Disclaimer:
This is a personal blog and should be taken as such. So don't sue me if what I write pisses you off. Or if I write lies. Or if I give maladvice. Or if you fail to read through my sarcasm. Et cetera.
I like stalkers.
Is it in bad taste to quote one's self?
"The greatest of debaters are not only the most eloquent -- they are the most bruised, the most resilient, the strongest of heart." -- Andrew Loh
Quotes "How many times have you chickened out?" - Qu Hsueh Ming
"Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds." - Albert Einstein
"An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile - hoping it will eat him last." - Sir Winston Churchill
"Affirmative action is something the good don't need and the bad don't deserve" - A wise man
"The men who create power make an indispensable contribution to the Nation's greatness, but the men who question power make a contribution just as indispensable, especially when that questioning is disinterested, for they determine whether we use power or power uses us." - John F. Kennedy
"The problems of the world cannot possibly be solved by skeptics or cynics whose horizons are limited by the obvious realities. We need men who can dream of things that never were." - John F. Kennedy
"I love America more than any other country in this world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually." - James A. Baldwin
"Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is but a broken winged bird that cannot fly." - Langston Hughes
"Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference." - Sir Winston Churchill
"Dreams are true while they last, and do we not live in dreams?" - Alfred Lord Tennyson
"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education alone will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan "press on" has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race." - John Calvin Coolidge
"We will either find a way or make one." - Hannibal
"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake." - Napoleon Bonaparte
"For evil to triumph, it is only necessary for good men to do nothing." - Edmund Burke
"War begins in the minds of men, and it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must first be constructed." - UNESCO Constitution
"The proper study of mankind is man." - Alexander Pope
"My kind of loyalty was loyalty to one's country, not to its institutions or its officeholders. The country is the real thing, the substantial thing, the eternal thing; it is the thing to watch over, and care for, and be loyal to; institutions are extraneous, they are its mere clothing, and clothing can wear out, become ragged, cease to be comfortable, cease to protect the body from winter, disease, and death." - Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens): A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
"Patriotism is to support your country all the time and your government when it deserves it" - Mark Twain
"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world. The unreasonable man persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man." - George Bernard Shaw
"The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it." - George Bernard Shaw
"Democracy is a system ensuring that the people are governed no better than they deserve." - George Bernard Shaw
"If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all." -- Noam Chomsky
"During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act." - George Orwell
"When the people fear the government, you have tyranny. When the government fears the people, you have freedom." - Thomas Paine
"I sense a learning: that much dumber people than you end up in charge. Look at the way things are. I'm no fucken genius or anything, but these spazzos are in charge of my every twitch. What I'm starting to think is maybe only the dumb are safe in this world, the ones who roam with the herd, without thinking about every little thing. But see me? I have to think about every little fucken thing." - Vernon God Little, Act II
I LIKE HOW STACYWRITES. There. Pergi baca dia punye - short and sweet.
After a long hiatus, Inkyhandsis finally back and running! It's a new beginning for a new year - but as always, we bring you exciting new voices, and new stories to be told. We know, we know, this issue has been a long time coming - we sincerely hope that you will enjoy it. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, remember? Here are some snippets from March, 2007:
Editorial: Notes on a Resurrection by Liew Zhou Hau
I suppose that most would view Inkyhands to have died in absentia, banished into the annals of Internet history without so much as a parting whimper. The past months have been eventful, to say the least, and I won't belabor the cause of our dereliction. What is more curious is rather our reappearance after all, the death of a litmag is fairly common, dependent as it is on the fickle whims of its creators. And given that we all have lives to lead, things to do and never enough time, it seems perfectly natural for Inkyhands to have bade goodbye, unceremoniously...
Editorial: Justifying Malaysian Ways to Man(kind) by Elizabeth Wong
As I'm writing this Editorial, I'm still seething over what happened in my writing seminar a week ago. I wrote a piece focusing on the awkward romantic relationships of teenage years. It was loosely based in Malaysia, except the characters spoke in somewhat watered-down Manglish. Usually, I receive incredibly useful critiques from my fellow participants; this time however...
The Wake by Lee Jia Hui
"How did it happen again?" I was still uncertain of his exact cause of death. Sally shrugged quite indifferently. "I told you," she said with a tone that sounded as if she were being harassed to reveal a dark secret. "He killed himself. Exact method, I haven't been brave enough to ask." Her gaze shifted to the solid mahogany coffin under the tree. "Why don't you go find out?"...
What Colour is the Sky? by Hanae
There is a damp and moist atmosphere in the air. The gentle patter of the rain is quiet, and somehow, comforting. They say I'm strange. Maybe I am. Many people detest the dull grey clouds that fill the sky and constantly drench the world in a gloomy dimness. The city becomes muted in black and white tones. I like the rain. It is soothing, cleansing. I feel like it can wipe away all the sin and blood of this rotting earth....
The Billionaire by Stacy
He owns the tallest building in the city and 96 percent of the company housed in it. He owns the pipe lines under the land that supply gas to the building from his fields in Nevada and the utility lines that deliver electricity. He owns the nineteen hundred people that work beneath him and the twenty thousand others who do not. He read somewhere in Forbes that his assets exceed sixteen billion dollars, and he is not surprised. People in the moderately populated city call him the billionaire; firstly because he is one - the only one in their city, and also because he's not one of them...
Epilogue: Autophagy by Raymond Tan
My hands aren't moving at all.
I stare at the blank sheet of paper, confused. How long had they been that way? In my mind I was still typing, the clatter of the typewriter echoing in my head just at it had echoed three sessions a day in the cell I was in...
