Posted by jbwan | Posted in Life in General, Politics | Posted on 30-04-2008
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So, Tibet; I haven’t yet made a statement on what I think about the events unfolding around the Olympic Games in China this year and the protests as a result of the human rights violations in Tibet. It’s tricky to say why really without offending somebody but here goes anyway.
In the last couple of months we have heard nothing but political figures preparing to boycott the Olympic ceremonies in China this year. Yet again another wonderful example of politics having a profound and detrimental effect on ordinary folk who don’t really have anything to do with the problems. The big question that I have been posing to everybody so far on this discussion is why the Olympic committee gave the event to China in the first place if such a political stance was being taken? Surely all these protests are the result of a decision by this committee who could have had a much bigger impact by refusing to grant the event than merely facilitating some politicians to not turn up and give bad press to an event that means everything to the amateur athletes who take part within?
Then there was the recent episode of Questions and Answers on RTE television, following on from the comments made by John Gormley of the Green Party in relation to Tibet and the controversy that it caused. I was shocked at the response from certain members of the audience during that show who’s only problem was that Tibet was referred to as a country by John Gormley and they saw it as a province of China. You’d swear that nothing bad was happening at all in the world if this was the magnitude of the issues coming to the fore.
So, where do I stand on this issue? Is it wrong, what is happening in Tibet at the moment? Yes, certainly! Any human rights violation is an awful and unconscionable occurrence. However, is it right for the political uproar to take place in the manner that it has? Well, personally I think it’s all a little hypocritical. The English have a very bad history albeit given the veneer of history to make it somehow acceptable, in terms of invading, land-grabbing, torture and killing of innocent civilians; All in the name of Queen and country. The US maintains its seat of power by bullying the rest of the world into submission. Despite being the only nation to “successfully” use an atomic bomb against another country as an act of war, resulting in untold damage and suffering, they still think that they should be the only ones holding the bomb as if they were some form of model for bomb control. The Germans, Italians, French, and others have all had their moments throughout history too, with different leaders. And the Irish, well our leaders just jump as far as Uncle Sam asks them to when they need landing space for planes on the way to a wrongful war on capturing fossil fuels that started as a war on an emotion (terror) in a completely different country.
The decision to host the Olympics in China was perhaps the wrong decision, if snubbing a country on the international stage was deemed to be a suitable protest against the happenings in Tibet. However, the decision to snub the games themselves is not having an impact on the host country but rather on the athletes and their morale and also upon the spectators who merely want to enjoy an event that goes no further than the boundaries of the stadium in which it is hosted. The atrocities and human rights violations that are taking place all around the world and of which we hear very little are all highly important challenges for us as global inhabitants, to overcome and make right. Sadly in this money-mad, capitalist vacuum called Western civilisation, only the areas with attainable natural resources or beneficial trade links will be tackled. A definitely new and materialistic form of altruism.
Posted by jbwan | Posted in Humour, Life in General | Posted on 29-04-2008
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Much like Paul and Shane, I have a hard time resisting these little “what xyz are you” tests. Today’s offering is “What Superhero are you?”. I seem to lean towards a majority Spiderman/Flash, no doubt because I failed to say that I hate redheads which invariably means that I am somehow enthralled by Mary Jane and thus I am Spiderman and because I said I like to run fast and thus I am the Flash. 
Anyway such is the way…
You are Spider-Man
| Spider-Man |
|
80% |
| The Flash |
|
75% |
| Superman |
|
70% |
| Hulk |
|
60% |
| Green Lantern |
|
60% |
| Iron Man |
|
55% |
| Wonder Woman |
|
50% |
| Robin |
|
50% |
| Catwoman |
|
40% |
| Batman |
|
35% |
| Supergirl |
|
35% |
|
You are intelligent, witty,
a bit geeky and have great
power and responsibility.
 |
Click here to take the “Which Superhero am I?” quiz…
Is it wrong that I feel a certain envy and upset that I am not more Batman like?
Posted by jbwan | Posted in Humour, Life in General | Posted on 22-04-2008
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I had wondered for the last few days where my daily dosage of Dilbert in my Google Reader had gone to. Today I see an update on the old feed to alert me to a new feed URL (http://feeds.feedburner.com/DilbertDailyStrip). So I’m back in Dilbert land again. In addition to the new URL all the comic strips now appear to be in colour. Personally I preferred the simplicity of the B&W 3-cell images with a colour bonus at the weekend but I doubt that it will detract from the splendid humour of Scott Adams and co.
