Month: January 2015

Thirty Hours Aboard The Rickety Upper Egypt Railway

Post author By lmacret
Post date January 31, 2015

The Upper Egypt line near Aswan zolakoma

CAIRO — As I hop on the Wednesday night Upper Egypt train from Cairo, I hear a newbie ask when we will get to Aswan, my destination and the end of the line. His question is met with collective laughter from a group of old Nubian men who seem to make the trip often. “You just relax and don’t even ask this question,” one of them answers. “We will get off when the train lets us go.” The man seems to have made his peace with the uncertainty that comes with using the Egyptian railway system, with all its downfalls […]

Tags Aswan, egypt, Egyptian trains, railroad, Upper Egypt train fire

Geopolitics Ideas

And If Europe Were Still The Last, Best Hope On Earth?

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Post date January 31, 2015

Greek treasures of the past. And the future? Jhadow

After the Greek election of radical leftists and the European Central Bank’s new liquidity, Europe is still where the rest of the world looks to understand themselves. History has so much to say.

Tags ECB, eu, europe, future, germany, Mario Draghi, putin, re-emerging power, Salafists

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Extra! Moroccan Weekly Features Francois Hollande As Hitler

Post author By
Post date January 30, 2015

The Jan. 29 front page of Morocco’s weekly magazine Alwatan Alane features French President Francois Hollande wearing a Nazi outfit, complete with a swastika armband and Adolf Hitler’s trademark mustache. The controversial photomontage is accompanied by the title, “Will the French revive Hitler’s concentration camps to exterminate Muslims?” Contacted by francetv info, publication director Abderrahim […]

Tags caricature, controversy, front page, morocco, nazism, president

Economy Future Geopolitics Ideas

Uber, Revolution Of The Always Informed Consumer

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Post date January 30, 2015

In, Bogota, Colombia Daniel Garzon Herazo/ZUMA

BOGOTA — The significance of Uber goes well beyond its specific function, which is to connect willing drivers with people who need to move around in a safe, comfortable and punctual manner. The deeper message of the controversial digital application — and others like it — is in the changing way labor and service markets […]

Tags airbnb, application, colombia, economy, internet, lyft, sharing, sidecar, unemployment

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Extra! Brazil’s Drought Knocking Out Electricity

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Post date January 30, 2015

For months now the southeastern region of Brazil has been experiencing the most severe drought in living memory. The already crippling water crisis was made worse by a mercilessly scorching summer that saw record high temperatures in São Paulo, Brazil’s most populous city. The suffocating heat has complicated matters further still by prompting people to […]

Tags brazil, climate change, drought, environment

Geopolitics

Russian And Ukrainian Armies: Former Brothers In Arms

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Post date January 30, 2015

A Ukraine-Russia joint military parade in Kiev, back in 2010 Brovary

After the Soviet collapse, Russia and Ukraine split what was left of the Red Army. Now an open war between the two is becoming increasingly likely in a bitter twist of history.

Tags collapse, nato, red army, russia, ussr, war, warsaw pact

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Egypt’s ISIS, Hollande As Hitler, Spectator Swearing

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Post date January 30, 2015

EGYPT’S ISIS TARGETS MILITARYAt least 26 people were killed yesterday in a series of attacks by an ISIS-affiliated group in Egypt’s Sinai peninsula, Al Jazeera reports. Most of the victims were Egyptian troops, but civilians were also among the victims. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi cut short his visit to Ethiopia, where he was attending […]

Tags andy murray, caricature, Eugene de Kock, Kenji Goto, morocco, terrorism

Society

Vanity Affair: This French Magazine Publishes Whenever It Damn Well Pleases

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Post date January 30, 2015

Egoiste, issue No. 17 of the "phoenix" Facebook page

Egoiste, the publishing plaything of an eccentric Parisian icon, Nicole Wisniak, has come out just 17 times in 37 years. The next publication deadline is always: “When it’s beautiful.”

Tags egoiste, france, magazines, Nicole Wisniak, publishing, slow journalism

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Unmistakably Portuguese

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Post date January 30, 2015

The traditional pavement in front of Funchal“s 17th century Igreja do Colégio can be found throughout Portugal but also in the country’s former colonies. My grandson recently took pictures of similar black-and-white sidewalks bordering Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana beach.

