Top 10 Deadliest Countries for Journalists

A free and fair press has always been a target for tyrants and criminals. As a result, reporters, photographers, and bloggers can find themselves in harm’s way while informing us of world and local events. Sadly, this situation has not improved much with time: as of this writing, 960 journalists have been murdered in the last 10 years.

The following are the “10 Deadliest Countries for Journalists”, as ranked by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). To humanize the grim statistics, each entry includes a passage describing a late journalist, randomly selected from victim rolls that are entirely too long.

NOTE: CPJ confirms a case only if it’s reasonably sure a journalist was murdered “in direct reprisal for his or her work, killed in combat/crossfire, or killed while carrying out a dangerous assignment.” Should you wish to contribute to its efforts, you may donate to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

10. Mexico 

Total Murders since 1992: 28

Since 1992, 89% of Mexico’s killed journalists were murdered, mostly by drug cartels and criminal gangs operating with near-total impunity. As could be expected from the failing drug war in Mexico, the victims’ beats typically focused on crime, with some overlap for covering government corruption.

One such victim was Luis Emanuel Ruiz Carrillo, a 21 year old photographer working for La Prensa. He was kidnapped along with his cousin (Juan Gomez Melendez) and a popular TV show host (Jose Luis Cerds Melendez). All three were later found dead with gunshot wounds to the head, next to fresh graffiti warning “Stop cooperating with the Zetas”. The Zetas are a major drug cartel, and operate with such freedom in Mexico that an armed Zeta walked into the police’s active crime scene and moved the bodies to a different location.

Ruiz was still in college, and winner of a journalism award the previous year. He had been on the job eight months. 09 more countries after the break...

10 Countries That Disappeared In The 20th Century

New nations seem to pop up with alarming regularity. At the start of the 20th century, there were only a few dozen independent sovereign states on the planet; today, there are nearly 200! Once a nation is established, they tend to stick around for awhile, so a nation disappearing is quite uncommon. It’s only occurred a handful of times in the last century. But when they do, they completely vanish off the face of the globe: government, flag, and all. Here then, in no particular order, are the top ten countries that had their moment in the sun but are, alas, no more.

10. East Germany, 1949-1990

Created from the Soviet controlled sector of Germany after the Second World War, East Germany was probably best known for its Wall and its tendency to shoot people who attempted to cross over it. Now, it’s one (over-reactionary) thing to shoot foreigners who are trying to enter your country illegally, but these were its own people!

Basically little more than a Soviet satellite state, the collapse of the notorious Wall and, with it, the demise of the old Soviet Union brought an end to this failed experiment in Communism, and it was integrated back into the rest of Germany in 1990. Because East Germany was so far behind the rest of Germany economically, however, its reintegration with the west almost bankrupted Germany. Today, however, things are swimming along nicely, thank you. 09 more countries after the break...

Skogafos - The most famous waterfall in Iceland

Photo — Link

Skógafoss is a waterfall situated in the south of Iceland at the cliffs of the former coastline. After the coastline had receded seaward (it is now at a distance of about 5 kilometres (3.1 miles) from Skógar), the former sea cliffs remained, parallel to the coast over hundreds of kilometres, creating together with some mountains a clear border between the coastal lowlands and the Highlands of Iceland. 10 more images after the break...

Kazakhstan — Photographer Gregory Bedenko

 Lake "Middle Kulsay." Included in the system of three very beautiful ponds, cascaded. At this point in the national park.

South-East Kazakhstan — Photographer Gregory Bedenko, Kazakhstan - the land of mostly prairie. However, the south-east by the mountains of Tien Shan, known for its stunning beauty of landscapes. 23 more images after the break...

Khan Shatyr — The World’s Tallest Tent in Kazakhstan

 Photo — Link

Khan Shatyr Entertainment Center in Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan, is an architectural project that is billed as the world’s largest tent. The “tent” is made of a transparent material and suspended on a network of cables strung from a central spire 150 meters high. The structure has a 200 meter elliptical base enclosing an area of 140,000 square metres. Underneath the tent, an area larger than 10 football stadiums, is an urban-scale internal park, shopping and entertainment venue with squares and cobbled streets, a boating river, shopping centre, mini golf and indoor beach resort. The transparent material allows sunlight through which, in conjunction with air heating and cooling systems, maintains a comfortable internal temperature between 15–30 °C while outside the temperature varies between -35 and 35 °C across the year.

To prevent condensation in the winter, three translucent layers of ethylene tetrafluoroethylene fabric or EFTE act to channel warm air. In summer, fritting on the outermost foil layer provides solar shading. Inside, low-level jets direct cool air across the space, while opening vents at the apex induce stack-effect ventilation. The transparency and scale of the tent stands out in the skyline like a beacon, changing colors at night and streaming in natural light during the day. 14 more images after the break...

Kuwait’s Golden Jubilee Fireworks Enters Guinness World Records

 November 10, 2012 marked the golden jubilee of Kuwait’s constitution and the country celebrated it with a spectacular $15-million fireworks display which earned the wealthy Gulf state a place in the Guinness Book of World Records.  Tens of thousands of Kuwaitis and expatriates filled the seaside Arabian Gulf Road to watch the dazzling display of colors and light that saw a staggering 77,282 fireworks launched over a period of one hour. The visual presentation marked 50 years to the day since the late emir Sheikh Abdullah al-Salem al-Sabah announced that Kuwait had become the first Arab state in the Gulf to issue a constitution and have a parliament. 08 more images after the break...

