Day January 11, 2008

China blogger beaten to death by police

For the “crime” of filming a confrontation by police with villagers. The killing has sparked outrage in China, with thousands expressing outrage in Chinese Internet chat rooms, often the only outlet for public criticism of the government.

Craig’s list scam

Homeless on the High Desert avoids a $1300 Craig’s list ripoff, and details how the scam works. For large money transactions, whether Craig’s List, eBay, or wherever, use an escrow service. eBay specifically says to only use Escrow.com.

US video of Iran speedboats doctored

Juan Cole has a detailed analysis of this pitiful (and failed) propaganda attempt. The Iranians analyzed the Pentagon video released to the US media and found that the audio track was not synchronized properly with the video, pointing to serious…

Chávez tactical u-turn on socialism

Chavez is abandoning his socialist agenda “for now,” granting amnesty to right-wing coup plotters, replacing left-wingers in his cabinet, and signaling he wants to build alliances with the bourgeoisie. New Statesman opines the recent defeat of socialism at the Venezuela…