Bullshit Building 1: Palace of the Soviets

Many buildings were built for a good reason. Some were built for reasons that no longer relevant or valid. But some building were built for specific bullshit reasons like ... for show-off. These buildings usually spectacular in size, shape, or both, but without any reason other than to satisfy the vanity of its initiator. I call them "Bullshit buildings."

This article will be my first article that review those bullshit buildings.

The bullshit building that got the honor to be reviewed first is the "Palace of the Soviets."

The Beginning

When the Soviet Union was founded, its elites decided that they need a big "in your face" evidence to the world that communism rules. They need super-mega-gigantic-gargantuan piece of work to compensate their inferiority complex. They need a spectacular scene. They need ... a bullshit building!

So, the elites of the Soviet communist party started an international design competition in February 1931 involving 15 renown architects. In May 1931, the "more-equal"s decided the contest had no winner.

Okaaay ... so did they cancel the project? Not exactly. 

In 18 July 1931, they restarted the contest, attracted 272 concepts. Somehow, those "more-equal"s, headed by "the most equal" himself, decided in February 1932 that the year long contest had 3 winners. All 3 winners decided to change their design from Avant-Garde to neoclassicism, enraging other architects. That means ... a new contest was needed!

Finally, in May 1933, one design was chosen. The "most equal" himself audited the design.

The Design

Palace of the Soviets from: http://www.imghack.se/39237

Let's see what kind of design won that contest.

Super-tall building? YOU GOT IT! This building will stand 495 meter (1624 feet) tall, making it the tallest building of its era. By the way, the "Most equal" mustached "Man of steel" (Joseph Stalin, NOT that other Man of steel) specifically ordered that the building had to be at least as tall as the Eiffel Tower.

A gigantic-supposed to be badass-but in reality is a kissass statue on top of the building? HELL YEAH! The statue on top was supposed to be 80 meters (262 feet) tall! That is taller than the statue of liberty! Here is the tricky part: the "Most equal" had a nasty hobby: accusing his opponents "betraying the revolution, betraying the idea of Lenin." So, he was very careful not to put himself on the pedestal. That's why you got the statue of Lenin, the bald & previous "most equal", not Stalin, the mustached & current "most equal", on top of this bullshit building.

Gargantuan shadows and impression of grandeur caused by the oversize building and statue as a facade in front of millions who died in famine? BINGO!

Congratulations comrades, we got our perfect bullshit building! Time to build it!

The Construction

Before the winner of the contest was chosen, the location for this bullshit building was already chosen: on top the rubble of "Cathedral Christ the Savior," the largest Orthodox church ever built, located nearby the Moscow River.

Postcard showing the Cathedral

Yup, the "more equal"s and "most equal" decided to show their manliness by destroying something that can't hit them back. That is because they were so manly!

Since they were bad boys, they also thought that blowing up a church, an important historical building, an icon, would  convince the whole world that they were cool boys. Ah ... such urge to find acceptance was too hard to be resisted. 

So, they blow up the whole church, freeing the land ... at 5th of December 1931, BEFORE the design was finalized. Doesn't matter. Who needs a church if you were communist bad boys?

They just finished the work on the foundation when a nasty unpredictable thing called "German Invasion" began. Mother Russia definitely needed the steel, concrete, and other materials that was at that time earmarked for the bullshit building.

After the wars ended in victory, looks like a new use could be added to the bullshit building, but the project was canceled. One blogger mentioned that the cancellation was due to the fact that the water from the river made the soil in that area unsuitable for skyscraper like this. If that was true, we got one more reason to give "Bullshit seal" to this building.

The End of the Bullshit

After some years, the Soviet government decided to build world's largest swimming pool on the site.

Not bad. The site FINALLY could be of some use.

The current Cathedral. From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Moscow_July_2011-34a.jpg

After the fall of Soviet Union, the Russian government decided to ... re-build the cathedral. Nowadays, the gigantic "Cathedral of Christ the Savior" was returned to its place, ending the bullshit for good.

*1st of June 2012 Update*
The next bullshit building: Every House in "Pantai Mutiara" Complex

Indifference

The World is a Dangerous Place, not because those who do evil, but because of those who  look and do nothing.
-- Albert Einstein

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.
-- Martin Luther King

"The path to Auschwitz was paved with indifference."

-- Ian Kershaw

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

-- Edmund Burke

There is one thing that I could say positively about monsters like religious radicals/fanatics, communists, Adolf Hitler, etc.

They are not indiffirent to the injustice in this world. They may be misguided, irrational, deranged, etc. but they always care in their own twisted way.

On the other side, I am flabbergasted by so many people who lack the moral and/or physical courage to stand for something. Many of these people say "this is none of my business" or "I have a family to feed."They conciously train themselves to be an indiffirent person. For example, at most, only around 30% Germans were actively supported the Nazi, therefore the Nazis were the minority. They managed to reign over Germany because most Germans were "The silent majority." Exceptions were the communists. They actively opposed the Nazi, because of their own twisted ideology, but still, they were the most vocal opponent of the Nazi. Unfortunately, others didn't take them seriously.  

There is a famous poem from pastor Martin Niemöller for the reason why indiffirence could be deadly.:

"First they came for the communists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me."

The emphasis in the last phrase is mine.

Sadly, there will be many who try to kid themselves by thinking "They won't come for me." Here comes the tricky part: they could come for you for something that you never guess before. Those maniacs hatred is always irrational. You can hardly guess something irrational. Oh yeah, sometimes people think you are something that you are not.

For example: the Nazi prosecutes the Jews openly, but do you know that they make clear definition of "Jews" that also discriminate a person with 1/8 and 1/16 Jewish blood? What about the Soeharto's coup in Indonesia in 1966? He targeted the communist, but do you know that many non-communists Indonesians were also killed because some personal enemies of them accused them as communist supporters?

