Speakers Corner: People, Protests, Freedom.

Think family

For those of you in Singapore, and watch TV, i am sure you have watched this video. It comes in four languages, but i'm just going to post the english version here. Not a long commercial, watch it.

Warming up of East Asian ties

A short video, along with a few links provided below the video, on the warming of East Asian ties, specifically between China and Japan.



http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/356160/1/.html

http://www.cctv.com/english/news/China/Politics/20030723/100974.html
:-)

charity thru vending machines

Vending Machines Enable Users to Donate to Charity

Appearing across Japan recently is something called the “charity vending machine,” which allows users to donate their change to such good causes as environmental conservation and child welfare at the push of a button. These machines have been well received by consumers, who enjoy being able to contribute to a cause that interests them when they buy a canned or bottled drink.
Drinks maker Ito En has linked up with the Japanese Organization for International Cooperation in Family Planning (JOICFP) and last year began setting up vending machines that dispense drinks with White Ribbon stickers attached. The machines are presently in use in eight locations, including in front of the building in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district that houses JOICFP.

(Quoted from: http://www.trendhunter.com/ 18 May 2008)

social problems, social issues. (Japan)

On the ground observations.

As most of you know, I am currently taking a Japanese language course here in Japan, and have decided to share some things I have seen while here. (This is not my first trip to Japan, for those of you who don’t know, I come as often as once every two months.)While walking to the train station after dinner a few nights back, I saw a little scene that made me think about some fundamental social issues in Japan (I believe in Korea too, thou I have only been to Korea once, and would not attempt to comment on Korea). A girl (probably in her mid-twenties) was walking by a road-barricade with one of those pull-me-luggage (the kind that could be stowed in the overhead compartment on a plane), when a much older man (probably in his late-fifties or sixties), – who seemed drunk from the way he talked and redness of his face –, leaned over to grope/touch the girl’s butt. This is not entirely uncommon here in Japan. So the girl, in an extremely unorthodox-Japanese manner, turned around and swung the little suitcase at him and demanded an apology. Of course by then, a little group of onlookers began to crowd, and the elder man was forced, probably in drunk reluctance, to apologise. I say unorthodox-Japanese manner because in many similar situations, the girl(s) would either turn, give a little stare, then walk on off, or continue walking away with her head down, without so much as a head-turn, so please do not ‘bite’ me on the usage of unorthodox-Japanese manner. We all know that Japanese mannerism and culture is among the few that has retained its historical origins very well.

So I come to my point. Is this a socially accepted norm? Is this a social education issue?

For some of us, especially those living in the extremely well protected (by governmental laws and the police organization) nation of Singapore, such acts of molestation would result in a hefty wrist slap (monetary fines and even a police case). Furthermore, the reaction from a girl in an above-similar situation would probably have resulted in the taking out of cell-phone, and the punching of three digits.

So argue with me here. “YES! It is a social education issue, and should not be socially accepted. Punishments should be imposed on offenders, police officers should be more vigilant, and more stringent laws have to be in place.” Easier said than done.

On to my next topic, partially related to the one above. Train carriages. For many of you who have been to Japan, you would know that Japan is covered in thousands of miles of tracks. From the Shinkansen (bullet train) to the daily commuter types (some are much like our subways, while others are inter-state types). I commute daily on the JR (acronym for Japan Rail), a vast inter-Japan rail network, from my uchi to my school. On the renowned JR system, train lengths range from 6 to 10 carriages, and of these 6 – 10 carriages, there is always at least one carriage that is meant solely for elders, the handicap, and the pregnant. Very commendable. And of these 6 – 10 carriages, there is also at least one carriage that is meant for ladies.

“Huh?” you may ask.
“Exactly!” is my reply.

This ‘female only’ carriage has a time-period, mainly peak hours. For those of you who indulge in vices such as pornography and adult videos (AV as it is known in Japan), the train carriage should be a sick but familiar scene; a place where molestation occurs, especially during peak hours. So the government decides to do something for the ladies of Japan, and thus, the introduction of ‘female only’ carriages.

Now ask yourself this basic yet simple question: “is that how you solve a problem?” While I am not able to fully provide examples of how such crimes could be curbed, I am sure governmental think-tanks could. But from my personal understanding and rationalizing, ‘female only’ carriages would only further worsen this social issue. The solution has to be dealt with from the root, and not form some feeble attempt at solving a much deeper issue. I have also read that women are not the only ones who suffer from groping problems, men too, are sometimes victimized by scheming girls who target a victim, and create a scene of false-accusation. This embarrassing scene could then be dealt with by the man, with a private settlement fee. In this case, exploitation is the key word, and I shall not dwell too much into it, as it is a separate issue altogether. While laws are indeed in place against such crimes, the enforcement is lacking.

