Thursday 5 August 2010

Third World lack of confidence? What do we do about it?

I am sure you all know what I am talking about. Since November 2007 I got my BB and had enjoyed tremendous freedom and mobility; I was travelling and at the same time keeping my business running. The amount of time I saved and the number of gains I secured because of it are not quantifiable, also being linked all the time with my children who study overseas by chatting with them all the time whether on MSN or BBM kept me in contact to the extent that I didn’t feel the need the distance between us nor did I worry about them at any point in time. My team in the office were also constantly in check, so if I needed to ask for something or needed them to do something urgently I was only an email away.

However all of this freedom is about to go, just because the guys at TRA and RIM cannot find a solution to the security issue. Now that this word is introduced I opened Pandora’s Box and of course we must reflect on the subject of national security. What does it mean? Is the country worried about 500,000 business men and women who are trying to add value to the country's economy? Is the country worried that us the business people are in contact with our children and families while trying to add value to the economy and doing this in stress-free mind? Is the country worried that being stress-free will actually endanger the country?

I dont think this is what bothers the country. To me, I dont mind if the country checks all my emails, mms, sms, bbms, emails, phone conversation etc. I dont mind if I have bugs around my house. In actual fact I will be happy if they do this as it will provide me peace of mind knowing that there are people who are worried about our security. Do you know that I become worried and terrified when I enter an airport that doesn’t check our things because there could be a terrorist amongst us who will either kill all of us or damage property; I would rather have the country do the proper checks and balances to keep us all safe. If the country says to me that I have to go and provide my finger prints and reveal all my life's secrets, I would do that tomorrow, in exchange to freedom and mobility. The latter is too important for me and my business. I consider what I am doing is so important to the country and its inhabitants, as otherwise most of my clients (the students) may lose time as they will not be able to study on time, so if in exchange I reveal a bit of my private information then who really cares? And mentioning private information is really a funny subject. If you google my name you can find out everything about me, the only this that is probably missing is the colour of my underwear, and even that is available from my credit card purchases. So our information is public and our lives are public, and even what we do for living is public as we show it on our websites hoping that people who need us will find us. And to prove that we are real we have to put our photos, and all of this is public too.

Did you know? I didn’t want to say all of this, rather I wanted to say that we will always be a third world, as we dont know how to solve business issues. TRA could have secretly talked to RIM and solved this matter in a very civilised manner the same as what the first world had done. Did we all think that the people who are using BB in the west are saved from this? No please you are all naive if you thought so, everybody in the world has a security surveillance imposed on him or her. When we lived in New Zealand they introduced a driving license with a chip (smart card) this chip is linked to radar that tells a machine somewhere, your whereabouts and the explanation provided is that in case someone is lost they can find him or her? Well, that was in the first world? Did anyone utter a word about it? Also in US all bags are screened before and after the flight has landed. The garbage is checked by the green police in Germany, and if they see a piece of paper they try to trace it to the house it’s thrown from then the person is fined.

What I am trying to say here is that, please people dont be upset, and we should all try to save our third world countries from acts that could harm us and our generations, and if we all thought that BBMs could endanger national security we should have said this before TRA had discovered it. In actual fact I received some BBMs that are not proper and I was upset about it. I think we as people living in the third world really lack confidence; we should not be scared to say what is on our mind in order to protect the people and the country.

I love my country and I would do anything to protect it. Come on Etisalat, find us a replacement that continues to save our time, or do the talk that the western world had with RIM (we have many advisors from the west, so why not use them for this to compensate the hefty salaries that they pocket every month)

4 comments:

  1. The government's in the middle east have no faith or confidence in their own people. That is why the relationship will never be proper, but it will be the master and slave relation decorated with suspicion and fear.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I really don't see the fuss here, maybe cuz I survived till date without the precious blackberry, I think I'd rather live in piece than turn this country into another Bahrain !! All those activists and strikes and the burning of tires all around the neighborhood naaah, let the country make good grib on it's ppl, we need to be mo stored and controlled... As for running businesses, how did u guys do it till the great invention of black burry? U used to enjoy ur family once u leave work place, while now, u all constantly checking and texting on ur little toy! I'm telling u sis, life was waaaaaaay nicer and much much easier, we had all ur attention, now, we have to keep repeating words cuz each is so busy on the blackberry. I rest my case ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sorry to say this but we are trust worthy we do even trust our shadows.I lived in the west & I saw how serious & truthful they r. There it is "u r telling the truth unless proven otherwise." Here, unfortunately, it is the other way around. "u r not telling the truth unless proven otherwise." When I came back I thought it is the same thing. I turned out to be too naive for even asking myself "why would ppl lie or have the urge to do so?". It was a culture shock from my own ppl. Man they lie about silly & childish stuff.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Suad I loved your article, it was great and so true,,, you always talk in a humorous and direct good way, you for sure should write a column in a local news paper some day on a daily or weekly basis why don’t you try doing that,,, I really encourage that…I will read your article every time
    Fortunately I dont use the Blackberry yet and dont need it that much really,,,
    I feel bad for you and people that are dependant on it....
    let us hope as you mentioned that they will have good talks and come up with a replacement that will give you the support to continue that freedom and stability and productivity
    in the end no one can control anything any more 100% in the supper internet highway that we are in now....
    we are all interconnected and to a machine some where as you mentioned weather we are told or not, any card we have will do that starting with bank cards and grocery cards they know what we buy and eat and like and dislike
    every time you enter a website information to register is also has information about you and drivers licenses and ID cards and electronic passports and so on
    so no harm in some control to keep peace and stability but as you said give us also some choices in life too otherwise what makes us any different than a programmed robots!!!!
    Let us hope for the Best and wish that you still have some good part of this blackberry freedom to continue a peaceful and productive life....
    Maybe they should ask for public opeion solutions and see possible ideas that will help...

    ReplyDelete