Another problem for indifferent people: when FINALLY someone come for the monsters that someone can mistook you for them. For example, when the Russian and the Allied army came to get the Nazis, many Germans were killed, regardless their political affiliation or indifference. Even if they never come for them physically, you could got some problem. For example, when the religious "moderates" keep quiet after the fanatics cause some troubles, the whole religion was viewed negatively by outsiders, the moderates were implied to be the same stock with the fanatics.

So, still interested in becoming "The silent majority"? Still interested to be indifferent in front of injustice? 

Aircraft Carrier in Modern Warfare

I read an interesting article from BBC about the future of Aircraft Carrier. The article basically pointed some doubt that aircraft carrier will play the dominant role they play today.

I have some comment on that topic. To do that, I have to provide a small historical lesson.

Early History

USS Langley, the 1st US Carrier

When the aircraft technology was still in its infant stages in early 20th century, the navy decided that aircraft could provide a very crucial supporting role for the battle fleet. At that time, the most important ship in the navy was the battleship, the largest, most heavily armored ships equipped with the largest cannon. The navy thought that aircraft could become the eye for the battleship fleet, locating other fleet, OR providing fighter cover to shot down any enemies recon aircraft. The problem is, the fleet could be located very far from any friendly aerodrome. Thus the need for an aircraft carrier was born.

The idea that aircraft could sink ship, let alone battleship, was considered absurd at that time. Billy Mitchell from the US Army is the first military officer who disagree with that opinion. He experimented with battleship "Ostfriesland" that the US got from the German navy after they won the first world war. Mitchell bombed the battleship using land based heavy bomber, and managed to sink her. Mitchell concluded that all surface ships now become obsolete, AND he also stated that no ships, even no aircraft carrier, would be able to contest land based airpower. (Morison, 1963 p:8)

Mitchell was considered a prophet because of his experiment and prophecy, but second world war prove him wrong half of the time. Mitchell's experiment was fundamentally flawed. The Ostfriesland was anchored at the time of the experiment. She had no crew, therefore could not shoot the aircraft, didn't have any damage control operation, etc. Therefore, it is not surprising that many of his conclusions was outright wrong. But, his mistakes were not obvious at that time. We need the second world war to demonstrate this.

World War 2

When the US Navy designed the defense against the Japanese threat, they assumed that the land-based, high-altitude, heavy-bomber B-17 Flying Fortress could be ship killers that could be used to attack Japanese fleet. They were wrong. The high altitude bomber lack the accuracy to effectively bombed a sailing ships defended by Anti Aircraft cannons and machine guns.

Partly based on the awareness of the flaw of Mitchell's experiment and the conservative nature of the Navy, the US Navy also still assumed that battleship is the most important ship. This assumption was challenged when the British torpedoed some Italian Battleships in Taranto, and by the Japanese aerial attack on Pearl Harbor. But, reasonably, the navy still thought that those events didn't reflect the actual capability of a battleship to resist aerial attack.

Essex Class Aircraft Carrier

The first sailing battleship sunk by aircraft carrier was the HMS Prince of Wales. She was attacked by land-based aircraft but those aircraft didn't attack from high altitude, they have to fly low, and attack the battleship using torpedo and bombs.

Mitchell was falsified once again by the "Operation Hailstone" in the beginning of 1944. During this operation, US 5th Fleet  consists all kind of warships, but its core is mainly the Essex class aircraft carriers, under admiral Mitscher attacked the Truk Lagoon in Central Pacific. It is important fact that Truk was a major base of the Imperial Japanese Navy, defended by hundred of planes. By the end of the operation, the ships of the 5th Fleet wiped out all Japanese ships and aircraft in Truk by combination of aircraft aerial attacks and naval surface bombardment. On the other hand, the US didn't lost a single ship in this operation.

USS Forrestall, the 1st Supercarrier

USS Gerald R Ford, the newest supercarrier

By the middle of the second world war , or even earlier, all admirals agree that aircraft carrier already replaced battleship as "the queen of the sea." After the war, the United States built "Supercarriers," carrier that are far larger than  any carrier in the 2nd World War.

Modern Warfare

Why the historical lesson is necessary? I want to pointed out some facts that:

1. The navy in some sense is a conservative organization, they need time to adjust to new development.
2. The second world war provide important lessons, not only to the US Navy, but also to any navy in the world.
3. Combined the 1st and the 2nd point, many of the lessons from the 2nd World War dominates the assumption of modern navy.

After the world war, jet propulsion become the dominant aircraft propulsion, and rocket-type weaponry provide even a small aircraft with sufficient firepower to sunk a battleship. Other significant technological developments are: nuclear power, satellite monitoring & positioning.

While the jet propulsion make sure that aircraft will have further advantage over ships, enhancing the importance of aircraft carrier, it also means that minor powers nowadays have the means to sunk any large and powerful ships, including any supercarrier.

Nuclear weapons make sure that any major power in an all-out war definitely will easily destroy all surface ships in a fleet with only one missile.

Satellite monitoring & positioning provides the exact location of any fleet to major powers. Unlike in 2nd world war where the fleet has to search the enemy's fleet by launching recon plane, nowadays modern fleet from any major power knows exactly the location of the opposite fleet.

In this case, it is reasonable to assume that in a naval battle between major powers, the fleet with supercarrier as its core would be easily overwhelmed by all kinds of attack that applied those new developments. In essence: carrier is irrelevant in a naval war between major power.

Nevertheless, nowadays we didn't expect any major power go to war between each other. No matter how heated the rhetoric between the US, Russia, China, India, etc, we consider a large scale naval war between them as highly improbable.

