Ben Zander: The Art of Possibilty

Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend a magistral speech by Ben Zander. He is the conduconductor of the Boston Philarmonic Orchestra since its formation. He is a very enthusiastic person.

He gave a great speech about how everyone's life can change just by changing our attitude towards life. (Someone very special to me, told me this many, many times). Actually, the speech was about leadership, possibility, new ways of living.

Some of the "rules" he believes in are...

1.- Give the other person an A
2.- Rule number 7
3.- Enthusiastic passion for life (never take a down spiral)

I would recommend everyone to read his book "The Art of Possibility", although I haven't done it yet, because it talks about this wonderful philosphy of life.

How many more 11s will we suffer?

It seems that we all have to be alert the 11th of each month. This specific date is going to be remembered as the day when terrorist attacks to civilians are more likely to happen.

September 11, 2001: New York

March 11, 2004: Madrid

July 11, 2006: Bombay

Near the 11th, July 7, 2005: London.

This kind of terrorism has the objective to kill or damage civilians. Any of us could be target, they just attack normal civilians. The 11s attacks killed thousands of people.

But there are more common aspects among these attacks:
- Incredibly powerful home-made Bombs
- Usage of common transport vehicles: planes, trains, subway, buses
- Brutal number of death men, women and children ( 2,986 in NYC 9/11; 192 in M 3/11; 52 in L 7/7; 200* in B 7/11)
- Huge number of injured people
- Carried out by irrational, un-hearted, raving, furious, mislead... terrorists' puppets.

I wonder if we will ever be able to stop these kind of tragedies from happening. Will we always have to live thinking that this can happen again?

I think that life is something precious and valuable. In moments like these, I keep asking myself what would I do if I had the power to do something and I do not really get to find a solution. What are they looking for? I think that terrorists' motive is "odium, enmity", their objective is wheter:
- Convert all of us into one of them, or...
- Eliminate us, so nobody will question their ideas.

Under these circumstances, our options are kind of reduced here. We can:
- Surrender and do everything they want us to do. Recognize that whatever it is that they want us to believe, is true. Or...
- Just die!

Neither of these alternatives fits my own personal goals. I am not looking forward to die, any day soon, and I am not willing to let myself be manipulated, be obliged to do things I do not want to do, be ordered to believe in something that I don't...

So, what can we do? Nothing? Well, we can do something. We can continue living our lives as we always did. By doing so, maybe, they will understand that we are not going to accept that no matter how many of us they kill, no matter how much they try to threaten us, no matter how much pressure they put on us... we will never surrender!

In my wildest dreams I really see an ending to this. I dream about a LEADER that, keeping the main ideals of these extremist terrorists, would be able to convey them to live in peace, to abandon the fight, and just be happy, live their lives... a leader that would be able to make them realize that the world is big enough for all of us to live in peace... a leader that would be able to make them understand that killing is not an option, that everybody's life has the same value...

That is what I hope for every terrorist group, Al-Qaida, Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA), Al-Jihad, Hamas, Hizballah, Ansar Al-Islam (Kurdish Taliban), IRA, Janjaweed...

Kind of unlikely, isn't it? Maybe if all of us, keep dreaming about it, someday it'll be real.

* Not definitive number

Wimbledon 2006

With all the excitement about the beginning of my MBA, I forgot talking about the great Wimbledon Final. I think the match was incredible! Federed won his fourth Wimbledon in a row and reafirmed his place as number 1 tennis player in the world.

However, against all odds, Federer suffered considerably in his prefered surface. Nadal played wonderfully and fiercefully, and at some point, he made us think that it was possible for him to win (at least, after he won the third set, I was sure he was going to turn around the match and win the final).



The result 6-0, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (2), 6-3, demonstrates several things (in my modest opinion):

• Nadal learns very quickly, the improvement in his play in a quick surface has been astonishing.
• Nadal has a remarkable mental strenght, he doesn't give up.
• Next year Rafa Nadal will be prepared to win both in clay and in grass.
• Federer is, so far, the best tennis player, ever.

I am looking forward for next year Open. For now, Congratulations to both, for being Great Tennis Players!

1st Day of my MBA!!!

Yesterday, July 10, 2006, was the first day of my MBA in NYU Stern. I must recognize that I was pretty nervous, I arrived like one hour before I should have to (which, as all you know me know, it is not very usual in me).

We are 67 students for the summer start, which is a the size of a regular "Block" (Class) in NYU Stern. We are almost 2 women per 3-4 men, which was really surprising to me, as usually the numbers are lower than this in the Top Business Schools.

