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19:10
The No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency is back
» Mshairi Young black man: crime perpetrator/victim of crime Black woman: crime perpetrator /victim of crime/mother of victim Black man: crime perpetrator /victim of crime/father of victim …and so on… There are days when the only images one sees of black people on telly are the above or a combination of the above. I exaggerate, of course, but perhaps not [...]
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19:07
Letter to Kibaki From Moi
» You Missed This (Tongue in the cheek post) Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;}Kabarnet Gardens
Nairobi
My Dear Emilio,
It is with a heavy heart that I write this letter to express my utter disappointment in you and how you have handled things, especially in recent months. As a patriot I am alarmed and very worried about the future of our beloved country.
I have thought long and hard before writing this letter and I hope you will not take anything in it personally.
You know these days I cannot sleep at night. The moment I doze off I wake up only a few minutes later sweating after seeing horrifying nightmares of terrible violence and chaos in Kenya.
Emilio, I have reminded you many times that you are the president of the republic of Kenya and you must take charge of things. And I remind you of this yet again. You know that I have always said (and you know it is true) when you do nothing it is always interpreted as a sign of weakness no wonder people are doing what they want in the country these days as if there is no president. There can only be one result from all this—chaos.
Even the things that presidents have to do, you don’t seem capable of doing properly. I am sorry to ask this again, but why the hell did you not ask for my help if you knew you couldn't steal a presidential election properly? What you did in December 2007 was so obvious and really embarrassing. What were you trying? You know how neatly I used to do my things so that nobody could challenge me. But what you did Emilio was so amateurish and hardly befits a president of the republic of Kenya. In fact the bill for that little fiasco will probably never be footed in the lifetimes of our great grandchildren. Come to think of it, can’t you do anything without it ending in a blunder? Believe you me my friend, all these things are going to catch up with you in a very bad way, make no mistake about that. I am your friend and I am worried that you could end up not only causing grief to yourself but to my family and the Kenyatta family as well. As you know people are now talking g about ending impunity and I have a feeling this campaign will end up with them poking their noses into the past. If you do not care about your children Emilio, I can tell you that I do and I want nothing more but for them to live in peace without being hassled.
Then this thing of keeping a woman you cannot control in State House. I know when you were a minister under me, you and others used to make jokes behind my back about me being a senior bachelor and not having a wife. Well, now we all know who the joke is on don’t we?
Lastly you will know how sensitive I was to hunger problems in the country. You see there are many things you can do to people but things become extremely dangerous when they start going hungry. Correct me if I am wrong but you don’t seem to care let alone realize how dangerous this can be.
Really Emilio, you have to do something and you have to do it pronto because the country is truly sinking into chaos and yet you have all the power to halt this slide. As always I will be available to advice accordingly.
Yours Sincerely,
Daniel T. Arap Moi
Former President and commander in chief of the armed forces, banana republic of Kenya.
Stop Press: Who else is on the hit list that Kamau Kingara was on? In my latest Confidential email newsletter I publish the hit list that is being targeted by assassins. You will be shocked!!! It’s free to subscribe send an email now to: kumekucha-subscribe@yahoogroups.com... and then follow the simple instructions Kumekucha
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14:03
The Nigerian And I Part I
» tHiNkEr'S rOoM I generally get a proliferation of letters from Nigerians/Sierra Leoneans/Cameroonians offering me a handsome cut of profits. I have ignored them all without fail. But one day I thought … why not answer one and see what happens? Strap yourself in and enjoy
Mrs. Rita Williams
49 Featherstone Street
London EC1Y 8SY
United KingdomDear Beloved One,
I apologize if the contents in this mail are contrary to your moral ethics which I feel
may be of great disturbance to your personal life, but I feel quite safe dealing with
you.Though this medium (Internet) has been greatly abused,I choose to reach you
through it because it remains the fastest,surest and most secured medium of communication.
However, this correspondence is purely private, and it should be treated as such.
I am contacting you based on trust and confidentiality.I have reposed higher confidence in your ability to handle this matter perfectly
for my sake. I am serious minded person. I am the above named person from Liberia.
