2010 Olympics with Brandy Yanchyk

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[Story Ticker] 29 October

GRN correspondent Brandy Yanchyk is closely following the build up to the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. There has been as much controversy as excitement during the run up.

Protest group, the Olympic Resistance Network believe that the Games are being held on “stolen Native land”.

However this is also the first time in history that Indigenous peoples have been recognized as official partners in hosting the Olympic Games.

Do you want to know more about the complications of this sensitive and complex issue? Let us know what you think- post a comment!

From October 30th the Olympic torch will have begun an incredible 45,00km journey across Canada- taking in over 1,000 communities, making it the longest domestic torch relay route in Olympic history.

If you want to know all about the issues and excitement for the 2010 Olympics, check out our stories page and let us know which story you would like Brandy to pursue.

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Saying Goodbye to the Golden Arches in Iceland

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[Story Ticker] October 28 Update

Welcome back readers! GRN correspondent, Alda Sigmundsdóttir enlightens readers on the closing of McDonald’s in Iceland.

GRN correspondent, Alda Sigmundsdóttir enlightens readers on the closing of McDonald’s in Iceland.

Excerpt from blog
“It is not McDonald’s per se who is leaving, but rather the people who have held the franchise have decided that, what with all the food needing to be imported [McDonald’s apparently doesn’t trust anyone else to make their delicious burger patties], it’s no longer viable to maintain in the current economic climate. So not only is the kreppa saving the children, it’s also vastly improving our culinary habits.”

Click here to see more on this article posted on her blog. You can click this link to see her article posted on The Guardian.

Biography on Alda Sigmundsdóttir

Sigmundsdóttir is a journalist and blogger based in Reykjavik, Iceland. Born in Iceland and now residing there once again, she runs Iceland’s most widely-read English-language blog, http://www.icelandweatherreport.com, where these days she mostly chronicles the country’s economic meltdown. Her blog was shortlisted for Best European Blog in the 2008 and 2009 Bloggies Weblog Awards and has been featured in various media worldwide.

Global for me is here to pursue the stories you want to know more about. Let us know what you think and if you want to hear more from Alda Sigmundsdóttir.

-Shea Northcut, GFM Team

Mysterious disappearances in the Philippines…

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[Story Ticker] October 23 update

Hello GFM Bloggers,

Last time we highlighted disappearances in China– now we believe the Phillipines warrants a similar focus.

Accusations of mysterious disappearances and extra-judicial killings supposedly taking place with the approval of the government of President Arroyo. Have you heard about the mysterious disappearance of Jonas Burgos?

Human rights group Karapatan assert the severity of the situation and call for more investigation and the attention of world leaders towards these supposed human rights violations.

Have a look at the story page and see if this is something you’d be willing to contribute towards to find out more ….

Missing! Where are the Uighur men?

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[ Story Ticker ] October 21 update

Afternoon bloggers!

We’ve been worried by some recent news regards human rights in China.

Human Rights Watch, recently released a report in which they have delved into the aftermath of the riots in Xinjiang, the Urumqi capital of China this summer. Their undercover investigators revealed some worrying testimonies from locals.

The riots were the eruption of ongoing ethnic tensions in the region and the Uighurs were blamed for the violence. In the following weeks, large numbers of Uighur men were rounded up by the authorities.

Whilst many have been charged and 11 even given the death penalty- there are still huge numbers of unaccounted for and missing men whose families are being denied answers as to there whereabouts.

For more on this story, check out the pitch on the story page– we want to know more, do you?

For this or any story that you want to know more about, keep suggesting your story ideas today at Global for me!

Pig or Pitbull?

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Sarah Palin: Would you like to see her in The White House?

The release of former Vice-Presidential candidate, Sarah Palin’s biography ‘Going Rogue’, on November 17^th, is certain to confirm in the minds of many that she intends to make a run for the White House at the next election.

An incredibly divisive figure, Palin has become emblematic of some of the most contentious differences in philosophy between liberal and conservative America.

Pro-life, pro-gun, anti-big government- heralded as a hero by the bible-belt, the Democrats presented a caricature of Palin, perhaps best exemplified by comedienne, Tina Fey’s impression of her on NBC’s, Saturday Night Live during the last campaign for The White House that became a you-tube sensation.

