Archive for
November 24th, 2008
Stories
Latin American Bloggers jump into Reality Television
Chevrolet and NatGeo have launched a reality show that mixes driving, tourism, gadgets and blogging throughout South America. On The Road Again follows 6 bloggers in 6 different countries, driving around, taking tours and documenting their experiences through streaming video, blog posts and pictures, and it will later on be featured on a NatGeo channel show. Leo Prieto from Chile writes:
Durante las próximas 6 semanas, se irán publicando en el canal de YouTube de On The Road Again y serán transmitidos por NatGeo, los “webisodios” de cada uno de los blogueros. El programa comienza esta semana, con la transmisión de mi viaje por el norte de Chile. Luego continúa con Fabio Baccaglioni (Argentina), Inti Acevedo (Venezuela), Rafael Ziggy (Brasil), Rafael Bayona/Patton (Colombia), y un bloguero por definir en Ecuador.
The following video has Leo Prieto in the abandoned mining town of Chacabuco in the deserts of Northern Chile:
Rafael Ziggy from Brazil also explains:
Fui convidado para participar de um projeto chamado On The Road Again. Esse é o nome de um serviço que será lançado em breve pela Chevrolet para compartilhar fotos, vídeos e histórias de viagens online. É destinado a viajantes, aventureiros, enfim, pessoas que gostam de pegar o carro e botar o pé na estrada.
Bloggers are already answering to the call: they have been checking out the website, commenting and living and traveling vicariously through the 5 chosen bloggers already on the site. Matias Dutto saw one of the episodes and remembered his own experience when travelling:
El episodio de Leo Prieto en la campaña On the Road Again, me hizo recordar uno de los lugares mas espectaculares: se trata de un escenario fantástico, casi irreal: San Pedro de Atacama. Ahí me quedé sin moverme casi una semana, porque se cortó el Paso de Jama - frontera con Argentina - por mal tiempo (me tocó pasar justo el invierno Boliviano) Gracias a la buena ayuda de un camionero chileno pude regresar a Jujuy, aquí mi cara de alegría y frío al mismo tiempo:
You can view Matias Dutto's picture here.
Other bloggers excited about this are those in Colombia, as they see fellow blogger Patton's updates on qik streaming video platform in real time, notified through twitter.
On this update, he tells us how he visited the house where Colombian Soccer legend Pibe Valderrama was born and raised, and he posts the video of the meeting with the Pibe's Father:
El Gerente comments:
En fin, adivinen quen fue el blogger colombiano escogido…
noo no soy yo, ya hubiese querido, pues es Patton, mentor bloguero de este espacio, el mismo que me ha dado consejos desde el comienzo y con quien se ha forjado una buena amistad…
nooo, it wasn't me, I wish, but it is Patton, blogger mentor in this media, the same one who has given me good advice since the beginning and with whom I have become good friends.
Another blogger writing about this is, for example, Maria() expresses her healthy dose of envy:
Por eso cuando en la blogocosa colombiana se supo que el mentado Patton se iba de viaje durante una semana por cuenta de Chevrolet, la gran mayoría de nosotros no pudo hacer más que morderse un codo de la envidia y desearle lo mejor en su expedición.
Already up on the program's YouTube channel are the adventures in Chile and Argentina, by Leo Prieto and by Fabio Baccaglioni and pictures are also up on their Flickr page.
This last clip is from Argentina, where Fabio rappels down a cliff face in the Andes Mountains.
Kenya: Save The Mau Forest!
Kenya's Mau Forest is one of the largest indigenous forests in East Africa, and it is under threat from slashing, burning (for charcoal) and illegal settlement. Some background on the issues at play is available on this link from Africa Science News. Bloggers are making note of the deteriorating situation and are examining the reasons for the destruction and possible solutions.
Omar Basawad of Safari Notes says: Save The Mau Forest! He asks pointed questions about the future, and includes pertinent statistics given in reports from United Nations Environment Programme.