Today's conflict that involve carriers are US intervention in minor powers territory. The US used their supercarrier repeatedly as mobile aerodrome, mobile headquarters. Across those interventions, not a single  supercarrier was sunk. The Serbian, Iraqi, or any other forces never managed to threaten the carrier seriously. Of course the story may be different in case of US intervention in middle power, e.g.: Iran.

Nevertheless, the supercarrier are still useful in power projection in minor power territories. Not only the US, other powers also need some power projection capability to protect their interest in faraway ocean. This ability also will lessened the burden of the US. Other power repeatedly complained about US hegemony, US de facto status as world police, etc. If they really didn't like this situation, they should put their money where their mouth is. They should build some carrier, maintain them, and use them to protect others. If they really dislike "USA: the World police," better they stop become freeloaders like they are doing now, and take some burden from the USA.

What? They thought the concept of a world police is absurd? They thought that "the worst peace is better than the best war"?Tell that to the victim of the Holocaust, Rwanda Genocide, etc.  who lost their lives after the world police didn't exist or didn't intervene. This world need more world police, not less, because psychopaths still manage to become ruler of so many countries. Psychopath like Hitler only understand one language: power. Many of them can be stopped only by military intervention. Another many of them can be stopped by credible threat of military intervention. In that spirit, the world needs more aircraft carrier, not less.

Sources:

Angelo Codevilla & Paul Seabury, War: Ends and Means 2nd Edition (Basic Books 1989, 2006)

Samuel Eliot Morison, The Two Ocean War (Naval Institute Press 1963)

"Battleship" Review

I have a soft spot for anything naval, but especially big ships with big cannon. That's why I resent the fact that there was no major movie about naval battle. That's why I rejoiced, when I heard the development of this movie. So, is the movie lived up to my expectation?

I agree with most critics that the movie's plot is dumb, nonsensical, etc. I will pointed out what I thought as the 3 most disturbing scenes:

1) As a military aficionado, I was absolutely screaming when I saw the alien spared one single destroyer when they has the chance to sink her. 

2) As an engineer, I was appalled when they show that they managed to turned on a very unused boiler of a museum ship only in few minutes. 

3) As a human being with 3 digit IQ, I laughed hard when I saw that they stored some live ammunition inside a museum ship. 

Really, if you used your brain, you will instantly realized that this is a really stupid movie. My final verdict for this movie: 70/100.

Why so high after I stated that the movie is dumb? These are the reasons:

1) Brooklyn Decker is hot. Good eye candy worth some extra points.

2) Despite the dumbness, the action scenes were still enjoyable. Most important, unlike the other Hasbro movie that involved Michael Bay and some giant robots, I still could follow what happened during the action scene of this movie.

3) Hey, they got some bonus point only because this is a movie about a naval battle! Especially when the climax involved a big, heavily armored ship with big cannon a.k.a., battleship!

I recommend this movie only for anyone who want to see dumb action film, and naval enthusiast.

Holy Land Pilgrimage

So many Christians spend so much time, money, and energy to visit the "holy land." This pilgrimage is supposed to enhance their "spirituality," to take them "closer to God," to emulate suffering of Jesus, etc.

Christians, what's wrong with you? Do you know many of those holy places are not actually the same historic place that you assume they are? Here are 3 examples:

1) Via Dolorosa/Way of Grief
You don't seriously think that the via dolorosa in Jerusalem is really the path that Jesus took to his crucifixion right? No? You thought Jesus really walk that path?

Small historical lesson: the original Jerusalem was burned, razed to the ground, uprooted from its foundation after a Jewish Revolt against the Roman Empire on 70 A.D. In ca. 130 A.D., a new city was built on top of that ruin, the Aelia Capitolina. That's right the TRUE via Dolorosa was destroyed together with the old Jerusalem. The current via Dolorosa is a path from Aelia Capitolina, around 100 years after the crucifixion of the Christ.

So, sorry to bring you the bad news: the via Dolorosa IS NOT the path that Jesus took.


2) Church of Nativity
Seriously? You really thought Jesus would mark the barn where he was born? You thought that he know the exact place where he was born? You thought that somehow his disciple managed to accurately guess where he was born?

3) The site of the Baptism of Jesus
Big news: the Jordan river where John the Baptist performed the baptism of Jesus is already dried years ago. The current Jordan river flows in different place. So, be aware, and never forget that the place that is marketized as the baptism spot is definitely not the same spot where Jesus was baptized.



Of course not every Pilgrimage spot in the holy land is bogus. For example, it is reasonable to assume that the Golgotha hill is really the place of crucifixion of Jesus, because that hill is still there, and there are records from multiple sources about its location. But, that didn't contradict the fact that many "holy places" have no historical reason to be holy. Be aware that some degree of rationalism in religion could help your spirituality too :)

"Membantah/Menghina" Tuhan

Satu lagi argumen dari para fanatik agama yang sering saya hadapi ketika memperdebatkan moralitas:


"Kamu menghina Tuhan yah? Berani²nya kamu membantah Firman Tuhan! Berani²nya kamu tidak setuju dengan Firman Tuhan!"


Jawaban saya adalah:
"Saya tidak menghina, meragukan, membantah atau menyangkal Tuhan kok, sebab saya saat ini BERDISKUSI DENGAN ANDA, bukan dengan Tuhan. Yang saya pertanyakan adalah apakah pendapat anda itu adalah pendapatnya Tuhan! Sejak kapan anda mendadak jadi Tuhan sih?"

Tuhan dan Logika

Saya sangat suka berdiskusi, berdebat. Salah satu topik favorit saya adalah soal moralitas. Nah, kalau sudah  berbicara soal moralitas dengan para fanatik agama, nama Tuhan PASTI langsung di bawa². Pernyataan yang sering dikeluarkan para fanatik ketika sudah terdesak dalam debat adalah: 

"Tuhan tak bisa dijelaskan dengan logika. Tuhan itu di luar logika manusia."

