mfn's blog

Vision 2020: just another dream?

As I heard that Malaysia is not bidding for the 2020 Olympics, I began to think that the hope for Malaysia to achieve the vision to be fading. Even our neighbor Indonesia is placing their bid by promoting green environment to the prestigious sport. The reason explained was simple - Olympics is a big thing and we are not sure if Malaysians are ready for it, because we don't have good athletes compared to other previous host countries. On the positive side it will somehow motivate our athletes to work harder and be known in the Olympics. However, we should not underestimate the capability of our own country in hosting such big event. We have managed to host the 16th Commonwealth games by facing a lot of difficulties including economic crisis. So why are we losing out today if we believe that our economy is much better than other countries around the world?

Even though there are a lot of big projects being abandoned, it does not mean that we should give up on 2020 and start extending it to another 50 years with no necessary target. Without realizing it we are only a decade before achieving that 2020 vision. 10 years can be just like a blink of an eye if we don't use the time wisely. There are almost no mention of 2020 everywhere. Matters concerning bad behaviours and corruption is everywhere. Are we able to uplift that dream again and become a role model to the world?

For a country to become successful it must have a clear goal and strive to achieve that goal without underlying or side intentions. The Germans had to teach their people to take care of the environment in ten years and they can be successful in doing that. The same goes to Singaporeans in educating their people to make the island clean. Their goal is very simple: Make their countries clean. With clear goals being advertised to people it shouldn't be a problem for us to follow. We don't really need to have 10 or 20 principles to achieve that goal.

So what we should do now is to concentrate on trying to achieve that goal by taking a different path instead of the one being set by the former premier. Maybe this is actually happening today, except that we don't emphasize on working it as efficient as possible before the time comes. Policies changed when new leaders take over, but the objective should remain the same.

In my opinion it shouldn't be a problem for Malaysia to place a bid for the Olympics. Even though the possibility of losing the bid is high, we have the guts to tell the world that we can do it. Let the world see Malaysia as a force to be reckoned with, not some kind of a poor little country who can't even fend for himself.

I may not be able to see floating cars roaming Kuala Lumpur in ten years time, but I am hoping to see more people being able to become successful professionals in life.

QotD: "To teach is to learn twice." ~Joseph Joubert, Pensées, 1842

If you had to teach something, what would you teach?

English and everything related to it. I find it really important to teach this language as it connects with cultures and values of people all over the world. English gives you access to wide range of resources -from scientific materials to historical literature. It is just a tool for just about anything. It also helps us to communicate our needs to people around the world. For example, nowadays English is one of the popular teaching subject for travellers. Travellers are now able to contribute to the society that they visit by teaching them English. The society will then be able to express their culture to future travellers through the medium of English. This will benefit both sides -the traveller teaching English and the society learning the language.

Atittude

Last night we had a talk about how a young adult may have a social problem and the things that may have caused this to happen. The social problem may include not attending to classes, not being able to keep up with studies and not having a good reputation with colleagues. When a person has a disciplinary problem it does not always mean that he does that without a reason. I thought the most possible reason that I could come up with is pressure within that person due to family difficulties and personal matters. However, my friend has a different opinion. He believes that the problem goes back to attitude.

Attitude problem can be a serious thing according to him. When a person has grown up, the person must come to accept difficulties such as death of a family member as part of what life is. People will somehow face the same difficulties and how he face them depends on his attitude. If he can accept the difficulties he should have no problem to develop himself and be positive with the outcome. However, when a person does not accept such facts he would be assumed to be in trouble. And that is what my friend termed as attitude problem. He believes that people at our age (the young adult) should not be grieving so much to the extent that we are not able to participate in social responsibilities. But that attitude problem may fade away when he grows older and begins to think deeply about life.

He might be true to a certain extent but I had my own opinions to this as well. Though it might be an attitude problem I believe that it also goes back to the root of the problem again. When a person begins to face difficulties since he was a child he may have develop a negative attitude until he grows up. Even though one might say that the person who are in troubled times can get help from his relatives it will never be able to replace what that person may have lost or wasted since he was a kid. If he is not strong enough the negative energy will be brought forward until he grows up. That is why theorists say people learn adopt things fast when they are little. If the person is not given proper care and attention, he will possess the negative attitude and inflict it on himself and others around him. The same goes if one's parent is troubled and has an attitude problem. That problem can be transmitted to their children if their children are exposed to the unwanted environment, besides having the same gene.

But if it is a personal problem that is being kept secret from others there is nothing that we can do about it. That is a personal matter, and we as friends must act professionally unless he is ready to speak out his problems. When the person gives up facing the difficulties, people will find him difficult to be accepted in their group.

Ihsan

When I was back in the UK, I came across many people who are willing to help me out in working on things like writing a document, giving directions and checking on assignments. They would do this without hassle and argument. In fact, they even want us to ask them for help. They also follows all the rules such as on the road no matter how ridiculous the rules can be. When asked why they are like that, the answer would only be self-fulfillment.

