Apart from bringing back wonderful memories of his days in radio and TV broadcasting, Toni Sant's podcasts represent a serious breakthrough for the Maltese blogosphere. In his four podcast tests, Toni included excerpts of a podcast by fellow blogger MaltaGirl as well as music from the Ajjut! blog. One of the podcasts is dedicated to the memory of the founder of the Tramps who died this week. Toni has now announced the first podcasting series in Maltese which presents a Maltese perspective on the 9/11 tragedy. It is based on webcasts featured on MaltaMedia.com after the New York terror attacks four years ago and consists of 23 daily podcasts starting today. You can hear an introduction here.

During the last months, freedom of information was a subject I turned to from time to time on my sister blog. Last December I noted that Malta was one of only three European Union countries without a proper law that gives access to public information. In a letter on today's Times, the outgoing Ombudsman explains:

In my role as Parliamentary Ombudsman I always firmly held the view that after the setting up of the Office of the Ombudsman, the next step to enhance the democratic process and give substance to the concept of transparency in public administration would be to enact a modern freedom of information law. I made the point eight years ago when I mentioned the need for such a law in my annual report for 1997 (paragraph 8.8, page 47).

A few weeks ago, the authorities announced that they are 'evaluating the viability' of introducing such a law. It took eight years for the government to start thinking about the proposal made by the Ombudsman. God knows how many more years we have to wait before a Freedom of Information Act is ratified by Parliament.

Churches across Malta are distributing free food in square cardboard boxes with the logo of the European union, and adorned with the blue flag with gold stars. These boxes contain rice, cooking oil, spaghetti and flour and are being given to people who request them. This seems like a charitable acknowledgment by the European Union of the growing poor and needy within the Maltese community. However, what does this imply about the way the country is being run? A prominent supporter of the Prime Minister who is also a government appointed chairperson, recently wrote:

The country right now is like a china shop...We are not in some terrible recession but things are tight. Every bit of the country or the economy is in a delicate position. Tourism looks fragile. Exports are struggling. “Flus fil-but” (money in the pocket) is in short supply for some...

The boxes are specially printed in Maltese, so it cannot be a mere surplus issue. These were specifically prepared and issued for Malta and the Maltese people. Is this an open admission that this government is unable to cope and unable to provide for its own people? We cannot be ungrateful for the generosity of our fellow Europeans, but on the other hand such a humbling situation does not correspond to the "blue sky" forecasts and promises which won the Nationalists the last election.

While doing some research at the National Library in central Valletta last Saturday morning, I enquired about how to make a few photocopies. I was told by the library staff that there were no automated machines. I had to first fill a form, pay at the cash office and then wait for delivery hopefully on the same day. Unfortunately, the cash office is open only between Monday and Friday so I was asked to return on another day. I went back this morning only to be informed that the photocopy machine was out of order. I had to return tomorrow, they suggested, but there was no guarantee that the machine would be fixed by then. I was not prepared to accept this particularly since I had just paid LM 1.30 (3 euros) for 7 ordinary photocopies.

I argued politely that there were several other office photocopy machines in the building including one in the cash office which seemed to be in perfect order. They responded by saying that only one photocopier was designated for library users. I used my diplomatic skills as best I could to insist that the copies could easily be made at the cash office. They finally agreed to try that route but first they had to seek the director's approval and at that moment he was out of his office. So I waited patiently. My copies were delivered half an hour later only because, I was told, the library director happened to be in a good mood.

The Management Efficiency Unit was set up by government to improve delivery of customer services at public offices. The website lists the Libraries department as one of their clients but the relevant hyperlink is dead. I wonder why!

Super1's news bullettin yesterday evening was followed by the usually reliable sports feature. The programme informed viewers about the latest score of the ongoing Msida - Valletta football match. They also showed the result of the previous match between Sliema and Mosta. According to Super1 it finished 3-0 with goals by Doncic, Giglio and Woods securing victory for the champions. On checking the maltafootball site, I discovered that the actual result was 6-0.

Net TV went one better. On the sports section of their 11pm news bullettin there was no mention of both games. They simply reported the matches played on the previous day, a whole 30 hours earlier. Still, it is hard to beat PBS in the annoyance stakes. On the Telefokus section of the printed edition of today's L-Orizzont, Charles Flores reports that the most popular sports programmes are being axed by the national broadcasting channel as part of PBS's latest round of cutbacks.

The money saved on sports might convenieniently go to finance the recruitment of a Nationalist Party journalist for the position of head of news at the 'impartial' PBS. That's the spirit!

The evacuation of the last Israeli settlers from Gaza is certainly a defining moment in the life of Israel. The international media is currently focusing on images of passionate exchanges between Israeli soldiers and hardline settlers and protestors who continue to defy the security forces. The settlers have acted with impunity for a long time so it is not surprising to see so many looks of disbelief among them especially those who have now chosen the largest Gaza synagogue as their final focal point of resistance.