 Maaf yah, kalau Tuhan tak bisa dijelaskan dg logika, kok anda bisa bilang "Tuhan itu "A"" atau "Tuhan itu "B""?

Satu contoh kongkritnya adalah pernyataan: "Tuhan itu maha baik." 

Pernyataan ini adalah satu usaha menjelaskan Tuhan dalam logika manusia. BAIK adalah sebuah konsep abstrak, tapi jelas sekali adalah sesuatu yang logis, sesuatu yang bisa kita semua cerna sbg manusia. Dengan mengidentifikasikan Tuhan dengan kebaikan yang mahabesar, kita semua berusaha menerangkan, menjelaskan Tuhan dengan logika manusia.

Jadi, berhubung anda juga manusia seperti saya,  SEMUA pernyataan anda tentang Tuhan itu sebetulnya juga usaha untuk menjelaskan Tuhan dg logika.

Jadi, kalau melihat keseluruhannya, ketika anda yg bicara, Tuhan bisa dijelaskan dg logika, ketika saya yg bicara soal Tuhan, mendadak Tuhan di luar jangkauan logika. Hebat betul anda bisa tahu kapan Tuhan bisa dijelaskan dg logika, kapan tak bisa. Hebat betul logika anda bisa menjelaskan Tuhan sementara logika org lain tak bisa.

Maaf yah, pernyataan "Tuhan tak bisa dijelaskan dg logika" bukanlah sebuah statement yg membuktikan kebenaran pernyataan² anda sebelumnya, atau membuktikan kesalahan argumen² kami.

Maaf yah, karena kita ini manusia, berarti kalau Tuhan di luar logika "Anything goes" atau Tuhan bisa jadi berarti apapun.


Intinya: kalau Tuhan berada di luar logika, kita tak bisa mendiskusikan apapun tentang Tuhan.

Keperawanan

Saya prihatin membaca salah 1 posting di grup facebook yang saya ikuti. Wanita yang menulis posting tsb curhat bahwa keperawanannya dicabut tanpa seijin dia. Setelah itu, dia dipaksa orang tuanya untuk menikahi pria pencabut keperawanannya karena mereka takut tak ada pria lain yang mau menikahinya lagi.


(Menghela napas panjang.)


Bukankah ini GILA?

Seorang wanita yang sudah menderita karena keperawanannya dicabut tanpa seijin dia malah diperintahkan hidup bersama pria yg dia benci itu?

Saya makin MARAH sebab kejadian ini tidak aneh di tengah² masyarakat kita.
Saya makin MARAH sebab "keperawanan" dihargai segitu tingginya sampai² ditempatkan diatas kebahagiaan seorang individu.

Itu bila kita lihat dari perspektif sang wanita. Bagaimana dari perspektif sang pria hidung belang? Pelajaran mahapenting dari kisah ini: cara enak untuk para pria hidung belang yang ingin menikahi seorang wanita Indonesia yang tak suka padanya adalah dengan mencabut keperawanannya. 

Seperti kata ilmu ekonomi: insentif itu penting. Budaya "tradisional" kita yang menempatkan keperawanan setinggi langit malah memberi insentif pada para hidung belang untuk mencabut keperawanan wanita. Jadi ...  selamat para orang tua yang memaksa putri mereka menikahi pria pencabut keperawanannya!! ANDA² INI secara tak langsung memberikan insentif pada para hidung belang yang lain!!

(Aspek) Budaya yang memaksa orang² tua melakukan hal macam ini adalah (aspek) budaya yang harus ditinggalkan. Budaya semacam ini sama seperti budaya korupsi, cuma akan membuat penganutnya menjadi bodoh, atau menderita, atau keduanya. Semakin cepat kita tinggalkan semakin bagus.

Resensi buku "The Bottom Billion"

Ada 7 milyard manusia hidup di planet bumi ini (6 milyard saat buku ini ditulis). Sayangnya, lebih dari 1 milyard manusia hidup sbg orang miskin, di negara miskin. Apakah yang menyebabkan mereka miskin? Bagaimana mengangkat mereka dari jebakan kemiskinan? Lewat buku "The Bottom Billion," Paul Collier hendak menjawab pertanyaan² itu. Namun, perlu digaris bawahi, buku ini membahas rakyat miskin di negara miskin BUKAN rakyat miskin di Cina, India, atau Indonesia atau negara berkembang lainnya. Namun, banyak masalah negara miskin yang serupa dengan negara berkembang seperti Indonesia jadi kita masih bisa banyak belajar dari buku ini.

Buku ini serupa dengan buku "The End of Poverty" karangan Jeffrey Sachs,  "The White Man's Burden" karangan William Easterly, dan buku² karangan Dambisa Moyo. Semua orang yang suka membaca buku² tsb wajib membaca buku ini.

Buku ini boleh dibilang terbagi dalam 2 bagian. Bagian pertama membahas 4 jebakan kemiskinan. Bagian keduanya membahas "obat"² yang biasanya ditawarkan untuk mengobati kemiskinan.

Pengarang buku ini, Paul Collier, adalah profesor ekonomi dan direktur departemen kajian ekonomi Afrika di universitas Oxford. Dia juga pernah mengepalai penelitian pembangunan di Bank Dunia.

Konser Lady Gaga: Part 2

Setelah komentar saya thd konser Lady Gaga, ada perkembangan terbaru. Konser tsb tidak batal. Biarpun belum ada rencana komplit, ini tetap kabar baik.

Sbg orang yang tidak suka pada Lady Gaga maupun lagu²nya, saya tak sangka saya bisa berkata:
"MAJU TERUS LADY GAGA!!"

Tunjukkan pada dunia, bahwa Indonesia tidak sepicik para pelarang konser Lady Gaga.
Tunjukkan pada dunia, Indonesia tidak senang dengan kepicikan dan sifat ke-kanak²an.
Tunjukkan pada dunia, orang² yang melarang konser Lady Gaga itu tidak bisa melarang konser tsb.

