Victory Claimed by Both Candidates in Romania

This article can be found here.

December 6, 2009

President Traian Basescu is in familiar territory. It was only five years ago when Basecsu was in a highly contested election which he barely won. The results of this year's election were even closer. While some polls proclaimed Mircea Geoana the victor with 51 percent of the popular vote, but Basascu claims that the results were skewed by the media. As a result, both candidates have publicly proclaimed themselves president. More than an election about the poor economic conditions for this agriculturally based nation, the campaign revolved mostly around the scandals involved with both parties. For one, a video of Basescu was released where he is shown slapping a 10-year-old boy. Once again, the president claimed media manipulation. There still appears to be some stigma attached to Geoana's Socialist Party, as one Basescu supporter decries the alleged victory of a "red". What the video does add to the election outcome is the increased visibility of the aggressive nature of the president. The results will be officially released on Monday, December 7, 2009, and when they do, at least half the voting population will be left in disappointment.

Italian Jury Convicts U.S. Student of Murder

This article can be found here.

December 4, 2009

One year ago, American student Amanda Knox was arrested for her alleged involvement in the murder of her roommate, Meredith Kercher, with the help of her boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito. It was believed that Knox and Kercher were fighting when it eventually escalated into the Sollecito wielding a knife and cutting Kercher's throat, while a third party, Rudy Guede, held her back. Prosecutors revealed Knox and Sollecito's attempt to cover up the murder by making it look like a robbery. The trial, like the article itself, failed to offer much description of the supposed happenings of that night, but there was apparently plenty of evidence for indictment. The jury deliberated for six hours and ultimately found the pair guilty of sexual assault and murder, giving Knox 26 years and Sollecito 25 years. The third offender, Rudy Guede, is already serving his 30 years, as yet another collaborator in the murder. The trial was held in a small Italian city, to counter the heavy amount of attention the case was getting that would possibly skew the jury's decision. Attached to charges of murder and sexual assault was unlawful possession of a weapon (the knife) and defamation, since Knox had accused her boss of doing the murder after being questioned by the police. Rachel Donadio ends the article by citing that most sentences in Italy are reduced after two tries of appeals; giving the idea that the sentences which may seem heavy now, will probably be much milder after the routine appeals are made.

What Can We Do to Change the World

This excerpt can be found here.

November 31, 2009

Zehfuss finds flaw in the idea of changing what’s wrong in the world through political policy. For one reason, it is not always easy to determine right from wrong, so we cannot whole-heartedly advocate going the right thing to defeat a specific ‘evil’. Secondly, people often get frustrated when their cause does not succeed, when the cause is often so broad and vast an issue, that it cannot be easily solved. Ability to create change assumes we, as humans, have some kind of control over all the world’s workings. In acting on war, there is inevitably a sacrifice of some lives in order to protect others. Another issue is in which conflict should we involve ourselves, as there will always be an infinite supply of conflicts. She cites the differences between problem-solving and critical theory: the former finds solutions using the same system, while the latter tries to alter the entire system as a solution in itself. Throughout the work, her tone is very informal; she connects to her audience by inciting a personal relationship with her audience, so that they may easily relate to what she is saying and thus better comprehend what she is trying to convey.

Culture, Crisis, and America's War on Terror

This excerpt can be found here.

November 30, 2009

“The Incredibles” was an incredible box office success, something Stuart Croft admits might be due to the popularity of other family, animated movies during this time; but the author also suggests another, more political, reasoning behind the success of this movie. Mr. Incredible is a retired superhero, put out of commission after the people he once spent his days saving from certain destruction rejected him. He and his superhero family now live mundane, middle class lives. Once danger reveals itself again, the Incredibles must return to superhero status in order to save the society, once again, from inevitable devastation. The author sees that the parallels the Incredibles share with America during this time are what lend it support among many Americans. America is now living off past glory, but many are becoming tired of this empty, grandiose promise. They need a new threat, terrorism, to show that they can still do great things, and ‘save’ the world. In the end, it incites a very real fear that the current war will be brought to America, when Cyndrome brings his weapons of mass destruction over to the Incredibles’ home town.

Citing the same reasons “The Incredibles” was successful, Croft makes another argument citing why “The Last Samurai” was not. The movie is about a respected, decorated military officer who was the sole survivor in a mission to defeat the great Samurai in Japan. Captured by these people, he assimilates to their ways, which involve a kind of morality lost in American values of that time, and learns to respect them. It is believed that the failure of this movie and the brutal criticism it received directly relate to the fact that it was a criticism of popular American policies.

Can the War on Terror Be Won?

This article can be found here.

November 26, 2009

Theorist Philip Gordon finds the goal of this so called “War on Terror” to be quite unclear. What is a victory with so broad an issue, and for that matter, what is terrorism? Traditionally, victory is when one nation finally forces another to accept given political ideology; so this war implies that all terrorists across nations must be defeated and accept the ideology given by the American government. This will not happen. Gordon believes the strategy needs to be more specific to call for the elimination of terrorist threats to the degree where they no longer affect the daily lives of citizens, a much more feasible outline. It is a key characteristic of war that it must eventually end, but this new War on Terror has the capability to last forever, as there will always be an infinite supply of terrorists. Rather, it is like the Cold War; which ended only when a certain ideology lost its appeal. Trying to end terrorism is counterproductive since costs would eventually outweigh benefits, and also lends the war a Utopian visage. Gordon cites patience and resolve and the only way to win this war, while simultaneously promoting alternative hopes to enemies. To him, victory will be when al Qaeda, the international terrorist group, no longer exists; not all terrorism in general. As the atrocities incited by these terrorist groups continue to build up, the support for these jihadists will eventually erode, especially as their violent efforts continue to kill fellow Muslims. Citing Fundamentalist Islam’s failure as a political regime in all the regions its been tried in, there’s reason to believe that with economic promotion and procurement of a middle class, Islam nations will break away from terrorist ideology. The author’s fatal flaw is his belief that the War on Terror is a clone of the Cold War, and all we need to do is copy the actions taken during that period to overcome our current crisis. Not only is that highly risky, as we are dealing with a new kind of enemy willing to die for their cause, but it is also ignorant, as the situation could never possibly be replicated.

The Culture of National Security: Norms and Identity in World Politics

This article can be found here.

