Author: Nahapetian Lilit

The Oregonian, OR
March 11 2005

Beyond the multiplex
Friday, March 11, 2005
By MARC MOHAN

MEET THE FLICKERS — Paul Sharits’ 1968 film “N:O:T:H:I:N:G” consists
almost entirely of rapidly flickering bursts of color frames, in
various rhythms but without any overall pattern. Images of a drawing
of a light bulb and a topping chair appear occasionally, but the
general effect is a hypnotic, stroboscopic exploration of the nature
of film and of perception. Which of these color blasts are actual
projections on the screen and which are residual images on the
viewer’s retina? And what does this say about the way we perceive all
projected film, which is after all just a series of rapidly flashing
still images? The 35-minute film allows plenty of time to ponder
these intellectual conundrums, but it’s just as satisfying to relax
your focus and enjoy the light show.

Also included in the Cinema Project’s program of Sharits’ work is a
more psychedelic but just as visually assaultive effort called “Razor
Blades,” and the only tedious film of the three, “Epileptic Seizure
Comparison,” would make a great band name.

“Inescapable Anxiety: Three Films by Paul Sharits” screens 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday and Wednesday at the New American Art Union, 922 S.E. Ankeny
St. VICARIOUS EXERCISE — In 2001, Mark Flagler hiked the entire
2,173-mile Appalachian Trail — a historic pathway that runs from
Georgia to Maine — in one season, joining the ranks of those known
as “thru-hikers.” He liked it so much he went back two years later
and brought a camera, resulting in the informative documentary
“Appalachian Impressions.” The film presents a straightforward user’s
guide of sorts, including information on the many shelters, small
towns and scenic vistas that lie along the epic path. Flagler, a
North Carolina native now living in Portland, also interviewed a
diverse array of hikers, many of whom go by “trail names” such as
“Homer” or “Brew.” If, like me, your trail name would be something
like “Outta Here,” this film may be the closest you ever get to such
an impressive outdoorsy accomplishment.

“Appalachian Impressions” screens at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Hollywood
Theatre. ARMENIAN RHAPSODY — “Vodka Lemon” gets its title from the
beverage sold by Nina (Lala Sarkissian) at a remote roadside stand in
bleak, wintry, post-Soviet Armenia. One customer asks, “Why is it
called Vodka Lemon when it tastes like almonds?” The answer: “That’s
Armenia.” Nina rides the bus to the cemetery every day to lay flowers
at the grave of her husband; the elderly Hamo (Romen Avinian) does
the same to honor his recently departed wife. Their hesitant
courtship is the center of this spare, poignant and occasionally
wacky film that also joins the ranks of communist nostalgia flicks
such as Germany’s “Good Bye Lenin!” and Georgia’s “Since Otar Left.”

“Vodka Lemon” opens Friday at the Hollywood Theatre.

In his search for worthy movies of all stripes, Portland freelance
writer Marc Mohan has learned that hidden treasures often lie waiting
in places without stadium seating. He can be reached at
[email protected].

OSCE monitors frontline

AssA-Irada 09/03/2005 00:57

Monitoring of the contact line between the Armenian and Azerbaijani
military units were held in Aghdam and Terter districts under the
mandate of the OSCE chairmanâ~@~Ys special envoy on Monday.

A soldier in the Azerbaijani Army was killed, while another wounded
as a result of frequent ceasefire breaches by Armenian military units
in the two districts over the recent period.

â~@~Armenian military units have become more aggressive on
the frontline of late. This is mainly due to the strengthening
of Azerbaijanâ~@~Ys image in the international arena,â~@~] the
spokesman for the Ministry of Defence, Colonel Ramiz Malikov said. The
ceasefire breaches became frequent after the Parliamentary Assembly
of the Council of Europe (PACE) passed a resolution supporting the
territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.

–Boundary_(ID_U3MDuiygfNwHGz3TVJ8u4w)–

FresnoStateNews.com
March 4, 2005
Contact: Shirley Melikian Armbruster
(559) 278-5292 or (559) 593-1815

Author Markar Melkonian to Discuss
`My Brother’s Road’ on March 15

The Armenian Studies Program Spring Lecture Series will feature author
Markar Melkonian on Tuesday, March 15 at 7:30 p.m.

Melkonian will discuss his new book, “My Brother’s Road: An American’s
Fateful Journey to Armenia” in his speech in Industrial Technology Building,
room 101, at the corner of Barstow and Campus Drive at California State
University, Fresno. Admission is free and the event is open to the public.

`My Brother’s Road’ is the story of Melkonian’s brother, Armenian national
hero Monte Melkonian. Born in the San Joaquin Valley, Monte Melkonian grew
up to become a promising archaeologist, witness to revolution in Iran,
militiaman in the streets of Beirut, guerrilla in southern Lebanon, prison
strike leader in France and commander of 4,000 fighters in the Karabagh War
in the last days of the former Soviet Union.

