Gini 2010 results are out. I’m a little surprised at the US’ rating; how accurate is the reporting? Shouldn’t it be higher since the crash?

When busy married couples bicker, the terrorists win.

Even a basic comparison proves they have nothing to fear. Monster.com, especially, is easily searchable with detailed filters that allow you to sort out very specific positions. The .jobs website, by comparison, is very basic and requires an enormous amount of “wading” to find something you’re interested in. Just stay competitive, Monster.

Banner ad snipped from my linked.in profile page.

I’m not quite sure what a sultry-looking Angelica Houston has to do with “hand screened $100K+ jobs.”

Oh, wait.

The Climate Change game, from today’s NYTimes.

I’m reminded of the “extinction game” that Crake and Jimmy play in “Oryx and Crake”. Looks awesome!… and depressing as hell.

I only want to suggest an alternative to medication: long-term lifestyle change.

Cut all “fast foods” from your diet.
Eat out at a nice restaurant once a week at most.
Cook almost all your meals at home.
Maximize vegatable intake.
Don’t drink sodas.
Exercise an hour a day, 4-5 times a week.

That’s basically how I went from 300lbs at age 18 to 185lbs by age 21. No drugs, no surgery, just a lot of hard work. But when I started dropping sizes, gaining muscle and seeing results, I was addicted. Self-esteem is a potent motivator.

If you respect your body, your body will respond. You’ll find you burn fat off faster. You will get sick less, if at all. Your bodyimage will improve, raising your self-esteem, which in turn encourages you to continue making these difficult changes, in an upwards spiral of success. If you’re single, attractive people begin responding to your overtures. If you’re married, your spouse will be thrilled — and responsive. Pills can’t give you all that.

As a series of articles in the NYTimes make clear, incredible changes are underway in international development. From Kiva to CharityNavigator, social media and increased global internet access have revolutionized the way the developed world redistributes wealth to developing nations. The article stresses that there are few easy fixes, and that truly sustainable development is incredibly difficult and slow.

Nevertheless, I’m more confident than the Times that entrepreneurs can play a leadership role in increasing third-world living standards… if for no other reason than profitability is the larger paradigm of the west. More people will be encouraged to engage in international development if they can make a living at it.

But isn’t there a limit?

MasterCard’s new CEO, Ajay Banga, is working hard to make MasterCard India’s new identification number administrator. India’s goal is to assign every single one of her 1.2 billion citizens a unique ID number — like a social security number — to minimize aid losses to corruption. The Indian government will be able to send aide money directly to its needy, and MasterCard wants to be the company that creates the network.

Capturing only a small fraction of those customers — with prepaid debit cards, mobile payment systems or credit cards — could exponentially expand MasterCard’s business and profits. “Whether it’s 200 million or 400 million, it’s a lot of millions,” says Mr. Banga, referring to estimates of the size of the emerging global middle class over the next five years or so.

he United States has the most developed credit system in the world; its citizens should be the most financially educated. Nevertheless, millions of Americans are overwhelmed with credit card debt.

Is allowing India’s very poorest and least financiall educated citizens access to credit cards a development opportunity or corproate exploitation? And will a company with a financial stake in indebting its customers take measures to protect the very poorest?

Our country has no fewer problems than it did in 1963. Who is our generation’s Bob Dylan, singing to get our attention?

What bothered me about his presentation was his background. This individual was privilaged and from privilage — both socially and economically. Furthermore, his career (accounting/budgeting) expects and richly rewards stark honesty. He has never actually dealt with customers. He has never been faced with losing significant business due to being honest. In short, he’s never really been challenged.

Like (I hope) everyone else, I strive to be honest in business and, as a manager, be trustworthy to my team and my customers. I know that without trust you have nothing. And I would most benefit from lectures by professionals who have been in positions like mine; who sometimes face challenges to their ethics in day-to-day business.

Candy corn to be exact. I love the stuff. Halloween is just a little over a month away and I can’t wait. We’re throwing a fete, carving a pumpkin, the whole thing. Now I’m scouring the ‘net for pumpkin carving stencils I can print and use as a guide