Mi-29 cubano em formação

As Forças Armadas cubanas iniciam nesta quinta-feira (26) o primeiro de três dias de exercícios militares que visam a preparação para um eventual ataque dos Estados Unidos.

O exercício, chamado Bastion 2009, será o primeiro desde que Raúl Castro assumiu a Presidência, em fevereiro de 2008. O mais recente havia sido realizado em 2004, quando Fidel Castro ainda liderava o país.

Mig-21 cubano

Segundo o jornal oficial do partido comunista, Granma, o objetivo das manobras é “fortalecer a preparação da ilha para enfrentar qualquer possível agressão do inimigo”.

De acordo com o correspondente da BBC em Havana Michael Voss, cerca de 1 milhão de efetivos devem participar do exercício – um sinal de que Washington não deve subestimar a capacidade de defesa de Cuba.

Foto de um Mig-23 cubano em voo

De acordo com o general de divisão Leonardo Andollo, as manobras são uma necessidade de primeira ordem, dada “a situação política e militar que agora define as relações entre Cuba e o Império”.

As autoridades cubanas têm mantido um estado de alerta desde a invasão frustrada da Baía dos Porcos em 1961 por cubanos exilados treinados pela CIA.

Mig-23 constitui o caça principal sobre o qual se assenta a defesa Aérea cubana

Recentemente, o presidente dos Estados Unidos, Barack Obama, declarou publicamente que o país não tem intenção de usar a força militar contra Cuba.

fonte:Hangar do Vinna

Creazioni Bastion di Ramona Boucher

Sono gioielli couture che brillano non per effetto dei cristalli ma per effetto delle pietre preziose incastonate nelle forme più stravaganti e originali che si possano immaginare. Diamanti, brillanti, smeraldi, topazi che assumono l’aspetto di un fiore, o ricoprono un pappagallo, un cervo, un elefante, o a cui si aggrappano cavallette.

Li disegna Ramona Boucher per un brand di lusso, nato appositamente per una fascia esclusiva di mercato. Il nome è Bastion.

Creazioni Bastion di Ramona Boucher

Creazioni Bastion di Ramona Boucher

Creazioni Bastion di Ramona Boucher

Being a Protestant and a Particular Baptist, I don’t go much for the building as far as it being essential for worship. Don’t get me wrong, having a dedicated building to meet in is very helpful and useful, but if you are to have a building it needs to lend itself for the purpose, being completely functional as such and efficient in terms of the funding for it (it is far more profitable to use what money you have in carrying out the mission, than building a facade of religion).

Having said all that, the building in this picture is certainly an impressive one. It is a grand old building (as far as ‘old’ goes in relatively young Australia), rich in history, as it contains many historical items of interest.

The building pictured is that of the Newcastle Cathedral (Church of England). As grand as it looks, it is hardly the bastion of Evangelical Protestantism that one would have hoped for. Any true semblance of Evangelical Christianity that it may have borne witness to has long gone from its walls.

BE BRANDS Live invitationBe Brands Live shatters the myth that business presentations need to be made of the same boring Powerpoint content we see everyday. Presented by brand expert and creator of BE branding, Simon Hammond, and accompanied by guitarist, Sam Vandenberg, BE Brands Live combines music and business strategy into a show that will leave you wanting more.

This exciting and inspirational 90 minute show is designed to allow business leaders to leave conservatism and rational business thinking at the door, thinking beyond WHAT you do, to WHY you do it.

BE Branding has been used to position some of the world’s greatest brands over the past 10 years and now BE Brands Live puts it on show for everyone to see. A unique opportunity to learn the secrets of the world’s top brands and challenge the way you think about your business.

Event Details:

When: Thursday 10th December
Time: Pre-drinks from 7pm, show commences at 7.30 sharp
Venue: Chapel off Chapel, 12 Little Chapel Street, Prahran, VIC (Australia)
Tickets: $149
Contact: Bastion on 03 9645 8900 or bblive@bastionbrands.com.au

Be Brands Live combines music and business strategy into a show that will leave you wanting more. This inspirational 90 minute show takes place in Melbourne at 7.30pm on Thursday, December 10, 2009. Tickets are available through bblive@bastionbrands.com.au

By Michael MacLeod

A BRAVE Scots mum of two has told for the first time of the harrowing work in a battlefield hospital which has helped make her the angel of Helmand Province.

