newsdesk.org: Civics & Society Archives

For Cold War Brits, the Day After was a Tea-Time Nightmare

A wry old anti-nuclear slogan used to say "One nuclear bomb can ruin your whole day." If you're British, and...

New Wind-Power Projects Becalmed

With oil prices setting new highs nearly every day, wind power is getting another look. But, like most weather reports,...

Yemen Steps, Uneasy, From Past to Future

The poorest nation in the Middle East is also proving to be one of the most potentially volatile. Yemen --...

Broadband: BBC calls for Market 'Intervention'

Citing inclusion and civic participation as trumping private profit, the British Broadcasting Corporation is making a case for government "intervention"...

Ghana's Oil -- Blessing or Curse?

With the discovery that Ghana is sitting atop an estimated three billion barrels of oil, the impoverished West African nation...

A Political Resurrection in Malaysia

Almost 10 years after he was driven out of office by a bizarre series of corruption and sodomy charges, Malaysia’s...

Not Your Father's Hate Groups

A national survey has found the number of active hate groups in the United States has increased by 48 percent...

Israel: Homelessness Spikes for Girls

The percentage of homeless teenage girls in Israel jumped from 15 to 25 percent last year, driven by the social...

Cultivating Change in Lebanon

Caught between warring militias and Israeli reprisal, Lebanon's farmers have a hardscrabble life that is only exacerbated by the threat...

The Ends of the Internet?

How shall the Internet come to an end? Let us count the ways. GigaOm.com, an online media service focusing on...

Rhode Island: Secrecy Affirmed for Cable TV

Rhode Island's lead cable TV regulator has agreed to keep secret previously open data about the business operations of the...

An Investor's Guide to Presidential Candidates

Pondering a donation to a presidential candidate? Looking for the right choice given the needs of your special-interest group? Friends...

Windmills and Foul Air in the Navajo Nation

To much environmentalist acclaim, the Navajo Nation has announced plans to create a new wind-power plant on a reservation in...

'The Great Firewall' Lets Down its Guard

While China, confronted with violence in Tibet, was shutting down some parts of the Internet, it opened access to one...

"Avoidable" Gaza Deaths Follow Medical Travel Bans

The World Health Organization said preventable deaths almost doubled in the Gaza Strip between 2006 and 2007, following the Hamas...

Australian Labor's Nuclear Powers

Firmly established in power, Australia's Labor Party has opted to reinvigorate a plan from the previous government to expand uranium...

U.S. Guest Workers Kept Like "Pigs in a Cage"

Almost 100 Indian guest workers at a Mississippi shipyard stormed off from their jobs one day earlier this month, claiming...

Debt Waived for India Farmers

Small and marginal farmers in India will get almost $15 billion in debt relief, thanks to legislation orchestrated by the...

Who Wants to Buy a President?

Bucking the trend of "horse race" campaign coverage, the Center for Public Integrity's latest edition of "The Buying of the...

Gay Muslims Seek Political Asylum in Britain

The United Kingdom has been gripped in recent weeks by the stories of two gay teenagers who say they face...

Communist Chic in the Former Eastern Bloc

There's nothing unusual about people returning to the fashions, products and social spots of their youth, but when that youth...

South Africans March as Crime Wave Peaks

A planned march against crime in South Africa is highlighting how racial and economic relations have changed in the nation...

New Reparations Call for Philippine "Comfort Women"

The Philippine legislature is considering a new resolution to ask for apologies from Japan, as well as financial reparations, for...

News Outlet Seeks Reader Donations to Fund Iraq Trip

An Oregon news service has come up with an unusual way to help pay for a reporter's trip to Iraq:...

Koran in Hand, She Wins Over Mullahs

Fiery and not yet out of her 20s, Wazhma Frogh has been making waves in Afghanistan by using the Koran...

Short-Changed by the Labels? Musicians Dispute Napster Settlement

The recording industry may have netted hundreds of millions of dollars in settlement money from lawsuits targeting Napster, Kazaa and...

"Enviropig": Less Pollution, More Questions

A little bit of genetic editing is all that's required to slash the environmental damage caused by sewage from industrial...

Infants and International Incidents

With regulations tightening in China, Western couples are increasingly looking to Vietnam for overseas adoptions. But the trend is creating...

Radiation on the Reservation

As the market booms for uranium mining in the American West, a Seattle newspaper took a new look at what...

A "Complicated Truth" About Obama Donations

Although Barack Obama has publicly disavowed campaign donations from lobbyists, the candidate, along with his rival Hillary Clinton, has received...

Friend of Hostages, or Friend of Hostage-Takers?

Venezuela's firebrand President Hugo Chavez has been deeply involved in recent months in trying to resolve the long-running standoff over...

Wikileaks Shutdown Thwarted

Infoworld technology guru Robert X. Cringley said the attempted shutdown of the Wikileaks Web site by a U.S. judge at...

Great Lakes Toxics Data Suppressed?

Millions of people in the Great Lakes region may face health problems from toxic pollution, but a study on the...

New York Targets Nonprofit Fraud

New York City investigators are looking into more than 30 cases of potential nonprofit fraud, the New York Post reports....

