The Days After Death

The Days After Death:

By mikospace

May Day 2017.  The night before, Father passed on from this life. Death consumed him quietly after a full dinner as he rested; shutting down his lungs, his breathing ceased and finally his heart stopped. At a full life of 90-years old, Father was ready; and has been ready for quite a while since Mother succumbed to her stroke which paralysed her for over a year some 17 years ago.  Their blissful life was survived by 6 children, 6 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren! What a blessed life indeed!      

Death is personal and customised for each one of us.  It accompanies us like a personal shadow, growing as we grow, and at time looming larger or taller depending on the role it chooses as our alternate self. Death’s only story is the story of our life. It has no separate meaning other than whatever we have made with our life.  We are death’s only friend; that’s why it is often confusing as we hear its voice beckoned so welcoming when our time cometh as we then struggle to prolong our earthly time by grasping at the straw of a diminishing life.         

The fear of death is quite exaggerated, and unfounded, when to die is actually perfectly normal.  All natural living things die.  It is such an important part of the natural process.  Death is many things to different people who prefer not to talk or think about it.  Like it or not, though most of us do not like it, it is more like we do not like its often uncertain timing.  If only we can choose when to die, wouldn’t that be great! 

The main problem is that most people are not ready to die. Yet, most would live their life as if death would not occur.  We know life is short, and yet we rush through it without spending quality time to appreciate the beauty of nature or create meaningful moments with our loved ones.  Many eat the wrong diets that shorten our short life-span; others repeatedly poison their bodies with tobacco and nicotine; or regularly drown their stomach, livers and kidneys in alcoholic beverages; and millions others are addicted to consume strange chemicals in the forms of vitamin-substitutes, health “supplements” and man-made medicines. Ironically, death probably never works harder to prevent the onset of massive and pandemic premature human deaths that should otherwise occur as a natural consequence of mankind suicidal life-styles!                

Death is also romanticised by a spiritual interpretation.  Many man-made religions teach death as the separation of the imagined human “soul” from the physical body, and which goes on living somewhere forever … to “heaven” if one has been “good”, to “hell” if he/she has been “bad” or to a “holding” location to be determined by some “gods” or divine beings.  Some religious beliefs would “recycle” the dead back to this world to provide another opportunity for them to live a “better” life … why not send them back to a better version of this world, I wonder?!  Who indeed would want to come back to this wretched broken world again …!       

There is no evidence that the probabilistic existence of “heaven” and “hell”, or “recycling” for a better life, has any effect on criminal behavior or better civic treatment of fellow human beings or more socially responsible behavior in the community.  My take is that everyone knew that no one is really “good” enough to go to heaven … everyone irrespective of our jobs or station in life is guilty of insufficient “good” deeds to qualify for that hallowed “heaven” place.  We are all condemned by the good that we failed to do! That would leave “hell” as the common final destination for the human souls; this is really comforting since many friends, buddies, and enemies, would therefore be re-united after death.      

The notion of the “afterlife” is a denial of death being the end of life.  People are just not ready to leave their loved ones, or to stop enjoying their daily golf games or to cease having their party fun. Others are really happy growing their businesses, increasing personal wealth and prosperity way beyond their need to fuel a greater sense of security and enhance their happiness assets.  To many, the “afterlife” is necessary in order to be truly human. For them, life is a path that must lead somewhere, anywhere … as long as it does not just end!....

This is a truncated version. For the full version click mikospace above.

Cheng Bok takes the govt to court

Tan Cheng Bock finally filed his case to the court for a legal interpretation on the Elected President yesterday. His main point is to seek a court ruling on how the counting of President Wee Kim Wee as the first elected president is deemed legal and proper to justify an EP election this year.

We will now have to wait to hear what the court has to say and whether the ruling is constitutional. The AG's office would have to explain come they come about with their recommendation to the PM.

This is probably the first constitutional challenge in this island since independence.

South China Sea – Return of peace and calm when the devil is away

The Americans have stopped their agitation in the SC Sea and moving north to the Korean Peninsula to raise tension there. With their departure, peace and calm have returned to the region. Now who is the trouble maker that caused all the tension in the SC Sea and now causing tension in the Korean Peninsula? It does not need any thinking to know the answer. But some fools would forever be fools and would not be able to see that the devil has left to create trouble in the Northeast Asia.
The American Pacific Command under the Japanese Commander still wanted to stir trouble in the SC Sea and requesting approval from Washington to violate Chinese territorial integrity. Trump has turned them down, or Trump’s team in Washington has said no. Permission not granted. China is now helping Trump to deal with the problem of North Korea and so cannot create trouble for China.
The main theater for war is now in the Korean Peninsula and let there be peace in the SC Sea. But would the sneaky little USAs feel uncomfortable, backside itchy because there is no trouble in the SC Sea and would want to drag the Americans back into the region to create tension all over again? What would the little USAs gain if the region goes up in smokes?
Why would the little USAs want to create trouble in the region when they could have peace and live peacefully with everyone? Anyone wants to invite the trouble maker back into the SC Sea?
China is continuing on its mission to build a new infrastructure for trade with the OBOR project. China is going everywhere to build ports, cities, rails and road and trade. On the other hand the Americans are going everywhere to sign military pacts to conduct military exercises, to threaten regime change. The Americans are conducting military exercises with the Japanese, with the South Koreans, with the Philippines, with Jordan, with India, with Nato countries, all in the name of peace and is regarded by many fools as a peace loving country. China is all about trade, about economic development, about building infrastructure, about building international banks, but many fools chose to call these as hostile acts with aggressive intents. How long would the fools wake up from their stupidity?  Oops, stupidity cannot be cured.

