Stories from 6 October 2006
Trinidad & Tobago: Different strokes
“While the rest of us are lining up for visas, being groped by security guards, having our fingerprints taken and our eyeballs photographed (not to mention having our phone numbers, credit card numbers and meal preferences sent ahead to Homeland Security if we're crossing the Atlantic), US citizens are still...
Trinidad & Tobago: Mousepads for bandwidth
Taran Rampersad takes the mickey out of two quotes relating to technology from the budget speech read this week by Trinidad and Tobago's prime minister.
Cuba, Czech Republic: Solidarity
Luis M. Garcia reads with interest a statement from intellectual and ormer Czech leader Vaclav Havel expressing solidarity with Cuban dissidents.
Cayman Islands: Roll over policy
Mighty Afroditee's child's caregiver falls victim to Cayman Islands’ government's newly implemented “roll over policy”, which limits the length of time expatriates can stay in the country.
Guyana-Gyal: Yin and Yang
After reading another newspaper editorial fraught with pessimism, Guyana-Gyal wishes there were more people like her friend, who “understand that along with tears is laughs; with the dark, light; problems, solutions; sick, heal. That is what I wish we could hear, again, again.“
Guyana: Skin deep?
Guyana Providence Stadium's field reporter waxes cynical about the cosmetic enhancements being made to Guyana's capital city ahead of the 2007 Cricket World Cup: “In Guyana these days as soon as you plant trees to beautify the place, the people dig them up and plant them in their own yards.“
Jamaica: Opposition blunder
Xamayca outlines the details surrounding an incident involving an accusation of corruption made by Jamaica's leader of the opposition against the ruling party.
Kyrgyzstan: Thoughts on the President's Strategy
Mirsulzhan Namazaliev gives his thoughts on the Kyrgyz president's strategies for the country's development over the next decade.
Kyrgyzstan: Split over PM
Sean Roberts analyzes whether or not a split in Kyrgyzstan's opposition over the Prime Minister is exactly what it seems to be.
Tajikistan: Election Assessment
Alexander Sadikov discusses the OSCE's assessment of the environment in which Tajikistan's presidential election will take place.
Africa: renaming of an airport
Chippla discusses the politics of naming public facilities: I have never been a fan of the naming of places or public facilities after individuals. In Nigeria, this appears to be the norm. What is even more perplexing about this is when such places or facilities are named after living individuals—a...
Sri Lanka: Business in the country
Mahoshada discusses the viability of doing business in Sri Lanka. “Conditions for conducting business in Sri Lanka have deteriorated markedly during the last year; this according to the World Bank’s annual publication Doing Business 2007, which provides a comprehensive international comparison of business conditions. “
India: Children and their Mothers
The Mad Momma writes a wonderful post on coping with her own actions and loving her child. “I slapped my son an hour ago. Not once. But six times in a white hot rage. This after being brought up by parents who even 25 years ago knew that you don't...
Sudan: helping Darfur
What is Africa doing to help Darfur?, asks Grandiose Parlor: It is a shame that the best Africa leaders can muster is some 7,000 ill-equipped troops that are expected to to police an area half the size of Nigeria! [Darfur=493 180 sq. km , Nigeria= 923,768 sq. km] This is...
Pakistan: Power station of the Past
How some places of importance are reduced to nothing. Light Within on Gogera “It is reduced to a shabby and sleepy suburb of Okara today. Town still boasts its importance when it was important British power centre and district headquarters from 1852 to 1865 and the part played by the...
Bangladesh: The veil in UK
Mezba comments on Straw's take on the veil, and explores the import of the hijab within the religion.
Belarus: New Detention and Demolition of the Old
TOL's Belarus Blog reports on the detention of a young activist on murder charges. Also, there's an entry on demolition of old buildings in Minsk.
Russia: Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Street Names
White Sun of the Desert writes about Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk street names and monuments inherited from the Soviet times.
Russia: “Ruled by Lunatics”
The Russian Dilettante thinks “the Kremlin has gone mad”: “This hunt for people with Georgian last names the Kremlin is leading is beyond belief. (Clearly it is ethnic Georgians who are targeted regardless of nationality — not just “illegal immigrants.”) I have a feeling this country is ruled by lunatics....
Ukraine: Help Sought to Save an Ailing Teen
Petro Rondiak and his wife Ola are looking for ways to save a 14-year-old Ukrainian girl diagnosed with leukemia: “It is clear that Tania will not get the required treatment in Ukraine. Ola and I are looking for a western hospital (USA? Germany?) to provide pro bono medical care for...
Ukraine: Tariffs and Coal Mines
Foreign Notes writes about the communal services prices situation and translates an article about Ukrainian coal mines.
