Will the sovereignity of nation states be curtailed by multi national conglomerates  which draw unfair trade terms that overide the laws of the nation states? Will it be like the colonanization era which exploits the cheap raw resources and sells intermediatary goods and finished products and services at high profits to the dveloping nations? Will predatory globalization puts the control of  essential goods and services in the hands of a few big boys and wipe out the self suffiiency of small and medium scale enterprises so that it's not a level playing field?

when mountains beckons

Man cannot create the awe inspiring vistas of mountains,the rolling green plains,the pristine air ,the crystal clear rivers that Nature has crafted.Our concrete peaks and subterreanean subways are not uplifting to
 the soul as much as what Nature can inspire.

path live wisely

how to reduce accidents at emergency lanes

A problem was posed to see the creative problem solving skills of the youths and to brainstorm without passing judgement.


When cars break down on the emergency lanes of super highways with three lanes up and down.Sometimes,it's raining or foggy so cars which are speeding may hit the back of the stationary car,causing injuries to the passengers in the cars or the driver who is kneeling down to check the tyres.

Solution: top of cars has emergency laser throbbing strobe lights that can be fixed on top of car and connected to battery to warn oncoming cars like a lighthouse
Solution: redesign the emergency lanes with wider berths and crash zones of old tyres to lessen the impact
Solution: A special chemical like an emergency fire extinguisher which can be sprayed on the tarmac to make it sticky to slow down cars that try to cut into the emergency lanes,Such foams,gluey chemicals can be dissolved by spraying a solvent once repairs are done.
Solution: An emergency booth that the driver can activate to warn oncoming cars of a broken down vehicle every 5km.3km away
Solution; the driver can put on a suit that has flashing LED lights all over so that cars can see them in foggy weather.

Just Do It

I did it! I couldn't imagine how hard it was to push myself up 1,400 over steps and to gather the guts to get back up that ass of a bitchwhich had just thrown me off her back.One moment,I was silently straddling her back and the next I was flung up in the air and landed splat on the muddy ground which was luckily soft and slippery and cushioned the fall.I wanted to give up the trek uphill but no way,this was the fulfillment of a youthful dream ,the search for lost youth,the pursuit for that shangri la in the clouds starts with me climbing back from the pits of dirt and earth and once you've hit rock bottom in your life,there is no way out but up.

that stubborn as a mule snorted and refused to climb up until her handler reprimanded her.In a way,I pity the poor ass as my big ,fat ass pressing on her back must have made her uncomfortable.Real ass hole,it said to me.I might as well be grazing on the grass or frolicking with my mates instead of straining myself muscle,sinew and back pain too.

There is a deep aura of serenity to sit outside the very same cave where guru rinpoche meditated and contemplate on where the next stage of your journey will take you.the wind whistles in your ear,the waterfall gushes down the steep cliffs and the chilly breeze calms frayed nerves.I send my gratitude to all sentient beings for giving me the strength to persevere.My knee screams with each agonizing step,my breath is short  and panting as the lungs acclimatise to thinner air and my muscle pulls after that toss up in the air.But pain and suffering are teachers.Lesson learnt.

When you are aware that here is now
                                 that after was over
                              and what will come will come
                          not happiness to seek but upekka

Education as a tool of social mobility

Education has been one of the best tool of personal transformation and enabling the uplifting of those from abject poverty.Education for the not so developed country is an investment for the future but focus more on career training and not on meeting the propagandic needs of politics.When the basic needs of security,freedom from hunger and ill health are met,the citizens would show their loyalty to the state.So to throw around abstractions like freedom,truth,,plurality and happiness means nothing to the grassroot level when Maslow's most basic needs at the lowest level cannot be met .The conditions can be created for conducive business environment and job generation is job of the government with its macro economic policies that encourages investment by businesses.The stage for social instability is set when there are masses of educated youths and not enough jobs which can meet their qualifications.Such mismatch will see fodder for unrest.

After the half way point,where is the final destination?

When what previously sparked you is just a let down
When the bird has flown the nest
When you have lost that mojo
When you;re glad the joints dont creak
And you pick out what suspiciously looks like a strand of your own hair in the fried noodles
When your back doesnt throb like the throttle of a Porsche
And your idea of bliss is a nap  without the need for a silencer to tone down nasal acoustics
what the heck
before you start scanning the obituaries
looking for that final sanctuary
what the heck
You only die once
so eat,sleep, pray ,play,dance,dance,dance
do not go into the good night
rage,rage against the dying of the light

The pen is mightier than the sword

Today I had a gift of a Parker pen-a commemoration gift from the company.This writing instrument may seem archaic to Generation Y and Z with their tablets and I Pad and such gizmos but to me it represents the excellence of well crafted writing instruments of a bygone era.With even language condensed to emoticons and acroynmsLOL ,the beauty of handwriting is encapsulated in writing by using this pen.

When we were young,we used those messy fountain pens in which we dipped our nibs in ink pots.How messy it was so that when we performed well in exams,the ultimate gift was the Parker pen-a ball point pen that glides over the pristine sheet without smudges and blots.

life simple isnt it?

Yesterday evening, the sky was a wonderful blue with a warm breeze

It was a good day to exercise in the park

Ahhhh,I can see clearly now the haze is gone

A tale told by an idiot,full of sound and fury

Rambutan was his family's pet name since he was 2 years old.He had that short spiky hair that looks like the hairy fruit-gosh how embarrassing it was when adults around you always seem to pat you with a grin and laugh it off when they asked you they asked "Rambut hutan when you grow up lah don't change to a durian head

That's why I dyed my hair green and spiked my Mohawk with gel so that the durian head will set the tongues wagging in the kampung and those nosey parkers will ask my grandma brazenly when she drops in at their stalls in the pasar "Wah your grandson vely funny looking that one,he some singer or what?

