Monthly Archive for June, 2007

How to see and address the world issues (by Bill Gates)

Published on June 26, 2007 in Taken from others and Thinking mood. 0 Comments

“…We don’t read much about the preventable deaths. The media covers what’s new – and millions of people dying is nothing new. So it stays in the background, where it’s easier to ignore. But even when we do see it or read about it, it’s difficult to keep our eyes on the problem. It’s hard to look at suffering if the situation is so complex that we don’t know how to help. And so we look away.

…

Cutting through complexity to find a solution runs through four predictable stages: determine a goal, find the highest-leverage approach, discover the ideal technology for that approach, and in the meantime, make the smartest application of the technology that you already have — whether it’s something sophisticated, like a drug, or something simpler, like a bednet.

The AIDS epidemic offers an example. The broad goal, of course, is to end the disease. The highest-leverage approach is prevention. The ideal technology would be a vaccine that gives lifetime immunity with a single dose. So governments, drug companies, and foundations fund vaccine research. But their work is likely to take more than a decade, so in the meantime, we have to work with what we have in hand – and the best prevention approach we have now is getting people to avoid risky behavior. …”

by Bill Gates, speach to Harward graduates in June 2007

Day 025 – Hostage incident card

Published on June 25, 2007 in Weird and random. 0 Comments

Text copied from UN Pakistan materials… reading this I have a feeling that all the movies about heroic guys fighthing against their captors are just a bunch of instructions how to get into troubles:

  1. Your only job is to survive.
  2. At the time of your seizure, do not attempt to fight back. The first 15 to 45 minutes are the most dangerous. Do not play the hero; do not talk back or act “tough”.
  3. Be certain that you can explain everything you have on your person. Do not carry any items that may call into question your motives or status within the mission.
  4. Fear is a normal reaction. Try to relax, pause, take a deep breath and accept the situation.
  5. Keep a low profile.
    - Be cooperative without appearing either servile or antagonistic. Follow the instructions of your captors.
    - Never beg, plead or cry.
    - Do not make threats against your captors or indicate that you would testify against them.
    - Avoid appearing to study your captors features, dress and mannerisms.
  6. Try to gain your captors respect and try to build rapport with them. An excellent topic of discussion is family and children.
  7. Emphasize that as a United Nations employee, you are neutral and not involved in politics.
  8. Encourage your captors to let the authorities know your condition and whereabouts.
  9. Take care of yourself; exercise, stay well groomed, eat and drink even if you are not hungry.
  10. Be patient and mentally prepared for isolation. Focus your mind on pleasant scenes, memories or prayers.
  11. Do not attempt to escape unless you are certain you will be successful.
  12. If there is a rescue attempt by force, drop to the floor and keep your hands over your head. Once the situation stabilizes identify yourself

Day 023 – Pakistani wedding (live)

Published on June 24, 2007 in Cultural. 0 Comments

Sitting and typing at my laptop in the kitchen I suddenly realize that I can hear loud music. As its nothing usual I look out of window, and find out that on the roof next to ours are finishing preparations for a wedding celebration.

Now I am sitting on our rooftop and watching the wedding from a distance of cca 8 metres and will live update You what is going on :)

First You should get the picture of the stageset of this litle “drama”. The floor of the roof is covered with red carpet, tent walls are around the whole roof to ensure privacy (luckily not on my side), small tent with food and tables with barbeque are in the corner and in a central position a small stage. Everything looks like You would imagine based on the Arabic nights fairytales (except of lightbulbs instead of candles and camera guys shooting it all on tape).

First the women, dressed in colourful clothes, welcome the family of groom and bride with throwing rose leafs on their heads. Then all the women take a seat and in the simple of tympan and clapping they half sing – half recite… blesings? (I still dont speak Urdu :D ) This takes time untill the whole family doesnt meet (which with Pakistani punctuality took an hour).

Then the bride, covered from head till toes, sheltered by four girls holding a colourful fabric above her head, each by one corner, accompany her to the stage. Her mother joins her and waiting continues. After a while mother leaves and the groom is brought to take place next to the brides side.

You should know that this moment, its only females present. The only males are the servants prepairing the festivity and children.

After an another half an hour (while the couple still sits on the stage) the men came and after a while the “man of the house” takes some food. After him all the men come and fill their plates (no surprise, its already 2 am). In the meanwhile girls do “guards” at the brides side, they change every few minutes. After all the men have, the women take food. After all the guests have taken part in the festivity, the couple is allowed to come down from the stage. At this moment also the servants are allowed to take food.

