living on the crossroads

Critical appraisement and CRITICAL appraisement

2012-02-01T11:05:00.000+02:00

Most of have probably admonished by someone or the other (usually mom) for being unnecessarily critical of someone we may know (or even met in passing).

Yes, even when we are convinced that they deserve it for some slight that we have had to suffer... NO... especially for some slight that we have had to suffer.

“Don't say anything, if you have nothing good to say!” Or something along those lines was the preferred mantra that we were asked to follow.

In most circumstances that is good advice. It's better for the Zen of all concerned; after all not everyone deserves our critical appraisement or an opportunity to bask in our holier-than-thou opinion or ourselves.

[Unless of course the 'us' in this equation happens to be a woman and the 'them' happens to be a man – there are probably different rules for that situation. But as your blogger is (un)fortunately a man, I am not familiar with the underlining rules in such circumstances.]

As a spouse-trained and happily married man (I am told), I am led to believe that ALL men are conditioned to always be open to critical appraisement by their better halves... because the women folk are actually taking the time to do so for our betterment, of course.

Besides what better way than to pass an entire evening (without a drink in hand, I might add) after a stressful days work than to bask in the warm glow of their 'holier-than-us' self-opinion.

Frankly, if I was allowed to think, I am told that I would think the same myself and conclude, without any persuasion whatsoever, that indeed there was no better way to wile away an entire evening (without a drink in hand, I might add) than critical appraisement... and that too, in front of the TV and no remote.

Actually my married life is not all that bad or scary. It's not bad. Period. In fact, my wife tells me that we are actually a great, fun couple and that her many virtues more than adequately overshadows my many, many vices. How can anyone argue with that?

But I digress.

If we think that we men get the brunt of critical appraisement, a news clipping I discovered recently proves that the Human Resources people in the Australian Federal Government have taken critical appraisement and converted it into an art form. Clearly not ones to mince words these people evaluate employee performance with deadly aim and a devious smile.

Following are some extracts from their evaluations:

Since my last report, this employee has reached rock bottom ad has started digging.
I would not allow this employee to breed.
This employee is really not so much a has-been, but more of a definite won't-be.
Works well under supervision and cornered like a rat in a trap.
He would be out of his depth in a parking lot puddle.
This young lady has delusions of adequacy.
He sets low personal standards and then constantly fails to achieve them.
This employee is depriving a village somewhere of an idiot.
The employee should go far; and the sooner he starts, the better.
A gross ignoramus, 144 times worse than an ordinary ignoramus.
When his IQ reaches 50, he should sell.
A photographic memory but with the lens cover glued on.
If you stand close enough to him, you can hear the ocean.
Some drink from the fountain of knowledge; he only gargled.
The wheel is turning, but the hamster is dead.

Ouch.

It IS the end of the world as we know it

2012-01-31T10:20:00.000+02:00

For various reasons 2012 promises to be an interesting year, maybe more tumultuous that 2011 because even though we may not see the end of the financial market we may just witness the end of the world. And this has nothing to do with the doomsday propheteering (profiteering? Prophet-erring?) of the 'rapture-is-upon-us' rantings of Harold Campings.

While this is old news by now, but for the benefit of my not so updated readers, according to the Inca calendar the world will end on December 23, 2012 (and if you are one of the aforementioned readers a) clearly you have been hiding underneath a rock, and, but more importantly, b) remember you read it here first!)

Now that we have gotten that out of the way, from what I understand this revelation and eerily precise doomsday date was arrived at not by deciphering some ancient text after years of study or through the discovery of some sacred artefact. No. December 23 2012 has been declared the date for the end of the world by something as mundane as a fact that the Incan calendar runs out on that day!

Now if you are among the people who believe all that they read than (taking into consideration how fast times goes these days) the end is nigh!

But don't sell the house and the dog just yet, stop to think what would be the point. Unless you feel from a religious point of view that leaving this world without any material possession means a 'green' channel exit at the final destination and a golden pass to heaven, that inflated bank account will not fare well when the end comes either.

You see what I bring all this up is to perhaps prove that you can't believe all that you read.

For example one of the stories on my newspaper this morning is that “Women are better at getting in and out of a tight spot.” Based on the headline alone, however, I would tend to only part agree – while men are clearly better at getting INTO a tight spot, universally they fail miserably at working their way OUT. Women are hands down better at getting out.

To push a point, it must be said that women are only not better at getting into a tight spot simply because we men are are not 'judgemental'. All men know that we are wired such that the red 'judgemental' button in our head is right next to the red 'panic' button – and we have no intention of even accidentally pushing the 'panic' button (which to put a fair point is also labeled with a 'FATAL FOR MANHOOD IF PRESSED' warning); so we stay away from that general area.

For women, things are a bit more efficient: there is only ONE button and it is a green button labelled 'judgemental/panic/put-man-on-back-foot' – well that is what the label WOULD read if it hadn't been worn off. They even have a embossed steel plate above the button that reads: FATAL FOR MANHOOD IF PRESSED.

(You see, in my experience, that green button for women is for them what our genitalia is for us men – something to play with when bored to often times pleasing affect.)

But I digress.

You see the story is not about relationships, as it is about parking. Yes. Parking. My question is, in what universe is women better at parking than men!? Sure, I will grant that my question reeks of chauvinism, so I should rephrase it (rather than get myself INTO a tight spot, which I will have fair difficulty getting OUT off): In what universe ARE women better at parking than men?

According to the story, British car parks operator NCP analysed the parking of 450 drivers using CCTV footage and surveyed another 2000 more. They analysed for technique, accuracy and time taken to complete the manoeuvre to create what they termed a 'parking coefficient'.

Out of a total of 20, women received an average mark of 13.4 compared to 12.3 for men.

Women were rated higher because using appropriate speed, and better 'pre-parking pose'. Furthermore it was observed that a higher percentage of female drivers finished centrally in their chosen parking spot – 53 percent compared to 25 percent for men.

If there is any truth in that report. Women have discovered that seemingly benign steel plate is a button in itself! And, whats more, they have begun to press it!

Maybe the end is nigh! (At least the Incan's got the year right.)

11.11.11 - what's so special?

2011-11-11T08:23:00.012+02:00

[Following is a AFP report, taken from the Al Arabiya news site last Monday, 7 Nov. 2011]

This coming Friday at 49 minutes before noon, people around the globe will experience a numerically auspicious hour and date unlike any other in modern times: 11:11, on 11/11/11.

While millions may marvel at the once-per-century string of ones on their clocks, mobile devices and calendars, to be sure much of humanity will hardly bat an eye.

But many numerologists, metaphysicists, psychics and their followers, occultists and conspiracy theorists will be watching for signs of some broad humanistic awakening, a harmonic convergence, even a portal opening into a new dimension, as some experts predict a major “shift in consciousness.”

Thousands will gather for 11/11/11 ceremonies, trance dances or day-in-the-life video projects around the world, and several Facebook pages marking the date have popped up.

A Spanish charity for the blind named ONCE (Eleven) is holding a special lottery with 11 one-million-euro prizes and a super jackpot worth 11 million euros.

From Israeli-born psychic Uri Geller to “visionary” author and 11-11 expert Solara -- and even fans of the movie “This Is Spinal Tap,” for whom the number 11 holds cherished meaning -- many are hailing the synchronicity of the date.

“It’s certainly significant to have a triple master number” on the calendar, Solara, who goes by one name, told AFP.

“I envision a big shift in consciousness on the planet, and it’s coming to a point with this date.”

