Feeds
8152 items (0 unread) in 54 feeds
Welcome to Mashada Blogs! Read all your favourite blogs in one place.
«
Expand/Collapse
-
-
23:56
From: assidous
Read This Entry & More At assidous
This is a dated post by kumekucha which is quite revolutionary by Kenyan standard, and he rightly says so. For this blogger, its not really so farfetched. The qualities i must say are what we really need to get to the next level. Here it is: The charade in Mombasa involving presidential hopeful Kalonzo Musyoka and a highly charged jeering crowd and the rest of the high drama revolving around ODM's selection of a presidential candidate is really occupying many Kenyans. One of the reasons for this is that many believe that if ODM sticks together and supports one candidate for the presidency, they will win the presidency hands down. What we have all failed to do is to soberly look at the work that needs to be done so that we may seek the candidate best suited for the office of president. Many Kenyans choose to be "realists" instead and in the process we fall neatly into the plans of the political ruling class. I urge all you "realists" out there to spare a moment to read this article and also our guest post by a Michael Mundia Kamau. It is my hope that your eyes will be opened. At the very least I beg you to think outside the box. Because we have some extraordinary challenges and problems facing us in Kenya just now, which cannot be solved using the same old tricks which have failed us in the past. Many times, my ideas here have been dismissed and I have been called a dreamer. And yet the saddest thing that can ever happened to a human being is for them to stop dreaming. I once met an old man in his late 60s at a jua kali garage where I had taken my ramshackle of a vehicle for repairs. It was a time in my life when I was facing so many problems and auctioneers were around the corner waiting to pounce on my car at any time. The man looked at my car admiringly and said to the mechanic in Kikuyu that in his entire life he had never owned a car. That’s statement struck me and I realized that every little kid dreams of owning a car, but what happens along the way? Many of them become "realists" and they lose the dream and in many cases the chance to own their own car. I hope I am not getting too deep when I say that life gives only that which you demand and nothing more, nothing less. What a man can dream of having, deeply desire and even imagine having, life will always give. But "realists" true to their realism receive only what is within their realistic reasoning. My question here has always been; even after the harsh reality and hard knocks of this life, can you dare dream? Are you man enough to dream of something bigger than a car? Can you dream big dreams? Like a just government led by a fearless courageous president (preferably not older than 45) ready to give all for the cause of a better Kenya? Can you dare dream of playing a part in installing such a president as the fourth president of Kenya? But let us start with a job description. What is the job on hand waiting for the 4th president of Kenya? Here is a short list; 1) Must be courageous enough to constitute a truth and reconciliation commission to bury all the skeletons in Kenya's closet because that is the only way we can have a truly new beginning. 2) Be courageous enough to take some tough decisions that will be politically unpopular but will be for the greater good of the country, like 1) above which will mean various popular tribal chiefs confessing their terrible sins and thus destroying their future political careers to stay out of prison. Others will refuse to confess and will have to be jailed or punished according to the law. 3) Be courageous enough to end corruption from the top. President Kibaki sounded very determined making his acceptance speech shortly after being sworn in as the 3rd President on that unforgettable December day, 2002. So what happened after that? I will tell you. Powerful forces came into play and the president had to survive. He had to abandon the dream and be a realist. Kenya cannot afford a repeat in the fourth president, we are rapidly running out of time here. 4) Be courageous enough to tackle tribalism head-on. For starters by appointing persons from as many different tribes across the country as possible to key positions. And also by passing laws that will clamp down hard on tribalism and any future administration that will "want to do things the way they have always been done." 5) Courageous enough to tackle the huge land crisis which is a time bomb waiting to blow this country into many tiny fragments if it is not dealt with quickly, like yesterday. 6) Courageous enough to implement new creative (out of the box) ideas that will make use of the resources that we have in plenty lying idle in the country while Kenyans suffer. Resources like lots of idle land and idle labour (Kenya's labor force is the most highly skilled and qualified on the continent today). We also have plenty of sun that can be turned into electricity. Enough rain to end all our water problems with the right rain harvest and storage strategy and policies etc. 7) But most of all courageous enough to start their administration with one priority. To get Kenyans working whether it is abroad or locally, to create laws and policies that encourage existing employers to employ more people and also to grow small businesses dramatically with a lot of help from the government because small businesses are the largest creators of employment in the world (not big foreign investors establishing factories in Kenya. Did you see what happened with the EPZ's.) With all due respect to my dear readers and their preferred presidential candidates, let us