The international community has for a long time been unanimous about the fact that these territories should never have been occupied in the first place. Prime minister Sharon promoted the settlements for many years and, with his about face, the game has suddenly changed. Why did Sharon change his mind so dramatically? Are there other external forces in action which are not visible? On the positive side, this evacuation will hopefully sow the seeds of trust between Arab nations and the state of Israel and help push the Middle East peace process forward.

An intervention by a government minister to force the Times to withdraw publication of a feature about the film industry, has raised alarm bells amongst those who value the concept of media freedom. The Times prudently decided to accomodate the minister despite the fact that the interview with Malta's film commissioner had already been conducted. Minister Austin Gatt added fuel to the fire with an article titled "Managing comminications', in which he strongly rebuked the newspaper's editor and the film commissioner while justifying how the government "manages information" and "exercises control" on the media. The bottomline of his argument is that no person holding any public position can speak to the press unless they are first granted permission by the ministry. In my view, such thinking goes contrary to an open and democratic society and should be vehemently opposed.

The Son's Room, the film that won the Palme D'Or at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival, is a compelling story of a once tight-knit family who have to come to terms with the devastating loss of a child. Nanni Moretti plays Giovanni, a psychiatrist who finds it difficult to sustain interest in his profession after the family tragedy. I watched the Italian film yesterday at Tal-Qroqq as part of the Evenings on Campus arts programme. It was not too difficult for me to feel the film's emotional impact having gone through similar emotions last year. During the European Parliament election campaign last year my attention was often more focused on the sudden death of my sister's daughter Miriam towards the beginning of the campaign.

The feelings the film expresses hold an undeniable sense of truth about grief and dealing with loss. Although melancholic in tone, it is still uplifting and ends on a hopeful note. I will probably not see it three times like Matthew Vella and his brother Mark but a film like this could stop you from worrying about other things in life that are often inconsequential.

Much has been made of the GWU's campaign to saveguard the jobs of 13 employees at Interprint, a government owned company which is being closed down. The Union is planning sympathy actions to force the authorities to find alternative employment for the workers who end their notice period in September. Commenting on the stand taken by the GWU, a Times editorial stated:

Just at a time when the administration is making such a serious effort to streamline the service..in comes the GWU pressing the government to do just the opposite...The union is fossilised in the past, moulded in an outmoded thinking and attitude... the union has become anachronistic...

To the contrary, the news that the Public Transport Association is threatening to dismiss 40 employees has hardly raised any eyebrows. I have not seen anything written in reaction to this heavy handed measure suggested by the PTA over their financial dispute with the government. It is true that restructuring is necessary and can be painful, but does'nt this say something about the priorities and contradictions of modern society?

It is ironic that as I start my new blog, another blogger whose posts I have admired and loyally read for a long time, has decided to call it a day. Josh Chafetz, who received his politics doctorate from Oxford, has decided to sign off the blogosphere due to his pressing academic commitments at Yale. He writes his final post with a heavy heart:

It's not without some regret that I give up blogging. It's been a part of my life for three and a half years, and through it I've formed rewarding relationships with some of our readers and some other bloggers. I've also, of course, greatly enjoyed working with David and Patrick, as well as other gone-but-not-forgotten OxBloggers (Dan, Anand, and Arielle)...

Oxblog will remain active with the writings of David Adesnik and Patrick Belton, both graduate students of international relations at Oxford.

I have been blogging on a daily basis since the late part of last year and it turned out to be an immensely rewarding activity. Having spent a good part of this year lecturing in economics at a Czech university and working as an editor for Eurobarometer, my blog has been a way of keeping in touch with developments in Malta. When I started the Wired Temples Blog, I had no idea where it would take me but it developed as a kind of platform for Malta references on the blogosphere, in cyberspace and the online international media.

I also used my blog to promote other Maltese blogs and contribute to the development of a 'Maltese blogging space' as well as to express my own opinions about a number of issues and events. I have been encouraged by the blog's Maltese and international readership which has continued to grow particularly following my integration with the MaltaMedia Online Network. Wired Temples will remain as it is, a daily blog concentrating on Malta's existence on the web with additional features such as the Weekly Press Digest, the monthly Top Ten Maltese blog posts and other new upcoming items . My more personal comments, thoughts and opinions about local and international events will be channelled via this new blog.

Blogs represent a new wave of internet innovation and they have lowered the barriers for entry into the media world. They are an open channel ideal for extending democratic debate in an open society. This blog will not have any restrictions in terms of subject matter but the focus will be on politics, media, culture, technology and international affairs. I hope that it will help foster debate, serve as an exchange of links, thoughts, and information and also encourage more people to set up their own blogs.

Blogs grew by taking on the mainstream media but blogging itself has become a mainstream activity in the United States with Europe and Asia quickly catching up. In the American and British elections and in the French referendum on the European constitution, blogging had a major impact on the public vote. Blogging in Malta is still embryonic but the seeds of growth are already in evidence. When Toni Sant predicted that blogging in Malta would take off this year, he was on to something.