Tuesday, October 02, 2007

Abbadi Not Guilty

I’m predicting that Mr.Abbadi will be found not guilty, perhaps not all of the charges will be thrown out, perhaps he won’t be getting an out right acquittal but his conviction will be on a much lesser charges that may or may not carry jail time other than what he already had served while in detention awaiting the trial. I think that his lawyer’s resplendence idea of inserting the hacking issue into the mix will prove to be a huge mitigating factor. If the judges don’t somehow doubt the credibility of the defendant’s attorney, they will have no choice but return a not guilty verdict. The letter is considered the fulcrum with which the persecution case rests’. Abbadi denied writing the letter, and further more says that he was framed by someone that wanted to harm his interest, and hence wrote the letter and attributes it to him. He also testified that he would never harm Jordan’s interests abroad and he is a loyal citizen and former law maker dedicated to the service of the Hashemite regime and the country of Jordan. If that defense is not convincing enough I don’t know what else would be. This new turn of events had changed the entire make up of the case and shook the ground underneath the prosecutor’s general feet. Had Mr. Abbadi insisted that he is the one that wrote the letter, and had he insisted that he wrote it because he was exercising his freedom of speech rights, he would be convicted with no if and or but about it. Nevertheless, having found an outlet to get him off the hook will prove to be a brilliant thinking on the part of his attorney. There is no way in the world the prosecution can prove with an absolute certainty that Mr. Abbadi wrote the letter, the IT experts that testified the other day on behalf of the defendant clearly stated that possibility of hacking the cite exists and it may very well be that someone had inserted the letter into the web site and made it look like Mr. Abbadi wrote it, in other words, the implication is that he was framed. When I reviewed this case few months ago I was thinking in my mind that it is going to be for sure 100% conviction, it is crystal clear that the letter which was allegedly written by Mr. Abbadi sounds like it is intended to harm the Jordanian interests and sully its reputation abroad, needles to say, the subsequent turn of events and particularly the framing allegations turns the whole story upside down and throws the ball back in the prosecution court. And despite the fact that the prosecutor asked that Mr. Abbadi be found guilty as charged, I’m sure the judges are much more sagacious than the prosecutors and they will take the issue of the denial as well as the issue of framing very seriously. Let us wait and see what the verdict is going to be but I have a deep visceral feeling that it is going to be favorable to Mr. Abbadi



http://www.jordantimes.com/?news=2575

Monday, October 01, 2007

It must be the end of time

http://www.jordantimes.com/?news=2547

I can’t believe that Fahed Fank, one of the most ardent opponents of the National Agenda; long even before it was even published, is now calling for its revival. The end of time must be drawing near. He questioned in his daily column published in AlRai newspaper on October 20, 205 whether the goals of the national agenda were obligatory or merely hopes and expectations, he questioned the hypothesis with which were used as a fulcrum for the national agenda, he stated that the fundamental issue in the economic development in Jordan is based on outside influences and not under our will and determination, he cited the Palestinian problem, the future of Iraq, the stability of the region, fluctuating oil prices, out side grants, the gulf market, and other reasons that will hinder the launching of the national agenda. Mr. Fank went on to say that the most farcical item of the agenda’s ten main items is the one that pledges to turn the countries budget deficit into a surplus even prior to having to take into consideration the foreign grants. According to him even if this economic surplus goal was achieved it would have caused as much damage to the economy as the budget deficit itself since it will demand an increase in tax levies.

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Jordanian Initiative

I’m surprised that no one particularly those amongst us that make it a habit of theirs to address these issues bothered to mention about the project lead by former president Clinton entitled “Clinton Global Initiative”. This link gives some back ground about the project.

http://www.clintonglobalinitiative.org/NETCOMMUNITY/Page.aspx?&pid=1399&srcid=-2


I’m personally impressed by what I have read about it especially that it covers four topics that are very near and dear to my heart. A) Education b) Energy c) Health d) Poverty alleviation.

I think that an initiative like that would be very helpful for country like ours, we hear about so many initiative that were created in Jordan over the last decade or so, sadly most of these initiatives either die in their infancy, never see the light, or never develop all the way until fruition.

I don’t pretend to have any answer but I’m just trying to toss some ideas around so hopefully it will stimulate a discussion about how can we lift Jordan to a higher standard better and more improved than the current one. Can we emulate the global initiative, better yet, can we localize or domesticate the global initiative with a similar initiative called the Jordanian initiative.

I know I sound like I’m too influenced by the global initiative and to tell you the truth I’m, but why not, I guess I’m extra ordinarily utopian individual, or a big day dreamer.

Monday, September 24, 2007

Help Wanted

Help Wanted



The Jordanian press and publication department is looking for qualified candidates to fill in a number of vacant positions available for a recently enacted domestic surveillance program.

