The Palestine and Israeli conflict is perhaps one of the most protracted and simmering conflict in modern times. Although similar in the emotive aspect to Pakistan and India, there is one stark difference.
The fact that Palestinians don't yet have an official state and is in repression from Israel makes it different in terms of asymmetry of powers at play. Before we look into the media reports, and make sense of the carnage and verbiage, it's important to see how the people involved really see it. Thanks to my peers at Fletcher. I've come upon an excellent site where you get a real picture of the situation. It's a web documentary on the lives of people on both sides.
http://gaza-sderot.arte.tv
Why is watching and learning this important? Well, because it helps us to establish common denominators and common ground for peace and reaching compromise. It also helps understand where policy has gone wrong. It also provide a compass when navigating through the whole media verbiage and internet ramblings on the issue.
There is also a great need to look forward rather than look back. Re-establish trust and order and put the people's live back on track. Hamas agenda of resisting Israel and to oversee its destruction is pointless. To argue for the nation of Israel to be uproot is purely making the conflict intractable. At the same time, the reaction from Israel would only continue to prevent the Palestinians from getting back on their feet to elk out a normal and progressive lives and at the same time sow more seeds of discord and help Hamas recruitment. As game theory suggest, this is the lose-lose situation.
As much as I disagree with Israel's ground offensive, I think abhor Hamas even more for dragging its people into the conflict and misrepresenting them. This also is a demonstration of Rupert Smith's notion of the new regional wars that take place in population centers and involve non-state actors.
I cannot stress how non-state actors when having chosen the path of violence is so dangerous and destabilising for peace because they hold to no jus bellum, are not constrained by norms and use their asymmetry to legitimise their insurgency and non-discriminatory form of warfare.
As much as we get shocked that Israel has shelled a UN school killed many innocent or perhaps feel a moral obligation to speak out at the disproportionate death ratios suffered by both sides, I would like to also point out that the non-discriminatory firing of Kassim rockets into cities without designated military targets are terrorist acts, does not conform to the principle of proportionality and are perfidious.
It is also pointless to retrace history to determine who has the legality or legitimacy over the lands. It merely builds fortifies and entrench the positions that does not help ameliorate the conflict. In short, both sides seriously need to back off and achieve a peace settlement at the negotiating table. Hamas to act responsibly for the people and Israel to agree to self-determination of the Palestinians and cease the economic strangulation on the territories.
My two cents worth.
Showing posts with label Personal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Personal. Show all posts
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Sunday, December 21, 2008
How much snow can you get in 24 hours?
This is amazing. I've heard of snow storms but now I've really witness the effects of one.
It started snowing yesterday at around 1pm on 19 Dec 08. It was really light and just flurries. I thought it would be nice and enjoyable. Of course, I was rather excited about it. It didn't stop in an hour or two and it just kept going. This was how it looked like at around 3pm.
The maintenance guys for the condo association were coming around continuously to clear the snow and to create walking paths for us. In fact, they were here almost every 2 hours. The snow just kept going. Finally at around 2am when I was about to go to bed, I looked out of the toilet window and saw this.
When it was finally morning, at around 10am, we found that the car had turn into an icicle.
The most amazing thing was when we asked our neighbors in the morning about the snow, we found out that this was just the tip of the iceberg. Imagine that!
It started snowing yesterday at around 1pm on 19 Dec 08. It was really light and just flurries. I thought it would be nice and enjoyable. Of course, I was rather excited about it. It didn't stop in an hour or two and it just kept going. This was how it looked like at around 3pm.
The maintenance guys for the condo association were coming around continuously to clear the snow and to create walking paths for us. In fact, they were here almost every 2 hours. The snow just kept going. Finally at around 2am when I was about to go to bed, I looked out of the toilet window and saw this.
When it was finally morning, at around 10am, we found that the car had turn into an icicle.
The most amazing thing was when we asked our neighbors in the morning about the snow, we found out that this was just the tip of the iceberg. Imagine that!
