There Are Some Things Money Can't Buy. Really.

Iron Man

It's that time again. The time where movies made for the masses, filled with wonderful special effects and hilarious LOL! moments bombard us en masse. This is the first wave.

And a slightly disappointing one.

Iron Man, is another typical origins movie. Which means that it is made with a sequel in mind (in this case an entire trilogy).

The cast is filled with a few Oscar nominees, including an Oscar winner. Only one seems to be at home in this movie.

And you would've expected something more. Still, it's not quite "run of the mill" nor is it clearly a intentionally or unintentionally a B-Grade Marvel Movie (such as, say, Daredevil or Ghost Rider). It has its entertaining moments, but they are too popcorn-ish (But hey, wasn't Spiderman popcorn fare- albeit a good one- all the way?).

As much as some would like it to be, I strongly suspect there is no such thing as a "serious" superhero movie. Which isn't exactly a bad thing.

Ah, but I May has never let me down. Yet. So, I'm waiting. Speed Racer is next week. Prince Caspian after that, and then Indy 4. We'll see.

If you thought RapidKL LRTs are crowded...

Those folks are actually paid to do that. Gotta love the Japanese.

The Orphanage

Take a woman, who lives in an old house where children have died, with an adopted son who sees dead people and subsequently disappears. Then, have her go on a wild goose chase (unsuccessfully) for him.

Flash forward a few months later, where she becomes convinced the house is haunted. She hires a medium who fills in some additional details. Then leave her alone to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Twist the plot in the end, and then twist the plot again to obtain an anti-happy ending.

Make sure it's in Spanish, and have Guillermo Del Toro to produce/present it for you for added cred.

Voila! You got yourself a critically acclaimed horror movie.

You can be quite certain that the English version remake will not be as critically acclaimed, because all American horror movies with haunted houses and twist endings are so passé, right?

Unless it's in Spanish.

Rating: B-

The Rectangular Table: Some Thoughts

As you can see, there wasn't a roundtable in sight but there certainly was one in principle. It was interesting to hear the speakers wax eloquent about esoteric relevant subjects in Malaysia today. As the moderator, I frankly didn't do much.

The speakers on the other hand, sure took their time. But they did make it sound as fun as possible. And yes, I should have been a little more...strict. But why would I want to when we were obviously having so much fun?

Hehe, okay. I do know some of the audience members found it an absolute bore. The nature of the subject will make it such to quite a number of young people. The speakers sure did not do any dumbing dumb on their subjects, and that's a good thing. Jargon, unfortunately, inevitably alienates some people. Take for example, zoology and stuff like that. National Geographic made it palatable to the masses. But it was folks like Steve Irwin that made in involving- to the young and the old.

No, I'm not gonna say we need a Steve Irwin of politics here to interest the young and old. I'm saying we just need to make it more involving, and not just talk about it and hope people will get interested.

Still, I'm really happy with the organizers for getting this together and for offering me the role of moderator. I might not have done much, but I have certainly learned a lot. As for the rest, I'm quite certain there were quite a few who learned a thing or two from this event.

Anyway, you can find the pictures here. Lots of thanks to Ethan; they turned out better than I expected. :P

(From left to right) Lee Swee Seng, Edward Ling, Me, Bob Kee & KJ John

Yes, I know, I look enthusiastic. My friends can attest that this is a somewhat biased representation of my demeanor throughout the event.

Malaysia: How It Works

The Junior Public Speaking Club (JPSC) cordially invites you to its second round table discussion entitled:


MALAYSIA: HOW IT WORKS


Objective: To encourage and nurture young people to be responsible, caring and fully participative citizens of Malaysia.


This special event is open to all ages - everyone who wants to know more about the supreme law of the land, how the govenment and its various branches work, our rights and responsibilities as citizens and how we can together help make a better Malaysia.

Our target audience is the youth/teens, but the speakers will definitely make it an interesting and worthwhile time for all the rest of us too.

There will be time for interaction during a tea-break and for questions from the floor.

Topics to be discussed:

1. *The Federal Constitution:* What is it and some salient points.