Solara lives in Peru, and while she is keeping her 11/11 plans secret, she says groups in more than 50 countries will mark the auspicious moment.

At 1111 GMT they will “join together and sit as silent watchers who oversee worlds within worlds,” and whose perspective will “strengthen the resonance of trueness just by their presence,” she said.

For numerologists, Freemasons and occult groups, 11 holds special resonance.

Some say it has psychic properties or represents a channel to the subconscious, while others stress its inborn duality, a reflection of the good-and-evil paradigm that Solara believes has been present since the dawn of humanity.

The Internet is humming with bloggers who insist the mystical 11 pops up with alarming regularity in schemes such as 9/11. Not only did the terror attacks occur on September 11, they note, but the twin towers resembled an 11, and the first plane to strike the World Trade Center was Flight 11.

Others cite the prophecy of Saint Malachy, who in the 11th century predicted there would be 112 popes before a biblical apocalypse. The current pontiff, Benedict XVI, is the 111th pope.

Historically the date carries weight. The World War I armistice was signed on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918.

“There’s an interesting synchronicity in how many things in this reality align with the number 11,” said Ellie Crystal, an author, psychic, blogger and metaphysical explorer.

There was an 11/11/11 100 years ago, of course, “but human consciousness was not in the same place it is today,” she told AFP.

Americans and others began focusing on 11:11 over the last several decades, with the advent of the digital clock.

“They’d see 11:11 and say ‘hmm,’ then they’d go about their business,” Crystal said. “And the next day they’d see it again. It makes people wonder, what is this whole thing about?”

It’s about pseudo-scientific bunk, an example of “confirmation bias” in which people spot hits but conveniently forget misses, insisted John Hoopes, a University of Kansas professor who specializes in knocking down such theories and uses dates like 11/11/11 to teach critical thinking.

Some people use numerology “to try and understand the world, but it has about as much scientific significance as the lyrics to ‘The Age of Aquarius,’“ Hoopes said.

Yet Crystal and others see 11:11 as a pre-encoded trigger, an “awakening code” that could elevate consciousness.

She said some are even convinced a physical portal will open on Friday, transporting believers across a bridge from the duality of this world into a new oneness.

“A portal will not open,” Crystal asserted bluntly. And, barring a horror film named “11-11-11” coming out on November 10, there will be “no doomsday, nothing apocalyptic.”

That could occur 13 months later, she quipped, citing a myth that the world will end along with the Mayan calendar on December 21, 2012.

But with a Christian radio broadcaster mistakenly predicting that the rapture would occur May 21, 2001, then on October 21, some are seeing a chance to inject humor into what will in all likelihood be just another day.

The Nigel Tufnel Day Appreciation Society has been petitioning to have November 11, 2011 christened Nigel Tufnel Day, to honor the guitarist in the classic “Spinal Tap” mockumentary who shows how his amplifiers “go to 11.”

So just what will happen on Friday? Those whose brains are wired for 11:11 will notice a realignment, Crystal said.

“If you don’t feel it, no biggie.”

Eid-ul-Azha: Time maybe to make a sacrifice for the sacrifice

2011-11-08T10:05:00.004+02:00

Angels stop Abraham as he sacrifices Isaac

With Eid-ul-Azha just concluded across the world, I can't help but look back at this Muslim tradition as an enormous waste of resource... particularly when it is set against the number of people in the world and the significantly growing number of animals that that are sacrificed on this one day.

I should say that as part of the Muslim fraternity, my childhood was linked to this tradition (but I'm glad to also say that we were never a rabid follower of this tradition).

You see I can understand the significance of the story behind the day and can even appreciate Abraham's devotion to God that he would willingly (albeit with most likely a father's heavy heart) sacrifice his son.

Press 'play' for podcast of this article.

Alas, can I admit that my devotion would not be strained in the least were I to be put to the same test, because I would not consider it.

I ask too many questions and would not see it as legitimate request from an all-loving God. The way I would see it is how could a loving God as such ask of me something as brutal as sacrificing my own son as a test to my devotion? Frankly, as events did flesh out (no pun intended), He did not – but I would not have given Him the benefit of the doubt. So frail is my devotion in the scale of things.

But lesson learnt. Point taken. As a result that now God in His infinite wisdom will never ask something similar of me (for which I am eternally grateful).

As I understand it, the ritual dictates that the flesh and bones of the sacrificed animal be equally divided into three portions. One for distribution among the destitute, one for distribution among neighbours and friends, and the final third for personal consumption.

It is this aspect that I consider hard to swallow. Millions of animals are sacrificed at the altar of belief across the world on Eid-ul-Azha – which means that a third of those millions are to be distributed to millions of homeless and destitute people. Unfortunately these people have no means of storing the meat; allowing whatever remains after consumption over two or three days to rot.

Why cannot it be that, considering the growing number of people in the world, Eid-ul-Azha is not just a day of sacrifice but moreover becomes a day of commitment by the community to sacrifice an animal throughout the year in turns.

Each day, or each week, only a certain number of animals are sacrificed by the community, such that the third of the meat can be distributed among the poor without fear of overwhelming them or any of it going to waste. Moreover these poor can be provided for again from the next sacrifice, a few days later.

There are seven billion people in the world, of which very conservative guesstimates would put at least a billion muslims slaughtering maybe 300 million animals in 24 hours. That is a lot of meat for one day.

Too utopian? Or perhaps an affront to Islam? Would love to hear your thoughts for an intelligent debate (which means no fatwas or cursing, if you are so inclined).

Greetings on Eid Ul Azha

2011-11-07T08:26:00.000+02:00

911: A conspiracy, not just theory

2011-11-04T08:32:00.002+02:00

There are probably dozens (if not more) conspiracy theories about what happened on 9/11 and whether in fact Al Qaeda was in fact responsible.

I for one was never convinced that Osama bin Laden was behind the hijacking and the resulting destruction in the US that day. A lot of it never made any sense to me – most importantly the motive was never clear.

I mean if you look at the facts as they have played out neither Osama bin Laden nor his Al Qaeda movement has benefited in the least... if anything they have lost much more.

But then who has benefited?

I am a firm believer in a particular quote from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, presented to the world through the mouth of Mr. Sherlock Holmes, inarguably the world's greatest detective.

The quote?

“When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”

The question we have to ask ourselves really is who (or which organisation, entity, industry or nation) benefited the most from the destruction.

I stumbled upon a full-length documentary on youtube quite by accident that addresses the inconsistencies and the anomalies in the events of that fateful September morning in 2001; which I present here on my blog.

Mind you the documentary is absolutely mind-blowing in the manner it is presented and possibly the most detailed and well analysed film on the subject. In my mind it presents strong evidence that there was a conspiracy all right, but that it was not perpetrated by foreign forces such as bin Laden or Al Qaeda but much closer to home...

But then I had my doubts from the start, so I may have been easier to sway.

The clip runs for 1 hour and 12 minutes.

Two more quotes from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that probably fir:

“There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact.”

“As a rule, the more bizarre a thing is the less mysterious it proves to be. It is your commonplace, featureless crimes which are really puzzling, just as a commonplace face is the most difficult to identify.”

Providence saves

2011-11-03T08:46:00.000+02:00

Going through the papers a particular news item caught my eye and reminded me of providence.

It seems a Sri Lankan trawler was detained in South Africa earlier last month after it had docked at a South African port to pick up bunkers.

The ship was scheduled to depart for Sierra Leone, however, after an ad hoc inspection by the South African Maritime Safety Authority (Samsa) the ship was detained because it did not have any safety equipment on board.

