November 30, 2004
A terra dos assentos
Enfim de regresso á terra dos assentos, onde a primeira noticia que ouço ao entrar para o taxi é que o governo vai ser dissolvido.
Uma boa noticia, parece-me.
Até amanhã.
November 29, 2004
Conspiracy Theories
The first time I saw these images I was in shock. The dimension of such an event just leaves you flabergasted.
But as the reality sank in, I couldn't help but wonder who would want to do such a thing. I tend to be skeptical about most things and when thinking about what had just happened I twisted my nose at the most obvious: a "terrorist" attack.
The first thing that popped into my head was: they did it themselves. By "they" I mean the american government, or a restrict group within the american government with some sordid hidden agenda, out to achieve world dominance or something wild like that.
Well, is this reasoning all that outlandish? The economy was breaking down, the dotcom bouble had just burst, China is on the rise and oil is that one resource that makes everything work, from cars and machinery to inflation and interest rates. So the "plan": get the fear of god into the population by bringing down a couple of buildings, pass scary "security" laws like the patriot act, and divert huge ammounts of funds to armament and defense areas, go into Afganistan (just an inicial step) and then follow through to Iraq where the oil really is, and from there, well, anywhere it takes to guarantee, uhum, freedom.
For a while now, I let these thoughts lie and occasionally let them out in light conversations with friends. But last night a TV program coincided with my convictions - SKY One Conspiracies.
Here are some related links:
www.nomorefakenews.com
Read John Rappoport's post for the 28th November. It sort of starts you off on this whole conspiracy business.
November 26, 2004
Update on ITER
So, it seems as if we cannot agree on a site for building the damd thing! The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor...
There's no disgrace like home
A lot has to be said about Matt Groening’s Simpsons. The satire just comes through so subtly you can’t help but laugh. It really has a go at everything, I mean, just the simple fact that they are portrayed as a middle class American family with all the ups and downs that the typical American families suffer, just brings you to the point where you accept their “typicalness”. But the point is, the reality they are pocking fun at is really that sad!
My favourite episode is “There’s no disgrace like home”. The one where they all go in to Dr. Marvin Monroe’s family therapy center to try and better their relationships with each other.
“The answers to life’s problems aren’t at the bottom of a bottle! They’re on TV.” – says Homer as he sees the doctor’s advertisement on TV during a wrestling match interval that he’s watching at the pub. They don’t have enough money for the visit to the doctor so they pawn in the TV – “The supreme sacrifice”.
They end up strapped in chairs and shocking each other, the idea being that if one of them hurts the other emotionally they just shock the person back. So they go on about it so much, that they drain the electrical supply from Springfield.
I rips me up every time.
November 25, 2004
Para lembrar/To remember
It's good to see that the media is covering this from an international perspective.
Child abuse is wrong. It is unfair.
So this post is a reminder. To remind us that these things don't just go away. That we mustn't forget to hold the abusers accountable for their actions and not let them get away with the horrendous crimes by allowing for so much time to pass that the severity of the crime is lowered.
November 24, 2004
2 to tango
Ok. I know it takes two to tango, but this whole Isreal-Palestine story is starting to stink to hell and high heaven. When a country spends 1 billion dollars to build a wall to keep "terrorists" out, and starts setting up missile defense systems on civil airliners, something is definitely not right.
I suppose it's just another way of dealing with modern war: either go in and strike pre-emptively, like in Iraq, or just build a physical barrier which seperates the good from the "bad".
Yeah. Like such a thing can be done.
1 billion dollar wall
Anti missile defense system on civil airliners
Palestine
November 23, 2004
Depression
Some days are just worse than others. The weather is cold and gray, I'm homesick, I miss my boy and I don't have a positive opinion about the future of the world we live in. Are we really doomed to perish together as fools?
November 22, 2004
November 21, 2004
Mais uma...
Pois é pimpolho, este teu pai não pára. De ida para a terra de sua majestade por mais uns dias.
