Monday writeup of the weekend news

In case you've missed it, there were several rather good pieces in the opinion section of the Los Angeles Times:

MODERN SLAVERY
Slavery's Staying Power - E. Benjamin Skinner

HOMELESSNESS AND MEDICINE
Street Medicine's Hard Choices - Susan Partovi

COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS AND JOURNALISM
Read It And Weep - Dennis McDougal

TIBET AND CHINA (Olympics)
Volcano In the Himalayas - Joshua Kurlantzick
Gold Medals, Iron Fists - Dave Zirin
Chinese Police Fire on Monks (today's Times Online)
A Beijing Boycott Won't Work (Times Online)
Free Countries Must Defy Chinese Blackmail (Guardian Online)
Younger Generation Rejects Non-Violent Tradition (Guardian Online)

I added the last four links to supplement both sides of the argument on whether to boycott the Beijing Olympics. I have a friend who is extremely proud of her Chinese heritage and is willing to overlook heinous crimes in the name of money and stability (her own words) - she already has tickets for the major sporting events in Beijing. On the other hand, my ex-supervisor will be strongly boycotting the event with members of his family and the Taiwanese community, marching against the Chinese government. It's a personal choice but one I hope people will make with facts, and not emotion.