The owner argued that such was not a requirement as part of Sri Lankan rules only to be told that at a South African port the ship had to meet South African rules. The owner reluctantly bought the requisite safety equipment and had it installed to be allowed to set sail.

As luck would have it the 57.5 foot fishing trawler, the Deshan Lanka, caught fire en route to Sierra Leone and subsequently sank off the southern Cape coast. The thing is, had Samsa regulations not compelled the owner to purchase the safety equipment all hands would surely have been lost.

Sri Lankan sailors were joyful when found Picture: NSRI

The four sailors on board were able to successfully launch the life raft as the ship sank. Despite a distress call to Samsa before their vessel sank, the sailors were adrift without food or water for three days, before the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), alerted by Samsa, were finally able to rescue them.

The life raft was found 10 nautical miles off the nearest land mass.

Naturally the first thing that comes to mind is that had it not been for the adamant Samsa captain who had inspected the vessel, the four sailors would surely have been lost at sea.

But then surely one cannot completely discount the fact that had the Samsa authorities not delayed the vessel in the first place, perhaps the sailors would have managed to have berthed safely at Sierra Leone with their cargo – and been saved from all the drama!

But I kid.

Talk about providence or at least someone really important looking down from above!

500 day journey ends without ever beginning

2011-11-02T09:18:00.001+02:00

It never ceases to amaze me the extents man is capable of going in the name of science. This week six people will re-enter civilisation after 520 days inside a isolation facility designed to simulate a trip to Mars.

The facility located in at the Institute of Biomedical Problems in Moscow. The six 'astronauts,' comprising of an international crew of three Russians, a French man, an Italian and a Chinese man, have been inside a windowless capsule since June 2010. The core of the mission was to test whether it is in fact psychologically possible for man to survive the trip.

When they come out this Friday, the answer will be an emphatic (if, I think, a cautious) 'yes.'

Since the astronauts boarded on June 3 last year, they have undergone experiments, carried out 'Mars Walks' in a car park outside a Moscow block of flats and monitored their own mental health and wellbeing.

To make the simulation realistic, the crew even experienced delayed communication with mission controllers at certain points during the trip.

After spending eight months simulating the journey to Mars, they exited the capsule to spend two days researching the 'Red Planet' (in the Moscow car park) before re-entering the 'craft' for the journey back to earth.

While researchers expect to use the reams of data collected to better understand the physical and psychological challenges that astronauts may face on real deep-space journeys,however, since they were not able to re-create the effects of gravity or radiation, it leaves some potential gaps in the actual results.

Early results indicate that lack of family contact and little variation in food often led to mental low points among the astronauts, which the group had to shake off in the interest of continuity. Among many experiments conducted in the capsule the astronauts even conducted various experiments on themselves to better understand the physical and psychological demands of a long space mission.

Thankfully the mission has gone without so much as a hiccup or a major crisis inside the capsule – so the scientists are confident that such a mission could one day be a reality.

What is more, and I see it as the most difficult part of the journey, is that when the six emerge from the capsule on Friday after 520 days in relative isolation, they will have to remain in medical quarantine for another three days.

It is expected that scientists will take another year to analyse the results of the mission before they can decide on the next plan of action.

And whatever that action may be, chances are that in the first time since the Apollo missions the National Aeronautical & Space Agency (NASA) will not be taking the lead, since they don't have a capable space rocket on the horizon nor the intention to send astronauts into deep space.

Currently NASA is focused on unmanned test flights on the next generation of space rocket by 2017 and has no clear set goals to land on an asteroid or reach Mars.

All in the name of science.

READ MORE ABOUT THE MISSION.

“Facts” about Gaddafi

2011-11-01T09:38:00.000+02:00

In my estimation death brings out the best and then the worst in a lot of people. I have been commenting on the two high-profile deaths last month October – that of Steve Jobs and then Muammar Gaddafi.

The media was filled by reports, anecdotes and factoids that were flamboyant in its praise for Jobs as it was in its disdain for Gaddafi.

Then a few days go by and the frenzy dissipates into a trickle, suddenly the reports, anecdotes and factoids in the media are no longer as rosy or rabid as they once were.

Jobs is being portrayed more and more as a dictator and a hard man to get along with; someone who bullied his way to getting what he wanted, and in the way he wanted it.

Suddenly there are reports on Gaddafi's benevolence.

I received a list of apparently “Facts that cannot be denied regarding Gaddafi,” which I present here. I am not in a position to confirm or deny the authenticity of the following list nor whether the “facts” presented are indeed true; but I can confirm that if what is listed below is true than millions of people in failing western economies would prefer a dictator like Gaddafi over their increasingly deficient 'democratic' choice.

There is no electricity bill in Libya; electricity is free for all its citizens.
There is no interest on loans, banks in Libya are state-owned and loans given to all its citizens at 0% interest by law.
A home was considered a human right in Libya –Gaddafi vowed that his parents would not get a house until everyone in Libya had a home. Gaddafi’s father had died while he, his wife and his mother were still living in a tent.
All newlyweds in Libya receive $60,000 Dinar (US$50,000) from the government to buy their first apartment so to help start up the family.
Education and medical treatment are free in Libya. Before Gaddafi only 25% of Libyans were literate. Today the figure is 83%.
Should Libyans want to take up farming career, they would receive farming land, a farming house, equipment, seeds and livestock to kick-start their farms – all for free.
If Libyans cannot find the education or medical facilities they need in Libya, the government funded them to go abroad for it – not only free but they would also receive US $2,300 per month as a stipend for accommodation and as a car allowance.
In Libyan, if a Libyan buys a car, the government subsidized 50% of the price.
The price of petrol in Libya is $0. 14 per litre.
Libya has no external debt and its reserves amount to $150 billion – now frozen globally.
If a Libyan is unable to get employment after graduation the state would pay the average salary of the profession as if he or she is employed until employment is found.
A portion of Libyan oil sale was credited directly to the bank accounts of all Libyan citizens.
A woman who give birth to a child receives US$5,000
40 loaves of bread in Libya costs $ 0.15
25% of Libyans have a university degree
Gaddafi carried out the world’s largest irrigation project, known as the Great Man-Made River project, to make water readily available throughout the desert country.
Nelson Mandela named his grand son “Gaddafi”.

That Apple c-founder Steve Jobs was a hard man to get along with, or that he was tyrannical may be true – but it does not take away from the fact that he was a visionary.

Similarly while the list above (save for the last item on the list) does portray Gaddafi as a misunderstood benevolent man and a 'brother leader' it probably cannot take away from that hard fact that he was also a tyrannical despot.

“Our's is not to reason why, our's is but to do or die – Tennyson"

On All Hallow's Eve

2011-10-31T08:47:00.000+02:00

Today is Halloween. And while typically I have never celebrated by dressing up and foraging for candy... I live Halloween through the exploits of my children, since Halloween is slowly becoming a global event as it finds popularity in more and more countries.

I came across this blog post on 'My Modern Met' about a Ray Villafane pumpkin carver extraordinaire! Villafene does not carve a pumpkin like a typical Jack-o-Lantern but puts an animated face on his carved creations.

When I saw the various animated faces on the pumpkins I immediately knew that these were amazing pieces of art that i HAD to share.

I think the original My Modern Met post sums it up best in (you can click on the post link for more images):

Just when we thought our pumpkin carvings were creative, we ran across these! We've seen Ray Villafane's expert hand at sand sculpting, but his original expertise lies in pumpkin carving. With Halloween creeping up on us, the New York native's pumpkin sculptures are in season. Each wrinkly, orange globe that Villafane digs into is brought to life with an animated expression. It's hard to believe that these figures were ever pumpkins!