I am married to Mr. Gary Williams who worked with Embassy here in London for nine
years before he died in the year 2003. We were married for eleven years without a
child. He died after a brief illness that lasted for only four days. Before his
death we were both born again christian.Since his death I decided not to re-marry
or get a child outside my matrimonial home which the Bible is against.When my late
husband was alive he deposited the sum of $6.Million (Six Million U.S. Dollars) in
a financial Vault.Presently, this money is still in a financial Vault.Recently, my
Doctor told me that I would not last for the next Eight months due to cancer problem.The one that disturbs me most is mystroke sickness. Having known my condition I
decided to keep this fund in the vault. I want an organization or an individual that will
use this fund for orphanages, widows, propagating the word of God and to
endeavour that the house of God is maintained. The Bible made us to understand that
Blessed is the hand that giveth. I took this decision because I don’t have any child that
will inherit this money and my husband relatives are not Christians and I don’t want my husbands
efforts to be used by unbelievers. I don’t want a situation where this money will be used in an
ungodly way.This is why I am taking this decision. I am not afraid of death hence I know where
I am going. I know that I am going to be in the bosom of the Lord, Exodus 14 VS 14
says that the Lord will fight my case and I shall hold my peace. I don’t need any
telephone communication in this regard because of my health hence the presence of
my husband’s relatives around me always. I don’t want them to know about this
development.With God all things are possible. As soon as I receive your reply I shall contact my lawyer to
do the normal process to enable the bank commence the release Your information as follows are
needed to proceed.1. Your full name
2. Your complete postal address
3. Your private telephone number
4. Your private fax number if any
5. Your age
6. Your accupationMy happiness is that I lived a life of a worthy Christian. Whoever that wants to serve the Lord
must serve him in spirit and truth. Please always be prayerful all through your life. Any delay in your
reply will give me room in sourcing another person for this same purpose.Please assure me that you will act accordingly as I stated herein.
Hoping to receive your reply and Remain blessed in the Lord.
Your’s faithfully,
Mrs. Rita Williams
© M for tHiNkEr'S rOoM, 2009. | Permalink | 9 comments | Add to del.icio.us
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11:15
Small Acts of Possession
» Kenya Imagine On the Presidential front, The Great Silent One continues in his inscrutable ways, his wonders not to perform. Perhaps he believes that politics, like poetry, ‘ is the opening and closing of a door, leaving those who look through to guess at what is seen during a moment,' for he merely peeks out, announces his marital status, and, not noticing the bullets whizzing practically past his nose, goes back inside and closes the door, to our Statehouse.
Was that a metaphor for the state of our country, or a mime?
Wambui Mwangi has a piece so rich it resists easy summary. I'll let you see for yourself. -
The development charade: empowerment, and other myths
» Kenya Imagine
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8:56
Here we go again!
» Memories, Sentiments, Rants and Raves Thanks to Shiroh and Aco, here we go again.
I’M PASSIONATE ABOUT
1. My family especially my folks.
Anyone who knows me well knows how much i love my family.
2. Cooking
I love to cook especially for a man who can really eat.I have collections of recipes and cookbooks.Sunday being my best day to try out recipes.
3. Charity
I love the smile on the faces of those receiving things that they thought they never could or even how a baby who has been abandoned clings to you when you hug them.
4. Traveling
I love to travel preferably alone that way i can be spontaneous.
FOUR WORDS OR PHRASES THAT I USE A LOT
1. For Real
2. Is all ngravy(its all good)
3. Malaria(moods)
4. Sema(tell me whats going on)
THINGS I HAVE LEARNT FROM THE PAST
1.Its always better when you share it with someone else.
2.I can only rely on my family and God most.
3.You can live with alot .
4. At the end of the day, i come first.
PLACES I WANT TO SEE OR VISIT
1. The carribean
2. Brazil carnival
3. Victoria Falls, Zim
4. The Alps
THINGS THAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY
1. Stayed at home to recover.
2. Struggled to get my connection to work and put in some work.
3. Wished my mum was nearer to take care of me.
4. Got a call from long lost friend.
Happy reading, normal programming soon.
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8:52
my knee, schoolwork, naturopathism, rastafariansm, party at the garage, writing, the mother...
» make mine a double espresso... clearly from the title i have alot to write about today, the title is like bullet points so that i don't miss anything out. okay, i popped my knee a crazy one last week thursday. we went for a few drinks, danced abit then pop! me knee cap (or whatever, i'm not in med school) popped out of it's socket (or whatever, i'm not in med school) the pain was of epic proportion. so there i was, on the floor in the middle of the pub, when it happens you can't stand up, crying really loudly, my friends trying to figure out if i fell coz i'm drunk... i took a cab home, called my mother, wept on the phone, went to hospital the next day. apparently, i need surgery coz the problem has been going on for a while. but they (medicine folk always say you need surgery right) so i am now in a beige coloured knee brace, limping around campus. fun stuff!!!
on to other things, my schoolwork, i only have four modules to this semester so i've been cutting class more than i'm proud of. all of that was going to change from this week but my being knee brace won't let me go to school. i've been- what's the expressin for broke? dead broke; piss broke; ummm... dirty broke? (your comments better have answers!!!) so i've been really broke for the past couple off days coz of the hopsital bill and the stupid BEIGE KNEE BRACE! so i couldn't afford a taxi to school no, not cab, a taxi. a matatu. yeah, they're called taxis here. so here i am in the comp lab downloading slides to lectures i've missed hoping that i have good grades by the end of the semester. oh. and yz, i know you'll read this soon, i hope you've been signing me in for sp201... other wise, chop chopped and screwed... sigh...
