Puffs of Smoke and other News

Should Alcohol be Legalised in Libya? (Global Voices) — I’m totally biased on this question. Yep. It should be. Then, you can control the quality and tax the Hell out of it. And all the good Muslims can look down on the Muslims who drink. And the Catholics in the country can laugh and get drunk like the priests. The Jews can drink wine like the rabbis. And everyone else can just roll their eyes at all of them.

Malaysia

Malaysians Support Army Offensive Against Sabah ‘Terrorists’ (Global Voices)

Mexico

Mexican eco-terrorists declare war on nanotechnology, threaten scientists (Boing Boing)

Moldova

Moldova Without Government: What’s Next – East or West? (Global Voices)

Myanmar

Myanmar’s Exiled Broadcaster to Return Home (Global Voices)

Pakistan

Angry Mob Torches Christian Neighbourhood in Pakistan (Global Voices)

Rome

Election of First Latin American Pope Stuns Analysts (Moderate Voice)

Pope Francis: A New Center of Gravity (Moderate Voice)

The New Pope Speaks to Vatican Crowd (VIDEO) (The Moderate Voice)

New Pope, Jorge Bergoglio, is Argentinian (Global Voices)

Bergoglio, Age 76, A New Pope (The Moderate Voice)

Argentine Pope Elected (The Moderate Voice)

New Pope Elected: Live Blogging (AFP) (Moderate Voice)

Cardinals Poised to Begin Historic Conclave (Moderate Voice)

Breaking the Silence: Secrets of Papal Elections (The Moderate Voice)

As cardinals gather to elect Pope, Catholic officials break into a sweat over news that priests share €23m building with huge gay sauna (The Independent)

Russia

How Using Twitter Can End Your Political Campaign in Russia (Global Voices)

Propaganda & Mystery in Russia’s Browder-Magnitsky Case (Global Voice)

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Court Sentences Reformists to 10 and 11 Years in Prison (Global Voices)

Serbia

“Ten Years Without Zoran Djindjic”: Serbia Honors Slain Politician (Global Voices)

South Korea

South Koreans Rip ‘Chicken Hawk’ Politicians As War Rhetoric Heats Up (Global Voices)

Taiwan

Taiwan Denies Entry to Anti-Nuke Visitor Ahead of Protest (Global Voices)

Tunisia

Self-immolations Continue in Tunisia (Global Voices)

United Kingdom

LibDems leave over support for secret trials; I resign from the party (Boing BOing)

Venezuela

The Curious Case of Hugo Chávez and Peru (Global Voices)

AP: Chavez made “meager” gains, only reduced poverty, didn’t build the world’s tallest building (Boing Boing)

The Curious Case of Hugo Chávez and Peru (Global Voices)

Death of Hugo Chavez a CIA Plot? Views from Venezuela, Bolivia and Russia (The Moderate Voice)

Vietnam

Digitizing the National Library of Vietnam (Global Voices)

Last Raw Deal goin’ down

Feb23

So, the Pope’s retired and the North Korea is doing nuclear tests. We’re just having a banner year already. Put it in your diaries, cousins. You’ll want your grandkids to remember this s**t.

Angola

Video of Brutal Beating of Women Shocks Angola (Global Voices)

Antarctica

Lake-drilling team discovers life under the ice (Nature) — Hey, I already knew about this. I watch X-files… Oh, that’s not a documentary? Who knew?

Australia

Australian Sport: Drugs, Match Fixing Linked to Organised Crime (Global Voices) — Are you shocked? I’m not. Seriously, drugs and match fixing. It’s the basis for a goodly number of enterprises for org. crime.

Bangladesh

#Shahbag Protesters Bid Farewell to Brutally Murdered Blogger (Global Voices)

Videos from #Shahbag, Bangladesh’s Generation Square (Global Voices)

Bangladesh Unites at Shahbag for 42-Year-Old War Crimes (Global Voices)

Bangladeshi Women Join Shahbag Protests in Remarkable Numbers (Global Voices)

In Pictures: The Protesting Crowd In Shahbag (Global Voices)

#Shahbag in a 144 Characters (Global Voices)

Bolivia

Bolivia: Indigenous Communities Battle for Territory (Global Voices)

Brazil

With Corruption All Too Common, Brazil Pushes Back (Global Voices)

‘Follow the Pope’s Lead,’ Brazil Tells Senate President (Global Voices)

Bulgaria

Bulgarian Police Attack Anti-Government Protesters (Global Voices)

Canada

One Phone Call is Not Enough: Court Rules You Have the Right to Google a Lawyer (Michael Geist)

Canadian cops can use electronic surveillance without reporting it (Boing Boing)

Canada’s Internet snooping bill is dead (Boing Boing)

China

Beijing Must Punish Pyongyang, But Never Join Anti-North Alliance (Huanqiu, People’s Republic of China) (Moderate Voice)

Citizens Document Extreme Water Pollution in China (Global Voices)

Chinese Planned to Kill Drug Lord With Drone (Moderate Voice)

Colombia

Colombia: Shots Continue to Ring Out in Medellín (Global Voices) — When I wrote that short story, I never expected it to become *real* in any way.