Stay well and look after your mother.
Kisses and hugs.
November 20, 2004
Quando dormes
Hoje, como um oasis no tempo, tive a oportunidade de tratar de ti. Dei-te banho, vesti-te, jantamos, e depois, adormeceste, cansado por não teres dormido a sesta.
Amanhã já não terei essa sorte. Enfim, ficam estes pequenos bebedouros no deserto que são estas viagens em que não estamos juntos. Dorme bem Sementezinha.
November 19, 2004
Amsterdam 2
This is a town with a special atmosphere. All the contrasts, the light drugs, the heavy drugs, the prostitution, the alcohol.., all a part of this wonderful melting pot of people and cultures.
Yet, it is no diferent to any other capitalist hive. Conversation to a lady that was outside the toilets in a bar, receiving change for the use of the facilities:
"You know, this is the hight of capitalism! You pay to drink, and you pay to piss!"
"Yeah sir, you'll have to take that up with my boss..."
"Oh forget it, you're just a cog/wheel in the machine. Just like me!"
November 18, 2004
Dubai
So how is Dubai?
Well, it’s a bit better than Saudi. I was getting pretty hassled with security in Saudi, you know, half an hour getting in and then again getting out of the compound (searches at gun point…). So my boss decided we should all move out.
And what’s the general feeling there?
It’s still an Arab country, but everyone’s much more open-minded, like for example, you can drink alcohol, prostitution exists – police will look away… and especially the wife, she can dress up in shorts and t-shirt and drive to the mall to do her shopping. She couldn’t do that in Saudi, she’d have to cover herself up as much as possible and she’d have to get a taxi – women can’t drive themselves there.
She must feel much better then, without all those restrictions.
Yeah, we’re really just looking to pay off our house and then most likely we’ll move on to some where else…
Dubai seems to be the exception to rule in the middle-east, regarding western habits. There is freedom of religion – churches for the different beliefs have been purposely built to cater for the large percentage of foreigners which are typically the “work-force” in the country.
It does seem to be taking a wise step in moving away from the oil dependency of its neighboring countries, so in a sense, anticipating peak-oil. The locals have obviously got an outstanding quality of living, in comparison to even the top countries world wide. So it’s no wonder that you’ll see people (locals) with pictures of the sheik and everyone likes him. Take the money out of the equation and many problems are immediately solved. This, of course, if there is an abundance of it.
November 17, 2004
GPS
Driving from Schiphol Airport to the hotel:
"This GPS system is pretty cool!"
"Yeah, it gives the distance and estimated time of arrival, plus the direction to go, obviously."
"That takes all the fun of getting lost, from driving..."
A while later...
"They also have GPS in the taxis in Ghana."
Laughs...
"Actually it's not that funny. They don't even have any meters in the taxis"
Conversation between us and the taxi driver in a Mercedes Benz luxury taxi...
November 16, 2004
Amsterdam
Mais uma viajem, Semente, em que não vou estar para aprender contigo. Espero que não me leves a mal, mas, a vida assim o obriga neste momento.
Enfim, melhores dias viram.
Um grande xi-coração do pai.
November 15, 2004
Vanunu, Mordechai
Falar da caminhada deste homem de 50 anos não é tarefa fácil. O que dizer de alguem que passou 18 anos numa prisão, mais de 11 dos quais numa cela solitária, por ter revelado informações consideradas secretas pelo governo Israelita?
Que é um traidor por ter revelado um programa nuclear?
Que era uma ameaça de tal relevância que não mereceu sequer a companhia de outros reclusos durante 11! anos?
Que durante esse tempo não conseguio ver que Israel estava ameaçada pelos vizinhos e como tal necessitava(/necessita?) do armamento nuclear para se defender?
Estranho então, como é que tem sido nomeado consecutivamente para o prémio Nobel da paz desde 1988!?!?!
Alguns links interessantes sobre este homem:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mordechai_Vanunu
November 14, 2004
The world in a boxing ring
...a left jab,
...followed by a right hook,
...1...2...3...4...5....