The day went smoothly. We had a reception, we were introduced to our summer study groups (I like mine very much, we are two Neww Yorkers, one from San Francisco, one from Colombia, one from New Haven and me (Spain). e had the chance to get to know the university and surroundings through a funny game. We met some of our professors, solve some administrative issues and we attended to a leadership conference.

The speaker of the conference was Chris Lowney, a great guy with one of the most rare backgrounds I have never hear of. He is a former Jesuit, who leaved his 7 years in the seminary and enrolled J.P. Morgan. He worked there for seventeen years, serving as Managing Director in New York, Tokyo, Singapore and London. Now he is a consultant for the Catholic Medical Mission Board.

The conference was really different from any other I had attended about leadership, and it was not this awkard evangelization speech that I was waiting for, when he said he had been a Jesuit. Mr. Lowney gave one of us a copy of his book "Heroic Leadership", which I am willing to read and let you know how it is (in my opinion).

Today, we had our first class. It was "Collaboration, Conflict and Negotiation". We had to read before the class the book "Bargaining for Advantage" by G. Richard Shell, which I totally recomend. My professor for this class is going to be Kim Corfman, who is the Vice-Dean of the MBA program in NYU Stern.

The class was great, very dinamic. We started with our own process of self-awareness which is essencial to become an effective negotiator, we made some play roles with our classmates, we analyze some cases... and the 8 hours just went by very quickly.



So, so far, I am really happy with the program. I think that pursuing this MBA is one of the best decisions I have made in my life.

I will let you know, how everything evolves. Actually, tomorrow I will have my first "Statistics and Data Analysis" class, the one that intimidates me the most!


All the pictures where taken from the website of NYU Stern School of Business

Rest in Peace, Mr. Lay

Kenneth Lay, former chairman and CEO of Enron, who was convicted of fraud and conspiracy, died today at his home in Aspen, before sentencing, due to a heart dicease. He was 64 years old. Mr. Lay was facing decades in prison.

I was sure that Mr. Lay, as well as Mr. Skilling, was guilty of fraud and conspiracy. However this does not change the fact that I feel sorry for his death.

Ken Lay (know as Kenny Boy by his closest friends) managed to find his way out from a very poor environment (he was the son of a very poor baptist priest) and found one of the most powerful energetic companies in the world. He was father of five and grandfather of 12.

I hope he rests in peace.

Jayaram

This little angel, Jayaram, is my Indian God-child. He was 1 year old when our lives crossed for the first time and I became his God mother and Sponsor. Now, he is 6 years old. The following are the two pictures I have of him



I wish someday I can go to Anantapur, India, to met him and Ramyasree in person.

I would like to thank publicly Fundacion Vicente Ferrer for their wonderful work in one of the poorest regions in India, and for taking care of these little angels.

Darfur, the genocide is still going on

Not since Rwanda genocide of 1994, has the world seen such a calculated campaing of slaughter, rape, starvation and displacement.

2003

• Open warfare erupted in Darfur when two allied rebel groups (Sudan Liberation Movement/Army SLA, Justice and Equality Movement JEM) attacked military installations (Sudanese Goverment Military Force). The main motive was the inequalities between Sudan's Center and its periphery.
• US tries unsuccessfully to intervene and bring peace after 20 years of civil war in the South of Sudan.
• Rebels took fight to protect their communities against Janjaweed Militias: Goverment-Backed militians, recruited among Arab extensions in Darfur and Chad. Janjaweed receive government support to clear civilians from areas considered disloyal to the Sudanese Goverment. Janjaweed attacks, that infringed 1949 Geneva Convention Agreement, that prohibits attacks to civilians; provoked:

a) Massive Displacement

b) Indiscriminate killings of civilians

c) Looting

d) Mass rape: hallmark of the crimes against hummanity in Darfur.

e) Hunger

f) Genocide: Arabs exterminating original Black African citizens

g) Torture

• There are two main conflicts open in Sudan:

1) Revels (different groups) vs. Government-Alined Forces (North-South Conflict)

2) Goverment-Sponsor Janjaweed vs. Civilians

2004

• June:
• African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) inception as a cease-fire monitoring body. Its main mission is to be witness of what is happening and testify if there are attacks agains civils.

• October:
• AMIS increases its personnel
• Change of mission: from a contigent of primarily unarmed military observers to a major operation that included: armed force protectors, unarmed civilian police, and support teams.
• AMIS mission:

a) To monitor and observe compliance with the cease fire agreement

b) To assist in confidence

c) To contribute to a secure environment by facilitating humanitarian assistance and returns of internally displaced persons

d) To contribute to overall security

• AMIS personnel lack training, operational capacity and political iniciative

2005

• June:
• Peace Deal signed to end the long war between Goverment and Sudan's People Liberation /Army (SPLM) => North South Conflict. This agreement does not address the issues in Darfur where Genocide continues.

