Now that I have seen this, my life is complete.
Category: Journal
Nova Jaro
La semajnoj de la lasta jaro jam estas preskaŠforgesitaj, ĉar reestas la ordinara rutino de laboro kaj hejmaj vesperoj.
Kristnaske ni manÄis agrable kun amikoj. Demandu iom pri la meleagro, kiu ne kuiriÄis.
Dum la sekva semajno ni ferias en Palm Springs kun la tuta familio de la bela Andrea. Estas vere Äueble malstreĉiÄi kaj fari nenion. Iom me scivolas kial homoj sin devigas multe fari dum iliaj ferioj. La valoro de sin ripozi ne troigiÄas!
George Bush’s Capitalist Running Dogs
Turns out that despite it all, the Iraqi economy is booming:
There’s a vibrancy at the grass roots that is invisible in most international coverage of Iraq. Partly it’s the trickle-down effect. However it’s spent, whether on security or something else, money circulates. Nor are ordinary Iraqis themselves short on cash. After so many years of living under sanctions, with little to consume, many built up considerable nest eggs—which they are now spending. That’s boosted economic activity, particularly in retail. Imported goods have grown increasingly affordable, thanks to the elimination of tariffs and trade barriers. Salaries have gone up more than 100 percent since the fall of Saddam, and income-tax cuts (from 45 percent to just 15 percent) have put more cash in Iraqi pockets. “The U.S. wanted to create the conditions in which small-scale private enterprise could blossom,” says Jan Randolph, head of sovereign risk at Global Insight. “In a sense, they’ve succeeded.”
Christmas Stories
A couple of years ago John Scalzi wrote a short story with the stated intent of making his mother-in-law cry like a little girl.
I challenge you to read it and not do the same.