When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him?
- Posted using iTouchBlogPress mobile
Monday, January 31, 2011
Friday, January 28, 2011
Egypt nixes the Internet
Watching Egypt nix the Internet, texting, SMS, and cellular services might be cause to examine how much we all DEPEND on these modern services.. What would YOU do if such a thing occurred where you live?
__________________________
(Rewrites in part, adds detail.)
The Eygptian government's crackdown on protestors intensified Friday with access to most forms of mass communication, including the Internet, mobile and SMS down, even as United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that "freedom of expression should be fully respected."
As the country braced for huge anti-government protests on the traditional day of prayer, the government appeared to have unplugged most means of communication--including social network Facebook and Twitter--that activists had been using to coordinate action across the country.
Landline calls placed from outside the country, however, were connecting.
In a blog, U.S.-based Internet intelligence firm Renesys recorded how late Thursday it saw "the virtually simultaneous withdrawal of all routes to Egyptian networks in the Internet's global routing table," in what it called "an action unprecedented in Internet history."
It contrasted the scale of the crackdown with the "modest Internet manipulation that took place in Tunisia, where specific routes were blocked, or Iran, where the Internet stayed up," but download times were slowed.
Facebook and Twitter weren't immediately available to comment on what is happening in Egypt.
Meanwhile, U.K.-headquartered Vodafone Group PLC (VOD) said in a statement that all mobile operators in Egypt had been "instructed to suspend services in parts of Egypt. Under Egyptian legislation, the authorities have the right to issue such an order and we are obliged to comply with it."
It said the Egyptian authorities will be clarifying the situation in due course.
Vodafone Egypt, the country's largest operator by customers, competes with Egyptian Co. for Mobile Services (EMOB.CI), also known as Mobinil, and Etisalat Egypt, a subsidiary of United Arab Emirates-based Emirates Telecommunications Corp. (ETISALAT.AD)
France Telecom (FTE) and Orascom Telecom (ORTE.CI) last year reached a settlement over the ownership of Mobinil.
All attempts to reach other mobile and Internet operators in the country were unsuccessful either because offices were closed due to the weekend or because mobile numbers weren't working.
According to Egypt's National Telecom Regulatory Authority, or NTRA, mobile subscribers in the country reached 53.43 million by the end of the third quarter of 2010, the latest figures available.
Earlier this week, blogs and social networks were full of calls to take to the streets to bring down the regime of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt's Interior Ministry had warned it would take decisive measures against the protestors in the Arab world's most populous nation, after organizers said demonstrations set to take place after noon prayers Friday would be the biggest in decades.
The protests in Egypt come after the 25-year regime of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was toppled in Tunisia, sparking shockwaves across the Arab world.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that "freedom of expression should be fully respected" in Egypt.
-By Shereen El Gazzar in Dubai, Lilly Vitorovich in London and Ruth Bender in Paris; Dow Jones Newswires; 44 207 842 9290; lilly.vitorovich@dowjones.com
- Posted using iTouchBlogPress mobile
__________________________
(Rewrites in part, adds detail.)
The Eygptian government's crackdown on protestors intensified Friday with access to most forms of mass communication, including the Internet, mobile and SMS down, even as United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that "freedom of expression should be fully respected."
As the country braced for huge anti-government protests on the traditional day of prayer, the government appeared to have unplugged most means of communication--including social network Facebook and Twitter--that activists had been using to coordinate action across the country.
Landline calls placed from outside the country, however, were connecting.
In a blog, U.S.-based Internet intelligence firm Renesys recorded how late Thursday it saw "the virtually simultaneous withdrawal of all routes to Egyptian networks in the Internet's global routing table," in what it called "an action unprecedented in Internet history."
It contrasted the scale of the crackdown with the "modest Internet manipulation that took place in Tunisia, where specific routes were blocked, or Iran, where the Internet stayed up," but download times were slowed.
