Bastobota without reality chara

Little girl and her father were crossing a bridge. The father was kind of scared so he asked his little daughter, "Sweetheart, please hold my hand so that you don't fall into the river."

The little girl said, "No, Dad. You hold my hand." "What's the difference?"

Asked the puzzled father. "There's a big difference," replied the little girl.

"If I hold your hand and something happens to me, chances are that I may let your hand go. But if you hold my hand, I know for sure that no matter what happens, you will never let my hand go."

In any relationship, the essence of trust is not in its bind, but in its bond.

So hold the hand of the person whom you love rather than expecting them to hold urs...

Kendrapara, September 30: The British might have left India long ago, but one of its establishments managed to thrive till recently on official records at least, in this coastal Orissa district.

A warehouse owned by the erstwhile East India Company at Danpur village on the outskirts of this town that continued to be on the list of the local power distribution company, CESU, and was marked a ‘chronic defaulter’.

"The British warehouse was probably drawing electricity more than few decades before the country's independence," N K Mishra, Sub-Divisional Officer (Commerce) of CESU said. "It is one of the few structures which was electrified by the Britishers much before others enjoyed the luxury of electricity," Mishra said.

Kendrapara, September 30: The British might have left India long ago, but one of its establishments managed to thrive till recently on official records at least, in this coastal Orissa district.

Now officials ask for the due bills to thier previous ruler. GOOD MOVE.Now officials ask for the due bills to thier previous ruler. GOOD MOVE.

Barbara Walters did a story on gender roles in Kabulseveral years before the Afghan conflict. She noted that women customarily walked about 10 paces behind their husbands.

She returned to Kabul recently and observed that the men now walked several paces behind their wives. Ms. Walters approached one of the Afghani women and said, "This is marvelous. Can you tell the free world just what enabled women to achieve this reversal of roles?"

"Land mines," said the woman.

News with views:

 
Zidane is now a virus. Hackers and virus creators are using the story of Zinedine Zidane head-butting in the final of the World Cup for accessing into personal computers by linking it to their virus affected site. The bogus website actually looks like an official Fifa world cup site and wants people to comment on the head-butting of Italian player Marco Materazzi. This site downloads bugs into personal computers, which eventually makes way for other viruses to come in.

Here is a story of a dumb hijacker. A man wearing a nylon mask and carrying a knife climbed into the back of a car in Australia and ordered the driver to take him to a nearby address. Before stepping down, the man took the drivers wallet with all the money.

The driver dropped him at his desired address and than went to the police. Police with the help of the dog squad started searching and found the man from the exact address he stepped down! He was arrested and the victim's money recovered.

Latter this hijacker was advised to reconsider his career options. Rightly so.

Overenthusiastic Bangladeshi soccer fans were ordered to pull down flags of World Cup contestants two weeks after the finals concluded in Germany. Bangladesh never qualified for the cup nor does it have a realistic chance in near future; which is matter of no regret for the dedicated fans that support Brazil and Argentina at large. Flying flags of other countries does not affect Bangladeshis’ national pride, nor do they realize the humiliation it brings to the nation. 

"Flying flags of other countries is illegal but we allowed it considering that the World Cup was a special occasion," the police said in a statement. "Now that the event is over, football fans should have pulled down the flags. If they don't, owners of the buildings should remove them immediately."

Well soccer is a game and a game is just a game. No hard feelings.

Little brain work, if you please………

You have a ‘ping pong ball’ at the end of a curvy, long, skinny hole in the ground. You want to get it out but you can't stick your hand in it won't reach or fit. A string won't work because you won't be able to attach it. What can you do to get it out without digging a hole?

 
In which question, can you never answer "yes" to?

War time puzzle:

During WWII, there was a bridge connecting Germany and Switzerland, and on the German side, there was a sentry tower with a guard in it. He would come out every three minutes to check on the bridge, and he had orders to turn back anyone who tried to get into Germany, and shoot anyone trying to escape without a pass. There was a woman who desperately needed to get into Switzerland, and she knew she didn't have time to get a pass. It would take her at least six minutes to cross the bridge, but she managed to do it. How?

Diary of a Management Trainee:

When I take a long time... I am slow.

When my boss takes a long time... he is thorough.