During these festivities I have lost the track of the couple, it might be that they have dissappeared for a time, but I noticed them only after a longer while. They were mingeling among the guests, bride was allowed to take her face cover off… The couple was not hanging much together, each socializing with different guests.

After the wedding night gets a little bit boring, a good old family quarrel comes handy… It looks/sounds like flock of chickens anoying a cock, a man among a group of angry talking women.

3 a.m., guests are leaving, the bags for gifts for the new couple are put (partly full) aside, party is over. The city spoils the people, I strongly believe that the wedding festivity the traditional style is more fun…

4 a.m., I go to sleep and post this, the servants and hired hands, are alrady for half an hour tidyng the roof, no visible result except of lot of talking and finishing leftovers… no need to hurry :D

Here are some pics I have taken, first: I know it looks like a stage in theatre, You will have to trust me that is really a roof and real people…

Thank You for reading, I will be glad if You let me know via email or Guestbook if You like my posts and if its worth to sleep only 4 – 5 hours because of this web…

Day 023 – Day of water and fire (monsoon storm and city fire)

Published on June 23, 2007 in Normal Karachi and Weird and random. 0 Comments

The previous post took place in the morning of this day. I have to tell that the wedding party (previous post) was lucky that they have chosen THAT night, it was raining the day before the party and also the night after…

But lets get to the stuff that interests You… So its like this: we sit at office, do our work (MC 2007/08 vision) when Taha gets an SMS (cca 4 pm) that a fire has broken out in a shopping centre (Mobile Zone market a.k.a. CTC in Clifton). Than we notice that the sky is getting dark and after a while a storm, even stronger than the one two days ago comes (cca 5 pm). The wind was so strong it opened our window, eventhough it was hatched. Taha gets an SMS: “Its raining, did You notice?”. Nida gets an SMS The rain was so short and strong that when we finished work, it was already gone (cca 6 pm).

Already before leaving I have seen a nice scene, where on a building close to ours a group of maybe 20 people including women in colourful dresses stands at the roof and enjoys the rain. Talking about enjoying, upon getting out we have seen a bunch of kids playing in the puddles at the parking place :) The other pictures show what I have seen on the way to our flat. The wind and rain has killed nearly 200 people, a lot were injured mostly due to falling billboards (which is no surprise, as there are hundreds of them and half of them look like scrap metal put as high as possible), home walls and trees.

These pictures were taken at the fire site. Lots of people and very discoordinated effort of local fire squad. It took them nearly hour to get there and start working… some people blame it on the traffic and unwillingness (ignorance) of the drivers, others on their uneffectiveness, others on the lack of quality equipment… I think ALL of them are right. Whole floor of expensive shops got burned to ash… Nearly none of them was insured as Clifton is one of safest areas of city (so much riots and crimes, that nobody actually thinks of a “natural” disaster).


I offer also pictures of local policemen and their by-road check points, its forbidden but I have used the chaos to take a few pics of them :)

And lastly, we went to a local tea place to enjoy the sunset… Rain makes all the trash look fresh and smelly, but the tea was good. Just btw, the “tea place” was: four chairs and minitable put on the isle in middle of two roads…

Day 023 – Collective property

Published on June 23, 2007 in Thinking mood and first days. 0 Comments

As mentioned before, Pakistanis often think in a short term horizon and are not much into keeping the streets clean. The another reason for this is simple: the concept of Collective (public) property is unknown. What is not mine (I cant sell or buy) is not my business…

But as soon as it concerns some food in the fridge the concept is very clear… What is in he fridge belongs to everybody. To a question: “Why have You eaten the cake?” I got an answer: “We have asked everybody who was present and it was nobodies, so we ate it.” At least it wasnt mine, but I took a bit, and it was really very good… :)

Btw, having a taste of Your food without asking is normal, just like dividing the sum of bill into equal parts among all (doesnt matter what You had). What is ours is also mine, isnt it…?

Day 023 – AIESEC update

Published on June 23, 2007 in AIESEC time. 0 Comments

Oh, yes… I forgot to give updates how is my job at AIESEC doing :)

If there is somebody who gets to read also this post, than You shall know that we have already had our first LC visit – in LC Karachi, that we are, slowly but still, doing MC transition, analyzed the Pakistan 2010 vision (or is it Envision?), am in charge of a national conference in a month and YES I DO LIKE IT HERE AND THE PEOPLE AND MY TEAM.

From right to left (just like Arabic or Urdu): Sohaib (MC X and Fin), Taha (MC ER), Marina (MC CEEDer from Canada), Emad (MCP 06/07), me (MC TM and LCD) and Nida (MCP)…