2023 Wrap up

Every year, I tell myself that I need to get back to writing posts more regularly. Seeing that my last post was from 2020, I don’t think I’ve done a terribly good job. My excuse is usually that I don’t have the time, and that is true, kinda. I have the same amount of time as when I used to write regularly. It’s just prioritising. Although in the back of my mind, there is a nagging thought, what if it’s not just time. What if I just don’t have as much to say anymore? What if I have less rage? What if I’m accepting more of the unacceptable? That is a thought that’s much more scary than the lack of time.

We are now on the other side of the Covid-pandemic. It’s still around, but it seems people have decided to ignore it now. The rates of infection are still high, although the effects are mostly mild for the general population. Everyone is being urged to get back to work, ignoring the trauma that many felt during the last few years from lockdowns, friends and family passings, and the isolation felt by so many during this period. Not only is it back to business as usual, but there’s a huge push to increase productivity as if everyone was just resting the past 2 years. This new push is not going to end well for someone.

This has been quite a year on the professional side. I’ve decided to quit my job to focus on my work in burnout and creating more sustainable workplaces. I really think this is going to be the big struggle in the workplace for the next little while as we make the transition into the next industrial revolution. After the experience of Covid, people had a taste of a more balanced work life and they’re not going to give that up without a fight. At the same time, the dinosaurs in senior management and their out-dated mindsets about work will try all they can to bring everyone back into the office.

Talking to everyone around me and the global research on burnout that I conduct, I know that everyone is exhausted. Everyone knows that work doesn’t work anymore. The problem is that no one has a good solution, or at least, there are few leaders that are brave enough to challenge the status quo. Most people enjoy eating food and having a place to sleep so not working is not really an option. Most companies think people are just resources to exploit and that there will always be someone who wants a job. I think in 2024, something is going to have to give.

To me, it seems that people have been beaten down so much that we have developed a collective learned helplessness. We have normalised stress. We have accepted that surviving is our only mode of living. At the same time, we’ve become more insular from each other and ourselves.

This might just be an age thing, but it seems people have really forgotten how to have fun. This includes talking about anything else other than kids and work. It’s so rare to have conversations about random things anymore. Remember those silly conversations that had everyone cracking up?  There’s none of that anymore. Everyone is so ‘busy’ that we don’t have the headspace to expand on the impossible or the absurd. Instead, the conversations are mundane because everyone’s brains are too full of how busy they are.

One very fun thing that happened this year was that I did my first BBQ pop-up. Cooking the American style BBQ with a menu of Brisket, Pull Pork and some sides. Everything ran smoothly and I learned a lot about running a pop-up. I’m hoping to be able to do it a few more times next year. The idea would be to create a regular event that people look forward to coming to. Something chill with good food, drinks, and some fun. I think that’s really something that’s missing nowadays. People either don’t do anything, or it’s these huge events. What we lose is this community vibe. This space to meet your neighbors, talk to new people, create new experiences. Hopefully this little venture can bring some of that back. 

Generally, when I write these posts, they flow out pretty easily. The difficult is generally with what not to include. With so many things to discuss that’s happened throughout the year, it’s hard to pick just a few. This year, I can tell you that I’m struggling a bit here. It’s not that a lot hasn’t happened this year, it’s just not post worthy. It might be because I’m out of practice writing these posts, or my idea about what to share has changed. Not sure what it is, but it feels different this time.

Looking back at some of my old posts, I rant about politics quite a bit. I still do in real life, but something has changed in the last couple of years. The level of rantings has definitely gone down and I’ve been thinking about why that is. My best answer right now is that I think I have lost the passion because I have fundamentally lost faith in humanity. I don’t see a way back for us. We are losing the war against far-right extremism. We are losing the fight for our planet. We are losing the fight for our humanity.

What I think is the worst part is that most people don’t care to fight for what’s right. Most people are too wrapped in their own world of ‘busyness’ to care about anything else other than their immediate surroundings. They are so distracted by fighting fires in their own lives that they can’t see the real root causes. Even if they do, they don’t care. That’s someone else’s problem.

Most people are struggling financially, and it makes them single minded. It’s hard to care about wars in far away places or what’s happening to the planet when you can’t afford rent or food. This is the dystopia that neo-liberalism has created. This is exactly what they wanted. When people are in this state, they don’t have the time to critically think about problems or solutions. They lean towards easily understandable three-word slogans. They become easily fearful. They become easily controllable.

To be fair, I think there are a lot of people that would care, but can’t. For many of them, they are just hoping to make enough money so they can ignore the problem. World heating up? I’ll make enough to live in a house with AC. Wealth gap increasing? I’ll just be on the right side of that gap. People losing rights? Money can always buy you those rights. I could go on, but you get the message. There is so much stuff going on (there’s actually a word for it called Polycrisis), that seems to have made people switch off completely to these massive issues we all face.

I think that’s why I want to really focus on this work on burnout and reducing the number of hours people spend working. I think if people weren’t so ‘busy’ with work, they would have time to do other things, to think about something other than themselves. The other obsession I have is to get people to have more fun. I really feel like people have forgotten how to enjoy the world and really have fun (myself included). Having fun is a muscle like any other. We need to work at it. It’s hard to just turn it on after it being off for so long.