November 25, 2009

Martha Finnemore’s main argument is that neither liberalist nor realist perspectives can provide adequate explanations for military intervention for humanitarian causes or preventative measures, since geostrategic and economic interests are not always involved. She adopts, instead, a constructionist’s standpoint. Shifts in intervention behavior reflect changes in norms regarding moral beliefs in military intervention, such as the definition of who is ‘human’, and thus deserving of humanitarian action. Classical liberals might promote the idea that intervention in nations with insignificant value economically may indicate a desire to spread democracy, but this still doesn’t explain humanitarian efforts. Interests cannot be assumed; rather, they must be interpreted for every unique situation. Norms determine interests, and interests are what determine action of the state, but norms do not directly affect action. Justifications, or reasons for action, are indicators of existing norms, as they are used to help explain feats of the state. Institutionalization of norms, by why which norms evolve when they become integrated into systems, also account for the progression of norms. Humanitarian intervention requires exclusive interest and identification in the peoples needing help. Eventually, humanitarian interests expanded to helping victims based on a new universal belief of humanity. I found it interesting, as Finnemore pointed out, that colonialism both began and ended as a humanitarian crusade to aid the ‘primitive’ peoples. There are conflicting views between ideas of state sovereignty and human rights, and which should be held to a higher standard. Today, it is not enough to intervene solely on the idea of humanitarianism, as it is viewed with suspicion. Unilateralism (action by one state) in intervention has been viewed as very expensive compared to multilateralism, which is known for making intervention measures more difficult since there is shared power. Intervention must be multilateral to be legitimate, since that is the only way for it to gain acceptance in the UN. Multilateralism of the 19th century was not driven by norms as it is today, but through the idea that one state acting alone would encourage adventurism, so in these times interventionism was marked by competitiveness and fear.

Power in International Politics

This excerpt can be found here.

November 24, 2009

Political power is cited by E.H. Carr, the author of this article, to be divided between economic power, power of opinion, and military power. The word ‘political’ is always applied to situations concerning power. When states cooperate on matters of “controlling the spread of epidemics or “suppressing the traffic in drugs”, this is not politics, because there is no concern over power. “Politics begin where the masses are,” as Lenin said, which references the fact that power mostly exists among regions with high populations or with greater prominence in the global community. An apt example given by Carr is that one is less interested in relations between Nicaragua and Great Britain, and more interested in politics between Great Britain and Japan. Carr sees many issues with Liberalist theory, as this ideology shares the same intentions as realism, but hides this fact with more subtle political tones. After WWI with the League of Nations, there was an idea that small nations would have no voice, as the League of Nations was created mostly for the benefit of the Great Powers. Like the previous article discussed, Power Politics today have been disguised under the name of “security”, and the effort to protect one's nation using sometimes preventative measures. In reality, war is never morality versus a villainous pursuit of power, but rather two nations competing over power. The treaty resulting from the Ruhr Invasion was unfulfilled when one nation, France, felt they had greater power over the weaker one, Germany. But as Germany became more powerful, only then was France willing to begin acting on the treaty’s agreements. This was spurred by a fear of power, not a desire to create diplomatic relations as the Liberal perspective espouses. The Locarno Treaty had ultimately failed when Germany no longer feared France, and France began to fear Germany., as “effective control of any government depends on its source of power.” Treaties and their effects don’t last forever; but the new mandates system trying to internationalize the globe has the same influences and appears as if it will have more lasting effects. If different states shared power within a same territory, their efforts to exert their separate strengths would incite rivalry and lead to increasingly more devastating wars.

America's Imperial Ambition

This article can be found here.

November 23, 2009

Modern American strategy is marked by the use of "preemptive and preventative" use of force, without the consent of the international community. This political stance threatens diplomatic relations and political stability. Containment policy began in the Cold War Era, and should have ended with the collapse of the USSR. Ikenberry sees this period as the first to use nuclear arms as a potential deterrent, and also views it as productive to the creation of necessary partnerships through international organizations. When President Bush came to power, he drove these realist ideals to new heights, rejecting Clinton's policies of improving national concerns and opting for a more international focus, namely integrating Russia into western ideologies. Ikenberry also cites Liberalist persuasions in American global politics, fundamentally founded upon economic prosperity by discouraging the use of trade blocs or rivalry. Unfortunately, these institutions tended to unite only the Democratic industrialized nations, and only contributed to the prosperity of these nations at the expense of those nations that are excluded. Trade expansion was seen as conducive to fighting terrorism. But America's recent protectionist measures have presented a loss of interest in this peace-promoting trend. Before actions like this were ever promoted by US politics, the global community was willing to see them as the supreme world leader. Now, the global community is becoming concerned over how much power they have, and whether or not they are using it for the good of all. The key problem is that the US sees the responsibility as global power as including the necessity of containing aggression by exerting their superior military strength. This belief has only been encouraged by the lack of competitiveness in obtaining the status of world power, disrupting the balance of power doctrine. America has grown so ignorant to believe that if they advance so far ahead of all other powers, the other states will simply give up and allow them to remain the permanent leader of the globe. But a new type of organization, terrorist groups, act outside of these traditional values or accepted rules and will not adhere to trends; this is the key reason that the US is pushing for the total elimination of these entities. The fear today is that, while these groups are willing to die for their cause, states cannot, based on the moral codes and laws that they promote in governance, willingly allow this to occur with the people they are intended to keep safe and secure. Since the US has taken the strategy of attacking all areas under the suspicion of housing terrorist groups, and these groups lend themselves to ease in flux, there has been a lessened interest in sovereignty. Also, new US strategy exchanges isolationism for pure rejection of global action, like treaties or institutions. The US belief that they are the sole great power has driven their idea that they are also the only ones with the authority to act aggressively against suspicious nations. Until the US states what this war will contribute to international order in the end, the global community will continue to loose interest in the cause.

The interesting aspect of Ikenberry's argument is his total regard for the US as an unwaivering and permanent global power whose military and economic prowess far exceeds those of possible competitors. Many critics would probably argue that the United States is actually slipping away from that status as Asian powers gain significant promenence in economic arenas. It could be a matter of a couple decades that sees China taking the place as global leader, especially considering the astounding speed at which they advance technologically and the profound importance that plays in considering states to be top global competitors. Also, Ikenberry chooses to simultaneously expose the US distancing itself from international organizations and promoting the global community to place a larger emphasis on these groups. "The US needs cooperation from European and Asian countries..." It's hypocritical to wish the outside community to do more of something that you acnowledge your own country avoids doing itself. If you must do this, you must also recognize the need for your own nation to adopt these similar policies. It's near impossible for these states to cooperate if the United States, as the leading global power, refuses to take part in this.