Posted by jbwan | Posted in Politics | Posted on 18-04-2008
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A couple of years ago I was talking to some friends about the political climate. In terms of party politics, the PDs had been decimated, Fianna Fáil had seized the country’s minds through no fault of their own but rather a global boom period of 10 years, Fine Gael were suffering because of the digs at Enda in the media and public domain, the Greens would always maintain the minority, and Labour, well that was the interesting one. My view was that I could see that the Labour party had a great deal of senior people in the top ranks but sadly that was also their undoing. They lacked fresh blood that would spread their appeal to a wider audience; the next generation of voters. I myself viewed them as an established party with little buzz that I was observing on the street; undeservedly so I might add as many points raised by the party were very valid. I recall saying that the way I saw it was that Labour had two options: 1) Maintain the status quo and fall further in voting numbers or 2) Embrace the modern age, find new blood and bring a New Labour to the Irish political stage.
Since I made that statement things have truly turned around. Fellow blogger
Séamus Ryan, from Waterford, has been blogging for a while, since about 2006, and he is truly an outstanding example of how politicians can reach that new audience of voters; continually delivering interesting snippets of information to the masses. In addition to Séamus, the overall Labour party outreach changed. We saw more and more technology being adopted, even to the extent that last year’s party conference was streamed over the web using a popular social media site to attract more numbers. There is even a Labour member of the
Twitter universe that spreads the word! To top it all off, the party also elected a new leader, challenged with the task of deciding the future direction of the party and he is doing just that.
Last night I was in WIT to hear Eamon Gilmore (leader of the Labour party) speak. I commend him on an excellent rhetoric to the audience, focussed on the economic development of the South East and also its educational needs, with particular emphasis on the university for the region. Unlike many politicians who pander to the masses, Eamon didn’t just say something to please the crowd, he offered opinion on the cultural and regional impact of such a facility – not just that it was needed because it was what people wanted to hear. That, to-date, is a greater insight than we have seen from many politicians, including our own Minister in Waterford. I spoke briefly to Eamon after the event and encouraged him to extrapolate and perpetuate the direct and aggressive line of questioning that we have recently observed in the Dáil from Fine Gael. To have the Labour party onboard with this issue and to force the questions until such time that the woeful inertia of Minister Hanafin is finally overcome.
So brings me to my final thought. In a few short years we have seen the Labour party evolve from a perceived “old” party to one that is now embracing technology and the community through social networking sites and other mechanisms. We are seeing the emergence of a charismatic leader who is clearly very articulate, understands the needs of the working public, is willing to engage in change, and who is seeking a rejuvenation of the party towards future success. From the party perspective we are seeing it engage and actively tackle issues such as the university for the South East, issues that mean a great deal to many young voters, young parents and those who are suffering in a lagging economy. The Labour party is changing in my opinion and it’s very close to the way that I imagined it should do. It is my opinion that we are seeing a greatly changing Labour party and if it keeps progressing along these lines and possibly a change in traditional economic policies then it truly could be a majority share of the electorate. Let’s hope that change and choice is on the cards for the future of Irish politics.
Posted by jbwan | Posted in Life in General | Posted on 17-04-2008
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Well-known Irish blogger Tom Raftery is soon departing our shores for sunny Spain and behind him, he leaves the CIX data centre that he and others put some fantastic work into making Ireland’s greenest data centre. However, with Tom’s new pursuit comes a great opportunity for somebody else. Tom is selling his shares in CIX to some lucky and interested person who has both the technical skills and genuine business interest to make CIX a big player in the world of data centres and hosting. If you’re looking for something to do with your cash then this is certainly a unique offer. I’d personally be interested in such an opportunity if I had the cash lying around. All the best to Tom with his new venture to Spain and good luck with the share sale, I’m sure that many will be knocking on your door as we speak. link to story: Tom Raftery
So often in my line of work, technology, I encounter the dilemma of watching technology emerge that does not directly benefit the end users; technology that sometimes makes life needlessly difficult. So, it’s at a time like this when I hear about a new development where technology is applied to a useful purpose that will give people great enjoyment, that I applaud the developers.
