Leges Vitae

9 Reasons Why Anyone Should Travel

2012-01-29T19:20:00.001-08:00

I have to admit this. I wasn’t a particular fan of travelling not long ago. I’m not sure if I was, even during our ambitious Winter Break tour across the United States – the exasperating walks that lasted forever, boring waits at airports and sluggish mornings that shun another full day of tour.

But after a few weeks back home, only did it struck to me how blissful that three weeks has been. Like what the Chinese writer, Lin Yutang said, “No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow.”

I have come to find that, it is indeed true – travelling, with all its ups and downs, makes you see the world out there in all its unimaginable splendour. And through my (ever so clumsy) experiences especially across US of A, I have compiled a total of 9 reasons on why anyone should travel:

1) You will ditch away mighty misconceptions

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” – Mark Twain

More often than we like to admit, the mass media and Hollywood does plant very convincing stereotypes into our innate beliefs.

The uneducated South Asians that live in squatters. The tightly conservative and narrow-minded Arabs. The glitz and glamour of Los Angeles on the silver screens.

Only when I dared myself to hit the road, have these obnoxious presumptions been turned upside down. Packed like sardines on a 4WD for 5 hours with 6 Pakistanis to Minneapolis, I have come to known them as the smartest (and funniest) intellectuals I’ve ever met; whom I’ve had the honour of calling them my brothers now. Talking with an Omani and Jordanian about the Middle East over lunch, I listen in awe at their brand of Islamic ideology and ever open mindset. Strolling through downtown LA, you will be shocked at the number of homeless people who live in a country calling itself the “Land of Opportunity”.

Be prepared to be challenged, demystified and contradicted. And to be ashamed of yourself. Because you certainly will.

2) You will be more knowledgeable beyond your expectations

“Don’t tell me how educated you are, tell me how much you traveled.” – The Prophet Muhammad

For every place you set foot on, there’s bound to be a treasure trove of history hidden somewhere. The heritage of Lakota, Dakota, Nakota Indians in the valleys of the Black Hills. The dingy underground street of old Seattle and the Klondike Gold Rush to Alaska. The bloody attempts of America’s worst criminals to escape the infamous Alcatraz Island.

If you do get to study or stay a little longer, the country’s politics, social issues and challenges will inevitably grab your attention. Never have I thought I would one day understand the Democrat-Republican rivalry, economic debates about 21st century capitalism and Stephen Colbert pot-shots on TV. And I was thrilled to bits for attending an LLM class at Duke where Professor Horowitz discussed about constitutional design in Fiji.

Or if you’re a law student (preferably highly naïve and idealistic) that visits Washington DC, there will definitely be an orgy fest of nerdy knowledge seeking– from 1^st Amendment Rights at the Newseum, famous Supreme Court personalities to (if you’re really loose up there)some mind-bending lost symbol hunting around the capitol ala Professor Robert Langdon.

3) You’ll make friends with new people every single day.

“A journey is best measured in friends, rather than miles.” – Tim Cahill

From the top of my head: Andy from Britain. (oh, how I love his accent!) Demi from Taiwan. Luna and Hun from South Korea. Siang, a Malaysian who just finished his studies at Australia. Lina from Uzbekistan. Fellow UGrader Amy and her “friend” from Minnesota. Jeff from Orange County. The lovely couple of James and Stephanie Szeto from LA. Carlos from Chile. (now where on Earth can you find someone else that raps in Spanish while bathing?) The friendliest Cantonese uncle and auntie from San Francisco. Bryan and his Indonesian mate from Purdue University. And not to mention the many people I met at Augustana College!

Fate brought different people from totally diverse backgrounds together at that exact crossroad in time. If we were late or early for a minute, I wouldn’t have met half the people above – and probably would have met another set of strangers. How cool is that!

4) You’ll treasure the special bond with your travel mates

Having travelled with one of the wackiest companions ever was the highlight of my entire journey. The ever hilarious entrepreneur cum gymnast-pants-wearing Wilson @ “Ah Beh Tu Bah Hoon”, environmental activist cum accent impersonator Floridan hot chick Nasha @ Ah Mei and journalist cum “I’m moving my 3 storey bungalow” baggage carrier fashionista Christine @ CGPS – they all made the journey kicking ass awesome! No way will the journey be the same without them.

It’s not the destination, but the journey with friends that truly matters.

5) You’ll get to savour so many delicious food!

Jesus, where do I start? Wonderful Lebanese dishes in Sioux Falls, fresh Snow Crabs straight from the Pacific Ocean, bone-falling grilled prime ribs in LA, lip-smacking enchiladas and tacos in Olvera Street, dizzyingly unique Irish coffee and clam chowder in sour bread at Fisherman’s Wharf, Japanese buffet at Las Vegas….I swear that you’d gain pounds for sure!

Of if you’re feeling homesick, there’s always Chinatown and our very own Malaysia Kopitiam in Washington DC!

6) You’ll appreciate the different culture, arts, music and way of life

Coming from Asia, I’m always impressed at how Western society appreciates the arts. (or what we Asians generally claim are un-scientific and of no “practical value”) Be it the dramatic personifications of dark humor in the theatre scene or the many weird sculptures dotted along any pathway, there is always something colourfully new to savour at every corner. I’ve been fortunate enough to attend enchanting orchestras, great clubbing spots (without people smoking inside!), museums of modern art, random street musicians and so many more.

Seeing, hearing and touching all these, despite the absence of human interaction, is already enough to offer quite a lavish and unforgettable experience.

7) You’ll be amazed at the architecture and scenery

Mount Rushmore. The Space Needle. The Walk of Fame. Grand Canyon. The United States Congress. Stanford University. Duke University. The Bellagio Las Vegas. Napa Valley. Golden Gate Bridge.

Feast the eyes on nature stripped bare and the technological brilliance of men. Smell the salty sea breeze and grassy gust of the great plains. Hear the cries of seagulls, rattling chains of moving bicycles and enchanting flap of the waves. Feel the rays of the sun and chills of the winter wind.

Truly, there are many things that can never be adequately explained. They must be seen, smelt, heard and felt - in its purest and virgin form. And it is one heck of an euphoric feeling that can never be forgotten.

8) You’ll learn to appreciate the unexpected…and find the thrill of it!

“Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things – air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky – all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it.” – Cesare Pavese

Stopped by a park ranger at the Badlands because we didn’t wear safety belts, and almost forgetting to bring my driving license along which could landed us in real big shit. Reluctantly entered an expensive club, and had the time of my life dancing to the pulsating beats. Driven to the gay district of Castro in the dead of night, and felt like turning up in a different world.

Your travel is never always going to go as planned. And that just might be the best part of it!

9) You’ll be…inspired!

For the linguist, you’d be inspired to speak the language - in my case, French!

For the entrepreneur, you’d be inspired the moment you enter the first Starbucks store in the world at Pike Place Market or the Boeing assembly plant in Everett.

For the historian, you’d be inspired by the Lincoln, World War 2 and Jefferson Memorial in DC.

It all really depends what lenses you use to peek at the amazing kaleidoscope of adventures out there. And the faith to make a change and be reborn as a different person, that comes with it. America, despite the gloomy predictions of its decline, still remains to me as one of the most admirable superpower the world has ever seen – true crusaders of freedom, a capitalist model that bought communism to its knees, a dynamic political scene and a superior legal system which is the envy of the world.

As a 20 year old boy that has idealistic hopes for a better world, you can’t help but feel inspired every single day.

So there you go – 9 out of the, I’m sure, many more reasons why anyone should travel. If you’re genuinely interested in discovering the wonders of the world out there, nothing should stop you. No money? Work, save or find for opportunities – the same way thousands of Malaysians have done. No time? College life is one of the best moments to travel, marriage and work will tie you down one day.

I shall end this post with my favourite quote of all time from the great Mark Twain:

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

The Triangular Theory of Love

2011-11-26T22:23:00.001-08:00

Yes, I would like to talk about love today. Actually, I wouldn't have if not for Psychology assignments. That's one of the perks of studying this subject - almost everything is understandable because us humans have experienced these psychological states in life. Here is a sample reflection paper of mine, bearing in mind that this isn't meant to be explanatory (which might disappoint some people) but a narration of original opinions and ideas by the student.

The triangular theory of love by RobertSternberg describes types of love based on three different components: passion,intimacy and commitment.

Passion is a state of intense longing for union withthe other, connected to both romantic and sexual attraction.

Intimacy involvesconnectedness and the bond where partners support, understand and trust eachother.

Lastly, commitment encompasses the decision, not merely a feeling, toremain together.

As the different stages of love shift, so does the emphasison each component. Basically, there can only be consumate love when all 3elements are present.

I would like to give personal insightstowards each component of this triangular theory of love. Firstly, I ~~personallyexperienced~~ strongly believe that passion is an extremely powerful emotion duringthe first stages of love. There is a desperate desire for feelings to bereciprocated and an extreme infatuation towards the other. Sometimes, itreaches a level where you view every action or trait (the giggle, the way shefondles her hair, etc.) as an additional attractive element that makes him/her“special”, however ridiculous they seem to be. (with the benefit of hindsight,of course)

Moreover, I believe males place sexual attraction asa bigger driving factor towards another as compared to mere romantic feelingsat this stage of “passion”. Of course, most guys wouldn’t admit it at thebeginning of the relationship because they would be perceived as “shallow” or“dirty”. As we all know (too well, sometimes), guys possess more uncontrollable sexual drives as compared to the ladies & this will inevitably be reflected too in the courtship process.

It has been theorized that when feelingsare developed quickly, it is also quick to fade away. This may be true for allrelationships, but I have a hypothesis that this doesn’t apply to one: ourfirst love. Many people have testified that it is the first love that draws thestrongest emotion and cuts the deepest wounds in our hearts. I believe thatthat special feeling of experiencing your first love will not fade away formany years, or even for a lifetime. A survey could be carried out among peoplewho have already married to rate each of their past relationships on a scale tofind out which one evokes the strongest memories. (bearing in mind thatpartners might develop jealousy, we do this secretly!)

The stage of intimacy is whererelationships take a different twist. As the fog of infatuation clears out,partners begin to discover each others' weaknesses and even dislike certain traits.It is difficult to forge an understanding of how to proceed with therelationship and I hypothesize that this is the part where most relationshipsbreak down.

One area I’m particularly interested in is how the level ofintimacy changes in long-distance relationships. Will there be a dip due to thephysical distance or does the phrase “absence makes the heart grow fonder” holdtrue in most cases?

Moreover, technological innovations have brought rapidadvances in the field of communications and it is interesting to research howthis can potentially change the nature of long-distance relationships,particularly “intimacy”. While Skype-ing and face-to-face chatting areimportant, it is not an effective medium to gauge the trust of partners. Trust,which is such a crucial part of intimacy, has a bigger connection towardssocial media like Facebook and Twitter, where it gives an avenue for a partnerto keep track on your daily life – thus, being a very effective indicator fortrust.

Yeah, I know, the article sounds very technical and un-lovey dovey, but that's academics for you. Wanna know the raw, hyperbolic, melt-in-the-heart emotions? Talk to the man!

Day At The NEWSeum

2011-11-24T09:36:00.001-08:00

No, this ain't no silly parody of Ben Stiller's "Night at the Museum". (although, I could imagine what awesome fun it would be if the entire Museum of Natural History came to live!) It was the last day of my tour and when TripAdvisor ranks Newseum No.2 for Washington DC's "must-see" list, you couldn't really resist it. As the name of the museum suggests, it is a historical collection of the journalism profession and also an exciting exhibit of cutting-edge communications technology.

A conspicuously modern museum, in all its glory at Pennsylvania Avenue. $20 for admission, but damn well worth it.

The 1st floor houses an array of Pulitzer Prize winning photography. I could stare at a single picture for a few minutes without blinking. It was as if those pictures; those human beings - overflowing with unspeakable, raw emotions; are telling me the story that very moment the photographer snapped his camera. It was moving. It was captivating. There then, I realized what the phrase "A picture paints a thousand words" truly meant.

From left to right: Right-wing activists smashing a folded chair on the head of a left supporter in Thailand; the American troops raising the flag after the brutal battle of Iwo Jima; Prisoners of War arriving home; the first black student to attend a university being ridiculed, which later spawned the Civil Rights Movement.

In 1987, President Ronald Reagan, at the Brandenburg Gate, said "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!". And indeed, 3 years later, the Berlin Wall that seperated West & East Germany collapsed. Not long after that, the Soviet Union disintegrated, the Cold War ended and the United States became the world's sole superpower left standing. It was a momentous occasion, signalling the triumph of democracy over communism. Some academicians, like Francis Fukuyama, even boldly proclaimed that this is the "end of history" - that democracy and capitalism had won the day. Would this hold true? Well, stay tuned because history is happening right now, even as we speak.

Next stop is the breathtaking 4D movie experience, depicting "some of the most dramatic events in journalism history. You are there, standing with Edward R. Murrow on a London rooftop as hedelivers a live radio report during World War II and going undercoverwith Nellie Bly as she exposes horrendous conditions in a 19th centuryinsane asylum." Besides, there's just so many other things to do - being a reporter while being filmed by cameras, peeking at legendary moderator Tim Russert's office desk and looking at how things work in a tense media room.

There's also the uber cool FBI exhibit. Newspaper reports on the most notorious criminals in American history being pursued by the FBI is just surreal for a Sherlock Holmes fan like me. Of course, the FBI's new focus is on the so-called "war on terror", where the brand new updates and lists of FBI's most wanted targets are displayed for all to see.

One of the more engaging exhibits: the World Press Freedom Index. As seen on the colored world map on the upper right image, green represents countries with a "free press", yellow as "partly free" and red as "not free". North America and Europe seem to have a very independent media, while the rest of Asia don't score that particularly well. Again, Malaysia fails to impress by being categorized as "not free". But then, even American television networks like CNN and Fox News have very obvious political leanings. Another interesting phenomenon: will emerging economic giants like China open up to the idea of a free press? Beijing is trying hard to quell dissent by banning internet materials, but political theory predicts that democratization will be inevitable as a country continues to prosper. Will the Communist Party reform? Interesting times ahead, I would say.

(On a side note, and as the bottom right picture displays: Congrats Malaysia, we won the SEA games Gold medal in football!)

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, orprohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom ofspeech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably toassemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

~ First Amendment To The United States Constitution

The First Amendment is arguably one of the most important, enduring and controversial article in the Bill of Rights. The American people, and more crucially the Courts, treasure their freedom & liberty very much. On more extreme forms of freedom of expression, a Nazi Party may march through a largely Jewish neighborhood (Collin v Smith, 1978) and even banning flag burning is unconstitutional. (Texas v Johnson, 1989) I'm not advocating that Malaysia should completely follow the democratic standards of the United States, but both the government and courts should be bold enough to uphold the basic constitutional guarantees for freedom of religion, speech and assembly. Sadly, what we are witnessing now is a flip-flop turn of events - while Mr. Najib recently promised to appeal the UUCA and form a parliamentary committee into free elections, his own government is in motion to pass a ridiculously undemocratic Peaceful Assembly Bill.

The 9/11 memorial is one of the more touching exhibits you could ever find. This year marks the tenth anniversary that changed America and the world forever. I would never forget the moment when a Malaysian boy like me saw grown men weep before my very eyes, as they rekindle the gruesome memories of that terrible tragedy.

I have learnt so much in the short 4 hours walking around the Newseum. It is a tribute to journalists who have braved bullets and storms to bring us the truth. It is a celebration of democracy, freedom of the press and what it truly means to live in a civil society. And lastly, it is a reminder that the press must always stay above politics, for it serves as a much cherished "fourth branch of government".

Seksualiti Merdeka - The Missing Link

2011-11-08T20:30:00.000-08:00

I've been following keenly on the developments on Seksualiti Merdeka and the kind of ~~reaction~~ vitriol it has generated throughout the Malaysian public. But before I comment further, just to set things straight: frankly, I don't think Malaysians are democratically mature to debate and compromise on this touchy issue. Let's face it: we can't even agree properly on the basic rights concerning race and religion. What makes you think Malaysians are in any level of cool-headedness & open-ness in bringing LGBT rights in the picture?

Oh no, I'm in no way downplaying the discrimination and challenges the LGBT community has to face today, especially in the Asian context. Nevertheless, the "damage" has been done. People have taken sides. Politicians are jumping up and down with hailers in mosque compounds. Groups are using the name of God to legitimize this "holy quest" to purge the land from "abnormal" and "sinful" people.

