International news

Now that the US election is (mostly) over, I have eased up somewhat on my obsession with politics and have begun reading international news again. BBC world news used to be my homepage, but between traveling and using other people's computers I have been ignoring the world stage.

I had forgotten how fascinating world news can be. Not only did I catch up a bit on the usual news (violence between Sri Lanka's government and its rebels, the degree to which the financial crisis is affecting various countries, etc) but also saw some of the day's more unusual events. People are crazy, and from a wider selection and number of people, you end up with crazier stories. These are from today alone:

Pirates capture Saudi oil tanker -- Piracy has come to mean taking media for free off the internet, at least in ordinary conversation, or about some exceedingly romanticized activity from hundreds of years ago, but we forget that the real thing still happens. I also sometimes forget that fighting over oil isn't just something left wingers accuse the Bush administration of, it is openly occurring on a regular basis. (For more on the current state of oil in the world and the consequences thereof, check out Mark's new website.)

China TV Bans Top Football League -- Some countries are far more intrusive than we Americans with our Libertarian leanings can even imagine. China is refusing to air some football games because the team members sometimes get in fights on the field. Remember when North Korea banned smoking in the whole country to help Kim Jung Il quit himself? Craziness. (Though a smoking ban wouldn't really bother me.)

Sheikh 'Planned Jackson Revival' -- The King of Bahrain's son is suing Michael Jackson for breach of contract after helping the pop star out with his debt and then being stood up. Hilarious.

And the winner for most bizarre news story of the day:

Albino Girl Killed For Body Parts -- Apparently there is a lucrative trade in albino parts in Burundi and Tanzania because they are used by witch doctors for magic potions. Yes, really. This is actually rather similar to a fantasy novel I just started trying to write, except that mine is fiction, and there really is magic in that fictional world.

Earlier this summer, a bunch of my friends got in a debate about the importance of keeping up with national and international news, and we generally concluded that it was most directly important for sounding well informed and to be able to participate in the social activity of discussing world events. However, I now think this leaves out the all important function of reminding oneself that the world is a strange, strange place.