Ramzi's Blog

What’s the solution?

ramzzi — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 11:00:20 +0000

I am one of you guys, a regular person who loves his birth place and the place I was born in is called Pakistan. It’s a beautiful country of 180 Million people, it has some of the most astounding landscapes and the most beautiful cultures in the world, it is a unique country in terms of the variety of landscapes it holds in it’s boundaries, it stretches from the roof of the world (Himalaya ranges) to the warm waters of Arabian sea (Indian Ocean), it has world’s largest irrigation systems, Cholistan desert, mountains of all colours and shades which are full of natural resources, large deposits of natural resources like Gem stones, Gold, Copper, Natural Gas, Milestone petroleum, salt, coal, iron and many other large deposits in it, it has a vibrant human resource, world’s ninth largest English speaking population, it has the seventh largest pool of doctors and engineers, 63% of it’s total population is under 25 years of age which means the country is full of resources but sadly yet impoverish, which puts a big question mark on our systems and society, at this point in the history we should realize and own the problems that we have before moving towards any solution, I am just one of those who are gravely concerned about the ongoing situation of our beautiful motherland, which I believe is one of the greatest nations of the world.

I have been thinking of the ongoing situation of Pakistan and will like to suggest a multi-layered solution approach which need to be adopted in Pakistan sooner than later as otherwise our future generations will not spare us or God forbidden we might not even have a future at all.

Before discussing the solutions first we need to identify the problems. To me the mother of all problems at the moment is lack of leadership, direction and vision.

In today’s sorry situation when our economy is in tatters, currency at the weakest, power production is just a fraction of what is required, the security situation is distorted with a civil war like situation, with enemy’s invasion in our country both in the shape of drone by US and suicide bomb blasts of the extremists, radicalized trends in the society which has produced incidents like Lal Masjid, Swat and Malakand situation and assassination of Salman Taseer, intolerance incidences like Sialkot lynching, Mukhtara Mai and Ranger’s involvement in the cold blooded killing of citizen.

As a nation we have already hit the rock bottom, nothing can be worst then this but as a nation we need to get united and to agree upon a plan to come out of the problems that we currently have.

Primarily we have to make sure that the people we elect should be the best amongst us, we should have people of good repute and education to lead the nation, the next government should be of technocrats who are experts in there fields, not a corrupt politician with a filthy past and a fake degree.

The assembly should pass a resolution which should ask political parties to conduct in party reforms by inducting or selecting people with a proven education and experience in their respective ministries.

As only people of good repute and education can ask US to leave the country and to convince them to wrap up it’s drone attack and Raymond Davis kind of operations on our soil as they are of no help and can only pile the heap of our miseries.

The government with NGOs and friendly countries like china and turkey should invest in the future of the nation by reforming it’s public schools, colleges and universities, all the top universities schools and colleges should be encouraged to open their branches in the rural and tribal areas.

All the foreign aid offers should be declined and the government should demand to halt or a reduction in the debt servicing for at least 20 years, in which there should be a ban on any kind of loan from IMF, World Bank or any other financial institute.

We should adopt a friendly policy toward our neighbouring countries and should revisit our policies towards India and Afghanistan as well, as we can only focus on our development once we get out of such kind of rivalries with our neighbouring countries.

We should also control our population and should impose a law in order to discourage people from having a family of more then 4.

We should have a full database of population in our country with matching DNA database and a full control of our borders specially the one which we share with Afghanistan.

After all what has been happening in my country I am still proud to be a Pakistan and as love knows no conditions so my love for my country is unconditional as well, I just want it to become one of the most progressing countries and want to see the change before I hit my bucket.

We should not just wait for a just and fair government to come by itself and solve our problems but should start solving problems ourselves as if we all do a little, we can do a lot!!

SAP HR and HCM training tutorial

ramzzi — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 00:45:00 +0000

This training tutorial is designed to help human resources (HR) administrators better utilize the SAP HR module, SAP human capital management (HCM) and the entire collection of SAP HR tools as a single platform for monitoring, managing and analyzing an organization’s HR processes.

In this guide, SAP HR administrators will find tips for SAP HR planning, such as:

How to create a business case for SAP HR in your organization;
How to plan an SAP HR implementation;
How to manage employees better;
How to build in organizational controls;
How to execute SAP HR projects; and
How to improve human resources training.

