Krabi Pics!!!

As promised, some of my pics from Krabi. Thanks to Winston for the pics!

On the way to our snorkeling trip

Definitely not getting seasick

Group photo at the airport

Another group photo at the beach

An example of the local fare, quite cheap actually

Silje Nergaard

Yes! Back from Krabi, well rested and hopefully I have returned with new energy and resolve for the new year, God willing. Anyway the pictures of my trip are not ready yet and I will post them out ASAP. Meanwhile please allow me to introduce you to another jazz singer/song writer. There are 2 sets of lyrics I like you to compare.

Lyrics 1
East of the sun and west of the moon
We'll build a dream house of love dear
Near to the sun in the day Near to the moon at night
We'll live in a heavenly way dear
Living and loving in pale moonlight

Lyrics 2
I won't disown
Those things my heart has sown
The pain is mine alone
I made this fickle heart my own
But how am I suppose to see the stars?
How am I suppose to see that far?

I am sure you can see the difference. Lyrics 1 is the typical jazz lyric. It has a premise, a love story behind it. It does not matter if it is happy or sad, the typical jazz lyric is outward looking, mostly when hearing the music and lyrics together it is like you are from the outside looking in.

Lyrics 2 is the direct opposite, it is inward looking. Instead of looking in from the outside, you get to feel what the writer is feeling first hand. That is what makes Silje Nergaard special. She pours her heart out to you in both the music and the lyrics and in turn, she might even help you find the words you need pour your own heart out as well. The way Silje writes her music compliments her lyrics beautifully. The mood and tone of her music never failed to enhance the message of her lyrics.

Some say that Jazz enables musicans to express their feelings as no other music genre can, unfortunately I feel that the lyrics have not gotten the same treatment. Not that I dislike the typical jazz lyric, I love it. But I feel that Silje fills up a nice niche in my music collection, whereby both the music and lyrics enables the expression of the feelings of the heart first hand.


Be Still My Heart, Silje Nergaard

Krabi

Going to Krabi on a holiday... what little I know of it is that it is an island in Thailand. Looking to have some R&R and clear my head. Reflect on the year that is past, and look forward to the year ahead. Hope I can enjoy myself. Pics coming soon.

Sleeping Dragons

One of the greatest battles a man can fight among himself is the battle between his mind and his heart. While the heart supplies the fuel for a man's flights of fancy daring him to do things he never thought he would, the mind would take the safe logical step which would look almost cowardly. Ah... the affairs of the heart; love... hate... romance... passion... TO HELL WITH THEM!!! DAMN THEN ALL!!! (I would much rather use the F word but I shall not)

Meeting up with a long lost friend is always done with anticipation, wondering how he or she has been doing all those years you guys were out of contact. But meeting up with a long lost friend that you once had liked is a different story. (Yeah yeah, I can almost hear the whooting and the teasing now.) Yes, for those of you who did not know, Eugene (the writer of this blog) is a guy with his fair share of crushes on girls. A close lady friend of mind advised against the meeting saying basically that this whole "affairs of the heart" and "old flame" thing is too difficult to predict. I might just do something really foolish and stupid.

But is has been years since I saw her, surely the feelings would have died down by now, surely God given logic and reason would prevail as it did years ago telling me that we are not really suited for each other. Boy was I wrong. During the whole time I was with her at lunch, the old feelings begin to surface again, my heart was pulling me to one side with my mind pulling me to another, the battle lines were drawn, war had began and I was in on man's land.

I spent a great deal of effort keeping my feelings in check and with the frustration building up as the lunch went on, it required an even greater effort to keep my feelings in check. It just became a vicious cycle which went on and on. The way I see it is this, I can either divorce myself from all logic and reason and just go for it (which would be suicidal) or I should follow logic and reason and never see her again. But I believe that God wants me to maintain the friendship without letting it go to the next level. So I think my only option is to do my best to keep my feelings in check and let "sleeping dragons lie" as they say. If this is what God wants me to do then I am sure he would help me. But sleeping dragons have a way of being awakened by the occasional knight in shinning armour trying to save his damsel in distress. If that happens then...

