Global Voices Online

Metroblogging Bangkok describes the event that caused the latest sporting rift between Thailand and Singapore.

Algerian blogger Lameen Souag examines the definition of the word black in the Songhay language, which is spoken in and around Timbuktu and in the Sahara.
“It would be interesting to examine the connotations of “black” in more languages,” he writes.

Arabist writer Issandr El Amrani links a story about the trial of two policemen charged with attempting to rape a woman.

Bahrain Rants encourages readers to spend their weekend slipping in new words into their conversations. This weekends gems are: Flummery, Maven and Vamoose.

Tim's El Salvador Blog takes a look at a variety of economic news stories focused on El Salvador including the rise in corn prices. That rise is also affecting Mexico, writes radio host Ana Maria Salazar: “The Governor of the Bank of Mexico, Guillermo Ortiz Martínez, said that an emergency salary rise and controlling prices do NOT solve the problem of the price hikes on basic foodstuffs. On the contrary, that would create a battle between prices and salaries.”

Ricardo Carreón laments the recent comment by Sao Paulo Mayor Gilberto Kassab which he says “poked fun” at a recent tunnel collapse which killed seven people.

Mark in Mexico, who was hospitalized himself recently for “some type of infection”, tells readers of a recent report from El Universal in which Mexico City prostitutes drug and rob their clients.

Miguel Octavio, who is now also publishing selected posts in Spanish, writes gloomily of the so-called “enabling law”: “Two days ago the Deputies of the National Assembly simply gave up their jobs and their own mandate in order to enable Hugo Chavez to rule by decree for an unheard of period of 18 months in areas that not even the Deputies knew about in detail the day they voted on it. It was indeed a sad day for democracy and freedom in Venezuela.” Fellow opposition blogger Daniel Duquenal adds, “As of today no man in Venezuelan history will have had as much power, as much discretionary power that is, with the possible exception of Juan Vicente Gomez.” Oil Wars, on the other hand, inspires a novel-length comment thread with his post “Why Chavez is so loved.” And finally, Richard Gott's argument that “Venezeula's ‘enabling' legislation is more likely to prove a path to reform than a road to dictatorship.”

Jeremy Taylor gets to the bottom of the idea being voiced by many in Trinidad and Tobago that capital punishment is a solution to the country's ills — and explains why it's not.

Christian S. Dunleavy traces the source of a Bermuda regiment official's puzzlement over the idea that new regiment recruits are required to “pee in a bag” to the blog of a regiment recruit.

Laura at the Caribbean Beat blog reminisces about Calypso Fiesta, the semi-final event of the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival's calypso competition.

Dominican hip hop blog rihiphop.com offers (ES) a free download of the complete mixtape “Pueto Pa Lo Mio”.

Though not officially affiliated with Caricom, the recently launched Caricom Blog aims to “provide information on the Caribbean Community and all related events, news, meetings and more”.

NvB: Bored in Brno? discovers a cafe that serves Middle Eastern fast food in Brno.

Traveling Life writes of the sex scandal in Poland: “Four. That's how many women have now come forward accusing the leader of the neo-communist Self-Defense party, Andrzej Lepper, of pressuring them to have sex with him. […] how many women have to come forward before the Kaczynski twins and PiS, or the “Law and Justice” party, do some justice and kick out Lepper, along with the rest of his crooked party, from the government?”

Csikszereda Musings links to a video about people and things Romania is famous for - which turns out to be nothing but a beer commercial.

Blog Bucharest points out that Romania's capital is just like any other big city - full of bad drivers and traffic jams.

Mikhail Khodorkovsky's lawyer Robert Amsterdam comments on Vladimir Putin's annual press conference and writes about Russia's energy politics.

Installment #12 of Marina Litvinenko's interview has been translated and posted at A Step At A Time.

One Missionary in Kosovo writes about the International Day of Prayer and Fasting for Kosova, marked Jan. 31.

The Golden Road to Samarqand posts two “official” recipes for Kyrgyz plov, a rice dish with onions, meat, and carrots.

Vadim rounds up the Tajik blogosphere at neweurasia.

neweurasia looks at the World Bank's implementing partner on a project to promote civil society in Uzbekistan.

Levan says that electronic music is very popular in Tbilisi at the moment and gives links to a few of the artists he finds interesting.

Burnell writes with excitement about plans to install wimax in Armenia.

Onnik Krikorian reports on a demonstration in support of Zhirayr Sefilyan, a critic of the Armenian government who was arrested in December on charges of planning a coup. Onnik says that the arrest probably has to do with the upcoming parliamentary election.

White African on the 2007 Bloggies, “There is a category for “Best African or Middle Eastern Weblog”. Someone tell me why the hell people cannot seem to separate Africa from the Middle East? It’s a different continent! Let me get this right… You can separate UK blogs from European blogs, but not Africa from the Middle East?”

Writing about Chinese investment and technology transfer in Africa, Jennifer Brea asks: will China teach Africa how to fish?

In a thought provoking piece, One Hundred and Forty Million: For every French Person, there are two Nigerians, Chippla discusses the politics of census in Nigeria.

Malagasy aty California explains (Fr) Americans' challenges with Madagascar's geography: “I often had to confirm that Madagascar is not close to the Middle East, that it is not a city, not in Europe and mostly that people don't speak Spanish there … Don't expect a correct answer when you ask Joe Smith to place Madagascar on a map.”

Peijin from Shanghaiist puts together reports on TV management: From February until August, Chinese TV “golden hours” (5-8pm) programming is going to go on moral diet, shedding excess and unwanted sex, violence, and moral degradation.

Li yin he blogs the statistics on an online opinion poll on the difference between woman and man's attitudes towards love and sexual relation (zh). The data shows 37% of male has tried commercial sexual service before.

Kamapat blogs about the recent protest of Osaka's homeless against city government's forced eviction plan (jp). There is an online petition organized by rootless.org. Interlocals.net has collected more background on the issue.

Alan Patrick of the newly named Buenos Aires Argentina Guide has already put together his eighth Buenos Aires blog roundup, including mention of a recent Clarín article about the boom of blogs in the metropolis.