Black and White and Read All Over ... in Asia, Anyway

Newspapers in the United States may be shrinking, losing circulation and laying off employees at an alarming rate, but times...

Russia Sends Opposition To Psych Wards

A Russian opposition activist was forced into a mental hospital in one of many signs of the Russian government's crackdown...

Specter of Fraud Haunts Pakistan Election

The majority of Pakistan's voters expect the upcoming February 18 election to be rigged, reports McClatchy Newspapers. Doubts are widespread,...

Sea Cow Stymies Navy's Okinawa Plan

The endangered dugong, a type of "sea cow" similar to Florida's manatee, threatens to put the brakes on a huge...

Death After Pepper Spray Raises Questions

A mentally ill man died not long after being pepper sprayed, the New Zealand Herald reported, prompting criticism of a...

Erosion Takes a Toxic Toll in Alaska

It has been widely reported that global warming threatens to sweep scores of coastal Alaskan towns into the sea. Now,...

Uzbek Strongman Has Powerful Friends Again

Western nations are once again making diplomatic overtures to Uzbekistan, despite the former Soviet republic's dismal human rights record. Admiral...

Canada Acknowledges Afghan Torture

Canada's defense minister acknowledged that the military knew prisoners they transferred to Afghan jails were being tortured. Although the military...

California Marijuana Law Takes a Hit

The California State Supreme Court found that employers can fire workers for using doctor-approved marijuana, despite a voter-approved state law...

War Crimes Trial Spurs Threat Claim

A witness in the war crimes trial of Charles Taylor, the former president of Liberia, said a group of men...

The Biodiesel Road Proves Bumpy in Southeast Asia

It's heralded as the clean-burning alternative to petroleum, but biodiesel's baggage has made a smooth roll-out seem unlikely. The challenges...

Malaysia Ban on "Muslim" Words Sparks Furor

Long simmering religious tensions are heating up as Malaysia prepares for national elections. In recent weeks, the Muslim-led government of...

The Dutch Ponder a Free-Speech Powder Keg

Geert Wilders, one the Netherland's most notorious right-wing politicians, seeks to make headlines around the world with the debut of...

Genetically Engineered Trees Cut Down

An electric fence wasn't up to the task of protecting a field of genetically engineered trees in New Zealand. Twenty...

Indigenous Rights Wend a Legal Labyrinth

Armed with a U.N. declaration on indigenous rights, an activist coalition is working to stake out new legal protections for...

Smells Like Team Spirit

In what may be a first for political branding, a Spanish political party has begun marketing its own perfume. The...

Iran Grapples with Discrimination, Division

Despite an ongoing crackdown on dissent, women's rights and ethnic separatism remain a thorn in the side of Iran's fundamentalist...

Nigeria's Smoke Out

Claims that international tobacco companies are targeting young people in Nigeria have spurred a $43 billion government lawsuit against Phillip...

Free After 20 Years on Death Row

A Scottish man who spent 20 years on Ohio's death row has been freed following a new plea. Kenny Richey...

Thailand's New Democracy as Fractious as the Old

Thailand returned to democracy last month, with its first national elections after 15 months of military rule. But the transition...

Trouble at the Roof of the World

Water rights and free speech are the latest sparks that have inflamed protests in Tibet against the Chinese government. Hundreds...

Judge SeeksTerror Trial Jury Blackout

A federal judge in Miami ordered jurors to be selected anonymously in the upcoming retrial of an alleged terrorist cell,...

Muslim Teen's Slaying Sparks Canada Debate

The slaying of a 16-year-old Muslim girl, allegedly by her father, has sparked a furor in the Canadian press and...

Afghan Reconstruction Faces U.S. Budget Cuts

An innovative reconstruction program in Afghanistan has been praised for giving decision-making power to small villages and communities, but may...

Protestors say Israel will Exclude Ethiopian Jews

Hundreds of Ethiopian Jews demonstrated in Jerusalem on Monday, alleging that as many as 8,500 of their family and community...

The Stirrings of Islamo-Liberalism

Plenty of media attention has been given to fundamentalist Islam and Taliban-style "Islamo-fascism." But three recent articles bring to light...

Things Looking Up for the Poor Down Under

When Australia's conservative government was voted out of office last month, much of the world's media emphasized the possible ramifications...

Corruption Roils Alaska Politics

With two oil executives headed to jail for giving hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal payments and "benefits" to...

A Man, a Dam and a Salmon Plan

A federal judge has rebuked the government for its latest plan to restore salmon runs along the Columbia and Snake...

Data Snooping and its Discontents

The limits of data privacy are being tested in Western democracies, as governments and corporations push for greater access with...

Sex on the Beach and Birds in Hand? Kenya's Tourist Trap

Miles of shoreline, coastal forests, mountains, plains and the continent-spanning Great Rift Valley all make Kenya a world-class tourist destination....

Cracks at the Seams? China Bolsters Three Gorges

Everything about the Three Gorges Dam seems larger than life. It was built at a cost of $15.6 billion, caused...

