Archive for
January 25th, 2007
Stories
Chilean Senator Explores World of Warcraft: Scholastic Team Building or Time Wasting?
Online, multi-player games like Second Life and World of Warcraft have attracted some authentic popularity in the form of subscription-paying registered users and a disproportionate amount of hype from techno-utopian bloggers, the-next-big-thing media futurists, and sociology professors turned computer geeks. So much hype as a matter of fact that New York University Professor Clay Shirky has frequently questioned the real number of returning visitors to Second Life as well as its potential as an influential communal space and educational tool as the Internet grows up.
While some university professors, like Harvard Law School's Charlie Nesson, have been exploring the potential of multi-player online games within the academic setting, other big name bloggers like Joi Ito, Cory Doctorow, and Global Voices co-founder Ethan Zuckerman have been critical of the proprietary nature of how content is stored in the games.
While the pros and cons of multi-player games continue to be debated by cutting edge commentators, a well known Chilean author, blogger, and senator has expressed [ES] his interest in establishing a “guild” within World of Warcraft composed of multidisciplinary users from around the world.
Arabisc: Hijab-clad Doll Under Fire in Tunisia
This is Fulla, the Hijab-clad Arab Muslim adaptation of the decadent West's Barbie doll.
Our Barbie wears the Hijab (head scarf) and Islamic attire - a long dress with long sleeves. While she is a blessing to many parents in the Muslim world who are happy to see their children playing with a doll which conforms to social traditions and religious obligations, Egyptian blogger Ahmed Shokeir registers his disgust against Tunisian authorities who aren't happy with the doll and are conducting a witch hunt and confiscating it from stores.
ولكن تونس وماأدراك ماتونس ، قامت حملة تفتيشية نشطة على كل المحلات وصادرت جميع الأدوات الدراسية التي تحمل صورها بزعم أنها تحمل دعوة للباس الطائفي ، ويعلق أحد الصحفيين أن الشنط المدرسية تحمل صور فلة وبالتالي الخوف على الأطفال الصغار أن يتعرضوا للتحقيق والإستجواب من جراء حملهم للشنط
The Iranian Nuclear Crisis
The United Nations Security Council unanimously voted to impose sanctions against Iran over its failure to halt its uranium enrichment programme on December 23, 2006.
Despite the gravity of the situation, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad described the UN’s decision as unimportant and vowed to continue uranium enrichment.
As a result, tension between the US and Iran is growing and many people are worried about another war in the Middle East. Iranian bloggers have discussed this issue and share their growing concern over the future of their country.
In Forever Under Construction,we learn aboout an anti-war campaign: Enough fear.This campaign begins with individuals willing to stand up and say no. This website will collect and display photos of people from the US, Iran and other countries holding up a hand in the universal symbol for “stop!”
Elections in Serbia
The first preliminary results of the Serbian parliamentary poll arrived less than an hour after the ballots closed at 20:00 on January 21. Some started celebration while members of the parties that got less than the required 5 percent of the votes burst into despair. The Democratic Party (whose slogan is “Because life can’t wait”) lost in its stronghold, the capital city of Belgrade. The Serbian Radical Party (”50% + your vote”) didn’t win more than 50 percent of the vote, which would have enabled them to rule the country. The ruling coalition led by prime minister Vojislav Kostunica (and inspired by the slogan “Long live Serbia”) won fewer votes than in the previous election.
Jelica Grgenovic calls in with the first preliminary results during the election night (SRP):
[…] Here you are, Cesid has announced [the first results at] 21:55. Still, votes in major cities have to be counted, which could improve the results of [self-proclaimed] democratic parties. But at the end, it will not have a major impact on the overall result. [60 percent of the votes have been counted], the result would be as follows: SRS (28,5%), DS (22,9%), DSS (17%), G17+ (6,5%), SPS (6,1%) and the coalition gathered around LDP (5,0%) […].
Dule Nedeljkovic sparks up a dilemma. Will the current PM and the president agree about the Prime Minister position? He states (SRP):
[…] I foresee new elections. There is no chance to have [Vojislav] Kostunica and [Boris] Tadic agree about PM position. That is at least what I think. […]
Aleksandra Mitrovic replies:
I can’t really understand how they are not ashamed to organize elections over and over again, to spend enormous amounts of money, especially when we have the same people with identical stories. They all rotate political functions, outcome doesn’t change. It would be interesting to check how expensive every election campaign has been. I would sum up the money. One could realize it would be better to spend that money on pensions, improvement of social care and other necessary things… it is sad to hear about all the wasted money. The majority of my friends from Serbia hope I will change my mind and get beck to my home country …but… I would not like to be ruled by these creatures. I can’t see any reason for celebration… […]
Ukraine: Two Years of Yushchenko's Presidency
Two years ago, Dan and Lesya McMinn of Orange Ukraine were among hundreds of thousands of people who came to Kyiv's Independence Square (Maidan Nezalezhnosti) on Jan. 23 to listen to Victor Yushchenko's inaugural speech. As many others, they had to overcome quite a few obstacles to catch a glimpse of the event. They took pictures of the crowd and wrote this, among other things, in the captions:
[…] We all had to take these circuitous routes in search of a view because there were so many people we were unable to get close enough to see by walking up the main street.