Will the Mau Forest be saved? Kenyan leaders and politicians, in a bid for votes, have always failed in reaching an agreement on the Forest; most have always put their political interests first, than the Forests. And that's what they continue to do now.
They do this, while an environmental disaster lies in waiting. ‘Effort should be made to save the forest because it is the source of lakes and rivers. Scientific reports say Lake Nakuru will be the first to dry,' recently said the Prime Minister, Raila Odinga. Most Kenyan leaders and politicians know the dangers of not protecting the Mau Forest; but fearing in losing votes, they have always failed to act to save the Forest.
He concludes his post by saying
Isn't it about time for real action? It could be already too late; but better late, than wait for the disaster that would be.
The KenyaImagine blog provides an update of the political back and forth between members of parliament regarding the Mau Forest.
This one is heating up again. Over the weekend, a section of Rift Valley MPs endorsed the burning of questionnaires sent in from the Prime Minister's office, a task force that has been set up, and which sent the questionnaires (which questionnaires MPs declared illegal for not bearing the government's coat of arms). Today, the Minister for Culture and Heritage William ole Ntimama was at it, against his Agriculture counterpart and namesake and in support of the Prime Minister. He asked the Eldoret North MP not to think the Kalenjin of greater significance than other Kenyan communities and insisted that there ought to be no compensation for the evictions from the Mau, which evictions he heartily supported.
On the Kenya Environmental and Political news blog, Phil posts an article by Jenny Curtain that looks at forest management (and reclamation as is needed in Mau forest) as an investment opportunity. He writes,
News on Kenya’s forests were recently dominated by the eviction of squatters from the Mau forest. This may change as the country moves towards sustainable forestry. Jenny Curtain analyses the investment potential created by changes in Kenya’s forestry management and developments in the international carbon credit markets.
Part of Jenny Curtain's analysis makes the point that the key to sustainable forestry would be creating linkages between the carbon credit market and forest management. She writes that this can be accomplished by the tendering system of the Kenya Forest Service (KFS), which can take advantage of the carbon trading schemes as provided by the Kyoto protocol
If through the protection of existing forests via the new tender initiatives KFS can corner even a small piece of the voluntary carbon market, the financial and environmental rewards could potentially be enormous. This money would sustain Kenya’s forests into the future. With sensible management, the flow on benefits would be untold for both the protection of the forests and the surrounding communities. Income generated could then be used to upgrade infrastructure, replant degraded areas, fund clean energy schemes within the forests e.g. hydro electric, solar power etc. that in turn would generate more credits. Funds could also be used to resettle illegal forest dwellers within areas such as Kakamega and the Maasai Mau forests and to provide them with sustainable employment on the reforestation and other initiatives.
In another post that is marginally related to the Mau Forest, Kenvironews posts about Balancing Environmental Protection and the Community’s Socio-Economic Needs. The writer Donald Anthony Mwiturubani sees a disconnect between environmental policy makers and local communities. He advocates involving local communities in the decision making process.
Traditionally, policy and legislation formulation have been carried out at the national level without necessarily involving or holding consultations with key stakeholders including the local communities. Policy makers perceive local communities as lacking expertise to make informed decisions. This top-down approach leaves some key stakeholders unrepresented in the development agendas.
He proposes a solution to this disconnect:
There is, therefore, a need to strike a balance between the socio-economic needs of the local people and environmental protective objectives. To achieve this, full and active participation of key environmental related stakeholders, including local people at different levels of decision-making is one of the essential steps. This could be achieved through community awareness and outreach programmes in relation to environmental policies, laws and environmental protection and management in general. Thus, environmental protection and management issues need to be translated into understandable concepts for an ordinary person who often views environmental resources as gifts from God and hence her or she has the “birthright” to use them. Some crimes the local people commit against the environment may be due to lack of awareness.
Environment: SA Bloggers sound off on GMO foods.
Genetically Modified foods have been a concern for many environment bloggers in South Africa and other parts of Africa too. On this post we check in a handful of bloggers who've recently written about genetically modified (GMO) foods and seed.