This SAP HR/HCM training tutorial will walk HR managers, HR directors and SAP developers through SAP’s HR/HCM modules, while providing tips from SAP HR and SAP /HCM experts that will help an organization improve its SAP HR system.

SAP HR/HCM planning

There are many different kinds of HR software and many enterprise HR software vendors. If you’re an HR director evaluating HR software solutions, ERP vendor SAP will probably be on your short-list of prospective vendors. No matter whether your HR-related function is technology- or business-oriented, you’ll find information in this training tutorial to help with your company’s SAP HR/HCM planning.

Understanding HR

HR applications touch upon many processes in an organization, not to mention every employee. Implementing or upgrading to SAP HR is a major commitment in terms of time and money that may make the HR department reconsider all of its people-facing policies, rules and goals in such a way as to ease the transition to SAP-supported business processes, taxonomies and tools.

HR managers may be interested in reading books about SAP HR such as HR Personnel Planning and Development Using SAP and mySAP HR: Technical Principles and Programming. These two books explain the strategic scope of an SAP HR project as well as the technical details involved. In order to better understand the practice of HR in the e-business era, check out e-HR: Human Resources in the Digital Age. Excerpts from other books chapter books on SAP HR an HCM from SAP Press books on the SearchSAP.com site.

For SAP HR planning, begin with the SAP Human Capital Management (HCM) Solution Map to see what SAP is offering in terms of high-level functionality. You might also want to examine Structures in SAP HR for a look at nuts-and-bolts functionality. If you still need more business context, read the SAP ERP HCM overview.

Another important skill is being able to change settings in SAP HCM, so you can configure SAP HCM to your company’s specific policies. It might come in handy to know where to find the settings pertaining to retroactive accounting in SAP HR payroll. Other good HR skills to have are knowing how to limit quota deduction amounts or how to change the calendar year to the fiscal year..

Making a business case for SAP HR

An HR manager or IT manager may have to make a business case for SAP HR. They can get the ROI numbers and benefits lined up by measuring the value of HR solutions. It will help to know the weaknesses of SAP HR. Deploying an SAP enterprise application is often a long-term commitment, and you’ll need to conduct your due diligence throughout the evaluation process. One idea is to specify key functionality and use weighted criteria in picking your human resources software vendor of choice.

The ROI of SAP HR and human capital management (HCM) benefits In some cases, return on investment (ROI) can be the determining factor in choosing an HR solution or looking at SAP ERP HCM. For example, the city of Mississauga, in Ontario, Canada, decided to implement SAP ERP HCM after years of using Oracle’s PeopleSoft HR software, citing a need for a greater ROI.

The city was looking for more functionality in its HR software, such as better workflow and employee self-service, which would allow employees to access and update their personal records.

When the city decided in 2008 to replace its Oracle PeopleSoft HR system with SAP ERP HCM, they could not calculate the long-term cost benefits of SAP HCM, but were able to calculate that, in the short term, SAP would wind up costing 45% less per CPU than Oracle PeopleSoft. Another cost benefit was that Mississauga had historically paid less in consulting costs for its SAP upgrades in ERP Financials applications than for PeopleSoft upgrades. Another incentive: The city already used SAP BusinessObjects as a BI platform, so managing one platform – SAP — would save IT administrators a good deal of time.

Another SAP ERP HCM user, the British Satellite Company, decided to replace its separate HR and payroll systems with SAP ERP HCM Personnel Administration, Organizational management, Benefits and Payroll. By centralizing its SAP ERP HCM system, the company was able to integrate the requirements of the new system into one set of processes, and automatic integration with the existing finance system was introduced to help streamline the payroll process.

Implementing SAP HR

If you decide on SAP as your HR/HCM solution, you may want to consult an SAP HR implementation guide. Most companies have to tweak the SAP HR/HCM module, which is why it pays to know about optimizing HR with custom objects.

The core of SAP HR planning is to translate board-, executive- and regulation-driven goals into policies that touch all employees and govern the processes surrounding the employee lifecycle, from recruitment to post-termination record-keeping. That’s a vast undertaking, but one that makes more sense if you break it up into smaller segments. Start by thinking of SAP HR as a set of administrative tools that lets you drive HR policies into the heart of an organization.