remember that what we are doing here is not the same thing as naming our favorite soccer striker in the English premiership. Or our favorite ice-cream flavor. This is a matter of grave importance. A matter of life or death for many ordinary voiceless Kenyans. In fact the lives of millions of Kenyans hangs on it and that of your children and great grand children many generations to come. We cannot afford to get it wrong this time. Resigning ourselves to 2012 is suicide because one wrong move and we will not have a country left by 2009 let alone 2012. Can't you see the writing on the wall? With this in mind I respectfully disqualify the following candidates; Raila Odinga: does not qualify because despite his demonstrated courage, there is no way he will be able to deal with corruption with the current structure in ODM because many (if not all) of his tribal chiefs he is relying on to corner votes in various parts of the country are suspects of grand corruption. William Ruto should tell us how he made his wealth. Sally Kosgei whom Raila has been warning up to also has scandals linked to her. Musalia Mudavadi knows a thing or two about Goldenberg (the single scum that impoverished and killed the largest number of Kenyans in the history of our country). The same thing that happened to President Kibaki's resolve is bound to happen to his come March 2008 when the pressure will be unbearable. Kalonzo Musyoka: I do not want to repeat that it is a fact that he hid in the National assembly toilets to avoid voting on important matters of national importance in parliament. Mr Musyoka told the Sunday Nation that he is a revolutionary. I'm sorry but that is laughable. These are not the Kanu days when mere words and slogans were peddled countrywise as the gospel truth and Kenyans were forced to swallow it hook line and sinker or else… I have tried very hard to look for something courageous that this fellow tribes-mate of mine has done in his life and the only one that comes close was his attendance of the controversial ODM rally in Mombasa last weekend. And the fact that he asked a hammer wielding charged, emotional man in the crowd to pass the hammer to him. That was brave. I can't imagine this guy driving out the influential drug Lords who control Kenya at the moment and have made the country one of the major transit points in the world for all sorts of illicit drugs. Or saying "No" to the corrupt moneyed and very dangerous individuals who are the real rulers of Kenya. Let me stop there and drop names of two individuals who have proved their bravery and ability to risk everything on a matter or principal. This is what we badly need in Kenya today. John Githongo: John Githongo's Dad is a close friend of the President. Imagine that! Githongo was so principled that he was willing to say "No" to his own family and close friends. In fact many Kikuyus view him as an enemy instead of the national hero that he is. Believe me it would have been very easy for John to just turn the other way and play ball and he would have been a very wealthy man today and comfortably living in his own country instead of in exile. And amongst other things his father's outstanding bank loan would have quickly been paid off a long time ago. It is not an impossible dream to get John Githongo elected the 4th President of Kenya. It can be done. All we need to do is agree and the means will be found quicker that you think. I dream of a Githongo presidency that will give Kenya the true new beginning that we all seek. Stephen Muiruri: The former Nation crime editor is an example of the kind of character that we should be thinking of for this high office. Don't laugh. Remember we agreed to think outside the box here. If you carefully study the kind of wars this brother of ours is fighting, you will begin to understand where I am going with this. The 4th president will need to be a courageous fighter. This is not the time to dream of long motorcades and everybody calling you "your excellency" which is what the ODM brigade and everybody else is dreaming about. I bet you none of them are thinking about the ordinary Kenyans who have lost all hope and now have to face the prospect of losing their head even when they are desperately confronting the challenge of putting food on the table amid record economic growth figures. Somebody has put it in the minds of Kenyans, and sadly including readers of this blog that to be president somebody needs to be very well known and already a politician. I put it to you that as per the current constitution anybody can become president. ANYBODY. All he needs are votes. Al we need is a people-driven wave to sweep our chosen candidate to victory. We can put anybody we want on that seat as long as enough of us have unity of purpose. All we have to do is reach across all the imaginary tribal boundaries like we are starting to do in this blog and seat down and agree. I dream of a situation where the Nark-Kenya brigade will be busy fighting amongst themselves over parliamentary seat nominees for the party as ODM holds endless discussions over which one of them will be the party's presidential candidate (the reason why they can't decide is because of GREED, nothing else) and meanwhile we ordinary folks say enough is enough and make our own plans. After all it is we who have the voting cards, is it not? The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. There is nothing, which the mind of a man can imagine and dream about that cannot be turned into a reality. Most of all my friends, I dream of the day when all of you will abandon your preferred presidential candidate for us to join together to change our country. The above article was blogged by Kumekucha on July 10th 2007 and re-blogged here by Assidous.