When I don't do it... I am lazy.

When my boss doesn't do it... he is too busy.

When I do something without being told... I am over-stepping my boundaries.

When my boss does the same thing... that is initiative.

When I overlook a rule of etiquette... I am rude.

When my boss slips a few rules... he is being original.

Health Tips:

Water works for losing weight.

For every one hour of work, take a five minute break and stretch, walk, or meditate. With just a few minutes of relaxation (or doing something other than work), you'll increase your physical activity as well as productivity and feel better throughout the day.

Management moral with the help of ‘Rose’:

Mr. and Mrs. Jabbar, an elderly couple had dinner at another couple's house, and after eating, the wives left the table and went into the kitchen. The two gentlemen were talking, Mr. Jabbar said, "Last night we went out to a new restaurant and it was really great. I would recommend it very highly. The other man said, "What is the name of the restaurant?" Mr. Jabbar thought and thought and finally said, "What is the name of that flower you give to someone you love? You know... the one that's red and has thorns."

"Do you mean a rose?" said the other. "Yes, that's the one," replied Mr. Jabbar. He then turned towards the kitchen and yelled, "Rose, what's the name of that restaurant we went to last night?”

Moral: Managers do not have to remember everything. They just need to know the sources of information.

Memorable Quote:

A budget is just a method of worrying before you spend money, as well as afterward.

 -End-

In focus:

 
Most Cheering news:

With dramatic changes in political situation of Nepal, the Maoist guerrillas are not only trying to return to regular lives, they are also looking for their life partners after passing years in the jungle with their fellow mates with no womanly touch.

Now they will have 2 commanders in their lives, one being the brutal but intellectual Maoist Leader, another is the in-house ‘wife commander’! Good luck bros. 

Most encouraging news:

Communication has lightened up the Rickshaw pullers’ daily work in Jaipur. Residents and tourists in the city started calling auto rickshaws with phones! Pink City Radio Taxi and an association of rickshaw drivers have joined hands to provide this new service in the city. Rickshaw pullers who join this initiative are given special phone sets, and a landline phone number would be displayed on the rear of their rickshaws. Initially the number is nominal but will increase in near future.

Most Discouraging date:

This June has seen 6-6-6.  This made some superstitious mothers to take steps to make sure their babies were not born on the most bedeviling of dates.  More than a dozen deliveries were postponed inNew York alone because of 666, which is said to be the "Number of the Beast" in the Book of Revelation. The next day however had a lucky number within 7-6-6.

So in the next year, hospitals around the world will have busy time during the first week of July (7-7-7).

Health tips:

If you stop getting thirsty, you need to drink more water. For when a human body is dehydrated, its thirst mechanism shuts off.

The average person who stops smoking requires one hour less sleep a night.

Dhada (s) of the month:

A clock bells 5 times in 4 minutes. How many times will it chime in 10 minutes?

If you were running a race, and you passed the person in 2nd place, what place would you be in now?

Rohosho time:

A policeman was walking past a restaurant when he heard someone scream - "No Jabbar, not the gun!" He ran inside and saw a doctor, a lawyer, a milkman, and a dead body on the floor with bullet wounds. He promptly walked over to the milkman and arrested him. He didn't witness the shooting and there was no apparent evidence to prove who shot the person and no one told him who the killer was. How did the policeman instantly know it was the milkman?

Management moral with the story of 3 parrots:

A man goes into a pet shop to buy a parrot. The shop owner points to three identical looking parrots on a perch and says:
“The parrot to the left costs 500 dollars”.
“Why does the parrot cost so much?” the customer asks.
The owner says, “Well, it knows how to use a computer.”
The customer asks about the next parrot and is told “That one costs 1,000 dollars because it can do everything the other parrot can do plus it knows how to use the UNIX operating system.”
Naturally, the increasingly startled man asks about the third parrot and is told “That one costs 2,000 dollars.”
Needless to say this begs the question “What can IT do?”
To which the owner replies “To be honest I have never seen it do a thing but the other two call him boss!”

Moral: Bosses / Team leaders / Department heads are just people who manage a group of creative and talented members but have no other qualities at all.

