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Tobaccoland

The tobacco industry in Indonesia is virtually unregulated. The result? Over two-thirds of all men are smokers, and it is commonplace for children as young as six to take up the habit. Tobacco is a $100 billion industry here, with TV and print ads everywhere. While investigating this phenomenon in Malang, VICE's Thomas Morton visited an anti-tobacco rally where he received some hands-on smoking-cessation therapy.

Spanish Bombs: Granada Unveils Joe Strummer Plaza

Punk rock was never meant to gain municipal recognition, but with time it often occurs that what was once rebellion becomes part of the establishment. Joe Strummer of the Clash has been no stranger to public acknowledgement, and yesterday the city of Granada, Spain, named a plaza in his honor.

Speaking with Adam Kokesh, Before He Was Detained by the Feds

Kokesh is a former Iraq War veteran and the guy trying to organize an armed march in Washington, DC. On Saturday he was arrested at a Smoke Down Prohibition rally, and is currently being held in federal custody. I spoke to him about his march and other stuff the day before he was detained.

Pakistan's Election Went Off Without a Hitch... Sort Of

There was violence and incidents that would be terrifying in a European democracy, but when looking closer at the socio-political situation here in Pakistan, it becomes clear that just being able to transition governmental authority without military involvement is a victory.

We Photographed the Drunk EDL Hate Mob That Attacked London's Police Last Night

Yesterday, a British soldier was murdered in South London by Islamic extremists. Later, the far-right English Defence League descended onto Woolwich in a drunken horde to spread Islamophobia and achieve absolutely nothing. I was there to take photographs of 60 to a hundred angry, confused men.

Stoya on Peeking Behind the Porn Curtain

As a culture, we are fascinated by what entertainers and public personalities do when they aren't at work and how they became who they are. This is why demand for biographies, interviews, and backstage/on-set photographs exists. The superficiality in these projects rubs me the wrong way.

Please Start Banning Books Again

I kind of miss the idea of cultural lines that one can’t step over. One of my most memorable high school experiences was getting a permission slip signed by my parents so I could listen to an audiotape of Allen Ginsberg reading “America.”

VICE News

Triple Hate

'Triple Hate' is a four-part documentary about Nathan Bedford Forrest, the Memphis City Council, the Klan, the Crips, Ulysses S. Grant, racism, and the specter of history. In part two, we hear from Confederate enthusiasts and a Ulysses S. Grant impersonator about what they think of the KKK rally.

A Few Impressions

'Leviathan,' I Love You

How did the filmmakers achieve this poetry? Because, if anything, this movie exemplifies the art of poetry without words, the art taking real life and framing it in such a way that it becomes greater than fiction. It holds up a mirror to nature, but this mirror came from a fun house and in its distortions reveals a deeper truth.

A Chat with Janicza Bravo (and Brett Gelman) About Her New Short Starring Michael Cera in a Wheelchair

Janicza’s new short 'Gregory Go Boom' stars Michael Cera as a wheelchair-bound dorkface and Brett Gelman as his older degenerate brother. It’s funny and slightly depressing, and you can watch the whole thing here. A couple weeks back I chatted with J&B over baba ghanoush about the new film and why they did such a thing.

Deportee Purgatory

Tijuana’s El Bordo Is Home to Thousands of Heroin-Addicted Mexican Deportees

About 40 percent of Mexican immigrants deported from the US are sent back through Tijuana. Many of the deported border crossers have established a makeshift shantytown inside a dry, concrete riverbed where the Tijuana River once flowed—called 'El Bordo.'

Watch Japanther's Kaleidoscopic New Video for "Stolen Flowers"

Japanther just sent us their new video for "Stolen Flowers," a song that sounds a lot like the other scuzzy pop-punk coming out of Brooklyn loft parties right now (this means that it is inherently good).

Amy’s Baking Company's Grand Reopening Nearly Bored Me to Death

In some kind of misguided attempt to renew their brand, Amy and Samy of the infamous Amy's Baking Company hired a PR guy and decided to have a relaunch. Since I work right down the street from the restaurant, I decided to drop in.