-
21:56
From: Kenyanentrepreneur.com
Read This Entry & More At Kenyanentrepreneur.com
I’m reading this article in the NYT about quantitative trading and computer driven research, which supposedly tells you when to buy and sell stocks, on a minute by minute basis.
So, a lot of these “quants” have Ph.D’s in finance and mathematics and I’ve never quite been able to figure out what these guys do. Is [...]
-
21:32
From: Walk of Kings:
Read This Entry & More At Walk of Kings:
Its funny that recently I have been thinking about destiny a lot . My walk has been full of struggles infact most of which are my own making .The excuse for me has always been its natural or I cant help myself . To be honest being double minded is hard and what’s worse is that God hates a double minded man . You cant walk in faith and walk in the world no matter how much you rationalize it .
I often go through periods in my life where I take stock of what I have been doing and what I really want in life . I know what I want in life and I know the way to achieve what I want can only be done through one road .Yes that straight and narrow road that I keep stumbling off. .I know I have not been totally committed to my walk and I have rationalized many things away but I know what I have to do !
Walking the walk has never been easy .The fact step to making it is accepting that the walk is hard
-
19:52
From: Walk of Kings:
Read This Entry & More At Walk of Kings:
You cant embrace the future and hold on to the past .A couple of months ago I started preparing for a move into a future I did not know. All I knew at the time was that my skills and potential were being wasted and I need a change . Through out 2006 I said the same thing over and over to myself but the thought of moving into something that was unknown kept me from making my move .The funny thing is I have never made a move in my life that did not succeed .so it wasn’t the fear of failure that kept me from moving it was just the fear of the unknown and the comfort of my current position .Needless to say I kept putting off the move . I kept saying at the end of this month I will resign and move on .only to find myself coming up with a reason to stay . So while I was preparing for change and doing what I needed to do to prepare for the unknown I larked the guts to move . I set up all sorts of terms and condition to resign only to make more when those conditions were met . I will resign when I have x amount saved . When x amount was in the bank I would say I need another x amount . Funny enough the company got a new boss and soon layoffs were in the wax .First to go was my immediate boss who was the hiring manager .Then a few weeks later I was called into a meeting with senior management . Your position is being terminated ! You should have seen the smile on my face . Mentally and financially I was prepared but God had allowed circumstances and events to push me out into what I did not know . Its been almost two months since that day . I am still job hunting but God has been taking care of me .My finances are still in very Good shape and my hopes are still high . Its funny how God watched while I larked the courage to lip .My faith would have been much stronger had I jumped and put my faith in God rather than being pushed . But I thank God because he is a God of wonder and second chances .When I needed a push He gave me a push .I can remember the faces on the people who let me Go the shock that I wasn’t angry , infact I was smiling because I knew God was up to something . Destiny was calling and fate was finally catching up with me . Anyway You cant have what you want in life ,If you hold on to the past you are tired of . You might not get the chance I got when I was pushed to the unknown . You only live once take a risk and let God work it out .
-
19:31
From: White African
Read This Entry & More At White African
In May of this year, a week before I got to South Africa, I was interviewed for South African Broadcasting Corporation’s (SABC) Radio 2000 show about AfriGadget. The interviewer asked me some questions that really made me start thinking about what AfriGadget has become and the platform it represents to continue fostering the type of change that needs to be encouraged in Africa.
I write more about this on my last AfriGadget post, where I talk about the evolution that the site is going through. What isn’t mentioned is that I’ll be spending a lot more time trying to make things happen. The team of editors and myself have come up with a strategic plan for growth that necessitates me directing more time to see it come to fruition.
I’m excited about the possibilities and the real world change that can happen when we actively do something, rather than just talk about it.
We’ll continue to bring you the same types of stories, augmented with some great new website features. If the right partnerships emerge, we’ll be leading some projects in Africa that create a way to invest in African micro-entrepreneurs directly.
If anyone would like to partner with us on a project, contact me.
