It's been a long long time since I last posted.
I've realized that my probation is over and my performance review is due.
Not that I'm nervous, but I find myself amazed at how much older I feel than I started out six months ago.
Six months with the agency, six months with a client that has demanded more of me than I've ever thought I could give. Six months, in a city that's sometimes beautiful and sometimes exhausting. Six months in the real world.
I know that there are countless blogs out there for professionals of every industry. Men and women sharing their knowledge and experience through their everyday work. I strive to have a blog of my own experience but realized that it's still a dumpster of my emotions that the victories and defeats I've gone through at work.
Sometimes I feel blessed and fueled for the drive I have to keep going. Yet other times I feel tired having my passion and creativity bounced off the walls endlessly without every going anywhere.
Perhaps this is my tuition. Life seems to be a school that's never "out" and everyone must keep paying their dues to learn what it has to offer.
I realized, you really can't keep your foot on the gas all the time. You can try, but you're just going to get burnt out. So I've learned to pick my battles. Learn to conceive and learn to have a short memory. Whether you win or lose in the office, tomorrow you're going back there and do it all over again.
China is bizarre. Sometimes in a beautifully optimistic way and sometimes twisted and disgusting. But I think as a journeyman, I've adapted quite well and I think I deserve a slight pat on the back for sticking in there when the going got tough and down right dirty.
When people ask me. "Why China?" I find myself speechless. I still have no answer, but I do have a gut feeling that it will do me good in the future. Moving half way around the world was no piece of cake but I'm glad and proud that I didn't quit during that first week when I left at 3 in the morning only to get back at the office at 10. I've been molded. Not completely, but I'm thankful for it because I hate to lose myself in the end.
I'm not out here saving the world. Not yet, anyway. But as tired as I get sometimes, I think I've still got the legs to chase the sun. Not too fast though, because I've found out that this is a long race.
Here's to the next six months, hope I find my own crib and hope I stay on track for my own dreams.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Thursday, March 5, 2009
James Morrison-Fix the World Up for You
I can tell you now
When I'm here to listen
To what I've got to say
All my words unplanned
Just like us they are waiting
To come together
I don't know if we're ready to take our train
But I, oh I, I'm gonna fix this world up for you
I'll try, I'll try to build it all around you
You'll never gonna have to be alone
You'll always know you got someone
To fix the world up for you
Well I'll bet I'll get it wrong
More times that I get it right
And I won't even realize it
But I've been doing all I can
To stop you falling
Even now I'm holding my breath for you
But you don't know, you don't know
That I'm ready to hold you now, hold you now
I, oh I, I'm gonna fix this world up for you
I'll try, I'll try to build it all around you
You'll never gonna have to be alone
Yeah you'll alway now you got someone
To fix the world up for you
Gonna fix the world up, up for you
Gonna fix the world up, up for you
Gonna fix the world up, up for you
When I'm here to listen
To what I've got to say
All my words unplanned
Just like us they are waiting
To come together
I don't know if we're ready to take our train
But I, oh I, I'm gonna fix this world up for you
I'll try, I'll try to build it all around you
You'll never gonna have to be alone
You'll always know you got someone
To fix the world up for you
Well I'll bet I'll get it wrong
More times that I get it right
And I won't even realize it
But I've been doing all I can
To stop you falling
Even now I'm holding my breath for you
But you don't know, you don't know
That I'm ready to hold you now, hold you now
I, oh I, I'm gonna fix this world up for you
I'll try, I'll try to build it all around you
You'll never gonna have to be alone
Yeah you'll alway now you got someone
To fix the world up for you
Gonna fix the world up, up for you
Gonna fix the world up, up for you
Gonna fix the world up, up for you
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Fuck You Very Much
I'm wound up way too tight,
walking the fine line between the unexpected and unreasonable.
Some days i just want to walk away from it all.
Start over again.
Or is it really a right of passage to be baptized by fire?
To reach heaven, must you first crawl through hell?
Either way I won't bend and break and I won't throw in the towel.
This is still my show and I will get my own ending with my own script.
They'll never take away my smile.
So here's to everyone who decide on a whim to take every hard-earned night and every precious weekend away from me.
Thank you and fuck you very freakin' much.
Because of you, I am fueled. To take on this world with the courage to say no
and keep looking until I find my dream under neath some rock tucked away somewhere.
Some day, I will get to the top and change the world in my own little way and it will be because of you. I will always remember you because without you I will be complacent. I would have forgotten that I should shoot for the moon, but when the moon isn't all that nice to have, I will keep shooting until i get the sun.
