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Kuwait: Blogs in the News

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 10:03:01 -0500

A local newspaper has started covering Kuwaiti blogs. In many countries, this might be perceived as a positive step but some Kuwaiti bloggers have their reservations.

According to Exzombie:

يحسب على الدكتور عدم حياديته في الطرح رغم توضيحنا له مرارا حول المجتمع التدويني الكويتي، فهو دائما يصور هذا المجتمع بان جمه ليبرالي رغم ان المدونات التي اعلنت توجهاتها تشكل نسبة ضئيلة من مجمل المدونات الكويتية، فضلا عن ان مدوناتنا الليبرالية لا تمثل سوى كسر بسيط من هذه المدونات، و تحامل غير مهني على الاخوان او الاقطاب الاسلامية و احتواء الكثير من ما يسطره من مغالطات دالة على سطحية الرؤية في المجتمع التدويني،

The doctor (PhD holder who runs the page) is not objective in his reporting even though we have explained to him the Kuwaiti blogging community several times. He always portrays it as being liberal - although the bloggers who have stated their ideologies are limited, compared to the size of the Kuwaiti blogosphere. Liberal blogs are a small fraction of the number of blogs. He is also unprofessionally biased against the Muslim Brotherhood and other religious bloggers. There are many mistakes in what he writes which show his shallow understanding of the Kuwaiti blogging community.

Krakatoa-q8 too has his reservations and says:

ثم طينها الاخ رئيس قسم التكنولوجيا و العلوم..بوضعه لمقابلة ( الله اعلم من اين اتى بها ) عن مقابلة مع مدون مصري؟؟!! لحظه لحظه..هل الكويت تعاني من قلة مدونين حتى تذهب الى ارض الكنانه وتقابل مدون مصري لانعلم اصله من فصله يتحدث في امور سياسية تخص دولة اخرى ونحن في الكويت وكمدونين لا نوصي بالتدخل بشؤون الدول الاخرى فلدينا مايكفينا من المشاكل والبلاوي والعلل، حنا شكو والمدونين المصريين..شنو دخل اهلنا فيهم..ماذا تريدنا يا جمال ان نتوقع مستقبلا ؟؟مقابلة مع مدون موزامبيقي او مقابلة مع مدون من جزر الاباطور مثلا؟؟
يجدر بالاشارة الى ان المقابلة مسرووقة حرفيا من موقع نافذة كارنغي على الشرق الاوسط..مع مدون اسمه ساند مونكي..يعني حتى اشارة الى المصدر..ماميش!!!!

The person in charge of the technology page has made the situation worse by publishing an interview (which only God knows where it came from) with an Egyptian blogger!! Hang on for a second! Are there no bloggers here for you to go to Egypt and interview a blogger we know nothing about, who speaks about the internal political affairs of another country?? We in Kuwait, as bloggers, don't recommend interfering in the affairs of other countries - because we have enough issues and concerns of our own. And Egyptian bloggers - what have we got to do with them? What else shall we expect from you in the future? An interview with bloggers from Mozambique?

It is worth mentioning that the interview has been lifted word to word from the Carnegie Endowment site on the Middle East. It is with a blogger called Sandmonkey and there isn't even a reference to the site it was taken from in the article!!

As You Like has another take on the issue and is concerned with the nationality of the page editor. He writes:

ظـهرت في الاسابيع الماضية صـفحة في جريدة القبس تهتم بشؤون المدونات، في بداية نشأة الصـفحة، اهتم الجريدة ببعض المدونات، مدونات نفـتخر بها نحن كـ مدونين، لكن ان يتم استغلال الصـفحة لصـعود الموجة، على حسابنا، فهذا مانرفضه، خصوصاً ان يكـون الصاعد على هذه الموجة شخص “عـراقـي” لايمت للكويت بصلة.

