Aspen leaves

Said the earth to the sky

Take me into your open palm

Wrap around me, hold me tight

Lift me onto the wings of a breeze

Pull me upwards help me rise

Leave in its wake my gems and a quiver

Trembling bodies dispersed behind

Like aspen leaves that dance in time

Shake off thy shadows but see them so

Accept them, love them, see them whole

Listen to them, unite them, speak try to speak

Further and further up I rise

Etched into land the shadows shrink

As gravity explodes and stars sail by

A thousand particles sweep to the spot

Transforming shapes to be born anew

Said the sky to the earth

Rest your head close your eyes

Take some stardust, take them inside

Feel them glitter, absorb within

Glow my dear and grow

A thousand branches embrace together

A bottle trunk a watery well

To dip inside in times of strife

Parched is the land, burnt is the grass

Wash thy face, water thy core

And may roots spread across the river beds

And may leaves flutter as they travel

Never alone, never ceasing

Always alive, always breathing.

Does the human me exist? - an invitation into the real world in the age of machines and humans on the road less travelled...

AI and intelligent computers programmed by intelligent people conjures up images of machines taking over the world but of course the computers are only ever going to get as good as their creators. But what if their creators do not think of all scenarios and the computers programmed reflect this mindset which then are used as a benchmark for humanity to follow...the dumbing down of the human mind through the use of computers...this story is my story, it is a real story of the dehumanisation process at work...a case study for the creators of machines...and an invitation into the real world, the human world...

The following is a copy of the email messages exchanged between myself trying to purchase some DVDs online and a high profile merchant banker and a retailer during the past couple of days. Note I have ommitted names and personal details for this public posting but I think I shall send them a link to this blog post!

Dear AniaThank you for your order. Here is your access information, which you can start using today. DVDs will be shipped in 24 hours.

Regards.
[Name]

Dear Ania:Your order was cancelled. I do not know if it was cancelled by you or by [retailers merchant bank] . We have sent you login information for 4 E-Books by [author's name]. Can you please pay for those items total $[].
Thanks.
[Name]

Dear [Name]

I would like to complete the transacton for the DVDs as well as the E-books. I'm not sure why the order was cancelled. Which is the best method of payment?

Many thanks, Ania.

Dear [Retailers Merchant Bank]
I purchased 4 DVDs and ebooks from [retailer] on 9 December 2009. Please indicate why this order was cancelled and why the amount has been refunded to my [merchant banking] account. I need these items asap. Please indicate the steps I need to take to make payment. I have a valid Visa card and a [merchant banking] account.
Kind regards
Ania

Dear [Name]
Thank you for contacting [retailer's merchant bank]. I apologize for the inconvenience that this has caused you. The order that you have requested information on has been canceled by our fraud department. After extensive review, the fraud department made the determination that this order has a significant risk of being fraudulent, and instead of taking that risk, the order was canceled. If you believe that this order was canceled in error, please reply to this ticket and we can forward you to our fraud team for a more detailed explanation of why the order was not accepted.Please let me know if I can be of further assistance.
[Name]

Why do you consider fraud? My visa card and [merchant banker] accounts are valid. Please reverse the refund.
Kind regards
Ania


Hello [Name],
A staff member has replied to your question:
Hello [Name],
Thank you for contacting [retailer's merchant bank]. I apologize for the delay in responding to your inquiry. This order was canceled for multiple reasons, the billing address is in the United Kingdom, but your IP address is coming from the States. The order is then being shipped to a different customer name in Dubai and lastly you are signing every email with [commonly used name], but the name on the order is [passport name]. For these reasons, you will need to contact the vendor to establish another form of payment.
Please feel free to reopen this ticket if you need any additional assistance.
[Name]

Thank you for your response. Yes my bank is in [UK location]and billing address is at my home in [UK location]. I work in Dubai and my IP address comes from Dubai (not US as you have detected).This email I am responding from my blackberry device which will have a different IP again and yes I understand these things because I am an IT teacher. The items I bought are a gift for a friend. My passport name is Anna but I have been known as Ania all my life and this is the name I use on all my emails. My address and names are real and valid and my bank at [bank name]has tight controls in place. Does it still sound surreal? Know that I am real and the valid holder of the [merchant bank] and Visa [bank name] account. Could you not contact my bank before claiming my details are false?
Kind regardsAnia

You have inspired me to write about your claims in my blog http://aniainaction.blogspot.com/2009/12/age-of-machines-and-humans-on-road-less.html which I invite you to read. May we learn from the experience and move forward.

Please indicate how I could complete the purchase of these DvDs.

Kind regards
Ania.

...waiting for a response...does the human me exist...

Hello Ania,
A staff member has replied to your question:
Hello Ania,
Thank you for contacting [retailer's merchant bank]. I apologize for the delay in responding to your inquiry. Unfortunately, we are unable to reinstate [my merchant bank]orders. You would need to place a new order with the retailer. We will make sure the new order is passed during our fraud review process.

Thank you,
[Name]

Hi, Ania,Sorry for all inconvenience it caused to you. I also do not understand why did they cancel the order. Usually if they consider some order probably fraudulent, they check it and then post the money. Did you hear from them? Did you pay with paypal account or with your credit card? Do you want to try the different way or do you want to wait for their response. Meanwhile please confirm the shipping address.
Regards.[Name]

It seems that I do exist... Thank you for intervening and the human touch :)