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Menno Aartsen

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Older news sections here: 2004 - 2002/3 - 4Q 2001 - September 11, 2001 - up to 9/11/01 - the very beginnings

Sunday October 17, 2004 - Outsourcing

While I think returning George Bush to the White House would be a major mistake, Senator Kerry does propose some scary things as well. For unrelated reasons, I had the opportunity to do some research on outsourcing, recently - being a systems developer, I've seen the outsourcing of software development jobs happen from close up, while, when I call my bank's toll free service number, I get to speak to a person in Bangalore, India.
I don't have a problem with any of this - when you look at call centres, they went from the expensive East- and West Coasts to the heartland, where labour was cheaper, and now they are in even cheaper locations where many people natively speak English - India, the Philippines foremost among them. And it is hardly surprising that after more than a decade of importing Indian and Chinese programmers, those programmers would eventually take the jobs back home, you don't need to be in Tampa, Fl. to write code. When you look at the way Americans are paid, you simply cannot say this is a bad thing.
For one, jobs are no longer being outsourced to foreign owned service companies - the major American and British corporations own their outsourcing subsidiaries overseas now, and so some of those revenues flow back. But more importantly, if this outsourcing improves our corporations' bottom line, we make more money in our 401K savings plans, and in the investment environment, and that money eventually ends back up in the economy.

I am spending a few days in Ohio, where lots of jobs were lost, and where John Kerry runs around promising he'll bring these jobs back to the US. Well, sorry, Senator, Ohio, and other places, do not have the workforce that can do these jobs, and if you're going to try and bring jobs back here, you're going to have to do some research.
I've bought a chain saw and a woodchipper recently, and as usual, I look for the cheapest deals. Guess what, the chainsaw comes from Sweden, the chipper from Italy. And, Senator, if you want to do something about these trends, you're going to have to appoint a task force that studies what it is these foreigners do that allows them to manufacture that cheaply. Because neither Sweden nor Italy are cheap countries to run businesses in, and that means we have to figure out what it is they do that we can't. Because if we don't the good Senator will not be able to keep his promises. And no, I don't think the man will be able to bring back software development or call centres to Ohio or Wisconsin. I am not aware of a lot of out-of-work American programmers in either state, and we've all tried the call centres in Utah and Florida - even there, they are too expensive to run, the consumer will simply not pay what it costs. So that work provides services that if they can't be outsourced, simply will not exist. And that is really bad for revenues.

Finally, I can't help but chip in on the subject of supporting our troops. I think by now 1080-odd American men, women, fathers, sisters, sons, nieces, have been killed in Iraq, not to mention some 30,000 Iraqis. And apparently the general trend is that if you don't elect George Bush, you're not supporting our troops. Personally, I think the best way to support our troops is to bring them home, so they can look after their families, take care of their lives, and be available should we really need them. Because with our military might and the alliances we have, Iraq was never a threat to the United States. Nor is Syria, Iran, or North Korea - we could squash each of these regimes in a heartbeat, if necessary. The rethoric that says otherwise is shameful, and perpetuating it simply amounts to deception.

Sunday October 3, 2004 - Shop 'till you drop

Having had an Internet account for nearly 25 years, I am a great believer in Internet shopping. So let me share with you what my favourite shopping sites are, and why.

Internet grocery Netgrocer.com delivers groceries nationwide, and does so at competitive prices. If, like me, you need to take a couple of hours minimum to go to the supermarket, having your groceries (except for fresh stuff, which they don't carry) delivered to your doorstep, at competitive prices, is both a time- and moneysaver. Netgrocer is run by a Shoprite franchise in New Jersey - having lived in the Northeast, I am well familiar with Shoprite, a large supermarket chain, their prices are comparable with those in other major chains across the nation, but, frugal Dutchman that I am, I love the site capability to compare products by unit price, hard to do in the supermarket, easy to do here. And they stock pretty much everything you need, as I said, with the exception of fresh things like eggs, cheese and butter. They've teamed up with FedEx Home Delivery, which keeps shipping rates manageable. Home Delivery works with local franchisees, as opposed to company owned FedEx trucks.