Friday, November 28, 2008
Happy Thanks Giving~!
It was awesome and the festivities just reminded me of the Chinese New Year Reunion dinners on the Eve of CNY. Thanks to my wonderful landlord, I was able to engage my family in the warmth of this day.
It's also one of the best turkey that I've tasted. Fragrant and not dry. I also tasted the most awesome 20 year old port wine from Portugal. 20% alcohol and certainly not for the uninitiated.
Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrates this festival!
It's also one of the best turkey that I've tasted. Fragrant and not dry. I also tasted the most awesome 20 year old port wine from Portugal. 20% alcohol and certainly not for the uninitiated.
Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrates this festival!
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Bravo! The power of adaptive management endorsed by the President-Elect of the United States of America
I am a firm believer of adaptive management. If there is such a term in the firm place. This concept or notion stems from the fact that there is no silver bullet in life, no panaceas.
Nations grow strong, companies survive competitions, individual thrive in the rat race, not by some magic formula or some harden idealogy. It comes instead from a rational and open mind, entrench in the believe that only constant in the world is change. Even as we apply solutions, we change and redefine problems.
A case in point. Even when we thought that Bush was erroneous, I've learnt that it was his powerful conviction that create a new branch with the Salafi's that contest and challenge the notion Osama bin Laden's notion of a violent Jihad against the West. Apparently, the notion of them destroying a few buildings and the retributive action of them having a Muslim nation destroyed and many more Muslim lifes lost was too much and was not proportionate and logical to them. It is with this hope that the pure unfeasibility and logic would triumph in these radical non-state actors who often abandon any sense of risk because they feel they have little to lose.
Here, I have just read President Obama's Post-election speech. It was just laced with so much character of adaptive management that just confirms why he has the potential and making to be a great leader.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/11/change_has_come_to_america.html
Adaptive management needs
1) Leaders who listen because only when your feelers are on the ground can you adapt and respond
2) Leaders who acknowledge that mistake can happen and we can adjust and make good
3) Leaders who know it need everyone to pull their weigh and work collaboratively
4) Leaders who believe in change
He is certainly the One.
Nations grow strong, companies survive competitions, individual thrive in the rat race, not by some magic formula or some harden idealogy. It comes instead from a rational and open mind, entrench in the believe that only constant in the world is change. Even as we apply solutions, we change and redefine problems.
A case in point. Even when we thought that Bush was erroneous, I've learnt that it was his powerful conviction that create a new branch with the Salafi's that contest and challenge the notion Osama bin Laden's notion of a violent Jihad against the West. Apparently, the notion of them destroying a few buildings and the retributive action of them having a Muslim nation destroyed and many more Muslim lifes lost was too much and was not proportionate and logical to them. It is with this hope that the pure unfeasibility and logic would triumph in these radical non-state actors who often abandon any sense of risk because they feel they have little to lose.
Here, I have just read President Obama's Post-election speech. It was just laced with so much character of adaptive management that just confirms why he has the potential and making to be a great leader.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/11/change_has_come_to_america.html
Adaptive management needs
1) Leaders who listen because only when your feelers are on the ground can you adapt and respond
2) Leaders who acknowledge that mistake can happen and we can adjust and make good
3) Leaders who know it need everyone to pull their weigh and work collaboratively
4) Leaders who believe in change
He is certainly the One.
Friday, October 31, 2008
My Op-Ed on China
The phenomenal economic growth in China for the past few decades has awed the world. Its consistency and resilience has made many analysts to forecast that its current growth trajectory is expected to continue. Proper management of this new found economic strength via good governance will enable it to perpetuate itself and increase economic, military and inevitably political power.
Although a detailed study of China’s growth in the economic, social, environmental and political dimensions reveal that there are potential speed bumps, a casual analysis would perceptively conclude that China is indeed rising by relative comparisons over time and is attempting to fulfill its stated objective of becoming a da guo (大国 – great power). Using a traditional realist lens, this rapid change of power dynamics would lead to a change in the balance of power not only for the region but between China, a rising power and the United States, the de facto superpower of the world today. This potential instability from China’s rise is therefore a motivation for us to examine these interactions closely so that we may understand potential areas of friction and perhaps generate appropriate recommendations for policy makers to avert a violent conflict.