A new page, which focuses on blogs, appeared in Al Qabas newspaper over the previous few weeks. It focuses on a few blogs - blogs which we as Kuwaiti bloggers are proud of. But for this page to be abused to suck up to others at our expense is something we reject, especially when the person climbing up is an Iraqi, who has no relationship to Kuwait.

هذا الـعراقي، رأيت ردوده في احدى المدونات العزيزة علينا، يشـبه احدى الجماعات السياسية في الكويت بأنها “قذرة” وكـ”الزبالة”، وهذا ما لا نرضاه على ابناء الكويت، سواء اختلفنا معهم، ازدادت حدة النقاش بيننا، الا اننا نظل في الاخير كويتيين،.

I saw a comment by this Iraqi on one of our dear blogs, where he describes one of the political gatherings as “dirty” and “garbage” and this is something we don't accept on the people of Kuwait, even if we don't agree with them. Even if we argue, we remain at the end of the day Kuwaitis.

Posted by Abdullatif AlOmar

Website Urges Children to Influence their Parents' Vote, for Obama

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 10:38:33 -0600

Harnessing the ability of youths to self-organize online via platforms like Facebook and text messaging, a group of Obama supporters have launched a website that urges children to rock the vote--through their parents.

Called YrMomma4Obama, using the text message jargon of teens, the effort cites the story of former Clinton superdelegate Christine "Roz" Samuels, who allegedly switched her vote to Obama because of the influence of her adult children.

Founders include former MoveOn staffer Catherine Geanuracos and Texas Young Democrat Amber Goodwin. In the press release Geanuracos, who has organized mobile campaigns for Live Earth, explains that," YrMomma4Obama combines traditional grassroots organizing, a peer-to-peer text message campaign, social network strategies and marketing tactics more traditionally employed by the entertainment industry to get the word out."

The recently launched website does not state the reach of the organizing effort, but offers four sample text messages for peer-to-peer campaigns, including one entirely in Spanish. The "Yes We Can" video is also embedded, as well as a printable flyer. Right now the campaign is targeting Texas, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Painters Stump for Hillary Clinton on Super Tuesday

Fri, 08 Feb 2008 16:11:47 -0600

Member of the New York Painters Union stump for Hillary Clinton on Super Tuesday. The Painters Union has over 6,000 members. Here two of the explain--sort of-- why they are campaigning for Senator Clinton.

Livestreaming the Primary Vote

Fri, 08 Feb 2008 14:50:26 -0600

GroundReport founder Rachel Sterne introduces the livestream of her vote on Super Tuesday. Unfortunately, she was voting in a firehouse in her hometown of Dobbs Ferry--which blew out the mobile signal.

Check out GroundReport for more live coverage of the 2008 elections.

Democrat’s Super Tuesday not so Super

Tue, 05 Feb 2008 14:29:03 -0600

Super Tuesday is here and while the Republicans will know who their nominee will be, Democrats will likely have to wait a little bit longer. Going into Super Tuesday, the national polls have Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton neck and neck. In fact, all of the polls have these two candidates well within the margin of error.

In the weeks, leading up to the South Carolina Primary it seemed that Clinton was the favored candidate, although, not by much. However, through a slip by former President Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton has suffered some damage to her campaign, which may just see her losing the Party’s nomination.

In states like California, Barack Obama has seen a surge in his poll numbers. Unlike the Republicans, today is not a winner take all proposition for the Democrats. This really leaves this whole process up in the air and we will likely not know who the Democratic nominee will be until about March or April.

This is where strategy by the Democratic Party may come into play. If it is John McCain who receives the Republican Party’s nomination, then the Democrats may just decide to nominate Hillary Clinton. In the Republican Party, there are many pundants that are claiming that they would vote for Clinton over McCain.

This type of match up will likely cause many conservatives to stay home in November. In essence, this would be like walking up to Clinton and just handing her the Presidency. While many are excited by the Obama campaign, he does have a weakness going into the general election and that is that he is considered to be the most liberal Senator.

