Economic growth = women

“I am very happy and proud” at being a female entrepreneur, she said. “When I was young, they said: ‘A woman is a woman — a man should take care of you.”’

“But women are actually contributing a lot more than men. We always find ourselves multitasking,” she said, between working and raising a family. “If it could be equated in terms of currency, it would be 80 percent of the economy.”  - Women Entrepreneurs Drive Growth in Africa

Funny line

The Economist had two interesting articles that are focused on South Africa, the first was about Avon being an employment opportunity to women in SA, where unemployment is at 25%  and this one on "Consumer good in Africa - A continent goes shopping." The one big questionable thing in this article is the definition of the middle class, but this is probably due to my lack of experience in the region and knowledge . I am becoming increasingly fascinated and interest in looking at the supply chain issues in emerging markets, which is probably due to my interest  in untapped opportunities and people.  I especially enjoyed the the last line from "Consumer good in Africa - A continent goes shopping":  

Still, the corridor chatter at sub-Saharan conferences these days is cheerful. Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum, says that cynicism about Africa has turned to optimism. “We have a sense that things are really getting better,” says Mr Braeken. Africa is not only about mining and oil any more. But, he says, the continent still needs to overcome what George Bush, in another context, called “the soft bigotry of low expectations”. 

Truth be told...in cartoons.

In High School, I became very political and grew obsessed with political cartoons. I would cut them out of newspapers and magazines, then put them on my notebooks and my school calendar. I even started an issue of my high school's ACLU newsletter (Yes, we had an American Civil Liberties Union club in high school) that focused only on political cartoons of the day, which was during the 2000 elections. From time to time, I enjoy a good political cartoon, but mostly collect wacky and weird stories from the newspapers.

While I have been in South Africa and learning about the domestic politics, I have fallen in love political cartoons again. There is an artist/cartoonist names Zapiro here in South Africa, who I think is so talented and can say so much in one picture. Most of his cartoons focus on South Africa, but some cover international news like the Europe crisis and Egypt. My favorites are the commentary on the controversial President, Jacob Zuma, for which he is getting sued by for defamation. The topic and issue of freedom of speech is very interesting one here because it often conflicts with the other constitutional right of human dignity (like does it cover public figures, like Zuma). These constitutional issues are very interesting to me because South Africa is a developing democracy and country, and it has never had to deal w/ these issues before.  Being here in Cape Town during the controversy over the Spear painting has been really interesting because it has raised these constitutional issues and also raised issues of race that hasn't been dealt with since apartheid. Zapiro recently made his own commentary about the issue freedom of speech and distaste for Zuma's hypocrisy, which has gotten him in trouble again. I am interested to keep following this issue when I return back home to the States. 

But for now, here is a link to Zapiro's delightful tribute to Madiba for his 94th birthday. Enjoy!

Just the beginning

Things are changing fast.
The truth is, we have only started to see what we will look like.

- "Viewpoint: Binyavanga on why Africa's international image is unfair," BBC News,  April 24, 2012

Next month, I am traveling to Cape Town, South Africa for a class and internship. My dream of traveling to Africa is coming true. The continent has always been an interest of mine and I'm excited to see and experience the culture of South Africa. I am also excited to explore a new city and try new foods...yum yum!

5-1-2011

Best line of Obama's speech tonight, "Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader. He was a mass murderer of Muslims." Wow, what a night.  This won't end terrorism, but I am thankful that this chapter has ended.
"Justice has been done."

Heavy heart

Viewing images of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan has given me a very heavy heart today. I am so thankful that my family, friends, and colleagues are safe and sound. I can't imagine the fear that so many experienced yesterday. My thoughts and prayers is with my loved ones, who are still experiencing aftershocks,  and the people of Japan.It is times like these when you realize how much you take for granted.

I saw this blog article from Nicholas Kristof, which demonstrates the strength and resilience of Japanese people and culture. The reason why I love it and so proud to be a double.

"The Japanese word for nature, shizen, is a modern one, dating back only a bit more than 100 years, because traditionally there was no need to express the concept. In an essay in the Times after the Kobe quake, I made some of these same points and ended with a 17th century haiku from one of Japan’s greatest poets, Basho:

The vicissitudes of life.

Sad, to become finally

A bamboo shoot.

I find something noble and courageous in Japan’s resilience and perseverance, and it will be on display in the coming days. This will also be a time when the tight knit of Japan’s social fabric, its toughness and resilience, shine through."

Please keep Japan in your thoughts.

Happy (early) International Women's Day

World news has been depressing. Often, I feel like we (the world) have been taking two steps back for every one good step, esp. in the realm of women's rights, which has gotten very ugly.   Lately, it feels like the only movement in Congress has been against women's rights - their health, livelihood, and family.  The article below gave me hope and was so refreshing to read because this is what I believe is possible. I can't predict the future, but on this front, I know that it can only get better.  Hilary and I will see you on the top!

"She was in energetic discussion on the Egyptian news site Masrawy.com, where her presence excited a stream of questions—more than 6,500 in three days—from young people across Egypt. “We hope,” she said, “that as Egypt looks at its own future, it takes advantage of all of the people’s talents”—Clinton shorthand for including women. She had an immediate answer when a number of questioners suggested that her persistent references to women’s rights constituted American meddling in Egyptian affairs: “If a country doesn’t recognize minority rights and human rights, including women’s rights, you will not have the kind of stability and prosperity that is possible.”

“It is like any challenge,” she goes on, her tone brightening. “You just keep at it, take it piece by piece, seize the ground you can, hang onto it, and then move forward a little bit more.” She pauses. “And we are heading for higher ground.”

Gayle Tzemach Lemmon,"The Hillary Doctrine," Newsweek, March 06, 2011

Got Confidence? Got Geeky Stubbley appearance?