I know it sounds a bit silly, but that’s the impact I want to make. I want to see people enjoy life again. I want to see people thrive. I want to change the course for humanity. I want to prove to myself that humanity have not gone too far down and that it’s still worth saving. If not, I hope I can make my escape plan a reality and have a nice quiet place in the country somewhere. Maybe then, I’ll start blogging more regularly again.  

 

Have a wonderful year everyone.

Thank you for screaming

Thank you for screaming

I don’t remember the first time I heard a Linkin Park song, but I remember the exact feeling.

After the death of my mother, I was in a downward spiral. There were so many feelings raging through me and when I wasn’t drinking, I could hardly stand all the emotions. I’ve never been someone who was outwardly emotional. I was raised to keep it inside, not to show or let anything out and that was probably killing me inside. These feelings were growing stronger by the day, feeding off my loss and spreading their control. Unable to control these demons, I felt helpless as they started taking over and leaving me a passenger in my own body.

One day when I was driving, a Linkin park song came on the radio and I heard Chester scream for the first time. I screamed along to the song even though I didn’t know the words. I scream at the top of my lungs for what felt like forever and at the end of the song I felt tired and my throat sore. Then, I felt something I haven’t felt in a while, a sense of relief.

I remember driving straight to a best buy and buying the CD. I listen to that CD over and over till I lost my voice from screaming. Chester and Linkin Park’s lyrics expressed what I couldn’t. I don’t know the story behind their songs, but they gave me the words that I wasn’t able to express. More importantly, Chester showed me how to scream.

The buried emotions were eating me up inside and I didn’t know of a way to bring them out. Inside your mind, these emotions are strong. They feed off the darkness in the corners of your mind, but like most demons, if you can bring them into the light, they often lose their power. These feeling won’t be easy to bring out, there’s not thinking it through or working it out. The only way to bring these feelings out it to scream and keep screaming and when you lose your voice, scream some more in silence.

The songs and the voice of Chester will be forever with me as they saw me through some dark times. Every time they’ve re-raised their heads, I know I had Chester with me to bring them to the light where they would have no power.

I am deeply sadden to hear about your death Chester. I know there are many others like me out there that you’ve helped through your music and the power of your voice. There’s nothing I can say that would truly show my appreciation so I’ll keep it simple.  Thank you.   

Chester, may you finally find peace and escape your demons.

God's religion

It's utterly naive and ignorant to think God 
would have a religion.

2016 Wrap up / What will the New Year bring?

2016 Wrap up / What will the New Year bring?

One post. That’s all I managed in 2016. I know, I’m terrible. For the last few years I’ve posted during my year end wrap up that I’d write more the following year, but I’m failing pretty miserable. It’s not that I haven’t wanted to. If it’s the thought that counts, there’d be hundreds of posts in 2016 but alas, one must actually type them out.

I think most people (who reads this blog anyway) would agree that 2016 really sucked. The American people have decided to listen to a con artist and fake news from Russians to begin four long years of corruption, geo-political uncertainty and the (re)rise of the white supremacists movement in America.

I’m sadden that Americans were so easily fooled (although it’s been years in the making with pseudo ‘news’ outlets like Fox breeding the ignorant). There is a large majority in the country that has been bred to hate anything that has been labelled as ‘progressive’ or ‘liberal’. At times even when it’s good for the person or the country. They’ve been able to take that out of the thinking. They have been taught to just hate, not think about why or what exactly it is they’re hating.

What's more infuriating is that Russian has meddled so much in this election with their trolls and fake news sites and the GOP refuses to do anything about it. How can you say you're American when you don't care about our political process? What would they be screaming if the Russians were helping the democrats? The hypocrisy is mind boggling.

The difference today versus before is that the hate is not about a difference in ideas (conservatives don’t actually have any ideas other than to repeal anything they see as progressive), but they’ve been able to harness pure mindless hatred in the American public. This is where things get dangerous. This is Un-American. This is how we got Trump.

Yes, I understand where this hate came from. It comes from fear. The fear that middle white Americans will have to adapt to the changing word (economically, politically). Unlike all other ethnic groups who have had to adapt to survive, this is new for white Americans and this need to change has brought on fear. This fear has brought on hate.

I’m going to save some of my rage for later posts as I don’t want to get too worked up on this first post. Hopefully, there will be more posts this year J

On to other things. 2016 has also sucked due to a few notable deaths of cultural icons. Prince and George Michael, two of my favorites, passed away this year. The one that hurt was Carrier Fisher. The princess we all grew up watching. For me, she was one of the first female characters that wasn’t just a damsel in distress. Leia was strong and held more than her own. She wasn’t just someone that needed saving, but she was the one who saved the day.

2016 also saw the UK exit the EU in what is probably one of the most ridiculous political moves. Conservatives stoked fear and make promises that they were never going to keep (money going to the health system? Yea, we were just kidding). Very similar to the US elections, it was fueled by fear and ignorance. At the same time, apathy from those who would now regret their decision.

While the world seem to be crumbling all around us, it was actually a pretty good year for me personally. I know it’s terrible to think so selfishly with so much going on around the world, and believe me, I’m thinking about what’s happening everywhere, but I guess it’s important to remember to think about yourself too.

We finally started and finished a renovation at our house which is great. After having to deal with council and 2 terrible architects for over 2 years, we lucked out with our builder. Everything went as planned and on budget (close enough anyway). Now we have this great en-suite with a great view. Other than that, I got a promotion which is always nice.