Cosimo Cavallaro versus Bill Donoghue

This video can be found here.

November 19, 2009

Artist Cosmo Cavallaro was highly criticised by Bill Donoghue after showing his piece, "My Sweet Lord" at the Roger Smith Hotel in New York City. The sculpture depicts an anatomically correct Christ molded from chocolate. The simple meaning of the piece is clear- Cavallaro wanted the viewer to be engulfed in the sense of sweetness, in not only sight and mind, but also in the sense of taste. While his artistic voice should be respected, one can easily speculate the connotations such a piece would present to the public. The piece may draw offense from Cavallaro's audience since there is a degredation involved in not only presenting Christ as completely nude, but displaying him as a sculpture to be eaten by the public. To some this may be quite a sacraligious act, but maybe the artist is actually making a statement on how commonly Christian images are degraded in culture on a day-to-day basis. Afterall, every Easter the stores sell chocolate crosses and profit immensely from this sacred religious holiday. But since public art, after all, is supposed to be made for the people viewing it, the piece would probably be more appropriate in a gallery where art critics would be more likely to pick up on these connotations and be less likely to grow offended, since they subjected themselves to that particular situation by willingly entering the establishment knowing the risk involved. On all counts, Bill Donoghue acted supremely immature and in effect invalidated his position's arguments. His statements were far more offensive than calm and cool Cavallaro could ever be in his artwork. I believe the line was officially and fully crossed at the point where Donoghue alienated the artist profession by professing that he had a "real job".

The Real WW IV

This article can be found here.

November 18, 2009.

To some, the war on terror is World War IV, and Bacevich admits that calling it a global war has its benefits, because it’s an easy historical analogy to place the war into in order to incite the attention of the population; but he also finds it to be misleading. One, it ignores the fact that Americans have become more fascinated with the use of military power since Vietnam. Also, calling it WW IV it erases a lot of complicated history that this analogy ignores. Modern society has created a “simplicity” of current historical understandings. For example, history leading up to this war is usually written in three parts: Cold War, Post Cold War, Post 9/11. But the real war began in 1980 under Jimmy Carter. Carter gave a series of speeches talking about what was going on in American society, problems that were much deeper than unemployment. He belived Americans had turned away from what mattered; they now worship consumption. Oil is used to create this “stuff” that we desire so much of, so we constantly want more of the oil in order to satiate this desire. The Carter Doctrine in 1980 called upon the “preservation of the American way of life”. It said we should cut down on the things we buy and go back to other values, like religion. Does “freedom” have to refer solely to economic freedom, the freedom to buy “stuff”? He examines “The Road Not Taken” when America chose the easy route by voting for Reagan over Cater. Doing so allowed them to avoiding the issue of consumerism, and ultimately militarism.
He also cites 2 competing US interests in the MidEast: our increasing oil dependence and our alliance with Israel. He found that the legacy of the 1991 Gulf War had only increased US commitments to this war. Public support for the Iraq War following 9/11 was characterized by "self-induced historical amnesia" and uncritical attitudes toward military power.

Plenary Session on the Relevance of the United Nations

This article can be found here.

November 17, 2009

This session scheduled on June 26, 2003 was called into place in order to re-evaluate the relevance of the UN in a changed world, a world characterized by increasingly aggressive acts of terrorism. There are aspects of the UN that have been undoubtedly successful, namely those that confront humanitarian causes; but their purpose of confronting threats to peace and security are lax. The UN has also successfully regulated trade between states, as there has also been much development in improving international criminal laws. Some believe that the world has forever been changed with the falling of the Twin Towers, a world that can no longer profit from the creation of international coalitions. First, the UN needs to be updated from its 1945 organization to account for a world made up of states with not only national ties, but also global ones. Second, it needs to appear more transparent, legitimate, and encouraging of participation. Third, all of its member must act selflessly, leading to a more efficient coalition. The key is creating greater accountability among member states in their local, national, and international levels. NGOs are only unsuccessful when used to make military campaigns. Mary Robinson speaks more for the importance of the UN as an enforcer of humanitarian rights, rather than one of security between nations.

U.N. Requires Fundamental Reforms

This article can be found here.

November 16, 2009

The UN had always been a major concern of the United States in terms of management issues. The US found the first loophole in the system by withholding their funding. This gave the United States a “theoretical veto” by introducing the use of consensus and results based budgeting. The one vote structure gives smaller nations way more for what they contribute to the organization. These nations are the US’s biggest opposition when it comes to efforts to create reforms. The UN’s credibility problem can only be solved by greater transparency and accountability. Only then will America begin to see the legitimacy of this organization. The questions that need to be answered in order to improve the quality of the UN include: What is the UN supposed to do? Uphold and protect the rights of people all across the globe, and all other things of humanitarian character. It is clear that the organization is not doing this, since there have been 300 wars since its founding, yet it has only been involved in preventing two of these. What must be done for the UN to return to its original intention? What means are available for accomplishing this goal and what is the best option? You can’t change the charter since that would lead to a decades-long fight. Instead, the US should withdraw from things they don’t approve and watch the UN try to change that organization to better fit the standards of the US. Democracy driven caucuses should also be created to unite countries with common interests in reform. Membership qualifications should be stricter to include only peace loving, non aggressive nations that do not continually break international law. The UN needs to “clean house”.

The Fog of War

The Fog of War: an Oscar Winning 2004 documentary.

November 13, 2009

In this spectacular documentary, Robert McNemara, the leader of the Department of Defense under Kennedy and Johnson, outlines several tips he used in dealing with war, based on the notion that the point is to learn from the acts of war, not to simply destroy nations. First, he cites empathizing with one's enemy as a way to avoid war, since you can detect the weaknesses and subtelties of another nation and find a point of common interest to build a sense of peace on. Secondly, he states that rationality will not save us, since luck is often involved in preventing wars. Third, he hopes that one can recognize that there exists something beyond one's self. Fourth, maximizing efficiency is a given when in a war environment. Fifth, proportionality should be a guideline in war. It is against some moral standard of war-making to kill over 100,000 people in one night, and that unwritten guideline should be accepted by all. Sixth, get the data, as it will save lives and prevent war. Seventh, belief and seeing are both often wrong, since we see what we want to see. Eighth, be prepared to re-examine your reasoning, as situations can change rapidly. Ninth, In order to be good, often you must engage in evil; since war is by nature, evil.

Mexico City Journal: Where the Swearing Is All About the Context

This article can be found here.