Facebook and Twitter weren't immediately available to comment on what is happening in Egypt.
Meanwhile, U.K.-headquartered Vodafone Group PLC (VOD) said in a statement that all mobile operators in Egypt had been "instructed to suspend services in parts of Egypt. Under Egyptian legislation, the authorities have the right to issue such an order and we are obliged to comply with it."
It said the Egyptian authorities will be clarifying the situation in due course.
Vodafone Egypt, the country's largest operator by customers, competes with Egyptian Co. for Mobile Services (EMOB.CI), also known as Mobinil, and Etisalat Egypt, a subsidiary of United Arab Emirates-based Emirates Telecommunications Corp. (ETISALAT.AD)
France Telecom (FTE) and Orascom Telecom (ORTE.CI) last year reached a settlement over the ownership of Mobinil.
All attempts to reach other mobile and Internet operators in the country were unsuccessful either because offices were closed due to the weekend or because mobile numbers weren't working.
According to Egypt's National Telecom Regulatory Authority, or NTRA, mobile subscribers in the country reached 53.43 million by the end of the third quarter of 2010, the latest figures available.
Earlier this week, blogs and social networks were full of calls to take to the streets to bring down the regime of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt's Interior Ministry had warned it would take decisive measures against the protestors in the Arab world's most populous nation, after organizers said demonstrations set to take place after noon prayers Friday would be the biggest in decades.
The protests in Egypt come after the 25-year regime of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was toppled in Tunisia, sparking shockwaves across the Arab world.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warned that "freedom of expression should be fully respected" in Egypt.
-By Shereen El Gazzar in Dubai, Lilly Vitorovich in London and Ruth Bender in Paris; Dow Jones Newswires; 44 207 842 9290; lilly.vitorovich@dowjones.com
- Posted using iTouchBlogPress mobile
Monday, January 17, 2011
2007 January 17th Web-log Flashback. McGuyver
Does anyone recall the old TV series titled 'McGuyver'? McGuyver was a simple man, who could do most anything with nothing. -With a shoelace, Swiss army knife, piece of gum, and pocket lint, he could hot wire a tractor, escape from the bad guys imprisonment, create a diversionary explosion, and pretty much get out of any pinch he might have found himself in.. He did the most with the least!I guess that's why I liked the show, (and one of those cool 'things' I wanted to learn by joining the Marine Corps as an 18-year-old). -I wanted to have the ability to know that I could survive, or at least get by, in any situation, no matter what.
MacGyver was a different kind of hero - he doesn´t use weapons, he´s afraid of heights, and he´s an expert at making complicated machines out of ordinary things. A fan, a dough-scraper and some duct tape forms an excellent helicopter attack. A cut credit card can help cause a traffic jam. A light bulb makes an outstanding set of lock picks
As odd as it sounds, I believe that's one more reason why I like the Lifeline Mission compound in La Digue. It's very "McGuyver". They are able to do the most, with the least amount of resources. Take for example the following:
A diesel generator charges a set of 24 car batteries (that are wired together) during the day.
The batteries power high efficiency lightbulbs, refrigerator, a satellite dish (for Internet and communication purposes), and a pump to fill the water cistern and a hillside tank (when switched on).. The hillside water tank? Gravity provides the 'running' water inside the mission house.
There is a 'solar oven' on camp that cooks 14 loaves of bread an hour, all day long, five days a week, to feed the hundreds of children at 2 feeding centers. It simply catches the sun, magnifies it rays, and cooks away. No electricity or gas needed. Just someone to re-aim it directly at the sun every 1/2 hour or so.
The huge pots for cooking food and boiling water are heated on burners made of automobile rims and modified propane burners.
Everything is nearly self sufficient; just like McGuyver would have done it. All of this is in place for one purpose. To teach, empower, minister, and care for surrounding villagers. NOT to enable or give, but to serve, and care. I dare say that the missionaries that live there are pretty well grounded and understand (or at least have a much better understanding than a 'blan' like myself) the culture.
