From the “Another Powerful Example of How Blogs Are Changing the World that We Won’t Be Able to Teach” Dept. comes this article in the Wall Street Journal via David Weinberger: “In the Midst of War, Bloggers Are Talking Across the Front Line.”
Bloggers from Lebanon and Israel — some on the scene, others around the world — are providing live updates of their experiences, commenting on each other’s writing and sometimes linking to blogs across the border. The dialogue is all the more unusual since the populations of the two countries had few ways to interact even before the fighting began. Lebanese law prohibits Israelis from entering the country, and there are no phone connections between the two states.
Sure, we can discuss the story. But fuggedabout actually showing the conversation to our kids or having them reflect on it on their own blogs where other people might be able to inform their thinking and learning. God forbid we forget to actually teach them how to stay safe from those Mid Eastern predators out there.
I’ll get off of this horse soon, I promise…
(BTW, if you want a really good rudown on the DOPA dopiness, try this post at The 463.)
A terrific book that is a compilation of blogs from a twenty-something Middle Eastern woman sheds a lot of light on how “natives” feel about well-intentioned neighbors and “friends” imposing their views (recently by force) on Mid-East internal problems. The book is “Baghdad Burning” by Riverbend [pseud.]. I believe the blog is still in existence.