Text – Page 42 – Citizen Reporter

Complicated Cairo

I often listen to stories of other people’s visits to Cairo, Egypt.? A place famous for so many things, what always strikes me about how people describe Cairo, is the huge clash between traditional and modern, or what some would call, East and West. Naturally I’d like to learn more and go see it for myself one day soon.? But until then, the world of podcasting and radio provides me with lots of second hand experiences I can live through.

The latest comes from Australia’s ABC radio national, the program background briefing, which last week put out a show about Cairo and the modern versus the old fashioned and all the problems it has brought the city.? Highly recommended listening, I felt the journalist did a great job. Moreover I listen to this show and I think to myself, I’d like to be funded and be able to do similar; bringing my audience with me as I explore and look into the changes a place is undergoing.? Perhaps with my upcoming trip to Istanbul, I can do a little bit of this.

Bonus, follow the link to the Background Briefing post, they included great photos and video. Again, I’d love to do similar.

100 Years and More

I found myself towards the back of the crowd, almost unable to see the gravedigger doing his work and the people laying down Revolutionary-Red carnations.

There in the cemetary that seemed to be located on top of the world, I scanned the traditional marble slab graves all around me.? Buried immediately in front of me, complete with the traditional brown and white fade-proof photo, is an old woman with the first name Liberia.? The dates on the grave read: 1896 to 2004.? I started looking towards the next grave but it suddenly hit me and my eyes zoomed immediately on that date again.. 1896.. . 2004. 108 years, right there in front of me. Amazing.

Channel Kennedy While I Sleep

Just arrived in Lisbon and enjoying the comforts of staying uptown with one of my dearest family members. The cold and soggy Portugal winter is making it even harder to stay awake. Therefore before I change location tomorrow, I leave you with a great edition of Radio Open Source, featuring James Blight.. who I honestly had never heard of but have now come to recognize as one of the minds behind the film “The Fog of War”.

In this particular interview he does a great job of explaining how Kennedy thought about things and made decisions, and how Obama might also do similar.? The main thing he says Kennedy would do, and I must say- what I would call one of the most lacking and necessary characteristics of ANY reprepresentative or world leader, Kennedy was very interested in considering how others thought and how others might think he thinks.? Might seem like a simple thing, but as Blight explains, if we understood or at least tried more to consider how and why other world leaders think, and how they think we think, we’d be much better at communicating with them.

Listen for yourself.

Weekend Break and A New Bike

Its the weekend and I’m busy with non-citizenreporter life. However staying true to my roots as a blogger and a bicycle rider, I wanted to share this video my buddy Marc over at Amsterdamize shot today.? It captures the first ride with my new Secret Service bike from Workcycles.com.? I’ve never had a more pleasant bike buying experience, so much so I had to say something here on the blog because Henry and the crew deserve credit beyond just my purchase*.

*(thanks to the Dutch government for this odd small business-tax-credit for bicycles thing which I can’t explain properly, but helped make this possible)

The Guatemala Banana Coup

In order to understand how it is that the world’s banana industry got to this volatile point, let’s look at various historical events that involve the big banana companies and the way they have conducted their businesses.

One of the bigger moments you’ll hear the term banana and coup intersect is the Guatemala coup of 1954.

It was the second ever democratic election in that country, and a man by the name of Arbenz was elected in 1950 with 65% of the vote.? His campaign was focused on economic independence from the United States and reforming a nation that had been ruled by a dictator for so long.? Once elected he took action to re-distribute land that during the time of the dictatorship was bought up by United Fruit (known today as Chiquita).? The company was in fact Guatemala’s largest land Continue reading “The Guatemala Banana Coup”

Dangerous Bananas

My buddy Lucas was telling me that he digs the site, but that I move from topic to topic too quickly for him.? Usually I listen to comments like that, say thanks, and then go back to doing my own thing, my way. But Lucas is a good man, who may be on to something.? Perhaps another step in my evolution as a citizen reporter will be to keep the focus on one topic, or at least a small amount of topics for an extended period.? Examples for this year, GMO agriculture, environmental crimes in Europe and North America, and perhaps the one I will start rolling out this week: Bananas.? (although I still maintain that its my site and a big world and I do what I want!)

You heard right on that last part: Bananas. Naners. Beloved fruit of millions if not billions of people, but lesser known for being one of the leading causes of suffering and political chaos in the 20th century.? And of course they’re not finished yet.

Lets set the stage for this issue, because its far bigger than our friend the banana. Its aboutContinue reading “Dangerous Bananas”