...38
...and it's a knock-out!!
"...for fear of upsetting big brother"
The end of NATO would obviously lead to another cold war, where the new enemy would be Europe itself. The slogan:"If you ain't with US, you're against US" rings out loud and clear. This article, which I arrived at through GNN, is certainly a valid argument that entities like NATO and even the UN are just charades, raised to serve the interests -economic and thus imperialistic interests - of those nations who would have us all under their dominion.
Note: curious coincidence, the two most visible flags on our picture here...
November 12, 2004
"One day you'll explain to me why this song makes you cry..."
Tom Traubert's Blues
Wasted and wounded, it ain't what the moon did, I've got what I paid for now
See you tomorrow, hey Frank, can I borrow a couple of bucks from you
To go waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me
I'm an innocent victim of a blinded alley
And I'm tired of all these soldiers here
No one speaks English, and everything's broken, and my Stacys are soaking wet
To go waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me
Now the dogs are barking and the taxi cab's parking
A lot they can do for me
I begged you to stab me, you tore my shirt open,
And I'm down on my knees tonight
Old Bushmill's I staggered, you'd bury the dagger
In your silhouette window light go
To go waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me
Now I lost my Saint Christopher now that I've kissed her
And the one-armed bandit knows
And the maverick Chinamen, and the cold-blooded signs,
And the girls down by the strip-tease shows, go
Waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me
No, I don't want your sympathy, the fugitives say
That the streets aren't for dreaming now
And manslaughter dragnets and the ghosts that sell memories,
They want a piece of the action anyhow
Go waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me
And you can ask any sailor, and the keys from the jailor,
And the old men in wheelchairs know
And Mathilda's the defendant, she killed about a hundred,
And she follows wherever you may go
Waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me
And it's a battered old suitcase to a hotel someplace,
And a wound that will never heal
No prima donna, the perfume is on an
Old shirt that is stained with blood and whiskey
And goodnight to the street sweepers, the night watchmen flame keepers
And goodnight to Mathilda, too
Well, I can't explain it clearly yet - these things to be like a lifting fog - you know the horizon is there, it's just a question of waiting for the fog to clear before you can make it out.
Maybe this has something to do with it:
The words unfamiliar to non-Australians are: swagman : is the Australian equivalent of a hobo. The swagman's "swag" was his bundle of belongings.
waltzing : is derived from the German term auf der walz, which meant to travel while working as a craftsman.
Matilda : A romantic term for a swagman's bundle. See below, "Waltzing Matilda."
Waltzing Matilda : When swagmen met each other at their gatherings, there were rarely women to dance with. Nonetheless, they enjoyed a dance, and so they danced with their swags. Thus, to "Waltz Matilda" is to travel from place to place with all one's belongings on one's back wrapped in a blanket or cloth. Another interpretation is the one given above, in "waltzing."
A kiss for a smile...
November 11, 2004
On land ownership
So often have I heard: “A man ain’t nothin less he own a piece a’ land”. I beg to differ. We don’t own the land – the land owns us. In the blind race to gather things, mountains of things (as Tracy sings), it becomes second nature to believe that in buying a piece of land you invariably buy into real estate, into a solid investment, a sure thing. In the eyes of many it is what defines men. It is what defines countries. Once ownership has been ascertained, walls can come up to keep the unwanted out and the wanted in. If those walls are violated then that means war. Or at least a reason to war. All we need are reasons.
The story here is all about this.
À procura da américa
Muitos americanos têm, de facto, uma visão de como gostariam de ver o mundo, completamente diferente daqueles que foram ás urnas no dia 2 eleger mais quatro anos da mesma escória.
Este artigo é um pouco longo, demora entre 20 a 30 minutos a ler. Mas vale a pena, nem que seja só pela citação de Kennedy.
