paradoxicalirony-blog

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#quote 'I am not what has #happened to #me, I am what I #choose to #become' - #carl #jung #advertising #besocial #brief

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For those who believe in God, most of the big questions are answered. But for those of us who can’t readily accept the God formula, the big answers don’t remain stone-written. We adjust to new conditions and discoveries. We are pliable. Love need not be a command or faith a dictum. I am my own God. We are here to unlearn the teachings of the church, state and our educational system. We are here to drink beer. We are here to kill war. We are here to laugh at the odds and live our lives so well that Death will tremble to take us.

Charles Bukowski on the meaning of life (via explore-blog)

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PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet

http://vimeo.com/31100268

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"Remember today, if big business and government are involved together, take nothing at face value"

The evidence from that point continued to mount, all to support Beck’s contention that the administration wanted Facebook to fail. Why? So that it could be brought into the orbit of the government as one of many formerly powerful companies that had to take money in exchange for loyalty. Beck suggested that the reason the government would want this is because control over Facebook via public money would enable them to have huge amounts of control over the internet, which they would then use to stifle dissent. - The Blaze

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In truth - many are lucky. But if you weren't born with too many contacts. Lets be honest, you need to work your ass off to get somewhere in life

PERSEVERE

There is never an end - only a bump in the road. 

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In the last 60 years, tens of thousands of people have reportedly been forced from their homes after radioactive waste was dumped into the Techa river in southwestern Siberia.

The government recently announced that the resettlement programme was over, yet four villages remain in the deadly radiation zone.

Al Jazeera's Charles Stratford travelled to the Chelyabinsk region, where radiation levels are 50 times higher than deemed safe for humans 

- Al Jazeera English 

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The EFF is concerned that, due to the vague language used in the bill, “a company like Google, Facebook, Twitter, or AT&T could intercept your emails and text messages, send copies to one another and to the government, and modify those communications or prevent them from reaching their destination if it fits into their plan to stop cybersecurity threats.”

A good social engineer (con man) would have a field day gaining access to user data with a simple phone call by posing as this or that government agency/corporate entity. It happens all the time at present.

KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON AROUND YOU! See full story here

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Google has taken the wraps off techno-glasses which add emails, Google searches and even directions over your view of the world. 

The glasses - unveiled via a Google Plus page, Project Glass, are voice-controlled, and offer GPS directions as well as email and video chat through a built-in screen directly in front of a user's eyes.

The glasses are a product of Google's 'Google X' blue-sky ideas lab - and the search giant is looking for ideas to improve them.

'We think technology should work for you—to be there when you need it and get out of your way when you don’t,' says Google. 

The glasses appear to run a variant of the Android operating system, using the same microphone icon and other recognisable parts of Google's mobile OS.

The glasses layer information 'over' the world, and offer directions - as well as allowing users to 'locate' one another in the real world, as with Google's current Latitude system. 

'We’re sharing this information now because we want to start a conversation and learn from your valuable input. So we took a few design photos to show what this technology could look like and created a video to demonstrate what it might enable you to do.'

Various leaks had hinted that Google wanted to move into wearable computing. 

'Many of the features - voice commands, embedded camera, Google Maps integration - have been previously rumored, but it’s compelling to actually see them in action. Whether they will work quite as well in reality is, so far, uncertain,' says ZDNet. 

No release date has been confirmed for the glasses - nor has Google explained exactly how the glasses work.

 'Google X' is where the search giant's scientists work on wild, out-there ideas.

'Google has always invested in speculative R&D projects - it's part of our DNA,' said a spokesperson when the first news of the lab leaked. 

'While the possibilities are incredibly exciting, the sums involved are very small by comparison to the investments we make in our core businesses. In terms of details, we don't comment on speculation.'

The lab is reportedly located in Google's Mountain View, California headquarters - known as 'the Googleplex'.

Engineers are free to work on projects such as connected fridges that order groceries when they run low - or even tableware that can connect to social networks.

Other Google engineers have reportedly researched ideas as far-out as elevators to space.

Google co-founder Sergey Brin is reportedly deeply involved in the lab. His business card is said to be simply a piece of silvery metal decorated with the letter X.

Brin, a robot enthusiast, once attended a conference via a robot with a screen showing his face.

It's not unusual for tech companies to have 'ideas labs' hidden away from their ordinary workers - at Apple, for instance, Jonathan Ive's design lab where devices such as iPads are perfected, is guarded as if it was a weapons facility.

- Daily Mail

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Google's Projectglass - Technology gone too far?

Do you think we will wake up soon to regret the new world we have created?

Project glass state on You Tube -

We believe technology should work for you — to be there when you need it and get out of your way when you don't. A team within our Google[x] group started Project Glass to build this kind of technology, one that helps you explore and share your world, putting you back in the moment. Follow along with us at http://g.co/projectglass as we share some of our ideas and stories. 

