Global Voices Online

Nami-Nami examines the menu of the Emperor of Japan during his recent visit to Estonia: “The only ‘outsider' is the snow crab, which was caught in Kamtchatka.”

All About Latvia reports on the election of the new president: “And this is the first time in my recent memory, the Parliament voted in a person opposed by so many organizations.”

The Macedonian Tendency posts a note on the name dispute between Macedonia and Greece.

Darkness at Noon blogs on his scientific research from “a run-down bus station in a little village about 2 hours outside of Lipetsk, which is itself about 10 hours from Moscow by train”: “Never did I think I would long for Moscow so intensely, but after a week in and out of provincial towns and villages (all without hot water), Moscow is like an oasis on the horizon, rising out of the parched earth.”

Russia bans export of biological specimens, Siberian Light reports.

Russian pirates strike back: “By buying licensed Windows you sponsor the war in Iraq.” See the poster at Russian Marketing Blog.

Scenes from the Sidewalk reports on Kyiv City Administration's attempts to deal with the problem of orphaned children in Kyiv.

Foreign Notes writes on the speculation around the sudden illness of Ukraine's minister of internal affairs: “Any number of unexplained deaths and assassination attempts on highly placed politicians and businessmen over the last decade and a half [including that of a former Minister of Internal Affairs Yuriy Kravchenko who committed suicide by shooting himself twice in the head in March 2005] give citizens a queasy feeling, suggesting stories like the one above cannot be completely discounted…”

Palestinian blogger Haitham Sabbah gives us a history lesson about the 1967 war between the Arabs and Israel here.

An ex-pat (was) explains why he came back to Sri Lanka and why he chooses to stay there. More at Indi.ca. “I was born in 1982 and my entire life has been defined by this war I had nothing to do with. It was just this messy inheritance. With the CFA I thought that maybe my parents generation would sort this out so I could have a normal life here, and build. That dream is rapidly slipping away for my generation, but I’m glad I had it. I still love Sri Lanka. I still feel like I’m home. I just have to do what little I can now. I still have that dream of a great Sri Lanka. It’s just one generation removed from me.”

Batya, from Israel, jokingly suggests building an underground Sderot.
“‘Sderot Underground' should be so strong, secure and reliable, that the new “Sderot” will be the most desirable place to live in all of Eretz Yisrael, especially when Iran (G-d forbid) gets the bomb.
“I have no doubt that Olmert and his fellow travellers will love this plan. Think of all the money they can make off of it!” writes the blogger.

Sietske, a Dutch expat living in Lebanon, fills us in on the latest developments in Beirut. “The Warden messages from the Canadian and American embassy are arriving more frequent now (Warden messages are messages from embassies to warn their nationals of (imminent) danger that may befall upon them).
“I even received one from the Brits this morning. They all basically state the same. ‘Avoid going downtown’, ‘Leave Tripoli’, ‘Do not frequent popular places’, Do not venture near Palestinian camps’, ‘Stay away from manifestations’, ‘Adopt a defensive posture at all times ‘etc etc’. These all add up to previously issued messages about not going down south, and staying clear of the southern suburbs. If this goes on much longer, and I would heed all messages, I’d end up barricaded inside my house,” she explains.

“The View from Fez has its ear to the ground and can confirm a rumour that has been floating around the Medina (city) for the last two days. Bono is in Fez. Why? Well according to one source he is recording here with U2 - another is that he has dropped in for the Fez Festival - or ( most likely) he is here for both reasons,” announced The View.

Singur underlines why development is crucial in West Bengal. “Today, regional and sub-regional cooperation is the axis around which the wheel of economic growth is turning. The nay-sayers to new investments in West Bengal and Bangladesh should glance eastwards to see how this wheel has turned in the direction of poverty alleviation, employment generation and shared prosperity. Not long ago, undivided Bengal was more advanced than several countries in Southeast and Far East Asia. Kolkata itself was ahead of Shanghai. Today, if Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, South Korea and, lately, even Vietnam, have left West Bengal and Bangladesh far behind, it is primarily because they realised the virtue of economic cooperation.”

Indian Muslims on the civic elections in Malegaon, which was rocked by bomb blasts last year. “So, does it helps if you are concentrated in a region, play communal politics and still be acceptable to the mainstream? Or can you be a party of only the majority group and still be fine? And when no political party in India is tackling the real issues of Indian Muslims namely poverty and education, is it really a bad idea to have someone who can fight for their rights and help address their genuine grievances?”