November 12, 2009

Recent studies on swearing in Mexico found several surprising facts about the prevalence of cursing in this nation. Apparently, Mexican people have a "reputation in Latin America for [their] ultrapoliteness and formality", though the article never explains why the audience should think that way, and I most certainly never knew that as a general fact. As in America, these terms have developed multiple meanings, sometimes implying endearment. The article did use a clever technique of integrating Spanish words into its format, first introducing the term "groserías", or curse words, to connect the American audience to their foreign counterparts. This allows the author to relate these notonriously bad-mouthed nations more easily. Lacey also draws on our own experience of cursing in our own culture to explain the use of such words in the Mexican culture. "Those swearing the most, not surprisingly, were the young people." Here, the author is relating American youth's practice of cursing as similar to its popularity among youth in Mexico. To further emphasize the point that geography -rather, proximity to the US- plays a major role in this trend, the author includes important data about Northern Mexico, the region closest to the US border, having the dirtiest of language in all the nation. The author also creativly ties the increasing use of profanities to the increasingly depressing economic state. The author ended well by questioning the significant of curse words at all when they are so commonly used.

Frontline: The Triumph of Evil

November 10, 2009

The triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.


(Left) During his three-hour stop in Rwanda, the President apologized for the international community's failure to stop the genocide that occurred in that country four years ago.

This Frontline Special followed up on the Rwandan genocide and the question of whether or not it is the obligation of Democratic nations to intervene in these events. Though the United States may have stated its desire to maintain their respect of state sovereignty as their reason for ignoring the events occuring in these nations, the Clinton administration simply had no interest in Rwandan affairs. There were no natural reasources they were gaining from this region that would make the country of any concern to the US, and so they allowed the genocide to occur, thinking that it would eventually sink into oblivion. But the massacre ended up being much more devastating than expected. Still, Clinton officials were too afraid to call the event a genocide, since many believed using strong words such as this may affect the outcome of upcoming congressional elections. When Clinton finally went to Rwanda to give his apologies for the lack of concern the international community had for the terror that occured in their nation, he used the word "genocide" eleven times.

Guest Speaker: Ted Spiker

November 9, 2009

Professor Ted Spiker stood at the head of the class with a carefully wrapped parcel. "A magazine cover is like wrapping paper." He carefully placed the package on the desk for the entire class to see as he began his lecture on 'Sneaky Interviewing Tactics for Great Storytelling". The goals of the interview are: gaining colorful, revealing information that gives insight into the character of the person in question. He lets you in on what this colorful information is: writing suggesting action, description, dialogue, anecdotes, emotion, things that make the story feel like real life. He then cites the basics to interviewing: being prepared, having one's tools ready, and getting ready to have a conversation, not an interview. Spiker listed ten tips to remember when conducting interviews. First, get in the game. In other words, an interview doesn't always have to be in an office setting. It's always best to observe them in their natural environment. Second, know the hot questions, or the questions that will inctie the most emotion. Third, listen and follow up. Fourth, be the bad cop in what you ask, and the good cop in how you ask it. The goal is to get knee deep in information on yor person, but not to make that person uncomfortable in doing so. Fifth, be a drummer. Be aware of everything around you and be able to multi-task. Sixth, keep your mouth shut. During uncomfortable silences, don't feel obligated to speak. Give that duty to the person you are interviewing, as that's often a way to get even more information thant the person was originally willing to give. Seventh, thank your english literature teacher for teaching you such things as personification and foreshadowing, because all are excellent tools in creating incredible stories. Eighth, always go on a second date. An interview doesn't have to be a one-time event. Ninth, think like a fighter. Distract your subject with soft jab questions, then follow it with powerful, tough questions. Tenth, leave your audience shocked and compelled. By the end of the lecture, Spiker took questions from the audience, one of which asked about the parcel that sat quaintly on the edge of the podium. "What's inside the box?" the girl asked. He threw it to her; and after several agitating minutes of trying to figure out how to open the package, she discovered that inside that box was a twenty dollar bill. Always listen and follow up, you might profit from it in the end.

Blackouts Plague Energy-Rich Venezuela

This article can be found here.

November 7, 2009

Even being one of the most energy-wealthy nations in the world, with abundant resources of oil and hydroelectic technology, will not save you from the torment of poor management. It is such poor management that has contributed to the blackouts that have characterized much of Venezuela's energy problems over the past two years. Since, six nationwide blackouts have ocurred, and water is continually decreasing in supply. The government believes that the problem will be solved by making all uses of energy more expensive to its already poor residents, rather than making their power distributors more effective. All efforts to build new plants are slow moving and the president seems to believe that mocking his citizens as obsessive consumers will dissuade further consumption of energy. Like Castro once did in Cuba, Chavez travelled around his nation condemning all signs of luxury, or oligarchs (upper class): swimming pools, obese people, gardens, etc. Renewable energy plans were halted and the president refuses to use their oil reserves, as they are difficult to extract from the Earth. This simply shows the negligence and apathy shown by the Mexican government concerning public services, which is quite odd for a Socialist nation founded upon ideas of offering uniform, equal services for all to enjoy and profit from.

The Saturday Profile: Back From the Suburbs to Run a Patch of Somalia

This article can be found here.

November 5, 2009

(Left)"It was hard for my wife and kids. But I'm doing something big here, and they know that."

The tone of the article in the introductory paragraph of this article suggests that the author, Jeffrey Gettleman, finds the fact that a man from Minnesota was asked to rule a part of Somalia to be quite comical and ridiculous. He relies on the man's appearance, "oversiz[ed]", "wearing a golf cap, huge sunglasses, baggy jeans, and an iPhone on his hip", to describe him rather than his leadership skills. Gettleman even uses the phrase "mind-boggling" when describing the expectations of this man "who dresses and talks like a rapper". But, as the article goes on, it appears that Gettleman was only using this skepticism to surprise the reader, as Mr. Aden appears to have created more peace in this war-driven nation than any previous rulers. New businesses, rules, police force, and schools have been installed under his guidance. He is a strong believer in creating government from the bottom up, something Somali elders saw in his fast efforts in aiding in the recent Somali droughts, which ultimately led them to believe he would be the perfect ruler of their small providence. His only enemy are the pirates, whom Aden seems to believe he can fend off with a little help in resources.

*“We needed a man of peace and he is from a peaceful place, Minnesota,” said one elder, Mohamed Ali Farah. *

Just how Gettleman began his article out of humor, he ends it the same way. All the middle information is employed to defy the reader's assumptions, which were originally based on the use of his humor.