Note: Ray Villafane's website for even more images. He also does sand sculptures you wouldn't believe!

What does it take to be human?

2011-10-28T10:58:00.000+02:00

This has been a week of events that I feel strains my belief that there is a humanity in all of us; a humanity that makes us human (and not something less).

Two events in particular have been thoroughly disturbing.

The first is the murder in cold blood of Muammar Gaddafi – who was a tired, broken man begging for mercy when he was eventually captured. That anyone could brutally murder a helpless man who had surrendered to his captor's good heart is beyond me.

Granted Gaddafi was less that merciful of his detractors and perhaps was due what was meted to him. Just because he was less than human does not give his captors the same license – after all a man cannot still be a man if he subsequently chooses to bite the dog that has bitten him.

Watching the shaky camera phone footage to see the bloodied image of a slobbering and sorry Gaddafi – the humanity in us must dictate standing down and overcoming the deep-rooted hate. Gaddafi might not have deserved the mercy, but failing to do so has degraded the Libyan liberation forces as being no different from their one-time oppressor and equally less human.

The second incident, which occurred about the same time that Gaddafi was killed, took place in the city of Foshan in Guangdong province of China. The incident was captured by a surveillance camera and subsequently aired by a local TV station; to be later picked up on youtube.

The clip shows a two-year-old girl in a covered market being knocked down and then run over under the wheels of a white van. The van only pauses briefly before driving over the little toddler to escape, leaving her bleeding on the street.

What is telling of the inhumanity is that over the next several minutes, more than a dozen people walk by the injured girl, yet not one of them stops to help.

In fact in one instance, a passerby sidesteps the girl's motionless body. In another, a motorcycle slows down only to veer around the girl and continue on its way. A mother and son pass by, with the son looking at the prone girl yet nether stop.

The girl was struck a second time by another vehicle before a woman is finally seen pulling the girl off the street, leaving behind a pool of blood. Local media reports identify the woman as a trash collector who places the child in safety and rans off to alert the girl's mother.

The video clip was lifted off a Huffington Post online report, which in turn was lifted off youtube. Click below to watch, but bear in mind that the images are startling as much as they are very disturbing.

While the first 40 seconds of the 3:30 minute clip says it all, the clip also features interviews with the elderly woman who helped, in Cantonese. A translation of what the woman said was in the Huffington Post report, which I reproduce below the clip (highlighted and in italics):

While cameras looked on, she tried to comfort a grieving family member, saying she was trying to call for help from many people.

Later on, in interviews, she described how she dragged the girl to side, then how she went out looking for help.

The reporter at the 2:20 mark asked “at that point, were you looking for people to help?”

The woman said she asked people all around, but no one acknowledged my pleas.
Then the reporter asked at the 2:30 mark: When you took her aside, was she conscious?

The woman said, “Yes, she was awake. One eye was closed, one eye was open,” then added that the girl was really heavy, and she didn’t have the strength to carry her, leaving her to look for help.

“Why didn’t so many people walking help?” she asked reporters at the three-minute mark, saying she walked all over the place, including the nearby stairs. She said she was asking passersby “why aren’t you helping?”

The reporter asked at the end, “Were you scared about the inconvenience of helping out?”

The women replied: “I wasn’t thinking about that. I wasn’t thinking about whether I should bother.”

The little girl, identified as Wang Yue by the Xinhua news agency, was taken to the hospital where she was taken while in a deep coma. The state media quoted Guangzhou Military District General Hospital as saying that the child was unlikely to recover.

She died a few days later.

There is little consolation that the police eventually arrested both the drivers.

I say again, what does it take to be human? I vote, humanity.

And I am dismayed to note that there are a lot of people who clearly fall short of that mark.

Re-routing Dhaka metro – how much is being compromised?

2011-10-27T09:11:00.000+02:00

As the debate continues about the new metro route in Dhaka and on which side of the old Tejgaon airport the MRT line will finally land, one wonders at the fluid opportunism of the political bickering.

Questions arise whether the line has been moved at the behest of the air force, the current custodian of the airport, who were reportedly concerned about the security risks that an elevated rail system travelling alongside it might raise.

Then there was suggestions that the metro would entail aircraft landing on only half of the runway due to clearance issues on approach from the south end (perhaps aircraft could make the approach from the north end without such a concern?) so there is now talk of the line alongside Rokeya Sharani beside the parliament building.

Suddenly the sanctity of the parliament architecture has been brought up and how the metro rail would compromise on Louis Kahn's design. This despite that fact that there is a mausoleum and other buildings around the site which were definitely not part of the original design.

That the current opposition – the party responsible for the mausoleum in question (it marks the party's founding father's gravesite) – would raise an issue about the sanctity of the architectural design is laughable.

The current administration has been quick to suggest in parliament how the new route would not compromise the design of the parliament complex and that the metro rail can be accommodated along the road that runs on the east side of the building without disrupting the beauty of the complex.

[That anyone in power would be concerned about the sanctity of master plans in a city that has run amok with buildings erected on the strength of cold cash and partisanship, master plan be damned, is ironic!]

Earlier the protests were from the Dhaka University authorities who wanted the lines redrawn so as not to go through the campus (which just happens to be located bang centre of prime land Dhaka city). That debate is now been settled, after all the authorities of the biggest and most prestigious institution in Bangladesh cannot but be an enlightened (if also a mercurial) group.

As I mentioned in a previous post that after 40 years of political bickering and wheeling dealing time is ripe for the country to unite for a common cause rather than still while away in the 'what's in it for me' mindset – and the metro rail, in light of the current traffic gridlock, is one common cause that we all need to get behind.

I am sure that this will get solved eventually, but time is of essence, The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which funded the initial feasibility study, is not waiting on the sidelines to pick up 80 percent of the US$1.7 billion price tag (albeit as a soft loan).

The people's representative have now just sit together and unitedly decide on the 'go ahead.'

The metro rail network, in its urgency, has grown to become bigger than a cheap political trickery. It is the project of the moment and only one of a few steps that could potentially make a real dent in the traffic situation in Dhaka and actually work to ease the congestion on the road.

Perhaps we should keep our fingers crossed that the solution to get things moving at last does not get trapped in a stalemate of its own.

Do you think the metro system could help ease the traffic situation? Will a metro network along the east side of the parliament complex compromise further a compromised plan?

You can never tell with kids

2011-10-26T09:08:00.000+02:00

Parents can never really be sure how their young children would take to exciting news and special holiday announcements.

In many cases it is the parents rather than the children who are more excited. For parents watching their children react to the news and squeal out in pleasure when presented with an exciting vacation opportunity is plenty reward.

An Atlanta-based couple were so excited about planning a Disney World holiday for their children that they decided to break the news to them with a handycam handy to tape what they were expecting would be over the top reactions.

They're eldest, a girl aged 6, went through the five stages of trauma – disbelief, denial, anger, rejection, and finally acceptance. The video camera captured the first three.

Not only didn't the kids jump for joy but they started crying when they found their voice and realised that their parents weren't joking, insisting that they would rather spend their vacation in Chattanooga!

Not their fault really, because they had enjoyed annual excursions to Chattanooga for holidays and were very partial to the aquarium and the Chattanooga children's museum. And for the fact that the parents were building up their Chattanooga dreams in the expected of runaway emotions when they finally broke news of their real holiday destination the night before.