• March:
• African Union decides to accept military planners and budgetary and logistical experts from outside the continent to provide training and improve oprations, and to provide military equipment.
• American Union led a March assesment mission with the participation of: United Nations Department of PeaceKeeping Operations (DPKO), European Union, United States, Canada and other international partners.

• End 2005:
• Situation in Darfur continues to deteriorate
• AMIS need to be able to provide a more aggresive response to the persistent violence against civilians in Darfur and must be equipped and supported to do so.

2006

• First Quarter:
• Sudanes Goverment obstacles AMIS mission
• Western Sudanese region of Darfur: acknowledged to be a humanitarian and human rights tragedy of first order.

a) 3.5 Million People in hunger

b) 2.5 Million People displaced due to violence

c) Nearly 400,000 died so far. As many as 5,000 civilians die every month.

• International Community is failing to protect civilians or to influence Sudanese government to do so.
• Sudanese Goverment continues to flout international laws with impunity.
• Janjaweed attacks to villages continue and difficult international aid.
• Even though they have been moved to refugee camps, Darfunians have to continue to collect wood and working the fields. These activities are done outside the camps (whose location is perfectly known by Janjaweed). So, daily, women and children have to put themselves at risk of rape, beatiness or death as soon as they are outside the camps, towns and villages.
• A campaing of what United Nations describes as Ethnic Cleansing by Arab militias against Non-Arabs villagers is still creating a climate of terror in Darfur. It threatens to become consolidated, as civilians remain confined in camps exposed to violence and human rights abuse that prevent them from returning their homes and claiming back their land.

• May:
• Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) signed by: Sudanese Government and Insurgents SLA led by Minni Arkou Minawi (SLA/MM).
• Two of the three revel delegations (SLA/AW (led by Abdel Wahid), and JEM) do not accept it and refuse to sign. Their arguments are:

a) They want more SLA participation in the implementation of the security arrangements

b) They are dissatisfied with provisions for political representations

c) They are dissatisfied with victim's compensation

d) DPA does not solve the conflicts root causes: the structural inequities between Sudan's center and its periphery that led to revelion in 2003.

• June:
• President Bush acknowledged that genocide is occurring in Sudan and must be stopped. The bipartisan Darfur Accountability Act, which would impose sanctions against perpetrators of genocide in Darfur, has passed the Senate and now waits for House approval. US citizens who want to help should write letters to their representatives in Congress, and urge passage of this bill.
• UN’s failure to take meaningful action to end genocide in Darfur. Following the Sudanese government’s outright rejection of an international force in Darfur, the UN continues to compromise the lives of civilians by allowing Khartoum to stall indefinitely on the question of peacekeeping.

• July:
• Problems persist in Sudan’s West Darfur where the security and basic needs of children continues to be threatened by the conflict.

I ask you to....

Open your Eyes and Make a Difference

Act now, because tomorrow it will be too late

We have different ways to help Darfur people:

• Write our governments to put this issue into their priority agendas
• Write a letter to your local newspaper editor
• Write an article about Darfur in your blog
• Raise funds and contribute with the humanitarian organizations working in Darfur
• Raise awareness

Interesting Links:
www.savedarfur.org
http://www.millionvoicesfordarfur.org/
http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=4027&l=1
http://www.darfurgenocide.org/
http://www.genocideintervention.net/index.php
http://www.unicef.org/spanish/infobycountry/sudan_darfuroverview.html
http://www.changemakers.net/journal/300506/framework.cfm

Zapatero announces the dialogue with ETA

Unfortunately, against all my wishes, against terrorism's victims will, last Thursday, 29th June 2006, Mr. Rodriguez Zapatero has formally announced that his government is going to dialogue with ETA.


I will publish his is his speech, the speech that let me speechless, as soon as I can.

I am so sad, discouraged, depressed, hopeless about this, that I don't even find the words to express how I feel about this.

Lets hope for the best, and see what happens.

Go Nadal!

I have been wanting to talk about Rafa Nadal for a long time. Now, that he has won Agassi in Wimbledon, I cannot let it go.

I've played tennis since I was 4 until I was 19, when I was diagnosed with a discal hernia and recommended to give up tennis competition. Since then, I did not follow tennis enough. However, last year when this young man won Roland Garros, I remembered why I liked tennis so much.

