Global Voices Online

LJ user tropical-rat engages in some amateur anthropology regarding flashmobs in Kazakhstan.

On the appearance of Ethiopian troops in Somalia, Yebo Gogo writes: “I hope all parties will find a way to walk away before more blood is shed, but this has the potential to be a long, deadly conflict.”

Irina Petrosian discusses the omnipresence of apricots, apricot-related gossip, apricots as an indicator of inflation, and much more that has contributed to Armenia being referred to on occasion as an “apricot republic.”

Yulia comments on the release of additional details about the new agreement between Kyrgyzstan and the United States that will allow the US to keep using the Manas airfield for supporting operations in Afghanistan. She argues that it is fortunate that the issue was resolved without becoming a huge fight because the US is an important ally for Kyrgyzstan to have.

Mat Savelli of Roma Roma posts a collection of the Balkan graffiti photos: “So, while “death to all Croats!” might give the impression that, say, Mostar east of the Neretva is a relatively intolerant place, there is every possibility that this was written in 1994. That being said, the fact that some graffiti does not get covered up might say something, but its hard to determine whether it means complacent acceptance of the message by society at large, or just a lack of paint to cover the thing up.”

Vilhelm Konnander writes about the 2006 Gay Pride in Riga, which “seems to become a repetition of last year's chaos and homophobic protests in the Latvian capital.”

Wu Wei points out a positive aspect in what's happening in Ukrainian politics: “The only hopeful thing I can think of is that these days all the changing sides and bribery and “principled stands” are happening more or less under the eyes of the world and not completely in closed and smoke-filled rooms. It must be good for Ukrainians to really know what is going on.”

The Humble Observer describes a ride in a third-class Ukrainian train car, platskart: “I usually ride in second class, where the rooms have four bunks. But when there’s no tickets, I ride with the masses ride in Plat. It’s a wagon on the train with no separate rooms, just lined with bunks.”

Doug Muir of A Fistful of Euros writes about “spy kids,” one of the legacies of Romania's Communist past: “Huge flap in Romania this week, as it’s been revealed that the Communist-era secret police recruited children to spy on parents and classmates.”