Moira Kane watched as the latest news about the mounting casualties in Afghanistan filtered through this week, follow by political posturing over the rights and wrongs of it all.

Regulations prevent her from commenting about the war on terror.

But look into her pools of eyes, and you know she has seen more horror on her Camp Bastion medical table than most could imagine, alongside some awe inspiring courage.

Dressed in civvies, she would look like any other middle aged woman. As a nurse, she might draw more respect.

Discover her place of work for part of the year, and she leaves you breathless.

And truly deserving of recognition for the work she and her team do in preventing yet more British deaths from the battlefield.

Smiling and calm, she said: “I saw the most harrowing, horrific injuries I’ve ever experienced out there.

“Then moments later you could be treating a four-hour old baby.

“Sometimes you’d get 10 casualties coming in at once so I eventually needed three teams of 12 people working 12-hour shifts.

“But if there was a major emergency it was simply a case of calling all 36 people in to help, even if they weren’t on-call.”

Encountering dozens of bloodied war wounded soldiers with multiple amputations would test the even the hardiest of medics.

But this Scots nurse told of how she would happily tackle another gruelling four-month shift running the UK military’s biggest emergency ward in the sweltering deserts of Afghanistan.

As the war against the Taliban raged on around her, cool-headed mum of two Moira bravely treated squaddies with some of the most harrowing injuries imaginable.

As a serving reservist, 52 year-old Moira also believes her 16-week shift without a day off proves members of the TA deserve more credit than the “weekend warriors” tag they are often labelled with.

With nursing and Army history deeply rooted in her ancestry, she knew exactly what she wanted to do when she signed up as a cadet nurse aged just 16.

Now a Major with the TA, Stirling-born Moira fits training around her “normal” day job as a Birmingham hospital matron in the expectation that she could be deployed again at any moment.

Her unsung heroics were honoured last week when she returned to her homeland to collect a unique award from HRH the Duke of Gloucester.

But she says the biggest relief about coming home from Helmand Province is getting to spend Christmas with her family, even if though she will be on-call on Boxing Day.

She said: “Coming home is lovely but it’s not as big a deal as when the soldiers themselves return.

“There are no welcome home parties or anything like that, because you have to be mindful of the fact that it is a multicultural society.

“I am acutely aware of the sensitivity of talking about the war in Afghanistan.”

Her calm approach to orchestrating a massive team of medics at the forbidding Camp Bastion emergency hospital was hailed as “an inspiration to all” at the Military Health Awards.

Her summer working in a warzone seems all the more remarkable when she tells of how her two children “take it in their stride.”

She has been married for 32 years to Vijay, an orthopaedic surgeon who also works at the George Eliot hospital, and who shares her passion for deployed healthcare for the military.

The couple were posted to Iraq in 2003, and while Moira says she enjoyed the experience, she does regret not telling her son and daughter more about it.

She said: “My mum looked after them back then and to be honest I’ve since realised it might have helped to tell them more about why we were there.

“But it was hard to know what was sufficient information, because we were really going into the unknown as the war was something new to all of us.

“There was a phone ban when we first got there so keeping in touch was so hard and I do feel for my kids thinking back.

“Now they just take it in their stride when either of us are deployed.

“They know it is something deep to my heart.”

This summer however, Moira was able to take her laptop computer to Afghanistan and speak to her now grown-up children over the internet.

The web also helped her team in Bastion to follow the progress of some of their patients once they had been flown back to hospitals in Britain.

But even in a week which has seen too many deaths, too many funerals, too many goodbyes – it is the ones who pull through that ensure these angels of the frontline never lose hope.

She said: “The casualties would be with us very relatively short periods.

“They get picked up by helicopter, give a brief on what happened on the journey, we give the emergency treatment and ensure they are thoroughly examined.

“They are so determined and motivated.

“Even when they are lying there injured, they tell you they want to be back with their colleagues.

“It is very distressing to see them with major injuries.

“But at the same time we have a link up with the hospital back at Selly Oak which allows us to see how they are making progress.”

Pausing, she adds:  “That is your reward, to know they are on the mend thanks to your efforts at the very front-line.”

“The soldiers are what inspire me to do it.”

See more of our pictures at our Flickr site and videos at our dedicated channel,  Deadline TV.

