Liberty of expression or hidden agenda?

April 10, 2014 //
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I just found out that there is something called MGIMO, a Russian school for diplomats, and that a professor who used to teach there has been sacked for publishing an article in which he equated the annexation of Crimea with Hitler’s 1938 Anschluss. (You can read that article, translated in English, by clicking here)

I did that by reading an article from The Moscow Times, published more than a month after these events have taken place and whose apparent point of interest was the state of turmoil prevalent at MGIMO.

Now, that I finished reading, I am left with a nagging question. What is the real purpose of this article? To demonstrate, against the prevalent feeling, that there still is some ‘freedom of expression’ left in Russia or just to ‘discreetly’ remind us that  “MGIMO has seen at least one other prominent expression of public protest against the government’s actions. In 1956, 18 Hungarian students left MGIMO to protest the advance of Soviet troops into Hungary. Nothing like this happened after the annexation of Crimea, according to Silantyev, who said there were some 1,000 foreign students from about 55 countries studying at MGIMO.”?

Well, Hitler might have acted differently, had Chamberlain and Daladier responded more appropriately to his opening gambits…

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Categories politics, Psychology

Bingo!

April 10, 2014 //
0

A great article on why Pay Transparency really works:

“Huet-Vaughn concedes he has no idea why this happened. But he has a great theory: We don’t care as much about the amount we make as long as we know we’re not being taken advantage of. And not knowing what other people earn is, de facto, a breeding ground for doubt.”

Well, this feeling might actually kick in only after a certain ceiling has been penetrated but this is a great insight, nevertheless.

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Categories Psychology, yes but

Piata reglementata de capital

April 10, 2014 //
0

“SIF Moldova renunta la intentia de a imparti cu SIF Banat-Crisana controlul la Muntenia Invest”

“Partile au convenit incetarea contractului de cesiune de drepturi si obligatii incheiat la data de 23.08.2013 (…) Partile declara ca acest contract nu a produs si nu produce efectele juridice avute in vedere de parti la incheierea contractului si convin in mod expres ca acesta se desfiinteaza cu efect retroactiv, fiind considerat ca nu a fost incheiat niciodata”, se arata intr-un comunicat transmis, miercuri, de SIF Moldova (SIF2) Bursei de Valori Bucuresti (BVB).

SIF Moldova arata ca decizia a fost luata dupa ce ASF a stabilit ca preluarea pachetului de actiuni Muntenia Invest “poate fi solutionata doar ulterior eliminarii prevederilor art. 14 alin. (1) din actul constitutiv al SIF Moldova”. Articolul prevede ca societatea, membrii Consiliului de Administratie si directorii nu pot detine actiuni la alte societati de administrare a investitiilor, iar pentru modificarea statutului este necesara intrunirea unei adunari generale extraordinare a actionarilor, care necesita un cvorum ridicat, de minim 50% din actiuni.”

Traducere: SIF2 a vrut sa cumpere ceva, avea nevoie de aprobare pentru a face acest lucru, s-a dus sa ceara acea aprobare si autoritatea de supraveghere i-a explicat ca in statutul sau, adica in statutul care defineste modul de functionare a SIF2, exista o prevedere expresa care ii interzice fondului exact genul de investitie pe care dorea sa il faca. Mai mult, administratorii fondului nu cred ca pot mobiliza suficient de multi investitori incat sa poata schimba acea prevedere, de care oricum uitasera, asa ca renunta de tot.

?!?

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Categories 1989 and the Global Financial Crisises., aici sunt banii dumneavoastra, Tara din care traim, yes but

Vaccines

April 7, 2014 //
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People are having second thoughts about getting their children vaccinated and ask themselves if it makes any sense to do it at all. 

Things are relatively simple.
Vaccines work for whole populations, not necessarily for individuals. In order to make them acceptable those who market them try (or at least should try) to make them as good as possible.
For a rational (but callous) individual the best thing to do is to make sure that he is the only one not vaccinated: he cannot catch the disease since nobody can have it yet suffers no possible side effects from being inoculated.
If enough people opt out then the whole effort would have been in vain. The immunity obtained by vaccination isn’t as strong as the one one gets after surviving the disease so if enough people get the disease because they haven’t been vaccinated at all then older people, those who have been vaccinated first, start to fall ill.
From this point on nobody would vaccinate anymore their children – because it’s useless, right? – while the right thing to do would be to get a second vaccine, a rappel.
What’s getting on my nerves is the fact that sometimes we trust ‘scientists’/’technicians’ with our lives (for instance when we get aboard airplanes) yet other times we develop all kind of wild theories (about vaccines, for instance).
Of course we need to be extremely careful, both when choosing an airline or a pharmaceutical company, but to refuse altogether to fly or to vaccinate your children…

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Categories Psychology

The Hypocrisy Of Sam Yagan & OkCupid

April 7, 2014 //
0

Michael Arrington's avatarUncrunched

OkCupid played a major role in the successful effort to bring down Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich.