Consolidating multiple HR applications

Many companies that have opened offices in other countries or grown through mergers and acquisitions have found themselves with multiple human resources systems from different vendors. More of these organizations are consolidating human resources applications to reduce the total cost of ownership (TCO) of applications and the cost of service delivery, as well as to get more accurate information.

In 2007 Inverness Medical Innovations acquired a company called BioSite, which was using HCM software-as-a-service from Workday Inc. By early 2009, Inverness had acquired a total of 70 companies, and wanted one primary HCM solution. Inverness was considering Workday’s HCM SaaS product as well as SAP HCM, since many of the companies that Inverness had previously acquired were using SAP ERP for financials.

Now, Inverness runs Workday’s HCM software to track compensation, benefits and employee time off and integrates information from outsourced payroll providers and benefits carriers.

Understanding SAP workforce management benefits

Another category of software related to HR is workforce management. Today, companies are looking for ways to get more out of their top (and most expensive) resource — their employees. In that light, many companies are taking another look at workforce management software.

Companies aren’t just using workforce management tools to track employee hours anymore. Tools like labor analytics are helping many companies better meet their strategic objectives as well as increase revenues.

Musharraf Bashing

ramzzi — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 09:08:18 +0000

Musharraf bashing has suddenly acquired a renewed hype in the media -more in the electronic than the print – eversince he announced entering into Pakistan politics. The interested parties and their cronies are busy day and night in slinging mud upon him and his ‘dictatorial’ rule of nine years. Use of negative superlatives like “not at all”, “nothing what so ever”, “ruination of the entire economy” etc. are being used profusely, incorrectly and illogically more because of a fad than fact.. Ironically, some of the saner element, intellectuals and knowledgeable too have succumbed to the propaganda and lost sight of the realilty. No doubt Musharraf made mistakes – some blunders, but to say that nothing at all positive for Pakistan was achieved by him and his regime, is unfair.
Following are, therefore, just to recount some of his achievements:- (List is a little long but please DO read if you have the heart to know real facts and are blessed with a fair conscience)
Basic comparison of 1999 and 2007
Pak Economy in 1999 was: $ 63 billion
Pak Economy in 2007 is: $ 160 billion
GDP Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) in 1999: $ 270 billion
GDP Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) in 2007: $ 475.5 billion
GDP per Capita in 1999: $ 200
GDP per Capita in 2007: $ 1000
Pak revenue collection 1999: Rs. 305 billion
Pak revenue collection 2007/08: Rs. 1002 billion
Pak Foreign reserves in 1999: $ 700 million
Pak Foreign reserves in 2007: $ 17 billion
Pak Exports in 1999: $ 7.5 billion
Pak Exports in 2007: $ 18.5 billion
Textile Exports in 1999: $ 5.5 billion
Textile Exports in 2007: $ 11.2 billion
KHI stock exchange 1999: $ 5 billion at 700 points
KHI stock exchange 2007: $ 70 billion at 15,000 points
Foreign Direct Investment in 1999: $ 1 billion
Foreign Direct Investment in 2007: $ 8.5 billion
Debt servicing 1999: 65% of GDP Debt servicing 2007: 26% of GDP Poverty level in 1999: 34% Poverty level in 2007: 24%
Literacy rate in 1999: 45% Literacy rate in 2007: 53%
Pak Development programs 1999: Rs. 80 billion
Pak Development programs 2007: Rs. 520 billion
Under Musharraf\’s vision
