Stories from 28 March 2007
China: top 40 blogs
Yee blogs the Top 40 blogs according to Zhuaxia stats. Zhuaxia is now the most popular online RSS feed reader in China.
China: Iron dragon
Tim Beckenham from Shanghaiist reported that a Henan-based investor group is constructing a 21-kilometre (13 mile) long metal Chinese dragon as a tourist attraction. There is also suggestion that the dragon structure could help minimise the impact of sand storms on the nearby capital. Chris O'Brien from Beijing Newspeak has...
China: Monopolized Spoofing by SARFT
The State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television once claimed that domestic films cannot be spoofed. However, recently Zhang Hongsen, deputy director of the Administration's Film Bureau made some harsh comments on local films; Chang Ping, deputy editor-in-chief of Southern Metropolis Weekly, criticized the SARFT monoplized spoofing: they apparently really...
Georgia: Worker's Paradise
Cuttino Alexander pays a visit to Chiatura a town that flourished under the Soviet Union and has since experienced economic and population collapse.
Uzbekistan: Locking up the Press
Bonnie Boyd sums up the arrests of journalists over the last six months in Uzbekistan and concludes that the world will be getting even less news from the country.
Kazakhstan: Cook for a Cause
News from the Caravan tells readers how to get a cookbook with good Central Asian recipes and help out a Kazakh orphanage at the same time.
Armenia: Burying the Prime Minister
Onnik Krikorian reports on and has photos of the burial of Armenia's prime minister.
Afghanistan: Higher Education Crisis
Safrang reports that there are too few university spots for eligible students in Afghanistan and that the problem is only getting worse. The blogger argues that failing to provide education for them will create a large number of dissatisfied youth.
Iran: Connecting the Medical World and Norouz Inspires Reflection
Iranian bloggers provide information, share their opinions, and discuss various issues with their photography, illustrations, and text. But that's not all. Occasionally, they launch plans to make the world a better place. Paris Marashi, an Iranian-American video-blogger has revealed a project that aims to bring Iranian medical professionals in contact...
Iraq: Resistance Operations
Iraqi blogger Lady Bird posts a graph which claims to list operations being conducted by Iraqi resistance forces in her country. They are: 1- Defense against attacks; 2- Conducting God’s judgement; 3- Bombardment; 4- Suicidal operations; 5- Assassinations; 6- Car bombs; 7- Sniping; 8- Attacks and 9- Road side bombs.
Philippines: Installing Ubuntu
Connie in Philippines describes her experience of installing Ubuntu, a popular distribution of Linux operating system on her daughter's new laptop computer.
Thailand: Celebrity Life
Gnarlykitty in Thailand witnesses her celebrity cousin with her fans and muses on celebrity lives. “I don't admire celebrities for being famous but I admire them for their abilities to be able to put up with all these uncanny things attached to fame. Criticism, lack of privacy, being under media...
Arepa de Huevo from Colombia, Ceviche from Ecuador and Pupusas from El Salvador!
#1: From Colombia: Nika's Culinaria shares a delicious recipe with step-by-step photos on how to prepare a traditional Colombian delicacy: Arepa de Huevo (Arepa with Egg) My first experience with it was when we visited Colombia 25 years ago. As in other latin american countries, street vendors sell all manner...
India: Feminism and Bangles
Jag's Blog points out to the ways that people take to insulting the cricketers who didn't make it to the World Cup. In this case they were shown as wearing bangles. “Does it mean that those who wear bangles – women – are … what? Useless? Incapable? Weak? Unskilled? Unable...
India: Women Sufis
Indian Muslims on women sufis in and from Delhi. “Among the other early women mystics are Umm Haram whose tomb is in Cyprus, Rabia bint Ismail of Syria, Muadha al Adaiyya of Syria, Nafisa of Mecca, Zainab and Ishi Nili of Persia. These women made major contributions to the vitality...
Sri Lanka: Women and Work
True Sri Lankan adds his take on the issue of women with children below the age of five years not being allowed to seek employment abroad. “This is a careful line to tread and I believe that the ban while solving some problems will only increase other problems such as,...
Pakistan: Dangerous Construction
Metroblogging Islamabad points out how unregulated construction activity is dangerous. “The death of an Indian national in a traffic accident caused by the construction of an underpass at Islamabad's China Chowk is tragic. Regrettably, it has taken a death for the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and the local administration to...
Pakistan: What's the news?
the olive ream takes a gut-splittingly funny look at News. “A ministerial committee met recently, in essence, to declare war. Eight months in arrears. Apparently Ehud Olmert, apart from all his other screw-ups, also forgot to officially declare war last July. The first Lebanon war was classified ‘Operation Peace for...
Arabisc: In Keeping with Fashion, Algerian Blogger Sued
An Algerian official has today filed a case against blogger Abdulsalam Baroudi, accusing him of libel for an article he posted on his blog. This will be the first time a blogger is sued for his online writings in this North African country. Baroudi is unruffled and says he has...
Malaysia: Politician Takes on Bloggers
Susan Loone blogs about a Malaysian politician who asked the government to “act against ‘insiders’ who reveal information to Internet blogs and news portals.”. The same politician had earlier caused a stir by uttering an obscene word in the parliament.
Africa: we should all wear sacks and cover ourselves in ash
A thought provoking piece by Dennis Matanda at the Sub-Saharan Africa Roundtable, Africans: A race that got lost a long time ago: “And in response to Koluki’s www.africanpath.com’s article on ‘Are We Losing the Plot?’ my answer is a resounding YES. I will even dare to go further by saying...