I find this very disturbing. Why? Amidst the fierce barrage of criticisms by conservatists and solid wall of defense by the liberals, what is the crucial missing link here?

It is the fact that these people demonize the LGBTs without even trying to listen to or have the heart to understand their plight. I'm baffled at how fast & easy people choose a side and start airing profanities against LGBTs. I'm shocked when so-called good Muslim friends start chiding Datuk Ambiga with terms like "dajjal" and "patut dihududkan" on social media, when they obviously have not even tried to comprehend the crux of the issue.

In fact, that's what exactly Seksualiti Merdeka is all about - as a medium to air grievances & finding solutions to tackle this long-standing issue.

Why do people react this way? Just to make it clear once again, I'm NOT saying homosexuality is permissible in the Quran, Holy Bible or other religious scriptures - I am just astounded at the lack of intellectual discussion where people go straight into emotional overdrive. What fuels this repulsive attitude? Why so much hate and anger?

I suspect 2 things: the genuine desire to protect the sanctity of religion (and to heed God's teachings) and the fear of being punished by God if they do not prevent this 'calamity'. As we look through the ages, both religious beliefs (The Spanish Inquisition, the Catholic-Protestant rivalry of medieval England, the bloody crusades that lasted for hundreds of years) and fear (a very important human instinct to protect ourselves) are the easiest way to make people react. Through the waves of propaganda and fear-mongering, it coerces people to pick a side. When they do pick a side, there's the 'good guys' vs 'bad guys' mentality. (you always being the good guy, of course) There's always the bogeyman, the punching bag, the "Zionist laknatullah", the "pondans" to target. What can be more convincing when the world seems to revolve around your group of 'chosen ones' and a higher being has given you the mandate to accomplish certain goals?

And that's where people discard all sense of logic. They enter into a cycle of distrust. They become very emotional, believing that they are standing at the 'right' side and those on the 'other' side are severely mistaken. They see those who they defile as enemies. They do not regard those who they target as human beings. End of story. "What's that you're saying?...bah! Bollocks!" - because, (hey!) God bless these people, they have ALL the answers already! Having derived all these wonderfully concocted conclusions, the last thing on their list is to engage and compromise. Just attack, attack, attack - while closing your ears and shutting your mind to any disagreeing opinions. How convenient indeed!

Last night, I watched a documentary titled "The Anatomy of Hate: A Dialogue for Hope" by Mike Ramsdell. It narrates in emotional detail "some of the most venomous ideologies and violent conflicts of our time including the White Supremacist movement, Christian Fundamentalism as an anti-gay platform, Muslim Extremism, the Palestinian Intifada, Israeli Settlers and Soldiers, and US Forces in Iraq." I find these theories strikingly similar to the Seksualiti Merdeka controversy we are facing in Malaysia. It's deja vu all over again: a deep-rooted belief that what you're doing against another (annihilating them) is 'right' and is the only solution possible. (in Malaysia's case, shutting all programs related to LGBTs and leave them to bury in their own sorrow)

It's a very sad thing to witness.

But do we actually have a silver lining amidst the thundering dark clouds? Yes, I believe so. At the end of the film, I find it amazing that there people who are willing to put hatred aside. They start listening to each other. Several Israeli and Palestinian soldiers dropped arms to form an organization called the Combatants For Peace. US forces reached out to Iraqi troops suspected of killing one of their brethren to fight against a common enemy: al-Qaeda. A white supremacist regrets his actions and realized that he couldn't continue what he was doing anymore. Throughout history, there is always hope that a few brave & wise men who would stand up & say: enough is enough.

After the show, the director sent a compelling message to the audience: the necessity to overcome fear, anger and hatred by starting to LISTEN to what others have to say. Hopefully, when the barriers have broken down, you won't see Israelis as Arab-massacring demons...Palestinians as ruthless suicide bombers that killed your family....or LGBTs as promoters of rampant orgy festivals. You sit down, face them and talk to them. You realize that they are human beings after all, just like you and me - not aliens from another universe - desiring to live in peace & dignity that every common man has the right to demand.

It might be very hard for some who have such strongly-reinforced preconceptions about LGBTs. It requires much intellectual effort to overcome firing emotions. But, I pray, do give it a try. Look. Listen. Talk. Engage. Debate. Agree. Disagree. Disagree vehemently. Find possible solutions or alternatives to address the discrimination without the need to ditch your religious beliefs. All, in a civic manner that is representative of what a true democracy is. If you walk out of the Annexe Gallery insisting that your views are still right, SO BE IT. I have no problems. It is your right to possess that view. But at least you have done your part in forming a bridge to solve the conflict, however shaky it may be.

Then only will I respect you as a Muslim, Christian or Buddhist - whatever your opinions on LGBT may be. But the moment when you start threatening and shouting on a lunatic one-way street, I'm sorry but you don't deserve my respect. Your arrogance is a disgrace to not only your religion, but to all religions - for painting a skewed picture of boiling intolerance and aggression among all faiths of the world. No wonder atheists are laughing their heads off.

I could write forever & ever regarding my encounters with LGBT people and how they are equals just like us -warm a few hearts, maybe. I could provide a psychological and biological explanation to describe why homosexuality is perfectly normal - and get you all intellectually riled up. I could try to throw arguments on the tyranny of majority by Tocqueville and Hamilton, the role of the constitution in protecting minority rights and other legal justification for LGBTs - heck, just because I'm a law student.

But no, I refuse to do so. Because I'm thoroughly disappointed that we as human beings have overlooked the very traits that make us "human" after all - compassion, discourse, rational judgment and love in its purest form. I'm ashamed that Malaysians have reached a stage where emotions and instincts get the better of themselves.

And so, even as we speak, the LGBT debate rages on in the public sphere. I'm waiting for the day that someone will extend an olive branch, even as politicians continue to hijack everything. But more than anything, I hope that there will be a day where Malaysians mature as a democratic society in facing any issue, however controversial it turns out to be.

“Hate is not conquered by hate. Hate is conquered by love. This is a law eternal”

- Quote from the Buddha.

Duke, Old Salem, UNC and a Long-Lost Academician

2011-11-04T18:20:00.000-07:00

I've finally completed one of the more "zesty" targets in my "to-do list" to the United States: visiting Dian Shah, a former academician at UM who's under the BrightSparks program in completion of her SJD in (I quote from her FB page) "Human Rights, Comparative Constitutional Law and Design in Divided Societies" at Duke University. Though we crossed minds for only a semester in her Torts classes, I can firmly say that we miss her personally as much as her jocular Justin Bieber buffoonery.

On a seperate note, I think our batch is pretty lucky to have experienced both Dian's and Zokhri's youthful injection into the classroom atmosphere. Juniors this year: unlucky you! Haha!

Anyway, I arrived at Durham, North Carolina in the evening of October 29. (after a delightfully Dracula-ish Halloween party the night before!) Had dinner at an Indian restaurant with her and 2 graduate students from Taiwan and Palestine. Question: what happens when 4 "self-professed intellectuals" sit together at the dining table? Answer: We enter into geeky talks on constitutional design, first-past-the-post elections, representative democracy and the Palestine-Israel conflict. Scram off "cool" people who'd talk about the Kardashians or Paranormal Activity 3, cuz we had a great time nonetheless! (secretly hoping that I didn't embarrassed myself naked with my limited knowledge on international affairs) And boy oh boy, the conversation would have been spicier than a potful of Chicken Tika Masala if the Israeli prosecutor attended!

The next day, we proceeded to the town of Old Salem, which is still dotted with historical buildings dating back to the early years of the United States. Beyond the ancient brick buildings, something more fascinating lies in the annals of history. The Moravian church community treated the African-American slaves as equals, way long before the Civil Rights movement came into play. Both whites and blacks were buried together in a plot called God's Acre and attended church in unison. Sadly, external pressure forced segregation nonetheless. As I listened to the caretaker's stories at the St. Philips African Moravian Church, I'm deeply moved that, at least some time ago, people were able to see the light - and judge each other not according to the color of their skin, but as equals before God's eyes.

I just adore these dresses worn a long time ago by early settlers. Speaking of which, I'm continuously fascinated in the history of the American Revolution and Civil War. Heck, I even bought a copy of the original American Constitution as a souvenier. And I swear to God, I almost bought a Confederate soldier headgear!

See my lunch above? According to Dian, it's typical Southern cuisine and I find it delicious. (finally, fresh eggs sunny side up!) By the way, people from the Southern states have a peculiar slang compared to the Midwest - hmmm...something like how George Bush utter his words. Typical cowboy-ish material, I would say.

And I love pumpkins, because it's Halloween! And when Halloween arrives, you get to see......

Adorable, chubby and insanely creative kids going trick or treating! The street of Old Salem was full with parents and children participating in this annual tradition. I'm amazed at the extent parents would invest, invent and make-up their kids - it's such a heart-warming family affair. Being a Star Wars fan, I was thrilled to spot several Jedis, Darth Vader and even General Grievous!

I got a day off by myself to walk around the Duke University campus. I just love being in an environment surrounded by ancient monuments, century-old chapels and well-preserved sculptures of the past. I'm in awe at how people hundreds of years ago possess the technology to construct these marvelous architectures. You really have to see it yourself to experience it. And, lucky as I can be, I got to see the "Occupy" movement in the US sweeping to Duke! Now, this is what I call democracy. Even luckier, there was a 31% discount at the gift shop for Halloween!

The Sarah P. Duke Gardens is probably the most beautiful, elaborate and ambitious landscaping project I've ever been to. Of fountains, giant lakes, bridges, the vast biodiversity of fauna and an even richer array of plants - it almost felt like heaven. My grandma would have insisted on building a cottage to live here! It took me almost 2 hours to explore the massive gardens.

Did I mention that Duke has always been among the top teams in NCAA basketball? A trip to their basketball museum and you'd be shocked at the extent the university goes in honoring their players. Looking at the trophies, medals and hall of fame, I thought only professional sports teams would achieve such a feat! And they have this almost fanatical worship to Duke's legendary basketball coach: simply by the name of Coach K. Besides having a basketball court named after him, he's also the United States Olympics basketball coach. What a man!!!

My final day in North Carolina: a stroll up Chapel Hill and the University of North Carolina. It has an equally beautiful campus like Duke and you could almost go berserk with the camera. UNC has this fierce MU-MC rivalry with Duke University in basketball. In fact, Michael Jordan was once a UNC college basketball player before going to the Chicago Bulls!

I loved my time at Durham a lot. Between the places I visited, there are always those "little" moments that matter: political discussions over a Thai dinner, sharing law faculty stories in the Mitsubishi Lancer, sitting in a class with Professor Horowitz on Fijian and Northern Ireland elections and not forgetting Eric playing his "toys". (as well as his willingness to accommodate a fellow Malaysian)

And so, before I end, I would just like to clarify that we (or at least, Dian) are not as geeky as I portrayed. There's just so many adventures and passions beyond the classroom that strikes a chord. After all, from Dian's own words: "Most academicians are hippies". And to a certain extent, I find it to be quite true and refreshing indeed.

Here's a toast to her and many more exciting years in academia ahead.

Yours sincerely,

From the ONLY country that celebrates Thanksgiving and treats Halloween so seriously,
The United States of America.

The Case For A More Liberal Malaysia - Part 1: "Get Out of My Life!"

2011-10-26T18:49:00.001-07:00

I personally do not relish of being dragged into the liberal vs conservative debate. Despite being exposed to a thoroughly liberal education, I belief, more so as a person who is living in an Asian society, that we must have a balance of both for a better society. Call me a centrist, if you will. Nevertheless, I don't have a choice for another post title without the "L" word; because I believe our individual self, society and government really need to break from the shackles of an increasingly conservative mentality. A delicate push towards liberalism for a more centrist position, is what Malaysia needs now.

I don't deny that I might have been influenced by the typical American ideology of "democracy", "liberty" and everything else, warts and all. However, I appreciate the fact that my professors don't take a stance and even exposes us towards arguments against democracy. (Divine Rights Theory by Sir Robert Filmer, for example. Which personally...is a wee bit creepy to me)

The rise of liberalism has its roots since the Glorious Revolution, where King James II was overthrown by a union of English Parliamentarians, subsequently forcing a sharing of powers between monarchy and Parliament. Thus, the idea of blind loyalty towards a single divine person begun to degenerate. There was an impetus for democratization of Europe as the rising middle class asserted themselves in countries such as the Netherlands. No doubt, there was an association between the term "liberal democracy" and the Protestant religion which seeks to escape the shackles of the Catholic Church. (and defend the position of these people who seek a transaction towards democracy)

So what are the elements of liberalism? First, there are the characteristics which propose the authorities to keep out of peoples' lives: limited government, a market economy and individualism. Secondly, the argument that citizens are protected by a set of codes and principles, which even the government cannot challenge: constitutionalism, rule of law and human rights.

One of the most striking principles of liberalism which appeal to me is the idea of limited government. It basically has its roots through the writings of John Locke, which basically argues that: in a state of nature, man is born free. Social life is peaceful. People might be selfish but they are generally cooperative and reasonable because, having a brain at all, we know that our neighbor is going to retaliate if we do something bad to them and vice versa. However, there is bound to be a Jack Sparrow or Green Goblin that's causing trouble. THAT'S ONLY WHERE the government is needed and steps in. Nothing more, nothing less, on any occasion. Like the night watchmen, the government fulfills its task of ensuring the safety of citizens when they sleep, but scrams off during the day when people carry on with their lives.

“That government is best which governs least.”

~ Thomas Paine

So, what of Malaysia in this aspect? John Locke would be squirming in his grave, seeing how our country is run. First, there is the enormous bureaucracy in government departments and an enormously bloated civil service we have to face. The red tape just has to stop. Secondly, the government, both state and federal, need to get off our backs. This includes student autonomy in universities, the need for 'permits' to have a gathering, the threatening nature of the Printing Presses & Publication Act 1984, religious authorities that bang down doors at 3am in the morning and many more. No one denies that we need MACC, the police and the general bureaucracy for the nation to function - it's just that the government should only step in when there is a real threat to the civil peace.

In modern America, limited government in social lives has flourished in many ways. Even during the Philadelphia Convention, representatives of many states are highly suspicious of a federal government and seek to maintain the existing confederate system. This was perfectly understandable because they wanted to prevent another form of monarchy and tyranny, which is exactly why they fled to the "Free World" in the first place. Today, civil right crusaders, libertarians and the Democrats act as watchdogs for excessive government intervention in American social lives. The Tenth Amendment states that government can only do things people allow it to do.

“The Tenth Amendment was intended to confirm the understanding of the people at the time the Constitution was adopted, that powers not granted to the United States were reserved to the States or to the people. It added nothing to the instrument as originally ratified.’’

~ United States v. Sprague

Which brings up the question: whatever happened to state powers in Malaysia, especially when it is a federal and not a unitary system? I think that state governments are an excellent buffer to impede the occasionally overwhelming power of the federal government. But as we all know, even the Federal Constitution itself in the Ninth Schedule grants excessive controls to Putrajaya. Furthermore, we have to take into account that it is the very same BN government that is controlling all states for a long time; thus, a top-down chain of command seems to prevail.

Yes, the Malaysian government needs to learn how to chill out and loosen its grip upon Malaysian society. One would expect that we are mature enough as a democracy to behave responsibly. Coming back to the discussion, I personally feel there is a greater concern other than our social lives when we talk about "limited government".

It is the government's inhibiting policies that disrupt the natural flow of the economic market. And when the government continues to thwart the "invisible hand" away with a cane, you would expect a painful slap landing very soon.

Next: A Market Economy

Wei Jiet boards the flight to Washington DC tomorrow. Not that it would help much, but he hopes to learn more about "limited government" by visiting Congress and possibly taking a peek at the Declaration of Independence. On "market economy"? You bet he's gonna visit Wall Street in New York too for the Occupy Movement. But deep down, he just hopes he can catch a glimpse of the How I Met Your Mother cast at MacLaren's.

Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse And The Badlands

2011-10-14T14:53:00.000-07:00

Yo, I'm back! I'm so thrilled to blog about THE highlight of the month of September here at Augustana: an unforgettable 3 day trip to South Dakota's most famous landmarks - the sheer marvel of the carved faces of America's greatest Presidents at Mount Rushmore, an exotic journey down American Indian history at Crazy Horse Mountain, the creepy rock formations of the Badlands and a last stopover at good old "WallDrug".