Honduran Security Forces Accused of Abuse

This article can be found here.

November 4, 2009

The caption of the picture above read "A man lay wounded after a shot in the head during another rally in July." It looks more fatal to me.

The picture to the right is one of the most awkward photos I've ever seen. The guy looks like he's on the phone while everyone's getting bludgeoned and the caption reads that this was a "pro-Zelaya student demonstration", while most of these people look to be professors.

Ever since President Zelaya's exile, security forces have attempted to fend off protest by beating or arresting people found associated with any form of opposition. Eleven people have been killed since the coup took place on June 28th and how many injuries have been reported. Mr. Zelaya secretly returned to Honduras two weeks ago, taking refuge at the Brazilian Embassy.

People are fearing the upcoming elections more than ever. Will enough people vote following mass discomfort with how the last president was removed and will great powers like the United States choose to recognize the election as legitimate, or continue to support the ousted president?

Driven the Distraction: When Texting Kills, Britain Offers Path to Prison

This article can be found here.

November 2, 2009

The British government has chosen to take a tougher stance on accidents directly resulting from texting, particularly accidents that lead to casualties. 22-year-old Phillipa Curtis was the first victim of its harsh sentencing when she was given almost two years of jailtime after getting into an accident resulting in the death of 24-year-old Victoria McBryde. Since records had shown that Curtis had been texting minutes before the event and had received an unopened message only moments before, prosecutors argued that Curtis had been looking down at her phone when the accident occurred. Though this seemed to be mere interpretation, the courts had felt as if they had to prosecute Curtis in order to make an example out of her and the effects of texting while driving. Surprisingly, several of McBryde's friends had also found the decision to be harsher than deserved, as they realized how much they, too, text on their phones while driving. The victim herself had sent a message and talked on the phone during her drive. Still, chief justice Lloyd Jones found the sentencing to be quite lenient.

Deal Set to Restore Ousted Honduran President

This article can be found here.

October 31, 2009

When simply one's presence brings terror to a nation's entire government, one knows the strength of one's power. After only two days of American officials being on Honduran soil, the same government that so violently ousted President Zelaya, signed an agreement to let him back into the nation. The United States promised the de facto government that their upcoming elections would not be recognized if Zelaya was not restored his position as President until those elections took place. Neither Zelaya or the man who took his place after the coup, Micheletti, will be on the upcoming ballot. The only obstacle preventing Zelaya's return is approval from Congress, the very institution that sanctified the coup to begin with. The thousands of protestors that had been oppressed by armed forces only a month ago, were not celebrating across the capital.

The article included contributing reports from Mark Landler from Islamabad, Pakistan. The legitimacy of his report seems like it should be held under much scrutiny since he is almost 9,000 miles away from the event he is reporting on.

In a Coup in Honduras, Ghosts of Past U.S. Policies

This article can be found here.

October 30, 2009

On Sunday morning, June 28, 2009, President Manuel Zelaya of Honduras awakened to the sound of cocked guns. After a twenty minute gunfight between his guards and the Honduran army, the soldiers escorted Zelaya to the airport to be exiled in Costa Rica. All of this took place the day after the president made a spontaneous move to hold a public vote that would give the option to allow for his eligibility in the upcoming presidential election. Doing so would lengthen his 4 year term limit and question the legitimacy of the Honduran Constitution. Earlier in the week, the president had also made drastic moves to remove the leader of the armed forces and the Supreme Court had ruled Zelaya’s intention to altering the constitution as unlawful. Zelaya had been leading an effort to change the Central American nation's constitution for quite a while before he was finally ousted, and there had always been a suspicion that there would be an attempt to arrest the president. No one expected something as drastic as a violent coup d’état.

The day following the coup, President Barack Obama held a press conference condemning the act as setting a "terrible precedent" for the region. Many believe that his adament rejection of the overthrow was meant to defy the assumption of outside peoples that America may have had a hand in the aggressive maneuver. It goes back to the Cold War, a time when it was not uncommon for the United States to interfere with Latin American governments under the influence of communist governments. In Guatemala, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, and many other nations, America asserted its democratic ideology by backing the party in opposition to Communism, either monetarily or with weapons. For example, President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela said that the C.I.A. may have had a hand in the president’s removal. Of course, he may be drawing from his experience with the Bush administration, which in 2002 offered a rapid, tacit endorsement of a short-lived coup against Mr. Chávez.

Forty Years War: A Place Where Cancer is the Norm

This article can be found here.

October 27, 2009

Gina Kolata, the author of this article writes an emotional and inspiring article about cancer patients at MD Anderson, the nation's leading cancer research center in Houston, Texas. She uses intimate stories of cancer patients and small anecdotes to bring herself closer to the piece. For example, she alludes to Tomas Mann's "Magic Mountain", a story about a introverted sanatorium in the 'flatlands' where finding a cure for tuberculosis is the main mission of its inhabitants. After creating this personal connection to the article, Kolata then offers the reader several emotionally touching stories of cancer patients at the hospital. They are patients like 35-year-old Mindy Lanoux of San Antonio, who has melanoma that has spread to her liver and lungs, her odds of surviving in the single digits. They are patients like 35-year-old Mindy Lanoux of San Antonio, who has melanoma that has spread to her liver and lungs, her odds of surviving in the single digits. Also, a Dr. Martin Raber, an oncologist — and a cancer patient himself — at Anderson. The sources she uses are unique because they all have cancer, yet they come from all different levels of experience with the disease- from doctors to nurses to ordinary patients. This backs the author's theme of discovering the prevalence of the devastating disease in this "parallel universe, where nothing matters but cancer". She continues to tell these series of stories of cancer patients, accounting for everything from hope and hopelessness, fortune and misfortune, life and death. Kolata has created an epic out of an article. The rest of the article continues in this fashion as short, touching quotes are injected throughout the body of the work. (For example, when Mrs. Toland was speaking with her son George: “Most people lose their innocence in little doses as they go through life. You lost yours all at once.”) The article ends with the story of Dr. Raber who had the disease plague him and his once 'perfect' career, leading him to realize that cancer wasn't about curing a disease or succombing to it; it was about dealing with it for the rest of your life, because of the high risk that it with return. But he finishes on a positive note, understanding that having cancer affect his life so deeply has allowed him to better understand his patients and their own battles with cancer.

