Saturday, November 27, 2010

Two good reads for Saturday

This is a wonderfully entertaining read and reminds me of the brilliant brains this author has been lucky enough to meet and listen to along the way. It's an acceptance speech for a lawyer's award in Canada. I've never heard of the man (Leon Getz) nor the award, but as it was featured on David Baines' blog I thought it worth a read. That turned out to be a smart decision. Here's an excerpt:
"F.E. Smith, the great English barrister, once said of Winston Churchill that he had spent the best years of his life preparing his impromptu remarks. These are my impromptu remarks.

"It is said that following a lengthy and somewhat difficult argument in the Supreme Court of Canada, the late Senator Farris took a lengthy Mediterranean cruise to recoup his energy.  Some weeks into the cruise he received a cable from one of his juniors.  It read: "Justice triumphed". The Senator replied:  "Appeal at once".
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Here's a throwback to when Time Magazine used to be a fascinating and obligatory read (whatever happened to it?). Anyway, this Time report on Peru, world's number one counterfeit money producer, shows a side of the country that's been less promoted these last few years (wonder why). It's a very solid piece of reporting and will enlighten the English language reader to the flipside of the 'progress' made in Peru this decade. Here's an excerpt.
"The largest single haul so far came in early September, when police officers raided a printing press in Lima's San Juan de Lurigancho district. While the house had been under surveillance for some time, officers were stunned to discover the extent of the operation. The final tally of the six different currencies produced was just above $27 million. Fake U.S. $100 bills accounted for nearly one-third of the total, while euros accounted for another $4 million. The rest of the bills were Bolivian, Chilean, Peruvian and Venezuelan currency.
"A month earlier, agents ran a sting operation that netted $1 million. The drop-off point was the food court at an upscale Lima shopping center built into cliffs overlooking the ocean. The counterfeiters agreed to sell each $100 bill for $5 to an undercover agent. The three people arrested had initially agreed to sell $3 million in fake bills. Around 20 illegal printing presses have been dismantled in Lima, each capable of turning out mass amounts of bills.
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