Stories from 10 September 2011
Russia, Italy: Andrei Tarkovsky's Polaroids
Jana writes [sr] about Instant Light, a collection of 60 Polaroid photographs by film director Andrei Tarkovsky, and posts some sample photos from the book.
Lithuania: Mushroom-Picking and Basketball
Lithuania – the best! writes about mushroom-picking and basketball: “I believe that mushroom hunting is second favorite sport in Lithuania after basketball :)”
Ukraine: “The Book ‘Wot Yanukovyhc Rote'”
Vasyl Pawlowsky of uaMuzik, LEvko of Foreign Notes and Alexander Motyl of Ukraine's Orange Blues comment of Opportunity Ukraine, a new book that is said to have been written by President Victor Yanukovych.
Ukraine: Commemorating Georgiy Gongadze on Sept. 16
Україна – Ukraine blog writes [uk] about the upcoming commemorations of Georgiy Gongadze, a Ukrainian journalist who disappeared eleven years ago, on Sept. 16, 2000: on Facebook [uk], and in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities [uk].
Philippines: Lolong, World’s Largest Crocodile
A 21-foot saltwater crocodile is now under captivity in the Philippines and is believed to be the largest of its kind in the world. Animal rights activists are urging the government to release it into the wilderness. Some netizens are comparing the crocodile to corrupt politicians
Spain: Intense Political and Social Debate on the Constitutional Reform
Political and social debate in Spain has been intense these past few months. The latest news that has once again caused thousands to take to the streets in protest has been the changes to the Spanish Constitution less than three months before the general elections.
Ukraine: Photos From Sevastopol's City Hospital #1
English Russia translates LJ user aquatek-filips’ photo report [ru] from the City Hospital #1 in Sevastopol, Ukraine.
Bosnia & Herzegovina: “Dumb ‘Ha-Ha’ References” to War in Books and Movies
Amila Bosnae writes about being disturbed by the casual mentions of the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina “in random books or movies”: “But the book simply goes on, like I didn’t just get shocked right back into the ugly world where that exact war shaped my life.”
Zambia: Political Parties Campaign Online For September 20 Polls
Less than two weeks before Zambia goes to the polls on September 20, 2011, political parties have taken their campaigns beyond the traditional methods of using posters, TV adverts and radio jingles to a totally new platform—the worldwide web.
Russia, Ukraine: “PayPal’s Epic Fail”
Svetlana Gladkova of Profy writes about PayPal's erroneous announcement of the upcoming lifting of some of the limitations for users in Russia and Ukraine.
Czech Republic: Milan Kundera and Privacy Issues
At OpenDemocracy.net, James Warner writes about Milan Kundera's work and the issues of privacy in the age of totalitarianism and now, in the age of new technologies and the internet.
Tanzania: Real-time Information on Zanzibar Boat Accident
You can follow real-time information on the Zanzibar boat accident 10th Sep 2011 or send report by sending a tweet with the hashtag/s #ZanzibarBoatAccident or #Zanzibar or #Pemba.
Croatia: The Largest “Welcome” in the World
Benita Hussain of Matador Network interviews Daniel Lacko, “a sponsored outdoor adventurer writing the largest ‘WELCOME’ in the world while exploring the Croatian coastline”; Lacko's travel blog is here.
Cuba: Former Prisoners of Conscience Detained
Notes from the Cuban Exile Quarter reports that “José Daniel Ferrer Garcia was detained together with fellow former prisoner of conscience of the group of 75, Ángel Moya, Raumel Vinajera and Francisco Macias…in a sign that repression continues on the upswing in totalitarian Cuba.”
U.S. Virgin Islands: Expecting Tropical Storm Maria
News of St. John says that the center of Tropical Storm Maria is expected to pass over the island at 2 p.m. today, adding: “The Governor has declared a State of Emergency and ordered a curfew from 7 p.m. Saturday to 5 a.m. Sunday and ordered Emergency Shelters to be...
Trinidad & Tobago: Addiction Advice
“What every single one of us have found is that at some point…it stops being your decision. You lose control over it, and using becomes involuntary. Willpower has nothing to do with it at that point”: Plain Talk blogs about addiction and offers solid advice to families.
Cameroon: Hackers Worthy of the Name
Ntrjack writes [fr] in his blog: “So the youth of Cameroon have discovered the gold mine of the free Internet and everyone now wants to go online using multimedia telephones, which are getting more and more common. This in theory is not possible, because the operators restrict access, but crafty...
Egypt: Lebanese Blogger and Activist Denied Entry and Deported
Award-winning Lebanese blogger Imad Bazzi was denied entry to Egypt, detained and interrogated at the airport and deported back to Lebanon on the next flight to Beirut. Tarek Amr checks out reactions to Bazzi's ordeal.
WikiLeaks Cables on Malaysia
uppercaise reports that the 994 cables from the US embassy in Kuala Lumpur in the WikiLeaks database is now online. There are 462 unclassified cables, 438 classified as confidential, and 94 classified as secret
Reducing Corruption in Malaysia
Greg Lopez of New Mandala notes that despite the numerous anti-corruption efforts in the past years, corruption continues rise in Malaysia.
Malaysia: Service Tax on Prepaid Phones
Dr Jacob from Malaysia is opposed to the plan of mobile phone operators to pass the new 6 percent service tax to consumers.