We departed for a 4 hour bus ride from Augustana to a motel near Rapid City. It brought a first glimpse of what was expected during the rest of the tour: lush green pine forests, amazingly clear rivers and everything of Mother Nature at its best. The tavern-style lodging brought a real "Western" atmosphere...not to mention the bellowing cowboy-cum-seargant owner! We had a campfire at the edge of the river, entertained by Jukka's guitar strumming, Rajab's singing and a unique dose of nature's soothing voice.

First stop: the popular landmark of Mount Rushmore. It has became almost like a symbol of the state of South Dakota - coins, Tshirts, souveniers...you name it! On the mountains, the faces of four exalted American Presidents - George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln basked proudly under the sun. The great US general of the American Revolution, author of the Declaration of Independence, the cowboy-boxing 26th President and the famous abolisher of slavery...all honoured in such a stunning yet befitting way.

Inside the museum, there were displays on the tools used to carve the figures, achievements of the US Presidents and video screenings. On the bottom right lies Gutzon Borglum, the key person in charge of this project.

Crazy Horse Mountain characterized the zeal and proud culture of the American Indians. There were so many paraphernalia on display and it was a great time immersing into the story behind the natives. We often disregard this indigenous tribe from the textbooks, but it is essential to recognize that they once roamed the lands of this vast continent.

Crazy Horse Mountain! As in, "Gunung Kuda Mengamuk"?

"In 1948, Korczak Ziolkowski began carving a monument he thought reflected the glory and tragedy of Native Americans. But what he began five decades ago became a family affair, with three generations of one family helping to build what will be the largest mountain sculpture in the entire world when it is finished." ~ ABC News

It represents Crazy Horse, an Oglala Lakota warrior, riding a horse and pointing into the distance. Up until now, only the face and 30% of the entire massive structure is completed. Perhaps I'll return one day when I'm old, grey and grouchy to witness the final completion! Hats off too for a family to have dedicated their entire lives and generations to complete this epic task.

We went on a 2 hour hike up Harney Peak. Needless to say, the view was stunning! I swear on my grandma's chicken soup, never had I travelled so deep into a forest or so high up a mountain before!

"The trail consists of dirt, rocks and tree roots. At many points, the forest of pine, spruce and fir trees gives way to majestic, rocky outcrops and sweeping views. Atop Harney Peak is a structure formerly used as a fire lookout and built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s. The startlingly expansive view from the peak allows visitors to gaze over land in four states -- South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana." ~ SouthDakota.com

Yup, I was right up there! Minus the thick mist.

Of course, things got more memorable when Minhazz, Baitullah and Hafsah got lost along the way. As to what dramas unfolded along those terrifying moments, it is a best kept secret...and a best bellow of laughter too!

The last major destination was the (in)famous Badlands. Ohmaigod, when you see the contrast of colours of the rocky formations....it's as if God came down and made ~~3 layer Sarawak Milk Tea~~ painted the Earth himself.

"People are drawn to the rugged beauty of the Badlands. These geologic deposits contain one of the world's richest fossil beds. Ancient mammals such as the rhino, horse, and saber-toothed cat once roamed here. The park's 244,000 acres protect an expanse of mixed-grass prairie where bison, bighorn sheep, deer, pronghorn, prairie dogs, and black-footed ferrets live today." ~ National Park Service. gov

A short stop at WallDrug on our way home. It was a souvenier heaven and got a tourist like me mad in excitement - from cowboy lashes, bison heads, arrows, leather boots and drugs (duh, why would you could it Wall-DRUG then?). I'm bringing an authentic cowboy hat back home to Malaysia!

Those 3 days was the best way I could ever spent my money on. The unique places, people and animals we so luckily met will be the highlights of my stay here at the US. Now, I can officially say I've BEEN to South Dakota!

Cheers,

From the land of vast landscapes, jackelops (Google this animal!) and the so-called "New World",

The United States of America.

My Personal Battle Hymm - The Teenage Tiger

2011-10-03T12:09:00.000-07:00

This post continues from My Personal "Battle Hymm" - The Tiger Cub Years.

Like I said before, I grew up staunchly with the "Asian" mindset, particularly at the beginning of secondary school. I still remembered my silly self: a week before Form 1 started, I vowed that I would write one piece of Bahasa Malaysia essay every night. I was so focused, dedicated and genuinely wanted to improve myself. Reflecting back, that was probably the most nerd-iest and kiasu moments of my life. Never would I set foot into that path again, as the years went by.

Was it a bad thing to be so overly hardworking? Perhaps yes, during the earlier years. I got a good solid foundation in academics, got the occasional praises from teachers to boost my ego and by Form 3, I was quite sure I had chosen the 'right' path. I was going to be the nerd. On the other hand, my co-curricular achievements went down the drain. The handful competitions which I entered that qualified as co-curricular achievements were some Maths and English quizzes...as if I wasn't nerdy enough! (Don't get it wrong, I don't think being labelled nerdy is a derogatory term, I'm just emphasising an "Asian" point)

But in Form 4, things started to change. I call it the "Western revolution". Perhaps because of hormones or a shift of mentality, I begin to realise life was rather dull to stick by tuitions while my friends had stories of which team they beat in football or that exciting Scouting camping trip. So, armed with a renewed sense of life, I decided to try out a number of new stuff. I played football more frequently with my friends at the padang (man, those moments were the best...I still do play futsal with them today even when I still suck), got introduced to classical guitar, dabbled in Scrabble and Boggle, entered the debating club, had a post in the Red Cross and many more. I wasn't a magnificent or successful state champion of some sort of competition...just the average Joe who had much more vigour in life than a few years back.

However, the "Asian" values which are instilled (or naturally discovered) within me remained. I like to think that I worked as hard as those SJKC students in my class towards the end of my secondary school years. (I hope I'm still the same person...but deep down, I highly doubt that) I put in considerable hours of practice with the guitar to score a good grade in the music exams. I still attended up to 6 tuitions a week. And man, did I HATED losing....

So, yeah, you can say that I have a bastard mix of values there...the diligent "Asian" and the "Western" oriented carefree explorer who started questioning things. It's a little bit like HongKong...an Oriental land with a twist of British flavour.

This ideology, which I consciously told myself is the perfect cocktail combination, changed slightly when I continued my pre-university education. Never have I felt more betrayed of the old adage "study hard and you'll achieve success". Success (at least, my definition of 'success') never came. It was pure bullshit, I thought, as my faith towards rigid examination oriented education faded away. I was pushed further into the "Western" realm which emphasized more on other personal developments besides academics. Public speaking, organizing a gala event, challenging the English lecturer till I was chased out of class, reading political news instead of mitochondrias...phew, those days were awesome! Fuck quadratic equations, I told myself. But of course, I didn't lost grip on my academics...I still needed that piece of paper to get into university.

And so, maybe subconsciously or in some kind of weird mental flipflop...I didn't wanted to study medicine and opted for law instead. Perhaps I didn't realised it then, but my rebelliousness, desire for something more 'liberal' in life and my absolute loathing at memorising a gazillion tonnes of medical terminologies converted me to the 'dark side'. Yes, I became a blood-sucking evil Sith rather than a benevolent Jedi that saved the weak. Sorry for stereotyping, but if I was still very much "Chinese" in Malaysian terms, I would have been an accountant, engineer or doctor.

But fear not, I still hold dearly the "Asian" values which I was accustomed with since young. It was a weird kind of balance...but I firmly believe the yingyang forces of both made who I am today.

Next: The Future - A White Siberian Tiger?

WeiJiet realised that his posts have deviated greatly from Amy Chua's emphasis on "Asian" style parenting into a discussion about "Asian" and "Western" values instead. But what the heck.

My Personal "Battle Hymm" - The Tiger Cub Years

2011-10-02T17:13:00.000-07:00

And so, finally, I got my hand on the (in)famous book, "Battle Hymm of The Tiger Mother" by Amy Chua. It was gripping, unrelenting and courageously conveys the many truths of "Asian" parenting. I sat diligently for 2 hours in the library, finished it and stared into the air as I reflected deeply into my inner experiences.

Unsurprisingly, I felt some sort of connection with this riveting memoir - the psychological warfare, tuition classes and my Mum's stubbornness in denying that super cool Power Ranger toy on the shelf. Yet, despite growing up in an "Asian" setting, I felt that there are considerable differences between her style of parenting and how my parents disciplined me when I was a young boy.

I like to begin this first post with a recollection of past childhood memories, followed by the characteristics within me today in the second and concluding in the third by what I feel are the best values which every person should possess in life - all inspired by this particular book.

"This was supposed to be a story of how Chinese parents are better at raising kids than Western ones. But instead, it's about a bitter clash of cultures, a fleeting taste of glory and how I was humbled by a thirteen-year old"

So why did I say there are differences from what Sophia & Lulu (Amy Chua's daughters) experienced and a typical Asian kid in the block like me? The first difference was glaring enough: as far as I'm concerned, Asian (at least, Chinese ones) parents DO NOT 'quarrel' or which their kids like she does with Lulu. What a joke. Who needs oral coercion when you can do it physically? In this part of the world, Asian parents would opt for the 2 inch thick rattan anytime over engaging with a meaningless dialogue of who is 'wrong' or 'right' with a child. Quarrels = melee combat, a waste of energy and a hell lot of mess. Rattan = nuclear bomb, target annihilated, hands clean. That's common sense for our parents.

The second difference was, surprisingly, my parents never actually coerced me to score As, be the best scorer in a Maths quiz or performed solo guitar on stage in front of a live audience. Sure, there were the initial nudges and pushes when I was real young but as I transitioned to primary school, there was not really much pressure. Those were one of the happiest days of my life; I played robber & thieves with my friends, had Digimon skirmishes and basked at the luxury of Pokemon card games. Trust me, Amy Chua would be gaping in horror to know this. The only thing I hated was attending Mandarin classes (or maybe I just hated the SJKC system of learning compared with the SK school I was gleefully contented with); and yet, that also wasn't because I was forced by Mum.

So why did I still attended those dreadful classes until I was Standard 5? Simply because...this might sound weird: I feel I have an obligation to do so. The same way I feel obligated to perform well in classes and almost everything in life. Up till today, I didn't know where that spirit of competitiveness came about. Was it because I felt confident of my abilities and wanted to push higher? Was it because I did not wanted to let my parents down? I don't know. But I'm certain it wasn't through the pressure, screaming and grilling of my parents. And sure enough, I blazed through primary and secondary schools, most of the times at the top of my class. (excluding a few years which I got 2nd or 3rd and how I deplored at that fact. How childish was THAT?)

I said I didn't know how I got this sensational drive to be better than anyone else, mainly because it could be a combination of various factors from my childhood. Mum taught me early how to read English through 'Peter & Jane' books and I guess that was a tremendous boost for my confidence as I chatted with other children. My grandmas & grandpas would be full with encouragement: never would an angpow be less than RM100 each time. (and they didn't only gave it during Chinese New Years, they can get really frequent & random!) Mum would fix certain hours specifically for studying with the television off, (much to Dad's dismay) but always allowed us to watch our favourite NTV7 sitcoms after that. My brothers and I had the chance to try out a lot of things: badminton coaching, art classes, swimming lessons, playing the guitar and many more. And boy, we sure had a lot of fun vacations! All in a relaxed, chill and vibrant environment - "Western" style. We got a lot of that.

But still, I possess many characteristics of an "Asian" kid: competitive, hated losing, studied hard and an innate dogged-ness for the quest of perfection.

Perhaps in a general statement of pure irony, I can vaguely conclude that I acquired my "Asian" values of life through a "Western" style of parenting.

"I'm not sure they're making choices at all. They just do what everyone else does. They're not questioning anything either, which is what Westerners are supposed to be so good at doing. They keep repeating things like 'You have to give your children to pursue their passion' when it's obvious that the 'passion' is just going to turn out to be Facebook for ten hours which is a total waste of time and eating all that disgusting junk food - I'm telling you this country is going to go straight downhill!"

Next: The Teenage Tiger - A Fusion of Asian & Western Values

Wei Jiet knows that all these descriptions sound so nerdy & arrogantly pompous now, but like the title says: these feelings revolved during his 'tiger cub' years. Many things and perspectives have changed since that. Watch out for the next post to find out more.

What's The Difference Between a "State" and a "Nation"? And hell, why should I bloody care?

2011-09-25T11:20:00.000-07:00

I'm now going to give some perspective from my favourite class so far: GOVT 120 - Politics In A Diverse World. Never have I imagined International Relations could be such a mind-boggling, seductive and intriguing world to explore. Professor Joe Donndelinger, the superb lecturer he is, has really inspired me to view this world in a totally revolutionary way. The more I was absorbed into his classes, the more I realized the shallowness of my understanding towards world conflicts and affairs.

What's The Difference Between a "State" and a "Nation"? And hell, why should I bloody care?

You should. Because it sets you in the right path in understanding almost all of the world's biggest conflicts. Including Malaysia.

The term 'state' refers to a legal, political and territorial entity more commonly referred as a country. Ideally, we would like to recognise a state if it has territory with certain boundaries, an established population, domestic legitimacy, external sovereignity, etc. For example, Costa Rica is a sovereign country, but not Puerto Rico. (which belongs to US territory) Israel's statehood is questioned to exist; and to make matters worse, Palestine is now running on a momentous bid for statehood at the United Nations.

By contrast, the term 'nation' refers to a real but elusive psychological phenomenon. A nation is a distinct group of people who share a common name , a collective consciousness, a compelling sense of collective personality. The nation can (it doesn't necessarily mean it MUST) be rooted in characteristics such as race, ethnicity, language, religion, experience or homeland.

Dalam kata lain, 'state' bermaksud negara manakala 'nation' bermaksud bangsa.

So what's the big fuss of these two definitions? The problem is this: nation and state do not coincide in over 90% of today's "countries". The Pashtuns in Afghanistan and the Muslim minorities in India are examples of this lack of 'uniformity' within a country. Shockingly, the Kurdish people of former Kurdistan, numbering 30 million, do NOT have a state of their own and are significant diaspora communities in western Turkey, Georgia, Lebanon, Azerbaijan, Russia and Israel. All this has serious consequences for world order and global peace.

Technically, there would be less tension if only homogeneous nation-states exist: each nation living happily ever after in its own state. Think about Armenia, Hungary, Iceland, Japan and Poland. Relatively peaceful countries in this recent decades, don't you think?

But the reality is: if the globe looks like a town, you would more often find a jewellery store smacked right middle in a dingy suburb or the local thrash dump site. And as we speak, it's windows are being smashed & it's contents are being robbed.

However, let's not all be over-hyperbolic in our predictions. There are other scenarios which we can witness ourselves at the global order.

1) There is respect, appreciation and celebration of diversity. For example, Australia and the United Kingdom have a relatively significant population that is born overseas and have migrated towards these states.

In fact, in the United States' so-called "salad bowl" and "mosaic" society, Latinos, African-Americans, Asian-Americans and many more 'nations' have flocked to this 'state'. This is not to say that elements of racism and right-wing groups do no exist, but the US remains one of the best examples where each national can almost truly enjoy life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness in a multi-cultural environment.

2) There are attempts of assimilation. The former Soviet Union, with 15 republic members, was clearly a multinational state. The Soviets attempted to transcend the multinational Tsarist empire and created a new homogenous identity, that of the "New Soviet Man". The identity was based on political ideology of the Marxist-Lennist socialist state. It, however, failed because ts core looked all too imperial Russian. Besides, since Suharto's "Pancasila democracy", the Chinese community have integrated rather well (comparatively to other parts of the world) into Indonesian society.

3) There may be standoffs, hostility and violence. Ethnic clensing by Bosnian Serbs against Muslims. Concentration camps by Nazis to exterminate the Jews. The Rwandan genocide between the Hutus and Tutsis. The fierce battles between the Hindu Tamil Tigers against the majority Buddhist Sinhalese community in Sri Lanka. Of course, there may be less violent standoffs after a long war: South Sudan is the newest state to have achieved independence through negotiations. (which doesn't mean that the dispute is settled once and for all) In fact, colonial powers which have drawn new boundaries across the African continent have triggered a tonne of trouble for dividing so many tribes into so many different countries.

The African continent that is divided according to tribal territories. Put THAT together with boundaries of countries drawn haphazardly, and you get TOTAL CHAOS. For example, Nigeria consists of a whopping 371 different tribes in a single country.