The entire lower level of the mission building is filled with classrooms and the feeding center. Someone donated the American swingset (visible in lower right hand corner) and had it shipped down on a cargo ship. The Haitian children have never seen such a colorful, strange apperatus, but have warmed up to it enough to where before school there isn't a square inch available for another child on it. Pretty cool to see so many smiles.
Last November, when we left Haiti, after our time was up, it was weird, because it felt like there was so much we didn't get to finish... Now that I've had the opportunity to do a recon of what the needs are, and which order to prioritize them, I'm really looking foward to 'MacGuyvering'.
-Ch
Friday, January 14, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Lead from the front
Alright. So here's the deal. For those of you who don't know me, I'm a former U.S. Marine Staff Non-Commissioned Officer. I mean business. I know how to handle troops. I know how to quietly make "defy-the-odds" decisions to take lives, save lives, preserve the peace, and sleep quietly at night... Until parenthood.
Children,
Our lovely children; require what I describe as; 'immediate action drills' on a daily basis:
Children,
Our lovely children; require what I describe as; 'immediate action drills' on a daily basis:
- Every flippen morning, we are awoken by two boys that insist to incur bowl habits first thing.. Even if I wake and change them in the early A.M. It must happen around 5:45am, but at 6am, it becomes a boiling stench that they seem to not be bothered by.. Seriously? When are we going to grow out of this? ...Oh yeah. 1-2 yrs from now..
- Our oldest, bless her heart, 5y/o and potty trained of course (yeah!) is the drama princess of the galaxy. Getting out of bed for the 13th time tonight, she expressed her excuse was the following: "My toes hurt." "Its too dark." "I heard Noah crying." "We forgot to brush my hair." "Shane and Loyola saw my underwear." -WHAT!? I expressed.. "Yes Daddy. I need a belt. My blue pants sagged and showed the back of my underwear". Okay Grace. We'll talk about it tomorrow.. I immediately walked in to tell my wife, her reply was; "Yes, she told me yesterday."
- Any window screen within reach of 2.5 feet must have holes that can accommodate 'Thomas the train' boxcars.
- Any window within reach of 2.8 feet must have nose prints and/or hand prints magnified in: Peanut butter, jelly, cracker grease, or play dough.
- Garage Upkeep. Doesn't happen. If they can get in, they will get it. Case in point: Last fall while mowing the lawn, my riding lawnmower tractor sent a 13/16 socket wrench through the side of our outbuilding.. Mmmm? How did that happen? Noah told me after I asked him. "I tossed it by the firepit Daddy!" Awesome dude. Thanks for letting me know in advance. Thank God I didn't aim the tractor at anybody..
Life is good, be humorous! -I wouldn't trade this for ANYTHING. The more parents I speak/collaborate with, confirm that it is wise to keep in mind all the mischievousness and $$$$ that we cost' our own parents 'back in the day'.. is reality today. Parenting is challenging, but rewarding. Right when you might think 'you just might be the worst parent ever,' or, 'my children are NOT the average', guess what? -They generally are.. And God loves YOU, just like YOU love your crazy kids. ..Bowl habits, learning the limits of sassiness, and overall running around craziness.
I'm glad God is much less impulsive with responses and far more patient than I am. -That's for sure..
My folks? They had five rambunctious children, and two dogs!. -I have NO idea how they ever made it, to parital retirement.
Make it Great, and irreplaceable.
-C
Monday, January 10, 2011
11 Step consideration process to having kids
Lesson 1
1. Go to the grocery store.
2. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their head office.
3. Go home.
4. Pick up the paper.
5. Read it for the last time.
Lesson 2
Before you finally go ahead and have children, find a couple who already are parents and berate them about their...
1. Methods of discipline.
2. Lack of patience.
3. Appallingly low tolerance levels.
4. Allowing their children to run wild.
5. Suggest ways in which they might improve their child's breastfeeding, sleep habits, toilet training, table manners, and overall behavior.
