Tunisian web users are poking fun at fallen president Ben Ali

Web users mock Ben Ali 

Slap Ben Ali, kick him or even strangle him during his last televised speech. This application is available on Facebook and has been warmly welcomed by thousands of web users wanting to let off steam on their former president. The game would have been unthinkable just a few weeks ago.

And in this video also available on the social network which was highly involved in the protests, a person by the name of Yassine does an impression of Ben Ali. The web user says he has waited for years to be able to do so.

This satirical cartoon depicts the fallen president as he fled the country. We see him in an airplane, calling different heads of state, asking for asylum. The video was produced by Kharabeesh, a group of Arab artists recently set up in Tunisia. The animation reflects the feeling of freedom that is sweeping through the local web ever since online censorship was lifted.

Satire is indeed back with a vengeance on the blogosphere. And is not only targeting Ben Ali, but also his party, the RCD, which dissolved its central committee on Thursday. The cartoonist ‘Z’ demonstrates this desire to turn the page on Ben Ali-ism in this drawing: an invalid covered in plasters commanding the doctors, dressed in purple, the colour of the former regime, to leave.

The slogan « RCD get out! » had indeed been widely used in the streets of Tunisia, and also on social networks, in recent days. This group which opposes the presence of several RCD politicians in the new government has over 10 000 members.

Sarah Palin president in 2012? 

Sarah Palin, former governor of Alaska, US President in 2012? The American Presidential election is still far off and yet the idea is gaining ground on the American web. An increasing number of the former US vice presidency candidate’s supporters are going online to say they hope she takes over from Barack Obama next year.

Numerous music videos, like these ones have appeared on sharing sites in recent weeks: they were made by supporters of Sarah Palin and sing her praises. We see Americans claiming that once she is President, Palin will rid America of criminals in Washington and it will mark the dawn of a new era for the capital.

But before she can be elected president, Palin, who is still lagging behind in polls must first of all be chosen as the Republican Party’s official candidate. This site is encouraging members of the conservative party to support the leading figure of the Tea Party Movement and convince them she is the strongest candidate for the presidential race.

Campaigning for Sarah Palin is also growing on social networks as illustrated by the dozens of Facebook groups set up to support her candidacy and her 2012 victory.

In view of this growing movement, critics of the ex-governor of Alaska have also decided to take a stand. The site impalin is campaigning to prevent Palin from becoming President and denounces her inexperience and her lack of knowledge in particular.

And finally, several Facebook groups have been set up, imploring American voters to not vote for Palin in 2012. The groups promise to move to Canada or join Al Qaida, if she wins.

Planet hunters 

Astronomers need a helping hand in finding another potentially habitable planet like earth. The site Planet hunters.org is inviting web users to take part in the analysis of data collected by the Kepler satellite. As Professor Debra Fischer explains in this video, space enthusiasts’ main mission will be to detect the dimming of a star’s light caused by a planet moving in front of it. The site was created as part of the Zooniverse project which had already got web users involved in classifying galaxies according to their shapes. 

Alcowebizer 

The site Alcowebizer shows you what the Internet looks like when you have had too much to drink. The test is very simple: all you have to do is enter in the website address of your choice, and then choose the level of alcohol consumed. The more alcohol in the blood, the stranger the site’s images and articles become.

Video of the day 

Trace the history of video games from the beginnings to present day in just several minutes: this is what Floriant Smolka, a German student in video game design has set out to do in this video. He presents a visual evolution of these games and enthusiasts will recognize their favourite heroes, from Pac Man to Sonic the hedgehog, and also Super Mario. This video clip takes all video games fans on a veritable trip though time.