Another One of Those ... by Kaput
He grabbed a towel and slipped into the bathroom. The shower was hot. His eyes rolled back as he let the water pummel him. Dipping his head, he let it massage his scalp and plaster his brown hair to his neck and shoulders. He rubbed circles of soap into his chest, stopping momentarily to investigate the red-purple bruises that swirled down his abs. He winced as he touched one of the bruises. Rinsing off, he wrapped his towel around his waist and shoved the door open. His room was cool and he shuddered. He dried himself and threw on a clean shirt and jeans...
Watching the Sunset by Syrkyd. K
It took me a bit of legwork and some mental workouts to finally find her. She was perched on the guardrail of a flyover, staring out into space. I gingerly took a seat beside her.
"Can't you find some better place?" I hollered over the din of the passing traffic...
Cell Fish by Rachel Chan
We chastised them silently for their love of TV, their idle weather chat, their flashy clothes, their superficial lifestyles. We compared them to ourselves, so full of life, so brimming. The filled basin, now brimming. Our exchange peaking as the water rising, threatening to spill over into unwanted crevices. Eyes, mouths, ears. In darkness, lurked unseen evil...
Small Things Go by Chew Tung Shen
The first time Koyo saw the rat, it had been on fire. Crazy doomed vermin, with its tail caught on the joint where the electric cables met the tower support. It had made quite a racket before it died. Surprising for such a small animal...
Read the latest issue of Inkyhands now ( http://www.inkyhands.net)! Do get back to us - we value all kinds of feedback! And remember, we need your submissions to keep Inkyhands alive!
PETALING JAYA: Malaysian students who are experienced debaters are invited to represent the country at the World Schools Debating Championship 2007 in Seoul, South Korea, in July.
An annual event since the early 1990s, the championship will be held from July 2-12 and has proven to be a forum for students from all over the world to exchange ideas and air their views.
The speakers, aged between 14 and 18, can also act as
youth ambassadors, foster friendships and understand each other's cultures and backgrounds.
The Malaysian team will be selected through auditions, to be held on March 10 and 11 between 9am and 6pm at Level Three, Menara Star, 15 Jalan 16/11, 46350 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.
The speakers will be asked to debate two topics: "This house disapproves of cloning" and "This house would cancel Third World Debt".
Those interested in participating must be 18 years and under as of July 2, 2007.
Students should register their full names, IC number, name of school, e-mail address, handphone number as well as a list of their debating experience in 100 words or fewer with The Star at e-mail msd@thestar.com.my or via fax at 03-7957 7641 by 5pm on Wednesday.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for the auditions.
This event is jointly organised by the English Speaking Union of Malaysia and The Star.
Judah Maccabee, by Chaverim, at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York.
We didn't have a video camera of our own, and so the fact that other people recorded us came as a surprise.
Description on Youtube: Choir of Bryn Mawr, Haverford, and Swarthmore does a new (is that possible?) song for Hannukah with one amazing and suprising solo... (more).
Discover
U.S. Education - KL '07 will be organized in Kuala Lumpur in July 2007.
Tentatively, it would be at Sunway Pyramid Convention Center on 15th
July 2007 (Sunday). The primary objective of the event is to enable
students to better plan and make informed decisions prior to furthering
their studies at U.S. universities and colleges. This event is
rebranded from Experiences 2006 Kuala Lumpur to better reflect the
objective of the event.
I refer to the anti-Islam advertisement from the "Terrorism Awareness Program" in last week's Phoenix. At first, I was extremely disappointed at what was, I believe, the publication of grand, bigoted lies ("Jihad demands the suppression of all infidels, Jihad's battle cry is 'Death to America'") and intentional provocation. The advertisement clearly insinuated that Islam is an all-encompassing threat ("against Christians, Jews, women, gays, America") and equated the religion with some very deluded people saying very stupid things.
But then I realized the infinite wisdom of the Phoenix for publishing the whole load of crap. Unlike other schools like the University of Pennsylvania, UC Berkeley and New York University who refused to run the ad, this is Swarthmore, after all. We, smart(er) Swarthmore students, would hardly be misled by the blatant lies, much less give credence to an organization that unfoundedly spreads hatred, and at the same time shamelessly calls itself a "Freedom" Center. The Phoenix clearly knew that all Swatties are too smart to be fooled by the $25 donation plea to support the "public service announcement."
Most importantly, the Phoenix is receiving revenue from the "Freedom" Center to publish its rubbish. I say we run a full page of it in the next issue. No, maybe two. Better yet, a fifty page pullout of the same advertisement in every issue for the next ten months. This way, not only will the Phoenix's coffers be pretty damn satisfied, we will also be able to divert some funds away from the "public service" project.
I say, better us, uber-smart, nonsense-immune Swarthmore, than some other intellectually inferior school where students might actually be influenced. Yes, believe it or not, stupid people do exist. It would be our public service to America.
Mr. Smirnov is hardly the only executive to have been
thwarted by stringent requirements for entry into the United States.
Travelers from emerging economies like India, China, Latin America, the
Middle East and Eastern Europe are required to have visas to come to
the United States (citizens of Western Europe, Canada, Australia, Japan
and Singapore do not require a visa for visits shorter than 90 days)
and many complain that the process deters them from traveling here.
...
In November, the Discover America Partnership, an association of travel
industry executives, surveyed more than 2,000 international travelers
and found that the United States was considered the least welcoming
destination, by a ratio of greater than two to one. Thirty-nine percent
of respondents selected the United States as having the worst entry
process, followed by the Middle East, cited by 16 percent of
respondents.
