ማሙሽ ትልቁን ቡል ዶዘር እንደ አሻንጉሊት ሲያገላብጠው
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Friday, April 11, 2014
Thursday, April 10, 2014
What A Ban On Taxi Apps In Shanghai Says About China's Economy
The Chinese mega-city of Shanghai has been cracking down on popular
taxi-booking apps, banning their use during rush hour. The government
says apps discriminate against older people and those who don't have
smartphones.
But economists and some customers see the crackdown as a small, textbook case of something much bigger: the battle between the government and market forces in the world's second-largest economy.
The apps are designed to address a supply and demand problem. Shanghai has at least 50,000 cabs but nearly 24 million people, according to the government. At rush hour or when it rains, getting a cab — as in other cities — can be practically impossible.
So the Internet giants Alibaba and Tencent have backed smartphone applications that allow users to order cabs. In China, customers don't traditionally tip cabbies, but to land a cab at rush hour, they can pledge through the app to give a tip in a sort of open bidding war.
Cabbies can see where the customer is, where he or she wants to go, and make an economically rational decision on whom to pick up.
I have two perspectives on the apps. Before I knew how to use them, I was frustrated, because empty cabs would blow past me at rush hour, en route to better-paying, more tech-savvy customers. Now that I've learned how to use the apps, which are in Chinese, they have proved invaluable.
Many Shanghai hacks swear by them. One named Chen says they allow him to plan routes and be more efficient.
"When a customer gets out of the car, I no longer have to drive around the streets," he says. "Instead, I check orders. If another customer is near, I can directly compete."
The apps are a marketing tool for giant Internet companies trying to capture customers for their online payment platforms. To promote the apps' use, they pay Chen and other cabbies nearly $2 every time they use one to book a fare. The apps also save Chen money.
"Because you know a customer's location and you know how far he is from you, you can save gas," says Chen, 26. "On average, if I use the apps during rush hour, they can save me at least 30 miles of driving a day and $80 to $100 a month in gas."
The Shanghai government doesn't share Chen's enthusiasm. It says the apps pose a safety hazard. Some cabbies have mounted up to four smartphones on their dashboards. In a statement, the government said the apps were "unfair and had upset the proper order of the city's taxi market."
Even the elderly mother of Jack Ma, whose e-commerce company, Alibaba, backs one of the apps, has complained she's had trouble hailing taxis.
Wang Gao, a marketing professor at China Europe International Business School, or CEIBS, in Shanghai, says those arguments are reasonable, but he thinks the government is driven by other motives.
"What's wrong with it?" he says. "This is a 100 percent market mechanism. Now the government tries to regulate it. This is a struggle between the market mechanism and the old planning economy mindset."
Until the apps came along, the taxi companies, which are government owned, set the real price for fares and collected about 33 cents each time someone called for a cab. That can add up in a city the size of Shanghai. Wang says the apps bypassed the old system and cut into company revenues.
"They get less and less phone calls," he says. "They lose more money."
Customers and drivers agree.
"I feel the most important reason for the ban is [the apps] hurt the economic interests of state-owned enterprises," says James Zhong, who works as a sales representative at a high-end apparel company.
Zhong, 30, started using an app a couple of months ago and hasn't used a taxi call center since. Wang says the government is now trying to regain control of the taxi market.
"All the companies are state-owned," he says. "This new service kind of hurts their interests. Do you think the fathers and mother will protect their sons? [It's a] very natural reaction."
Much has been made of China's embrace of capitalism, but — along with transportation — the government still dominates key sectors, including energy, telecommunications and banking.
Wang says vested government interests won't give them up easily.
"You will see the fight between the old system and the old force and the new force," he says. "But in the end, the market will win the game, because it benefits all the customers."
The app ban is now more than a month old in Shanghai. Drivers say they are quietly ignoring it.
But economists and some customers see the crackdown as a small, textbook case of something much bigger: the battle between the government and market forces in the world's second-largest economy.
The apps are designed to address a supply and demand problem. Shanghai has at least 50,000 cabs but nearly 24 million people, according to the government. At rush hour or when it rains, getting a cab — as in other cities — can be practically impossible.
So the Internet giants Alibaba and Tencent have backed smartphone applications that allow users to order cabs. In China, customers don't traditionally tip cabbies, but to land a cab at rush hour, they can pledge through the app to give a tip in a sort of open bidding war.
Cabbies can see where the customer is, where he or she wants to go, and make an economically rational decision on whom to pick up.