Ecuador

Ecuador: Central Bank President Resigns Amid Forged Degree Scandal (Global Voices)

Finland

Pirate Bay calls cops on Finnish copyright enforcement thugs that ripped off its website (Boing Boing)

France

Horsemeat Scandal Spreads as French Retailers Pull Foods (Moderate Voice) — So, what’s the bigger deal? The fact that the meat is not as advertised, or that people are actually eating horses?

Germany

From Whispers to Outcry: Sexism in Germany (Global Voices)

Honduras

Honduran President vs. Freedom of the Press (Global Voices)

Hong Kong

Hong Kong Activist Jailed for Burning Chinese Flag (Global Voices)

Hungary

Students to Protest Constitutional Amendment (Global Voices)

India

India at the Forefront of One Billion Rising (Global Voices)

Indonesia

Indonesia’s Bill on Mass Organizations (Global Voices)

Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s ice cream budget frozen (ontd_political)

Japan

Japan’s Porn Law is Strangling Artists (Global Voices)

Imposed 66 Years Ago, the Time Has Come to Revise Our ‘Pacific Constitution’ (Iwate Nippo Shimbun, Japan) (Moderate Voice)

Japan’s Conservation Groups Fight to Preserve Wetlands (Global Voices)

Okinawans Will No Longer be ‘Pawned Away’ to Curry American Favor (Ryukyu Shimpo Shimbun, Japan) (Moderate Voice)

Kashmir

Fatwa Snowballs, Kashmir’s First All-Girl Band Calls it Quits (Global Voices)

Kenya

Kenya’s Presidential Elections Go High-Tech (Global Voices)

Kuwait

Targeted by Kuwaiti Police, Stateless Video Blogger Calls it Quits (Global Voices)

Libya

A Second Revolution in Libya? (Global Voices)

Malaysia

Australian Senator Deported for ‘Interfering’ in Malaysian Politics (Global Voices)

Mali

The Idleness of African Leadership in Mali (Global Voices)

Mauritania

Mauritanians Protest Tahrir Square Assaults (Global Voices)

Mexico

Rights group faults Mexico over abductions (Al Jazeera)

Myanmar

Myanmar: Media Freedom Still Under Threat (Global Voices)

E-Mails of Reporters in Myanmar Are Hacked (NYT) – Hmmm… a mostly repressive government reading emails, hmmm…

North Korea

North Korea’s blast: China Holds the Cards (Moderate Voice)

North Korea Stokes Global Fury with Nuclear Test (Moderate Voice)

North Korea Conducts 3rd Nuclear Test (Global Voices)

North Korea conducts third nuclear test in DPRK history (Boing Boing) – Okay, so this likely links back to the same story, but it’s got a better picture.

Pakistan

Pakistan’s Hazara Shias Demand Arrests, Protection After Deadly Bombing (Global Voices)

Peru

Peru: Heavy Rains Affect Arequipa (Global Voices)

Rome <– You did remember that this is its own country right? The Pope's actually the leader of a nation, not just a religion?

Pope’s Resignation Echoes in Africa (Global Voices)

Latin America: Pope Resigns – Hope, Humour and Speculation Follow (Global Voices)

Pope Benedict XVI Resigns (UDATE 2 with ROUNDUP) (The Moderate Voice)

Papal Frontrunners Include Two Africans And One Canadian (The Moderate Voice)

Pope’s Brother Knew of Planned Resignation (Moderate Voice) — Well, God forbid the man talk to his *family* rather than the press first. The nerve.

Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation: Live Report (Moderate Voice) – Well, not so live anymore.

How Will the Catholic Church Handle a Living Ex-Pope? (The Moderate Voice) — Well, hopefully, he’ll retire to a monastery with a bunch of other retired priests and live out his life praying and working in the garden.

A Non-European Pope (The Moderate Voice) — I think it would be cool to have an African pope. I mean, it’s not like it’s going to necessarily change anything in terms of the direction of the church – given the power of the Curiate – but a little new blood in the papacy would be welcome.

