Stories from 12 February 2009
The Balkans: “Balkan Males” Blog
Belgraded has discovered a blog “that's completely dedicated to good looking Balkan guys.”
Russia: More on Racial Violence
Moscow Through Brown Eyes posts more notes on racial violence in Russia.
Poland: Social Networking and Migration
the POLSKI blog writes about the popularity of Nasza Klasa, a social networking site: “And like Facebook it’s put people who haven’t seen one another for years in touch again, revealing the extent of Polish migration over the past 40 years.”
Sudan: Video Declarations on Darfur Genocide by the Perpetrators
A video recently released by Aegis Trust shows the testimony of four men who state they actively participated in the violence and massacres on Darfur, and who are not afraid to call it genocide. The video was uploaded on The Hub and it is hoped that people will see it and then pass it on to others in order to spread this information.
Bangladesh: Exploring New Markets For Manpower
Bangladesh Corporate Blog is in favor of the Bangladesh government's decision to explore new markets for the Bangladeshi manpower, “why should we remain squeezed back to back against each other in (…) one of the smallest countries of the world?”
Iran: Persian Leopard in Photo
Kosoof, an Iranian leading photoblogger,has published a photo of a “Persian leopard”. He says this animal is in danger and there is a project called ” Persian Leopard Project” to save it.
Sri Lanka: Flesh Forks
Indi.ca from Sri Lanka explains the alchemy, the reasons behind using flesh forks, the five fingers of a hand to eat a meal in the Indian subcontinent.
Pakistan: Acknowledgment At Last
CHUP! – Changing Up Pakistan reports that Pakistan has formally “acknowledged that ‘some part of the conspiracy’ behind the November attacks in Mumbai took place in Pakistan”.
Azerbaijan: General's Assassination
Thoughts on the Road comments on yesterday's assassination of Lieutenant-General Rail Rzayev, commander of Azerbaijan's air force, in Baku and speculates on possible motives for the killing.
Martinique: Bitterness after “The Last Masters”
Ever since the February 5th broadcast of The Last Masters of Martinique, a documentary about the Békés, the French West Indies have experienced the equivalent of a sociological tsunami. Bloggers and regular citizens alike are writing to express the shock, sadness and humiliation felt by many non-Béké Martinicans after watching the documentary.
Bermuda: Economic Plan?
“It’s two weeks to go until Bermuda budget day”: Vexed Bermoothes wants to know what the plan is.
Haiti, U.S.A.: She's My Daughter
“Does our obvious bond seem fake? How could she be anyone other than my daughter?”: Designer Mama relates an unsettling incident at the Canadian border as agents question the legitimacy of her adoption of a little girl from Haiti.
Trinidad & Tobago: Transitioning
“We have created a rich and wonderful culture that is unique to Trinidad and Tobago…but sometimes I wonder if we are just waiting for the bottom to drop out”: Trin ruminates on education, crime and government policy in the wider context of international politics.
Barbados: Supporting Rihanna
Living in Barbados says that Rihanna's assault “is deeply felt here as a personal beating up on many individuals”, while Cheese-on-Bread! learns that “Rihanna is back home to recover from the trauma of the past few days.”
Jamaica: Dancehall Ban
Following the broadcast ban on Rampin Shop and other sexually explicit songs, Raw Politics…Jamaica Style! thinks that dancehall must rehabilitate its public image, while Long Bench believes that while the ban should have been enforced a long time ago, now it's being done “for the wrong reasons, and under the...
Israel: “Strange” and “Complicated” Elections
Two former Prime Ministers, Benjamin Netanyahu and Ehud Barak, and Foreign Affairs Minister and Acting Prime Minister Tzipi Livni ran a tight race to win the votes of Israelis. The result is a “nail-biting poll” and an election cliff hanger, which sees Livni as a forerunner and Netanyahu a very close second. And while the election results will not be announced for days, Israeli bloggers share their thoughts on this “strange,” and “complicated” elections in this post.
Africa: Internet Revolution Is Here!
GlobalAdvances blog looks at the future of the Internet on the African continent noting that, “Bandwith to Africa is expected to grow dramatically as the continent is gaining internet connectivity faster than any other region in the world.”
Iranian Website “Balatarin” Back Online after Hacker Attack
Balatarin, which means “the highest” in Persian, is a very popular Iranian community website that was hacked on February 3, 2009. Registered users of the site post news and links, and the community votes to make content appear higher on the list. The website has been filtered on the internet in Iran since 2007.
India, Bangladesh: BIPA Treaty
The New Horizon takes a closer look at the Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIPA) between India and Bangladesh and comments: “Bangladesh should take the treaty in positive frame of mind and try to exploit the conditions as much as they can. It is the same for India.”
Japan: Tokyo gov't invites Google to discuss Street View
Blogger Hiromitsu Takagi posts a transcript [ja] of a recent open meeting [ja] organized by the Tokyo metropolitan government about Google's Street View service, introduced in major Japanese cities last summer. Google was invited to the meeting and reportedly told that, in future cases, the company should give advance notification...
Korea: Golden Blog Award
Readers can see the best blog story, best blog, funniest blog, happiest blog, angriest blog, culture blog, food blog, etc. from Korea English blogosphere at the Hub of Sparkle.
