It's the twentieth anniversary of the famous “pale blue dot” photo – Earth as seen from Voyager 1 while on the edge of our solar system (approximately 3,762,136,324 miles from home). Carl Sagan’s words are always worth remembering:
Look again at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every ‘superstar,’ every ‘supreme leader,’ every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there — on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.
The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of this pixel on the scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner, how frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds.
Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves.
The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life. There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which our species could migrate. Visit, yes. Settle, not yet. Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand.
It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known.
Aristotle, Socrates & Plato (c.427-347B.C) were renowned shapers of the whole intellectual tradition of the western world. It is from these teachers of inquiring minds that whole generations of societal laws, jurisprudence and ethical convictions were born in the western hemisphere. A big part of their questionings and verbal answers were dictated on the premise of practical wisdom in terms of action through moral obligations. They understand what most people forget, that you must "will" the human society to act conscientiously through individual (your own actions) as people are like sponges. Whatever individuals perceive their society to be is what they will automatically follow. For instance in places of constant war like, Sierra Leone and Botswana, armed children learn and are expected to take a life if their troop leader commands it but in Nairobi or Netherlands, any human life taken is an aberrant act against God and Nature. These names and places do not reflect any condemnation of their way of life but is a study of how we often reflect & act; based on what we perceive our immediate surroundings to be. In places of moral decay & lack of reasoning, our baser instincts often rise to control our emotions in such environments. To control our base emotions, systems and structures named as laws and government are initiated, often with the best of intention, but the noble reasons behind these Rules and Procedures often take a back seat after a few generations when time and situations change and then we have perverse dogma presiding over us. We allow rule and procedure to take over our thinking and sense of right and wrong for fear of doing the wrong thing or the fear of being accused of being wrong. Plato for instance, writes in his compendium "The Laws" –Book Seven ;( On Education): "The State's general code of laws will never rest on a firm foundation as long as private life is badly regulated and it's silly to expect otherwise" Fast forward a few thousand years, and in India a lawyer named Mahatma Gandhi is noted for his practices of "AHIMSA" way of life to humble the British into leaving India.
Too often, to have a semblance of peace and prosperity, we start to regulate our society with either fear or incentives and are expected to obey without question the cane or carrots system implemented for us. We take for granted that this is how it is and this is how it will end. We are not allowed to question the authority of systems and in a smaller scale we ourselves refuse to sit back and question the logic behind our own lives. The wisdom of questioning the rationality behind the systems and behind our own personal actions and reactions evaporates in front of the onslaught of our own fears; the rat race we are in and our own economic and contractual obligations. Empathy is lost in our race to 'save face'; and words like 'kiasuism' gain precedence in society. Again, because real world problems are often ambiguous and ill defined, and their context always changing we (the inmates of society ?) fall back on regulations and policing the system unquestioningly because very few role models in our immediate life is seen taking the mantle of Leadership in acting altruistically. Everybody and everything is busy fighting to prove he's superior or richer or powerful. This then becomes the acceptable world view. Thus are concepts of service and contribution lost amongst the avarices of a normal life.
We are in dire need of a hero figure in this country. Someone all races, rich or poor can look up to. We are constantly bombarded with views of so call leaders who are the bottom of the barrel choices and the evil conspirators of looting for individual gain which many chagrined opiniators say is the result of our own biased selections and that we deserve the people we elect. It is time we need to be the change we seek. We need to influence the world of our opinion through our own altruistic and selfless actions. We can start by believing that we too are able of sacrifice for the benefit of others. And more importantly, we must believe we can be the leader our future needs.
Below is an Analogy of research conducted in Stanford University way back in the 70's:
Start with a cage containing five monkeys.
Inside the cage, hang a banana on a string and place a set of stairs under it. Before long, a monkey will go to the stairs and start to climb towards the banana. As soon as he touches the stairs, spray all of the other monkeys with cold water.
After a while, another monkey makes an attempt with the same result - all the other monkeys are sprayed with cold water. Pretty soon, when another monkey tries to climb the stairs, the other monkeys will try to prevent it.
Now, put away the cold water. Remove one monkey from the cage and replace it with a new one. The new monkey sees the banana and wants to climb the stairs. To his surprise and horror, all of the other monkeys attack him.
After another attempt and attack, he knows that if he tries to climb the stairs, he will be assaulted.