Jepang Memenangkan Perang Pasifik?

Setelah membahas langkah terbaik Jerman untuk memenangkan perang dunia 2, kini giliran medan perang Pasifik.

Kalau untuk kasus Jerman kebanyakan orang menuding invasi ke Uni Soviet sbg penyebab utama kekalahan Jerman, di medan perang Pasifik kebanyakan orang akan menunjuk pertempuran Midway. Pertempuran ini memang penting, 4 kapal induk Jepang dikaramkan, sementara pihak Amerika cuma kehilangan 1 kapal induk. Namun, Midway bukanlah kunci kemenangan Jepang di perang Pasifik. Peluang pertama Jepang untuk melibatkan level strategi tertinggi, sebelum perang Pasifik dimulai. 

Timur Tengah: Kunci Kemenangan Jerman di Perang Dunia 2

Kita semua sudah tahu sejarah perang dunia 2. Poros Berlin-Roma-Tokyo berperang melawan persekutuan Inggris-Perancis-Uni Soviet-Amerika Serikat. Pihak poros berhasil ditundukkan walaupun mereka berhasil merebut Paris, mendekati Moskow, menghancurkan armada Amerika di Pearl Harbor, dst. 

Apakah pihak poros sudah pasti kalah dalam perang ini? Apakah kemenangan pihak sekutu sudah terjamin? Di permukaan, kelihatannya begitu. Inggris dg koloni²nya, Uni Soviet dg sumber daya manusia dan mineralnya, serta Amerika Serikat dengan industri yg terlindung oleh 2 samudera tampaknya tidak akan bisa dikalahkan oleh pihak poros. Atau minimal ... pihak poros butuh mukjizat untuk mengalahkan pihak sekutu. Betulkah sesederhana itu? Tulisan ini akan membahas peluang pihak Jerman dan italia.

Konser Lady Gaga

Penyanyi pop kondang Lady Gaga hendak mengadakan konser di Indonesia, para fans-nya pun bersukacita. Namun, konser tsb rasanya batal karena polisi, PPP, Ketua MPR dan banyak pihak lain menyatakan "Lady Gaga tak sesuai dengan budaya kita."

Penulis BUKAN fans Lady Gaga. Penulis bahkan tak suka lagu² Lady Gaga. Penulis juga merasa tindak tanduk Lady Gaga biasanya adalah upaya mencari perhatian dengan bertindak/berpakaian norak. Tapi penulis bereaksi dengan tidak menonton konsernya, tidak membeli CDnya, dan melewatkan gosip Lady Gaga. Tidak pernah terlintas di benak penulis untuk menghalangi siapapun menonton konser Lady Gaga.

Abraham Lincoln pernah berkata

"If you want to test a man's character, give him power."

"Kalau kau mau tahu karakter asli seseorang, berikan dia kekuasaan."

Penulis sudah pernah menulis soal kengototan "mempertahankan budaya bangsa" sebetulnya adalah sebuah bentuk represi konyol yang tidak bisa dipertahankan secara rasional.  Pelarangan konser Lady Gaga ini membuktikan bahwa pihak² yang melarang konser Lady Gaga sebetulnya bersifat ke-kanak²an, sebab siapa lagi yang ngambek irrasional ketika hal yang tak dia sukai ditonton oleh orang lain?

Pak polisi, daripada repot² melarang Lady Gaga, sebaiknya anda tunjukkan nyali anda dengan menangkapi para pelaku kekerasan atas nama agama. Itu terang² perbuatan kriminil. Itu terang² mendesak. Itu terang² melecehkan wibawa hukum. Itu terang² mengancam persatuan bangsa, mengancam kemajuan bangsa. itu terang² membuat malu Indonesia, mencemarkan nama baik budaya Indonesia.

The United States 2012 Presidential Election

 

Let me get this straight, I am neither a liberal nor a conservative, nor a libertarian. When I took the „World's Smallest Political Quiz,“ I got 60% for personal issues, and 40% for economic issues. That makes me a „Centrist“ with inclination to the left. I personally more inclined to the right on foreign policy issues, while I agree more with the left on domestic policy issues. So, I think it is not too far fetched to call me an „Independent“.

I am not an American, but I followed the news about their coming election. If I were an American, I definitely would vote for Romney. My reason is not a conventional reason. I am in the opinion that both of them are politicians. Politicians have this tipical habit called „B.S. Promising.“ Since they will broke their promise … I will vote the one who promise to do more horrible things!

C'mon America, you can't call your country „Land of the free“ while denying healthcare and education for the poor. The republican war against „Socialized medicine“ is so immoral and stupid, luckily they choose a politician as their candidate!! I believe Romney will be smart enough to support ObamneyCare, or even expand it. On the other hand, Obama speaks big about protecting freedom, while signing NDAA, and maintain Gitmo ...

So, if you count on their dishonesty, I am pretty sure Romney will win this election.You know you can always count politicians for their dishonesty! So, this is my proposed campaign slogan for Romney:

„ROMNEY 2012, TIPICAL POLITICIAN, AMAZING FUTURE!!“

Mitt Romney photo from: http://reason.com/quiz/GOP2011/profile/mitt-romney 

Barrack Obama photo from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Official_portrait_of_Barack_Obama.jpg

Amerika Serikat sebagai Polisi Dunia

Tulisan ini adalah lanjutan dari artikel Amerika Serikat, Iran, dan Intervensi. Di artikel ini, penulis hendak mengelaborasi komentar penulis thd campur tangan Amerika Serikat thd urusan negara lain. Mari kita mulai.

