Archive for
April 5th, 2007
Stories
Bloggers in India Mourn the Untimely Death of Shakti Bhatt
Delhi-based journalist-blogger Jai Arjun Singh has posted excerpts from his informal interview with Shakti, in which her informed-yet-inclusive, warm-hearted attitude towards writers and readers comes alive -
I'm not the first to say that we could do with more narrative non-fiction. It's easier said than done, because writers need advances for research and travel, and few Indian publishers are willing to fork out that kind of money. One can argue that it would be money well spent, especially if they have a marketing plan to back it up, and that bigger publishers should be more open to taking a risk, if there is one. It is a genre that deserves to be encouraged also because of the scarcity of creative journalism in India.
Mumbai-based journalist-blogger eM - who many believe to be the next big thing in Indian chick-lit - has written a moving post on her friendship with Shakti -
When I think of her, I think of sitting in her living room watching her hula hoop, backwards and forwards, smiling, her hips working, her arms outstretched. “You're a lucky man,” I told her husband once, with all sorts of hidden innuendos at that hula hooping and he smiled at me and said, “I know.”
Delhi-based writer-blogger Nisha Susan has written about (more…)
Panama: Bocas Dolphins Under Threat, and Non-Lethal Personal Security Devices in Panama.
#1: From The Noriegaville News, Bocas Dolphins Under Threat :
My own opinion of this project is it is simply a commercial venture using and probably abusing the natural resources of Panama. The continued use of the buzzword abundance in their proposal confirms my feeling. How do you increase abundance by removing the dolphins from the bay? I agree that dolphins are not an endangered species as I have sailed through schools of thousands off Venezuela and on the
Eastern Caribbean. However, there is not an overabundance of dolphins in Dolphin Bay.
The few dolphins there are like pets to the local population and they are very disturbed, deservedly, about their possible loss. Read the complete story…
#2: From Panama Guide, Non-Lethal Personal Security Devices in Panama :
Compared to many parts of the United States it's relatively easy to obtain a permit to legally carry a handgun in Panama. From personal experience I know that carrying a handgun for self defense is usually a bad idea, especially in a foreign country and I strongly suggest you think twice before you go that route. If you produce the weapon and draw a bead your next decision might include taking another human life. There are, however, viable alternatives. Continue reading…
#3: MsABCMom on Schools in Panama:
Swahili Blogosphere: Blogging against Freedom of Information Bill, African unity, and How many other dictators are out there?
The extraordinary summit of the Southern African Development Community leaders in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania is over, but the debate over the Zimbabwe's government's crackdown on opposition still lingers on. As usual, when Zimbabwe's political crisis dominates news headlines so do the opposing views of the situation.
What do Swahili bloggers and their readers have to say about Zimbabwe?, Photoblogger Muhidin Issa Michuzi posts photos of the Southern Africa leaders as they arrive in Dar Es Salaam for the summit. Mugabe's photo leads to a heated debate about Mugabe's tactics of suppressing the oppostion, his portrayal in the media and Zimbabwe's land redistribution program.
One reader condemns Mugabe's dictatorial tactics:
Hata mie nakuunga mkono kuwa Mugabe anachemsha kwa kumdunda Morgan Tsvangarai na wapinzani wengine. Inaonekana anaendesha ubabe na kutoa “news” kwa mataifa ya magharibi.
Swala la Mashamba-ni haki kuyagawana kwa walio wengi sio kuwaachia walowezi wachache. Tatizo linakuja kama unachukua mashamba na kugawia watu ambao hujawatayarisha kuyatumia kikamilifu. Tunaambiwa kuwa sasa hivi Zimbabwe kuna njaa sana kutokana na hili zoezi-sijui kama ni kweli au ni propaganda za BBC na vyombo vya habari vya magharibi.