On to my third issue. Catch Sales. I believe many of you may not be familiar with this term. From a logical perspective, this term seemed to be coined for people who run after you around malls and try to push the sales of various products. Make sense? You couldn’t be more wrong. Catch Sales is a term used to label people (I believe 99% of them are men) who wait at busy pedestrian junctions or the entrances to malls, and target lone girls (usually better looking ones) to join their various ‘phoney’ companies or modelling agencies. While it is a common tactic employed by many head-hunting firms, the objective of these Catch Sales are drastically different. They aim at targeting girls for various jobs, ranging narrowly between pornographic magazines to pornographic AV. They used to be dressed seemingly decently in suits, and I believe recent laws have banned such attire. So now, the Catch Sales are dressed in less conspicuous clothing (I am being sarcastic, when you have the opportunity to see one, you would be able to tell them from the other normal people, relatively clearly.)

These people usually target lone girls, and would follow them for a distance, consistently pestering them with questions and compliments alike. Sometimes, they might even daringly walk up to couples holding hands, thou seldom the case. Another annoyingly amusing fact is that these Catch Sales sometimes operate when there are police officers nearby. Furthermore, shopping centres and areas that are mainly populated by the young would have PA loudspeaker systems blasting both the latest chart-topping music hits, and warning messages for girls of such Catch Sales activities nearby.

On now, to my forth and final point; once again partially related to the abovementioned issues. While walking around downtown Sannomiya, Kobe earlier today, I saw a few young girls from a distance, all dressed in trendy clothing and smoking. Then as I got closer to them, two police officers seemingly materialized from out of nowhere, approached them, and demanded an ID check. It seemed obvious that the girls were underage, as I saw one still wearing a uniform-skirt hiked up, despite of the funky top she adorned. While it is both right and dutiful for the police officers to perform such routine checks, why is it that the same officers are not trying to reduce the three above mentioned issues?

Myanmar relief!

this short post has actually been in my draft for sometime, and i only recently realized that it was actually not posted.. apologies..

Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar on 2 May 2008, leaving at least 31,938 dead and 29,770 people missing.
Dozens of the 63 villages surrounding the town of Labutta have been wiped out and US estimates the death toll could hit 100,000.
Many countries have pledged emergency aid so far totalling some 19 million euros (US$29 million). (quoted: Channel News Asia, 17th May 2008)

Play your part in charity:

http://www.ifrc.org/
http://www.mercyrelief.org/
http://www.worldvision.org.sg/

language, accent, and all things said

This video is in response to some who comment on my choice of accents used in videos of my blog. This short clip argues that "while accents shape the facade and image we portray, nothing is more important than one's ability to communicate". And because certain accents are restricted to a small group of people or region, my choice of accent in the videos is aimed at broadening the view-ability and understand-ability.



All comments are greatly appreciated!
(Thanks Mr.Pang, for your insightful comment!)

China earthquake relief and warming of East Asian ties

(updated 20th May 12noon)

• http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/348696/1/.html

Below are two news-video articles from both Chinese and American news agencies (CCTV and ABC news).

A short Chinese news agency (CCTV) interviewing a Japanese analyst on the warming of ties.

I have provided several links below to charitable organizations that may assist those who are interested in providing aid and help.

• http://www.china.org.cn/english/MATERIAL/116641.htm
• http://www.unfoundation.org/index.asp
• http://www.mercycorps.org/chinaearthquake/?source=1062
  

Please spare a thought for all; in fact, spare change is a surprisingly helpful form of aid. For more information on the current situation in China, feel free to load the links provided below.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/

If you are religious, pray. If you are non religious, pray.

what do you want from us?

Here is the original-text to the "What do you want from us" video clip poem...
cheers~
:-)

WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM US?
By a Silent, Silent Chinese.

When We were called the Sick man of Asia, We were in Peril.

When We were going to be the next Superpower, We were called The threat.

When We closed our doors, You smuggled Drugs to our Open Markets.

When We Embraced Free Trade, You blamed us for Taking away your jobs.

When We were falling apart, You marched in your troops and wanted your fair share.

