History of Israel & stolen land of Palestine by Israeli historian Professor Ilan Pappe

A must watch!

Free Gaza Free Palestine

Why we make bad decisions

If you are going to make a decision better watch this TED Talk before you do!

People of power

People chosen to positions of so called power are often seen to forget that they do not have absolute power. Merely because subordinates execute their orders, it doesn’t mean that’s the way it has to be all the time. They are simply placed in those positions of power as a result of the trust and respect of the wider population they have gained along with many other aspects that must have steered them to these higher positions. That’s what gives them the authority to command and why we follow those commands without any questions.

The moment that trust is lost for any reason their authority is compromised. They must be removed from their positions immediately. It then becomes the utmost duty of the subordinates to relieve/replace him/her from the position with another trusted person as soon as possible.

This is just my opinion and view on this kind of situations which have now become quite common here in Maldives.

I'm sorry, but I don't want to be an emperor

“I'm sorry, but I don't want to be an emperor. That's not my business. I don't want to rule or conquer anyone. I should like to help everyone if possible; Jew, Gentile, black man, white. We all want to help one another.

Human beings are like that. We want to live by each other's happiness, not by each other's misery. We don't want to hate and despise one another. In this world there is room for everyone, and the good earth is rich and can provide for everyone. The way of life can be free and beautiful, but we have lost the way.

Greed has poisoned men's souls, has barricaded the world with hate, has goose-stepped us into misery and bloodshed. We have developed speed, but we have shut ourselves in. Machinery that gives abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge has made us cynical; our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery, we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness. Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost.

Lecture on Income Inequality

Lecture by Prof. Emmanuel Saez.

The Power of Appreciation

Building Social and Emotional Skills in Elementary Students: The Power of Appreciation

In this nine-part series, we will look at important factors that influence the happiness and social and emotional learning of elementary school age children. These factors are very useful in helping students learn, manage emotions and increase empathy. Each blog features one letter of the acronym HAPPINESS:

H = Happiness
A = Appreciation
P = Passions and Strengths
P = Perspective
I = Inner Meanie, Inner Friend
N = Ninja Mastery
E = Empathy
S = So Similar
S = Share Your Gifts

In this article, we’ll explore appreciation, which is a pillar of happiness and one of the fastest ways to shift a student's mood and perspective. The definition of appreciation is "gratitude; thankful recognition." Developing gratitude helps students to focus on what is working in their lives, and also to train their minds to notice the good things that are all around. Learning to appreciate even the little things in life, such as a sunny day, a smile or a good meal, improves one's outlook substantially, and helps to develop a more optimistic and resilient attitude. What we focus on is what grows -- and gratitude promotes positivity.

Continue reading here

How evil a thing is inflation?

It is true that in times of general rise in the price level, if all groups of prices, such as agricultural prices, industrial prices, prices of minerals, wages, rent and profit rise in the same direction and by the same extent, there will be no net effect on any section of people in the community. For example, if the prices of goods and services, which a worker buys rises by 50 per cent and if the wage of the worker also rises by 50 per cent then there is no change in the real income of the worker, ie., his standard of living will remain constant. However, in practice, all prices do not move in same direction and by same percentage. Hence, some classes of people in the community are affected by inflation more favorably than others. This is explained as follows:

Continue to read full article here

Petition to stop inciting hate in Maldives.

We are calling upon Mr.Nasheed, the leader of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) to stop actions which has caused unprecedented divide and hatred among the people of Maldives. After resigning on live television on the 7th of February 2012, ex-president Nasheed, after 24 hours of his resignation then claimed he was forced to resign under duress, yet has failed to prove or take the matters to the courts. Instead he has gathered his supporters to the streets, incited hatred among people and has continued to organize street protests and encourages acts of terror. We urge Mr.Nasheed to stop calling out for civil disobedience and stop encouraging the break of law.

We condemn the acts of violence and arson, which are being committed by MDP and its supporters. We are urging all political parties in the Maldives to find a peaceful resolution to the current situation through civil decorum, without the call for violence and within democratic means. Stop further riots and civil disobedience acts by MDP. We are calling upon all Leaders to intervene in MDP’s terrorism and urge to stop their actions….

To read full details and sign the petition kindly follow this link: http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Stop_the_inciting_hate_in_Maldives/?cvGgUcb

Maldives president quits

The president of the Maldives has resigned, after clashes in the capital, Male, between soldiers and police who sided with anti-government protesters.

Mohamed Nasheed confirmed his resignation on Tuesday in a nationwide broadcast after police seized control of the state television station.

"It will be better for the country in the current situation if I resign. I don't want to run the country with an iron fist. I am resigning," Nasheed said.

A statement issued by the president's office on Tuesday called for people to remain calm.

"The government of Maldives together with all state institutions will work to ensure peace and stability in Male," it said. Read more at http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2012/02/20122765334806442.html

I do not believe that we are in a situation of crisis here in the Maldives though…It was a peaceful power shift for the good of the nation and its people.

On SOPA

Several readers have asked me my opinion of SOPA, the Stop Online Piracy Act.  I fear that in this case, the devil is in the details, so I find it hard to reach a strong view.  But I have been disturbed by the relatively knee-jerk reaction of the anti-SOPA crowd.  This is a hard issue, and when someone makes it sound easy, I feel like they haven't thought it through very thoroughly.