When we are in East, we are always taught about moral values and how we should help each other and follow the rules. This can also be seen in schools when we are taught moral education, civic and religious education. But we can hardly see people nowadays following what they have been taught when they were kids. In the UK there is no subject specifically designed for spiritual or moral education. Even if they have religious education, it is not designed to preach people to do good. So it makes me wonder why people in the West -who do not have a specific curriculum or some never heard of the term 'moral values', are so inclined to practice what is being taught in the schools in the East.

In Islam, there is a particular term for this. It is called 'Ihsan', or goodness and perfection. We can only reach 'ihsan' when we do things for the love of God. It is an act of worship as if God is watching us (when He is indeed watching us) even though we are unable to see Him. People who have the 'ihsan' will be  rewarded in the afterlife. In order to reach the perfection we need to do good things such as helping people, obeying the law and avoid doing things which are harmful to oneself and others. It is excellence of work and in social interaction. Sincerity is also part of ihsan, which is to get to the highest degree of worship.

But we hardly see Muslims practicing the concept nowadays. The power of ihsan seemed to be shifted and incorporated in the Western culture. And I am still wondering how the Westerners are practicing it as perfectly as how one would describe the meaning of ihsan. The only difference between 'ihsan' being practiced by the Westerners is that they are not doing it for any particular religion, though nowadays there is a growing number of Western Muslims out there, practicing the same 'ihsan'. Is it because we do not get the 'self-fulfillment' that we deserve to get when we do the good deeds? Or is it because of economic reasons? We feel that there is no point of helping people out without getting a reward? Unless if they pay us with good money?

Thus, there is no surprise if the West is adopting more Islamic values and culture than the East. This may explain what the prophet meant by "the sun will rise from the west" when the world is coming to its end. Wallahua'lam. There is a vast knowledge that are yet to be discovered.

Delayed crisis

I thought I just saw a terrible economic crisis a couple of years back in the UK. When I read the news in Malaysia, it was all about good news as we were able to cope with the crisis and were still live a happy life. Ringgit was strong, and there was nothing to worry about. Last year, economy in the UK was slowly recovering and I could see smiley faces everywhere, and people shop quite a lot for Christmas. It was a good sign that everything was going to be okay. But upon my return here, I suddenly felt like what happened in the UK a couple of years back is slowly being felt here. It was like our country is taking its toll for being prosperous when other countries were slowing down. I thought it was only because of the little profit Petronas made last year, but it seemed to be more than that. A lot of things had to be cut down, a lot of things had to be paid. And the budget for education and teacher training institutes had been reduced tremendously. It is a tough time for everyone. 

With the rising price of sugar, everyone seems to be taking this opportunity to raise the food price. But that is not really a matter, as consumers have the right to choose whatever stall that sells food at a reasonable price. The thing that matters is the financial difficulties that everyone is facing today. There are cuts everywhere. Even the cents are now rounded to the nearest ringgit, in which I find quite surprising (though some said it can benefit the consumer at some point). We may no longer see people wasting their food everywhere in the restaurants and cafes -a practice which may be popular a few years back. Well that might be a good indicator of our attitude towards things. But the difficulty that is facing us today may indicate a more stressful life routine. This may led to unwanted aggression as people are fighting for survival. Like the famous manglish phrase "no money no talk", we will never have a good life without good pay. This is a challenge for everyone including government servants and private sectors.

Let's just hope that the economy becomes better throughout the year. It is the year of the tiger so probably everyone has to be bold to go and drive the economy forward.

Doctor, can I trust you with my life?

Sometimes when we go to a clinic and tells a doctor that we have stomachache the doctor would just jot down the information and prescribe a medicine to us without checking on us. And on rare cases, we do not realise that we have a disease which is more serious than a stomachache. By the time we are admitted to the hospital, it is already to late and our condition worsen. And when we thought the hospital can help us out things turn the other way round. We need to see a specialist, we to get this and that, and in the end we are not able to cure the disease. But these are only rare cases.

When I heard from my uncle about the trouble he is getting through to get his child the proper treatment I began to ponder how our medical profession is developing. I began to ponder deeply with accidents involving medical treatment being published on paper.

Doctor is a noble job and not all people is entitled to become one, no matter how they indulge with the subject. It also requires ethical values which is the core part of it. Doctors must be honest in their work, but at the same time they need to please their clients. Isn't that a tough job?

When a doctor starts to open a private clinic, there are a lot of things that need to be considered. If a doctor is unable to cure a patient, they need to tell the patient so and suggest them to see a specific doctor or go to a hospital for medical check up. They must not make their own assumption and give whatever medicine they have in their stock. This can be detrimental to the patients and I believe this is against their ethical conduct. Meanwhile, they need to treat the patient with uttermost respect. I have experienced many cases in which the doctors are stubborn and arrogant. Sometimes they don't even smile and helpful to their patients. Maybe they have their own problems at home but they shouldn't bring that problem to the clinic. There are also instances where the doctors would not accept patients in their clinic. The reasons may sometimes because they are closing. What would happen if the patient dies when they arrive just on time to get help from their doctors? A problem as simple as coughing can kill in a split second if it is not being treated.

