“The human race is an unfair and stupid competition. A lot of the runners don’t even get decent sneakers or clean drinking water. Some people are born with a massive head start, every possible help along the way and still the referees seem to be on their side. It’s not surprising some people have given up competing altogether and gone to sit in the grandstand, eat junk food and shout abuse.
What we need in this race is a lot more streakers.”
- Banksy in Cut it Out
“I’m sorry. I dont want to be an emperor.That’s not my business. I dont want to rule or conquer anyone. I shall like to help everyone if possible. Jew, gentile, black man, white. We all want to help one another. Human beings are like that. We want to live by each other’s happiness not by each other’s misery. We don’t want to hate and despise one another. In this world there’s room for everyone and the good Earth is rich. And can provide for everyone. The way of life can be free and beautiful but we have lost the way.
Greed has poison men’s souls, has barricaded the world with hate, has goose-stepped us into misery and bloodshed. We have developed speed, but we have shut ourselves in. Machinery that gives us abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge has made us cynical, our cleverness hard and unkind.
We think too much and feel too little.
More than machinery, we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness. Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost. The aeroplane and the radio have brought us closer together. The very nature of these inventions cries out for the goodness in men. Cries out for universal brotherhood for the unity of us all.
Even now, my voice is reaching millions throughout the world. Millions of despairing men, women and little children, victims of a system that makes men torture and imprison innocent people.
To those who can hear me, I say, do not despair. The misery that is now upon us is but the passing of greed. The bitterness of men who fear the way of human progress. The hate of men will past and dictators die. And the power they took from the people will return to the people. And so long as men die, liberty will never perish.
Soldiers, don’t give yourselves to brutes. Men who despise you and slave you, who regiment your lives, tell you what to do what to think and what to feel. Who drill you, diet you, treat you like cattle, use you as cannon fodder. Don’t give yourselves to these unnatural men, machine men with machine minds and with machine hearts. You are not machines! You are not cattle! You are men! You have a love of humanity in your hearts. You don’t hate, only the unloved hate. The unloved and the unnatural.
Soldiers, don’t fight for slavery. Fight for liberty. In the 17th chapter of St.Lucas it is written, the kingdom of God is within men, not in one man, nor a group of men, but in all men, in you. You the people have the power. The power to create machines. The power to create happiness. You, the people have the power to make this life free and beautiful. To make this life a wonderful adventure. Then, in the name of democracy, let us use that power, let us all unite. Let us fight for a new world, a decent world. That will give men a chance, to work, that will give youth a future and old age a security. By the promise of these things, brutes have risen to power. But they lie. They do not fulfill, their promise, they never will.
Dictators free themselves, but they enslave the people.
Now let us fight to fulfill that promise. Let us fight to free the world.
To do away with national barriers. To do away with greed, with hate and intolerance.
Let us fight for a world with reason.
A world where science and progress will lead to all men’s happiness.
Soldiers, in the name of democracy, let us all unite!”
- Charlie Chaplin in his film “The Great Dictator” / “Look up Hannah”
John Perkins has written three books that revolve around the ideas of corporatocracy: “Confessions of an Economic Hit Man”, “The Secret of the American Empire” and his latest, “Hoodwinked.” If you ever have the opportunity to read any of these, I highly recommend that you do, at least the first two cause I haven’t read his third book yet. Nonetheless, John’s an excellent writer and he’ll keep you engaged throughout the pages but most importantly, you’ll end up being enlightened (and astonished) on how the world works.
George Soros gave a lecture on Open Society at Central Europian University.
Watch Video Lecture
Read Transcript
Malaysian filmaker Yasmin Ahmad passed away on 25th July, Saturday. This is indeed sad but she’s done something awesome with her life. May Allah swt be pleased with her.
It has occurred to me that the somewhat inspirational or motivating quote, “Be the change that you want to see in the world,” is simply inadequate. Or maybe I have misunderstood it all this while.
Suppose that I want the world the change into say, a nicer place. Following the quote then, I have to be a nice person myself. It is then assumed that people will naturally take example from my lead. That everyone will be nicer after they interact with me. But experience tells me that this will simply not happen.
(thx to my friend Firdaus for letting me know of this release)
Yasmin Ahmad’s second and latest ad for a pro-family campaign in Singapore. I love this one very much. As with her first ad, Yasmin stays away from portraying the image of a perfect family. But the idea of having a perfect life partner is not totally absent.
