Despite the portentous threat of extradition hanging over his head, Julian Assange has managed to use his credentials to interview some of the most controversial figures across the world. In the ninth episode of Julian Assange show, he takes his viewers inside the tumultuous world of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. In this segment, Assange cross examines infamous Pakistani politician Imran Khan and gains perception into country’s foreign relations, its ongoing internal warfare , pending corruption and the status-quo of power structure in the society.

Imran Khan is one of the most recognized figures ever to come out of Pakistan. He will always be remembered for bringing the 1992 world cup trophy to his homeland, for his marriage to British socialite Jemima Goldsmith and for his philanthropic contributions to Pakistani society. He joined politics in 1996 and formed a party called ‘Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf’ (PTI) to fight injustice and corruption. His political voyage has been full of endearing hardships, multiple incarcerations and heartbreaks.

“Pakistan is changing fast, over the last two years US drone attacks and corrupt political dynasties have driven millions to this cause” said Assange. This is another glimpse of Arab Spring that has crossed over to Pakistan.

According to Khan, “Well, the battle in Pakistan, just like in the Middle East, is of a status quo, an entrenched status quo ‒ what you call the power structure ‒ benefited from the system, and the majority of the population wanted a change. ”

Khan has faced severe criticism from home and abroad for his docile political career. In 2007, US cables referred to him as “Pakistan’s one man party” He boycotted the 2008 elections over the protest of the National Reconciliation Ordinance deal that the Bush administration brokered between General Perveez Musharraf and Benazir Butto. The following deal gave amnesty to Bhutto and her party members over corruption cases.

Khan explains that in Pakistan there is a political mafia. According to Khan, “First of all, I boycotted the elections in 2008, um, because, you know, these elections were manipulated by the Bush administration. His party alongside other political parties boycotted 2008 elections over their fear of pre-poll rigging.” Khan argued that Musharraf allowed criminals to contest elections.

In the aftermath of 2008 elections, his party’s popularity decreased. But for past two years things have changed. As opinion polls in Pakistan reflect, Khan’s popularity has increased in the last six months to 60-80%. With over 306846 followers on Twitter, Khan and his party have risen to prominence. His popularity has come with a hefty price tag, as many political parties turned against him. His party is no longer actively seeking coverage in media, due to money being poured into channels by opposition parties.

But despite the setbacks, he has been holding mass rallies with over 100,000 people and as he puts it: “Now, since the big rallies, the whole political scene has changed. We have seen now politicians rushing to me. So people who are electables, realizing that the vote bank now belongs to me, they are coming to join me.” Khan compares his ardent following in Pakistan to one in former Middle East, where demand for change and a protest against anti-status quo movement saw fall of many governments. According to Khan, Pakistan has not experienced such mass turn out in rallies since the death of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.

Assange quizzed Khan over the challenging and oft confusing relations between the US and Pakistan. In the aftermath of 9/11 and under the governance of General Musharraf, Pakistan became America’s key ally on its war on terror. Over time, the War on Terror has changed and evolved by transcending the Afghan boundaries and crossing into mainland of Pakistan. Khan said “no country has ever been bombed by its own ally, as we have been bombed in this country.” There is a mounting anger in Pakistan over American drone attacks on its soil. People of Pakistan are still coming to terms with the fact that certain factions of intelligence services aided Bin Laden in using Pakistan as his hide out. The war on terror has bore horrific consequences for Pakistan, 40,000 Pakistanis have been killed and in the last 4 years it has cost Pakistan $50 billion.

Khan holds Musharraf accountable for all the mess in contemporary Pakistan from growing corruption to country’s mounting debts to the war on terror. “Julian, it’s so shameful. You know, never has a country’s ruling elite, for personal benefits, never have they betrayed their people as much as this elite under Musharraf and the current elite”, Khan said.

Imran Khan provides another well known glimpse into a world of darkness, where corruption is rife, civil liberties are eroded and money and power has become an instrument of governance and military to exploit and exercise dominance over the poor population of a country. However, things are changing fast across the Pakistan’s political spectrum, with the recent eviction of Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani from his office, judiciary maintaining its status, and the current President losing support fast amongst general public. With mounting debt of $12 trillion, an army killing its own people, and over 14 hours of power cuts in a day, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is in a dire need of miraculous savior. Now, whether Khan’s popularity in opinion polls will take him towards becoming a next leader of the troubled Pakistan remains to be seen.