Necrosha: Chapter 1 by Craig Kyle & Christopher Yost (Writers) and Clayton Crain (Art)

Necrosha: Binary by Zeb Wells (Writer), Ibraim Roberson (Art), and John Rauch (Colors)

Necrosha: The Foretelling by Mike Carey (Writer), Laurence Campbell (Art), and Matt Milla (Colors)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: Since the first chapter of Necrosha takes up the bulk of the one-shot, I will use the regular review format for it. The two smaller chapters that lead into the stories that connect X-Force to New Mutants and X-Men: Legacy will get capsule reviews. Also, as a side note, be sure to read the one-shot after reading X-Force #20 (which I’ll be reviewing by the end of the release week), but before reading New Mutants #6. While it’s not entirely necessary to read X-Force #20, a few scenes simply won’t make much sense unless you do.

“Necrosha: Chapter One”

The Story: Selene builds up her army using an altered version of the techno-organic virus that Bastion has been using and makes her first move against those that have stopped her in the past.

What’s Good: New Mutants/X-Force/X-Men Legacy: Necrosha is, in many ways, a typical Marvel “hey it’s crossover time!” one-shot. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, however, as Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost do a really nice job of finding a balance between getting readers up to speed and getting the Necrosha crossover rolling in a positive direction that makes it seem like Necrosha will be quite the treat for most “X” fans. And, in all honesty, that’s half the battle.

The best thing about the book is that, from start to finish, both visually and as far as the dialogue is concerned, the Necrosha one-shot carries an ominous, creepy tone that never really lets up. I’m all about mood and setting the stage and Yost, Kyle, and Clayton Crain nail it as far as the total creative package is concerned. Even when Kyle and Yost throw in some banter and one-liners, the first chapter of Necrosha manages to really drive home the point that stuff is about to “get real” as all the kids say these days.

Another high point is that the writers instill a real sense of history, as far as lives lived, into the story through both Selene and the various characters that are infected with the “T-O” virus. From Selene’s dialogue about her past to the conversations that take place between the formerly dead and the living, it’s clear that Kyle and Yost did the homework necessary to give Necrosha that extra bit of weight and depth. It’s that something that can turn a solid story into a good, or even great, story.

Visually, Clayton Crain’s artwork is near perfect as far as mood and tone is concerned. It’s dark, it’s heavy, and it expertly captures the horror movie vibe that permeates throughout the entire book. While Crain’s work is definitely flawed (which I’ll get to in a moment), a few scenes, like the birth that opens the book or the arrival of Selene’s army near Utopia for example, show that Clayton Crain is definitely the right artist for the crossover.

What’s Not So Good: There’s a lot to like about the first chapter of Necrosha, but, unfortunately, there’s quite a bit to dislike about it as well. While the good outweighs the bad, nearly every negative is directly related one of the start of the crossover’s strong points. It makes Necrosha: Chapter One feel rather uneven.

The ominous, creepy tone I talked about earlier? It’s certainly a highlight and quite effective…until you realize that the deadly seriousness leads to a number of groan-worthy lines of dialogue (“She sent us here to remind you of that…And to make you suffer!”) that tend to fall extremely flat. In addition, the seriousness makes some of the banter and humor feel wildly out of place. I’m all for lightening the mood, but the swing from horror to comic book fun and back again is a bit jarring.

Another part that didn’t bode well is the sense of history that Yost and Kyle use to the advantage of their story. It makes some portions of the comic feel too heavy on exposition. It’s understandable considering that chances are good that a large portion of the Necrosha audience isn’t going to know who a handful of the characters are, but it’s also rather annoying.

Clayton Crain’s fitting artwork? It is…well…Clayton Crain artwork. Now I truly find Crain’s work to be absolutely stunning when everything about it comes together. When it doesn’t, however Crain’s work can look muddy, overly dark, and, at worst, totally incoherent. Unfortunately, a large part of the first Necrosha chapter is pretty tough to follow due to Crain’s style. A number of characters look exactly the same (Wolverine? Shaw? Pierce? – Selene? X-23, a Hellion?) and while hairstyle and context make it fairly easy to sort out who’s who, it shouldn’t be a chore to keep characters straight. Also, some of the action that takes place is so darkly colored that it’s next to impossible to figure out what, exactly, is happening.

“Binary”

The Story: Binary is “turned on” by the T-O virus and helps Selene’s slaves get inside Utopia.

The Good And The Bad: I don’t know if this is really a negative (it could be considered to be since it’s not the main event), but Binary is actually the best thing about the Necrosha one-shot as a whole. It’s an extremely good short story all around. Roberson’s detailed artwork is impressive, John Rauch’s colors elevate Roberson’s work to another level, the binary code framed panels are a great touch, and Zeb Wells’ story does a great job reintroducing the character.