Positions entail spaying on electronic media websites, blogs, web pages, electronic news beaurues, correspondences, news bulletins, comments, chats, announcements, and electronic press releases.

Qualified candidates must posses an excellent command of the English language, must be willing to engage the bloggers into a lively desirable discussions for the purpose of entrapping them. This isn’t a nine to five position, a designated spy must be available on a twenty four to forty eight hours shifts. When the story breaks so will the spy be ready to report on the flurry electronic activities about it.

The position offers a basic salary and plenty of commission incentives, the more people you turn in the higher your income will be. Our goal is to shut the mouths as well as the spirit of those nonconforming so called electronic media journalists.

In the past we have been successful at shutting the print journalists as well as defining delineated borders for the video and audio journalist personnel, we expect to have the same level of success if not better, faster, and more swifter at the electronic media.

For immediate consideration forward “ironically” via electronic media your curriculum vita outlining your qualification, interests, and goals. Only applicants that demonstrate the highest degree of becoming excellent spies will be considered for the positions, and will be invited for further processing and training on the best methods of how to spot violators of electronic media journalists and bring them to justice.

If you aren’t self confident well rounded spy willing to turn in the most intimate person to you;then you need not bother applying for any of these open positions, this isn’t for the feign hearted individual.

Interested applicants need not worry about public exposure, confidentiality is of a paramount importance to the press and publication department, all reporting and turning in people will be done in highly covert operations, you need not worry about being exposed.

We encourage young talented English proficient male and female Jordanians to take advantage of this rare opportunity, applications will be reviewed on first come first serve order, don’t let this excellent opportunity pass you by, hurry, the time to become a highly paid spy is now. Experience is not necessary, nor is it a requirement.

Thursday, September 06, 2007

New ways of looking for a job

Nowadays eager job seekers are turning to places like You Tube to tout their marketable skills, prospective employers are reacting positively. A decade or so ago, the same people were sending in video tapes of themselves to companies that they hoped to work for, in a recorded two to three minutes segment they would outline their career goals, education, training, professional experience and even hobbies. When those video tapes ended up being too bulky and require video cassette players to view them, employers lost interest in them and soon enough they have become extinct. Not long afterwards the compact discs emerged as the favorite tool for sending one's blurb about him and his job prospects. While I concur that the cold calling is dead but so is the web sites that people post their resume on it 'on line' in hope of trying to locate a job, it too caught up with the frenzy of job searching for a number of years .Regrettable, the trend didn't last and the force of the imposed technology caused it to move on as well. Check this out: In any given day there are millions of resumes circulating on the internet, even those resumes that are job specific number in the hundreds of thousands, employers don't have the necessary time to sift through these job applicants in order for them to select the right candidate. Often times even human resource managers are under intense pressure to staff the vacant positions as soon as they possibly can in a relatively short period of time line, though, to do so in a hasty manner would do the company disservice and result in hiring the wrong candidate. On the flip side of the coin, watching an already uploaded segment on You Tube can be achieved with relative ease by a click of the mouse. Only then the employer can get a very clear idea about the person's character by watching him/her introduce themselves on You Tube or similar website, and if they don't like what they see they never have to see them again. There are no reams of resumes to go through, no highlighting of important facts, and no narrowing down of three, two, and finally one candidate. When the human resource manager watches the You Tube like video he/she will decide on the spot whether that particular candidate in the segment is suitable or unsuitable to work for their company. They will be able to watch his appearance, listen to his voice, and determine his nationality, color, body language and so on. These are very important characteristics for employers. By contrast, posting a resume on the internet is going out of vogue; soon it will be extinct just like the video cassette and the compact disc before it. People should realize that technology is changing the face of how we should be looking for a job now and in the future. Remember once upon a time when finding a job was solely based on referral. A friend of yours, your neighbor, or your uncle used to recommend you for their boss and then the next thing you are hired based on their recommendations. Then there was the job ads appearing in the newspaper, and answering them via the postal services, followed by an invitation for an interview, and finally the hiring. Then there was the cold calling, the walk in, and even the stopping of managers in the middle of the street begging them to give you a chance for an interview. All of these styles have gone out of business; they are no longer effective in locating and landing a job. While I do wish the best of luck for the founders of this new online job seeking company in Jordan, I think that they have arrived into the market too little too late, the digital divide had caught up with them, and unless they add some new innovative features to go a long with merely posting a text resume they will be doomed. One must be mind full of all of the changes that are occurring around him, what used to be fitting a couple of years ago may not be fitting these days. The key word for Akhtaboot is innovate- before-it -is too- late.

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Stone care techniques

I was reading this column published on Friday August 31,07 http://www.alghad.jo/index.php?article=7016&sub#msg in alghad jordanian daily-- and then I decided to speak my mind on it.


