Ben E. Hama's definitions

turkmenistan

an asian nation that everyone seemed to trample on throughout history: alexander the great, genghas kahn, the turks, the soviets. the nation finally became independent after soviet collapse, but things got no better. instead, a former communist big shot, a mr. nayazov, took power and created a crazy cult of personality. he recently died, so things are pretty unstable.

in turkmenistan, nayazov's cult of personality forced his picture to be on everything from cereal boxes to watches.

by Ben E. Hama February 4, 2007

saint vincent and the grenadines

it's another caribbean tourist trap! these islands are longtime british posessions that used to be agricultural powerhouses. now they earn their money through vacationers. the islands have a history of natural disasters including volcanoes, earthquakes, and hurricanes.

saint vincent and the grenadines are in the caribbean.

by Ben E. Hama February 2, 2007

palau

palau is a tiny island nation in the pacific, with a population of only about 20,000 people. it was colonized by various powers between the 1600s and late 20th century, including the Spanish, Germans, British, Japanese, and Americans. however, no foreign power really did anything to help or harm the region. a huge WWII battle occured here, and following the end of the war, the US was put in charge of the region. palau refused to join the country of micronesia when it was formed in the 1970s. after political chaos, it finally became independent in 1994.

palau has many coral reefs.

by Ben E. Hama February 7, 2007

oman

a middle eastern nation, it's been a kingdom for a long time. it was once a british mandate for a few decades, but this never worked well. the sultan has had absolute power in the country for centuries. oman was able to become extremely wealthy with its nationalized oil company. although it's not something that people generally think of in the middle east, this nation has a pretty high standard of living and doesn't have crazy strict relgious laws.

oh man, what's the name of the country? yeah, oman, that's it!

by Ben E. Hama February 6, 2007

tajikistan

a country NOT in the middle east, despite being heavily islamic. this asian nation was one of the soviet republics that became independent in 1990. after it became sovergn, it plunged into civil war. the nation has rich natural resources and is a leading cotton and aluminum producer. unfortunately, it is currently a faux democracy, ruled by a former soviet official.

tajikistan is not a middle eastern country.

by Ben E. Hama February 4, 2007

saint kitts and nevis

one of the carribbean's many tourist countries. a former british colony, it was the last nation in the region to actually attempt to keep its sugar industry. eventually, it succumbed to pressure and is now just a tourist destination for americans, canadians, and euros.

alexander hamilton was born in saint kitts and nevis

by Ben E. Hama February 2, 2007

cape verde

a bunch of islands off the atlantic coast of africa. unpopulated area until the portuguese brought african slaves here to work on sugar plantations. although it's been a sovereign country since 1975, it is still dependent on portugal to survive economically. politically, however, the county is the most stable and prob. the freest in africa.

cape verde exists off africa's coast.

by Ben E. Hama February 4, 2007