-
19:28
From: AfriGadget
Read This Entry & More At AfriGadget
First off, I’d like to thank the thousands of readers who visit AfriGadget every week. It’s been great to see the amount of interest that innovation Africa-style engenders. I’d like to give a little update on what’s been happening and where we’re going with AfriGadget in the near future. If you’d like to help in some way, please contact me.
Some AfriGadget Groups
AfriGadget Flickr Group - We have an image gallery on Flickr that you can take part in. Tag your images “AfriGadget” and add them to the AfriGadget group.
AfriGadget Facebook Group - Just started this month, the AfriGadget Facebook group is a place that you can talk to other AfriGadget readers and find like-minded friends.
Website Redesign
This has been a long time coming. The current site has some problems that we’d like to “fix” via a redesign. We’ll still be using WordPress, but want to make it more accessible and increase the breadth of information available. Feedback indicates that people like the look and feel of the current site, so we’ll try and stay pretty true to what you see now.
There has been an ever increasing number of emails asking for more information on specific projects, as well as a great deal of interest from people who want to purchase some of the items that we’ve shown on AfriGadget. We’re going to be building in some of those features into the new site.
Helping Micro-Entrepreneurs
I’ve had a number of interviews by different media outlets over the last couple months, and one specific interview by a South African radio company really hit me. They asked, “How does AfriGadget help the Africans who are beings showcased?”. I didn’t have an answer - or, I did, but the answer was “not at all”.
In the new site, we would like to work with an organization like Kiva, and their partners, to create ways for people to invest in some of the entrepreneurs that we talk about. In the cases where it makes sense, we’ll also help the entrepreneurs sell some of their items via our website.
Growing AfriGadget
The website initiative is only one of the three that we’re planning for this year. If we can find the right partners, we’ll be announcing some projects that a couple AfriGadget editors will be leading that are, quite frankly, much more exciting and “big” than a website redesign. As we grow AfriGadget we’re looking for partners who can help us. Contact me if you’d like to know more about those initiatives!
All of us do AfriGadget on the side. The growth of the site that I have outlined above is meant to benefit the innovators in Africa, not those of us who manage and create content for this site.
-
14:36
From: Me, Life & Everything
Read This Entry & More At Me, Life & Everything
Rendezvous: 2236hrs
Prolixity: Short
Mood: Sad
Whereabouts: Home
Echelon: I
Track: 4 in the morning -Gwen Stephani.
A sad and overly pessimistic title, i know, and ps i looove that song, was in some deep thought a little earlier and for some reason my late best pal came to mind and it was a little bit of a battle to remain [...]
-
12:00
From: tHiNkEr'S rOoM
Read This Entry & More At tHiNkEr'S rOoM
In the new found spirit of adventure, this Sunday Roberta and I found ourselves visiting one of my godsons. You are well on the path to being a distinguished gentleman when you are Shortlisted for the post of Godfather Actually awarded the post of Godfather Have been ...
-
7:47
From: You Missed This
Read This Entry & More At You Missed This
August 13, 2007 Dear Njoroge, I have decided to write this Open Letter to you after I had read in Kumekucha the very moving letter Tom Mboya’s son, Lucas, has published asking to assist in solving the murder of his father. Here also your name came up together with Njonjo, Koinange and Moi, a.o.. And that’s when I started wondering what to do and came up with the idea of writing to you directly asking you to tell the world what you know about this and other cases like J.M. Kariuki and Dr. Robert Ouko etc. Please understand me, I do not want to join those implicating you – but I would like to offer you to come out to say what you know. Do this for yourself and for the benefit of Kenya – the country you have been proud to have been able to assist to lead into a better future after Independence, first as Minister for Health and then Foreign Affairs. I have seen the interview you gave to the Stanford University remembering your accomplishments. There is a lot to be proud of - but there is also a lot to regret…….. You have reached the twilight of your years – we both have – but I want to remember you as the caring man I once loved. A man who listened to the problems of the people in his constituency to whom you had reserved each Friday when the Parliament was closed. I have seen them waiting in front of your office with the deep assurance of your help. And I have watched with admiration how patiently you were then listening to their problems and how happy you have been if and when you were able to help…… I have seen the way you have treated your employees and farm workers – with patience and respect. And exactly mainly all this had been the main reason why I felt in love with you. I also remember what you told me about Dr. Ouko: that it was you who convinced President Kenyatta to appoint him Minister for Economy because you had realized his qualities during his time in Arusha. A