When We were putting our broken pieces together again,
“Free Tibet” you screamed, “it was an invasion!”

(Without giving back to the Birth Place of Confucius, Woodrow Wilson handed us a ticket for the Famine Relief Ball)

So, We Tried Communism, You hated us for being Communists.

So, We embraced Capitalism, You hated us for being Capitalists.

When We had a Billion People, you said we were destroying the planet.

When We were trying to limited our population, you said It was a human rights abuse.

When We were Poor, You called us dogs.

When We Loaned you cash, You blamed us for your debts.

When We were building our industries, You called us Polluters.

When we were selling you goods, You blamed us for global warming.

When We bought oil, You called that exploitation and Genocide.

When You were fighting for oil, You called that Liberation.

When We were lost in Chaos and rampage, You wanted to Rule us with Laws.

When We established laws and orders against Violence, You called us Violating the Human Rights.

When We were in silent, You said you wanted us to have the right to Free Speech.
When We were silent no more, You said we were Brainwashed Xenophobias.

When you invaded Iraq and caused millions of deaths, It was an Operation of Freedom.

When we called "One China", You said we have no Rights.

Today, you are calling us Hans, Tibetans, Mongolians...­

(there are 56 ethnic groups in China!)

100 years ago, you said “oh you poor CHINESE people”

Why do you hate us so much? We asked.
“No,” You Answered, “We don’t hate You.”
“We don’t Hate You either, But Do you understand us?”
“Of course We do,” You said, “We have AFP, CNN and BBC”

What do you really want from us?
Think Hard first, Think History, not Media.

the disease...

The current anti-China movement needs serious evaluation...

Visit China, live in China, interact in China, learn the culture of China, before commenting..

Internal problems require internal rectification, foreign internvention and fuel to flames would only further aggrevate matters... When no help is asked for, when no extreme violations are inflicted, moderation is required pertaining to sensitive issues. Furthermore, this is a sovereign situation. Media framing constitutes and contributes in the spread of news, facts, lies, misconceptions, and assumptions. What you see may not necessarily be reality.

Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and may parts of Asia suffered imperialistic colonization. Where do these regions currently stand? Democracies talk about equality and rights, where were these regions' rights then, where are these regions' rights now?

In retrospect, when the Industrial Revolution was in full steam, technology, science and knowledge was limited, this understanding was limited. Now that these fields have been advanced, developing nations are not given the full opportunities to excel. Equality? Europe and North America has much responsibility to shoulder. Understanding history would clearly help. The past two centuries have been more or less, Eurocentric, with power and gains, comes responsibility.

The Olympics, consistently used as a platform for anit-this and anti-that for decades, the exploitation of this window should not be profiteered.

The world we know today suffers from various diseases, the disease of greed, the disease of selfishness, the disease of religion differences, the disease of wared-hope, the disease of environental destruction, and the disease of history... When would we start curing ourselves?

Gambling... ... an issue?

While it has been empirically proven that gambling activities create social problems, personal issues and increased crime rates, it has been also been proven to have a positive effect on its locality. While the ‘battle’ between ‘good’ and ‘evil’ shall exist for all humanity, the arguments justifying the legalization of gambling shall similarly never cease. Thus during the process of deciding, governmental leaders and representatives from all reaches of society need to sit down together for a rational, pragmatic and open discussion. The search for a balance would be hard, but maintaining that crucial and delicate balance would be harder. From a personal perspective, I see gambling activities as an acceptable source of revenue and entertainment, but consistent governmental efforts must be present for the maintaining of social and civic order.

The gambling industry is known to be a labour-intensive business, this not only creates jobs for the populace, but helps improve opportunities and benefits as well. Furthermore, in light of inflation and tax increases, further provoked with lowered corporate taxes, gaming licences and taxation could offer a cushion for both the people and the national economy. Casinos further strengthen a nation’s tourism industry, from food and beverages outlets to international appeal. This second perspective offered represents a ‘larger picture’, where social issues are viewed from a ‘national collective angle’, and not from a ‘macro perspective’. In general, governmental bodies could use revenue collected from casinos to further improve national investments and wealth, infrastructure, and also social and civic responsibilities. Gambling per say, could not be blamed for any ‘harm’ nor ‘costs’ to individuals, families and society because it is a personal decision. In addition, with a proper educating systems and warnings in place, gambling as a vice becomes similar to cigarette smoking and alcohol drinking. Thus from a long term perspective, gambling incurred revenue not only offers the nation and her population with the opportunities to see an increase to infrastructure, that could ‘trickle down’ to benefit them, it also helps increase awareness of possible threats and harm to excessive gambling.