There are also doctors who claim themselves as 'specialist' and opens a 'specialist clinic'. They need to be careful in making such claims as there are people with serious difficulties and require specialists to cure them. For instance, there are hundreds of difficulties relating to heart, and each difficulty requires a different treatment. Sometimes, the difficulties can also be related to other parts of the body. So, can we rely solely on one heart specialist clinic? And specialists require a certain type of qualification to treat the patient. Honestly, we are still lacking specialists in Malaysia.

I am not surprised when the MAA voiced their concerns over the 1Malaysia clinic. When we don't have enough doctors in our country, how can we be sure that we can have enough qualified doctors in every clinic, even though they just have to check on simple sickness? Some may rather just buy the medicine in the pharmacy, where it usually has labels and prescription written all over.

It is great to hear that the number of qualified doctors are increasing and many who studied overseas had returned to contribute to the society. We need expertise so that we can trust our doctors with our life, even though we know that the matter of life and death is in God's will. But we can try our best in trying to keep up with our health. As for the muslims, there is no single incurable disease but death. So we need to work hard and learn more in finding cures to the disease. 

Blame the system

This morning my lecturer told a story quite a long time ago about a boy who were not able to further his education after PMR. And the reason was simple - he was unable to read. He was not able to learn how to read effectively in schools and had to receive extended education from his mother.

And our lecturer posed this question: Who should be blamed for this situation? The teacher, the parents or the system? She added that during that time the system did not have remedial classes, so people like him would not be able to receive proper education and to be on par with his friends. Those were the days, she said. But it was mentioned that long before that -back during British education system was introduced - there were special classes for these children. But when the government changed the policy, everyone had to rush for the syllabus.

And today, the government has introduced other learning programmes to help learners with learning difficulties to compete with other children. But will it be possible with teachers as the only aid for these children? It may be possible yet it may prove otherwise as these programmes are still undergoing trials and errors. But one thing is for sure is that teachers today need to work extra hard to get the things done. That explains the increase of our pay.

We shall see how it will turn out in near future, so long as the policy does not change too quickly like what has happened to the Science and Mathematics in English, in which I find this decision to scrap the project as too hasty, as we are still unable to see the end result of it.

The one who leads and the one who follows

When people follows a set of belief without studying it, they become ruthless and selfish. The one that causes trouble are always the followers, but the one who will be in trouble will always be leaders. However, if the follower posses a good knowledge of what he believes in, he will remain content and think before acting. Even gangsterisme has this two kinds of followers - the one who knows nothing but acts as if he knows everything and the one who knows something and acts rationally (though in negative light). The first type of followers are always the threatening one, but the easiest ones to be tamed. That is if we give them the knowledge.

In response to the attacks on the churches, I'd rather say that the people behind the plot (is they are muslims) are those who were not given enough education on Islam. There is nothing in the religion that permits someone to burn down religious buildings. Mecca was left unharmed except for the removal of deities, Hagia Sophia was transformed into a mosque and much of the interior was retained until today. We must remember that places of worship are places for people who are seeking peace and tranquility. And Islam itself is derived from the term 'peace'. Don't let the history of al-andalus and alhambra to take place again.

These are the people who might in the end turning away from the religion, if they are not being taught about the truth. So the blame will go back to people who have the knowledge but do not teach it to the ones who act like they know everything. This includes leaders when they do not practice what they preach. Na'uzubillah.

We should work on this rather than fuelling demostrations. Equip everyone with the knowledge before trying to win back what has been lost.

Happy new years!

I would like to wish all voxers especially my neighbors happy new years! We just had Islamic new year a few weeks ago, AD new year few days ago and we will be having Chinese new year in a month's time. I must say the start of the year was not as good as the last time, but I am pretty sure that things will become much better throughout the year. Welcome to a new decade.

I am not I a very good health condition (probably trying to adapt with the weather here in Malaysia) so I probably not be able to update my blog as frequently as before. Furthermore, I am preparing for my final year. But I have loads of things in mind that I'd like to share with everyone. Stay tuned!

Near the end of the line

Finally I have reached the end of my study in Plymouth, UK. After two years of bittersweet memories, everything has come to an end. But memories will be cherished, and talked about in almost every aspect of life. It seems like it was only yesterday that we came to land of the English people. I wonder when will I be able to visit this place again. Like my lecturer in Portsmouth said, you might be able to come back but by that time everything must have changed significantly. The people you've met may not recognise you and you might not recognise them. Probably facebook can help with that. Even so, the feelings and atmosphere may not be the same.

I will be leaving Plymouth on Christmas eve and on the plane on Christmas day.

Goodbye Plymouth.