Enjoy it because it will be the last time in your life you will have all the answers.
Lesson 3
A really good way to discover how the nights might feel...
1. Get home from work and immediately begin walking around the living room from 5PM to 10PM carrying a wet bag weighing approximately 8-12 pounds, with a radio turned to static (or some other obnoxious sound) playing loudly. (Eat cold food with one hand for dinner)
2. At 10PM, put the bag gently down, set the alarm for midnight, and go to sleep.
3. Get up at 12 and walk around the living room again, with the bag, until 1AM.
4. Set the alarm for 3AM.
5. As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2AM and make a drink and watch an infomercial.
6. Go to bed at 2:45AM.
7. Get up at 3AM when the alarm goes off.
8. Sing songs quietly in the dark until 4AM.
9. Get up. Make breakfast. Get ready for work and go to work (work hard and be productive)
Repeat steps 1-9 each night. Keep this up for 3-5 years. Look cheerful and together.
Lesson 4
Can you stand the mess children make? T o find out...
1. Smear peanut butter onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains.
2. Hide a piece of raw chicken behind the stereo and leave it there all summer.
3. Stick your fingers in the flower bed.
4. Then rub them on the clean walls.
5. Take your favorite book, photo album, etc. Wreck it.
6. Spill milk on your new pillows. Cover the stains with crayons. How does that look?
Lesson 5
Dressing small children is not as easy as it seems.
1. Buy an octopus and a small bag made out of loose mesh.
2. Attempt to put the octopus into the bag so that none of the arms hang out.
Time allowed for this - all morning.
Lesson 6
Forget the BMW and buy a mini-van. And don't think that you can leave it out in the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't look like that.
1. Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment.
Leave it there.
2. Get a dime. Stick it in the CD player.
3. Take a family size package of chocolate cookies. Mash them into the back seat. Sprinkle cheerios all over the floor, then smash them with your foot.
4. Run a garden rake along both sides of the car.
Lesson 7
Go to the local grocery store. Take with you the closest thing you can find to a pre-school child. (A full-grown goat is an excellent choice). If you intend to have more than one child, then definitely take more than one goat. Buy your week's groceries without letting the goats out of your sight. Pay for everything the goat eats or destroys. Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even contemplate having children.
Lesson 8
1. Hollow out a melon.
2. Make a small hole in the side.
3. Suspend it from the ceiling and swing it from side to side.
4. Now get a bowl of soggy Cheerios and attempt to spoon them into the swaying melon by pretending to be an airplane.
5. Continue until half the Cheerios are gone.
6. Tip half into your lap. The other half, just throw up in the air.
You are now ready to feed a nine- month-old baby.
Lesson 9
Learn the names of every character from Sesame Street , Barney, Disney, the Teletubbies, and Pokemon. Watch nothing else on TV but PBS, the Disney channel or Noggin for at least five years. (I know, you're thinking What's 'Noggin'?) Exactly the point.
Lesson 10
Make a recording of Fran Drescher saying 'mommy' repeatedly. (Important: no more than a four second delay between each 'mommy'; occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet is required). Play this tape in your car everywhere you go for the next four years. You are now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.
Lesson 11
Start talking to an adult of your choice. Have someone else continually tug on your skirt hem, shirt- sleeve, or elbow while playing the 'mommy' tape made from Lesson 10 above. You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a child in the room.
This is all very tongue in cheek; anyone who is parent will say 'it's all worth it!' Share it with your friends, both those who do and don't have kids. I guarantee they'll get a chuckle out of it. Remember, a sense of humor is one of the most important things you'll need when you become a parent!
- Posted using iTouchBlogPress mobile
1. Go to the grocery store.
2. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their head office.
3. Go home.
4. Pick up the paper.
5. Read it for the last time.
Lesson 2
Before you finally go ahead and have children, find a couple who already are parents and berate them about their...
