Stories about History from August, 2008
Cuba: Birthday Candles
Child of the Revolution notes that “every August 13 without fail, the official Cuban media celebrates Fidel Castro’s birthday by trying to come up with ever more ridiculous ways to...
Hong Kong and China: Pillar of Shame Exhibition During Olympics
The Time Square in Hong Kong is having an art exhibition during Beijing Olympics until Aug 19. Two of the artworks look like the Pillar of Shame, an artwork to...
Bosnia & Herzegovina: Archeological Vandalism?
YakimaGulagLitteraryGazett reported that an archaelogical site was vandalised a few days ago in the mediaeval fortress of Visoki, at the top of the hill of Visocica -the alleged site of...
Haiti: Olympic Potential
“f there are indeed Haitian athletes in Beijing who decide to defect, I could not blame them”: jmc strategies compares China's progress to Haiti's, asking: “Do you think a new...
East African Embassies Bombings Anniversary
Brian of Black Star Journal remembers de 10th anniversary of the bombings of the American embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania with links to regional press accounts...
Uganda: Olympic Presence
Jeremy Goldberg of Millennial Challenge gives an overview of Uganda's Olympic medal history and comments on the Ugandan Olympic team in Beijing, comprised of 12 athletes.
Georgia War: US Loss in Georgian Gambit
LJ user saintrio presents (RUS) his views on the Russo-Georgian conflict and draws principal and historical parallels.
South Africa: Decoding revolutionary rhetoric
Sentletse decodes the revolutionary rhetoric of new ANC in South Africa.
Japan: Ainu recognized as indigenous people
On June 6, a couple of months prior to the International Day of the World's Indigenous People, the Japanese Diet passed a resolution to officially recognize the Ainu as an...
South Ossetia: Did Kosovo set a precedent?
When Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in February this year, many feared that it would set a precedent for other secessionist regions in the world, particularly in the Caucasus. Sinisa Boljanovic analyzes what bloggers said then and what they are saying now that those fears have become a reality.
Estonia: Parallels between Estonia and Georgia
Itching for Eestima writes about the historical parallels between Estonia and Georgia and the fear of being invaded from the East, viz. by Russia.
Guyana: Remembering Burnham
Signifyin’ Guyana notes that the motion “to give due recognition to the work and contribution of Guyana’s first Executive President” has received full backing, while Living Guyana says that Burnham...
Poland: History Polish Style
Polandian started a series on how Polish history can be interpreted, which would somehow surprise most historians.
Bloggers react strongly to ‘Building a Better Fiji’
A government-appointed committee in Fiji introduced an 11-point framework to augment the Pacific island nation’s constitution and “rebuild Fiji into a nonracial, culturally vibrant and united, well-governed, truly democratic nation.”
Georgia, Russia: Blogger From Poti Recounts the Bombing
Here is LJ user pepsikolka's account of what it felt like when the Russian planes were bombing Poti, her native city: "[...] Around midnight I heard some roaring, ran up to the window and saw shaft of fire, explosions at the port and heard a deafening noise. I didn't even have the time to get scared, I just knew that if a cistern with oil at the terminal gets hit, there'll be fire and an explosion, so I grabbed the phone, called Tengo, Vika answered, screaming [...]"
South Ossetia: History Russian Style
LJ user gklimov [Russian] interviewes Russian historian Gennady Klimov about the history of the Ossetians and Georgians, receiving some interesting answers.
National Day of Singapore 2008
It's National Day of Singapore yesterday. The Itch To Write gathers some of the sentiments of young Singaporeans.
Arabeyes: Mourning for Mahmoud Darwish
Bloggers around the Arab world mourned the death of Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish yesterday. Scores of posts appeared online in Arabic and English even before news of his death was officially confirmed.
Southeast Asia and Beijing Olympics
Close to 200 athletes from the Southeast Asian region are participating in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The big news (as far as the region is concerned) during the opening ceremonies are the exclusion of Brunei during the event and the “improper” waving of the Singaporean flag by the country’s flagbearer.
Georgia: History Repeating?
Writing from Tbilisi, Wu Wei says images of Russian tanks entering the Georgian breakaway region of South Ossetia bring back memories of Hungary in 1956 and Czechoslovakia in 1968. Meanwhile,...
Estonia: WWII Book Review
Itching for Eestima posts a review of Eesti Legion – a photobook by ex Prime Minister Mart Laar on the Estonian Legion during the Second World War – and reflects...