2. *Democracy:* How this works? Electoral Process, Free Speech etc

3. *The Government:* How this works? 3 Branches of Government and their roles etc

4. *Justice:* How this works? The importance of an independent judiciary

5. *Rakyat Malaysia:* How this works? What are my rights and responsibilities as a Malaysian


Distinguished Guest Speakers:


1. Nathaniel Tan, Blogger & Activist

2. Bob Kee, Concerned Citizen

3. Lee Swee Seng, Advocate & Solicitor

4. KJ John, Executive Director, OMHSI

5. Edward Ling, Campaign Manager (to Hannah Yeoh ADUN Subang Jaya)


WHEN: 25th April, 2008

TIME: 2:30-5.00pm

VENUE: No 16 SS19/5B 47500 Subang Jaya (courtesy of Subang Jaya Gospel Centre)

See maps below on how to get there.

Please take note that the Q & A session is reserved for youths under 21, but people of all ages are welcome to attend.

We are grateful to Subang Jaya Gospel Centre for the use of their hall for the event. However we wish to note that neither the meeting nor the Club is religious in nature.

Prayer: Keep it simple.

"And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites.

For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret.

And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.

Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

(Matthew 6:5-8, ESV)

Is Jesus saying that we should not pray long prayers? Some might say that it is the intention that's important (i.e. one prays long prayers merely to look spiritually good). That said, it's clear that one should not "heap up empty phrases".

What do you think constitutes "empty phrases"?

Remember: "For your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

Carson (Expositor's Bible Commentary, Matthew), I think, helps flesh out the various thoughts contained here:

Jesus is not condemning prayer any more than he is condemning almsgiving (v. 2) or fasting (v. 16). Nor is he forbidding all long prayers or all repetition.

He himself prayed at length (Luke 6:12), repeated himself in prayer (Matt 26:44; unlike Ecclesiasticus 7:14!), and told a parable to show his disciples that "they should always pray and not give up" (Luke 18:1).

His point is that his disciples should avoid meaningless, repetitive prayers offered under the misconception that mere length will make prayers efficacious.

Such thoughtless babble can occur in liturgical and extemporaneous prayers alike. Essentially it is thoroughly pagan, for pagan gods allegedly thrive on incantation and repetition.

But the personal Father God to whom believers pray does not require information about our needs (v. 8). "As a father knows the needs of his family, yet teaches them to ask in confidence and trust, so does God treat his children" (Hill, Matthew )

Suffice to say, I've heard my fair share of pastors who are capable of praying an entire sermon. That's not necessarily bad. The good intentions are certainly there. But ah, we must remember the model prayer:

Pray then like this: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Simple enough, yes? Again, no one's stopping us from expanding on that model. But there's no need to add so many things, as if leaving them out will make prayers lesser in quality and less effective. God knows and will meet all our needs (Matthew 6:30).

Tis the time, once again.

I've yet to finish an epic college assignment (epic in quantity and difficulty) due this Thursday and I've also got to brush up on my politics and history as I'm due to moderate the 2nd JPS Round Table Forum, alongside (among other people) bloggers Bob Kee and Nathaniel Tan, Hannah Yeoh's campaign manager Edward Ling, KJ John of Malaysiakini and OHMSI and Lee Swee Seng, lawyer and toastmaster.

Pressure lah.

Does life begin at conception?

Hilary Clinton: Potential for life begins at conception. . . I am a Methodist, as you know. My church has struggled with this issue. In fact, you can look at the Methodist Book of Discipline and see the contradiction and the challenge of trying to sort that very profound question out. But for me, it is also not only about a potential life — it is about the other lives involved. And, therefore, I have concluded, after great concern and searching my own mind and heart over many years, that our task should be in this pluralistic, diverse life of ours in this nation that individuals must be entrusted to make this profound decision, because the alternative would be such an intrusion of government authority that it would be very difficult to sustain in our kind of open society.

Obama: This is something that I have not come to a firm resolution on. I think it’s very hard to know what that means — when life begins. Is it when a cell separates? Is it when the soul stirs? So I don’t presume to know the answer to that question. What I know, as I’ve said before, is that there is something extraordinarily powerful about potential life and that that has a moral weight to it that we take into consideration when we’re having these debates.

At least Clinton gave an answer; Obama's is either avoiding the issue or he doesn't know for sure.

Either way, it's ironic that people are willing to commit to a stand (like Obama) even though they "don't presume to know the answer to that question".

And as for Clinton, it's curious how "profound" decisions are mostly left to teenage kids and the like.

In the end, shirking this issue does not demonstrate understanding and wisdom, but a lack of it.

I try to appreciate movies.

I don't get why the critics fawn over movies like Citizen Kane or The Godfather. They are entertaining, but by no accounts did they blow me away. Perhaps I need to grow older.