My other complete favourite is PC Connection, where I have been buying computer stuff for a long time now. PC Connection has discovered, as other shopping sites do, that if you tell the customer up front whether something is in stock or not, and then ship it quick, often delivering in 48 hours from order even if you pay the lowest shipping rate, your customers keep coming back. Their prices are good - last week, I needed some replacement UPS/surge protectors, and they had a Belkin 350VA uninterruptible power supply for only $29.95. Not to mention the HP 2.4Ghz laptop I bought from them a couple of months ago, $699 after rebate, all I needed to do was to stick another $100 of memory in it to make it fly. And a couple of weeks ago, they had a Brother fax/printer/flatbed copier/scanner on sale. Ethernet and USB interfaces (hooked up to my wireless access node, I can print to it from any laptop in the house!), and the ability to print directly from any current type of memory card. The price? An unbelievable $149 after rebate. At PC Connection too, you can sort by price, and there are no sales gimmicks or other funny stuff. You need reliable, they're a good bet. Yeah, Mac stuff too... I do buy from other computer sources, when they have what I am looking for at a better price, but I must say that does not happen too often.

As far as travel agencies are concerned, Expedia is by far and away my favourite. There is a special reason for that - unlike most other American travel agencies, Expedia will let you book from anywhere to anywhere - i.e., if I want to fly my sister, who lives in Amsterdam, here for her holidays I can book an Amsterdam - Washington round trip. If I find myself in Munich and want to go to London, they'll handle that, too, online, with etickets, and where available with online boarding passes. Most other travel agencies will only let you book travel commencing in the US. Literally next to Expedia, I use Sidestep - this agency has an application that installs in your Internet Explorer browser, copies the information you're entering in another travel agency's site, and then tries to find you a cheaper fare, or hotel, or whatever, displaying the results next to your original search. Very clever.

Friday October 1, 2004 - Avedon

One of my prized possessions is a thank you note from Richard Avedon, the famous photographer and quintessential New Yorker who passed away today. Many years ago, as a junior editor at long defunct Dutch fashion magazine Avenue, I wrote a review of a new Avedon book - I'd had to fly to Milan to even find a copy to look at.
After negotiating reproduction rights for some of his great fashion photography, I sent him a copy of the magazine, with a translation of the article, and duly received a very gracious personal note, thanking me, inviting me to visit his studio if I ever found myself in New York. Little did I know I would eventually live in his home town, Manhattan... Only then did I begin to fully appreciate his fame and his talent, wondering how I had ever had the hubris to think I could review him.
And so one of the world's great photographers is no more, dead from a stroke, while on assignment (at 81!) in Texas. I'll sign up for that, you know, a quick death at advanced age, doing what I love. Long life, Mr. Avedon. To paraphrase David Niven: "He had a good innings".

Saturday July 31, 2004 - "No More Bushit"

As the campaign heats up, nowhere are discussions more intense than in Northern Virginia, where much of the business of government is done, and many civil servants, government officials and mid-ranking military personnel live. In what is largely a Republican state, support for President Bush has been evident, but in the past few months I have noticed some cracks in the glossy paint covering the Republican armour.

Earlier in the year, I spotted a new bumper sticker at my Chevrolet dealership - it read "No more Bushit!". That might have been a Democrat interloper, but the Mercedes I drove behind yesterday clearly had a disgruntled Republican driver - his bumper sticker read: "We're making enemies faster than we can kill them"....

I personally found Mr. Bush' contention that "most Americans get their health insurance from their employer" particularly offensive. The statistics are easy to come by - a large proportion of working Americans - depending on who does the math up to a staggering 34% - have no health insurance at all, smaller companies are not obliged to provide that, and can't afford to, it is only those of us lucky enough to work for larger corporations that have decent health insurance. And Senator Kerry has it right - nowhere else in the Western world is a large proportion of a population not covered by its own tax dollars at all. National Health systems like the ones in Canada and Europe may not be a panacea, but nobody over there has to choose between medication and food, at the end of the month. In all fairness, I have to add something that isn't always understood overseas, even by the French President: anyone in the United States who urgently needs medical care can go to the nearest emergency room and get health care, including surgery and followup care, and won't have to pay if they can't.

Sunday May 2, 2004 - People

It is without a shadow of a doubt true I haven't updated my people section for years, and you're right, there certainly are some new stars in my heavens.

I'll do that sometime in the very near future - for now, here is a picture of what some of those friends wrought, in Jakarta, Indonesia. I was a member of the NYNEX team that started up Excelcom (now Pro-XL), the third cellular carrier in Indnoesia, and going back there some seven years later I was not a little surprised and pleased to see that our small company now has three million customer, and my former colleagues and staff are in a decidedly upscale building in downtown Jakarta. Custom built, too, a rarity in the world of wireless communications.

