TIME POWER: TODAY…
0001 by Jeff HessToday, as I go about my tasks, I’ll think about: When you have the ability to focus on and accomplish your most vital priorities, you produce your optimal effect.
4 March 2008
3 March 2008
GOOD MORNING MYANMAR…
2030 by Jeff Hess
We all can’t be the kind of journalist who gets a chauffeured car and a corner office. Most of us (99.9 percent?) deal with all kinds of hassles. As if the generals didn’t make it hard enough to be a journalist in Myanmar, Aye Chan Myatge writes about the more basic obstacles he constantly deals with trying to do his job.
From The Irrawaddy:
If you asked me whom I hated the most in Burma, I would say: bus conductors, the country”s dictator and the director of the press censorship board. Perhaps in that order.
I used to travel every day from my hometown to downtown Rangoon, a journey of about 40 minutes on a filthy bus. Wedged in on the crowded vehicle, I had to obey every order from the apparently omnipotent bus conductors-and their shouts of “Hey, why are you standing here? Go deeper inside, stand, here, move along.”
The conductors try to pack in as many passengers as possible, and the way they push you about is really scary. “Hey, don”t forget to pay!” they shout. “I don”t want to have to nudge you and ask for the fare.”
Many of the buses date from the 1940s and are too old to run reliably. They break down, making people like me late for work.
After reaching my stop, I would make for the office, climbing the stairs to the seventh floor. There was no elevator in our building and climbing those flights of stairs really made me fed up.
About 70 of us worked in one open-plan office. A pile of papers usually awaited me at my desk.
The one computer with Internet access stood in a corner of the room, locked. If we wanted to use it we had to ask the administration staff for permission. Continue Reading »
3 March 2008
MUCKING OUT THE BLOGPILE…
1400 by Jeff Hess
I’m constantly tossing interesting websites into what I call my blogpile. Some of them find their way here in the form of regular posts, but more often than not they languish and get buried deeper in the pile. The end result is that I have to go back and do a bit of shoveling. Today’s item is Keeping Focus While Beating Back Distractions.
3 March 2008
3 March 2008
FROM THE SANDBOX…
1200 by Jeff Hess
CAPT Mike Dunn: The school bus for my youngest son waits in front of our house. Holding his six year old hand in mine, I walk out into the early morning half light very much aware this will be the last time I will perform this ritual for a year. Half way down the front steps I scoop him up into my arms, which causes him to reward me with a smile and a laugh I”ll not…
3 March 2008
FROM MY DAD ON THE RIGHT…
0800 by Jeff Hess
I could never bring myself to forward all the email jokes, cartoons and other Internet comedy that land in my inbox. But then I started posting the ones my dad sends me. Judging from my comments and emails, my dad has become one of my greatest blogging assets. In honor of Ohio’s primary here’s a few right-wing emails From My Dad.
Mike Huckabee and Hillary were walking down the street when they came to a homeless person.
The Republican, Mike Huckabee, gave the homeless person his business card and told him to come to his office for a job. He then took $20 out of his pocket and gave it to the homeless person.
Hillary was very impressed, so when they came to another homeless person, she decided to help. She walked over to the homeless person and gave him directions to the welfare office. She then reached into Huckabee’s pocket and got out $20. She kept $15 for her administrative fees and gave the homeless person $5.
Now, do you understand the difference?
3 March 2008
GOOD AFTERNOON MYANMAR…
0430 by Jeff HessBlogger Molly Danzinger is fond of giving farm animals through Heifer as gifts for her friends’ milestone events. I’ve always thought it was a good idea and one I knew other organizations used as well. This morning I came across a program specific to Myanmar on the blog Sheep Pen Ministries. And it’s not all livestock.
It was such a privilege to be invited to speak at assembly at a local secondary school earlier this year, sharing about getting involved in community development projects that can make a difference in the lives of others. Since then, students and teachers have been mobilized to ‘Give a T-Shirt”, ‘Give a Stationery”, ‘Give a Goat” and raise funds for well building projects in Upper Myanmar.
The response has been overwhelming! To date, love.myanmar project has received about 350 kg of clothes for children and adults, about 3 carton boxes of stationery (enough to bless children in at least two villages and orphanages), a herd of goats to help start a small goat farm business for a family and enough funds to build 4 water wells for a village of 400 families.
We are just so amazed.
In September, a team of about 10 students will be going to Myanmar with us to deliver these love gifts. Our hope is that lives will be touched. When these students return, they will share about their experiences, the people whom they”ve met and their vision at assembly. We hope that many more will be inspired to be a blessing!
We are after all, blessed to be a blessing!
I’m going to talk to my Mitzvah Makers’ class about this.