1. 9 world class Engineering universities being developed and 18 Public universities already developed.
2. Public sector institutions have increased from 110,267 (in 1999) to Become Private sector institutions have increased from 36,096 (in 1999) to become 81,103 (in 2006).
3. PAK is 3rd best in world Banking profitability.
4. PAK IT industry now values around $2 billion, including $1 billion exports and employs around 90,000 professionals.
5. CNG sector has attracted over $70 billion investment in last 5 years; and created 45,000 jobs.
6. Telecom sector attracted around $10 billion in investment and created above 1.3 million jobs.
7. Industrial Parks are being setup throughout the country for the first time! M3 estate, Sunder industrial estate, Chakri, etc.
8. Major Mega projects like the Saindak, Rekodiq, Marble production, Coal production and Mining & Quarrying are being pursued.
9. In 2006, GDP growth is 6%. Earlier in 1999 was 3.5%.
10. Foreign Reserves from $700 million to $17 bn.
11. KHI stock market: from 700 points to 15,000 points. 12. Literacy rate improved by 11%.
13. Poverty decreased by 10%.
14. He made 4 dams: Mirani, Subakzai, Gomalzam, Khurram, Tangi dams. Biggest of them Bhasha Started 15. 7 Motorways completed or under construction: M1, M3,M4, M8, M9, M10, M11.
16. Six major highways under construction. 17. GWADAR advance mega Sea port developed under his vision! 18. 650 km Coastal highway constructed.
19. Historic 100% increase in Tax collection of Rs 1 trillion. 20. Large scale manufacturing is 30 year high, and Construction activity is 17 year high.
21. Newly found World class copper- gold deposits in Chagai will fetch $600million per year.
22. A new Oil refinery with UAE will fetch $5 billion & will process 300,000oil barrels a day.
23. Industrial sector registered 26% growth.
24. PAK in 1999 was a $63 billion economy; and now 2006 it\’s $160 billion economy! PAK economy is now the 3rd fastest growing economy after China & India . Education under Musharraf Era
25. In 1999-2000 there were 31 Public Universities. Now 2005- 2006 there are49 Public Universities. Under Musharraf 20 NEW UNIVERSITIES SET UP!
26. Air University (established 2002)
27. Institute of Space technology, ISB (established 2002) 28. Sardar Bahadur Khan Women University , Quetta (established 2004)
29. University of Science & Technology, Bannu (established 2005)
30. University of Hazara (founded 2002)
31. Malakand university, Chakdara (established 2002) 32. Malakand university, Chakdara (established 2002 33. University of Gujrat (established 2004)
34. Virtual University of Pak, Lahore (established 2002) 35. Sarhad University of IT, Peshawar (established 2001) 36. National Law University , ISB (2007)
37. Media University , ISB (2007) etc.
38. University of Education , Lahore (2002)
39. Lasbella University of Marine Sciences, Baluchistan (2005) 40. Baluchistan University of IT & Management, Quetta (2002), etc. Pakistan now has a total of 245,682 Educational institutions in all categories, including 164,579 (i.e. 67 percent) in the Public sector and 81,103 (i..e. 100 percent) in the private sector, reports the National Education Census (NEC-2005). The census — jointly conducted by the Ministry of Education, the Academy of Educational Planning and Management (AEPAM) and the Federal Bureau of Statistics (FBS) – reveals that the number of private-sector institutions has increased from 36,096 in 1999-2000 to 81,103 in 2005, i.e. by 100 per cent. A record of more than 5000 Pakistani doing PhD\’s in foreign countries on scholarship While 300 PhD\’s are producing every year locally whose number was just 20 in 1999. This number will increase to 500 in 2008. Total 99,319 Educational Institutions (Public & Private) have increased in Musharraf era!