The bottomline is this, whatever happens, it would be a difficult journey for me to discipline my heart and get it in control. God help me

Stacey Kent

A Prominent jazz critic once said this about Stacey Kent, "To hear Stacey is to love her". I agree. If any of you think that Diana Krall is good jazz, you have not heard Stacey Kent. In fact when compared to Stacey, I feel that Diana Krall is way way out of her league. This is the promo she did for her latest album "Breakfast On The Morning Tram" enjoy.... and eat you heart out Diana Krall!!!

Paper Boats

How come these precious things were made to seem remote?
How come the words I weighed were forced back down my throat?
There was no room for honesty
No quarter that was mine
No noble cause
I tried to fake a life
To fool those snapping jaws

From here I dare to launch
My flimsy paper boats
I shove each gently from the shore
God guard it where it floats
They must not drift too far from You
If you sense danger cause they are too frail
In time they will catch Your wind
And fly with billowed sails

Mike Mcgurk

In Christ Alone

In Christ alone I place my trust
And find my glory in the power of the cross
In every victory let it be said of me
My source of strength, my source of hope
Is Christ alone

Grounded

Due to the Hari Raya holidays I have been grounded. It is this only week now in a very long time where I have not taken a plane or a bus ride to some far away place. It is always good to be home of course, and I have taken the time to consolidate my thoughts about all the travelling around I have been doing and in the course of doing so learnt a few things about myself.

The first thing I learn is about money. Since I travel so often, it is hard to keep up a social life locally. Does that mean I have no social life and that is why I can travel so often? No. Frankly I don't think the amount of money I earn is enough to justify scarificing my friendships and relationship here locally. In fact, if it is just about the money I would much rather take a lower paying job and stay well connected with friends and family.

I know it makes no sense. But I feel that you can't put a price tag on the friendships you have taken so long to build with so much effort. It is priceless. So in terms of value, if I have to choose between a pay cheque and something priceless. I will choose something priceless. So the bottomline is that I am not doing all this travelling for the money no matter how good it might be. And if I ever fall into the trap of just working for the money, it will be pointless and worthless.

The second thing is to learn from all this exposure and experience I am getting when I am overseas. No, I am not learning a tangible subject like math or science, but something intangible that I can't explain in words. I seem to be developing an instinct that I know will serve me well later in life. Something like learning how to ride a bicycle or learning how to swim.

The third thing is that this arrangement will not last forever, sooner or later I will have to move on. I believe that I have mentioned in an earlier post that I feel that this is what God wants me to do in order to prepare me for his plans for me in the future. So if God were to call, this arrangement would have to end.

The fourth thing is that my source of strength and hope comes from God alone. When you are in a foreign country full of strangers and you need help. You can always call on Him and He will answer you. As a result of all my travels, I have learnt to depend more on Him and hopefully build a deeper relationship with Him.

It is ironic that in my act of reaching out and travelling around, I have been able to dig deeper into myself and learn more about myself and God. He works in mysterious ways.

Guidance

My old commando friend suddenly posted a question to me a few weeks ago on MSN. It went something like this, " How do you know if you have found the love of your life? Does God tell you? Will He provide one specially for you?

A bit surprised by this line of questioning, I ask him where did all that questions came from. He told me that he has fallen for a girl he knows in university. I told him what any Christian brother would tell another, I told him to pray about it. Then he asked me if I had tried praying about something like that before and how it turned out. I told him that I have tried it on a few occasions only to either draw a complete blank from God and/or make a horrible mistake.

Not very encouraging right? But I added that that is just my personal experience and things might turn out very differently for him and again emphasize that he should pray about it. When he asked about how I go aout this matter now I said, "For me when it comes, it comes. Going without it is no big loss."

Looking to God for big decisions is never easy. First of all it is difficult to get an answer, in my experience at least. Second, it might be an answer you might not like. God's answer might require you to make so-called "unpopular" decisions, decisions that might even cause you to be shunned even by your Christian peers. So what happens when God's answer is not the answer you had hoped for? What would you do? Would you go the way which you prefer or follow God's guidance however unpopular and difficult it might be?

Of course every Christian would give the model answer and say that God's will is always better. After all the Bible says that all things happen for the good of those who love Him and do His will. But I am sick of model answers, examine yourself and ask yourself what you are really going to do. As for my commando friend, I pray he will do the right thing even if it is not what he had hoped for.

Obligations

Recent events in my company has cause me to question who I am obligated to. Am I obligated to the customer or to my boss? My boss promised a certain customer in Jakarta that he will visit the customer this week (the customer requested the visit). So last week when I was in Jakarta, I told this customer that my boss was coming as promised and he(the customer) was looking forward to it. I gave this customer my word.