I have no idea how I will get there, but when that day comes, when I'm on top, when people I never knew know about me, when that beautiful day comes. I will say thank you, but mostly, fuck you.
walking the fine line between the unexpected and unreasonable.
Some days i just want to walk away from it all.
Start over again.
Or is it really a right of passage to be baptized by fire?
To reach heaven, must you first crawl through hell?
Either way I won't bend and break and I won't throw in the towel.
This is still my show and I will get my own ending with my own script.
They'll never take away my smile.
So here's to everyone who decide on a whim to take every hard-earned night and every precious weekend away from me.
Thank you and fuck you very freakin' much.
Because of you, I am fueled. To take on this world with the courage to say no
and keep looking until I find my dream under neath some rock tucked away somewhere.
Some day, I will get to the top and change the world in my own little way and it will be because of you. I will always remember you because without you I will be complacent. I would have forgotten that I should shoot for the moon, but when the moon isn't all that nice to have, I will keep shooting until i get the sun.
I have no idea how I will get there, but when that day comes, when I'm on top, when people I never knew know about me, when that beautiful day comes. I will say thank you, but mostly, fuck you.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
He is a little bit naive
Either he's one dumb SOB or he's just how we should all act, tolerant and always unafraid to learn.
Startled Iraqis welcome,sort of, their first tourist
By Stephen Farrell and Alissa J. Rubin
Published: February 6, 2009
BAGHDAD: "I am a tourist" were his first words. The telephone line from Falluja was bad, but there could be no mistake. Possibly Iraq's, and certainly Falluja's, first Western leisure visitor was in town.
Not for long though. A guard at a checkpoint caught sight of Luca Marchio among the Iraqi passengers on a bus that was heading from Baghdad to the once-notorious - and still tense - western city and alerted his superiors.
Marchio, 33, a native of Como, Italy, soon found himself in the Falluja police headquarters surrounded by bewildered officers trying to make out why a Westerner would wander around their city without a translator or guards. Marchio may have worried the police, but his main concern was saving money.
In two telephone conversations with journalists, he brushed away concerns for his safety and offers of help. "I am a tourist," he said. "I want to see the most important cities in the country. That is the reason why I am here now.
"I want to see and understand the reality, because I have never been here before and I think every country in the world must be seen. I was looking for cheap accommodation here in Falluja, but the authorities explained to me that it was impossible because there are not any hotels here. They suggested a short tour and then go back to Baghdad."BAGHDAD: "I am a tourist" were his first words. The telephone line from Falluja was bad, but there could be no mistake. Possibly Iraq's, and certainly Falluja's, first Western leisure visitor was in town.
Not for long though. A guard at a checkpoint caught sight of Luca Marchio among the Iraqi passengers on a bus that was heading from Baghdad to the once-notorious - and still tense - western city and alerted his superiors.
Marchio, 33, a native of Como, Italy, soon found himself in the Falluja police headquarters surrounded by bewildered officers trying to make out why a Westerner would wander around their city without a translator or guards. Marchio may have worried the police, but his main concern was saving money.
In two telephone conversations with journalists, he brushed away concerns for his safety and offers of help. "I am a tourist," he said. "I want to see the most important cities in the country. That is the reason why I am here now.
"I want to see and understand the reality, because I have never been here before and I think every country in the world must be seen. I was looking for cheap accommodation here in Falluja, but the authorities explained to me that it was impossible because there are not any hotels here. They suggested a short tour and then go back to Baghdad."
Full Article at: http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/02/06/mideast/falluja.4-424637.php
Startled Iraqis welcome,sort of, their first tourist
By Stephen Farrell and Alissa J. Rubin
Published: February 6, 2009
BAGHDAD: "I am a tourist" were his first words. The telephone line from Falluja was bad, but there could be no mistake. Possibly Iraq's, and certainly Falluja's, first Western leisure visitor was in town.
Not for long though. A guard at a checkpoint caught sight of Luca Marchio among the Iraqi passengers on a bus that was heading from Baghdad to the once-notorious - and still tense - western city and alerted his superiors.
Marchio, 33, a native of Como, Italy, soon found himself in the Falluja police headquarters surrounded by bewildered officers trying to make out why a Westerner would wander around their city without a translator or guards. Marchio may have worried the police, but his main concern was saving money.
In two telephone conversations with journalists, he brushed away concerns for his safety and offers of help. "I am a tourist," he said. "I want to see the most important cities in the country. That is the reason why I am here now.