Memorable quotes

We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.  - Albert Einstein  

-End-

Football is a game of goals. Does not matter who plays better. Germany sure deserved to win the cup. They have been one of the most positive, attacking forces and to which their supporters have contributed hugely with their enthusiasm and hospitality. It is a shame that France with just 8 goals in 6 matches with a more defensive approach sealed a place in the Final.  

3rd place matters a little if not anything. Quick trivia, who finished in third place in 1994 World Cup? If the answer comes immediately to your mind than I admire your ability to recall forgettable things. Even if you know that Sweden finished third, you might not remember the fourth place team was Bulgaria. Point is, there is no glory in finishing fourth. There is no room on the stage if you aren’t in the top three. Germany just managed to be on the stage with Bastian Schweinsteiger  who was the hero for Germany as they officially ended the 2006 World Cup as the third-best side after demolishing Portugal 3-1 in Stuttgart. Nuno Gomes headed in a late consolation, but Portugal ultimately had no answer to neither Schweinsteiger, nor his Bayern Munich team-mate Oliver Kahn, who was phenomenal in the Germany goal.
 

Only seven countries have lifted the World Cup trophy in triumph but many great teams have thrilled and excited fans on football's biggest stage.Best 5 teams from the history are:

1. BRAZIL 1970
The team that secured Brazil’s third World Cup in the space of 12 years is widely regarded as one of the best units ever assembled.Defensively they were nothing special but with the attacking capabilities of players like Pele, Rivelino, Jairzinho, Tostao and Gerson, it was no wonder they swept all before them in Mexico.

2. NETHERLANDS 1974
Rinus Michels’ side were so accomplished they could interchange positions almost at will, a concept given the name ‘Total Football’.They totally outplayed the teams put in their path, crushing Bulgaria 4-1, Argentina 4-0 and beating world champions Brazil to set up a final against bitter rivals West Germany. The hosts had not touched the ball when Netherlands were awarded a first-minute penalty, scored by Johan Neeskens but the Germans came back to deny the Dutch the honour of succeeding the great Brazil side of 1970 as the world’s top team.

3. ARGENTINA 1978
They were, perhaps, fortunate to secure a place in the final of their home competition, beating Peru 6-0 when they needed to win by four goals, but in terms of overall quality they were a better side than the 1986 team, which Diego Maradona dragged to victory.Striker Mario Kempes finished as the tournament’s top scorer, Leopoldo Luque and Ossie Ardiles provided the flair and Daniel Passarella offered defensive class, all under the guidance of forward-thinking coach Cesar Luis Menotti.

4. WEST GERMANY 1974
Early on in their home competition few would have given Helmut Schon’s side a prayer, having lost their opening game to East Germany while Netherlands' total footballers were earning rave reviews.But they improved as the tournament wore on and, with players of the calibre of Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Muller, Paul Breitner, Wolfgang Overath and goalkeeper Sepp Maier, reached the final where they showed great resolve to overcome going a goal down after a minute to secure their second World Cup trophy.

5. WEST GERMANY 1990
The 1990 finals were a disappointment after the Maradona-inspired high jinks of Mexico '86 but Franz Beckenbauer’s side were undoubtedly the best team on show. Captain Lothar Matthaus was at his imperious best as an all-round midfielder without peer, Jurgen Kohler and Klaus Augenthaler were solid in defence while full-back Andreas Brehme and winger Thomas Hassler provided guile from the flanks. Jurgen Klinsmann’s ludicrous play-acting meant many overlooked just how good a player he was, while Rudi Voller was always dangerous in front of goal.

 
JULY 05 , 2006

France Does it again

France booked a World Cup final spot against Italy after Zinedine Zidane's first-half penalty earned victory over a disappointing Portugal in Munich. Zidane’s 33rd-minute penalty proved to be the difference between the two sides  which was high on perspiration if not inspiration. Les Bleus defended well when it mattered, although they were not tested enough by a Portugal side lacking a distinct cutting edge. Portugal looked far from threatening with the out-of-sorts Pauleta on his own up front and Ricardo had to save Ribery's drive as France stayed in control.

Portugal: Ricardo, Miguel (Paulo Ferreira 63), Meira, Ricardo Carvalho, Nuno Valente, Costinha (Postiga 74), Maniche, Deco, Ronaldo, Pauleta (Simao 68), Figo.
Subs Not Used: Boa Morte, Caneira, Nuno Gomes, Paulo Santos, Quim, Ricardo Costa, Tiago, Viana.

