Crime linked to Global Economy Slump

Read a disturbing article from StarTribune.com

Intro reads like so: Organized crime has emerged as a top global threat as mobsters conspire worldwide to prey on everything from energy markets to victims of identity theft, Attorney General Michael Mukasey said Wednesday. – StarTribune.com

Apparently criminals link up with terrorist groups if they see an opportunity to make  a profit. One of the examples made is – criminals smuggle drugs and counterfeit money that is a huge factor in distablising parts of the US economy.

Much of organised crime is also said to have infiltrated gas and oil companies. This new spin on crime is quite unsettling because – crime no longer affects just the  country of origin of the criminals – but  rather has a global effect.

Read the article for more on this stuff… it’s madness… unfortunately this aggrevates the state of the poor… that will inevitable lead to more crime…

Gratitude for the good among the bad – Life

I must say – as much negativity as there has been in the past week – I have had a very blessed week that I must be truly grateful for. Things that I have prayed and hoped for seem to be coming true – and this always happens right when you think you should give up. During a cloud of a social and economic storm – so much good is happening. And I have learned many lessons through my actions and other’s actions in just this short week – lessons that I am highly grateful for.

I love Switchfoot – while I was listening to them I came across the words “Doubt your doubts and Believe your beliefs” — now I BELIEVE that’s very powerful. It makes me think of the statement, “If you knew you could never fail, what would you  do differently with your life?”  Now it doesn’t go exactly like that but that’s the joist of it.

You’re silly if you think failures won’t come but it’s getting the guts to face them that makes you succeed… that’s why I love that quote.

So I’m gonna go home now and dream some more… so I can realise more of my dreams in just a few short years.

Have a brilliant weekend.

Now that I’m calm – David Bullard Article

Let me say this rationally….

 

For me – what irritates me about the David Bullard’s article is that in essence he says - black people are non – progressive people and the only that they should be grateful to the white man instead of blaming him for everything.

 

Because the last line is that – all black people look for – is someone to blame for their problems… look there are people like that in all races…. but the condition of the black majority is very complex… yes, one can’t commit crime and then say that I turn to crime because of the place I come from, my neigbourhood and mentality that is there – and this is especially because of the legacy of apartheid… had there been no white people we’d be fine…. that’d be WRONG – lots of people come from difficult backgrounds but make it without going down that road.

 

Now he makes it seem as though all black people want to do is blame their problems on others and not take responsibility – our society is far more complex than that.

 

There’s white people who blame black people because of crime. I have come across people who have confessed that when someone close to them had been affected by crime [I mean some of the grossest of crimes] they had felt like knocking down every black man that they saw….

 

Now that is assigning blame….

 

That is what ticks me off mostly about this article… the fact that he portrays black people as simple and only looking for someone to assign blame to for their problems.

This is a condition that affects people across all societies

 

Virtualised Workforce – Telecommuting

If I don’t have to come to the office to work and I can do my work from home more efficiently, then why not? Studies show that this is going to be a growing trend, and old ideas are the ones that stop it from catching fire.

Already companies are contracting work to people in foreign countries because expected income is lower – If u can have an overseas contracter, why can’t your staff work at home and come in every now and then?

These are the the reasons why you should let your staff work at home if possible:

With the proper application of good management techniques, you will see an improvement in overall productivity, a decrease in attrition, a reduction in corporate expenses and a massive increase in skill set availability.

Now I don’t know any company that doesn’t want to cut down on costs so it can have a better looking bottom line… you know what I’m saying?

Your company can demonstrate leadership by example, as well as benefiting employees, your local community, and even the environment.

With skyrocketing fuel prices, employees that telecommute feel an immediate increase in spendable income. With a virtualized workforce, your building utilities decrease and you will find that employees working from home effectively put in more hours and experience fewer sick days.

Now happy workers make loyal workers… Scream back at me if you don’t agree.