We were supposed to have a big trip to Machu Pichu this year, but it fell through due to my poor planning. The time we had wanted to go got booked up so no South America for us. We’ll try again in a couple of years. Next year, there’s an exciting Japan trip planned. So excited about going back. I used to go every year for a while because I had clients there, but haven’t been back in about 4 years now. Can’t wait to go back to experience it on holiday rather than work.

Here's to a decent 2017. I know it's not going to be good around the world, so let's make a pledge to watch out for each other. Help those weaker than ourselves. If you see something, do something about it. Don't wait for someone else because there is no one else. They're coming after all of us and it's time we fight back not with words, but action.

Save the dream in 2017.

Why the Limit?

Why limit yourself?

I think I've discussed this before in this blog, but probably not for a long time. It's something that I've been thinking about lately so I thought it might be interesting to write it down again. I never understood why people think of good and evil as a dichotomy. More importantly, why do people think you can only either be good or evil?

The concept of good and evil are amazingly childish and naive. It's too simplistic to think a person can only be either one or the other is just ridiculous. Yes, I know most people believe it's a spectrum, but even then, there is only 2 points in the spectrum. To either be good or evil. Most people strives to be either one or the other, but the question is why? Why not be both?

I don't believe good and evil are mutually exclusive. If a person's goal is to Understand, then they must know both sides of the coin. Simply working towards one side of the spectrum leaves you utterly ignorant of the understanding you need to reach your goal. After all, how do you know what good is if you don't know evil and vice versa. Beyond that, what's wrong with wanting to be both? Are people's goals so simple and narrow that they only care to define themselves so incompletely?

This concept has held back our species for far too long. We fight wars, we waste resources, we waste time over this childish concept of good and evil. The potential for humans to advance and evolve lies in the embrace of both sides of the coin. The potential for humans to self destruct lies in the continued battle of good and evil.



    

2015 Wrap Up

2015 Wrap Up

Just having a quick look at the blog, I noticed that I tried to make a bit of a comeback last year while I was back in the US. With a whole 4 posts during 2014 and zero in 2015, I would say that the comeback to blogging was a pretty big miserable failure. Well, maybe 2016 will be the year… I wouldn’t hold your breath if past years are sets any examples.

There were a few big changes in 2015. One was changing jobs. I’m back working for a consulting company, albeit in an internal capacity. No external client work for me. It always fascinates me how some of these massive global corporations seem to be able to function so well on the outside, but looking under hood, there is a lot just being tied together with duct tape. Well, I guess that’s the kind of role I do now. Fixing things internally. I think this will be an interesting opportunity to work on a regional level and see how to better coordinate things with so many cultural and business differences. It's already been really eye opening working with people from different countries. So many things I take for granted or just assume is the 'right' way of doing something just isn't so.

We took a couple of amazing trips this year. The first big one was to France for a good friend’s wedding. I’ve been to Paris a couple of times and I never really saw what the big deal was. I didn’t experience the food that I had heard so much about and I just didn’t think of Paris all the highly. What I realized during this trip is that it’s not France that I didn’t like. It was just Paris.

In this trip, we went to the other areas of France, mostly Lyon and the French Alps. It was simply amazing! The food, the culture, the entire area. This is what you hear about in books and see in movies. Paris is basically a giant tourist trap, but go outside of it, things start getting amazing. I can’t begin to describe the amazingness of the food we had in Lyon. This was the height of French cooking (as the French says, it's the foodie part of the country and they were not lying). We didn’t go to any Michelin starred restaurants or anything. Just your ordinary brassieres and we experienced some of the most amazing food. There were flavors and combinations of food that I had never thought of putting together and it all finally matched what my brain had always imagined French food should be.

From Lyon we drove to the French Alps where the wedding was taking place. On our way there, we stopped by a castle built in the 1600s from an amazing concierge recommendation (this is the first time I’ve experienced the value of what a really good concierge can do for you). The concierge recommend a restaurant in the castle that had an amazing chicken dish (chicken with vinegar sauce and wild mushrooms) that was legendary in the area. He was not wrong.

The castle itself was pretty amazing. There has been very little done to modernize it so it kept most of its old characters. The upkeep has been well kept as I believe people actually lived inside the castle. It was a classic spiral wall design that made attackers go through a spiral walkway of death as they try to reach the central keep. Just standing there I could felt how difficult it would be to invade a castle of this design. I love looking at the archer holes in the windows and the areas where there would be bottlenecks where pots of oil would be dumped on invaders.

 

We then made our way to the French Alps. I have seen these types of villages in movies and TV, but so amazing to see it live. Have a look below. It’s exactly like how it would be in a movie. I don't think picture does it justice, but just take my word for how gorgeous it is. We got to meet up with some old friends at the wedding and met some new ones. We met some really nice French peeps who also didn’t like Paris (which I was so happy to hear). They thought Parisians are all rude and France (and the world) centers around them (which is exactly my compliant about them). I thoroughly enjoyed dancing till the sun came up with them. 

Shortly after we went to France, we went to Taiwan for a wedding. It’s been about 10 years since I’ve been back and overall, this is probably my favorite trip back ever. There’s a lot to write about so I’ll leave it for another post. See, I’m trying to comeback with more posts already.

