Now and Then, Here and There

"Si jeunesse savoit; si viellesse pouvoit"
If only youth had the knowledge; if only age had the strength ~ Henri Estienne

Sometimes we hear the laments of the older adults about how the youngsters nowadays have fallen from grace. This standard that the former uses would be "their younger days".

Then the youngsters would argue with "Time changes things! Things ain't what they used to be anymore!"

Rinse and repeat until
A) both parties agree to disagree
B) one side chickens out
C) the debate gets more physical
D) all of the above, in no definite order

There is some merit in both. Things are no longer as good as the olden days - I usually phrase this as "when the sky was still blue and the grass greener" - and the world today is a different place to live in compared to, say, thirty years ago. We can hardly blame the elders for their stand - how many times have you yourself frowned upon the idiocy and mischief those younger than yourself were up to?


Sure, some things come with age - responsibilities, maturity, wisdom, driving license and the realisation that the world is not only a bed of roses but the thorns are very much real. But that's not what this post is about.

It's how the younger generation are getting more and more daring at a younger age. Primary schoolchildren getting acquainted with cigarettes. Teenagers experimenting on sexual behaviours. Illegal racing. Drugs and gambling. Women and men alike having no shame of parading every inch of their body for others to worship with their lustful eyes and erotic touches. Adultery seen as something normal. Single parenthood is as common as the traditional idea of parenthood. It's the collapse of the basic institution in a society - which spells eventual doom of the latter.

The problem with this risk-taking behaviour is that it is practised at the wrong place, wrong time, wrong situation.

Perhaps it has something to do with the wrong escape route.

Consider for a moment: when we pursue material enjoyments, our reasonings more often than not revolve around this elementary excuse of "to de-stress". In the olden days, things were harsher - everywhere people laboured, parents were generally stricter, kids rarely sought for entertainment. When they did, their form of amusements were basic, using everyday items like slippers, rubber-bands joined to form a skipping rope, and coconut leaves. They didn't have much of an escape, so they faced their hardships with valour and they prospered in the end when they conquered their difficulties.

So they may have a right to brag after all. And, while they're at it, dismiss our generation as having been pampered, causing us to become weaklings who only complain when things don't go the way we want them to.

In contrast, our escape routes are plenty. Too many to choose from, that even if we can successfully overcome the temptation of one, there is no guarantee that we can survive the next. Nothing good on TV? Switch on the PlayStation or XboX. Bored of the console? There's the Internet. From there...my God, the destinations are innumerable. Practically everything can be found there, with the help of a good search engine.

These temptations beckon us to choose escape routes over facing and looking at our problems in the eye. It's not like one of those shounen anime subplots that require the hero or his posse to go on a journey in search of his/their potential to become stronger, to defeat the current villain. No, this is running away like a coward because one is too afraid of the prospect of getting hurt, failure, or the notion of leaving everything including comfort behind.

In other words, afraid of hardships.

So we run away, abandoning the chance to develop ourselves. As a result, we are accused of being pampered.

We retaliate, then we are labelled as rebels.

...There's just no end to this, is there?

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Now playing: Gackt - 哀戦士
via FoxyTunes

P/s: Title or post is in no other way related to the Now and Then, Here and There anime.

Random, Useless Knowledge

Well, I must say I was generally pleased with Clash of the Titans. Not as ecstatic as the time I watched Sherlock Holmes, but still...

Although, the movie did not really correspond to some of the accepted details of Greek mythology.

I've always loved reading about Greek mythologies since my early childhood. It tells a lot about how people at the time believed in the Powers that Be, although admittedly, their beliefs would be insulting to the One True God in so many ways. In those mythologies, the so-called gods seem more like a clan of humanoid creatures that have a penchant for lewdness and cross-breeding *cough*especiallyZeus*cough* and patricide *cough*Zeus et al*cough*.

As for the discrepancies...Beware that these may contain spoilers...

1. Movie!Perseus was introduced as the son of King Acrisius's wife who was impregnated by Zeus. In the canon of Greek myths, Perseus's mother was actually the King's daughter, Danae.

