From the Desk 06.06
Xpat Magazine June, 2006
V
olume of soft drinks consumed by the average North American in 1999 : 48 gallons
Top grossing soft drink company in the world : Coca Cola
Number of human rights violations against union members, including unfair dismissal, abduction, torture, and murder, alleged to have been committed by Coca Cola in Columbia by a 2004 New York City fact finding delegation: 179
Number of violations for murder: 9
Total amount spent by the US on poppy eradication and other anti-drug campaigns in Afghanistan last year: $780,000,000
Amount it would have cost to purchase the country's entire 2004 poppy crop: $600,000,000
Total number of uses for the word or acronym POP discovered while researching this issue: 36
Number of Popeye statues in the United States: 6
Date that John Lennon proclaimed the Beatles "more popular than Jesus": March 4, 1966
The reaction of Richard James Cardinal Cushing, the Archbishop of Boston at the time : Lennon was "probably right"
Number of people who search google for "Jesus" and the "Beatles" in one month respectively:850,000 and 170,000
Number that search "Cheese": 750,100
Ratio of searches for "Britney Spears" to "God" : Nearly 2 to 1
Most searched word on google : sex
Most Popular album of all time according to a 2003 Zagat survey : Bruce Springsteen's Born to Run
Number of positions in top 5 albums of same survey occupied by the Beatles: 3
J-Lo's dressing room requirements for a benefit concert in Miami : White room, white flowers, white tables and/or tablecloths, white drapes, white candles, white couches...
Most popular movie of all time according to the Internet Movie Database : The Godfather
Most published book of all time : The Bible
Greatest novel of all-time according to a poll of prominent authors from around the world : Don Quixote by Miguel De Cervantes
Number of free copies of Don Quixote distributed to Venezuelan people by the government in "Operation Dulcinea" : 1 million
Reason for "Operation Dulcinea" according to President Hugo Chavez : "We're still oppressed by so we want the Venezuelan people to get to know better Don Quixote, who we see as a symbol of the struggle for justice and the righting of wrongs."
Marilyn Monroe's measurements : 37-23-36
Average fashion model's measurements: 33-23-33
Projected measurements of a Barbie doll, if she were a full-sized human being: 36-18-33
Percentage of 9-and 10 year-old-girls polled by Pediatrics magazine that are trying to lose weight : 40%
4 President of International Operations at Coca Cola Muhtar Kent's feelings on Chinese cuisine : "Chinese meals and Sprite are really connected"
President Bush's popularity rating on February 27, 2006 : 34% (an all-time low)
President Clinton's approval rating immediately following his impeachment : 73% (his highest ever)
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I'm a travel writer and photographer currently based in Tainan, Taiwan where I founded and edited Xpat Magazine, one of Taiwan's largest and longest-running expatriate periodicals. My writing and photography has been published in various print and online publications including Taiwan Today, the Taiwan Fun Magazine Group, and TransitionsAbroad.com. I speak English, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese (to varying degrees) and am available for assignment. I can be reached through the form on the contact page of this website, or at xpatmatt (at) gmail.com.
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