One big accomplishment I checked off this year was going to Ibiza. Clubbing capital of the world. I really wanted to go before I became the creepy old guy. I had so many expectations of Ibiza, mostly from reading magazines all these years, so many were spot on and so many were just completely wrong. It was an amazing time and I’m so glad that I got to check that off the list. I’ll leave the details for another post as well so we can get into it more. I’m sure future me will enjoy reading it.

Everytime I travelled, and when I see tragedies unfold around the world, I keep having a recurring thought. As I visit more and more of the world, what I find is that people are all mostly the same. Everyone want the same things. What’s most important in life is not trying to please some imaginary ‘God’ or anyone else for that matter. Good food, good family and friends, laughter and love. That is all that's important for everyone. If we concentrate on this, and just this, our world would become a much better place. Maybe then we can focus on bigger issues that we will all have to face soon (i.e., climate change). If we can't even agree on these basic things, we have no hope of working together against such a huge global challenge.

 

Much like the last few years, I have been thoroughly lucky in my life with so much love and laughter. Like everyone else, there’re always a couple of little bumps, but they just make things interesting. It’s amazing when you know you have someone supporting you unconditionally, you never have to worry that much about anything that comes up.

 

We have some amazing trips planned for 2016. Hopefully I’ll get it together to write it all up and share the fun details.

Oh, the new Star Wars came out this year (last week actually). What a rush to see it in the theaters again and so excited that it was a great movie. I really believe this was the best movie that they could’ve made that satisfied both the geeks and the general public. Well done you.

Pup’s had a few surgeries this year, but am happy to report that he’s better than ever. He still sits around thinking about things that shouldn’t be published, but I think he’s mellowing out a bit more lately. I think it helps that the rabbit and the moose help talk him down and distracts him with their general silliness.

Much like the last few years, I have been thoroughly lucky in my life with so much love and laughter. Like everyone else, there’re always a couple of little bumps, but they just make things interesting. It’s amazing when you know you have someone supporting you unconditionally, you never have to worry that much about anything that comes up.

We have some amazing trips planned for 2016. Hopefully I’ll get it together to write it all up and share the fun details.

Here’s to a great 2016. To you and all yours, all the best in the coming year.

      

2012 Wrap up

I noticed I might have skipped last year’s wrap up, or have been too lazy to actually look for where I’ve put it.  Either way, that was 2 years ago now.  That seems like such a long time ago.  Another amazing thing is that I started this blog 8 years ago!  Oh how much has changed in these last 8 years.

Ok, now it’s for the 2012 wrap up.

It’s hard to believe, but I’ve been living in Australia for over 4 years now.  It really does seem like just the other day I arrived at the Sydney airport with my 2 big pieces of luggage and such excitement at finally coming to a place I’ve always wanted to visit.  Who knew 4 years later I’d still be here and have no intention of leaving. Sydney has really become a home for me.  I don't think I've felt this way in quite a long time.  I'm glad that life has brought me to such a great place.

2012 had a few big changes with a new job and a new house that I get to share with a wonderful person.  These things seem to be very positive signs that I’ll remain here in Australia for the foreseeable future.  One thing that I got to do in 2012 was really explore Australia.  This is such a large and diverse country, it was great to visit some of the different areas such as Darwin where I saw the most amazing crocs and across all the different wine regions that are only within a few hour’s drive from my house.

I think 2013 will see a bit more exploration of other countries.  Every time I speak with someone it seems there’s another country that I need to visit and explore.  I still kick myself that I never did much traveling when I was younger.  I don’t think I knew that many people that traveled while I was growing up.  It just wasn't part of the plan when one was younger.  Here in Australia, it would be a complete oddity if someone hasn’t gone out of the country.  Especially, someone who's relatively young.

   

There were some bad times in 2012 as well.  Re-injuring my back and coming close to needing a neurosurgery was certainly on top of my list of things that I could’ve done without.  After 6 months of rehab, I seem to be on my way back now.  Now to get back in shape in time for some summer Frisbee.  This is not going to be easy given I have done absolutely zero exercise in 6 months (doctor's orders).

Overall, it’s been a wonderful year, but I am really looking forward to 2013 and 2014 which are already packed with lots of major exciting changes and event.  Can’t wait!

To all of you, have a wonderful year.  

Evil? Yes please.

I define it as the conscious act of inflicting pain, physically or psychological, directly or indirectly, onto another being without any feelings of remorse or pity. Evil is all around us, the seeds are in all of us. However, most of us do not have the potential to harvest the powers of the seed. One must be willing to nurture the seed, to see it grow within one’s mind and soul, and eventually, allow the growth to take control. This is not such an easy task, and as of yet, there have been no one who is able to succeed.

What does it feel like to be truly evil? We hear accounts of ‘evil’ people everyday in the news; the murders, the rapist, the molesters, the drug dealers, the religious rights, etc. Are these people truly evil? The answer is no. Some of these people have a sickness, some are mislead, and some are just trying to achieve happiness in their own twisted way. That perhaps is evil in the view of many people, but there is a difference in what they do and true evil. The difference here is that these people have a self-interest in what they do. The drug dealers are trying to make money, the serial killers and molesters are trying to satisfy an uncontrollable thirst in their twisted mind, and the rapist a sense of power. These are self-gratifying actions, and although they can be deemed evil, they are nothing special. Nothing more than a pathetic primitive urge.

