James Bond is the classic cold-blooded British agent that we have all grown to love, even if he isn’t the nicest of guys.
From Sean Connery, George Lazennby, James Moore, Pierce Brosnan and now Daniel Craig we have watched James Bond transform on the big screen over the last 46 years, beginning with the first movie in 1962.
The book took more than two years to be put together. Phantom Students focus on the experience of New York City author, Charlton D’souza, on what he and other students faced while attending Marymount Manhattan College Community Leadership Program (CLP). The program was designed to reach out to students in communities that have been overlooked by institutions of higher education.
The program began in 1993, with 15 students enrolled, D’souza had discovered. When the year was over, only one student graduated from it. By a very slim margin, the entire class dropped out.
In 1999, 17 students out of a class of 27 graduated, making it the highest number of students to complete the program. In total, 156 students were enrolled in the program.
The program itself is no longer in existence. The last class enrolled documented thus on a chart in Phantom Students was in 2001. His colleague and long time friend since high school, Brandon C. Jennings, was in the program at the time it was cut along with D’souza in early 2004. In addition, he is still paying a loan to this date.
Nationally, D’souza researched that one of the reason why students were dropping out of school was due to economic issues. He went to the U.S Census website and saw that “In 2005, the average tuition was $13,425 for room and board (for in-state students) at the nation’s four-year public colleges and universities. In 2008, that number has increased to $15,372.”
For private institutions, in 2005, tuition, room and board was $36,510. In 2008, the number increased to $41,000 a year.
D’souza was in the program on a full academic scholarship, but on February 21, 2004, he did not get to see it last. It was in the evening when he was leaving school. One of the security guards handed him a letter. Inside, it was a statement that said he was “no longer a student and had been discharged from the university.”
When he was in transition of wanting to transfer to another school, D’souza could not get a transcript or speak with any members of the administration. So he protested “outside the college and held a press conference seeking help. He also began to file complaints to the United States Department of Education and the Attorney Generals office, and the person holding the position was former governor, Eliot Spitzer. Spitzer also has a connection with the institution as well.
The young man is very driven and determined. Even his former Marymount professor Americo Casiano believes in him. Casiano currently works for the Bronx Council on the Arts, a private non-profit organization that provides “cultural services and arts programs” for community oriented organizations throughout the Bronx.
The book is almost ready to print. It has only 176 pages. And he has a website where he is trying to reach out to schools to speak about his story. He came up with the name Phantom Students because he ”wanted to bring attention to the students who weren’t graduating from college.” Pretty soon the book will be up on the website to be viewed chapter by chapter. Later this month, a book signing party will take place.
Visit the website at http://www.phantomstudentsacrossamerica.com/
Jon Stewart and Arianna Huffington had a great discussion about blogging last night on the Daily Show. I tend to agree with Stewart on most of his points, and it’s part of the reason why I have so much trouble with this blog thing. I feel like I’m posting the drecks and stale leftovers of my mind.
Arianna says to “blog your passions.” But why burden the web with random ramblings about stuff I like, even stuff I’m “passionate” about? Do you really want to hear about my obsession with overweight cats and sequins?
As Jon Stewart says, there’s a reason why he doesn’t air all his thoughts.
So what is behind the necessity to blog? Are we having a tug of war between quantity versus quality?
I found Arianna’s points to be interesting, and I think what she says has merit. Blogging is a different form of communication as it is more immediate, intimate, and informal. It’s not perfectionism. I guess it’s more akin to IM’ing or emailing a friend. I just wonder at times how journalistic it is in nature, and whether it really contributes something of value.
On election night, when I finally left the newsroom, I made my way down to a West Village bar to watch the election results with friends. The bar was packed with crowds who cheered every time a state turned a shade of blue. However, one group of men did not go along with the mass celebration. They booed the blue shades, and were the only ones to cheer when a red state popped on the map of America.
A friendly rivalry emerged between this group and the rest of the bar. However, as the night wore on, it became clear who would be victorious. At that moment, I decided to go up to the small group, and talk about why they supported McCain, and what they hoped to see during an Obama presidency.