Below is the footage of the surprise gone woefully wrong.

<a href='http://www.bing.com/videos/browse?mkt=en-us&vid=20bw7qqo&from=us-Careers&src=FLPl:embed::uuids' target='_new' title='Best Surprise Ever?' >Video: Best Surprise Ever?</a>

The good news is that the children did eventually warm up to the idea of a Disney vacation and had a great time.

Which only goes to show that you never know with children.

In a later development the dad sent the video to the Chattanooga visitors bureau because he thought “they'd get a kick out of it.”

Naturally the Chattanooga Convention and Visitors Bureau in Tennessee loved the tape. They started sharing it and pretty soon the tape was being shown on TV stations nationwide. Moreover the footage has logged up over 70,000 hits on YouTube.

Global crisis alphabet starts with a 'Dubya'

2011-10-25T09:49:00.000+02:00

The world seems to be in perpetual chaos. If it isn't a natural disaster, it's a war; if it isn't a war, it's civil unrest; if it isn't civil unrest, it's a prolonged recession; if it's isn't a prolonged recession, it's partisan turmoil; if it isn't partisan turmoil, it's a natural disaster...

And so it continues.

The world is not at peace anymore, and in my mind, peace and the end to conflict seems further than it has ever been before. There is a restlessness about that belies a state of urgency. In my opinion imperial forces are about with a vengeance; in the guise of propagating democracy and protecting human rights.

One would automatically assume that I mean the United States by the above paragraph when the US is not the sole perpetrator. The European Union, particularly Britain, Germany and France (and maybe in that order, although not necessarily) can share in some of the credit.

Which in a nutshell is the source of the problem – CREDIT; or lack thereof.

We are in a interesting Catch 22 dilemma where one is confused whether the credit crunch preceded the chaos, or whether it was the the chaos that triggered a domino effect on the economy and led to the credit crunch.

My take, albeit simplistic, is that it all started with 'Dubya' – the 42nd and possibly worst president of the United States. George W Bush was a lost president who was clearly out of his depth in foreign affairs, and who chose to take it on because he was even deeper in confusion with his domestic policy.

Had the war on terror not been launched 'Dubya' might have passed on as a nondescript president who kept the seat warm while the economy caught its breath after the Clinton years.

However, that was not to be, and more disturbingly the American people re-elected him to their long lasting detriment – in their misdirected expectation that he was going to keep the nation safe (when it was because of him (and his Trickier Dick) that they had to start locking the doors in the first place).

Had 'Dubya' never been re-elected, the world might have been a better place and the world powers would not have injected so much money into far away (imperial?) outposts in the name of saving face. Iraq and Afghanistan has drained the big powers of tremendous financial strength because the two men of the moment (Blair and Bush) possibly believed that they were on the brink of creating history.

Unfortunately history will not look too fondly back at their performance... provided the global economy can whither the depression and the deception quickly enough.

The easy thing would be to blame Dubya for everything, but in my mind while Dubya might have gotten the ball rolling the people who followed in those populist footsteps when they should have known better should be taken to account too.

It might be even more simplistic to suggest that Obama was in a strong position to pull the plug when he took office in January 2009 – but he had to look every much the tough Texas Ranger for the public (thanks again to Dubya). 'Not on my watch,' resonated through the Obama administration on the back of the remotest of possibilities of another terrorist act on US soil.

The Twin Tower attacks piggybacked on Al Qaeda's demands that the US remove its military bases off sacred soil, i.e. Saudi Arabia – a residue of Bush Sr's political chicanery and spat with one time friend and confidant Saddam Hussain.

One wonders whether the Twin Towers would still standing if the US forces had been pulled out of Saudi soil within a year of its ousting Saddam's forces from Kuwait. My guess it might have been, but oil ran in the veins of George H. Bush, George W. Bush and of course Dick Cheney – their political fortunes have always floated on crude – and Saddam Hussain shook their trust in the uninterrupted oil supply so they had to be sure.

The rest fell into place and we are where we are.

One other thing, I am not one to surrender to explanations of divine intervention – I've delved in too much science and mathematics for that (moreover its plain spooky to think that it might happen) – but the series of natural disasters and the scale of destruction unleashed since the beginning of this year would prod anyone to suspend their logic for at least moment to imagine that the Almighty might be giving us a warning.

I did have a disclaimer that my take on the current circumstances were rather simplistic.

Could I be onto something? Any thoughts?

Gaddafi needn't have been allowed to die a martyr

2011-10-24T12:19:00.000+02:00

Last week I had a rather tongue and cheek go at the media frenzy about the passing of two distinct personalities who died within two short weeks of each other. It seemed that both the passing of Steve Jobs and Muammar Gaddafi spun off countless stories and anecdotes in the media and the social platforms.

The images depicted in the media of the aforementioned personalities could not be more different, where as with the one the media built him up to near impossible heights of achievement and fanfare, the media went to (somewhat) extremes to degrade the other.

Of course that is how the popularity wind was blowing, Jobs was as heaven sent as Gaddafi was the devil's own.

This post is, however, not to ramble about the differences in media treatment meted out to the two; nor is it to downgrade the one and enhance the other. To give the devil its due, as far as I am concerned, the two personalities in question lived their lives according to their own rules and principles – and received their just rewards and their due place in people's emotions.

In my previous post I had listed 12 points on how Jobs and Gaddafi were similar. This post is a discourse on the unlisted 13th similarity – neither deserved to die in the manner they did.

While Steve Job's and Muammar Gaddafi's decline were inevitable in light of the developments over the past few months, Gaddafi's death could (and should) have been prevented.

That he was fleeing from Sirte amid the fall of his last vestige of support was humiliation enough for the self-professed 'brother leader.' By executing him in cold blood (and there should be little debate as to what the act should be labelled) the 'saviours' of Libya demonstrated that they were no different.

The ousting of Gaddafi was a unifying force for the renegades, now that he is dead the unity may be short lived as multiple leaders of the revolution finally find their voice and start talking about the way forward; each with an expectation that his place at the top is the natural order for the country to rise up from the past.

The western media had painted Gaddafi as a pariah again (he had enjoyed a period of respite from media bashing and enjoyed western world approval since 90s ), many news reports reminisced that Ronald Reagan had once labelled him the “mad dog of the Middle East.” But it should not be forgotten that this mad dog was one of the first regimes that came in with support for the forces against apartheid in South Africa.

It should not be dismissed that he was one of the first Arab leaders who categorically shunned the Al Qaeda for its hostile actions following the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers.

On the same account it cannot be dismissed that he was probably the man behind the PAN AM hijacking and subsequent bombing of the aircraft at Lockerbie, which left nearly 300 passengers and crew dead.

While he was not below calling the revolutionary fighters 'rats,' the revolutionary fighters in their passion could not rise above that denigration and prove him wrong.

His capture and subsequent beating and murder in the hands of a revolution force will make him a martyr and could potentially fuel unrest in the years to come... particularly because the mobile camera footage of his last few moments alive, aired in all the news channels and stills printed on the front page of many newspapers worldwide, showed that he was a scarred and defeated man and was at the mercy of his captors.

[You may click on the image on the right to see an image of a bloodied and defeated Gaddafi. In the interest of decorum I chose not to post the image here. But be warned, the image is not for the faint hearted.]

The Obama administration was quick grab any video footage of the Osama bin Laden assassination, lest the images show a similarly scarred and defeated man; showing that he too was to have no mercy in the hands of his captors.

