In honor of Tibetan Uprising Day (March 10th) The Komodo Dragon Show (based in Winnipeg, Canada) will be airing 3 hours of Tibetan Music, including cuts from most of OgreOgress's Tibetan titles.

The Jewish Students’ Association/Hillel at the University of Manitoba and the University of Winnipeg will be hosting the Israeli-Palestinian Comedy Tour (I-PCT) on Thursday, March 4 at the West End Cultural Centre as part of Punchlines for Peace. The event is being funded by the Asper Endowment Fund of the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba, with support from the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg.

Founded in 2006, the I-PCT has traveled the globe, performing for sold-out crowds in the United States, Europe, Israel, Palestine and Canada. Their comedy is designed to transcend underlying tensions between Palestinians and Israelis. “I think there is a growing realization that Palestinians and Israelis are human beings first, and humour is a powerful way for humans to energize their faith in humanity. We don't make fun of the tragedy of the Middle East conflict, but we do laugh about the stupid logic that often drives people to do crazy things”, says Ray Hanania, the Palestinian member of the troupe.

The I-PCT consists of three Jews and one Palestinian. Hanania, the only Arab member of the comedy troupe, was born to Palestinian-Christian parents from Bethlehem and Jerusalem, and grew up in Chicago. He is also a respected journalist and radio talk show host who has written for several North American and Middle Eastern publications, including The Jerusalem Post and a newspaper in Saudi Arabia. Charley Warady, an Israeli Jew, has appeared on Comedy Central and Just for Laughs, and has entertained campus audiences throughout the United States. Two of the members — Aaron Freeman and Yisrael Campbell — are converts to Judaism (Campbell will not be performing on March 4th due to a scheduling conflict).

The Israeli-Palestinian Comedy Tour performs at Punchlines for Peace on March 4th at 8:00pm, with doors opening at 7:30pm. Tickets are $8.00 per person and are available at the University of Manitoba Answers Booth, University of Winnipeg Info Booth, or by contacting Samantha Loxton, JSA/Hillel Director at the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg at 918.2358 or email SLoxton@jewishwinnipeg.org.

Don't miss "Ultrasonic Film", 10pm to midnight, Thursday February 18th! This special 2 hour show will be our "Best of 2009" show, complete with honorable mentions!

Join hosts James Borsa & Lindsay Brown as they countdown their Top 20 best films of 2009! Films on the list include Theatrical, Canadian, HBO & Foreign! This is a yearly tradition on our show! 2 different lists of our separate choices!

Also a great place to find new titles that you may have missed, so be sure to check this show out!!!

So be sure to tune into a very special "Ultrasonic Film" on Thursday February 18th from 10pm until Midnight, as James and Lindsay explore their best films of 2009!

UMFM is pleased to announce three new shows in its morning talk radio blocks -- plus a bit of reorganization that may help listeners tune in to issues that matter to them.

Thursday has a new program in Midweek Politics, which focuses on U.S. politics and news of the week, with truly bipartisan interviews and a remarkable breadth of topics, starting at 8 a.m.. It's followed up with Alternative Radio at 9 and ALERT! at 10, making Thursday morning great for politicos of all varieties (except perhaps the FOX News variety). Early risers can get a dose of This Week in Science on Thursdays at 7 a.m..

Friday has a great ecologically themed pairing of If You Love This Planet at 6 a.m. and Earthbeat Radio at 7 a.m.. At 8 a.m. tune into brand-new show Essay Selections, a compilation of great programming from other National College Radio Association (NCRA) stations, followed up by the nefarious Interview Show, with -- you guessed it -- interviews with musicians of all genres.

Saturday morning has a great independently programmed hour of news, with Groundwire national news at 7 a.m. followed up by new addition Terra Informa, an insightful and well-researched show covering environmental issues, produced at CJSR in Edmonton. Don't miss it bright and early at 7:30 a.m.!

In the evening, don't miss Remembering Our Jets -- a new addition that broadcasts the voice of the Winnipeg Jets -- Tuesdays at 6 p.m.. Shaking The Tree is another new local show that puts the spotlight on environmental and food injustice in and outside of Canada, produced by U of M Faculty of Environment students and professor Stéphane McLachlan.

UMFM's programming is evolving with new and better shows all the time, so watch for more great niche news and public affairs shows. And if you can't listen in live, check them out by podcast.

As all of you all know, a major earthquake struck Haiti near the capital of Port-au-Prince, on Tuesday January 12th, causing catastrophic destruction across the city of two million people in the western hemisphere's most impoverished nation. Over the past few days, many of our listeners, as well as many of UMFM's own volunteers, have contacted us asking how they can help with the relief efforts. After a little research, I can suggest that donating to one of the following organizations will certainly help to make even a little difference.

• MCC
• Oxfam
• Partners In Health
• The Red Cross
• Plan Canada
• Unicef
• World Vision
• The Haitian Education Project

Also, I would encourage you to head down to the Lo Pub on Monday, January 25th, as the Mass Appeal folks have put together a fundraiser for Haitian Relief Efforts. For more information you can go here.