One person from the group was willing to be interviewed. His name was Brendan, and he was an Iraq War veteran who served in the army.
Here are this thoughts:
The future of the Republican party
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Disagreeing with Obama’s withdrawal timeline for Iraq
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What steps can Obama take to improve the economy?
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Thoughts on universal healthcare
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When a close friend working in Silicon Valley as senior manager was fired last month, I asked him if he had interests to go back to China. Then we began to talk about the career opportunities and culture difference between the U.S. and China. Our conclusion was that we were always outsiders, no matter how hard we tried to fit in. But he still wanted to pursue his career dream in the high-tech center of the world.
I’ve heard from other friends in China, since the financial crisis hit the New York and Wall Street so hard that lots of senior traders, brokers, and managers were fired. Some lost their jobs only because they were Chinese. So Chinese financial institutions came to the U.S. to recruit high-level managers and talents. 
Financial Times reported:
The Shanghai Financial Service Office has told state media the city is sending a delegation to New York, Chicago and London to recruit specialists in risk management, asset management, product research and development, macroeconomics and policy analysis.
The head of human resources at the office said at least 27 financial institutions in Shanghai, China’s commercial and financial hub, had listed more than 170 vacancies for foreigners.
China Investment Corp, the country’s sovereign wealth fund has begun their global recruitment since the beginning of this year. They even published advertisements in the Wall Street Journal, but no one knows if they have recruit appropriate talents yet.
Working in China, in the booming market or the financial industry, the companies need candidates can speak and write fluent Mandarin, sophisticated social skills, know the global financial system and China’s local regulations. Some extra capabilities would be good alcoholic drinking capacity, sensitivity of political risks and issues.
My previous employers were all multinational companies, which have rare experience on dealing with officials successfully. Companies, such as Proctor & Gamble was dragged into troubles or crisis easily. So while the whole world tries to find its way out of the global financial crisis, if you decided to go back to China, my friends, you need to figure your way out of dealing with the under-the-table rules.
When I visited the 17 miles drive in Pebble beach of California, I was not only amazed by the scenery, but as a business reporter, I also remembered that was the place Zhang Enzhao, former chairman of China Construction Bank took millions of bribes. The economy engineer and top official in major Chinese banks, was caught and accused of accepting bribes in a civil law suit filed in 2004 in California, the United States .
And nowadays, another Chinese businessman Huang Guangyu is in trouble. Huang Guangyu used to be the wealthiest person in the country, according to Hurun’s Report on top 100 billionaires in China. He built up a fortune of $6.3bn (€5bn, £4.1bn) from the Gome electronics retail chain he founded.
Yet for the past week he has been missing. Gome suspended its shares on Monday as rumors of Mr Huang’s arrest swirled around the capital and company officials could not explain his whereabouts. Only late on Friday evening did the authorities give the first details about the case – a two-line statement saying Mr Huang was suspected of manipulating the share price of two small companies with links to Gome.
The mystery of his disappearance does not reflect well on the rule of law in a country that has promoted market reforms for 30 years but where political connections and personal feuds still often trump legal due process. It has also exposed the complex attitude to wealth and business in modern China where the new rich are lionised for their dynamism but are also considered suspect at a time when social inequality is widening.
The updated news is that the Chinese authorities confirmed last night Huang was suspected of manipulating the share prices of two small companies. Born in a small rice-farming village near Shantou, Huang was a typical example among the richest in China of overnight fortunes abound. However, when the economy downturn raised the social unrest and anger to billionaires in China, the Communist Party has to find out some scapegoats.
Gome’s rivals, such as Suning and Yongle electronics retail chains, would be happy to see the crisis in Gome. But some analysts believed that Gome’s executives can calmly settle down the founder’s crisis and make it stock trading back to Hongkong Stock market.
