Blogging the democratic revolution
Nathan from The Argus has got some great commentary regarding the Bush inauguration speech. I don????????t know how to say it other than to once again say that democratization isn????????t new. Talking about it is. Doing it is bipartisan. Publicly supporting it seems to be something the right is much more concerned about. And why do I don the ideologue????????s gloves, something I rarely do here? Because praktike points to this Senate plan as an alternative to Bush????????s foreign policy vision. All I can really say in praise is that it is gloriously imprecise, tells a wonderful fairy-tale in the…
Mora has a great article over at Babalu Blog. It’s about how while most all countries have the internet, that luxury does not exist in Cuba, so it’s almost impossible to communicate to the inside. Also, very interestingly, she has found a publishing house that produces the works of Cuban writers who would otherwise not be able to get their work out. Take a look.
I think this has literally been the most mind-blowing article I’ve read today. Not because it is anything I didn’t know already, but because it’s being reported as the front story on CNN’s website. Although most say they don’t know who the candidates are or where to go to vote, they say they will vote come January 30. That doesn’t sound so much different from the U.S. Except that they’ll actually be voting. What a cool step forward for this country.
Miguel Octavio notes some interesting graffiti in Caracas today. A Chavez no le gusto el Rice de Condoleezza (Chavez didn????????t like Condoleezza????????s Rice) . I laughed, so I had to post it. But for something more worthwhile to read, check out this post on how ths Venezuelan Supreme Court is smashing democracy there.
Check this out. It’s an interview with ZUBR, and can give you a basic overview of what it’s all sbout.
I like to get the updates from the blogs in Ukraine so that we can see their commentary. But with the inauguration, there has been so much that I simply can’t keep up. So I’ll be putting it all here. Discoshama has a lot: –01/26 update along with 01/25 update. –More nonsense from the Euro Left on Ukraine. –Note to Western Journos – — Ukraine is not a Russian Province. –Another reason to love Yushchenko. Meanwhile, Neeka blogs like a madwoman as well: –PIces of conversation between Yushchenko and Putin. –Another criticism of an NYT article on Ukraine and a…
The new NGO “Friends of Democracy” website has been setup, and they collect news from locals in Iraq. Very cool stuff. But what I like even more is that they have photos!
Chrenkoff did some statistics analysis of negative media coverage in Iraq. And just like he thought, the bad is oft more told than the good.
Scott Clark has several articles up at the moment about how Russia’s hostile business environment is further crippling the country. Judging from the articles, I don’t think Putin cares. He just wants to hit the big companies for as much as he can in taxes. The government taking and redistributing a la communism, however, is simply not economically sustainable. He is finding himself in a bigger mess the more he attacks business and the more allies he loses to the west of him. And what is the answer? Free markets and civil liberties? No, couldn’t be!
Hossein Derakhshan is reporting that Orkut and Yahoo! Messenger will possibly be banned in Iran. This, coupled with all of the other internet shutdowns, shows a real fear among the regime there of the communicative power of the web. They can close their borders, but ideas like liberty transcend any kind of oppression; it’s practically born in us. The internet just helps connect these people, and this ability to organize is something the mullahs feel they need to scratch out. He also has some good comments about lifting the embargo on Iran. I agree. Killing trade actually helps oppressive regimes…
The blogger from Democracy In Iraq (Is Coming) has posted his thoughts on the recent Zarqawi “declaration of war.” He says that democracy is evil, and that it goes against Islam. Of course, in his version of Islam everyone you disagree with must be killed, he doesn’t really follow Islam, but facism, the problem is that he is too stupid to distinguish the two. … I would like nothing more than to hear tommorow that he has been captured and decapitated just like so many of his victims. Even if he continues to live he will never win. He should…
John at Crossroads Arabia strongly recommends an article that relates many facts about the temporary city of two million, Haj. I haven’t been able to read it yet, but anything he recommends tends to be good stuff.