But due to some crappy planning (in my opinion) by my boss, he had to postpone the trip to an as yet undetermined date. Now I must be the bearer of bad news to this customer and no doubt bear the brunt of his complains. In other words, I must put up with all the shit but that is not important, the important thing is that I broke my word to the customer. Now this is not the first time this sort of thing happened, there were quite a few times whereby I have to go back on my word just because my boss couldn't deliver on his.

Now I am not dissing my boss at all, my question is to what extent am I obligated to the customer who is paying for a top quality product? In other words, if earning my paycheck requires me to go back on my word, whether or not it is on behalf of my boss then is it right? Am I doing right by God breaking promises I have made to other people? Well it sure felt wrong to me, each time I do it I feel a slight sense of guilt. The worrying thing is that even that is beginning to fade. God help me to sort this out.

I am Back!

Yes! I am back after three weeks abroad. I am off now till the end of the week. Being abroad for this long made me confront something about myself, something very human. Manpower changes in the company I am working in will cause me to travel quite often, more often than what I am doing now. Now I know a lot of people will jump at the chance to travel for their work but I was honestly burnt out after travelling for so long.

Now I am asking myself lots of questions like, is this all worth it? Are all my efforts and sacrifices abroad appreciated at home? Is this what God wants for me? And if so what am I suppose to do with this chance I am given?

Honestly, I am starting not to like this new arrangement. Could it be time to leave this company? No, I don't think so. Sometimes I guess God plans our lives in a way that we might not like, so perhaps I should bite the bullet and get on with it, maybe there is a hidden purpose or blessing in all this, maybe I should give it time.

The Long Haul

I will not be updating this blog for quite some time. I will be abroad until 13th of August, work stuff. Hopefully will have lots of stuff to update by then. Seeya!

Whale

One thing I like about the way Douglas Adams writes "Hitch-hiker's Guide To The Galaxy" is that he does not use the main characters and plot to get his point across, but he uses minor characters and subplots. That way you don't really have to read to whole book to get the gist of his message.

One of my favourite minor characters is the Whale. The Whale appeared suddenly out of nowhere on top of a planet called "Magrathea" alongside a pot of flowers (which also appeared out of nowhere) falling towards the ground. The Whale had a very self-aware existential life of discovery which sadly lasts only a minute before it impacts the ground, leaving a large crater and quite a lot of atomized whale remains. During the short time when it was alive, the whale asked questions like, "What am I?" "What is my purpose in life?" and things like that before falling to its death.

I think the whale represents all of us, the moment we appear on this earth we are already hurdling to our deaths. While we try to search for the answers to life it will already be too late, we would already leave a crater on the ground, the pot of flowers falling alongside us would be the flowers someone would leave on our gravesite.

I know all that sounds a bit morbid but it is the truth. The good news is that this apparent "freefall" in our lives is avoidable. If we know who to turn to. I do, do you?

The Church

Even being a Christian, I have never worn the church comfortably. I am also never comfortable when being labeled a "church-goer". Why? Because everyone in church is always in their "sunday best". Everyone trying to look their best, everyone trying to look perfect. When faced with something like that I feel uneasy.

Why is that so? Sadly, I believe we are afraid of being judged by our Christian peers. And is this fear justified? I believe it is. We Christians are a quite judging lot. We judge about what is happening, about what other churches are doing, about a certain pastor who decided to be a celebrity, about how a fellow brother or sister did something wrong etc... With people like this, it is little wonder that people try to look their best in front of their Christian peers. One false move will provoke a wave of backlash filled with gossip, funny looks and people who judge prematurely. I am not saying I am not on occasion guilty of a lot of judging myself but as I start to learn the reasons for the existence of the church and compare it with the state of the church today. I have discovered the error of my ways; it has also left me cold and disillusioned.

To illustrate my point a bit better, I quote from an article called the “The Midnight Church” which talks about an organization called the “AA” (Alcoholics Anonymous);

“… The ‘sharing time’ was like a textbook small group, marked by compassionate listening, warm responses, and many hugs. Introductions went like this: ‘Hi, I’m Tom, and I am an alcoholic and a drug addict.’ Instantly everyone shouted out in unison like a Greek chorus, ‘Hi, Tom!’ Each person attending gave a progress report on their battle with addiction…”

“… My friend freely admits that AA has replaced the church for him… The church seems irrelevant vapid, and gutless to him. Others in the group explain their resistance (of seeking the church for help) by recounting stories of rejection, judgment, ‘a guilt trip’. A local church is the last place they would stand up and declare, ‘Hi, I’m Tom, and I am an alcoholic and a drug addict.’ No one would holler back, ‘Hi Tom!’”

