I've thought about this, and I don't think it would make much of a difference. Let me give an example to explain why.

Say in your first life, you decided you wanted to be an musician but your father made you study accounting. You became an accountant, but you realised you hated the profession. You also realised that you still had a beautiful voice (everyone was always complimenting you on it on the few occasions you sang), and you saw a classmate of yours who made the decision to pursue a career in music being very successful.

Naturally, in your second life, you would choose to be a musician instead of an accountant. But note that your decision to be a musician would open up a new life with a different set of choices that you would have no previous experience of. What would you do if a record company representative approached you to sign for his record label? If you made a mistake, you'd then go through life wishing that you had yet another chance at life.

Why is it ok to adopt a child to ease your pain of childlessness, but not for publicity? Aren't both purposes equally selfish? In both cases, isn't it in the interest of the parent to take the best care of the child? That's all that matters!

Not entirely true, Seun.

They are both 'selfish' (self-interested is actually my preferred word), but if you adopt a child for publicity, what happens if you begin to find it a hassle to look after the child and you realise their is a more hassle-free way of obtaining publicity?

Smartsoft,

I think that's what kazey is talking about.

I've fooled around with xampp in creating a standalone web app that can run a local website connected to a mySQL database, but it's a bit heavy (it comes with quite a few files which I'm not sure are needed). I wonder if there's a lighter deployment package that will let me do the same thing out there.

We can meet with some employers to reserve certain percentage of every offer they have to the nairaland house---

Who is the 'nairaland house'?

- Seun?

- Everyone?

- A selected committee of elders?

If I really liked the person, I'd let the person know how hard I found it to deal with their BO.

What I would do next would depend on the person's response. If their attitude was "Ehen, that's just how I am. That's your problem - deal with it", then I would break off the relationship, because it would mean that the person didn't care about how I felt and wasn't ready to compromise or work out a solution (which could be a problem in other areas).

If on the other hand, the person showed an appreciation of how I felt and was ready to work out a solution, I would stick with it.

I don't believe the problem of BO is insurmountable if the person really wants to deal with it. What I've found is that it helps to really scrub those areas of the body that have hair (armpits and groin) with a net sponge when taking a bath, because those areas trap sweat which causes BO when it breaks down.

Using a deodorant after a bath and changing your clothes regularly (especially if they are sweat soaked) helps. If you can, it helps to avoid situations where you're likely to sweat excessively (like the hot sun or important examinations )

Seun,

Interesting point.

I think this feature of Nigeria's political system is not going to go away in a hurry. Perhaps the best thing is for politicians to reward people who have put them into power with an opportunity to grow the economy and make money instead of simply doling out money.

What are you like? Do you want to make those of us who don't have forums with 30,000 registered users feel worthless and inadequate?

Talk about blowing one's entire woodwind orchestra!

Thing is, all the 'exercise' that Nigerians do (running and jumping for a Molue bus) is because they have to do it, not because they see the health benefits.

I bet you - if Nigeria was a wealthy country where everybody had a car they could drive and lots more food to eat, you'd find many more overweight people.

Supaguy,

God bless you real good for answering an inquisitive mind.

Of the verses you referred me to, here are the relevant portions:


14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

Okaaaaaaay, so death can be thrown into this fire. I'm confused o! If the verse had said 'firewood' or 'petrol' I could have understood - but a fire that burns up death? Obviously not an ordinary fire. Perhaps it's not even a literal fire - after all, the Bible is known to use figures of speech. Maybe it refers simply to destruction. God knows.

And the fire even burns Hell itself! Na wa o, so this must be some kind of super-hell! How come nobody ever told me about this? All my life I've always believed there's just heaven and hell - and now I find this out!



15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

OK, so people will also be cast into this Super-Hell. But it doesn't say what will happen to them. Will they fry immediately? Or will there be gnashing of teeth and gums, Supaguy? Let's see if the last verse says anything,



8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

OK, so basically just expatiating on what was said in verse 15. Now I know that the lake has lots of brimstone (or sulphur). I didn't know that sulphur was able to burn up death, sha. But there's no mention of gnashing of teeth here. I guess I need to search further - - -


Bingo! 'Gnashing of teeth' found in Matthew 13:

49 So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,

50 And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

But is this the same Super-Hell that we saw before? What if it's the regular hell? Or perhaps it's even another hell that we don't know about - after all, it's described here as a 'furnace of fire' which after all is very different from a 'lake of fire'. Perhaps there's more to this 'Hell' business than than people are letting on. I guess I should ask God, but I'm sure I'll be told that everything I need to know is in one Holy Scripture or another. Should I ask the Devil? After all, he's supposed to be masterminding operations in Hell. I don't know- - - it's all verrry confusing.