[…] at one point we scrambled up this icy slope over crumbling ruins. What's life and limb at such a great moment in history?
[…] What was amazing is that the great hordes of us were all wandering along back streets blocked to all foot traffic on a number of sides. That this many people were traveling the side paths can give you an idea about how many were on the major routes.
The second anniversary of Victor Yushchenko's inauguration ceremony went largely unnoticed this past Tuesday, overshadowed by the bitter power struggle and a buildup of disillusionment over Yushchenko's “failed presidency,” as Abdymok, a Kyiv-based journalist and blogger, called it in a laconic anniversary posting.
South Asia: Human rights, blogosphere, traditions, democracy, discrimination, travel and festivals
Picks from different blogs from the following South Asian Countries:
Bangladesh:
After 5 years detention in Guantanamo, one Bangladeshi (Mobarak) was recently released by the US authorities. However he was arrested again by Bangladesh Airport police for interrogation as soon as he arrived in Dhaka. Naeem of Drishtipat blog is surprised by silence of the Bangladeshi bloggers about Mobarak's case. He asks:
Are we silent because he is religious, trained at a madrassa, therefore falls outside our human rights box? Is it because we are afraid to take on cases that confront US foreign policy?
Angelmorn informs about “the Dhaka project” a wonderful initiative taken by an airhostess of the Emirates Airlines to help the under privileged in Dhaka.
Ershad Ahmed writes on the intriguing traditions and cultures of Henna/Mehendi and its importance in the Indian sub-continent.
Mezba coins a Desi Marriage FAQ For Dummies.
Bhutan:
Diva of the Kuzu-Bhutan Weblog describes how Bhutan is dancing on its way to democracy.
Pedup is not happy with the recent bans imposed by (more…)
Links for Thu, 2007-01
Blog Politique du Senegal is worried (Fr)about imports from China “flooding” local markets: “China has extremely low production costs … By opening its doors wide to Chinese products, Senegal is preventing itself from developing a national production. Meanwhile, the country's industrialization is the only means of providing work to thousands of under- or unemployed youth.”
Says L'Odyssee de Tattum (Fr): “Our national webmaster, Hery, has struck again! And it's all for the better! He redid and finalized the Wordpress in Malagasy project begun by [blogger] Many to come up with: Blaogy.org, a new blogging platform powered by Wordpress.”
Puerto Rican writer Elidio La Torre-Lagares posts two interesting poems in English.
Melody at the Belize News Blog encourages readers to download the latest issue of the recently launched Belize Independent Newspaper, which is devoted to the emergence of new political parties in Belize and the challenge they represent for the two-party status quo.
Kenny Sia is asking his readers to assist in the flood relief efforts in Southern Malaysia. “Getting hit by the flood is bad, but getting hit by the flood twice in a week is even more suay. While we're wondering where to go for a night out drinking, those kids affected by the flood are wondering how they're gonna even go to school when all their belongings are washed away.”
Robert Frische at Cricketwukup.com remembers a calypso written by a Barbadian singer in honour of great West Indies cricketer Desmond Haynes, who, near the end of his career, was both passed up for the captaincy and dropped from the team. You can hear the song as well — an MP3 is attached to the post.
The New Mandala links to a story from from the Boston Phoenix about the conflict in Lao between the US backed Lao Army forces and North Vietnamese backed Phathet Lao. The story was first published in 1972 and features a Lao Army officer talking about the lack of morale in the army to fight fellow Laotians.
Attillah Springer confesses to a sense of unease as the organiser of today's national shutdown in Trinidad and Tobago is charged under the country's anti-terrorism act.
The Arabist reported today a Human Rights Watch plea to the Saudi monarch urging him to stop presecuting Ahmadis. According to the letter, “Saudi Arabia has so far arrested 56 non-Saudi followers of the Ahmadi faith, including infants and young children, and deported at least 8 to India and Pakistan.”
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