When the author asked his AA going friend what does AA have that is missing in the church, his friend answered;

“None of us can make it on our own, isn’t that why Jesus came? Yet most church people give off a self-satisfied air of piety or superiority. I don’t sense them consciously leaning on God or each other. Their lives appear to be in order. An alcoholic who goes to church feels inferior and incomplete. It’s a funny thing, what I hate most about myself, my alcoholism, was the one thing God used to bring me back to him. Because of it, I know I can’t survive without Him. Maybe that is the redeeming value of alcoholics. Maybe God is calling us alcoholics to teach the saints what it means to be dependent on Him and on His community on earth.”

This is a lesson we should all take to heart.

Meditation

In my loneliness,
When you're gone and I'm all by myself,
And I need your caress
I just think of you,
And the thought of you holding me near,
Makes my loneliness soon disappear

Though you're far away,
I have only to close my eyes,
And you are back to stay,
I just close my eyes,
And the sadness that missing you brings ,
Soon is gone and this heart of mine sings,
Yes I love you so,
And that for me is all I need to know,
I will wait for you,
Til the sun falls from out of the sky,
For what else can I do
I will wait for you meditating,
How sweet life will be,
When you come back to me

The Gay Issue

Following the news these few months, you will no doubt notice that very now and then, the issue of legalising same sex marriages and homosexuality have come out and made the news. Be it a same sex marriage of a certain high profile celebrity couple or the remarks made by our very own MM Lee during a certain public function. The forums in the newspapers will come abuzz with debate about what this person did or what that person said about the gay issue without fail.

I am glad that all the articles and public debate I have come across so far in Singapore have been pragmatic and intelligent which is more than I can say for America where it has descended into a political and religious farce. Which begs the question, does religion have any place in the public debate on social issues in our postmodern world?

Firstly, I believe religion does NOT have a place in such a debate because not everyone goes by the same standard nowadays. This differing of social values and standards among individuals is a fact in our postmodern world which we can't deny. Postmodernism can be both good and bad for Christians like me because while other people can't impose upon me their social values and standards, I also can't impose my on them. This is a far cry from the days of the Roman Empire and the Middle Ages where it is the Church in Rome that imposes social values and standards on all, any deviation from those standards would be met with harsh consequences. As such I can't tell people that homosexuality is wrong just because the Bible says so because not all believe in the Bible or accept its laws and commandments. In fact I might look rather ignorant and stupid.

But after all that is said there is still some good in all this. Being influence by the things we believe in we as Christians can offer our point of view about this issue, but we must be practical and logical about it and not start waving Bibles and crosses shouting slogans about gays burning in hell. We as Christians must present an argument on how and why homosexuality is wrong and what harm it will do to the family unit and society at large rather than preaching fire and brimstone without sense. I believe that there is a way to get the Bible's message about homosexuality across without religious rhetoric and pushing into people's faces, doing that will only turn more people away.

Paul said in Corinthians that, "everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial." Therefore we must show how accepting homosexuality is NOT beneficial and present people with the one and only alternative. Religion might not have a place in a postmodern world, but there is always a chance to slip it in.

Jazz

A lot of people have asked me why I listen to music that even my grandfather would find old fashioned. The thing is I don't really have an answer. Jazz just simply makes me feel how I think good music should make me feel. Whether it is the old multi-melodic syncopations of New Orleans Jazz or the modern Jazz done by people like Paris Match or Jazzinho, it does not matter which era the Jazz is from, as long as its Jazz it will sound right to me. Which is a lot more than I can say about certain christian music these days.

Of course I do have my favourites and preferences, but as I sat at the table with my friend at Jazz@Southbridge last week, all the music the band was playing sounded right. Their rendition of old classics like "desafinados" and "blue bossa" was spot on and flawless. I did, on a few occasions, challenge myself to put into words my feelings about Jazz only to find myself even more at a lost for words.