"I want to see and understand the reality, because I have never been here before and I think every country in the world must be seen. I was looking for cheap accommodation here in Falluja, but the authorities explained to me that it was impossible because there are not any hotels here. They suggested a short tour and then go back to Baghdad."BAGHDAD: "I am a tourist" were his first words. The telephone line from Falluja was bad, but there could be no mistake. Possibly Iraq's, and certainly Falluja's, first Western leisure visitor was in town.
Not for long though. A guard at a checkpoint caught sight of Luca Marchio among the Iraqi passengers on a bus that was heading from Baghdad to the once-notorious - and still tense - western city and alerted his superiors.
Marchio, 33, a native of Como, Italy, soon found himself in the Falluja police headquarters surrounded by bewildered officers trying to make out why a Westerner would wander around their city without a translator or guards. Marchio may have worried the police, but his main concern was saving money.
In two telephone conversations with journalists, he brushed away concerns for his safety and offers of help. "I am a tourist," he said. "I want to see the most important cities in the country. That is the reason why I am here now.
"I want to see and understand the reality, because I have never been here before and I think every country in the world must be seen. I was looking for cheap accommodation here in Falluja, but the authorities explained to me that it was impossible because there are not any hotels here. They suggested a short tour and then go back to Baghdad."
Full Article at: http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/02/06/mideast/falluja.4-424637.php
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Big Brother
News like these really make us think about the by-products of technology, are we really free? Or are we just plugged into the wall somewhere (I know I already am because all day I've been staring at a 15' window that I call the world)
MILWAUKEE - Watch an advertisement on a video screen in a mall, health club or grocery store and there's a slim — but growing — chance the ad is watching you too.
Small cameras can now be embedded in the screen or hidden around it, tracking who looks at the screen and for how long. The makers of the tracking systems say the software can determine the viewer's gender, approximate age range and, in some cases, ethnicity — and can change the ads accordingly.
That could mean razor ads for men, cosmetics ads for women and video-game ads for teens.
And even if the ads don't shift based on which people are watching, the technology's ability to determine the viewers' demographics is golden for advertisers who want to know how effectively they're reaching their target audience.
While the technology remains in limited use for now, advertising industry analysts say it is finally beginning to live up to its promise. The manufacturers say their systems can accurately determine gender 85 to 90 percent of the time, while accuracy for the other measures continues to be refined.
The concept is reminiscent of the science-fiction movie "Minority Report," in which Tom Cruise's character enters a mall and finds that retinal scanners identify him and prompt personalized ads that greet him by name.
But this technology doesn't go nearly that far. It doesn't identify people individually — it simply categorizes them by outward appearances.
So a video screen might show a motorcycle ad for a group of men, but switch to a minivan ad when women and children join them, said Vicki Rabenou, the chief measurement officer of Tampa, Fla.-based TruMedia Technologies Inc., one of the leaders in developing the technology.
"This is proactive merchandising," Rabenou said. "You're targeting people with smart ads."
Because the tracking industry is still in its infancy, there isn't yet consensus on how to refer to the technology. Some call it face reading, face counting, gaze tracking or, more generally, face-based audience measurement.
Whatever it's called, advertisers are finally ready to try it, said advertising consultant Jack Sullivan, a senior vice president of Starcom USA in Chicago. "I think you're going to see a lot of movement toward it by the end of this year in the top 10 markets," he said.
Because face tracking might feel reminiscent of Big Brother, manufacturers are racing to offer reassurances. When the systems capture an image of who's watching the screen, a computer instantly analyzes it. The systems' manufacturers insist, however, that nothing is ever stored and no identifying information is ever associated with the pictures. That makes the system less intrusive than a surveillance camera that records what it sees, the developers say.
Full article at: http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/20090131/ap_on_hi_te/tec_nosy_ads
MILWAUKEE - Watch an advertisement on a video screen in a mall, health club or grocery store and there's a slim — but growing — chance the ad is watching you too.
Small cameras can now be embedded in the screen or hidden around it, tracking who looks at the screen and for how long. The makers of the tracking systems say the software can determine the viewer's gender, approximate age range and, in some cases, ethnicity — and can change the ads accordingly.
That could mean razor ads for men, cosmetics ads for women and video-game ads for teens.
And even if the ads don't shift based on which people are watching, the technology's ability to determine the viewers' demographics is golden for advertisers who want to know how effectively they're reaching their target audience.
While the technology remains in limited use for now, advertising industry analysts say it is finally beginning to live up to its promise. The manufacturers say their systems can accurately determine gender 85 to 90 percent of the time, while accuracy for the other measures continues to be refined.
The concept is reminiscent of the science-fiction movie "Minority Report," in which Tom Cruise's character enters a mall and finds that retinal scanners identify him and prompt personalized ads that greet him by name.