Understanding China
China has a deep desire to be a daguo since the time of Sun Yat-sen, and this desire has been spurred by the many years of humiliation that they suffer from the foreign powers that took advantage of the weak Qing dynasty in late 1800s. While the rest of the world marched toward modernity from World War II, the Chinese were caught in a civil war between the Nationalist and the Communist. Although the eventual Communist victory brought stability to the nation, it was trapped in the ideological contest during the Cold War and remained isolated from the world. It was only during Deng Xiaoping’s time, that China was able to reverse its policies and put China on track for economic expansion and growth.
With economic growth, comes the associated cost of interdependence and the need to co-operate and build trust. The Chinese leadership understands this security dilemma and has been careful not to derail their valued economic growth through any perceived aggressive actions. Deng Xiaoping’s warning of bu yao dang tou (不要当头 - do not seek leadership) exhorts self-restraint and humility while the more recent and proactive policies of fuzeren de daguo (负责任的大国 – responsible great power) advocated by Jiang Zemin demonstrates China’s understanding of its interdependent relationship with the rest of the world. These are important markers of their intent based on explicit principles that we know China has a propensity to rigidly adhere to.
China’s interactions with Asia
Regardless of the historical perspective of the Middle Kingdom or the articulated grand strategy by the Chinese leadership today, they share a commonality. That is the desire to be a great nation that is built on a strong economic base, so that it may derive respect and acknowledgment from its periphery. China’s policy of non-intervention in sovereignty of states and her purely economic engagements for mutual benefits, has won it many friends in Asia and beyond, but at times drawn flak from United States and other Western powers for its mercantilist approach that often turns a blind eye to issues of human rights and potential security threats.
In Asia, it has engaged in many regional arrangements which includes ARF (ASEAN Regional Forum), ACFTA (ASEAN China-Free Trade Area), TAC (Treaty of Amity and Co-operation in Southeast Asia), ASEAN + 3 (ASEAN + China, Japan and South Korea), SCO (Shanghai Co-operation Engagement) and other bilateral agreements. These are significant confidence building measures that builds on the premise of their increasing mutual economic interdependence that will potentially extend to forge a regional security arrangement that will add to the stability of the region. China has also renounced the use of force on the issue of the Spratlys in the TAC, playing a backseat role as a demonstration of goodwill to Southeast Asian countries. The net effect of Chinese actions is the shared belief of the region to integrate China to the international community and to accommodate China’s rise, while at the same time tapping on China as an engine for their economic growth.
The Deal Breaker
The lynchpin of the stability in Asia is undeniably the tumultuous relationship between China and Taiwan. This is the single issue that China will neither relent nor compromise on and is willing to stake its relationship with other nations on. We need to recognize that any compromise on this issue will negate China’s position as a da guo, and reopen old wounds of humiliation that it is trying to heal. China will therefore continue to engage a multi-prong strategy of exerting its soft power to gain legitimacy of her claim over Taiwan and at the concurrently use her economic weight to bend Taiwan’s will to seek independence. As a last resort, the use of force will serve as deterrence and physical coercion that will be applied should Taiwan decidedly declares independence.
The US – China Equation
The issues of Taiwan will be the key determinant of Sino-American relations in the years to come. The contest between U.S. ideology and Chinese pride will continue to persist unless one party is willing to back down to de-escalate the situation and break the stalemate. This issue had persisted in times when China was weak and is even more unlikely to change now that it has grown in strength. Because China’s rise is now evident, the only recourse is for U.S. to strategically accommodate China’s key interest and to engage her need in meeting the world’s expectation of her to be a responsible power. It would be unlikely that both nations would desire to escalate the situation to the point of war unless there is a failure of institutions and leadership on both sides that believes some benefit can be derived from a violent conflict. U.S. suspicion of China’s rise and their stalemate involving Taiwan will invariably lead to more persistent and intense conflicts. Past conflicts of the Taiwan Straits incident in 1995-96, the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, the U.S. spy plane incidents and the recent Chinese reaction to US sale of weapons to Taiwan are examples of what we can expect over the next decade. These conflicts will unlikely lead to violent conflict and will more likely result in the maintenance of a fragile status quo.