P.S. Kindly note it is not an effort to promote Musharraf for a come back. It is just to call a spade a spade. He MUST not come back, especially if he has to keep the company of ANY politicians (ANY politician). A pure and simple Presidential form of government would suit him if he can manage one some how. Neither is he (or any soldier) suited to this kind of mockery of a democracy nor is such a democracy suited to this country. The system must change and not, as they say, the faces only.

The Poet in me…RIP now!!

ramzzi — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 14:07:27 +0000

Hi there,

Although I am not a poet and that has been decided now, but in the past I did express my then feelings and thoughts that I got myself stuck invery deeply, in this form of literature, then thought does it even worth thinking about certain event, person or time that was destined to pass and leave us with a big lesson, why don’t I rather start living in the present and cherish the very moment that I have got in my disposal, present is a precious present” ain’t it?
I hope you will enjoy a few poems or may be a few lines which I am sharing with you guys on this forum, so enjoy everyone:)!!

Talaash
…………..
Ye mera pyar nahi hay tou aur kya hay bhala
har ek nigah main tujh ko talash karta hon

hawaoon main kabhi dhondhon teray badan ki mehk
kabhi main raah main tujh ko talaash karta hon

kabhi kisi ki nazar main kabhi badan main kisi
har ek nazare main tujh ko talash karta hon

tou mujh say dour buhut hay yeh jaan kar bhe kabhi
main apnay paas main tujh ko talaash karta hon

tere wafa say mujhay sou shikayatain he sahi
main etibar main tujh ko talaash karta hon

teray jo baa’d mili hain muhabatain mujh ko
main un kay pyar main tujh ko talaash karta hon

Ramzi~
Sydney,Australia
22-Dec-2006

Mohabbat Ruth Jati hay!!
———————————
umeedon ki ye dorain kis tarha say tot jati hain
yaqeeni beyaqeeni say yon kyon kar maat khati hay
ye chahat bhe koi mosam hay jo yaksaan nahi rehta?
koi rokay bhalay kitna, mohabbat ruth jati hay!!!

dilon main khwahishain janay kyon itna kasmasati hain
kisi ki yaad aksar khwab say hum ko jagati hain
kabhi sukh day kay jati hain, kabhi dukh day kay jati hain
koi rokay bhalay kitna, mohabbat ruth jati hay!!!

mohabbat roshni hay dil kay angan jagmagati hai
humain pehum chupay kuch ramz jenay kay batati hay
hamaisha ek suhani yad ban kar gudgudati hay
koi rokay bhalay kitna, mohabbat ruth jati hay!!!

Ramzi~
Sydney
28-11-2006

One world one game lets all play some football!!!

ramzzi — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 13:24:15 +0000

There is a lot of Oley Oley in the air, many hearts have been broken, many will be broken eventually in the coming days as we are heading to the final stages of FIFA 2010 football world cup.

Every team has tried to there best to outplay there opponents and despite a few wrong decisions by the referees the whole world cup has remained fair and catchy with the favourite teams making there way to the quarter finals.

Until now it’s Brazil, Argentina, Germany, Ghana, Holland and Uruguay who have secured there places for the next stage, tonight matches will decide the fate for Paraguay, Japan, Spain and Portugal.

In my opinion Spain has better chances to run over Portugal and Japan can outplay Paraguayans.

So according to my theory it would be Argentina, Brazil, Ghana and Spain in the semis and we can witness a major upset in that pressure cooker final games and who knows it can be the under dogs Ghana who can lift the cup and make the African continent proud with their power play, but more then that I would say it’s Argentina who has displayed superb play so far and deserve to win this event, Maradona boys have played like champions so far! Go Messi Go yes your guess is right I am barracking for Argentina in this world cup totally dazzled by the many great moves they have made in the field so far, although Messi has unfortunately remained goalless despite all the many great dodging and passing but his performance has remained 5-star, shortly Argentina will lift the cup but lets see and enjoy every remaining moment of FIFA 2010..

How to get started with a SAP data archiving project

ramzzi — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 19:43:21 +0000

As more organizations confront aging SAP systems,SAP data archiving projects are coming up on the radar. Archiving data can help enhance the performance of databases, applications and free up infrastructure resources for other projects like upgrades to ECC 6.0.

In this podcast, SAP data archiving expert Nick Parkin of Proceed Archiving Solutions answers some of the most frequently asked questions about getting started with an SAP data archiving project. Parkin has been working as an SAP technical consultant since 1996, and for the last five years has focused on database performance and how organizations can improve storage use and performance with data archiving.

Listeners will learn:

When it’s time to consider data archiving

What size database warrants an SAP data archiving project

The pros and cons of buying additional storage to increase performance

Whether data archiving makes it difficult for users to access data

How long a project typically takes

All About Swine Flu

ramzzi — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 09:31:22 +0000

What is swine flu?

people, pigs can get influenza (flu), but swine flu viruses aren’t the same as human flu viruses. Swine flu doesn’t often infect people, and the rare human cases that have occurred in the past have mainly affected people who had direct contact with pigs. But the current swine flu outbreak is different. It’s caused by a new swine flu virus that has spread from person to person — and it’s happening among people who haven’t had any contact with pigs.

What are swine flu symptoms?

of swine flu are like regular flu symptoms and include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills, and fatigue. Some people have reported diarrhea and vomiting associated with swine flu. Those symptoms can also be caused by many other conditions, and that means that you and your doctor can’t know, just based on your symptoms, if you’ve got swine flu. It takes a lab test to tell whether it’s swine flu or some other condition.

If I think I have swine flu, what should I do? When should I see my doctor?

you have flu symptoms, stay home, and when you cough or sneeze, cover your mouth and nose with a tissue. Afterward, throw the tissue in the trash and wash your hands. That will help prevent your flu from spreading.