But this technology doesn't go nearly that far. It doesn't identify people individually — it simply categorizes them by outward appearances.
So a video screen might show a motorcycle ad for a group of men, but switch to a minivan ad when women and children join them, said Vicki Rabenou, the chief measurement officer of Tampa, Fla.-based TruMedia Technologies Inc., one of the leaders in developing the technology.
"This is proactive merchandising," Rabenou said. "You're targeting people with smart ads."
Because the tracking industry is still in its infancy, there isn't yet consensus on how to refer to the technology. Some call it face reading, face counting, gaze tracking or, more generally, face-based audience measurement.
Whatever it's called, advertisers are finally ready to try it, said advertising consultant Jack Sullivan, a senior vice president of Starcom USA in Chicago. "I think you're going to see a lot of movement toward it by the end of this year in the top 10 markets," he said.
Because face tracking might feel reminiscent of Big Brother, manufacturers are racing to offer reassurances. When the systems capture an image of who's watching the screen, a computer instantly analyzes it. The systems' manufacturers insist, however, that nothing is ever stored and no identifying information is ever associated with the pictures. That makes the system less intrusive than a surveillance camera that records what it sees, the developers say.
Full article at: http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/20090131/ap_on_hi_te/tec_nosy_ads
Friday, January 23, 2009
I'm Yours-Jason Mraz
I know it's not new or anything, but I'm loving this song right now more than ever before.
Well you done done me and you bet I felt it
I tried to be chill but you're so hot that I melted
I fell right through the cracks
Now I'm trying to get back
Before the cool done run out
I'll be giving it my bestest
And nothing's going to stop me but divine intervention
I reckon it's again my turn to win some or learn some
I won't hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait, I'm yours
Well open up your mind and see like me
Open up your plans and damn you're free
Look into your heart and you'll find love love love love
Listen to the music of the moment babay sing with me
We're just one big family
And It's our God-forsaken right to be loved love loved love loved
So I won't hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait I'm sure
There's no need to complicate
Our time is short
This is our fate, I'm yours
Scooch on over closer dear
And i will nibble your ear
I've been spending way too long checking my tongue in the mirror
And bending over backwards just to try to see it clearer
But my breath fogged up the glass
And so I drew a new face and laughed
I guess what I'm be saying is there ain't no better reason
To rid yourself of vanity and just go with the seasons
It's what we aim to do
Our name is our virtue
But I won't hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait I'm yours
Well open up your mind and see like me
Open up your plans and damn you're free
Look into your heart and you'll find that the sky is yours
Please don't, please don't, please don't
There's no need to complicate
Cause our time is short
This oh this this is out fate, I'm yours!
Well you done done me and you bet I felt it
I tried to be chill but you're so hot that I melted
I fell right through the cracks
Now I'm trying to get back
Before the cool done run out
I'll be giving it my bestest
And nothing's going to stop me but divine intervention
I reckon it's again my turn to win some or learn some
I won't hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait, I'm yours
Well open up your mind and see like me
Open up your plans and damn you're free
Look into your heart and you'll find love love love love
Listen to the music of the moment babay sing with me
We're just one big family
And It's our God-forsaken right to be loved love loved love loved
So I won't hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait I'm sure
There's no need to complicate
Our time is short
This is our fate, I'm yours
Scooch on over closer dear
And i will nibble your ear
I've been spending way too long checking my tongue in the mirror
And bending over backwards just to try to see it clearer
But my breath fogged up the glass
And so I drew a new face and laughed
I guess what I'm be saying is there ain't no better reason
To rid yourself of vanity and just go with the seasons
It's what we aim to do
Our name is our virtue
But I won't hesitate no more, no more
It cannot wait I'm yours
Well open up your mind and see like me
Open up your plans and damn you're free
Look into your heart and you'll find that the sky is yours
Please don't, please don't, please don't
There's no need to complicate
Cause our time is short
This oh this this is out fate, I'm yours!
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Simpsonize Yourself
Woohoo I finally have my own Simpsons avatar. You may think it's sad but I'm weirdly excited about this. I don't know if it looks like me but oh well. If they made a Simpsons version of The Sims I would so buy it. I can't wait to live in Springfield lol...
You can make your own at http://www.simpsonsmovie.com/main.html
Now all that's left is think of my occupation and a catch phrase. Maybe I'll be Ned Flanders' curiously Asian and atheist nephew who is an underachiever that drinks beer all day and works at the dry cleaner's across form Apu's Kwik-E-Mart.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Beautiful Blues
She gives me the beautiful blues.