The Paradoxes of Pope Benedict (The Moderate Voice)

America’s ‘Pulse’ Is Having a Bad Day (The Moderate Voice)

Russia

Incredible details are emerging about Russia’s Chelyabinsk meteor (i09)

A Fistful of Bloggers: Russian MP Pressured to Resign (Global Voices)

Meteor explodes over Russia (Boing BOing)

“Pedophile’s Guide” Lands Russian Blogging Platform on Blacklist (Global Voices) — I’ve an idea. How about leaving it live and spying on it somehow. Like a little malicious script that will let you see who’s reading it.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia: Hospital Gives HIV, Minister Gives iPad (Global Voices)

Saudi Women Protesters Arrested for “Impairing Development” (Global Voices)

Senegal

Is Senegal’s Government Spokesman Selling Out? (Global Voices)

South Africa

Pistorius sobs as court hears murder charge (Chicago Tribune)

Spain

Spain: lawmakers want bullfighting to be protected as cultural heritage (Boing Boing) — That’s like saying that America should protect dog fighting. No. Just No. That which was acceptable in the past, is not exactly what is acceptable in the future.

Under Pressure, Spain Opens Door to Foreclosure Reform (Global Voices)

Spain: Bail of 8,1 Million Euro for the King’s Son-in-law (Global Voices)

Taiwan

Taiwanese Writer Finds Poetry in Laid-off Workers’ Railway Protest (Global Voices)

Tajikistan

Journalist’s Stabbing a ‘Warning’ for Tajik Opposition (Global Voices)

Turkey

Turkey: Lynch Attempt on Kurdish Members of Parliament in Sinop (Global Voices)

United Kingdom

TESCO attaches tracking armbands to employees (Boing Boing)

UK “forced labor” welfare scheme nailed in court (Boing Boing) — There’s a huge difference between “prove to us your trying to find a job” and “do this unpaid labor for for-profit companies so I get my kickback.”

Guerrilla Benchers replace street furniture removed to discourage homeless people (Boing Boing0

London mayor praises horse meat (Boing Boing)

Venezuela

‘He’s back!’ Chavez in Venezuela after Cancer Surgery (Moderate Voice)

Yemen

Protester Sets Himself on Fire, Yemen Remembers the Revolution (Global Voices)

What a world! What a world!

Oct25

And I don’t even like that movie.

Anyhow, these are the stories that caught my eye recently.

Nobel Prizes

The First Chinese Laureate: Mo Yan Wins the Nobel Prize for Literature (Writer’s Write)

United Nations

Latin American Nations Push UN to Drop Zero Tolerance on Drugs (The Moderate Voice)

Australia

Australian Prime Minister Gillard’s Sexism Speech Sparks Divisive Reaction (The Moderate Voice)

Australian PM lances a sexist boil in Parliament (Boing Boing)

Australian Attorney General says that public scrutiny of spying bill would not be in the public interest (Boing Boing) <– I don't know about you, but when I hear that, the only thing I can think is "what the *Hell* is this man trying to cover up.

Austria

Austrian Daredevil Felix Baumgartner Breaks Sound Barrier in Record Space Jump (The Moderate Voice)

Bhutan

Bhutan Aims to Be First 100% Organic Nation (The Moderate Voice)

Brazil

Brazil to roll out national radio-chip ID/surveillance/logging for all vehicles (BOing Boing)

Bolivia

Kids are at Home, with Parents, in Bolivia Prisons (The Moderate Voice)

Canada

Canadian Teen Who Posted Anti-Bullying Video Commits Suicide (Newsy.com)

What Canada stands to lose in the war on science (Boing Boing)

China

Ai Weiwei guest-edits the New Statesman, which pirates itself to evade the Great Firewall of China (Boing Boing)

France

Climate of Fear Takes Hold in France’s Jewish community (The Moderate Voice)

Germany

German teen sells mum’s jewels for brothel visit (Reuters)

Twitter censors Germans’ access to Neo-Nazi group’s Twitter account (Boing Boing)

Greece

Antifascist Greek protesters say they were tortured by police (Boing Boing)

GreeceWatch: Troika Spat, Cuts Near, Rightist Rage (Guest Voice) (The Moderate Voice)

India

India’s Top Court Orders Toilets for Every School (The Moderate Voice)

India’s 50,000 Missing Children (The Moderate Voice)

India Fights to Protect Traditional Home Remedies (The Moderate Voice)

Lebanon

The Help: Status, Servants and Double Standards in Lebanon (The Global Mail)

Libya

Libya Consulate Was Invaded, Torched by Armed Mob: US (The Moderate Voice)

Attack on U.S. Consulate and Citizens Must Never Be Repeated (Quryna, Libya) (The Moderate Voice)

Netherlands

Dutch government gives itself the right to break into your computer and destroy it (Boing Boing)

Pakistan

To summarize the below: The Taliban are whiney, scared, little boys, who can’t handle the idea that a woman is a person and has the ability to think, learn, and succeed. To prove to their spineless little wonder-worm that they’re better than women, they attacked a little girl. Brilliant, a******les.