Of course, there are multiple other degrees of tolerance between those 3 which I have stated. The Catalonians have a political movement for independence from Spain, which certainly has less bloodshed. (which begs the question, is Barcelona out of the La Liga then?) In Canada, alongside the English settlers, the original French settler-descendent Quebecois are protectors of the French language and insist on a seperate territorial identity.

But, the bigger question which comes to mind is this: where does Malaysia fall in this nation-state debate?

For sure, we don't belong to the same bandwagon as most African countries. At least, not since the 1969 racial riots. Assimilation? Certainly not...what with the Chinese community fiercely protecting their right for vernacular education and the Indians squabbling over temple demolitions. I believe we lie somewhere near the "celebration of diversity" option.

We all strive to create Mahathir's dream of a bangsa Malaysia. Or 1Malaysia, as we like to call it nowadays. But Malaysians are still rather vague of this concept. Do we actually want to achieve a Soviet-style "nation" where everyone speaks the same language, identifies themselves as "Malaysian" first and have a common national identity? Or do we want to maintain our respective racial/cultural identities but still remain united as one "nation"? How can that be possible? Where do we draw the boundaries of wanting to be identified as a single unit? I know, it's confusing.

In classroom, our professor identifies Chinese and Indian minorities as being another nation living in the state of Malaysia. Initially, I wanted to raise my hand, deny that completely and assert that we are moving towards a truly Malaysian society in the proudest of fashion. But then, my hand stopped....I hesitated. Will I be actually telling the truth? Is the reality of tanah tumpah darahku alligned with the idealism we like to sow (and believe) in our spirits?

Being a Malaysian Chinese, I somehow feel weird to be identified as belonging to another 'nation' (at least, in the theoretical sense) and being treated as just another subject matter of study in this "will they fight or will they not fight?" political guessing game. I want to believe that being a Malaysian represents much more than that. That we are not just variables in an academic setting; but a united society that has proven its strength by living in peace after 54 years.

I am continuing to believe in that. Seeing the mess we are facing right now, it is really up to the younger generation to define what a true bangsa Malaysia is.

Wei Jiet is high on books of Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union and....after finishing much of all the episodes of "How I Met Your Mother", enjoying another similarly hilarious sitcom "The Big Bang Theory".

Augie Academics

2011-09-24T20:21:00.000-07:00

It's my third week here in Augie already! So many new and exciting stuff have happened, as evidenced in my Facebook postings and pictures I have uploaded. In fact, some people even questioned whether I'm a tourism attache paid by the US Department of State to enjoy life in the US. Mr. Pervert Yeo back home thinks that I'm "on a vacation or what?".

Therefore, I think its only right if I shed some light about the courses I'm taking here. I'm actually majoring in Government & International Relations with additional minors like Economics and Psychology. Heck, I didn't planned this out. The day I arrived, my eyes bulged as I saw weird courses such as; HIST 297 - Clash of Capital and Class and COMM 210 - Rhetorical Criticism. Thinking it was some quirky voodoo economics mumbo jumbo, I ditched the former (something which I would regret later). Thinking I was quite a smartass debating mumbo jumbo law student back home, I ditched the latter.

And then, with enormous confidence, I decided to take MDFL 180 - Introduction to Spanish.

A week later, I dropped it like a whining sissy. Apparently, I wasn't that quite a smartass after all. (Feels ashamed....heck, why am I even telling you guys this?)

ANYway, to cut the story short, I'm taking:

GOVT 120 - Politics In A Diverse World (my favourite class and professor so far!)
GOVT 190 - Humans In Conflict
GOVT 200 - American Government
ECON 120 - Principles of Economics 1
PSYC 115 - General Psychology

From time to time, I will try to blog what I have learnt from the courses above.Now, I don't intend to treat this blog as a domain to reiterate my subject notes. I hope that the important topics which I am learning in America can be shared amongst my readers. Of course, for some kick, each post will be fused together with an analysis from Malaysia's standpoint with regards to that particular topic discussed.

Back Home: The Law Faculty

2011-09-19T22:36:00.000-07:00

It has been an amazing 2 weeks since I've been here in the United States. The things to blog about are plenty, particularly the trip to the Black Hills. However, on the long road back to Sioux Falls, I managed to peek at the Orientation Day album from one of the JKOs. And boy oh boy, do I miss the faculty very much!

The typically mundane stuff we did back in the first year transformed into vivid memories, which I so dear to experience them once again. The giggling waves of laughther as we joked in Miss Dorothy's English classes. Standing in unity as a batch to face the most ticklish of lecturers to the most terrifying ones. Sitting on the corridoor benches as we gossiped or discussed about some random project like LawNite. I guess it's really true; you only cherish the moments when you are not there to relive them again. Especially when social media is so efficient at refreshing your memory!

And Orientation Week of course. That is one of the most difficult thing to depart as I flew to the US. You know there's just so many things you'll miss out, especially when you're part of such an awesome JKO team!

There's also the chance you missed out on imposing a certain ideology towards the 'freshies'. Yes, I'm a politically devious person that is hell-bent on turning the world upside down. In my opinion, there's just so many misconceptions about law school, whether academically or socially, that I so wish to dispel.

There's not much I can add to the stuff I listed down in this post. If, by any chance, a freshie does drop by this page: all I can sum up from my humble experiences throughout this one year is:

If you focus on results, you will never change. If you focus on change, you will get results.

~ Jack Dixon

Perhaps that is one of the core messages which I hope to see in the future generations of UM law students to come. I am a firm believer that academic results are certainly not what every person should chase for; rather, it is the inate faith to improve themselves in the language, critical thinking and non-academic pursuits that transforms you into a better student. People must be ready to jump into the unknown and be willing to taste the bitterness of defeat. Then, only will the 'results' which Malaysian students so desire will come.

Which brings me to the most powerful quote of all time, from one of my favourite movies:

Pursue excellence, and success will follow, pants down.

~ Rancho, from the movie "3 Idiots".

I wish my batchmates and juniors all the best in their journey ahead.

Regards,

From the land of burger, fries and coke,
The United States of America.

WeiJiet just played an awesome game of sand and mud volleyball at Augustana. Tomorrow, it's gonna be in the pool! Yeah, baby! And if he's lucky enough, he might get a volunteer job at the veterans' hospital this weekend.

First Week in Augie!

2011-09-09T19:01:00.000-07:00

After more than 28 hours of cramped jet cabins, incessant transitions at the most modern airports in the world and facing an amazingly friendly first point of entry at Denver, I finally got to set my feet on the USA.

No, I did not lose my bags to United Airlines. Yes, I fumbled with something as simple as a cash transactions to buy a banana smoothie at Seattle. And yes, I did stupid stuff like crossing through the Singaporean immigration when I WASN'T SUPPOSED TO, causing myself to wander around the T2 Terminal like a zombie when I could be in slumber heaven at the T3 Transit Hotel.

I expected to face such stuff but hey, making mistakes is part of this awesome journey too! Where was I? Oh, yeah, back to America. Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to be exact. It's a lovely city which, in my opinion, portrays the 'real' America: small cosy individual houses with big lawns, great church communities, friendly people walking their dogs and not a sight of towering infrastructures; accommodated by the beautiful parks, lush greenery, beautiful rivers and big blue skies. (I plan to have a separate blog post on this, just be patient! ^^)

And here is my host institution, Augustana College! It's one of the best private colleges in the MidWest. And it employs a liberal arts education system, which is something I have deeply wished to experience myself all along.

The best part is, this year, it had a record high number of international students enrolled!

A tour along the Augie campus:

The statue in the middle is Ole the Viking, our mascot.

The first picture is the Center of Western Studies, which is uniquely shaped like a Native Indian teepee.

The library has top-notch facilities. It is also supposedly guarded by Moses.(which really looks like Hellboy carved into a statue to me)One feature of this campus is that it is dotted by many pieces of art and architecture, reflecting the vibrant appreciation of aesthetic values by the community.

The main area on the ground floor of the library is my favourite spot. It has an amazing collection of encyclopedias and magazines of just about anything: Lutheran, Time, Academe, etc.

I witnessed my first ever live American football game! It was the Augustana Vikings against Minnesota-Duluth (which are the national champions) I find that football games are an important family affair: scores of kids throwing football around the field and hordes of old people seating below tents munching on free burgers. Everyone was proud to display their team jersey.

It was a nerve-wrecking game! Especially when Augie performed well in the first two halves. I thought we were going to win! A few mistakes were costly and the opposing team successfully gained ground. It was an interesting event, with the occasional explanation by friends on the rules of the game. (Anyway, I still think soccer is a better sport to watch)

For the new student orientation, they had this massive inflatables to have fun with!

The opening convocation at the Elmen Center where all professors came with their fancy academic robes. Me with college President Rob Oliver.

One very poignant moment occurred to me last weekend. It was when all Americans stood up to sing their national anthem before the football match. Lead by a local singer, (who, interestingly, belted out the lyrics in her own style like an American Idol rendition) it was a truly fascinating moment. It goes something like.....

This is Beyonce, singing the US national anthem "Star Sprangled Banner" at the 2004 Super Bowl.

O! say can you see by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there;
O! say does that star-spangled banner yet wave,
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

2 sentences strike my chord the most. The portrayal of USA as the "land of the free" and "home of the brave". I find it extremely true in this great country. True, we will inevitably say racism still exists and the economy is in bad shape... But through my very own eyes, I see how the Blacks, Latinos and Whites happily joke around while preparing our meals. Through the papers and news, I see from afar how brave American civilians and soldiers went through 9/11, as the 10th anniversary of that unfortunate day is arriving.

It touched me to a certain extent. Why? Maybe because it reminds me of the things back in Malaysia. Can the Malays, Chinese and Indians genuinely embrace each other one day? No stereotypes, no awkwardness, without the ghost of racial policies haunting above? When can we truly accept one another as equal human beings with equal rights and with equal chance to pursue life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness? Because that's what I learned when I had the chance to interact with so many international students all across the globe. There was only one race (like what my friend, Wilson mentioned): the human race. If only we treat each other as that, then world peace is very much attainable.

Sorry for the idealistic talk. It's just me. I'm excited of many more encounters, experiences and people I will meet in shaping my opinion about America and the world. Until then, bye! And the best wishes to Malaysia come Malaysia Day on September 16.

Wei Jiet can't wait for the 3 day Black Hills trip next weekend! He's even more elated to know that Global UGrad will have a Fall Pre-Departure Orientation at Washington DC on November 16. Lots of travelling and exploring to do!

US Pre-Departure Thoughts

2011-08-27T00:20:00.000-07:00

Like Wilson said, this is gonna be my last weekend in Malaysia before I depart to the States.

Packing is not exactly a favourite activity of mine. But with such a long hiatus and being an 'ambassador' of Malaysia, I guess the urge to NOT drag extra gargantuan suitcases along to the airport is a luxury I cannot enjoy.

Camera? Check.

Immigration documents? Check.

Souveniers and baju melayu? (siap dengan samping lagi!) Check. Instantly realising that I would miss out on Hari Raya....bummer. ==

The flight route to there is going to be a complicated one. From KLIA to a night's stay at Terminal 3 in Singapore, then an exhausting 7 hour flight to Tokyo, another extra exhausting 11 hour flight to Denver...and just when you thought you have escaped the clutches of the daunting airplane cabin, another hour's flight to Sioux Falls, where my college is located. The Ugrad guide book advised us to bring along 'reading materials' throughout the journey. Therefore, I plan to bring together with me...

The World if Flat by Thomas L. Friedman. I know, I'm THAT nerdy. But after reading the super-awesome super-funny SUPERFREAKONOMICS, I'm so freakisly into these globalisation-statistics-bamm!!! stuff.

A few mini resolutions during my stay at the US:

1) Immerse myself as much as I can into American culture, lifestyle and interests.

This means shaking off my long-time addiction towards The Malaysian Insider, Malaysiakini and other news portals. Honestly, I do get tired of the endless politicking ala Malaysian "don't question my rights - Anwar is a sex maniac - stupid ministerial statements" scenario. I think right now, it is better for me to focus more on the international arena and US administration, for once. Of course, this doesn't mean I have lost faith towards Malaysia. (Shhh...I will peek on Loyarburok, once in a while)

2) I know it's contradicting with my first point, but still....pay attention to the 13th General Election

Election is going to be held very soon. Best to be updated. We may never know if another political tsunami will sweep the dirty Malaysian political scene. Hey, I'm not 21 yet, so I won't exactly escape my 'civic duty' of voting, right?

3) Learn another language

I desperately want to learn Spanish. Or French, if I can't choose Spanish. Hell, I would even learn Elementary Greek!

4) Visit a UM lecturer at Duke University

It's a long time since I've met the swashbuckling UM academic, Miss Dian "Justin Bieber" Shah who is currently doing her PhD (actually, a SJD) at Duke. Promised you would take me around North Carolina, and you WILL hold your word! Muahahaha....

5) Travel to Washington, DC!

It's my ultimate dream destination in the US. The center of American government, it is brimming with my favourite hotspots such as the Smithsonian Museums, The Capitol, US Supreme Courts, Washington Monument, Lincoln's Memorial and so many more bustling destinations! Gonna do back-to-back visits if I have to!

There are so many more stuffs I wanna do, but I'm just gonna state down this 5 here. Who knows, maybe the foster family have some other plans for me. It's gonna be a bash, and I can't wait for it!

Wei Jiet realises that when everyone is cheering "Merdeka!" back home on 31st August, he will be at a foreign land half the globe away. (Or worse, still on a plane when the clock strikes midnight!) He's not really a nostalgic person, but he will miss the rendang, char keuy teow and mamak roti canai back home. Plus, brilliant commercials such as this:

An early Selamat Merdeka, fellow Malaysians!

The University Rankings Debate (Part 2)

2011-08-21T09:46:00.000-07:00

This is part 2 of my initial article The University Rankings Debate (Part 1).

My favourite knight (or pahlawan, if you insist) against the gigantic dragons of QS and THE, is none other than USM’s Vice Chancellor, Tan Sri Professor Dr. Dzulkifli Razak. There is a wealth of arguments in his columns on New Straits Times and among education segments of certain newspapers. I recommend you to read those enlightening pieces.

He must be the only Vice-Chancellor in the world who devotes time to be a newspaper columnist. Respect!

He presents the viewpoint that rankings are “ambiguous, given that the world is not at all ‘flat’.” In fact, the world is “asymmetrical in almost every dimension, making any exercise to stack one over the other dubious.” He further clarified that “To insist on making comparison - when there is a dire lack of a singular monolithic basis - will, at best, result in an oversimplification that gravely distorts the situation. It misses the core idea that universities are unique in their own ways as a mean to create their values.”

What are the university values? I think this argument is pretty valid. Some universities focus a lot on preserving a nation’s cultural identity and play a crucial role in contributing to the society that is unique only to that particular part of the world. The creative hub of LimKokWing University definitely has a vastly different objective than the educational focus of Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris. The same can be said to uphold Bahasa Malaysia as the nation’s lingua francua, where it is inevitably valued strongly in Malaysia.

This is a picture I took at a bus stop. Very strong values indeed.

Maybe a bit too strong.

3) An Anglo-Saxon bias?

After reading several articles online, I found out that Anglo-Saxon academic have a longer history and culture to cite each others’ publications compared to academics in other parts of the world. As a result, high impact journals as well as those frequently counted in bibiliometric databases are in: you guessed it, English. Hence, universities with a longer English speaking heritage gets the lion’s share of publication points in rankings. There’s nothing unfair in that, it’s just the reality we have to face and suit into. And, oh, by the way, this is where Malay nationalists attack the university for over-emphasising English and neglecting Bahasa Malaysia. Whether this is actually even a zero-sum equation…is a debate for another day.

Attention has to be paid to what Saifuddin Abdullah, our Deputy Minister for Higher Education, (which happens to be my second favourite minister in the Cabinet, following Idris Jala) said at the De-colonising Our Universities’ conference: "We are not waging war against Western education, but to ensure that knowledge and researches by our higher-learning institutions benefit our people and address local issues…We need our own definition for knowledge as well as to develop indigenous knowledge”. True, the role of Bahasa Malaysia is extremely important in Malaysia’s academic setting, but there is a time where exceptions arrive…which coincidentally, is a debate for yet another day.

On the other hand, QS's website reads: “But the QS Peer Review is independent of any such language bias, and QS has gone to great lengths to produce our surveys in a range of languages, so as not to disadvantage non-native English speaking academics. We accept that some bias remains in the citation per faculty count, but we are encouraging the inclusion of as many foreign journals as possible”.

4) An imbalance between the sciences and humanities?