Guest Speaker: Mike Foley

October 26, 2009

Before he became the professor of the Journalism course at the University of Florida in 2001, Mike Foley had a successful newspaper career from 1970 to 1999. From 1920-1973, Foley worked at the St. Petersburg Evening Independent. From 1973 to 1999, he found his niche at Florida's largest newspaper, the St. Petersburg Times. He worked his way up the ladder from city editor, to managing editor, to executive editor, and finally to vice president. Many great writers came and went under his vigil as vice president of the St. Petersburg Times, including Rick Bragg. He recalled his greatest story, coincidentally one of the greatest disasters to ever occur in the St. Petersburg area, as the day a ship crashed into the skyway bridge. 7:38 AM, May 9, 1980, Foley received a call from one of his employees who tipped him off on the event. From there, he began to give out orders to his reporters, sending them to several different areas across the site in order to gather eye-witness reports. By the end of the day, Foley had 23 different stories to choose from. He cites that good editors are able to take a story and make it better-- even if it was good to begin with.

The hierarchy of the newspaper business is as follows: Executive Manager --> Managing Editor --> Assistant Managing Editor --> Metro Editor --> Assistant Metro Editor --> City Editor --> Assistant City Editor --> Reporter

The different types of editors can be described as: Assigning, Copy/Desk/Design, Administrative, Opinions, Online, and Photo/Illustrations

Film on the Dolphin Hunt Stirs Outrage in Japan

This article can be found here.

October 22, 2009

Director Louie Psihoyos recently debuted the screening of his highly publicized documentary called "The Cove" that aimed at raising awareness of the inhumane capture of dolphins by fishermen in Taiji, Japan. Every winter it's dolphin fishing season, and fishermen flock to the sea to initiate their mass slaughter of the species. Captured by OBarry's candid cameras, the fishermen trick the dolphins into their nets by luring them in with the vibrations of their beating metal poles. Once trapped, the fisherman equip themselves with spears and stab the gentle creatures repeatedly until they finally die. Aside from these practices being highly unethical, dolphin meat consists of dangerous amounts of mercury, that may be hazardous to the consumers it is so haphazardly distributed to. Japan is probably more known for their more publicized mass slaughtering of the whale population; but the 13,000 dolphins that were killed last winter should not be ignored. The documentary allowed for Japanese people to become more aware of the inhumane activity of dolphin fishing through the gorey, explicit footage of fisherman making their murderous jabs at the dolphins, showing the sea slowly turn red with blood. This image has already activated several influential people, like Hollywood's Ben Stiller, into lobbying for the termination of such practices after the documentary's debut at the Tokyo Film Festival.

Asia Said to Be Leading the Globe Out of Crisis

This article can be found here.

October 21, 2009

When Ben Bernanke, the nation's leading economist and chairmen of the prestigious Federal Reserve, tells you to do something relating to finances, you'd be smart to listen. On October 19, 2009, Bernanke came out with a statement requesting that the US and Asia, the world's most influential economic powers, combine efforts to lower trade imbalances across the globe, ensuring that such action will greatly aid in the rapid recovery of the global economy. Bernanke also suggested that Asia's own rapid recoveries should be looked to as inspiration for other nations still dwelling in the red. He blatantly calls out the United States' practice of excluding some nations from their trade as directly influencing the failure of the economy, along with their reckless lending practices. Bernanke suggested that Asia, now out of the red, has a duty to export less and focus on selling their goods domestically, since less successful economies cannot produce goods as cheaply in light of economic challenges. Though straightforward in most of his statements, on the verge of harsh bluntness, Bernanke still manages to avoid commenting on the recent decline of value of the US dollar, something that relates directly to his own activity as leading chairman of the Federal Reserve. No, commenting on the insecurities of his own governmental organization would imply weakness. Save the criticisms for governmental groups other than your own. Psh.

A Harvest of Golf Courses From Vietnam’s Farmland

This article can be found here.

October 20, 2009

It's hard to imagine the prominence of golf, the most pompous and western of all sports, in a third world nation; but golf courses have become one of the most essential of capitalist enterprises in Vietnam. To the author of this article, Seth Mydans, the association of elitism to golf courses is an apt symbol of the plight of the nation's poor farmers. These groups of people struggle to retain their land in the face of developers hungry to acquire their livelihood simply to create more golf courses. What's more is that these very sites that pushed rural peoples out of their homes, would most likely never cater to the needs of anyone other than the rich, a very minute portion of the Vietnamese population. Mydans cites the fact that at least one permit to construct these courses are issued every week. After the Vietnam War, the country had only two courses. Today there are 13. The government have tried to slow the creation of these courses because they feel there are environmental hazards and social costs to their rapid production, which there are. Over 3,000 farmers have lost their farms and their way of life. And since golf courses simultaneously provide so few jobs and suck up so much of the available land, the Vietnamese people have ultimately been placed in a lose-lose situation. Golf courses are being seen as a way for Vietnam to re-enter the global scene and change their image from one of aggression to one open to tourism. Even the strict communist leaders are having a hard time controlling wealth-driven investors. It appears that capitalism is a major motivating force behind the creation of these sites, as the golf courses aren't the only thing being constructed with these permits. Hotels, resorts, and recreational parks are also being developed on the appropriated land. New developments have reported that not only do these courses destroy the way of life of thousands of natives, but they also suck up so much water that meager amounts are available for the city-dwellers.

Guest Speaker: Marianne Giordano

October 19, 2009

Marianne Giordano is a 1977 UF graduate who is the current editor the New York Times' "The Local" blog, an experimental media outlet that focuses on intense news coverage of a small region, namely the suburbs. Before her current position, Giordano worked for several different newspaper outlets. Her first job was as a writer for the Miami Herald. She then moved to New Jersey, where she worked on and off for the New York Daily News for seven years. There, she covered all kinds of stories, from murders to the New York drug trade. She was the first woman to earn the position of bureau chief. She then gained a prominent position at Columbia University, where she not only taught, but wrote for Columbia Journal News. After Columbia, Giordano was offered an editing job for the New York Times, something she was always wary of because she had always loved being active in the field. After a short tenure as editor there, Giordano left to work for the New York Observer in the late 90s; but following the 9/11 attacks, Giordano realized she had real interest in what got covered in the news and how. She took the position and was assigned to the National Politics desk during the 2008 election. Since the last time she had been editor, the newspaper became a lot more interested in integrating their printed news with the web, so she was also put in charge of editing the NY Times' National Politics blogs. She, in turn, became very interested in this revolutionary way to present news and went into blogging full force, updating on a regular basis with election news. At one point, she had edited for a live blog that updated continually during events such as debates or caucuses. At the end of these informal articles, she would create a report summarizing the entire evolution of the event and send it off simultaneously to print and the web. Her intrigue in finding new ways to present news led up to her participation in "The Local". The paper incorporates user generated content, since citizens are encouraged to get involved in contributing news for the blog to post. The most revolutionary aspect of this type of coverage is the informal, conversational, and truthful tone that blogs are capable of conveying. People are able to comment, supplying corrections or asking for clarifications. The future of news, as Giordano sees it, is a new, more interactive journalism combining contemporary social media with old media. The purpose of "The Local" was to see if the NY Times could become more interactive with their readers, and if the paper could make a little money from selling advertisements at the same time. As of now, these local blogs are not so profitable as they are popular.