Although a detailed study of China’s growth in the economic, social, environmental and political dimensions reveal that there are potential speed bumps, a casual analysis would perceptively conclude that China is indeed rising by relative comparisons over time and is attempting to fulfill its stated objective of becoming a da guo (大国 – great power). Using a traditional realist lens, this rapid change of power dynamics would lead to a change in the balance of power not only for the region but between China, a rising power and the United States, the de facto superpower of the world today. This potential instability from China’s rise is therefore a motivation for us to examine these interactions closely so that we may understand potential areas of friction and perhaps generate appropriate recommendations for policy makers to avert a violent conflict.
Understanding China
China has a deep desire to be a daguo since the time of Sun Yat-sen, and this desire has been spurred by the many years of humiliation that they suffer from the foreign powers that took advantage of the weak Qing dynasty in late 1800s. While the rest of the world marched toward modernity from World War II, the Chinese were caught in a civil war between the Nationalist and the Communist. Although the eventual Communist victory brought stability to the nation, it was trapped in the ideological contest during the Cold War and remained isolated from the world. It was only during Deng Xiaoping’s time, that China was able to reverse its policies and put China on track for economic expansion and growth.
With economic growth, comes the associated cost of interdependence and the need to co-operate and build trust. The Chinese leadership understands this security dilemma and has been careful not to derail their valued economic growth through any perceived aggressive actions. Deng Xiaoping’s warning of bu yao dang tou (不要当头 - do not seek leadership) exhorts self-restraint and humility while the more recent and proactive policies of fuzeren de daguo (负责任的大国 – responsible great power) advocated by Jiang Zemin demonstrates China’s understanding of its interdependent relationship with the rest of the world. These are important markers of their intent based on explicit principles that we know China has a propensity to rigidly adhere to.
China’s interactions with Asia
Regardless of the historical perspective of the Middle Kingdom or the articulated grand strategy by the Chinese leadership today, they share a commonality. That is the desire to be a great nation that is built on a strong economic base, so that it may derive respect and acknowledgment from its periphery. China’s policy of non-intervention in sovereignty of states and her purely economic engagements for mutual benefits, has won it many friends in Asia and beyond, but at times drawn flak from United States and other Western powers for its mercantilist approach that often turns a blind eye to issues of human rights and potential security threats.
In Asia, it has engaged in many regional arrangements which includes ARF (ASEAN Regional Forum), ACFTA (ASEAN China-Free Trade Area), TAC (Treaty of Amity and Co-operation in Southeast Asia), ASEAN + 3 (ASEAN + China, Japan and South Korea), SCO (Shanghai Co-operation Engagement) and other bilateral agreements. These are significant confidence building measures that builds on the premise of their increasing mutual economic interdependence that will potentially extend to forge a regional security arrangement that will add to the stability of the region. China has also renounced the use of force on the issue of the Spratlys in the TAC, playing a backseat role as a demonstration of goodwill to Southeast Asian countries. The net effect of Chinese actions is the shared belief of the region to integrate China to the international community and to accommodate China’s rise, while at the same time tapping on China as an engine for their economic growth.
The Deal Breaker
The lynchpin of the stability in Asia is undeniably the tumultuous relationship between China and Taiwan. This is the single issue that China will neither relent nor compromise on and is willing to stake its relationship with other nations on. We need to recognize that any compromise on this issue will negate China’s position as a da guo, and reopen old wounds of humiliation that it is trying to heal. China will therefore continue to engage a multi-prong strategy of exerting its soft power to gain legitimacy of her claim over Taiwan and at the concurrently use her economic weight to bend Taiwan’s will to seek independence. As a last resort, the use of force will serve as deterrence and physical coercion that will be applied should Taiwan decidedly declares independence.