“The Foretelling”

The Story: Selene calls on The Crone to learn the future. The Crone then contacts her daughter.

The Good And The Bad: Laurence Campbell’s gritty artwork feels a bit out of place the book, but it still winds up being a nice fit for Mike Carey’s unsettling character piece. I’ve always liked Blindfold and her interaction with her mother does an excellent job of adding another layer of uncertainty to the start of the Necrosha crossover. While I wish there was a bit more to it, the important stuff manages to make quite an impact.

Conclusion: While the first chapter of Necrosha has a few problems it’s still a strong start to what looks to be a memorable crossover. As for the one-shot as a whole, thanks to two excellent bonus stories, the book is a surprisingly great package.

Grade: B

-Kyle Posluszny

KOMPAS/BAHANA PATRIA GUPTA

Benteng Vastenburg dilihat dari ketinggian, Solo, Jawa Tengah, beberapa waktu lalu. Walau merupakan saksi sejarah perkembangan Kota Solo, Benteng yang dibuat pada tahun 1745 oleh Baron Van Imhoff kondisinya memprihatinkan, selain sudah milik perseorangan, di areal benteng tersebut rencananya akan dibangun hotel oleh pemiliknya.

/

SOLO, KOMPAS.com–Sejarawan dan pengajar Fakultas Sastra dan Seni Rupa Universitas Negeri Sebelas Maret Solo, Soedarmono mengatakan rekonsiliasi antara pemerintah, masyarakat Solo, dan sejumlah pihak swasta pemilik tanah di Benteng Vastenburg, dibutuhkan untuk menyelesaikan polemik yang terjadi.

“Rekonsiliasi dibutuhkan untuk dapat menampung semua aspirasi yang ada terkait penyelesaian masalah benteng tersebut,” kata Soedarmono dalam diskusi “Masa Depan Benteng Vastenburg” di Balai Soedjatmoko, Kota Solo, Senin.

Akan tetapi, lanjutnya, rekonsiliasi tetap diarahkan pada upaya pelestarian sebuah cagar budaya, khususnya Benteng Vastenburg yang dibangun penjajah Belanda pada 1775.

Meskipun pada akhirnya salah satu pemanfaatan benteng tersebut untuk hotel, kata dia, konsep rekonstruksi bangunan benteng harus ditekankan pada pelestarian cagar budaya, “Jangan sampai bentuknya seperti bangunan modern”.

“Titik final yang dicita-citakan dalam rekonsiliasi tersebut adalah terwujudnya Benteng Vastenburg sebagai pusat kebudayaan,” kata dia.

Ia mengatakan, sejumlah konsep pemanfaatan Benteng Vrastenburg sebagai pusat kebudayaan telah disiapkan, “Tidak hanya sebagai museum, benteng tersebut diharapkan juga dapat menjadi pusat pengembangan kebudayaan”.

“Situs cagar budaya seperti Benteng Vastenburg harus dipertahankan karena menyangkut identitas kota. Kota Solo bermasalah dalam pelestarian cagar budaya karena banyak bangunan cagar budaya dan kawasan bersejarah di Kota Solo mengalami degradasi karena kalah oleh kepentingan ekonomi,” menurutnya.

Jika rekonsiliasi terwujud dan menghasilkan kesepakatan dalam merekonstruksi benteng tersebut seperti bentuk awal, kata dia, hal tersebut menunjukkan kebangkitan Kota Solo dalam melestarikan cagar budaya yang ada di kota tersebut.

Sementara itu, Kepala Museum Benteng Vredenburg Yogyakarta, Sri Ediningsih mengatakan, kondisi bangunan-bangunan yang berada di dalam Benteng Vastenburg sudah hilang, “Hal tersebut lebih parah dibandingkan saat Benteng Vredenburg dipugar menjadi museum”.

Oleh karena itu, kata dia, perlu dilakukan rekonstruksi bangunan pada Benteng Vastenburg, “Rekonstruksi bisa dilakukan dengan melihat foto-foto yang mendokumentasikan bangunan-bangunan yang ada di benteng tersebut”.

“Selain itu, rekonstruksi bangunan juga bisa dilakukan dengan melihat bangunan-bangunan yang ada di dalam Benteng Vredenburg Yogyakarta karena memiliki kemiripan dengan apa yang ada di Benteng Vastenburg Kota Solo,” menurut Sri.