Egyptian Demands on Return of Nefertiti Statue Mar Reopening of Berlin Museum

This article can be found here.

October 18, 2009

Just in time for the Neues Museum to reopen their doors after years of overdue renovation, the Egyptian government has claimed their right to one of the museum's most prized exhibits, the bust of Queen Nefertiti. Germany took ownership of the 3,300 year old statue after Germany originally acquired it in 1913. Investigations have been initiated questioned how the piece originally arrived in Germany. If they find out that it had been looted and sold to take its current residence in Germany, the Egyptian government has a legitimate right to ownership. It is just now, 96 years after it was removed from its Egyptian homeland, that Egypt has first attempted to claim ownership of world-renowned artifact. Only a few days after claiming this piece, Egyptian officials began to claim five other artifacts currently installed in the French Louvre. The French government were also willing to return the pieces if there was any proof that they were now under the possession of the Louvre as the result of any illegal activity. Of the various nations that house Egyptian artifacts in museums, most would argue that giving the pieces back would lead to their demise, because Egypt provides such poor conditions to house these works in.

Russia’s Leaders See China as Template for Ruling

This article can be found here.

October 17, 2009

Clifford Levy, the author of this article, does not hide much bias when exploring the Russian government's attempt to emulate Chinese Communist Party. He attacks the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, by comparing him to an "envious underachiever" who is "ashamed" of his country's poor transition into a capitalist economy. He hints that Putin is capable of rash, irrational decisions when throwing his nation into fundamental political and economical changes. Levy adds that Putin does not wish to mimic the Communist Party of the old USSR, or even the one under Chinese President Hu-Jintao. Instead, he only wishes to promote a government with the utopian ideal of being able to maintain single party dominance while supporting a flourishing economy, something China has only recently- and probably temporarily- been capable of. In past years, before he he quickly decided to give up on creating a more capitalist system, Putin haphazardly lowered government controls on all businesses, making these completely dependent organizations suddenly fend for themselves, rather than being eased into that position. Recently, the article cites that he has been trying out a new "Russian Conservative" policy. Again, Levy offers these examples to his readers to solidify the belief that Putin's political views are fundamentally flawed.

Pipe Bursts, Floods Dorm

This article was found on the front page of the Alligator, volume 103, issue 35.

October 13, 2009

The author of this article, Rebeca Martinez, chose an interesting source to rely upon for an eyewitness account of the recent flooding of Riker Hall on Saturday. Unfortunately, the whole first portion of the article, the part encompassing a large chunk of the front page of the paper, depends on the report of one Uri Ramirez, a UF sophomore who lives on the third floor of the flooded building. In large bold letters usually reserved for supplying the reader with a summary of the article's important content, Martinez displays Ramirez's rather precocious comment: "It was pretty loud actually. And my hypothesis is that they hit one of the sprinklers, and suddenly, I heard a splash of water." Since Ramirez himself isn't able to write out his statement for Martinez to use, I believe it is up to the author in displaying the quote with the most readable use of grammar. I an not suggesting that Martinez should change the statement in any way, but just make sure that proper sentence structure be used to present the article in the most professional light that is easy for the reader to understand. Instead, the quote could be written as: "It was pretty loud actually; and my hypothesis is that they hit one of the sprinklers," and use the second part of the quote--"and suddenly, I heard a splash"-- in another part of the article; perhaps when using Ramirez's second quote where he describes how he heard a couple of guys playing with what sounded like a nerf ball outside his window. This would make more chronological sense, so there would be an ease in the flow of the article, for the reader's sake. Continuing on the eighth page of the paper, the article uses another witness' statements, Josh Perry. The author makes the mistake of using a third party quote, which isn't very professional since there is a questioning of reliability. "From what I heard" is how the quote begins. The article then begins to rely exclusively on what "Perry said", as most of the concluding paragraphs end in or include the phrase "Perry said". If a writer is going to depend so heavily on witness' statements, it needs to find more than two contributors.

Guest Speaker: David Frank

October 12, 2009

David Frank is a video journalist at the New York Times; but before beginning his video journalism career, Frank used to be an editor for the photojournalism department at the New York Times. After a long tenure as editor, he turned away his managerial job and decided to go back out into the field. He is now currently working on creating video news stories for the New York Times. By doing so, Frank is taking his photojournalism background and melding it with more a traditional, written journalism to create a more contemporary form of news coverage. Though this type of coverage is young and not yet proven to be economically profitable, Frank assures that this not the reason these new forms of coverage are explored. Rather, they are ways for news outlets to experiment with more ways to incite the public into becoming better informed, by providing more 'entertaining' ways to present their information. An example of his work can be found here. This tear-jerking account is exactly the kind of news Frank loves to cover. It is a sports story in that it does inform the watcher about Olympic hopeful Melanie Roach, but it is also unexpected since it primarily focuses on her struggle with her son's autism.

In Paris Without Papers, and Seeking Visibility

This article can be found here.

October 10, 2009

The US isn't the only nation with immigration high on the political agenda, with thousands of African, Turks, Pakistanis, and Chinese inhabiting the camps in the outskirts of Paris. But, unlike the immigrants of America that try to keep their presence concealed, these immigrants march and protest for citizenship on a regular basis, disregarding the risk of deportation. The main reason for this difference lies in the fact that the Parisian police do not do regular checks in common immigrant settlements and perform subsequent deportations like they used to do in America. Event under President Obama's recent measures, deportations and direct attacks on common immigrant sites are also becoming less regular. In Paris, though, one or two residency permits are cranked out every day at a consistent rate, awarding 150,000 immigrants citizenship yearly, the second highest in Europe. Some believe that it is actually the prevalence of these immigrants that keeps them safe from government deportation, since common national opinion on the subject would lead to nation-wide resentment if this were to occur.