“In the end, it’s these small things (imperfections) that you’ll remember. The little imperfections that make them perfect for you.”
I am currently taking a subject called Sociology of Emotions. And to date, this has been the most riveting subject I have taken yet. It grabs me by my collar and shakes me up. It tells me I am a human. It tells me that as a human, I am in my very nature, emotional. Whether we like it or not, whether we suppress our emotions or deny it, it is what makes us humans. And this is one of the things that makes this subject so special. Because it accepts the fact that there is such a thing as human nature, unlike most other sociological enquiries that starts from the point of “there is no human nature.” It also does not deny the possibility of things such as souls and a multiple self and that these are important elements of our emotions.
For those of us who are not sociologically trained, then you may wonder what exactly is so special about saying there is human nature? Well, besides this standpoint, sociology of emotions being a sociological enquiry, also tells you that social and cultural factors play an important role in shaping how you feel towards certain objects, towards certain people, towards certain events.
Sociology of emotions also tells you that not everyone values the same emotions equally. Anger is natural. But whether or not we see the value of anger depends on what our culture has to say about it. This subject also tells you that emotions in today’s world are being bought and sold. Happiness is bought. Bought by airline companies. And in this highly corporatised world, this is all that emotions is good for – profit. Hate this very idea?
Then come let’s get emotional. Get angry, get happy. Cry and laugh. Appreciate all the emotions that are innate in us! But as with all other matters, please, do not overdo it. Moderation is key.
I felt that this week’s sermon in Singapore’s mosque is a great one. And so, I’d like to share it here.
Once, the Holy Prophet s.a.w. saw his companion, Abu Umamah, in the mosque outside of prayer time. He asked Abu Umamah “Why do I see you in the mosque outside of prayer time?” Abu Umamah replied “I have worries and problems because of my debts.” The Prophet replied “Do you want if I teach you a prayer and Allah will remove your worries?” Abu Umamah replied “Certainly, O Messenger of Allah.”
So the Prophet s.a.w said “Read this prayer in the morning and afternoon:
Which means “O Allah, I seek your protection from worry and gloominess. And I seek your protection from weakness and laziness. And I seek your protection from fear and stinginess. And I seek your protection from being burdened by debt and being subdued by others.” Abu Umamah later said “I did what the Prophet taught me. And Allah s.w.t. removed my sadness and worries, and helped me settle my debts.” (Narrated by Abu Daud)
Look brothers, how the Prophet s.a.w. cares for the conditions of his companions, and for our conditions too. He did not only teach a doa or prayer, but also include in the prayer the best of advice for us. This prayer teaches us that we can overcome any challenge if we strive and seek Allah’s help.
First: Our Prophet s.a.w. taught us the first step to change any negative situation into a positive one. He taught us to seek Allah’s protection from worry and sorrow. Asking from Allah through doa gives us hope. Hope changes our state of mind; from sorrow and sadness to happiness and calmness. When we are calm, we can think of the best of solutions.
Second: Our beloved Prophet s.a.w. taught us to remove the feeling of weakness and laziness. This means we must always work and put in effort. We must be courageous to face any challenge and not feel weakened by it. We must upgrade and improve ourselves by learning and acquiring new skills. Weakness and laziness are not part of a Muslim’s dictionary. As Allah s.w.t. promises the rewards of action and effort in Surah An-Najm verses 39-41:
Which means ”And that man shall have nothing but what he strives for. That (the fruit of) his striving will soon come in sight: Then will he be rewarded with a complete reward.”
Third: Rasulullah s.a.w. forbade us from fear and stinginess. Sometimes, fear becomes an excuse for us to not try to improve ourselves and contribute to society. Sometimes, we do not put forth our best in doing something, and this is part of being stingy. In our current economic conditions, we should try to help the weak and those in need, if we can afford it. This will make us generous, which is a noble value in Islam.
Fourth: Rasulullah s.a.w. also taught us to seek Allah’s protection from being burdened by debts and loans, and from being subdued by others. Because Allah s.w.t. places importance to freedom for mankind from such subjections. We are also taught to find ways to settle our debts. Infact, to also plan our finances so that we don’t need to take loans unnecessarily. When we plan, and seek Allah’s help, InshaAllah we will be able to settle our debts well.
My dear brothers,
No matter how big a challenge we face, or how difficult a situation we find ourselves in, we must have the trust that if we sincerely strive to overcome these difficulties, Allah s.w.t. will not put our efforts to waste. The benefits of our efforts will show. So ask Allah s.w.t. to bless our efforts. InshaAllah, you will be granted success as the example of the companion of the Prophet s.a.w. earlier has shown.