Mie siungi mkono viongozi kukaa sana madarakani-nchi yeyote duniani. Naipongeza Tanzania kwa kuweka katiba inayolinda kipindi ambacho mtu anaweza kuwa raisi (miaka kumi inatosha!). Huyu Mugabe amekaa mno bwana-halafu amezeeka. Mbona mwenzie Mandela alikaa kidogo akaachia ngazi?? Ukomavu wa kisiasa lazima uandamane na kung'atuka kutoka madarakani katika muda muafaka.
And lastly, I do not support the idea of leaders staying in power for a long time. I congratulate Tanzania for upholding the constitution with a maximum of only two terms (ten years limit) for presidency. Mugabe has stayed in power for too long, after all he is too old. Why do you think Mandela stayed in power for a short period of time? Political maturity must go hand in hand with stepping down at the right time.
Arabeyes: Pictorial Tour of the Middle East
American couple BSS and BRN, who live in Al Ain, in the UAE, have been busy clicking photographs of their new surroundings, bringing us up close and personal with the beauty of the architectural marvels they see around them.
A special interest is posting pictures of mosques on their blog, which showcase the elaborate architecture and design such places of worship boast. Altogether, BRN has so far posted images from seven different mosques in the town, which is about 120km away from Dubai.
In nearby Saudi Arabia, blogger Mohammed Fares takes us on yet another adventure into the heart of the desert. This time he takes us to Jebel Baloum - a mountain which is 1045m above the ground at its highest peak and which belongs to the Tuwaiq mountain range. (more…)
Links for Thu, 2007-04
Adamu reports that Hayao Miyazaki's new animation, “Ponyo on the Chiffs” is scheduled to be released in summer 2008. The production is completely hand-drawn, with no computers used whatsoever.
Hisane Masaki from Ohmynews reports on the recent merge of two oil companies into Inpex Holdings to prepare for entering the global market.
Marie Mockett from Japundit introduces a new book, Kickboxing Geishas, about contemporary Japanese women's role in changing the society.
Poet Tinashe Mushakavanhu has been compared to Dambudzo Marechera. eshuneutics disagrees: The gaps are more to do with a poet learning a visual syntax whereas the breaks in Marechera are a psychological terrain that has to be crossed with a struggle, with effort, with full engagement by the reader. I find Mushakavanhu’s poetry to be interesting, but to draw comparisons with Marechera is misguided: the obvious comparisons—beyond the fact that both have connections with Zimbabwe—are really quite spurious and detrimental to a developing poetic talent.
Kumekucha reveals what he calls “two anti-Kikuyu” constitutional amendments in Kenya, “Moi and his cronies introduced the constitutional amendment requiring a president to garner at least 25 per cent of the votes cast in 5 provinces out of the total of 8 as an extra safety valve and precaution against losing the presidential elections. This amendment was clearly targeted at the feared Kikuyu vote in the opposition. The arithmetic clearly showed that a Kikuyu candidate who could get the support of the entire community was capable of getting enough votes to win the presidency. This is further evidence that Moi must have rigged both the 1992 and 1997 elections in his favor. The truth is that Matiba won in 1992 and Kibaki won in 1997.”
A sign of order and normalcy in Hargeysa, the capital of the Republic of Somaliland.
Le Blog du Congolais posts an article by Freddy Lokolongo stating [Fr]: “The events of Bas-Congo and more recently attacks on the homes of ex-Vice President Bemba … with the complicity of [United Nations Mission to the Congo] MONUC, do not even begin to display the extent of the plot originated by the international community … and of which Kabila [and others] are the leaders.”
Commenting on a news story about GEDIMEX, a food distributor who refuses to halt its alleged sale of rotten rice, Collectif Haiti de Provence writes [Fr]: “One wonders how one can store food to its rotting while thousands starve … No investigation by authorities will uproot GEDIMEX. Favors here, resounding favors there and the story will be quickly forgotten.” The story about GEDIMEX broke amidst a general crackdown on retailers of expired food near destitute violence ridden areas of the capital by the government.
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