TR EMERITUS

Written by Darkness of the Brotherhood - As we preview the carnage of the global economic meltdown – and even asses how well or badly we as a nation & people may have faired against the maelstrom – this prompts us all to ask: do we need to change the way we think if we want to remain on the top of the heap? To paraphrase what does it take to succeed in an age where the only thing that is certain is uncertainty? Unbeknown to many (who may well be oblivious to these transformational changes) we are already barreling inexorably into the unknown like a stone dropped into the abyss of a well – the age that can only be described as “golden spanner” – where things never seem to pan out the way it should; stock markets no longer abide to linear economics; even seemingly “good” plans seem to offer no guarantees – against this dystopian landscape a sporadic strain of virus could just as well throw the whole world out of synch; the sudden collapse of a bank may even render many right back to square one – my point is all these events brings home one startling reality; like it or not we may already be living in a very different world. I know this only too well. Everyday, I peruse through the carnage; indolent Americans and Europeans no longer buy our exotic metals in the virtual; it’s hard to sell to space stations even with revolving loans these days and the litany of shattered dream goes on and on – it’s depressing. In a nut, the world these days; politically, economically, socially and technologically is a very different place from what it used to be – the mantra seems Shakespearean even: “we plan our lives only to be ruled by accidents…” Yes, I know there may be some empty barrels out there who will continue to insist the prescription to our times may lie somewhere in the trite line of ensuring: we must insist upon the crumbly idea some savior may be found in only ensuring those who have knowledge, vision and character continue to hold on to the levers of power, if we are to see light at the end of this tunnel – as if is ONLY these Brahmins who have the ability to craft a new vision to ensure Singapore grows from strength to strength – but I don’t buy into such populist claptrap; not even for one moment. It would appear what we need to do is to learn new stuff to survive; but I don’t consider that as important as being able to unlearn many of the scripting that has been programmed into our heads since birth – I am not saying all of these motifs that are floating in our heads are bad; but I do question the whole idea of chasing pragmatism an injecting into everything from policies to profiling economic plans, as if it's Penicillin that can cure so many of our ills; taking the word pragmatism beyond its dictionary meaning may have worked before; but I remain sceptical whether that alone these days is enough to solve many of the emerging challenges that will wash up on our shores. These days it is not enough to think critically; even Pastun gunsmiths somewhere where gun shots regularly rent out in Pakistan have begun to replace the cumbersome firing pin of the AK-47 with only 2 moving parts instead of 4 - what is required in this new age to deal with new problems is a new way of thinking -one where we may even have to be comfortable with lateral thinking. Here I ask myself how did we get ourselves in this shit hole? What accounts for the veneration of the gilded hamster wheel? How did this whole idea of chasing ceaseless competition assume primacy?– can education be the tap root? To the perceptive reader; I am using the word “education” in its profound sense – a dog can be trained to heel, stand and come on command, but that hardly equates to the type of transformational change I am referring too – real education must be appropriate within it cannot be learnt.   I am merely scratching the surface – but if we peel off the veneer; we could just as well ask do we even have institutions of higher learning that is capable of producing movers and mobilizers who may be able to add real value to this whole of the goody good machine? Stretch it further and you might even raise a host of uncomfortable questions whether our child like faith in the scholar program is really abasement on a mechanized scale or does it offer real intellectual salvation that can produce real thinkers who can add to the good benchmark – stretch it till the sinews turn white and you may even ask whether this grand Pharoahic vision of Philip Yeo and his quaint tankhood metaphor of “whales and guppies” offers or detracts? Here I will stop (as he has a habit of naming and shaming people that seem to disagree with him), but you get my general drift: we are stuck on one gear; we need to relook at the whole idea of the goody good machine from the inside out – very much in a way Japanese camera manufacturers used to strip down German Leica camera and reverse engineer many of those stuff that separates mediocrity from something that stands out as iconic and timeless. In other words. We need to desperately refocus, re-engineer and even restructure the whole way in which we have traditionally defined individual and organizational success. But before diving into the solution where did it all fuck up? – that’s to say before we even begin to rebuilt and re-engineered; we need to ask ourselves - where did we go wrong? Here some many may still contend like, if it ain’t broken then don’t mess with it - it would make sense if only it didn't sound so much like the string quartered that once played on the deck of the Titanic just before it sank – as we survey the prospects of the next 5 years and wonder why our dream has suddenly been transformed overnight into a mirage shimmering over the desert waste of the current economic crisis – the