· November, 2010

Stories about Ideas from November, 2010

China: “Hang the Slaves of the West”

  30 November 2010

A new website that vilifies Chinese political liberals, including 2010 Nobel Prize winner Liu Xiaobo, has caught the attention of the Chinese internet for its extreme views. Why has it not been removed by censors?

Bahamas: Power & Race

  29 November 2010

“There is a core lack of confidence in the ability—or is it the right?—of Bahamians to take control of our own destiny”: Blogworld considers the merit of a thesis “on Blackness & The Presumptions of Ultimate Power.”

Brazil: Three proposals to ease Rio chaos

  29 November 2010

Bruno Cava, writing for the Amálgama blog, analyzes [pt] the current wave of violence in Rio de Janeiro's slums, and proposes three possible solutions: new policies for development and urbanization of poor areas, democratization of the criminal justice system and decriminalization of all illicit drugs.

China: Time for a new conversation about privacy invasion

  28 November 2010

With a broader and perhaps global view of more pervasive privacy issues, poet and professor Rui Shen asks: "Some people disagree with airport security measures that display people's bodies, feeling those to be an invasion of their privacy. Watching the debate on the news, though, I wonder: are these people confused or just stupid?"

Cuba: Reasons for Confiscation

  26 November 2010

Generation Y finds out that the reason copies of her book were confiscated, is because its contents “are against the general interests of the nation, since it argues that certain political and economic changes are required in Cuba so that its citizens may have more material benefits and achieve personal...

Cuba: Waiting in Vain?

  25 November 2010

“We are surrounded by a repression that does not sign papers, show its face, or place a stamp next to each act which violates its own law”: Generation Y is waiting for answers.

Lebanon: Blogging Lebanon – the Convention

  25 November 2010

“After its unfortunate cancellation last May due to student protests at the American University of Beirut, AUB's Online Collaborative is announcing the relaunch of AUB's First Lebanese Bloggers Convention, now renamed to Blogging Lebanon,” writes Moudz, who posts details about the event.

Cuba: Democratic Change?

  24 November 2010

“I don’t think capitalism is the model of a perfect life. But it is more logical and possible at this stage of human development”: Translating Cuba examines “the hard road to democracy”.

Jamaica: U.S. Influence?

  24 November 2010

Active Voice takes on an interesting “dot connection exercise” with “the sequence of events that preceded and followed the sensational charges recently levied against JLP Deputy Leader James Robertson”.

Ecuador: “Clean Quito” Campaign Fights Chewing Gum

  24 November 2010

Have you ever thought about how much it costs a municipality to remove chewing gum stuck to the pavement? Thousands of dollars in street cleaning are spent to fight this habit of discarding chewing gum on the ground. In Quito, the municipal government and several schools began a campaign that seeks to remove gum from the ground and make the capital cleaner.

Iran: We are all Computer Criminals

  23 November 2010

Iran's government has a law at its disposal that make it possible to label almost any Internet user a criminal. The “Law of Computer Crimes” was approved by Iran's parliament in January 2009. It has been instrumental in the prosecution and repression of several bloggers, but its articles have never received much public attention or scrutiny.

Cuba: 6th Congress

  23 November 2010

Sin Evasion and Translating Cuba both blog about the next Cuban Communist Party Congress, scheduled to take place in April next year.

Guyana: Writers’ Challenges

  22 November 2010

“I wonder…if being categorized as ‘Caribbean writer’ helps or hurts a book's promotion and sales”: The Signifyin’ Woman blogs about some of the challenges Caribbean writers face.

Trinidad & Tobago: A Different View

  19 November 2010

Blogger Afra Raymond was “one of the three people ‘let go’” from a state-owned media house; he examines the controversy and asks: “How committed are we to a conversation with people who hold different views?”

Cuba: Before & After

  16 November 2010

Translating Cuba blogs about the two most over-used words in the country, adding: “There is a third reality that belies the stubborn reality: both Before and After contain everything.”

Japan: “Investigations in Suburban Tokyo”

  14 November 2010

Chris Berthelsen from a-small-lab posted his slides for a workshop titled “Transforming Neighbourhoods – Tokyo/Berlin“, where he investigates the city of Tokyo for hints of “usable cities”.