Booked: Ricardo Carvalho.

France: Barthez, Sagnol, Thuram, Gallas, Abidal, Ribery (Govou 72), Vieira, Zidane, Makelele, Malouda (Wiltord 69), Henry (Saha 85).
Subs Not Used: Boumsong, Chimbonda, Coupet, Dhorasoo, Diarra, Givet, Landreau, Silvestre, Trezeguet.

Booked: Saha.

Goals: Zidane 33 pen.

Att: 66,000.

Ref: Jorge Larrionda (Uruguay).

Fifa man of the match: Lilian Thuram

Now Portugal has a 19-game unbeaten streak since a February 2005 loss to Ireland and has reached the World Cup semis for the first time since 1966. Scolari, coming off a penalty-kicks victory over England, is unbeaten in 12 straight World Cup matches. He led Brazil to the 2002 title and is trying to become the first person to coach two nations to world championship.


France Mantra
Despite all the critics aimed at him, coach Raymond Domenech has always kept faith in his initial plans and up until now, it has paid off. Against two very technical sides such as Spain and Brazil, the idea was to prevent the opponents from keeping the ball. In those respects, Vieira and Makélélé have been instrumental in regaining possession, breaking down opponent attacks and distributing the ball around the pitch. The French team have shown real rigour and discipline in their positioning, making them very difficult to break down. The 34-year-old Zidane, who will retire after the finals, seems to have recaptured his brilliant best and was magnificent in France's 1-0 win over holders Brazil in the quarter-finals.He will be the key for France as usual.

JULY 04, 2006

Italy has made it to the Final

Germany was the last team who deserved to be in the World Cup final, Italy was an unlikely choise. fOOTBALL gOD had other plans in his mind. Italy was the better team tonight and won with some style as they hold their nerves till the end and thrown the hosts out of the cup.

Fabio Grosso and Alessandro del Piero each scored late in extra time to put Italy in the World Cup final. Grosso curled a left-footed shot past the diving Jens Lehmann in the 119th to put the three-time champions into Sunday's final against either France or Portugal. As Germany pressed for an equaliser, Del Piero then finished an Italy break with a delicate chip into the corner.

It was an extraordinary end to an enthralling encounter which saw Italy hit the woodwork twice and Gianluigi Buffon save superbly from Podolski. In the first half of extra time, Italy started out the better team, Alberto Gilardino getting inside the German defense and sending a soft shot past goalkepeer Jens Lehmann and off the post. The ball rolled across the front of the open goal but there were no other Italian players to score. A minute later, Gianluca Zambrotta sent a hard shot from outside the area off the crossbar. The two teams were level 0-0 after 90 minutes. 

Germany: Lehmann, Friedrich, Metzelder, Mertesacker, Lahm, Borowski (Schweinsteiger 72), Ballack, Kehl, Schneider (Odonkor 83), Klose (Neuville 111), Podolski.
Subs Not Used: Jansen, Huth, Nowotny, Hanke, Kahn, Asamoah, Hitzlsperger, Hildebrand.

Booked: Borowski, Metzelder.

Italy: Buffon, Zambrotta, Cannavaro, Materazzi, Grosso, Camoranesi (Iaquinta 90), Perrotta (Del Piero 104), Gattuso, Pirlo, Totti, Toni (Gilardino 74).
Subs Not Used: Zaccardo, Barzagli, Peruzzi, Nesta, Amelia, Barone, Inzaghi, Oddo.

Booked: Camoranesi.

Goals: Grosso 119, Del Piero 120.

Att: 65,000

Ref: Benito Archundia Tellez (Mexico).

Fifa man of the match: Andrea Pirlo

JULY 01, 2006

Six of the seven World Cup winning countries from the past have made it to the quarter-finals in Germany 2006. Brazil still remains the favorites while Argentina or Germany is the other picks to go all the way.

Do You Know

=All six former champions who qualified for the tournament have made the quarterfinals. The only former title holder, Uruguay, failed to qualify.

=After the round of 16, England has recorded 28 clean sheets in 54 World Cup matches.

