Stories about Ideas from March, 2009
Western Ideological vs. Chinese Nationalistic Sentiment
Inside-Out China blogs about the nationalistic sentiment shared by overseas Chinese, as a result of direct confrontation with Western Ideology: if the Chinese government were smarter, it should send all dissidents overseas instead of putting them in prison, as living the West seems to be more effective in changing views.
Middle East: Women Looking for a Cause to Celebrate
Female bloggers from across the Middle East joined hands in marking the International Women's Day with posts reflecting on the occasion and celebrating the lives and achievements of women who have touched them. In Saudi Arabia, American Bedu admits that while many women in the kingdom may not even be...
Guatemala: Easy to Understand Demographics
Mafaca breaks down the demographics of Guatemala's population [es] in easy to understand terms.
Egypt: Mostafa Hussein shreds the Honor Legacy
Honor, honor crimes, female genital mutilation (FGM), and virginity are deeply rooted concepts in the Egyptian culture. Call them heritage, legacy, or traditions, Mostafa Hussein brilliantly feeds them into the shredder.
Antigua & Barbuda: Upcoming Election
Abeng News Magazine notices that “the first significant general election in the English-speaking Caribbean in the post Obama campaign era is showing that it has learnt a lesson from the great North” – using the power of the Internet to reach potential voters.
Anguilla, Jamaica: Student Safety
“Will draconian measures actually increase security and comfort, or will they destroy our sense of community and undermine security?”: Corruption-free Anguilla wonders if increased security at one particular school will help students learn better, while Long Bench is appalled at the negligence involved in the schoolyard death of a child...
Haiti: Party Confusion
Wadner Pierre reports that as the election draws closer for twelve seats in the Haitian Senate, “the Fanmi Lavalas (FL) party (the electoral vehicle of the Lavalas movement) has divided into two factions” and he believes that the Provisional Electoral Council “must decide which faction has the better claim to...
Barbados: Blogging as Journalism?
“Blogging has become very popular around the world, Barbados no exception”: Barbados Underground says that “the fact that the traditional media in Barbados continues to regard bloggers as nincompoops maybe more a reflection on them than the blogs.”
Jamaica, U.S.A.: Artist vs. Art
“What should a black reader do if he finds out that one of his favourite authors was racist?”: Jamaican Marlon James considers the options.
DRC: “We have to stop believing in Santa Claus”
Musengeshi Katata at Forum Realisance [Fr] calls Africa Must Reclaim Her Destiny, published by Harmattan in Paris, a “must read”. Katata writes, “We have to stop believing in Santa Claus and take destiny in our own hands.”
Brazil: Introducing the Web, a “Digital Baptism”
A "Digital Baptism" workshop brought digital inclusion to Belo Horizonte, the capital of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais this Saturday, introducing the basics of using a computer to those who had never had the chance before or teaching more advanced tools to more advanced users. See some pictures and videos from the action packed day.
Qatar: The nature of exploitation
Qatari blogger ALFARES writes a thoughtful post [Ar] about self-interest, and the tendency of most people to exploit others.
Haiti: A Necessary Practice?
My Life, an Open Book… says that the Haitian practice of Restavec is “not ALL bad”, but warns that despite the success stories, “we cannot ignore the fact that there are people who take advantage of the reality of poverty in this country by taking advantage of these needy children.”
Jamaica: By the Bye
Girl With A Purpose thinks that Jamaican politicians should put their money where their mouth is and foot the cost of running by-elections themselves.
Jamaica: Young Writers
Jamaican litblogger Geoffrey Philp features writer Pamela Mordecai's wish list for young writers.
Brunei: Largest serving of grilled satay
Last Monday, Brunei Darussalam reached a new milestone for creating the “largest serving of grilled satay in the world”. Just imagine 75,000 sticks of chicken satay being simultaneously grilled from one end to another end (over 200 metres).
Israel: Film Illustrates Problem of Closed Gaza Borders
In the Israeli blogosphere you rarely get the feeling that everyone is listening and no one is talking, and that's the case today with the debut of a short film called “Closed Zone.” A 90-second animated film about the sealed Gaza border crossings, “Closed Zone” already has 31,600 hits and 200 text comments on YouTube, and counting.
Arab World: Birthday Food for Thought
Several bloggers from across the Arab World are marking their birthdays online with philosophical posts, describing their lives, hopes, accomplishments and dreams. Here's a selection of posts.
Jamaica: Double Standard
As the Jamaican Prime Minister reasserts his vow not to yield to pressure from lobby groups “to ‘liberalize'…unjust laws which overly scrutinize and punish some men for engaging in consensual sexual practices with each other”, Long Bench maintains that his position is an “irresponsible double standard.”
Barbados: Shaping the Economy
Barbados Underground says that despite his availability to the media, “the big void appears to be the incoherent vision of Prime Minister Thompson on how he plans to reposition the Barbados economy for the future.”
Trinidad & Tobago: What's your Policy?
“Can the Government appointed Board inspire customer confidence? Will Clico be run like the hospitals or the Ministry of Works? Can Agents promise it won’t?”: Blogging from Trinidad and Tobago, This Beach Called Life wants to know if you would buy a CLICO insurance policy.
