Month: November 2011

Random Discourse – The Death of Gaddafi

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I first heard of the country called Libya when I was 10 years old. That was when American F-14 shot down two Libyan Su-22 over the Gulf of Sidra. The country and Colonel Gaddafi (already the leader of Libya at that time), were soon forgotten since I was too young to understand the geopolitics of the world.

When I heard of Libya again, it was when the United States bombed it in 1986. I wasn’t really aware of the reason behind that until years later, but the fact that F-111 fighter bombers flew all the way from England around the Straits of Gibraltar to bomb Libya was nothing short of amazing to a 15 year-old. The reason was that the military history books which I had taken a fancy of at that time portrayed the flight of bombers from England to Germany in World War II as an impressive feat on its own. It was also the first time I was exposed to the weaponry like HARM (High Speed Anti-Radiation Missles) and AGM-65 Tactical Air-to-Ground Missile etc.

Since then, Colonel Gaddafi is nothing more than another crackpot Arab dictator which I had a low impression of. After all, whenever I heard of the country again it was always related to some anti-Israel rhetoric, atrocities like the Lockerbie bombing or United Nation sanctions. Over the years I even discovered that Gaddafi is afraid of heights, and he refused to stay in high rise buildings and refused to take a flight for more than a certain number of hours. Thus, Libya is not only a pariah which failed to behave accordingly in the modern world, its leader Gaddafi is a wussy!

When the United Nations lifted the sanctions on Libya in 2003, it came as a surprise to me. In my opinion, this was a shameless political deal. Libya was providing counter-terrorism intelligence to MI6 and the CIA in the aftermath of 9-11 and now it suddenly became as an ally of the West in the so-called “War on Terror”. All the crimes against humanity committed by the Gaddafi and his regime were seemingly forgotten (if not forgiven) and I wondered whether Gaddafi will ever get his just deserts. This simply added to my already low opinion of the UN as a useless organisation not only incapable of dealing with the issues between countries and the world, but nothing more than a rubber stamp to legitimise the actions of Western (in particular American) neo-Imperialism.

Then came the “Jasmine Revolution” which swept rapidly across the Arab world. Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, Libya and Syria were all caught. I thought things in Libya will become a long drawn out affair like that of Syria and Yemen (which are still ongoing). In fact, I was expecting the rebellion to be brutally crushed and the remnants of the rebels Libyan National Liberation Army to scatter to the four winds and prosecute a long, drawn out guerilla war against Gaddafi’s regime. I didn’t take into account how quickly France led the West in turning against Gaddafi, declared a no fly zone over Libya and then attacked his forces with air strikes. It is of no wonder Gaddafi’s regime to collapse like a house of cards, since this was like someone binding you in ropes and then putting you into a boxing ring with an opponent.

Gaddafi was captured and summarily executed by forces opposing his regime on 20th Oct 2011. Just like Saddam Hussein, the bitter end of Gaddafi was captured on video by a mobile phone. The video showed the once haughty leader being beaten in public while he begged for mercy. There were some reports that he was also sexually abused with bayonets, guns and cylindrical objects shoved into his anus before he was killed. I bet no one would pursue the matter on bringing those who tortured and executed him to trial for a war crime.

Comparatively, even though Saddam Hussein was executed after a show trial, he died a more “dignified” death. Not that I have any respect for Saddam, but at least he was clearly made of sterner stuff compared to Gaddafi. Saddam didn’t flinch before his executioners and he remained unrepentant to the very end.

Those who are pro-West will celebrate the death of Gaddafi and the collapse of his regime to be victory of the self determination of the Libyan people. Unfortunately, the reality is more than that. It simply demonstrates that there is no true self determination for any other country with a value system different from the West. Granted, the likes of Saddam and Gaddafi are plundering their own country’s riches and stashing them away in private coffers, but the same can almost be said for Wall Street and it is not like there aren’t pro-West leaders who are doing the same while the West turn a blind eye to that.

In the world of neo-Imperialism, where the right to reason and opinion is often dominated by the West, my bet on the next victim would be Iran as there is now rumors of preparations to attack Iran’s nuclear facility. I also wondered what other plots would be thrown at the cancer-stricken Hugo Chavez of Venezuela who has survived several political plots which included referendums and military coups.

Anyway, I don’t mourn nor sympathise with Gaddafi. Good riddance to bad rubbish.

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Random Discourse – Cold Blooded China?

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The China double hit-and-run case is old news since it happened on October 13. Much have been said about the carelessness of the mother to the callousness of the 18 pedestrians and cyclists. Undoubtedly, those 18 people who did nothing to help were condemned and there was much discussion (if not debate) among China’s netizens about the degradation of “Chinese morality”. Even I had put the blame of the complete collapse of Chinese morality on the Cultural Revolution and the Communist Party. The only bright spot of this whole incident is that the old lady who helped refused to take any reward offered to her. Let me paraphrase what she said: “I will not take it because if I do, people will say I am doing it for the money.” Note, this is not some rich tai-tai but an old lady picking cupboard boxes to make a living.

I’ll admit I was outraged and appalled when I first read the news and saw the video. As time goes by I understand some of the reasons behind the callousness of the passerbys. It is not even the result of the bystander effect, but a fear that one might get into trouble.

