Stories from 18 March 2010
Global: Furs And Fashion
Last month the fashion world went literally “wild” during the unveiling of fall collections. They had models strutting the catwalk in so much fur, it was scary enough to make animal rights activists and environmentalists jump out of their skins.
Bangladesh: The China Card
J Rahman at Mukti shares his cautious optimism about Bangladesh Prime Minister's ongoing China trip.
Slovenia: Minister arrested by police
Sleeping with Pengovsky comments on the recent arrest of Slovenia's minister of agriculture by the country's National Bureau of Investigation.
India: Masters, Not Representatives
Amit Verma at India Uncut comments on the news that garlands of thousand-rupee notes were presented to a political leader in India: “this kind of behaviour demonstrates, yet again, how our politicians believe that they are our rulers, and not our servants.”
Bangladesh: Climate Change
Anirvan Chatterjee at Year Of No Flying lists six things you need to know about Bangladesh regarding climate change.
St. Lucia: Literary Festival
Caribbean Book Blog is excited about St. Lucia's upcoming WORD ALIVE International Literary Festival, “the first full-scale international literary event of magnitude to be held in the island.”
Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago: The Law is an Ass
From Barbados, B.C. Pires comments on the political goings-on in Trinidad and Tobago, saying, “There is only a small difference between prosecution and persecution.”
Trinidad & Tobago, Guyana: Miss Tourist
Lifespan of a Chennette goes “touristing” in Guyana's capital city.
Bermuda: Lack of Confidence
“I don’t think anyone has any real confidence that Government will act to restrain its spending, or plan to work down the debt without strangling the community with taxes”: Bermuda's budget debate has eroded Vexed Bermoothes‘ confidence.
China: Confession of a ‘Second Generation Migrant Worker’
China’s hukou system, adopted in 1958 to control population movement, has long been criticized for tying the population to their place of origin. With the mass migration of rural workers to China’s cities and coastal regions, the system is under the spotlight. One blogger airs his grievances.
Ukraine: Differing views of the Orange revolution
The Ivanov Report presents a very critical comment on an essay about the Orange revolution by Keith Gessen in The New Yorker.
Iran: Opposition leader used You Tube for New Year Message
Mir-Hussein Mousavi, one of Iranian opposition leader, and his wife, Zahra Rahnavard, used You Tube to deliver his new year,Noruz, message. He called Iranian people will face very difficult economic situation next year and country has been very isolated in international community. He praised “Green Movement” [Iranian opposition movement] and...
Chile: Tu Sunami jabs at President, quakes and aftershocks
From Chile, a video mashup by tintoweno mixes McHammer, Storm Troopers and the Chilean president Sebastián Piñera as comic relief: adding humor to the tense situation lived in Chile as they still experience very strong aftershocks after the February 27th 8.8 earthquake. The video's name, Tu Sunami refers the President's ...
Iran: Jailed blogger's mother called to release his son
Several news sites reported that Hossein Derakhshan's mother has called on the head of Iran's judiciary to release her son for the Iranian New Year, or Norouz, marked on March 21. Hossein, has been in your prison for more than 500 days. And we have been waiting for him outside...
Blogging about the Caribbean's Repeating Islands
An interview with Ivette Romero-Cesareo and Lisa Paravisini-Gebert, the scholar-bloggers behind Repeating Islands, a blog that covers Caribbean literature, art, and culture and cuts across the region's language barriers.
Saudi Arabia: Call to Demolish the Grand Mosque
“Shiekh (?) Yousuf al-Ahmad from Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University in Riyadh has shamelessly called for demolishing of the Grand Mosque in Makkah and rebuilding it in a way that prevents women from mingling with men during tawaf and prayers,” reports Saudi Jeans, who links to the video in...
Saudi Arabia to mark Earth Hour
“On March 27, Saudi Arabia will take part in Earth Hour by switching off power for an hour,” announced the SaudiEmbassyUSA on Twitter.
Nigeria: “Enough is Enough!” youth march on the capital
On Tuesday, March 16, thousands of Nigerians marched on the capital, Abuja, to show their frustration with the woes that continue to besiege the country. This sort of protest has not been a common feature of the Nigerian political scene, at least not in this decade, though the demonstration is one of several that have taken place this year.
Bloggers’ opinions about technology and football
Despite the dramatic advances in technology, The International Football Association Board has rejected the introduction of goal-line technology during 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
Senegal: RIP Mahaman Traor
The Senegalese film director and one of the founders of the Pan-African Film festival [FESPACO], Mahaman Johnson Traor is no more.
South Africa: What are your rights when stopped at a roadblock?
Emma discusses the rights of drivers when stopped by traffic police in South Africa.