Question time though: Why then do I actually find 2001: A Space Odyssey mind blowing, Vertigo thrilling and Casablanca brilliant? I usually put it down to subjectivity; preference.

But it is still hard to figure why the same critic can call all those movies "great". True, some are. But ah, not all.

I've been recently following a formula I followed to improve my writing. That is, by immersing myself into the cream of the crop of said art. Which means I've been watching a lot of what people call "great movies". Yes, by watching lots of good movies, perhaps I myself can improve my movie making skillz. Yup yup.

It's hard to distill a formula though. I've always been taken aback at how similar some Booker prize winning books are stylistically that I suspect there must be some algorithmic formula you could draw up that will ensure you will definitely win the Man Booker.

It's just that visual storytelling is an incredible rich and diverse art. True, most would say that literature has explored an ever vaster world (it has been around for a lot longer than movies) and that books can afford to be rambling and long (think Tolstoy or Proust!) while movies must always be short and succinct (no more than 3 hours, please, unless it's an art film or The Lord of the Rings).

It's even worse if you're trying to make a short film. Perhaps I should start watching more of them. Some of them -prize winning shorts, mind you- are so dull and unstimulating that you have to laugh.

I haven't made a lot of short films. What I've made are all, well, not so serious stuff (check out my Youtube link and you'll know why). I'm still looking for something serious to film. Even if it's a comedy, it still has to be serious.

I've in fact hashed out a rough screenplay for "Wirawan", where a motley group of young Bumiputera students gain incredible powers, and fight (among other villians) Makkal Sakti (a big, brawling Indian man) and homeless dogs. Subtle political commentary included.

Those who are interested, do e-mail me (you can find it in my profile). Malaysians of all races are welcome. I'm trying to get Chinese people to play the Wirawan, in fact.

WIRAWAN BOLEH!

Yeah, something along those lines.

I'm Notta Heretic

Are you a heretic?
created with QuizFarm.com
You scored as Chalcedon compliant

You are Chalcedon compliant. Congratulations, you're not a heretic. You believe that Jesus is truly God and truly man and like us in every respect, apart from sin. Officially approved in 451.

Chalcedon compliant		92%
Nestorianism		58%
Modalism		50%
Apollanarian		50%
Adoptionist		42%
Pelagianism		33%
Monophysitism		25%
Monarchianism		17%
Albigensianism		0%
Donatism		0%
Gnosticism		0%
Arianism		0%
Docetism		0%
Socinianism		0%

Overall, good questions- goes straight to the important, essential stuff. Sure, it might all be "merely words" for the less pedantic, but there's no denying that acceptance of such propositions have been considered the make or break issue by many Christians throughout the centuries. Some questions could do with some brushing up on semantics (perspicuity is important, seriously!)

Worldly music? Or eh...

So, American Idols sang "Shout to the Lord" that song we usually sing in (some) churches. Darlene Zschech & Hillsongs must be proud. Or should they be? Sure, Idol (PC, PC) dumped "Jesus". But it got chosen nonetheless as a song worth singing. The Christian fundies will be hopping mad at this, for a variety of reasons. ("Hah! Song that gets sung by worldly people! Must be an unbiblical song!")

Maybe, but then again how many trillions of times have Amazing Grace been belted out by pagans and believers alike? And that song is a staple in many congregations whose liturgies are still printed in books.

Either way, Americans got an earful of Christian music, and I am left bemused at the irony of it all. See if you can guess why. Ah, America, America.

Weird places to stay...

Such as my condominium, where the manager (a grown man) shouts straight into the face of a tenant for no reason whatsoever, except maybe that he's just pissed off with people, life and etc.

People are weird. But people are people, and that, of course, explains a lot of things.

Aguirre: The Wrath of God

Werner Herzog has presented, in all its glory, the Amazonian jungle. Oh, and human nature as well.

There is relatively little dialogue; the visuals tell it all. Aguirre is best described as raw narrative: there are no stylistic pretensions and what we have left is an ambitious independent film. Read the Wiki page and you'd find out that how the movie was made is profoundly interesting in itself.

It certainly was a pioneering movie: and any movie after that will undoubtedly draw comparisons (which some critics did with recent films like Malick's "The New World").

Of course, the reason for such is that Aguirre excels. Some might be left bored at the drifting plot, which progresses at a leisurely pace. Either way, when one thinks of what the cast and crew had to go through to film this movie, you come to appreciate it more.

As the story progresses, you get to see how the titular character- Fernando Aguirre - comes from the background and into the foreground. Kinski portrays him as an ambitious madman with no small amount swagger.