2. Perseus actually killed Acrisius by accident, not because the latter was out for Perseus's blood in the first place.

3. Io was a favourite of Zeus, whom he protected against Hera's jealousy by changing her into a heifer. I can't recall who was the one cursed with eternal youth and immortality though...

4. Canon!Perseus ended up as the King of Tiryns after marrying Andromeda. The movie ended on a totally different note...

5. The monster Kraken was in no way associated with Greek myths, enough said.

6. Medusa's lair wasn't really in the Underworld, was it?

7. Medusa's head was supposed to be an offering for Athena, not to petrify Kraken. Athena later affixed the head on her shield.

8. Canon!Pegasus sprang from Medusa's body after her death.

9. Mentioned in passing, movie!Hydra was said to have five heads, whereas it actually had nine.

10. And lastly, to my knowledge, the Greek gods and goddesses certainly did not have shiny-sparkly-silver armours. Maybe one or two, but Zeus is commonly depicted as wearing robes, not polished-aluminum-body-plates...

There's more, of course, but the above are the glaring ones.

...Why is it that I can remember these details but I can't get medical knowledge to stay in my gray-cells with the same ease!?

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Now playing: Jason Derulo - In My Head
via FoxyTunes

Lesson of the Day...With A Bit of History

...Never read numerous political articles in succession, despite the harmless air they seemed to have. The reason? I succumbed to a unilateral, throbbing headache around four hours later.

...Or, it could have been because I kept myself glued to the computer screen, watching anime (and enjoying it!) right after I was done with the magazine?

History serves another purpose other than teaching us what to avoid - Please don't remind me by saying that history is to instill a sense of patriotism, because it doesn't work on me even after all these years - and that is for us to poke fun at it, all in the name of good humour.

I'd love to quote a comment I found on Youtube about nationalisme, although I'm not sure if it's legal to quote it without permission (since I'm too lazy to ask, whee!); "Nationalism makes relative but not absolute gains". In other words, it's the power that pushes a nation forward, to succeed. As such, when there is a problem of "Self before the rest" in the name of one's country, there's no escaping the possibility of getting involved - or, rather, clashing - with another, especially when history is thrown in the mix. Because history is, essentially, something that has happened that thus, is beyond change. What can be done, instead, is to manipulate the interpretation of the entire story. It's a classic example of "There is only one history/truth, but many versions of it".

And because we won't be who, what and how we are today if it was not because of history, it's quite hard to blame history entirely for all it's worth. I don't know if you've noticed it before, but many major turning points in history involves tyrannical if not egoistical rulers, and plenty of bloodshed. We can rightfully say, "Oh, they lived in the age of ignorance! Like England's King Henry who couldn't bear a male successor, he wrongfully divorced his wife to marry another, and yet when the latter still gave him no son, he accused her of multiple adultery and had her beheaded! But we all know that the sex of the child is determined by whether or not Y chromosome is present, and that should be coming from the father!", but people back then did not know that. What was important to King Henry was that he needed a son. Likewise, Shi Huang Di of China did not care about the massive killings he had ordered just for him to expand his empire and for his Great Wall. Oh, and while we're at it, we must never forget about Hitler and his Holocaust, because now Israel is doing the same to Palestine. Justified terrorism, ka?

Shouldn't we be horrified that it's essentially the evil megalomaniacs who managed to change the course of the world?

So yes, history will continue to haunt us because as long as we allow the inherent selfishness within us to command ourselves, we're destined to repeat history. I suppose one may say it defines humans - that we fight for what we believe is right, and if it so happens that we think it's right if we strip away the right of others in the name of misplaced right of self, it's maddeningly unacceptable.

But amidst it all, there is often the wish to emerge as the "good guy" in every story. So, for argument's sake, a country that went on massive imperialisme, forcing every other country into submission would attempt to justify it. In history books, this is manifested as a clever series of wordplay, or by a simple case of "lies of omission".

Studying history with only the hard facts will be boring. Devoid of humanity? Perhaps. Difficult to remember? God, yes!

Let's not forget that we may be manipulated, in that our thoughts are orchestrated to follow a certain pattern. How we view the world is partly shaped by the media - namely, newspapers, television shows, history, and perhaps even by fictional works.

