Thursday, October 30, 2008

Epiphany Of The Month....

Dave Bekham has had an lucid moment.

Well all I can say is that kids emulate their role models don't they? I mean when your sports idol does 37 milliion/year whats wrong with asking for the same?

Pj

Monday, October 27, 2008

Pedophilia For The Rich.

There is a lot of buzz on the local Internet about a Muslim cleric, Syekh Puji , who has married a 12 year old girl in Java despite of a number of laws that specifically prohibit this sort of thing. Apparently he even has his minions out looking for more children to fill out his legal quota of wives. As marriages are a matter of public record and no secret has been made of the wedding I'm surprised that some time has been taken to "investigate" this crime. The fact that the cleric in question is a wealthy man may go some way in keeping the law at arms length. The cleric has also used religious reasons to support his decision with the implication being that these reasons supersede the law of the land.

Harrumph!

Something really needs to be done. Last time I checked Indonesia was still a secular republic with its own criminal laws and constitution. Being wealthy does not entitle one to flout the law publicly and does giving generously to the poor is not a license for paedophilia. Now its not so shocking to realise that this sort of thing exists here. Pobably happens in a lot of countries. But it is shocking when the people in charge here can't see anything wrong with it and don't have the good grace to be ashamed when their hands are caught in the cookie jar. The same people who were in the streets when playboy opened its doors are suspiciously reticent when one of their own has subverted religion to achieve his own perverted ends. Not to say that people have been silent - the stirrings of a reaction are beginning. But really, if you ever needed a reason to hit the streets, protecting you kids is probably the best reason I can think of.

I find myself wondering why God has been playing extremely fast and loose in selecting those who claim to represent him on the mortal plane. Personally I would not accept any ones' religious credentials without a signed declaration of power of attorney from God as well as some attestable, repeatable and demonstrable miracles. Parting the Red Sea would be a good example, or even parting a small lake. Claims that you are just following your leaders example don't count. And Sheik Puji, even if you could walk on water, I would still have a hard time believing that the rape of children is justifiable from holy writ.

Pj

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Inspiration...or lack thereof

I woke up thinking of this poem for some reason. Not sure what I ate last night to bring this on.

If

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;

If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!

Rudyard Kipling 1909



Kipling may have written this nearly 100 years ago yet it remains one of my favorites to this day. Pretty inspirational stuff. And I need inspiration. Day 5 of customs invoices and still not finished. Another fire to put out as all the shipments got mixed up. On second thought maybe I've misplaced my trust in Kipling. This may be more appropriate.







One more week and I'm outta here.

Pj

Saturday, October 25, 2008

half hearted beginnings

I haven't decided why I doing this just yet. I suppose I'm just curious to see what direction this goes and what happens along the way. Travel is like that - getting there is half the fun. For some reason I've been living in a suitcase far longer than whats considered healthy or normal. Maybe by writing it down I can make some sense of it someday. Or maybe I can make a home (such as it is) here in these lines.Or it could even be a sort of herd mentality - everyone else has a blog so why can't I? Whats more likely is that I will get bored of this in a few weeks and take up some other, less challenging, pastime.
Time will tell.