By Tonyo Cruz (Manila)

Saturnino C. Ocampo was already an accomplished reporter and business editor of the Philippines’ biggest and most influential newspaper when in the early 1970’s, he just dropped everything.

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By Sean Tizie (London)

“Dear Francesco, you are and continue to be the history of Roma. You are not only a football champion, but you are an example for your professionalism and human gifts which have always distinguished you.”

Not many football players command the respect of their club to warrant such high praise in an open letter from their president. But AS Roma president Rosella Sensi is firmly in recognition of the fact that not many players have garnered the same kind of following as Francesco Totti. Today we celebrate the birthday of one of football’s modern day icons.

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By Andrew Jude Rajanathan (London)
“Take a good hard look at yourself and find out what you truly enjoy in life, it may take some time, it may take you years, but I guarantee you it will be worth it in the end.” – Theo Paphitis, Dragon’s Den.

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By Miles Warren (London)

Inspiration is a gift that spontaneously comes and goes without reason. Some occasions one can be overwhelmed with creative ideas whilst others are a frustration of little to no drive. It is when we find a constant source of inspiration that fuels our imagination that we really excel. This may be in the form of an individual, a group, a place or sound, but whatever it is it will change the way we think and feel and guide us forward on a positive path.

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By Kaamil Ahmed (London)

Through war-torn streets, surrounded by the sounds of shelling and gun-fire, Robert Fisk roams. Not content with what he has dubbed as “hotel journalism”, The Independent’s famed foreign correspondent has provided his readers in the West with insight into the destruction and suffering of the wars of the past decades not by relying on government statements or news attained from other sources, but through the use of his own eyes. Whether in Palestine, Lebanon, Serbia, Afghanistan or Iraq, Robert Fisk has been the man who has taken a step further than most journalists and walked onto the streets and lived with the people he writes about.

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By Ikes (@ikesonthereal)

Total read time (bolded sections) = 2 minutes
Total read time (all) = 6 minutes

To celebrate Jay-Z’ electric career as an artist, entertainer and businessman, we got a fan to write about why Jay-Z inspires him and how Jay can be an inspiration everyone. (Our guest writer, too, aspires to follow Jay-Z’s success as a hip hop artist.) Today marks the 8th anniversary of the bravery shown during the terrorist attacks on American soil, and we respect Jay-Z’s decision to give all the money made from the concert to aid the New York Police & Fire Widows’ & Children’s Benefit Fund.

Performing at the Manchester MEN Arena, UK

Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4th, 1969), the man we all know as Jay-Z will be performing in NYC, Friday September 11th at Madison Square Garden. It’s a sold out event, and actually the 8th time the illustrious hiphop artist/business mogul has achieved this. However, this time around the concert was sold out in an undeniable 15 minutes, and goes down as one of the many records set by the man many people may consider not only the best rapper alive today, but one of the greatest MC’s to ever grace the microphone.

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By Andrew Jude Rajanathan (London)

It is that time of year again. The month of September marks the arrival of a new batch of University freshers up and down the country as well as across the world. These new students will emerge from the cotton wool of high school and enter the world of independent thinking and learning.

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By Tonyo Cruz (Manila)

I’ve read about him but it was only this June 2009 that I met Ethan Zuckerman who, for me, is a larger-than-life figure in the worldwide campaign to put technology into its intended use: To empower the public, especially those who have less in life and whose voices badly need to be heard by the world.

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By Alex Donald (London)

Titus Flavius Josephus is perhaps a strange choice when it comes to inspirational people. However for me, he is no less than an ancient hero for our modern generation. He’s someone who remained faithful to his principles his whole life and was no stranger to aiming high and achieving his goal. Being Jewish under the Roman empire meant he was at a disadvantage and faced discrimination from all corners and had to overcome obstacles greater than most. Yet against the odds, he made it… but at a bloody cost. Despite his achievements, he was responsible for what many today regard as an act of treachery against his own people.

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By Tonyo Cruz (Manila)

In January 2001, as Filipinos rose in an uprising that would eventually oust a corrupt president, popular actress Nora Aunor approached Bayan and told leaders that she wished to go to the center of the uprising to express her support to the people. Later in the day, in one of the most dramatic scenes of that uprising, tens of thousands of people cheered when Aunor arrived at the Edsa Shrine, with labor leader Crispin Beltran and a peasant leader accompanying her.

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