3 March 2008
FROM MY CHAPBOOK…
0400 by Jeff Hess
My name is Jeff Hess and I’m a biblioholic. I own hundreds of books. Not valuable books, mostly Science Fiction paperbacks and text books, tomes rescued by the bag from library book sales. A few years ago, in the interest of not burying myself, I began reading more books from the library and taking notes. My electronic chapbook was born.
This is a passage I copied from Midrash and Literature edited by Geoffrey H. Hartman and Sanford Budick.
Appellation 1 : an identifying name or title : DESIGNATION 2 archaic : the act of calling by a name 3 : a geographical name (as of a region, village or vineyard) under which a winegrower is authorized to identify and market wine [166]
3 March 2008
3 March 2008
TIME POWER: TODAY…
0001 by Jeff HessToday, as I go about my tasks, I’ll think about: The Time Power System is built on three key concepts: time management is the act of controlling events; congruity represents balance, harmony and appropriateness among the events in your life (a workaholic is a person in a state of incongruity, out of balance in his total life perspective; and concentration of power is the ability to focus on and accomplish your most vital priorities.
2 March 2008
GOOD MORNING MYANMAR…
2030 by Jeff Hess
This week’s cover story in The Irrawaddy looks at how cell phones, computers and the Internet gave (and continues to give) the military dictators of Myanmar ulcers. Unfortunately, the generals are learning and discovering better ways to restrict and close the digital flow of information in, out of and around the country.
Burma”s generals may have underestimated the power of the Internet during the 2007 uprising, but they are now playing catch-up
The Burmese military government has found a new enemy-the growing number of “cyber dissidents” who are gaining popularity both inside and outside the country. The bad news is that the junta usually finds a way of defeating each new enemy.
During the September 2007 uprising in Burma, citizen reporters and bloggers played a key role in exposing the junta”s brutality.
Burma”s state-controlled media and privately owned journals operate under tight controls and, understandably, shy away from accurately reporting the situation in the country.
And so it fell to citizen reporters-equipped with cell phones, digital cameras and memory sticks-to connect with the exiled and international media.
Digital technology facilitated a fundamental contrast between the two mass uprisings in recent times-1988 and 2007. Continue Reading »
2 March 2008
DAMN… THAT DIDN’T TAKE LONG…
1806 by Jeff Hess
This morning I naively wrote: Interestingly enough, I have not received a single email in this vein mentioning Senator Barack Obama. Well, as I sat down to check my emails this afternoon, I found that at 1357, this bit of far-left?/far-right? venom-infused invective attached as a comment to today’s From The Sandbox post.
The political message begins:
Obama is the pre-packaged “New & Improved Chocolate Flavor” Presidential candidate PRODUCT – being hyped & PUSHED by GE and its WHOLLY-Owned subsidiaries NBC & MSNBC…along with Westinghouse & its subsidiary CBS…while slamming the Clintons all day every day.
(Assisted by…CNN/FOX/ and a lot of newspaper & radio media dependent on advertising$$.)
GE is the 2nd largest corporation on the planet.
Obama is IN with the Nuclear Industry: Excelon Corp of Illinois has been one of his largest contributors from his entry into politics to the present. Excelon is the largest nuke operator on the planet;owns Con-Ed of NY; more nukes in Illinois than any other state.
GE, Westinghouse, Excelon & 3 consortiums of other companies are planning to build 29 new nuclear power plants. Their Wholly-Owned & Wholly Influenced “News” media are selling the Obama Product because Obama is in favor of Nukes.
In 2005 Obama Voted FOR the Cheney Energy Bill (H.R.6) which ENABLED the nuke industry to make its Plans to build 29 new nukes-by Guaranteeing Taxpayer Payback of any nuke loans that default. (No nukes were built for the past 30 years because the banks wouldn’t loan the money – too risky)
I pulled up H.R. 6 — Energy Policy Act of 2005 — and did a, granted, quick read of the omnibus bill.
On page 119 of the bill — (b) Contract Authority.– I found what I think the spammer is talking about.
Both Obama and Clinton include information on HR 6 on their websites, but neither site does more than mention nuclear energy in passing. The focus is on whether or not the bill was a present to the petroleum industry.
If you want to read the entire comment spam, I’ve posted it as page.
What do you think?