The World's 15 Richest Muslim Countries

01. Qatar

GDP (PPP) per capita: $ 88,919 (2011)

(Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)

14 more counties after the break...

Setenil de Las Bodegas – The City Built Under the Rocks

 Photo — Link

Setenil de las Bodegas is a town (pueblo) in the province of Cádiz, Spain, famous for its dwellings built into rock overhangs above the Rio Trejo. According to the 2005 census, the city has a population of 3,016 inhabitants. It has an exact antipodal city: Auckland, New Zealand. 08 more images after the break...

The Double-Decker Trams of Hong Kong

Double-decker trams were once popular in the United Kingdom and some European cities, like Berlin. Throughout the British Empire countries in the early half of the 20th century including Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington in New Zealand, Hobart and Tasmania in Australia and in parts of Asia, double-decker trams were in use. They are still in service in Hong Kong, Alexandria, and Blackpool, but Hong Kong Tramways is the only tram company in the world that operates double-deck trams exclusively. 06 more images after the break...

Europe Map Look Like

Europe Map Look  Like, Very "nice" comparison. 23 more images after the break...

TOKYO: A beautiful City

 

                                                    20 more images after the break... 

Feuture of Dubai

Feuture of Dubai by Richard Allenby-Pratt — Dubai - a city located in the desert. A city with rising skyscrapers, green golf courses, and who would have thought, even with a ski resort. Here too is clearly visible real struggle of mankind with nature. Large-scale recession and rising debt frighten its future. Not so hard to imagine how this huge metropolis under the scorching rays of the sun will turn into an abandoned metropolis, surrounded by sand, followed by the financial crisis will eliminate the wealthy donors to deprive two million foreign workers a piece of bread.British photographer and artist Richard Allenby-Pratt has created this terrible post-apocalyptic scenario that is implemented in the nightmarish representations. 13 more images after the break...

Reethi Rah Hotel, Maldives Islands

                                                       More images after the break...

Russian stadiums for the World Cup in 2018

1. Dynamo Moscow

Russian stadiums for the World Cup in 2018, More images after the break...

10 Places You Don’t Want To Live

The world is a giant jigsaw puzzle, spotted with both exquisitely beautiful and potentially dangerous places. While you may dream of spending a lifetime in some of the true paradises-on-earth, you should be equally wary of stepping up in some real hell spots for your own safety. But not everyone is fortunate enough to get a cozy and safe home and there are places on earth where people are actually living on the edge of peril.

Here are top 10 such nightmarish places on earth where you would never want to live:

Dharavi in Mumbai, India

The slums of Mumbai

Roughly half the residents of Bombay live in crowded slums such as these.

Photo from bwillen

Sprawling over 175 hectares between Mahim and Sion, Dharavi has emerged as the largest slum of Asiainhabiting a population exceeding 600,000. Dharavi has its rival in Orangi Town in Karachi, Pakistan that has a notorious filth and expanse. Dharavi presents a brighter picture as a cheap pocket in the midst of expensive Mumbai where you could stay for as low as 4 US dollars rent per month. 09 more after the break...

10 Amazing Things You Didn't Know About China

01. China executes three times as many people as the rest of the world

China carries out almost three times as many executions as the rest of the world put together, according to the most conservative estimate by Amnesty International. In 2008, the group confirmed 1,718 executions through news reports and public documents, but many others are not reported. Some analysts say the figure may be above 6,000. The exact number is a state secret. Many executions are done on the road using vehicles called the death vans designed by Jinguan Motors. The makers of these vans say the vehicles and injections are a civilized alternative to the firing squad, ending the life of the condemned more quickly, clinically and safely. According to them, the switch from gunshots to injections is a sign thatChina "promotes" human rights now.  More ....after the break...

What is forbidden in Iran

Gmail

Pork and dogs, I can understand, because Islam does not favor them.
But why Batman? Consider the compilation of the things that are forbidden in Iran. More after the break...

Top 10 Super Power Countries of the World

01. The United States of America

United States of America is the number one super power in the world. It is the most influential country that contains the world’s strongest army and a powerful democracy, as well. United States reached to the highest powerful position after a long struggle and hard work. It is more commonly known as the Super power and it contains a highly influential media. This country is a prestigious and influential member of a number of influential bodies.

Following list has been created after conducting a number of surveys; here are the most powerful countries of the world, 09 more Countries after the break...

10 Countries with the Largest Armed Forces

10. Vietnam

Even with diplomacy being the backbone the international scenario nowadays, countries find the need to spend a sizeable percentage of their annual budget on the military, and for good reason. It’s called preparing for the worst. A look back at history reveals that disputes have seldom been settled on paper. With tensions peaking and ebbing unpredictably on several fronts and terrorist factions emerging within countries all over the world, the military is always in need of more able individuals. And though numbers may not win a war, they certainly matter. Following is a list of the ten countries that currently have the largest military forces in the world. [Stats viaWikipedia] 09 more after the break...

The Most Unusual Buildings Around The World

1. The public library in Kansas City, USA

All the buildings reflect the desire of their creators. The builders have stepped away from the ordinary standard of architecture, we can say that these prominent structures are among the unique treasures of the world, which transmit the bizarre sense of uniqueness, which shows contemporary exotic forms of external and internal design and permissible visionary architect. 41 more images after the break...