Ia mengatakan, pemanfaatan dalam bentuk apapun pada Benteng Vastenburg diharapkan tidak meninggalkan konsep pelestarian cagar budaya, “Itu yang harus dipahami oleh para pemilik tanah di kawasan benteng tersebut”.

Sementara itu, rencana pembangunan hotel dan mall di atas tanah Benteng Vastenburg menuai banyak protes, salah satunya dari Komunitas Peduli Benda Cagar Budaya Nusantara (KPCBN).

Surat penolakan yang dikirim KPCBN kepada Menteri Kebudayaan dan Pariwisata (Menbudpar) membuahkan hasil dengan adanya surat balasan dari Direktorat Jenderal Sejarah dan Purbakala yang menyebutkan pendirian mal dan hotel tidak diperkenankan dibangun di kawasan cagar budaya Benteng Vastenburg.
JY
Sumber : Ant

• Situs Sejarah Bawah Air Masih Terabaikan
• Lukisan “Matuto” Banyak Ditemuka…
• Tim Ekspedisi Sriwijaya Teliti Situs Kota …
• Patung Peninggalan Majapahit Hilang di Pam…
• Masjid Agung Al-Baitul Qadim Tertua di Tim…
• Patung Kepala Buddha 1.000 Tahun Dicuri da…
• Generasi Terakhir Pemain Sasando
• Depbudpar Telusuri Sejarah Pamekasan
• Beliung Peninggalan Masa Neolitikum Ditemu…

I have got seven promo codes for this game.

All you have to do is to read the review and spot what features of the game can be further improved. You can also add in what you will like the developer to add for future updates of the game. Your entry will qualify you for a chance to win one promo code of this game to play with your friends.

As usual, only the best entries win! Before you participate in the contest, please read the rules and regulations that you can’t trade the promo code away. The contest is for people who really wants to play the game and my site does not welcome promo code traders.

For those who like tower defense games, Chad Town has given us a game that is different from the rest. It is a mixture of strategy, action and puzzle elements in the game. There are 3 game save slots for you to save your progress.

Why I say this game has strategy elements in it? This is because you have to place the towers in a strategic place so that enemy ships cannot hit your towers so easily with their cannon balls. The normal action elements applies in this game as you can choose the location to fire your cannon ball from your defense towers at the ships. While you shoot the cannon balls, sounds of the fire and miss hits of the cannon balls are clearly heard in the game play itself.

The most intriguing part of this game is that you have to connect the roads from the towers to the armories so that they have a flag on the top of the tower and they have a constant supply of firepower from the armories. You can only build roads and buildings in the green parts of the map. If your object turns red, it means you cannot build it there.

The placing of the road uses some of Tetris’s logic. You can adjust the shape of your road parts like in the Tetris game. However, there is a time limit where you can adjust the road blocks carefully. You need precision and careful adjustments to do it well. For starters, I find it easier for me to place the towers close to the armory so that the distance for me to construct the roads is shorter. There are two buttons – the reverse button to rotate your road block and the plant object button which is shown as the downwards button situated on the bottom right of the screen.

In the game, you can also upgrade your units and buy new weapons. Weapons like Cannonball, Powder Keg Mine, Fireball and Bomb Shell are available for purchase in the game.

You will earn gold in the game by destroying the enemy ships. You can notice from the screen shot below that there are a few characteristics for the different warships.

This game does have a time limit as to how long you can attack the ships around your towers on the seas. You can play the game in Survival or Conquer game modes. The basic game rules applies for both game modes. You have to position the red cross hair at the enemy targets and press the bottom right button to shoot. The enemies are moving at fast pace. You have to aim your shot and take down the enemy as fast as you can.

Overall, I feel the scrolling of the red cross hair is slow because the enemy units are always moving. You need to move it carefully and position it to shoot. You need to use two fingers – one for scrolling the cross hair and the other finger to press the shoot button. When I doing the shooting, I will usually get multiple shots at one time so that I can ensure I got my target in no time.

Luckily, there are some automatic fire from my tower units or I will be dead in no time. There is a tutorial to follow for new players in the game. This game has 10 Campaign stages so for a price of $0.99, I will think it is worth buying. Great game overall but need some improvements for the scrolling portion of the cross hair.

Graphics: 4.7 /5
Sound/Music: 4.6 /5
Fun: 4.7 /5
Addictiveness: 4.7 /5
Value for money: 5 /5
Overall: 4.7 /5

Check out Bastion on iTunes for $0.99!

Benteng ke Istiqlal

Oleh Alwi Shahab
wartawan Republika

Inilah masjid yang paling monumental dan terbesar di Asia Tenggara. Istiqlal berarti ‘Merdeka’, melambangkan kemerdekaan dan kejayaan bangsa Indonesia setelah berhasil membebaskan diri dari belenggu penjajahan. Presiden Soekarno sengaja memilih membangun masjid ini di atas puing-puing bekas benteng Belanda yang luasnya 9,9 hektare.

Benteng Belanda atau Citadel terletak di Wilhelmina Park. Dahulu di tengah Istiqlal terdapat Monumen Michiels, untuk menghormati Mayor Jenderal Andreas Victor Michiels, komandan militer Belanda di Sumatra Barat. Dia meninggal karena menderita luka parah oleh para pejuang kemerdekaan saat memimpin ekspedisi menghadapi pemberontakan di Bali (23 1848). Lambang kolonial ini dihancurkan setelah kemerdekaan.

Sedangkan nama Wilhelmina Park diganti menjadi Taman Wijayakusuma, Jalan Pintu Air, Jakarta Pusat. Pembangunan masjid Istiqlal dicetuskan oleh Menteri Agama KH Wahid Hasyim (ayah Gus Dur) dan H Anwar Tjokroaminoto (putra HOS Tjokroaminoto) bersama tokoh Islam lainnya tahun 1950, hanya beberapa bulan setelah penyerahan kedaulatan. Begitu kokohnya benteng ini, saat diruntuhkan dengan dinamit oleh Korps Zeni AD perlu waktu satu setengah tahun.

Selama bulan Ramadhan, ribuan jamaah dapat menikmati buka puasa bersama di Istiqlal, yang pangannya merupakan sumbangan dari para dermawan. Setiap Jumat tidak kurang dari 25 ribu jamaah shalat di masjid megah ini. Sedangkan di Hari Raya Idul Fitri, diperkirakan jamaah membeludak mencapai lebih dari 200 ribu orang. Presiden Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, para menteri, dan korps diplomatik akan shalat ID di masjid kebanggaan rakyat Indonesia.

Masjid Istiqlal terdiri atas beberapa bangunan. Seperti, gedung induk berukuran 100 X 100 m (satu ha), merupakan bangunan pokok dan di sekelilingnya terdapat lima lantai. Total luas bangunan induk 36.980 meter persegi atau hampir empat hektare. Di atas gedung induk dibuat kubah yang berbentuk kerangka polihedron, yang terbungkus konstruksi betuh bertulang. Di puncaknya, terdapat lambang ‘Bulan Bintang’ terbuat dari baja tahan karat.

Masjid dengan menara setinggi 6.666 cm atau hampir 70 meter merupakan landmark ibu kota RI. Ketika bandara di Kemayoran dan kemudian di Halim Perdanakusuma, saat pesawat hendak mendarat, para penumpang akan menikmati dua monumen raksasa: Monas dan Istiqlal. Menara Istiqlal dibuat berlubang-lubang, terbuat dari baja tahan karat, dan di puncaknya terdapat menara setinggi 30 meter. Kegiatan ta’mir masjid Istiqlal meliputi bidang peribadatan, ibadah sosial, publikasi dan dakwah, pendidikan dan latihan, serta studi dan kemasyarakatan.

IGN Sawabi

ilustrasi

/

SUMENEP, KOMPAS.com - Kondisi benteng Belanda yang dibangun pada tahun 1785 di Desa Kalimo’ok, Kecamatan Kalianget, Kabupaten Sumenep, Madura, Jawa Timur, tak terurus.

Selain ditumbuhi semak belukar, di dalam benteng Belanda terdapat bangunan yang didirikan oleh Dinas Peternakan Sumenep, sebagai karantina hewan dan sapi perah.

“Ini sangat disayangkan. Kami akan melakukan koordinasi secepatnya dengan Pemerintah Kabupaten (Pemkab) Sumenep, untuk memikirkan kondisi benteng Belanda itu,” kata Kasubdit Dokumentasi dan Publikasi Direktorat Jenderal Sejarah dan Purbakala Departemen Kebudayaan dan Pariwisata Sri Suharni di Sumenep, Rabu.

Ia menjelaskan, sejak tahun 2003, peninggalan sejarah itu  menjadi salah satu cagar budaya di bawah pengawasan Badan Pelestarian Peninggalan Purbakala (BP3) Trowulan, Mojokerto.

“Namun, informasinya sebelum tahun 2003, lahan di dalam benteng Belanda sudah dimanfaatkan Dinas Peternakan Sumenep. Ini yang akan kami bicarakan dengan pemkab, karena benteng Belanda ini harus dipelihara keberadaannya dan tidak boleh diperuntukkan untuk kepentingan lainnya,” katanya mengungkapkan.

Sri juga menjelaskan, sejak tahun 2003, BP3 Trowulan telah menempatkan salah seorang stafnya untuk mengawasi sekaligus merawat benteng Belanda.

“Sekali lagi, benteng Belanda ini seharusnya tidak boleh diperuntukkan untuk kepentingan lain. Secara internal, kami akan melakukan koordinasi intensif dengan Dinas Kebudayaan, Pariwisata, Pemuda, dan Olahraga (Disbudparpora) Sumenep, untuk ikut memperhatikan keberadaan cagar budaya ini,” katanya menegaskan.

Di luar benteng Belanda, terdapat komplek pemakaman Belanda yang dibangun pada tahun 1933. “Kami akan berusaha merawat keberadaan benteng Belanda ini secara maksimal. Kalau dirawat secara optimal, benteng Belanda ini bisa menjadi salah satu lokasi wisata yang layak jual,” kata Sri menuturkan. Sri datang ke Sumenep, dalam rangka “press tour” di empat kabupaten di Madura.

Clearly, the corporate world is still a man’s world. Under this male-bastion model, corporations, for a number of reasons, are losing out as much as women. Every corporation wants the most competent people woking on their side. But companies which permit themselves the luxury of unconsciously sexist attitudes lose out on a wealth of talent which resides equally in men and women. That is simply bad for business.

 When women and men are segregated in the workplace, formulating stereotype of each other’s behavior, they can become blind to genuine abilities each possesses. Women, for example, are rarely considered great-deal-makers.

 But women are actually more flexible, less deceptive, more emphatic, and more likely to reach agreement, while men are just the opposite. When a man visualizes a negotiating situation, he sees it as a one-shot deal to win or lose, like a sport or a game. A woman sees it as part of a long-term relationship. Since most business situations involve long-term relationships, the female approach is more productive.

 But in the information society, as the manager’s role shifts to that of the teacher, mentor, and nurturer of human potential, there is even more reason for corporations to take advantage of women’s managerial abilities, because these people-oriented traits are the ones women are socialized to possess.

 The problem is that most women feel that they must be more like men if they are too succeed in a male-dominated corporate environment and that is a mistake both for women and for companies.

 The appropriate style for the manager of the 80s was an androgynous blend, one that combined the best of traditional male and female traits.

 Men and women should learn from one another without abandoning successful traits they already possess. Men can learn to be more collaborative and intuitive, yet remain result-oriented. Women need not give up being nurturing in order to learn to be comfortable with power and conflict. Women can transform the workplace by expressing, not by giving up their personal values.

 My Consultancy–Asif J. Mir - Management Consultant–transforms organizations where people have the freedom to be creative, a place that brings out the best in everybody–an open, fair place where people have a sense that what they do matters. For details please visit www.asifjmir.com, Line of Sight

Ca orice minune tine trei zile, toata lumea stie. Ca in Romania ceva bun nu dureaza, e arhicunoscut.

Totusi nu ma asteptam ca ING, o banca de la care speram la mult mai mult, o institutie cu traditie, care a trecut de la zona business la cea particulara, sa ajunga in halul asta.

Am fost la ING Pantelimon, cu o problema. Asigurarea pentru casa, care se reinnoieste automat, nu figura ca platita pe luna asta. Cu alte cuvinte, m-am dus sa ii intreb de ce nu imi vor banii. Zis si facut.

Ca de obicei, am fost intampinat cu “bunavointa”…ma rog, politete rece tipic romaneasca. Dupa aproximativ 35 de minute de “cautat prin sistem”, “vorbit cu specialistul” care “are drept de semnatura” si dupa ce am fost aproape agresat de faptul ca “poate nu am bani in cont” desi aveam cu mult mai mult decat aveau ei nevoie, am aflat ca trebuie sa sun eu in alta parte.

Cum se poate explica lucrul asta? Tot eu sa dau telefon? Ca sa imi luati banii? Probabil ca era greu ca domnisoara “specialist” sa dea ea un telefon sa rezolve. Poate ca era greu sa stie ce trebuie sa faca in astfel de situatii. Poate ca era greu sa ma gandesc la faptul ca daca cineva ia niste bani pentru un lucru, sa stie sa il si faca.

Probabil ca vreau eu prea multe. ING ramasese pentru mine aproape ultimul bastion in calea ignorantei si nesimtirii romanesti din institutii. Se pare ca a inceput sa fie cucerit din pacate. Atat.

By Michael MacLeod

BATTLEFIELD medics who risk life and limb daily to save the lives of wounded soldiers have been honoured for their skill and bravery on the front line.

Scotland’s military health heroes swept the board at the Military and Civilian Health Partnership Awards.

Among them was Stirling-born Major Moira Kane, a mum of two who had to leave her family behind at short notice to run the emergency ward in Afghanistan’s Camp Bastion.

Her team treated countless war-wounded soldiers and witnessed some of the most harrowing injuries imaginable.

Major Kane said: “I’m a Scottish lass and it is great to take a break from the trauma ward at Camp Bastion to collect the award in Edinburgh.

“Working out there was an entirely different nursing experience to anything I’ve ever been involved in.

“Sometimes you’d get ten casualties coming in at once so I eventually needed three teams of 12 people working 12-hour shifts.

“But if there was a major emergency it was simply a case of calling all 36 people in to help, even if they weren’t on-call.

“The dedication of staff to do that was just brilliant and the equipment we were given out there was really top-spec, you couldn’t ask for more.

“To be singled out for the award is lovely but it really is a massive team of people who deserve the recognition.”

And for helping heal veterans’ mental scars of war, Glasgow-based charity leader Billy Watson and his SAMH team were singled out as “world leaders” by health secretary Nicola Sturgeon.

She was joined by the Queen’s cousin Prince Richard the Duke of Gloucester at the plush awards ceremony at Edinburgh’s Hopetoun House.

They paid tribute to the selfless medics who leave their daily jobs behind to bravely carry out complex surgery in the heat of battle, along with rehab experts and psychologists who help war victims regain a normal life.

Cumbernauld’s John Clark was honoured for leading a team of expert orthoplastic surgeons who take in soldiers with horrific injuries and piece them back together.

Having joined the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders in 1984, he retrained to become a nurse and is now the senior military nurse at Selly Oak Hospital in Birmingham.

After accepting the Team of the Year award he said: “You do see some absolutely horrific things in this job and in many cases it is simply damage-limitation.

“But the satisfaction of seeing someone return to work, re-learn how to walk, drive or even ski; that is what you do it for.

“Our job is incredibly complex but it is the teamwork behind the planning of care for every patient that gives us the edge.

“It is a great surprise for us all to get this award and nice for me too because I’m a very proud Jock back on home turf.”

Also flying the flag for Scotland was Glasgow-based war-blind charity Sealladh, whose dedicated staff help ex-service men and women with eye injuries.

The team scooped the Innovation and Service Development award after developing a neuro-vision rehab device, similar to the popular Nintendo Brain Training game.

Project co-ordinator David Logan said: “If this project didn’t exist many people would still be undiagnosed and unaware that their clumsiness and lack of co-ordination was due to sight loss.

“We are honoured to win this award.

“It came as a great surprise and we’re delighted that the important work we are carrying out has been recognised and appreciated.”

Ms Sturgeon said she was “humbled” to have met the teams who save our war wounded from life-threatening injuries.

She said: “For those of us who have never served in the Armed Forces we can only begin to imagine what that must be like.

“It is work that must be the most harrowing imaginable, but also very rewarding and that is why they do it.

“I would love to see more people follow their examples as world leaders in their fields.

“Humbling is without doubt the best word to describe this event.”

HRH the Duke of Gloucester said: “I have seen for myself the hospital constructed at Camp Bastion, well supplied with every possible life-saving item of equipment.

“As a result there are many people alive today who might have otherwise succumbed.

“We must remember that these inspiring stories of survival also leave a legacy of sick and injured personnel, no longer critical, but still needing a great deal of medical attention, in some cases for years to come.

“It is at these times the importance of the healthcare we provide to our service personnel becomes all too apparent.”

See more of our pictures at our Flickr site and videos at our dedicated channel,  Deadline TV.