In one shot it would be revealed that trained elite US forces were not above undisciplined Libyan freedom fighters when it came to heated revenge killing.

Gaddafi had a chequered past for sure but he, like Osama, should have been allowed to account for his sins.

Jobs & Gaddafi, more in common than apples

2011-10-21T11:53:00.000+02:00

The Arab Spring has claimed its first head. Now while other ill-fated heads of government opposed popular uprising to their own downfall, few opposed it with the viciousness and acrimony of Col. Muammar Gaddafi – swearing against the “rats and dogs” and defiant till the last bullet finally entered his skull.

Here was probably the last great megalomania – so eccentric to the core that he was downright weird. Media reports on Gaddafi are pouring through the internet with each news agency trying to outdo the other with salient details of the man that was.

While the frequency of the reports are beginning to rival that of Steve Jobs' passing, not surprisingly the reports are in direct contrast to the eulogies that the founder of Apple received. While Steve could do little wrong in the wake of his passing, Muammar it seems can do little right in the same circumstances.

Of course both had tremendous effect on millions of people that watched over, the affect that Jobs had on his millions, however, was also in direct contrast to the affect that Gaddafi had on his millions. In that event Jobs' passing left millions feeling helpless, while Gaddafi's passing have millions feeling hopeful for the first time.

In my opinion both were dictatorial in their prime and were widely known to have little tolerance for dissension; both left people closest to them in awe of the power they wielded. However, the proportion between Steve's admirers and detractors is most likely absolutely inverse to Muammar's counts.

Having witnessed the media frenzy that has been riled up between the two deaths (after all one followed almost 2 weeks into the other), one cannot but be impressed how the world sees them in retrospect.

Suddenly I feel that the two men were more alike than different. Below I would like to tabulate some of the similarities (that are surely hidden by the semantics):

Steve Paul Jobs (1955 - 2011)	Muammar Gaddafi (1942 - 2011)
Dictator who was actually a brother leader	Brother leader who was actually a dictator
Visionary eccentric	Delusional weirdo
Experimented with LSD	Looked like he was on LSD
Life was a rags to riches story	Life into a rags to riches story
Touched millions of lives	Torched millions of lives
Quiet man, kept to himself	Quite a man, kept it for himself
High fashion fatigue	Fatigue to high fashion
Aged well	Well aged
Cancer claimed his life	Life claimed him the cancer
Lost his battle to cancer	Lost his battle. Period.
Died in the place of his birth	Died at the place of his birth
Millions noted his passing in prayer	Millions prayed of his passing
Put Cupertino in the map	Put Sirte on the map

There are probably many more. Can you think of any more similarities? Drop us a comment.

Offline circumstances

2011-10-20T11:40:00.001+02:00

Living on the Crossroads is in the process of migrating to its own web address: www.blog.crossconnectivity.com

Unfortunately the site is still under construction... and the pages could not be successfully uploaded. Please bear with me. In the meantime 'Living on the Crossroads' will continue to remain on the Blogger server until further notice.

Thanks!

From the ashes comes character

2011-10-12T11:56:00.000+02:00

Listening to the radio this morning, the presenter was narrating an incident involving one of his friends.

You see the friend's house had burnt down the night before and he had accompanied him to the site to see what, if anything, could be recovered. As it would be, all that was left was ash and cinders.

The outer brick wall of the facade stood erect and blackened the windows had all been blown out and the window frames in pieces and frail with perhaps a residue of paint holding it. The grand piano, which at one time had probably graced the centre of the living room, was nothing beyond ash and steel wires.

The fire it seemed had consumed everything without remorse. However, as his friend sifted through remnants of old photographs and twisted, charred furniture he came across a small blue ceramic dove. When he picked it up from amid the debris and wiped clean the soot off of the bird, he was amazed to see that aside from a few tiny fractures on the surface the bird remained in one piece, in defiance of the destruction around it.

To that friend that bird was a glimmer of hope that the worst was behind him and that there was light ahead. The friend commented that if the bird could just talk it would have had an amazing story to relate about the heat, the smoke and the destruction of the night before.

When one thinks about it, while it is truly amazing that a small ceramic bird could survive in an inferno that claimed everything else, what is worthy of contemplation is to realise why that bird had survived in the first place.

In a simple explanation, that little bird was created through trial by fire. Those of its batch that did not survive unscathed by the flames of its creation were shattered and sent back through the manufacturing process anew. Only those that were able to weather the heat and the flames thrown at it were worthy of their shiny ceramic armour.

In that way, many of us are tested by fire in life and those of us who can withstand the heat are rewarded with a similar private badge of honour. And those who cracked were left behind; perhaps only scarred but afraid to continue.

In my opinion that little bird serves as a metaphor for our survival. If we live a sheltered life and have never been tested against fire, our journey may end if we cannot cope when times are hard. So it is equally important to grow up safe but be tested through each development phase so that when our character is tested against seemingly insurmountable odds – we, like that little bird, can wipe ourselves clean of the soot and stand proud.

Homesickness before death

2011-10-10T11:24:00.000+02:00

This morning I woke up with a feeling of loneliness and a grave case of homesickness – I am sure this feeling haunts millions of people who live away from their homeland.

This angst must be worse, particularly when you know you may never see home again. Day before yesterday, eight people were beheaded in a foreign land for crime they may have or have not committed.

The court proceedings were conducted in Arabic, the defence was less than perfect because their story was never told. Those eight Bangladeshi probably watched in complete despair and helplessness as the people around spoke and gesticulated in lightening Arabic and made an example of them... because they could and because nobody else wished to dispute the accusations nor listen to their cries.

Following is a short poem I wrote that I imagine went through their minds.

A lonely goodbye

A soft touch stirs me awake,
Feel a lingering kiss on my face.
My senses curl towards the source
Crashing and breaking into a smile on my face

I open my eyes to understand I am not home
(The place where my heart yearns to be)
The sun's rays are bright already
I am late... even when I have no place to go.

I see the world around
This is not me nor mine
But that of an adopted place
Promised only for a short while... so long, long ago

A deep sigh escapes from my chest
A breath tinged with a bittersweet ache
Of melancholy and surrender
Where is my home? and why am I here?

I feel suddenly homesick and tired
Even as home promised me nothing
But an end to this once upon a dream
Along the crashing waves of foreign waters

The change I seek simmers...
It wafts and bobs on the horizon
Almost within eyeshot
But just beyond reach of expression

How do I really feel?
When my feelings are but faint and unsure
What do I really want?
But what I already do not have in my heart

Home? Where is this place I pretend?
Is it not wherever I find myself?
I am a fool to think that it is a place
When I know it was a just another prison

The real prison, however, is my poverty
My voice drowned everyday in sweat
Never loud to be heard
Never noticed as that of a man

I hear the words that condemn me
Shoot out from mouths that talk in tongues
I am sorry, I do not understand
But the sounds from my lips bounce of the deaf walls

The public square I know so well
Many a times I have walked passed
My consolation is that least my brethren understand my tears
And can my acknowledge my final goodbye... and I their's

Home is where my soul will go
To bleed an eternity in the pangs of those who cared
I look back at the years before
To put a brave face to my despair

The mind plays tricks
Like by a street magician
A cheap sleight that fails to fool
Yet makes my lips curve to foolish grin...

The soft touch of sharp steel stirs me
I think I feel the instance of a kiss on my neck
My senses curl towards the source
As it crashes and finally wipes the smile off my face.

At long last, I am going home.