"Campur tangan" atau "Tidak campur tangan" itu pertanyaan yg salah. "Tidak campur tangan" artinya menolerir pihak yg kuat, mengijinkan mereka mendapatkan apa yg mereka mau. Artinya, negara manapun punya "campur tangan" di negara lain. Jadi pertanyaan yg betul adalah "Bagaimana cara merancang campur tangan yg terbaik?"

Cox & Forkum, 5 Juli 2007: http://www.coxandforkum.com

Banyak yang menyatakan bahwa campur tangan terbaik adalah melalui organisasi supra-nasional seperti PBB. Maaf yah, para tiran kriminal yang membantai rakyat mereka sendiri itu juga adalah anggota PBB. Ini sama saja dg hendak menciptakan kepolisian yang beranggotakan gangster, perampok, pembunuh berantai, dan kriminal lain. Tanpa para kriminal itupun, mencapai konsensus di antara 100+ anggota PBB itu sangat sulit. Bahkan ketika konsensus tercapai di antara sebagian besar anggota PBB tsb, masih ada 5 negara yang memiliki hak veto yang bisa membatalkan konsensus tsb. Salah 1 negara pemilik hak veto hampir selalu membela si kriminal. Menunggu konsensus di antara 5 negara pemegang hak veto itu seperti mengharapkan menang lotere. Namun, polisi dunia tetap dibutuhkan. Di artikel sebelumnya, penulis sudah menunjuk, absennya polisi dunia saat itu membuat Hitler, Mussolini, dan Tojo memiliki kesempatan untuk melakukan kekejian² tak terperi di dunia.

Amerika Serikat, Iran, dan Polisi Dunia

Situasi terkini: sanksi ekonomi sudah membuat hidup Iran jauh lebih susah, tapi mereka masih ngotot melakukan program nuklir mereka. Israel sudah gatal untuk membom Iran.  Amerika Serikat terus menerus mengecam, dan menyatakan mungkin akan melakukan intervensi di Iran. Uni Eropa mengecam Iran tapi tidak menunjukkan gelagat untuk melakukan intervensi militer. Russia dan China menekankan pentingnya kedaulatan nasional. Sementara itu, banyak rakyat Muslim mengecam amerika serikat, menyatakan ketidak sukaan mereka karena Amerika serikat dianggap terlalu mencampuri urusan negara lain.

Perang Dunia 2

Pelajaran sejarah sedikit. Mari kita mundur ke tahun 1930an akhir. Nazi Jerman menganeksasi Austria, lalu Sudetenland, disusul Cekoslowakia. Kerajaan Italia menyerbu Ethiopia. Kekaisaran Jepang mencaplok Manchuria, lalu melakukan perang all-out melawan Cina.

Amazing Quotes 3: Voltaire

Some amazing Quotes from Voltaire:

„I disagree with what you say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it.“

„Every man is guilty of all the good he didn't do."

„It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets.“

„Animals have these advantages over man: they never hear the clock strike, they die without any idea of death, they have no theologians to instruct them, their last moments are not disturbed by unwelcome and unpleasant ceremonies, their funerals cost them nothing, and no one starts lawsuits over their wills.“

„Doubt is not a pleasant condition, but certainty is absurd.“

„God is a comedian playing to an audience too afraid to laugh.“

„If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him.“

„Each player must accept the cards life deals him or her: but once they are in hand, he or she alone must decide how to play the cards in order to win the game.“

„Those who believe absurdities will commit atrocities.“

Resensi buku "What Went Wrong"

Saya punya beberapa pengalaman berdiskusi (Baca: BERDEBAT) dengan para pendukung penerapan Shariah di bumi Indonesia. Salah satu argumen yang seringkali mereka ucapkan adalah:

"Sadarlah! Sistem demokrasi sudah bobrok, gunakan sistem Khilafah untuk menghapuskan korupsi dan mengembalikan kejayaan Islam!"

Setiap kali saya menjawab argumen ini, saya mengutip buku Bernard Lewis yang berjudul "What Went Wrong."yang pertama kali dipublikasikan tahun 2002, sesaat setelah tragedi 9/11, tapi sebetulnya penulisannya selesai sebelum tragedi tsb.Saya menyarankan para pendukung maupun penentang Khilafah untuk membaca buku ini.

Amazing Quotes 2

Another Amazing Quotes:

"Faith is often the boast of the man who is too lazy to investigate."

-- F. M. Knowles 

"The postmodern attitude as that of a man who loves a very cultivated woman and knows he cannot say to her, I love you madly, because he knows that she knows (and that she knows that he knows) that these words have already been written by Barbara Cartland."

--Umberto Eco, in the postscript of "The Name of the Rose."

“It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depend upon his not understanding it.”

--Upton Sinclair

Admit your errors before someone else exaggerates them.

--Andrew V. Mason

"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away."

--Philip K. Dick

'We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid. '

-- Benjamin Franklin

"If knowledge can create problems, it is not through ignorance that we can solve them."

-- Isaac Asimov

Kisah Admiral Yi Soon Shin

Apakah nama Yi Soon Shin terdengar asing bagi anda? Bagaimana dengan Hideyoshi Toyotomi dan Tokugawa Ieyasu? Saya yakin jauh lebih banyak pembaca yang lebih kenal dengan dua orang terakhir yang dikenal sebagai pemersatu Jepang, sebab saat ini sedang terjadi booming semua yang berbau Jepang, terutama di kalangan remaja dan pemuda kita. Sungguh sayang, sebab Yi Soon Shin sangat berhubungan dengan kedua orang ini.