The ending is filled with clear irony, and at only this stage some might be convinced of its greatness. But great movie or not, it certainly is innovative. And as a movie that sets out to tell a story, it works- compellingly.

In that old classic phrase: What an (mis)adventure!

So we college students set out to an FGA Planet Shakers concert to sell some t-shirts. Yes, college project. Tralalala, no harm trying right?

So we got there, and had no idea what to do. The crowd was intimidating, and we were clueless and obviously, embarassed. I lost count of how many familiar faces I saw.

Seriously, I don't make a good direct salesman. It's...ah. It's a deep, gloomy feeling everytime you even think of approaching someone. Unless I somehow get high, or something. Which is, incidentally, what happens if you somehow manage to sell something. Then you feel almost invincible. :P

Ah well, sometimes you're not up to these sort of things. Some times it's just a bad idea. Suffice to say, the product we're selling does not really have a mass appeal. More like something targeted towards a select group of people.

I'm gonna try selling it to my relatives again...

Wisdom, Knowledge or Information?

Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?

Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?

T.S. Elliot, The Rock

Sometimes we put things like wisdom and knowledge as opposites: the former usually the one more desirable. But wisdom without knowledge is nonsensical; one must first derive knowledge from information, wisdom from knowledge.

They all go hand in hand. The problem though, is that sometimes we stop at one stage: Some of us are content to not go beyond collecting information, others smug with their knowledge and only few go on to distill wisdom from those things.

In the end though, wisdom (I believe) comes with age; it takes a time to become mature, just as it takes time to distill wisdom.

China, Tibet and all that.

As the joke goes, pity the Muslims if a Chinese politician insults Islam, because nobody can afford to boycott Chinese goods. And so the situation is in this case. The Tibet crackdown has had many NGOs all over the world huffing, but with China in mind, they can do nothing but belch air.

The EU are already talking about boycotting the Olympics Opening Ceremony. It is, of course, questionable to take the Olympics into account. The Olympics held in Nazi Germany wasn't boycotted (except for some Jewish athletes who refused to participate), and there's no reason why the one in China should be.

Some might say though, that targeting the Chinese Olympics would be where it hurts the most- which is questionable. But still, there is little doubt that it attracts the most attention.

China, of course, know that they can't act freely and cover things up anymore. Thanks to none other than globalization (that evil thing), the world can easily watch what happens. Their reputation is at stake, along with maybe some foreign investments. But ah, that's if this thing gets out of hand. Looking at them, they've been efficient enough. The monetary compensation for each person killed is a nice touch.

Still, there's no doubt some- if not most- Tibetans want China out of there. The Chinese would say that Tibetans are better off with them (China does, after all, have a pretty nifty economy).

Those wanting independence would state that Tibet by right (which is the truth, since it was invaded and conquered) belongs to Tibetans. The Dalai Lama, with his good ol' Middle Way philosophy suggests that China keeps Tibet minus the religious and cultural aspects (of which Tibet will get the autonomy). The hardcores might want more than that, of course. Full independence or...

Either way, China has to address the psychological tension. If propaganda doesn't work then "cleansing" is necessary. Hehe. Just kidding. Well, I'm amateur in these areas, so I'm probably off mark with most of my comments. But ah, in the words of Quintus from Gladiator, "People should know when they are conquered."

Sometimes resistance is futile. And the West, guardians of freedom and democracy, can only flail in vain. That would be one dark outcome indeed. But truth be told, I see no other option. The decision lies with the People's Republic. Let's hope the people know what's the right thing.

Ouch.

These overachievers (business wise) sure deal a big blow to one's ego.

Poetry need not rhyme.

The Measure is English Heroic Verse without rhyme, as that of Homer in Greek, and Virgil in Latin; rhyme being no necessary Adjunct or true Ornament of Poem or good Verse, in longer Works especially, but the Invention of a barbarous Age, to set off wretched matter and lame meter; grac't indeed since by the use of some famous modern Poets, carried away by Custom, but much to thir own vexation, hindrance, and constraint to express many things otherwise, and for the most part worse then else they would have exprest them.

Not without cause therefore some both Italian, and Spanish Poets of prime note have rejected rhyme both in longer and shorter Works, as have also long since our best English Tragedies, as a thing of itself, to all judicious ears, trivial, and of no true musical delight; which consists only in apt Numbers, fit quantity of Syllables, and the sense variously drawn out from one Verse into another, not in the jingling sound of like endings, a fault avoided by the learned Ancients both in Poetry and all good Oratory.

