Stories about English from February, 2012
Bermuda: Economic Debate
“This Friday parliamentarians will hold the annual economic debate against the backdrop of a sustained global recession and two competing views about how to get out of it”: Respice Finem debates the value of austerity measures as opposed to economic stimulus.
Cuba: Worry about Hunger Striker
Uncommon Sense hopes that political prisoner Ernesto Borges’ fate will not go the way of so many other hunger strikers, saying: “He needs you to learn his story and to spread it so that his life can be saved.”
Jamaica: Nicknames
Grasshopper Eyes The Potomac blogs about Jamaicans and their nicknames, explaining that it's an eccentricity with “meaning and real origins that mark a key characteristic of a person or their background.”
Barbados: Leap Day
B.C. Pires “couldn’t let the leap day go unobserved”.
Macedonia: Skopje's Pollution Monitoring Saga Continues
NGO Greenbox is compensating for the lack of web interface for the air pollution measuring system in Skopje by posting photos of the display on their blog. Filip Stojanovski writes about the initiative.
Russia: Great Lent Has Begun
Citizen media outlets have captured the multidimensional essence of the Russian Orthodox Lenten season, which began on Monday, including issues such the religiosity of post-USSR Russia, the liturgical calendar, the peculiarities of the Orthodox traditions and fasting rituals compared to those observed in the West, and the public statements made by prominent church officials.
Slovakia: Chuck Norris Bridge
In the situation when the U.S. action film star Chuck Norris leads in the public vote for the name of the bridge across the Morava River into Austria [en], blogger Ondrej Horváth recommends [sk] asking Mr. Norris before making the final decision, because otherwise it is possible that the bridge...
Bangladesh: Boycotting Indian Products to Protest Brutality at Border
Indian Border Security Forces have killed more than 1,000 Bangladeshis in the last ten years. Some bloggers have started a campaign to boycott Indian products and services on March 1, 2012, to protest.
Paraguay: An Interview on the Land Conflict in Alto Parana
Landowners are opposing review of land titles in the department of Alto Paraná “to determine if the lands are ‘ill-gotten,’ whose title deeds could be forged or faked or simply seized from the times of the Stroessner dictatorship” Ignacio Cirio explains. Upside Down World published a translation of Cirio's interview...
Zambia: Ban Ki-moon Calls on Nation to Respect Gay Rights
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon visited Zambia on 24 February; he addressed parliament, met key political figures and visited the Victoria Falls. None of these events have made as much news as his call on the nation to respect gay rights.
Thailand: Facebook Blamed for Teen Pregnancies
Netizens in Thailand react to the report of the National Economic and Social Development Board that popular social networking site Facebook is partly to blame for the unwanted teen pregnancies in the country. Thailand has one of the highest rates of teen pregnancies in the world.
Taiwan: Say No to Ractopamine Tainted American Meat
Ractopamine, a leanness-enhancing feed additive, is banned in Taiwan and more than 150 other countries. However, under pressure from the US government, the newly elected Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou is now considering lifting the ban.
Armenia: Sumgait Pogrom Anniversary
The Armenian Observer posts the harrowing details of at least 26 ethnic Armenian victims of the Sumgait pogrom which took place on 27 February 1988 and which seriously escalated the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh. Six Azerbaijanis were also killed in the inter-ethnic...
Azerbaijan: Khojaly Massacre Anniversary
As Azerbaijanis worldwide, as well as Turks in Istanbul, commemorated the 20th Anniversary of the Khojaly massacre, the most serious during the fighting with Armenia in Nagorno Karabakh during the early 1990s which left 613 civilians dead, Tamada Tales comments on the release of the full transcript of an interview...
International Mother Language Day in Francophone Regions
February 21st is International Mother Language Day. Discussion of the origins of this celebration, and a brief review of current developments in French language and new technologies.
Russia: An Overview of the Pre-Election Anglophone Blogging
Below is a quick overview of what some of the Anglophone Russia bloggers have been writing during the busy pre-election month of February.
Uruguay: Scenes From the Longest Carnival in the World
Every year, Uruguayans celebrate the longest carnival in the world. Percussionists, dancers and musical and theatrical performers take center stage for over 40 days. Sites and blogs dedicated to the event keep netizens around the world informed on the different aspects of carnival, while bloggers share photos, videos, and thoughts on this celebration of culture and heritage.
Cuba, USA: Blogger Perspectives on the Embargo's 50th Anniversary (Part 1)
The United States' economic embargo against Cuba has been in existence for 50 years. To mark the occasion, Global Voices interviews two bloggers about the blockade and what it has (or hasn't) accomplished. This is Part 1, in which Cuban diaspora blogger Alberto de la Cruz shares his views.
Sri Lanka: Abductions On The Rise In Sri Lanka
Groundviews reports that there has been a disturbing rise in the number of abductions in Sri Lanka, especially in and around the capital, Colombo.
Pakistan: Congratulating Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy
Hina Safdar At Chowrangi celebrates the Oscar award winner, the internationally renowned Pakistani documentary filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy. She won the award for her documentary ‘Saving Face, which is based on the story of acid attack survivors.
India: Cheap Tablet, Unaffordable Mistake
Nitin Pai at The Acorn posts an in-depth analysis on the controversies related to the $35 Aakash tablet PC.