If you’ve got flu symptoms, and you’ve recently been to a high-risk area like Mexico, CDC officials recommend that you see your doctor. If you have flu symptoms but you haven’t been in a high-risk area, you can still see a doctor — that’s your call.

Keep in mind that your doctor will not be able to determine whether you have swine flu, but he or she would take a sample from you and send it to a state health department lab for testing to see if it’s swine flu. If your doctor suspects swine flu, he or she would be able to write you a prescription for Tamiflu or Relenza. Those drugs may not be required; U.S. swine flu patients have made a full recovery without it.

How does swine flu spread? Is it airborne?

new swine flu virus apparently spreads just like regular flu. You could pick up germs directly from an infected person, or by touching an object they recently touched, and then touching your eyes, mouth, or nose, delivering their germs for your own infection. That’s why you should make washing your hands a habit, even when you’re not ill. Infected people can start spreading flu germs up to a day before symptoms start, and for up to seven days after getting sick, according to the CDC.

The swine flu virus can become airborne if you cough or sneeze without covering your nose and mouth, sending germs into the air.

The U.S. residents infected with swine flu virus had no direct contact with pigs. The CDC says it’s likely that the infections represent widely separated cycles of human-to-human infections.

How is swine flu treated?

new swine flu virus is sensitive to the antiviral drugs Tamiflu and Relenza. The CDC recommends those drugs to prevent or treat swine flu; the drugs are most effective when taken within 48 hours of the start of flu symptoms. But not everyone needs those drugs; many of the first people in the U.S. with lab-confirmed swine flu recovered without treatment. The Department of Homeland Security has released 25% of its stockpile of Tamiflu and Relenza to states. Health officials have asked people not to hoard Tamiflu or Relenza.

Is there a vaccine against the new swine flu virus?

But the CDC and the World Health Organization are already taking the first steps toward making such a vaccine. That’s a lengthy process — it takes months.

I had a flu vaccine this season. Am I protected against swine flu?

. This season’s flu vaccine wasn’t made with the new swine flu virus in mind; no one saw this virus coming ahead of time.

If you were vaccinated against flu last fall or winter, that vaccination will go a long way toward protecting you against certain human flu virus strains. But the new swine flu virus is a whole other problem.

How can I prevent swine flu infection?

CDC recommends taking these steps:

Wash your hands regularly with soap and water, especially after coughing or sneezing. Or use an alcohol-based hand cleaner.
Avoid close contact with sick people.
Avoid touching your mouth, nose, or eyes.

What else should I be doing?

informed of what’s going on in your community. Your state and local health departments may have important information if swine flu develops in your area. For instance, parents might want to consider what they would do if their child’s school temporarily closed because of flu. That happened in New York City, where St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens closed for a couple of days after eight students were found to have swine flu. Don’t panic, but a little planning wouldn’t hurt.

How severe is swine flu?

severity of cases in the current swine flu outbreak has varied widely. In Mexico, there have been deaths and other severe cases. Early cases in the U.S. have been mild. But that could change. The virus itself could change, either becoming more or less dangerous. Scientists are watching closely to see which way the new swine flu virus is heading — but health experts warn that flu viruses are notoriously hard to predict, as far as how and when they’ll change.

Why has the swine flu infection been deadlier in Mexico than in the U.S.?

is unclear why U.S. cases have been milder compared to those in Mexico. Among the first 20 reported cases in the U.S., only one patient required hospitalization and that person has fully recovered. CDC researchers are actively investigating to learn more about the differences between the cases in Mexico and those in the U.S.

Have there been previous swine flu oubtreaks?

There was a swine flu outbreak at Fort Dix, N.J., in 1976 among military recruits. It lasted about a month and then went away as mysteriously as it appeared. As many as 240 people were infected; one died.

The swine flu that spread at Fort Dix was the H1N1 strain. That’s the same flu strain that caused the disastrous flu pandemic of 1918-1919, resulting in tens of millions of deaths.

Concern that a new H1N1 pandemic might return in winter 1976 led to a crash program to create a vaccine and vaccinate all Americans against swine flu. That vaccine program ran into all kinds of problems — not the least of which was public perception that the vaccine caused excessive rates of dangerous reactions. After more than 40 million people were vaccinated, the effort was abandoned.

As it turned out, there was no swine flu epidemic.

I was vaccinated against the 1976 swine flu virus. Am I still protected?