Picture by Vagawi on flickr
UrbanSprout points to a report in Mail Online article that indicates lower fertility in mice fed on GM (Genetically Modified) maize
Dr Jurgen Zentek, Professor for Veterinary Medicine at the University of Vienna and lead author of the study, said a GM diet effected the fertility of mice.
One of the studies was a reproductive assessment by continuous breeding (RACB) trial, in which the same parent generation gave birth to several litters of baby mice. The parents were fed either with a diet containing 33per cent of GM maize, a hybrid of Monsanto's MON 810 and another variety, and a normal feed mix.
The team found changes that were 'statistically significant' in the third and fourth litters produced by the mice given a GM diet. There were fewer offspring, while the young mice were smaller.Prof Zentek said there was a direct link between the changes seen and the GM diet.
Regarding Monsanto (a major producer of GMO seed) UrbanSprout deadpans…
Perhaps this is the environmentally friendly benefit of using GM seed that Monsanto has been touting - they're unwittingly helping to reduce population growth!
On Relax with Dax, the blogger contemplates the topic of GM foods as a solution to world hunger. He is very careful to see all sides of the issue. He says:
We all suffer from confirmation bias to some degree, but being aware of it can help us to avoid it at least partly. I actively try to expose myself to both sides of the story, especially topics which I feel strongly about. I feel very strongly that GM foods are a danger to our future, but I try to expose myself to the other point of view. For this reason I attended a presentation at the UCT Graduate School of Business which was pro GM. It was an interesting presentation and those who attended were enthusiastic in their support (except me).
Dax gives more information about the presentation he attended, and directly challenges Prof Chassy's assertions.
Prof. Chassy himself made the point strongly that all people who are against GM foods are just uneducated rabble who have no idea what is going on and those who are pro GM foods are very intelligent scientists. Not only is this an appeal to authority, it is also completely and utterly untrue. There are more scientists than I can count who are anti GM foods. Remember, we are not talking about research into genetic modification, we are talking about allowing GM foods to be released into the environment and eaten.
Prof Chassy spent some consideral time explaining to us that we will in the future be unable to grow enough food to feed the world’s population, a fact I can agree with. However, his proposal that GM foods will allow us to grow enough food, I do not agree with. In fact this is what this post is about. I want to show that contrary to Prof. Chassy’s comment that no scientists are anti GM, it is actually scientists who are saying that GM is not a solution to the impending food crisis and that in fact, organic and sustainable farming methods are a better option.
He lists links to reports by other scientists, and concludes by saying:
If one takes the time to do some research, it becomes evident that there are many scientists which do not see GMOs as the solution to our food problems. Activists are just the people who have taken on the task of informing the public.
UrbanSprout posts an in-depth documentary review of the film ‘World According to Monsanto'
I have watched a lot of documentaries on GM foods and Monsanto and although they each have their own style and there is always some new information, they generally cover a lot of the same material. This recently released documentary is not like that. It takes a very different angle, looking at the history of Monsanto and the way it operates, rather than focusing specifically on GM foods.
The blogger asks some pertinent questions and posts a link for others to watch the film online.
So after seeing all this evidence of Monsanto's lying and test fiddling, one has to ask the question: When they say GM foods are thoroughly tested (which they are not), does that actually mean anything? Even relying on social concience would be dangerous. Surely they wouldn't let GMOs be released if they knew there were harmful effects? Well, if they can watch people dying from exposure to PCBs outside their factory, while they continue to manufacture and pollute, then they are capable of doing anything.
The very interesting thing is this, when it comes out that GM foods are responsible for environmental problems, and human health issues, guess who is going to pay to fix it? The taxpayers, that's who. Monsanto will just carry on making money while we pay to clean up their mess.
How does this make you feel?
Watch online here.
