A World at War

In current world conflicts more civilians are victims. During World War I, civilians made up fewer than 5% of all casualties. Today, 75% or more of those killed or wounded in wars are non-combatants. Some end-of-year food for thought.

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Is Death a Cure?

While we are at the festive mood of the holidays, tragedy strikes in Nepal where the bridge collapsed in a remote village drowning unaccounted number of people. Ironically, such tragedy strikes usually when people set out on a pilgrimage, offering their thanks and sure enough to gather some blessings for the near and dear ones. Few years ago, if I recall correctly, similar was the case in India where hundreds of pilgrims were the victim of a stampede. Tsunami, happened during Christmas where tragedy struck in and around the coasts of Asia and Africa.

Is death a cure? Why did people have to die when they were actually offering or perhaps intended to offer their prayers to the supreme being? Is death a way of God to relieve us of our pain and sufferings? Is this his way of saying, “Come my child, come to me for it is much better here with me”?

Now as I write, I hear about the assassination of the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto. After years in exile, she returned to her country, only to accept her death bed, just like her father and her brothers. Despite the corruption charges against her, she was in the campaign for the betterment of the country and to restore democracy that made the western countries smile. Alas, but all in vain! Her message for a good cause will once again remain unheard and undelivered!

The Mind Freak Freaks me out!

I was watching Chris Angel’s Mind Freak in A&E and his tricks simply astound me. I am aware that it’s not magic but a trick that keeps you awestruck for hours, that’s only if you’re trying to decipher it. Yesterday, he chain-sawed himself into half, in front of dozens of gaping audiences standing inches away from him. Another trick that gave me goose bumps was when he had two bystanders pull apart the body of another volunteer. When they did, the torso of the women crawled away from its lower half! You have to see it to get the creeps. There was one more trick where he had a bull dozer run over him while he laid belly flat over layers of glass pieces. He walks on water; he practices levitation, puts together dollar bills that was torn into pieces and many more. His tricks just put David Blain’s into the shadows!

Movies like ‘The Prestige’ and ‘The Illusionists’ give away a few tricks that magicians and mentalists use. Here I am just wondering, how he did it. How?

Unpleasant turned Pleasant!

My previous post about an unpleasant surprise that T-Mobile had to offer did not remain unpleasant after all! After a few recommendations made by some acquaintances, I had a complaint filed with BBB (Better Business Bureau). IT WORKED!! They helped me out! Below, is the negotiated letter to BBB from T-Mobile!

On December 05, 2007, the business provided the following information:
December 5, 2007

VIA E-MAIL
info@bbb.org

Bureau Services
Better Business Bureau of
Alaska, Oregon, and Western Washington
P.O. Box 1000
DuPont, WA 98327

Your Case No. 22140232
T-Mobile Account no.34803761


To Whom It May Concern:

T-Mobile USA, Inc (''T-Mobile'') is in receipt of your email dated December 3, 2007 regarding the above referenced account.

T-Mobile records indicate that the commitment end date for mobile numbers (mom’ number) and (my number) is July 6, 2008, and the commitment end date for T-Mobile number (girl friend’s number) is July 10, 2008. As such, it is T-Mobile's position that since (girlfriend) transferred the above mentioned mobile numbers to another carrier on November 10, 2007, effectively canceling her service on her T-Mobile account, the three $200.00 early termination fees billed on her November 2007 billing statements are valid and owed.

Nevertheless, as a gesture of good faith to (girlfriend) and in an effort to amicably resolve the issue, T-Mobile has placed a one time credit on her account in the amount of $600.00 for the disputed fees. The remaining balance on (girlfriend’s) account is $99.59 and she may remit payment by calling Customer Care.

Based upon the foregoing, we respectfully request that this complaint against T-Mobile be closed.

Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at the address listed below or toll free at (T-Mobile)
Very Truly Yours,

T-MOBILE USA, INC
Executive Customer Relations

So my dear bloggers, do not hesitate to fight it you think you’re right!

An unpleasant surprise!

Just like how I got ripped off by my health club, I got ripped off by my most loved phone service providers too. In my earlier posts I mentioned me getting an iPhone for my birthday and therefore switching to ATT from T-Mobile, the service I cherished for four years.

We had taken a family plan, sharing three lines between my mom, girlfriend and self, girlfriend being the primary account holder. Last year, she was away during the summer, vacationing away in Nepal for THREE whole months (How lucky was she?)!! My mother, then, while browsing around in the mall, chatting away in her cell phone, attracted a T-Mobile agent. They lured her into getting a new phone for which she would be rebated $50 each out of the total cost of $250! Seemed like a good deal for a brand new Samsung phone! She purchased three for all of us and strode away proud of herself.

Today I got a bill from T-mobile for $600!! The cancellation charge of $200 was applied to each phone. I thought our contract was over two years ago. However, the T-Mobile customer service informed me that whenever you get a new phone and claim a rebate, your contract is automatically renewed! We were not informed about it and more over, the primary account was not even in the country! They said it did not matter! If any of the members of the account claimed for a phone, it was a binding contract resulting in the automatically renewal of the services!! A nice way to suck your consumers of their funds with an unpleasant surprise!

A Bomb Scare!

My mom called me today at work worried and startled. She got me vexed and anxious. What was the matter? Someone had come to deliver a flower bouquet along with a beautifully decorated vase! I saw no reason to worry and asked her why she was acting the way she was!

Her concern was that there was no reason for anyone to send us flowers as it was not anybody in the family’s birthday and neither was it any occasion to be celebrated. Her main concern was that as soon as the bouquet was delivered, the delivery man disappeared in a glance. He had left in haste and was one of those who seemed intellectually challenged. She thought it was a Bomb? A BOMB??

My mom travels a lot and perhaps she had taken the announcement in the airports advising passengers to avoid touching or accepting unidentified luggage too seriously. Her description of the scenario was so vivid that for an instance I began to imagine the worst. Why would anyone think about bombing us? I advised her to leave it outside the house until I got home. Needless to say, she had not even touched it and it remained where the man had left, all day, in the freezing cold.

When I got home, I slid the card off the flowers. It read, “To our wonderful brother, wishing you happiness always. Your loving cousins!” I brought in the half wilted flowers smiling to myself. It was a wonderful ‘Bomb Scare’ that kept us laughing and will do so for many more years to come!