Workforce virtualization also removes cars from the road, making your company greener. By following just a few simple steps, you can truly do your part to help with some of the most critical issues facing us today, including economy and ecology, while helping your business increase productivity and lower costs.

This last point is very important because global warming and the thinning of the Ozone layer is quite scary, just to think, only 50yrs ago the you could lie in the sun and not worry about skin cancer… but that’s another topic – in regards to th eone we’re currently discussing  I say – why not?

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Solar System’s ‘look-alike’ found

This is a headline on BBC news online – you can read more on the article by following this link.

Biblical people and others, between 600BC and 400AD have long believed that the world was spherical and orbited the sun. But secular scholars had no knowledge of this, hence the misconception and old ideas that the world is flat and orbited by the sun.

The Church of Jeses Christ of Latter-Day Saints has as part of their doctrine believed that God the Father has created many world like our own – worlds without number. Where science is only coming to know this now – many of this religion have known it for over a century. Such information was found in lost scrolls that were later translated – the Books of Moses and of Abraham, found in the Pearl of Great Price – it has become additional scripture of the church.

 

Green Cars

Peet du Plooy is a Trade and Investment Adviser from WWF SA – he spoke to Summit TV about the next generation of cars that might spell the end of the traditional “gas guzzler”.

People are seriously looking into alternatives for oil. He states that there were more electrical cars than petrol and diesel ones around 1900 but bc oz of their poor performance they were overtaken buy the oil fueled machines.

Today, it seems it is a different story. There is an electrical car currently being developed that has a speed of 0-100km/h in 4s. The appeal to this alternative is that although you’d still be using coal the same amount you use now will last three times longer with the electrical car… this leads to few emitions.

So when is this baby hitting our shores? Du Plooy reckons we should see it in 2yrs time – but production will initially be limited.

Costs? Well, he reckons that there is no reason for the car to be more expensive than your regular one – the battery should be slightly more expensive but overall running costs of the car should be cut down significantly.

So it seems that ‘the future’ isn’t that far away – the batteries that would otherwise have been expensive about a decade or so ago, have come down overtime, making it more affordable to obtain a car like this.

If you haven’t figured it out already – this is a very strong trend globally. Battery companies are buying car manufacturers so they can  have a steak in this new development.

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CLEAN GREEN CARS

Zimbabwe Election

Okay, we were a bit ahead of ourselves… the results are still pending but the MDC is definitely in the lead – the news have sent stocks soaring though as investor’s hopes surge.

It reminds me of some speculators last year who said that if anything, last year was the time to start buying stocks in Zim because you’ll cash in big. Others disputed that. But the signs seem to be there, I think that even now would be a good time to  play the Zim stock market – u could pick up some stocks at pitiful prices and cash in big in a couple of year’s time.

LINKS
Waiting Game Underway in ZImbabwe  -CNN

Mugabe loses Zimbabwe Assembly (Zimbabwe Elections)

The MDC was pretty confident from the onset that they had won the election, even though Mugabe withheld the results and a whole lot of gemors was going on. And indeed they did, despite comments that they had released their statement prematurely. I guess when people are sick of someone and can’t wait to get rid of them – they  rush into statements like that -  I don’t blame the MDC. Now what remains to be seen is what Morgan Tsvangirai will have to offer. One could say that Zimbabwe is so low that it can only go up now – well let’s hope so – Zimbabweans need relief.

A friend of mine who visited there says that the people are very slender and they say they are used to eating one meal a day – we do that when we’re fasting! It’s been reported that Mugabe was not seen in public since the elections.

The man is in his 80s one may ask why he is so reluctant to let go of his seat - Why doesn’t he go take a vacation in the Bahamas…? Well – I guesst this is all he knows and he might not know what do do with himself outside this role…. I mean, think about it – who wants to retire and have a long vacation, especially with millions upon millions in the bank account – while they could just sit there in a presidential seat and institute laws that will make millions upon millions suffer – who would want to exchange that for anything? Anything!

LINKS
Oppositon wins Zimbabwe Assembly - BBC