All my love, affection, good wishes, and compassion go to Malala Yousafzia

Pakistan Child Rights Activist Shot in Head: Doctors (THe Moderate Voice)

Online diaries of girl who took on Taliban and was shot as punishment (BOing Boing)

Taliban Vow Again to Kill Pakistani Girl (The Moderate Voice)

Shot Pakistani girl shows improvement: military (The Moderate Voice)

Pakistan Child Activist Facing ‘Critical’ 36-48 Hours (The Moderate Voice)

Doctors Hopeful for Pakistani Girl Shot by Taliban (The Moderate Voice)

Why Malala Yousafzia Matters (The Moderate Voice)

Serbia

The Decent People: LGBT pride in the former Yugoslavia (Boing Boing)

Spain

Fury in Spain Boils Over at Mitt Romney’s Debate Remark (Spanish Newspaper Roundup) (The Moderate Voice)

United Kingdom

UK website taken down by spurious copyright complaint regarding UK ultra-right groups (Boing Boing)

Cheating F1 team wins the right to deduct its fines from its taxes (Boing BOing)

UK surveillance bill: 19,000 letters opposing, 0 in favour (Boing BOing)

As it happened: Gary McKinnon extradition decision (BBC)

Gary McKinnon on the decision not to extradite him to the USA (Boing Boing)

Flaming balls of…. world news

Sep22

There’s been a surge of nasty news these past few weeks. Death, destruction, with the occasional bright spot of a new baby panda in the DC National Zoo, and the documentation of an adorable new monkey. (Not that those two stories are actually *in* this post, but they do exist…)

Middle East (See also Libya links)

Story of “Muhammed” Movie Gets Even Weirder (ontd_political)

Two Die in Pakistan as Film Violence Spreads (The Moderate Voice)

Letter from a Scared Actress (Neil Gaiman)– This is an important read that talks about the move that has been used to spark off the riots. (<– note, protests shouldn't *kill* people)

Fresh Protests as Prophet Cartoons Fuel Muslim Fury (The Moderate Voice)

Influence of Salafists Grows After Arab Spring (The Moderate Voice)

Anti-Islam Film, UN Human Rights and the Politics of Turmoil (The Moderate Voice)

The Prophet Motive (The Moderate Voice)

Manipulated Outrage and Misplaced Fury (Hudson Institute)

Middle East mobs freaking the hell out over YouTube video (Boing Boing)

Canada

Ontario dad wants option of pulling kids out of class based on religious beliefs (ontd_political)

Canada Breaks Off Relations With Iran (Guest Voice) (The Moderate Voice)

Questions surround security detail at Montreal shooting (Security Director News)

A mandatory $180 art school textbook about “prehistory to 1800” with no pictures, thanks to a lack of mysterious “copyright clearances” (Boing Boing)

Canadian mint claims copyright over pictures of pennies (Boing Boing)

China

Beijing hints at bond attack on Japan (ontd_political)

Japan firms stop China operations after protests (afp.com)

Artist Ai Weiwei captures footage of protesters attacking US ambassador’s car in Beijing (Boing Boing)

Japanese man attacked with hot noodles over Sino-Japan geopolitics (Boing Boing)

Egypt

Obama Makes News on Egypt, as Questions Rise on Benghazi Commando Raid (The Moderate Voice)

France

France’s Hadopi finally punishes someone for infringement — a guy whom everyone agrees isn’t an infringer (Boing Boing)

Germany

Court: saying ‘no’ not enough to stop sex (ontd_political) — I do not have enough curse words in my vocabulary to express my disappointment with this court.

Nude monk tripping on bad berries (Boing Boing)

Ghana

What Voices Count?: on Voter Fraud and Intimidation (Racialicious)

The Right to Information: A Building Block of Democracy [An African Election] (Racialicious)

Guatemala

Guatemala’s Volcan de Fuego erupts (Boing Boing)

India

Growing Backlash Over Indian Cartoonist Arrest (Guest Voice) (The Moderate Voice)

Obese elephants in Tamil Nadu given slimming help (BBC)

Indian Cartoonist Freed from Jail (Guest Voice) (the Moderate Voice)

Iraq

Kickstarting a hackerspace in Iraq (Boing Boing)

Iraq’s First Hackerspace Will Run on ‘Irrational Optimism’ (Wired.com)

