傻冒儿 Stupid Hat aka ShaMao'er

Tank Man

I'm sure this is blocked in China but for those who haven't seen it and can it is very well done.

The Tank Man

 

Deaf and Dumb Amputees need not apply

This is just too funny.  Believe it or not it is from an advertisement for a Vice President at a reputable company.  These are some of the job requirements!

I love the definitions...

Handling:
Seizing, holding, grasping, turning, or otherwise working with hands. Fingers are involved only to the extent that they are an extension of the hand.

Talking
Expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word. Talking is important for those activities in which workers must impart oral information to clients or to the public, and in those activities in which they must convey detailed or important spoken instructions to other workers accurately, loudly, or quickly.

Hearing
Perceiving the nature of sounds. Hearing is important for those activities which require ability to receive detailed information through oral communication, and to make fine discriminations in sound...

Making monkeys

ShaMao's been a bit busy losing his job in recent days so not much action on the blog.

In any case, here is a nice little article that I agree entirely with:

How to Make a Monkey out of an Activist

 

Counting the Dead

Seems even dead children are a threat to the "harmonious society"

China revealed its long-awaited official count of schoolchildren killed in last year’s earthquake Thursday.

But the modest, eyebrow-raising figure – 5,335 students, of nearly 87,000 dead – is unlikely to satisfy bereaved parents and others who have urged the government to tell the truth about how many children died last year and why so many schools collapsed when surrounding buildings didn’t. (Read the Monitor’s coverage about parents’ push for accountability here and here.)

Let’s compare this with other figures the government has put out:

Some 3,340 schools still need rebuilding, according to the Sichuan Province education department, which also announced the death toll.

That means, for every school that fell during the quake, only one or two children were killed – even though a much higher number should have been in class when the quake struck that Monday afternoon.

And with an official overall estimate of nearly 87,000 dead or missing (but presumed dead), that means only 6 percent of people killed last year were schoolchildren.

Yet students made up 16 percent of Sichuan’s population as of 2007, according to official estimates cited by Time magazine.

http://features.csmonitor.com/globalnews/2009/05/07/quake-count-how-chinas-death-toll-of-schoolchildren-adds-up/

Disappearing Loopholes

I'm really happy with this one.   Obama has no fear of sacred cows; I'll give him that.  

I have done work for so many companies that have put together just nonsensical organizational structures simply to avoid paying US taxes.  There is also a very lucrative industry of tax consultants that invent ever more creative structures that I will be happy to see out of work (not that I don't believe they will just move on to the next scam). 

I am not sure if US corporate taxes render US companies relatively uncompetitive to foreign rivals or not.  I have read arguments on both sides that frankly tend to make me sleepy.   However, I do know that whatever the rules are; they should apply to everyone. 

Firms Face Tighter Tax Rules

End the University

End the University as We Know It

Agree entirely.  There are so many things wrong with our education system but this is as good a place as any to start.

 

Huawei

I get a useless quarterly email from the UPenn Wharton School of Management.  One of the articles this time was Huawei Technologies: A Chinese Trail Blazer in Africa

Here's the beginning:

Walk into a bookstore in Beijing and you will find shelves filled with books about Huawei Technologies. As one of China's fledging multinational companies and a major force in the international telecommunications equipment industry, Huawei is rewriting the rules of competition in a global industry. According to some observers, it is the first non-state-owned Chinese company to successfully expand its operations internationally.

So.... about 3 minutes of internet research revealed that in fact Huawei refuses to disclose who owns its shares, saying it is "employee owned" but refusing to provide any details.  Both Australia and the US have recently rejected attempted acquisitions of companies by Huawei on the basis that the company is likely owned by the Chinese military.

Surprise surprise and a big thumbs up to the folks at Wharton

Moving...

ShaMao has moved into a new place over the last couple weeks so hasn't had time to post.   He will also be starting a new project at work (the first real work in 10 months!) that will see him back and forth between the US and Europe.  I hope to have some interesting posts on Europe once I get there.

Hopefully will find time to update more often in the coming days.

The True Conquest of Mexico

I have just finished reading the 2 volume True History of the Conquest of Mexico by Diaz Del Castillo.  The book was written in 1568 by Del Castillo who was one of Cortes' officers throughout the campaigns in Mexico in 1518-1521.  Although the book is often frustrating in its lack of detailed descriptions of the sites, sounds, and people Del Castillo was encountering (and fighting), the brief glimpses of color he does provide throughout his story are just incredible.  An eyewitness account by one of only a handful of men (one of less than about 500 who lived) who saw the amazing city of Tenochtitlan, Mexico City, built in the center of a lake. 

The story of the conquest itself is just unbelievable;  the audacity of these few Spanish amazing.  Although I had heard the story before of the flight from Mexico City and the subsequent return, siege, and conquest to read it told by a participant is just great.   Highly recommended to any who are interested in such things.

Mass mailings

I am 'fortunate' to have an acquaintance who is in the habit of forwarding me right wing populist email mass mailings.   In what may become an ongoing series on the ShaMao, here is a nice sample of what is being mailed out there.   This one was sent to about 50 people in the same sending that I received it in. 

One would really hope we had moved on past such thinking....no.  Not in any way surprising but still manages to surprise me.

Accounts Receivable Tax 
Building Permit Tax 
CDL License Tax 
Cigarette Tax 
Corporate Income Tax 
Dog License Tax 
Federal Income Tax 
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA) 
Fishing License Tax 
Food License Tax 
Fuel Permit Tax 
Gasoline Tax 
Hunting License Tax 
Inheritance Tax 
Inventory Tax 
IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax) 
IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax) 
Liquor Tax 
Luxury Tax 
Marriage License Tax 
Medicare Tax 
Property Tax 
Real Estate Tax 
Service charge taxes 
Social Security Tax 
Road Usage Tax (Truckers) 
Sales Taxes 
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax 
State Income Tax 
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA) 
Telephone Federal Excise Tax 
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Tax 
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax 
Telephone State and Local Tax 
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Tax 
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax 
Watercraft Registration Tax 
Well Permit Tax 
Workers Compensation Tax 

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?
Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago...
and our nation was the most prosperous in the world.

We had absolutely no national debt.. 
We had the largest middle class in the world... 
and Mom stayed home to raise the kids. 

What happened?
Can you spell "politicians!" Can you spell "generational welfare?" Can you spell "illegal immmigrants?" Can you spell "creeping socialism?"

And I still have to 
press '1' 
for English. 

I hope this goes around the 
USA 
at least 100 times 

What the hell happened?????

If you've gotten the impression that I'm angry, well, your very perceptive!