feeling which was mutual, as Dr. Ouko once told me when we were driving back from Kisumu to Nairobi. He wanted to follow your example when he was appointed Minister for Foreign Affairs in 1979 because he always admired your style and your achievements. I then also remember what you wrote to me once after Dr. Ouko was killed: ‘You and Dr. Ouko should have never gotten involved in the Molasses Plant – a project tainted and doomed by too many politicians ……’ – I have read all your sadness about his death in these few lines because Kenya had lost another of its great sons…….. But I do not only want to talk about the past – and a very dark period in Kenya’s history. The real reason for this Letter is to look into the future and to try to find a better life for all its people. So somebody has come up with the idea of arranging a so-called Roundtable Discussion …….. and here is my challenge to you: Would you be willing to chair and also host it (and maybe even helping in covering its expenses) ? Place and date could be discussed, but it should be outside Kenya since some of its participants are living abroad. My proposal was Switzerland and I would be willing to organize it. What do you think ? Somebody has called me ‘A master of foreign politics and propaganda’ – although I was laughing when reading it, I admit I also have been honored by it. But I would more than willingly be pleased to pass this title to you. So – please – agree to my proposal. Do it in the memory of the love we once shared, do it for the admiration and love my daughter still holds for you – but most of all, do it for the Children of Kenya so they can have a better and brighter future ……… and then, last but not least, do it for yourself………. You know my email-address and phone number ………. Awaiting your reply, With all my love, Marianne Read the statement from Lucas Mboya that started it all.
-
7:25
From: Farmgal
Read This Entry & More At Farmgal
one, I really am thinking of going to university =3yrs
I want to live in Kenya…where?
I can go university at home but don’t know if I can afford it!
What will I do with my car in Kenya?
Relationship errrr lets not get into that!
God I need Help!!!!!!!
Am confused beyond…I feel like a hyena at cross roads.
-
7:07
From: You Missed This
Read This Entry & More At You Missed This
kumekucha blog article directory By Faith McCoyFor your website or blog to be viable, make more money, and sell more products, you need traffic. The problem is that most folks have no idea of the basics involved in generating traffic. The basics start with you ensuring that your site has been indexed with the major search engines like Google. Yahoo and MSN. Most sites with little or no traffic have NOT been indexed. And yet it is so easy to get indexed. Being indexed means that somebody using keyword phrases at a search engine will be able to find your site. Simply having links pointing to your site from high ranked article directory sites and blogs will get you indexed very quickly as well as generate tremendous traffic in your direction. The right way to make this happen is to write articles and post them at those article directories with resource boxes at the bottom containing links pointing to your site. It is that simple. Folks online are always looking for useful content to re-post at their site which means that if your articles are good, they will tend to get re-posted much more widely and quickly which will create even more traffic and even more links pointing to your site. The other basic rule to always remember if you want to increase traffic, is that content is truly king. The better quality the content, the higher the traffic and the more successful your site will be. The same old offline rule where the content of a magazine or newspaper decides how many copies they end up selling also applies online. Did you know that headlines can make the difference between a supermarket tabloid selling a few hundred copies and a million copies? The same applies to the headlines you select for your online content. ----------------------------------------------------------- Discover more traffic and ghost writer secrets. Or get a glimpse into the way a real professional online ghost writer works. Other articles in this blog article directory; Article on resume/CV writingOn writing and self publishing booksTerm Life Insurance Mystery That Is Well Hidden And The Most Valuable Business Tip You Will Ever Read
-
7:01
From: My Africa Today
Read This Entry & More At My Africa Today
|
|
|
| BusinessWeek’s recent article on rising outsourcing destinations highlights what many African entrepreneurs have proposed for years. Outsourcing to parts of Africa can be a win-win situation. The BusineesWeek article refers to consultancy A.T. Kearney’s 2007 list of the 50 most desirable outsourcing destinations worldwide. For the list countries were ranked by a) financial attractiveness, based on such measures as compensation and infrastructure costs; b) a so-called people score, measuring a nation’s people skills, availability of language and educational skills, and the size and quality of the IT industry; and c) their economic/political environment, infrastructure quality, cultural exposure, and IP security. While India remains the top outsourcing destination many African countries are learning from their example. (Note: Scores are in parentheses.)
