Stories from 17 August 2007
Turkey blocks popular blogging platform WordPress.com
The popular, and free, blogging platform WordPress.com has been blocked in Turkey and those who are trying to visit it are seeing this message: “Access to this site has been suspended in accordance with decision no: 2007/195 of T.C. Fatih 2.Civil Court of First Instance.” “I didn’t realize Turkey had...
Argentina: Carpooling Match Site
Blog Pasa en Buenos Aires [ES] writes about a new site called Comparte Coche [ES], which is a way for commuters into the city of Buenos Aires to find carpooling matches, which will help to reduce transportation costs and be a little easier on the environment.
Latvia: Demography
Latvia Economy Watch writes about the demographic situation in Latvia. Latvian Abroad writes about Latvians in the UK and Ireland – here and here.
Estonia: Gay Pride in Tallinn
All About Latvia shares his thoughts on Tallinn and the Gay Pride Parade there.
Russia: Russian Politics Syllabus
J. Otto Pohl is teaching in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, now, and has posted his Russian Politics Syllabus.
Ukraine: Another Election Campaign
Mark MacKinnon writes about yet another election campaign in Ukraine – yet “another farce.”
Russia: Racism
Mark MacKinnon writes about violence against non-Russians in Russia and the Kremlin's “strategy” of making Putin look like “a least-bad option” by not discouraging more radical political views: “…the monsters it created are now out of even the Kremlin's control.”
Guyana: Thunder and Lightning
“I wonder if is true, that when you want to know how far away the storm is, count the seconds between the thundah and lightening?” Guyana-Gyal thinks she's caught in the eye of the storm.
Barbados, Jamaica: Dean Moves On
Cheese-on-Bread gives a Hurricane Dean update from Barbados: “When I heard on the news…that the all clear had been given I was surprised, 'cause in St. Michael the wind was howling and the rain beating down”, while Jamaican Veiw says that “Hurricane Dean could be in Jamaica’s territorial waters by...
Trinidad & Tobago: What Ails the Windies…
Vaneisa Baksh thinks that the West Indies Cricket Board would do well to listen to Captain Ramnaresh Sarwan's take on what ails West Indies cricket.
Haiti: Preparing for the Storm
As Haiti continues to prepare for Hurricane Dean's arrival, The Livesay Haiti Weblog reports: “The newest projections are saying ‘Dean’ will hit Southern Haiti sometime Saturday afternoon. It has not strengthened that we see, we're just expecting rain and wind”, while Pwoje Espwa says: “It's a busy time for us...
Cuba: Donation Drive?
Neither Babalu Blog nor Child of the Revolution is impressed by the latest Cuban campaign.
Jordan: Where's the Applause?
Natasha Tynes from Jordan writes that her country will be accepting 50,000 Iraqi children in schools and wonders: “Where's the applause?”
Jordan: Shawarma Ban
The Black Iris from Jordan discusses the shawarma ban in his country.
Israel: Coverage Praised
Liza from Israelity commends journalist and blogger Lisa Goldman for her coverage, marking the first anniversary of the Second Lebanon War.
Zimbabwe: Rigging Zimbabwe's 2008 elections
Mugabe has started rigging next year's elections: “Even though they plan to rig the election as usual, they want to give the result a semblance legitimacy by polling the largest number of votes. Some of the stages of the plans have already been implemented, the events in the past 3...
Israel: Strange Democracy
Batya from Israel reports that Olmert enjoys five per cent support. “Strange kind of democracy we have here in Israel,” notes the blogger.
Iraq: Abu Ghraib Attack
Ladybird from Iraq posts a video of Iraqi ‘resistance’ forces attacking the infamous Abu Ghraib prison. She also reports that US forces killed two women and two children in Mada'in city.
How to Help Needy Iraqis
Iraqi Khalid Jarrar writes about ways in which people can help needy Iraqis in this post.
Iraq: Journalist Murder Mystery
Alive in Baghdad narrates how an Iraqi journalist — Suhad Shakir — was shot dead in her car while driving and how her murder still remains a mystery.
Libya: Driving Stories
Iranian Mr Behi amuses us with tales about driving in Tripoli, Libya, in this post.