The truth is - convenience is always a positive attribute to be incorporated in technology. But where is the limit? If everyday, every moment of our lives is consumed by alerts of information and detailing everything about our environment. Where is the interest in living? 

If we are aware of everything that is happening within and external from our immediate surroundings, will there still be fruit to show in our conversations?

If we never get lost, then what things will land upon accidentally, if ever? 

If we cross this line, where we consent to information being chucked at us at all moments. Will we have any personal space? Or will we have to pay for it, as information becomes a norm and personal space a commodity?

Although an awesome product, and sure enough to profit well. This could just be down to the engagement and interactivity hype surrounding technology for the past 10 years. 

The day we realise we have given up all our personal space - will we love it just as much?

Will technology become a restraint on our freedom?

Let me know your thoughts

Read more here

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When it happens to someone you know...

If you follow my blog you'll know that I have not been up to date for the past few weeks. 

I was tying loose ends in SA before going to visit family in London. I had been gone for over 10 months which in itself does not seem like a lot of time. 

Upon arrival and settling in I arrive to 3 pieces of news that made those who told me and myself reassess our lives almost instantaneously

1. Someone had gotten married and had a child 

2. Someone in the year below hung himself

3. Someone in my year - that I boarded with hung himself

I was only gone for 10 months. These were people we went to school with and saw everyday.

My immediate thoughts were:

Did we make the effort to speak with them? Ask them how they were? Did we bother to keep in contact? Did anyone care enough to find out why they did this? Did we ever know who they were?

I know ill never know the answers - but I did remember one of them well. A guy who I didn't like as he made crude remarks that I made a point of stamping out. I wasnt proud of my behaviour as a high school student - we all dealt with our internal insecurities to the best we could. Mine were mostly instilled by family gaining satisfaction out of others dismal I grew overtime and let that part of me perish with the memories of high school.

Its hard to understand why I am hurting over this - I didnt know either boys that well, but I just can not understand how those privileged enough to attend our school would ever feel that there was no way out. 

All i can fathom from this situation is:

1. There is always a way. You have to fight through obstacles in order to truly reap the rewards. Happiness can not be felt without sadness. We should aim for contentment, nothing more and nothing less.

2. No expectations, no regrets. We cannot expect too much of ourselves. Failure is inevitable and part of growing up. Without it - we will not learn thus not grow any wiser. 

3. Life is not always meant to be constant and stable - when it starts to sway, hold tight because the ride will only get interesting and its never too late to enjoy the ride. 

Will post updates soon enough - I promise! Have a few stories in drafts that I plan on posting soon enough.

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 The unstoppable, Stop-Kony 2012 video, which has highlighted the plight of African child soldiering like never before. But is it really good? Is it really bad? Or is the world really more complex than 'good guys' and 'bad guys'? Whatevers; one thing's for sure, this is momentous: never had a 27-minute video devoid of both cats and boobs ever achieved such virality. Is this a demonstration of the internet's ability to instantly inform and engage tens of millions; and a hopeful sign that there is a willingness among those millions, to engage passionately with something more meaningful? Or does Kony2012 just mark the dawn of a rapacious new era of viral humanitarian marketing? Join your charitable host Robert Foster - and our special guest, General Baxter, direct from AFRICOM - as we delve into the dark heart of the matter. Juice Rap News: written by Giordano Nanni; lyrics and performance by Hugo Farrant. Created by Farrant & Nanni in a back-yard studio in suburban Melbourne.  CONNECT with us through: Our website: ‪http://thejuicemedia.com‬ 
 Twitter: ‪http://twitter.com/juicerapnews‬
 Farcebook: ‪https://www.facebook.com/rapnews‬ 


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Hi Guys - 

This is my friends Saatchi & Saatchi London competition entry. Let me know your thoughts and please watch and like the video to increase the views for her.

Thank you, 

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The truth is - 

Not all of it is our fault. 

There are so many societal constraints that push and pull us towards differing opinions about ourselves. Media appears to dictate what we should consider as normal or what our goals should be, but in reality humans themselves create the media and thus the cycle never seems to end. 

BUT

If you take apart what is man made and what is real, and realise that you are all you'll ever have - you'll learn to love who you are. 

Sometimes we have to get lost - in order to find ourselves. 

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So if you haven't come across the Kony 2012 campaign yet, heres a short brief to bring you up to scratch. 

Kony 2012, is an American initiative to take 'Joseph Kony' down as he is a rebel leader who seizes hundreds of child soldiers. Thus this year - 2012 - 'everyone' must keep the world aware of his existence and try to combat and take him down. But wait - hasn't he been in Congo since 2006? Hmmm..

The official reason is to assist African countries --Uganda, Congo, Southern Sudan and Central Africa Republic-- to defeat the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA).

