Stories from 25 July 2005
Iran: Hero or loser
Hoder has his own take on Akbar Ganji, both as a man and as a symbol.
Lebanon: Al-Wadi
Abu Aardvark notes that the latest hit show to come out of Lebanon is a Big Brother-style reality show set on a farm featuring immensely popular Lebanese pop star Haifa Wehbi as the star. Haifa is pretty much the hook for the show, as she's the ‘permament guest’ while the...
Lebanon: If Syria Really Wanted Lebanon's Interests…
A Lebanese Abroad doubts Syria's assertions that it really wants to have ‘brotherly’ relations with Lebanon.
Nigeria: Going Wireless in Nigeria
Chippla's Weblog looks at a bright spot for Nigeria: the country's burgeoning wireless revolution.
Indonesia: Learn the language
Macam-Macam reports that overseas applicants for work permits will be required to learn Bahasa Indonesia if their job requires them to interact with Indonesians.
France: The well known clothing brand Celio starts its blog
Loic Le Meur reports on the launch of yet another French corporate blog.
Ethiopia: From Gonder to Niger
Andrew Heavens on how hunger crisises are inherently undramatic.
China: Why The Visitors From Beijing Cried At The Sight Of Bottle Of Remy Martin
EastSouthWestNorth translates an article about what happened when a group of education volunteers were treated to a banquet.
Egypt: Reaction to the blasts
From Cairo, with Love asks “wouldn't it be wise to close the tap, from its source, that pours so many terrorists into our laps?”
Egypt: A Moral Stand
Egyptian Person says that “if you are selective in what you call terrorism depending on where it's taking place or who is getting killed, then you are a part of the problem and you need to fix yourself…”
Egypt: Mona El Tahawy gets it right!
Rantings of a Sandmonkey says “we are all in this together!”
China: Looking for 5 million bloggers
China Herald wonders where the 5 million Chinese bloggers figure comes from.
China: Has the future tone of Sino-Japanese relations just been set
Angry Chinese Blogger wonders if the appointment of a new Japanese ambassador to China forshadows slightly strained relations in the future.
Cambodia: Photo of Cambodia and Her People
Tharum's Web points to the Flickr Cambodia feed as a way for foreigners to become more familar with his country.
Bahrain: It's great to be free..
Silly Bahraini Girl asks for a dialogue on what it really means to be free (mildly NSFW picture included).
Iran: Persian Coverage of Akbar Ganji
webgardian has been following the Akbar Ganji story and what Iranian bloggers have to say about him closely.
China: ma-lie-lao-tai mentality
Bingfeng Teahouse pushes back on the issue of internet filtering, arguing that concerns about Chinese internet filtering are somewhat overblown and spring from an antiquated mindset.
Hong Kong: Activist Says Chinese Hackers Read His E-mails
Glutter reports that a Hong Kong democracy activist says that his emails have been monitored by an unknown hacker inside China. This is another worrying development for for the future of ‘one country, two systems’.
Venezuela: polling
Daniel of Venezuela News and Views discusses “The difficult art of Venezuelan polling”
Central America: CAFTA
Boz ponders CAFTA and free trade in general as the agreement enters a House vote this week.
Ecuador: Former president a wanted man
Jeannette Jalil writes from Chile that “The Supreme Court of Ecuador has issued an arrest warrant for the former president, Lucio Gutierrez.”