It is my opinion that whoever takes California will wind up being the Democratic Party’s nominee going into the general election. Therefore, it may not be such a surprise after all.

Photo
CNN

The Republican’s Moment of Truth

Tue, 05 Feb 2008 13:30:39 -0600

Today is the big day for Republicans in a winner takes all proposition. Super Tuesday is now upon us and the candidates are making one last push for the Party’s nomination. Romney and McCain have their sights set on California as the largest prize and possibly the deciding factor in this campaign.

In recent weeks, John McCain has enjoyed an unprecedented expansion in support for his campaign even though many in the Republican Party are saying that they would rather vote for Hillary Clinton as opposed to John McCain. This has to be a welcome development for the Clinton campaign, now they only have to hope that McCain takes the Party’s nomination.

Mike Huckabee has all of his hopes pinned on the southern states. However, it seems that he may have a little trouble getting any results from his favored southern states due to some wicked weather running through the region, including tornado warnings in Oklahoma. It seems that God might have something to say about this after all.

Ron Paul is dependant upon just the will of the voters but it is likely that he will not win the nomination and if it is true that the media and the establishment are running the numbers, and then Ron Paul will likely place very low in the Primaries. His supporters are well aware of what the outcome of this campaign cycle will be and it is hoped that Paul will decide to run as a third Party candidate.

The evangelicals are split between Mitt Romney and John McCain. There are those that seem to hold Party politics in much higher regard and it is John McCain’s maverick status, which has Dr. Dobson of Focus on the Family backing Mitt Romney on this Super Tuesday. It seems that Mitt Romney is enjoying a slight surge in the polls and that is even more evident in California.

It is possible that Republicans in California that may have supported Tom Tancredo and Duncan Hunter will find they agree more with any candidate other than the perceived pro-illegal alien John McCain. John McCain was one of the authors of the immigration reform bill, which was devastated by the people through an unprecedented outcry that the Congress and the Senate could not ignore.

John McCain cannot even bring this bill up in his speeches without getting booed at his own rallies. Because the McCain-Feingold bill is not on the radar of most of the public, it is not much of a problem for John, but the immigration reform bill is something that is still fresh on the minds of the voters and they do not want to see that bill continue to be resurrected.

This Super Tuesday is the decisive moment for the Republicans. No matter what happens, the Party’s nominee for President of the United States will be known today. However, the Democratic nominee may not be known until March or April.

Pre-Election Lack of Sleep Thoughts

Tue, 05 Feb 2008 00:02:54 -0600

I was going to post some stuff about the Obama rally held by students today at Binghamton University, complete with pictures, but the turnout was lower than the Sunday event in downtown Binghamton, and the crummy indoor lighting meant my pictures suffered. I'll try taking pictures of lines at the polls tomorrow (hoping there are some long ones). I'm having difficulty sleeping, hence the late night post. My dorm room is extremely stuffy (they keep the thermostats at 68° and we have no control over them) and my brain functions are on overdrive without the use of coffee. I'm plagued by a combination of: unusual anxiety over today's election, how I'm going to try to keep my student magazine afloat this semester, anticipation for my impending graduation, and self-criticism about social skills that have improved only marginally over the last few years. Yes, my mind's all over the grid right now. I'm not sure why I'm so anxious about this primary. Perhaps it's just all the hype that's been fabricated by the mass media -- maybe it's finally gotten under my skin. With polls showing Obama and Clinton in a dead heat going into Super Tuesday, I'm quite jumpy. Maybe it's my overactive desire to see the underdog -- my guy Obama -- take the spoils so I can laugh at my parents via video chat. Look, I'll vote for whoever gets the Democratic nomination, but I deeply want Obama to win. This desire, coupled with the fact that this race is so close, is scary. Granted, I did more for Kerry in 2004 than I've done for Obama (I canvassed in Scranton for Kerry, a candidate I liked only because he wasn't Bush), but Obama is someone that I truly like. However, I'm also looking beyond Super Tuesday and beyond the Democratic National Convention, to the race for the general election. It seems pretty clear, from my perspective, that McCain will get the Republican nomination, unless he does something monumentally stupid. Based on the speech I saw him give in Boston yesterday, it almost looks as if his running mate could be Joe Lieberman. Politically, it's a good move, since Lieberman would be able to pull more moderates to the Republican camp. It seemed like a similar philosophy back in 2000. Regardless, we'd still have two guys who'd keep us in a senseless war/occupation for who-knows-how-long. We can't let that happen.