Tags europe, madeira, photography, portugal, tourism, travel

Future

Chinese Lessons In How Not To Invest In Technology

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Post date January 30, 2015

In a welding workshop in Suzhou, eastern China Liu Bin/Xinhua/ZUMA

In China, there is no shortage of economic commitment to research and technical advancement. But state graft and insider favors drive the process rather than a pure pursuit of innovation.

Tags china, education, employment, funding, technology, university

Eyes on the U.S. Future

Why Russia Is Abandoning The International Space Station

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Post date January 29, 2015

U.S. astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson looking out the ISS NASA/Tracy Caldwell Dyson

With its programs aging, Russia has announced that it’s pulling out of the International Space Station in 2020. Where does that leave space exploration for the rest of the world?

Tags elon musk, international space station, iss, mars, Mir, moon, nasa, russia, space x, yuri gagarin

Food / Travel Society

The Hoppy Comeback Of French Microbreweries

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Post date January 29, 2015

At the Goutte d'Or microbrewery in Paris Facebook page/Worldcrunch

Wine-loving France used to be a beer haven too, before shrinking to just 22 breweries three decades ago. Today it’s up to more than 700 microbreweries, even if industrialists continue to dominate.

Tags beer, craft, degree, FrÃ©dÃ©ric Sannier, france, la rochelle, university

Economy Geopolitics Ideas

The Anger Of Alexis Tsipras Could Tear Europe Apart

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Post date January 29, 2015

Tsipras after the election. Marios Lolos/Xinhua/ZUMA

A German take on new Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who looks ready to peddle his sense of alienation beyond Greece’s borders? If so, Europe itself is at risk.

Tags economy, european union, greece, opinion, syriza, tsipras

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Hezbollah Restraint, MH370 Declared “Accident,” Saudi Misogyny

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Post date January 29, 2015

HEZBOLLAH SENDS MESSAGE OF RESTRAINTWhile many feared that yesterday’s deadly clashes between Hezbollah and the Israeli Defense Forces on the Lebanon border might ignite a new war, Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said Israel had received a message from Hezbollah in which the Lebanese group said it was retreating from further violence, Haaretz reports. According to […]

Tags argentina, boko haram, ebola, isis, nisman, tsipras

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Little House On The Fjord

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Post date January 29, 2015

In 1960, I was able to afford a trip to faraway Norway, because I’d just won the first prize at a radio show trivia contest — 1,280 new francs, the currency that had just been introduced in France at the beginning of the year. Of course we went there by car, in our robust Peugeot […]

Tags environment, norway, photography, scandinavia, tourism, travel

Society

Resomation, A Third-Way Alternative To Cremation Or Burial

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Post date January 29, 2015

Founder of Resomation Ltd. Sandy Sullivan next to a "resomator" Melissa Lyttle/Tampa Bay Times/ZUMA

Another more environmentally friendly option for what to do with the dearly departed has been legalized in a few U.S. states, with several European countries now considering it as well.

Tags Alkaline Hydrolysis, burial, corpse, cremation, death, funeral, germany, resomater, resomation, ritual

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Why Shanghai Doesn’t Want To Talk About GDP

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Post date January 28, 2015

SHANGHAI — The most important recent piece of economic data in Shanghai is the number that’s missing. At the annual new year session of the Shanghai Municipal People’s Congress, the megacity chose not to set an annual GDP growth target, an unprecedented move for a country where local governments’ political performances are largely tied directly […]

Tags china, data, economic growth, gdp, shanghai

Syria Crisis Terror in Europe

Can France ‘Cure’ Its Aspiring Jihadists?

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Post date January 28, 2015

French policemen in front of the Paris supermarket attacked on Jan. 9 Ania Freindorf/ZUMA

Just a few months before the Paris terror attacks, and arguably late to the game, France launched a “disindoctrination” program for Islamist radicals that relies on social and religious approaches.

Tags al qaeda, doctrine, france, isis, jihad, radicalization, rehabilitation, terrorism

Ideas Society

In Rural Colombia, At The Gory Intersection Of Social Media And Bullfighting

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Post date January 28, 2015

Corraleja in Sincelejo, Colombia. Luis Perez

Images are spreading of extreme cruelty to animals at the corralejas, a version of bullfighting in remote areas of Colombia. Social media can be both enemy and friend for animal rights activists.