The US – China Equation
The issues of Taiwan will be the key determinant of Sino-American relations in the years to come. The contest between U.S. ideology and Chinese pride will continue to persist unless one party is willing to back down to de-escalate the situation and break the stalemate. This issue had persisted in times when China was weak and is even more unlikely to change now that it has grown in strength. Because China’s rise is now evident, the only recourse is for U.S. to strategically accommodate China’s key interest and to engage her need in meeting the world’s expectation of her to be a responsible power. It would be unlikely that both nations would desire to escalate the situation to the point of war unless there is a failure of institutions and leadership on both sides that believes some benefit can be derived from a violent conflict. U.S. suspicion of China’s rise and their stalemate involving Taiwan will invariably lead to more persistent and intense conflicts. Past conflicts of the Taiwan Straits incident in 1995-96, the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, the U.S. spy plane incidents and the recent Chinese reaction to US sale of weapons to Taiwan are examples of what we can expect over the next decade. These conflicts will unlikely lead to violent conflict and will more likely result in the maintenance of a fragile status quo.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Free Market Spiral
This is such a momentous period in history. I've often thought about it hypothetically but I never believed that it could happen.
The Free Market Spiral.
Free markets in my opinion are the greatest and most efficient allocation mechanism in the entire world. Using the concept of utility, which is the satisfaction that an individual derives from a good, the market it able to use a price mechanism to indicate their level of utlity and thereby promote the allocation of resources to the production of the good. Using an established demand curve derived from utility and a supply curve derived from cost of the resource, we can attain an equilibrium where the market pays for exactly what that good can provide in terms of utility.
If we're in an agrarian or pure production state, this would have been pretty straightforward.
Then enters the complex world of commerce and leverage. With the establishment of banks that are able to collect deposits and make loans based on the fact that not everyone will draw their money out at the same time, we now have essentially a system that runs excesses or what I call money in circulation. Because of the innate and inherent trust in the system, everything will be fine and dandy.
Unfortunately, this is no longer the case in recent times. With fear at all time highs, the trust to lend has corroded. This seizes up the circulation of the financial system and basically disrupts the price mechanism. Eventually, this will warp the notion of utility and shift the demand curves itself and reset the equilibrium. In real terms, the financial crisis will damage the brick and mortar business as well.
People have been mistaken all this while, thinking that they have a free-market economy but have actually been living with an anomaly which is known as the banking system which is not based on 'real' resources but on a flow model. Hence, the free-market model is not really free and that this banking system is guarded by a regulator which is the central bank, otherwise known as the lender of last resort.
Today however, we witness something quite remarkable which I see as a real paradox. The democratic system (a political equal of the free-market) has been exercised by the people to curtail the government and in doing so tied the hands of the regulator who has been doing the job of regulating and mitigating the quasi-free market/banking system.
The end result is the demise of the effectiveness of the very system and the potential destruction of the ideology.
I guess people have forgotten that it was not idealogy failure that lead to the fall of communism but more of the lack of pragmatism that lead to its demise. It's only attractive when it works.
Hence, I leave you with a nice Op-Ed from the Asia Journal of Public Affairs. The emphasis that good governance is a necessity, because nothing is a given.
http://www.lkyspp.nus.edu.sg/ajpa/issue1/Dean_Op_Ed.pdf
The Free Market Spiral.
Free markets in my opinion are the greatest and most efficient allocation mechanism in the entire world. Using the concept of utility, which is the satisfaction that an individual derives from a good, the market it able to use a price mechanism to indicate their level of utlity and thereby promote the allocation of resources to the production of the good. Using an established demand curve derived from utility and a supply curve derived from cost of the resource, we can attain an equilibrium where the market pays for exactly what that good can provide in terms of utility.
If we're in an agrarian or pure production state, this would have been pretty straightforward.