Even the usually tactfully worded Obama seemed to get in on the action, seemingly in response a Palin sound-bite where she had chosen a cutesy line to emphasise both her small-town credentials and readiness to be vice-president, she had declared to a crowd of supporters,

“You know what the difference is between a hockey mom and a Pit Bull?” Pointing to her mouth, she answered rhetorically;

“Lipstick!”

Six days later to a gathered crowd of Democrats, Obama announced supposedly talking about the health care system;

“You can put lipstick on a pig but it’s still a pig.”

Whilst he denied any reference to Palin, the comment sent his audience into raptures and received his loudest applause of the day. It is hard to believe that Obama was unsure of the potential interpretation of such a turn of phrase.

The release of Sarah Palin’s biography presents us with a moment to carefully consider her impact upon American politics to date and with our unparalleled network of international journalists, from Washington we can provide political correspondents to give you, the low down on her whirlwind political career thus far and analysis on what the future might have in store.

Global for me is here to pursue the stories you want to know more about.

Let us know what you think- post a comment now and check out the page for this story…

See you soon,

Kit- GFM Team.

GRN Correspondent Simon Lane releases new book

Welcome back!

Global Radio is pleased to announce correspondent Simon Lane has released a new book, The Real Illusion. It was released in September and is now available online to purchase.

GRN correspondent Simon Lane is based out of Rio de Janeiro and has written five books.

Description of Book: This book is an anthology of twenty-one stories spanning nearly three decades. Simon Lane’s writing offers a journey of the mind, reflecting the peripatetic nature of the author’s life, or lives. Sharp reportage joins lyrical and metaphorical explorations of the human condition to create a world of its own, always tinted with the most refined sense of humour, no matter what the subject. Enjoy the ride, from Los Angeles to London, from Iceland to Mexico. This will entertain and inspire the most well-travelled reader, indeed anyone seeking a moment’s respite within the eye of the storm.

The Real Illusion was published in September 2009.

The Real Illusion launched in Paris at Shakespeare & Co. last week and is coming to London at the Chelsea Arts Club on 21 October. You can also view and buy Lane’s book by clicking here.

Background on Author: Simon Lane writes for a variety of publications. He has been a correspondent in Rio de Janeiro since 2001 and covers all aspects of life in Brazil. Past books include Le Veilleur, Still-Life with Books, Fear, and Word of Mouth.

Let us know what you think by leaving a comment.

Thank you,

Shea Northcut
-GFM Team

NATO of the South

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Can Chávez and Gaddafi’s proposed NATO of the South really work?

Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez this week played host to thirty or so African and Latin-American leaders. Brought together by Chávez for an intercontinental summit, invitees included controversial leaders such as President Mugabe of Zimbabwe and Libyan leader, Colonel Gaddafi.

Chávez, Gaddafi and Mugabe are never likely to be any western leader’s preferred dinner guests and the gang don’t seem interested endearing themselves anytime soon… Gaddafi and Chávez announced from the summit that they are hoping to form an “anti-imperialist” front across Africa and Latin America that they see as becoming the NATO of the South.

“The world’s powers want to continue to hold on to their power,” Colonel Gaddafi announced somewhat richly for a dictator who had a white limousine flown all the way to Venezuela to meet him at the airport.  “Now we have to fight to build our own power”.

Whilst the behavior of Gaddafi often seems farcical, he is not without influence in the sphere of international politics as was recently illustrated by what many have interpreted as a trade for oil of  Lockerbie bomber, Abdul Baset Ali al-Megrahi. The eccentricity of Gaddafi’s behaviour perhaps overshadows it’s malignance. Meanwhile Chavez’s polarized Venezuelan citizens love and loathe him with partisan passion whilst he too attains a severity of international influence through his nation’s wealth of oil. Meanwhile Mugabe, despite his horrendous human rights record remains in power with international powers seemingly unable or unwilling to depose him.

This proposed NATO of the South’s membership roster seems a promising idea that has been initiated with a rather peculiar blend of power, hypocrisy and eccentricity by worrisome individuals. You can use Global for Me as a tool to explore the issues discussed here or whatever issues you are interested in- covered in a rather more balanced, informed and analysed way than I have here by Global For Me’s experienced network of expert professional journalists.

For whatever stories you want explored further; at Global for me, we have the correspondents to provide coverage and analysis for the stories you want to know more about.

Post your commments and let us know what you think… up on the stories page.

Kit- GlobalFM