This year, he did it again. He won Roland Garros, beating number one Roger Federer:

Nadal has won a record 60 consecutive matches on clay. Nadal's mental toughness, drive to improve, calm and constancy are amazing. Rafa Nadal is not only a great tennis player, perfectly aware of his strenghts and weaknesses, but also a very mature 20-year old boy. Besides, he looks like my small brother. They seem to be brothers! Same face, same gestures.

The important issue now is that he just beated the great Andre Agassi on grass. Rafael Nadal talks a lot about how he hopes to contend for a Wimbledon title in three or four years, once he gets used to the odd bounces and tricky footing that come with playing on grass.

Could it happen much faster than he -- or anyone else -- thought?
I hope so!

The only two Spanish tennis players who were able to win Wimbledon were Manuel Santana, 40 years ago, and Conchita Martinez in 1994. Rafael Nadal will be the next one.

Go Rafa, Go!

Care Foundation

CARE is a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. Care places special focus on working alongside poor women because, equipped with the proper resources, women have the power to help whole families and entire communities escape poverty. Women are at the heart of CARE's community-based efforts to improve basic education, prevent the spread of HIV, increase access to clean water and sanitation, expand economic opportunity and protect natural resources. CARE also delivers emergency aid to survivors of war and natural disasters, and helps people rebuild their lives.

Watch their video (click on the following picture)

Care's Mission is to serve individuals and families in the poorest communities in the world. Drawing strength from our global diversity, resources and experience, Care promotes innovative solutions and is an advocate for global responsibility. Care facilitates lasting change by:

• Strengthening capacity for self-help
• Providing economic opportunity
• Delivering relief in emergencies
• Influencing policy decisions at all levels
• Addressing discrimination in all its forms

Guided by the aspirations of local communities, Care pursues its mission with both excellence and compassion because the people whom it serves deserve nothing less.

Let's join them in their effort of making the world a better place!

The happiest day of my life...

... so far

I don't know why today I woke up really nostalgic, romantic, sensitive... maybe it has something to do with my hormones. Who knows! The thing is that I kept remember my wedding day, over and over again.


I am picturing me getting looking at him waiting for me in the altar, I feeling the rain of rose petals over us, I remembering us having a walk in the Parador de Baiona while we were being fotographed, I am feeling the high emotion I felt when we got in the restaurant and I heard our song playing (Wonderful tonight, Eric Clapton), I remember feeling the happiness of our friends and family ... I feel his hand holding mine, his smile, his love... Everything!

Remembering my wedding day, I realize how fortunate I am. I found love and love found me! How great is that? I have a loving partner to live my life with, who makes me feel special, unique, who makes me feel I can do anything and who is going to be with me every step of the way.

Te quiero todo!

שלום سلام Peace

The following is a transcript of an article written by Free Cedar (http://cedarfree.blogspot.com/) that I found so interesting that couldn't avoid to share it.

שלום سلام

Salaam (سلام) and shalom (שלום) two different languages, two words for peace.I've always had a hard time understanding why people who use the word 'peace' on a daily basis to greet each other, spend their time fighting. Two people that are so much alike, just never seem to use the points they have in common, to settle their differences. Because it is true, at the end of the day, Arabs and Israelis have more in common than Arabs and Europeans or Israelis and Americans.Obviously, I am not candid and the problem is not that simple.

However, here I am asking myself: is peace in the Middle East an illusion? Is the end of the Arab-Israeli conflict a dream? Am I just being delusional in thinking that peace is achievable?Well sometimes I think I am. I find myself being cynical and get to the conclusion that peace in that part of the world is simply hopeless. George Bernard Shaw wrote that "The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it."

Could it be true? In the end, is the doubt, I find myself into from time to time, nothing more than a mere and accurate observation of the situation?It does seem so when considering what's going on. The election of Hamas and the representation of Israel by Olmert don't give much space for hope. Not only do you have, on the one hand, a group refusing to recognize Israel and, on the other, a government insisting on pursuing a unilateral delineation of the land (eating up some land on the way); but they also refuse to discuss.Moshe Dayan (not much of a peace person) was very wise when he stated that: "If you want to make peace, you don't talk to your friends. You talk to your enemies."

Maybe it is time for both parties to consider talking to each other. To realize that it won't go anywhere by taking unilateral actions or pursuing terrorist attacks. Maybe it is time for both parties to realize that huge concessions are to be made; because, meanwhile, it is the general population that is suffering.