It is an accepted fact that there is greater frequency of publication among the scientific community (Simply because there is many more discoveries in science than, say, history or philosophy. You can’t expect them to rephrase the same things Aristotle and Herodotus said a gazillion years ago over and over again, right?) Among the humanities, arts and social sciences, there exists a less developed citation structure. It gets trickier when greater grants and endowment are bestowed to the sciences, both to the type of university right up to the faculties. As noted by Malcolm Grant, “this helps to explain why a world-class institution such as the London School of Economics can be ranked in one table no higher than 86th.” Reasonable to foresee Universiti Teknologi Malaysia overtaking Universiti Malaya, then?

Again, credit has to be given to QS for introducing “a system which categorises each university on 12 different measures, based on whether the university specialises, is a general university and/or has a medical school, its number of students, and finally the research productivity of the university. Arts and humanities-focused universities produce many fewer research papers than science-focused ones. In this way, sub-rankings can be drawn by classification. QS also publishes sub-rankings by the five broad subject categories defined earlier: Life sciences, natural sciences, IT and engineering, the social sciences and the arts and humanities.” I particularly like the different rankings for the different broad subject categories, which makes better sense to rank MIT higher than Harvard in IT and engineering.

Conclusion

I think I have covered pretty much as to what are the core issues in the university rankings debate. All in all, I am inclined to support that university rankings are NOT everything. To call it useless and to be scrapped altogether is pretty extreme. We do need to be reminded to buck up. There is no greater example than the deterioration of Malaysian public universities in the rankings. We have been decreasing in quality over the decades courtesy of a flimsy education system, widespread acceptance of mediocrity and too much politicisation. The university rankings merely reaffirm that and jolt us back into reality.

Why so much resource is spent on establishing more diploma factories throughout the country when we should be focusing on improving quality? What is the use of labelling 5 universities as ‘research universities’ if we don’t strive towards more publications in international journals? Isn’t it better for our vast knowledge in Malay studies and Islamic understanding to be published in English for the global audience? The fact is that no matter what, an academician in a university setting will only be recognised through his contributions in research.

Again, I maintain that university rankings should not be the ‘be all and end all’ of a university’s direction. However, it is foolish as well as naïve to justify our stumbling with obscure terms like “upholding Bahasa Malaysia” and “focus more on serving the nation” while our counterparts such as Chulalongkorn University, Universitas Indonesia, De La Salle University and the National University of Singapore move forward in the ever challenging road of the academic race.

Fortunately, I'm ending my article on a good note. It came as a surprise today. The Star's Education section published about the University of Malaya (UM) being the first Malaysian institution to be included in the top 500 of the Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s 2011 Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU). It's definitely a step in the right direction. Ghauth Jasmon will probably experience less sleepless nights, for now. But then, the journey is long ahead and I hope Malaysian public universities will continue to strive even harder.

To my University of Malaya mates, we're finally on the news for the right reasons!

WeiJiet is perplexed that Malaysia only appeared in the lower rung of the top 500 in the Shanghai Jiao Tong rankings. Where the hell did were we all this while?

The University Rankings Debate (Part 1)

2011-08-19T09:39:00.000-07:00

I was pleasantly surprised that the University of Malaya is currently embroiled in a so-called “academic crisis” as alleged by one of our most trusted, revered and oh-so-informative Utusan Malaysia. Pleasant because it has been awhile since I saw ponytail-swinging Dr.Azmi in action! Surprised because, damn it, we are in the news for yet the wrong reasons again.

It was alleged that 146 academicians “resigned in mass exodus” since 2009 but Ghauth Jasmon refuted by saying only 123 either resigned, retired or passed away. The “reasons” given were because there was too much focus on journal publications in ISI data and Scopus, as well as the erosion of Bahasa Malaysia, in tune with the university’s aims to achieve a better standing at the global university rankings.

There are 2 funny things from this whole episode. First, is Utusan’s report that Dr.Azmi himself said: “Tindakan ini menjejaskan perkembangan bahasa Melayu sebagai bahasa ilmu dan bercanggah dengan Dasar Pendidikan Kebangsaan yang menjadi tunjang pembinaan negara bangsa Malaysia.” I don’t know you guys, but I’m preeeeety sure that only in a different galaxy do you imagine him saying those words. Of course, he denied those allegations later. Secondly, the fact that 80% of hired international staff are from Bangladesh, Nigeria, Phillipines, Sri Lanka, India and Jordan. Third world jokes aside, I find it highly ticklish that a senior in Facebook said: “Now, we have academics that can’t speak English AND Bahasa Malaysia!”.

Ok, time to talk about the serious stuff now, particularly on the issue of university rankings. If Ghauth Jasmon was a dart board getting shot at from every single angle, the obsessive chase in university rankings is the ultimate bull’s eye. So, what’s really the big deal of university rankings, anyway?

Ah, we do love his "engineering days in UK" joke, right? (Winks)

So far, the more influential and often cited university rankings are the QS and Times Higher Education World University Rankings. (Of course, after a breakup from a rather short marriage!) They justify the need for rankings mainly because there is a need for students in this globalised era to make the best choices for their higher education. In a broader picture, QS’s mission focuses on measuring Research Quality, Graduate Employability, Teaching Quality and International Outlook, allocating different percentages for different criteria evaluated upon.

No doubt, there is a huge debate on whether these rankings are valid or even if universities can be evaluated at all. There are a few key battle grounds which I would like to explore:

1) Is there even a need for university rankings?

Pros: At first glance, of course there is a need! The same way we put students through standardized examinations until Form 5 to find out who is academically better. The same way FIFA rankings tell that Spain is a better team than Nicaragua. The same way we find out which rich-ass tycoons appear on Forbes 500 list. The reality is, this world demands an evaluation of units/persons/organisations belonging to the same field of pursuit on a linear scale to single out the ‘good’ ones. (And of course, to possibly pour scorn over the ‘not so good’ ones)

Beyond that, one of the other advantages is precisely to create competition to become ‘good’ universities. Especially after 6 years of rigorous evaluations, university leaders are able to benchmark the evolution of their university compared to other institutions. Furthermore, highly influential rankings such as QS, THE and Shanghai Jiaotong are able to create international recognition and brand awareness (despite the obvious monopoly of US and UK universities at the top), especially among academicians searching for a job and employers seeking the most economically viable graduates. There is no harm for universities to acknowledge these rankings and spur changes, for example: decreasing class size, pushing for more academic publications, accommodating more international student ratio and etc. Who wouldn’t want these good improvements? Alas, even if the university does not want to associate its mission completely upon university rankings, it is still an important measuring tool that can be utilised alongside other internally generated data.

Cons: But is it all that simple? People forget that university rankings put immense pressure upon the administration, especially when societal perception is considerably shaped by these indicators, to conform to a particular method of evaluation. Malaysia is a perfect example. Parents and the older generation lament about the ‘good old days’ when we were once top in Asia. Students have lost faith in public institutions and flock overseas every year.

Back to the topic, opponents argue that it is even worse when the university does not endorse or agree upon those evaluations in the first place. And worst, is when this ‘tyrannical tool’ (as claimed by Theodore Mitchell, president of Occidental College) ‘is used to get institutions to chase after a single vision of what good higher education is’. It does sound like a diabolical plot to transform all universities in the globe to a singular, rigid and fixed type of 'ideal institution'.

Picture taken from http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/Pictures/web/h/f/t/Harvard_1.jpg

2) Are the methodologies used valid?

Pros: The better known university rankings employ a rigorous methodology. For example, QS had “consultation with almost 8000 academics in face-to-face seminars have shown strong support for our focus on these primary (though by no means exclusive) missions of world class universities.Next, QS sought to develop a tried and tested approach to conducting an expert Peer Review Survey of academic quality. It brought in statistical and technical experts to ensure that our survey design could not be ‘gamed’ and provided valid results. The survey design is founded on the principles of many online political polls, which have become increasingly accurate at anticipating election results. The Peer review conducted by QS has been independently validated by a leading statistician. Paul Thurman, Clinical Professor at Columbia University and a specialist in public health statistics.”

Very impressive indeed. The thing is, every ranking has its flaws and there will be loopholes to criticise. But when there is a certain professional standard of qualification and annual re-evaluations through consultations, proponents can safely say that there exists a strong credibility among university rankings after all.

Cons: What about the other side? Well, for starters, there is certainly no consensus on how to measure academic quality in classrooms. Then, there is the halo effect. A higher ranked department may provide enough ‘glow’ to allow other departments at that same institution to be more highly ranked than is warranted. Moreover, the very fact that we use different sorts of methodologies makes comparisons between reports relatively impossible.

Malcolm Grant, an opponent in this debate, totally bulldozed QS and THE through his extremely persuasive arguments in an article on Guardian. Among the highlights are:

Imagine a newspaper decided to create a table ranking the world's cities. Is Moscow better than Sydney? Would Hong Kong squeeze in above Manchester? Or Bangkok above Brighton? It would be a nonsensical exercise. Better in what respect? They are all vastly different types of human settlement, meeting different aspects of human need in different cultures and climates. (emphasis is mine)

But to come to a single ranking, we would then have to manipulate the data: should a measure of the state of public health outweigh a measure of investment in public transport?

The basic problem is that there is no definition of the ideal university. (emphasis is mine) Is it big or small? Is it better at research or at teaching? Is it a specialist science and technology institution with heavy research income – or does it focus primarily on the humanities and social sciences? Is it adventurous or risk averse?

Next, what are the data? On teaching, there are simply no robust data on which global comparison can be made. None of these say anything about the quality of teaching.

Next: What USM Vice Chancellor Prof Tan Sri Dzulkifli Razak has to say about methodologies....

Wei Jiet is glad that a "mass exodus" from the law faculty wasn't mentioned. Although, it would be interesting to see a tall British lecturer walking around the corridors one day. Meanwhile, the only "mass exodus" he could probably think of now is from 1st college male toilet cleaners.

The American Dream

2011-08-17T08:37:00.000-07:00

I never believed this moment will ever come. At least, not at this particular juncture of life. What timing! It seems so weird. Yet, it's indescribably satisfying.

A distant dream packaged in a 5 copy thick envelope, chillingly congratulative phone calls by the ever elegant Ms.Kalis, swooshed through an interview by a bunch of smart-looking Caucasian executives and baam!...the dreams became reality and off you go for an adventure of a lifetime, all expenses paid.

Yes, I am flying to the United States of America! *Coca-Cola Cheers, Ronald McDonald high-fives, Lady Gaga hits on the background!*

So what if it's for one semester only? It's a golden chance to get a taste of the much-hyped American Dream. The baseball-burgers-Greek party culture! Seriously, America didn't came on top of my list after high school. Simply because the top 2 choices of my profession were coincidentally law and medicine; both which are post-graduate studies there. As I finally narrowed down to law, only British castles and sunny Australia beaches cropped across my mind.

I definitely felt relieved after making a decision to accept the offer. It wasn't exactly an easy choice to make. Yes, it's extremely tempting but I guess the things which are pulling me back are the plans, hopes and promises which I vowed to pursue during my 2nd year at the university. There were just so many things which I have promised to do: getting down and dirty in civil society campaigns, being committed to the ALSA organizing commitee, a few tournaments here and there, the much-anticipated faculty orientation....

But I'm glad those nasty clouds of confusion are over. I'm amazed at the level of support and encouragement I receive from lecturers, friends and coursemates alike. Rest assured, I'll make the very best of my 4 months at the other half of the world. Many discoveries await and I'll keep y'all on constant annoying update!

We on this continent should never forget that men first crossed the Atlantic not to find soil for their ploughs but to secure liberty for their souls.

~Robert J. McCracken

This might sounds overly dramatic, but the sentiments of immigrants who set sail from all across the world to bask at the symbolic Statue of Liberty are somewhat similar to mine now. Beyond the culture, cuisine and places I intend to travel, what I wanted to discover most in the "Land of the Free" are the values which Americans uphold so proudly: Jeffersonian democracy. True freedom of religion. Active freedom of expression. Equality of opportunities. Most of which are entombed in the famous US Bill of Rights.

However, I think we all know that things aren't as optimistic as it looks at the world's superpower. As Uncle Sam faces the dangerous economic turmoil it has gotten itself into, a deadlock of political will between the Democrats and Republicans at Congress and an unprecedented waning of global influence due to China's rise, it is indeed a very interesting time to learn first hand on how Americans whip the old man in shape in light of these 21st century challenges.

And if I'm lucky enough, maybe the "law student" in me will find the time to read and discuss upon several famous American court cases that shaped the nation. Switching the dynamic Lord Denning for an equally controversial Antonin Scalia! Yipee!

Maybe I should stop now. Wouldn't want to get my hopes so high and all, right? I'll just go with the flow. But I'm sure an extremely new world awaits me. Excitement is in the air.

A few shots (thanks to Wilson's camera) at the Malaysian American Centre of Educational Exchange (MACEE), the nexus of our exchange program management.

Ms. Kalis at briefing us eager beaver UGraders from Malaysia who will be going for the fall intake.

Nasha, a fellow UM student of environmental engineering who would be on an academic year at Florida Gulf Coast University. Imagine the beaches!

Had the privilege of attending the Fullbright and US Government Exchange Program Debriefing session. This is Dr. Zulkifli Mohamad (more commonly known as Zubin Mohamad) under the Fullbright Professional Exchange Program, who attended UCLA and UCR to undergo dance studies. To our surprise, he presented a special contemporary dance!

US Ambassador Paul Jones with other Fullbright grantees.

Global Ugrad grantees and future scholars! I am very thankful for the seniors who shared their amazing experiences at the US. You guys have inspired me and the others so much, especially with all the great adventures you have captured on camera. I wish I could have a blast there too!

Sometimes people call me an idealist. Well, that is the way I know I am an American. America is the only idealistic nation in the world.

~Woodrow Wilson

For the first few weeks upon hearing that I am awarded this wonderful opportunity, it really meant a lot to me. For all the past scars that remind me very much about how brutally realistic and dirty both people as well as the nation can go in awarding opportunities to its young talent, I am thankful that there are people who still cherish everything an idealistic (possibly naive?) boy stands for: honesty, integrity and sincerity.

Therefore, a big thank you to MACEE, the US Department of State, University of Malaya, the law faculty, Ugrad seniors, friends and families.

Now, it's time to *Partaaay in the USA!*

Wei Jiet is humbled to be a Global Undergraduate Exchange Program scholar under the United States Department of State. He will be spending a semester at the United States to study International Relations/Political Science at a private liberal arts college at South Dakota. The West Coast, Washington DC and Florida are on his travel plans already!

How To Kick Ass In Legal Studies (Part 6- Logic and Speed)

2011-08-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

Lo and behold! All 4 tips which Mr.Fahri presented to us have been discussed. For the icing on the cake, I would like to add in the last 2 traits which, personally, are important for the field of legal studies.

He that cannot reason is a fool.
He that will not is a bigot.
He that dare not is a slave.

~Andrew Carnegie

The first trait is logic. Pure simple logic. Ain’t hard, right?

True, we all know that the law requires a stretch of imagination and the occasional flamboyant creativity (we all certainly relish these quantum leaps of reason, especially yours truly), but less we forget that it is logical arithmetic which anchors the law from sailing to silly sinister horizons. The law’s insistence on sound and explicit logic keeps fantasy novelists and certain Malaysian newspaper editors away from law schools. It disciplines law students from making arguments based on unprincipled, untethered and unsubstantiated sci-fi hunches.

I would like to think that we are educated quite well to think logically in school from plenty of Add Maths and Science. To most people, it is an immensely subconscious ability that you don’t really need to “learn” or “apply” it in exams. It sounds quite silly to suggest that we learn about logic in our Legal Method subject, for example. However, when we ponder closely enough, there lies a vast uncharted terrain which the brain has yet to explore. Or realize.

It is quite interesting to read on a few fallacies in logical argumentation such as the bandwagon approach, slippery slope, circular reasoning (my favourite!), strawman, ad hominem attacks and red herrings. However, the two which are easily applied in legal studies are deductive and inductive reasoning.

In Wikipedia, deductive arguments “are attempts to show that a conclusion necessarily follows from a set of premises or hypotheses”. It is a simple method of gaining knowledge as well as applying knowledge in exams. For example, the judges in the famous American case of Brown v Board of Education came to a ruling using deductive reasoning:

Premise 1 - Unequal educational facilities go against the Constitution.
Premise 2 - A separate educational facility for black children is inherently unequal.
Conclusion - Therefore, a separate educational facility for black children goes against the Constitution.