1. Methods of discipline.
2. Lack of patience.
3. Appallingly low tolerance levels.
4. Allowing their children to run wild.
5. Suggest ways in which they might improve their child's breastfeeding, sleep habits, toilet training, table manners, and overall behavior.
Enjoy it because it will be the last time in your life you will have all the answers.
Lesson 3
A really good way to discover how the nights might feel...
1. Get home from work and immediately begin walking around the living room from 5PM to 10PM carrying a wet bag weighing approximately 8-12 pounds, with a radio turned to static (or some other obnoxious sound) playing loudly. (Eat cold food with one hand for dinner)
2. At 10PM, put the bag gently down, set the alarm for midnight, and go to sleep.
3. Get up at 12 and walk around the living room again, with the bag, until 1AM.
4. Set the alarm for 3AM.
5. As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2AM and make a drink and watch an infomercial.
6. Go to bed at 2:45AM.
7. Get up at 3AM when the alarm goes off.
8. Sing songs quietly in the dark until 4AM.
9. Get up. Make breakfast. Get ready for work and go to work (work hard and be productive)
Repeat steps 1-9 each night. Keep this up for 3-5 years. Look cheerful and together.
Lesson 4
Can you stand the mess children make? T o find out...
1. Smear peanut butter onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains.
2. Hide a piece of raw chicken behind the stereo and leave it there all summer.
3. Stick your fingers in the flower bed.
4. Then rub them on the clean walls.
5. Take your favorite book, photo album, etc. Wreck it.
6. Spill milk on your new pillows. Cover the stains with crayons. How does that look?
Lesson 5
Dressing small children is not as easy as it seems.
1. Buy an octopus and a small bag made out of loose mesh.
2. Attempt to put the octopus into the bag so that none of the arms hang out.
Time allowed for this - all morning.
Lesson 6
Forget the BMW and buy a mini-van. And don't think that you can leave it out in the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't look like that.
1. Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment.
Leave it there.
2. Get a dime. Stick it in the CD player.
3. Take a family size package of chocolate cookies. Mash them into the back seat. Sprinkle cheerios all over the floor, then smash them with your foot.
4. Run a garden rake along both sides of the car.
Lesson 7
Go to the local grocery store. Take with you the closest thing you can find to a pre-school child. (A full-grown goat is an excellent choice). If you intend to have more than one child, then definitely take more than one goat. Buy your week's groceries without letting the goats out of your sight. Pay for everything the goat eats or destroys. Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even contemplate having children.
Lesson 8
1. Hollow out a melon.
2. Make a small hole in the side.
3. Suspend it from the ceiling and swing it from side to side.
4. Now get a bowl of soggy Cheerios and attempt to spoon them into the swaying melon by pretending to be an airplane.
5. Continue until half the Cheerios are gone.
6. Tip half into your lap. The other half, just throw up in the air.
You are now ready to feed a nine- month-old baby.
Lesson 9
Learn the names of every character from Sesame Street , Barney, Disney, the Teletubbies, and Pokemon. Watch nothing else on TV but PBS, the Disney channel or Noggin for at least five years. (I know, you're thinking What's 'Noggin'?) Exactly the point.
Lesson 10
Make a recording of Fran Drescher saying 'mommy' repeatedly. (Important: no more than a four second delay between each 'mommy'; occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet is required). Play this tape in your car everywhere you go for the next four years. You are now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.
Lesson 11
Start talking to an adult of your choice. Have someone else continually tug on your skirt hem, shirt- sleeve, or elbow while playing the 'mommy' tape made from Lesson 10 above. You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a child in the room.
This is all very tongue in cheek; anyone who is parent will say 'it's all worth it!' Share it with your friends, both those who do and don't have kids. I guarantee they'll get a chuckle out of it. Remember, a sense of humor is one of the most important things you'll need when you become a parent!
- Posted using iTouchBlogPress mobile
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