Saturday April 24, 2004 - the Google BooBoo

Google now provides a service to news sites that reads the subject matter of the news item you're reading, and conjectures up commercial websites that it thinks you might be interested in seeing. AT&T's news site today has an article about a hot air balloon in Spain colliding with a smokestack, catching fire, and its three occupants, rather than burn, jump to their deaths.

What does Google think are appropriate ads, in this context? Two offering balloon rides, and one for "Skyfire Balloon Supplies". Tsk, guys, I think you might want to tweak the algorithm just a wee bit more...

Sunday April 10, 2004

I have moved much of the "Menno & Dick Asia 2004" tour narrative to my travel section - enjoy. I am still adding pictures as they get developed and scanned. The tail end follows here:

Coming back from the Orient, we crossed the dateline, we experienced March 31st twice, beginning in Singapore and then in San Francisco all over again. Too soon, it was time to go home again, although we were both ready, it has been a fast-and-furious and intense experience. From the Tokyo hotel manager who expected Dick to turn up with his wife and from there figured we were a gay couple so put us in a suite together, via the Indonesian Secret Service surveillance we experienced in Surabaya, to the stupendous scenery we witnessed above and below the water in Sulawesi, the trip was mostly characterized by the hospitable and caring people we met and re-met along the way. Jerry (who came up to Sulawesi to dive with Dick) and Nathi (Bu Nathi, I can't even begin to thank you for all your "nationwide" help) in Jakarta, where I was also able to meet some of my former colleagues and my former boss, Gerry Rossi, in the wireless joint venture I helped set up, Susi and her husband in Surabaya, who went out of their way to help me get my Grandmother's grave repaired, Jacque in Singapore, former coworker-turned-friend and our wonderful guide, John in Manado, manager of the Nusantara Diving Centre who became a friend and ally, Meneer Hasun in Manado who offered to sell me his gorgeous island off the South shore (I'm tempted, so I won't tell you its name :), and the many kind and helpful nameless people we met along the way, sometimes puzzled for our being in places that two middle aged American males aren't normally found, but always friendly, curious and so helpful.

I didn't buy the Aiptek digital gizmo I shot these pictures with until we left Singapore for Sulawesi, so I owe you pictures from the first few days of our trip, Tokyo, and Singapore, I am waiting for the 20-odd rolls of 35mm film I shot to be developed and scanned. Then I will probably move this travelogue to my travel section, where it belongs.

The last impression is that of a grey and drab Hong Kong International Airport, where the Chinese authorities run security and ID checks even on transiting passengers, and mindful of the devastating effects of SARS (we would have taken this trip last year if it hadn't been for that epidemic), still check the temperature of every passenger, whether or not they enter Hong Kong, they've clearly decided they're not going to be caught unawares again, as have the Singaporeans, where you pass through a temperature sensing gate upon arrival at Changi Airport. That has to be the nicest airport on Earth bar none - carpeted end-to-end, the normal airport noises are muted here, and every conceivable service from a full and delicious Chinese chicken noodle soup for breakfast to an outdoor smoking area with pool(!) and bar is provided. The Indonesians had cottoned on to this too - the outside smoking area in our departure terminal equally had a small bar, serving excellent cappucino and food as well.

I leave you with pictures of the massive 747-400 that took us from Kongers to San Fran, you know you're going home when you see the Verizon Airfone in the seatback in front of you (I know... but Verizon does pay my wages :), as well as a dusk impression of that beautiful place, Northern Sulawesi - if I have ever been to a quality holiday destination this has to be it, it is a bit of a trek to get there, but if there is a contest for Paradise on Earth Manado is a good contender. A decidedly Christian enclave in a largely Muslim country, Northern Sulawesi is now also home to hundreds of thousands of Amboinese, who fled here when sectarian violence in Ambon forced them to abandon their ancestral home.

Many thanks go to friend and colleague and traveling companion Dick, who talked me into taking a holiday American style, something I had never done before, you know, it-is-Wednesday-so-this-must-be-Surabaya :). Never seen and experienced so much in such a short period of time, thanks big guy!