I have two perspectives on the apps. Before I knew how to use them, I was frustrated, because empty cabs would blow past me at rush hour, en route to better-paying, more tech-savvy customers. Now that I've learned how to use the apps, which are in Chinese, they have proved invaluable.
Many Shanghai hacks swear by them. One named Chen says they allow him to plan routes and be more efficient.
"When a customer gets out of the car, I no longer have to drive around the streets," he says. "Instead, I check orders. If another customer is near, I can directly compete."
The apps are a marketing tool for giant Internet companies trying to capture customers for their online payment platforms. To promote the apps' use, they pay Chen and other cabbies nearly $2 every time they use one to book a fare. The apps also save Chen money.
"Because you know a customer's location and you know how far he is from you, you can save gas," says Chen, 26. "On average, if I use the apps during rush hour, they can save me at least 30 miles of driving a day and $80 to $100 a month in gas."
The Shanghai government doesn't share Chen's enthusiasm. It says the apps pose a safety hazard. Some cabbies have mounted up to four smartphones on their dashboards. In a statement, the government said the apps were "unfair and had upset the proper order of the city's taxi market."
Even the elderly mother of Jack Ma, whose e-commerce company, Alibaba, backs one of the apps, has complained she's had trouble hailing taxis.
Wang Gao, a marketing professor at China Europe International Business School, or CEIBS, in Shanghai, says those arguments are reasonable, but he thinks the government is driven by other motives.
"What's wrong with it?" he says. "This is a 100 percent market mechanism. Now the government tries to regulate it. This is a struggle between the market mechanism and the old planning economy mindset."
Until the apps came along, the taxi companies, which are government owned, set the real price for fares and collected about 33 cents each time someone called for a cab. That can add up in a city the size of Shanghai. Wang says the apps bypassed the old system and cut into company revenues.
"They get less and less phone calls," he says. "They lose more money."
Customers and drivers agree.
"I feel the most important reason for the ban is [the apps] hurt the economic interests of state-owned enterprises," says James Zhong, who works as a sales representative at a high-end apparel company.
Zhong, 30, started using an app a couple of months ago and hasn't used a taxi call center since. Wang says the government is now trying to regain control of the taxi market.
"All the companies are state-owned," he says. "This new service kind of hurts their interests. Do you think the fathers and mother will protect their sons? [It's a] very natural reaction."
Much has been made of China's embrace of capitalism, but — along with transportation — the government still dominates key sectors, including energy, telecommunications and banking.
Wang says vested government interests won't give them up easily.
"You will see the fight between the old system and the old force and the new force," he says. "But in the end, the market will win the game, because it benefits all the customers."
The app ban is now more than a month old in Shanghai. Drivers say they are quietly ignoring it.
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
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Nigeria’s Anti-Drug Agency Arrests Woman Who Hid 685g Of Cocaine In Her Private area
Nigeria’s Anti-Drug Agency Arrests Woman Who Hid 685g Of Cocaine In Her Private area
The Nigerian National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 36-year-old food vendor for concealing wraps of cocaine in her private araa
Chinelo Okorom Lynnette was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos during the inward screening of passengers who arrived via an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia The NDLEA said Chinelo has already “excreted” 685g of cocaine and remains under observation.
“The suspect tested positive for drug ingestion and vaginal insertion”, Commander of NDLEA at the airport, Hamza Umar said.
“She, however, expelled a total of 685 grammes of substance that tested positive for cocaine while under observation at the airport”.
The suspect confessed to the crime, but claimed that she was lured into drug trafficking on the pretext that she would be importing female bags.
“I am a food vendor at Ajangbadi, Lagos and have never been involved in crime. I am a victim of man’s cruelty to man”, she lamented in her statement.
“My husband abandoned me with four children two years ago. I work hard to pay their fees and ensure their proper upkeep. The last straw that devastated me was when the landlord forcefully ejected me. I had nowhere to turn to for solace”.
Chinelo said she was “crying like a baby” when a man appeared out of the blue to offer a shoulder to cry on, asking her to wipe away her tears and promising to introduce her to importation business.
“I felt he was God-sent until he sponsored my trip to Addis Ababa”, she said. “When I got to Ethiopia, he told me to take cocaine to Nigeria. Initially I disagreed, but he threatened to recover his investment at all cost”.
Also speaking, Chairman of the NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade observed that drug traffickers are fond of always changing their routes and tactics, but they could not possibly outsmart the NDLEA.
