The News (Wednesday's Sample)


Before you go on to read the news topics, I thought I'd do my fair share and show you a sample of how I'd write this. This is to improve the quality of analysis within the news articles. In other words, you guys are really good at summarizing - A++ for that, but you need to know how to explain why stuff is going on, and what you actually think of it. You also need to cite where you got the articles, by the way. Many of you have forgotten about citing your sources. I'm also doing this because Serena doesn't have computer access to help Kah Hao today, so Kah Hao and Kathleen will do their fair share on Friday. Without further ado, I present my top three headlines for today.

Russian warns against arming Syrian opposition

Russia is doesn't approve of the Western and Arab states supplying Syrian rebel troops with weapons because 

1. The rebels will not win (because they are fighting against 'awesome' Russian weapons, after all)
2. People are only going to end up killing each other.

These are pathetic reasons because Russia and Syria have been homies for a long time - Russia has been selling weapons to Syria, and even has a naval base in Syria to strengthen its presence around the Mediterranean sea. In other words, if the current government topples, Russia is going to lose its political presence and a lot of money because it has been trading with Syria extensively. The thing is, Russia is one of the five UN nations with veto-power, which means Russia can ask the UN to stop Syrians from toppling Al Assad. Russia would rather support its own economy than be concerned with the lives being lost and the welfare of another country.

Al-Assad is stalling for time - he's trying to pit all the countries who want to help against each other so he can still remain in power. He's signed the 6-point peace plan, but he's obviously paying lip service because he does not care about his people and still wants to remain in power. In this case, the UN should help as much as it can and ignore Russia because the rights and the welfare of the Syrian people are more important.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17553612


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia%E2%80%93Syria_relations

Egypt liberals spurn Islamist offer, threaten protest

Though Egypt has ousted Hosni Mubarak, there are still problems. While drafting the new constitution, liberals (people who believe that religion shouldn't have a part to play in governing the country) are pissed off because the majority of seats in parliament belong to Muslims. The dominant party is the Muslim Brotherhood. 

Many political parties have also pulled out of this because they felt that they weren't being heard, and though the Muslim Brotherhood has vacated 10 seats in parliament, liberals still don't think they can be represented in their government. The Muslim brotherhood has also decided to contest in the upcoming elections, exacerbating the problem.

This situation shows that democracy only caters to the majority, making it difficult for people of all religions to have their voices heard and build the country they want to be in. Though democracy is based on the premise of equal opportunity, this isn't so because the majority of people will end up monopolizing the state. The challenge in Egypt and in any democracy is fairness. It's about listening to every voice, and these people have to learn to strike a balance between liberals and conservatives. The road is long and hard, but Egyptians will be able to create the kind of government they want to see with their resilience.

http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE83300P20120404

North Korea refugees 'arrive in Seoul after China stay'

This is a short article about refugees who have escaped from North Korea. It's not surprising, since the North Korean government is an Orwellian dystopia, depriving its citizens of basic rights and access to food, among other things. So in order to escape, these North Koreans don't go through the 38th parallel - they'd be caught and thrown into the 'gulags.' They go to China first before reaching South Korea. The Chinese government disapproves of this - and wants to send these refugees back, but South Korea doesn't want these refugees to return to North Korea because they will be thrown in prison.

No one knows how to deal with this situation, 'cause North Korea is basically planning a missile launch that says, "Hey guys, we can blow everyone up, just sayin'." Seoul doesn't want to anger or exacerbate the tensions they have with North Korea, but she (all countries are she) doesn't want these people to be hurt by the North Korean government. Looks like they're caught in a dilemma.   These refugees also reflect an oppressive society, and shows that not everyone thinks the Kim family is God's gift to man, so this means there is hope! The problem is finding a feasible solution that will be best for all Koreans - North and South, so that they can co-exist peacefully despite differing ideologies. There is also the problem with the nature of a dictatorship, and it's going to be difficult to topple it. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-17607839


All right, it's done! I hope you guys have a better idea of what to write here, and yes, you can be a bit informal about this. If you express what you know in your own words, you will benefit because you would have understood these conflicts better, and will also be able to explain what's going on to me.