Stories about Latin America from June, 2008
Ecuador: Twitter Updates of Qualifying Game
The recent World Cup qualifying game between Colombia and Ecuador was covered by the newspaper HOY through the use of live twitter updates writes Christian Espinosa of Cobertura Digital [es].
Dominican Republic: Questioning the Milk Given to School Children
The Dominican Republic is in the midst of a milk scandal, in which the Ministry of Education and producers are being accused of providing "whey" or "sugar water" to the nation's schoolchildren. Dominican bloggers attempt to verify these claims.
Costa Rica: Andrea Morales Leaves Her Political Party
Andrea Morales, a deputy from the Citizens Action Party (PAC) in Costa Rica, caused controversy when she resigned from her political party, in which she has belonged to during the past several years. She had broken with party lines when she refused to be in opposition to the Free Trade Agreement, which had passed in a nationwide referendum. Costa Rican bloggers come out in support for her decision.
Bolivia: Launch of Adriana Gil's Political Party
Sebastian Molina of Plan B [es] writes about the launch of a new political party by Adriana Gil called Democratic Force. The 26 year-old Gil was once an ally of Evo Morales and MAS and had opened up doors for the politician in Santa Cruz, Bolivia.
Bahamas, Venezuela: PetroCaribe
Rick Lowe at Weblog Bahamas cannot believe that the question of the Bahamas joining PetroCaribe appears to be on the table once again, adding that the move “would drastically and quickly increase the national debt of The Bahamas. Something we can ill afford in these very trying economic times.”
Mexico: Possible Destruction Due to Construction of Tunnel
Blog Populi, Blog Dei [es] cites many of the possible environmental problems that might result from the construction of the Cerro de la Silla Tunnel near Monterrey, Mexico.
Paraguay: Victory Over Brazil
Viviana Benitez of Panambi News [es] recounts her experience listening to the Paraguay's 2-0 victory over powerhouses Brazil on the radio.
Trinidad & Tobago, Haiti: Small Shoes
Trinidad and Tobago-based artist Chris Cozier posts a photo of a child's shoes taken on his last trip to Haiti: “Something about the way that the shoes had become so worn out struck me. They looked like islands in the sea but also like the two countries that make one...
Cuba: Review of Sanctions
Both Babalu and Child of the Revolution blog about the European Union‘s upcoming decision on whether or not to end sanctions on Cuba.
Barbados, Venezuela: Maritime Claim
Notes From The Margin sheds some light on the Barbados/Venezuela maritime controversy, saying: “The waters under discussion can ONLY be Venezuela's if you accept that 1. Half of Guyana is actually Venezuela. 2. That two countries (Venezuela and Trinidad) can commit a third and fourth countries (Barbados and Guyana) to...
Costa Rica: Diesel Subsidy
Rigo of Tico Blog Libertad [es] is relieved that the Costa Rican government continues to subsidize diesel and which is what his car runs on, especially in light of the rising fuel prices.
Argentina: Restoration of Recoleta Cemetery
The Recoleta Cemetery in Buenos Aires, Argentina continues with its restoration projects on various crypts and vaults writes AfterLife.
Brazil: The Black President Before Obama
The sweeping Obama phenomenon has caught Brazil, and it comes as no surprise in the country with the world's largest population of African descendants. An especially notable thread is the one reporting on the resurgence of a weirdly interesting 1928 Brazilian sci-fi novel — ‘The Black President' — that predicted a US election matching a black, a feminist, and a conservative candidate in the then remote year of 2228.
Azerbaijan: Media Campaigner Assaulted
This is Tbilisi Calling, the blog of journalist Matthew Collin, reports that a media rights campaigner has been pistol-whipped and hospitalized in the Azerbaijani capital, Baku. The incident happened after police raided a party celebrating the 80th anniversary of the birth of Che Guevara.
Barbados, Bahamas, Cuba, U.S.A.: R.I.P. Russert
Cuban blogger Ninety miles away…in another country, Adrian Gibson at Weblog Bahamas and Living in Barbados acknowledge the passing of American journalist Tim Russert.
Guatemala: Activism Helps Remember the Disappeared
Guatemala's recent dark history includes approximately 40,000 citizens who disappeared during the armed conflict. Many bloggers keep their memory alive by discussing recent performance art exhibits and activism that helped end the annual military parades.
EmPivot: Green media aggregator
EmPivot is a website made for sharing videos with a specific theme: environment. This green-related media content is added to the website so that people, organizations and companies can connect with each other with this same interest between them. EmPivot, as they explain on their website, comes from the word...
Paraguay: Producing a Bill Gates
Liam of Políticamente Incorrecto [es] reflects on the state of the Paraguayan educational system and cites a recent interview conducted with Bill Gates. The interviewer asked him whether he would have had the same success if he would have been born in another country like Paraguay.
El Salvador: Funes Continues to Lead by Wide Margins
The presidential candidate for the FMLN party in El Salvador, Mauricio Funes, continues to lead by nearly 19 percentage points over ARENA candidate Rodrigo Ávila. Hunnapuh [es] notes that this latest survey took place after the revelations of possible links between FMLN party members and the FARC noting that it...
Brazil: World (not) Naked Bike Ride
In the Brazilian version of the World Naked Bike Ride (WNBR), in São Paulo, nudism was ruled out: “According to the a lieutenant who was patrolling the demonstration, the order was to arrest anybody who displays their genitalia. In other words, it is fine to protest… but not naked. The funny...
Paraguay: Increasing the Use of Guaraní with New Lugo Administration
El Yacare [es] publishes a peticion sent to incoming Paraguayan president Fernando Lugo asking for an increased use of the indigenous language Guaraní specifically asking for the act of inauguration to be conducted in both the country's official languages.
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