Damn her picture-perfect smile and her tender lips,
the way she walks away and her hair between my finger tips.
She is my angel, who brings me light and death all in one kiss.
Now she's gone, wondered on, and she tells me boy don't reminisce.
She gives me the beautiful blues.
The kind that hurts and yet you keeping hanging on.
For your dear life, for the day you take the queen with the pawn.
After all this time, my ship never really sailed out of her dock.
Hers is gone, into the sunset, swiftly with the destiny winds that hold no bound.
She give me the beautiful blues.
Damn her picture-perfect smile and her tender lips,
the way she walks away and her hair between my finger tips.
She is my angel, who brings me light and death all in one kiss.
Now she's gone, wondered on, and she tells me boy don't reminisce.
She gives me the beautiful blues.
The kind that hurts and yet you keeping hanging on.
For your dear life, for the day you take the queen with the pawn.
After all this time, my ship never really sailed out of her dock.
Hers is gone, into the sunset, swiftly with the destiny winds that hold no bound.
She give me the beautiful blues.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
The Follow
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIHGT8vWleQ
Some time ago, BMW made a series of short films with famous directors around the world. Some were cool, some were funny and some were beautiful. The series is called "The Hire" starring Clive Owen. This one is one of my favorite.
I really like the narrative. Maybe because it puts things in perspective for me. "If you lose them, just keep moving and hope for the best." Perhaps that's true on different levels. We all have something we're following or chasing. Be it our dreams, our goals, or...Well, I'll leave it all to you to fill in the blanks. It's important to keep the faith even when it seems that you have all but steered away from the path that you want to be on. I've kept moving and I'm hoping for the best. It's a new year and it looks like the road ahead might get a bit bumpy, but here's hopign all of you have the strength to keep believing.
Some time ago, BMW made a series of short films with famous directors around the world. Some were cool, some were funny and some were beautiful. The series is called "The Hire" starring Clive Owen. This one is one of my favorite.
I really like the narrative. Maybe because it puts things in perspective for me. "If you lose them, just keep moving and hope for the best." Perhaps that's true on different levels. We all have something we're following or chasing. Be it our dreams, our goals, or...Well, I'll leave it all to you to fill in the blanks. It's important to keep the faith even when it seems that you have all but steered away from the path that you want to be on. I've kept moving and I'm hoping for the best. It's a new year and it looks like the road ahead might get a bit bumpy, but here's hopign all of you have the strength to keep believing.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
$50 Billion Ponzi
I've been reading some of the articles about Madoff and I must admit it's quite fascinating how far people are willing to go and how smart they can be in the name of greed. Not only until today that I learned what a "Ponzi" is. It just goes to show there really is no shortcut to success. Article from Wikipedia.
The "Ponzi"
A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to investors out of the money paid by subsequent investors rather than from profit. The term "Ponzi scheme" is used primarily in the United States, while other English-speaking countries do not distinguish colloquially between this scheme and other pyramid schemes.
The Ponzi scheme usually offers abnormally high short-term returns in order to entice new investors. The perpetuation of the high returns that a Ponzi scheme advertises and pays requires an ever-increasing flow of money from investors in order to keep the scheme going.
The system is destined to collapse because the earnings, if any, are less than the payments. Usually, the scheme is interrupted by legal authorities before it collapses because a Ponzi scheme is suspected or because the promoter is selling unregistered securities. As more investors become involved, the likelihood of the scheme coming to the attention of authorities increases.
The scheme is named after Charles Ponzi, who became notorious for using the technique after emigrating from Italy to the United States in 1903. Ponzi did not invent the scheme, but his operation took in so much money that it was the first to become known throughout the United States. His original scheme was in theory based on arbitraging international reply coupons for postage stamps, but soon diverted investors' money to support payments to earlier investors and Ponzi's personal wealth.
Knowingly entering a Ponzi scheme can be rational, in the economic sense, even at the last round of the scheme if a government will likely bail out those participating in the Ponzi scheme.
