Before things get too far behind, here some commented pictures from my first „back to Kenya“ trip — most of these have also been on facebook, but of course without the little stories in between…

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• Policies can make politics: US stops deporting non-criminal illegal immigrants http://j.mp/nQXL1K at least the federal government… #

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• #travelinsight 72: I hate taxi drivers who scare you of their own city and countrymen for business. And love the „dangerous local quarters“. #
• #travelinsight 71: When traveling, you sometimes need a lot of luck! Miraculously always had it so far, quite a lot in one day recently. #
• #travelinsight 70: My #1 important technical advance ever: washing machine. No, don’t tell me you need the wheel for that! #
• #travelinsight 69: One time a teacher, always a teacher? Seems so. Explaining physics to the children in my Kisumu guest family #
• Uups. The mountain messed up my calendar — the peak was August 1 of course, otherwise how would I have internet now? #
• The power of compromise applied to science http://j.mp/mR6XQ1 you don’t think evolution and creation work together? They do #
• August 2, 2011, 6:15am http://twitpic.com/5zw5aw Uhuru Peak. Didn’t think it was going to be that hard… More pictures on my blog soon. #

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In a way, this was the beginning of traveling again: still based in Kagondo, exploring the immediate surroundings. I was invited by a very lovely young priest to visit him in his parish — the big island „Bumbire“ and some 80 small surrounding islands in Lake Victoria.

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After some two weeks of traveling again, it is time to finally put here the last last pictures from Kagondo. At least until the next visit, which might be in September, and hopefully soon again after this year!

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• Addicted to Urban Dictionary http://j.mp/qpZB26 All the reasons I love English in one place. And contemporary culture, of course. #
• Norway should open our eyes to how irrational „Muslim Terrorist“ profiling is http://j.mp/pIAzBH 2010 saw 3 muslim & 160 separatist attacks #

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• Verbraucherschutz-Portal startet mit überlasteten Servern http://j.mp/njWlRY ist doch ein guter Start?! #
• Wow I love the iPhoto facebook uploader! Life can be so easy. And here are some pics from Kisumu, lions and all http://j.mp/oLgLWA #
• Wirtschaftliche Sanktionen gegen Menschenrechtsverletzungen: Europa liefert nicht mehr für Hinrichtungen in USA http://j.mp/qgyfnW #

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• California „propositions“ (referendums) have become an industry, providing laws for big money http://j.mp/qDXXSd #democracyiscomplicated #
• I usually doubt articles like this, but interesting that supposedly least nutritious veggies are also most tasteless ones http://j.mp/oDOs2y #
• Victory for Pastafarians (& atheists): Austrian driver’s license picture wearing spaghetti strainer for religious reasons http://j.mp/p2gLnc #
• #Krugman Economic policy can achieve short-term growth, while we know little about long-term factors http://j.mp/nwFcSQ http://j.mp/pLz51U #
• #Krugman Money is the most difficult to explain economic topic because it inherently deals with market imperfections http://j.mp/r8EBfF #
• Dîner en Blanc in Paris: An aristocrat flash-mob (since 1988) http://j.mp/pE4l7g And New York tries to copy. We will see… #
• #Krugman debunks helplessness-talk concerning the economy http://j.mp/rauRM7 Which begs the question: Why is nothing done?! #
• Assange’s acts might be legal rape or not, they certainly are rape by any reasonable moral judgement http://j.mp/rtMXjm Bah. #sadbuttrue #
• Development from low to middle income through occupation change, further to high income through qualification change http://j.mp/qwZiDp #
• Median household income gain in US since 1975 (!) explained entirely by working longer http://j.mp/pMWrlf Yay rising standards of living! #
• US Inequality Quiz http://j.mp/on0heh Why is shrinking welfare popular, social mobility, taxes and growth, per capita income per work-hour #
• Informelle Große Koalition zur Steuerpolitik http://j.mp/nIyRsz Die FDP fängt an mir richtig leid zu tun. #
• Democracy succeeds or fails over „small“ technical details http://j.mp/omIzXo What Arab Spring countries should learn from US mistakes. Wow! #
• #Krugman on (contemporary) Great Recession http://j.mp/qqRDwe Unemployment is not a structural problem, it’s a lack of political will #
• The stunning culture of our own past: silent reading was a revolution for our oral ancestors, and writing had no spaces http://j.mp/rouNLF #
• #travelinsight 68: In 80 hours around Lake Victoria. Phew. Involves three border crossings. I’ll have to rant about the Ugandan ones later. #
• Tagebücher eines „kleinen“ Justizbeamten 1939 bis 1945 zeigen deutlich, was man wissen konnte http://j.mp/oBj9w2 Traurige Wahrheit. #ZEIT #
• „Rape Mythology“ creates a strong incentive for legitimate victims to lie about circumstances http://j.mp/qdgqPN #DSK #lifeiscomplicated #
• #ZEIT Fahrrad-Verkehrsregeln-Quiz http://j.mp/pXY3eL Geschwindigkeits– & Promillegrenzen, Musikhören & Einkaufstaschen, und #CriticalMass #

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• Sexism among atheists — what’s wrong with asking somebody if they want to have sex in an enlightened age? http://j.mp/kppPr0 #privilege #
• Economist reviews „Too Big to Fail“ (and „Inside Job“) http://j.mp/ioVhzc where do mistakes „cross over into villainy“? #
• Heribert #Prantl hält Laudatio zum Negativ-Preis Verschlossene Auster an Atomindustrie http://j.mp/lWlj0T „Kommuniziert wie der Teufel“ #
• #travelinsight 67: Trying not generalize African culture myself, I hear „we Africans“ all the time. A healthy, inclusive identity, I hope. #
• #travelinsight 66: I’m not the only one living out of a suitcase (that is, backpack) here: Most man my age do. Furniture is rare. #
• The church of fiscal conservatism #cartoon http://j.mp/l4ThiB #
• CDU/CSU/FDP nach Wulffs Lob für die Grünen http://j.mp/lpVOId Wir haben auch Basisdemokratie. http://j.mp/kL2FYH Lächerlich. #
• The #SlutWalk movement and Feminism — fighting the „division of women into good girls and bad ones“ http://j.mp/kv1gI5 #
• Die erfolgreiche schlechte Regierung: hört auf Stimmung der Bürger aber ist ideenlos, verbraucht deshalb „Diskursmasse“ http://j.mp/kUiYlT #
• Only perfect women are raped? Arguments for not dropping the #DSK case in the face of other lies from the alleged victim http://j.mp/iRjCeY #

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What could have been a tweet is becoming a small post instead, because I found a discussion in the comment section so enlightening that I want to quote it here, along with some of the original content. The starting point is a story of sexual harassment at a (as far I understand) atheist or sceptic conference. Now, as some people said, the harassment was not „serious“: She was in the elevator back to her room after a party early in the morning, and a guy who got into the elevator with her asked her to have coffee in his room or something. She declined, end of story.

The case becomes interesting and even illustrative because it pits two camps against each other that I both subscribe to: open communication (and sexuality) advocates and feminists. And because the fascinating issue of „privilege“ (in this case the classic „male privilege“) comes in, which I’m starting to find a useful figure of thought in a number of social issues. To give my conclusion away: I’m siding with the feminist critique. And here’s why:

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