Here is how I feel about it :

The market is awash with stone care products but the owners of these stone buildings are unwilling or unable to utilize these products that keep their building aesthetically sound. Stone surfaces can very easily be maintained by power washing them annually with 1500-300 psi power washing machine. However when the dirt is allowed to dwell on the surface for a number of years it first penetrates into the porous stone surface, hardens, and builds up just like the plaque that adheres and builds on the human teeth. Once the dirt on the stone surface hardens and gets exposed to hot and cold and rainy weathers, removal of the dirt becomes that much more difficult. The key to maintaining beautiful looking stone surface is preventive maintenance, power wash the exterior of the entire vertical surfaces from all four sides of the building at least once a year and you can rest assured that your building will look as good as the first day you built it for many years to come. Conversely, ignore power washing your building surfaces for five or more years and your building will look very ugly. In any event, even those who ignore the preventive maintenance stage can still get their building back in shape by moving into step two of stone care and that is called corrective and restorative maintenance techniques. In this stage the building surface must be cleaned using a number of ways among them acid based chemical to etch the surface, sand blasting, or poultice, any of these methods would take care of the cleaning part, after the surface had been thoroughly clean, an impregnator would have to be applied on the stone surface by using either a spray gun, a soft wool lamb applicator, or hand brush. In some instances more than one application would be needed especially if the stone surface had gone into vigorous cleaning prior to the application. Once the impregnator dries up the stone surface would look like brand new again and all it would need is a regular hosing with a garden hose about twice a year. I'm amazed about how much the Jordanians ignore the maintenance of the exterior stone surfaces of their buildings, I even once thought about opening a stone care business in Amman consisting of washing all the intolerable ugly looking permanent grime adhering to the buildings stone surfaces.

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Blogging---again ?!

I think that the bloggers need to coalesce over one single issue at the time and try to break it open inside out in the public view so it can turn into the talk of the town. This is the only way that public officials will begin to pay attention to what the bloggers are saying. At this point in time each blogger is blogging about anything and everything, there is no one particular issue [except may be for the snow] that would attract a collection of bloggers to debate in a deliberate fashion and prosecute a particular issue from A to Z.
The bloggers can if they want to- become the lobbying voice- the public defenders- if you will for- the general public, they have the ability to understand the issues more than anyone else, they have the necessary education to fathom the most intricate details surrounding the issues, and they have the technology to spread the word around with relative ease.
I think that the bloggers can operate as a pressure group by explaining the pros and cons of every issue that affects the citizens of the country, be that health care or lack of it, education, immigration, taxation, foreign labor, and so on and so forth.
So why aren’t they doing it?! I think that part of the reason is apathy, and part of the reason is their impotence toward believing that no matter how hard they try they aren’t going to be able to change anything and business will continue running the way it has been running for the past several decades.

The final part is probably fear of retribution by the government against them personally or against members of their families. Perhaps some of these concerns are quite legitimate and others are just imaginary.

Where do we go from here? I say we go toward coalescing, toward a synergy like effort, toward parsing every issue in a manner that is comprehensible to the average citizen of the country.

If we continue to blog with no aim in sight we are going to be blogging for the rest of our lives about things that no body read except the authors themselves. By contrast, if we can show that we are dead serious about plowing the rugged fields and prepare it for reform, we are serious about seeing a change taking place in the country during our life time not our children or grand children’s time, then just may be and that is a big may be somebody out there will begin paying attention to what we blog about and why.

There are a lot of grievances’ out there; there are a lot of people that don’t know what is going on and why they have arrived at where they are at right now. There are a lot of people that were better off five and ten years ago.

There are people that lament the good old days and wish that they are still living in the past. All these feelings combined need to be articulated and simplified. It doesn’t take a lot for the people to be content in Jordan, but the constant influx of foreign workers, regional immigrants, refugees with no refugee status, sky rocketing real-estate prices, have put the Jordanian citizen in a state of shock and bewilderment.

Bloggers can and should collectively discuss and parse some or all of these issues, they can help put the citizen’s mind at ease by creating a group of informed citizens, ones that know what to do to find jobs for their children, where to go to get an annual check up, how to apply for a scholarship, how do you get a tax relief and exemption.

I guess I’ll stop here before I veer too much away from my main objective which is the need to coalesce toward a primary issue and stay with it from A to Z.

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Blogging

I just learned that there are more than fifty million blogs out there and the number is expected to double by year end. Most blogs are read by the author only and by no one else. Most blogs don't generate any type of profits.The Blogger isn't recognized as journalists. Bloggers are called pajama journalists because most bloggers blog while they are at home, they don't go out on the field looking for stories to report about. Bloggers can be considered as an add on, an accessory, a supplement to real journalism. Journalists aren't worried about the bloggers taking over their jobs. I guess the bottom line is that bloggers aren't being taken seriously by anybody. Their future is unknown, some have already run out of the passion for writing and others are on their way out as well. It would be interesting to find out what will become of blogging five to ten years from now.