TakeSeven: Plagiarism

Yea, as you 2O1 people know, an unfortunate event took place earlier this week. However, I want to make it clear that this is no verbal attack, I'm just trying to give some constructive criticism to our History teacher.
First of, I appreciate the fact that he has gone much effort to set up a website for us and correspondingly uploads useful information via his web page. However, there has recently been a mishap that has happened regarding the issue of Plagiarism. It is known that our History teacher has given us contracts to sign, and these contracts state that punishment shall be given to those who plagiarise.
This incident came about when our History teacher gave us an online worksheet to do. However, some people from our class had copied the answers to those questions straight of an identical source on the internet. Although I am not one of them, I do admit that their act of plagiarism was wrong . However, note the word "identical". Somehow, my classmates had managed to find a website that has the exact same questions as our worksheet, and another question comes to mind: Exactly who is in the wrong here? Our teacher, who has accused us of plagiarism, has done the exact same thing. Evidence? Typo-errors in the worksheet were identical to the ones on the website. It would be amusing to call it "a mere coincidence". And this sparked of quite a bit of friction between us students and him. So I hope that this issue will be resolved soon to ensure a conducive classroom environment (Yes, those same corny lines).
In conclusion, I just want to say, "Practice What You Preach".

TakeSix: My Childhood

On the way back home from a onerous session of training, I just started thinking about my childhood. So I guess I just share it.

My childhood was a pretty pleasant one. Funny memories, really. Since my birth, my dedicated grandmother has taken utmost care of me. In fact, most of my younger days were spent with her. I still remember that routine; weekdays are spent with her at Toa Payoh, Block 179, the 13th floor. I slept on a mattress which had a floral pattern and owned a pillow nearly as big as me. I still have that wonderful pillow, and I have enjoyed sleeping on it ever since. My most vivid memory however, was taking out a Lego container and placing it in front of the television. I would rush to get my food and place it on the container, and as I ate my food enjoyed what was my main form of entertainment then.

However, time spent in the vicinity was not forgotten either. I still can paint a vivid picture in my mind: Two towering blocks, both dull red, sheltered an often-crowded Kopitiam below. The Kopitiam faced a huge open pavement which had trees and benches uniformly placed about 6-8 metres apart from each other. I always loved that guy who would come out at night and place little go-karts in a corner and rent them out for $1 for 15 minutes. Hey; huge space, obstacles, go-karts -- heaven for a young one like me. Once in a while my grandmother would, reluctantly, pay that dollar and allow me to have the best fifteen minutes of the moment. Such occasions were rare though, as my grandmother is a frugal person.

Naturally, as my grandmother spoke in Teochew, my second language had emerged as such. Soon, with my newly found 'skill', I made a reputation for myself in Toa Payoh. I would cheekily go up to the Kopitiam frequents and say a phrase or two, or even better, converse with them. Thus I made a name for myself as the "Toa Payoh Kia" (Toa Payoh Kid )... Yes, you can go ahead and dismiss the above but they wouldn't really benefit me in anyway to lie.

Sadly, as I grew older and had to go to kindergarten, I left behind my childhood haven for my new home. Now, it is my grandmother comin' over instead of me. All those memories: Choking on a fish tail ( Why did I do that??), losing a few bouncy, rubber balls to the vicious urinal, making my grandmother mad with my rowdy behaviour and more. My biggest regret is the loss of my '2nd language'. My grandmother used to be so proud of the fact that I could speak Teochew at such a young age... Now I just use Chinese to speak with her. It seemed as though my transition back to my home was a brainwash. Every time I hear my grandmother talking about my childhood with her I guess I die a little inside.

But regrets aside, I 'm just grateful for the fact the fact that my childhood is so memorable.
(I'm glad I got all of that off my chest!)

Jong, signing out.

 

TakeFour: As If the Plight Isn't Bad Enough.

Well, unless you've been living under a rock, you should know about the tragic Haiti earthquakes. Yes, the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that has taken approximately 50,000 lives. And after this devastating wrath of Mother Nature took place, many rushed in as volunteer workers to help the wounded. Thumbs up to them.