On March 31 the company showed a message to all visitors using Mozilla’s Firefox browser. The message stated: “Mozilla’s new CEO, Brendan Eich, is an opponent of equal rights for gay couples. We would therefore prefer that our users not use Mozilla software to access OkCupid.”

okcupid-firefox-boycott-hed-2014

As we all know, Eich’s opposition to equal rights for gay couples stemmed from his $1,000 donation to support Proposition 8 in 2008. There are no other allegations that he ever showed any other discrimination against gays or anyone else.

Most people will argue (including me) that OkCupid is permitted to express opinions and take actions like this under its first amendment rights as a corporation.

But what was OKCupid’s motivation? And how does OkCupid’s co-founder Sam Yagan fit into this?

I believe that it was a PR…

View original post 425 more words

Categories Uncategorized

Robots

April 7, 2014 //
2

The sole characteristic that makes us what we are, human beings, is our ability to ‘get out of our selves’ and to make decisions as if their outcome didn’t matter to us. In other terms we are able of cold blooded reasoning.
I don’t say this is easy – it involves quieting down our emotions – nor that everybody is able to do it. In fact almost nobody is able to do it consistently yet here we are, all the better just because of this particular ability of ours.

I find it extremely strange that some of us, in fact too many of us, are willing to give up this special ability, for different reasons.

Some try to introduce self driving cars, in the name of safety and to increase the capacity of existing highways. http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-04-03/the-problem-with-self-driving-cars-they-dont-cry

Some others came up with software to grade students essays. http://www.informationweek.com/mobile/mobile-devices/automated-essay-grading-software-stirs-debate/d/d-id/1111035?

Not even the stock market is immune to these developments. “High-frequency trading practices” – robots, that is – have become widespread enough as to create concern. http://www.aboutschwab.com/press/issues/

As you’ll notice if you read those articles there is no clear majority as yet, for or against this phenomenon. Pros are carefully weighted against the identified cons and then advice is given by the authors. Unfortunately none of them distances himself far enough from the brouhaha to notice the somber fact that by allowing so many automatons to take over our lives we not only basically give up our individual autonomy but also we give up more and more of the opportunities we have to exercise our capacity to decide for ourselves.

It is indeed increasingly safer and more profitable, in the short term at least.

But is it really good for us? For our ability to cope in unforeseen/unforeseeable circumstances?

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Categories 1989 and the Global Financial Crisises., Psychology

Noi traim ca sa mancam sau mancam ca sa traim?

April 6, 2014 //
0

“Meniul zile cu 11 lei/3 feluri nu e vina patronului de restaurant ci a clientului care strâmbă din nas și pleacă la vecinul care vinde cu 50 de bani mai ieftin. Mâncarea multă, pusă cu lopata pe un platou de lemn încărcat de grăsime nu-i vina patronului ci a clientului care vrea să mănânce 1800 de grame de cartofi țărănești cu ciolan, cu 26 de lei. Colicile biliare de după căruța de mici cu cartofi pai sunt tot vina noastră, pentru că, pentru a putea vinde cinci mici cu muștar, cartofi și pâine cu 11-14 lei, ei bine, micii aceia nu mai sunt ce ar trebui să fie iar uleiul în care au fost fripți cartofii e cel mai ieftin și n-a mai fost schimbat de două săptămâni.”

Amandoi, atat clientul cat si ‘restauratorul’ sunt vinovati de ‘lacomie’. Uita ca ‘banul’ si mancarea sunt doar unelte. Primul masoara cat de eficienta este activitatea noastra iar a doua ne tine in viata.
Din pacate le-am transformat pe amandoua in ‘obiective strategice’.
Si iar imi aduc aminte de bunica-mea care ma intreba “ce crezi tu, noi oamenii mancam ca sa traim sau traim ca sa mancam?”