Apparently, there were extortion cases where good Samaritans were accused of knocking into or pushing elderly folks, and even kidnapping children. These poor souls end up losing huge sums of money. In one bizarre case in 2006, a kind man in Nanjing named Peng Yu (彭宇) was sued in court by the very woman he helped. The accursed judge presiding over the case ruled that “common sense” suggested that Peng only took the woman to the hospital because he was guilty and ordered him to pay her medical expenses. From what I gathered, it cost Peng a good 40,000 Yuan (approx. S$8000). Similarly a Xu Yunhe (许云鹤) in Tianjin also lost over 100,000 Yuan (approx. S$20,000) for helping an elderly person who was jay walking. In a society where there is such gross miscarriage of justice, and where the people preyed upon each other, it is of no wonder why the two drivers who ran over her didn’t stop to help while everyone ignored poor Yue Yue as she lay dying on a narrow market street. After all, those who didn’t care probably felt that “no good deed goes unpunished” in China and netizens there even joked that the old lady helped because she does not read news on China’s Internet.

However, understanding why those 18 people didn’t help doesn’t mean I agree with the excuses, rational or reasons behind it. The excuses given reminded me of the Parable of the Good Samaritan from one of my Bible studies lessons, in which one of reasons given as to why the people didn’t help was to avoid the trouble that comes along with it. My pastor further explained that Jesus detests this because the priests and Levites in that period no longer understand the spirit of God’s spiritual laws, but were repeatedly finding excuses in the word of the law to justify their actions and excuse themselves from doing what is right.

Now, even when we do not look at the moral aspect, I would like to point out at times even animals do better than human beings in helping their own kind in need. Look at these videos, for example:

  1. A friend in need is a friend indeed

  2. Battle at Kruger

In the first example, a gecko made an effort to help another of its kind on its own and it is clear how apprehensive it is when attacking the snake. In the second example, a herd of buffaloes battled the lions to save a calf. All of these actions come with a threat to the very lives of those which offered to help.

I am not linking these videos to “teach” everyone a moral lesson, but it makes me feel ashamed after looking at these videos. We are less than beasts (禽兽不如) when our actions are less than that of common beasts. If we cannot be as heroic as the gecko in the first video, then at least be like the buffaloes in the second. If we believe that we can’t be of any good on our own, or that our strength alone is too feeble, then call for help. Certainly, doing what is right in whatever way appropriate is better than doing nothing at all. The old lady who helped did not even hesitate when she dragged poor Yue Yue to the side of the road.

Before I end, please look at this video. And remember what the police officer said:

Go proactive. Take action. Different people, different action.

Travel Journal – Macau

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This is my first visit to Macau and Macau always give me the feeling of being an insignificant younger brother overshadowed by Hong Kong, not just in size (a mere 29km2 compare to over 1100km2 of Hong Kong) but also in terms of its economy. Incidentally, Hong Kong’s previous colonial ruler Britain also eclipsed Portugal (Macau’s colonial ruler) as a maritime power.

Getting to Macau from Hong Kong is easy. Just get down to the harbour at Sheung Wan and buy a ticket. Just be careful not to take the ferry that goes out to Taipa, however. After clearing Hong Kong’s customs, one is required to get a seat number (like those on an airplane) before boarding and this should be done more than 15 minutes because ‘unclaimed’ seats are issued to those who have either missed the earlier ferry or those who wants to take an earlier ferry out. Be really careful when boarding because the seas are quite rough in Hong Kong. On both the outgoing and returning trip I have noticed people that fell when the ferry rocked. The trip takes about an hour.

After clearing the customs in Macau, you will be greeted by touts who would offer taxi tours to bring you around. My advise is to ignore them if you only want to visit the Ruins of St Paul (大三巴) and the Macau museum since it’s only about 500 ~ 600 meters out from the Grand Lisboa. The only issue is getting yourself orientated so you can find your way to the destination. To get to the casinos, just hop onto any of the shuttle buses provided by the respective casino which is about to leave.

The entire income of the whole Macau Special Administrative Region [SAR] probably comes from the casinos alone. There’s so many of them and I didn’t bother to check them out nor try my luck. I walked through the Grand Lisboa and felt it’s no different from Genting. Gamblers however, may beg to differ.

Macau is simply Las Vegas of the Orient and Sin City. Next to the casinos you can easily find the multitude of pawn shops (for those who are out of luck), and there are also many shops selling expensive jewelry and watches for those who have made a killing. Around the casinos you really don’t see much of the housing.

Prostitution is legal in Macau as it is in Singapore. The difference is that there is no restriction to soliciting. Strewn on the floor outside the casinos, I noticed ‘name cards’ touting massage services and spas. On one card it claimed that the girl is from Singapore. I have no doubt these masseurs are nothing more than prostitutes.

There are also restaurants and retail shops in the casino. I had lunch at the restaurant in the old Casino Lisboa located right next to the famous infamous ‘Race Track’. There are no horses or dogs racing here but rather it is where the prostitutes – mostly from China – congregate and walk around non stop in a loop. I often seen them approach or winked at the men who looked at them.

I noticed on the map, which I have lost, that there is also a zoo and a university. Unfortunately we didn’t have time to visit Taipa and we only spent time at the Ruins of St Paul and the Museum. It took me awhile to get there since it is not so straight forward nor is it visible at street level. Again, there was a never-ending hoard of tourists from China.

I had originally wanted to spend a few days in Macau and I am glad I didn’t. Frankly I think there is nothing much though on hindsight I regret not visiting the Venetian. Perhaps I would save that for a second trip.

Anyway, I haven’t got much to show for it except these photos. Maybe I’ll come back again in a few years.