Poet Lee in translation

2011-10-06T09:09:00.001+02:00

Following is a translation of a poem I discovered recently. The poem was originally in Chinese and was translated by Bruce Lee (Yes, the same. Do you know of another?)

It was intense to learn that Bruce Lee was an accomplished poet who not only wrote his own work but translated the works of others.

In fact, the article I read of this (and the poem) continued that "He was a man who took poetry so seriously that he even wrote an entire movie script (with the aid of Sterling Silliphant, the screenwriter of the Oscar winning In the Heat of the Night) based off of a poem that he composed."

But I digress...

[If you want to read about Bruce Lee and his poetic side outside his poetry in motion, click to read: Poetry Kung Fu or: Breaking Boards With Your Head is Dumb, Write Poems Instead.]

The poem that Lee translated was that of Kuan, the wife of great Yuan painter Chao Mengfu. She wrote the upon hearing her husband was to take a mistress.

Parting
By Madame Kuan, translated by Bruce Lee

Who knows when meeting shall ever be.
If might be for years or
It might be forever.

Let us then take a lump of clay,
Wet it, pat it,
And make an image of you
And an image of me.
Then smash them, crash them,
And, with a little water,
Knead them together.

And out of the clay we’ll remake
An image of you, and an image of me.
Thus in my clay, there’s a little of you,
And in your clay, there’s a little of me.
And nothing will ever set us apart.

Living, we’ll be forever in each other’s heart,
and dead, we’ll be buried together.

Chao Mengfu didn’t take the mistress.

The imagery in my mind was beyond surreal and blew my mind in the power of the word strings. Once again I am humbled and wish that I could write things that way... and I speak not only of the tempo but the translation itself.

So I thought it apt to share, considering that is the real essence of my blog... to reveal things that have impacted (and continue to impact) my development and make me ME.

Care to share any insightful and overwhelming lines of verse that might have blown your mind away?

Seriously time to take things a little less seriously

2011-10-05T10:47:00.000+02:00

I have been accused many times of not taking supposedly serious things not seriously at all, or not seriously enough.

I blame a society that expects increasing solemnity with age. According to these unwritten rules people are supposed to become more planted and mirthless as they age.

It seems that levity becomes conditional as you age; apparently after a certain age, you can only joke among old friends (who are as old as you are), you can joke with little children (who are closely related), you can joke with the spouse (but only on Tuesdays... and then only if it isn't raining), you can joke with the help (if you fancy a illicit hanky panky)... the rules are so bizarre that you'd think I was making this up!

What's more, the “certain age” is conditional on economic and social standings and the rotation of Jupiter in accordance with Uranus (and Mars, but only every 3rd leap year that doesn't end with a '2').

The rules are so unforgiving that its safer to just grouch up and let those ear hairs sprout.

Had society written down the rules it would probably state with irrevocable certainty that life with levity must end at any or all these birthday milestones: 33, 41, 49, 53, 64, 67, 68, 76, 81, 88, 92, 98, and 102. When someone hits these ages, society looks at them different and expects certain changes in behaviour and no change is frowned upon.

And should any person commit to levity in the years not mentioned in the list above, the act is delegated to immaturity, mid-life crisis, idiocy, or upright senility – dependent solely on the age period.

Like I said the rules are very strict and unforgiving. Thus I am destined to be labeled 'immature', 'suffering a mid-life crisis', 'an idiot', and 'senile' as I age.

You'd think that taking life seriously would be a good thing and a sign of maturity and balance. Think again.

I read online that a 46-year-old father of three has admitted to court officials that he attacked a teenage boy who killed off his "Call of Duty: Black Ops" character.

While this 'mature' man regrets storming over to the boy's home and grabbing him by the throat for 'murdering' his avatar in the online game, he explained that it was not out of 'malice'.

Supposedly the two were playing the online game over the internet and were using microphones to talk. The 13-year old not only killed his character but allegedly also called him a name, which set him off.

Thankfully the boy's mother was around to rescue her son. The boy suffered some minor scratches but no actual physical harm. I suspect that he has also lost his appetite for the game or has sworn off violence completely.

Thankfully the man is 46, so his actions will be deemed by society as 'immature,' attributable to a 'mid-life' crisis, or simply 'idiotic.' My guess is that he fits all three of the labels very well.

But having said that, may I humbly point out that the core trigger for his actions was the fact that he obviously takes things far too seriously.

Morals have lowest melt threshold during global meltdowns

2011-10-04T12:00:00.000+02:00

The global economy begins to look bleaker with each passing day on growing doubts over Greece's ability to avoid default, which in turn are fuelling fears of global financial turmoil and recession.

Moreover in the backdrop of a declining US economy, a possibility of a prolonged recession, and growing fears over the banking sector's exposure to euro zone sovereign debt (made worse with Germany and France's so far failing attempts to rein in the Euro instability and Italy's shaky financial footing) there seems little to smile about, or, let alone, make light off.

But it seems this is not for the lack of trying.

As the economy continues to take a hit there is a more real aftereffect than just plummeting global stocks (which, by the way, is at an all-time 15 month low) or lower profit margins, at best, or bankruptcy, at worst – on the other side of the equation people lose jobs that they probably need to survive.

In times of global villages and linked economic indices, global ceases to be global as much as it is 'GLOCAL.'

Times are particularly tough for people at the lower income spectrum and in an (inane?) attempt to keep spirits high, QC Mart, a Iowan convenience store chain, kicked off a contest offering $10 to employees to “guess which of your colleagues will be fired next.”

Believing in the promise...

In my opinion this can only be a sordid and sorry attempt to emulate reality TV suspense in its worst form. Not only was the contest in poor taste and a deplorably bad attempt at making light of a not-so-funny matter, but clearly thought off by someone without a clue and a sure job.

As it happens an employee quit on seeing the memo (announcing: “NEW CONTEST – GUESS THE NEXT CASHIER WHO WILL BE FIRED!!!) and realising that it wasn't a joke. She sued QC Mart for being a 'hostile work environment.'

The judge agreed and did not see the matter lightly either. She ruled against the store.

Administrative Law Judge Susan D. Ackerman ruled that the employee was eligible for unemployment insurance after quitting her job because of the contest. “The employer’s actions have clearly created a hostile work environment by suggesting its employees turn on each other for a minimal monetary prize. The claimant has established this was an intolerable and detrimental work environment,” Ackerman wrote.

If the idea of the contest doesn't repel you yet, read the actual text of the memo below. It would be hilarious if it wasn't meant to be taken seriously (this was issued in March):

“New Contest – Guess The Next Cashier Who Will Be Fired!!!

“To win our game, write on a piece of paper the name of the next cashier you believe will be fired. Write their name [the person who will be fired], today’s date, today’s time, and your name. Seal it in an envelope and give it to the manager to put in my envelope.

“Here’s how the game will work: We are doubling our secret-shopper efforts, and your store will be visited during the day and at night several times a week. Secret shoppers will be looking for cashiers wearing a hat, talking on a cell phone, not wearing a QC Mart shirt, having someone hanging around/behind the counter, and/or a personal car parked by the pumps after 7 p.m., among other things.

“If the name in your envelope has the right answer, you will win $10 CASH. Only one winner per firing unless there are multiple right answers with the exact same name, date, and time. Once we fire the person, we will open all the envelopes, award the prize, and start the contest again.

“And no fair picking Mike Miller from (the Rockingham Road store). He was fired at around 11:30 a.m. today for wearing a hat and talking on his cell phone.

Good luck!!!!!!!!!!”