facts remain undeniable: we may have ridden out this storm; but many of our compartments are flooded and the ship is listing – that’s hardly a sterling record and so the question remains: how do we fix it? When we square off the accounts let us be clear: the human raw material in Singapore is as fine as can be found anywhere in this planet – we are second to none in “intelligence” and the spirit of dedicating ourselves to the whole idea of ceaseless competition – but all I am saying is – this is no longer enough – if I had to finger the root cause for this sordid state of affairs – I remain mindful economic recession may on A4 paper only offer a disquieting account; but what’s even infinitely worse is the moral and spiritual recession it wrecks on my fellow human beings – I don’t need a psychologist to tell me how unemployment can scissor through families; all I need to do is look at my neighbor and compare how he used to be and what he is today since he lost his job in January. That’s what happens when the goody good machine splutters; it manifest itself in many ways; most of it unseen, unrecorded and it all occurs underground – on the surface everything looks hunky dory; but deep down it’s riven with decay. If I had to account for one reason why we are in a fix; it must have something to do with our preoccupation with social Darwinism  aka law of the jungle, namely the law that accounts for the survival of the fittess. In a nub the logic goes something like this in tadpole language; “What doesn’t kill you, will eventually make you stronger.” Policy makers are the worst culprits for peddling the snake oil of social Darwinism, they regularly tell us welfare turns our back bone into jelly; if we don’t earmark the capable as scholars then the whole edifice may even come crashing down, it’s no good. Instead the reverse the whole logic of how corrosive social Darwinism really is by glossing over it with platitudes that would probably provoke Darwin himself to turn in his grave; politicians tell us no end; winging it on your own inures you with added resilience; we will emerge stronger (even when droves find themselves emptying out their cubicles); worst they tell us all; if we depend too much on the government; it breeds a crutch mentality and eventually our resolve may even melt away like camphor. Granted all this talk about survival of the fittest seems innocuous enough. Even sensible and worst of all believable - besides who can only possibly deny what doesn’t kill you may perhaps even make you stronger. The danger of course is when the idea of social Darwinism is taken too far; it is transformed into a form of tyranny where it becomes even possible to technically legitimatize the whole idea – will power alone can conquer all – I don’t believe in that claptrap; you see, I’ve climbed at least a 15 mountains and sometimes things do go wrong (I am not talking about the escalator type climbs to Everest where there are even Zebra crossings and all you really do is follow a mountain guide like a sheep to plant a plastic flag) – I am talking about the real stuff where all you’re got no other choice but to take out your Swiss knife to cut yourself off from someone that you know; if you don’t do it; he will imperil the rest or the type where you break a leg at the upper reaches of 16,000 feet – when those times occur; I just shout for help – the plain truth is simply this some things will kill you; they don’t make you stronger anymore than you can wrestle with a 150 metric ton freight train – you die and that’s the end of it. That’s one reason why I remain critical of social Darwinism when its used to justify everything from perpetual tuition to the whole idea of just winnow a few and giving them the choices cut and leaving the rest to fend for themselves; the whole idea of the survival of the fittest makes licit tyranny - it must be pursued in moderation – if we are not mindful of how social Darwinism permeates policies, decisions and even something as how to teach ordinary folk how to wisely manage their finances – then it’s magically transformed into an ideology, not so different from Juche or some form of “ism.” When that day comes the whole idea of goody good machine becomes inane; and with it, it can only produce a form of insanity. As when only the strongest survive and the weak have no choice but to perish; then it could be said we have ceased entirely to be human beings where dignity and decency are reduced to mere frescoes that can do nothing except paint frivolous pictures of the happy life; without the content and only the hollow form; we may even begin to pursue the whole idea of building a brain on a Byzantine scale like Philip Yeo – and what may I ask did we get out of it? Or worst still a juggernaut like Temasek that is so big that if you hammered its tail, it would probably take a months before it registered somewhere in the labyrinth called the brain - pain. Here we need to be mindful – social Darwinism just like turpentine; is a solvent that can gel with practically any idea ranging from economic policies to something as innocuous as how to get people back into the work force; it’s scope I will leave to your imagination – let us say, I know this only to well. But where Darwinian logic becomes poisonous is when it leeches into government itself; here the result is often what we see in failed states; dysfunctional firms and even broken families; too much government and too little administration; to many public servants and too little public service; too many controls and too little imagination to fathom possibilities; too many laws and too little justice and people for government; instead of government for people. And the pithy summary just goes on and on - really, I can't think