Semua bermula pada tahun 1590 saat Hideyoshi baru saja selesai menyatukan Jepang. Namun, situasi Jepang saat itu masih amat kondusif untuk perpecahan lagi. Kekuasaan masih belum terpusat benar di kalangan Hideyoshi dan semangat berperang masih membara di kalangan bangsawan-bangsawan Jepang. Hideyoshi memutuskan untuk menyalurkan segenap semangat itu keluar untuk menghindari perang saudara. Secara logis pilihan dijatuhkan ke Cina dan Korea, maka dia mengirim utusan ke Korea. Yang diminta utusan itu kepada pihak Korea adalah ijin untuk menggunakan wilayah Korea sebagai pangkalan untuk expedisi militer ke Cina yang saat itu dikuasai oleh dinasti Ming.

"Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance" Review

The first Ghost Rider movie is a disappointment. The movie failed miserably in (almost) every possible way. The action was ALMOST good.  The plot was ALMOST interesting. The acting was mediocre, etc. In the end, I give it 40/100. That's why I never expect anything good from its sequel: Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. Boy, I was wrong ...

First, I start this review by giving my score to this movie: 100/100. Forget all other negative review, this movie is PERFECT for your night! Let me continue it with the reason behind that perfect score.

There is only 2 kinds of scene we can found in Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance:

1) BADASS ACTION SCENES!!

When was the last movie where the director shoot a scene above a cliff, behind the stuntman?

When was the last time you see a superhero using a Bagger 288 to kick the badguy's sorry ass?

Etc.

 The action scenes in this movie are really top-notch, nuff-said.

Dude, what's wrong with your head?

2) Scenes that are SO BAD it become HILLARIOUSLY FUNNY!!
When you see a nervous Nicholas Cage oozed fire from his nose like a demon who got flu, you know there is something wrong inside the writer's head. And YES, that example is far from the funniest one, I won't spoil the laugh to you.

Seriously, there is NOT ONE SECOND in this movie that I could describe as BORING. That's why I give this movie a perfect 100/100 score. Watch it and enjoy it. You won't regret it.

Demokrasi dan Kemakmuran

Apa hubungan demokrasi dengan kemakmuran? Ada dua jawaban extrim yang bertolak belakang satu sama lain yang sering diajukan.

Pertama adalah, demokrasi adalah sine qua non, syarat mutlak, untuk kemakmuran. Jawaban ini sering sekali dikumandangkan oleh negara-negara Barat umumnya, Amerika Serikat khususnya. Mereka selalu mendorong demokratisasi di negara-negara lain, mengatakan itu semua demi kemakmuran, demi kepentingan negara itu sendiri.

Kedua adalah, demokrasi adalah musuh kemakmuran. Jawaban ini sering sekali dikumandangkan oleh pemerintah Cina dan negara² otoriter lain. Mereka selalu menekankan pentingnya stabilitas, disiplin, dan keamanan. Mereka juga menekankan bahaya anarki, ketidak pastian, dan kekacauan yang menurut mereka akan tercipta oleh demokrasi.

Mari kita analisa kedua jawaban tsb.

Amazing Quotes 1

Some amazing quotes:

It is not they love peace less, but that they love their kind of peace more.

-- Saint Augustine, "City of God"

You can always keep the peace if you are willing to pay the asking price; and it is a matter of high strategic decision whether the price demanded is worse than refusal with its risk of war.

-- Samuel Eliot Morison, The Two-Ocean War, p. 43.

America in 1939 – 1941 wanted neither world power nor world responsibility, only to be let alone; but world power and world responsibility were forced upon her by the two nations, Germany and Japan, that badly wanted both.

-- Samuel Eliot Morison, The Two-Ocean War, p. 45.

“'Better' is the enemy of 'Good Enough”

-- Admiral Sergey Gorshkov

"If you are looking for perfect safety, you will do well to sit on the fence and watch the birds."

-- Wilbur Wright

"Somebody once said that in looking for people to hire, you look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence, and energy. And if they don't have the first, the other two will kill you...."

-- Warren Buffett

"Anything asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence."

-- Lawrence Krauss

If a scholar has nothing new to say he should keep quiet.”

-- Samuel P. Huntington

"The quest for truths is synonymous with intellectual controversy."

-- Samuel P. Huntington

Irshad Manji, UGM, dan Sedihnya Negeriku

From: http://www.4shared.com/photo/y6T1td6Z/Logo_UGM.html

Diskusi buku "Allah, Liberty, and Love" yang seharusnya diselenggarakan oleh Pascasarjana UGM dibatalkan setelah adanya ancaman dari pihak² yang tidak menyukai bukut tsb. Ketika diskusi akhirnya digelar,di tempat lain, gerombolan pengacau benar² menyerangnya.


Diserang, Irshad Manji Tak Beranjak dari Duduk



Di negeriku ini, kalau tak suka dengan sesuatu, tinggal melakukan ancaman kekerasan.


Di negeriku ini, kalau tak suka dengan sebuah buku, berarti SEMUA orang lain tidak boleh baca.


Di negeriku ini, universitas negeri saja tidak dilindungi oleh pemerintah.


Di negeriku ini, banyak manusia merasa dirinya bisa menjadi wakil Tuhan di dunia ini.


Sedihnya negeriku ini ...

Website yang rutin saya kunjungi ...

Ini beberapa website yang rutin saya kunjungi:

Berita:

Dulu Russia Today ... sekarang "RT"

Perspektif yang ada di sini berbeda dengan perspektif BBC, CNN, CBSNews, dan media² berbahasa Inggris mainstream lain dari amerika atau Inggris. Oh iya, perspektifnya juga sering tak sama dengan Al-Jazeera. Bagus untuk perbandingan.

The Daily Show with John Stewart
Sebetulnya bukan acara berita, tapi acara komedi mengomentari berita² di Amerika Serikat. Sedihnya, jurnalisme Amerika Serikat sering KALAH dengan para pelawak ini. Misalnya, merekalah yang meliput para pahlawan 9/11 yang tidak bisa mendapatkan perawatan setelah sakit keras akibat menolong para korban 9/11 ...