. The new swine flu virus is different from the 1976 virus. And it’s not clear whether a vaccine given more than 30 years ago would still be effective.

How many people have swine flu?

a hard question to answer, because the figure is changing so quickly. If you want to keep track of U.S. cases that have been confirmed by lab tests and reported to the CDC, check the CDC’s web site. If you’re looking for cases in other countries, visit the World Health Organization’s web site. And when you hear about large numbers of people who are ill, remember that lab tests may not yet have been done to confirm that they have swine flu. And there may be a little lag time before confirmed cases make it into the official tally.

How serious is the public health threat of a swine flu epidemic?

U.S. government has declared swine flu to be a public health emergency.

It remains to be seen how severe swine flu will be in the U.S. and elsewhere, but countries worldwide are monitoring the situation closely and preparing for the possibility of a pandemic.

The World Health Organization has not declared swine flu to be a pandemic. The WHO wants to learn more about the virus first and see how severe it is and how deeply it takes root.

But it takes more than a new virus spreading among humans to make a pandemic. The virus has to be able to spread efficiently from one person to another, and transmission has to be sustained over time. In addition, the virus has to spread geographically.

Why we are where we are

ramzzi — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 06:08:41 +0000

N the middle of Karachi stands the concrete shell of a 30-storey building. This is the structure of the Hyatt Regency hotel started in the mid-seventies, and which has remained a building site since work was abandoned in 1977.

In a sense, this hulk is a metaphor for Pakistan: a state launched with much fanfare, enthusiasm and good intentions, but which can neither be completed nor pulled down.

Any state has a number of prerequisites to function effectively: settled borders; an accord on the measure of autonomy to be exercised by the federating units; the official language; and a broad consensus on the nature and direction of the state. Another element relates to national identity. Finally, any modern state must establish its monopoly on the use and means of violence.

As an artificially created entity, Pakistan was required to define and establish these parameters. Unfortunately, it failed to do so, largely because of the long delay in forging a consensus on the constitution, and partly because of the frequent military interventions that repeatedly eroded respect for the constitution and the rule of law. Poorly educated military dictators with no sense of history attempted to come up with half-baked concepts that have laid waste to the institutions we inherited from the British.

An early problem the new state faced was the issue of borders that were left undefined by the departing colonial power. Pakistani rulers have struggled with this question, opting for military confrontation instead of dialogue and discourse. It is true that our neighbours have not been very helpful in settling the matter. Pakistani militarists have driven our foreign and defence policies, arming to repel real and perceived dangers from abroad, while creating a Frankenstein’s monster that now threatens to devour us.

As a result of this single-issue agenda, money that should have been spent on education and health was diverted into the insatiable black hole of bloated military budgets. As our population has increased without check, millions of young people remain uneducated and unemployed. Filling the educational vacuum are the thousands of madressahs, many financed by Saudi Arabia, that do not equip students for careers in the modern world. There is thus a fertile breeding ground for the Taliban and their fellow extremists to recruit foot soldiers from.

The last six decades have amply demonstrated the difficulty inherent in building a national identity based solely on religion. Talk to any conservative Pakistani today, and he will assert that as Pakistan was created in the name of Islam, the Sharia should be the law of the land. It would be futile to point out that Jinnah visualised a secular state in which all Pakistanis would be equal citizens. This lofty vision would be scant comfort to the Sikh families who have had to flee their homes in the tribal areas because demands for jaziah, the old Muslim tax on non-Muslims, were made by de facto Taliban rulers.

In order to justify the partition of the subcontinent, rulers have resorted to bewildering mental contortions. Many have tried to move our roots to the Middle East from our true origins in South Asia. This confusion is reflected in school textbooks and the media. Thus, we have young people unsure of their past, and unable or unwilling to claim their rich cultural patrimony.

The insecurity caused by the wrenching experience of Partition has seen military and civilian rulers looking to the West for military and economic assistance. For years, these anti-Communist alliances made us feel stronger than we actually were. But they also isolated us, and when the balance of power began to shift against us, the army built up a force of extremists to further its agenda in Afghanistan and Kashmir. These are the militants who threaten our very survival today.