What do we do in this age of overflowing information? Well, for starters, we must not accept things unconditionally. Just because Politician A is criticising Politician B, it doesn't mean that Politician B is in the wrong. Remember that there is such a thing as the pot calling the kettle black.

Another thing is, that we must learn to question. Even question authority when time calls for it, and do it ethically. Perhaps the young standing up against the old may not be part of what they say "Eastern culture", but for the sake of a healthy debate for the greater good, I say "WHY NOT!?" There is no infallibility in human traits!

...I didn't expect this entry would be this long. I sense a comic strip coming along...if I feel like drawing one.

Oh, wait. Now I know why I had that god-awful headache. I've been thinking too much about things that won't be able to be changed in the near future.


Current Music: World is Mine - Hatsune Miku

P/s: Suddenly I am reminded of one of my favourite quotes, one by Peter Ustinov; "To arrive at the truth, the German adds, the Frenchman subtracts, and the Englishman changes the topic."

P/p/s: PASTAAAA~!!!!11

Hibi

August 31.

It's one of those days again. Days that I'd rather have as non-existent. Days that people celebrate without truly understanding or appreciating history.

Despite being unpatriotic in the least, I do understand history. I am thankful (to some extent, but thankful nonetheless) for some of the great things that happened to me here. But...to say that the present is truly in glory? I have my doubts, and am not hesitant to say so.

It is true that we are more developed now compared to once before - but let's just put it this way; Our mentality has not developed as rapidly as the materialistic aspect. Backward development? Perhaps.

Imagine: People behaving like they have no idea what 'humility' means! I do agree that people should dress decently in public, but the way some people go about trying enforce 'morality', it's just not right! That's how we get opponents to the notion, saying that it's transgressing basic human rights!

I, for one, don't really like it when outsiders dictate what I should wear (that is God's privilege over me, but He's no outsider!), and hence, I do have something against school uniforms. Given, it would mean that I know, inherently, what may be worn and what may not. It's as simple as that.

I am okay with individualism, as long as it doesn't try to condescend other individuals.

But my main complaint is not wholly on dress code. It's how people behave that really ticks me off.

We claim we're civilised. But during 'celebrations', so called, why do most of us degrade ourselves, lower than the level of animals? It's downright embarrassing and depressing, how I wish to just escape from this pathetic country and how weak I am to challenge the mainstream 'culture', if I may put it as such.

Personally, if they have no religion, I couldn't care less. But please! Forget not He Who hath Lordship over thee, and never shalt thou forget thyself!

And there's also this 'habit' of blaming others, or other cultures.

Some claim that it's the West who has contaminated our lifestyle. But did they pause and ponder about the real situation?

They have their own lifestyle, yes, as do we. But, our problem is that we are too quick to copy what is not really good, or those that are not meant to be for us. For instance, everybody knows that smoking is bad, health-wise or...whatever it is. But some people do it because it's 'cool' and the need to be 'accepted'. Take note: I'm not only referring to cigarettes, per se, since there are also local...addictive that are a big no-no. Caffeine is not included, though.

And, we are bad drivers. We're not sporting enough, nor are we concerned about other people's safety on the road. And I'm willing to bet that the West are better drivers than we are. Is it because they were the ones who came up with automobiles in the first place? It's anybody's guess.

Politics. Our current political pattern, quoting a lecturer, is not designed for unity. The government comes up with a notion, and the opposition has to oppose. It's not beneficial for anyone if two sides, supposedly representing the same mass, are arguing. Whatever happened to 'work towards a common goal, forget our differences'?
Education. Again, we're copying what is not suitable for us. We're learning too much, yet it doesn't really shape the human within us. It's just food for brain, but isn't it supposed to supply our conscious as well? The system is too exam-oriented, that students abhor exams rather than enjoy it (ie. treating it as a positive challenge). We're becoming too worried about scoring instead of paying enough attention for us to enhance our skills.

It's absurd, how what we were taught does not really apply in real life. Could one say that, after all it's said and done, it's just a waste of time?