Colbert Report
Sejenis dengan The Daily Show, tapi disini pembawa acaranya, "Stephen Colbert" adalah parodinya tokoh-tokoh extrim kanan Amerika. Colbert dan Stewart bekerjasama meng-olok² "Super PAC" yang mencemari demokrasi Amerika. Oh iya, Colbert juga pernah menjadi berita di Indo setelah dia mengejek Menkominfo Tifatul Sembiring yang mencium tangan Michelle Obama.

Komik:

Dilbert
Kesal thd bosmu? Terjebak dengan rekan kerja idiot? Kau tidak sendirian!! Scott Adams melukiskan semua kebodohan di tempat kerja (dan dunia) dalam comic strip buatannya!! Diupdate setiap hari.


Ctrl+Alt+Del
Komik strip karangan Tim Buckley yang wajib dibaca oleh penggemar video game dan tehnologi!


The Oatmeal
Matthew Inman mengomentari kejadian² di dunia ini di komik stripnya ini. Tidak seperti 2 komik strip di atas, dia tidak memusatkan perhatiannya pada 1-2 bidang saja.

Lain-Lain:

Badass of the week!
Website buatan Ben Thompson yang menceritakan makhluk² tertangguh!! Contohnya adalah Anthony Omari, seorang Kenya yang mempertahankan sebuah panti asuhan, mengalahkan perampok yang membacok mukanya; atau Max Hardberger, seorang petualang yang pekerjaannya adalah membajak kapal barang dari tangan pemerintah korup!


TV Tropes
Apa itu "Tropes"? Begini deh ... "Tropes" yang terlalu sering dipakai itu kita sebut "cliche." Website ini mengumpulkan tropes yang ada di berbagai media.

Red Letter Media
Website koleksi review film buatan Mike Stoklasa dan timnya. Terkenal karena review Star Wars Episode I-II-III yang Stoklasa lakukan sbg karakter "Mr. Plinkett," pembunuh berantai berumur 100 tahun.

Nasionalisme dan Budaya Asing

Sebagai bukti tingginya sifat nasionalisme kita, sering kita mengatakan “Cegah merembesnya budaya asing ke dalam negeri kita!” Kitapun mengatakan pornografi, pornoaksi, sex bebas, hilangnya rasa hormat pada orang tua, dan hilangnya rasa kekeluargaan sebagai bukti pengaruh buruk dari budaya asing. Kitapun jadi sering menyatakan bahwa kita harus kembali ke khitah asal kita, ke kebudayaan asli kita agar tak mengalami dekadensi ini. Begitu seringnya kita melakukan dan melihat hal ini, kita menjadi merasa itulah cara yang benar untuk membela kepentingan bangsa dan negara kita. Apakah memang demikian?

Sebelum kita memulai perdebatan ini, kita harus mendefinisikan manakah budaya asli kita, dan otomatis semua yang tak merupakan budaya asli kita adalah budaya asing. Kaum Muslim biasanya akan menunjuk ke Qur'an dan agama Islam sebagai budaya asli kita.

Maaf, tapi, agama Islam berasal dari Jazirah Arabia, bukan dari Indonesia. Begitu pula agama Kristen, dan Katolik, berasal dari daerah Palestina, bukan dari Indonesia. Begitu pula agama Hindu dan Buddha, berasal dari India. Begitu pula agama Konghucu berasal dari Cina. Kesimpulan: Sebagian besar dari anda tidak menganut agama asli Indonesia.

Some Opinions about Life & Death

The general liberal/leftist opinion on live & death:
"You could terminate life before it was born. Lucky for you, after that, even though you are a mass murderer, child-rapist, genocidal-maniac, you have "the right to live" and nobody can give you death penalty!! Yup. NOBODY!! We don't have the right to attack those who already slaughtering others, because if we attack, we are no different!! After this, all of us could sing Kumbaya around the campfire every night! Yes, all of us, including the serial killer, child molester, and genocidal-maniac, isn't that wonderful?"

The general conservative/rightwing opinion on live & death:
"Life before conception is very holy, nobody could touch it. Once you touch this world ... TOUGH LUCK!! We, the right, love to see death penalty!! The more executions you perform as a public officer, the more applause you got!! See the right-wing crowd reaction to Rick Perry if you doubt this. About foreign policy ... let's blaze ANYONE WHO ARE DIFFERENT THAN US!! They need a good lesson about democracy, human rights, etc, a war is a good start for that!!"

The general psychopath opinion on live & death:
"I am against abortion, but FOR KILLING BABIES!! YEAH, KILL THEM ALL!! I would apply as the "babykiller" instantly if they agree with this. Death penalty? No chance man, one more man toast by the government means one less man to be killed by me! War? When there is none, I will start one, at least locally :)"

The general "holier than thou" opinion on live & death:
"I know God's will exactly, follow my word to know whom we have to kill and whom we have to save. What? You disagree with me? YOU ARE AGAINST GOD, KILL HIM!!"

The general "slave" mentality on live & death:
"I totally agree with my friends/parents/religious leader/politicians/ etc. about abortion, death penalty, war, etc. No, I should not let my own thinking distort me."

Review "The Avengers"

OK, ini blog pertama saya. Semoga bermanfaat.

Ah, The Avengers ... setelah Marvel menciptakan begitu banyak trailer sepanjang 2 jam, akhirnya filmnya datang juga. Mari kita lihat ...

Semua puja-puji thd film ini rasanya sudah disampaikan kritikus² lain, dan saya setuju dengan mereka. Jadi, review ini akan fokus pada kekurangan The Avengers! 

Kekurangannya:

- Ceritanya tertebak

- Lawan mereka di pertempuran terakhir, alien Chitauri, kurang variatif

- Para Chitauri ini tak mengerti logika militer

Vonis akhir: 75/100