Stories from 24 August 2008
China: Games over
Well we couldn't watch it on YouTube, but there was Twitter so we know the Beijing Olympics closing ceremony involved [note: links to profanity] some sort of [profanity] hot-pot tower of babel that spiderman climbed up…and we heard something about ants and a transformer bus. Anyway, we're very thankful we...
Taiwan: Viva la Generalissimo!
Ashinakhan criticizes the come-back of Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall with extended history review of Taiwan's difficult road to democracy.
Mexico: Protests About Insecurity in the Capital
A large crowd assembled outside the National Palace in Mexico City to protest the insecurity in the city. Daniel Hernandez of Intersections [es] was present and writes that “they were protesting the fact that it took the death of the son of a wealthy and connected figure for political leaders...
El Salvador: The Strategy of Fear in the Presidential Elections
Hunnapuh [es] compares the current FMLN candidate for the Salvadoran presidency, Mauricio Funes, with the late Shafick Handall and how the rival party used the strategy of fear to defeat the candidate and would seek to do the same with Funes.
Mexico: Thoughts from A Grandfather
Soron of La Vida es Sueño [es] writes a tribute to his grandfather, Germán, who spoke about life in Mexico City back when, “one could see on a daily basis the volcanoes that surrounded the Mexican Valle, the sky was always blue and there were even rivers in Mexico City,...
Venezuela: Antonio Lauro and His Classical Guitar
Antonio Lauro is well-known for composing waltzes for the classical guitar. As part of the group Trio Cantores del Trópico, Lauro managed to contribute to the Venezuela's musical heritage converting original European structures into melodies that sound very much like the Venezuelan idiosyncrasies. He toured extensively around neighboring countries to spread the sounds of Venezuelan music.
Dominican Republic: Gold Medal in Boxing
Duarte 101 [es] celebrates the gold medal of Félix Díaz for his win in the Olympics. It was the first time since 1984 that a boxer from the Dominican Republic brought home a gold medal.
Russia: Rally at Red Square
Photos and video of seven activists holding a rally at Red Square in Moscow on Aug. 24 – “For your and our freedom” – in commemoration of the protest against the 1968 Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia (posted by LJ user moscow_river_25 in the legal_team LJ community).
Arabeyes: The Olympics, Pride, Equality and Hope
Millions around the world were glued to their television screens watching their favourite athletes at this year's Beijing Olympics, which just closed. What did Arab bloggers have to say about the world's premier sporting event and their country teams? Following are a few reactions.
Egypt: Blogger Detained
Elijah Zarwan, from Egypt, draws our attention to yet another blogger detained. “Mohammed Refaat, a student and a blogger, was detained on July 21 on charges of ‘threatening public security’ by using the Internet to call for a strike on July 23… I took a quick look at Refaat’s blog...
Georgia: Regional Reporters
The conflict between Georgia and Russia over the breakway territory of South Ossetia were accompanied by cyber-attacks on several Georgian official government and independent media sites. But rather than prevent journalists from utilizing the Internet to report on the war, it achieved the opposite. Many Georgians -- media professionals and citizen journalists alike -- set up blogs to report or comment on the conflict.
Breastfeeding in Thailand
absolutelybangkok.com is worried that Thailand has the lowest exclusive breastfeeding rate in Asia and one of the lowest in the world.
Malaysian politics and Olympics
A Malaysian badminton silver medalist found himself at the center of power struggle among Malaysia's political parties when he arrived home. Blogger 4896 advises politicians to spare athletes from political intramurals.
Laos in the Olympics
The 2008 Beijing Olympics informed many people around the world that Laos is pronounced as Lao (silent ‘s’), as noted by I Eat Padek.
Taiwan: Taichung shooting incident
Michael Turton reports on an incident where a foreigner was shot in Taichung.
Lebanon: Israel threatens while Syria seeks to buy arms
"What’s cooking?" is probably the most common question people in Lebanon are asking since Israel Environment Minister Gideon Ezra’s speech few days ago and the recent news of the Russian-Syrian arms deal. Last week, Minister Ezra said that the Lebanese state will be considered a target if it legitimizes Hizbullah (which the Lebanese government did). On the other hand, Russia has announced that it is ready to sell new weapons to Syria. What do Lebanon's bloggers have to ay about those developments?
Georgia: Dispatches Under Russian Occupation
When Russian forces rolled into the strategic Georgian town of Gori, information on the occupation was scarce. Journalists died during Russian bombing runs in the military campaign leading up Gori's capture, others were shot at, and access to the town was not only limited, but also perilous with South Ossetian, Chechen and Cossack militia hijacking cars and robbing occupants. The posts by the radio station's Goga Aptsiauri are a fascinating account of life under Russian occupation. In his final post made two days ago, Aptsiauri reports that the Russian military had finally left.
Georgia: Goltz on South Ossetia
Writing for Untold Stories, Thomas Goltz offers his opinion on the conflict between Russia and Georgia over South Ossetia.
Georgia: Ukrainian Bloggers Action
Peace in Georgia points its readers to an action staged by Ukrainian bloggers. Following reports that Russian troops and South Ossetian irregulars engaged in looting, the bloggers have set up an online shop for looted Georgian goods.
Georgia: Russian Withdrawal
Registan questions the sincerity of the Russian withdrawal of combat troops from Georgia. The blog says that Russia is clearly delighted by the impotence of the U.S. and NATO during the war with Geogia over South Ossetia, but says that Moscow is also unable to find a permanent solution to...
Georgia: Economic Fallout
Regional Reporters [RU] reports on the economic consequences of the war between Georgia and Russia over South Ossetia. The blog says that with the damage to civilian infrastructure in Georgia estimated at $1 billion, experts from the World Bank will visit the country to assess what needs to be done...