Time to review NS laws to be fair to Singaporeans

Jason Wong wrote an article on a Singaporean who returned home after spending 30 years overseas only to be jailed for 33 months! The article is in TRE and here is a quote,
‘The PAP has managed to instill fear even in its judges to hand out ridiculous jail sentences. Let’s take the case of 44 year-old Ang Lee Thye. This gentleman left Singapore at age 14 for the United States. Lived in the states presumably all this time, and then at age 41 decided that he missed Singapore enough to risk a jail sentence. He actually surrendered to authorities when he returned to Singapore. Boy did the PAP high court judges give it to him good. The lower court judge low-balled by giving Mr. Ang a 24 months sentence, but these “more” intelligent judges upped his jail time from 24 to 33 months!’
The law is the law. Yes who does not know that? But when the law is unfair, difficult to enforce equitably, and worst, puts Singaporeans at a huge disadvantage, should not the law be reviewed, should not the people that are paid millions by the Singaporeans, put their heads together to come out with a more equitable law to be fair to Singaporeans, to do justice to Singaporeans, the people that are paying them their million dollar salaries but become their victims with their laws? I am talking about the laws on National Service.
Yes, superficially the law is fair to all Singaporeans. I am not going to split hair on this and pick up exceptions. Generally this law is applicable to all Singaporeans, the rich and the poor, the dark horses and the white horses. Ok, take it as that. The law when applied to all Singaporeans is fair. The point is that Singapore is now flooded by foreigners that come and go, to steal the jobs of Singaporeans, steal their girlfriends and wives, while they are serving NS or doing reservist training to protect the country and people.
These foreigners are having the best of everything, with advantages in getting jobs, even getting free education paid by Singaporeans without having to serve NS or NS liabilities. And they got promoted to be the bosses of Singaporeans, to have Singaporeans working under them even if they are younger and have questionable qualifications and experience. Even if they become Singaporeans, or children of PRs, they could easily tear away the citizenship, give up their PRs and return to their home countries, skip doing NS and sell their flats at a profit to daft Singaporeans,  and the daft Singaporeans were none the wiser. They are benefitting from all the things being NOT Singaporeans without any responsibility and liability while the poor Singaporeans will be jailed should they misstep and cross the line on this NS law.
It is high time, overdue, to revise this NS law to make it fairer to Singaporeans, not against Singaporeans and putting the foreigners, the PRs and the temporary new Singaporean at a huge advantage. Something must be done to change the situation for Singaporeans to come home again instead of staying away like convicts. Singapore is home to Singaporeans. Home has a special meaning to all Singaporeans. Don’t we want our Singaporeans to come home freely and happily? Do we have a heart to feel for our Singaporeans brothers and sisters, that they are one of us? Or we rather give their places to the foreigners that contributed nothing but sponging on our system, stealing our jobs and making Singaporeans looking really stupid?
What do you think? Are the NS laws fair to our fellow citizens?
I dunno want to laugh or cry for this Ang Lee Thye?

Redbean Editorial piece

Photo from Virgo

The United States made a pointed statement to North Korea that it would resort to violence, to attack North Korea if necessary. The United States have removed its veil as a peace loving Empire and would attack any country, particularly North Korea, if it did not stop its denuclearization programme. The world must come to the expectation that only the United States is allowed to have all the nuclear weapons at its disposal and no small countries would be allowed to have nuclear weapons except those that the United States could not attack without being counter attacked and those countries that the United States permitted to have nuclear weapons.
 
The United States have gone from bad to worse, instead of pretending to be a peace loving country, it is now saying it clearly that it would use force against smaller countries, to attack smaller countries, to conduct wars at its own discretion. Like a juvenile bully, the United States would use its big clout, its military power to bully smaller states to keep them from pursuing nuclear goals. Only the United States can have nuclear goals and ambition. It made it clear that it would impose economic sanctions against countries wanting to have nuclear weapons.
 
It’s avowed reason is for the United States to attack any country under the guise or deceptive term called regime change. Regime change is the United States code to invade a country to change its legitimate govt of the day. The North Korean govt must bear in mind that it would suffer the same fate of Iraq, Libya and Syria if it did not possess nuclear weapons to defend itself against an invasion by the United States. Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons are the only credible and effective deterrent against a vicious attack by the United States and its allies and their hostile policies of ‘regime change’.
 
When the Evil Empire think of nothing but its own military dominance and control over smaller countries, it sees nothing intrinsically wrong to attack and invade smaller states wanting to have nuclear weapons of their own, no matter that such weapons are for the defence against an attack by the United States. Given the peculiar and outrageous thinking of the United States, having nuclear weapons is the only means of survival and to prevent an attack by the United States.
 
However there is a way to end the brinkmanship in the Korean crisis. The United States must know that North Korea has the ability to strike back at the American continent and it is for the good of the United States to capitulate its aggressive intent to attack North Korea and to negotiate peacefully and to accept North Korea as another nuclear power.
 
The United States must reach a peaceful deal with emerging nuclear powers like Iran and North Korea, to engage them diplomatically instead of threatening them with military confrontation and war. The United States must move beyond sabre rattling, to come to the negotiating table to reach a peaceful settlement with North Korea and Iran, to lower tension and not to turn peace into war.
 
The United States cannot hope to solve the nuclear problems on its own without bringing in other nuclear powers to negotiate for a new status quo. The United States must change from its unilateral policy of wanting to have all the nuclear weapons to threaten other countries and not allowing other countries to have nuclear weapons to protect themselves against a mad and trigger happy United States that live on wars, that thrive on wars and profited from wars.