Stories from 27 March 2006
Brazil: Podcast Removed
Carlos Lobo of Blog.bossanova.fm has taken down all of his podcasts after receiving an email supposedly from “the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act)”. Lobo clarifies, “I don’t earn money with this, I only share brazilian culture.”
Chile: Seeking Public Transportation Proposals
Teo Veloso is using the group blog Atina Chile to solicit a community-wide urban transportation proposal (ES) which will be submitted to the Bachelet administration.
Armenia: Kjell Engebretsen Interview
Onnik Krikorian interviews Kjell Engebretsen, the Armenia Country Director of the Norwegian Refugee Council.
Mongolia: Ivanhoe's Muscle
Shards of Mongolia notes that former US Secretary of State James Baker has paid a visit to Mongolia's prime minister and minister of trade and industry on behalf of Ivanhoe Mines. Shards of Mongolia says that the government absolutely must resist this pressure.
Turkmenistan: Agreement
Writing at neweurasia, Peter discusses the agreement between Turkmenistan and Ukraine to settle gas debts and says Russia looks to be the winner in the dispute.
Bolivia: Unfettered Coastal Access
On the recent anniversary of the War of the Pacific Jim Schultz sees little chance of Chile granting Bolivia sovereign coastline, but does see an alternative solution.
Armenia: Peace Corps Impact
A post by Nessuna at Oneworld Multimedia about visiting the town of Berd with a friend who is a Peace Corps Volunteer prompts a discussion about the impact of these volunteers in Armenia's small villages and a post in response written by a former Peace Corps Volunteer in Armenia at...
Mongolia: Traditional Script
neweurasia‘s Mongolia blog writes about traditional Mongolian script and whether or not it could ever be brought back.
Armenia: Notes from the Armenian Blogosphere
Oneworld Multimedia has a roundup of the English-language and Armenian-language Armenian blogosphere.
The Charango Controversy
This article was written by Miguel Esquirol and originally appeared in the Bolivian blog community site Blogs de Bolivia. The original Spanish version can be found here (ES). Lately, many charangos have been given as presents. Evo Morales presented one to Condoleeza Rice, the Chilean President gave one to Bono...
Venezuela: Jorge Rodriguez Ends Bid to CNE
Miguel Octavio's blog, The Devil's Excrement has once again been loaned to ghost blogger, Jorge Arena who tries to understand why Jorge Rodriguez has stepped down in his bid as head of the National Electoral Council (CNE).
Japan: Sumoto River recovers
Justin at Cosmic Buddha sees the first signs of life—maybe carp, maybe mullet—on the Sumoto River since a disastrous typhoon two years ago.
Malaysia: Rising Islamism?
Colors of Life worries that, as Islamist political power rises in the country, the dice has been cast against a “Malaysian” Malaysia.
Philippines: More on Rent Control
Another Hundred Years Hence responds to a reader, a Filipino-American who owns some apartment buildings in New York, who argues that rent control may help the urban poor stay in cities and protect them from gentrification.
China: Bopomofo manual
The blogger at Pinyin News introduces some new literature on various Chinese input systems. “I certainly don't recommend using zhuyin, [otherwise known as bopomofo] but it's nice to know the information on how to type it (both by itself and for character input) is available and put forward so clearly.”
Singapore: Staying Skeptical of Scripture
Singapore's Salt * Wet * Fish reposts a 2004 entry from his old LiveJournal that continues to have resonance: a reflection on a passage by Buddhist nun Thich Nhat Hanh on remembering that spiritual texts are meant to provoke insight, and should not always be taken on face value.
China: Government searches
Virtual China‘s Jason Li dishes out a treat for his insomniac readers with a link to a new section of Chinese-language search engine Baidu which only searches within Chinese government Web sites, which basically means .gov.cn sites and China Central Television (CCTV).
Thailand: Dodging the Question
Thai blog Bookish reflects on the beleaguered Thai PM's evasion of a question posed to him on a TV talk show: Did he make a mistake transferring his company's shares to his son rather than to a blind trust, as required by the Thai constitution?
China: Comrade dancer
Frances at Supernaut, who returned to Guangzhou this month, posts on the transsexual former PLA soldier Jin Xing, organizer of this year's Shanghai International Dance Festival and her eponymous dance theater.
Vietnam: The Rest of the Country
Virtual Doug tries to grasp how Việt Nam’s rapid economic growth is affecting its countryside, where 80% of its people live.
Hong Kong: Scary Superman
The biggest threat to Hong Kong's democracy, security and the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) is none other than Li “Superman” Ka-shing, argues Tom Legg at Daai Tou Laam.
