OPPORTUNITY CAFE

Get it.   We are interdependent.   Economically and spiritually, we are a chain.  A world of links, one pulled by the other.  And yes, the USA is the mother link, economically.  Now.  That will not always be the case.  Change is the nature of life.  Today, the USA.  Tomorrow, perhaps, China.  The next day, perhaps, Jamaica.  Or Brazil.  Or Dubai.  Or Cuba.  What is clear without a doubt, is that we are all linked together.  For the well being of one, we must root for and support the well-being of the …

Luis is a Taxi Driver from Argentina who has evidenced a keen aptitude for dispute resolution.  On a recent road trip in Baltimore, I appreciated his ability to “be his own boss” and complained about the lack of “human-ness” working in a corporation.   He jumped at the opportunity to share his unhappy experiences in the corporate world, as a manager stuggling to balance work needs and the needs of employees in the midst of office politics and pettiness.  It seems the employees were constantly arguing about the heat.  Some thought …

In India, and in some parts of the Muslim world, marriage is entered into much like a Business Agreement (contract) is entered into in the United States.  Under US law, in order for a contract to be binding, it must include four components:  An Offer, Acceptance, Competency, and Consideration (the exchange of value.)  An offer must be presented and accepted.  The parties entering into the Agreement must be mentally competent and of an age of accountability.  Something of value must be exchanged.
In seeking marriage:
The process of Sourcing for  the contract …

Praise to President Obama who is remaking the face of government to reflect the face of America. Yesterday, he announced that he will nominate Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. A federal appeals judge in New York, she is the daughter of Puerto Rican parents. Raised in the Bronx, she was educated at Yale University. Her professional background exceeds that of Supreme Court Justices before her, including work as a former prosecutor in NY. Sonia Sotomayor will bring real-world life experience to the decision-making that shapes our nation.

Of course, the politicos and racists are out in number- seeking minutiae to grasp hold of and contort. It seems that statements indicating her Latino background will enable her to be a more well-rounded, culturally aware decision maker are threatening to some. There is contention by some that these types of statements present a reverse discrimination of sorts. Read more….

When Fabio arrived in the United States in 2003, from France, American sentiment was not friendly to the French, who had refused to support participation in the Iraq war.  Within his first few weeks in the United States, he was beaten up.   Then, a co-worker at his new job tormented him relentlessly, unabashedly telling him “The French are not welcome here.”   Feeling bitter and angry, he alternately felt a desire for vengeance, and considered whether he should return to France.  
One day, as he was at work in the medical lab, his co-worker was …

I have trouble trusting people who don’t believe in God. Where is their frame of reference?  To whom are they accountable?
Returning from a road trip to Atlanta, I could not help contemplating with perplexity the fact that a new friend is an Atheist.  Enrico is a physician from Argentina who does not believe in God.   His faith (lack thereof) had come to light during a discussion of views of God and the “afterlife” by people from several different countries.  Perspectives of the form of god ranged from “Creator God to …