Tear Gas for Ethnic Protest in Malaysia

Riot police greeted thousands of minority protesters in Malaysia's capital of Kuala Lumpur, turning back their calls for increased social...

Japan to Expand Atomic Bomb Victim Definition

More than 50 years after the nuclear destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a string of court losses has forced Japan's...

Hizb-ut-Tahrir: Winning Hearts and Minds

The Islamic group Hizb-ut-Tahrir is gaining a foothold across Central Asia and is making its presence felt in Britain and...

Outsourcing Motherhood

Scores of impoverished Indian women are selling their services as childbearers to foreign couples who either cannot, or don't want...

Families Asunder over International Adoption Woes

Several countries are tightening their adoption laws to avoid kidnapping scandals, such as the recent confrontation in Chad over a...

No Safe Haven: Oklahoma Shuts out Illegal Immigrants

A new Oklahoma law targeting undocumented workers is among the most punitive in the nation, making it illegal to "hire,...

Tribal Loyalty May Bridge Iraq's Sectarian Divide

Iraqi tribal chiefs from the Sunni-dominated Anbar province held talks last week with counterparts in Shia-dominated Qadissiya Province. Their goal...

FCC Tries to Sneak Through Looser Media Rules, Protesters Say

Among the 200 people who signed up to speak at an FCC hearing on media consolidation in Seattle last week...

Anti-Gay Russian Churches Growing in U.S.

The beating death of a gay man by a group of Russian-speaking men in Sacramento this summer highlighted the growing...

Thailand's Muslim Conflict

Violent conflicts between Thai armed forces and a rebel separatist group in the three Muslim-dominated southern provinces of Thailand flared...

The Persistence of Rendition

When President Bush publicly acknowledged the existence of secret CIA jails, he also said they would be vacated -- temporarily....

Whistle-Blowers Muted by Bureaucracy

Whether speaking out about violations of national security or tainted meat, precious few government employees receive protection for their whistle-blowing...

Old Wounds Deepen for Government Critics

A snapshot of anti-government and protest movements in Bolivia and the Philippines reveals little progress towards healing old wounds --...

Blood Diamonds Sullied, But Still Glitter

Delegates from 70 countries and international groups will meet in Brussels next week to discuss progress in stamping out trade...

New Hope and Hurdles for Uganda Peace

Overshadowed by the Darfur conflict, one of Africa's most bloody and intractable rebellions inches closer to resolution. Reconciliation is on...

A Taste of Old Russia

European authorities are decrying a move by Russia to cut the number of international observers at its upcoming December 2...

Resistance Deepens to Afghan Poppy Spraying

A secretive test-spraying of "harmless plastic granules" over Afghan poppy crops has revealed deepening opposition to drug- eradication efforts backed...

Fakin' It: Officials Forge a Future in Iraq

More than 900 officials in the Iraqi government, including parliamentarians, are obtaining forged degrees to continue to serve in the...

The Child Brides of Kandahar

Human rights activists in Afghanistan say arranged marriages involving young girls under 16 still account for half of all marriages...

Iran: Dissent Crackdown Deepens

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government is in the midst of an unprecedented crackdown on civilians, criminals and dissenters. Experts suggest...

U.S. Water Pollution Laws Routinely Flouted: Report

For years, U.S. municipal governments, corporations, and even the EPA have circumvented Clean Water Act safeguards against industrial pollution. More...

AIDS Bias Targets 11-Year-Old Boy

An 11-year-old who received "regular blood transfusions" for years was diagnosed as HIV-positive, and later kicked out of a school...

New Testimony in Indonesia Activist Death

A "massive" dose of arsenic in an airline meal took the life of a prominent critic of the Indonesian government,...

Families a Casualty of Kashmir Split

As many as 50,000 Indian-Pakistani families have been divided by the disputed Kashmir province since 1989. Among them are several...

The World's Prison Crisis

Overcrowding, poor hygiene and drug addiction aren't just issues that affect U.S. prisons, but extend to those of other regimes...

French DNA Bill Stirs Anti-Immigrant Fears

If a French bill becomes law, any immigrant seeking to join relatives in France will have the option of taking...

The Death Sentence on Trial?

Support for capital punishment may be on the wane, as the Supreme Court ponders a Kentucky case that pivots on...

A Nuclear "Renaissance"

Although it is a long way from becoming a reality, pundits are already predicting a "nuclear renaissance" in America for...

Kurdish Vote Puts Pressure on Arabs

Kurdish officials are beginning the process of sending Arab residents back to their cities of origin ahead of a referendum...

Day Labor Camp Divides in Texas

A Christian church in Houston is part of an interfaith coalition that has drawn the ire of anti-immigration activists by...

Billboards No More for Brazil's Megalopolis

More than 70 percent of residents of Sao Paulo, Brazil's largest city and the nation's economic powerhouse, remain fully committed...

Agribusiness Gets Another Record Harvest -- of Subsidies

The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the latest federal farm bill would spend $280 billion on traditional subsidies for corn,...

The Burma Backstory: How Fossil Fuels Keep the Junta in Business

Although most of the world's political powers, including the United States, have condemned the Myanmar junta's crackdown on reformist protesters,...