Binghamton Students and Locals Rally for Obama (and one lone soul for Clinton)

Sun, 03 Feb 2008 23:14:57 -0600

Students and local residents rallied for Barack Obama on Sunday, February 3, outside the historic courthouse of Binghamton, NY, while on the other side of the street stood one Hillary Clinton supporter. The College Democrats of Binghamton University will be hosting a rally for Obama (and to remind fellow Democrats to vote in the Super Tuesday primary) in the lobby of the Old University Union on Monday, February 4, at 12 noon. Images from that event will be posted some time in the afternoon.

A Haitian Blogger on the Next American President

Sun, 03 Feb 2008 17:35:02 -0600

By Jennifer Brea

Pascale, a Haitian living in Abu Dhabi who blogs at Natifnatal, writes about the American presidential election from a “Third World” perspective. Given America's impact, the outcome of this election matters not just for U.S. voters, but people around the world.

And while America certainly needs hope, she writes, campaign promises have a way of evaporating as soon as the contest is over. Can politicians like Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton help the US write a new chapter?

Jusqu'ici je n'ai prêté qu'une attention vague aux joutes électorales américaines. Mes priorités ont monopolisé chaque minute de mon temps, et j'ai trouvé que les mêmes promesses revenaient comme un refrain de mauvais aloi ponctuer les discours des démocrates et républicains—des promesses qui impressionnent mais qui ont en général une vie assez courte une fois le nouveau président investi dans ses fonctions.

Up until now, I haven't lent any more than vague attention to the American electoral contests. My priorities have monopolized each minute of my time, and I have found the same promises returning like a bad refrain—impressive promises that are generally short-lived once the new president is sworn in office.

Je suis sceptique pour plusieurs raisons. Je viens du tiers-monde et il y a toute une panoplie de mises en garde qui régissent les réserves du citoyen haïtien moyen à la veille de toute élection—des mises en garde du genre « l'homme aux abords du pouvoir n'est pas l'homme au pouvoir », « la parole a été donnée à l'homme pour masquer sa pensée », « read my lips », etc…Mais aussi en tant que tiers-mondiste, j'ai toujours pensé qu'il y a en fait peu de différences entre les hommes politiques américains, que tous ces efforts à séparer d'un coté les démocrates des républicains d'un autre coté sont des atteintes superficielles pour camoufler les vrais problèmes qui rongent l'Amérique, et par ricochet le monde…

I am skeptical for many reasons. I come from the Third World and here there have been a panoply of warnings responsible for the reservations of the average Haitian citizen on the eve of all elections—warnings of the sort “those surrounding power are not the ones in power,” “speech was given to man to mask his thoughts,” “read my lips,” etc…But also as a Third World-er, I have always thought that there is little difference between American politicians, that all their efforts to separate Democrats on the one hand from Republicans on the other are superficial attempts to camouflage the real problems that are eating away at America, and by extension, the world…

Pascale is particularly concerned about Americans' desire to be the exemplar, often through force, of ideals they have failed to master at home.

