I remember a joke between my cousins over beer, if one would be president, he would put to death anyone who wants to be given help by everyone except him/herself, which would probably be everyone above the age of 3. Not one of the best jokes I've heard, not even close to being funny, but it got me thinking that it is true how a lot of our brothers and sisters refuse to see tha fact that self-help, as I would lazily term it, would do them good. Waiting for rain, and if it doesn't rain, they would blame everything to that black cat eating a full bowl of cat food most enjoyably given to them by the one now pointing a finger at them for their misfortune... "You cat, you!!! if you weren't so cute and adorable, great with excuses and if you weren't so easy to get along with... I'd be rid of you once and for all", funny...
Now relating to unemployment and the reportedly 5,000 OFWs who came home from being laid-off by their employers, I just hope that this won't multiply the above mentioned point to an even more frightening scale. It's a good thing Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) has launched a package of assistance. A tight program, offers them a Php50,000 non collateral loan. But what's most interesting about this is the pre-requisite of a business proposal and a free bussiness course.
Providing a good start for our brothers and sisters, but the question now is, how will our OFWs respond to this? Relating to an interesting blog post by Jon Limjap, the problem will be if they decide to start up a business, how will they make use of the funds and what kind of business or project would they venture in? Filipinos being one of the most entreprenurial in the world commit a common mistake when going into business, not planning with the end in mind. Sustainability and the potential of the business to be profitable is ofcourse top in mind, but the bigger part of it, is to know when to grow the business further and to know what needs to be accomplished.
An easy thing to say, of course for me who still insn't an entrepreneur. But an very challenging and motivating thing for me to consider on my plans.
Monday 26 January 2009
Sunday 25 January 2009
Who should you ask forgiveness from?
From @inquirerdotnet twitter post:
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/world/view/20090126-185577/Mexico-hit-man-dumped-300-bodies-in-acid
"TIJUANA -- A Mexican hit man who calls himself "The Soupmaker" has revealed how he dumped 300 bodies in vats of acid over the past decade to dispose of their remains for a drug trafficking cartel.
"They brought me the bodies, about 300 over the last nine to 10 years," Santiago Meza Lopez, 45, told reporters Friday a day after his capture by the army.
Meza Lopez said he had been paid some $600 a week for his work by drug boss, Eduardo Garcia Simental. He was arrested Thursday in Tijuana on the border with California, and is among the FBI's most wanted men.
"I ask for forgiveness from the families of the victims," Meza Lopez added.
In 2008, more than 5,300 people died violent deaths connected to cartel activities, with Mexican authorities having deployed some 36,000 police and troops to fight the drug traffickers."
At the most, the line in bold letters made me think, partly made a chuckle, who should he ask forgiveness from? Definitely not from the families of the victims alone. The sincerity of his statement is very much questionable.
Why do we have human burial? One word, respect. Of the whole lot of practices and methods of burial across cultures and distances, the dead need closure. Whether it be for the afterlife or simply avoiding a corpse from emmiting unpleasant odors. A list I got from our friendly dictionary:
1. Respect for the physical remains is considered necessary. If left lying on top of the ground, scavengers may eat the corpse, which is considered highly disrespectful to the deceased in many (but not all) cultures. See Sky burial
2. Burial can be seen as an attempt to bring closure to the deceased's family and friends. By interring a body away from plain view, the pain of losing a loved one can be lessened.
3. Many cultures believe in an afterlife. Burial is often believed to be a necessary step for an individual to reach the afterlife.
4. Many religions prescribe a particular way to live, which includes customs relating to disposal of the dead.
At the end of the day, one would also want respect and closure when he/she leaves the physical world, I wonder if it would bother him if his body was the one to be thrown in acid.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/world/view/20090126-185577/Mexico-hit-man-dumped-300-bodies-in-acid
"TIJUANA -- A Mexican hit man who calls himself "The Soupmaker" has revealed how he dumped 300 bodies in vats of acid over the past decade to dispose of their remains for a drug trafficking cartel.
"They brought me the bodies, about 300 over the last nine to 10 years," Santiago Meza Lopez, 45, told reporters Friday a day after his capture by the army.