of a better way to drive off a cliff. You have all been warned - your greatest enemy is not out there; it right there lurking somewhere in your head. Darkness 2009 The Brotherhood Press 2009 This essay has been funded by the Thai Royal Creche - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XK2Mn-XgHjA&feature=related "My regards and felicitations to the lady of the lake" Darkness 2009   A Message to all guildsmen,   I have successfully negotiated a deal in Kuala Lumpur to re-site our new server farm in KL / the building is located in heart of Bukit Bintang / the rent is super duper cheap, but it comes with one condition – we need to first rehabilitate the building if we are to get this special deal as there are serious structural problems with the aluminum cladding (the owner is convinced it will collapse and he doesn’t have the finances to hire a professionals to augment these structural faults) – I have done an initial TOR assessment of the work, it requires extensive work, my feel is it is a good deal – to cut a long story, we shook hands and its good to go. The owner is a honorable man besides the son happens to be one of us - so he can be trusted.   Gentlemen this is a strictly volunteer mission – the guilds and the confederation of gamers will bear ALL the cost and I will be experimenting with a new polymer that I have invented to strengthen the building by at least 600% / I have not given this new substance a name, but basically the task involves rappelling outside the building, drilling holes at specific intervals and injecting this substance into the structure to augment many of the structural flaws – it basically like foam but when it cures, its like concrete only it weights significantly less (no one in Singapore wants to use it as they think it is some industrial mumbo jumbo, so I do not mind telling you all that I am also using this as an opportunity to test out this new foam concrete.)   I need a team of at least 6 very experienced alpinist climbers / I DO NOT NEED SHOW OFF’s AND RISK TAKERS / so on this mission I will prefer to deal with ONLY those who have families. As experience tells me ONLY these category of individuals are mature enough to manage risk without imperiling the rest of us. This should not be a problem as the guilds have many climbers of this sort.   The requirements (TOR) are as follows:   -   5 years experience in alpine climbing – minimum 7 climbs unguided / guided climbers are not eligible (I do not care if you have even climbed Everest - we need people who can work independently with minimum supervision and if they are in trouble, they can remain cool and work out a solution to keep it safe for themselves and others - so you are disqualified / proficiency in abseiling is essential using static rope (no dynamic rope will be used – so please, if you are a weekend warrior, do us all a favor, just give this a miss and do yourself and everyone else a favor – no offence intended). -    3 skill sets are required: controlled descent / ascent / emergency rescue (hopefully, this will not be required) the main equipment required is as follows: Juma / daisy rope / Petzl stop / mini traxion and tyrollean tranverse / figure 8 / THERE ARE NO ANCHOR POINTS – so we are likely to use cams and only ballast we would need to figure out a way to manage the risk on what is available on site. -   Engineering experience is preferred but not necessary. Work detail will be issued by Harphoon – I know some of you think he is young and inexperienced, but please set aside your ego and lets respect the rank and keep it strictly professional - he will be my No.2 that is final. -  Living conditions will be spartan / no air-con / no room even / please bring a foldable bed as we will be living and working on site itself on top of the building  / that will be where will eat, shit and sleep / that is as good as it gets (bring also plenty of sun block as it will be very hot and please bring lots of rechargeable batteries as it will be a rotating shift) -   As usual there will be strictly NO sharing of equipment / I expect every man to manage his own kit / except perhaps the rappel rope – it is sized at 11.5 / the plan is to work in pairs / I expect it to be hard work, so I would prefer to deal with people who talk less and can get the job done without too much fuss. -   Pls note the structure is glass and steel / there are no hold points / no where to even rest your feet – so fitness is essential / I strongly recommend an industrial harness with at least one rescue piton – a rescue team will rappel down in the event of any complications, if you get snagged or get your lines entwined (though again, I don't expect that to happen.)   WARNING: I do NOT want to see to any strange equipment that we all have not worked with before / every single time, we go for a climb some idiot will bring along some piece of hardware that no one knows how to operate and it is so complicated that we all need to read the manual before using / please check off the standard kit list with Astroboy (but please sign off on the book and do not disturb his granny if he is out, she is already senile and I have been getting alot of complains of people taking stuff out without signing the log book - remember what you take out, you are responsible for - if you break it, you buy a new one and replace it - it's as simple as that!), I have listed them above – there is a big box underneath Astroboy’s bed and there is everything that we need there / if I see any funny gear it will be thrown into the dustbin - this is not a test bed for new stuff - if you want to do that go to SAFRA and they will oblige you.   