“Going to Addis Ababa to smuggle cocaine into Nigeria is one of the tricks employed by drug trafficking syndicates” Giade said.
“Cocaine is not known to come from Addis but, we were able to detect it because of our vigilance. We are prepared to counter the activities of drug kingpins and bring them to justice. We look forward to fruitful progress in our investigation”.
While confirming that the suspect will soon be charged to court, he implored the public to be wary of the manipulative tendencies of drug traffickers.
ክርስቲያኖ ሮናልዶ ያስገባው ግብ ለሶስት ወራት ሂዎቱን ስቶ ኮማ (Coma) ውስጥ የነበረውን ልጅ ነፍስ ዘራበት።
ክርስቲያኖ ሮናልዶ ያስገባው ግብ ለሶስት ወራት ሂዎቱን ስቶ ኮማ ውስጥ የነበረውን ልጅ ነፍስ ዘራበት።
እሰከዛሬ የምሰማው ወሬ የእከሌ ቡድን ተሸነፈ ብሎ እራሱ ከፎቅ ላይ ወረወረ፣ ታነቀ፣ በረኪና ጠጣ እና ሌሎችንም አሰቃቂ ስራዎችን ነበር ዛሬ ግን ይህን ስ ሳማ በጣም ደስ ብሎኛል። ስፖርት ለጤና ይሉታል ይህን ነው
A goal by Cristiano Ronaldo helped to bring a boy out of a three-month coma and the pair had an emotional meeting after Real Madrid's Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund.
David Pawlaczyk was knocked off of his bicycle by a car and suffered several internal injuries in August.
The 14-year-old was rushed to hospital but slipped into a coma, as reported by Polish newspaper Fakt.
His parents were told that sound therapy was the best hope of waking their son and were told that they should play familiar sounds to him.
David was a big Real Madrid fan and his parents played him radio broadcasts of their matches among others.
When Ronaldo scored his third goal during Portugal's World Cup play-off clash with Sweden in November, David was listening to the commentary and at that moment he was roused from his coma.
The Polish press reported the story and Ronaldo caught wind of it and invited David and his family to Madrid for Real's clash with Dortmund.
Sunday, April 6, 2014
ቀነኒሳ በቀለ የፓሪስ ማራቶንን አሽንፎ አዲስ ክብረ ወሳን ሰበረ/Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele wins Paris marathon with new record
Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele wins Paris marathon with new record
Ethiopian triple Olympic champion Kenenisa Bekele won the
38th Paris marathon on Sunday, beating previous event records with a
time of two hours five minutes and two seconds. Kenyan Flomena Cheyech
won the women's race in a time of two hours 22 minutes 41seconds.
The 31-year-old 5,000m and 10,000m world record-holder ran to
victory on the 42.195km course on a sunny April in Paris morning,
continuing his transition from track to marathon in style.
"It was my first marathon and I didn't have much experience," he said. "It was very tough but it was the time I expected. After 25km I pushed alone but it was very tough."
The previous Paris record was held by Kenya's Stanley Wiwott who clocked two hours five minutes 10 seconds in 2012.
Another Ethiopian, Limenih Getachew, came second this year at two hours six minutes 49 seconds with Luka Kanda of Kenya, the 2012 Rome winner, third at two hours eight minutes two seconds.
In the women's race, Kenya's Flomena Cheyech won at two hours 22 minutes and 41seconds, beating Ethiopians Yebrgual Melese by three minutes 37seconds and Ahmed Zemzem by three minutes 14seconds.
"I'm very happy, the course was good," said a delighted Cheyech. "I wasn't that fast but in the middle of the race, I felt confident and just told myself to keep running."
"It was my first marathon and I didn't have much experience," he said. "It was very tough but it was the time I expected. After 25km I pushed alone but it was very tough."
The previous Paris record was held by Kenya's Stanley Wiwott who clocked two hours five minutes 10 seconds in 2012.
Another Ethiopian, Limenih Getachew, came second this year at two hours six minutes 49 seconds with Luka Kanda of Kenya, the 2012 Rome winner, third at two hours eight minutes two seconds.
In the women's race, Kenya's Flomena Cheyech won at two hours 22 minutes and 41seconds, beating Ethiopians Yebrgual Melese by three minutes 37seconds and Ahmed Zemzem by three minutes 14seconds.
"I'm very happy, the course was good," said a delighted Cheyech. "I wasn't that fast but in the middle of the race, I felt confident and just told myself to keep running."
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