new or used?

one of my responsibility is to check whether the material used in a new construction is new (it is always must be new due to contract's condition). two days ago I did exactly that. the picture above shows the material exhibits sign of being 'used material'. it is quite obvious, isn't it?

why in the world the constructor ever wanted to do this? is everybody else is blind? really I was disappointed. had the material had been installed, I would asked them to remove everything and redo it again. it was a foolish attempt of doing thing. foolish.

ghost of the past

I have to document this type of encounter which happened while I was working away from home a couple year ago. the ghost which I encountered was almost wiped out from my map of memory. it was impossible when we were separated not only by time but also geographical location, or so, I thought. never crossed even in my remotest mind that I would experience again such a terrified encounter. until that moment. it was a stupid and waste encounter.

comment vs complaint

yesterday I went to have dinner with friends. my food was not so tasty, so I gave my sincere comment to the owner while we're paying the dish. to my shocked, her face turned to 'very unhappy'. even at that point of time she was to receive the money. couldn't she differentiate the 'humiliating' comment and sincere comment? nothing in my comment could be misunderstood as 'complaint'. what happened to maxim 'customer is always right'?

diary of a father XVIII - tin ore

I brought my family to see this monster last week. this is actually a tin ore dredging floating machine. the length is about 100m, width is more than 10m and depth is about 4m. this particular machine is 73 years old. once, this kind of machine was used by the colonial to steal our wealth. then it was handed over to the locals. and I really don't sure whether the locals were better than the colonials in term of sharing the wealth.

my grandfather worked in this mining activity: as a worker. I told my kids to imagine how he worked in such condition so that he could raised his many kids plus some more of his nephews. while not working he would do a lot more of part time works.

so while the machine symbolised the colonials grip on the locals economy, but it also was the place where my family was raised. there is always two sides of a coin.

wealth and truth

someone told me that if you're rich enough, you may be able to buy truth. though my belief don't agree with this but in reality, sometimes it works that way. I had a friend while in the university who really fought on extreme right path. he would explained his believe to everyone he spoke to: he had a brilliant public communication. among his statement was "justice (system) is for the one with money".

after three years in the so-called higher learning campus, he told me "even we (same race) don't really understand the problem. after this I might as well study, get a job, and get my self rich". I hope he's succeed.

diary of a father XVIII - school

only a few days before school kids get their long vacation. after which they will embark on a new level of schooling. I've always tell my kids to do the best. regardless the result we will get, but the most important thing is to do the best. the rest is in God's hand. don't be afraid.

winds of change in mediterranean

certainly there are changes in countries around Mediterranean sea. first there were what they called Arab's Spring. three of the leaders there were replaced. now the cleaning session blows to Europe. starting with Greece and then Italy. by the end of last century we've seen communist nations fell apart. then new countries created around the same basin. clean it up!

diary of a father XVII - decision

today I'am making one of the difficult decisions I've ever made. as a father I always want the best for my family, even it's not the best for me. I want my family live in dignity and high hope. but sometimes my decision are flawed. I'm just a human being.

history II - world war I

it was said that world war I had entered the era of 'pages of history' from living memory. it is said that the last known serviceman has died in Australia in May this year.

that war ended with the world losing two empires: the Ottoman and the Austro-Hungarian. there were a lot of history truth hidden. 'when a person dies, it is like a whole library burnt down' - old saying.

Greece and the bankrupted democracy IV - unity government

the unity government of Greece has been formed. one reader comment on BBC that the democracy is falling in Greece. he said when a government can choose whoever they like in the government, then the democracy is falling. but for me, in the case of Greece, they unity government is made up of most of parties in the parliament. they were chosen by the people. they are people's representatives.

but what if the representatives are turning their backs against the people's wish? perhaps they can resort to direct democracy such as shown by the Occupy movement. I've wrote about direct democracy before. may be I need to write more about direct democracy in the future.

Greenpeace & environment

I heard that Greenpeace had some victory in French. go Greenpeace!

Greece and the bankrupted democracy III

the discussion among political parties in Greece is still in progress. and may be the democracy is in progress!

diary of a father XVI - job

this is my office. the idea of publishing this picture came when we (family circle) had a discussion about our job last weekend. one of the participants said workers at his workplace were just paid August's salary - a two-month late. then several others joint the fray. mostly they blamed the employers. at one time I decided to enter the discussion. I reminded them how the largest workers union in the country disagreed with the recently  passed amendment on the worker's act.

yes, I agree that employers are greedy. but we, the commoners, somehow elect our representatives who in turn passed the law that affect us negatively. the people are always depressed, always.

diary of a father XV - family outing

the picture above shows part of a train network which explore network of caverns. however, when we arrived there few months ago it was closed. we were told that there was an accident happened in the past and was closed due to that. I hope that they'll find a way to really improve the safety issue. and that my family can get the benefit from the development built from tax payers' money.

Greece and the bankrupted democracy II

well, the government of Greece is still holding ground. and the PM had proposed a unity government in facing the situation. let's see how the people of a country which gave us democracy will do that, when even the parliament is split into two factions. let's hope that we can learn more from these people, again. let's see how the people of Greece is going to face the economic difficulties without giving off their identity and dignity. watch and learn...

Greece and the bankrupted democracy

Greece is one of the earliest great civilisation. they teach us several things such as democracy. I wonder, if democracy could be used to destroy the very core of the system, the people. let say, the austerity plan put forward by the government is genuinely for the country's good. let say, the people of Greece reject the plan. as the result, the country goes 'bankrupt'. I don't know what happened next. but if eventually the people suffer, then the democracy, from my opinion, should failed. we have seen the failure of communism, the breakdown in the financial system and several other incidents. now is democracy failing?

from the rich Empire and pioneer of democracy, could Greece goes bankrupt and show us the failure of democracy? may be there is another system of government which is better. search for it. it is already here.