2 March 2008
MUCKING OUT THE BLOGPILE…
1400 by Jeff HessI’m constantly tossing interesting websites into what I call my blogpile. Some of them find their way here in the form of regular posts, but more often than not they languish and get buried deeper in the pile. The end result is that I have to go back and do a bit of shoveling. Today’s item is Work For Eight Hours Straight Without Hating Yourself
2 March 2008
2 March 2008
FROM THE SANDBOX…
1200 by Jeff HessThe Usual Suspect: Oh-Dark-Fuck-Me-Rotten and we throw our gear on. I’d spent the previous night preparing. “Suspect, here ya go, we’re supposed to carry these,” says our resident New Guy. He hands me a frag grenade, a flashbang grenade, a smoke grenade, and a star cluster thing. They’ve never given me grenades before. Ah shit, what’s this all about? Fuck, this…
2 March 2008
FROM MY DAD ON THE RIGHT…
0800 by Jeff HessI could never bring myself to forward all the email jokes, cartoons and other Internet comedy that land in my inbox. But then I started posting the ones my dad sends me. Judging from my comments and emails, my dad has become one of my greatest blogging assets. In honor of Ohio’s primary here’s a few right-wing emails From My Dad.
Republicans’ defense of President Bush’s immigration bill is more enraging than their defense of Harriet Miers. Back then, Bush’s conservative base was accused of being sexist for opposing an unqualified woman’s nomination to the highest court in the land. Now we’re racists for not wanting to grant amnesty to millions of illegal aliens.
I don’t know why conservatives like Linda Chavez have to argue like liberals by smearing their opponents as racists. Oh wait, now I remember! Their arguments are as strong as liberals’ arguments usually are.
Apart from abortion, no subject produces so much disingeniousness as America’s immigration policy, both legal and illegal. For nearly 50 years, Americans have been intentionally lied to about our immigration laws.
In 1965, Teddy Kennedy overhauled immigration law with the specific purpose of effecting a dramatic change in the nation’s demographics. Bobby Kennedy had civil rights, so Teddy needed something big: He would preside over a civil rights bill for the entire Third World! My word, but that man could drink in those days. Continue Reading »
2 March 2008
WE PAUSE FOR THIS EDITORIAL COMMENT…
0700 by Jeff Hess
Beginning this morning, in recognition of Ohio’s primary week, I present seven posts culled from what I call my On The Right file. These are emails forwarded to me by my dad. He passes along a lot good jokes, as you all know, but he also recieves and sends me some without comment that I can only most charitably characterize as mean.
With the exception of the first and last post, these are all attacks on Senator Hillary Clinton. Re-reading them made me want to defiantly vote for her on Tuesday. I’m no fan of the Clintons, but I fail to understand how they can make otherwise reasonable people foam at the mouth and produce these .
Interestingly enough, I have not received a single email in this vein mentioning Senator Barack Obama.
I have to wonder if they will start soon.
2 March 2008
GOOD AFTERNOON MYANMAR…
0430 by Jeff HessAs Ohioans prepare to cast their primary votes for the fall elections, Myanmar has entered the candidates consciousness through the back door of China. Ohio has higher than average unemployment and people are thinking about all those jobs shipped overseas; and the candidates are working it.
From The Associate Press:
China has proven a reliable punching bag, and potential vote-getter, for US presidential candidates: The fast-growing country’s massive factories, staffed by underpaid workers, fill US stores with tainted food and dangerous toys, voters are told.
Candidates accuse China’s government of crushing dissent and befriending thug rulers in Sudan and Myanmar; Beijing’s currency manipulation and trade distortions, they say, make it impossible for US companies to compete.
As a crucial primary on Tuesday in the industrial, midwestern US state of Ohio approaches, Senator Hillary Clinton and Democratic presidential front-runner Senator Barack Obama are each working to convince voters that they are the stronger candidate to confront China.
The campaign China-bashing offers another side to what US President George W. Bush calls the “complicated” relationship with Beijing. His administration has balanced criticism with a recognition of China as an important trading partner and as a world power whose cooperation is needed to settle nuclear standoffs with Iran and North Korea.
Voters are wary of China’s rise. With US recession fears growing, many Americans are more likely to think about jobs lost to China than about the low prices they pay for Chinese products. Their view of China’s power can also be exaggerated: A recent survey found that four in 10 Americans believed China, not the US, was the world’s top economic power. Continue Reading »
2 March 2008
FROM MY CHAPBOOK…
0400 by Jeff HessMy name is Jeff Hess and I’m a biblioholic. I own hundreds of books. Not valuable books, mostly Science Fiction paperbacks and text books, tomes rescued by the bag from library book sales. A few years ago, in the interest of not burying myself, I began reading more books from the library and taking notes. My electronic chapbook was born.
This is a passage I copied from Midrash and Literature edited by Geoffrey H. Hartman and Sanford Budick.
Apodictic: : expressing or of the nature of necessary truth or absolute certainty- apodictically \-ti-k(0-)lÃŽ\ adverb [58]
