You've Probably Heard: Darfur is a Mess, and Journalists are Getting Killed

Apathetic Lemming of the North is usually a fairly laid-back blog, with posts about geeky watches, ash-tray-shaped couches, and anything else that strikes the Lemming's fancy. Today is going to be different. The Lemming is joining with other bloggers in a "Bloggers Unite" campaign.

"Bloggers Unite is an initiative designed to harness the power of the blogosphere to make the world a better place. By challenging bloggers to blog about a particular social cause on a single day, a single voice can be joined with thousands of others to help make a real positive difference; from raising awareness for cancer, to an effort to better education systems or support 3rd world countries."

The Lemming couldn't decide which cause to focus on, so he picked two that have already been discussed on another blog. ("Another War-on-Terror Blog," another Brian H. Gill Company blog)

Typical. The Lemming is not only apathetic, he's lazy.

The two social causes are 'Darfur' and the regrettable tendency of journalists to become dead in some parts of the world. Both are, in the Lemming's mind, serious situations.

Finally, the Lemming doesn't have a solution for either social cause. But, he does believe that knowledge is power - and that these posts will help you make more informed decisions when voting, or deciding whether or not to donate to a charity, or whatever. Here are those posts:

Darfur

The 'Darfur' crisis extends beyond the western section of Sudan where people are dying. That's an immediate and serious issue. Many people in Sudan who don't belong to the 'in' group aren't being treated all that well.

• "Darfur: Overview of the Current Mess, and Some Background"
  Another War-on-Terror Blog (April 23, 2008)
• "British Teacher Home from Sudan: Gillian Gibbons, Muslim Clerics, and a Teddy Bear named Mohammed"
  Another War-on-Terror Blog (December 3, 2007)

Journalists

Journalists ask questions. That's their job. In some parts of the world, those in charge can tell an annoying journalist to drop dead - and make it stick. That's a problem for the journalist, and for everyone who relies on journalists for information about these alternatively-ethical regimes.

• "Committee to Protect Journalists Unveils the Impunity Index"
  Another War-on-Terror Blog (April 30, 2008)

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Links to other posts in "Bloggers Unite" are at "Bloggers Unite for Human Rights, May 15th 2008," BlogCatalog's official link thread started May 15, 2008. One of the unofficial threads is "Bloggers Unite - the Balloon Goes Up Tonight" - a BlogCatalog discussion thread started May 14.

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Update - May 16, 2008

Here's a way to keep track of what's happening in Darfur:

"Darfur: An Unforgivable Hell on Earth"

The right sidebar of this blog leads with a quote: "They said it could never happen again... But it is happening. Armed conflict in Darfur, Sudan has left over 200,000 dead, forced more than 2.5 million people from their homes and placed millions of people - in Darfur and the neighboring countries of Chad and Central African Republic - at risk of starvation, disease and further attacks. United Nations officials have called this the world's worst humanitarian disaster today. Won't you join us in saving lives?" Larry Cox, Amnesty International USA Executive Director

A link to this blog appears in a month-old discussion thread:

"Let's Not Just Go Back to Our Dinners"
BlogCatalog discussion thread (started April 10, 2008)