Michael Jackson ‘Converts' to Islam
The King of Pop Michael Jackson has done it again and stories about his alleged conversion to Islam are keeping blogs in the Middle East abuzz with snark comments. Is Jackson's conversion a part of an American conspiracy “to destroy Islam from within,” is it a media stunt or has he finally found his true calling?
The Skeptic from Egypt remarks:
London’s Sun and the slightly more reputable Telegraph report that Michael Jackson has converted to Islam. Both papers run photos of Jackson out and about in Bahrain, dressed in drag.
I think Run CMD said it best over email: “It’s obviously all part of a devious American plan to destroy Islam from within. Michael Jackson is working for Dick Cheney. It all makes sense now.”
From Kuwait, Loft965 notes:
According to this article, Michael Jackson has been converted. These rumors have been circulating for ages now, but this one seems to be true as all the news agencies are talking of it. It started with Jermaine Jackson and then the Bahrain residence and now his name is Mikaeel. I don’t understand why you have to change your name if you convert. It’s not mandatory. And he has the world’s most recognized name. I don’t know what to think of this but he sure looks good in a burqa (a veil which covers the face).
Some Contrast, another Kuwait blogger, also tackles the topic.
And Palestinian-American blog Kabobfest, writes about Jackson's alleged conversion and his court case with a Bahraini prince, Shaikh Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Bahraini King's son who is suing the King of Pop for $7 million. News is just out that the case has been settled out of court.
In this post, Kalash says:
You may have heard about the latest lawsuit facing Michael Jackson - a Bahraini prince paid him millions of dollars for an album and book that were never produced. What you probably didn't know is that Jacko has an ace up his sleeve…
The King of Pop converted to Islam. I've been hearing rumors ever since he started spending so much time in the Middle East, but the detail in the most recent report leaves little room for doubt. He even changed his name to Mikaeel. I guess he wasn't feeling those Jehovah's Witnesses anymore.
Jordanian blogger Kinzi responds to the post saying:
I almost blogged about this, thought it is better not coming from me.
Mabruk (Congratulations), Ummah of Islam. What a prize. Um, good luck, whoever his handler will be. Piece of work, indeed.
But American Muslim Girl adds:
you know what… I feel sorry for him and definitely he might have some, uh, issues and stuff, but…
I don't know… I wouldnt turn anyone away, especially not someone with a huge mic and many “followers.”
Closer to the action, from Bahrain, which Jackson stayed for a year and where a member of the Royal family is at the centre of the court case which has thrust back the 50-year-old pop star to the front pages of newspapers, Esra'a from Mideast Youth runs the headline: Islam wins: Michael Jackson converts.
She further adds:
This one-gloved thriller star is being sued by a local prince here for going against some “contract” and not recording songs about peace or something. Not that anyone cares what he does. But sometimes I do, because I grew up obsessing with him. Then I wasn’t sure if he was white or black or if it was “forbidden” for me to practically worship because he turned into plastic. Or a woman.
He’s apparently now converting to Islam. I am still in the “not caring” category.
Esra'a also digs up a two-year old sarcastic letter she penned two years ago, in which a fictional Jackson addresses the world. In the letter, Esra'a writes:
I’m afraid I’m legally banned from going near any playground since this whole unfortunate misunderstanding with my trousers. That story has gotten a lot of attention from the media. Speaking of the overzealous media, I don’t know why I’m surrounded with cameras all the time. I’m sure the boys and girls of Bahrain don’t want a succession of blurry photos showing me thrashing around my bedroom with a framed picture of their King.
I started wearing an abaya (black cloak women in Bahrain wear).
Our last stop is with Israelicool, from Israel, who notes:
Islam has a new, wacky recruit […] Mikaeel? Sounds more like he has converted to Russian mob boss.
But if it turns out that Jackson did convert to Islam, I wonder if he will adapt some of his old songs to conform with his new beliefs. I am guessing Beat It may be a prime contender.
Commenting on this post, TechyNews notes:
Oh no poor Islam, I am sure they didn't want Wacko Jacko to join their ranks. Also was this just his excuse to wear a Burka instead of the hospital mask to cover his face? Silly Jacko, Burkas are for Chicks.