Then enters the complex world of commerce and leverage. With the establishment of banks that are able to collect deposits and make loans based on the fact that not everyone will draw their money out at the same time, we now have essentially a system that runs excesses or what I call money in circulation. Because of the innate and inherent trust in the system, everything will be fine and dandy.
Unfortunately, this is no longer the case in recent times. With fear at all time highs, the trust to lend has corroded. This seizes up the circulation of the financial system and basically disrupts the price mechanism. Eventually, this will warp the notion of utility and shift the demand curves itself and reset the equilibrium. In real terms, the financial crisis will damage the brick and mortar business as well.
People have been mistaken all this while, thinking that they have a free-market economy but have actually been living with an anomaly which is known as the banking system which is not based on 'real' resources but on a flow model. Hence, the free-market model is not really free and that this banking system is guarded by a regulator which is the central bank, otherwise known as the lender of last resort.
Today however, we witness something quite remarkable which I see as a real paradox. The democratic system (a political equal of the free-market) has been exercised by the people to curtail the government and in doing so tied the hands of the regulator who has been doing the job of regulating and mitigating the quasi-free market/banking system.
The end result is the demise of the effectiveness of the very system and the potential destruction of the ideology.
I guess people have forgotten that it was not idealogy failure that lead to the fall of communism but more of the lack of pragmatism that lead to its demise. It's only attractive when it works.
Hence, I leave you with a nice Op-Ed from the Asia Journal of Public Affairs. The emphasis that good governance is a necessity, because nothing is a given.
http://www.lkyspp.nus.edu.sg/ajpa/issue1/Dean_Op_Ed.pdf
Sunday, July 6, 2008
A window of perspective
I'm all set. The visa for everyone has been approve and we should all be well on our way to Boston in a month. The process was laborious and difficult.
The amount of probity checks and paperwork that needs to be amassed is unbelieveable. Ironically, I understand from a small print on forms for the whole visa episode is that there is a real effort to cut down on paperwork. Haha... I think I remember repeating data for several different forms, countless times. Then again, it is reflective of how a couple of people without rationality and with no respect for the sanctity of life can inflicit so much inconvenience on people whom they will never know. The result is so much layers of check and cross-checks to regulate the passage of people travelling across borders.
The interview for the visa at the American Embassy was another highlight. I was by a counter window with a charming Asian American interviewer. She ran through the protocol and worked through the papers. I was asked why I was getting a visa and of course I told her the reason.
"So which university would that be?"
"The Fletcher School. Tufts University"
"Oh great. That's a really good school."
So we ran through the questions to talk about my course of study, how I will be paying for it and then the next thing caught me by surprise.
"So why did you leave your job to this programme."
"Erm, I didn't. I took a sabbatical. I'll be getting back to my job once I'm done"
A look of confusion. It didn't click. I've just mentioned that I was paying my way and then of course I said I was going back to work. After some questioning, I told her about the No Pay Study Leave and directed her to the letter of approval. Then she was livid.
"Why? Oh my gosh." She couldn't believe it because it didn't make sense.
I then proceeded with my standard text of explaining why I did it, which I use to everyone whom I knew. I've said it so many times that I lost count but this was the first time I had to say it to someone whom I just met. I wondered if I was even believeable. Did I sound so unreal that she smelt a rat? Perhaps then I would be in trouble because my visa would not be approved.
Anyhow, we moved right along. She went on with other background questions and spoke to my missus. Before we concluded the interview, she had only kind words of consolation for me.
"Alright, we're done here. Good luck okay? I hope you can find some way to get compensation and get it all back."
I most certainly will. Thank you "lady at the window".
The amount of probity checks and paperwork that needs to be amassed is unbelieveable. Ironically, I understand from a small print on forms for the whole visa episode is that there is a real effort to cut down on paperwork. Haha... I think I remember repeating data for several different forms, countless times. Then again, it is reflective of how a couple of people without rationality and with no respect for the sanctity of life can inflicit so much inconvenience on people whom they will never know. The result is so much layers of check and cross-checks to regulate the passage of people travelling across borders.
