Stories from 10 December 2007
Russia: Sakhalin's Expats and Economy
Tim Newman of White Sun of the Desert writes: “Times are changing in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, and proof of this comes in the form of something I have never seen before in the town, and a few people I have spoken to on the subject say the same thing: a large banner...
Russia: Review of David Foglesong's Book
Sean's Russia Blog posts a lengthy review of David S. Foglesong's “The American Mission and the “Evil Empire”: The Crusade for a “Free Russia” since 1881.”
Russia: “Everyone is Stupid”
TOL's Elections in Russia writes on one blogger's take on the election: “everyone is stupid.”
Russia: Bloggers Don't Recognize Election Results
TOL's Elections in Russia writes about a Russian blogger's campaign to “not recognize the results of these ‘elections’.”
Russia: Mishki
Lyndon of Scraps of Moscow posts a comprehensive review of media and blog coverage of Mishki, the new pro-Kremlin children's movement that has rendered “many Russians and Russia-watchers” “speechless.” Lyndon has also discovered Mishki‘s website: “Mishki.ru got a “server not found” message, but then I thought that maybe this group...
Russia: Election Summary
Ruminations on Russia posts one of the most concise summaries of the Dec. 2 Duma election: “Dog votes for new fleas.”
East Timor: The dirtiest city
Timor Online [pt] comments on a piece of news in which East Timor's President Jose Ramos-Horta labelled his capital the dirtiest city in the world. “Ramos-Horta forgets that it is Díli's admistration's job to look after the city's cleaning and that he has also forgotten that he has not done...
Armenia: Election Notes
The Armenia Election Monitor 2008 reports on the latest news and speculation surrounding the 19 February 2008 presidential election in Armenia.
Turkey: Hrant Dink Named World Press Freedom Hero
Oneworld Multimedia carries news that murdered Turkish-Armenian editor and journalist Hrant Dink has been named as one of its World Press Freedom Heroes by the International Press Institute.
Jordan: New Traffic Law
Jordanian blogger Khalaf argues that a new traffic law passed by cabinet aims to fill up the government's coffers and not prevent accidents and save lives.
Iraq: Yahoo Account Hacked
Bahraini blogger Esra'a reports that the Yahoo email account of an Iraqi human rights activist has been hacked.
Jordan: Bad Milk at Schools
Bad milk at schools? Jordanian blogger Firas tells us more.
Travelling through Palestine and Israel
Ray Hanania takes you on a voyage to Palestine and Israel and shares his thoughts on peace and normalisation of relations here.
Egypt: Wael Abbas and YouTube
Egyptian blogger Zeinobia sheds light on her fellow blogger Wael Abbas‘ dilemma with YouTube. Global Voices Online reported on the issue here.
Africa: A balance of the summit
“Despite the bad auguries predicted by many, the conference was held. In spite of the bad foreboding of cynics, none of subjects was a taboo, from Zimbabwe to Darfur, from human rights to good governance”. Vital Moreira [pt] analyses the outcome of the summit between the European Union and African...
Argentina: What Happened at PersonalFest?
Fabio.com.ar [es] and Jorge Gobbi of Vida Vacia 4.1 [es] write about the occurrences at PersonalFest, the two-day music festival in Buenos Aires. According to some witnesses, there were reports of stampedes and people who were attacked with knives. All of this was ignored by the mainstream media according to...
Paraguay: The Price for Broadband Internet
Internet en Paraguay [es] responds unfavorably to the news that Paraguay pays 7 times as much as neighboring Brazil for 1Mbps of broadband internet and wonders whether government officials are content with the advancement of internet in the country.
Argentina: Predictions for the Era of Cristina Kirchner
Bloc de Periodista [es] lists ten predictions for the era of new Argentine president Cristina Kirchner, including “1) Cristina will displace all of the magazine cover girls. She will be the woman who will appear on the most covers this year.”
Guatemala: La Quema del Diablo
A tradition in Guatemala called “la Quema del Diablo” (or Burning the Devil) involves taking out one's trash to be burned and which symbolizes the burning of evil spirits as a way of purification. Oscar Mota of Desde Guate [es] does not believe in the tradition, especially for the contamination...
India: Outing Bloggers
A sudden turn of events in the blogosphere, as some trolls “out” some of the bloggers by disclosing their real names. IndieQuill on “Outing Bloggers”.
India: 49th Carnival of Feminists
Tamil Punkster brings the 49th Carnival of Feminists. Links to some excellent posts on issues like media, violence and technology.