Maybe it is time for peace indeed, but, then, a question arises: is it in anyone's interest? By analyzing the situation one could conclude that peace is, actually, not in anyone's interest:- Arab countries prefer to keep the status quo so that its population focuses more on hating and criticizing the Zionist enemy rather than realize the poor state of their internal affairs.- Israel prefers to keep the status quo so that they can keep as much territory as possible and a dream of Eretz-Israel can, somehow, remain.- The West in general, and the US in particular, prefer to keep the status quo, since keeping the Arabs' attention on the Israeli-Arab conflict, allows the preservation of despotic governments that will assure their vital need in oil.

Nevertheless, I don't want to lose hope. Grass-root initiatives are carried out (such as Seeds of Peace or OneVoice) and the majority of Palestinians and Israelis are longing for a permanent peace. There's place for hope.

What the region needs are visionary and open minded leaders. Leaders to carry on people's hope. Hence, today I want to be optimist; today I want to believe that the Middle East can be an island of peaceful cohabitation; I want to believe that Palestinian terrorist groups will stop killing hundreds of innocent people; I want to believe that the Israeli army will stop attacking their neighbors killing innocent children, women and men along the way; I want to believe that some Israelis will stop acting as Yishuv and just live within their internationally recognized borders; I want to believe that Arabs will stop using unnecessary rhetoric resulting in tensed situation; I want to believe that a two state solution where Palestinians and Israelis can live in peace and security is possible.

So to you my friends I would like to say....

Salaam, Shalom, Okikiamgenoka, Nagaa, Vrede, Asomdwoe, Pake, Selam, Khaghaghutyun, Mir, Pau, Dohiyi, He Ping, Ashtee, Rauha, Paix, Frieden, Irene, Lumana, Bekè, Pace, Phyongh’wa, Pax, Nirudho, Sula, Katahimikan, Pokoj, Paz, Su Thai Binh, Sholem, Layeni, Heiwa ... PEACE.

Don Julio Fernández Gayoso

I have always believe in the proverb "De bien nacido es ser agradecido" (Meaning: we should always be thankful).

That's why I wanted to say thanks again to D. Julio Fernández Gayoso, for the kind hand he has always held to my family, and specially, to me. I would like to wish him the best in his new position as Executive President in Caixanova.

During his more than 25 years as CEO of Caixanova, he has done a great job, promoting Galician economy. He was awarded the individual medal for the 'saving merit' by the Exchequer in 1970, the gold badge of Santiago University in 1982, commander of the Order to the Civil Merit in 1983, gold medal of Vigo in 1997, medal to the 'saving merit', awarded by the Spanish Confederation of Savings Banks in 1998, gold medal of the Chamber of Commerce (Vigo, 1999). In 1999, he got the distinction 'best financial executive in Galicia' according to the readers of the famous magazine 'Actualidad Económica'.

D. Julio started his professional activity in the bank firm 'Caixavigo' in 1948 and was elected CEO (Director General) in 1965 when he was 33. During his leadership, Caixanova growth from a small local entity with a total balance of 15,6 million euros and 44 locations, to become one of the main financial institutions in Spain, managing over 30.734,5 million euros with 1.652,9 million euros in equity, at the end of 2005.

He is on the board of directors of several firms and institutions representing the bank firm (the Spanish Confederation of Savings Banks, 'Caser', 'Lico-Leasing', 'Lico-Corporación', 'Ahorro Corporación Financiera', 'Grupo Cable' and 'Inversiones Estratégica de Galicia'). He is the vice-president of 'Banco Gallego', ('Caixavigo' got 50% of its capital in 1998). He is also a foundation member of the Foundation 'Empresa Universidad Gallega', 'FIES' Foundation (Fund for the Economical and Social Investigation), 'Pro-Vigo' Foundation and member of several societies such as the Galician Centre of Contemporary Art, 'Laxeiro' Foundation and 'Camilo José Cela' Foundation, among others.

Last Thursday, June 22, 2006, he retired as CEO to assume the Executive Presidency. The new Caixanova CEO is one of his loyal dolphins, D. José Luis Pego.

Not only, D. Julio is worth mentioned by his accomplished professional career, but also, his human aspect is worth mentioning. He is a noble, loyal, social aware business man, and that is even more important than his amazing business skills. He is a great person.

With this article I just wanted to pay tribute to a great man that has always been there for us, and has been a key player in my home city (Vigo) development.

So, I just wanted to say thanks to D. Julio, and wish him all the best in his future!

The Great Warren Buffet

This is my third "The Great X", and hopefully, not the last one.

Today, we awoke with an exciting new: "Buffett to Give Bulk of His Fortune to Charities". Mr. Buffet, the second richest man in the world has taken the decision to give away 85% of his fortune (about $37.4 billion).