The interview for the visa at the American Embassy was another highlight. I was by a counter window with a charming Asian American interviewer. She ran through the protocol and worked through the papers. I was asked why I was getting a visa and of course I told her the reason.
"So which university would that be?"
"The Fletcher School. Tufts University"
"Oh great. That's a really good school."
So we ran through the questions to talk about my course of study, how I will be paying for it and then the next thing caught me by surprise.
"So why did you leave your job to this programme."
"Erm, I didn't. I took a sabbatical. I'll be getting back to my job once I'm done"
A look of confusion. It didn't click. I've just mentioned that I was paying my way and then of course I said I was going back to work. After some questioning, I told her about the No Pay Study Leave and directed her to the letter of approval. Then she was livid.
"Why? Oh my gosh." She couldn't believe it because it didn't make sense.
I then proceeded with my standard text of explaining why I did it, which I use to everyone whom I knew. I've said it so many times that I lost count but this was the first time I had to say it to someone whom I just met. I wondered if I was even believeable. Did I sound so unreal that she smelt a rat? Perhaps then I would be in trouble because my visa would not be approved.
Anyhow, we moved right along. She went on with other background questions and spoke to my missus. Before we concluded the interview, she had only kind words of consolation for me.
"Alright, we're done here. Good luck okay? I hope you can find some way to get compensation and get it all back."
I most certainly will. Thank you "lady at the window".
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Bringing the Brood
For friends who don't already know, I'm bringing the brood.
Finding housing for families in Massachusetts is not the easiest thing in the world. To problem is because of leaded paint. Since most of the housing in MA pre-dates 1978, it is likely that these house would use leaded paint. Paint however, is quite toxic and little children can suffer from lead poisoning when in constant contact with it.
I am actually quite happy that there is such a legislation to protect my little ones but it also translates to a smaller selection of housing for my family. Nevertheless, we've managed to find housing near school albeit being a little pricey. It's a nice little townhouse and once we are there, we can show you pictures of our temporary home.
So for other newbie Fletcherites who will be going with family. This is an important point to note.
Finding housing for families in Massachusetts is not the easiest thing in the world. To problem is because of leaded paint. Since most of the housing in MA pre-dates 1978, it is likely that these house would use leaded paint. Paint however, is quite toxic and little children can suffer from lead poisoning when in constant contact with it.
I am actually quite happy that there is such a legislation to protect my little ones but it also translates to a smaller selection of housing for my family. Nevertheless, we've managed to find housing near school albeit being a little pricey. It's a nice little townhouse and once we are there, we can show you pictures of our temporary home.
So for other newbie Fletcherites who will be going with family. This is an important point to note.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Shin Splint...
I'm not sure how many of you knows this but it's a fun fact to know. It's trivia and it's substantiated.
How do you identify a Navy man?
Well, all you have to do is to check his shin. Due to the incessant need to cross watertight doors on a ship, you will invariably nick your shin on the edges of the hatch. If you are a klutz, perhaps you get it more often then some. As a rule of thumb, I conclude that everyone have at least been struck once. For me, I've got scars at approximate the same height on both my shins. Prove of a Navy man and a klutz.
What's the purpose of this post you may ask?
It's my way of conveying a metaphor. Crossing that threshold can seem like an effortless task. For some like me, it's an obstacle and its whack you squarely in the shin and leaves you reeling in pain for a while. Paralysed and unable to walk.
Today, I'm at my lowest and humblest. Unbelieveably, I have decided to remain with the organisation that I serve. As a compromise, I am requesting for no pay study leave or no pay leave in order to maintain this path to Fletchers. I must say that in these few weeks I have received continual offers to derail me from the road to where I want to go. This I resisted with great vigor.
Perhaps my friends and colleagues will be bewildered by this sudden turn of events but perhaps they will never understand this internal turmoil that I face. This strong desire to do something of meaning and purpose when I know that I have established myself in a position of influence. Perhaps some others may be disappointed because of my inability to join them in their adventures without restraint but it may be for the best. It certainly isn't about money because that is something that I'm fully capable of generating. More importantly, I believe is my needs of having immaterial satisfaction over the material.