This neglect then of rhyme so little is to be taken for a defect, though it may seem so perhaps to vulgar readers, that it rather is to be esteem'd an example set, the first in English, of ancient liberty recover'd to heroic poem from the troublesome and modern bondage of rhyming. - John Milton (Intro to Paradise Lost)

Convincing a person to believe in God

Is ultimately contingent upon said person's willingness to believe. Thus, an argument for theism must also be supplemented by a solid understanding of psychology: which is in the end the key to everything. Environmental influence is almost everything.

The formation of a novel - Pt. 1

In attempting to write a truly long story (as in a work of fiction breaching 2,000 words), I've always encountered a major roadblock in that after that point, I lose all motivation and purpose completely. I certainly don't lack ideas; far from it, there's just too many that can't be written out.

So I realized that having clear, well defined ideas alone does not mean that you'd have no trouble writing out a complete story. I've been able to type out (usually in a single sitting) works of short, short fiction for the simple reason that I could focus that long. After that, I falter.

Nor is it the wordcount alone that is an obstacle (I've written numerous assignments that of lengths sometimes twice as much). I manage to reach that word count level simply because I leverage on other people's work. But when it comes to writing something by myself, it's another story.

Perhaps a solution could be to draw elements from others' work. I've done that on multiple occasions, but still, I only have the heart to imitate style and not content (copying the latter isn't a very noble thing, and it bespeaks of laziness on the author's part).

So what is the solution then to my so called writer's block. I'm still finding out. Willing to write alone is not enough. But it would be a shame to not write down the words to my thoughts and fantasies, even as I moan about my problems here.

Tis the time for revolution.

Zimbabwe, the land where a single two ply toilet paper costs more than Z$500 (hence why some are saying the latter is cheaper), has shunned its failed government and embraced...change. At least, that's what the opposition offers. But seeing how this nation's economy is in tatters no thanks to its corrupt dictatorship, surely there is nowhere to go but up. Read this article and note some similarities with our current situation (note especially the description of some of the defeated politicians).

Why skepticism is sometimes good.

Nevermind about faith, with its contemporary definition that has so far diverged from the traditional ANE (Biblical) one that the two have become almost exact opposites. Skepticism is sometimes quite healthy

Remember those pesky e-mails circulating in Hotmail/Yahoo about sending this e-mail to X number of persons else your account gets deleted. Well, a lot of people either fell for it or decided to play it safe. As for me, I laughed and deleted it. E-mail accounts are still fine.

There are other ones too, like the unproven "Don't drink cold water after a meal else you'll get cancer etc."

But people do fall for that, the main reason is because its convincing, and it computes quite well in the mind (well, I fell for some of that for those reasons and nothing more). But a glance at serious, mainstream scientific studies (think journal articles and the like) usually disproves that. Entertain yourself by seeing how many of these Cancer Myths you hold to. Especially interesting is Myth 9, which is basically the big, secret, medical conspiracy theory. I actually know a few people who believe in that. A note on Myth 8 though: studies are still ongoing, and WHO recommends a play it safe approach.

Healthy skepticism is not about playing Doubting Thomas 24/7, which is as stupid as playing Mr. Gullible. No, it's something more like being a good Berean. Check, check, and check it thoroughly.

Which is why Popper is so important to me. Falsifiability is a prerequisite for sanity.

I was humbled.

I tend to get very proud; happy about myself, my achievements, etc.

I was even happier when I met someone who was smarter than me and made me look like an idiot. For that, I was really grateful. Much to learn, I have.

Boycott? What boycott? *Rant* *Rant* (Skip reading if necessary)

Local supermarket chain Mydin wins hands down the Sad Waste of Perfectly Good Stuff Award for wasting perfectly good red stickers. Meh; don't they know any better? Such things are nothing but an emotive response, since boycotting products have absolutely no impact on Geert Wilders and his political party who made that damned video (they barely have any presence in the parliament anyway).

Sure, some people are saying that the Dutch companies who lose their business would sue him. But if the Netherlands are anything resembling what I've been taught about, then the "liberal" courts will throw it out on the grounds of good ol' freedom of speech.

Thinking about it, maybe it'd be better if Al-Q or sumthing just offed him (Wilders). Deterrents make good preventions.

And for the last time, yelling out how much you hate that Dutch b'tard will only bring him millions of dollars worth of free publicity, and maybe a few more seats in parliament. Noobs.