The anti-SOPA crowd argues that this is a matter of basic liberty.  But it's not.  In a free society, you don't have the freedom to steal your neighbor's property.  And that should include intellectual property.  Continue to read at Greg Mankiw's Blog..

Wastage of Human Resources

The term wastage of human resources is the loss of employees other than by redundancy. Redundancy points out the position of the employee as no longer needed for any available job and therefore liable to dismissal. In an organization, the wastage of human resources is mainly caused by the factors Labor turnover, Idle Time and Absenteeism.

Read more at MBA Knowledge Base

Being Human- Kindness is the Key

Kindness is a virtue for some and those who acquire it live a contented life there after. But our Business Managers and leaders are forgetting the art of munificence be it, termination of employment (where it can be avoided), not giving any leaves, discourteous language, unfriendly behavior, ego, being abusive, and what not, our forum (citehr) keeps receiving such queries…

What do you think is missing amongst other things? Here is what I feel can bring some relief….

“The ideals which have lighted my way and time after time have given me new courage to face life cheerfully, have been Kindness, Beauty, and Truth. The trite subjects of human efforts, possessions, outward success, and luxury have always seemed to me contemptible” - Albert Einstein

more at http://www.citeman.com/16663-being-human-kindness-is-the-key.html#ixzz1cO8v5SGn

Engineering and Management

A job oriented job was possible if you attained an engineering qualification some 4 decades ago. Engineering is in various types of fields such as Civil, Mechanical, Electrical, Electronics, Mining, Aeronautical, Environment and perhaps few other fields. Engineering course is a four year course including computer subjects.

Only an engineering qualification now is not enough and you have to additionally do an MBA to build a career. The Engineering and manufacturing sector will take a worldwide stage and will be very prominent in the world.  Experts say with management qualification career choices will open up for job aspirants and that they will have a range of choices to excel.

This situation persists, thanks to high job satisfaction ratings due to the profession’s financial security and highly creative, intellectual environment; not to forget the rewards of being able to benefit society through scientific and technological discovery.

The engineering industry has always had a requirement for high quality talent. Firstly it did not appear as if it was booming because other sectors were recruiting in larger numbers. Today, the scenario has changed. Therefore, in comparison, it seems as if there is a boom in the engineering industry. Secondly, there was large scale migration of talent from engineering industry to other industries, notably IT. This necessitated recruitment of replacement in fairly substantial numbers.

more at http://www.citeman.com/16806-engineering-and-management.html#ixzz1bpVOKeNp

Quality of Work Life (QWL)

The term Quality of Work Life (QWL) aims at changing the entire organizational climate by humanizing work, individualizing organizations and changing the structural and managerial systems. It takes into consideration the socio-psychological needs of the employees. It seeks to create such a culture of work commitment in the organizations which will ensure higher productivity and greater job satisfaction for the employees.

Quality of work life refers to the favorableness or unfavorableness of the job environment of an organization for its employees. It is generic term which covers a person’s feelings about every dimension of his work e.g. economic incentives and rewards, job security, working conditions, organizational and interpersonal relationships etc. The term QWL has different meanings for different people. A few important definitions of QWL are as follows:

Kindly continue to read full article at MBA Knowledge Base

The Six Thinking Hats

Battle for freedom of information continues

There is no doubt about the level of freedom humankind has reached in terms of accessibility of information. The dramatic change occurred to the way knowledge is acquired, by the birth of the internet and evolution of related technologies through continuous refinement and improvement, has made it possible for almost anyone to gain access to information with relative ease. Most sources of academic materials, or so called academic databases are not free. Perhaps, these databases can be made available for free too. One might wonder in such a situation, whether academia has to be made completely free for everyone universally.

Information, can be categorized into meaningless, misleading, bad, useless, good, authentic, quality etc. The information available for free can be good or bad depending on the motive and intention of the publisher or source. Academic journals, articles, books and the like are deemed authentic good quality sources of knowledge as, they are written to serve a specific purpose. That is, to pass on the knowledge to the seekers. Access to these materials have always been restricted to the seekers’ eyes only.

The greatest challenge

The greatest challenge of all is fighting against your inner self and keeping in control of your very own self. If you can win that, you are destined to succeed in your life. If not you will see yourself trying to fight and control others without any effect but with dire consequences.

I am alive!

Apologies for my long absence/inactivity since November last year. Some people might have thought I had died.

It was a busy and hectic period in November with so much work and stuffs. Also, I fell ill at the same time and had to leave for holidays immediately after semester ended and get treatment for the illness.

Holiday so far has been really good having being able to spend time with parents, brothers, sisters and childhood friends. Most importantly, I was really happy to have experienced my own home place again, where I grew up as a kid, after a very long period of time away from home.

'Edge of Darkness' trailer

Just thought to share this trailer [Mel Gibson’s new movie] with you for now as I will not be making posts till end of Nov. This is the busiest period of the semester. Hope you enjoy watching this trailer.

Edge of Darkness Trailer

See you in December with some new posts.