Bernard Madoff Scandal:
On December 11, 2008, former chairman of the NASDAQ Stock Market Bernard Madoff was arrested and charged with a single count of securities fraud, but one which, if proved, may rank among the biggest frauds ever - totaling $50 billion of fraudulent losses. If these figures are accurate, this would be the biggest Ponzi scheme in history.[4] It is alleged that one of Madoff's biggest investors, René-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet, of Access International Advisors, committed suicide around December 23, 2008, following the disclosure of the scheme.[5] At the time of this writing, it is unclear to what extent Access International's funds were involved in the scheme. Villehuchet is alleged to have lost as much as $1.4 billion in Madoff's scheme.[6]
While the scheme was typical of a Ponzi in its structure, it differed in its pace and its marketing. Rather than offer (suspiciously) high returns to all comers, Madoff instead offered modest, but steady returns to an exclusive clientele, returns produced in both up and down markets. The investment method was stated to be through a combination of stock purchases tracking some index and related puts and calls (contrary "bets" on the index's direction), but with the exact details a proprietary secret. Madoff exploited social networks to promote it among a largely upper class Jewish clientele, with significant funds invested from educational and social charity funds directed by the clients. The slow pace and "insider" marketing enabled the scheme to survive for an unusually long time and also to grow far larger than would be expected of a common Ponzi. All worked well for Madoff until the general market downturn of 2008 motivated a larger than usual number of investors to cash out their positions. With little actual liquidity, the scheme collapsed. In fact, the stated methodology was not possible, since the existing markets in puts and calls were not large enough to support the claimed activities, an observation noted by several critics prior to the collapse.[7] The scheme also differed in that even some hedge funds invested in Madoff's funds, with some investors unknowingly exposed through multiple fund investments that they believed to be diversified.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponzi_scheme
The "Ponzi"
A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to investors out of the money paid by subsequent investors rather than from profit. The term "Ponzi scheme" is used primarily in the United States, while other English-speaking countries do not distinguish colloquially between this scheme and other pyramid schemes.
The Ponzi scheme usually offers abnormally high short-term returns in order to entice new investors. The perpetuation of the high returns that a Ponzi scheme advertises and pays requires an ever-increasing flow of money from investors in order to keep the scheme going.
The system is destined to collapse because the earnings, if any, are less than the payments. Usually, the scheme is interrupted by legal authorities before it collapses because a Ponzi scheme is suspected or because the promoter is selling unregistered securities. As more investors become involved, the likelihood of the scheme coming to the attention of authorities increases.
The scheme is named after Charles Ponzi, who became notorious for using the technique after emigrating from Italy to the United States in 1903. Ponzi did not invent the scheme, but his operation took in so much money that it was the first to become known throughout the United States. His original scheme was in theory based on arbitraging international reply coupons for postage stamps, but soon diverted investors' money to support payments to earlier investors and Ponzi's personal wealth.
Knowingly entering a Ponzi scheme can be rational, in the economic sense, even at the last round of the scheme if a government will likely bail out those participating in the Ponzi scheme.
Bernard Madoff Scandal:
On December 11, 2008, former chairman of the NASDAQ Stock Market Bernard Madoff was arrested and charged with a single count of securities fraud, but one which, if proved, may rank among the biggest frauds ever - totaling $50 billion of fraudulent losses. If these figures are accurate, this would be the biggest Ponzi scheme in history.[4] It is alleged that one of Madoff's biggest investors, René-Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet, of Access International Advisors, committed suicide around December 23, 2008, following the disclosure of the scheme.[5] At the time of this writing, it is unclear to what extent Access International's funds were involved in the scheme. Villehuchet is alleged to have lost as much as $1.4 billion in Madoff's scheme.[6]
While the scheme was typical of a Ponzi in its structure, it differed in its pace and its marketing. Rather than offer (suspiciously) high returns to all comers, Madoff instead offered modest, but steady returns to an exclusive clientele, returns produced in both up and down markets. The investment method was stated to be through a combination of stock purchases tracking some index and related puts and calls (contrary "bets" on the index's direction), but with the exact details a proprietary secret. Madoff exploited social networks to promote it among a largely upper class Jewish clientele, with significant funds invested from educational and social charity funds directed by the clients. The slow pace and "insider" marketing enabled the scheme to survive for an unusually long time and also to grow far larger than would be expected of a common Ponzi. All worked well for Madoff until the general market downturn of 2008 motivated a larger than usual number of investors to cash out their positions. With little actual liquidity, the scheme collapsed. In fact, the stated methodology was not possible, since the existing markets in puts and calls were not large enough to support the claimed activities, an observation noted by several critics prior to the collapse.[7] The scheme also differed in that even some hedge funds invested in Madoff's funds, with some investors unknowingly exposed through multiple fund investments that they believed to be diversified.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponzi_scheme
Raheem Devaughn-Butterflies
Kiss me like when I dream of you
Notice me, act like you have a clue
Flirt with me, act like I interest you
Like my eyes do, wish I could undress you
So I try to find the words
But I only suffocate
Then my palms, they start to sweat
And my shirt is soakin' wet
You give me the butterflies
You give me the nervous side of life
Don't walk by just say "hello" baby
You are my day dreams when I'm awake
Let's sleep like I pretend we do
Convince me that day dreams do come true
Picture as where I picture you
And I just panic when you're in bird's eye view
And I try to say "hello" and the words don't come out right
Wish I could find myself but it's a losing fight
You give me the butterflies
You give me the nervous side of life
Don't walk by just say "hello" baby
You are my day dreams when I'm awake
I go dreamin' you go wakin' me
You won't catch me and I keep fallin' girl
You only notice me in a perfect world
But the world is so imperfect so...