Image Courtesy of  stiksa

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Eddie Campbell is a Scottish comics artist, who has been a widely known author for decades. He allows a lot of history to influence his work, such as Greek mythology, as well as tie in his own autobiographical story lines. He is able to connect different concepts throughout his work, creating an undertone of authenticity for the readers to enjoy. His latest book is no different, which merges different elements to the story line, but what is even more influential and unique is his way to establish a comic book in a way that reads as a novel.

Money is something we all have to deal with and attempt to prove that is positively influential in our lives, rather than an unfortunate issue. Eddie Campbell’s book tells the story of just that: trying to find a way for money to be a constructive component to society, instead of a game of downfalls. Throughout Campbell’s graphic novel, money is compared to time, obstacles, and referred to as “The Lovely Horrible Stuff.”

‘The Lovely Horrible Stuff’, or money, prevents the real growth and creativity of each individual that could be formed overtime due to having to spend so much time to figure out the obstructions of income. While it has only two chapters, the text provides many scenarios that all readers can relate to when dealing with the preventative actions of money and the people in charge of it. These continuous situations are unfortunately relatable to all readers who have ever dealt with trying to make a living. The story tells of money not being trustworthy, as well as the people who speak of it. Who do you trust? Since you cannot trust money or people in your life, you spend your time daydreaming, which in turn costs you time which could have been spent making money.

Campbell’s story spends some time examining Yap, an island in the Caroline Islands, where money is still very influential and powerful today. Captain O’Keefe who is believed to be a historical sailor, who tried to alter Yap’s society, is also brought up throughout the latter part of the book. O’Keefe is an additional example of what happens when one messes with money to the book. Campbell involves people from the past such as O’Keefe and Shakespeare with the story’s present situation in a way that shows how ridiculous money has been throughout time.

The illustrations highlight the great comic drawing skills Campbell has, which help to depict the meaning behind the words, as well as adding humor to the story. The book is honest, which allows readers to see how truly backwards the world is due to money’s control over their lives. Campbell’s artistic skill of drawing really adds a unique touch. The images create a way for the reader to see the story at its greatest potential by depicting different actions and perspectives. Something that is also unique is there are many types of pictures throughout including photographs, sketches, and computer-generated images. The variety of images emphasizes different story lines within the book, as well as connecting the reader’s real life to the message.

The Lovely Horrible Stuff exemplifies the affects money has on a person, on family, on business relationships, and ultimately on the world as a whole. There is no better depiction of justifying the feeling of resentment toward money than this story.

Eddie Campbell’s The Lovely Horrible Stuff is available for purchase on July 10, 2012.

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Sweden has recently begun moving away from paper money, favoring instead money of the electronic kind.  Not to say the country has completely eliminated the need for physical money, but bank notes and coins make up a meager 3 percent of the Swedish economy, contrasting with a 7 percent average for the rest of Europe and 7 percent for the United States.

In major cities, public modes of transport have stopped taking cold, hard cash.  Tickets are instead bought in advance or with a text message from a cell phone.  These businesses are not alone.  Many other businesses now accept only cards, and a few banks no longer handle physical money in any way, preferring to profit from electronic transactions.

Even churches have made the jump, with many now accepting cards when worshipers make donations. Many have expressed concern at the technological jump.  Those that prefer coins and bills are worried about the complexities that appear with such an economy.

The young and others may have a good grasp on technology, but for the elderly in rural parts, these new methods present all sorts of problems.  Many do not even have credit cards, and most of those that do, do not understand how to withdraw money or use their card in many transactions.

This move to digital money, however, has undeniable benefits.  There is now much less room for shadow economic activities, like concealing profits when tax season comes in Sweden, especially when compared with the rest of Europe. In Italy, Prime Minister Mario Monti has moved towards limiting cash transactions to payments of up to one thousand pounds.

Another beneficial effect is a reduced number of robberies in cash-holding organizations. The number of bank robberies went from 110 in 2008 to 16 in 2011, the lowest since data began to be recorded 30 years ago. Robberies of security transports have also lessened.

Not that this switch has not caused any problems. Cyber-crime is on the rise, with the number of reported crimes up from 3,304 in 2000, to the astronomical 20,000 in 2011.

