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May 13, 2009

Pope supports Palestinian state

Per BBC, Pope Benedict XVI shows his approval and support for the Palestinians' right to a homeland, as he continues a Middle East tour in the West Bank.

In Bethlehem the Pope called for a "just and lasting" peace in the region and encouraged the citizens of Palestine to denounce acts of violence and terrorism.

Twitter users in the region speak about the Pope's visit:

Pnina (Jerusalem) G'morning from Jerusalem, where the Pope is currently a 5 min walk from my house. Think he'd like to try a hafooch? 11 May 2009 from web

JerusalemBureau (Jerusalem) I think the #Pope's walkout reflects politics, not integrity 11 May 2009 from Tweetie in reply to miguelg1964

fatherjonathan (Rome, Italy) Doing radio tour today on Pope's visit to Jordan and Israel. One host expressed shock the Pope would call for a two-state solution. What?! 13 May 2009 from web

Some citizens are inconvenienced by the Pope:

ASoldiersMother (Jerusalem, Israel) Tell that to the pope! Wanted to get across town yesterday...but driving there wasn't an option :-) At least 2day is better. 13 May 2009 from TweetDeck in reply to SusanZelinski

sarijos (Jerusalem) no traffic snarls today :-) The pope is still visiting somewhere else 13 May 2009 from TweetDeck

carolw (Israel) Spent the day in Jerusalem. Only inconvenienced by the Pope once. 13 May 2009 from web

jerrib247 (Jerusalem, Israel) The Pope being in Jerusalem is a traffic nightmare! Whole sections of the city are closed down. What a pain. 13 May 2009 from TweetDeck

Nigeria: Thousands protest high fuel prices

Per BBC: Nigerian police are on high alert in the city of Lagos as an anti-government march takes place on Wednesday. Hundreds of thousands of Nigerians hit the streets in protest of rising fuel prices, low minimum wages and the slow process of electoral reform.

The Nigeria Labour Congress has served notice to the Federal Government that more protests around the country would follow if the government does not meet its demands.

Twitterers in Nigeria and elsewhere covered the event:

dennisude (Abuja, Nigeria) Crude oil theft in Nigeria's niger delta bears economic, environmental, socio-political and security problems. http://bwbx.io/6GIg 12 May 2009 from Business Exchange

234next (Nigeria) Lagos/Nigeria - Police in Ikeja cheer on workers in peaceful protest march. 13 May 2009 from web

WorldPolitics (India) Nigeria: Labour Protest - FG Raises Security Alert - AllAfrica.com http://cli.gs/PePpjz #LinkTweet 12 May 2009 from WP to Twitter

francjournalist (Bangalore, India) Security heavy at Nigeria march: Thousands of protesters take to the streets of a Nigerian city for an anti-gove.. http://tinyurl.com/paxugv 13 May 2009 from DestroyTwitter

Featured TwitPic: Refugees in Pakistan

"IMSciences students in Jalozai SWABI refugee camp" #swat #idp
(Posted by @bilish, 35 kilometers southwest of Peshawar, Pakistan May 13, 2009)

May 12, 2009

Featured TwitPic: Beach in Sydney

"At the beach it looks so pretty but im sure it's ice cold!!" (Posted by @lilbabygirlloz, Sydney, Australia, May 12, 2009)

Facebook caught up in Holocaust controversy

Per ABC News, Facebook is under pressure to ban conversation over Holocaust Denial. The article features one particular student Abbas Hodroj, who upon discovering the news, joined a Holocaust denial group to prove a point.

Facebook so far has banned two Holocaust denial groups, but has left three open. Facebook spokesperson Brian Schnitt released a statement to ABC saying, "the mere statement of denying the Holocaust is not a violation of our terms."

The Twitterverse is buzzing about the issue, with many criticizing Facebook:

Jnobianchi (New York, N.Y.) Via @scrapsflippy : breast feeding = bad; denying the holocaust happened = good. Stay classy, Facebook http://tinyurl.com/qpg5rt

israfran (Tel Aviv, Israel) What a shame!! Facebook Remains Stubbornly Proud Of Position On Holocaust Denial http://tcrn.ch/1jD by @arrington

SamGliksman (Los Angeles, Calif.) Let Facebook know you expect them to remove anti-semitic Holocaust denial pages. Here is how: http://tinyurl.com/qbshvf

adschwartz (Scottsdale, Ariz.) Seems this is a good start but there is still more to be done. RT @jtanews Facebook removes two Holocaust denial sites http://bit.ly/aDKsD

frugalfreebies (Ontario, Canada) My baby pic was considered objectional & removed, but Denying the Holocaust groups OK with Facebook? http://bit.ly/4Qe8R

DavidSpinks (New York, N.Y.) Interesting debate RT @jacobm: looks like facebook doesn't want to talk about any more holocaust issues for now, sad, http://snurl.com/hvnbz