The battle of my emotions and my logic has once again proved that my heart is stronger than my mind.
The ball is now in their court. I have abdicated control and this is my final recourse.
How do you identify a Navy man?
Well, all you have to do is to check his shin. Due to the incessant need to cross watertight doors on a ship, you will invariably nick your shin on the edges of the hatch. If you are a klutz, perhaps you get it more often then some. As a rule of thumb, I conclude that everyone have at least been struck once. For me, I've got scars at approximate the same height on both my shins. Prove of a Navy man and a klutz.
What's the purpose of this post you may ask?
It's my way of conveying a metaphor. Crossing that threshold can seem like an effortless task. For some like me, it's an obstacle and its whack you squarely in the shin and leaves you reeling in pain for a while. Paralysed and unable to walk.
Today, I'm at my lowest and humblest. Unbelieveably, I have decided to remain with the organisation that I serve. As a compromise, I am requesting for no pay study leave or no pay leave in order to maintain this path to Fletchers. I must say that in these few weeks I have received continual offers to derail me from the road to where I want to go. This I resisted with great vigor.
Perhaps my friends and colleagues will be bewildered by this sudden turn of events but perhaps they will never understand this internal turmoil that I face. This strong desire to do something of meaning and purpose when I know that I have established myself in a position of influence. Perhaps some others may be disappointed because of my inability to join them in their adventures without restraint but it may be for the best. It certainly isn't about money because that is something that I'm fully capable of generating. More importantly, I believe is my needs of having immaterial satisfaction over the material.
The battle of my emotions and my logic has once again proved that my heart is stronger than my mind.
The ball is now in their court. I have abdicated control and this is my final recourse.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
The Beginning
They say that necessity is the mother of all invention. I couldn't agree more.
This blog is borne out of adversity. It is because of the tumultuous road that I have taken when I decided to pursue my postgraduate programme at Fletcher School, Tufts University, that made me decide to start this blog as a journey log. Because I refuse to yield to the conventional path that was offered to me, the organisation which I serve with utter dedication will not support my pursuit at Fletchers. It is with great difficulty and pain that I had decided to take the road less travelled and to end my career in a job that I loved passionately because of its patriotic purpose, its excellent leadership and talented people.
This sacrifice have made me more resolute that before, that I will without a shadow of a doubt, extract the full value of the programme at Fletcher School this coming fall. It is therefore necessary that I capture my thoughts and learning in the most suitable medium available.
I have chosen to write this blog to publish my journey of my upcoming programme in hope to ignite discussions and to solicit new perspectives. I will attempt to utilise the full interactivity that the Internet can provide in enchancing my learning journey.
This is the story of a new phase and journey in my life. This is the beginning~!
"The romance of the road is the measure of torn slippers"- Ulyssus
This blog is borne out of adversity. It is because of the tumultuous road that I have taken when I decided to pursue my postgraduate programme at Fletcher School, Tufts University, that made me decide to start this blog as a journey log. Because I refuse to yield to the conventional path that was offered to me, the organisation which I serve with utter dedication will not support my pursuit at Fletchers. It is with great difficulty and pain that I had decided to take the road less travelled and to end my career in a job that I loved passionately because of its patriotic purpose, its excellent leadership and talented people.
This sacrifice have made me more resolute that before, that I will without a shadow of a doubt, extract the full value of the programme at Fletcher School this coming fall. It is therefore necessary that I capture my thoughts and learning in the most suitable medium available.
I have chosen to write this blog to publish my journey of my upcoming programme in hope to ignite discussions and to solicit new perspectives. I will attempt to utilise the full interactivity that the Internet can provide in enchancing my learning journey.
This is the story of a new phase and journey in my life. This is the beginning~!
"The romance of the road is the measure of torn slippers"- Ulyssus
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