Cameroon Bans Twitter: Paul Biya against freedoms

The African Nation of Cameroon has banned access to Twitter. This was
confirmed by a tweet from Internet service provider MTN Cameroon.

Bouba Kaele, a spokesman for MTN Cameroon said on a tweet on the 09th
of March 2011, that due to demands from authorities, his company was
blocking access to the popular Twitter Service.

Paul Biya, who leads the regime that has been in place since 29 years
displays the same characteristics as other regimes that have fallen in
the Maghreb.

There is widespread corruption, and Biya has no clear successor just
like Hosni Mubarak of Egypt.

Furthermore, the country's first female presidential candidate, Kah
Walla was brutalized by Biya sponsored thugs on the 23rd of February
2011.

Paul Biya has also been under scrutiny for investing millions of
dollars in foreign real estate especially in Geneva, Switzerland. A
pro Democracy group, CODE found one such residences and posted videos
on Youtube.

This latest move to ban access to Twitter all over Cameroon by Paul
and Chantal Biya just goes to prove once more the repression that
Cameroonians have had to endure for the last 29 years under Paul Biya.

Muammar Qaddafi defiant in the face of International Pressure.

Libyan strongman Col. Muammar Qaddafi is resisting calls from his
countrymen to resign as leader.

He has ruled the nation of 6 million for the past 41 years. Together
with his family, wealth generated from oil revenue has been invested
in diverse endeavors, yet the average Libyan feels left out of the
economic prosperity the country should have been enjoying.

People also want more freedoms, the kind of freedom the Colonel's son
Saif Al Islam enjoyed when he was a student in the London School of
economics, or when any of his other children are in Europe or the USA.

But the aging leader is refusing to give up his stranglehold on the
political and economic life of his people.

A ragtag rebellion has been organized in the East of the country and
seems headed to the capital city of Tripoli. Desertions are being
recorded daily amongst the senior ranks of the Qaddafi inner circle.

In the last few hours, violence has escalated between African
mercenaries and Libyan civilians trying to remove Qaddafi from power.

There have been calls for the establishment of a "No Fly" zone to
protect civilians from bombardment by Qaddafi's elite security force.

As the mounting death toll causes concern worldwide, the African
Union, the European Union and some world powers like the USA are
working to have the United Nations pass a resolution calling for a "No
Fly" Zone.

With every passing day, lives are unnecessarily lost as Qaddafi tries
against all odds to prolong his 41 year rule over the Libyan people.

As of this writing, it is being reported that the despot is in a hotel
granting interviews in camera to some Western journalists. We will
know what the outcome of this trip to meet the press is, especially as
news that Qaddafi had been shot spread over the last few hours.

More on this in another post soon...

What is the Best Oil for your Car Engine?

If you own a car, you may have heard the saying thayt the heart of the
car is its engine. It is the single most important component. Without
a running engine, the a car becomes nothing but a paperweight that
will rust with time.

Engine oil provides lubrication for the moving parts in your car's
engine. All lubrication oils are not created equal. There are two main
types, Synthetic oil and Regular oils (also known as Dino oil).

Regular engine oil is derived form the heavier distillates from
refining crude oil. The oil is the most commonly available and is
quite cheap. It does a pretty good job, but has to be replaced every
3000 miles or every 6 months for best performance of your engine. It
is not recommended by some high performance engine manufacturers
because of its characteristics under high stress conditions these
engines may have to operate in.

The other major type of oil is the Synthetic Oil. These is completely
created in a laboratory as its name suggests. It is the oil of choice
for some high end manufacturers like Mercedes Benz and BMW. It brings
out the best of the motor it is called to lubricate. Engines with
synthetic oil run much quieter and smoother in my experience. The most
famous of these include Mobil1. These oils can be run in the engine
for much longer too, so instead of changing the oil every 3000 miles,
you may have to go 5000 miles between oil changes. The engine is also
cleaner inside too with less sludge accumulation.

So whatever way you choose to go, the cheaper regular engine oil, or
the higher performance synthetic oil, you will get to enjoy your car
if you follow the manufacturer's recommendations.

International Women's Day 2011: Women Honored Worldwide

Once more, it is the 08th of March, the International Women's Day.

Since 1911, the day has been one when the plight and achievements of
women has been celebrated. The significance was not much initially, as
the day was timidly observed in Germany.

But over time, the day has grown in importance and scope. In the 1940s
and 1950s, it was mostly celebrated in Eastern Bloc countries as the
International Day of the Working Woman. The 1960s and 1970s saw many
women join the workforce in different capacities, and the day became
popular even in Western Countries like the USA.

1977 saw the UN General Assembly voting to adopt the 08th of March as
the International Women's Day. This is what really popularized the
celebration of women on this day.

In different parts of the world, the day is marked in various ways.
Some have seminars and other events that showcase the achievement of
women in industry, politics and business.

In sub Saharan Africa, it is mostly a day where women are honored by
men. They get together and pretty much party with other women. It is a
very important day both economically as well as politically.

Women's groups showcase their activities, educate the public on what
they do, and they get the full attention of the media. In recent
years, it is a tradition to get a special fabric design, which women
wear as a uniform on this day.

It is also a day that women leave the kitchen, and can be said to be
an official day off for the sub Saharan women.

In the United States, president Barack Obama designated the month of
March "Women's History Month". Celebrations for the day included
Congressional hearings broadcast live on C-SPAN which focused on the
difficulties women still face in some parts of the world.

Congressmen were briefed on mass rapes carried out by the LURD's
Resistance Army in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and how this has
affected the spread of HIV/AIDS.

All in all, the International Women's Day 2011 was a success across
the globe, and shows the growing role women have come to play not only
in the home, but in society.