Meza Lopez said he had been paid some $600 a week for his work by drug boss, Eduardo Garcia Simental. He was arrested Thursday in Tijuana on the border with California, and is among the FBI's most wanted men.
"I ask for forgiveness from the families of the victims," Meza Lopez added.
In 2008, more than 5,300 people died violent deaths connected to cartel activities, with Mexican authorities having deployed some 36,000 police and troops to fight the drug traffickers."
At the most, the line in bold letters made me think, partly made a chuckle, who should he ask forgiveness from? Definitely not from the families of the victims alone. The sincerity of his statement is very much questionable.
Why do we have human burial? One word, respect. Of the whole lot of practices and methods of burial across cultures and distances, the dead need closure. Whether it be for the afterlife or simply avoiding a corpse from emmiting unpleasant odors. A list I got from our friendly dictionary:
1. Respect for the physical remains is considered necessary. If left lying on top of the ground, scavengers may eat the corpse, which is considered highly disrespectful to the deceased in many (but not all) cultures. See Sky burial
2. Burial can be seen as an attempt to bring closure to the deceased's family and friends. By interring a body away from plain view, the pain of losing a loved one can be lessened.
3. Many cultures believe in an afterlife. Burial is often believed to be a necessary step for an individual to reach the afterlife.
4. Many religions prescribe a particular way to live, which includes customs relating to disposal of the dead.
At the end of the day, one would also want respect and closure when he/she leaves the physical world, I wonder if it would bother him if his body was the one to be thrown in acid.
Tuesday 13 January 2009
Downright practical use of online Social Networks
I got this from @wilsonng, twitter. Very practical use of Online Social Networks:
http://scobleizer.com/2009/01/12/if-you-are-laid-off-heres-how-to-socially-network/
I started using social networking sites/networks when I was in college just for the sole reason of being into it. The girls. The network of friends that will come with it. So everything there was, from my point of view today, useless. If I remember right, on my Friendster account, my description of myself before was just "an average guy". Nothing intellectual about it, nothing really interesting about it. Who would be interested with someone who is average.
Having the opportunity of being with great and inspiring people on my first job, current one, I saw the difference of treatment with the online community. I wasn't very much active online, as I was offline, before. They had a wealth of friends, opportunities, learning and other open doors or windows from their networks. Blogs, online forums of every interesting kind, mailing lists, formal articles, events, professional networks, resources and knowledge that were there and that were taken advantage of. I guess it really helped build the attitude. Helping build the very powerful notion of "self-help", that the Internet exists not only for porn, multi -media downloads, game FAQs, walkthroughs, women, men, pirated and cracked software or tools. It's one, a pool of great wisdom and knowledge. Two, a very helpful friend if you need complete, mundane, and even fake answers. Three, a venue for great ways to meet interesting and intellectual people that can help you form your art/interest, or help improve it. Four, as said in the link above, a way to help you find a job.
Taking advantage of the opportunities, I have already changed my view on the internet. I now have sense on my sites. And coming off from my point of view of it before, I am now constantly reaching other audiences, not only those already in the community, but also those who still are clueless of how powerful "knowledge that is freely and easily available" is, like the internet. I had an experience of teaching people how to use the internet, explaining to them how powerful it is. A child answering me, "can I play games on it?", me saying in reply, "oh sure, you can do everything on the internet, after a game, you can look for answers to your homework or project". Me telling a guy about my age, "Chong di lang pang porno ang internet, interesado ka sa webdev diba? Try the MSDN Rampup site, or the Microsoft Learning website, those sites will give you tons of learning opportunities and all".
You hit two birds with one stone, you teach them "self-help", and you open them up to the opportunities found online.