PS I don't know what it is about Matthew, but he seems quite big on the whole 'wailing and gnashing of teeth' thing. Is this a Jewish cultural thing? Do any of you guys know people who regularly gnash their teeth when in suffering? Me, I prefer a good long scream.

With all the confusion over the voting system to be adopted for 2007, it is understandable if people don't know what to believe anymore. Electronic voting system today, electric voting system tomorrow, steam powered voting system next week, the newspapers seem to come out with a new story every day.

Well all newspapers, except one. From the time of its inception, the Daily Amebo has remained in the vanguard of those dedicated to revealing the Truth, the Whole Truth and Nothing but the Jazzed-up, Embellished and Exaggerated Truth. So it is with these credentials that I bring you the Last Word on the voting system that will be used in 2007.

Go here:

The Daily Amebo - Voters to Vote on Voting

As promised, I am back to add some more offences to the Death Penalty List (tm).

But first, let me attend to my correspondents.



Babadee,

This is certainly not a case of killing an ant with a sledgehammer. Think of it more as killing an amoeba with an intercontinental ballistic missile.

You see, we cannot leave anything to chance. What if the ant that we think we have killed manages to get up and crawl away? No - we must aim for total, complete, comprehensive and utter obliteration if we are to root out the canker in our society. Only the Death Penalty List (tm) will do the job.



Christino,

Of course there will be spiritual punishment after the physical punishment. I am reliably informed that there is a Lake of Fire awaiting offenders (complete with teeth-gnashing). But the idea is to hasten these wicked ones towards their eternal damnation. And this is where the Death Penalty List (tm) comes in.



Beyonce,

Lapping shall most certainly be high on the Death Penalty List (tm). Such unnaturally prolonged contact with another human being can lead to the most impure thoughts, and where these can lead to I am not at liberty to say, as this is not the 'Sexuality' forum. The only way to discourage this is the application of the Death Penalty. In addition to lapping, I should include the following: Lookery, Touchery, Thinking of Lookery and Hanging Around Street Corners Doing Nothing.




IAH,

I think that breaking Nairaland Rules and Regulations should definitely be on the list. It shows a lack of discipline and a willingess to disobey constituted authority. And once we go down that road, we are only three crimes away from a total collapse of law and order. In addition, anyone insulting Seun, talking back to Seun or not praising Seun enough should also be subject to the the Death Penalty.



I think I have run out of time, but I have still succeeded in extending the Death Penalty List (tm) a bit. Perhaps I will return later to add more items.

Hmph.

Who is an 'internet user'?

Is he someone who has access to the internet from the comfort of his bedroom?

Or is he someone who has to travel five miles to his nearest cybercafe, and while there experience the joys of server downtime so that he is only able to open his mailbox before his purchased time online is used up?

I'll be keeping the bottle of celebratory kunu firmly corked, thank you.

just one single question why are foreign brands having such great success in Asia then to your mind?? I told you that Mc Do opened their 500th outlet there, Starbucks entered, KFC is there, Burger King, Pizza Hut and many other local brands are also there, all is there in Asia

Perhaps McD might have been more successful if they had come in before companies like Tantalizers, Sweet Sensation and Mr. Biggs had started up. I suspect that these companies are already so established in Nigeria that it would take a lot of marketing muscle to take away marketing share from them.

it has to be due to bureaucracy and corruption that these things close down so quickly in Naija. Is is true that Churches´s Chicken left Nigeria What a pity

Oh? So why are the existing fast food restaurants still in business?

How can it be that Nigerians are still stuck in time    We sometimes still behave like "bush people". a burger, even it is a Nigerian made one, oooo no not for me, I prefer my food next to the open smelly gutter with tons of nerve-wreaking flies around it because this was/is/will ever be Nigeria"!

What is your business with what Nigerians choose to eat? If people don't want to eat hamburgers, why should they be made to do so? And you seem to be saying that Nigerians have only two choices - the clean sanitary environment of McD's with their burgers, or the 'smelly gutter' environment of Nigerian restaurants with their local cuisine. This is patently false.

Everybody likes Western fast food, theme parks, highways and cool malls the world over. Why not Nigerians? Are we aliens

No - we're Nigerians. Deal with it.

Afeni,

Are you confusing illiteracy with education?

I agree that being illiterate restricts the extent to which you can gather information to form an opinion. However, it doesn't mean that you can't form an intelligent opinion at all.

I may not know how to read, but I can form an intelligent opinion on something I hear on the radio or being debated by other people.

Think about that.