Tags animals, bullfighting, colombia, corralejas, cruelty, peta, rights

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ISIS In Libya, Japanese Mother’s Plea, Apple Breaks Bank

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Post date January 28, 2015

ISRAEL-LEBANON-SYRIA SKIRMISHES INTENSIFYAn anti-tank missile was fired at an Israeli military vehicle near the Lebanon border Wednesday, wounding four soldiers, Reuters quoted a military source as saying. The incident came several hours after Israel launched an air strike in Syria amid tensions that have escalated in the frontier area over the past 10 days. According […]

Tags israel, kenji, Litvinenko, netanyahu, putin, tsipras

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Extra! Litvinenko Inquiry Begins, Putin’s Involvement ‘Exposed’

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Post date January 28, 2015

The Times, Jan. 28, 2015 A photo of former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko was allegedly used by Russian special forces for target practice, says The Times on Wednesday’s front page. An inquiry into the dissident’s death began in London Tuesday, with claims made by Ben Emmerson QC — the lawyer acting on behalf of Litvinenko’s […]

Tags alexander litvinenko, kgb, mafia, polonium-210, putin, spies, united kingdom

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Tiananmen Transportation

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Post date January 28, 2015

Twenty years ago, Beijing was already dealing with monstrous pollution — and since then, China has surpassed all other countries in vehicle sales. So cyclists in the capital must have a harder time navigating Tiananmen Square … and breathing along the way.

Tags china, environment, photography, pollution, tourism, travel

Society Terror in Europe

Why Poland Is Not Charlie

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Post date January 28, 2015

Not reading Charlie Hebdo on Warsaw's Zamkowy Square Kuba Bozanowski

The recent terror attacks in Paris didn’t inspire much Polish empathy, in part because Poles have trouble identifying with the West’s multicultural societies. That needs to change.

Tags charlie, hebdo, je suis, poland

Society

Indian Police Find 300 Kidnapped Children After Being Chided For Inaction

Post author By lmacret
Post date January 27, 2015

Nearly half of India's missing children remain untraced. Bismillah Geelani

A child goes missing in India every eight minutes. After India’s Supreme Court censured police for failing to act, authorities launched an operation to bring children home. But it’s still too little, too late.

Tags begging, exploitation, india, kidnapping, missing children, organ traders, poverty, prostitution

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Extra! Remembering Auschwitz’s Liberation 70 Years Later

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Post date January 27, 2015

“My Great-Grandmother’s Suitcase” — Die Welt, Jan. 27, 2015 The suitcase featured on Die Welt“s front page is kept at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum and is labeled “Zdenka Fantl.” It belonged to a young woman who was taken to the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1943 — and survived it. The woman’s great-granddaughter Kim Sarah Mojecki […]

Tags anniversary, concentration camp, front page, germany, liberation, nazism, war, wwii

Society

New Film Visits The ‘Chaordic’ Crush Of Cairo’s Tangled Streets

Post author By lmacret
Post date January 27, 2015

Traffic jam in Cairo Martyn Smith

CAIRO — Ironically enough, the roads to the Cairo premier of Sherief Elkatsha’s traffic-centered documentary Cairo Drive weren’t at all crowded. The special screening at the recent Zawya cinema happened on arguably one of the coldest days the capital has ever seen.

Tags arab spring, cairo, Cairo Drive, Cairo Garbage, documentary, documentary film, egypt, hosni mubarak, Mikala Krogh, mubarak, Sherief Elkatsha, traffic, We are Watching You

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Still Got It! Musicians Over 70 Who Keep On Rocking

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Post date January 27, 2015

Last week, the great beatnik bard Bob Dylan gave his first interview in three years to AARP, the American Association of Retired Persons’ magazine — a peculiar choice until you consider that the AARP publication actually has the largest magazine circulation in the U.S. The interview proves, if it’s even necessary, that at age 73 […]

Tags age, Cohen, dylan, inspiration, keith richards, music, songs, united states

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ISIS Loses Kobani, Russia’s “Junk” Rating, Blizzard Friends With Benefits

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Post date January 27, 2015

ISIS LOSES LONG KOBANI BATTLEAfter more than four months of intense fighting, Kurdish fighters have taken control of the Syrian town of Kobani on the Turkish border and have driven out ISIS fighters, though these still occupy important areas outside the town, Reuters reports. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, at least 1,600 […]

Tags Castro, koch, nisman, snow, storm, tsipras, united states, winter

Economy Geopolitics

Putin’s Nemesis Speaks: The Alexei Navalny Interview

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Post date January 27, 2015

A pro-government march in Moscow Anna Sergeeva/ZUMA

The anti-corruption activist, under house arrest in Moscow, says that Putin is pursuing war in Ukraine to consolidate his power and fulfill his ambition to be Russia’s “president for life.”