To list a few of my networking sites :D
Twitter: http://twitter.com/nolem_blckhrt
Plurk: http://www.plurk.com/rdcimafranca
blogger: http://rdcimafranca.blogspot.com/
Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/4/908/b5
Still not a networking animal. In time I will be :D
A definition of Social Networking Service, from our friend, the free encyclopedia
http://scobleizer.com/2009/01/12/if-you-are-laid-off-heres-how-to-socially-network/
I started using social networking sites/networks when I was in college just for the sole reason of being into it. The girls. The network of friends that will come with it. So everything there was, from my point of view today, useless. If I remember right, on my Friendster account, my description of myself before was just "an average guy". Nothing intellectual about it, nothing really interesting about it. Who would be interested with someone who is average.
Having the opportunity of being with great and inspiring people on my first job, current one, I saw the difference of treatment with the online community. I wasn't very much active online, as I was offline, before. They had a wealth of friends, opportunities, learning and other open doors or windows from their networks. Blogs, online forums of every interesting kind, mailing lists, formal articles, events, professional networks, resources and knowledge that were there and that were taken advantage of. I guess it really helped build the attitude. Helping build the very powerful notion of "self-help", that the Internet exists not only for porn, multi -media downloads, game FAQs, walkthroughs, women, men, pirated and cracked software or tools. It's one, a pool of great wisdom and knowledge. Two, a very helpful friend if you need complete, mundane, and even fake answers. Three, a venue for great ways to meet interesting and intellectual people that can help you form your art/interest, or help improve it. Four, as said in the link above, a way to help you find a job.
Taking advantage of the opportunities, I have already changed my view on the internet. I now have sense on my sites. And coming off from my point of view of it before, I am now constantly reaching other audiences, not only those already in the community, but also those who still are clueless of how powerful "knowledge that is freely and easily available" is, like the internet. I had an experience of teaching people how to use the internet, explaining to them how powerful it is. A child answering me, "can I play games on it?", me saying in reply, "oh sure, you can do everything on the internet, after a game, you can look for answers to your homework or project". Me telling a guy about my age, "Chong di lang pang porno ang internet, interesado ka sa webdev diba? Try the MSDN Rampup site, or the Microsoft Learning website, those sites will give you tons of learning opportunities and all".
You hit two birds with one stone, you teach them "self-help", and you open them up to the opportunities found online.
To list a few of my networking sites :D
Twitter: http://twitter.com/nolem_blckhrt
Plurk: http://www.plurk.com/rdcimafranca
blogger: http://rdcimafranca.blogspot.com/
Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/4/908/b5
Still not a networking animal. In time I will be :D
A definition of Social Networking Service, from our friend, the free encyclopedia
Tuesday 6 January 2009
Being much more careful of online Scams
The best time to scam people
Moving with the times and world wide economic crisis, companies around the world laying off the deemed unnecessary employees left and right, employment getting more and more elusive for most of our Filipino brothers and sisters, spell difficult times for most of us. Economists saying that there will be 11M Filipinos who will be unemployed or underemployed this year (although disputed by Labor Secretary Marianito Roque here, still doesn't erase the fact of the crisis). More and more people will just be falling in line to get a taste of the comfort chair, dressed with 3 square meals a day, adequately paying bills and the much needed housing and educational loans, and a middling quality of living, instead of actually sitting on it. The need to better the situation is the top priority most people have, at all costs for the not so ethical group of people.
Far from helping the situation
A lot of people have ways and means to help better their condition, although some at the expense of others. Preying on those who are uninformed, online scams of job offers, easy return of investment, and winning big in unheard and unofficial lottery games is not a surprise to most of the conversant individuals.
Warnings and reminders, like this one, have already been in place for the already victims and budding victims. This will be supplement to all the other reports and warnings available, put in my own way.
No excess trust to be given away here, sir
A lot of people fall prey to these scams, all because they are too trusting to the idea of "free" or "discounted" lunch. How does one better the enticing urge of trusting a possibility?
My main advice, If it involves you handing over money, If it is free at first glance, or largely discounted without verifiable proof and verifiable return till end, say no. You'll be in a lot worse situation if you are too trusting. Some of these things magically appear, so if you did not do anything, initiate contact, or deserve it in general, it must be fake. Or for the fickle minded, it is fake and is not worth pouring anything to it.
