TR EMERITUS

The topic of the benefit and harm of the mRNA vaccine is complicated. The health authorities mandated the use of the vaccine in 2020. There is a large following of people who disagreed with that decision. The objectors were active in spreading the materials against the vaccine. I have viewed some of the materials. I found the reasoning to be flawed. For example, the mRNA vaccine might be harmful for some people, but it cannot be concluded that it was harmful for the majority. The objectors advanced another argument, namely that the health authorities should not have approved the vaccine and mandated its use in a hurry, before the vaccine was proven to be safe. I disagree with the objectors. It is the responsibility of the health authorities to make the judgement. The objectors should respect that authority. Many objectors continued to send many anti- vaccine materials for me to review. I declined, as i considered it to be a waste of time. Furthermore, I am not an expert on the subject and my opinion will not carry any weight. I took 2 jabs of the vaccine and 2 boosters previously, when the covid virus was severe. I believe that the latest strain is mild, and it is not necessary for me to take another booster. Many people appear to share the same opinion. I also believe that the mask is not helpful and not necessary. I prefer not to wear a mask outdoors, even in crowded places, although many people prefer otherwise. Recently, I was alarmed by the excess death in Singapore. The statistics showed that the deaths in Singapore in 2022 was more than 20% higher than 2019. A friend explained that the vaccine caused a drop in the immune system in the body and resulted in a higher incidence of cancer, organ failure, etc Another person suggested that the drop in immunity was caused by the virus itself, rather than the vaccine. I have decided to keep an open mind on this matter. I will continue to pay attention to research but I will focus on credible sources.   Tan Kin Lian    Read More →

Jet Li recently said this: “I don’t know how to be a good father, so can I learn to be one all over again.” His daughter, Jada, 20, had depression when she was seven. It grew worse when she was 13. At that time, Jet Li was busy with his charity, One Foundation. It was set up after the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004. Throughout that period, Jada was battling her condition alone. She even wanted to end it all. Jet Li came to a point of brokenness and confessed: “I wanted to find an opportunity to say to her: “Sorry, my child, I was wrong. I gave all my time to the world and forgot to care about you.”” And sorry he did, in words and deeds. Father and daughter then took a three-month journey to heal, exploring Tibetan Buddhist studies. Over time, Jada’s condition gradually recovered. But the journey of fatherhood does not end there. It has no expiry date as long as you are still breathing. And rich or poor, money does not solve everything. You cannot throw money at it and hope that a life will just pick herself up and walk. Relationship is about time spent, not just money spent. And it is about character forged along the way, overcoming one challenge after another, as the bond mutually reinforces. This may be trite, but the trite road is the least travelled. It’s a fabled tale often told but the trail remains cold. Just about the same time, I read about Nathanael Koh. You may have read his story. On Dec 15, at 13, Nathanael “became one of the youngest students to graduate from the Australian National University, earning an honours degree in music composition with a perfect point average.” He achieved many milestones in his short 13 years. At three, he started playing the piano. At 9, he completed his diploma in music theory from Trinity College London. He is also “scored A+ for several mathematics modules at New Zealand’s University of Canterbury at 12.” He is now aiming for a doctorate programme in music composition at ANU.” When he was born, Nathanael was diagnosed with global developmental delay, “which meant he lacked the muscular strength needed to perform everyday tasks”. He was incoherent at four and “could not even eat solid foods at seven.” His parents struggled during this time, and his dad said: “Nathanael liked to stare at bright lights and make funny sounds. Most people avoided us as they thought he had some disease.” Nathanael said: “I feel like we shouldn’t judge people especially people like me, because everyone has a different path and is unique.” The stories of Jet Li and Nathanael taught me a thing or two about walking this journey with your kid. For Jet Li, it’s about self-awareness. He confronted his flaws and did what he needed to do as a father. In his busyness to be and do many things that clamoured for his attention, he knew that what he had left behind will eventually catch up with him. And he also knew the road ahead is an empty trek no matter how bright the lights if he doesn’t turn back and simply be a father to his daughter. No star is complete without the warmth of the light, because the universe is often very cold. For Nathanael, it’s about taking a different path, taken with the love of family. He was surely different. But some people only saw that. They judge him based on that alone. Like his dad said: “Nathanael liked to stare at bright lights and make funny sounds. Most people avoided us as they thought he had some disease.” I believe if we stop at different, the world will always be tribal. And the natural reaction to anyone different is avoidance, even alienation. That is why Nathanael’s words bridged the silent gap when he said: “Everyone has a different path and is unique.”That made all the difference, right? When we go beyond what is superficial, and journey with a life regardless, we will eventually see it bloom into someone beautiful. As parents, we need to embrace that uniqueness in our child. If we stop at different, we will miss out on the uniqueness of their gift. It may not be a gift of academic brilliance, like Nathanael, but it may just be one that save us from ourselves. And through this realisation, we can learn to be a better father/parent to our child.   Michael Han    Read More →

As mentioned in Part I, even though we are not "Experts" in the specific knowledge domain, we can still examine the validity of the claims made by these Experts by using Empirical Observations. Hypothesis 1) Vaccine (V) is Safe 2) V is Effective in preventing Infection and transmission of Covid (CV) 3) V is Effective in preventing hospitalization from CV Infec 4) V is Effective in preventing Death from CV Infec 5) V cause Excess Deaths 6) CV Infec cause Excess Deaths The list goes on. Empirical Observations: A) Pf, the manufacturer of V, has literally listed 1291 potential Adverse Effects on their own V with some of these potentially Fatal. Empirical Observations also indicated that lots of Adverse Events have been recorded in US as well as EU. B) Inspite of high V rates for so many countries including SG, Infec still continues. C) Hospitalization still happen to many V people. D) Although the latest variant of CV should be milder but yet, V people, small number multiple boost-ered, have died from it. E) Majority who were hospitalized or died from CV are old and vulnerable people. F) Excess Deaths for all causes are higher in countries which are highly V, multiple boost-ered. In fact, there is strong correlations between High Excess Deaths and V rates in different countries. G) All countries, regardless of V rates, are suffering from CV infections. From these observations, it is natural for us to ask for Hypothesis: 1) Safe? How Safe? Safe for everyone and pushed for Mandatory V? 2) Empirical Observations have proven this hypothesis is false 3) How effective in prevention of hospitalization? We don't know but we are still seeing these even though the new variants are supposed to be milder. 4) How effective? We are still seeing deaths, though in very small number, while variants are milder. 5) The high correlation of Excess Deaths in various countries to high V rate is the subject of great concern. We need more indepth studies and research. 6) There is no Empirical Observations of correlations. All countries are suffering infec regardless of V rates but Excess Deaths are different in these countries. If All countries cannot escape CV Infec, then they should suffer similar Excess Deaths if CV Infec is the culprit of causing Excess Deaths! But there is no Empirical Observations to support this. These are my Critical thought process which formulate my views and stance about V, even though I am no "Expert".   Goh Meng Seng      Read More →