November 10, 2004
Peak Oil
Pois é. Uns posts atrás era discutido uma situação em que a produção de petróleo atingiria um ponto máximo - ponto chamado de "Peak Oil".
Eis um artigo que alinha mais ou menos com o que foi dito.
A que extremos chegarão os americanos para garantir as suas reservas, e, indirectamente, o seu império?
November 09, 2004
A picture is worth a thousand words 2
Mas, continuando com as imagens, este é sem duvida um bom filme para se ver hoje...
A picture is worth a thousand words
.
Após várias horas de exposição, decidi retirar a foto do Semente. Fui levado pelo orgulho a expô-lo, de modos que agora acho que devo mantê-lo no anonimato.
.
O meu velho e eu 2
"Sabes, Cuba é o segundo país com a relação entre médico/paciente mais elevada no mundo. E o sistema de saúde é grátis para os utentes... claro que o Fidel é um ditador e sou contra as ditaduras, e não há liberdade de expressão..."
"Isso nem é assim tão mal. É como estes estudantes... como não têm mais nada que fazer andam só a causar disturbios."
"Olha que não. Sabes que os estudantes são dos poucos grupos sociais que ainda podem reclamar por alguma coisa em massa. É que é muito dificil - entrando para o mundo do trabalho, o mundo da empresa - conseguires reinvidicar o que quer que seja. Não é possível a união entre colegas de trabalho como entre colegas de estudo."
November 08, 2004
Need I say more?
Basta ler aqui para sustentar os dois posts anteriores.
"O Presidente George W. Bush rejeitou qualquer possibilidade de adesão dos Estados Unidos ao Protocolo de Quioto porque este vai contra os interesses industriais americanos."
...
Uma esperança
Talvez com isto as coisas possam melhorar.
Humm... Não. Não acredito.
Enquanto algo for vendido a quem não tem, as coisas nunca darão resultado. Mas surge-me agora um pensamento: será que ao gastar 166 500 milhões de dolares no projecto ITER os EU não teriam resolvido o problema desenhado no post anterior?
O meu velho e eu
"Então e o que achas disto tudo?"
"Bem, sabes o que é o tratado de Quioto, não sabes?! Pois a Russia ratificou esse tratado, ou seja aderiram e comprometem-se não ultrapassar as suas quotas de poluição.
Ao invés dos Estados Unidos, que, só por si são responsáveis por mais ou menos um terço dos gases de efeito de estufa lançados para a atmosfera todos os anos. Estes ainda não aderiram. Já imaginaste o que será termos de andar permanentemente com mascaras na cara? Não podermos andar ao sol? O nível das águas do mar a subir, milhões de pessoas desalojadas?"
"Pois... estamos mesmo no fim."
"Ainda se eles tivessem uma mentalidade como nós aqui na Europa - que andamos de carros com 1000, 1100 de cilindrada que consomem menos de 10 litros aos 100, talvez as coisas não fossem tão graves... mas não, é tudo á grande. E o problema é que os países produtores de petróleo estão na sua capacidade máxima de produção! Com mais pessoas a comprarem carros, cada vez mais consumo... as reservas começam a diminuir. E não podemos esquecer que a economia gira toda á volta do petróleo, ou seja, se as reservas diminuem, e a procura aumenta, o preço tambem aumenta - como aliás estamos a assistir. "
"E cada vez pior. Não sei onde isto vai parar."
"Porque é que eles atacaram o Iraque? Tudo bem que o Saddam era um tirano e não concordo com ditaduras, mas é o petróleo que eles procuram! Para não falar no facto de que devem ser os próprios povos a conquistarem a sua liberdade... Só mantendo as suas reservas é que conseguem continuar a potencia que se consideram, e para tal toca a ir atacar onde lhes apetece e convem. Sabes quantas pessoas já morreram desde o inicio da guerra?"
"Não..."
"100 000! ...! Será que teria morrido tanta gente se o Saddam ainda lá estivesse? Não creio. E não vai acabar tão cedo."
