Stories from Quick Reads from February, 2012
Bermuda: Economic Debate
“This Friday parliamentarians will hold the annual economic debate against the backdrop of a sustained global recession and two competing views about how to get out of it”: Respice Finem debates the value of austerity measures as opposed to economic stimulus.
Cuba: Worry about Hunger Striker
Uncommon Sense hopes that political prisoner Ernesto Borges’ fate will not go the way of so many other hunger strikers, saying: “He needs you to learn his story and to spread it so that his life can be saved.”
Jamaica: Nicknames
Grasshopper Eyes The Potomac blogs about Jamaicans and their nicknames, explaining that it's an eccentricity with “meaning and real origins that mark a key characteristic of a person or their background.”
Barbados: Leap Day
B.C. Pires “couldn’t let the leap day go unobserved”.
Slovakia: Chuck Norris Bridge
In the situation when the U.S. action film star Chuck Norris leads in the public vote for the name of the bridge across the Morava River into Austria [en], blogger Ondrej Horváth recommends [sk] asking Mr. Norris before making the final decision, because otherwise it is possible that the bridge...
Chile: The Role of Public Libraries in Post-Earthquake Reconstruction
Several Chilean bloggers are sharing their thoughts on the second anniversary of the 8.8-magnitude earthquake that hit Chile on February 27, 2010. Enzo Abbagliati [es] looks at how public libraries can help people “rebuild their lives.” He argues that restoring or building people's deep bond with reading is “probably the...
Paraguay: An Interview on the Land Conflict in Alto Parana
Landowners are opposing review of land titles in the department of Alto Paraná “to determine if the lands are ‘ill-gotten,’ whose title deeds could be forged or faked or simply seized from the times of the Stroessner dictatorship” Ignacio Cirio explains. Upside Down World published a translation of Cirio's interview...
Costa Rica: Turning to Facebook to Fund TV Show
Sürrealista is a media producer in Costa Rica that has worked with many local bands. Now they want to have a 30 minute TV Show and to make that happen[es], they are asking for people to watch their pilot show online, give it a “like” on facebook and share it.
Trinidad & Tobago: Battle with Media
Afra Raymond outlines what he believes is a “sinister pattern” towards the media in Trinidad & Tobago, since the People's Partnership has been in government. According to Raymond, who elaborated on his views in an accompanying webcast, “…given the boundless nature of the new technology, we are going to see...
Iran: A pro-animal blog was filtered
Sepehr Salimi writes another pro-animal and pro-environment blog got filtered in Iran.Dadkhahi Heyvanat az Ensanha (animals ask people for justice) used to write about pets.
Armenia: Sumgait Pogrom Anniversary
The Armenian Observer posts the harrowing details of at least 26 ethnic Armenian victims of the Sumgait pogrom which took place on 27 February 1988 and which seriously escalated the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh. Six Azerbaijanis were also killed in the inter-ethnic...
Azerbaijan: Khojaly Massacre Anniversary
As Azerbaijanis worldwide, as well as Turks in Istanbul, commemorated the 20th Anniversary of the Khojaly massacre, the most serious during the fighting with Armenia in Nagorno Karabakh during the early 1990s which left 613 civilians dead, Tamada Tales comments on the release of the full transcript of an interview...
Sri Lanka: Abductions On The Rise In Sri Lanka
Groundviews reports that there has been a disturbing rise in the number of abductions in Sri Lanka, especially in and around the capital, Colombo.
Pakistan: Congratulating Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy
Hina Safdar At Chowrangi celebrates the Oscar award winner, the internationally renowned Pakistani documentary filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy. She won the award for her documentary ‘Saving Face, which is based on the story of acid attack survivors.
India: Cheap Tablet, Unaffordable Mistake
Nitin Pai at The Acorn posts an in-depth analysis on the controversies related to the $35 Aakash tablet PC.
Trinidad & Tobago: Carnival is My Time
“In an attempt to imitate art…culture in T&T seems to have perverted itself and in trying to become something else, may have succeeded all too well; the business model of Tribe and the other new ‘Rio’ styled bands seems to be built on encouraging excess for profit”: Plain Talk suggests...
Cuba: Dialogue with the Opposition?
“It might be paranoia. In totalitarian states, suspicion and the absurd become habit. But it isn’t insane to think that to give the dissidents a space if circumstances force their hand, could become a part of the island’s mandarin’s calculus”: Iván's File Cabinet puts forward a compelling theory.
Jamaica: Inmate Beatings
Following reports that several high-profile inmates are being beaten, Active Voice wants to know “what’s going down at the Horizon Adult Remand Centre”, which seems to be “a virtual Guantanamo Bay.”
St. Lucia, Trinidad & Tobago: Priestly Poetry & A New Literature Partnership
Caribbean Book Blog interviews priest and poet Fr. Lambert St Rose, while Bocas Lit Fest announces “a new partnership that will work towards enhancing the Caribbean literary scene and help kick-start an infrastructure to support writers, writing, and publishing.”
Brazil: Visually Impaired Dancers Become Ballet Professionals
Pierre Larose, on his blog Discovering São Paulo, shares a video report on ‘a ballet school in São Paulo which has developed a method of “teaching by touch” in order to develop professional ballet dancers who are blind or visually impaired’. He adds that in 12 years approximately 300 dancers...
Egypt: Mahliat, popular initiative to improve local councils
This short video highlights the role of local councils in the community. It is made by mahliat [Ar] or “local councils” – an Egyptian movement founded by Moustafa Shoman. You can also follow the movement on Twitter and Facebook.