Warren Buffett came from a small town and made it big without losing sight of his roots in the process. Even though he is a billionaire many times over, he still lives in the same house he bought before he was rich and is considered an all-around good guy.
He turned his company, Berkshire Hathaway, almost single-handedly over the last 30 years, into a Fortune 500 powerhouse. He has amassed a personal fortune of $36 billion dollars and is considered the most successful investor of all-time.

Buffett, 75, has for decades said his wealth would go to philanthropy but has just as steadily indicated the handoff would be made at his death. Now he was revising the timetable.

Here are the recipients of this extraordinaire philanthropist donation of shares:

• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: Ten million shares (aprox. $30b)

This foundation, the largest in the world, has around $30 billion of assets right now and has given away $8 billion in its 12 years of existence. Most of its money (typically funneled through partners) has gone to world health programs and to U.S. education. Buffett's gifts to this foundation will continue only as long as either Bill or Melinda Gates is alive and active in its work.

Combining the two fortunes will create a $60 billion philanthropic vehicle that will dwarf the $11 billion Ford Foundation, the $8.3 billion Lilly Endowment and the $5.5 billion Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. By comparison, the United Nations and its agencies spend about $12 billion per year. The gift, valued today at more than $30 billion, will create a philanthropic organization with potential to significantly shape social issues including child mortality, disease control and education.

"Rather than competing, they are going to pool their resources for common causes. They are going to affect millions of lives" says Daniel Borochoff, president of the American Institute of Philanthropy.

• Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation: One million shares

Once called simply the Buffett Foundation and renamed in 2004 for Buffett's wife, who died that year, this foundation has $270 million in assets. Most of its funds came from the estate of Susan T. Buffett, and $2.1 billion more is expected from that source. This foundation has focused on reproductive health, family planning, and pro-choice causes, and on preventing the spread of nuclear weapons.

• Susan A. Buffett Foundation: 350,000 shares

This philanthropy is named for and chaired by Buffett's daughter, 52, who lives in Omaha (and who has also chaired the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation since her mother's death). The daughter's foundation, which today has $118 million in assets, has funded early education for children of low-income families. With her father's new gifts, Susan Buffett expects to continue that work and expand into public-education and foster-care grants.

• Howard G. Buffett Foundation: 350,000 shares

Now holding $129 million in assets, this foundation was set up by Buffett's older son, 51, who farms 840 acres outside Decatur, Ill., and is on several corporate boards, including Berkshire's. (His middle name, by the way, is Graham - for famed investor Ben Graham.)

This foundation's giving has been very international, taking in 42 countries and often aimed at conservation goals such as the protection of African wildlife habitats. But with its new money, the foundation plans to move much more heavily into clean-water projects, food relief, the plight of children entangled in illegal immigration, and other humanitarian areas.

• NoVo Foundation: 350,000 shares

Named for the Latin word novo (meaning "I alter"), this foundation is run by Peter Buffett, 48, a musician and composer, and his wife, Jennifer, who live in New York City. Currently holding $120 million in assets, it has focused on funding individuals and organizations working to open up education opportunities, reverse environmental degradation, uphold human rights, and improve understanding and respect among various cultures and ethnicities.

So, again, I've found another role model to follow. It's very inspirational to find people in the world with the ideas so clear, with a so wide heart, with such a tremendous generosity. I wasn't wrong when I called him The Great, he is one of my Greats.

Lets all (at our possible level) follow their steps!

Sources: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/26/business/26buffett.html?hp&ex=1151380800&en=db528d55ed9f06b1&ei=5094&partner=homepage
http://money.cnn.com/2006/06/25/magazines/fortune/charity3.fortune/index.htm

The Great Bill Gates

Microsoft chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates announced in a press conference June 15 afternoon that he would be shifting priorities, leaving his full-time position at Microsoft in two years to focus his efforts on the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Gates reitered that he is not retiring from the software business, calling the change a re-ordering of priorities. He states:

"With great wealth comes great responsibility,"

(...) "A responsibility to give back to society."

Gates will retain his position as company chairman, and plans to spend some of his time at Microsoft. Microsoft CTO Ray Ozzie will take over Gates' role as Chief Software Architect starting immediately.

By Nate Mook, BetaNews June 15, 2006, 4:49 PM

Bill Gates is another role model to me, not only because he is the most successful entrepreneur in the world, but also for his philanthropist spirit.

There are many people with tons of money, but not all of them are willing to share it, and to invest it in order to improve the world we live in. That's why I find him a reference to follow. He is absolutely compromised with the underprivileged. In fact, he is one of the world's biggest (if not the biggest) donor.