oh yeah, the naturopathism. so on friday, my landlady, bless her heart picked me up and took me to hospital. i had no idea where it was and i couldn't walk so clearly... on the way there she was talking about how she doesn't to modern medicine and she's more into herbs and stuff and she used to own a health shop and how nature is the best way to treat the body... it went on for a while, then she got into life coaching stuff and energy stuff and how the brain affects the body and certain injuries are an indication of what's bugging us mentally like how if you get a tongue sore, there's something you're keeping in and you need to speak out about it, etc, so apparently me hurting my leg was because there's something i'm supposed to be doing or accomplishing that i'm not... of course it got me thinking but come on, we all have stuff we're supposed to be doing right? i'm really curious about the whole naturopath thing, something new to try out so i'll try get books and stuff. i'll let ya'll know how that goes.
the rastafarian point won't be long. i was thinking of trying out the rasta thing, as in the religion again... but i really love meat, and alcohol, and menthol cigarettes and spices so... i'll look for something else...
there was a party at my house this weekend. it was lame, so me and the cool side of the house decided to go back to my room, which used to be part of a garage by the way but it's totally legit now plus i get a garage door. (yaay!) so cool people plus a bottle of tequila, a bottle of gin, really cool music... and more cool people coming in... come on... of course it became a party. it kicked ass, before we moved it to the club, you know, coz we're cool, but that was a good look for me. the cool party was in my room. score!!! i'd upload pictures but nah... i'd probably get into trouble ;)
this writing thing... i hadn't written poetry in ages. everything was just sounding random but i'm working on it. this last bit is more for me. i'm telling myself everything will be alright. i haven't lost is. i've got some ideas. watch this blog!
finally. just thought i'd mention that my mom is really really cool. she's also having a problem with her left leg... we're like so telepathic!!! i miss her. she's awesome... if you don't know, now you know niggas!!! (watched notorious recently, can't get that line out of my head) that and... i love it when you call me big poppa!
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8:43
African Banks - Internationalisation
» Rants, Raves & Reviews African banks are rather small (assets or capitalisation) compared to their international peers.
The only countries with banks of 'decent' size are either S.African (S.Africa proper), N.African (Egypt, Morocco) or W.African (Ecobank & Nigerian banks).
But as we have seen... size does not matter. After all Bank of America & Citibank are among the largest banks in the USA. And we have Lloyds & HBOS in the UK. All are in trouble.
I expect the large 'international' US banks e.g. Citigroup & BofA will shrink or sell their foreign operations over the next few years to raise cash to pay off debts.
West European 'international' banks are also feeling the hurt including Barclays & UBS. Many French, German & Swiss banks are also hurting.
HSBC & Standard Chartered may survive the current problems but in my view they are really Asian (Chinese & Hong Kong) banks.
Now... I think that most African banks will weather the storm. And grow from strength to strength.Whereas all do not (& cannot) have ambitions to become '' international" banks... I think a few will do so over the next 5 years. And become much stronger. Standard Bank of S. Africa (Stanbic) is moving into other markets by buying out small to mid-sized banks.
I remain a sceptic of Nigerian banks. They have tried to expand but I do NOT trust their balance sheets.
A major factor that will push internationalization of African banks is the return of diasporans with the relevant expertise.
All said and done... I do hope that African banks can reach all parts of Africa. And provide a product to all Africans - whatever their socio-economic status.
Mobile Payment Systems & Mobile Funds Transfer systems have already penetrated huge swathes of the cash transfer market.
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6:41
Do journalists retain rights to their work?
» REBECCA WANJIKU'S BLOG The other day I met Tom Osanjo, a former colleague and friend, and we got into a discussion about the rights that a writer retains.
The issue we were debating was whether journalists retain any rights to the material they publish. There are two schools of thought; there are those who think that once you have written, thats it, the rights shift to the publisher.
Another school of thought holds that the journalist holds the rights and if the publisher wants to use the story or photo again, then they must pay again or something like that.
James, winner of the CNN sports journalist of the year in 2007 gave us his experience; how the organizers of the CNN awards made him sign an agreement that allowed then to redistribute the pictures.
James' argument was that if the rights are retained by the media house, then CNN would have asked the media house for permission to use. That supported the argument that the rights are retained by the writer.
That argument seemed to have preempted a debate that I would have a week later.
Today I found myself weathering a storm in a tea cup.
Sometimes last year, I participated in online discussions about the fiber optic cable and so many other attendant issues. Some of the issues were very technical while others were social-economic.
In writing an article, I went to some old drafts of the daily summaries that I had done and used the material that was summarized for the final report.
The agreement with the organizers was that I still retained rights to the material and was free to use the material so long as it was advancing the wider goals of the ICT sector.
As a journalist, the right to use materials is of paramount importance. The organization and the author did not have any problem. Nevertheless, the article rightly credited the author and the organization.
Forget about my incident, the question I asked was; what happens in those cases when somebody asks you to do a speech on their behalf, do you still retain the rights to the contents of the speech or not?
It got me thinking...... I think I still retain the rights but if someone paid me to do the speech, then the rights go to them.
But still....I think there is much to be debated....