Israel

Israel: Is Netanyahu Going ‘Crazy?’ (The Moderate Voice)

Sorry Bibi – Americans don’t want to fight your war (The Moderate Voice)

Haaretz Editorial Warns Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu Not to Meddle in US Presidential Election (The Moderate Voice)

Japan

Japan Takes Cautious Tone in Dispute with Increasingly Assertive China (The Moderate Voice)

Libya

US Ambassador Killed as Libya Mob Storms Embassy (The Moderate Voice)

Secretary Clinton Calls Attack “Savage,” with Film Uproar Leaving Foreign Service Heroes Dead in Benghazi (The Moderate Voice)

If the Prophet Can be Insulted, then the Holocaust can be Questioned (Al Watan, Libya) (The Moderate Voice)

Remembering Sean “Vilerat” Smith, killed in Benghazi (Boing Boing)

Libyan Fatwa Court Calls Attack on Americans an ‘Offense to Islam’ (Al Watan, Libya) (The Moderate Voice)

Al Qaeda Says Libya Was Revenge Attack, US Deploys Forces (Guest Voice) (The Moderate Voice)

More signs point to “Media for Christ” firm behind “Innocence of Muslims” (Boing Boing)

Gawker outs director of “Innocence of Muslims” as softcore porn director (Boing Boing)

VIDEO: Americans killed in Libya honored at Andrews Air Force Base (The Moderate Voice)

Man believed to be “Innocence of Muslims” filmmaker once arrested for making PCP (Boing Boing)

Libya Attack: Who’s Behind the Inflammatory Video (The Moderate Voice)

The Pentagon on Libya (The Moderate Voice)

Report: Mysterious gentleman behind Anti-Muhammad movie an ex-meth cook (Boing Boing)

Snapshots from Benghazi (Boing Boing)

On the So-called Film that So-called Incited an Attack on US Consulate in Benghazi (The Moderate Voice)

If You Wondered: US Ambassador Chris Stevens’s Death (The Moderate Voice)

Official Details Benghazi Attack, Vows to Support Libya (Updates) (The Moderate Voice)

Mexico

Business Plan Remakes Meth Market (The Wall Street Journal)

Malaysia

Malaysia offers “spot the gay kid” seminars for teachers and parents (Boing Boing)

Native American Nations

For Native American Women, Scourge of Rape, Rare Justice (NY Times)

Pakistan

Three Killed as Pakistan Protests US-Made Film (The Moderate Voice)

Pakistan Conflict Fuels Marijuana Boom (Guest Voice) (The Moderate Voice)

Pakistan blocks YouTube over “Innocence of Muslims” (Boing Boing)

Philipines

Thin-skinned, plagiarizing Philippines Senator criminalizes “libel” with last minute stealth-attack on cybercrime bill (Boing Boing)

Poland

Rash of demonic possessions in Poland gives rise to ‘Exorcist Magazine’ (i09)

Dried riverbed reveals stolen architecture, unexploded artillery shells (Boing Boing)

Rome

“Lovers locks” to be cut from Roman bridge (Boing Boing)

Russia

No criminal charges for owners of Russian ‘slave’ factory (ontd_political)

Russia reveals large deposit of “extra-hard” diamonds in asteroid crater (Boing Boing)

United Kingdom

BitTorrent study finds most file-sharers are monitored. (ontd_political)

Every Women’s Refuge in the UK Could Close Due to Universal Credit (ontd_political)

Tim Berners-Lee blasts UK government’s Internet spying plan (Boing Boing)

New Transport Minister convicted in 2009 of careless driving in incident that left cyclist with broken neck (Road CC)

Act today to stop the Daily Mail’s campaign to establish opt-out censorship in the UK (Boing Boing)

Archaeologists believe they have found skeleton of King Richard III (Telegraph)

UK government is squatting on 1.67 million unused IPv4 addresses (Boing Boing)

UK Tories put a spam kingpin in charge of the party (Boing Boing)

Uruguay

Uruguay Takes ‘War on Drugs’ in New Direction: The State as Dealer (The Moderate Voice)

Yemen

Protester Shot Dead as Mob Storms US Embassy in Yemen (Guest Voice) (The Moderate Voice)

The Course of World Events

May26

As always folks this is just stories that caught my eye. (Also – plague of rats in Hamelin. If the BBC can’t keep a straight face, I ain’t even trying.)

