Happy Deepavali

Today is Deepavali, or Diwali, a major festival holiday in Hinduism, Sikhism, and Jainism.

Here, read more about it from wikipedia


Deepavali, also known as the festival of lights, marks victory of good over evil and uplifting of spiritual darkness. Symbolically it marks the homecoming of goodwill and faith after an absence, as suggested by the Ramayana.

Well well, we should hope for some homecoming of goodwill and faith now, after the huge void of it in the stock markets in recent months.

With the recession, the huge drop in value of national wealth, what are you planning to prepare for the absence of boom times and good life?

Happy Deepavali to all Hindus and citizens of the world =)

Critics do not need solution

Being able to criticise does not make me an expert. Not being an expert does not make me unable to criticise.

-cherub' 26th october'2008

Why must one provide the reason why one is unhappy over something, and then provide the solution or alternative?

One view people misunderstood is that they believe that one has no right to criticise anything unless he has an alternate way. If you are not able to provide constructive suggestions, then please do not hold the high ground and criticise.

I disagree.

This view is held by many, uneducated and educated, by professionals like lawyers, teachers, and our favourite politicians.
How many times have our own local politicians lambasted the opposition for criticising the government, arguing that the oppositions has no alternate solutions?

You see pal, you are the government. I pay you your salary to do your job right. And if the majority of your taxpayers said you are doing it wrong, you need to justify your salary and change your policies.
I can't possibly do your job for you.





To generalise this:
I may not be a chef, but I can tell whether a chicken rice dish is done properly.
If it is not tasty, I can simply criticise it.
I have no idea how to brew the sauce, how to cook the chicken or the steam the rice, but that does not mean I can't criticise or reject the dish.

Gold hits lowest level

"Gold hits lowest level in a year"

Straits Times, Money Page Headline 24th October' 2008

One of the example how the crisis unfolding is making irrational events, or rather, distorting conventional wisdom.

In moments of crisis, gold is traditionally seen as a safe asset class. In bad times, gold usually benefits in times of uncertainty.
we all know the value of gold as a stable mark of value.



Why the break in wisdom? One reason is that the greenback, after suffering from months of low value, has surged and become a strong and dependable asset class, taking gold's position as a safe asset to park value.
2ndly, fall in gold prices was led by the downfall of commodities prices, including the prices of precious medals such as platinum and silver.

So where can u park your money now?

What recession?

Are you affected by the financial downturn in America?

Think about it.
How many friends / relatives of yours that is affected severely now?

The latest grapevines revealed that even those in the financial sector remains relatively unscathed. Sure, bonus outlook is probably down, but most jobs are secure.

In most unrelated sectors, the factories are still humming, though expectations of lower output and bad times are here.

The construction sector is having a helluva booming time. They will probably welcome the recession for the cheaper prices of raw materials, and cheaper labour.

The property market is calmer and less active. But prices are still holding steady.



I have heard that this is possibly the biggest recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s. (i believe it myself too)
If so, how come the bad news arent coming yet?

When?

How much is 1 life worth?

Would you cause the death of an innocent person to save the live of another person?
How about causing the death of an innocent for the 10 lives?
20 lives?
100 lives?
1000 lives?

Say you are walking on a track and you realised the approaching train's brakes are faulty. If you push the friend next to you onto the track, you can stop the train and save the passengers' lives.
Would you sacrifice an innocent life for the 10 passengers? 100? 1000?

How do you judge the worthiness of lives? by quantity? by how close you are to him?

Defend your rights

I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.

Paraphrase from Voltaire, "Essay on Tolerance"

Original phrase- "Monsieur l'abbé, I detest what you write, but I would give my life to make it possible for you to continue to write."

There are so many different people, with strongly held beliefs and opinions. It would be counter-productive to prove anyone's worth. I guess that is the real strength of true democracy, which is so lacking in many political systems and religions.
To assert oneself is right and has no room for any deviation is arrogant and simply backwards.

When you argue, do remember to put yourself in the other's shoes and consider all facts. Life would be educating.

Beliefs and differences

"While you are 100 percent certain that your preferred candidate's stance on issues such as foreign policy and the economy would appeal to any human being with half a brain, there is, in this very same country, an equally large voting bloc which believes that you and your candidate of choice are absolutely insane"

Article from The Onion, a satire website from America.
The Onion is a newsletter with a long history of satirical articles which no holds barred.



The irony aspect of satire is that sometimes it reveals more information and insight than what you can glean from normal news report and commentary. Especially political incorrect information and very simple facts that gets overlooked by over-analysed data and eager journalists.


Many people make up this world, and its really amazing how different beliefs and opinions can be held, and fought over. People who believe in a particular belief, say political party 1, cannot understand why are there so many people supporting the other side. "Isn't this obvious", I've heard this lamenting countless of times.

Personally I feel Obama is the ideal man for the job right now, and the Democratic Party has the greatest potential to right the wrongs and set USA in the correct path. And there is easily another large voting bloc who believe that voting for Obama is insane and nothing less of a Republican victory would do USA justice.

Thats the beautiful thing about democracy.