Bill Gates talking about two things that are close to me personally – Malaria and Teachers.
Great presentation.
Muallaf was a nice watch. The title and the trailer suggested a story of a boy who would embrace Islam. That never happen in the film.
Today I watched Muallaf at The Picturehouse. My first time there. It was small, cozy and comfy. Excellent for films! Venue aside, the film started with a young man named Brian. He is a school teacher and lives alone. His mother always calls and checks up on him but he never speaks nicely to her. Indeed, Brian hardly puts on a smile. One of his students, Rohani, deemed him “miserable.” And it probably had to do with the fact that he was angry with with his father – a rather devout Christian – for punishing him on an ‘extreme’ level when Brian was young. And this inadvertently made Brian abandon his Christian faith. But that looked set to change when his relationship with a student, Rohani and her sister Rohana, became closer.
The overall mood of the film is generally tense. The music throughout the film gave a mellow feel to it too. But all that changed nicely towards the end. Yes, a rather nice, calm and pleasant ending! But I think some viewers may not realize this fully. This is evident during a Q&A session with the director and cast after the film. At least two viewers commented that there was no “closure” to the movie. But the director, Yasmin Ahmad argued that there was indeed a closure and in fact, compared to her other films, this film had a complete ending.
I think viewers (including myself) may fail to realize that the story is about Brian. And this is perhaps because a large bulk of the film centered on the story of the two sisters (Rohani and Rohana) too. And to this effect, I think viewers would have expected that the relationship between Brian and the two sisters be concluded – that perhaps Brian and Rohana would fall in love with each other or something. And so, when the film ended without this expectation appearing explicitly on screen, some were somewhat left wanting more. But this was the only thing that was sort of a disappointment for me. Overall, though, the movie was excellent. The short humor and “what was that all about?” scenes that broke away from the main storyline is also clever, I think. It allowed viewers to escape for a while, from the tense storyline. And indeed, this has much to do with the character, especially Brian.
When Brian (the actor’s real name is also Brian) first appeared on screen. I thought, “Ohh man, this actor’s not so good. He’s too stiff and corky.” But as the story developed, I eventually realized that he was excellent! That was who the character was! A corky, stiff guy. A miserable young man who lives alone! Young Brian (played by Haris Zakaria, Yasmin’s nephew) was excellent too, despite his small airtime. That boy’s got a salute from me! The other casts were great too, including Yeo Yann Yann, Singapore-based actress who played Cindy, a young woman who works in the pub and is Rohana’s colleague. Though she has complains towards Rohana, she is highly considerate and protective to her fellow worker, even willing to take a hard beating. A trait that is perhaps sadly uncommon today. And indeed, this film shows a lot about personal traits, including and especially about loving others. Not romantic love, but the sort of forgiving others and not holding a grudge against anyone, not even to those who have hurt us. And that was what I find most beautiful about this film.
Allahum innaka ‘afuwwuun tuhibbul ‘afwa fa’fu anni
O Allah! You are the one who pardons greatly, and loves to pardon, so pardon me.
OOO yeh! Matt is at it again! Truly inspirational!
Matt’s official website: http://www.wherethehellismatt.com
The Pangea Day Event was awesome! Totally inspiring!
The event lasted for four hours…. a showcase of the selected films, live performances, guest appearances and ‘mini-discussions.’ The focus was initially on a general level – how individuals from various countries see life through their own lives – What makes people cry, laugh, angry or happy.
The last hour was the most moving. The focus temporarily shifted to the Israeli-Palestianian conflict and later on concluded with messages that call for a change in how we see others. And we can do this by listening to what others are saying! Give our enemies or the people we hate a chance to speak and listen to them!
————–
The showcased films and a one hour highlight is available on the official website. So check it out if you’d like.
My favourites are the following:
Stille Post (Telephone Game)
a class of students play a classic game with a ‘twist’ in the end.
Operation Homecoming
a short narrative documentary of a U.S soldier reflecting the impact that the U.S army has upon local citizens of Iraq. A very personal account and artistic. Eerily-insightful.
Encounter Point
an inspiring film that portrays the victims’ parents (Israeli and Palestinian) meeting each other.
Walleyball
cool film that shows americans (U.S) and south americans playing volleyball over the huge wall along the U.S-Mexico border.