Olympics

Official Protesters of the London Olympics suspended on Twitter (Boing Boing)

Space Hijackers create Official Protesters programme for the London 2012 Olympics (Boing Boing)

Afghanistan

Why Afghan Women Risk Death to Write Poetry (NY Times Magazine)

Argentina

In Latin America, Only Argentine Leader Stands with Obama on Gay Marriage (La Informacion, U.S.) (The Moderate Voice)

Azerbaijan

Sign a petition for a “guilt-free Eurovision” — keep the pressure up on Azerbaijan (Boing Boing)

Canada

Canadian MP: ripping a CD is like stealing a pair of shoes (BOing Boing)

Sickening profile of Canada’s weapons-grade patent trolls (Boing BOing)

Quebec cops kettle and mass-arrest demonstrators (Boing Boing)

Canada’s telcos secretly backing revival of “dead” warrantless surveillance bill (Boing Boing)

Toronto neighbours turn their laneway into a garage-door art-gallery (Boing Boing)

Canada’s warrantless surveillance bill is, improbably, dead (Boing Boing)

China

BREAKING: Chinese Dissident Chen Guangcheng Arrives on American Soil (UPDATED) (The Moderate Voice)

UPDATE: Mr. Chen Has Left China — China’s Military Visit to the U.S. and Mr. Chen’s Pending Release: Just Mind Games? (The Moderate Voice)

Colombia

Colombia Government Must Come Clean on Battle Drones (El Tiempo, Colombia) (The Moderate Voice)

France

France’s New Socialist President Hollande Has Three French Riveria Homes (THe Moderate Voice)

Finland

Finnish court: open WiFi owners not responsible for copyright infringement (Boing Boing)

Germany

‘Lost Nation’ of Germany is NATO’s Biggest Problem (Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany) (The Moderate Voice)

Pirates win more seats in German state elections (Boing Boing)

Balancing Act from Germany’s Angela Merkel (The Moderate Voice)

German police fired 85 bullets in 2011 (Boing BOing)

Greece

Will Greece Elect Pro-Bailout Government? (The Moderate Voice)

Greece Heads To Elections, Economy May Head Off Cliff (The Moderate Voice)

Political Meltdown in Greece: New Elections Increasingly Likely (UPDATED) (The Moderate Voice)

Iran

Iranian cartoonist sentenced to 25 lashes (Boing BOing)

Italy

Earthquake and bombs in Italy: An eyewitness report from Jasmina Tesanovic (Boing BOing)

Libya

Libya: Inside Gadhafi’s secret surveillance network (Boing BOing)

Convicted Lockerbie Bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrah Dies of Cancer in Freedom in Libya (The Moderate Voice)

Mexico

Mexican drug cartels now using Claymore mines (Boing Boing)

49 Decapitated Bodies: Mexico’s Drug War and P.R. Nightmares Continue (The Moderate Voice)

Netherlands

War Crimes trial for Ratko Mladic begins in The Hague (Boing Boing)

Netherlands becomes first EU nation to enshrine Net Neutrality in law (Boing Boing)

Mormons Perform ‘After-Death’ Baptisms of Dutch Royals (Trouw, The Netherlands) (The Moderate Voice)

Pakistan

American ‘Grandees’ Should Pay Debt to Pakistan and be Grateful (The Frontier Post, Pakistan) (The Moderate Voice)

Acid victims fear backlash over Saving Face (International Tribune)

Poland

Poland’s future of copyright (Boing BOing)

Dire Straits for Europe Absent Less Nationalism and More Cooperation (Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland) (Moderate Voice)

Russia

Microsoft invests in Russian company that attacks BitTorrent swarms (Boing Boing)

Sweden

Swedish telcoms giant Teliasonera complicit in mass surveillance in the world’s worst dictatorships (Boing Boing)

Thailand

Roasted gold-leaved foetus collection was for black magic (Boing BOing)

Tibet

Four people dead on Mt. Everest, one still missing (Boing Boing)

Turkey

Migratory bird confused for avian spy (Boing BOing)

Uganda

Uganda Re-Introduces Draconian Gay Law as Answer to Obama (Modern Ghana, Ghana) (The Moderate Voice)

United Kingdom

Publishers Association Chief Calls Opponents of Copyright Laws Thieves (Writers Write)

London cops want to suck your phone dry in an instant (Boing Boing)

UK civil servants routinely snoop on citizens’ private financial and health information (Boing Boing)

Russell Brand testifies to Parliament about drug policy, channels Groucho Marx (Boing Boing)

Yemen

Yemen massacre triggered by donkey “rape” (Boing Boing)

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwean senator proposes ending AIDS crisis by mutilating women and preventing them from bathing (Boing Boing) — You, sir, are an asshole.

Goblins attack Zimbabwe family (BOing BOing)

News and World Events – Um, oy veh?