Check this out:

http://www.snopes.com/horrors/techno/cellcharge.asp

A tip - if ever anyone sends you an email with a warning of doom and destruction if you do (or don't do) XYZ, please go to http://www.snopes.com and search for the story by typing in a few words using in the warning. Do this especially if the warning includes an instruction to forward it on to XYZ number of people. By doing this, u will spare some people the annoyance of having to delete uneccessary scare e-mails.

You have not been charged for this advice.

Ka

For those who reject Him, there is going to be eternal doom in the Lake of fire, where there's going to be gnashing of teeth!  U don't want to imagine being there.

I'm intrigued.

Tell me more about this Lake of Fire. Does it burn you up completely? If so, that means you die again, right? Then do you go to Hell - Level 2 - like you do in computer games? And if you do, is the fire there even hotter? Or does it just inflict the pain of burning without actually burning you? When you say Lake of Fire - does it mean that there is petrol in the lake that is aflame? Or is the entire lake (from top to bottom) filled with fire? If so, what burns to produce the fire?

And this gnashing of teeth. Is it compulsory? I mean, what if I'm old by then and all my teeth have fallen out - is gnashing of gums acceptable? Why the emphasis of teeth gnashing - is there some deeper symbolism at work here? Perhaps the fire isn't that hot - maybe it's a lukewarm Jacuzzi of Fire - is that why it will only produce gnashing of teeth rather than scratching out of eyes in extreme pain?

I'd appreciate an honest reply. Remember, there is the possibility that I might be convinced and scared into renouncing my sinful ways and embracing the Way of the Lord!

Seun,

Go ---> here to see why your idea is flawed.

<offtopic>
Do you have some code which turns ellipses into commas? If so, why?
</offtopic>

Seun,

The thing is, there are many other things to pay for other than food (like transport, accommodation, etc.). These other expenses are 'harder' than food expenses (i.e. it is more difficult to compromise or substitute them), so people will tend to go without a meal so they can have more money to meet these expenses.

I think your original question ('Are Nigerians Hungry') is the right one to ask. What is the point of having abundant food if you can't buy it because it's too expensive or you don't have the disposable income to buy it?

I understand. I read my bible very well. There will always be those who prefer the easy time of being slaves in Egypt to the tough times of being freemen in the wilderness.

And there are those who seem to prefer the tough times of being slaves to Mugabe in the economic wilderness that is now Zimbabwe.

Oh sorry, I forgot. They aren't actually in Zimbabwe, are they? So they have the luxury of that preference.

Bibi,

There's no uniform definition of a good wife - it depends very much on the man who is looking.

But certainly, a man has to be sure that he is happy with all the features I listed in my previous post concerning the woman.

I don't understand why you regard those as the qualities of a nice lady and not a good wife.

Seun,

I don't understand your argument that this is a joke. I think it's a very good policy that will stamp out exam malpractice.

OK, so the punishment seems to be harsh. But have you considered the knock-on effect of exam malpractice?

If I cheat in a university entrance exam, I could get into medical school unfairly.

If I continue cheating, I could end up becoming a doctor with no knowledge of medicine.

If I practice medicine without knowing how to do so, I could kill someone.

And all because I WAS NOT SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR CHEATING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



So I would suggest that the Death Penalty for Exam Malpractice is a Good Idea.

Here are some other things I would like us to introduce the death penalty for:

- Murder

- Corruption

- Embezzlement

- Coup Plotting

- Election Rigging

- Arson

- Slander

- Libel

- Homosexuality

- Fornication

- Adultery

- Wearing Indecent Clothes

- Gluttony

- Drinking

- Smoking

- Being Disrespectful To Your Elders

- Dancing To Disco Music

- Not Doing Your Homework On Time

- Chewing Gum

- Riding A Bus Without Paying Your Fare

- Being The Relative Of Someone Who Rides A Bus Without Paying Their Fare

- Breaking Wind In An Enclosed Space

- Not Being In Bed Before 10 pm

- Not Going To Church On Sunday (Or Mosque On Friday, Or Synagogue On Saturday)



I  will surely be back to add more to this list. It is only by the Death Penalty that our nation can be purged of the wickedness that is abroad the land!

I'm surprised that there's any dispute about this.

A good job only requires that you are happy about a few things - pay, work environment.

A good wife requires that you are happy about many things - her personality, religion, physical features, sexual compatibility, social background, attitudes to money, attitude to children, attitude to housework, etc.

So how it can be easier to find a good job than a good wife?

It is painful now but in the long run it will work out.

Mugabe, is the only leader with balls as far as I can see. Here is hoping that he lives a good long time and rules forever.

Spoken as only someone can speak when they are cocooned in their ideological bubble, ignorant about how terrible life is for those on who they wish Mugabe's rule to be inflicted on 'forever'.