Nicaragua: The Growing Blogosphere Through Collaboration
The following is an email interview with Alvaro Berroteran, who started the blog Nicaragua Y Su Blog [es], which has been promoting new and existing blogs in the Nicaraguan blogsophere. Berroteran lives in the city of Granada and currently works in web design, but is a painter by trade. Recently, through other web 2.0 tools, such as Twitter, Berroteran has connected with others in the Nicaraguan blogosphere to help launch a new project called Blogs Nicaragua [es].
Global Voices: When did Nicaragua Y Su Blog begin?
Alvaro Berroteran: It was about a year ago, when I started Nicaragua Y Su Blog with the intention of promoting Nicaraguan blogs. I searched and found that there was not a Nicaraguan blog directory, even though our neighboring countries had their own. I felt a little isolated, alone, and didn't know much about the blogosphere. I remember the saying, “Pedestrian, there is no road, one makes a road by walking, ” and Nicaragua Y Su Blog was born.
GV: What were some of the early blogs that you remember reading?
AB: I started with 5 blogs, including one of the more successful ones by Sergio Simpson. Under the category of Nicaraguan blogs, I started to add all the blogs that were related to Nicaragua. My attempts to create or start a Nicaraguan blog community was well received by well-known bloggers. Thanks to Byron Corrales, one can link to this blog and be a part of this community, so that we know that new bloggers exist and that they feel that they are not alone.
GV: How has the relationship been with the Nicaraguan blog community?
AB: A few months ago, I reactivated my Twitter account and little did I know that this would mean that Nicaraguan blogs would grow stronger. There I found people like Rodrigo Peñalba, Juan Ortega, Adolfo Fitoria, Elie Herrera, Igor, and others who were interested in contributing towards making my dream a reality, which is to promote and organize the Nicaraguan Blog Community.
In a year and a half, my blog has passed through some ups and downs, but also through some moments of grand satisfaction. One of these lost battles was the attempt to offer Nicaraguans a free site for blog hosting. One of these examples was blognica.com. I hope to be able to try again one day. Another of these satisfactions was the collaboration that I have received with some of the Nicaraguan bloggers, who talk about their experiences on their blog. The support for the initiative is shown by linking to one another in a blogring.
GV: What are the future plans for the Nicaraguan blogosphere?
AB: Now we are more united than ever. We created a Facebook group for the Nicaraguan blog community and we are also present on Twitter thanks to the work of Juan Ortega. However, there is still a lot to be done, and thanks to Igor, all of the Nicaraguans and the rest of the world can find out what is happening in the Nicaraguan blogosphere by visiting Blogs Nicaragua.
Syria: A Blogosphere Divided
The Syrian blogosphere has been embroiled in a heated debate over the weekend. It is a debate that is quite reflective of some of our modern disagreements as Syrians, over a wide range of basic issues: identity, religion, state and personal freedom.
The casus belli came in the form of a post, by Syrian blogger Ahmad Edilbi, that called for professional hackers to destroy Syrian blogs he deems are “immoral” [Ar]:
[…]
فاسمحوا لي إذا بتوجيه دعوة لك شخص قادر على اختراق المواقع والمدونات بأن يقوم بمراسلتي لإعطائه بعض المواقع التي تحتاج إلى تدمير ..
[…]
So allow me to invite those who are able to penetrate websites and blogs to mail me so I can send him a list of some of those sites that need to be destroyed.
The post itself caused outrage, and many of the commenters were highly opposed to such means.
The incident, until yesterday, was mostly unknown in the English part of the blogosphere - as language is one of the many lines of divide in the Syrian blogosphere.
The real debate exploded when Razan Ghazzawi quoted the post, and used it in a comparison between Syrian Expatriate, and Local bloggers [Ar]:
ما معنى ان تكون اول مدونة سورية تدعو الى الغاء زملائها في التدوين السوري مدونة محلية باللغة العربية وذات خطاب ديني؟
What does it mean to have the first blog that calls for the dismissal of its fellow Syrian blogs a local, Arabic blog with a religious narrative?