Nov26

So, no fancy title. But I need to clean out my tabs and reading files. And so, here we have a bunch of articles that caught my attention and I think need to be passed on.

European Union

Sterilised Roma woman wins human rights appeal (Human Rights Europe)

European Court of Justice: spying with national copyright censorwalls is illegal (Boing Boing)

Left, right, left: how political shifts have altered the map of Europe (The Guardian)

#hackergate

News of the World shredded hard-drives, laptops (Boing Boing)

J.K. Rowling Testifies During Phone Hacking Inquiry (Writers Write)

Aussie senator: News Corp offered me favorable coverage if I killed legislation it didn’t like (Boing Boing)

Cambodia

Lucky iron fish persuades Cambodian women to cook with iron, stave off anemia (Boing Boing)

China

Vladimir Putin scoops Chinese peace award (The Guardian)

Denmark

Man doused himself with petrol (Politiken)

Egypt

Egypt: 33 dead in Tahrir protests, as “Arab Spring” mirrored in bloody Fall (Boing Boing)

Egypt in turmoil before first free elections (The MOderate Voice)

Egypt police detain, beat, sexually assault US-based journalist Mona Eltahawy; other journalists also targeted (Boing Boing)

Estonia

Estonian Marathon Bans Black Runners (Racism Daily)

First Nations

Canadian indigenous band declares state of emergency due to horrific conditions, government takes no notice (Boing Boing)

Greece

Greece, the CDS Market, and BNP (Brad deLong)

Iran

Iran stares down America and the UN over its nuclear hopes (The Moderate Voice)

Libya

Ethnic Hatred Taints Liberated Libya (Racialicious)

New Zealand

New Zealand Prime Minister sends police to raid major news outlets over covert recording of negotiations with far-right party (Boing Boing)

New Zealand Election Mandates Social Media Blackout (The Moderate Voice)

Pakistan

Pakistan telecom censors ban 1,500 words that must not be texted (Boing Boing)

Russia

Russian social media erupts as Putin apparat tries to suppress video of booing crowd (Boing Boing)

Thousands of Russian nationalists march in Moscow (Associated Press)

Serbia

Citizens hold protest against asylum seekers (B92)

Spain

Europe Ailing Economy Consquences: Conservatives Expected to Win Big In Spain (The Moderate Voice)

Spain Conservatives Get Huge Win: Rajoy Warns “No Miracles” (The Moderate Voice)

Sweden

Swedish Pirate Party MEP Amelia Andersdotter, on taking office at long last (Boing BOing)

United Kingdom

Criminals fall for beer sting (The Guardian)

Wide World Events

Nov17

There’s still massive shifts happening across the world and they’re as hard to predict for the lay person as plate techtonics.

These are the bits that caught my attention.

#hackergate

James Murdoch, “the first Mafia boss in history who didn’t know he was running a criminal enterprise” (Boing Boing)

NewsCorp shareholders revolt against Murdoch family (Boing Boing)

Africa

Al Qaeda Threatening Positive Progress in Africa (The Moderate Voice)

European Union

Europeans: EU to vote on ACTA, get informed and involved! (Boing Boing)

Argentina

Three-Eyed Fish Discovered Near Argentinian Nuclear Facility (io9)

Canada

How Toronto Lost Its Groove (ontd_political)

Torture victims target Bush’s Surrey visit (ontd_political)

China

China Completes Second Orbital Docking (Discovery News)

Egypt

Egypt: “social media activist” hero Alaa Abd El-Fattah jailed for another 15 days (Boing Boing)

France

Hostages freed by al-Qaeda arrive home in France (ontd_political)

French court sends EDF execs to jail for hacking, spying on Greenpeace (Boing Boing)

Germany

After 43 years, Germans finally to see Star Trek Nazi episode on network TV (ontd_political)

Greece

Hopes Raised in Europe and U.S.: Greece Swears in New Prime Minister Lucas Papademos (The Moderate Voice)

Greenland

Greenland ice sheet melting at unprecedented rates (ontd_political)

India

Is It Time For India To Try On Its Super Power Shoes & Start Being One? (The Moderate Voice)

Israel

Ex-Israeli President to serve 7 years for rape (ontd_political)

Israel & Palestine

Judge Goldstone’s Offensive Apology for Apartheid (ontd_political)

Italy

New PM Monti looks to form new cabinet (ontd_political)

Berlusconi To Resign (The Moderate Voice)

Berlusconi Bye Bye? (Boing Boing)

Presto Panico: Berlusconi Screws The Pooch, Italy, Maybe The World (The Moderate Voice)

Berlusconi to neo-fascists: “I’ll be back.” (Boing Boing)

