If you’ve seen Moscow‘s imposing Red Square, still regularly patrolled by Russian guards, imagine seeing a plane land there. This Guardian video shows the story of Mathias Rust who, 25 years ago, flew through the Iron Curtain on a peace mission to “build an imaginary bridge” between cultures. He was an amateur 19-year-old pilot, and managed to fly from Helsinki to Moscow without being taken down by Soviet air defense. After circling a few times to show he intended to land, he stopped on a nearby bridge and drove the Cessna into Red Square like a car. Though he was greeted by happy and supportive spectators, it was the height of the Cold War, and he was subsequently arrested and sentenced to prison for four years. He served only 14 months, but the unbearable conditions made him question his actions. As he states in his current day interview, it’s remarkable to see how far one person can go.
Video: Iceberg Flips While Ship Passes
Sometimes the key to making a great video is simply being in the right place at the right time. That happens to be the case with this clip, which was shot on Argentino Lake in Argentina. A ship just happened to be passing by the Upsala Glacier just as a massive iceberg broke apart and then rapidly flipped over in the water.
The calving of icebergs is actually fairly common although it is seldom caught on video. For those aboard that passing ship this had to have been a fascinating yet terrifying scene as that giant iceberg looks like it could do some serious damage to any boat that wandered too close. Watching that huge chunk of ice crumble and roll in the water is a sobering reminder of the powerful forces that are at work on our planet.
Video Of The Day: Liberia And Cannibal Generals
**WARNING: THIS VIDEO MAY MAKE SOME VIEWERS UNCOMFORTABLE. Watch with discretion.**
Charles Taylor was all over the news today. The former president of Liberia has been sentenced to 50 years in prison for supporting and arming homicidal rebels in Sierra Leone in return for “blood diamonds.” From an article in the New York Times today:
After more than a year of deliberations, the Special Court for Sierra Leone found Mr. Taylor guilty in late April of crimes against humanity and war crimes for his part in fomenting mass brutality that included murder, rape, the use of child soldiers, the mutilation of thousands of civilians and the mining of diamonds to pay for guns and ammunition. Prosecutors have said that Mr. Taylor was motivated in these gruesome actions not by any ideology but rather by “pure avarice” and a thirst for power.
Appalling as that may sound, atrocious acts aren’t as uncommon in Liberia as they are in other places. In this video, VICE documents the destitute state of Liberia, cannibalism and other desperate measures taken by citizens of the country.
Video: Maori Creation Story Told In Sand Art
One of the great things about exploring other cultures is hearing their stories. The world is filled with myths, legends, fables, anecdotes, histories, jokes and all sorts of other oral traditions. Some traditional storytellers keep to the old ways, while others, like this sand artist, have taken on new methods to tell age-old tales.
Marcus Winter is a Maori artist who opened up the 2010 Original Art Sale in New Zealand by retelling a traditional Maori creation story. Through his work we see the world being formed when the children of Ranginui, the Sky Father, and Papatuanuku, the Earth Mother, separate their parents and set off a chain reaction that creates the world and, of course, New Zealand.
Stories are living things. They take on new forms to adapt to the times and perpetuate themselves through the ages. I’m glad that artists like Winter are taking their ancient tales and giving them a modern twist.
Metal Detectorists Uncover Treasure Chest Of Gold Bullion, Sort Of
How many times have you seen that awkward guy at the beach with his pants tucked into his socks scouring the sand with a metal detector and wondered if he’s ever found anything valuable?
We laugh at him somewhat and tell ourselves that he probably has jars at home full of bottle caps and used pieces of tinfoil, but what if, just what if, he’s ever found something extraordinary? A long-lost diamond ring, a rare coin or an entire hoard of Viking silver?
What about a treasure chest full of gold?
Such was the case this past Memorial Day weekend on the crowded shores of California’s Venice Beach. Knowing that the beach was going to be packed for the holiday weekend, a team of pranksters decided to clandestinely bury a treasure chest full of faux-gold bullion deep in the sand at 2 a.m. and then raise it the next day amongst the excited crowds.
The only problem was that the gold bullion was chocolate coins – but nobody needs to know that.
At one point the metal-detecting team and their horde of frothing onlookers even draw attention from local authorities who inform them that you can’t, in fact, just unearth buried treasure chests in public without telling anyone. Outnumbered by the glory-hungry crowd, however, the authorities are brushed aside and the effort to extract the bullion culminates in a triumphant crescendo, despite being only temporary.
Look for metal detector sales to spike this week all along the West Coast.