Tags activist, alexei navalny, chechnya, corruption, crimea, oleg navalny, politics, putin, russia

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Brazilians Rush To Cuba Before It’s ‘Americanized’

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Post date January 27, 2015

Havana — Photo: Angel Chevrestt/ZUMA HAVANA — When Presidents Barack Obama and Raúl Castro announced the two countries would “normalize” relations between the two countries, most observers were quick to point out that this unexpected move would eventually benefit the Cuban economy by boosting the tourism industry, among other sectors. And according to Folha de […]

Tags capitalism, cars, communism, cuba, havana, tourism, veradero

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Balancing Act

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Post date January 27, 2015

The inhabitants of Nazaré lent themselves well to portraits back when people were more open to being photographed than today. This woman was carrying a recycled oil can that she used to draw water from a well.

Tags nazare, photography, portrait, portugal, tourism, travel

Food / Travel Society

The Swiss Who Makes The Rolls Royce Of Skis

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Post date January 26, 2015

Worker manufacturing skis at the Zai factory in Disentis Facebook page

DISENTIS — The snow hasn’t fallen yet, and the crowds are still to come. It’s a rainy December day under a low grey sky. A ray of sunshine sometimes pierces through the clouds to caress the eternal whiteness of eastern Switzerland’s summits. Having departed from the town of Coire, the small red train takes travelers […]

Tags alps, craft, skis, sports, switzerland, winter, workmanship

Economy Society

How Russian Brands Are Cashing In On Buyers’ Patriotism

Post author By
Post date January 26, 2015

Man wearing a Putin T-shirt in Moscow's underground Anna Sergeeva/ZUMA

MOSCOW — When Russian President Vladimir Putin’s approval rating began to rise last year, patriotism crept into Russian consumer preferences, branding experts say, so much so that companies are now catering to this newfound domestic pride. Branding agency Depot WPF recently developed a new design for a juice brand, using elements of traditional Russian painted […]

Tags brands, consumer trends, food products, nationalism, patriotism, russia, Stoli, vladimir putin

Geopolitics Society

Why Greece’s Tsipras Could Prove To Be A Wise Choice

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Post date January 26, 2015

A Victorious Tsipras on Sunday Aristidis Vafeiadakis/ZUMA

Pure necessity could turn Alexis Tsipras Greece’s liberal prime minister-elect, into an unexpected reformer willing to go against client politics.

Tags bankruptcy, berlin, brussels, client politics, greece, left coalition, Syriza party, troika

blog

FIRST QUARTER MOON – Jan. 26 – Feb. 2

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Post date January 26, 2015

(March 21 to April 19) Professional connections developed last week now turn out to be winning options. A positive phone call or reply comes your way around Jan. 30. It is a good time for work, which will dominate your sky in this lunar cycle — but this doesn’t mean emotions are to be forgotten. […]

Tags astrology, horoscope, italy, signs, stars, zodiac

Geopolitics Syria Crisis

Firewood As A Crucial School Supply In Syria

Post author By lmacret
Post date January 26, 2015

Schoolchildren studying without electricity in Aleppo, Syria Miguel Juarez Lugo/ZUMA

Despite lacking basic amenities, residents of a small Syrian village persist in their quest for education. But to keep the children warm in shelled-out buildings, they must bring wood to school.

Tags Jabhat al-Nusra, pupils, school, syria, war, wood

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Syriza Wins Greek Election, Europe Reacts

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Post date January 26, 2015

SYRIZA WINS GREEK ELECTIONAs expected, Greece’s anti-austerity party Syriza secured a resounding victory in yesterday’s general election but came just two seats short of an absolute majority in the parliamentary assembly. But the far-left party has already struck a coalition agreement with the right-wing Greek Independents, which also rejects the austerity policies that have plunged […]

Tags boko haram, elections, greece, hostage, syriza, tsipras, wikileaks

Geopolitics

Greek Elections: Syriza Victory On Europe’s Front Pages

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Post date January 26, 2015

Syriza celebrations in Athens Michael Debets/Pacific Press/ZUMA

Greece’s anti-austerity party Syriza won Sunday’s general election with 36.3% of votes, putting the country on a potential collision course with the European Union over its 240 billion euro bailout package. Party leader Alexis Tsipras said that, “The verdict of the Greek people renders the troika the IMF, the EU Commission, and European Central Bank […]