=Germany striker Klose is one goal away from becoming the 12th player in the tournament’s history to net a total of 10 at World Cup finals.

=No pig in in France may be addressed as Napoleon by its owner.

 =All of Italy’s players play in the Italian League.

Joke of the World Cup

-Review-

Argentina Vs Germany

The rivalry between Argentina and Germany is an old one, including two World Cup finals, with one victory each. And it's bubbling up again. Germany vs Argentina on June 30 at Berlin’s Olympic stadium, the venue for the World Cup final on July 9, is probably the biggest match of this tournament. In 1990, Referee Codesal whistled the end of the match and Germany captain Lothar Matthaeus lifted the World Cup. A few yards away, Argentina captain Maradona cried openly. "The game will be very hard fought and close,'' Argentina's 22-year-old striker Carlos Tevez said. "It's going to be very tough for us ; and for them.'' The German team has displayed an offensive minded style of football that has led to four straight victories, Argentina being the team with lots of goals on account as well.

Italy vs Ukraine

Two teams coming off emotional, draining matches that were won from 12 yards out meet in this quarterfinal. Ukraine beat Switzerland on penalties after 120 agonizingly scoreless minutes, while Italy saw their game plan pay off in the last 10 seconds of injury time, picking up a penalty kick on a counter attack. The Ukraine captain ended his seven-year stay with AC Milan only last month and admitted he will have mixed feelings about trying to knock his adopted country out of the tournament. The Italians have once again limped into the latter stages of a major competition but that is when they are at their most dangerous.

England vs Portugal

Portugal head into quarter-final clash against England battered and bruised but confident that it has the depth of quality on the replacements’ bench to prevail. Portugal will have Deco and Costinha missing from Saturday’s clash after both were sent-off in the match against Netherlands. But Portugal look an inspired lot led by their talismanic captain Luis Figo, who at 33 years has been their best player. Coach Luiz Felipe Scolari as instilled confidence in to the team that have been under-achievers till now. Meanwhile, England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has warned his players not to rise to any provocation from Portugal. The good news for Sven is that key striker Wayne Rooney is getting back to his top form.

Brazil vs France

Revenge is will be an issue for Brazil when it faces France in the World Cup quarterfinals. The five time champion lost 3-0 the last time if faced France — the 1998 final at Stade de France. Brazil earned its quarterfinal berth by beating Ghana 3-0 on Tuesday in Dortmund. France had a comeback 3-1 win over Spain in Hanover. Veteran midfielder Zinedine Zidane was crucial in France’s win, setting up the deciding goal and then scoring one of his own late in the match.  Zidane also was key in the final against Brazil in 1998, scoring twice. Brazil has been the most successful team in Cup history, but its record against France is slightly checkered. This one is sure to be another classic, although our money is still on Brazil.

Numbers do not matter really, but sure make a point:

Argentina, Brazil and Germany lead all teams at the tournament with 10 goals, twice as many as England and Ukraine. France, Italy and Portugal each have six goals. The Germans have been prolific in shots (78) and shots on target (38). But Argentina has been most deadly, scoring its 10 goals from just 21 shots on target. In comparison, Brazil’s 10 goals came on 36 shots on target.

Quote of the tournament

Portugal’s Luiz Felipe Scolari, explaining his captain’s loss of cool during the match against the Dutch: Jesus Christ may be able to turn the other cheek, but Luis Figo isn’t Jesus Christ.

World Cup Football. Greatest Show on Earth they say. Bangladesh never qualified on any of the tournaments in past and never will in future. This does not drag down the enthusiasm we have towards the game though. I am sure Bangladeshis are more exited than many of the qualified countries’ supporters. Brazil and Argentina are at the pick to grab popular support from Bangladeshis.

I am a loyal supporter of the Dutch team since 1988. In 2002 they could not qualify for the world cup which left me with Spain and promising Portugal to lay the support. I also supported Portugal in Euro 2004. I accept the fate that all 3 of the teams are only capable of reaching semi finals. No worries. I will personally beat the finalists of World Cup 2006 at my PC on FIFA 2006 professional level! No doubt on this. 