Monday February 16, 2004

Once upon a time, when the Church ran the Western world, marriage was a sacred religious vow, I have little doubt put into place by evolving religions in the Middle Ages as a methodology to further extend its hold on society. But today, the State having taken over from the Church as the controlling entity, marriage is of course little more than an economic bond that allows a couple to be a legal entity, and to have certain advantages that singles lack, like inheriting. In and of itself, a somewhat ridiculous situation - a father or mother can arrive for work late having dropped the kids of at school, with me having to pick up the slack by virtue of not having children.

What puzzles me mostly about the gay wed-a-thon going on in San Fran is that there appear to be so many people who think they can decide for others what is and isn't a marriage. You're gay, you can't marry, because you cannot procreate, but a sterile paraplegic, who can't either, can? A murderer can get married in jail?

These are of course somewhat extreme examples, but it does puzzle me there are so many people whose religions allow them to decide the fate of other people, especially if you consider how many religions there are, and how many of them clearly state they own the only true God. It reminds me of this conversation I had with a security guard at the lab where I worked, who was (and probably still is) a Jehova's Witness, and who felt it prudent to declare that the religions of all these "foreigners" at the lab (Indians, Chinese, Lebanese, Basque, and about 100 other nationalities and ethnicities), were false religions. Now that I found truly offensive. All this noise about San Fran basically comes from people who, in my book, have absolutely no respect for their fellow man - a basic tenet, methinks, of any filosofy.

Saturday February 14, 2004

At the doctor's office, the other day, my physician and I got to talking about the medication I am on - one of the new breeds of miracle drugs, without which I probably would not be half as functional as I am today. The prospect of losing my employer's excellent health coverage is always there, of course - what would I do without this stuff, or on a less effective drug. Mind you, patients on a maintenance drug rarely attempt to come off it after a few years, to see what the long term might be like - but that's another issue.

This doctor, a renowned and well respected physician in the Washington Metropolitan area, expressed deep concern about the number of patients in the USA today that have no health coverage, or inferior coverage. People who work and try to maintain lives but, unlike me, have no access to the plethora of advanced drugs that are available today, drugs that could make them more productive, provide them a better quality of life, even live longer. We hear a lot about the amazing advances in medicine, but far less about those advances only being available to people with jobs in government and large enterprises.

It is somewhat incongruous that we bill ourselves as the richest country on Earth (to me, the jury is still out on that, I don't know that you can gauge riches in $$s alone), yet cannot provide universal health care. And perhaps we need to get our priorities straight and make health care a major issue in the elections - it is ridiculous to me that a 70 year old retired fireman on a fixed income with health insurance cannot even get something as basic as a hearing aid from either the Veteran's Administration (he is WW II veteran) or his fireman's insurance. We have the entire infrastructure in place - the Armed Forces have their own network that provides health care for active and retired military, the HMOs largely maintain a separate health network that has everything up to and including large hospitals, is this rocket science? Granted, Canadians and Europeans complain about waiting times and red tape, but the bottom line is, they can go and get health care, insured or not, and we can't, by default. I am all for the War on Terror, but I cannot help but wonder how much health care we could have bought for all those taxpayer dollars we're spending in Iraq.

Sunday February 8, 2004

Well, yes, it is completely true I have neglected my news section. The primary reason is probably that I had reconstructive surgery on my left foot in September, and recovery has been, well, painful :). The surgeon had warned me about this, but I guess hearing it is one thing, four months of pain and limping quite another. But it's getting there, and I should be better about my log, I promise...

The two gentlemen from Sears Delivery who came to bring me the chest freezer I bought a couple of weeks ago are a point in case. When I placed the online order on Saturday the system came back and told me it would be delivered Tuesday, and then their automated system called my office on Monday to confirm delivery. At that point, we had just had the next snowstorm, there was a foot of snow in my driveway, which, at around 300 yards, is impossible to clear if, like me, you don't have a pickup truck with a blade. So I went "Yeah, sure" and thought they'd be around whenever the roads cleared up (here in Virginia, side roads are not generally maintained, at least not in the way I was used to in New York).

So I was genuinely surprised and not a little pleased when I saw a white panel truck in the street, two guys putting the freezer on a sling between them, carrying it all the way from the street, and I had my freezer, on time, delivered and installed into the laundry room. Kudos, gentlemen, you deserve a medal... Friend Pietsje from Seattle arrived the Friday after, and she helped me hit Walmart and filled that thing right up. When you live 25 miles away from the nearest supermarket, it may be a bit of an investment to fill up a freezer, but it beats having to take two to three hours and half a gallon of gas to buy $5 worth of chicken for dinner, let alone fresh veggies..