These are some wonderful things his done (appart from partially leaving Microsoft):

• The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation said Sunday that it would sharply increase its investment in malaria research, awarding $258.3 million in grants to hasten ways of preventing and treating the disease. Counting the new money, the Gates Foundation will soon be providing more than a third of the world's annual research budget for malaria, eclipsing the U.S. government as the leading funder of such work. Malaria kills an estimated 1.2 million people a year, the large majority of them African children who have yet to reach their sixth birthday, and the toll has risen sharply over the past two decades.
• Bill Gates has pledged $57m over five years to help protect young people in Africa against the threat of HIV and Aids. The donation from the Bill and Melissa Gates Foundation is the biggest by a private foundation to support Aids prevention among young people.
• Bill Gates and wife Melinda have given $5billion to their private Foundation, in order the money to be spent on those who most need it.
• Bill Gates foundation is donating $750m over the next five years to get life-saving vaccines to children in developing countries, for the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (Gavi).
• Bill Gates donated $550 000 worth of software, cash and consulting to Peru.
• Bill Gates donated $22.6m to UNC to fund a drug trial aimed at curing African sleeping sickness. More than 300,000 people in Africa are infected with the life-threatening parasite, and an estimated 60 million are at risk.
• Bill Gates has given $50 million to be used for screening and treating cervical cancer in developing countries, where access to testing is not always available. More than 370,000 women worldwide develop cervical cancer each year.
• Bill Gates is donating $15 million to the Computer History Museum, the biggest gift in the history of the Silicon Valley institution, which maintains the world's largest collection of computing artifacts.
• Bill Gates creates the NewSchools Venture Fund $29,640,000.00 over 41 months to support work with charter management organizations, and extend the model of scalable high quality schools through the development of hybrid organizations.
• ....

I dream of becoming a great entrepreneur someday. But my biggest dream is to use the power, influence and wealth, my venture would give me, to help others; especially children all over the world.

I think that we all have the power to change the world, and I am going to do my best trying to do it!

Thanks Bill Gates for the wonderful example you are as a businessman and as a person!

Miguel Angel Blanco's Assassins' Trial

The trial for Miguel Angel Blanco's murder, town councillor shot death by ETA in 1997 after a 48-hour kidnap followed by our whole country; is finally taking place.

Please, let us have some JUSTICE here!

For Miguel Angel, and for all of us. The terrorists (Txapote and Amaia) were laughting and cheating during the whole trial. Miguel Angel's parents and family were there and the assassins laughted at them!

Who is willing to negociate with these people?

Zapatero: Do you really think that the ones sharing table with you in a couple of days are any different from these two animals. If you thinks so, you're kidding yourself. They are not! All of them are beasts, animals, killers. What do you want to negociate with them? Why do you want to negociate with them?

Justice!

Negociation no! Not in my name!

Notes about Relationships

Some notes to think about...

1. There is nothing as a perfect marriage - Two people are bound to have differences. These differences do not indicate an underlying problem between the couple. How the couple resolves the issues is what determines the outcome of relationship, and the strength of it.

2. Marriages stay perfect for a very short while - And then issues emerge because people are constantly changing or the dynamics of the relationship is changing contsantly. So a perfect marriage will be perfect for a few months, and then some issues will come up. If the couple can resolve the issue, the marriage again becomes good, but only until the next issue comes along.

3. Singular instances of differences do not matter - But a pattern does. If I am mad at my girl friend because I feel that I am not able to give enough time to my work, and I grumble about it in every dispute we have, clearly we need to do something about it. However what i grumbled about 4 months back, and was resolved amicably does not matter. The complete surface matters, not the individual dot on it.

4. Couples should learn to compromise - They should learn to compromise before they are married. Especially the ones who are going to have a love marriage. Couples in love often times think that they will have everything as they have dreamt of, and that none of them will ever have to make any compromise whatsoever. It is real good for a couple to have 2-3 good big fights. They will be forced to resolve it. They will come to know each other better in the process. They will realise that they have to adjust and accomodate, and probably this will happen for the rest of their lives. And finally, they will see how strong their attachment is.

5. Everything matters - Mutual respect, friendship, earning potential, sex (!) and behavioral compatability. All of them can be issues of conflict. It may not be necessary to be compatible on all of these, but atleast knowing each other on these is a good idea.

6. Remember the lesson learnt in undergrad: Marry a woman who is beautiful for you, not for every one. A woman is beautiful for you if you like her, love her, and are willing to accept her as she is.

