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Ben Affleck Debuts His "Gimme Shelter" Congo Video to UN

Molly — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 03:00:00 -0800

Ben Affleck went in front of the UN yesterday to present a short film he directed, with the help of Mick Jagger and cinematographer John Toll, to launch a new $23 million initiative to help Congolese refugees. The short, "Gimme Shelter" is set to the classic Rolling Stones song used with permission, and was shot last month when Affleck made a trip to visit refugee camps in the Congo. From here, the film will be released worldwide to help raise awareness about UNHCR and the needs of the 1.3 million displaced people in the area. Check out the video below and let us know — do you think it's effective?

Ben Affleck Says Successes in Africa Inspire Him to Do More

LibertySugar — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:00:00 -0700

I checked out a panel on combating global poverty this week, filled with a diverse set of people ready to talk about their experiences surrounding the issue. I was super excited to see panel members like ex-Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, and the bearded and articulate Ben Affleck.

A humble Ben noted that he felt a bit out of place, but then shared what he's learned from his time in Africa. Ben thinks poverty activists need to re-package their message so it's not so doom and gloom. He argued that it's "more effective to talk about what people are doing successfully. [The successes] gave me added urgency to get involved."

Ben also highlighted how he and other Western folk are received in Africa. He said:

The countries that hold us in the highest esteem are in Africa. We don't carry colonial baggage. . . . [But] Western folks come in with a sense that "this is how it works." Imposing paradigm is much less effective than imposing solutions into social grooves. You hear people say, "If you teach a man to fish . . ." These people know how to fish, they need a pond to fish in.

Does Ben's insight impress you as much as it impressed me?

Here Comes the White House Correspondents Dinner!

CitizenSugar — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 15:50:26 -0700

Oh, man this has to be the hottest ticket in town. The special dinner where the press gets to roast the president? Especially one whose approval rating hit 28 percent today and it's his last year in office!? I'm dying, dying to go.

The whole tradition of the dinner started in 1924, when Calvin Coolidge became the first of 14 presidents to attend. Up until World War II, the dinner was an entertainment spectacle with singing between courses, a homemade movie (aw! how cute is that?!), and an hour-long, post dinner show with big-name performers.

This year is no exception. I suppose? Though the list this year doesn't feature Sinatra, (or Paula Jones and Matt Drudge like in this pic from 1998). Ben Affleck, Pamela Anderson, Eric Dane, Tim Daly, Hayden Panettiere, and Marcia Cross will all be there — and kind of inexplicably — Lauren Conrad from The Hills. Maybe LC and GWB are BFFs? Could happen.

The host this year is Scottish-born, now US citizen Craig Ferguson, who said of receiving the honor,

But I thought as soon as I become an American you know what is going to happen, I am going to get jury duty or the CIA. will get in touch and have me assassinate a foreign head of state. Anyway my first job as an American citizen I can exclusively reveal tonight is performing at the White House Correspondents Dinner weekend. I am doing it. I am doing it. I know! Anyway, I am not hosting it. President Bush is . . . I am thinking does he know I can't be kicked out now? Like it would be the
big thing have the dinner and my last act at president, you go home Ferguson. I am like I am home.

The shindig happens April 26. Will this year top Stephen Colbert's turn in 2006? To take a quick peek at the host heard round the world,

Obama Gets The Sarah Silverman Treatment — Big Time!

LibertySugar — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 11:00:10 -0700

I've known it all along! The fight for the Democratic nomination is actually a lover's quarrel between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

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Well, at least that's what one talented (and bored?) video editor wants me to believe with this "I'm F*cking Obama" video. Check out this Ode to Obama, a la Sarah Silverman.

And if you're in the mood, watch the originals "I'm f*cking Matt Damon" and "I'm f*cking Ben Affleck." Did the latest video make you laugh?

Ben and Jen Campaign For Obama, But Is the Bloom Gone?

CitizenSugar — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 12:00:58 -0700

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner hosted a Generation Obama fundraiser in Boston over the weekend. A typical celebrity event — except for the attention it grabbed from the New York Times resident conservative scribe, Bill Kristol. Taking umbrage with the concept "Generation Obama," and the wilting bloom of the Obama mystique, Kristol said,

But there’s not much audacity of hope there. There’s the calculation of ambition, and the construction of artifice, mixed in with a dash of deceit — all covered over with the great conceit that this campaign and this candidate are different.

Now before you rush straight to the comments, that's not even the controversial part of the piece. To find out,

Make Your Own Obama Ad! Matt Damon and Celebs to Judge

LibertySugar — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 12:00:29 -0700

Tired of tacky and empty campaign ads? Well, if you're an Obama supporter now is your chance to do something about it! The super emailers at MoveOn want you to make your own 30-second spot telling the nation why we should elect Barack Obama. The winner of their "Obama in 30 seconds" contest will get a $20,000 gift certificate for movie equipment. Your ad will also make it on national television.

All you have to do is sway the panel of famous judges that includes Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Oliver Stone, Naomi Wolf, Markos Moulitas, Russel Simmons, Jessie Jackson, and a bunch more Obama-maniacs! If you're an aspiring filmmaker, try and top Will.i.am — this could be your big break!

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