United States should lead the world in recognizing peaceful, democratic Somaliland | SomalilandPress.com

Published in "Somaliland Press" July 20, 2010

Somalia recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of its independence, but most Somalis have nothing to celebrate. Somalia ranks as the world’s most utterly failed state. Today, 3 million people are desperately in need of food, 1.4 million have been displaced and 750,000 survive on humanitarian relief.

United States should lead the world in recognizing peaceful, democratic Somaliland | SomalilandPress.com

Haiti at Six Months

New York Times Editorial, June 16, 2010

Six months after Haiti’s earthquake, the situation is bleak. Of the 1.5 million people displaced, 28,000, so far, have been moved to safer transitional housing. The rest huddle in tents and pray that the next rains won’t wash their meager belongings away. Crime is resurgent and everyone is desperate for some sign of recovery.

Read more . . . Haiti at Six Months

Haitian Orphans Have Little but One Another

By DEBORAH SONTAG
Published: July 5, 2010

CROIX-DES-BOUQUETS, Haiti — More than five months after the earthquake that killed her single mother, Daphne Joseph, 14, lost her bearings a second time when she was forced to leave the makeshift orphanage where she had felt at home.

Read more:Click here to read article

Bringing Cinema to Haitian Tent Camps

From the New York Times:

In Haiti, a handful of organizations are racing to produce programming that entertains and informs the hundreds of thousands of displaced people living in camps without televisions or radios.

Question: What types of films and TV spots are selected for viewing and how might this impact Haitian culture?

To view the audio slide show click here : Watch Haitian Cinema in Tent Camps

Playing for Change - Peace Through Music

Playing for Change is a multimedia movement created to inspire, connect, and bring peace to the world through music. The idea for this project arose from a common belief that music has the power to break down boundaries and overcome distances between people. No matter whether people come from different geographic, political, economic, spiritual or ideological backgrounds, music has the universal power to transcend and unite us as one human race.


Playing for Change Home Page

With Sharp Satire, Enfant Terrible Challenges Czech Identity

As you read this article, see if you can find the rationale behind the Czech reluctance to use documentation for confirming acceptance, receipt of monies, etc.

An interesting random article on Czech art and identity.

China to Scan Text Messages to Spot ‘Unhealthy Content’

A post from the Global New York Times: BEIJING — As the Chinese government expands what it calls a campaign against pornography, cellular companies in Beijing and Shanghai have been told to suspend text services to cellphone users who are found to have sent messages with “illegal or unhealthy content,” state-run news media reported Tuesday.
Click here to read more

Food for thought . . . how does this relate to the difference between the Chinese focus on central control for the collective good, vs. our western focus on the rights of individuals to free speech?