World Cup football is right at the corner. This is one of the few occasions which wage earners including garments workers of Bangladesh enjoy thoroughly. This year though many of them will have no work, no earnings so no mantel and financial strength to take pleasure out of the Germany world Cup 2006. Germany however is one of the big buyers of our garments manufactures. Ironically the recent unrest in garments sector has a trickle down effect right at the center of fashion market of the World Cup as some of the affected factories were preparing cloths with the World Cup’s logo.

There is no better way to hurt an economy than ruining its major contributor. Just as other countries would like to impede Ronaldinho by any means to halt Brazil’s quest. ‘Ready-made garments’ is the No. 1 industry of Bangladesh with 75% of the total exports. More than 4,000 factories are activating in this sector which employ more than 1.2 million workers, 90% of which are women. In two days of violent unrest in Dhaka and in its suburbs, over 250 factories of this effective sector have been destroyed and burnt. A perfect plot to ruin the economy. Job well done.

Garment factory workers are the most productive and yet most exploited, the least rewarded but appreciated sections of the poor working class. It is surely the anger of workers ‘who do not have any weekend, do not have regular salary let alone overtime’ which played its part in the recent unrest. Owners however think otherwise. They are blaming a neighboring country (I wonder who this might be! Is it Myanmar? ) for manipulating the sentiment of the workers. Dear owners, leading a lavish life with foreign tours and best education for your children do not mean workers are passing ‘happy happy’ days. It is the reverse actually. The hard labor of 1.2 million workers enables you to lead the life you do. Ya ya, you are the entrepreneurs with the capital and links and the brain and the communication skill which makes the difference. Try to live a month with the wage you provide to your workers. I won’t advise you to put your feet in there shoes cause they do not have any! Oh! Sorry, I missed your age. If you are above 45, you won’t necessarily get a job in the garments sector. Do imagine your daughter in the place of the worker. She is locked inside the factory from dawn-to-dusk because her employer does not trust her and when fire catches up in factories, dozens of people like her are burnt alive.

Atrocious fact is, day by day, workers are sacrificing their flesh and blood; owners are accumulating the fat from it. Nice correlation- brainy but less haired economists would say. Paying around sixty US cents to a factory worker per day simply means this huge workforce is living below the poverty line! Hello civil society and NGOs, did this simple math never occurred in your precious mind? Human dignity, freedom and leisure are just three words which the workers never understood. These are sole proprietorships of the civil society and NGOs which brings fame and funds from the international donors.

So called “Bhab Murti” of this sector was ruined years ago. Much to the displeasure of the owners, General Secretary of the Brussels-based International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers' Federation Neil Kearney said "We have repeatedly warned of the growing frustration at the payment of starvation wages, the excessive hours of work, the cheating on piece work and the falsifying of overtime rates, the abusive treatment and the appalling health and safety conditions.” But the employers association, BGMEA, has brushed aside the notion that the violence is the result of low wages and poor conditions, claiming that workers were 'well paid and enjoyed good conditions'.

Neil Kearney pointed out that the violence at the FS Sweater Factory in Dhaka, which marked the start of the riots that spread through the industry, stemmed from corrupt criminal action against workers involved in a dispute over piece rates, and that police brutality and incompetence further enflamed the situation.

According to the Global Union Federation, the violent events that occurred last week in Bangladesh’s garment industry certainly served to highlight the corruption, incompetence and brutality of the country’s police force. In a letter to Prime Minster Khaleda Zia, this federation said that the country’s total lack of respect for civil liberties is preventing workers from organizing and bargaining to improve their wages and working conditions.

Who is the big neighbor, By the way? Owners started blaming out side influence from the very beginning. Why not JMB?! Maybe because none of the frontline workers had beard.

Without the argument of whether they are right of wrong, "neighboring country" was an ‘inquiring’ choice of words from the owners. Did the statement refer to Myanmar, Bangladesh's neighbor to the east? Not to forget, Myanmar is ruled by the awful military Generals and depresses democracy in every possible way.

Knock Knock. Wake up. Spit it out dudes. If you think its India who is behind this civil unrest, you should have the gates to say so. It seems that the owners are only good at exploiting workers inside the factory but do not have the guts to name India in front of the media even when it is accused of the worst crimes. Shame.

Obviously India played a role in it.

It must have. That is the characteristics it has.

