Filed under: Radio | Tags: Alcoholism, Belfast, Drinking, Foreigners, Immigration, Islam, Kebab Shops, Northern Ireland, Protestants, Religion, Shankhill Road, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Weekends
Filed under: Radio | Tags: Afghanistan, Ahmad Seyar Zia, Architecture, Art, BBC, Belfast, Cartoons, Environmentalism, Fenian Elements, Gerry Adams, Global Warming, Gordon Brown, Hearts and Minds, Ian Knox, Islam, Journalism, Laziness, Love, Mad Magazine, Northern Ireland, Orange Order, Pakistan, Philadelphia, Politics, Religion, Sammy Wilson, Seamus Kilters, Sky News, Socialism, Tae Kwan Do, Terry McLaughlin, The Irish News, Thomas Nast
Ahmed Seyar Zia
Ahmad Seyar Zia is, as he has proclaimed himself to be, the King of Love. He is a young Afghan man, studying abroad in India now. Born in Kabul, raised in different places around Afghanistan and Pakistan, he has developed his own life philosophies that, he finds, hold him apart from most other young people around him.
In today’s interview, Ahmad talks about growing up in the tumultuous past decades of Aghanistan, of the religious and philosophical system he’s developed, of taking up Tae Kwan Do after his brother lost his leg in a mine explosion, and why he’s intent on returning to his country.
Ian Knox is one of Northern Ireland’s premier political cartoonists. After studying for a career in architecture, he made his way into the world of cartooning and now contributes to a whole array of outlets – including The Irish News, Hearts & Minds, Sky News, and The Guardian. He talks about why he likes to annoy people, how he knows if his cartoons succeed in their attempts to shove his opinions down the audience’s throats, which politicians he most likes to draw, and how he survives his daily threat of a heart attack.
Filed under: Radio | Tags: Afghanistan, Belfast, Christmas, Democratization, EU, Humanitarianism, Ireland, Islam, Kidnapping, Michael Semple, Middle East, Pakistan, Politics, Reconciliation, Taliban, Tea, Terrorism, UN
Back briefly in Belfast, Michael Semple speaks about his experiences in Afghanistan, including those which recently put him in the headlines. Semple was expelled from the country on Christmas last year, after the Afghan President alleged that he engaged in unauthorized activity in the country. He works for the EU’s Special Representative in Afghanistan, focusing on reconciliation and democratization processes in the country. Semple speaks about his past decades of work in Afghanistan, the expulsion, and the notoriety that came with it.
Filed under: Radio | Tags: Balkans, Belgrade, Boojum, Boris Tadic, Botanic Avenue, Burritos, Central Asia, Democratization, Elections, Ethnic Minorities, EU, Immigration, Islam, Mexican food, Migration, Nationalism, Philadelphia, Politics, Radicals, Restaurant, Serbia, Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan, Vojislav Kostunica, Zoran Djindjic
Boojum's owners
Episode 8 has Dusan Spasojevic explaining why he is afraid of Serbia’s presidential election; John Blisard on his new Mexican restaurant, Boojum, on Botanic Avenue; and Bayram, the first person from Turkmenistan to live in Northern Ireland, on adjusting to life here.
Bayram in Lady Dixon Park
Filed under: Radio | Tags: Activism, Answers in Genesis, Atheists, Bible, Catholic Church, Cincinnati, Creationism, David Menton, Dinosaurs, Earth, Islam, Ken Ham, Kentucky, Museum, Politics, Religion, Science, USA
At the Creation Museum
The program visits Kentucky’s Creation Museum and interviews Dr David Menton, who lectures there. He belongs to Answers in Genesis, a Creationist group working to publicize and explain the ‘Young Earth’ view of the origin of the universe, which follows a strict interpretation of the Bible. Dr Menton discusses how he reconciles Creationism and science; how the museum was established in the face of local protests; how he deals with people who criticize and mock Creationists; and why he believes that dinosaurs and humans walked the Earth together.
Security
Filed under: Radio | Tags: Art, Belfast, BT, Call Centres, Chicken factory, County Down, Dance, Dizziness, Film, Hygiene, Immigration, Islam, Jared Longlands, Kemal Yilmaz, Konya, Law, Life plans, Litter, Menial labor, Northern Ireland, Pantomime, Portugese, Projectionisht, QFT, Religion, Students, Turkey, Waterfront, Whirling Dervish, Writing
Whirling Dervishes in action
This week the program features an interview with Kemal Yilmaz, a whirling dervish who recently travelled from Turkey to perform in Belfast. He’s been a dervish since his early teens, now he’s studying law and whirling in the meantime.
Then Jared Longlands talks about authoring anti-litter pantomimes, living the creative life, and surviving menial labor. To see some of Jared’s writings, drawings, comics, and other creations, contact him via email, at smartturkey@hotmail.com.
