“Brand” Barack Obama

Barack Obama! Need I say more? His name generates varied thoughts among the varied population of the world. But all these thoughts have one thing in common, they are all positive. The most popular man in the world, the most powerful man in the world is now also a Nobel Laureate after winning the Nobel Prize for Peace 2009.

But all said and done, does Barack Obama deserve the award?

When one puts aside the history, emotions, and dwells on the merits on which he was awarded the prize on a cold, dark night, a few doubts do arise.

Barack Obama was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace for his efforts to strengthen world diplomacy and rid the world of nuclear weapons. Barack Obama’ s efforts to strengthen world diplomacy have not yet bared fruit or something noteworthy. Iran hasn’t abandoned its nuclear weapons program while pirates roam the waters off the Somalian coast like its their own backyard. Barack Obama made a speech about bringing the U.S. and the Muslim world closer, but no major treaties have been signed. He has made speeches about making Earth a nuclear free world, again no concrete agreements have been concluded. All very good intentions but nothing to show for them.

Barack Obama is the commander-in-chief of an army fighting two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Here lies the irony.

Barack Obama is just nine months into his presidency.There were 204 other contenders with at least a few who have devoted decades to further the cause of peace and have milestones to show for it.

So did “brand” Barack Obama win the award. Did his charisma win when compared to the achievements of the other contenders? Make no bones about it, I am a big supporter of Barack Obama but have a few doubts creeping into my mind whether he actually deserved the award.

A TOTAL KNOCKOUT

Spoorthi-2009, the Jain college PU Fest was an absolute delight with spine-tingling events and hair-raising crowds. It was every bit of entertainment you could ask for, with competitions that ranged from the usual to the plain bizarre. This was one fest that’s going down in the books, you ask why so much hoopla for a fest just like another, here’s why for the soldiers are home with a fine victory and a oh too sweet souvenir ,THE OVERALL CHAMPIONSHIP TROPHY to be exact0, a rapturous trophy that looks worth the fight.

Organized by Jain College V.V Puram, this PU fest was a challenging and a pleasant learning experience. It was definitely no plain sailing winning the title of the ‘Overall Champions’, but being who we are and the institution we represent, I think winning is what we do the best.

For those inquisitive few, who want a glint of the actual scorecard here’s an excerpt.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANGEMENT- II PLACE

BUSINESS QUIZ                                  – I PLACE

BRAND MAKEOVER                          – II PLACE

This was a victory that the commerce forum will indeed nail down, here’s hoping for many such treats in the times to come.

P.S: kudos to the participants for the splendiferous homecoming.

FRIDAY TREAT,YOU IN??

If  your thinking that the recent crisis preliminary was the only spice in an all too predictable week, well think again, for the week just got spicier ….

Brace yourselves for a boisterous Friday for the business quiz is here to help bring this week to an impressive close. So don your thinking caps and polish those brains for you’re sure going to need it coz this one’s going to be no  smooth sail.

With the promise of questions that demand the best from your ingenious side, this is one competition that will test your knowledge to the farthest corner of your brain.

Getting to the more cardinal side:

• Teams of 2 are allowed.
• The preliminary and the finals will be held on the same day.
• Answers will be in written.

Make sure you come prepared for you don’t want to be left squirming in your seats, which this event also happens to promise.:)

Noorie Fathima, Student Representative, Colossus

WHO KNEW??

American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating one olive from each salad in first class.

Every 23 seconds a Tupperware party starts somewhere in the world.

Winston Churchill was born in a ladies’ room during a dance.

More than 20% of the votes in the 2001 elections in Argentina were invalid.

Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great, and Dostoyevsky were all epileptics (aka brain disorder).

The Mall in Washington, D.C. is 1.4 times larger than Vatican City.

72% of people in Mali earn less than $1 per day.

Noorie Fathima, Student Representative, Colossus

END OF GLOOM?

Looks like Japan’s going to see the end of its murky days with the sun shining again on the island.

The world’s second-largest economy grew 0.9% in the second quarter from the first three months of the year, recent figures showed. Japan joins France and Germany in terms of leading nations that are showing positive growth after a torrid year. It seems quite a turnaround for Japan, whose gross domestic product (GDP) was declining at its quickest pace ever – 13.1% on an annualized basis – in the final three months of last year.

What does this mean for the global economy? Asian benefits – In the first instance, it’s very positive for all the countries in Asia. Their largest economy is showing signs of recovery, which means increased Japanese demand for their products and greater trade between the nations. Japan was helped by its biggest trading partner, China, which also showed signs of a rebound in its second quarter, as its $586bn (£355bn) stimulus package started to kick in and boost consumer demand. China’s economy grew at an annual rate of 7.9% between April and June, up from 6.1% in the first quarter. For Japan, the implications of such a boost are obvious. Japan’s exports rebounded 6.3% during the quarter, the first gain in more than a year. This is also important for Europe. Japan is the European Union’s sixth-largest export market and the fourth-biggest buyer of European imports, according to 2007 figures from the European Commission. Any boost to Japan is a boost to its major partners. But that does not mean the nascent economic recoveries in Europe and Japan are the same.

“You have to differentiate between what’s been happening in Europe and the situation in Japan,” says Peter Dixon, an economist at Commerzbank. “In Europe, there’s been a rebound in real activity,” he adds, meaning that domestic demand has actually picked up in France and Germany.

The Japanese government unveiled a 15.4 trillion yen ($162bn; £100bn) package in April, on top of two other stimulus boosts in the previous year, taking the total public stimulus to the economy to about $260bn. Many say that this massive flow of money is doing its job and boosting the Japanese economy.

With burly economies like Japan showing tell tale signs of desperately needed recovery; let’s hope that the other crippled,  like the U.S.A also show some much needed optimism in the current global scenario.