One cannot rule out 'foreign conspiracies' against a 'growing market'; particularly when history records hundreds of wars to capture another's market. India is good at doing a lot of ugly things including harming its small neighbors. Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh face this Big brother’s continuous interference. Maoist guerrillas of Nepal are funded by India causing civil war and LTTE group of Sri Lanka are getting Indian assistance from the very early stage. LTTE’s top leaders were even trained in India. The target of India this time is Bangladeshi economy in general; export industry in particular. How about the fact that ‘not a single Indian owned garment factory in Savar EPZ came under attack’! PC Sharkar’s magic? Who knows!

After the end of the Multi-Fiber Agreement in 2005 and the changeover to the new WTO regime, it was projected that Bangladesh's flourishing textile industry would fold over. Wise but wrong ‘prediction masters’ said, Bangladesh was dependent on MFA quotas and that India would dominate the new landscape. This did not happen; instead, the industry continued to flow. The garments factories of Bangladesh are enjoying a boom following the end of global textile quotas. In the first nine months of the current fiscal year, textile exports rose by 19.45 per cent to 5.65 billion dollars. The sector is irreplaceable. It was 80’s Maradona and recent Ronaldinho of Bangladeshi economy. An ugly fealty country like India does not want this for boom of its own garments sector perhaps. Historically India’s foreign policy on Bangladesh is largely based on highlighting Bangladesh’s image as a sorry story to the rest of the world. The sage continues.

Beloved Government! The government, which grants various kinds of 'incentives' to the private sector employers, did not play any pro-active role to make the employers respond to the legitimate demand of adjusting the minimum wage. The Government is also tuning with the owners and thinks it was the outsiders who did this. They being the insiders could not do anything about it. They can not ensure life security of the people, cannot supply adequate water & power, and now they have proven to be spectators in the unrest and riot with zero level of ‘protectionist credibility’. We love you.

Truth is, workers’ anger mingled with Indian conspiracy and pulled our Ronaldinho flat into the ground. It would take an extra effort to stand up and fight again. Four parties involved in the garments industry; the government, factory owners, western buyers and workers must have a combine essence to solve the dispute. Living one of the parties aside will only worsen the problem.

While the ‘player Ronaldinho’ will do his best to retain the World cup in 2006 for Brazil, our garments sector has to fight with a lot of odds to retain its position which will perhaps take years to accomplish. I hope both succeed.

There lived a wise Lawyer.
He entered politics at very early stage of his career. He always managed to grab a seat in the Government side no matter who was in power. The lawyer oneday went to bird hunting in rural areas of Savar after Saifur Rahman declared that seasonal birds are not welcomed in Bangladesh. He shot and dropped a bird, but it fell into a farmer's field. As the lawyer climbed over the fence, an elderly farmer came and asked him what he was doing. The lawyer responded, "I shot a bird and it fell in this field, and now I'm going to get it back."

The old farmer whose name was Muzibur Rahman replied, "This is my property, and you are not welcome here."
The angry lawyer said, "I am one of the best lawyers in Bangladesh and a Member of the Parliament; if you don't let me get that bird, I'll sue you and take everything you have". The old farmer smiled and said," Apparently, you don't know how we settle disputes in Savar. We settle small disagreements like this with the “Three Kick Rule."
The lawyer asked, "What is the Three Kick Rule?" The Farmer replied, "Well, because the dispute occurs on my land, first I kick you three times and then you kick me three times and so on back and forth until someone gives up." 
The attorney quickly thought about the proposed contest and decided that he could easily take the 75+ old farmer. He agreed to follow by the local custom, thinking he can take 3 kicks of this 75+ man and than beat the hell out of him in return.

The old farmer walked up to the lawyer. Amazingly, farmer’s first kick planted the toe onto the lawyer's 2 legs and dropped him to his knees. Farmer’s second kick to the midriff then made the lawyer loose his early morning breakfast. The farmer’s third kick sent him face first into a fresh cow pie.

The lawyer put every bit of his will & ability and managed to get to his feet. Wiping his face with the arm of his coat, he said, "Okay, Now it’s my turn."

The old farmer smiled and said, "Naaaaaah, I give up now. You can have the bird."