Blog de Connard has a rather… strange picture of some Russian pension protesters dancing in the metrograd.
Abdymok has some great photos from Yushchenko’s inauguration. And comparatively, there are quite a few of Yulia Tymoshenko. Hey ladies! (Who is that on the left? Anyone?) Beautiful. That’s just a sampling. Check it out.
David McDuff has more news about the pension protests going on in Russia. But what I found even more interesting was his reflective thoughts on his Russian studies and his own thoughts on totalitarianism while the Soviets were in power. Since for someone from a Western democracy it’s almost impossible to understand cognitively the reality of the fabric of life in a totalitarian state, a Westerner????????s memories of contact with that fabric are almost always bound to be selective, personal and subjective to an extent that may make them irrelevant in terms of historical truth. Yet I believe that since…
More on the the Washington election fraud and how the blogosphere uncovered it.
Dan McMinn over at Orange Ukraine has got his inauguration photos up in two different galleries. The first gallery, obviously, are the inauguration photos! But with this an era does come to an end. Even though the work of the Orange Revolution will go on, here are pictures of the tent city before it eventually comes down. On another note, he does have a write-up of the recent announcement of Tymoshenko as PM and Yushchenko’s trip to Russia. And a history of the two in the Kuchma government, with many sources to back it up. Best of luck to all…
Over at Powerline, they are reporting on the latest from the Washington debacle, in which up to 3,000 felons, dead people, and those not eligible voted. Even though the Republican candidate won two recounts, the Democratic won the last hand-recount. And honestly, not only do I find that fishy, but the fact that they are willing to ignore the fraud is worse. This is really irritating to me. It has been going on for awhile now, but like Powerline says, it is only just finally getting attention in the mainstream media. They can’t hide from it anymore. Ukraine got a…
I have recently been in discussion with a couple of fellow bloggers over an idea I had to make this site run both more efficiently and at a higher level of content. Since there are only twenty-four hours a day — most of which I cannot dedicate to the blog — there is no way that I can possibly read all the news, all the blogs, link to them, and comment on them. It’s impossible. So what I’m proposing is to make this blog a “moderated open-source,” so that instead of me having to search for what all of the…
Babalu Blog is talking about it here. Chavez has apparently just signed into law a land reform decree that would reallocate farmland. Not good. And Gustavo Coronel has a new essay up regarding Chavez’s oil policy, which is illogical and in conjunction with Chavez’s inane and random behavior.
David McDuff has dug up some more criticism of C.J. Chivers’ recent Ukraine article. From no other than an actual Ukraine historian, Taras Kuzio. David also has some thoughts about Ukraine over the past several years.
Check out Bloggledygook, he’s got the scoop on some more spy novel writing going on in major newspapers regarding the events in Ukraine.
Via TulipGirl, it seems as if Yushchenko has chosen Yulia Tymoshenko for prime minister. Not that there was any doubt! From the Kyiv Post: (AP) – President Viktor Yushchenko on Jan. 24 tapped top ally Yulia Tymoshenko to be Ukraine’s prime minister in an appointment that pays tribute to her key role in Yushchenko’s torturous election victory but also will likely vex his opponents at home and in Russia. Yushchenko’s office announced the decision while the president was in Moscow on his first foreign trip following his inauguration a day earlier. The visit was intended to smooth relations with Russia,…
Hat tip to Sisyphean Musings for finding the Iraqi television ads up for download. Pretty cool!
Canadian MP Jason Kenney of the Tories visited the home of Zhao Ziyang. He was the first foreigner to visit the house in 15 years, and did it as a show of support for Ziyang and the underground democracy movement. Mr. Kenney said later that he made the effort as a show of support for those who back the underground democratic movement in China. “Why should we as Canadians be shy about appropriate expressions of support for democracy and human rights in China?” Mr. Kenney asked. “I hope other foreigners do something symbolic to show the underground democracy movement here…