Noorie Fathima, Student Representative, Colossus

BATTLE GROUND ON MONDAY!!

Get geared up for an exciting week for the much awaited CRISIS MANAGEMENT preliminaries are finally going to be underway on Monday the 24^th August, 2009.

For those who aren’t acquainted with this competition here’s a little help.

• Teams of only 4 are allowed.
• A couple of thorny situations are given to you of whose feasible solutions the participants need to give.
• Solutions to the crisis given will be in written.
• Solutions should be realistic not a result of your fantasies.

P.S: Those who have a way with squeezing themselves out from chaotic situations should definitely give this a shot.

Noorie Fathima, Student Representative, Colossus

Product Launch Competition

The preliminary competition of PRODUCT LAUNCH is scheduled for Monday, 27th of July, 2009 at 3:00 pm. The competition will be held in Room Nos. 108, 109 and 117.

The final will be held on July 31st, 2009 at 3:00 pm in Room No. 109.

Noorie Fathima, Student Representative, Colossus

LEAPS AND BOUNDS

With the markets still recuperating from the after shock of global meltdown, it had been praying for a miracle to set the pace going again and it seems to be, that those prayers might just have been answered.

India’s largest Telco Bharti Airtel on Monday said it is in talks to acquire a 49% stake in Africa’s largest Telco MTN to create an entity stretching from the Cape of Good Hope across the African continent, West Asia and the Indian Subcontinent with revenues of about $20 billion and over 200 million subscribers. The combined entity will be amongst the top five operators globally. With this deal, the new entity will cover almost 24 countries, most of them categorized under high-growth geographies. Since there is a synergy between the strategic intent of Bharti and MTN, hence they will complement each other in achieving the necessary mandate.
According to sources: The South African Telco will get a 36% economic interest in Bharti in return for offloading the minority stake. The deal size is estimated to be worth over $23 billion.

This proposed merger with Africa’s MTN group will create a telecom giant, fourth largest in terms of subscribers, among the global telecom companies.
Recently, Bharti Airtel announced that its mobile phone subscriber base had crossed the 100 million mark, making the company world’s third largest single country service provider. Little did the world know that in one big leap, the telecom giant would consider doubling the subscriber base with a merger.

With this deal showing signs of near completion. The newly merged companies can divide their growth strategies with MTN pursuing expansion over Africa and the Middle East; bharti airtel can drive growth in Asia and India.

According to sources it is said that  Standard Chartered is advising Bharti while Bank of America ,Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank are advising MTN.The merger will be India’s biggest-cross border deal, eclipsing Tata Steel’ acquisition of Anglo-Dutch steel major Corus for $12.2 billion in 2006.
Bharti and MTN have agreed to hold exclusive talks with each other till July 31, 2009. As per Bharti’s disclosure to the stock exchange MTN would hold 25% in the Indian Telco after the deal, while the re-mainder would be held directly by MTN shareholders.

With this deal having hit the rocks before due to differences in thinking0, here’s hoping for a breakthrough between these telecom giants which will not only help invigorate the sluggish Indian market but will also have a positive impact on the world market as well.

Noorie Fathima, Student Representative, Colossus

COLOSSUS INAUGURATION

The colossus inauguration that was held on 24 June, 2009 was a smashing hit thanks to the efforts put in by the commerce department and all the students involved. It was an event that not only inspired the students but also gave them something to look forward to. The event gave the students an insight into the various competitions and activities that will be held in the course of the year which helped the students gear up for the coming future. what also helped the students further, were  the encouraging words and experiences shared by the senior members of colossus which helped them connect to their own confused selves making them less uncertain about what they want to do and all the more positive.

The event was a brilliant one but, thanks to the magnetic presence of Mr.Janardhan Subramanian, it was made an unforgettable one.

Mr.Janardhan Subramanian is the Registrar of Christ University and the Dean of faculty of commerce and management. He is a man with tons of experience behind him in varied fields. He has 30 years of industrial experience in not only marketing and management but also banking and law; he was also the Managing Director of a petroleum company in East Africa.

His experience in the field of commerce was definitely a tool in enlightening the students about the ways of the trade.  He stressed on the need for commerce and the potential that us, the commerce students had in an ever growing society and this helped the students to become more confident and certain about their future.

Finally, the event came to an end leaving the students heady with anticipation and rearing to go! Most importantly it left them with the hope to look forward to a future that is bright with numerous possibilities. A dream that could come true.

Noorie Fathima, Student Representative, Colossus

COLOSSAL FUN !

College can get very predictable and mind-numbing at times but we’ve got just the thing to pump you up and get that adrenaline going.

We at the commerce association, exuberant as we are, know how to keep them light bulbs flashing, set those IQ’s soaring and get those brains racking, with a plethora of activities that explore every iota of skill and gut you possess .

We are a blast of inspiration and opportunity combined with a refreshing amount of innovation and a modest degree of originality.

We are COLOSSUS!!!!!!! –for Christ PU college’s aspiring commerce enthusiasts.

Those of you who are uninitiated in the world of colossus

Here’s a little sneak peek into what we have in store for you.

Product launch-if marketing is your cuppa tea, then look no further.

Event manager- like to have things your way??

Crisis management- for those who always manage to squeeze their way out of sticky situations

Business quiz- to help enlighten you about the world of business and it’s most significant comings and goings.

Business launch –if you happen to have entrepreneurial skills and a way with innovative ideas then, business launch is precisely what you are looking for.

Service launch- can you resist a challenge????? If no, then service launch should hold your utmost attention, with challenges that quite simply live up to their meanings.

And countless other explosive activities bound to keep your days brimming with expectancy and excitement.

Snazzing it up!!!

Noorie Fathima, Student representative, Colossus