Next, remove another of the original five monkeys and replace it with a new one. The newcomer goes to the stairs and is attacked. The previous newcomer takes part in the punishment with enthusiasm! Likewise, replace a third original monkey with a new one, then a fourth, then the fifth. Every time the newest monkey takes to the stairs, he is attacked.
Most of the monkeys that are beating him have no idea why they were not permitted to climb the stairs or why they are participating in the beating of the newest monkey.
After replacing all the original monkeys, none of the remaining monkeys have ever been sprayed with cold water. Nevertheless, no monkey ever again approaches the stairs to try for the banana. Why not? Because as far as they know that's the way it's always been done round here.
And that, my friends, is how company policies are made.
The last weekend was one with happy overtones for the lady of the house that my wife was looking forward to for a long time as it was an occasion for her to meet up with long lost classmates.
After more than 25 years of moving on with their individual lives these ladies gathered together over the week end to celebrate their alma mater's 105th anniversary in Dewan Pay Fong,Melaka.
She 's been in contact recently with many of her lost former classmates with memories of how things were and who & which part of their hopes and dreams coming true, and with the promise of keeping the relationship alive into the future, it was almost an anticlimax when the actual day dawned as she fret and frowned on everything from her weight to the color of her nails and which dress to wear...
It was nice to see michelle come alive with the thought and anticipation of meeting her classmates again
After a good meal and much laughing, in between catching up and getting to see and know each other again, the party carried on unto the wee hours of the morning with much gaiety, friendship and promise.
The evening calm was preceded with the girls reliving their youth albeit momentarily by congregation and recollections. A walk along the brightly lit canals of Sungai Melaka later on, having fried oysters in the old quarter of Melaka amongst friends; and downing some ice cold beers in the vicinity of Geographers Cafe in Jonker Street brought many a happy complaint and smile into the faces of these gals as the walk and talk got them really hungry and thirsty for more.
Good Times.
.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Goodness knows why, but recent flamboyant attempts at enjoying my present "penganggur" situation have not been sitting well with my psyche. Though the money is still being earned monthly through my consultancy, the fact that I do not report daily to a central abode of duty or maintain an office seem to qualify me to the title and worry of being a loafer in my mind.
It has been a good 6 months since this situation presented itself to me and I honestly thought that it was what I wanted all along but unfortunately the mind is a different beast to please, altogether. My Id has not been impressed, not at any rate favorably impressed, with the current results of my self- bestowed fortunate situation. As a matter of fact, I worry more than ever now of being somewhat useless! Idiosyncrasies aside, I did not estimate that the predicaments of 6 months ago will lead me down this path, as at that time I'd hoped the butterfly would turn into a caterpillar and all would be well with the world eventually. Actually, I still do, but it does not seem to lessen the fear and loathe in my mind of my current situation.
Rationalizing that I should take this time to sit and ponder on my next goal is pointless as I am drawing a blank on every other turn my mind makes. To be precise, money is not the current worry, but the lack of something to do passionately, is. Still, there is no accounting for good luck, and I'd always said that one has to careful of what one wishes for as it just might come true ! Sex is also factored in as the drive seems waning nowadays, could it be, due to the melancholy of the situation? If so, then I am nothing but a hypocrite, because this is the very apex of my wantings. To be financially stable, and hypothetically care free. Without a schedule or care in the world.
But, whatever it is, isn't this a more attractive hypocrisy than other hypocrisies? Ha-ha. I leave it to you, my children, (and the occasional reader or two) to decide.
Up till now, Gunabalan had often been accused guilty only of strangling the Malaysian English language, squeezing the meaning from it until only a vague but high fallutin connotation remained, and it lays lifeless on the page unread by the local readers but now it appears that a murder charge of the highest degree is contemplated behind veiled screens, given the silence of current readers.
As usual, a report of the past few days is required, for it has been quite a while since my last posting on this issue. Last Friday, the hotel owners of Renaissance in Melaka obliged my association with a seafood buffet spread in their coffee house on expense account and so, we indulged in wine and tuna, salmons and oysters, amongst other offerings. It was an extremely kind gesture on behalf of our group that is most appreciated . Rightfully, such wild indulgences come with a price and this was a stomach upset that we purposely allowed to continue for the next 60 hours so as to assist us in some highly required colon cleansing. (Well, what can I say, when life gives you lemons; make lemonade!) So, I slept through Saturday, Sunday and parts of Monday and voila, found that I'd lost almost 4kg's by late Monday night. Hurrah! Good news is further compounded by the fact that the friend heard about my situation and is all aghast about it and is talking about getting the Hotel MGMT to compensate us for our troubles!
