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At least eight Americans as well as other Western nationals have been detained by the Chinese government, according to
Reuters, for expressing political speech related to
Tibet. We Americans take our right to "
free speech" as a given, although this right is not a global one.
Acts of journalism -- what we think of as the Fourth Estate -- are vital to a democracy. In this digital age, these acts of journalism are increasingly being performed by bloggers. Marshall Kirkpatrick at ReadWriteWeb provides more details as well as this information: Call the US Congressional Foreign Affairs Committee, +1 202 225 5021, to register your concern about the Americans being held by the Chinese government.
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The total household income of the upper 1% in 2005 was almost five times greater than that of all households in the bottom 20%, which is the area underneath that bottom green line in the chart above. In 1979, it was only 1.6 times greater.
Click image for more detail.
Blog Action Day, 15 October 2008, is an annual nonprofit event designed to unite the world's bloggers, podcasters and videocasters to discuss the same issue on the same day. Think of it as something like an intellectual flash mob. You don't have to sign up to participate, but right now there are 2,305 sites registered.
This year, the
topic is poverty. In 2007, it was
the environment. (
tip)
Watch the promo clip on
Vimeo. Learn more about poverty:
Politico reports that
John McCain will name his
vice presidential running mate on his 72nd birthday: Friday 29 August. That's also the day after the Democratic National Convention ends.
Speculation about Barack Obama's running mate remains rife. The faithful wait for a text message or email notice.