No, Evil is something completely different. Evil is a higher order state of being. Like being enlighten. Just as someone can become enlighten through the light, one can also become enlighten through the darkness.

In order to understand evil, one must understand the role evil plays in the balance, and in our world. As many have said, without evil, there would be no good, and vice versa. Without evil, the world would not exist. Evil is in our nature, as is good. Evil sparks life and ideas. It is only after evil has existed that good comes in to extinguish the flames evil has ignited. As is good, evil will never be able to be extinguished, and so, it will flare up again and again only to meet its match with good. So the cycle continues. However, it is the evil that first brought about the change. Without the existence of evil, or evil rising, we are complacent with what we have and hence do not evolve.

If we had not seen the harshness and evils of nature, we humans would have never banded together in the first place. If we had not seen the evils of wars, countries would’ve never been formed, and if cruelty and suffering were never caused by anyone, we would’ve been ignorant of our own full potential. It is only by these acts of evil that we allow ourselves to explore our true potential. We have the potential for great deeds good or evil. As we’ve mentioned before, good always comes after evil.

If there were no tragedies, where would the good deeds go? If there were no tyrants and evils, where would our heroes come from? If there were no evil in the world, what would be the point of existing?

Ok, so I went a bit off the topic there. I just wanted to show the important of evil in our world. Without it, there would be nothing. Anyone who would argue otherwise is close-minded and not able to see the views of the truly enlighten.
Back to the topic at hand. What is the action of one who is truly evil? The answer is simple. We can simply look at those who have achieved this feat, in the ways of the good. Those who are pure at heart acts not for any self-interest, but for the greater plan. Great figures of good such as Mother Theresa, Gandhi, or Martin Luther King Jr., did not act for self-interest, but for a goal that was greater than themselves. Great figures are passionate and devoted to what they were doing. The only joy they knew was knowing that their actions would have a greater impact for the present and the future.

So too are the actions of one who is truly Evil. The actions that are taken are not those of self-interest, nor of pleasure. These actions are done only to cause the maximum amounts of pain and suffering. These actions may be random, without reason, and without cause or could be carefully planned in order to inflict as much damage to others as possible. One may ask, this seems so robotic? However, that is not the case at all. Just as the great figures of good are compassion towards those that they help, the action of the Evil one must replicate the same feelings. The victims must know that the actions taken by the Evil one is a conscientious and deliberate act to harm them. There is no remorse in the actions that are taken, and there is no joy. These action are done just because the individuals inflicting the pain just feels it is something that has to be done.

The Evil one will cause the people of the world to shake with fear. A fate far worst than death, to live in fear and wonder. What will the Evil one do next? Who will it be? The Evil one will make the world rethink what it truly means to be Evil, and what they have taken for granted for so long. The Evil one will bring destruction and chaos to the world, without prejudice, and without care. The Evil one will continue to bring the mayhem, never yielding. Any hope of the light returning will be diminished by the Evil one. There will be nothing left but sorrow and the flames of hope will be extinguished.

As the prophecy of balance holds, the Dark one will not run rampant for long. After a period of time, the goodness of man will rise up, and a hero will be born to challenge the Darkness. This light of hope will no doubt win the war against the darkness, and soon the dark one will fall once again.

The acts of the Dark one will not be forgotten however, man will try to make sure that the Evil will never be able to rise again. They will put it in their history book. They will write books and make movies about the Dark one in hopes of helping following generations understand what could happen. However, as with all things, time will make people forget.

People will forget what had happened. People will cease to care. People will once again need to be reminded. The Dark one will wait as long as needed. Then the Dark one will once again rise from the ashes. Perhaps in a different form, but always with the same intentions. Thus the cycle continues.

Moving on Back... to the Dark Ages...

Lately, it seems to be very fashionable to call those who are against corporate corruption and those who wants things to be more fair a socialist or communist. I don't understand why everything seems to be so extreme and black and white with this groups, but I guess it's all projection. More importantly though, you can't be a socialist AND a communist. These ideals are mutually exclusive. The fact that you use those 2 forms of government interchangeably shows how little you understand about government structures. Get your name calling right.

I am not one for socialism or communism not because I don't like their ideas. I think all forms of governments are good on paper and as an idea. However, humans are not built this way (or perhaps just not today's humans) to make socialism or communism work. People today will not accept equality and hence these governments will never work. Not because it was a bad idea, but humans are intrinsically flawed to follow those ideals.

So today we have capitalism. Like socialism or communism, humans are incapable of a pure form of society. Humans are intrinsically unable to follow any form of society in its purest form because we have natural desires that doesn't fit in well within a society. Human have things like greed, lust, envy, etc., that makes them break any rules of a society. Hence, humans have built rules and regulations to guard against ourselves to make capitalism work. This has worked well, and it is with these safeguards that we've been able to grow within this society.

So why is it that so many people today are pushing us to go back to a Feudalistic form of society where you have a small group of the rich (kings, queens, royalty, etc.) and the rest of the people who work as serfs and peasants for them? They seem to be fine with 1% of the population owning the majority of the wealth and power in society. They seem to be fine with allowing those with wealth to change laws to benefit themselves. They seem to be fine with the fact that those in government work for this 1% instead of the 99%.