…l'Amérique aura beau se faire l'avocat des droits de l'individu et aura beau prôner l'égalité pour tous, les questions de discriminations et de d'inégalité restent encore entières. Je ne me suis jamais sentie plus ségrégée qu'aux E.U. Chez moi en Haïti, la musique, l'art, et la science du monde sont accessible à tous. Il est assez normal qu'un (e) jeune haïtien(ne) soit un(e) passionné(e) de Céline Dion, de Bocelli, de Monet ou du génome humain ; qu'il/elle discute du bec et des ongles l'Illiade, l'Odysée, et le surréalisme ; qu'il/elle analyse David Copperfield tout en fantasmant sur Beyoncé et Brad Pitt. Ce qu'est qu'aux E.U. que j'ai appris que si tu es noir(e) et que tu écoute de la musique de Georges Michael par exemple, tu es considéré(e) « a black with white taste », qu'il y a un cinéma pour blancs et un autre pour noirs, une musique pour blancs et une autre pour noirs, etc…

…America has tried to style itself the arbiter of individual rights, to champion equality for all, [but] issues of discrimination and inequality remain intact. I have never felt more segregated than when I was in the United States. Here in Haiti world music, art, and science are accessible to all. There's nothing out of the ordinary about a young Haitian to be mad about Celine Dion, Bocelli, Monet or the human genome; or for him or her to discuss inside out the Ilyad, the Odyssey and surrealism; for he or she to analyze David Copperfield while fantasizing about Beyonce and Brad Pitt. What I learned is that in the United States, if you are Black and you listen to George Michael, for example, you are considered “black with white taste,” that there are movies for Whites and movies for Blacks, music for Whites and music for Blacks, etc.

Les Etats-Unis, c'est une société qui d'après moi doit se pencher sur ses malheurs avant de se faire les militaires du monde. Avec les classes moyennes s'appauvrissant, les familles enfoncées jusqu'au cou dans les dettes, des visions altérées et irréalistes de la notion de limite que tout homme sensé est supposé avoir pour pouvoir faire une bonne allocation de ses ressources, avec la crise de l'immobilier, les marchés boursiers s'effondrant sous le poids des signes avant-coureurs d'une récession, la hausse des prix des produits de première nécessité, et le sceptre du terrorisme hantant comme une épée de Damoclès le quotidien, le prochain président aura du pain sur la planche.

The US in my opinion is a society that ought to tend to its own problems before making itself the military of the world. With a middle class that's growing power, families up to their necks in debt, an altered and unrealistic sense of boundaries, which every sensible person is supposed to have in order to allocate resources properly, the rising prices of basic necessities, and the specter of terrorism haunting daily like the Sword of Damocles, the next president will have a lot on his [or her] plate.

Yet, Pascale recognizes there is something different about this election, something unprecedented:

Il est indéniable que et Hilary Clinton et Barack Obama veuillent secouer le status quo. Une femme et un noir portés par le même rêve de présidence de la nation la plus puissante du monde. Devant la défaite essuyée à New Hampshire un charismatique Obama scande trois petits mots qui galvanisent— « yes we can »— alors qu'une Hilary Clinton triomphante proclame que l'homme moyen ne sera pas invisible pour elle. Une Amérique encore à rebâtir veut encore croire que le changement est possible.

It is undeniable that Hilary Clinton and Barack Obama want to shake the status quo. A woman and a black carried by the same dream of presiding over the world's most powerful nation. In the face of defeat in New Hampshire, a charismatic Obama chants three little worlds that galvanize— « yes we can »— while a triumphant Hilary Clinton proclaims that the average man will never be invisible to her. An America that's to rebuild again needs to believe again that change is possible.

Caribbean: Obama in Iowa

Sun, 03 Feb 2008 17:24:13 -0600

By Janine Mendes-Franco

Senator Barack Obama's astounding success in Iowa - the first of the caucuses that will ultimately result in the victorious nominee from each of the two main political parties going on to contest the 2008 US presidential election - has struck a chord with many Caribbean bloggers.