This is also a diplomatic mission where we are ambassadors as a Malaysian team will be there to observe us / we have sold them a new Dimitri class space station - so training will be required - I expect alot of social interaction – three topics are barred from discussion: royalty, politics and religion / please note that the locale Bukit Bintang is now an Arabic enclave; we may also need a liaison officer to communicate our intentions as no one likes to see strangers hanging outside their windows - bear in mind BB is also a giant vagina where prostitutes ply their trade openly – our Malaysian counterparts will be observing us and I do not want any sexual fraternization of any sort (otherwise I will tell your wife’s. I will. Let me share with you why - many of our Malaysian counterparts will be observing us and we are there to built deep spirited trust - this can only come from having a moral consistency - if you cannot tahan, go to youtube, but don't put me in a position where you shame us all.)   Keep it safe, clean and always remember we are ambassadors and if we do this well – we will leave people with a good impression that we are serious people who can be trusted to do big things.   As I said this is a strictly volunteer mission – the danger is 8/10 / remuneration for work done will be 50,000 Imperiums for each worker / we will work 12 hour rotation shift and it will be completed within 72 hours /   I will be the team leader and the first to go down to demo the SOP / Scholarboy will be XO and safety officer will be Harphoon / please report for fitness check with pumpman ASAP – we need to make sure you are fit for the job. NB: piton has been calibrated at 70 kg ( FREE FALL - DYNAMIC ROPE / BEAL) - those exceeding this weight need not apply.   SAFETY FIRST   Darkness 2009                    Read More →

The case of David Hartanto Wijaya, an Indonesian student who died at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in March, is entering a crucial stage, but the family continues to suspect an unfair process. David’s family filed a request in April to the Singaporean coroner court to consider the case as a murder, challenging conclusions made by the NTU and Singaporean police that David had committed suicide. Only if the coroner court finds it was not suicide will the case be forwarded to the criminal court. However, David’s family has felt that they still received unequal treatment throughout the process. The case has just entered the third phase of the court process, with more new witnesses to be presented by the NTU and the family. Hartono Wijaya, David’s father, said the NTU had already presented 22 witnesses, with four more to be presented soon. “But so far we were only given opportunities to present four witnesses, out of nine names we have submitted,” Hartono said on the telephone from Singapore. “Our request that David’s laptop and digital hard disk be returned to the family was also denied. And we just found out that the judge never received the family’s request until today,” he said Wednesday after one of the court’s sessions. Wednesday saw the coroner court receive testimonies from four witnesses brought forward by David’s family. “One of them is his brother, the other three are his friends. But they are not eyewitnesses. They were all witnesses to David’s life as a brother, as a friend,” Hartono said. The family had tried to find eyewitnesses from the university but everyone had remained tight-lipped, he said. Hartono said the President of NTU Su Guan Ning had told the family that the university had a witness who saw David attempt to slit his wrist before he jumped from a building in the university. “But when we asked to meet the person? The NTU rejected us.” The NTU alleged David had attempted to kill Chan Kap Luk, David’s professor, just before David committed suicide. Indonesian lawyer O. C. Kaligis, an advisor to the family, said the Singapore’s coroner court process turned out to analyze the possibility whether there had been a murder attempt on Professor Chan Kap Luk. “What we see is that the court only focused on how David Hartanto Wijaya tried to murder the professor,” Kaligis said. “From the start there has never been an analysis on the cause of David’s death.” The pictures that show his deep wounds were never exhibited, said the lawyer who advocated the family pro bono. Horrendously graphic pictures of David’s corpse showed he did not commit suicide. The pictures had been analyzed by Indonesian forensic experts Djaja Surya Atmadja and Evi Untoro, and they said any forensic doctor around the world would see from the forensic report that David’s body had defense wounds. “It was absolutely not a suicide.” Iwan Piliang, a blogger who has been accompanying the family since the beginning, said that they would bring forward two forensic experts from Indonesia who had analyzed David’s body from the Singaporean doctors’ forensic report and pictures of his body, “including a digital forensic expert who is the one and only expert in Indonesia.” Source: The Jakarta Post  Read More →

From Dr Mahathir's blog 1. I read somewhere that the Singapre Parliament made up of 82 PAP (People's Action Party) members and two opposition (made bankrupt by the Singapore Government) have just passed a new law which defines one person as an assembly. Before according to Singapore laws, 5 people would constitute an assembly and police could arrest them if they had not obtained permission to be together.   2. The new Public Order Act (POA) gives power to the police to tell even one person to move on because he has now been defined as an assembly.   3. It is explained that this POA is to prevent destabilising street protests seen in Thailand and terrorist attacks such as Mumbai. 4. I am sure with this new law, Singapore will not see a one-man demonstration or riot.     Read full article here  Read More →