The post was picked up by a number of bloggers, and each discussed the incident from a different perspective.
Dania, of My Chaos, discussed what she feels as a religious fever sweeping the society, and in turn, the blogpshere:
I don’t mind it, after all it is freedom of expression, but some of them are sending messages of not respecting the “other” freedom of expression, and more dangerously to attacking other's freedom of expression. Can any one help me out in here to figure this thing out? Is our society heading toward the religious mentality to hypnotize itself out of a miserable reality? Is it systematic? Chaotic? A normal result of giving the freedom of religious organization to move after decades of firm controlling? is it a type of defense system against the global media hostility against Islam?What is it?!
Abu Fares, expressed his own observations on the state of the Syrian blogosphere:
The Syrian blogging movement had started as a secular/liberal outcry in the face of political totalitarianism. The early writings addressed individual freedom and liberty, attacked the unilateral decision making process of the political establishment in Syria and advanced pluralism. Generally speaking, they were mostly written in English. The recent trend, mostly expressed in Arabic, is best characterized as a sweeping current of religious zealotry. These newcomers may or may not openly oppose the political establishment but they share the common vision/dream of Islamic Revival to right what is presently wrong in this country and the rest of the world.
His post attracted a large debate, and around 37 comments, so far.
The debate was further expanded by different perspectives on the matter shared by Dubai Jazz, Abu Kareem, and Ayman Haykal [Ar].
The heated exchange clearly highlights some of the most pressing, and controversial issues that divide the Syrian society. The internet and the implications of such open mediums like blogs, the definitions of personal freedoms, and the concepts of Law and State, between the different ideological currents roughly representing a Secular and Religious outlook for the future.
The exchange also highlights how divided the Syrian blogosphere is, and how isolated each group is. This debate was almost exclusive to the bloggers who are associated with the English-language Syrian blogosphere (except for some comments on Ayman’s post [Ar]), just like the debate that took place around the first post [Ar], was almost exclusive to the Arabic-language bloggers.
While the bloggers may not represent a true quantitative image of the dynamics of the Syrian society, they do represent many of the colors and currents that are flowing, and clashing in that society.
Links for Mon, 2008-11
Osteuropablog draws attention to [GER] a gradual change of policies in Minsk - economic liberalisation, EU-rapprochement, and new approaches to legitimising political power.
Nick Wadhams was able to categorically identify the owner of the yellow hummer mentioned by GV in the post on yellow humvees and the UN procurement scandal. He posts a conclusion to the BYH saga on his blog.
Sandeep Bansal at Desicritics takes a look at the possible candidates of the next Prime Minister of India.
Light Within posts a review of today's Lahore Bloggers' Meet including pictures. CIO Pakistan has links to live blogs, twitters and videos covering the meet.
Back to Bangladesh posts some great pictures of the colorful Raash festival of the Manipuri indigenous people of Sylhet in Bangladesh. The festival is meant to celebrate the love of Radha and Krishna.
Generation Y takes a road trip to Cuba's Pinar del Rio and is even more convinced that “we have to avoid letting our tendency to forget cover up the situation…we have to go to the affected areas, deliver aid directly, and record the testimonies there. The hurricane-force winds are still blowing in the lives of these people and will not diminish because we cover our ears.”
jmc strategies, on learning that Haitian-American Patrick Gaspard is pegged to become Obama's White House Political Director, says: “Congratulations are in order for a young man who has achieved much and deserves much. Times have indeed changed in America.”
Trinidad Carnival Diary blogs about the 7 deadly sins of Carnival bands.
Uncommon Sense reports that a 19th century Cuban Brother is being beatified by the Catholic Church: “Br. Ollalo’s beatification will take place at 8 a.m. on November 29 in the Plaza de la Caridad of Camaguey, Cuba. It will be the first beatification to ever take place on Cuban soil.”
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