Want to tell your children a story? Forget Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. Read them “My Beautiful Mommy.”
Tell them that mommy is beautiful because she is made of plastic and is white. This can help boost their self-esteem. It will set them thinking, “Wow! I must be ugly too. But it’s alright, when I grow up, I can be plastic too!”
This book is written by a plastic surgeon who wanted to help parents explain to their children, why mummy needs go for a plastic surgery and why she is resting all the time, after the procedure.
—–
What others are saying:
What: Pangea Day
When: 10th May
About: People in local communities all over the world will gather together, to watch films that have been produced by independents. There will be a total of 24 short films and they have been chosen based on their ability to inspire and help us see the world through another person’s eyes.
More Information: http://www.pangeaday.org/index.php
“Food prices have increased 83 percent in three years, according to the World Bank. The rising costs of both food and fuel have caused tensions and riots in developing nations including Haiti, Burkina Faso, Egypt, Indonesia and Ivory Coast.
According to Oxford-based Oxfam, the U.K. policy will cost taxpayers 500 million pounds ($1 billion) a year, and may lead to 60 million people being forced from their land to make way for biofuel plantations. About 30 percent of recent food price inflation can be attributed to biofuel production, the group said, citing the International Food Policy Research Institute.
Both Oxfam and the environmental campaign group Greenpeace called the policy “reckless,” because fuel providers are not yet obliged to source biofuels from sustainable plantations.
“Right now, rainforests are being destroyed to make way for biofuel crops in places like Indonesia,” Belinda Fletcher, forests campaigner at Greenpeace, said in an e-mailed statement. “This destruction leads to massive greenhouse-gas emissions and completely undermines the point of these so-called green fuels.”
Deforestation accounts for about a fifth of the world’s greenhouse-gas emissions, according to Greenpeace. Destruction of peatland forests in Indonesia, driven by the expansion of plantations of the biofuel palm oil, now contributes about 4 percent of global emissions, the group said.”
(Source: Bloomberg)
Full Article here: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601102&sid=ahQazSamU6vA&refer=uk
The problem of food shortage is no longer a threat exclusive to developing countries. In the future, it may be a problem that concerns every country on the planet.
Throughout known history, the number of agricultural products have always outweighed world population. Undeniably, some people are unintentionally undernourished and many have actually died of hunger. However, the problem has always been about lack of opportunities and unequal distribution of food and resources.
However, by 2050, humanity may unfortunately face the real threat of food shortage. With a forecasted population of over 9 billion, experts are concerned that the agricultural industry would not be able to produce enough food for everyone.
But the booming world population is just one issue. The problem also probably lies in the fact that in this modern world, people are consuming more than needed. And with the population of China and India being modernised, there will definitely be a spike in the demand of food product.
Some experts believe that the only way to prevent a real shortage of food is to embrace genetic engineering within the agricultural industry.
However, Genetic Engineering does have its own sets of problems. The main ones being the fact that it is under the oligopoly of big corporations with no moral obligations.
Whether or not we will be able to prevent a serious food crisis from happening remains to be seen.
————-
International Herald Tribune: Tensions rise as world faces short rations
Globe and Mail: The Crisis Felt Around the World
Seattle Times: Rice shortages spur producers to limit exports
———
Narrated Abu Huraira:
A man came to the Prophet. The Prophet sent a messenger to his wives (to bring something for that man to eat) but they said that they had nothing except water. Then Allah’s Apostle said, “Who will take this (person) or entertain him as a guest?” An Ansar man said, “I.” So he took him to his wife and said to her, “Entertain generously the guest of Allah’s Apostle ” She said, “We have got nothing except the meals of my children.” He said, “Prepare your meal, light your lamp and let your children sleep if they ask for supper.” So she prepared her meal, lighted her lamp and made her children sleep, and then stood up pretending to mend her lamp, but she put it off. Then both of them pretended to be eating, but they really went to bed hungry. In the morning the Ansari went to Allah’s Apostle who said, “Tonight Allah laughed or wondered at your action.” Then Allah revealed:
“But give them (emigrants) preference over themselves even though they were in need of that And whosoever is saved from the covetousness Such are they who will be successful.” (59.9)
- Sahih Bukhari
Two Indonesian blogger have recently blogged about the Nobel Prize.
One was on the recent case of al-Gore and seems happy about it.
