Stories from 14 September 2010
India: The Silver Tsunami
“Unlike in the rich world geriatric care in India is virtually non-existent,” informs Proloy Bagchi. The blogger fears that India awaits a tsunami of old people and they will be in a lot of problems.
Bangladesh: Four days without newspaper
Journalist and Blogger Mahadi Hasan Talukder reports that due to Eid holidays no newspaper has been published in Bangladesh from last Friday to Monday. This may be a good opportunity to get into the habit of reading news online by many.
USA: “Science Blogging” Goes Global, Gains Respect
A global online community of scientists have recently emerged as an influential and important contributor to worldwide journalism about science. They have grown more sophisticated in their communications, now catching the attention of journalists who were previously dismissive of citizen media about science.
South Asia: Media Mentions Of Neighbors
Using Google search A random walker seeking cloud patterns analyzes how the news media of South Asian countries pay attention to their neighbors.
Portugal: Students Demand Social Action in Higher Education
Clube dos Pensadores [Thinkers Club, pt] blog comments on the opening ceremony of the Portuguese school year today, with the Prime Minister Sócrates and Minister Gago, when a group of students stormed the stage and read a statement against the 400% increase of tuition fees in higher education, in the...
Venezuela: 5 Reasons to Vote on the Upcoming Parliamentary Elections
Alejandro Tarre lists [es] five reasons why Venezuelans should vote on the September 26 parliamentary elections.
Colombia: Blogger Censored, Asked to Remove Content
Tomáz, in his blog Mundo Graficador, shares [es] and reacts to an email he received from the legal representative of someone he had talked about in his blog. In the email, the legal representative asks Tomáz to remove the content where he was allegedly using the name and image of...
Bolivia: City of Cochabamba Celebrates its Bicentennial
Coinciding with the bicentennial celebration [es] of the city of Cochabamba, in 200 words Fadrique Iglesias writes [es] about his thoughts on freedom, development and what he hopes will happen in the next 200 years.
Mexico: Celebrating the Bicentennial in the Middle of Chaos
This year Mexico will commemorate the bicentennial of its Independence from the Spanish Crown and the centennial of its Revolution with an extensive program of events. Although this year is meant to be special, some Mexicans consider that amid the problems the country is facing the money the government is spending on the celebrations could be used on other important issues. Mexicans have shared their thoughts on the bicentennial celebrations through the web.
Cuba: Cutting 500,000 Jobs
On the heels of Fidel Castro's admission (and subsequent retraction) that the Cuban economic model no longer works, the government has announced [ES] that it intends to cut massive numbers of state jobs, in an effort to breathe some life into the island's struggling economy. Cuban bloggers discuss the measures.
Trinidad & Tobago: Happy Birthday, Alice Yard
Pleasure says of Alice Yard's fourth anniversary: “The contribution of this space, at formal, anecdotal and social levels, cannot be underestimated. It has been a place for the arts, in a country where the arts are all too often left bereft.”
Barbados: Charges Laid
Barbados Free Press reports that murder charges have been laid against two young men in the recent robbery/firebombing incident.
Bermuda: Eye on Igor
Bermuda Blog is keeping its eye on Hurricane Igor.
Cameroon: Classic Makossa Music Blog
Dibussi reviews Makossa Original, a blog “which profiles the major Makossa acts and albums from the 1970s and 1980s, spicing it all up with pictures of rare and long-forgotten album covers and mp3 downloads of some of the greatest Makossa oldies.”
Africa: Can An African Tech Entrepreneur Change the World?
“Can an African tech entrepreneur change the world?,” Bill Zimmerman asks: “I chose to address the acute need for creating enabling environments on the ground for new technology companies, the present lack of seed-stage financing to fund their growth and opened with the ambitious question, Can an African tech entrepreneur...
Ethiopia: Ethiopia's rich history, legend and culture
Justin discusses Ethiopia's rich history and culture on travel blog:”One of the first places we went was to Addis Ababa University, the site where Haile Sellasie's former palace was located. We were able to go into his former bedroom and even his bathroom. Haile Sellasie was the former emperor of...
Zambia: I Blog to Remind Zambians Who They Are
Mwata Chisha is a Zambian blogger based in the United States of America. His blog is called Cultural Intelligence: Philosophies and Personal Opinions of Mwata Chisha. Mwata uses his blog, among other things, to analyse statements and actions of political leaders on a “rational—irrational” scale.
Russia: Officials Embrace Twitter. By mistake
Yelena Osipova reviews some notable examples of the use of social media by Russian politicians.
I Paid A Bribe: An Endeavor in India
“Bribed? Didn't bribe? Powerless? Victimised? Angry?" I Paid a Bribe is encouraging citizens in India to tell their stories of bribery and corruption and is using these stories to identify the most corrupt departments and processes in the country.
Brazil: Story of a Free Store and Ethonomia
João Perdigão tells the story of Loja Grátis [Free Store, pt] in Belo Horizonte, a place where “anyone can take something away and not necessarily leave something in exchange”. Brazilian artist Junia May, says that exchange practices reflect a new economic awareness, and introduces the concept of ethical economy, or...
Paraguayans, their paramours and the MP7
I host a radio show in Asunción, Paraguay’s capital. Every Friday afternoon I ask my listeners for real stories, to help them relax in this city’s traffic. And it was during one of these Friday-afternoon call-ins—I had asked about technology that helps cover up unwanted tracks—that I first heard about Chinese dual-SIM mobile phones.