From my inbox to this blog post. Nerdy bearded men, like Aaron, are rejoicing everywhere from this article. I think it is pretty hilarious and Aaron's response was pretty great.  Comments like that are why I keep him around, not his geeky, hairy, soft/cuddly outer appearance. But that's just me.

Thanks, Jezebel.  

5 Years later: Hope

I thought that I would share this nice story of hope: NYTimes, In Tsunami’s Wake, an Unexpected Second Chance, January 1, 2010. Hopefully, it won't be the last.

Heartbreaking article

"Poverty manifests itself in small things...As she weaves in and out of the aisles, you can see that every purchase is weighed, compared, agonised over. She desperately needs new saucepans, and they are reduced this week, but that would mean no vegetables, and Farzana, 13, must have those because she might be getting sick. She wants to buy pasta in bulk because it is cheaper, but can't because that leaves too little money for emergencies. "Better to get things little by little," she says. "Never know what might come up.

Rowenna Davis, 'We're all in this together,' The Guardian, October 14, 2009

When a well-founded fear of persecution meets economic downturn. Very sad article, not only does the Begum worry about feeding her family, but "She lives in fear that any day she could receive a rejection letter and will be deported." I can't imagine her anxiety (link: Begum's budget), especially as she also struggles with the clash of culture between her expectations and her daughter's.

Amusing article:

“I suspect that the enemies of this country do not wholly rely on The Mail on Sunday and Facebook for their information..." Sarah Lyall, 7-5-09 "On Facebook, a Spy Revealed (Pale Legs, Too)"

I hope not, although it would explain why terrorist hate America. Amusing article about a British spy, whose love of banana hammocks were exposed in a British Tabloid Newspapers thanks to Facebook. Good job, spy's wife. Hubby is probably not happy.

Fun facts and Stories

Did you know:

A new word in the English language is created every 98 minutes? Also, that Gay people in China used to be prosecuted under "hooliganism" laws?

I love crazy facts and stories and luckily for me I just found BBC's Magazine Monitor: 10 things we didn't know last week. Check it out. It is really interesting. But, it did have some things that I did know like " Britney's father monitors her mobile phone use." I read enough celebrity blogs to know this. I imagine that Jamie Spears rules Britney's life like Stalin ruled Russia.

I can't wait for more fun facts next week.

6-10-09

Today is a sad day. I have no words. I am frustrated, disgusted and sad. Please keep Stephen Tyrone Johns family in your thoughts.

seven months of stupidity

The expert, Richard L. Hasen, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, said that while Mr. Coleman’s side might argue that the election had problems, “the position of the justices appears to be: ‘You need to do more than that. You need to show us that whatever problems there were likely affected the outcome of the election.’ And that’s a tough standard to meet.” John Schwartz, June 1, 2009, New York Times "Minnesota Justices are Skeptical in Senate Case"

No shit,man. This is Coleman's third attempt to overrule Franken's victory. Just. give. up. The third time is not the charm. If you ever want a future in Minnesota politics again - Just. give. up. It has been 7 months already, spring has sprung!

Funny politics

"When I get a case about discrimination, I have to think about people in my own family who suffered discrimination because of their ethnic background or because of religion or because of gender. And I do take that into account."

Who said that? Sotomayor??? No. It was Supreme Court Justice Alito. Gotta love Conservative Hypocrisy!

Why was it good when Alito says his Italian background would make him a good Judge? But, Sotomayor almost made the same point and she is viewed as a racist. Xenophobia?

Sotomayor's speech was also taken out of context. If you see what she actually said , you will see that it was manipulated and spun to look like a bigger deal than it actually is. But, Alito blatantly says it. Plus in our heterogeneous society, we should have representatives that look like our population. Sadly for some, not me, that is not white.

"I would hope that a wise [not all] Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life."

A justice should be weighed on their actions and legal rulings and not speeches (especially, taken out of context). Check out the Huffington Post's "Sonia Sotomayor: 10 Things you Should Know." It will be a very exciting summer in D.C.

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Amusing News:

MSNBC reports that George W. feels relieved to not be president anymore. I am glad that we agree on something for once. Finally, he has found his niche, picking up poop.

Also, the only talking gig he can find is talking to high school groups? Wow, Ex-President FAIL.

Decided

I may have to go to London in 2011. Read article. I wonder who will play Mark Darcy?

new news

I hope this is true b/c it would be AWE-SOME! Girl power!

piggly wiggly

Not to create a culture of fear, but look at this cool Swine Flu map by Google. I usually never look at the flu maps during regular Flu season, but this is pretty amusing. I also just read that Japan got its first case today. So, put a marker on that map! I guess it is good that they caught this person at the Airport. But, I just hope that my mother gets out of Japan before more paranoia hits.

I also wanted to share these cool fashionable face masks. I like to call it Flu Fashion! Maybe I should color my surgical mask?? Personally, I think that we should take advantage of this paranoia by reviving the economy with drug, tissue, sanitary hand wipes, and face mask purchases.


View H1N1 Swine Flu in a larger map

Yuck

"Appreciating neotenous features isn't the same as being sexually attracted to children, but at least one study has found that average, college-age heterosexual males and child molesters share remarkably similar (and deeply neotenous) attractions: high cheekbones, unwrinkled eyes, glabrous skin."

This John Cloud article, Does Beer (Goggling) Affect Whom We Find Attractive?, may be the most disturbing article ever. At least for today. The study findings seem like common knowledge, but the stuff about attraction to juveniles/youthful features is gross. I feel like this is something that I would learn from Law and Order: Special Victims Unit.

I never want anything dealing with me to be compared with a "child molester." Yuck! Thanks, Mari for grossing me out today. Usually it is the other way around...