Bye-bye, Bunga-bunga: “Addio Berlusconi” (Boing Boing)

Iran

Op-ed by US hiker jailed in Iran: solitary confinement is torture (Boing Boing)

Is There A Middle Ground In Dealing With The Threat Of A Nuclear Iran? (The Moderate Voice)

BREAKING: Massive Explosion Reported at Military Base West of Tehran (UPDATES) (The Moderate Voice)

Japan

ICYMI: Crowdsourcing radiation data inside Fukushima hot zone, Xeni in Japan (Boing BOing)

Hacking geigers: Safecast crowdsources radiation data in Japan after Fukushima disaster (Boing Boing)

What’s the fallout for pets abandoned in Japan’s Fukushima hot zone? (Boing Boing)

Safecast draws on power of the crowd to map Japan’s radiation (Boing Boing)

New International Report Shreds Japan’s Carefully Constructed Fukushima Scenario (Guest Voice) (The Moderate Voice)

Inside Fukushima: 8 months after disaster, foreign journalists get first look at crippled nuclear plant (Boing Boing)

Tsunami dead were idiots for being too slow, says minister (ontd_political)

Libya

Gaddafi Said To now be Buried in Secret Location along with others. (The Moderate Voice)

Mexico

Anonymous Spokesman Flees Over Safety Concerns (Discovery News)

Mexico helicopter crash kills Interior Secretary Blake Mora (ontd_political)

Prostitutes, pot, pet peacocks, and plasma TVs found in Mexico prison raid (Boing Boing)

Mexico: moderator of online discussion forum about narcos reported as tortured, decapitated by narcos (UPDATED) (Boing Boing)

Mexico: Nuevo Laredo online says murdered man wasn’t blogger or “social media” reporter, but scapegoat for terror (Boing Boing)

Mexico’s “War on Drugs” leads to catastrophic rise of murder, torture, “disappearance” (Boing Boing)

Report: “No proof” man killed in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico was social media user (Boing Boing)

Mexico: Interior Minister killed in mysterious chopper crash 3 years after predecessor’s death in mysterious plane crash (Boing Boing)

Malaysia

Stolen government of Malaysia certificate used to sign malicious fake Adobe software update (Boing Boing)

The Netherlands

Halal and kosher hit by Dutch ban (ontd_political)

Russia

Russia Mars Probe May Fall to Earth in January (Discovery News)

Toxic Russian Mars Probe Heads Back to Earth (Discovery News)

Russian Mars Probe ‘Considered Lost’ (Discovery News)

Russia’s Mars Mission May Be In Trouble (Discovery News)

Sweden

School head on rape claim: ‘boys will be boys’ (ontd_political)

Switzerland

Muslims outraged over pig parts dumped at Swiss Mosque site (ontd_Political)

Syria

Human Rights Watch reports “Crimes against humanity” in Syria (Boing Boing)

Thailand

Flood-hacking in Thailand (Boing Boing)

United Kingdom

UK City Forcing Taxi Drivers To Record All Passengers (Consumerist)

‘Can He Speak English?’ Westminster Official Asks Welsh Teacher And Former Union President (ontd_political)

UK religious, political leader calls gay rights Advocates ‘Gaystapo’ (ontd_political)

Secret documents reveal the flimsy case for Ofcom to give into BBC’s public TV DRM demands (Boing Boing)

British man calls police after confusing the Moon for a UFO (io9)

Sales tax is still regressive, gravity still sucks, and George Osborne is still a delusional ideologue (Boing Boing)

The Stimulus Worked (The Moderate Voice)

Liberal whingers are wrong – we should shut our libraries (ontd_political) — Just a note. In answer to the first question – I went to the library two weeks ago and I’ve got one of the books sitting on my desk right now. So /insert rude gesture here/

Venezuela

BREAKING: Wilson Ramos Rescued, Safe in Venezuela (The Moderate Voice)

New, Old, and In Between World News

Nov1

The world continues to explode with news. Below are just some of the bits I’ve captured. From earthquakes to dictator’s to human rights. These have caught my attention.

Africa

Open For Questions: Crisis in the Horn of Africa (The White House)

European Union

EU Leaders Meet. Ordinary Europeans Weep. Bankers Celebrate. (The Moderate Voice)

Oh No He Didn’t: Sarkozy tells Cameron to ‘shut up’ on eurozone (ontd_political)

Argentina

Former Argentine naval officer Alfredo Astiz has been jailed (ontd_political)

Australia

Australian detention centres breaking people – report (ontd_political)

Canada

Mystery feet identified (Boing Boing)

Air Canada flight attendants blocked from legal strike, says labour board (ontd_political)