Fact is, I love Jazz, maybe a bit too much. But through Jazz, I think I have learnt a thing or two about love and how you should love. God willing, I pray that I can challenge myself to put into words my feelings about God's grace and mercy only to find myself even more at a lost for words. But I won't be truly lost, because God will find the words for me.

Japan

I spent the whole of last week in Japan. Although I am not caught up with the Japanese craze like some of my peers, I had one thing in mind... Paris Match. Since I could not get their cds here in Singapore, I was about to buy up all of their cds I could get my hands on. I got 3. :) Although Japan is a beautiful country with beautiful people, home is always the best. Here are some pictures...

Entrance to the main Park at Ueda (lots of cherry blossoms)

Thats me!

Same park

Cherry Blossom tree

A factory I visited

View from my hotel room at Ueda

A huge underground shopping mall at Tokyo

Paris Match's latest album "Our Favourtie Pop" I bought this among others

Here's where I found it!

300

I watched 300 with an old friend of mine on Monday. I enjoyed the company and the movie as well. The movie was basically adapted from the Frank Miller graphic novel which was in turn taken from the Battle of Thermopylae where King Leonidas of Sparta managed to hold off a Persian Army numbering hundreds of thousands with only three hundred men. King Leonidas held out for two days and would have lasted longer if it wasn't for a traitor in their mists.

300 was not without its controversy. Splashed over the front page of the world section of a recent issue of the Straits Times was an article about Iranian leaders making a big fuss and protesting about how the Persians in the movie were depicted. Decadent, gluttonous and sexually deviant. In fact, a certain prominent Iranian leader was quoted as saying that the movie was a propaganda tool of the west to villanize Iranians Now you might be asking why would Iranians make a big fuss about how Persians were depicted in some movie, it is because Iranians consider themselves modern Persians.

It is of course understandable how something like that would cause offence, but if the Iranian leaders stayed silent and did not stir up this huge fuss, I don't think people would link modern Iranians to ancient Persians. Yes, given that it is historical fact that Iranians have Persian ancestory, it is still a stretch of imagination for any layman to form such an association. Most of us would just enjoy the movie as it is. Furthermore, any movie, even those based on real events would have exggerated their storylines for dramatic purposes, artistic license so to speak. In fact, stirring up such a huge fuss would only lend credit to such an association.

So I guess this goes to show that even if you are offended by something somebody did, a little tolerance and silence would go a long way to make you look good.

Influences Part 2

A lot of people think that philosophy can only be learnt through reading super dense and hard to understand books that are too thick for own good, the kind of books that you can kill people with by throwing it at them. That could not be further from the truth. Lessons in philosophy can also be learnt through novels and story books that are easy and enjoyable to read. In fact through reading this kind of books you might be learning philosophy without even knowing about it. Such is the power of subtlety.

But it is not a book, but a series of books I read that made an impression on me. In fact the blog you are reading now actually pays a small tribute to these series of books. I am talking about the HHGG(Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy) series of books written by Douglas Adams. He wrote five in total. There are numerous multiple subplots to the story so it is difficult to summarise in detail (you will have to read the book to find out more) but the main plot (which is set in our modern era) involves a human called Arthur Dent who is forced to travel the galaxy as a hitch hiker because earth has just been blown up and he is the only survivor.

The character that made the deepest impression on me was a robot named Marvin. According to the book, Marvin was built with "Genuine People Personalities" technology and was the most advanced robot ever built... period. He is in fact 50,000 times more intelligent than any human and even that is an understatement. Marvin often appears to be depressed and bored throughout the book series because no task he could be given would occupy even the tiniest fraction of his vast intellect and that is the true horror of Marvin's existence. In fact, there is only one time he seemed to appear happy, after seeing "God's last message to creation" after which he died.

I think Marvin is the most human character in the book even though he is a robot. We humans often feel sad and depressed even though we have everything we could ever want in life, and a little message from God no matter how nonsensical is all it takes to make all the sadness go away even though we might be staring death in the face. I find it wierd that Douglas Adams who is a fiercely atheistic man would write a character like Marvin into his novels. Perhaps in writing the character of Marvin, he unintentionally let his guard down and acknowledge that there is a human need for God no matter how atheistic one might be. Food for thought

Interesting Proposition...