The other was on Muhd Yunus and the poverty level in Bangladesh that has suppposedly risen from 2005 to 2007. And thus proposed the question, did Yunus deserved the Nobel prize?
I would like to response to these by simply saying that it does not really matter.
The Nobel Peace Prize is a highly publicized phenomena.
Anyone who gets it, gets lots of attention.
And this is in fact, one of the considerations that judges have to consider:
“What are the consequences of awarding so-and-so the Nobel prize?”
And thus, also the question, “What are the consequences if so-and-so is not awarded the Nobel prize?”
Take for instance the Grameen Bank and Muhd Yunus.
The consequence of them winning the prize have led to the popularization of microcredit.
This inevitably would result in organizations adopting the model.
Al Gore. His efforts against global warming has already been acknowledged throughout the world, thanks to his film “An Inconvenient Truth”. The Nobel prize would thus do little to actually spread what is already popular. But still, it was significant that the Prize be awarded to Al-Gore. For the one reason that Al Gore is trying to save the world and the Nobel Foundation supports it. And this would in turn, help silence Al Gore’s critics.
In any case, the message I’m trying to say is that prizes are not given out merely to congratulate people on the results of their efforts.
Neither is it entirely for the purpose of acknowledging people’s efforts.
They are also given out in sight of other considerations.
It’s not so much whether a person/organization desrves an award or not.
It’s what happens after the award that matters.
Now that I’m on school vacation, I finally managed to catch Planet Earth on TV. The recent episode was on “Deserts”. We don’t need to watch this episode to realise that water is scarce in the desert. And we all know that we can’t live without water and scientifically speaking, life is possible on Earth because of water. But I think as inhabitants of the concrete jungle, we tend to take water for granted.
And this “take for granted” attitude towards water becomes obvious during rainy days. We complain. We hate rainy days.
Pre-modern tribes sing and dance to call for rain. We sing songs to chase the rain away.
That’s right. We don’t need rain for water. We have our taps. Some of which are made of gold! Who needs the troublesome rain when we have golden taps to provide us with water?
Thirsty? Step inside a store. Grab a can of drink and pay at the counter. How long should this seemingly simple task take?
Apprently, sometimes it’s more than 10 minutes for me. Not because of long queues, but trying to decide what I want to drink.
Coke? Root Beer? Lemon Tea? Lime or green tea? How about coffee?
Nescafe? Pokka? What flavour? Mocha? Original? Latte?
Packet drinks? How about plain mineral water?
In contrast, when I’m at a vending machine, where my choice of drink is limited to eight or ten, it typically takes me no more than ten seconds to decide.
Having choices is essential to the idea of freedom. Too much choice however, can be detrimental. Time and effort are wasted in trying to decide what we want. In the book “The Paradox of Choice”, Barry Schwartz also talks about other consequences of having too much choice like having higher expectations.
For instance, in my “What drink to get” scenario:
I may end up trying a new flavoured drink that’s bitter.
Then I feel like crap. Why?
Because among all those countless drinks, I expect at least one of them to have a ‘heavenly’ taste. And that is my target.
But it seems my choice drink was not one of them. It was bitter, not heavenly.
I was wrong. Who likes being wrong?
Thus, I feel crap – unhappy, unsatisfied.
In contrast, when I have limited choice, whatever drink I get, though I may regret it, it won’t be as painful. Because I didn’t have much choice. I won’t expect any of them to have a heavenly taste.
In all, “The Paradox of Choice” is one that acknowledges the necessity for choices.
But choice itself should not be the goal that people should strive for.
——
I didn’t find the book a must-buy. But it is worth reading. Anyway, here’s Schwartz presenting his arguments:
(Duration: 20:22)
Original source: here.
Abdul Rahman (sometimes spelled AbdurRahman) is a common name that is commonly misused.
Very often, in countries where people are called by their second names,
an “Abdul Rahman” will simply be called “Rahman”. And this is inappropriate.
“Abdul” comes from the Arabic word “Abd” which means slave or servant.
“Rahman”, is a derivation from the Arabic word “ar-Rahman” which means “the Most Beneficent or Gracious”.
“Abdul Rahman” therefore, means “servant of The Most Beneficent”.
An Abdul Rahman thus, is merely a servant to “The Most Beneficent”.
He himself is and not “The Most Beneficent”.
And in Islam, “The Most Beneficent” is Allah s.w.t -God.
So, the next time you meet an Abdul Rahman, do call him by his full name.
Of course, if he has a nickname, use that.