Bash kore gechi shaper Guhai; shabdhan hote

shikhini kokhono; koto bishodhor boshi-eche daat, khote

cheye geche deho, bishe bhore geche naali

bish ke korechi rokto, khoto ke shonali rupali.

                            Humayun Azad (28 April, 1947-12 August, 2004)

Osama bin Laden’s Desire

An arrested Pakistani millionaire testified that he met Osama bin Laden twice in his life. He owns a news agency and took Laden’s interview in 2 occasions. He said he was impressed by Laden’s attitude and al-Qaida leader called himself “a prophet” on several occasions.

Big shots get away by saying something like this, where else Afghan citizens faces death sentences for converting into Christianity.

The India Bush did not see.

The US President visited India in Late February. Indian authority convinced Bush with all the good things they posses or tend to posses. There is another India within the fast growing global leader which posses 300 million poor people. Farmers in Maharasthra still hang banners offering their kidneys for sale; hungry parents in the barren fields of Orissa sell their children for the price of a bag of grain; millions roam the country in pursuit of work, trading the want of the village for the indignity of bonded labor- Such is the burden of poverty for more than a quarter of India's 1.1 billion people. It's the nation with the largest number of poor people in the world.

India is growing at an average of 6.8 percent since 1994. In just a decade, the land of lepers and snake charmers was supplanted by one of tech tycoons and MTV veejays though half of all children remain malnourished, half of women remain illiterate, more than 80 percent of the countryside lacks access to a telephone or a toilet.

Mafia in New York

As a former mafia killer, Eddie Lino must have known his death might always be around the corner. But he wasn't expecting it to find him in retirement, on a Brooklyn freeway in 1992, when two police officers reportedly pulled him over in his Mercedes. Maybe he thought he was about to get a ticket for speeding. Instead, prosecutors allege, one of the officers pulled out a gun and killed him on the spot.

Tales of police officers corrupted by the mob are hardly unheard of in New York. But the case of Louis Eppolito and Stephen Caracappa, whose long-awaited trial opened in Brooklyn yesterday, has stunned even seasoned investigators. Eddie Lino's murder - in which Mr Caracappa, now 64, is alleged to have pulled the trigger, earning the duo $75,000 (£45,000) from their mafia boss - is only one of eight in which they are implicated; apart from murder the list includes racketeering, kidnapping, obstruction of justice and money-laundering.

Koran outsells

The holy Koran outsells all other books displayed at the weeklong 'Book Festival' in India. Koran was the best selling book in the Festival held in the capital city of a Christian dominated state, officials said.

Love for Jazz music

Kim Cheol-woong, a North Korean citizen trained in classical music heard jazz piano for the first time while studying overseas and was fascinated. In the North Korean communist regime, playing Jazz music is prohibited. So one night in 2001, he made the dangerous trip across the Tumen River into China and reached Yanbian city. After 2 years he managed to reach South Korea and still lives there. Kim now teaches music at a university in Seoul, and dreams of playing at New York's Carnegie Hall. Many North Koreans who flee the country seek asylum from hunger and oppression, but Kim's father was a high-ranking military official and lavishly provided for his family. He really left the country for his love towards Jazz music.

Hero comes home

US Air Force pilot Alvin E. Crane Jr. was flying a T-6F, a World War II-era inside North Korea 55 years ago. His plane was hit by bullets and before the plane crashed, he managed to parachute out. Then he died possible by the North Korean soldiers. His body has been transferred to the US recently.

Bir Srestho Motiur Rahman is still sleeping in Pakistani territory, the land he hated the most. None of the Governments succeeded to honor him in Bangladesh territory. Fate!

Thanks for posting your valuable comments on my blog. I noticed you misspelled “that” several times. Please take the time to spell if fully despite of your tight Pakistani schedule; or do not bother to visit my blog in hurry, go find something which speaks Pakistani tone. You also misspelled “traitors”! Please do not learn to live like that.

Before commenting on some write ups, you better gain some knowledge of history which you lack completely. I am sorry to break the ice, it is the Pakistani politicians who were traitors as they lost the election and refused to hand over power to the Awami League. Please live with the fact that the Pakistani armed forces lost the war they started in Bangladesh and were kicked out from this land.

You are however welcome to visit Bangladesh without the fear of being kicked out.

Subhan