Global Voices Online

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Delhi Summit Reflections: We ARE the People of the Year.

Rebecca MacKinnon · 08:59

As global voices editors, authors, community members, and allies convened our second annual summit in Delhi this weekend, TIME magazine dedicated its “person of the year” to YOU: people around the world who are taking media creation into their own hands.

(Photo by Jace. Click to enlarge.)

The TIME article praises the individual “for seizing the reins of the global media, for founding and framing the new digital democracy, for working for nothing and beating the pros at their own game,” etc. The article concludes: “This is an opportunity to build a new kind of international understanding, not politician to politician, great man to great man, but citizen to citizen, person to person.”

That, in a nutshell, is exactly what Global Voices is all about.

The problem is that the “new kind of international understanding” that TIME describes, a world of true “citizen to citizen” communication, remains a still-distant dream. The reality is that Web2.0 - and the potential for empowerment that it represents - remains largely inaccessible to large numbers of people on the planet, and is not being accessed by many more, for many reasons.

(Photo by Georgia. Click to enlarge.)

How do we help more people become creators of their own media? What kind of outreach can Web 2.0-savvy citizens provide to the still-uninitiated? How do we bridge massive and endless barriers of language and culture? Are the technical tools accessible enough to the next billion Internet users, or are we in need of new solutions better suited to the developing world? And how about people who are being prevented from speaking - or being heard - by governments, corporations, and other powerful entities? These were exactly the questions we tackled during our public meeting on Saturday.

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The World Championship of Brazilian 2.0 Football

Jose Murilo Junior · 08:12

Inter Campeao Brazilians still have fresh memories of the defeat of the national team in the last World Cup in Germany, when the group of international shining stars was unable to show the needed will to win on the field. As a result, Porto Alegre's Internacional triumph in the Club World Cup this weekend in Tokyo comes as a meaningful Christmas gift earning for Brazil the unofficial title of having the top global football team. The victory has brought back the pride of being the best in the world. But the special fact of this being achieved by a group of lesser known Brazilians who play in the country, as well as conquering the Barcelona favorite ( Ronaldinho's team) in the final game generated interesting reactions in the blogosphere. Could we say that Brazilians are discovering a more efficient way to play the game?

No final, quem esperava qualquer espetáculo por parte dos espanhóis acabou se frustrando com a eficiência dos brasileiros na contenção de jogadas. Na frente, o Inter viu suas duas grandes apostas - o capitão Fernandão e o novato Alexandre Pato - com atuações tímidas, diminuindo seu poder ofensivo. No final, porém, foi o reserva de Fernandão quem roubou a cena. “Depois de uma bola importante do Iarley no contra-ataque, fiz o gol do título. Todo mundo lutou para conquistar este título para a torcida. Fazer parte de um grupo desses é excelente. Eu estava no banco, mas tentei ajudar meus companheiros”, disse Adriano.
Inter derruba Barça com gol de reserva e é campeão mundial - Blog do Rodrigo Oliveira

In the end, the ones who were waiting for a Spanish show were frustrated by the Brazilian efficiency in the play of the game. In the forward, Inter had it's biggest bets — the captain Fernandao, and the novice Alexandre Pato - developing timid performances and disempowering the offensive sector. In the end, however, it was Fernandao's substitute who stole the scene. “After receiving an important ball from Iarley in the counter-attack, I've made the goal of the championship. Everybody struggled to give this title to our partisans. It's wonderful to be part of this team. I was sitting on the bench, but tried to help my colleagues when I went in”, said Adriano.
Inter derruba Barça com gol de reserva e é campeão mundial - Blog do Rodrigo Oliveira

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To hell you f***ing murderer…to hell…go and meet your other chums who are burning in hell now!!!!

Salam Adil · 02:44

(or Landing at the Iraqi Blogodrome)

These were the words of, normally, mild-mannered blogger Marshmallow26 to the news that her uncle's neighborhood had been blown to pieces by a suicide bomber who had aimed his load at one of the houses but in his hurry killed no one but himself. And she describes the scene:

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Lebanon: Hassan Nassrallah

Moussa Bashir · 02:01

The secretary general of Hezbollah S H Nassrallah and his speech that was directed to the demonstrators partaking in the sit-in protest in Beirut was the subject of many posts in the Lebanese blogs this week. And as usual, the opinions are as diverse as the political point of views of the writers. The selections here are from the diverse spectrum of opinions. They are stated at random with no particular order or grouping.

Let us start with Perpetual Refugee who returned after a long break with a post about a conversation with a gay friend and supporter of Nassrallah and Perpetual Refugee’s unsuccessful attempt to convince him of his mistake:

This was what freaked me out. An educated man. My friend. Openly gay (except to his mother). Supporting Nasrallah. All because they belong to the same ‘sect’. Nothing else.
He seemed to have forgotten that his fundamental rights as a gay man. A gay Lebanese man. His rights were also being besieged by the demonstrations. The very rights that were struggling to flourish into something real. Starting with the most basic of rights. The right to live. As oneself.

Savonaroll at Remarkz uses wit, sarcasm, and ridicule, to criticize the faults in PM Sanyoura’s reply to Nassarallah’s address to the protestors.
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