Ewan's Corner

Archive for the ‘misc’ Category

A wonderful and amazing version of the Dr Seuss classic “Oh, The Places You’ll Go!” (his final published book) recorded at Burning Man. One of my favourite bed-time stories, loved by big and small kids alike – wisdom for us all.

Created by Tedshots.

I choose to live by choice, not by chance;

to make changes, not excuses;

to be motivated, not manipulated;

to be useful, not used;

to excel, not to compete.

I choose self-esteem, not self-pity.

I choose to listen to my inner voice,

not the random opinion of others.

This re-posting was inspired by Simon Dingle’s great opinion piece “Cellphones and Cancer” posted on Fin24 today, and all the stupidity surrounding the recent media-hyping of the announcement by the WHO.

Written by Dr. Milton Mermikides, Tuesday, 14 June 2011 00:00, originally from Swift

The skeptic community often provides, most commendably, the calm voice of reason during periods of public scares (and outright panics) such as the MMR and vaccine ‘controversy’, fears surrounding fluoride, mobile phone and Wi-Fi usage, the perils of Facebook, overblown drug risks and the impending doom from microwave ovens. Although opposing false fears is admirable work, it is important that we don’t become blasé and, through habit, allow genuinely concerning public health issues to escape our criticism. By way of a demonstration I would like to share some genuinely alarming information that I recently discovered about a supplementary nutritional practice. It is conducted by a sub-culture of adults for personal use and by (presumably well-meaning) parents in an effort to enhance their children’s performance. It seems, that this has been happening for years and has as yet escaped critical examination, so in this brief time please allow me to present an overview.

The substance is known as Ba-2Na (not barium disulphate – it is in fact an organic mixture) and can be found in green-form, black-form and yellow-form. The latter state being highly desired among users. As it is consumed all over the world, there are numerous names for Ba-2Na (depending on the method of production) including mauz, musala, musa and even, believe it or not, superbum. The latter conjuring up images of a superhero rushing into a phone booth not to don a costume but simply to urinate.

Dosages are bought (sometimes in the street in plain view) in individually ingested units of approximately 200 grams each, consolidated in to ‘bunches’ of 4-7 units. The reported effects include a rush of energy and a sense of contentment and satisfaction. In fact some are so enamored with the substance, that they believe it to be a proof of the existence of God. However, as far as I can discover, there have been no safety testing of this substance, rather worrying considering the following facts, one starts to wonder who is protecting the interests of the dealers.

Ba-2Na is highly genetically modified – often synthesized using a tissue culture – and is virtually unrecognizable from its wild natural counterpart.

This sugary concoction of chemicals includes phenylalanine (a component of aspartame and found in diet drinks, the possible dangers of which are well discussed), threonine (which can be absorbed directly into the human heart), extremely toxic phosphorus (used in matches of all things) and particles of ash. This toxic cocktail is also cut with mind-numbing dopamine and serotonin (which can cause endomyocardial fibrosis) – hence the sense of gratification reported by users- and other biogenic components. The substance can also spread infectious diseases if handled unhygienically, which is sadly often the case.

Parents are forcing their children to consume this gunk under the impression that they will give them a burst of energy and strength – an edge over their peers – however Ba-2Na interrupts the natural digestive function, appetite response and formaldehyde levels in the blood, and no-one really knows the cumulative effect of all these chemicals in the absence of adequate testing. Not to mention the fact that Ba-2Na emits over a 1000 times the ionising radiation of a mobile phone, the health effect of which doesn’t bear talking about. Allergic reactions (bizarrely from users who are allergic to latex) have also been noted but for some unknown reason have not made it to public knowledge.

Finally, the discarded casing of this substance can potentially cause physical harm to others – and most shocking of all – this can even be a source of amusement to the addled brains of users.

It is appalling that we haven’t highlighted these dangers and I suggest an imminent large-scale response. We need to peel back the outer layer to get to the centre of the issue, and then we might have a ray of comfort. If we don’t take this sort of thing seriously, we’ve all slipped up.

A large haul of uncut street Ba-2Na in its highly desirable yellow-form:

Postscript 

Ok so that’s very silly, but other than the ill-concealed name, all the statements I’ve made about the humble banana are basically true, deceptive, but true. Any old nonsense can be supported on a foundation of carefully-selected – and omitted – truths- All this can of course be achieved completely unconsciously. The alternative medicine, pro-homeopathy/anti-‘allopathy’ community, nutritionists, ‘wellness’ ‘experts’ and the anti-vaccination crowd are all deeply guilty of this massaging and careful compilation of truths and the use of scary science-y terms to convince themselves and others of whatever agenda to which they’ve formed an allegiance. Of course, these can be supplemented with a healthy dose of toxic lies – a level to which I haven’t needed to stoop in order to make a case against Ba-2Na.

Son of a CERN nuclear physicist, Milton was raised with wide artistic and scientific influences, an eclecticism that remains with him today. He has a BSc from the London School of Economics, a BMus (Berklee College of Music) and a PhD in music (University of Surrey), and holds commendations for his education and charity work. Milton now lives in London (UK) where he enjoys teaching, performing, composing, producing and writing about music. To learn more please visit miltonline.wordpress.com

“Trying to get everyone to like you is a sign of mediocrity”

The full quote is an even better read:

“Good leadership involves responsibility to the welfare of the group, which means that some people will get angry at your actions and decisions. It’s inevitable, if you’re honorable. Trying to get everyone to like you is a sign of mediocrity: you’ll avoid the tough decisions, you’ll avoid confronting the people who need to be confronted, and you’ll avoid offering differential rewards based on differential performance because some people might get upset. Ironically, by procrastinating on the difficult choices, by trying not to get anyone mad, and by treating everyone equally "nicely" regardless of their contributions, you’ll simply ensure that the only people you’ll wind up angering are the most creative and productive people in the organization.”

Also very true:

“The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help them or concluded that you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership.”

And

“Good leaders don’t wait for official blessing to try things out. They’re prudent, not reckless. But they also realize a fact of life in most organizations: if you ask enough people for permission, you’ll inevitably come up against someone who believes his job is to say "no." So the moral is, don’t ask. Less effective middle managers endorsed the sentiment, "If I haven’t explicitly been told ‘yes,’ I can’t do it," whereas the good ones believed, "If I haven’t explicitly been told ‘no,’ I can." There’s a world of difference between these two points of view.”

And

“Organization doesn’t really accomplish anything. Plans don’t accomplish anything, either. Theories of management don’t much matter. Endeavors succeed or fail because of the people involved. Only by attracting the best people will you accomplish great deeds.”

This day and age we’re living in
Gives cause for apprehension
With speed and new invention
And things like fourth dimension.

Yet we get a trifle weary
With Mr. Einstein’s theory.
So we must get down to earth at times
Relax relieve the tension.

And no matter what the progress
Or what may yet be proved
The simple facts of life are such
They cannot be removed.

From As Time Goes By in Casablanca, via The Endeavour, via Math Mutation podcast #134.