Rank - Country (overall - financial - people - environment)
#13 - Egypt (5.6 - 3.2 - 1.1 - 1.3)
#25 - Mauritius (5.4 - 2.8 - 1.0 - 1.6)
#26 - Tunisia (5.4 - 3.0 - 0.9 - 1.5)
#27 - Ghana (5.5 - 3.3 - 0.9 - 1.3)
#31 - South Africa (5.3 - 2.5 - 1.2 - 1.6)
#36 - Morocco (5.1 - 2.9 - 0.9 - 1.3)
#39 - Senegal (5.1 - 3.2 - 0.8 - 1.1)
Other factors which add to a countries’ attractiveness are language and education skills and the reliability of a nation’s telecommunications infrastructure. But the the key underlying factor for many African countries’ successful bid for new business is the lack of infrastructure. While the African digerati are continuously ramping up their skills and making themselves available for business they continuously run into infrastructural limitations. But who is to blame? Is it the governments who are overrun with bureaucracy? or the people themselves, who often do not hold their leaders accountable?
"Offshoring upstarts are making so many inroads, in fact, that by 2012, they’ll significantly dilute India’s dominance, says consultancy Gartner (IT). The consulting firm says that by 2010 about 30% of Fortune 500 enterprises will outsource to three or more countries, from less than 10% today. “So many governments have realized what an opportunity this is and there’s a lot of effort being spent in promoting their countries to the market,” says Johan Gott, manager of A.T. Kearney’s Global Services Location Index.
…Kenya, for instance, is trying to become a destination for business process and IT outsourcing. The Kenyan government has worked in recent years to liberalize its telecom sector, which has lured more operators and helped drive telecom services prices down by 70% in a short time, according to the World Bank. Yet the country relies on satellite connections to link to the rest of the world. That makes it costly for outsourcers to do business." | Customize your mobile with your Complimentary Ringtone!
-
6:36
From: Memories, Sentiments, Rants and Raves
Read This Entry & More At Memories, Sentiments, Rants and Raves
They dated for a year. On Friday, she sent an SOS and came over. I offered wine and she declined that was strange i know my girl she never turns down liquor. I made her tea instead and got my wine. I asked her how is baba and she laughed then sighed. She: mamie am pregnant". Me: Ok, what does baba think about the whole thing? She: he said "Woman,sort yourself out, am confused" ME: then? She: He hasn't called and when i call him he wont answer.
What is wrong with some men,of course you knew when you were stroking that this might happen. Confused, sort myself out? Whatever happened to confessions of undying love and forever. These are the worthless men who give good men a bad name!
-
6:33
From: My Africa Today
Read This Entry & More At My Africa Today
“Pluto” wins 2006 Name of the Year In its meeting in Anaheim, California, on January 5, 2007, members of the American Name Society voted “Pluto” as the Name of the Year for 2006. The runner-up for Name of the Year was “Macaca”, which received only one vote less than “Pluto.” The second runner-up was “Flickr”. The final vote was taken among the five nominees “Blue Dog Democrats,” “Flickr,” “Macaca,” “Pluto,” and “Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt,” which had been chosen from twelve original nominees by a committee. All twelve original nominees, along with the rationales for their nominations, were: Ahmadinejad -- The President of Iran became a prominent character for the United States in 2005-2006. He is repeatedly being denounced for developing his country's nuclear facilities. His religious affiliation with the Shiites in Iraq affects the United States involvement in Iraq. He has repeatedly made public statements for attention by the people of the United States. His eligibility for nomination for Name of the Year is reinforced by his potential future importance, either as a constructive or destructive leader of a nation of special importance in the Middle East. Barbaro -- After a year of rebuilding lives in the hurricane stricken southern states, floods and devastating fires out west and a sad and controversial war in Iraq, this name represents all what we are seeking as humans. Barbaro in his peak as a race horse brought happiness, excitement, courage, bravery, strength, good sportsmanship and sheer beauty. When he was injured and near death, he got humans to pray, appreciate life and ask for hope. Now with his amazing recovery, he does all of those things for humans all over again. Beatrice -- This name is VERY important in the best-selling Lemony Snicket books. Through all of the books, Snicket keeps the name Beatrice exactly the same, but treats it in a different way in each book. She is the mysterious woman who in the dedications is the recipient of his fondest feelings. The humor comes in the way Snicket creates variations on the theme of missing her. He starts with alliteration and surprise: “To Beatrice—darling, dearest, dead.” Then he plays with switching from literal to metaphorical meanings as in “For Beatrice—You will always be in my heart, in my mind, and in your grave.” “For Beatrice—When we were