"Ah pois não. Vai ser pior que o Vietname."
"Claro. E mais! Como é que aquela gente consegue lutar contra o armamento dos americanos? Será que ninguem achou estranho a facilidade com que entraram em Bagdad? Que hipotese é que os iraquianos tinham? A unica maneira que eles têm de poder combater a máquina americana é com martires! Imagina tu: se acontecesse aqui algo parecido, caísse aqui uma bomba e vocês morriam todos? Que razão teria eu ou tu para continuar a viver? Com tudo na miséria? Só restava mesmo a vingança.
E a isso eles chamam terrorismo."
E o terrorismo não vai parar enquanto houver esta injustiça, por isso a guerra não vai acabar tão cedo.
Eu diria mais - a guerra já começou.
November 05, 2004
Fisherman's blues
I wish I was a fisherman
tumblin' on the seas
far away from dry land
and it's bitter memories
castin' out my sweet line
with abandonment and love
no ceiling bearin' down on me
save the starry sky above
with light in my head
with you in my arms...
i wish i was the brakeman
on a hurtlin fevered train
crashin head long into the heartland
like a cannon in the rain
with the feelin of the sleepers
and the burnin of the coal
countin the towns flashin by
and a night that's full of soul
with light in my head
with you in my arms...
And I know I will be loosened
from the bonds that hold me fast
and the chains all around me
will fall away at last
and on that grand and fateful day
I will take thee in my hand
I will ride on a train
I will be the fisherman
With light in my head
You in my arms...
Light in my head
You in my arms...
Light in my head
You...
With light in my head
You in my arms...
November 04, 2004
Why I loath the CV
It's really very simple: you're being judged according to a piece of paper. Everyone who's been through the process of human resource selection knows the drill. You first send in your CV stating what experience/education you have and if you're lucky you get called for an interview. During this conversation you are once again analysed and "sized up" for the job.
It's the quick, slap-dash, no frills concept for allocating labour.
Not even by a long shot does it come near to hinting at the capabilities of the person in question. I'm sorry. I'm sure many will disagree, but a person is so much more than a few lines on a piece of paper.
Those uncomfortable coincidences
Just yesterday I was discussing with some colleagues how I despise CV's. Today I have a pile of them on my desk...
November 03, 2004
Well done Moody!
The only credible reaction to the american elections from this list is the Kenyan Vice-President's, Moody Awori. I definetly think we should a-worry at this outcome because the comming times are not going to be any easier than the past 4 years.
Anticlimax
That's exactly what the 3rd of November feels like to me, with regards to the american elections.
Most likely the present idiot will remain president for another term. Which, as I said in a previous post, is not all that bad, since it should speed up the decline, the world decline, of the recent past.
The "left" wing compromise for Kerry is bullshit. Bullshit. The "Anybody But" idea stinks. Either be coherent and start looking at real alternatives to the mainstream right wing drift, or assume open-heartedly the hard reality that leftist ideologies are just that. And that in reality people are comfortable with this state of affairs, the whole class system, materialistic reasoning for getting up in the morning.
November 02, 2004
Last call for those with plutonium-238 in their garages
Come on guys, hand it in. Do what is morally correct .
...for something completely different
Quem já viu Magnolia terá, pelo menos, a noção que na vida existem conicidências que são óbvias demais para conforto. Foi assim para mim ao ver o filme de Claude Lelouch (que, admito, até então não conhecia).
É de facto uma lufada de ar fresco, como aliás pelas cenas no mar, somos levados a experimentar, comparado com tudo o resto. E entre o musical e o romance, transparece um relato do que é a vida: entre o sonho e a realidade, e o incontornável passar do tempo, a vontade de escapar para o mar...
Jeremy Irons e Patricia Kaas excelentes. Recomendo vivamente:
"And Now... Ladies and Gentlemen"...
November 01, 2004
Yearning...
...for the wide open sea.
Here's a story which was later depicted in "The Perfect Storm".