Current Music: We are One Tonight - Switchfoot

Head On

"If there was nothing wrong in the world, there wouldn't be anything for us to do" - George Bernard Shaw

So I have been guilty of many things. I realise that by complaining, it makes me sound like a spoilt brat, but hey, what else is there to do when one is subjected to such injustice?

I'm starting to dislike this place. It manages to make things more...annoying for us. There was one day when we had to go for a bloody dull seminar on consumerisme just because it's compulsory. While it is true that it won't make much different after all if I were there or not, but let's face it - responsibility is pain. They make you do what you don't want to do - which is quite like describing life in general, especially if one is governed by autocratic rules and rulers. It's a question of responsibility - your being absent shows that you've some sort of an attitude problem, and yes, that itself is enough to show how unfit you are for medicine.

But there's also the question of human rights - student rights. As a student, I'm to study. To me, I'm no student of this university - I'm just a student of medicine. So that means I study for the knowledge, not for the university. As such, I have aversion in fulfilling all (perhaps most) the extra tasks they drop on my frail little shoulders. Who cares what the seminar was talking about? The speakers were utterly dull, irritating (honestly, it took all my self control not to go out there and launch a debate there and then...) and so, so unprofessional.

Find some other people to yak to, for God's sake. My books were calling me, yet I've wasted my whole day. I tried to be positive about it, really, but there's no way I can lie to myself.

Studies are another. Honestly speaking, I love reading the books. If I had the time and energy, I would read more. I would delightedly open several books just for one topic but hey! Let's be realistic. There's no time. It's not like during my matrix time, when I could gleefully read and reread the textbook. Now it's all rush, rush and rush. The things we've to learn are interesting (mostly) too, but when the time factor is involved, one can't help but to just...give up on it all. I've no problem at all with books, seriously, but what good are books when we can't read because of Father Time?

And I think Anatomy is just not for me. Heck, sheer memorising is not for me. I don't think it's the right way to stimulate one's intelligence and brain capacity. The cadaver class didn't really help either, since there wasn't any good view long enough to make sure that whatever enters my brain stays there. The formaline stench was hellish - the sight of death was, at first, nerving. And one cadaver for 30 people? Absurd. Fifteen is good enough. And that's not even talking about how the girls and guys are to distance themselves from each other and all...

Honestly, some people make other people's lives more miserable than it should be.
I can't seem to treat humans as mere cells and organisms. I keep on thinking about the soul - the unseen.

Speaking of cells, I keep on falling asleep during Histology class. I don't think it's my fault (it's beyond my control! If only I can control it, turn it on and off whenever and wherever appropriate...ah, bliss) and it's not the lecturer's fault either.

I have a big issue with some teaching methods. If one remembers history, one would say that all the big imams of the past had stern teachers. As for me (call me weak if you must, there's no use denying reality) I beg to differ with this attitude on behalf of the teachers or...people in the teaching business. Just because they know more than us students doesn't grant them the right to...speak (or berate) us if we erred. It's human to err. Teachers were students too once upon a time, so they think they should re-apply the teaching methods their own teachers of the past applied to us too?
Where is common sense? Perhaps the word common should be dropped from common sense, since it's not so common anymore. At least, it's not common here.

The authoritative have no common sense. If we need any information to be filled in their forms, why couldn't they have informed us in advance on what kind of info the forms require - or at least , if one already has it, to bring it over? Not everybody's parent(s) is at home to check. Normal people don't go memorising numbers like tax accounts into their head - there are much better things to remember!

All this emotional torture is seriously frizzing up my hair, and possibly giving me high blood pressure too. I wonder if I could sue this evil breed of...creatures.
Some people are immensely annoying, you'd wish they'd just vanish from the face of the earth, and your memory of their existence with it.

My focus has long gone with the wind.

Can I survive here? Barely one month and my motivation is already below sea level. Stay for another five freaking years...I don't know if my sanity is still intact by then.

Survival seems so incredibly impossible.

Medical students are human beings too. Don't push us as if we're not.

Where is civilisation when I need it?

If only five years would speed pass by me without my losing my balance.