Surprise Nobel for Obama Stirs Praise and Doubts

This article can be found here.

October 9, 2009

When it was announced that Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize, I was confused as to how such a new president could already earn the great honor. But it became clear that the award was less about President Obama's accomplishments and more about the hope for his future success in limiting the stockpiling of nuclear weaponry around the globe. The committee noted specifically the president's increased emphasis on diplomacy. Republicans question if it is not Obama's charisma that has won the award, and Democrats too wonder if the president has really earned this award. Leaders of many Middle Eastern nations, most notable Iran, are fuming over the committees decision. The committee assured those confused by their decision by admitting when considering their nominees, they think about who has made the most effort in the past year to enhance world peace, and they came up with Barack Obama's name. The $1.4 million prize money will be donated to charity. Since the award is more of an expectation rather than a congratulatory award, a lot of pressure will be placed on Obama in the future years of his presidency to make global peace a reality.

Former UF Employee Arrested for Molesting

This article was written in the Alligator

October 7, 2009

When is an article's contents considered too obscene to be shown on the front page of a newspaper? This was one of the first questions I asked myself when I picked up the most recent Alligator newspaper. There on the front page was a short article about the UF engineering employee, 53-year-old David Blankenship, who was arrested for lewd and lascivious conduct involving a young girl. The topic is one that is not new to popular newspaper headlines. Rather, the specificity upon which this article took when describing the man's act was what I found to be obscene. In only the fourth sentence of the article on the front page of the newspaper, the author Katherine Bein explicitly lays out the finer details of the young girl's molestation. Bein outright describes how Blankenship "touched [the girl's] genitals under her clothes and penetrated her with his fingers". Something like this should be found in a newspaper, even on the front page. But details such as these which some may find offensive or traumatizing belong on the inside of the newspaper. A topic such as this is not being treated respectfully if the intimate details are being immediately put up front.

Guidelines in England for Assisted Suicide

This article can be found here.

October 6, 2009

Assisted suicide has been illegal in England for over 50 years, but recent guidelines have been cleared by the courts making it easier for friends or relatives to get away with doing such acts. One way this has been made easier is with the promise of courts to review and judge on these cases individually, and not by one generalized ruling. Some other provisions required that the person aiding a suicide to be motivated by compassion, that the deceased clearly wanted to die, and that the deceased being terminally ill, being severely physically disabled or suffering from an incurable degenerative disease. However, those who assisted in the suicide might be prosecuted if the deceased was under the age of 18, was mentally handicapped or not sure about his or her wishes, or was not being seriously disabled, terminally ill, or suffering from a degenerative disease. Also, if the person aiding in the suicide pressed someone into it or seemed to be motivated by some personal gain, they may also run the risk of prosecution. These measures were passed after Debbie Purdy successfully led a suit against the court on clarifying the law. Purdy wanted to have her husband try and aid in her suicide, but did not want him to go to jail.

Dancing Into the Evening, Brazil Celebrates Arrival on World Stage

This article can be found here.

October 4, 2009

After being recognized as the hosts of the 2016 Olympic games, Brazilians are beginning to view their country as an emerging power in global politics. Especially since this set of games will be the first to be held in South America. The author of the article purposefully takes a quote from a Brazilian electrical technician and cites him as saying, “We aren’t the United States, but we are getting there, and we will get there.” Using this source allows the author to convey not only the newfound sense of national pride found in the lower class sectors, but emphasize the reference point on which countries like Brazil base their global status: the United States. Brazil's emergence as a new world power can best be seen through the closing gap between the wealthiest few and the middle class. But economic success can be found mostly through luck. As the author points out pessimistically, the nation was just "lucky" enough to discover "huge troves of deep sea oil". The author repeatedly points out these 'lucky' instances as he describes the President da Silva's rise from poverty to leadership and Brazil's flourishing prosperity in the midst of a global economic crisis. Does all this talk of luck insinuate that their winning bid for host as host of the Olympics was just another one of these 'lucky' instances? Was Chicago just not lucky enough? In the end, the lack of 'sportsmanship', if you will, that the author expresses creates an overall jealous tone in the article.

Dialing for Answers Where Web Can’t Reach

This article can be found here.

October 1, 2009

Question Box is the African version of Google. It's a calling nonprofit service that provides answers to Ugandan citizens that live in remote areas in need of advice. Using the phone, a farmer who is confused on what to fertilize his crops with might call the hotline, who will then provide them with information. Simple enough. Since cell phones are already popular in Uganda, the service should not be difficult to supply. The California based creator, Rose Shuman, received funding from the Bill and Melinda Gaes Foundation, and first explored the program's success in the rural villages of India. Far from dial-up or wi-fi, the program primarily focuses on using cell phone support methods in providing information rather than the internet. Ultimately, Question Box seeks to increase the economic prosperity of the region by removing the obstacles involving lack of access to a technologically advanced world. In India, where cell phones were less pravalent, Question Box was simplified to a literal 'push-to-talk' metal box. It's all about outsourcing. The program connects local rural citizens to operators in cities that do have access to the internet. Of course, not all information can be found on the internet, and the internet is slow even in the Uganda's larger cities; so Question Box has turned to using Appfrica Labs, a database that documents information and all past questions and answers. Because the database is uniquely local, information would be more region specific and less tedious to use than popular American search engines.

Belatedly, Egypt Spots Flaws in Wiping Out Pigs

This article can be found here.

September 30, 2009

Before last spring, pigs were often allowed to stroll the streets of Cairo, Egypt, eating all the discarded organic waste that littered their path. That is, before the country's leading experts advised the mass slaughter of these species in order to slow the spread of a certain sickness called the swine flu. No longer around to provide their waste reduction services, pigs are being replaced by sheep, who have struggled to keep up with the quality of their predecessors' work. Residents are reporting an increased stench in the city, and officials are beginning to wonder if the measures taken will reap any positive results. The author uses this humorous anecdote to lightly introduce the broader issue of an over-reactive and rash Egyptian government. As the article takes a more serious tone, the author Michael Slackman takes a broader prespective by acquainting the reader with Cairo's other service industry issues, like the prevalence of bribes. By supplying them with quotes from Cairo's suffering citizens and qualified experts from that region-- like the chief of the infectious disease department at the Ministry of Agriculture, Sabir Abdel Aziz Galal, who advised against the pig massacre-- Slackman brings the article above the level of a merely entertaining article to one that seriously explores the legitimacy of the Egyptian governement.