Anna Dancing Hula

This pretty girl is Anna! I was just checking other's blog and I found her family's (http://inmitchells.blogspot.com/).

I thought she was so cute, it was worth sharing!

Description:Anna dancing to music at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, CA

If you're having trouble watching the video, try copying the following URL into your browser:http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6882600688276314015&pr=goog-sl

Galician language to be used in epitaphs. What is this???

We thought there was enough absurd in the Spanish political environment... Well, we were wrong!

The new BNG (Galician Nacionalist Block, politic party) is starting a new program to promote the use of Galician language in events related with death. Meaning: stone tables epitaphs and funerals.



According to Mr. Lobeira, BNG deputy, maintains that the current situation is unfair and discriminatory, because only one in a thousand epitaphs are written in Galician. In fact, he wants the Galician Government to take an active role to solve this problem. Comorr???? What's he talking about?

In order to clarify the motives under his petition and protest, he adds: "If today a great catastrophe eliminated totally or parcially the human been from the earth...

You're wondering... how this sentence finishes? ...we'd all be dead, ... it'd be horrible... NO! Take a look!

... with the highest probability, the funeral archeologic rest that future generations would find, would never confirm the existence of Galician as a language. Cemeteries, stone tablets and epitaphs would certify that Galicia does not have its own language".

Yes!!! Amazing! It's increadible! Unbelievable. This man has a salary paid by Spanish people, by us, through our taxes... Come on! He's spending his time thinking and working about this stupidity!

Well... these are the people leading our country, our regions, our cities... What kind of future is waiting for us?

The Great Oprah

Before I moved to New York, I new little about Oprah Winfrey. I just knew she had a very famous talk-show in the States and she was one of the most powerful woman in business.

However, when I moved to New York, I started watching her program, researching about her and... Oh, man! She's Great! She's like an angel on earth.

I admire her professional career, of course: television pioneer, producer, actress, cable network co-founder, etc. In 2003, Oprah became the first African-American woman to reach billionaire status, according to Forbes Magazine. She has broken through cultural, geographical and gender barriers, letting the world know it’s not your circumstances, but your heart that determines how far you go in this world.

However, what I admire most from her is her passion for giving back to society. She is a great philanthropist.

I totally agree with her, when she affirms that education is the door to freedom.

Through the Oprah Winfrey Foundation and her Oprah's Angel Network, she:

• Awarded hundreds of grants to organizations that support the education and empowerment of women, children and families in the United States and around the world.
• Donated millions of dollars toward providing a better education for students who have merit but no means.
• Developed schools to educate thousands of underserved children internationally and created "The Oprah Winfrey Scholars Program," which gives scholarships to students determined to use their education to give back to their communities in the United States and abroad.
• During Christmas 2002, her life changed when she traveled to South Africa to bring holiday cheer to the children. She calls those 21 days some of the most miraculous of her life.
  “I realized in those moments why I was born, why I am not married and do not have children of my own. These are my children. I made a decision to be a voice for those children, to empower them, to help educate them, so the spirit that burns alive inside each of them does not die," she said.
  With the help of Nelson Mandela, Oprah launched ChristmasKindness, giving the children of South Africa one day of pure joy, toys and hope, just as she received as a 12-year-old on welfare.
  In two provinces, over 12 days, thousands of rural South African children from 63 schools joined Oprah and her team of friends and volunteers. Tents went up, music played, everyone danced, food was passed out, and backpacks filled with clothes, toys, books and school supplies were distributed to all.
• On December 6, 2002, Oprah partnered with South Africa's Ministry of Education to build the "Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls—South Africa," which is scheduled to open in 2007.
• Raised more than $50 million, with 100% of audience donations going to non-profit organizations across the globe.

In 1991, this abuse survivor initiated a campaign to establish a national database of convicted child abusers. Then President Clinton signed the "Oprah Bill" into law in 1993. In the aforementioned interview, Oprah stated:

“A part of my mission in life now is to encourage every other child who has been abused to tell. You tell, and if they don't believe you, you keep telling. You tell everybody until somebody listens to you…I don't want another child to be afraid of saying, ‘This is what happened to me’.”

She demonstrates day by day her care about creating a better world. She is specially committed to improve the life of those less favoured, to children and to women. She inspires and educates her audience everyday, moving us to "make a difference".

I've always dreamed about creating my own Foundation. I want to do that, I want to make a difference in this world; and Oprah showed me that no matter what, all of us have the power to make the world a better place.

For all the mention and far more, Oprah Winfrey is one of my personal roles model and heroes.