Category Archives: Peek into my mind

American Irons

Posted on April 15, 2012 by sinyaw

Buying a car is so hard. Large sums of money are involved. The consequence of making a mistake is very regrettable. The purchasing process is arduously unpleasant. And there isn’t enough information to make good decisions with. Fortunately, there is … Continue reading →

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Individual Mandate

Posted on March 26, 2012 by sinyaw

In a society where hospitals cannot turn away patients, regardless of their ability or willingness to pay, individual mandate on health insurance is a necessity. I have seen and heard so many times of lives that withered away unnecessarily because … Continue reading →

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DFW

Posted on March 18, 2012 by sinyaw

I landed at DFW oh so many decades ago from oh so far away. Together with several literal FOBs (fresh off the boat), we set out to try the quintessential Americana: McDonald’s Big Mac. As we walked the streets of … Continue reading →

Posted in Peek into my mind, Witness to my life | 2 Comments

Diversification is not the goal

Posted on February 21, 2012 by sinyaw

Riding on FaceBook’s IPO news frenzy, CalSTRS, California’s Teacher’s Pension Fund, asked the company to add a woman to the board. “We are disappointed that the Facebook board will not have any women members,” CalSTRS corporate governance director Anne Sheehan … Continue reading →

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三國(6): 楊修之死

Posted on February 10, 2012 by sinyaw

一句”食之無味,棄之可惜”, 楊修就被曹操給宰了. 後人說他的故事, 都在他聰明的地方. 只是”恃才放曠“, 惹毛了老闆曹操, 才丟了腦袋. 太多人聰明一世,只錯在一點: 做事的後果沒搞清楚. 也不需要有太長遠的考慮,只要眼前的後果就行了. 美國總統候選人Mitt Romney拒絕公開他的稅單,這有可能嗎? 要選總統,還有不公開的選擇? 公司有個員工,差旅報銷,不但高過準則,數目字還不符,還用了五年前的發票. 這不是想被炒嗎? 曹操定軍山敗了,進退兩難,真不知道該不該打劉備,說了句”雞肋”. 被楊修聽出來了他的心意. 但也不能老羞成怒,硬幹. 找敗戰. 羅貫中的看法,曹操早想殺楊修了. 最重要的原因,是楊修在幕後干預了曹操立嗣,扶佐曹植. 曹操不要別人知道他在選嗣. 楊修不但看出來了,還決定去挺曹植.他看出曹操心意沒說,決定挺曹植也沒請准. 也就是說他替曹操下了立嗣的決定. 這不是找死?

Posted in Books & Reviews, China, Peek into my mind | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Do you want to be a genius?

Posted on February 3, 2012 by sinyaw

The good news is that you can be as brilliant as Tiger Woods, Warren Buffet, or even Mozart! The bad news is that you are probably a bit too late. But don’t despair, there is still hope. Geoff Colvin’s book, … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Reviews, Management Thoughts, Peek into my mind | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Trebuchette

Posted on January 29, 2012 by sinyaw

Who does not want to play with a trebuchet? A massive and powerful machine that fell castles and fortresses mysteriously. It takes many people to operate. When assembled, it lobs big boulders or fireballs over long distances. The movement, observed … Continue reading →

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Internet v. Media Industry

Posted on January 24, 2012 by sinyaw

Recently, prominent internet players coordinated a protest against the government. And they won. Wikipeidia shut down itself for 24 hours. Google put up a censorship protest sign. Several other sites took similar action. All because the US congress was considering … Continue reading →

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Cash for Green Cards

Posted on December 13, 2011 by sinyaw

Want to become a US citizen? Tired of waiting in the tedious visa application process? No problem. For the low low price of half a million dollars (and you can get it back in a couple of years, plus interest), … Continue reading →

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三國(5): 既生瑜,何生亮

Posted on November 27, 2011 by sinyaw

周瑜和諸葛亮的競爭,是三國中的個小插曲. 最後,周瑜長嘆,認輸了. 書中描述周瑜是個文武雙全的美男子. 他娶了美女小喬. 又是吳國軍方第一把. 也就是說,他是天之驕子,世界上該有的:名,利,外表,內涵,權勢,美妻,他都有了. 幹嘛還跟諸葛亮爭什麼爭呢? 因為”贏”的追求是個無底洞,永遠不會滿足的. 赤壁之戰,周瑜大勝. 但幾次他要殺諸葛亮都沒成. 徣完東風後,諸葛亮飄然而去. 周瑜知道這下不好搞了. 一氣周瑜是諸葛亮巧取南郡,稱周瑜鬥曹:”用計策，損兵馬，費錢糧＂他趁虛而入圖了個現成. 再氣周瑜是有名的”賠了夫人又折兵”. 用美人計不成,反賠了個孫權的妹妹孫尚香.最後,諸葛亮識破周瑜”假途滅虢”計,又大敗瑜於荊州.把周瑜氣到巴丘而亡. 成了三分天下. 周瑜如果誠心聯劉破曹,是有成功的機會的. 但他一心想先吃下劉備,壯大東吳後,再攻曹操. 這策略也不能說是錯了. 畢竟聯軍不如自己一國方便. 何況劉備羽翼未成,乘弱先吃也好. 不幸栽在諸葛亮手下,大計不成. “既生瑜,何生亮”,遺憾而亡.

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