Terrorise them.that's my motto.Sometimes,we chillax and lepak outside Jalan Batu and roar our kap chais that we modified.It's the rage of the machines.Man that felt good when we saw the cars hurriedly scramble away in fright.When we see some dumb mak cik at the traffic light ,we would take out the spanner,smash her windscreen and make off with our loot= that classy handbag.We always share our spoils with our members coz we're brudderslah.

Sometimes,our taiko ask us if we wanted to make some duit kopi sure no problem.

It was in the headlines the next morning.77 year old senior citizen found dead by the side of Jalan Gajah by some passers by.Gold chain around her neck was ripped off.A hospital appointment card was lying a few metres away.

Today I kayalah. My brudders and I got 300 each just to stand outside and shout and scream to frighten those dumb idiots outside the school decorated with banners and flags.You only live once brudder -can't wait to pop some pil kuda with this durian runtuh lah.

tired exhausted

What a crazy weekend! Detest crowded cities where a person is stuck for hours in a jam,and then spend time looking for a parking lot in a mall and then queue to eat and then queue to use the loo.Uggh just to meet up with an old varsity friend.

i wish I can be at a small hotel in nagarkot now overlooking a valley and with view of soaring mountains and a cool breeze,just watching birds circling with no CROWDS,just the sound of the wind whistling.No hot hazy stifling heat that sears the brain

cool cool cool

fusion

Recipe for fusion breakfast

1. toasted seventh day adventist grain sprouted bread (gluten free)
2. smear with margarine and organic peanut butter
3.Sprinkle with shredded nori flakes, shredded dried pumpkin floss with sesame and grated raw carrot
4. sprinkle with ground dried roasted peanuts


Drinks

fresh orange juice,passionfruit juice and cubed red dragonfuit

time to read and paint

Just when I thought I'm freed from the shackles of cooking and picking up after the man of the house,I have to be down with a bad flu-the heat is so stifling that it dries up creative juices.

But before that ,I should be thankful to have a chance to have read Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart" when I did post colonial literature in uni compared to my teenage yearswhich was limited to fairy tale romances of Mills and Boons or Valley of the Dolls and James Michener's novels.It opened my world literally and figuratively to reflect on the dichotomy of the powerful vs. the powerless,the oppressor vs. the oppressed. May Achebe rest in peace for he was truly representative of "A Man of the People". Isn't it ironical that when the liberators of the oppressed becomes the new oppressors or even worse? Or that which claim to represent "the People" are defenders of "themselves" ,and "a class above the rest".

  Despite all that one upmanship and superiority complex of "us" vs. "them",at heart the "isms" and "ideology" maintain the status quo and what Margaret Atwood "The Handmaid's Tale" depiction of the Orwellian dystopia or my latest reading Pramoedya Ananta Toer;s "Child of All Nations"praxis of the oppressed " show that that which appears different is actually the same. ",How different can "An enemy of the state" be from " A prisoner of the state".Wasn't Pramoedya Ananta Toer a prisoner of the state , Nelson Mandela, Aung San Su Kyi?

ASEAN

Economic sovereignity enables the community to deal with macro economic policies that suit each nation's level of development but cooperation in terms of accessibility to each other's market is essential.

  Food security and improving the quality of food available would provide social stability.Thailand has improved the agricultural produce to be able to be self sufficient but sacrificed in terms of environmental degradation.perhaps sustainability would be a more eco friendly model of raising agricultural output without the hazardous impact on the health of farming community or the consumers.
The agrricultural output has spin off benefits to the tourism sector,food and beverage industries, and sme manufacturing of cannedor processed food and others. Myanmar markets seem to lack the availability of local agricultural products even for basics like eggs,fresh local fruit and vegetables.Being dependent on imports would not be a long term sustainable solution but they should undergo training in co-operative ventures with the Thais to use technology to speed up agricultural production in a sustainable manner.Farmer's rights to their land is vital to be protected before they are grabbed for land development schemes that threaten their livelihood and cause the lop sided development ala China which sees farmers driven to migrate as seasonal workers in cities and causes socio-economic problems likethe break up of the stable family unit and slums in the cities that sees vast income disparity and environmental pollution.
     In terms of a healthy balance between sustainable tourism and preservation of traditional cultures,the symbiotic development of tourism in Bali sees a healthy coexistence between preservation of rural lifestyles and traditional architecture being maintained.No massive high rise blocks that mar the natural landscape.
     What can we learn from the mistakes and long term effects of modern " development" as we try to play catch up with the developed nations-the basic infrastructure,transportation and healthcare would be upgraded without the destruction of the values and cultures.The high rise edifices that eliminates the unique local architecture,the mono culture that displaces the cultural diversity, the sacrifice of quality of life for gross national product.

" V "

International Women's Day reminds me that it's time to reread Eve"s "The Vagina Monologue".
International World Book's Day reminds one of Cervantes Don Quixote

The Impossible Dream

To dream the impossible dream
To fight the unbeatable foe
To go where the brave dare not go
To right the unrightable wrong
To love pure and chaste from afar
To strive when your arms are so weary
To reach for the unreachable star

And I know
if I'll only be true
To this glorious quest
That my heart
will be peaceful and calm
when I'm laid to my rest

And the world will be better for one
that one man/woman
all battered and torn
still strive with his/her last ounce of courage
To reach for the unreachable star
to dream the impossible dream

pics

Not all that glitters is gold