I was in Kuala Lumpur with both my bosses for a business trip yesterday. It was a pretty ordinary trip until the drive back to Singapore. Stopping at a hawker centre for dinner my boss offered me a very interesting proposition. Although I don't think it would be wise to reveal the details right now I can say that it will have very positive effect on my career prospects but it will also have a very profound impact on my personal life. Suffice it to say that it was very tempting.

My job has been great so far, a profound blessing. And although I gave a tentative 'yes' to my boss' proposition I have yet to ask God about it. All the things God has done for me after my NS has left me nothing but thankful and it almost makes me 'pai seh' to ask for more, which is why I don't. So perhaps taking on this proposition might be a bit too greedy, it is also a double-edged sword. Now is perhaps a good time to ask God for some wisdom and guidance.

Chinese New Year

Here in Singapore where the Chinese make up most of the population, Chinese New Year is celebrated more so than the actual new year itself. This year is no exception, I have done more than my fair share of relative visiting and "Ang Bao" collecting. Most of the relatives you see in the Chinese New Year holidays are those you only get to see on Chinese New Year, you only see them once a year. Which gives you a huge sense of perspective because the same people playing "catching" with you in the void deck of your flat a little while back are now getting married and having children. It really blows my mind when I wonder where the heck all those years went.

But Chinese New Year also brings its fair share of woes. Nosey relatives will make it a point to ask you the dreaded question before every "Ang Bao" presentation,

"So How? Got girlfriend or not?"

"Err... no..." I would reply.

My Aunt closed in for the kill...

"How can?! You so good looking how come got no girlfriend! You bluffing me right?"

Sensing that her weapons were being fired, I raised my shields,

"No I am not... nowadays girls go for money not looks, maybe if you are not so stingy with your 'Ang Bao' I might be able to afford one." I said jokingly.

Knowing that her weapons had no effect she disenaged,

"wah... still as cheeky as ever..." she said as she handed me her "Ang Bao".

With that, I said my thanks and moved on with my shields still holding... but just barely.

For me personally, I don't even think I am ready for a relationship much less a marriage. But with marriage being a cornerstone of Chinese tradition and the tendancy of relatives on my mum's side to marry young... very young, well lets just say that you can't argue with tradition, you just have to live with it.

Equality?!

I remember watching one episode of the sitcom called “The Office" on Arts Central. In it, the boss of the office who was basically self-centered and ego-centric, was the first to dash out for safety at the sound of a fire alarm while the others tried to help each other to evacuate and let the women go first. When brought to account for that self-centered and cowardly act, he had this to say, "Women and men are equal in the workplace so if I let the women go first I will have a lawsuit on my hands." Although it was said for comedic effect, I felt that it reveals a certain amount of hypocrisy.

Humanity has been trying to achieve some kind of equality for ages and at all levels whether it be race, gender, opportunities for education etc... We had some degree of success with regards to that but has the pursuit of equality turned us into a society of hypocrites?

Take the workplace for example; an employee can sue an employer for discrimination and receive certain compensations if the case is won. That is fair because the employee was being discriminated against and unequally treated, but what if it was the exact opposite whereby an employee was given preferential treatment and he or she has certain perks and privileges not available to another employee in the same position. Would he or she sue the employer for preferential treatment? Isn’t he or she unequally treated as well?

I guess the problem with the “doctrine of equality” (so to speak) is how we use it. We only pursue equality in areas that benefit us and turn a blind eye to it in the areas where we stand to lose out. If that is the case then the word “equality” when used in that light becomes a misnomer. That is why so many double standards arise in the world when we try to make things equal, which allows the root of hypocrisy to grow leading only to the promotion of self-interest. That being the case, I guess nothing is strictly equal.

Influences Part 1

I can tell you that I am only influenced by God and the Bible, that I run my life strictly based on what the Good Book says. If I did, I would be lying to you. Sometimes you just can't help it, some things just grab hold of you and never let go. Therefore, I have decided to post some of the things that got a hold on me so that perhaps you can get a better idea of where I come from when reading my other posts. I intend to make this a series. I hope...

Last week I caught the local debating TV show on Channel 5 called "The Arena". Its basically a revamped version of the traditional debating format that school students compete in. The topic for the week was that if people were self centered by nature. While the debate was pretty much a one sided affair, the topic reminded me of a school of philosophy called "objectivism". I came across it while doing a bit of research for a philosophy and worldview course that I did few years ago.