We've gone down that road and have rejected it. For thousands of years we lived in this feudalistic culture and it has lead us nowhere. A few lived ridiculously lavish lives while everyone is left with the scraps. We tore down these ideas and built a new world where we believed in letting everyone have a chance at a good life. We made things fair through education so that all children have a chance at a good life regardless of who their parents were. We created a society where we looked after each other equally and not by some title. This is the type of society we have fought so long and hard to create.

What's amazing is that the majority of those who are pushing to move backwards in society are the people that will become the serfs and peasants in their new world. Do they think they will be thanked by their new lord? Do they think betraying the 99% will earn them favors by the 1%? what's more amazing is that you may be fine to play that peasant role, but how do you live with yourself knowing you've condemned your children to these roles? No matter how hard they work, they will never have a chance to better themselves. You have given all the power and wealth to a few and they have no intention of giving that up. What will you do then? Revolt again for the very society you help to tear down?

Like a spoiled child who doesn't understand how good they have it. These conservatives/libertarians scream for an individualist society. Little do you know that while you think you're arguing for more freedom, you're tightening the noose on your neck.

What I've Learned from Reading Manga

I know most people will dismiss this as childish. How could an adult possibly learn anything from Manga/comic book?! Isn't it just for children? Well, despite what you may think, I have learned a lot about life from these stories and I think it would be good if people did as well. Perhaps I'm just reading more into it than is there. Whatever the reason, the message in my head is clear and here they are.

(In no particular order)

• You should always work your hardest to be strong. If you're not strong (whether physically, mentally, socially, or even economically), you will not be able to protect the innocent or the ones you love

• No matter how strong you think you are, there will always be someone bigger, badder, and better than you. Always strive to be better
  

• If you choose the right people to trust and believe in, they will go to the ends of the world with you

• Taking advantage of the weak is not power. Power comes from being able to stand up and protect the weak
  

• Believe in your friends and those that you trust, but most importantly, believe in yourself. Find the strength from within
  

• Always believe. Even when the odds seems overwhelmingly against you. Always believe you can succeed

• A life without honor is no life at all
  

2010 Year End Wrap up

Here we are again. It's time for the yearly wrap up. Doesn't seem very long ago since I posted the last wrap up. I know it's such a predictable saying, but these wrap ups seems to happen faster and faster. I don't think the younger me really knew what that meant, that life does speed up, but now that I'm experiencing it for myself, I'm looking to hold on and enjoy as much as I can.

This year saw the beginning of the 3rd year living here in Australia. I can say without a doubt that I'm entrentched in the culture and the people here. I have lived in quite a few places, and no where else have I felt more at home than here. There are so many wonderful things here and so much more that I've yet to experience. I think 2011 will bring more travel adventures than ever before.

This year, I was able to travel to Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, the US, and not to mention all the numerous internal trips within Australia for both work and holidays. In 2011, I'm looking forward to doing more trips to places I've never been.

This year has started a new chapter for me personally. I hope it's the chapter that I've been waiting to write all these years. I've found the person that I've been writing to and dreaming about for so long. I'm so excited I can hardly stand it every time I see her.

For me personally, this has been a wonderful year. However, the same cannot be said for those closes to me. I received some terrible terrible news about family members. This is going to play out a lot more in 2011 and the uncertainity is almost unbearable. Being so far away from everyone is also difficult. I think what's worst is that there's nothing I can do but wait. I wish these were problems that I could make go away because I know someone that knows someone. Those problems I can deal with. These issues my family is family sadly are not of those nature.

I know for most people, their goals change year to year and especially when they start to get older. I think I've really noticed this this year. A lot of things that I've really enjoyed in the past hasn't been as exciting for me and on the other hand, there are a lot of things that I really enjoy now that I would've thought as boring before. Besides that, some of my goals that I have personally acheived I'm once again trying for. This time though, it's a lot more fun achieving these goals with someone.

It seems silly to have goals for this year when there are such big things going on within the family to worry about. I think my biggest goal/wish this year is to be able to write this post next year with some excellent news.

Hope is not a good strategy. Do what you can. Don't wait for someone else to help, and don't just hope that something will be done. Be a hero for someone.

The Dangers Facing Progressive Thinking

One basic problem to progressives is this. Progressives tend to view issues from multiple sides, hence they will critique the argument (even their own) from multiple angles. However, conservatives lacks the understanding and ability to see any fault in their own thinking and hence will only attack the opposition. For the average person who doesn't think critically and just listen to others (even if it's from both sides), they're going to hear more negative points about the progressive argument because they will hear progressives arguing both sides and conservatives purely attacking the progressive view while fully supporting their own views. Mathematically, there will be more negative views on a progressive viewpoint vs. a conservative one.

There is a big difference in arguing and attacking a view which has really been blurred or ignored in today's politics. You can be objective and disagree with a view without attacking it blindly. This is a big difference that most people just doesn’t seem to understand. They think all criticism is bad, and if you discuss any points that automatically mean you're against it. Also, the idea that you can't change your mind is absurd. Being completely inflexible in an opinion doesn't show strength, it show ignorance in accepting other views.

A big reason for this lack of understanding is that in our educational system and society in general, critical thinking is not often taught or valued. We’re taught information and for the most part, are asked to regurgitate the information and nothing more. Very rarely are we asked to question this information or to discuss the origins or possibility that it might be wrong. It is not just a fault of society, but it is also a problem with people today. People today are amazingly connected with information through the Internet and because of that, have become lazy in turning information into thoughts or ideas. They simply read a headline here or there, never getting to the details or think for themselves the meaning of what they’re reading.