As Monte Melkonian’s comrade and sometimes-critic, Markar Melkonian shared
the dangers and hopes of the road for a while with his brother. `My
Brother’s Road’ is the product of eight years of research and writing and
draws from hundreds of interviews and thousands of documents in four
languages on three continents.

Markar Melkonian is a third generation Californian, a teacher, writer and
veteran solidarity worker. He holds several graduate degrees, including a
Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Melkonian’s books include `Marxism: A Post-Cold War Primer’ and `Richard
Rorty’s Politics: Liberalism at the End of the American Century.’

Markar Melkonian is founder and a director of The Monte Melkonian Fund,
Inc., a nonprofit organization that assists the needy in the impoverished
former Soviet Republic of Armenia.

The lecture is co-sponsored by the Armenian Studies Program and the Armenian
Students Organization. Relaxed parking will be available in Lots Q, K, and L
after 7 p.m. For more information, please contact the Armenian Studies
Program at (559) 278-2669.

PanArmenian News
March 4 2005

PEACEFUL MARCH AGAINST SEIZURE OF ARMENIAN CHURCHES IN GEORGIA HELD
IN TBILISI

04.03.2005 14:44

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On March 3 about 200 representatives of the
Georgian and Armenian youth organization gathered near the Georgian
Church of Sioni situated near the Nubarashen Armenian Church and
marched to the Armenian Church of Surb Gevorg, IA Regnum reports.
Georgian and Armenian youth joined to hold a peaceful action to
protest against the activity of the Georgian Clergy directed to the
seizure of the Armenian Church. In the Surb Gevorg Church they
lighted candles and were blessed by father Abgar, who recollected the
times when the representatives of both nations launched pilgrimages
during which Georgians visited Saint Echmiadzin and participated in
the liturgies together with the Armenians, who then came to Mtskhetu
to celebrate the Svetitskhoveli Holiday. He noted that the tradition
was preserved even during the soviet period, when the religion, to
put it mildly, was not heartened. However despite their good
intentions some of the Georgian young people participating in the
march preferred not to enter the Armenian Church. Some of the young
Armenians put up tents in front of the Nubarashen Church. The
Armenian Diocese of Georgia hopes that the problem will receive a
solution during the top meeting of Catholicos of All Armenians
Garegin II and Patriarch of All Georgia Ilia II.

ITAR-TASS News Agency
TASS
March 3, 2005 Thursday

Armenia’s Central Bank chief re-elected for second term

By Tigran Liloyan

YEREVAN

Tigran Sarkisyan, Chairman of the Central Bank of Armenia, has been
re-elected for the second seven-year term.

A decision to this effect was made on Wednesday night by the
republican parliament that upheld the respective proposal made by the
country’s president.

Sarkisyan graduated from Lenigrad Financial-and-Economic Institute
with distinction in 1983 and completed a post-graduate course at the
Institute in 1987.

In 1990-95, Sarkisyan was a member, chairman of the standing
commission on finances, credits and budget of Armenia’s Supreme
Council. In 1995-98 he headed the Armenian Banks Association, and has
been the Chairman of the Central Bank of Armenia since March 3, 1998.

ArmenPress
March 3 2005

BAKU RESIDENT DECLARES HIS APARTMENT NEW STATE

BAKU, MARCH 3, ARMENPRESS: A resident of Baku, the capital city of
Azerbaijan, said he was renouncing his citizenship and declaring the
space of his two-room apartment an independent state, which he said
was a constitutional monarchy.
A local daily newspaper Ekho quoted Sabir Mamedov as saying that
his move was prompted by “total injustice” reigning in Azerbaijan. He
refuses to pay utility fees and taxes.
He said he was working to draft the constitution of his state, new
legislation and fasces. He was supposed to declare about the
emergence of a new state on March 2. The new “state” has now a
permanent population of four persons.

LEBANESE REPRESENTAIVES OF THREE ARMENIAN PARTIES MET IN BEIRUT

A1+
03-03-2005

The representatives of three Armenian political parties in Lebanon
â=80` the Social Democratic Party, Armenian Revolutionary Federation
Dashnaktsutyun and the Ramkavar-Azatakan Party – met in Beirut on
March 2.

First of all they considered the measures dedicated to the 90-th
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. After that the discussions
focused at the domestic situation in Lebanon. The meeting participants
sharply condemned the murderof Lebanese former Prime Minister Rafik al
Hariri and expressed hope that the latest developments will not have a
negative impact the life of the Armenian community in Lebanon.

RosBusinessConsulting, Russia
March 2 2005

Russian parliamentarians to observe Moldovan elections

RBC, 02.03.2005, Chisinau 09:27:19.30-member delegation of the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe will observe the
forthcoming elections in Moldova. Three State Duma deputies are
supposed to be members of the observer mission, the Chisinau bureau
for informing the EC announced. The mission will be headed by
Norwegian parliamentarian Andre Kvakkestad. Representatives of Spain,
Turkey, the UK, Switzerland, Sweden, Germany, Austria, Lithuania,
Italy, Estonia, Poland, Armenia, the Netherlands, Belgium, Hungary,
Cyprus, Russia and Ukraine will also join the Council of Europe
mission. Parliamentarians will arrive at Chisinau on March 3. The
elections will be held on March 6.

