adminFreedom House released its 2010 Freedom in the World survey, which sadly, shows overall freedom declining around the world for the fourth straight year. The report designates a total of 89 countries as free, 58 as partly free, and 47 as not free. Last week, I asked Freedom House Director of Research Arch Puddington about some of the more surprising developments from this year in freedom:
There is something artificial in Gen. Başbuğ’s “angry”ness. Despite fisting the table, there is something I still did not feel that he was that angry. It was a performance, not too many buys. He comes to use rhetorical devices:”Our soldiers charge into battle crying out ‘Allah, Allah’,” he said, banging his fist on the table. … Read more
The Status Report: Assessing the Obama Administration?s First Year
Source: The Brookings Institution
During the presidential transition, Brookings scholars wrote a series of policy recommendations in 12 memos to incoming President Barack Obama. In January 2010, one year into the new presidency, our experts rated the progress of the new administration on those same issues in The Status Report, a series of daily commentary and video.
Each of the items below provides an assessment of President Obama?s performance in light of recommendations made during the Presidential Transition.
Hagia Sophia restoration ends after 17 years. Today last pieces of Scaffolding was removed at Hagia Sophia.
Well, as a person who has more than a thousand friends in Facebook, I had already experienced that, now we scientify it (!):
Brain Can’t Handle More Than 150 Facebook Friends Finds Oxford Boffin
ITProPortal
A professor of Evolutionary Anthropology at Oxford University has found out that human beings are physically limited to being able to link up and manage up
Here is the latest news on Turks into social media: Turkey: The land that embraced Facebook, FriendFeed and startups ……… Furthermore, last year ComScore released a report showing Turkey has the third most engaged online audience in the world, with 30 hours spent online each month ? that?s actually behind the US and Canada. See … Read more
Among the rich families of Turkey Eczacıbaşı family is exceptional. No other families can challenge Eczacıbaşı in the amount of investment in arts and cultural fields. But not only in terms of investment, this family is exceptionally urban, modern and politically liberal in their reactions and positionings. One of their leading members, Şakir Eczacıbaşı, passed … Read more
I am about to finish reading Murat Menteş’ last novel. This is the last of a series of quality novels I have been reading. He has earned quite a fame in Turkey and he deserves it. Good geeky appropriation of popular culture images. All other novels are award winning novels and I would recommend all … Read more
More photos can be found here.
Istanbul is under snow and life stopped in our European capital of culture. I decided to give a break to my life, and now camping in my parents’ place. Watching tens of episodes of How I Met Your Mother, reading, eating and napping. But this of course entails family thingies like watching food (in the morning) and marriage programs (afternoon) with mum….I hear that snow will be affective until Monday…
Another Istanbul 2010 video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0C8xWl8dq1k
Since today, Jerzy Buzek, European Parliament President, is on Twitter.
At this moment, he has 50 followers, the number is quickly growing. He himself (probably the press team) isn’t following anyone by now – waiting to see how this develops.
In the last round, relations got worse but I believe this is just another (negative) step in many steps to come… A roundup on Turkish foreign policy… Historic efforts to establish ties between Armenia and Turkey may break down, the Armenian foreign minister warned on Friday, blaming Ankara for obstructing the process. (AFP/Graphic/Paz Pizarro) A … Read more
Nuray Mert should be happy. The columnist who has been writing recently about a possible civilian dictatorship (AKP one party regime) should feel satisfied with the latest Constitutional Court decision that assures military tutelage…
There is no need to have another coup plan unveiled, but Taraf daily insists on the new coup plan… some military officials might have planned these bloody plans.. in fact, most tactics were already employed in the 12 September 1980 coup… A roundup on Turkish politics follows…
The true effect of Lisbon, the practice not the theory, is beginning to come to light and, as some of us warned, it is far from pretty.
The House of Commons’ European Scrutiny Committee, the body charged with sifting through EU legislation and holding the Government to account, has published its annual report today and has some quite interesting things to say about the Lisbon Treaty’s impact on Parliamentary scrutiny of EU proposals – a largely unexciting process but, if it can be effective, one that is key to maintaining a link between our national representatives and the Brussels legislative machine.