However there is always a flip-side to things I suppose. Amid the many thousands of volunteers going about their good deeds, there has been a recent headline where a man was murdered by a policeman over a mere sack of rice. It really makes you think: Wow. The scenario then was like this:
Five bags of rice which fell from a truck were found by two men on the street. Thus, the policemen assumed that they were stealing these sacks of rice, and probably to them, that was good enough a reason to pull the trigger. Four bullets were fired, and both men were shot from the back, however only one survived.
What's worse: his body was just left there for two days.

By most economic measures, Haiti is the poorest country in the Americas. An average salary in Haiti is $2 per day. It is one of the world's poorest and least developed countries, and about 80% of the population were estimated to be living in poverty in 2003. So I guess its fair to say that their police force is not the most well-equipped, nor well-trained. However, I feel that although they might lack basic skills and instructions, they should have the moral righteousness to put their fire-arms down and instead clarify the matter. Right now, resources are extremely scarce and people might turn to theft for survival, and if the police start firing away at sight of one stealing food, I guess that weapons-related murder will be the second reason for the death of many in Haiti. What do you think?

God Bless Haiti. 

TakeThree: The Wonders of a Workout

Let me give you an overview of my day.

• Woke
• Went to Church
• Had an interesting Disciple Group (DG) lesson
• Sang my heart out during worship
• Came home and wasted my afternoon doing nothing
• Went for and intense swim
• Back home
• I crammed in two hours of self-initiated work

So now I am pretty amazed by how exercise can set you self-discipline at a pretty high level. Yes, I have been guilty of wasting my time away many times before and it's like this: "One of these days, is none of these days."  or "How soon not now, becomes never." Yup, them good ol' procrastination quotes. But after some exercise something overcame me and I was ready to start studying, so I am quite impressed with this discovery. I guess the determination of trying to exceed my limits really got my will-power going. So I just want to share this because I'm trying hard not to procrastinate when I really should doing something else. And yes, I got a new record for my timing ;)

TakeTwo: Luxury Jail Cells

Looks like for once, jail cells are not looking too shabby! At least, that is the case in Jakarta, Indonesia, where Artalyta Suryani, a business tycoon found guilty of bribing state prosecutor Urip Tri Gunawan, has been exposed of having a luxurious jail cell. In her posh jail cell, there is an air-conditioner, a spacious double bed, flat-screen television, private bathroom and a adjoining karaoke suite. And that's not the end of the list, as she even has her cell serviced by maids and assistants.

Oh yes, did I mention that while she served her 5-year jail sentence, she had: private drivers to collect and drop off goods, beauty treatments, and a private office with pieces of furniture that others in Indonesia could barely afford. Funny thing is, she acquired this hotel-room-esque jail cell with the help of the dollar bill. Ah, the irony. Jail is supposed to be a place for outlaws to reflect and reform; giving these people a chance to turn over a new leaf. Yet, it seems, Artalyta never learns. After being transferred back to an ordinary cell, hope she realises that money can't get you anywhere.

This situation is another dent in Indonesia's already horribly-tarnished reputation, with cases such as the  President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono bail-out money case and other illegal corruption cases already destroying the purity of Indonesia. One shocking fact is that last year, more than 750 police officers were caught accepting bribes, 440 were charged with disciplinary action, 230 were reprimanded for breaching There is even an acronym to represent the state of Indonesia over the past decade, KKN, which is supposed to stand for "Corruption, Collusion and Nepotism". Although a notable effort has been made against corruption, it seems more effort has to be put in.

TakeOne: Fresh Start

 
It's been a pretty meaningful '09 for me, as I have grown stronger spiritually, mentally and physically. And here comes another year of blogging. This is the second blog I have maintained and as this year passes, I hope can really achieve more with this one (e.g: Our class' seemingly unreachable target of becoming a celebrity blogger). Oh yes, this blog is really initiated because it is a school assignment and thus it has its rewards. But if I can manage my time well and really have fun with this assignment, I might consider blogging as more of a hobby than an assignment. Hope as I venture on this journey I can really keep the readers comin' in. So anyway, here's to a great 2010 ahead.  :D