The Messenger, Georgia
March 2 2005

Excise tax weighs down early results of Tax Code
By M. Alkhazashvili

Georgia’s new tax code entered force in January, making months of
theoretical discussion, debates and disputes a matter of the past and
placing all eyes on the code’s work in practice.

And as reported in the Georgian media, the government is facing
serious trouble. Over the course of a month state revenues decreased
by GEL 15 million and cases of smuggling dramatically increased;
dynamics that are linked to the major rise in excise taxes.

While the tax code won support for its flat tax, elimination of all
but 8 taxes and new dispute-resolution methods, it is now coming
under criticism for the excise tax hikes, including an increase to 90
tetri from 40 tetri per pack of imported cigarettes.

Officials saw this as one easy way to maintain revenues while cutting
other taxes but, as the recent measures against cigarette sales in
Georgia’s many open markets show, officials are struggling to limit
the surge of smuggled goods.

It is obvious that a vital step in increasing revenues by increasing
the excise tax is the eradication of smuggling. But to stop smuggling
is always difficult in Georgia because the country’s borders are not
protected well enough. The post-Rose Revolution government considers
the eradication of smuggling to be one of its major priorities but
raising the excise only makes its fight harder.

When the excise tax is 70 tetri for Georgian made cigarettes and at
the same time smuggled tobacco products from Russia cost 50 tetri, it
is clear that there is now more to be gained from smuggling.
Contraband goods chiefly come from separatist regions, as well as
from Armenia and Azerbaijan. Meanwhile local tobacco producers face a
drop in sales because their legal products are now more expensive.

Since the government found itself facing a rising tide of smuggled
goods, three ministries, the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of
Finance and the Ministry of Health, agreed to go after the likely
distribution points for cigarettes. Thus they banned all small
traders from selling tobacco products in open air markets and
required a new licensing system for sellers in shops.

Government representatives say the decision, which took effect on
March 1, is correct. “It is outside of the law when on every street
and on every crossroad tobacco products are sold,” the vice-speaker
of Parliament Mikheil Machavariani said on Monday. But others think
that it is pointless to fight against small traders since they are
not the ones bringing in the smuggled goods.

Opposition leaders are attacking the new ban as another example of
the government’s painful policies. “In this decision, as in other
decisions made by the government, the social issues have not been
considered. Social problems are not mentioned in the new Tax Code,”
Conservative Party MP Kakha Kukava tells the newspaper Akhali Taoba.
“This badly influences the interests of the middle and small
entrepreneurs as well. At the same time the excise price increase was
considered only for the importers who have powerful lobbies in the
government,” he goes on the claim.

The sudden implementation of the measure – the government rejected
claims that they announced the new rules only a week ago by saying
they had in fact announced the rules two weeks ago – is one major
defect. Moreover, it will require serious government energies to
police markets and bazrobas, energy that could be also spent
attacking the root of the problem, smugglers busily penetrating
Georgia’s loose borders.

A comparison of excise increases and price increases on selected
cigarettes (source: Anti-Monopoly Service)

Press-Enterprise , CA
Feb 26 2005

Church papers, checks stolen

“VIOLATED”: Rancho Mirage parishioners’ personal information was
taken from a social hall.

By MONIQUE H. HENDERSON / Special to The Press-Enterprise
Armenian Apostolic Church of the Desert

For more information on the theft or to find out if your information
was stolen, contact the church at (760) 773-2155.

Donation records, construction contracts and other sensitive personal
information are among items reportedly stolen from a newly built
Armenian church in Rancho Mirage.

The break-in at the Armenian Apostolic Church of the Desert is
believed to have occurred late last week, according to Parish Council
Chairman V.J. Mkrtchian.

Police discovered the break-in after a neighbor’s alarm sounded at
about 3 a.m. Saturday, Mkrtchian said. The church’s checkbooks,
computers, a $6,000 sound system and food also were taken.

The items were housed in the church’s social hall, which was
completed about six weeks ago. Worship services are being held in the
hall while negotiations continue on construction of a sanctuary.

The social hall had an alarm system, but it apparently did not sound
during the break-in, Mrktchian said. Several doors leading into the
hall were broken, according to Mkrtchian.

“We are investigating what happened with the alarm,” he said.

Church members have been notified about the break-in and about the
missing financial documents, Mkrtchian said. Many members were
particularly concerned to know their social security numbers and
banking information are in the hands of criminals.

“People are very disappointed, angry and confused,” he said of the
church’s estimated 50 members. “We are not a business. This is God’s
house – it’s where we hold our services. You feel violated when
something like this happens. You like to think that God’s house is a
safe place.”