Why doesn't Blogger update us when there are new comments?

This is quite annoying to me. Some of the blog postings are very provocative, and some interesting comments are attached to them, but blogger won't send us updates to let us know that: (a) someone has commented on your blog, or (b) someone commented on your comment.

I think some of the interesting discussion is written in the comments, and I've contributed to them with my own thoughts. But how can people respond if they don't know anyone commented on their post? If you want to read comments, you have to go back and search in blog postings you've already read, and no one is doing this it seems. What a shame.

The Vienna Declaration

In 2009, member of the media gathered in Vienna along with NGOs to create a declaration on press freedom. They eventually declared that state secrets in the 21st century only hurt those trying to stop terror groups. Complete open access to government information helps promote a free society which hurts the goals of non state actors who seek other solutions.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/magda-abufadil/vienna-declaration-press_b_376579.html

Spanish Riding School News

It appears tough times have caught up to the famous Austrian institution "The Spanish Riding School".

http://www.austriantimes.at/news/Business/2010-06-22/24400/Spanish_Riding_School_%27gallops_towards_bankruptcy%27

Things That I Really Enjoyed During Our Visit-My Short List

1. Visiting the different cafes of Vienna and realizing there is something important in slowing life down.
2. "Mayerling" normally not something that I would look forward to but I thoroughly enjoyed both the orchestra and the ballet. It gave a sense of clarity to the story of the Habsburgs.
3. Old Town Prague and its activity and vibrancy.
4. The beauty of Vienna and how well it works its green areas into its city planning. Parks range from Prater with its family atmosphere and numerous activities to the Vienna Woods with its vineyards and its panoramic vistas to the Volksgarten where people could relax, read a book or just retreat from city life for a while.
5. How efficient local transportation was ranging from trolleys to subways to buses.
6. The vast array of historic buildings and different styles of architecture. I enjoyed walking the Ringstrasse at night and being surprised how active it was even at midnight.
7. Seeing the many different perspectives of our group and witnessing that each of us have our own passions and motivations.
8. Talking to some of the residents of Vienna and hearing the pride in their voice about Viennese culture.
9. Being amazed by The Czech Republic and their recovery from a system that stifled a very creative culture. They have historically been caught in the middle of other peoples conflicts and still managed to have their own unique way of life.
10. Returning to the US and realizing I was very lucky to have such an opportunity that many others will never know.

Day Five: Friday, 11 June 2010

The visit to the Prague office of the IOM today was my favorite during this week. Lucie Sladkova gave a wealth of information about the IOM in general, her administration, and the current projects her office is working on in Czech Republic. I was very inspired by her talk, and I have a newfound interest in the IOM because of it.

Before our visit, I had the idea from previous research that IOM was not directly involved in efforts against human trafficking, but worked through other NGOs instead to combat trafficking. I learned that this office does support human trafficking research, however. Upon further research after our visit, I found an immense amount of information through the website of the Ministry of the Interior, where reports on human trafficking dating back almost 10 years can be accessed in English. The IOM facilitated many of these reports. I plan to use them to inform my research for this class.

If anyone is interested, here are the web addresses to the IOM, Prague, website and the Czech Republic Ministry of the Interior website:

http://www.iom.cz/

http://www.mvcr.cz/mvcren/

Day Four: Thursday, 10 June 2010

Upon arrival to Prague today, I was struck by the immediate difference in things like infrastructure and cleanliness in contrast to Vienna. It really hit home that this city so recently came out of the Velvet Revolution, yet at the same time I realized how far they’ve come in only 20 years.

Our Lonely Planet guidebook says that the city developed rapidly once it was free, but there are still plenty of rough edges to this place. And I like them. Vienna to me now seems almost too clean, too orderly. I like the street art on the buildings here, and the grittiness of the streets. In a way, it almost makes the better-kept tourist areas of the city seem inauthentic, but I must admit that I’d rather see a clean Prague Castle than a graffiti covered one.

The oldest parts of the city we visited today, around the Prague Castle grounds, were like an outdoor museum. Here are some pics… (and one of the street art at the bus station).

Day Three: Wednesday, 9 June 2010

Today was my favorite day on our itinerary so far. I very much enjoyed the discussion on human trafficking we had at Webster Vienna. Even though Marion Mansberger could not be there to give her presentation, I was happy to give a short one to our class. Hopefully, it was informative to everyone.

I also feel fortunate to have briefly met Dr. Weeks, who gave a talk about human trafficking and the University’s symposium on the topic with the UN. I plan to contact him regarding his work in the area of human trafficking research, and for any resources he knows of that can inform my own research for this class. Also, I am a bit envious of the access the students at the Vienna campus have to the UN. It would be very exciting to be a student at Webster Vienna, and organize talks at the UN headquarters. Just the same, I feel privileged to be part of our class because of the access I’ve gained to the people and places we’ve visited during this course.

To see the UN.GIFT write-up of the symposium, please go to:

http://www.ungift.org/ungift/en/stories/university-students-learn-about-human-trafficking-at-united-nations-in-vienna.html