jastram.de Blog - News

Help in Burma / Myanmar

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 12:07:01 -0400

I've been following the news in Myanmar for several years. I conciously noticed Myanmar as one of the most miserable places on this planet the first time around 2000 in San Francisco, when some friends and I went to a Burmese Restaurant. We were part of a supper club, picking the cuisine by following the alphabet and matching it with a country starting with that letter. We picked Burma for B, just to learn that officially it was Myanmar.

It feels like there is nothing we can do to help, but there is! Read on to learn what you can do to help the Burmese people!

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Reincarnation regulated

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 19:40:12 -0400

In the long tale of Chinese-Tibetan relations, the Chinese authorities decided to regulate reincarnation. While this sounds bizarre at first glance, it makes sense for their pursuit of controlling the Tibetan people. While according to Buddhist believe (almost) everybody is reborn, only few important religious leaders are looked for - like the Dalai Lama. By regulating reincarnation, the Chinese will probably try to control this search process, probably with the goal of nominating the next Dalai Lama themselves. The Slashdot discussion has some insightful comments.

Citizendium as an alternative to Wikipedia?

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 22:32:31 -0400

Are you worried about rogue content in Wikipedia? Citizendium will try to be an alternative. Or will it just be an elite Wikipedia...?

Medien-Manipulation: Die Zeit zum Thema Leitzins

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Sat, 12 Aug 2006 17:30:11 -0400

Die Zeit hat einen interessanten Artikel: Inflation gesucht, erschienen am 10.8.2006. Der Artikel beginnt folgendermaßen: "Zinspause in den Vereinigten Staaten, steigende Leitzinsen in Europa. Deutlicher kann das Signal nicht sein, dass die beiden weltweit wichtigsten Zentralbanken, die amerikanische Fed und die Europäische Zentralbank (EZB), völlig verschiedene geldpolitische Strategien verfolgen."

Das Interessante: die Fed hat die letzten 17 Quartale die Zinsen ununterbrochen auf 5.25% erhöht, während die EZB zum vierten Mal, ganz vorsichtig, die Zinsen auf 3% erhöht hat. Ich hätte von der Zeit eine etwas objektivere Darstellung erwartet.

Übrigens vertritt der Economist die Meinung, dass die Fed die Zinsen noch einmal hätte erhöhen sollen, und dass die Erhöhung der EZB-Zinsen eine gute Sache ist.

Google Zeitgeist 2005 Released

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Thu, 22 Dec 2005 11:03:04 -0500

Google has the not so well-known Zeitgeist project that looks at what's going on through the spyglass of searches. They just released the Zeitgeist for 2005, as the end of the year approaches. It shows how the search for Weapons of Mass Destruction correlates with the US presidential elections, or how Wikipedia gained momentum this year.
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Who is Hamilton Naki?

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Wed, 15 Jun 2005 20:32:46 -0400

Hamilton Naki is dead. I learned about it in this week's Economist Obituary. I didn't know who he was before reading this story. He lived in South Africa during apartheid, and was a brilliant surgeon. But he was black and nobody was allowed to know, so officially he was the gardener.
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Say no to the EU Constitution

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Fri, 27 May 2005 16:35:04 -0400

During the next few days, both France and the Netherlands will vote on the EU constitution. A "No" vote in both countries is likely, which Europhiles would see as a disaster. However, I think that a rejection of this constitution would actually be a blessing, and this week's Economist confirms me in this opinion.
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"The Gates"

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Mon, 28 Feb 2005 23:13:39 -0500

Christo and Jeanne-Claude closed their Excibition "The Gates, Central Park, New York City, 1979-2005" today.
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Tsunami Disaster

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Sat, 01 Jan 2005 12:42:50 -0500

I was shocked and speechless, as within a few days the death toll from the Tsunami rose from 10,000 to over 130,000, and still rising. Please donate!

RSS feed for jastram.de available now!

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Sat, 02 Oct 2004 15:30:32 -0400

If you use an RSS reader like bloglines.com, you can now add jastram.de to the feed.
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Bias in the Media?

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Mon, 19 Jul 2004 17:59:40 -0400

Are the news we receive biased? The Christian Science Monitor has a well-balanced article on this topic called Different News for Different Views. Bias has been a hot topic in the context of Michael Moore's film Farenheit 9/11, and I am right now reading the Book "Bias" by Bernard Goldberg - a horrible book.
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Fremdenhaß per Spam

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Mon, 14 Jun 2004 22:34:34 -0400

Seit Jahren bekomme ich meinen Anteil an Spam zu Themen wie Medikamentenangeboten, Krediten und Penisvergrößerungen. Erschreckenderweise ist eine neue Kategorie dazugekommen: Ausländerfeindlichkeit (Bericht von Heise.de).
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Quick! Download those songs for 7 cents a track!

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Wed, 28 Apr 2004 14:51:49 -0400

The Russian web site allofmp3.com offers legal downloads of music - for 7 cents per track!
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Got my check from the Record Labels

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Mon, 23 Feb 2004 05:04:27 -0500

I got a check for $13.86 in the mail, which represents the settlement of the Compact Disc Minimum Advertised Price Antitrust Litigation. Yey!
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Turn off your TV!

micky@alum.mit.edu (Michael Jastram) — Mon, 02 Feb 2004 22:59:36 -0500

I just stumbled upon this cute website that encourages people to turn of/get rid of their TV.
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