Oscar Swartz, the creator of Sweden’s first Internet provider, Banhof, thinks that a digital economy also complicates matters of privacy, due to electronic trails resulting from transactions.  “One should be able to send money and donate money to different organizations without being traced every time,” he says.

It is unlikely, however, that physical money will be completely phased out anytime soon.  A much more likely possibility is that it will slowly play less of a role in the economy, though not disappearing completely anytime soon.

Sweden was ranked number one in the Global Information Technology Report, first shown at the World Economic Forum in January, for the second time in a row. The Economist Intelligence Unit listed Sweden first in 2010, in its most recent digital economy rankings. These rankings track how much countries have integrated information and communication technologies within their economies.

In 1661 Sweden was the first European country to introduce bank notes to its people, a move that very much helped all countries move forward.  Now, as the country phases them out, could they be on the right track once more?

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Leaving your wallet at home will not be a problem anymore with the new application by Google. Google Wallet is an Android app, only available on the USA for Nexus S 4G and Sprint phones, which literally transforms your phone into a wallet. The application launched at the same time Visa, Discover and American Express announced that they will join Google´s project.

So far Google Wallet works with Citi MasterCard and the Google Prepaid Card. Moreover, Google wanted to thank people who are adopting this new method of payment before the end of the year by adding a $10 free bonus to the Google prepaid Card. From now on people will be able to pay with one action — simply tapping their phone on a reader.

Google Wallet uses the NFC technology (Near Field Communication) that allows simplified transactions, data exchange, and wireless connections between two devices with up to a 10-centimeter distance.

Thinking about the protection of the ecosystem, the Google team created this app to help the environment. Instead of having a bunch of plastic credit cards, people will just need their phone. But that’s not all — Google Wallet offers a lot of other advantages such us having your loyalty cards, gift cards, receipts, boarding passes, tickets, even your keys attached to this app.

In addition, Google has created a web site, similar to the one that they created for Google Plus, where users can find tips and information about this new app. On this site, by typing in their zip code, people will also be able to look for the nearest location where they can use the new app.

Regarding privacy issues, Google won’t be able to know what customers have purchased. Google does record local transactions on the phone, but these transactions are only identified by amount and location and are only viewable to the users.

First reactions

Web site pages such as eWeek.com have already speculated in chances of failure of the new app. The site listed about four reasons why Google Wallet won’t succeed: The lack of knowledge from the users, the possibility that iPhone 5 release a similar application, the limited phone availability and the risk that Google Wallet won’t be rapidly adopted in the market.

On the other hand, the believers think that Google Wallet is a brilliant idea and they wonder why NFC technology has taken so long to be adopted in the US, since it already exists in Asia.

Moreover, the biggest opportunity that people see its use in is for Google Offers. One of the bloggers on Mashable.com published that “Google Offers as an app is a nice way to browse for deals, specials and coupons. You can clip those offers digitally to Google Wallet and then show the coupons at merchants, whether they are NFC-enabled or not.”

Over time, Google plans on expanding support to more phones. Google Wallet’s challenge will be to distinguish itself in a growing market. Some of its users also think that this is just the beginning of what is sure to be a great technology succeeds in less than two years.

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Everyone apparently knows the piracy consequences on the audiovisual industry. But they maybe do not know the real cost of this action. According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), every 20 songs available on the Internet, 19 were illegally downloaded, affecting the same producers and artists worldwide.

That is why artists and creators are looking forward new ways of selling their art and making money at the same time. The indie rock band Kaiser Chiefs had a great idea to fight against piracy and you can participate with them through their webpage kaiserchiefs.com

They thought an unique way to sell their new album named “The future is medieval” and the users are the major figures in this online distribution.

First of all, you must select 10 of the 20 available songs in the “create album” section. You can preview all songs and you also can change your selection anytime you want. Afterwards you will design the cover of your brand new customized album. There are several ways to make an unique cover, so try and try again until you get the most original one.

The final step is to pay for your new album, only 7.50 pounds (around US$ 12), and enjoy of your own music selection. In addition to this, if a user buys another user’s selection, this one will earn a dollar for this transaction.

So it’s  time to make your choice, and maybe you would get some reward too.
All is up to you!

Image Courtesy of  http://www.flickr.com/photos/silvertje/with/2539403844/

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