A night of Comedy, Presentation and Discussions by Ethics In Tech.
About this Event
Join Ethics In Tech on April 15th as we discuss the following topics:
-Environment, Climate Change and the catastrophe we are experiencing because of inaction.
-Military industrial complex and it's priorities. How the US has need for never ending military resources for war.
-Taxes and how tech companies such as Amazon avoid them.
-Big Tech monopolies and Antitrust and inhumane business practice of your favorite tech companies.
Please consider supporting the work of Ethics In Technology by endorsing the following Petition:
Break up and Regulate Amazon and it's various business units.
Speakers:
Cody Urban is an anti-war and human rights organizer with CODEPINK's Divest from the War Machine campaign. He is currently working with CODEPINK's Divest from the War Machine campaign at the state and municipal levels. He organizes in a number of spaces, focusing on ending the root causes of US-led war and uniting the US anti-war movement with other social and national liberation movements in the US and around the world.
Garett Reppenhagen is the son of a Vietnam Veteran and grandson of two World War II Veterans. He served in the U.S. Army as a Cavalry/Scout Sniper in the 1st Infantry Division. Garett completed a deployment in Kosovo on a 9-month peace-keeping mission and a combat tour in Baquaba, Iraq. Garett gained an Honorable Discharge in May of 2005 and began working as a veterans advocate and a dedicated activist. He served as the Chairman of the Board of Iraq Veterans Against the War, worked in Washington, DC, as a lobbyist and as Vice President of Public Relations for the Nobel Prize winning Veterans For America, as a Program Director for Veterans Green Jobs and was the Rocky Mountain Director for Vet Voice Foundation. Garett lives in Colorado where he serves as the Executive Director for Veterans For Peace.
Mike Elk A protégé of the late William Greider, Mike Elk is a yinzer labor reporter who covered the drug war in Brasil, spent years covering union organizing in the South for the Guardian, and was labeled an “abrasive gadlfy” by the New York Times for his role exposing sexual misconduct in his own union the Newspaper Guild. A native of Pittsburgh, he now lives in his hometown, where he runs the crowd-funded publication Payday Report. Elk founded the publication while living in Chattanooga in 2016 and after being fired as a shop steward in the union drive at Politico during the early days of the digital media unionization movement. The son of United Electrical Workers (UE) Director of Organization Gene Elk, he attended Woodland Hills High while it was still under federal desegregation orders in the early 2000s.
Brett Wilkins is a San Francisco-based independent writer and activist whose work focuses on issues of war and peace and human rights. His articles have recently appeared in print and online publications including Asia Times, The Jakarta Post, Common Dreams, Counterpunch, Antiwar.com, Mondoweiss, Socialist Viewpoint, TeleSur and Venezuela Analysis. Brett is a member of Collective 20 and is editor-at-large for US news at Toronto-based Digital Journal, as well as a board member of the nonprofit advocacy group Ethics In Tech.
Host:
Vahid Razavi Ethics In Tech Founder. A technology Veteran of Silicon Valley. Vahid has founded, advised and worked in senior management roles in Silicon Valley. He has published two books, The Age of Nepotism and Ethics In Tech and Lack Thereof. As a lifelong activist and humanitarian he has published hundreds of articles and videos on various social issues including tech industry and social injustice. He has previously worked for companies such as Amazon Web Services, Fast Search, Exodus Communications, Qwest Communications, and was the founder of the Cloud Computing Company BizCloud.
Music:
Mike Rufo is a Bay Area activist, singer/songwriter, and sustainable energy consultant. Mike is a board member of Defending Rights and Dissent, a civil liberties organization and was previously a board member with the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technology (CEERT). Mike has directed several national sustainable energy consultancies and is a Lifetime Achievement Award (IEPEC) winner for his work on energy program evaluation and policy. He has a Master’s degree in Technology and Human Affairs and an undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies. Mike’s passions for civil liberties, social justice, the environment, and music come together in songs like “Spyin’ Eyes” that promote activism and transformation. Mike shares his songs at peace, civil liberties, and other activist events, including, of course, Ethics in Tech.
Comedy Host:
Debi Durst
Forged in the crucible of improvisational theater at a young age, Debi has performed with every improv group known to Humanity in the Bay Area, beginning with The Committee, Spaghetti Jam, Femprov, The Comedy Underground, The National Theater of the Deranged, Papaya Juice, The Dinosaurs of Improv, The Marsh Jam and currently The Bad Aunties.
Comedians:
Steven Kravitz recently celebrated a birthday, making him 2 weeks older than dirt. Steven will be lip-synching his entire set. He is also a fan of red vines.
Arthur Gaus is a San Francisco-based attorney and stand-up comedian who is a regular at legendary local comedy clubs Cobb’s and The Punchline, where he has appeared with some of the biggest names in comedy including John Oliver, John Mulaney and Brian Regan. He is well known for his distinctive delivery and sharp wit. His album Nice Jokes for Smart People is available everywhere.