In this philosophy, a man's sole purpose in life is the pursuit of his own happiness through logic and reason. In that pursuit of happiness that man must not expect others to make sacrifices for his happiness nor must he sacrifice himself for the sake of others, that is considered immoral. It was created by a philosopher/novelist Ayn Rand. So fascinated I was with her thinking that I bought one of her best selling books titled "Atlas Shrugged".

The reason I guess I was so taken by her philosophy was because it flies in the face of what "traditional" philosophies tells you about altruism, caring for your fellow men. But objectivism frowns upon altruism as evil, a total opposite. The movement waned somewhat after Ayn Rand's death and other more traditional philosophers have branded objectivism as just a fad, something that has faded away. But I disagree, if you look at how the world is at the moment and the way people think, you will come to see that objectivism has more of a hold now than ever before.

The videos below are parts of an interview she did for television so you could hear it right from the horses' mouth (so to speak). I think you will agree with me that she is brilliant, flawed maybe but brilliant nonetheless.

Part 1 of 3


Part 2 of 3


Part 3 of 3

Yesterday Night

Yesterday night, I was watching "Arts Central" in my room, the channel was airing a documentary series called "Taboo" which delves in how different cultures have different reactions and practices to certain things and what might be taboo in some cultures are perfectly ok in others.

This particular episode I was watching was covering different definitions of beauty by different cultures and what extend they go to to achieve their definition of beauty. Some of them were pretty extreme, for example the women from a tribe in the island of Java willingly chip their teeth to look "beautiful." The process of "teeth chipping" (so to speak) involves some shaman chipping the teeth with nothing but a wooden hammer and a parang so it is a pretty painful.

But what caught my eye was the part about people in China who purposely break their legs and forcefully lengthen them just to look taller. The reason they do this is because short people are looked down upon and shunned in China. My uncle once broke his leg while playing football a few years back and the pain and suffering he when through was enormous. Even now, being fully recovered he still feels occasional pain and weakness in that leg especially during rainy weather. But now we have people willing to through twice the hell my uncle went through just to get a few centimetres of height. Twice because my uncle only broke one leg. :)

There is no doubt that being "pleasant looking" does give you a headstart in life. It will help in getting a job, attracting a mate and even being socially accepted. But are we going to change a part of ourselves just to be accepted by a social circle, just to get that job or even just to make that guy/girl fall in love with me? Or are we going to stay true to ourselves and find friends that will take us for who we are, make the effort to look for a job we truly enjoy and find fulfilling and fall in love with someone who will truly love us for who we are? Is changing who we are whether physically or otherwise a betrayal to the way God made you? These were the questions I asked myself in my sleep yesterday night

Craziness

2006 is gone and right now we are about a week plus into 2007. But as I look back into 2006, I can't help thinking what a crazy year it was. Taking it from a worldwide perspective, the most powerful man in the world (for those of you who do not know who I am talking about, maybe it is better that way) dug himself into a deeper hole than he was in, Iraq being a big factor in that. Sometimes when I watch some of his speeches and press conferences on YouTube, It feels as though he is talking to a five year old kid.

Then we have North Korea, one of the poorest and isolated countries in the world whose all powerful leader managed to gather enough resources go nuclear while their people starve in famine. I guess that is what happens when your priorities are screwed up, people closest to you suffer.

Closer to home in South East Asia, we have a coup in Thailand, Vietnam and Philippines each got two visits from typoons where people were killed, causing much destruction and suffering. It rained like never before in December which caused floods in neighbouring Malaysia displacing tens of thousands from their homes and again causing much destruction and suffering. The fact that Singapore managed to get by relatively unscathed amist all this chaos is nothing short of God's grace and mercy.

Yes 2006 is a crazy year but 2007 looks set not to disappoint. Already an execution of a former dictator (Saddam) has already gone horribly wrong turning him into a heroic icon even a martyr. Not only was the execution badly timed (it coincided with the Islamic Haj celebrations), it has also become a farce. Apparently, someone decided it was a bright idea to tape the execution and when the video leaked out into the mass media, we see people taunting him telling him to "burn in hell", while Saddam seemed to have this otherworldly dignity about him waiting for his time to come. Now I do not know much about executions but I think if the most dignified looking man in an execution is the man who is about to die then I think the whole thing could have been better managed.

Now with all this craziness one might be tempted to think that he or she is the only sane person in the world, but in this crazy world being sane might be very unhealthy. :)