#false promises

Read my latest article: https://substack.com/@donnylim/note/p-196090463 and many more notes/articles on my SubStack.

The scars on Victor’s forearm remind him constantly of the day a Ukrainian drone attacked him after he was forcibly conscripted, like hundreds of young Kenyans, into the Russian army. It was a war that had nothing to do with him and which he was exceptionally lucky to survive. Four Kenyans -- Victor, Mark, Erik and Moses -- recounted to AFP the web of deception that took them to the killing fields of Ukraine. Their names have been changed for fear of reprisals. It began with promises of well-paying jobs in Russia from a Nairobi recruitment agency. Victor, 28, was supposed to be a salesman. Mark, 32, and Moses, 27, were told they would be security guards. Erik, 37, thought he had a ticket to high-end sports. They were all to be paid between $1,000 and $3,000 a month -- a fortune in Kenya where jobs are scarce and the government encourages emigration to boost remittances. Victor, Mark, Erik and Moses were included in WhatsApp groups where fellow Kenyans reassured them in Swahili that they were heading for good salaries and exciting new lives. Instead, Victor’s first day was in an abandoned house three hours outside Saint-Petersburg. The next day, he was taken to a Russian military base where soldiers presented him with a contract in Russian that he could not read. “They told us: ‘If you don’t sign, you’re dead’,” Victor told AFP, showing his Russian military service record and combat medallion.

Remember back a few years ago when we were promised that AI would help cure cancer and advance medicine? I do.

Track 7: ( Inspired by King Tubby)

Listen to me all you vain people

Money is the root of all evil.

Class systems aren't natural. but contrived.

Yet, until the very day that you die,

They imprison you and claim your pride.

They substitute Truth with their lies.

O you work for powerful elites

Who plot the oppressed's complete defeat!

In the rat race, you have to compete,

To buy things that you don't really need.

Yet, still you try to climb the ladder.

Whilst, with false promises & daggers,

They stab you in the back. O don't sell

“We’re a family here.”Sounds sweet, doesn’t it? Warm, comforting, maybe even safe. But let’s be honest: in many workplaces, it’s less about belonging and more about boundaries being erased. “Family” gets used as a cover-up for unpaid overtime, unrealistic demands, and the expectation that loyalty should replace fair treatment. Here’s the thing—your workplace is not your family. It’s a…

Stagflation is when an economy suffers from three problems at the same time: slow or no growth, high unemployment, and rising prices. The word is a combination of “stagnation” (meaning little or no economic growth) and “inflation” (meaning prices for goods and services keep going up)[1][2][3][4]. Economists once thought these two problems couldn’t happen together—normally, high inflation shows up…