A global economic meltdown sure brings out the best of the worst in a lot of people. So what do you think? Care to report any more incidents low moral melt thresholds during a glocal meltdown?

Divide the nation out of Dhaka

2011-09-28T11:19:00.000+02:00

One more in my series on traffic management solutions for my hometown Dhaka. The suggestions are ideas that in my opinion could help ease the traffic mess in Dhaka. As always the idea can just as easily be replicated in all the other cities and towns across Bangladesh to benefit road users... provided intent.

Traffic Management: Lesson 7: Dhaka is only a mega-city by sheer volume of its population and by no means because of its infrastructure and facilities. It is a failed city and soon to be a dead one if we do not get our wits in order and organise and rearrange.

The traffic situation is moot point and testimony that the infrastructure in the city is no where near what it needs to be to simply cope.

That the city empties out every major holiday is proof enough most of the present Dhaka denizens still have major ties to their origins... particularly strong family ties. Which means that there is somewhere else they'd all rather be. The reason for their presence in Dhaka can be attributed to four basic reasons: 1) job opportunities, 2) education, 3) required links to government offices/ministries, 4) medical reasons, 5) better opportunities in a city.

Truthfully it says very little of our country and is a sad indication of our development and planning when we can boast Dhaka as the best we have.

What Bangladesh needs is a federal system of governance. Most of the systemic architecture is there, we have District Commissioners and local government leadership structures as well as local mayors in place in the other cities – what we do not have is clout and wherewithal to get things done without permission from central government.

The divisions should be allowed semi-autonomy and the governors allowed to implement their own local requirements for power, infrastructure, education. They should be allowed to invite businesses to invest in the area through special zones or preferred tax rates, etc. That way if new industries enter otherwise isolated/neglected zones it will translate to better paying jobs and in turn inject growth in housing, roads, schools, etc and bring economic dignity to areas that were previously compelled to wait government handouts and partisan representation in parliament.

Sales taxes would be proportioned out to federal tax and national tax, such that some of the revenue would stay in the district for development of infrastructure and other facilities. Divisions would compete against each other for development and investment – and because the better developed divisions and those with more efficient local governments would invite people to move in, it would be mean two things – lesser pressure on Dhaka as people who don't have to be there move out (unclogging the roads), and also divisions the get the influx grow richer from the taxes these new denizens pay.

So Lesson 7 – divide and divest takes some of the investment (and traffic) designated for Dhaka and put it in areas that hitherto was not getting its requisite development funding. People can then live closer to home because suddenly that home can meet their needs for job opportunities, schooling, infrastructure, medicine, etc - eventually benefiting the nation.

The plus is that the streets of Dhaka are suddenly freer and the urgency for infrastructure in Dhaka, while still there, can be tackled more systematically and with more breathing time.

Hand of Hope: This you gotta see...

2011-09-27T10:13:00.001+02:00

The picture is that of a 21-week-old unborn baby named Samuel Alexander Armas, who is being
operated on by surgeon named Joseph Bruner. The baby was diagnosed with spina bifida and would not survive if removed from his mother's womb.

Little Samuel's mother, Julie Armas, is an obstetrics nurse in Atlanta. She knew of Dr. Bruner's remarkable surgical procedure. Practicing at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, he performs these special operations while the baby is still in the womb.

During the procedure, the doctor removes the uterus via C-section and makes a small incision to operate on the baby. As Dr. Bruner completed the surgery on Samuel, the little guy reached his tiny, but fully developed hand through the incision and firmly grasped the surgeon's finger. Dr.
Bruner was reported as saying that when his finger was grasped, it was the most emotional moment of his life, and that for an instant during the procedure he was just frozen, totally immobile.

The photograph captures this amazing event with perfect clarity. The editors titled the picture, "Hand of Hope." The text explaining the picture begins, "The tiny hand of 21-week-old fetus Samuel Alexander Armas emerges from the mother's uterus to grasp the finger of Dr. Joseph Bruner as if thanking the doctor for the gift of life."

Little Samuel's mother said they "wept for days" when they saw the picture. She said, "The photo reminds us pregnancy isn't about disability or an illness, it's about a little person" Samuel was born in perfect health, the operation 100 percent successful.

Why should you read this obituary?

2011-09-23T08:40:00.000+02:00

Michael Stern Hart... all heart

Unfortunately media failed to notice that Michael Stern Hart- founder of the Project Gutenberg- passed away on 6th September.

Here is his obituary:

Michael Stern Hart was born in Tacoma, Washington on March 8, 1947. He died on September 6, 2011 in his home in Urbana, Illinois, at the age of 64. His is survived by his mother, Alice, and brother, Bennett. Michael was an Eagle Scout (Urbana Troop 6 and Explorer Post 12), and served in the Army in Korea during the Vietnam era.

Hart was best known for his 1971 invention of electronic books, or eBooks. He founded Project Gutenberg, which is recognized as one of the earliest and longest-lasting online literary projects.

He often told this story of how he had the idea for eBooks. He had been granted access to significant computing power at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. On July 4 1971, after being inspired by a free printed copy of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, he decided to type the text into a computer, and to transmit it to other users on the computer network. From this beginning, the digitization and distribution of literature was to be Hart's life's work, spanning over 40 years.

Hart was an ardent technologist and futurist. A lifetime tinkerer, he acquired hands-on expertise with the technologies of the day: radio, hi-fi stereo, video equipment, and of course computers. He constantly looked into the future, to anticipate technological advances. One of his favorite speculations was that someday, everyone would be able to have their own copy of the Project Gutenberg collection or whatever subset desired. This vision came true, thanks to the advent of large inexpensive computer disk drives, and to the ubiquity of portable mobile devices, such as cell phones.

Hart also predicted the enhancement of automatic translation, which would provide all of the world's literature in over a hundred languages. While this goal has not yet been reached, by the time of his death Project Gutenberg hosted eBooks in 60 different languages, and was frequently highlighted as one of the best Internet-based resources.

A lifetime intellectual, Hart was inspired by his parents, both professors at the University of Illinois, to seek truth and to question authority. One of his favorite recent quotes, credited to George Bernard Shaw, is characteristic of his approach to life: "Reasonable people adapt themselves to the world. Unreasonable people attempt to adapt the world to themselves. All progress, therefore, depends on unreasonable people."

Michael prided himself on being unreasonable, and only in the later years of life did he mellow sufficiently to occasionally refrain from debate. Yet, his passion for life, and all the things in it, never abated.

Frugal to a fault, Michael glided through life with many possessions and friends, but very few expenses. He used home remedies rather than seeing doctors. He fixed his own house and car. He built many computers, stereos, and other gear, often from discarded components.

Michael S. Hart left a major mark on the world. The invention of eBooks was not simply a technological innovation or precursor to the modern information environment. A more correct understanding is that eBooks are an efficient and effective way of unlimited free distribution of literature. Access to eBooks can thus provide opportunity for increased literacy. Literacy, and the ideas contained in literature, creates opportunity.

In July 2011, Michael wrote these words, which summarize his goals and his lasting legacy: “One thing about eBooks that most people haven't thought much is that eBooks are the very first thing that we're all able to have as much as we want other than air. Think about that for a moment and you realize we are in the right job." He had this advice for those seeking to make literature available to all people, especially children: "Learning is its own reward. Nothing I can say is better than that."

Michael is remembered as a dear friend, who sacrificed personal luxury to fight for literacy, and for preservation of public domain rights and resources, towards the greater good.

This obituary is granted to the public domain by its author, Dr. Gregory B. Newby.