Blogs & Ecology

Below is a selection of some recent posts from the Estonian blogosphere.

Itching for Eestimaa writes about Estonian women who survived the deportations of the 1940s, but whose tragic stories never found a reflection in the Soviet-time Estonian women's magazine, Nõukogude Naine:

[…] These women are no different than the young women of today, except life dealt them unfortunate circumstances that they ultimately had to digest and live with.

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Source: Global Voices Online

Below is a selection of recent posts by bloggers from around Central and Eastern Europe on social networking, participatory media, online activism and other related issues.

Eternal Remont writes about Russian businessman Oleg Teterin, who claims to have trademarked the ;-) emoticon:

[…] Seeing that the Russian patent agency will grant a trademark for just about anything these days, Eternal Remont is attempting to trademark “Oleg Teterin,” (trademark pending) and will expect payment whenever anyone speaks, writes, prints, or otherwise uses this phrase in all media known to humanity, existing or future. […]

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Source: Global Voices Online

Itching for Eestimaa notes, among other things, on how the U.S. presidential race was taken in Estonia.

The 8th Circle reports that citizens of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia will now be able to visit the United States for up to 90 days without an entry visa; Polish citizens, however, are not included in this list: “It’s ironic, because of the immense role that Poland has played (and continues to play) as a stedfast ally of the United States. It’s also awkward, because Bush has promised visa-free travel to Poland’s neighbors while not being able to do the same for Warsaw.”

Babel Tallinn reports about a survey that gives 84% support to the EU among the total Estonian suffrage - coincidentally the same percentage of citizens who are Estonian by ethnicity.

Itching for Eestima discusses how Finland deals with its Russian neighbour in the Georgia war context and reflects on Estonia's role.

Itching for Eestimaa writes about a recent trip to Setomaa, “the southeastern most corner of Estonia, the home of the Orthodox, Finno-Ugric Setu people.”

Vello Vikerkaar reflects on fame in a small country such as Estonia.

Itching for Eestima writes about the historical parallels between Estonia and Georgia and the fear of being invaded from the East, viz. by Russia.

Suomalais-venäläinen kansalaisfoorumi posts a statement by the President of Estonia, Toomas Hendrik Ilves, declaring that war has broken out in Europe, and furthermore tells about a Russian ultimatum to Georgian forces in Abkhazia to lay down their arms or to be annihilated.

AnTyx reports that customers in Estonia have gone on a shopping-spree for Georgian wines as an act of solidarity with Tbilisi.

Vello Vikerkaar advocates for the substitution of Estonia's inane slogan ‘Welcome to Estonia' for a story worthy of Hemingway, who once said “In every port in the world, at least two Estonians can be found”.

Babel Tallinn writes about the long over-inflated real estate prices in Estonia, and the current crisis with falling prices in the sector.

Itching for Eestimaa thinks that Lithuania's recent decision “to ban both Soviet and Nazi symbols, as well as national anthems, is […] a mistake.”

AnTyx compares Tartu's Snail Tower to other cities' modern architecture.