On the other hand, inductive reasoning is “a form of reasoning that makes generalizations based on individual instances”. Inductive reasoning relates very much to the use of analogy and it is an important tool to face real daunting hypotheticals. Sounds very much like Tort classes, right? A professor repeatedly changes the facts to push the boundaries of law, entangling students in a nasty web of confusion. However, always remember to revert back to the principles of inductive reasoning by drawing comparisons between the two cases and arriving at a reasonable conclusion.

Just think about it. The force of logical reasoning is very much alive in legal studies. It’s just that we take it for granted at times and hop on this mind-boggling pursuit of incessant memorization while failing to detect this enchanting hierarchy of reasoning. A well constructed syllogism is a joy to examiners as each conclusion is backed by well-supported evidence and act as signposts to guide him or her along your desired path.

The second point is…speed. Yes, you heard it right. Speed. I’m reminded of the evil villain in Kung Fu Hustle who said, in epic notoriety: “In the world of kung fu, speed defines the winner”. Ditto to legal studies. It has got to be the most realistic and practical lesson I learned so far.

Speed ditches a boring 4 hour textbook torture for a “hip-hip-hoorah, I’ve finished!” information super highway.

Speed allows you to do thrice the number of revisions for a fixed period of time, which allows information to be super-glued firmly inside the brain.

Most importantly, speed allows you to write as much words possible in major exams that have notorious time constraints. Simple stuff: the faster you write, the higher the probability you’re able to adequately answer the questions to gain higher marks. I doubt that I will have decent marks without the additional element of speed in exams.

Generally, I think students have good logic and speed to face the rigorous academic challenge. But it sure helps to polish those skills to perfection. I strongly believe that “polishing” these skills doesn’t mean doing tonnes of exercises a month before an exam. Logic, speed and everything altogether that I have written in previous articles can only truly achieve its ultimate potential by treating them as a way of life.

Wei Jiet scored a horrendous 58% in a logic test by Dr. Chandran. Yes, apparently he’s THAT logical. Speed? Let’s just say that he’s quite fast in doing stuff, but procrastination always gets the better of him. That’s why you get super long hiatuses at his blog at times.

How To Kick Ass In Legal Studies (Part 5- Language and the Law)

2011-08-04T10:10:00.000-07:00

"How To Kick Ass in Legal Studies" is a 6 part series of the blogger's personal recollection in education. Oh, and everything wacky and bizarre that comes with it.

“Language is the means of getting an idea from my brain into yours without surgery”

~ Mark Amidon.

Yes, we’re not doctors. We don’t need to lobotomise a person’s hypothalamus to score A’s in exams. Neither do we need calculate the trigonometric trajectory of a robotic arm in vacuum space. People in the legal profession, as they say, need only to master the languages.

I have always admired people who are geniuses in putting across a point in brilliant linguistic precision, such that rattles the inner core and cleverly manipulates the mind to dance in symphony to the deliverer’s intentions. It is an art; be it the most well-known politicians, Harry Potter’s J.K. Rowling or our Chinese debaters back in university.

It is the ability of clear expression - articulating the thoughts within the unseen mind to the outside world, as accurately and as clearly possible. This may be one of the most crucial skills which students must master to score in exams.

In the case of studying Malaysian law, this inevitably means being proficient in English and Bahasa Malaysia. I’m far from being a novelist and as you may have known by now, my writings are terribly disorganised and difficult to comprehend at times. That is something I intend to improve along the way.

Nevertheless, I have come to know that being able to express ourselves clearly is NOT about writing or speaking in the most direct, bull’s eye, hit-the-G spot manner. It is how you build an argumentative momentum. How you thrust an idea at crucial Eureka points which sends the reader into a kumbaya frenzy. How you depict your sincerity to earn that extra recognition. How you try to successfully convince the reader, even with a few weak submissions, that this IS the correct and best answer among all.

Of course, some lecturers might not get fooled. But alas, like anything in this world, everything is a matter of perception. You can memorise with robotic precision the various cases or legal theories, but it is pretty useless if you do not have the technique of packaging all those answers in tandem with the questions asked.

I know students, especially from our law faculty, are striving very hard to improve their command of English. That deserves the outmost credit and praise. However, forgive and correct me if I’m wrong, but I notice that people seem to think that reading alone is enough to achieve this. To the extent of the ability of clear expression, I beg to differ. Reading can only get you so far. The steepest learning curve lies in both speaking and writing.

Why? Because we need to hone the skill of transforming the knowledge we have gathered through reading into comprehensible, concise and impactful sentences. Speaking with friends using English or BM at McDonalds over lunch, as simple as it looks, trains your ability to express your thoughts. Writing, blogging or tumblr-ing can be a fulfilling way of breathing life to our ideas. Given the short time span of information digestion us humans possess, it is indeed a challenge to deliver as accurately and quickly possible to the listener or reader. And it is a challenge we need to survive in this game.

“If language is not correct, then what is said is not what is meant; if what is said is not what is meant, then what must be done remains undone; if this remains undone, morals and art will deteriorate; if justice goes astray, the people will stand about in helpless confusion. Hence there must be no arbitrariness in what is said. This matters above everything.”

~ Confucius

Talking about grand old Confucius, I tend to speak a lot of Mandarin too, given the groups of people I hang out in my everyday life on campus. You can’t really escape it. Don’t get me wrong, it’s never a bad thing. It’s just something natural for those whose native tongue is Chinese. But for those who want to seek the additional avenue of improving English, I think our university has plenty of opportunities. You can join the debate team, Toastmasters club or AIESEC.

But as for me, I’ve always enjoyed communicating with our own batchmates. Jubs*always has inspiring tales to tell of the Sabahan life and his dreams of making the world a better place. Wawa* and Naj* are 2 awesome fairies whom I look forward to gossiping with. And I am often thrilled to have a “war of words” with Q* whenever he posts controversial stuff on FB. Needless to say, too many clashes of opinions with Z* and E* has no doubt increased both my confidence and blood pressure.

No need to put on a fancy suit and deliver a trailblazing 7 minute debate speech. Just have a nice talk with the people around you!

Never ever underestimate the power of language. For everyone who learns the same stuff in law school, it is most probably the ultimate trump card that determines the winner. It is the gun which triggers the bullet of knowledge.

And it’s really up to you to fit that into your sister’s pooh-pooh water gun or a bad-ass Kalashnikov AK-47 killer!

* Names are not revealed in full. Because they're so awesome, I'm scared mobs of people will pounce on them upon sight.

WeiJiet thinks that he is a factory reject in the Cantonese language. He's neither here nor there, even after years of Hong Kong dramas. His use of this Chinese dialect is limited to only ordering chicken rice in PJ, parroting Eason Chan songs and the occasional "sei pok kai!" from Stephen Chow.

How To Kick Ass In Legal Studies (Part 4 - Updating The Law)

2011-08-01T10:47:00.000-07:00

"How To Kick Ass in Legal Studies" is a 6 part series of the blogger's personal recollection in education. Oh, and everything wacky and bizarre that comes with it.

Today’s version of the celebrated case of Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co would not merely involve an ubat jantan cap Pak Skodeng advert on Petaling Street, but rather, a sexy animation of Justin Bieber inviting you lusty perverts into a five-star porn site on Facebook and Twitter.

Such, has the world changed.

The moral of the story is: ~~don’t be a stupid kaypoh to apply the law at impractical stuff that will never come out in exams~~ to be aware of the changes that is happening around you. Yes, we have come to the third skill which Mr. Fahri was talking about – applying the law.

This is not going to be a post on how you apply the theoretical mumbo jumbo of defamation to a hypothetical case.

This is about how it is advisable to insert your opinions on everyday happenings into exam answers. Why? Because, while students are busy doing replays of K-Pop videos, academicians read the news. They see the law permeating into the daily lives of Malaysians. And boy oh boy, trust me, they feel an electrifying connection whenever a particular student gives an interesting legal analysis on newspaper headlines.

Law is, as you should have known by now, a peculiar mental approach that will haunt you for the rest of your life. As a law student, you are obliged to know at depth, from a legal point of view, the criss-crossing facets of social discourse in ever-happening Malaysia. Yes, this means frequent visits to The Malaysian Insider, ARTiculations and The Star Online. Of course, in reality, one only need to browse through the most awesome blawg around, Loyarburok, to reap those tasty fruits of distinction.

Back to the analogy above. The point is - explanations and examples written in textbooks as well as journals, may very well miss out on the hottest topics debated today within that particular legal framework.

For instance, the case of Che Omar bin Che Soh is often brought up when discussing article 3 of the Federal Constitution – Islam as the religion of the federation. Today, that 1988 case is as lame as an Angry Bird pencil case. Right now, the community is in feverish discussion on whether only a Muslim can be a Prime Minister of Malaysia and the S. Shamala custody battle. Hey, don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying Che Omar is not important, but it puts you in a brighter spot for offering a fresh angle to the already dead bored examiner running through 100 monotonous scripts. Everyone is going to cite the same old case because we read the same old notes, don’t we?

The Malaysian Legal System (MLS) subject gives a lot of leeway to develop your own critical thoughts: Is the 1989 amendment in the Emergency Ordinance that disallows any forms of judicial review of the discretionary powers of the minister - a blatant disregard to the concept of separation of powers? Is Hishamuddin in his right state of mind to declare wearing BERSIH shirts as illegal without any law passed in Parliament? Besides Wan Arfah Hamzah and Prof. Ahmad Ibrahim, what did Prof. Shad Saleem Faruqi say about the common law in Malaysia?

We must learn how to apply and relate the law to the cacophony of issues touching the social fabric of our nation. If you think only law students do this sort of ‘adult stuff’, you’re wrong. More and more young people from various educational backgrounds are beginning to enter the political dialogue. It would be very sad indeed if law students don’t grab the bull by the horns in what is supposed to be our circle of forte.

Learn to be inquisitive in nature. Read, record and remember things. Talk to a senior or a lecturer on his thoughts about the development of the law. We must always try to contribute as much legal opinions in exam papers – because of the simple fact that lecturers expect us to do so.

“The law is never stagnant and constantly evolving, even as we speak. It shapes according to the standards and values of the community. That is why we must always be aware of the social developments happening around us”

~ Professor Norchaya Talib, a respected academician whom I had the honour of meeting with.

The trick is by working hard to stand out from the crowd, because that’s where the glittering prizes of As are being rightfully awarded.

WeiJiet practices the ancient technique of 'bootlicking' - the cunning endeavour of paying extra attention to sources cited by lecturers in pro formas which students would normally ignore. He believes by doing this, he can manipulatively inflate the ego and, more importantly, the generosity of the examining lecturer. Such are the wicked deeds of this evil law student. Apart from the list above, he also encourages students to read Utusan Malaysia - but only for entertainment sake, please.

2011-07-27T19:05:00.000-07:00

This few weeks have been semi-hectic. Semi-hectic because I was rushing to complete a research analysis in economics for a lecturer in Nanyang Tech, but unfortunately, I always seem to relax around with lackadaisical procrastination whenever I feel like it. I don't know, but I think I'm getting easily distracted away from 'important things'...all because of the fast-paced political updates on Malaysiakini and certainly, the Facebook hangarounds and stuff.

Talking about Facebook and the likes of social media, I'm at the Media Legal Defence Conference at KL now. Some interesting perpectives here certainly has opened my eyes to the emerging '4th estate' of democracy and governance, which is an independent press. More on that later.

Want to know what I've been doing? Ok, so I am writing for the blog. Something will be publised soon. But you know, posts in this blog is as random as it gets. Meanwhile, check out my article at the utilmate blog Loyarburok.

WeiJiet feels great to meet the likes of Mr.Dipendra and Arianti, two practicing lawyers which he has a lot to learn from. On the other hand, he feels even greater meeting Julian Assange's hot Australian blondie lawyer!

My 1st Year University Life

2011-07-20T20:57:00.000-07:00

This blog post is a narration of an unbelievable journey throughout my one year at the University of Malaya. It is a hard-thought, careful and honest description of the tribulations, achievements and lessons which I experienced in this wonderful campus. But more than anything else, this is a tribute to the beloved friends I made along the way, the powerful mentors that have laid down invaluable guidance and the enthusiastic juniors I am honoured to be acquainted to in Penang & beyond.

Life at the urban Lembah Pantai area which hosts the leading university (and I daresay, the leading law faculty) in Malaysia has been yet another milestone in my life. Below, in no particular order, are the meaningful experiences and genuine lessons I want to share.

1)University is a beehive of people, activities and ~~hot girls~~ societies. Do not hesitate to jump into the nectar filled river of opportunities. Make meaningful friendships. Join an event you never dreamt of doing. The options are endless.

2) Do the most wacky/silly/ludicrous/nonsensical stuffs ever! You're only going to go through university once in your entire life. Unleash all those teenage and childish demeanour before adulthood hits you. And don't forget to take photos!

Well, photos can only do this much. It may not even be funny to some people. But it's the story behind each and every one of these photos, known only by the bunch of buddies who hopped into the circus ring with you, that are worth a fortune.

Of course, I wouldn't label medic students adding a few drops of adrenaline inside a patient's blood vessel just to see him jump out of bed, as 'silly'.

3) Yes, be silly. But when the moment calls for it, be serious. Go all out. Kick some serious butt.

4) Grab every opportunity to travel around the world and experience its wonders. Yes, you may be studying in Malaysia but like I said, the opportunities are always there, learn how to make the best use of them. I have learnt so much about the different cultures, perspectives and people in the places I have visited. It has no doubt made me a better person with a global outlook.

You don't need to be a Porsche-driving son of a CEO to afford these trips, most of the programs are partially funded and grants are available. More importantly, nothing beats travelling with university coursemates as they're so much fun!

5) When all the fun is over, take a step back and reflect upon ourselves. Who are we? We're university students and the younger generation, the future leaders in this country. Always remember that we have a role to play in society. Give back to the less fortunate. Fight for a noble cause you believe in. Move your lazy asses of the backseat, stand up and be counted.

Honestly, I am quite ashamed of not doing enough for my part in civil society. Compared to my other friends who are involved in Clinical Legal Education and Community Outreach Program, I am nothing as opposed to their continuous efforts to educate prisoners, abandoned children and many more.

6) Be inspired by the people around you.

Yes, every moment when you think you have achieved great things already, it will come to you that there are even better people out there.

I've known a girl who is a brilliant writer, passionate thinker and an admirable advocate of animals.

I've known a Sabah native who possesses so much zeal in orang asli rights and helps out tirelessly with the OKU community almost every weekend despite his heavy academic workload.

I've known a final year buddy who is a South East Asian Bronze medallist in pingpong, who has to train at the sports center almost every day and still managed to graduate with a degree in law.

I've known a lecturer (ok, maybe I have known him a little bit too much. Laughs) who has taught me the value of humanity, compassion and kindness. He has shown remarkable courage in facing a world which resists his dreams and hopes. I will miss him terribly when he flies to Korea this August to complete his PhD.

And the most inspirational of all, I salute my fellow coursemate who topped his STPM with flying colours, managed to enter law school and scored better grades than the majority of us. All of this, despite being blind.

In the award winning movie, Forrest Gump once said: "Mama always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get." Yes, life is like that. I don't know about others, but I'm eternally grateful for the people I have known here and the things that come in my way.

This is not an article to show off whatever I have achieved. If indeed I joined those tournaments and events just to add in my collection of memorabilia, then I would have dumped those chances a long time ago. Because behind every personal best I have scaled, it involves tremendous amounts of sacrifice, tears, blood, sweat and hard hard work. You feel like letting go of everything at one time.

But as I reflect back, it's not the trophies or plaques that dot the cabinet that mattered most to me. It is the simple memories of friendship, fun and feverish fascination in pursuing my passion which I treasure the most. To my batch mates at the law faculty and the seniors I know, I owe you all a big thank you for everything. I appreciate every moment, despite being critical at times.

To the juniors, it has always been my passion in helping you all achieve your fullest potential. I regret missing the chance to meet you guys for one last time, but this picture is the last visit of mine in Penang. I hope you can learn a little bit from what I have gone through.

You do not need to force yourself to be someone you aren't, because each person's journey in university is inevitably unique and can only be defined by themselves.