There has been a great deal of talk among Republican party leaders on how the party should move forward. On a state level the party suffered a great loss of confidence. Republicans have controlled the New York State Senate for the past 40 years. In recent years New York State has lost its republican governor, New York City’s mayor switched out of the Republican party and a Republican president has not won New York State since Reagan. (more…)
Ah, the judicial system…
Where partisan hacks are appointed for life…
Where we win the war on drugs a few million arrests at a time…
Where overworked D.A.s and more overworked P.D.s come together for a few hours of jostling over who gets the better end of the structured plea bargain…
Where the magic happens.
My colleagues in Tim Harper’s Craft class joined me in a fun-filled day watching:
a Fujianese immigrant bow before the arraignment judge, who told them to come back on a date different from what the bailiff told them, and only then (the date the judge said, not the date the bailiff said) would the People’s case against them for selling shit on the street without a permit be adjudicated;
a 19 year-old woman testify for the prosecution against the man she accused of raping her, calmly parrying the defense like so – Q: What did you have to eat when you got home? A: Chef Boyardee ravioli. Q: Meat or cheese? A: I do not recall the specific flavor of ravioli.;
a purple-haired woman yelling over the barrier separating the court from the gallery during a sentencing, only to be revealed as the defense attorney when she looks at her client, recognizes him and asks him how he got to court without her.
All of this led off by an inspiring dissertation from an ADA about how the best time to commit a crime is just before Christmas, because the prosecutors won’t be able to convene a grand jury before they have to cut you loose.
And my mother still wonders why I didn’t go to law school.
Hey, at least we don’t still execute mentally challenged sixteen year-olds, right?
Thanksgiving is the holiday for eating… and family too.
Some people train for a month inadvance to expand their stomachs for the big day.
I myself have never been a fan of turkey or stuffing and the whole L-tryptophan sleepy thing either. I was pretty sure I was the minority on that until I read an article in The New York Times.
They asked what people’s favorite Thanksgiving dish was and I was surprised to see so many cranberry sauce and green bean fans. Some people responded with “Hellllooooo the turkey!” but most favored renditions on the turkey’s accompanying dishes.
What’s your favorite Thanksgiving treat?
Taken by Henry Cool Pics on Flickr
On Tuesday’s morning edition of “The Today Show”, host Matt Lauer interviewed former Victoria Secrets model and current TV show mogul,Tyra Banks on a survey her show conducted during this summer to over 10,000 teenage girls and young women.
“Tyra Banks good morning and Wow” were the first words Lauer said. “I’m a parent of three little kids and my jaw dropped….What surprised you the most?”
Tyra explained that finding out how honest the girls were in their answers because the survey was anonymous, surprised her the most.
The survey itself was composed of questions centering on “sexuality, sexually transmitted diseases and teen pregnancy, as well as drinking, drugs and violence among females.” (excerpt taken from Today Show contributor Laura T. Coffey report on the story.)
Here are some of the statistics from the study:
- On average, girls are losing their virginity at 15 years of age.
- 14 percent of teens who are having sex say they’re doing it at school.
- 52 percent of survey respondents say they do not use protection when having sex.
- One in three says she fears having a sexually transmitted disease.
Just viewing some of the clips that was provided to Today’s viewers showed one 16-year-old girl wearing a green jacket who smirked when she told Tyra she had nine lovers since losing her virginity at age 13.
Click here to view the Today Show video in its entirety
In addition to the video, an article was accompanied to provide more description of the survey and statistics. (http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/27706917/?GT1=43001)
And an interactive map: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/27285583/
NYC STATS
“About 1 in 3 youth are currently sexually active”
Last year in August, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene issued its sixth volume of “NYC Vital Signs”, focusing on”Teen Sexual Activity and Birth Control Use in New York City”.
Statistics was provided by the New York City Youth Risk Behavior Survey.
Knowledge of emergency contraception varies by gender and borough
*Youth in Manhattan (55%) and Staten Island
(54%) are more likely to report knowledge of
EC than youth in Queens (41%) and the Bronx (43%).
*Youth in East and Central Harlem more
commonly report having heard of EC than youth
in North and Central Brooklyn (59% vs. 37%).
The show will be airing this Friday…check for local listings.