Oh Yeah, Sandra dropped by the other week and literally sobbed storied us into accepting a sausage dog that she rescued from some uncaring soul somewhere. She actually brought 2 dogs; one was a handsome white terrier that was around a year old, and this other shiny black bitch which was kept in the car as she was around three and a half years old with scabs and a blind eye. Guess which one my children chose?
Anyways, coffee (the dog's name) is actually a pretty decent and well mannered dog. Only thing bad about her is that she will occasionally howl. Not a good thing with Asians, howling. Bad juju.
Any ways, let's hope this dog lasts longer than the rest, as the children do tend to lose interest in their pets very fast.
KUALA LUMPUR, June 29 — Malaysia’s relatively high population growth rate will see the country remain comparatively young over the next two decades but economic growth is not expected to keep pace with population expansion, according to a report by Bank of America Merril Lynch.
Most developed countries experience lower population growth than developing countries and thus become older as they grow richer but China and Thailand however, are forecast to grow old before they can become rich with more than 15 per cent of the population aged above 65 years in the next 15-20 years.
The forecasts are part of an analysis by Bank of America Merrill Lynch on the impact of demographic trends on investment opportunities.
It also found that the population in Hong Kong, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Australia are growing old fast but they are expected to remain among the wealthiest in the world.
By 2015, Malaysia is forecast to have an elderly dependency ratio (EDR) — population aged above 64 divided by population aged between 15 and 64 — of 10 with a GDP per capita calculated on purchasing power parity (PPP) basis of US$20,000 (RM64,950). Current young and rich countries such as Australia, Singapore and the US have EDR’s of between 15 and 25 with a GDP per capita of between US$50,000 to US$70,000.
By 2030, Malaysia’s EDR is expected to be about 15 with a GDP per capita of about US$50,000 while Australia, Singapore and the US are expected to have an EDR of between 30 and 40 and per capita GDPs of US$110,000 and US$160,000.
The report also suggested however that based solely on the ratio of prime savers — defined as population aged between 40 and 64 — to the rest of the population, the stock markets of China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines are expected to outperform those of Australia, Hong Kong, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand in the next 20 years.
It added that in advanced economies such as the US and the UK, the stock market “can rationally factor in the demographic trend, usually a few years ahead”. It said that there is a risk of that relationship becoming “self-fulfilling” leading to decades of bear markets in those countries.
“The stock markets and financial assets are arguably most influenced by the mid-aged people,” said the report. “Hence, it is not surprising that the correlation between Mid-Young ratio and the aggregate value of stocks traded is quite high for most Asian countries.”
The report said that there were investment opportunities in the education sector in China, India and the Philippines unlike Australia and Korea which have the most highly education labour force.
It also said that Australia and Thailand have room for development in the private healthcare sector and that India, Philippines and Singapore lag in terms of public spending on healthcare.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
(Please click on the topics that interests you, below):
When we think of the Hindu religion, unlike other religions in the world, the Hindu religion does not claim any one prophet; it does not worship any one god; it does not subscribe to any one dogma; it does not believe in any one philosophic concept; it does not follow any one set of religious rites or performances; in fact, it does not appear to satisfy the narrow traditional features of any religion orcreed. It may broadly be described as away of life and nothing more.
Common Misunderstandings on Hinduism
Vedanta (and all Hinduism) is entirely monistic, believing only in the all-pervading world-soul, Brahman, rather than a personal God
Thisadvaitaphilosophy is certainly popular, and offers a simple explanation of the many deities. Nonetheless, many theologians have considered God to be a person. He is not merely an anthropomorphic representation, nor are the various deities andmurtis simply incarnations or representations of an impersonal Supreme.
Thus Hinduism includes both monism and monotheism. It is misleading to call the Abrahamic religions,"the monotheistic traditions," implying that monotheism is absent from the Eastern traditions. Vedanta includes many monotheistic schools. They may accept the existence of many gods and goddesses, but strongly emphasizes the pre-eminence of the Supreme Deity.
KUALA LUMPUR, June 29 — Malaysia’s relatively high population growth rate will see the country remain comparatively young over the next 
By 2030, Malaysia’s EDR is expected to be about 15 with a GDP per capita of about US$50,000 while Australia, Singapore and the US are expected to have an EDR of between 30 and 40 and per capita GDPs of US$110,000 and US$160,000.