I am proud to say that I have debated with superb Asian teams in Macau, mooted before the Senior Counsel of the Republic of Singapore, wrote for my faculty's Vox magazine, drank soju amidst -10 degree celcius snow in Korea, flashed a sword while wearing a hanbok like an asylum escapee at Seoul International Airport, performed a traditional Indian dance in front of hundreds of delegates, played futsal in torrential rain at 3am in the morning, acted like a possessed Syariah lawyer for a video, became an ardent follower of Lord Bobo's minions and had my balls shrunk while visiting the ~~haunted~~ abandoned Vice-Chancellor's house at midnight.

It has been an awesome roller-coaster ride so far.

We may not be setting foot on the grounds of prestigious Harvard Square or amble through the hallways of ancient Cambridge buildings, but I am a firm believer in making the best out of whatever God has given to me. Always believe that we can still achieve many great things in life.

All the best to my juniors and friends.

"Stay hungry, stay foolish"

~ Steve Jobs, on the 2005 commencement address at Stanford University.

WeiJiet is setting out on the 'road less taken'. He is overwhelmed with excitement as another chapter of his life journey unfolds. More stories and surprise to come!

How To Kick Ass In Legal Studies (Part 3 - Beware The Buddy Note Bane)

2011-07-17T12:00:00.001-07:00

"How To Kick Ass in Legal Studies" is a 6 part series of the blogger's personal recollection in education. Oh, and everything wacky and bizarre that comes with it.

First, it’s the Malaysian student psyche within ourselves that’s hampering progress. Now, time for...

Suspect number 2.

After a consensus with a few of my friends (believe me, these are not the people you usually see myself with. We work in stealth mode, Vendetta style), we identified another dangerous malady that is plaguing the once fertile garden of ideas in law school.

Oh, believe me, it’s the greatest conspiracy there is. It’s right in front of us. And yet we do not know it. (Screams. In. Horror!)

It hides among our messy pile of academic jumbles, infiltrating our mind in nimble ninja mode to perpetuate a sense of dangerously static complacency. Yes, it’s none other than the…(shrieks, squeals, gasps)…

The buddy system notes! (Note: Picture above is real)

Of course, this is NOT an indication that the buddy friendship system is bad, it’s heart-warming in fact. Of course too, this is NOT some ungrateful son of a ***** lamenting about a system that's a great help for infants of the legal world like us. Collected over generations of buddy lines, it is structured, complete and straight to the point.

But therein lies the greatest flaw of it.

"The critical spirit never knows when to stop meddling."

~ Mason Cooley, US aphorist, City Aphorisms, Second Selection, 1985

Just like any affirmative action policy, you gain immediate benefits of understanding thoroughly what the subject demands of you. But the negative effects are also present if these ‘policies’ continue without stop. Students rely on it too much. Some even dismiss recognized authors of textbooks and unabashedly lift their anonymous buddy notes to the almighty altar status of some Holy Bible in legal knowledge.

Sadly, unlike our predecessors (the original authors of the notes), we don’t go scavenging in the library anymore. We don’t experience the thrill of discovering additional knowledge outside lectures which may come as useful. We rigidly stick to the same yellow ancient 5 year old papers. It gives a false sense of security, up to the point that we think that students peeking to the highest rack on the 2nd floor in search for American jurisprudence are ‘wasting their time’.

That’s when our minds have been shut. Jammed. Slammed. The cocooned perception that we have ‘everything in place to excel in examinations’ by virtue of just buddy notes is something students have to overcome. We accept everything that there is, without exploring other texts to think critically.

Of course, you can definitely score an A for certain subjects which are technical and memory-based in nature (such as Family Law and Contracts, where my buddy's mind maps have been great help), but vast amount of subjects still demand students to smash through the thick barrier of disillusioning buddy notes as well as their air-conditioned comfort zones. Only then can creativity trickle in like hot treacle, as we compare opinions, ideas and new discoveries from different authors. Thus, exercising the mind to think, analyse and judge critically.

My humble suggestion is to use buddy notes as a foundation or guideline for further research. Those are indeed valuable information and should not be disregarded altogether. But it is imperative that students realise that it is not the ‘be all and end all’ of legal studies.

"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."

~ Aristotle, Greek philosopher(384-322 BCE)

The reason critical thinking should be embedded within lectures, activities and studying is because I strongly believe a good law student should have a culture of thinking critically in every aspect of life. A constant spark that fluctuates non-stop within the mind. A every-morning-wake-up-brush-teeth kinda habit. A norm whenever we set ourselves upon.

Never, ever believe that things are going to be that simple.

WeiJiet believes there's only one place on Earth where you shouldn't think TOO critically: Datin's Family Law tutorials. The time he spends reading and writing is grossly disproportionate; indeed, abandoning one's scribble of the pen is a roadblock towards the path of enlightenment. Only by achieving a balance of both can we live in a critical thinking culture, a journey which WeiJiet still has a long road ahead.

How To Kick Ass In Legal Studies (Part 2 - Cracking The Brain)

2011-07-07T06:56:00.000-07:00

"How To Kick Ass in Legal Studies" is a 6 part series of the blogger's personal recollection in education. Oh, and everything wacky & bizarre that comes with it.

"Knowing a great deal is not the same as being smart; intelligence is not information alone but also judgment, the manner in which information is collected and used." - Carl Sagan

Having a bagful of gold doesn't necessarily guarantee a pauper striking a fortune, what more a fortune that will last till the end of his life. The same goes to the large swaths of legal knowledge that we have amassed through research. One of the best ways is to convert it into a foundation and platform towards critical thinking.

Wikipedia wise, critical thinking "refers to higher-order thinking that questions assumptions. Critical thinking is "thinking about thinking." It is a way of deciding whether a claim is true, false, or sometimes true and sometimes false, or partly true and partly false”.

Let’s admit it, no other faculty is more synonymous to critical thinking than the faculty of law. It would really be a slap in the face if we lost an “Is the food at the faculty café or 1st college better?” argument to some rocket engineering geek. Of course, if you actually did argue with him, you can start dumping your LEB matric number, because the answer is obviously: “They both suck big time”.

The Malaysian education system doesn’t revolve around one of the most notorious teaching techniques our counterparts in America experience: the Socratic method. While us “exam-oriented parrots with static memory and zilch creativity” can breathe a sigh of relief, is the current approach of lecturers delicately stroking the scarce analytical grey matter that’s left in our brains like pampered kids; producing critical thinking students?

Or, do they?

Let's recall the typical scenario in our law school lecture.

First, we have what we call, the "active participants". Efficacious, lively, bold, zealous and overconfident – we have the ADHD geeks who wants maximum airtime in class. Before we even scramble for our pens, KAZAAM!...they’ll swoop down like desperate hungry falcons and shove down their dramatic opinions into your throats. Their names appear on the class’ Bingo sheets, you win if all your choice of 5 speaks first in class. Participants stop talking completely when first semester grades come out and they get all Cs.

Then, we have the “backbenchers” – cool dudes who opt out of Contracts whenever they feel like it. Also known as the ‘late-nighters’, they probably had extra shots of tequila at the club last night or played 4 hours of Call of Duty till sunrise, hence the ‘cool-ness’. Whenever they do enter, they’re always late. Bermuda shorts. iPod earphones on. Facebook on the iPad. They ask if they can “borrow” your notes.

And finally, the “terrified middle group”. They are the confused majority who don’t have an iota with what the hell is going on in class. Deep down their shuddering hearts, they just wished Prof. Nor would just tell them what the freaking law is.

So, which group do you belong to? Whoever you are, do try your best to become the "active participants". Didn’t some Chinese dude once said “One who asks questions is a fool for 5 minutes, one who does not ask questions remains a fool forever.”? In fact, it’s even better if you challenge the lecturer’s take on a certain issue with your own ideas than merely tossing a few doubts here and there. Then your professors can build up those ideas and summarize it all magically into a perfect conclusion like Harvard’s Michael Sandel, which I’m sure they’re so desperate to imitate. Give them a chance. Be assertive. Be courageous. Be CRITICAL in nature.

Of course, you don’t necessarily need to speak in class to be ‘critical’. Some people can do it privately, and its fine with me.

In Malaysia, students don’t normally have the chance to participate in editing or contributing to a law review/journal. That’s a bummer already. Furthermore, 1st years also have limited chances to be involved in mooting because they’re only exposed to it in 2nd year. However, competitions and selections do exist, and it is the student’s prerogative to jump into these opportunities to build up thinking skills. Mooting is the penultimate channel to test a student’s understanding of the law, its application to real circumstances and most importantly, how you counter the opponent’s arguments – that’s where the bulk of ‘critical thinking’ go. It’s also great fun!

"Too often we... enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." - John F. Kennedy.

The moment we sit down, twiddle our highlighters and accept every word the lecturer says like a child before a God-sent Messiah should be buried to dust. It's time we break the barriers and open the floodgates to questions, reasons and thoughts. And then, to present it to the thriving world of ideas where it rightfully belongs.

WeiJiet is constantly haunted by his disastrous debating past; where he pretends to be the greatest 'critical thinker' but comes in with practically zero 'research'. An article on the Yale Law Journal served as an inspiration to him on the 3 types of law students in lectures. No, he doesn't read law journals for fun.

How To Kick Ass in Legal Studies (Part 1 - Ransack, Research, Retrieve!)

2011-06-28T08:31:00.000-07:00

"How To Kick Ass in Legal Studies" is a 6 part series of the blogger's personal recollection in education. Oh, and everything wacky & bizarre that comes with it.

My first year in law school breezed by and no matter how cliché this sounds, it sure passes fast. 9 months of brutal book burying and the epic finale of nerve-wracking examinations, our cohort of batchmates have weathered the greenhorn year, at last! But, sad to say, not without a few casualties. As the examination results begin to resurrect and intoxicate the spirits of students into zombies like a deadly malaise, what with the unhappy results for the second semester, I can’t help but dwell upon our journey so far.

Why the negativity? Why do people tend to treat law school as a burden? Since when it became hell for some?

I have a few comments on this. And heck, I’m curious too. Why don't hard work translate to deserving results? Dissecting, rummaging and tearing apart the walls of the Sultan Azlan Shah building in search for the answer to this dogma.

But honestly, as I reflect my not-so-great self, am I really in the best position to give an analysis on this? I’m no law professor, a working attorney nor a final year senior who probably has a better view on this. However, armed with that little bit of shamelessness which every ‘good’ law student should arm themselves with, I’m marching on in this perilous trail of exploiting what’s the best way to have a good (and enlightening!) legal education in law school. First year in law school, if you insist on distrusting my lack of judgment as a wet-behind-ears bloke who has nothing better to do during the holidays, something which I admit and wouldn’t mind at all.

And so, we begin.

To find out how to be ~~an accomplished law student~~ crazily high CGPA scorer, it is imperative to know what the law schools EXPECTS us to arm ourselves with. We need not look far for a framework on this. Remember our orientation week? The speech by Fahri Azzat, the maestro from Loyarburok, entitled ‘The Endless Possibilities After Law School - Various Career Options of a Law Graduate’? Slap yourself thrice, scratch your balls and call yourselves a banana-eating ape if you don’t, because nothing comes close to an inspirational orgasm than that brilliant piece of oral delivery.

It's simple, he stated 4 important skills which students should acquire during law school: ability to research, thinking critically, application of learning and clear expression. I know lecturers only emphasise on how to succeed in THEIR particular subject but seldom remind students of the very basic tenets of acing in studies. To me, personally, those 4 things are the guiding lights to eminence in law school.

First things first: research. It’s a big word, I know. To dig deeper beyond the surface of an area of law for greater clarity, understanding and breadth of knowledge.

"If you steal from one author it's plagiarism; if you steal
from many it's research" ~ Wilson Mizner

What kinds of research do we have? Ok, here’s the part where we get a little nerdy, but just bare with me. The Dean of the National University of Singapore law faculty, Mr Cheng-Han Tan , classified legal research into 3 categories.

The first one is doctrinal research, which is an internal perspective of the law. Under our common law system, to borrow the author’s words, this “involves analysis of cases, how these cases relate to general principles, internal consistency within specific areas of law, the relationship between different areas of law, and so on.” The examples are pretty obvious: what are the principles of negligence based on Donoghue v Stevenson, the elements to form a contract, etc.

But law is no autonomous discipline in the real world. The history, politics, culture, economic circumstances, societal change and shift of civic values continue to hammer modifications to the law like a malleable steel. Having that in mind, comes the second category of research: attempts to understand law better through the prism of “outside” or “external” perspectives. Nothing comes in more handy in understanding this concept when first year students are exposed to the subject of Law & Society.

This is where most students would stop digging. The jewels, diamonds and nuggets of gold unearthed would have been more than enough to score a solid A. However, just for the voraciously curious & inquisitive, there is one more research that is getting popular and ever more significant in the globalised world order.

You see, law is not entirely like science. We have different and countless models of legal system all over the world from the Code of Hammurabi of ancient Babylon till the comprehensive European Union law. Therein, lies a vast ocean for comparative legal research, the third branch of research. In the professor’s own words: “This is because the greater interconnectedness of economies has led many to think of law less exclusively in domestic terms. This realization has come about partly as a result of the realities of legal practice due to the increasing amount of transactional work that has a cross-border element. This in turn has led to more international arbitrations of disputes”. Well, if you can’t really fathom the complex intricacies of economic and trading law between nations yet, you can nevertheless still apply this methodology on subjects such as Torts.

For example, we all might think that the Caparo test, which is deployed by certain common law countries, is the best assessment for negligence there is. However, you might be surprised that Canadian courts favour the Anns approach instead! It was adopted in the case of City of Kamloops v. Nielsen and later modified by Cooper v. Hobart. Furthermore, as the Malaysian courts sounded the death knell for the Bolam test in Foo Fio Na v Dr Soo Fook Mun, their counterparts in Singapore reaffirmed it resoundingly, perhaps best described by the words of Yong Pung How CJ in Dr Khoo James and Another v Gunapathy d/o Muniandy and another appeal: “Beyond this time-honoured test of liability, neither this court nor any other should have any business vindicating or vilifying the acts of medical practitioners. It would be pure humbug for a judge, in the rarified atmosphere of the courtroom and with the benefit of hindsight, to substitute his opinion for that of the doctor in the consultation room or operating chamber. We often enough tell doctors not to play god; it seems only fair that, similarly, judges and lawyers should not play at being doctors”.

In reality, in a 2 and a half hour rush to BARELY cover the basic questions in examinations, of course it isn’t that advisable to place in your own analysis of the legal stand of foreign jurisdictions. But it is indeed an interesting hunt/adventure for students who want to go that extra mile…we’re all hyper excited teens after all, right? Anyway, it beats spending whole three days memorising the same bloody boring thing all over again just so you can regurgitate it at the right time, place and amount.

But really, why is it important for self-development? Because it challenges the assumptions within our ‘perfect’ legal system (believe me, the lecturers have rather convincingly alluded us all the while) which we take for granted. By comparing different models, we can identify the strengths and weaknesses of our own legal system which hopefully translates into reform in the near future.

If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be
called research, would it? ~ Albert Einstein

Next article, on racking our brains - critical thinking!

Wei Jiet believes one's experience shouldn't be used as a benchmark for legitimising the expression of one's opinion on matters close to the heart. That's like saying only politicians can comment on politics and he can't complain about his wantan mee now because he's not a chef. Any ad hominem assaults should be dismissed, and debates should be focused solely on ideas and perspectives.

Malaysia: To Laugh or Cry?

2011-06-27T09:39:00.000-07:00

Reading the happenings around Malaysia, it is always the cliche saying of credible editors and journalists: "I don't know whether to cry in sadness or laugh at all this stupidity", which comes into mind.

The recipe of a government "on the run", very much the situation of desperate office bearers in the Arab Spring revolution, is for all to see. Frankly, the people don't oppose the actions of a government and its agencies with no reason. The government has been extremely successful in committing almost every single wrongdoing possible in the book: corruption, incompetency, media propaganda, shameless puppeteering of the police force and racial bigotry.

Even if they didn't had their hands dirty on all these issues, they sure are as guilty for sitting down and fiddling while Malaysia burns. Any political science student will tell you that the consequence of continuous arrogance and violent force of a ruling government is not going to be a pretty sight for all.

And we have the Bersih rally. You don't need to be a law student to know that it is a constitutionally guaranteed right to assemble. It is the people's right to voice out their grievances. It is a right, not some God-damn privilege I need some body to scrutinise and approve, knowing that I can walk down the street and spill out my concerns towards this nation I love.