Sound familiar? Propaganda used to sway mass populations in order to enter territories with citizens backing for an alternative agenda. That of resources such as diamonds, oil, gold, and many others as well as blocking China's entry into the continent as the next big power.

For example previous initiatives that have not benefited the continent. AFRICOM - the expansion of US military footprint on African soil. Getting involved with Libya that wanted to give a political voice to Africa with a unified africa with economic integration through a creation of a single currency made of Gold to bring back the power of their resources to the continent. But would USA ever stand for that? NEVER

Aljazeera illustrates the main incentives for the US, have been very commonly held, and  continues to be held:

As a result of Invisible Children's irresponsible advocacy, civilians in Uganda and central Africa may have to pay a steep price in their own lives so that a lot of young Americans can feel good about themselves, and a few can make good money. This, of course, is sickening, and I think that Kony 2012 is a case of Invisible Children having finally gone too far. They are now facing a backlash from people of conscience who refuse to abandon their capacity to think for themselves.

But, as I said, I wouldn't have known about Kony 2012 if it hadn't been for the emails I've been receiving from the US. And that, I think, is telling. Kony 2012 and the debate around it are not about Uganda, but about America. Uganda is largely just the stage for a debate over the meaning of political activism in the US today. Likewise, in my view, the Kony 2012 campaign itself is basically irrelevant here in Uganda, and perhaps the best approach might be to just ignore it. This is for a couple reasons.

First, because Invisible Children's campaign is a symptom, not a cause. It is an excuse that the US government has gladly adopted in order to help justify the expansion of their military presence in central Africa. Invisible Children are "useful idiots", being used by those in the US government who seek to militarise Africa, to send more and more weapons and military aid, and to bolster the power of states who are US allies. The hunt for Joseph Kony is the perfect excuse for this strategy - how often does the US government find millions of young Americans pleading that they intervene militarily in a place rich in oil and other resources? The US government would be pursuing this militarisation with or without Invisible Children - Kony 2012 just makes it a little easier. Therefore, it is the militarisation we need to worry about, not Invisible Children. Second, because in northern Uganda, people's lives will be left untouched by this campaign, even if it were to achieve its stated objectives. This is not because all the problems have been resolved in the years since open fighting ended, but because the very serious problems people face today have little to do with Kony. Inside Story - 'Kony 2012': The future of activism The most significant problem people face is over land. Land speculators and so-called investors, many foreign, in collaboration with the Ugandan government and military, are grabbing the land of the Acholi people, land that the Acholi were forced from a decade ago, when the government herded them into internment camps. Another serious problem is so-called "nodding disease' - a deadly illness that has broken out among thousands of children who had the bad luck to be born and grown in the camps, subsisting on relief aid. Indeed, the problems people face today are the legacy of the camps, where more than a million Acholi were forced to live, and die - for years - by their own government as part of a counterinsurgency that received essential support from the US government and from international aid agencies. Which brings up the question that I am constantly asked in the US: "What can we do?", where "we" tends to mean relatively privileged US citizens.

If you keep tabs of politics for a long stretch, like anything in history, patterns emerge. it is very typical for media footage to pull people in one direction in order to allow for something else to occur. if people sign this bill all over the place - just as obama said with iran - they will stop at nothing to 'capture' the predator. this does in fact mean war, arms, blood, and something to be gained. 

A good friend Rob Watt states

One of the biggest and most documented examples in history was in the 1930s when the Nazi Party convinced the German public via the media, that their economic woes were caused by the Jews. 6 million Jews died. Read up on Joseph Goebbels. Propaganda plays a huge role with the public forming general opinions. Don't formulate your opinion from digesting one source, go to many, talk to other informed people and then start to formulate it.

Very true. 

The fact of the matter is, anyone can shoot a great movie - look into all the corporate heads involved as well. People must stop and do their own research before jumping the gun. But wait - what about that picture with the founders of Invisible Children holding guns and posing with the Sudan Liberation Force?

USA has always had something to gain from all that they do - and unfortunately it takes years before anyone regrets the original support. I.e the infamous Iraq situation. 

Please watch these links and educate yourself - because who can believe that this experiment has actually worked and may have us all participating in the next war for selfish interests. Such as who is the boss? USA or China?

Why do we have to stand for this!

http://www.acholitimes.com/index.php/perspectives/opinion/15-open-letter-to-jason-russell-ceo-of-invisible-children-inc-on-kony2012

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2012/03/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2113956/Kony-2012-Photo-shows-Invisible-Children-founders-posing-weapons.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSSVEQp2DSU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ddYeKf6E6Y&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uct3dyDVgts&feature=youtu.be

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Republic of Congo's government scrambled to organize Sunday's mass burial, which took place exactly one week after an arms depot inside a military barracks caught fire, setting off a lethal rain of grenades, mortar rounds, shells and rockets.