Instead of fighting them, the ruling elites continue their double game of playing footsie with the Taliban, while laying claim to billions in western aid. But the jihadis cannot be defeated with money alone: political will and a broad consensus backed by military might are needed. So far, there are few signs of any of this happening. While the Taliban walk into Buner and Dir after their uncontested victory in Swat, the army continues its policy of studied indifference, while the politicians play their power games.

The divisions in the ranks of Pakistani society over this threat are visible in the media. In a sense, this is the inevitable product of decades of brainwashing about the nature of the Pakistani state. Many people are confused about the issues underlying this crisis: having been told that Pakistan was created in the name of Islam, they are now being asked to accept that the real enemy is not Hindu India, but fanatics who want to impose their stone-age rule in the name of Islam.

Such contradictions cannot be easily resolved, especially in a deeply conservative society where illiteracy is rampant. When simple, poorly educated soldiers are warned by mullahs that they will not be accorded a Muslim burial if they fall fighting the Taliban, it is understandable that they should be reluctant to go into combat. Generations of army officers have been indoctrinated at military academies into believing that India is the real enemy. It is hard for them to face reality, and reorient our defence to the west.

Since Zia began promoting Wahabi madressahs across Pakistan in the eighties, we have faced bitter sectarian strife. Anti-Shia militias have been in the forefront of the jihad in Afghanistan and Kashmir, acquiring arms, training and large amounts of money in the process. These forces are now formally allied with the Taliban, and have presented their erstwhile handlers in our intelligence services with the difficult task of keeping them on our side, while simultaneously appearing to fight them.

In the long wish list prepared by the army for the Pentagon’s consideration, night-vision goggles are high in our priorities. Well-informed friends in Peshawar tell me that this equipment is on sale in the local arms bazaar, having been looted from US and Nato convoys. But if our army doesn’t want to buy the locally available goggles, could I ask them to consider fighting during the day, at least?

When you next drive past the looming shell of the Hyatt Regency, spare a thought for what might have been.

Discussing the Divine Comedy with Dante

ramzzi — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 16:05:45 +0000

Discussing the Divine Comedy with Dante by Taiwanese artists Dai Dudu, Li Tiezi, and Zhang An.

You recognise some of them, but not all of them. So it is with the 103 famous people in this bizarrely ingenious Taiwanese oil painting,Discussing the Divine Comedy with Dante, which has become an online cult. Echoes of classic art seem to spring out from every point – yet they are fiendishly elusive.

Pinning down the exact quotations of famous works is harder than it looks and can tease you just as certainly as trying to identify everyone. For starters, the painting alludes to an 18th-century genre known as the “conversation piece”, epitomised by Johann Zoffany’s Tribuna of the Uffizi (c 1770s).

Where Zoffany portrayed gatherings of cognoscenti or music lovers, once even the crowd at a cockfight, here we see an impossible gathering of historical figures in the afterlife. But that’s just the start of the art arcana . . .

1 The Queen’s head is superimposed on to the body and dress of Princesse Albert de Broglie as painted by Ingres in 1853.

2 The Chinese poet Li Bai falls backwards in his chair in exactly the same pose as a drunken reveller in William Hogarth’s painting An Election Entertainment (1754-5).

3 Deng Xiaoping adopts the classic nonchalant pose of Titian’s Portrait of a Man in London’s National Gallery, resting his arm as he turns towards us.

4 Rameses II sits in a similar pose to Joshua Reynolds’ portrait of Lawrence Sterne, but by the time Reynolds used it this was already an ancient pose signifying melancholy.

5 Dante, whose religious poem The Divine Comedy is the key to this painting if its title is anything to go by, stands in profile like Piero della Francesca’s portrait of Federigo da Montefeltro.

6 Napoleon poses as . . . wait for it, himself. His horse closely resembles his steed in Gros’s painting Napoleon on the Battlefield of Eylau, in the Louvre.

7 Leonardo da Vinci worked for evil rulers such as Cesare Borgia and here he listens politely to Stalin’s mad schemes.

8 Significant objects are displayed on the tables just as they might be in a Renaissance painting. The typewriter signifies that Li Bai is a poet.

9 Kofi Annan imitates the boy musician in Manet’s The Fife Player.

· This article was amended on Monday March 23 2009. The portrait of Federico da Montefeltro alluded to in the painting Discussing the Divine Comedy with Dante is the work of Piero della Francesca, not Piero di Cosimo. This has been corrected.

ramzzi — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 16:25:31 +0000