Relating to this one, one of the 48 Laws of power, rule #40: Despise free lunch, tells us:
"What is offered for free is dangerous – it usually involves either a trick or a hidden obligation. What has worth is worth paying for. By paying your own way you stay clear of gratitude, guilt, and deceit…" - Robert Green
Investing hard earned money, time and emotion should be done with the outmost precaution at times like these. You wouldn't want to have to tell your wife, husband or kids that you lost your "nest egg" and see the fear and disappointment in their eyes, would you? Having had experienced first hand how it feels to be on the edge of being comfortable would tell me, I wouldn't want that too :D
Moving with the times and world wide economic crisis, companies around the world laying off the deemed unnecessary employees left and right, employment getting more and more elusive for most of our Filipino brothers and sisters, spell difficult times for most of us. Economists saying that there will be 11M Filipinos who will be unemployed or underemployed this year (although disputed by Labor Secretary Marianito Roque here, still doesn't erase the fact of the crisis). More and more people will just be falling in line to get a taste of the comfort chair, dressed with 3 square meals a day, adequately paying bills and the much needed housing and educational loans, and a middling quality of living, instead of actually sitting on it. The need to better the situation is the top priority most people have, at all costs for the not so ethical group of people.
Far from helping the situation
A lot of people have ways and means to help better their condition, although some at the expense of others. Preying on those who are uninformed, online scams of job offers, easy return of investment, and winning big in unheard and unofficial lottery games is not a surprise to most of the conversant individuals.
Warnings and reminders, like this one, have already been in place for the already victims and budding victims. This will be supplement to all the other reports and warnings available, put in my own way.
No excess trust to be given away here, sir
A lot of people fall prey to these scams, all because they are too trusting to the idea of "free" or "discounted" lunch. How does one better the enticing urge of trusting a possibility?
My main advice, If it involves you handing over money, If it is free at first glance, or largely discounted without verifiable proof and verifiable return till end, say no. You'll be in a lot worse situation if you are too trusting. Some of these things magically appear, so if you did not do anything, initiate contact, or deserve it in general, it must be fake. Or for the fickle minded, it is fake and is not worth pouring anything to it.
Relating to this one, one of the 48 Laws of power, rule #40: Despise free lunch, tells us:
"What is offered for free is dangerous – it usually involves either a trick or a hidden obligation. What has worth is worth paying for. By paying your own way you stay clear of gratitude, guilt, and deceit…" - Robert Green
Investing hard earned money, time and emotion should be done with the outmost precaution at times like these. You wouldn't want to have to tell your wife, husband or kids that you lost your "nest egg" and see the fear and disappointment in their eyes, would you? Having had experienced first hand how it feels to be on the edge of being comfortable would tell me, I wouldn't want that too :D
Sunday 4 January 2009
Strange way to start this blog
Aha! After contemplating on whether to start myself a new blog, for the more serious and quality type posts, I tried signing up here at blogspot. To my suprpise I already created an account here, August 28, 2007, almost two years ago. I have forgotten why I created this in the first place, I doubt if it has anything to do with the reason I have right now.
There was a test post, and two comments. I guess I was testing the comment function.
For the more serious matters, concerns, and me wanting to be, at the least, a decent writer, I will be updating this blog. I will try to overcome the thought of comparing the quality of my work, if there is indeed quality, to the other experienced bloggers and writers in the community. Thinking of how bad my posts will look like compared to the other blogs that I read has hindered me from writing anything, so how can I grow without even starting crossed my mind. I will be as bold and as confident from now on, since at the end of the day, I will be improving with every topic I write about.
This may even be a great way to start my new year, one of the ways.
There was a test post, and two comments. I guess I was testing the comment function.
For the more serious matters, concerns, and me wanting to be, at the least, a decent writer, I will be updating this blog. I will try to overcome the thought of comparing the quality of my work, if there is indeed quality, to the other experienced bloggers and writers in the community. Thinking of how bad my posts will look like compared to the other blogs that I read has hindered me from writing anything, so how can I grow without even starting crossed my mind. I will be as bold and as confident from now on, since at the end of the day, I will be improving with every topic I write about.
This may even be a great way to start my new year, one of the ways.
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