Worldcrunch
Some 18 months after clashing with Beijing authorities, Google seems to have found a major new way to break through in China. Not only does it avoid web censorship dilemma, its new strategy opens an opportunity for Google to capture the booming online adv
Burma’s new ‘civilian’ government – staffed mostly by former generals – is ushering in a wave of reforms that even some of the country’s most hardened dissidents are welcoming with cautious optimism.
Air guitar virtuosos from across the globe rock out at the World Air Guitar Championships in Oulu, Finland.
A group of squatters is pooling its resources and trading shares in an effort to save Christiania, a so-called ‘autonomous neighborhood’ founded 40 years ago in central Copenhagen. The famous squat – long a target of rightist politicians – is being eyed b
The EU Council of Ministers has finally cleared the way for Nutrition Facts labels to be standardized Europe-wide. But manufacturers still have a few years to conform – and consumer protection groups aren’t entirely happy.
Drug lords in Puerto Rico seem to be taking cues from their murderous counterparts in Mexico, beheading rivals and dumping bodies in public places.
A crash on Shanghai’s metro system injures 260 just two months after a deadly high-speed rail line collision and subsequent cover-up sparked national outrage. And scant TV coverage again.
Sexual violence against women and girls has been a common, though rarely talked about, practice in Colombia’s decades-old civil war. A new report by Amnesty International highlights the problem, and urges Colombian leaders to end the impunity.
Beijing will be putting into service the first ever gold dispensing ATM during China’s National Day Holiday which begins Saturday. Officials are banking on customers buying gold on the fly out of nervousness about the world economic crisis.
In Mexico City, the Material Girl is getting into the groove – business wise – with an upscale gym called Hard Candy. Madonna may soon expand her exercise-oriented endeavor to Russia, with branches in Moscow and Saint Petersburg.
Op-Ed: Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi has built an empire and survived repeated scandal. But this birthday, one message is clear: as the economy tanks, Italy has finally grown tired of his antics.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا By Kristen Gillespie BAHRAIN & SAUDI ARABIAElfagr.org reports that Bahraini political activist Mohammed al-Shihabi is warning of a Saudi-American scheme “in collaboration with the Al Khalifa government to control Bahrain completely.” Al-Shihabi cites the Bahraini king’s recent visit to Saudi Arabia (which has deployed at least 1,000 […]
After several notorious cases of abuse of very young students elsewhere in Italy, a private nursery school in Ravenna allows parents to check in on their kids – and teachers — any time of the day.
After long development problems, Boeing delivers its first 787 Dreamliner to All Nippon Airways in Japan. The Dreamliner is 20 per cent more fuel-efficient than other planes its size, with other special features including bathroom windows.
At a time when much of the developed world is still mired in a major slowdown, Germany’s 6.2% jobless rate is enviable. But by not counting half the unemployed over the age of 58, Germany might not be giving a true picture of its economic health.
Essay: Much has been made of China moving past Japan as Asia’s leader. But a Beijing-based Japanese writer says Japan’s relative economic decline in the past 20 years hides the fact that it has built a model society for its citizens.
American authorities are about to get their hands on Vladislav Anatolievich Horohorin, an accused cybercriminal who is suspected of executing numerous security breaches in banks and large businesses. He has arrested 13 months ago in Nice, France.
With tainted fruits and vegetables sending scares across the globe, worried food authorities can welcome the inauguration of the world’s largest private laboratory performing safety analysis on food. But don’t expect them to announce the
Essay: Two feminist associations want to end the differentiation between “Mademoiselle” (Ms.) and “Madame” (Mrs.) imposed on women filling out official documents. One French (female) commentator takes issue with this la
Moscow is trying to get people out of their cars, with expanded connections and swanky new subway cars. The project also includes special anti-vibration tracks and tunnels designed to protect the Bolshoi Theater’s brand new underground concert call.