From an opposing viewpoint, statistics have shown that an introduction of casino gambling in an environment where it was previously unavailable would result in an increase in both crime and corruption. This heavily researched fact has been brought to the attention of policy makers, non-profit organizations, and agencies designed for society’s betterment, resulting in a stronger voice in casino condemnation. No parent would feel safe if his child had to grow up in an environment where thefts lingered in back alleys, nor would any decent police officer join ranks with corrupt officials. Furthermore, vices such as prostitution and illegal money lending might increase in numbers, further creating opportunities for crime and corruption. While these facts are undeniable, they are not entirely unpreventable. Like the mosquito, crime and corruption requires a proper breeding environment before it could occur. A strong and rigid infrastructure in place prior to the introduction of casinos would significantly help reduce the effects of crime and corruption. Proper social education could also help alleviate the probability of criminals creating instability. Most importantly, it must be emphasized that gambling as a vice or addiction results from an individual’s inability to withstand temptation, personal responsibility takes precedence in decision making.

While gambling offers recreational excitement, many other activities offer similar heart pulsing and sweaty palmed thrills. Sports of almost any calibre usually stand as the greatest example of such activities. In conclusion, while ethical and social issues have a tendency to increase along with the introduction of casinos and gambling activities, there are various factors propelling an opposing viewpoint. Firstly, the individual’s decision to indulge in vices such as gambling. Secondly, a social ‘safety net’ created to educate, guide and help gamblers; this is usually a governmental initiative. Thirdly, the economic-stimulation offered by casinos in job-creation opportunities, as well as revenue and charity. The government’s ability to work openly and consistently with casino corporations and social communities also serve as a crucial factor in the maintaining and balancing of gambling activities. Personal decisions and personal choices are each and everyone’s individual responsibility.

Beauty of religion (SENSITIVE POST)

The Greatest Weakness stems from the Weakest Greatness humans have indoctrinated themselves to believe. From issues ranging from political ideology, to zealous religious faiths, and from inter-human relationships to the paranoia of possessive ownership, the human mind offers both the cause and effect explanation for justification.

The creation of things on earth draws both religious belief and empirical scientific proof into a never ending debate, a feud that could never end, notwithstanding the extinction of this self-annihilating species, commonly known to us ‘homo sapiens’.

Religion and beliefs offer many similar traits, the preaching of positive and good deeds versus those with evil intent. However, over the centuries, various cultures, traditions and practices (in certain areas, malpractices) develop their individually localized strands of these beliefs, thus creating a consistently polarizing world. These differences offer the greatest rift between men.
While this may seem controversial, it is in my opinion that human weakness accounts for the imagination of religions. This imagination and recreation of what was reality turned into myth and legend is more than purely a way of human control, but also the excuse needed for human survival. Human survival does not purely stem from the necessity of procreation, but also from the simple basic desire for knowledge. When that knowledge could not be satisfied with naturally accepted reality, then the power of imagination comes into play. Great Moses parted a sea, enlightenment occurred under a Bodi tree, and while some gods chose jackals for heads, others preferred elephants. I love religion, because all religions preach good things, and while there are those that choose to denounce others and maintain a staunch belief in their own, I offer my humble three words: “frogs in wells”.

I am not lost, at least I do not deem myself lost. I deem myself rational and pragmatic, while some may argue, I beg to differ. Firstly, religion is a faith and belief a person chooses, preferably based upon personal preferences. These preferences differ between individuals, and should be respected, however, a parent’s belief in his or her child, and the faith they put into their child(ren) shares many similar traits. Secondly, religion preaches the positive, be that of good deeds or charity. The fundamentals of Catholicism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism etc all share those qualities; these religions condemn looting and theft, adultery and innocent killings. Are nations’ judiciary laws not based upon similar grounds?

I am mere mortal. By saying that, I am acknowledging my personal belief in higher beings. I am not contradicting myself, because hope, faith and belief permits continuity, and without continuity, humans as a race would have ceased to exist eons ago. But then again, do we not kill ourselves with vices, wars over territory, ideology and religion?

Regardless of our skin colour, language and location, we all look different. Regardless of religion, beliefs and traditions, we are all different. Our differences make us individually special, accept it, adapt to it and embrace it.