Zolk C in collaboration with the Waterford-based
TSSG group (a division of
WIT) have rolled out a GPS-based navigation system for the historic battlefield of Culloden in Scotland. The system guides users around the battlefield to certain key points where information will be imparted. In principle a very usual system but what is different about this is that no infrastructure or signage or any other structure that could ruin the landscape of the battlefield was needed to make this possible – thereby preserving the ancient site from modern intrusion. The service is being officially launched today in Culloden and I wish the team behind this the very best with the rollout. I had a sneak preview of the service myself a few months back and it was certainly impressive when compared with the standard tourism offerings that I have previously experienced. Sometimes the simplest technology developments are the ones that deserve the greatest respect and this is a perfect example of combining existing technologies with media presentations to forge a fantastic user experience for all tourists.
Posted by jbwan | Posted in Life in General | Posted on 14-04-2008
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Originally uploaded by
jbwan
Our new rabbit arrived home yesterday to his newly constructed hutch which I have made 1000% cat proof – I even find it difficult to get into it myself to give him his food and water. His name is Pythagoras but his friends call him Pi for short. He’s reasonably friendly at the moment but we’re hoping to get him used to the house and guests so that he can pop in on occasion and meet and greet. George is a wee bit jealous at the moment but as long as Pi stays out of his waterways then the old fish will just get on with it.
Posted by jbwan | Posted in Life in General | Posted on 10-04-2008
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Apparently a teenager in the US has been arrested under the suspicion of making terror threats and making up a “hit list” of people. Shockingly enough the name of Chuck “He counted to infinity twice” Norris, made it onto that list. A bit of advice kid, don’t mess with anyone who can slam a revolving door. source: The Register
Posted by jbwan | Posted in Life in General | Posted on 09-04-2008
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For ages now, I and others have been awaiting the voice of Danny O’Hare to appear in the national media, attacking the case for a university in the South East. It’s pretty sad really that somebody could be so predictable as to have people watching the papers and waiting for him but there you go.
Danny played his press card yesterday in the Irish Times and wrote an article about how there should be no more universities in the country. Going beyond that, Danny even went so far as to suggest that the NUI strategy was a mistake “we are never likely to be able to put the individual components of the National University of Ireland back into their original bottle” and that there should only be effectively only 4 universities in the country as a result, thereby undermining his own achievements of being a founding president of DCU, as surely less universities is better in his mind?
Danny touches on international standards, etc and warns about dilution such as that experienced in the UK but fails to acknowledge that countries such as Finland and New Zealand are on a par with Ireland in terms of population size, density and infrastructure-wise and these countries have around about the magic 8 universities which is more than Ireland. Danny then complains that his university friends are not voicing their opinions in the national media about this university case “What I find remarkable is the silence in the current debate of the existing universities.” I think Danny, that you will find your friends will not be so vocal, especially in NUI if they perceive that you are saying that they shouldn’t be universities. Danny also brings up the old chestnut of MIT being a great IoT; why does everyone forget that MIT receives more funding than the entire university sector in Ireland put together? MIT’s research funding alone, back in the 80′s was over $500 million.
While Dr. O’Hare goes a long way to trying to make a rational argument, it is lacking in detail, especially with throwaway international references which are not properly examined in the context and he also throws in the weak floodgate argument of constant me-too applications. While I would agree with the prevention of constant me-too applications from IoTs that do not have either a regional nor a properly grounded argument let there be no illusion about Dr. O’Hare’s motivation for this argument. He says, “Let us be in no doubt whatsoever that giving in to Waterford’s demands will not provide a place where the Government could stop the drift.” With no other reference to another IoT in this sentence Dr. O’Hare has placed his cards firmly on the table – it’s about Waterford and nowhere else. Now why would a former director of WRTC (now WIT) wish to take such a stance?
Posted by jbwan | Posted in Life in General | Posted on 07-04-2008
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I awoke this morning to see the entire of my garden covered in a blanket of snow – yes it is April 7th. Momentarily filled with childish glee I starred out over the blank canvas and dappled decking, recalling childhood memories of simpler times. When I was growing up we had a few good snowfalls in the city centre. If you weren’t up and about by 0800h there’d hardly be a car left with snow on it to fuel your arsenal of snowballs. Looking out my windows this morning the cars were still covered and all but the roads were blanketed with snow – where had the children gone? Have things moved on so much from my childhood that kids no longer burst out of their homes at the first sign of snowfall? I would have played myself and thrown snowballs at the neighbours but they might have thought I was losing the run of myself. Boy, it sucks to be an adult!
OK I admit it, I did make one snowball and flung it at the garden wall – you only live once.