What's the point of taking your kid to amusement places that are very much like what he can see abroad where he's based?

Abeg, take him on a never-to-be-forgotten trip on a molue bus! Let him experience the authentic sights and sounds of parts of Lagos like Musin, Agege and Abule-Egba. If he's lucky, he might even be treated to a sermon by a roving in-transport preacher or an exposition on the efficacy of various drugs by an itinerant medical expert!

Yeah, I liked V for Vendetta. It didn't get very good reviews in the UK, though - perhaps those who reviewed it were fans of the graphic novel it was based on.

And i'm going to try to watch Closer soon. Why? natalie Portman, of course!

Seun, I didn't know that you watched movies based on the actors/actresses starring in the movie instead of the plot or cinematography. I'll tell you straight up - Closer is a very different movie from V4V (but you probably knew that anyway). I didn't enjoy it quite so much - it promised much but delivered little IMO.

What did Sankara actually do for his country?

Charisma is all well and good, but charisma does not give people the tools to farm or educate children.

I think Sankara was more about image than substance.

I used to use ZA before, but it takes damn too long to start up! Plus the later versions don't work so well with peer-to-peer software - they end up consuming all your computer's memory.

These days, I use Kerio Personal Firewall - also free.

There are no examples of a completely free market without government intervention, so in each and every case, the government will be involved, if only by enforcing the law. Could you tell me what in a completely free market prohibits the formation of coercive monopolies or oligopolies? Do I have to accept that on faith alone, maybe?

Nferyn, I'm following your debate with interest - but could you explain what a 'coercive monopoly or oligopoly is, just so that I'm clear?

It seems that you assume that because Jerry Rawlings killed eight senior military personnel and committed many human rights violations that Ghanaians must have thought that it wasn't safe to be corrupt because they might be killed.

Do you know for sure that Rawlings was targetting only corrupt people? Do you think that because of Rawlings' actions that there is no corruption in Ghana? Do you think that if all corrupt people were killed it would lead to a growth in the economy? Do you think the primary way of stopping corruption is to kill people who you believe to be corrupt?

As you can see, there is a time when a system is just too corrupt. At which point, a purge must take place.

That's all well and good, but there are numerous examples in history where one set of corrupt leaders was purged to make way for another set. Or even worse, the situation degenerates into anarchy because several people make a grab for power at once.

If you don't kill of the past and present corrupt politicians/military, that would only be additional incentives for others to be corrupt. After all, if the past politicians/military men stole and got away with it, why can't they? This is similar to the type of madness that leads to mob mentality. All it takes is for one person to cross the line and get away with it, and scores of others would follow.

OK, so you feel that the only incentive for people to change their behaviour is by force. Can you please tell me which revolution involving the spilling of blood led to development in the Western world? Please don't tell me they weren't as corrupt as African nations at one time and never needed change.

Had the initial hoodlums that started the first killings in the Sharia riot been killed, the lives of thousand would have been saved. What Nigeria needs is extreme measures that puts an end to corruption. If that means execution of corrupt officials, so be it. If you really think about it, how many Nigerians have died due to malnutrition, preventable and curable disease that would not have occurred if the Government was serving the people as they are supposed to? I would estimate that the number would be in the millions. So, it is only reasonable to advocate the trial and subsequent execution of corrupt politicians/military men in order to save the lives of millions of people. No free ride for corrupt degenerates. Hopefully the next President understands that. And hopefully he is willing to put IBB trial and later execute the degenerate by firing squad.

Of course we need strong action to be taken against corruption in Nigeria because it distorts economic growth by redirecting resources to unproductive ventures. Of course such action will serve as a deterrent to some people.

However, you adopt a very narrow and simplistic approach (of using force) to solving a very complex problem. I mean, how will you determine who a corrupt official is? Will you go by hearsay? Will you appoint officials to do this? What if they themselves are corrupt (since they now have power)? I mean, look at what you say about putting IBB on trial and then executing him - it's like the trial is a formality, since you have already decided that you will execute him after the trial, anyway! There's no mention of trying to prevent situations that give rise to corruption in the first place - it's like saying that you will solve the problem of an empty bucket by filling it with water instead of plugging the hole in the bottom of the bucket.

Moukee,

You're not serious. People in other countries are calling their revolutions 'correct' names like Orange Revolution, Tulip Revolution and Velvet Revolution, and instead you want to disgrace Nigeria by giving our revolution a low rent name like Kpangolo Revolution! Abeg, comot for space and don't come back until you have thought of a better name!

Kpangolo revolution my @*#~!!!

[Jerry Rawlings'] , nonchalant attitude to the spilling of blood led to the economic miracle in Ghana.

This is one of the most preposterous allegations I've heard in a long time!