Austin’s Weblog

Police in Romania have caught a serial dater who invited women for romantic meals at expensive restaurants, then ran off, leaving them to pay the bill.

Police say good looking romeo, George Hodoroaba, 23, struck dozens of times in the town of Suceava in eastern Romania.

He was finally caught after restaurant owners were issued with a photofit image of his face.

Five women have so far come forward to officially register a complaint against Hodoroaba, who was well-dressed with expensive suits when he approached them in bars and clubs to invite them for a “romantic meal”.

A police spokesman said: “He was always generous with the order, he would demand the best wines and told his female guest to have whatever she wanted.

“But in every case, he would say he had to make an important phone call and needed to go outside where reception was better, and then would simply vanish. In three cases, he even borrowed the girls phone to make the call - and disappeared with that as well.”

Hodoroaba faces two years jail if convicted, and police believe the real number of victims is far larger than the complaints they have received, but say most women would probably be too embarrassed to come forward.

–News from http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_1361131.html

Whenever I heard the words “Jury Duty,” I used to cringe just like many other Americans.  But as I went through the Jury Selection process, I observed exactly how the US Judicial System relies on it’s diverse citizens and permanent residents to provide an important service for people involved in litigation.  My opinion towards Jury Duty has changed from disdain to that of an inconvenience.

People are suing too much and have adopted a frivilous attitude for bringing a case into court for the goal of possibly winning a monetary sum.  But for the true disputes that contain valid points and arguments affecting society, the jury selection process is extremely important for a fair verdict at the end of a case.  I never thought about it until now, but if I was either a plantiff or a defendant, I know I’d want a fair and impartial jury.

In spite of it all, I tried my best to avoid being picked for a case.  Hehe…

Humans all seem to have certain tendencies that transcend race, creed, gender, cultures, etc.  On this last trip to China, I things I saw that really bothered me was the human tendency to gather and hoard and the tendency to be cheap.

If we trace back through evolution, we find that human used to be a bunch of nomadic hunter gatherers.  Maybe this is why we feel the need to purchase souvenirs and other items when we visit places.  Obviously there’s also a sentimental value and to a lesser extent, maybe even some utilitarian value to the items we buy.  But this behavior of gathering and hoarding or the “I want” desire can be seen in almost everyone.  To add to this is the idea of getting stuff at the least expense possible.  Our cynical nature draws the biggest of doubts out and we conclude that everyone is always trying to rip us off.  So, when you factor in the fact that almost everything in China is based on a bargain system between merchants and buyers, things get interesting. 

During the bargaining process, nothing else matters except getting what you want at the lowest price possible.  Things like the relative imbalance in the standards of living between us Americans and the poor vendors in China don’t really come to mind.  It’s a safe assumption that we make many multiples of their monthly salaries but when it comes down to it, 12.5 US cents or 1 yuan can make all the difference in a sale.  Vendors have no choice but to risk not selling an item or marginalizing their profits while Americans justify the bargaining process with the idea that vendors won’t sell below their costs. 

One incident really sticks out in my head.  I realized the ruthlessness of the bargaining system when a little old lady was selling embroidered purses from a street side store.  She was excited when our entire tour group of 30 or so American women showed interest in purchasing.  The group elected the best “bargainer” to reduce the price so much so that the old woman (who was probably a bit senile) gave a price that was under her cost.  She ended up losing money on each purse sold.  When the dust had settled, she counted her money and our tour guide heard her cry out and scream that she had lost all that money.  The best response that our guide was able to muster was “Old lady, I’m sorry… you should really have someone helping you sell.”  We all felt bad, but the group had already disbanded to find the next bargain.

I witnessed some ridiculous spending on silk bedding, silk rugs, famous brand purses, clay terracotta soliders, among other souvenirs.  The defining moments from our visit to China were no longer the impressive sights or rich history and culture, they had become in a word, “shopping”.  I think it’s a little sad to cheapen a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to nothing more than gathering and hoarding… but who am I to criticize, I bought two fake name-brand watches myself.