Iar daca uitam ca scopul primordial al activitatii noastre (actul de a manca este inclus aici) este in realitate “supravietuirea” (atat cea fizica, individuala, cat si cea ‘sociala’ – adica a mediului social si economic care ne face posibila existenta fizica) vom sfarsi prin a da faliment/muri de foame sau din cauza obezitatii. Ca sa nu mai vorbim despre faptul ca asta se va intampla in mijlocul unei gropi de gunoi.

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Categories aici sunt banii dumneavoastra

Two new pictures added to ‘Spring’

April 6, 2014 //
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ImageImage

Categories Pictures

Diferenta intre a avea dreptate si a striga in gura mare.

April 6, 2014 //
2

Image

“Rusia a avertizat, vineri, România, pe tema unor declaraţii “antiruse” ale preşedintelui Traian Băsescu în legătură cu criza din Ucraina, Moscova subliniind că o deteriorare a relaţiilor nu este în folosul niciuneia dintre cele două părţi.”

 

Mai demult am citit o pilda din viata lui Socrate. Ca sa nu ma chinui sa o reproduc din memorie am imprumutat versiunea de aici. Multumesc Gabriel Pascal.

 

” “Socrate, trebuie sa-ti vorbesc despre unul dintre studentii tai.”

“Stai o clipa,” ii replica Socrate. “Inainte sa-mi spui, as vrea sa-mi raspunzi la 3 intrebari. Inainte sa-mi vorbesti despre studentul meu, sa stam putin si sa testam ce ai de gand sa-mi spui. Primul test este cel al Adevarului. Esti absolut sigur ca ceea ce vrei sa-mi spui este adevarat?”

“Nu” spuse omul. “De fapt doar am auzit despre el.”

“E-n regula” zise Socrate. “Asadar, in realitate, tu nu stii daca este adevarat sau nu. Acum sa incercam testul al doilea, testul Binelui. Ceea ce vrei sa-mi spui despre studentul meu este ceva de bine?”

“Nu, dimpotriva…”

“Deci,” a continuat Socrate, “vrei sa-mi ceva rau despre el, cu toate ca nu esti sigur ca este adevarat?”

Omul a dat din umeri, putin stanjenit. Socrate a continuat.

“Totusi mai poti trece testul, pentru ca exista a treia proba – testul Utilitatii. Ceea ce vrei sa-mi spui despre studentul meu imi este de folos?”

“Nu, nu chiar…”

“Ei bine,” a conchis Socrate, “daca ceea ce vrei sa-mi spui nu este nici Adevarat, nici de Bine, nici macar de Folos, atunci de ce sa-mi mai spui?”

Omul era invins si s-a rusinat. Si astfel Socrate nu a aflat niciodata ca nevasta-sa il insela cu studentul respectiv.

Nu pot opri vorbele celor care vorbesc despre mine (mai ales cand nu sunt de fata), dar daca nu pot sa-i protejez pe ceilalti de aceste vorbe, imi pot dezvolta un sistem de autoprotectie, de selectare a ce las sa ma influenteze:

1. Este Adevarat?
2. Este Util?
3. Este Bine? “

Eu am sa merg un pic mai departe decat a facut-o Socrate.
Suntem intr-o alianta? Are aceasta alianta un punct de vedere bine conturat si exprimat elocvent? Am participat la intalnirile acestei aliante atunci cand a fost adoptat si exprimat acest punct de vedere?  Este vre-un element de noutate in aceasta luare de pozitie?

Si atunci? Ce rost sa iesim din front? Ca sa devenim ‘tinta’?

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Categories Lumea descrisa prin bancuri, Psychology, Tara din care traim

Sitting together on a train were Pres. Obama, George W. Bush, a little old lady, and a young blonde girl with large breasts

April 6, 2014 //
0

Excellent post.
Obama failed to fulfill, by far, both the promises he made when he run for president AND the hopes/illusions nurtured by those who voted for him but holding him accountant for all the misery that befell on the regular Joe is a little too much.
This kind of mistakes is very costly. Those who forget that the daily actions of each and everyone of us aggregate into our common destiny tend to believe that we might change our fortune simply by changing the leader.
History has proven, time and again, that we’ll keep making the same mistake until we’ll eventually understand what went wrong. And start doing ourselves what needs to be done instead of looking up to somebody above us to direct our actions.

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Categories 1989 and the Global Financial Crisises., politics, Psychology, The world as described in jokes
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