Posts range from the coverage of a full-blown endorsement of Obama by the US Virgin Islands Governor, to hopeful questions about whether history could actually be unfolding before our eyes. Some bloggers think he's the perfect candidate for the next US president, others aren't so sure, but there's no doubt that the Senator for Illinois is giving the Caribbean blogosphere something to talk about…

Haitian-born blogger kiskeácity “captured some inspiring moments” at the Iowa Caucus Party in Downtown Manhattan, making her earlier post that much more pertinent.

But Further Thoughts wonders “how much of this is real”:

A month ago, people seemed to be saying that yes, Obama will win in Iowa, but it doesn’t matter all that much.

But then Obama won in Iowa, and the narrative changed. The latest polls suggest that real change is afoot. Obama is surging in New Hampshire and nationally. But how solid is this? Have people made up their minds, or are they just saying what the press tells them they should be thinking?

Liza Sabater, Puerto Rican by birth, mixed race by ethnicity, views Obama as the perfect example of “the audacity of biracial hope”:

Recognizing how ingrained racism and prejudice is the culture at-large and the psyche within, is the most important first step for any liberal hoping to discuss and understand the audacity of Barack Obama's hope.

Barack Obama comes from a world in which he has not just seen but lived the good and bad of both ends of the color spectrum. There is no need to defend one over the other because he knows how similarly good and similarly bad people can be. He understand social economic catastrophes are not predetermined by a person's race but are wrought by government policies that exploit the politically disenfranchised and the economically weak.

In other words, he understands that race is just one part of the political equation.

Meanwhile, Signifyin' Guyana poses the question:

Do you think he will win the whole thing? Why? Why not? Does he need black voters to carry him through?

Blogging from Trinidad and Tobago, Club Soda and Salt is not convinced:

“They said this country was too divided, too disillusioned to ever come together around a common purpose,” Mr. Obama said.

Well, this “common purpose” sounds nice, but what is it? I honestly have no idea, and I feel like the Obama campaign hasn’t really ever defined it. This nicely captures the “something missing” that is part of why I can’t actively back Obama over the other Dems.

I’m fine with him getting the nomination, and I’d love to see him be president, but this is part of why the Obama campaign has let me down a little.

In contrast, blogger Jeremy Taylor chalks one up for Obama:

If it gives America the sense that this guy might actually be electable, then Iowa will have done the world a service. The president of the US is pretty much the president of the world, so America's choice next November is of more than passing interest to the planet.

…The rest of the world desperately needs an American president with some common sense. Someone who can stop this lunatic war in Iraq and fight “terrorism” without creating ten new terrorists for each one taken down. Someone who wouldn't rush to applaud Mwai Kabaki for winning a rigged election in Kenya. Someone who is not afraid of the Israelis and thus can lean on them and produce a settlement in Palestine. Someone who will dismantle the crazy 45-year confrontation with Cuba. Someone who doesn't wear cowboy hats.

For Seldo.com, it comes down to a simple issue of technological savvy:

Obama is the candidate who understands that the Internet is not just a technology, not just a new industry, but a fundamental change to the nature of public discourse, and like any other form of free speech, it needs to be encouraged and protected from vested interests who would seek to control it to their own ends.

Linking to Obama's blog post in The Daily Kos, Liza Sabater writes:

This may be, by the way, the post that alienated the Obama campaign from not just the netroots crowd but the whole progressive blogosphere.

Obama is not out to get the enemy. He is out to build bridges, heal old wounds. Barack's campaign is all about bringing all peoples into the democratic process by putting politics back on the kitchen table by calling it Hope.

No matter the race or ethnicity.

No matter the religion or political ideology.

Jeremy Taylor echoes her sentiment…sort of:

Obama? He sounds as if he's so wonderful that he'll be all things to all men and all women. You look at him and wonder, can he really make it? If he does, could he sustain it? In Washington, would he be a pushover, would he get fat and pompous, would he be allowed to implement any liberal ideas? How long would it take the wolves to tear him to bits?

But if you want change, Obama — so far — seems the one who's up for it. The best of a dubious lot.