Catholic leaders in France slam public school textbook that delves into “gender theory.” With help from allies of Nicolas Sarkozy, the Church is demanding changes to the curriculum, which explores how society and culture can affect an individual’s sexual
Egypt and Tunisia began 2011 with a revolutionary bang. But over the course of the year their respective economies have gone flat. Leaders from the Arab Spring countries know that stoking economic growth may be the best chance to make democracy last for t
A pair of cute robotic furry seals help elderly victims now in a retirement home recover from their mental scars, after Japan’s March quake and tsunami disaster.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا By Kristen Gillespie SAUDI WOMENOver the weekend, Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah granted the right of women to vote… in 2015. Elections for the Shoura Council, will be held this week, but women are not allowed to participate. Elaph.com published a commentary by Essam Abullah, who calls the […]
The top German fashion house that bears the name of famed designer Hugo Boss has commissioned a study to try to clarify his role during the Nazi regime. The study says Boss was not Hitler’s personal tailor, though his company did produce SS unifo
Bad news for Russian tax evaders who’ve counted on Swiss bank accounts, as Switzerland agrees to turn over information to Moscow about account holders, particularly in relation to tax investigations.
China is an eager customer when it comes to Latin America’s raw materials. But it has proven to be far more finicky when it comes to the region’s value-added goods. Even Pollo Campero, Guatemala’s far-reaching fried chicken chain, failed to gain a foothol
Essay: Recent cases of badly behaving sons of the rich and powerful has riled the Chinese public, raising real questions about whether a country’s ruling class is more powerful than the state itself.
After public endorsements aimed at returning Vladimir Putin to the presidency and making current President Dmitry Medvedev the next prime minister, the first of what may be many protests took place away from the glare of TV by Russians demanding true demo
There were emotional scenes in Barcelona after Catalonia’s final bullfight took place before a ban comes into force in the autonomous Spanish region.
Op-Ed: Facebook is squaring with Google in a race for control not only of the social network market, but of the Internet as a whole. Regardless of who “wins,” there’s a danger for users, who bit by bit are losing control of both their digitial profiles –
German tax advisor Markus Zwicklbauer has stopped paying his taxes. Fiscal authorities can have his money, he says, provided they prove it’s being used for the common good of German citizens – and not “wasted” abroad.
White clinker brick houses with saunas, Jacuzzis and underfloor heating: in the Munich suburb of Grünwald, villas like this abound. But now, a Japanese businessman has decided to plant this “Grünwald style” for the moneyed elite in Osaka.
Both Greece and its fellow euro-zone member countries must decide whether to bet on a future of shared sacrifice and common rules. Europe’s post-War dream of a union to avoid the continent’s history of warfare is facing its gravest risk
Could this 60-year-old Hindu nationalist become India’s next Prime Minister? Though boosted by his own charisma and the economic success of Gujarat, the region he leads, Modi is also still hounded by decade-old accusations that he sanctioned deadly attack
Serving a 13-year sentence for fraud, Mikhail Khodorkovsky is a symbol for Russians seeking real democratic reforms. In this open letter from his prison cell published by Kommersant, the former oil tycoon lays out his vision for a lasting overhaul of the
Mounting debt in Greece, Italy and elsewhere in the EU are raising serious questions about the future of the single currency. Things look different in Iceland, after a grave banking crash in 2008 makes the tarnished euro still look like a shiny replacemen
Prime Minister Erdogan vows a fierce response to the Kurdish rebels’ killing of police officers in southeastern Turkey. Reports cite the possibility of a coming Turkish ground assault across the Iraqi border to strike PKK rebel enclaves there.
Countries like Chile and Brazil fared far better than expected during the 2008-2009 global financial crisis. It may still be too soon, however, to celebrate the region’s “independence” from its historic reliance on the United States.
Essay: At some point over the past decade or two, macho men fell out of style. But is that really a good thing? Die Welt columnist Judith Luig suggests that machos actually have some advantages over their modern ‘metrosexual’ replacement