Today, each individual has more information thrown at them than ever before, but how much of that is actually used? We all seem to know more information, but it doesn’t seem to be making us any smarter or wiser in decisions or discussions. You still hear the same idiotic and naive discussions out there and worse yet, most discussions are just talking points from other people. So while we have more information, it's not being used at a higher level than simple data.

This is a big reason why there is a growing number of conservatives out there. The conservative argument is much more easily digested than a progressive argument. Conservative arguments are simplistic. Typically, it's either for or against. Period. It only requires a headline to be repeated over and over again to get into their people’s mindset. They don’t need or want you to get to the details as there is often nothing there. They simply repeat a message that's simple to understand over and over again. People digest this simple one sided argument and that becomes the basis for their thoughts. In today’s society, this is perfect as it's how to best influence people in the digital age.

On the opposite spectrum, progressive arguments are very difficult. It's difficult to describe, it's difficult to discuss, and it's just difficult all around. Progressive argument not only requires a great deal of basic knowledge into a subject, but it also requires you to think about the information to get to the conclusion as there is not just one answer. The progress argument typically have to account for multiple viewpoints so it requires a great deal of insight both into the issue at hand and of yourself. This takes a lot of time and effort. Unlike conservative views, it’s almost never just right or wrong, black or white. It’s never just good or bad. Progressives understands that this is a complicated world and that answers to solve its problems are complicated.

Unfortunately, this is where progressives will lose the majority of the population. People don’t want to think about problems. They have enough of their own problems to think about complicated global issues. The last thing a person wants to do is think about other people’s complicated issues. It also takes a very special breed of people to enjoy thinking and discuss problems. This is why you hear less and less progressive thoughts out there. It’s just too difficult to have discussions with people when they only want to talk in bullet points and not really engage in a discussion.

In today’s society, people just want to hear an answer. Much like when you google something, you just want to get an answer. We’ve become that society in all matters of life now. We want whatever we desire quickly and easily. Most people don’t want to think about things, just tell them what to know/think. Typically, whatever is the loudest and most simplistic will get the ears of the people (think top 10 links in a google search). With this mindset in people today, that’s why conservatives are winning the minds of people.

I wish I could be more positive and have a solution to this issue, but it seems quite daunting. How do you make people think when everything around them is allowing them to think and do less and less? The next generation will be inundated with even more information and they will be able to get it even more quickly. What will happen to them? Will they be more resilient than I give people credit for? I guess only time will tell.

Hero.

The world is in a mess and is in trouble right now. The amount of bad things that are happening far outweighs those good things. So much of the world seems to be coming apart at the seams. Some of which are uncontrollable, but many of which are controllable and caused by us.

What world needs is a hero now more than ever. It doesn’t have to be one person that saves the world at once. It can be a person that helps out one other person when they were in need, and that person helping another. With enough heroes, we can push back this encroaching darkness that seems to be spreading.

For 2010, be a hero. Do your part to help the world. Don't standby as violence, famine, injustice, suffering and misery grow around us. Don’t standby as the helpless falls prey to the darkness. Stand up and fight. Lend a helping hand, a smile, and show that you care. Fight for yourself and those around you. This is not a fight we can afford to lose. Do something positive for the world and for someone else. Always remember that we are all in this together.

Be a hero.

What you should know right now

How ironic that with the spread of technology, and the ability to easily have information at our fingertips, I think more than ever, people avoid information and even more so, facts. Perhaps because there is just too much information and it’s too difficult for many people to filter through the noise, or maybe many people have the information, but lack the key ability to translate information to higher order ideas or see patterns. Maybe there're too many talking heads that are confusing everyone on what're facts and what's personal commentary. Maybe our society has become so complex that the average person is incapable of understanding most of what’s going on. Maybe we’ve all mostly just become so self absorbed with our own little worlds that so many have ceased to care about anyone else. Whatever the reason, I see people ignoring the big picture problems. Not the symptoms that so many are confused with, but the actual problems that’s plaguing society.

So to help you out, here are some for you to consider. Facing the new year and the upcoming new decade, these are the roots of all the major problems we will experience. It would be nice if you knew what they were.

Wealth Gap – Thanks to the global financial crisis, which funny enough, is caused by the greed of the very wealthy people on wall street to make more money on bad bets, has made the wealth gap around the world even worse than before. As is the case in most financial downturns, the rich will get exponentially richer because they have the resources to not only survive, but to take advantage of a financial crisis. They use their vast resources to take advantage of others while they are down. Basically, the rich gets rich when things are going well, and when things go bad, they get even richer.

This is not just a problem of having the top .01% of the population owning the majority of the wealth in the world. If you look at all the other issues in the world, most of it ties back to financials. As I’ll point out in the next few issues, it all ties back to this one. Next time a major problem pops up, don’t just look at the problem in isolation. Look at all the things that led to this problem. Looks at the ties it had. I bet the majority of times you’ll trace it back to financials.

In the US, so much emphasis has been put on Wall Street and how it has become this institution where you can make so much money without actual work. Sure, you talk with your fancy figures (that you make up, and deliberatly make confusing so no one understands), and your fancy words and acronomes, but in the end, you don't actually do anything productive. Wall Street is basically just a big casino where the rich always takes the house. Of course, I don't want to call Wall Street a big casino cause that would be an insult to casinos. In casino, there are actually rules that the house obides by.