But such right can be rightfully taken away if it is a threat to national peace. But is the Bersih rally a "threat to national peace"? It's just damn funny seeing the sandiwara that Utusan continues to play: from a Hindu agent in Ambiga, a Jewish conspiracy, a revival of Communism, a threat to the King and most recently: funding from the Christians! Let's put in some Dalai Lama conspiracy and Orang Asli tapai drinking ritual to complete the equation! Then they'll say the whole world is in an evil diabolical plot to "take over Malaysia".

Us urbanites with Malaysiakini access can sure yank our asses off in giggles, but will the rural people continue to fall for the same trick in the book? Or are they smarter than we think? Do they know the values of democracy, freedom and justice? Do they know that beyond their self-perceived comfort in FELDA terraces, lies so many more rights and opportunities that should have been theirs?

Whenever I see some Minister making stupid comments on AlJazeera that even the newscaster was baffled or some academic giving shallow arguments to support the ruling elite, I just wished I could have a live televised debate with them and see how they scamper finding an answer to the very basic counter-arguments to whatever horseshit they're spinning. Unfortunately, we have to admit that many people continue to be hoodwinked.

You will realise many a time when a BN politician would say: "The people are smart enough to look through Anwar's lies" and then, the next day, a Pakatan politician would give a statement like: "The people have matured and know how the government is treating them". At the end of the day, who should we believe? Honestly, both sides must have pretty bad grassroots understanding or are either lying in front of the camera.

What do the Malaysians of the 21st century, 3 years after the 2008 political tsunami, a few months after the democratic changes in the Middle East and Singapore, think of now? Have we progressed or have we fallen again for the media?

That is why I am a confused son of Malaysia. Herein lies the dilemma of either shielding my face from the tears or from too much bellowing laughter.

Will our country really change?

Also, allow me to reemphasise the eerie resemblance of this speech in the government conspiracy movie, V for Vendetta:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1ikQQk8cJQ

Beneath this mask there is more than flesh.
Beneath this mask there is an idea, Mr. Creedy, and ideas are bulletproof.
~V.

Frankly, the government can crack down on any kind of organisation linked to a particular colour, logo, effigy, shape or structure. But as long as the rakyat holds strong to the virtues and ideologies which champion the fundamental tenets of a nation such as democracy, freedom and justice; rest assured those ideas will never be shattered upon by any force in this world.

Korean Winter Study Trip (Day 1 & 2)

2011-06-16T21:30:00.000-07:00

Alas, time to blog about my trip to Korea! I attended the Winter Study Trip 2011 organised by the fantastic team of organisers from ALSA Korea. It was such a packed and exciting experience with so many experiences I want to convey. Thus, its only natural that I decided to blog about it periodically.

Starting from the first day, right away!

Our delegation from Malaysia met together at the LCCT to board AirAsia. Our plane was the ginormous Airbus A330 by AirAsia X. Sounds so much sexier to me with the "X"!

And so, after a 7 hour flight, we landed at .....Pyongyang, North Korea. Ok, kidding, would have been detained and shipped to labour camps if we really landed at the wrong side of Korea.

The Seoul International Airport, dubbed the best airport in the world, greeted us. We stepped out with heated anticipation despite the freezing cold.

Of course, Pierce Brosnan personally welcomed us!

Are Asians always pushing and rushing like that? Anyway, train was super fast.

We sat on a bus to the host institution, Konkuk University. And God, I have to tell you, its crazily cold out there in Korea! Never felt such strong bursts of wind and chilling atmosphere before in my life. Dragging our 75 tonnes bags up the slope to our hostel in the below freezing point weather is one of the most painful experiences ever. We felt we were gonna die.

Our fingers felt like they were numb. That's why I didnt took any pictures right until we reached the warm heavens of our rooms. Again, Korea amazes me with its high-tech hostel rooms that even has a freaking electronic door! Imagine that in Malaysia.

We were starving, so some of us mustered whatever courage we got (of course, the hunger helped a lot) to search for dinner in the nearby town. My first Korean walkabout...

Arrived at a food stall. Here it is, classic original Korean kimchi. P.S.: I'm never actually a fan of this spicy delicacy.

They love to serve food in elaborate fashion.

Street food! Save it for an empty stomach later!

The nightlife is exciting. Bars and pubs abundant.

Oh yeah, I also had the chance to take some pics with Yoona. Apparently, she's a fan of ALSA too.

Mr.Hamsap would never let this opportunity to slip either.

Time for sleep. It was an exhausting journey. Shared a room with Jackson.

The next morning, we searched around for food. They have hotdogs and sweet Korean pancakes for sale. But I chose some special pancake that has an egg inside. Delicious!

Lunch not long after that. Ok, so we actually woke up around 11am so I think its branch lah. This was fresh chicken and vegetables in sumptuous spicy sauce cooked in front of you.

Had a little walk around the university after that.

Oh, I love the lake behind us. More pictures on that later!

Meanwhile, we prepared for the grand welcoming dinner that very night. They had such a great array of food that I was left literally stunned for awhile. Talk about good hospitality! LOve you, my Korean friends!

Yummay! From exquisite steamed fish,many fried stuff, egg rolls, sausages, fruits and many more!

Jackson looks....half Indian, half Jewish?

Yeo curious whether the soju bottles can fly after tied by a balloon.

Talk about soju! This favourite Korean alcoholic drink is such fun to gulp down with a bunch of friends. Park, our Korean caretaker for the Malaysian delegation, got us into a game of rock, scissors and stone; all cups were a mixture of soju and beer except for one, the loser chooses the last cup...and most probably, has to drink the 100% soju! That left Yeo, Eugene, Don, Jackson and most of us red faced throughout the night. Park was awesome, he said: "We Koreans drink soju like water!".

I'm pretty sure they looked more riled up and disastrous after drinking. ;)

Time to perform "Thriller"! It was one of the most embarassing...and fun dance I've ever did!

Apparently, Malaysian zombies are not scary at all.

The Indonesians doing their stuff.

Some really funny people from the Japan delegation.

Hongkong TVB actors reaching for the stars!

Group shot!

After the dinner, decided to walk about the town again. Who wants freezing cold Baskin Robbins in freezing cold winter??!!

Here are some things that reflects Korea:

First time I've seen anything like this: snow from the sky, sweeped to the side of the pavement and left to freeze.

Typical busy day for locals. Beautiful and stylish cars criss-cross the bust streets. People looking handsome with their jackets and suits in the breezy gust of air. Vapour forming when people embrace in friendly conversations. The occasional shouts from Korean vendors.

Of course, the trees look so enchanting without the leaves! Walking along this street feels really romantic.

More updates on the next few days to come. The excitement is just beginning!

What I've Been Doing So Far

2011-06-09T12:05:00.000-07:00

I don’t exactly adore long holidays. Yeah, you get excited initially, but after that everything goes a little stale and the mundane mode kicks in to bore the living crap out of you. So what have I been up to for the past one month?

Facebook-ing, Malaysian Insider-ing, watching commencement speeches since it’s the season again (yes, I do it but I don’t know why. Maybe for the inspiration? I’m a very emotional guy), browsed travelogues on holiday destinations, completing a law-related article, etc. Oh, and Korean movies like Midas have been my loyal midnight companions too. Yeap, don’t remind me that I’ve been doing dead boring stuff all the time. I actually wished that I am living in the Klang Valley as most internships, volunteer missions and interesting work are centered around here. Yes, I’m also a guy with many excuses.

The more productive ventures I’ve immersed myself in? Read some quirky books. Super Freakonomics blows my mind off and gives yawning statistics such a twist that you remain baffled by all the weirdness on planet Earth.

The second book is a more academic one: “Federal Constitutions – A Comparative Study of Malaysia and the United States”. It highlights the remarkable (and also challenging) formation of the American Constitution framed at the Philadelphia Convention in 1787 and its important features such as the doctrine of separation of powers. It also gives us a historical flashback of Malaya’s own Reid Commission styled Federal Constitution. Alas, the mash of similarities and differences between the two is an intriguing one and it teaches you that each country as well as each era requires different principles as pillars to construct a nation’s most powerful legal document.

The third one is “What Your Teacher Didn’t Tell You” by Malaysia’s hippest intellectual Dr.Farish Noor. And I must say, its freaking awesome! Challenging our shallow and misplaced understanding of History in the Malayan archipelago, his attempts at restructuring our perspective of Malaysia is a fresh, sexy and groundbreaking one. I strongly suggest that he rewrites our History textbooks!
I’ve also done a little soul-searching these past few days. The death of a distant grandaunt has got everyone talking on how we should treasure the ones around you while they’re still around. It’s very true. That life is so fragile, breakable and poof!...gone…just like that. Also, my great-grandmother’s dog was brutally bitten to death by 3 stray ones. Poor thing, I miss that guy already. Ok, maybe the latter incident isn’t exactly the most powerful spark of epiphany but it still helps putting me into the backseat to reflect on myself.

I’ve set certain goals in life. But as I review them, I came to realize that those dreams are so…typical in nature. You know, the same way a char kuey teow man aims to sell 200 plates a day…that’s the same mindset a student emphasizes throughout an education in the desperate race to achieve good grades. Or to win a particular competition. To ace an award to make yourself proud. And it ALWAYS has to revolve around academics. I’m not saying its wrong, nor that I do not enjoy it. It’s just…well, UN-EXTRAORDINARY. At this point of life, I don’t think I’ve achieved much nor did I make any significant change to the community. You want to do something so different and 360 degree-ish turning point mumbo jumbo so that you wouldn’t regret later. A fresh objective to pour my blood, sweat and tears?

Economics? Photography? Travelling?

A New Dawn: The Subject of Law & Society

2011-06-01T02:23:00.000-07:00

By Lim Wei Jiet

You could say that studying Law and Society is like jumping in a Harry Potter quest to destroy You-Know-Who. Dumbledore doesn’t tell you where the Horcruxes are, the only note you got isn’t from your buddy but a man called Regulus Arcturus Black AND you’re most probably going to end up like a depressed, confused and bespectacled nerd.

But believe me, reflecting back on those days, it was a magical journey that brought me to the realisation that the law is much more than establishing negligence, forming a contract or flipping feverishly over the Federal Constitution. Law & Society is an overarching umbrella subject to all branches of law, shading you from the blinding perception that your legal knowledge is only limited to solving tutorial problems and the occasional “Hey, I see an exemption clause in this Mid Valley parking ticket! See, law actually applies to real life!” moments. No, law applies to the human world in a force much more impactful than that. This subject dives deeper into the complexities of socio-legal relationships and along the way; you spawn an appreciation to the beauty and vitality of law. That the law is a living thing and it, sometimes rather eerily, plays such a tremendous role in shaping our very lives.

It was a subject that was revived by the faculty after a curriculum restructuring which puts the new semester system in place. Among the wide array of conventional subjects offered, what the faculty wants to inseminate is an element of humanity within the hearts of budding players in the legal arena. It was a right move made at the right time, given the fact that the welfare of the Malaysian society is often neglected along the lines of legal careers, politics and frustratingly, judgements.

An important prerequisite to the more philosophical jurisprudence, Law and Society is a more general reflection of, well, the society of course. What does the society expect from the law? How wide are the doors of justice open to the man on the street? Do laws change over time as the society progresses? At the end of the day, questions normally overwhelm answers and students are left to grope in this borderless terrain of haze.

But that is exactly what makes Law and Society so interesting to me. Sorry to the bookworms because this ain’t some mind memorising marathon as it requires you to flex your general knowledge muscles towards the happenings of everyday life. You need to appreciate facts such as the implications of the Communist system towards the ordinary citizens of China, the African-American Civil Rights Movement in the United States and even the ever spicy political developments right here in Malaysia. Of course, some eager beavers, including me, get carried away with the Wikipedia pursuits but it is always important to link those critical issues back to legal development.

One major highlight of studying this subject is how social change acts as an engine to legal change. There are 3 aspects to social change which catalyses the ramification of laws: cultural lag, cross-cultural borrowing and great men. While our lectures focused on the Law of Industrial Accidents in 1900s America, let’s put all those technicalities aside and see how this reflects exactly with the winds of change sweeping Malaysia. Selangor’s Freedom of Information Bill 2010 wouldn’t have been materialised if it wasn’t for the rising demand by the society for a more transparent and accountable state government. During the course of its formation, we can inevitably witness cultural lag in the form of a long tabling process due to opposition from certain quarters, cross-cultural borrowing elements when other Commonwealth FOI Bills were referred to and great men such as Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim as well as Elizabeth Wong leading the charge. Put the Whistleblower Protection Act 2010, Personal Data Protection Act 2010 and the amendment of the University & University Colleges Act into the equation too. What makes Law and Society eye-opening is that you realise how these legal reactions are actually taking shape around you, even as we speak, moulding itself into a more dynamic form which demands attention as the time passes.

This brings us to the second issue at hand: Do the laws always address social change? Of course they don’t in Malaysia! What do you expect? To illustrate this, we have to transport ourselves back in time to our first year study trip to the town of Bukit Koman. As uncontroversial the place may sound, in reality, the people of this place have been suffering over the years from incessant cyanide poisoning from a nearby gold mining factory. Deformed babies and skin rashes continue to plague the community as their pleas were turned a deaf ear by the authorities, like something out of an Erin Brockovich movie. The Bukit Koman residents have even formed their own committee, held demonstrations, appealed to the Health Ministry for inspections, consulted the big shots in the State and even gone to court, but to no avail. Can you imagine how touching it is when a man in his 60s say that he is still fighting all the way for the sake of his grandchildren? At this day and age, why doesn’t the Malaysian legal system which has a full set of statutes, courts and enforcement officials, cater to these stricken minority groups? Ultimately, where is justice?

Justice. A utopian ideology constantly in dogged pursuit. And nothing gets more interesting when the valiant crusaders of social morality are brought right into the classroom especially for you. Law & Society has always welcomed personalities of various expertises to talk, mingle and share their experiences with us. A critical discussion of justice with Malik Imtiaz, jaw-dropping factual revelations by the Consumers Association of Penang, heart-warming stories of public interest litigators fighting for the rights of the Orang Asli and hilarious yet stunning talks on our rights by Dr.Azmi Sharom are among the few orgasmic moments enjoyed by us students. This fruitful engagement with the ‘real world’ exposes us to the bitter reality of justice in our country. We may feel disappointment, disgust and sometimes anger, but after every session, there’s this spark of inspiration which reignites our continued struggle for justice in society. Yes, stretching the boundaries and never letting go of hope.

And I think those are the qualities that the faculty is trying to instill among the first years and hopefully remain beyond our education until the twilight of our legal careers. Whether our students soar high to become esteemed judges, top-notch litigators or government officials, I think Law & Society acts as an anchor to remind us that the welfare of the society must be placed at the pinnacle of our actions. What we do shape the law, which in turn shapes the society. And befitting a circle of life, what the society demands will transform the law too in return. Rather arrogantly but not without truth, we are the main players who have the power to drive this wheel of reciprocity in order to achieve a healthy and progressive society.

To end my article, perhaps its best to quote Abdoolcader J in the judgement of Tan Sri Haji Othman Saat v Mohamed bin Ismail [1982] 2 MLJ 177, where he valiantly said: "Even if the law’s pace may be slower than society’s march, what with increased and increasing civic-consciousness and appreciation of rights and fundamental values in the citizenry, it must nonetheless strive to be relevant if it is to perform its function of peaceful ordering of the relations between and among persons in society, and between and among persons and government at various levels."

Ultimately, the real test to gauge the success of Law & Society is not memorizing those legal jargons in Steven Vago’s book. Not rushing for the free newspapers at the library everyday. Not hopping at the sight of an “A” on the result slip. But it is the courage to put ourselves forward into the legal battlefield in championing the rights of society in the future.

The writer would like to thank Puan Zalina Abdul Halim and Mr. Wan Zokhri Wan Idris for giving their views as the pioneer educators of Law & Society. He also strongly believes that keeping your eyes open in lectures, rummaging The Star for the front page news instead of Chelsea’s glorious victories at the back and nefarious addiction to Loyarburok.com is the best combination for a highly enjoyable Law & Society education.

Choosing

2011-05-27T06:57:00.000-07:00

Again, we come at the crossroads of life. God must have had a jolly good time handing down these tectonic tests to a mere mortal like me. What's up with the big guy lately? The trials, tribulations and troubles?

But then again, who's to really shoulder the burden? These are choices, active ones at that, which I created for myself. No complaints there. The stakes are high this time around, like I mentioned earlier. Whatever move made, it is going to charter much of the course of my remaining 3 years at the faculty. It requires a lot of mental calculations, pros and cons tussling and anchor deep thought. