Blog – Page 6 – Nina's Homepage

April 6, 2025

The Apple and the Pear: Words – and Colours – Life’s Varieties

Image of fresh apples and pears looking almost the same — Original image by wirestock on Freepik, resized

“Dark yellow? Orange?” Words matter. Images in the mind are directly connected with them. That makes them so powerful. And so difficult to control:

Because that’s what can happen: People talk apparently about the same thing but it is only partly the same – as in ‘dark yellow’ or ‘orange’. You cannot always know what others understand of your words, your speech, or your message.

Equally difficult can be to really know what others might mean, even though you seem to be using the same words. Why that happens? Because we all grow up and make experiences in certain cultures and surroundings.

That way the associations, the images, that crop up in our individual minds can be different – even if slightly.

At times they can make understanding each other challenging, at least.

Of course, there’s the situation that people are well-meaning but make more of their own skills or their expertise than is actually true. And others even expect it from them. In interviews for job applications, for example.

When you then meet the exception from the rule, it can make it even more challenging and also interesting: To expect someone to be ‘telling tall tales’ and then find out that they hadn’t…

March 29, 2025March 29, 2025

Sons or Daughters… Rudyard Kipling: “If: A Father’s Advice to His Son”

Photo of a vertically shaped red rock before a blue sky — Image free license freepik.com

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise

If you can dream – and not make dreams your master;
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings – nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And – which is more – you’ll be a Man, my son!

Holds true for daughters too…

Rudyard Kipling is not only author of ‘The Jungle Books’, that story of the ‘man cub’ Mowgli that is known across generations of children. He also was a memorable poet and writer, who wrote poems that are to the point and rhythm, as it were…as well as prose that is full of imagery and imagination.

His political views are rather doubtful and informed by the times he grew up in, but otherwise: Highly recommended. 🙃

March 23, 2025March 23, 2025

“The Silent Majority” – The 100-People-Rule

Image of many figures like pieces in the blue dark, one of them in red and highlighted standing out. — (Image licensed freepik.com)

In former times it seemed to be a matter of course to talk about the ‘silent majority’. And it also seemed to be debatable: Did it exist?

These days we know: It does!

The statistics you get from business departments such as support, online and offline, confirm:

For any person letting a company, an organization, or platform know about their issues or problems or worries, there are around 100 silent ones who do not speak up. Some are too lazy. Some are too busy. Some are just too self-conscious, don’t dare to draw attention to themselves.

Whatever the reasons may be: I also know from actual experience how often people in everyday life underestimate the universal facts of human life:

Emotions, feelings, worries and also joy so often are felt very similarly. Yet, very often also people don’t know about that and therefore feel disconnected.

Sharing helps: Experience, emotions, and thoughts. And my blog is one place where I like to share for exactly that reason. To help and to spread perhaps a (little) light of understanding.

March 10, 2025March 10, 2025

The Miracle of Human Understanding

group of people and coloured arrows showing speech direction

Most of us past teenage years have seen and experienced misunderstandings. Some can be tragic, some can seem funny even, looking back, some are funny – and some are rather mundane, really.

What can make it difficult can be situations such as the following, a nice example I came across the other day, paraphrased here:

A group of people were scheduled for a training of communication. Everybody arrived in time, wore casual clothing as per agenda and was quite relaxed, chatting and waiting for the training to begin. A little while into the day’s itinerary, a young man who everybody had been wondering about, arrived far too late. He was very quiet, wore a business suit that obviously had been expensive and showed a rather withdrawn behaviour.

The group decided that he seemed rather arrogant and they felt annoyed and treated with a lack of basic politeness.

It took a while to find out that he had been to a funeral, unexpectedly and of a close person and barely had found time to arrive at all…

This little anecdote makes it clear nicely how easily unrelated events can be made into a chain of misunderstanding.

Keeping an open mind and realizing that our interpretations can be wrong in spite of appearances can be the first step towards real understanding.

March 3, 2025March 9, 2025

Inexplicably Close? – The Trump-Putin Axis Explained

Image of a stack of coins and a rising business chart before it — Money, more money, profits… (Image licensed via Adobe CC)

All of you who are wondering and perhaps even seem to be challenged in believing it: Trump and Putin actually and truly are close.

Why?

How can it possibly be that a fiend such as Putin is close to someone like Trump, after all the president of the leading nation of the ‘free world’?

It’s basically three principles that apply:

- “Cui bono?” – The Latin phrase is age old and describes what you would look for in most questions of business and politics to get a clear picture: “Who benefits?”
- There’s history to rely on for similar examples: The Roman Empire especially and its several emperors in its later stages; corruption was common then.
- Trump as well as Putin are very much alike in terms of personality: They crave attention and power, to different degrees. They need money and more money to achieve that.
  - That’s their basic common denominator or ground.

One proof was presented at the time (2016 US-presidential elections) by two newspapers, one of which cannot be trusted these days anymore because it was acquired by amazon’s founder. The proof was confirmed by the Pulitzer Prize committee (among others).
The New York Times still stands like a beacon, as yet.

Also please take into account that war especially in modern times is a means to an end. Cruel, but just that. Just as Netanyahu first aggravated and then used the conflict about Gaza to cover up the fact that the numbers of his votes were decreasing fast at the time – and the support for his internal politics declining.

For all of my readers who feel discouraged in the face of adversity and the abyss of human depravity, do not despair:

We are not the only ones worrying! The state of the world has been better – but it also has been worse, in the course of history!

Just think what the 30 Years’ War meant to Europe at the time!

Remember: Remind your democratically elected representatives of their tasks – and of what you really want.

Keep at it – and don’t forget about the breaks!

Update March 9th 2025: The New York Times has published a fine news analysis on March 7th here, confirming facts and this view on them – regarding Trump’s view on Putin.
ℹ️ Article should be paywall-free here, from my own subscription, to be purchased with a subscription for that newspaper usually:
Trump’s Affinity for Putin Grows More Consequential Than Ever
(URL taken and pasted at March 9th 2025, UTC+1, 01:03 p.m.)

For a comprehensive and concise view on Mr Trump’s biography and background that helps explain, confer to award-winning documentary producer and director Michael Kirk’s FRONTLINE-video on PBS, from 2017, in context of the 2016 elections, available from select locations:
President Trump

February 15, 2025

The Deals: Politics and Business Rolled Into One – Ukraine for Gaza – Corruption on Large Scales

Image of two hands shaking in front of a digital network of lines — Image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay

Be that Trump or Putin, they are about money, and more money – and their networks: They depend on the lobbyists behind them. They are not the only ones, but at the moment the most noticeable ones.

That’s why we see what we read and hear about: Trump has been best buddy to Putin at least ever since Trump’s first run for office. His family was actively maintaining contacts in Russia and with Putin. These facts have been proven. By newspapers such as the New York Times and the Washington Post.

Since then amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos has acquired the Washington Post and already he not only has reduced its staff: The quality and reliability of the content and the reporting has become rather superficial not to say doubtful.

Another dependent and buddy is Elon Musk, who at this very moment is firing thousands of US-government officials in the administration. A cover-up for the government funds he received for development. The Teslas failed and he would have to return billions of dollars and be bankrupt. This way: He just might be save…

The New York Times are a reliable source of information yet, but we can only hope that Trump as well as the several courts over there will let it stay that way. He certainly has done all he could – and had it done for him – to make sure that he practically cannot be drawn into court again. For none of his proven crimes.

In Europe we need to stay united, all those that are not yet compromised by money or power – but know what the true values of a democracy are:

Freedom, equality and fraternity.

January 21, 2025January 23, 2025

Trump as MENACE‌ to DEMOCRACY? – UKRAINE, SYRIA, GAZA: THE‌ DEAL

Screenshot of NATO member states, current, taken at 21-01-2025_06-16-46 at https://www.nato-pa.int/content/membership-map

The signs are there: He had the majority of Supreme Court Justices newly instated during his first time in office. He initiated the attack on the US-Capitol. The signs also are there that he will try to limit freedom of the press. At least.

He is on best terms with president Putin of Russia, who demonstrably manipulated elections in 2016 in Trump’s favour. I am convinced that the deal was worked to make peace in Gaza and Syria so that eventually NATO and Ukraine will agree to special contracts, regarding Ukraine’s status as non-member.
And when you look at the OFFICIAL NATO map, screenshot above taken from their website today, you cannot but wonder how one would not feel at least uncomfortable, being part of the white space to the right…

I recommend (yet, as long as they can) The New York Times as source of reliable information: They have won Pulitzer prizes for their reporting, research as well as content.
https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/staffs-new-york-times-and-washington-post
Note, update: The Washington Post some time ago was acquired by Jeff Bezos, the founder and owner of amazon and a Trump follower. So, although at the time the link’s content was created, it was reliable; it is not anymore.

Trump himself, as regards a non-character who is willing to do anything to appear powerful and wealthy, is a criminal several times over: He was ruled guilty before US courts more than once, for fraud and bribery as well as sexual coercion.

The Supreme Court, whose Justices in majority he instated newly with his followers during his first term in office, overruled those verdicts with the rather threadbare argument that he had been president and thus immune…

January 18, 2025

‘Stand-up’ Comedians: The President-elect of the US and Companies Donating – Nero Burning Rome…

Painting of Poppea and Nero Having the Head of Octavia Brought Forward to Them by Giovanni Muzzioli — Poppea and Nero Have the Head of Octavia Brought Forward to Them by Giovanni Muzzioli – Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons

I wonder sometimes if there ever was a similar government and its head in history as the one coming up on Monday, 20th January…?

They say Nero in ancient Rome was made fun of, at the time and in later centuries; considered to be downright crazy and not to be depended upon. He apparently set fire to Rome, and had his mother and his first wife murdered.

Four years ago a person that has been ruled a criminal several times over in front of legal US courts, incited an attack on the US Capitol. A building that is one epitome of a republic claiming to be the oldest existing democracy and the seat of its parliament.

And here they all are, be that Microsoft, Apple, Uber, amazon or Boeing: Millions of dollars donated just for the inauguration. Licking his boots.

The most pitiful spectacle is Trump himself who earnestly sends a message of ‘everybody wanting to be with him’ on social media.

Let’s just hope that somebody over there still has some sort of sense left and eventually will stop this sorry excuse for a man.

So needy he stops at nothing to get attention and be counted ‘powerful’ and rich, when you look at his history (Link to PBS broadcasting company’s site, FRONTLINE series of documentaries; this one award-winning).

January 15, 2025January 15, 2025

Close Deals using Threats – The Blackmail Tactics – President-elect’s Hidden Agenda Unfolding

Image of a stage highlighted by several stage lights creating a circle of light with dark blue background — Special effects used as a front – lighting and stage decoration used to intimidate or frighten people… (Image licensed via Adobe CC)

To start a conflict, manipulate people into it by threatening them in multiple ways; to position oneself as a representative of an interest group, a lobby; then in the limelight apparently get people back together again for peace talks and eventual – and so sudden … – peace or at least truce…

What do you call that?

- ‘Smart’, because the person reaches their goal of appearing to be the hero of the hour?
- ‘Business-like’, because using money as a weapon they appear influential and the ‘wise guy’ … of the day?
- Or ‘Cruel’, because many lives are lost in the process, hostages kept for years in fear and captivity, marred for life while others suffer intense pains of loss and worry?

I am happy and very relieved that so many are now apparently released from captivity as hostages! For themselves and for their families, their near and dear!

But they might not have been to be in that place at all, in the first place – used by a president-to-be and yet another ally in Israel, Netanyahu, who had to fear using his ‘job’ – and thus started to get beligerent. Follow the history on channels and newspapers to trust. It was rather obvious.
And war one way or another throughout history has been known to be a welcome and often-used method to distract attention from internal affairs and issues – of a king, or a dictator, or a president…

The result, and the tragic and cruel truth can seem unbearable: It’s once again about power and money. Ultimately. People are just so much cannon fodder, once again.

And we can expect ‘more of the same’, in the coming months, if not years.

Because, there is ‘a method to the madness’.