Stories from 23 February 2006
Mongolia: Japan's Chingis Khan Craze
Mongolia Matters has the latest evidence of Japan's Chingis Khan craze.
Kazakhstan: Sarsenbaiuly Summary
Matt Jay has a valuable summary of the murder of the opposition politician Altynbek Sarsenbaiuly in Kazakhstan.
Kazakhstan: Investigation Heats Up
Registan.net notes that things seem to be heating up in Kazakhstan in the investigation of the murder of an opposition leader. The head of the Senate administration has been arrested in connection with the murder, and the opposition is calling for investigation of the president's daughter and her husband.
Georgia: Dangerous Destination?
Susan of SueAndNotU takes issue with Forbes listing Georgia as one of the world's most dangerous destinations.
Russia: Political Jokes
Sergey Belyakov of RUBLog posts six political jokes, which target Vladimir Putin, Joseph Stalin, George W. Bush, Richard Nixon, and Adam and Eve.
Russia: Defenders of the Fatherland Day
Russia marks Defenders of the Fatherland Day today, aka the Men's Day (while March 8 is the Women's Day). Megan Case posts a contemporary greeting card she has found in s store; Katerina at The Accidental Russophile links to the site that has Soviet postcards for the occasion; Russia Blog...
Russia: Market Roof Collapse
W. Shedd of The Accidental Russophile attempts to analyze today's collapse of one of Moscow's largest markets from an engineer's perspective. So far, 56 people are reported to have been killed, but this number is likely to grow, as many more were inside at 5:45 a.m., when the tragedy took...
Bolivia: The “Sound Mobile”
Eduardo Ávila has posted a video of his friend, Miguel campaigning in Quechua via a giant speaker attached to the roof of his car in the outskirts of Cochabamba. Ávila has also posted a picture of what he calls the “Sound Mobile:” a minivan equipped with booming speakers to get...
Pakistan: Old Photographs
Pakistan: Old Photographs
Mexico, Brazil: Showing of Brazilian Documentary on Bloggers
Alfredo Sanchez (ES) and Eduardo Arcos (ES) both post about the free showing of a Brazilian documentary about bloggers and another about cinema clubs this Saturday in Mexico City. More information about both documentaries can be found at Cine Club Bravo, the group hosting the event.
Bangladesh: Power blues
Bangladesh: Power blues
India: Indian Diplomat Speak
India: Indian Diplomat Speak
India: Illiteracy and the road ahead
India: Illiteracy and the road ahead
India: Street Harassment
India: Street Harassment
Argentina: Are you from Buenos Aires?
Santiago, an Argentinean living in Brooklyn, New York offers his surefire test of whether or not you are from Buenos Aires.
Chile: French Indie Musicians Visit
For all you fans of floating canines and euro-techno, this is one post that can't be missed. The Chilean music blog, Super 45 – Blog System says that various French artists are headed towards Chile including Manu Chao and Pascal Arbez (better known as Vitalic). Included is a video of...
Iran: Cutting Trees!
Hanouz, an Iran based journalist & blogger, talks about cutting thousands trees (Persian) in Levizan forest in neighbourhood of Tehran. According to the blogger, Tehran's municipality is cutting these trees to construct a highway. It is considered disastrous for Tehran and its air pollution.
Indonesia: Tattoo Culture
IndCoup discusses tattoo culture in Indonesia. He explains: “The revival owed much to the popularity in Indonesia during the mid 1990s of US rock bands the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Guns and Roses, both of which flaunted the sexual appeal of tattoos.”
Indonesia: Terrorist Blogger
A. Fatih Syuhud asks: “Are you the terrorist blogger?” He writes: “Blogging should be made use for advocating peace at heart and mind, not only for the sake of blogging and attracting traffic by making any provocative statements in the name of freedom of expression.”
Malaysia: Its Own Cartoon Kerfuffle
Malaysia's paper-of-record, the New Straits Times, has gotten into its own cartoon controversy after running a syndicated strip on its funny pages critiquing the Danish cartoon controversy. The government has demanded an explanation from its editors and demonstrations against the NST are apparently planned. Jeff Ooi's Screenshots has been following...
Philippines: Revolutions
Jessica Zafra reminds readers why the Philippines 1986 “People Power” Revolt, the 20th anniversary of which is ongoing, was so important, despite the subsequent disappointments and political troubles: “We were the opening salvo in the Big Freedom Blasts that began in the late 1980s and continue into this century. The...