together I felt breathless. Now you are,” and “For Beatrice—Our love broke my heart, and stopped yours.” Judging from Book the Twelfth, she died in a house fire as did the Baudelaire’s parents: “No one could extinguish my love, or your house.” He uses contrast in “For Beatrice—When we met, my life began. Soon afterwards, yours ended,” and comparison in “For Beatrice—Summer without you is as cold as winter. Winter without you is even colder.” “Book the Fourth” has the longest dedication: To Beatrice—My love flew like a butterfly, Until death swooped down like a bat. As the poet Emma Montana McEllroy said: “That’s the end of that.” Books Tenth and Eleventh, respectively, are perhaps the most enigmatic. “For Beatrice—When we met, you were pretty, and I was lonely. Now, I am pretty lonely,” and “For Beatrice—Dead women tell no tales/ Sad men write them down.” In the final Book the Thirteenth, he writes, "I cherished, you perished, The world's been nightmarished." Here he hints that Beatrice was the mother of the Baudelaire children, but readers are still left with lots to wonder about. “Blue Dog Democrats” -- The name comes from the fact that they represent the “blue states,” but they’re not typical Democrats. They’re sort of “dogs” as “Democrats. On National Public Radio they explained that before the “Blue Dog Democrats” there were the “Yellow Dog Democrats.” These are the Democrats located at the far left. They are called “Yellow Dog Democrats” because “they would vote for a Democrat even if it were a Yellow Dog.” It is said that when the moderate democrats heard about the “Yellow Dog Democrats,” they “turned blue,” and that is how they became the “Blue Dog Democrats.” Flickr -- Flickr was a little-known website when it came on the scene in early 2004, but a blog post (http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2005/10/the_new_rules_o.html ) by Seth Godin in October of 2005 pointed out the apparent greatness of the name to marketers around the world. Marketers are now often asked by their business clients if dropping a letter from a real word makes a good corporate name. All of this is because of that one name. How has this affected the world? Well, in less than an hour of searching on the internet over sixty companies that use exactly the same naming convention (dropping the penultimate vowel before a closing "r".) were found by the original nominator of this name. Poems have been written as an homage to the practice - composed entirely from real website and company names. Jack -- It’s been the #1 most popular name in the UK for a decade and is steadily rising in the US. On television it belongs to the protagonists on the popular shows 24, Lost, Stargate and Alias, and it is also the name of the main character from this year's most successful movie, Pirates of the Caribbean 2, Jack Sparrow. This traditional name for an “everyman” now has a modern sophisticated and popular image all around the English speaking world. “Macaca” -- Early in the Senate race in Virginia, incumbent republican George Allen was leading democratic challenger Jim Webb by double-digit margins. Most political pundits, as well as most Virginians themselves, thought Allen was unbeatable in what was in 2000 and 2004 a solidly republican state. That changed on August 11, at a campaign rally in southwest Virginia, where Allen pointed out a Webb campaign worker of Indian descent in the crowd using a racial slur: "This fellow here...Macaca, or whatever his name is. ...Lets give a welcome to Macaca, here. Welcome to America and the real world of Virginia." The young man to whom Allen referred was taping the event, and overnight Allen's insensitivity and potential bigotry were important campaign issues. His lead over Webb vanished within a week. Today Allen conceded the race, resulting in the U.S. Congress changing from republican to democratic control for the first time in nearly two decades. The term "Macaca moment" now seems to be headed for permanent status as an item in America's political lexicon. The spread of the incident and the name over You Tube also illustrates the new power of that Website in spreading cultural phenomena. “Penguin Space Shuttle” -- This was the nickname given to a recent space shuttle which was black and white, and which couldn’t fly because of many delays. The illustrates both normal processes of nicknaming, but also the recent fashionable place penguins seem to have had in American society, as exemplified by cartoon characters such as Opus and films such as The March of the Penguins and Happy Feet. Pluto -- In August 2006, the International Astronomical Union, meeting in Prague, decided that Pluto did not meet a strict scientific definition of “planet” and said that Pluto should be called a “dwarf planet”, with the term “planet” reserved for objects whose gravity has cleared the neighborhood around their orbits. This decision immediately caused an uproar in the general public around the world; even some astronomers were upset. The word “plutoed” has already entered the English language to mean “to downgrade, demote, or remove from a prestigious group or list.” The great emotional reaction that many had to the demotion, often expressed as feeling angry or sorry for Pluto, also shows how naming an inanimate object or a place with a personal name, even of an ancient Roman god, helps human beings to become personally attached to them. Restless Leg Syndrome -- Since it is impossible to prescribe medicine for a medical condition that has no name, it is necessary to provide this condition with a name before anyone can sell medicine to treat the condition. For years we’ve all had “restless legs,” but now that it is named the “Restless Leg Syndrome” we can buy medicine to make it better. Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt -- This name symbolized the cult of celebrity gossip. When this child was born in Namibia in May, many joked that this was the most anticipated birth since the Christ child, and then "Brangelina" gave her a Messiah-like name, with a biblically significant place name first and "new" in the middle. The rarity and creativity of the given names, combined with the hyphenated surname, to exemplify the characteristics of today’s celebrity baby names for many Americans. Suri -- When Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes gave this name to their daughter in April 2006, no one really knew if it had a connection with LRON or Scientology. Many believe it was a reference to LRON's hometown, Surrey, England. Cruise’s publicists claimed it was Hebrew for “princess” (perhaps possible as a Yiddish form of Sarah) or Persian for “beautiful red rose.” Whatever its derivation, the speculation surrounding the name is another example of the present cult of celebrity. Customize your mobile with your Complimentary Ringtone!
-
5:03
From: assidous
Read This Entry & More At assidous
It seems that the Bush administration cookie is still crumbling. With Carl Rove, the master architect of the administration quitting, it looks like the end of the beginning of party has not only began, but is still on. Here is the real story: Monday, August 13, 2007; 4:57 AM WASHINGTON - Karl Rove, a political adviser to U.S. President George W. Bush and a lightning rod for anger among Democrats, will leave the White House at the end of this month, Rove told the Wall Street Journal. "I just think it's time," Rove said in an interview with the newspaper published on Monday. "There's always something that can keep you here, and as much as I'd like to be here, I've got to do this for the sake of my family." Article in washingtonpost.com blogged here by assidous
-
4:18
From: Cock And Bull
Read This Entry & More At Cock And Bull
I have always used a soap called Cussons Imperial Leather for my bath. And I suppose the reason is because of its advertisement slogan: A little luxury every day. While most other soaps have gradually moved from, “New” to “New and improved”, to “New and Improved with extra power” etcetera, etcetera, Cussons Imperial Leather has continued to consistently promise “A little luxury every day”.
Sometimes we think that the reason why we are unhappy is because of the things that are missing in our lives. But once so often we come across people who have those things whose lack we imagine are holding back our happiness, and realize that they too are not necessarily happy. A person thinking that lack of money is causing them unhappiness only needs look around at the multitudes of monied people who are down in the doldrums. A person attributing their blues to the lack of a romantic relationship only needs open their eyes to see the many couples who believe that they are unhappy because of the relationships they are in.
Once in a while, a person forgets about all their troubles and becomes genuinely happy. You wake up one morning, the sun is shining, the sky is blue and birds are singing. The world is beautiful. Have you laughed and suddenly realized how long it was before you heard that sound? If a person was to analyze the situation, he or she would realize that it was not the acquisition of that which was missing that made them happy. In most cases people become happy when small, almost insignificant things happen; a child’s toothless laughter, a puppy’s sideways trot, a friend recounting a funny moment, reading about a comical incident, or even remembering the smile of a loved one.
While taking my bath this morning, I realized that I was so preoccupied that I had forgotten all about the joys of washing off soap from the body with warm water. I had forgotten about the comfort of drying off with a fluffy white towel, and the fresh feeling of wearing clean linen garments. I had even forgotten about Cussons Imperial Leather’s timeless promise of “A little luxury every day”.
Happiness is available to us. It appears like the water bubbling from a spring just a short distance from where we are. To feel the coolness of the water, or know how wet it feels, we need to reach out and touch it. It is in the same way that we need to reach out to those things that make us happy, for we already have many of them with us. By promising ourselves a little happiness every day, we do not have to postpone happiness until we become richer, or more famous, or married, or divorced.
Read the complete article at
|
|