Extra carpenters had to be hired to build the coffins. The municipal morgue stayed open all night so that families could finish the ritual washing of the bodies.

At least 246 people were killed, but only 159 of the bodies could be identified in time for Sunday's funeral. The scene at the morgue in the hours before the burial, and at the cemetery after the coffins were lowered, was one of chaos, punctuated by pain.

The last body to be identified on Sunday morning was that of Jean Mbarushimana's 17-year-old brother. The teenager was killed by a flying shell, and the family brought the body to the morgue itself. But the morgue removed the young man's clothes and on Saturday, when the family returned to do the ritual washing, they could no longer recognize him, his features erased by decomposition.

"I went and bought a pair of boots and went body by body. I stayed up all night. He was the very last one at the back of the morgue," Mbarushimana said.

Coffins were being hauled out of a shed on a trolley, pushed by men wearing face masks and white lab coats. Families arrived on Saturday and camped out in the morgue's parking lot, waiting for their names to be called on the morgue's speakers. They stood holding shopping bags with the new clothes they had bought to dress their loved ones.

When their turn came, they were handed gas masks and ushered into the tiled floor of the morgue. Inside, female relatives washed the women's bodies, while male relatives washed the men's, a funeral rite common in much of Africa.

On Saturday, an elderly man who had lost his child had a heart attack during the process, said an emergency responder who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the press.

The mother of a 16-year-old girl who died after being hit by shrapnel wept uncontrollably, as her child's coffin was rolled away. She placed her hand on her heart to steady it. Another swayed from side to side, her arms raised, as if imploring the heavens.

By midmorning on Sunday, 145 coffins had been piled onto open bed trucks. Another 14 were set aside at the request of families whose rites differ, including the Muslim victims of the blast. They will be buried in a simple shroud.

The trucks were driven by soldiers wearing gas masks against the stench. The caskets were taken to an esplanade, where President Denis Sassou Nguesso laid a ceremonial wreath at the foot of the first truck.

They were then driven to a sandy field where identical holes had been dug, lined in cement. A young man who lost his entire family had to be restrained after he became violent. His friends held him down on his back. He grabbed a fistful of dirt and threw it into his mouth, as if to choke himself.

At the lip of each grave, families wept. Many wore masks against the overpowering smell. Germaine Amboulou was splayed out next to the grave of her 7-year-old. "Jesus. Oh Jesus," she sobbed.

The dead were crushed inside collapsing homes, under falling beams and ceilings. They died of blunt trauma, hit by grenades, mortar rounds, shells and rockets.

But the explosions also claimed the lives of those that were not touched at all - like Mireille Massanga, pregnant with her fourth child. She was three days away from her due date, said her cousin Rufin Tchikaya, and when she heard the blast, she scooped up her children and ran as fast as she could for almost 1 mile (1.5 kilometers).

When she was out of harm's way, she stopped running, but her heart didn't. Her family rushed her to the emergency room, and she died in the long line of people waiting for treatment, said Tchikaya. "They thought she was in labor, and the hospital had no time to deal with a simple pregnancy," he said, as her coffin was taken for burial.

Anger at the government is starting to boil over. The road to the cemetery had to be cordoned off by riot police on Sunday, after frustrated mourners began hurling stones. Families were promised 500,000 francs (around $1,000) per relative for burial clothes. Fights broke out at the cashier set up inside the morgue when many were given less.

The government had promised to move the arms depot located in the Mpila neighborhood in the northern part of Brazzaville after a less deadly explosion in 2009. The cause of the fire that set off the detonation has been blamed on a short circuit, but residents claim witnesses saw a soldier throw a cigarette inside the armory.

A soldier who worked at the barracks and who asked not to be named in keeping with military protocol stood silently outside the morgue, waiting for the name of his 22-year-old daughter to be called out. He had left the barracks just before the first blast. When he returned to his destroyed house, he said his daughter's body was so mangled, he initially walked past her corpse, not realizing it was his child.

His eyes watered when he was asked if he blamed the military for her death. He had a shopping bag with him, in which he had folded a new, beaded bridal gown, still in its plastic covering. His daughter was never married and so he planned to bury her in the clothes of a princely bride.

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For entrepreneurs, start ups, and anyone who wants to do great in their careers

First make peace with the fact that failure is inevitable.

Then make peace with the fact that you will be wrong and no one is truly perfect.

Now - when you make mistakes, or you fail at anything. Don't wallow in pity but learn from it. Go forward with your lives and try to figure out what you should do differently next time. 

Failure is inevitable but rewards are not. Bite through the failure to appreciate a real and satisfying reward. 

Like our Freedom from major capitalistic structures still in place today ;)

*woops... couldn't help myself there*

Also check out: "Kathryn Schulz: On being wrong"