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Time spares no one. That continuum ticks on, breath by breath, counting down and counting you out. Yet family bond endures. It has been that way for centuries: hunting and gathering, agrarian and industrial society. The very moment we fear that the machine will take over, that’s when we got Social, from Twist to Tweet.…
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As Yahoo News flashes Most Admired Person of the Year, I can’t help reflecting on Adults I most Admired ever. From a teacher friend of my mom to complete strangers in heartland America, from a relief worker in the Pacific to far-away Africa, I remember them not so much for how much they were giving…
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Originally posted on Thang Nguyen 555: People have paid lips service to freedom, the defense of freedom, and the exercise of free speech. But few put any thought on the price of freedom. Freedom somehow is perceived as being free (i.e. you don’t have to pay anything, in economic terms). Actually, freedom costs a lot.…
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Originally posted on Thang Nguyen 555: Yesterday I reposted “Invisible Man“. Today, it’s about “invisible hand“. There is an invisible hand that definitely plays with events in history, and this Adam-Smith-like hand seems to run out of tricks every 40 years or so, so it seems. In Understanding Vietnam (Berkeley Press), we learn that history seems…
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Originally posted on Thang Nguyen 555: UN General Secretary even admits that he has an image problem. I tried the UN web site, and clicked on Secretary General. He does have a picture standing behind a podium, addressing me the only web audience as far as I am concerned. I thought being in that important…
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My first American solo supper was a big Whopper, at the time, sold by the leading Burger King. The next day, I sampled McDonald known for its fries. You may say, I got myself into a blind-fold test not unlike Coke vs Pepsi tasting. To this day, my number-one choice would be In-and-Out. But seeing…
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Originally posted on Thang Nguyen 555: Canadian University system has just introduced a new low grade (lower than F) for Academic Dishonesty (plagiarism or online essay service etc…). At least, the University is catching on with high-tech trickery, and how these portable devices and outsourcing services can aid cheaters. TA’s will have to play cops,…
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Originally posted on Thang Nguyen 555: FIOS in Triple Play, for $79.00 for the first six months. The last time I looked, it was $100 for the Triple Play package: phone, TV and broadband. In China, kids played until they dropped dead (unwilling to lose their seats at the Internet cafe and online, where supposedly,…
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How many among us actually put in that many hours pursuing one thing? Yet studies show it takes that much practice to master a skill or a trade. That long to promote ourselves to the rank of outlier : Bill Gates coding skill, the Beatles smooth performance etc… Today marks my first 10,000 views of…
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Originally posted on Thang Nguyen 555: The bus rider paid for the fare in Trillions of Zimdollar. Or else, a live chicken will do. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090816/ap_on_re_af/af_zimbabwe_zimdollar I experienced this back on May 1st, 1975 aboard a Seventh Fleet warship on the way to Subic Bay (thank you President Ford). We learned from word of mouth that…
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Thang Nguyen 555 