I don't understand where this trust of Wall Street come from. Wall Street cares for one thing and that one thing is making money. It cares not for ethics, for doing the right thing, or for the greater good. It cares for making money however possible. It will do everything in its power, legally or not, to achieve their only goal, and that's to make money.

Human Trafficking – One excellent example of how the wealth gap is the root of so many other problems is in the case of human trafficking. Human trafficking is one of the most offensive and common problem that has arisen with the wealth gap issue. With the concentration of so much wealth lying in the hands of so few, everyone else is stuck with fighting for the scraps. When a situation like this appears, the scum of the earth will rise to take advantage of them.

Generating an estimated $32 billion dollars annually, human trafficking is the fastest-growing criminal activity in the world today. It is also the most lucrative. According to a 2005 International Labor Office (ILO) report, just a single female held for sexual exploitation yields an average of $67,200 annually in Western Europe and North America.

Whether it is for manual labour, or at worse, in the sex trade, human trafficking is growing and will continue to grow. Human trafficking targets women and young children. Many times, they are lured and lied to about job opportunities, and sometimes, knowingly sold by their own families. This is how awful a wealth gap symptom can get. While there are hundreds getting multimillion dollar bonuses on wall street for gambling with the world’s money, others are stuck to live in a world they are bought and sold like animals in this ‘civilised’ world we live in. While a group of people thinks about what ridiculous mansion they should buy next, another lives in a hell every day of their lives.

The Military Industrial Complex – President Eisenhower warned in his farewell address that ‘we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals so that security and liberty may prosper together.’

Sadly, just like so many things, we are doomed because we ignore and lack the ability to learn from history. Eisenhower’s warning is exactly what we’re experiencing today. It is the norm now, to hear from the president, that his foreign affair decisions will be made from advice from the military leadership on the ground. This is exactly what the founders of the country wanted to avoid when they set up the government. The head of state/chief would not be someone in the military, but would be a civilian for the sole purpose to protect the country from becoming a military runned state.

One thing that people seemed to have forgotten is that the military exists for conflict. They are in the business of war. Their survival and continual growth depends on there being a conflict. Like any other self preserving being/group, they will never say that there is no longer a conflict for that would essentially end their own existence. No general in the military will ever suggest not using the military for that’s what gives the military their life and it’s what gives them their purpose. The military will always say that there is a military solution to any problem. To ask and rely solely on the advise from the military about foreign affairs strategies is against everything the founders of the countries wanted.

Along those same lines and back to the wealth issue, there is a lot of money in continuing conflicts and the use of the military for the private sector. It is estimated that in 2010, the budget for the military will be between $880 billion and $1.03 trillion. The lobbyist for wall street and the private sector who caters to the military no doubt will do their best to ensure that this country stays at war for as long as possible. What do you think Wall Street will do to the stocks of these huge corporations if there were suddenly peace all over the world?

One thing people don’t seem to realise is that the people and organisations who have become obsessed with wealth cares for nothing but money. People and organisations who profits off conflicts and wars doesn’t care who they’re selling the guns to. Have you ever wondered who these 'terrorists' gets their weapons from? They don’t care that by perpetuating conflicts, more people will continue to suffer, and more people will die. This doesn’t matter to them. What matters is that they continue to have huge profits to show Wall Street. Wall street has become the all powerful that everything bows down to. If it takes continuing wars and for people to continue to suffer and die, so be it. All is well as long as Wall Street is happy.

This combination of the military and the private section is what we were warned about. Together, they can and will create propaganda to make sure we perpetuate wars and conflicts. They will sell fear, and sadly, with the citizens of the US becoming less knowledgeable in the world, we will buy this fear. These companies will profit while the rest of the world will suffer the consequences of war.

Pandemic – I don’t think I need to say too much about this. There will probably be a pandemic soon, and there will probably be no stopping it. With the world becoming smaller due to air travel, the hopes of stopping a pandemic is quite small. Also, with the current global financial crisis, governments would not have the resources to respond to a wide spread pandemic.

I thought this was interesting. During the Swine flu scare during 2009, there was a great shortage of vaccines to go around. Health professionals were busy trying to vaccinate the high risk populations (kids, pregnant women, etc.). With the demand so high, many high risk individuals didn’t get their vaccines. It was then reported that firms on Wall Street was able to get the vaccines before hospitals was able to. This is how bad things have become. Even in a case like a pandemic, as long as you’re rich, you’ll be fine.

Climate change – there’s probably enough talk of this that I won’t go into it. There’s a country that’s going to disappear in a few years because of the rising ocean levels. Go tell them there is no such thing as climate change.

In case you're feeling the cold this winter and doesn't think there is a global climate change happening, let me remind you of the difference between weather vs. climate change.

Weather is "the conditions in the atmosphere in a certain place during a certain time. Weather is always changing."

Climate is "what the weather is generally like over long periods of time, such as years or decades in a particular area. A place that has little rainfall has a dry climate, and a place that has high temperatures has a hot climate."

Your insanely short attention span is probably getting in the way of anything useful you may have to add to this conversation.


Let’s give this a try in 2010. Let’s not just take care of ourselves this year, take care of those around you and those that need help. It doesn't just have to be the people that you know. We’re all people and we’re all in this together. Only by working together will we be able to get through this.