You give me the butterflies
You give me the nervous side of life
Don't walk by just say "hello" baby
You are my day dreams when I'm awake
You are my day dreams when I'm awake
You are my day dreams when I'm awake
Notice me, act like you have a clue
Flirt with me, act like I interest you
Like my eyes do, wish I could undress you
So I try to find the words
But I only suffocate
Then my palms, they start to sweat
And my shirt is soakin' wet
You give me the butterflies
You give me the nervous side of life
Don't walk by just say "hello" baby
You are my day dreams when I'm awake
Let's sleep like I pretend we do
Convince me that day dreams do come true
Picture as where I picture you
And I just panic when you're in bird's eye view
And I try to say "hello" and the words don't come out right
Wish I could find myself but it's a losing fight
You give me the butterflies
You give me the nervous side of life
Don't walk by just say "hello" baby
You are my day dreams when I'm awake
I go dreamin' you go wakin' me
You won't catch me and I keep fallin' girl
You only notice me in a perfect world
But the world is so imperfect so...
You give me the butterflies
You give me the nervous side of life
Don't walk by just say "hello" baby
You are my day dreams when I'm awake
You are my day dreams when I'm awake
You are my day dreams when I'm awake
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Newton Faulkner-Aging Superhero
Every time I think of growing up I find out that I just slipped back,
I got it all wrong you know I,
Feel younger than I did when I was younger on a backwards track
I thought by now I could have figured it all out instead I'm further back,
Feels kinda stupid but I,
Feel 16 in my head but I guess it's only 5 years back
But I won't see the signs
it took so long but you were always on my mind, yeah,
For all the times I've tried to take a little time out for myself,
I'm just growing all alone again
But I find in my mind that I'm not.
Time is running out and I just want to say I'm sorry now,
Before I'm all alone again, and I'm broken and cold
The ageing superhero in me is tired
Because he's lived too fast for too long
and he still longs to be inspired
I feel old, feel broke feel cold and I can't fight back,
It sounds so stupid I,
But it's gone, this train won't run,
Guess it must be the track
But I won't see the signs
it took so long but you were always on my mind, yeah,
For all the times I've tried to take a little time out for myself,
I'm just growing all alone again
But I find in my mind that I'm not
Time is running out and I just want to say I'm sorry now,
Before I'm all alone again, and I'm broken and cold-
But I won't see the signs;
it took so long but you were always on my mind, yeah,
For all the times I've tried to take a little time out for myself,
I'm just growing all alone again
But I find in my mind that I'm not.
Time is running out and I just want to say I'm sorry now,
Before I'm all alone again, and I'm broken and cold
The ageing superhero in me is tired
Because he's lived too fast for too long
and he still longs to be inspired
I got it all wrong you know I,
Feel younger than I did when I was younger on a backwards track
I thought by now I could have figured it all out instead I'm further back,
Feels kinda stupid but I,
Feel 16 in my head but I guess it's only 5 years back
But I won't see the signs
it took so long but you were always on my mind, yeah,
For all the times I've tried to take a little time out for myself,
I'm just growing all alone again
But I find in my mind that I'm not.
Time is running out and I just want to say I'm sorry now,
Before I'm all alone again, and I'm broken and cold
The ageing superhero in me is tired
Because he's lived too fast for too long
and he still longs to be inspired
I feel old, feel broke feel cold and I can't fight back,
It sounds so stupid I,
But it's gone, this train won't run,
Guess it must be the track
But I won't see the signs
it took so long but you were always on my mind, yeah,
For all the times I've tried to take a little time out for myself,
I'm just growing all alone again
But I find in my mind that I'm not
Time is running out and I just want to say I'm sorry now,
Before I'm all alone again, and I'm broken and cold-
But I won't see the signs;
it took so long but you were always on my mind, yeah,
For all the times I've tried to take a little time out for myself,
I'm just growing all alone again
But I find in my mind that I'm not.
Time is running out and I just want to say I'm sorry now,
Before I'm all alone again, and I'm broken and cold
The ageing superhero in me is tired
Because he's lived too fast for too long
and he still longs to be inspired
Friday, January 2, 2009
Awww look at the chubby love-sick fella...
