In less than an hour the Chinese new year will start. The year of the Ox.
wo zhu ni men xin nian kuai le!!!
(I wish you all a happy new year!!!)
Although an official start date for the Chinese calender is not given, which probably has a lot to do with the ancient dynasties basically trying to start from year one every time a new one took over and destoying previous rulers' work, experts suggest this new year will be the year 4706.
'Interesting...' thought Dave, '... next year is 4706... I was born in 1984... that will make me 2722 on my next birthday! Cool.'
Happy 4706!
Have a great one!!
*HUGZ*
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Talk the talk.
According to Wikipedia "Liverpool has a population of 435,500, and lies at the centre of the wider Liverpool Urban Area, which has a population of 816,216."
The population of the whole of Northern Ireland is estimated around 1,759,000.
In comparison, Obama's Inauguration was apparently attended by approximately 1,800,000.
Take a moment to let those numbers sink in.
Say "Wow."
The majority of people seem to think the speech went rather well for Obama, although a few grumbles in the media could be seen from the lack of a specific sound bite they could cling to and milk for all its worth. But no big surprises there, Obama showed long ago he could talk the talk.
He sounded honest and sincere, he admitted to difficulties and hard times but was hopefull he could pull us out of Bush's era. He has offered the hand of peace to all nations, races and religions, including the non-believers. Heck, he has even offered to bring scientists in out of the cold.
And yet, within this hope inspiring message of world wide peace, Obama has already started to possibly alienate one of the world's strongest players. The Dragon, China.
China, like the majority of the world, was broadcasting the speech live and translating it as they went, when Obama said, "Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions."
The translator stopped talking when the word "communism" came up as a negative term and apparently the live broadcast was interputed by suddenly jumping back to the studio. Funnily enough, Obama then went on to say it was wrong to "cling to power through ... the silencing of dissent." This was also silenced.
China has done some fairly silly things in the past, but surely they could recognise that censoring of one of the world's most powerful and popular people is going to do their rep far more damage than leaving it in ever would.
That said, communism really does get a bad press. Wiki:
"Communism is a socioeconomic structure and political ideology that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless society based on common ownership and control of the means of production and property in general. Karl Marx posited that communism would be the final stage in human society, following a socialist stage, which would be achieved through a proletarian revolution. "Pure communism" in the Marxian sense refers to a classless, stateless and oppression-free society where decisions on what to produce and what policies to pursue are made democratically, allowing every member of society to participate in the decision-making process in both the political and economic spheres of life."
"Capitalism is a very economic system in which wealth, and the means of producing wealth, are privately owned and controlled rather than publicly or state-owned and controlled. In capitalism, the land, labor, and where investments, distribution, income, production, pricing and supply of goods, commodities and services are primarily determined by private decision in a market economy largely free of government intervention. "
When Obama said "Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some" and "It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labour, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom."
Which of these ideas are actually closer to what he said?
The population of the whole of Northern Ireland is estimated around 1,759,000.
In comparison, Obama's Inauguration was apparently attended by approximately 1,800,000.
Take a moment to let those numbers sink in.
Say "Wow."
The majority of people seem to think the speech went rather well for Obama, although a few grumbles in the media could be seen from the lack of a specific sound bite they could cling to and milk for all its worth. But no big surprises there, Obama showed long ago he could talk the talk.
He sounded honest and sincere, he admitted to difficulties and hard times but was hopefull he could pull us out of Bush's era. He has offered the hand of peace to all nations, races and religions, including the non-believers. Heck, he has even offered to bring scientists in out of the cold.
And yet, within this hope inspiring message of world wide peace, Obama has already started to possibly alienate one of the world's strongest players. The Dragon, China.
China, like the majority of the world, was broadcasting the speech live and translating it as they went, when Obama said, "Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions."
The translator stopped talking when the word "communism" came up as a negative term and apparently the live broadcast was interputed by suddenly jumping back to the studio. Funnily enough, Obama then went on to say it was wrong to "cling to power through ... the silencing of dissent." This was also silenced.
China has done some fairly silly things in the past, but surely they could recognise that censoring of one of the world's most powerful and popular people is going to do their rep far more damage than leaving it in ever would.
That said, communism really does get a bad press. Wiki:
"Communism is a socioeconomic structure and political ideology that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless society based on common ownership and control of the means of production and property in general. Karl Marx posited that communism would be the final stage in human society, following a socialist stage, which would be achieved through a proletarian revolution. "Pure communism" in the Marxian sense refers to a classless, stateless and oppression-free society where decisions on what to produce and what policies to pursue are made democratically, allowing every member of society to participate in the decision-making process in both the political and economic spheres of life."
"Capitalism is a very economic system in which wealth, and the means of producing wealth, are privately owned and controlled rather than publicly or state-owned and controlled. In capitalism, the land, labor, and where investments, distribution, income, production, pricing and supply of goods, commodities and services are primarily determined by private decision in a market economy largely free of government intervention. "
When Obama said "Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some" and "It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labour, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom."
Which of these ideas are actually closer to what he said?
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