LONDON (AFP) – There's a gnawing problem in the countryside -- a giant beaver on the loose, wreaking havoc in southwest England.
And his owner reckons there's only one thing that can lure the lovelorn rodent back into captivity: the scent of female beaver.
The six-stone (84-pound, 38-kilogramme) animal escaped from the Upcott Grange Farm in the county of Devon back in October, along with two females who were recovered soon after from a nearby lake.
But the one beaver still on the run is thought to be the culprit felling trees some 20 miles (32 kilometres) down the River Tamar at Gunnislake.
Conservationist Derek Gow, who owns 24 of the animals under licence, reckons the runaway is hunting for female beaver. He is planning to catch the escapee using honey traps: boxes that smell of females.
"I know where he is, but he's occupying a territory of probably a kilometre in length," Gow said.
"We've got traps being made up at the moment.
"Using the scent from one of the female beavers, we'll be able to catch the male beaver fairly quickly."
The furry escapee and his trail of destruction were widely covered in Wednesday's national newspapers.
Gow suspects the electric fence surrounding his beaver pen failed during a flood.
"We've checked the fence, we can't find any holes at all. We can't think of any other way they might have got out."
Beavers were hunted to extinction in Britain in the 16th century.
However, in a controversial project, four families of beavers have been shipped in from Norway and will be released in western Scotland early next year.
LONDON (AFP) – There's a gnawing problem in the countryside -- a giant beaver on the loose, wreaking havoc in southwest England.
And his owner reckons there's only one thing that can lure the lovelorn rodent back into captivity: the scent of female beaver.
The six-stone (84-pound, 38-kilogramme) animal escaped from the Upcott Grange Farm in the county of Devon back in October, along with two females who were recovered soon after from a nearby lake.
But the one beaver still on the run is thought to be the culprit felling trees some 20 miles (32 kilometres) down the River Tamar at Gunnislake.
Conservationist Derek Gow, who owns 24 of the animals under licence, reckons the runaway is hunting for female beaver. He is planning to catch the escapee using honey traps: boxes that smell of females.
"I know where he is, but he's occupying a territory of probably a kilometre in length," Gow said.
"We've got traps being made up at the moment.
"Using the scent from one of the female beavers, we'll be able to catch the male beaver fairly quickly."
The furry escapee and his trail of destruction were widely covered in Wednesday's national newspapers.
Gow suspects the electric fence surrounding his beaver pen failed during a flood.
"We've checked the fence, we can't find any holes at all. We can't think of any other way they might have got out."
Beavers were hunted to extinction in Britain in the 16th century.
However, in a controversial project, four families of beavers have been shipped in from Norway and will be released in western Scotland early next year.
Under the Gun-The Killers
She's got her halo and wings
Hidden under his eyes
But she's an angel for sure
She just can't stop telling lies
But it's too late for his love
Already caught in a trap
His angel's kiss was a joke
And she is not coming back
Because heaven sends and heaven takes
Crashing cars in his brain
Keep him tied to a dream
And only she can set him free
And then he says to me
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Yeah she's got a criminal mind
He's got a reason to pray
His life is under the gun
He's got to hold every day
Now he just wants to wake up
Yeah, just to prove it's a dream
Cause she's an angel for sure
But that remains to be seen
Because heaven sends and heaven takes
Crashing cars in his brain
Keep him tied to a dream
And only she can set him free
And then he says to me
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Stupid on the streets of London
James Dean in the rain
Without her it's not the same
but it's alright
Because heaven sends and heaven takes
Crashing cars in his brain
Keep him tied up to a dream
And only she can set him free
And then he says to me
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Again and again
Hidden under his eyes
But she's an angel for sure
She just can't stop telling lies
But it's too late for his love
Already caught in a trap
His angel's kiss was a joke
And she is not coming back
Because heaven sends and heaven takes
Crashing cars in his brain
Keep him tied to a dream
And only she can set him free
And then he says to me
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Yeah she's got a criminal mind
He's got a reason to pray
His life is under the gun
He's got to hold every day
Now he just wants to wake up
Yeah, just to prove it's a dream
Cause she's an angel for sure
But that remains to be seen
Because heaven sends and heaven takes
Crashing cars in his brain
Keep him tied to a dream
And only she can set him free
And then he says to me
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Stupid on the streets of London
James Dean in the rain
Without her it's not the same
but it's alright
Because heaven sends and heaven takes
Crashing cars in his brain
Keep him tied up to a dream
And only she can set him free
And then he says to me
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Again and again
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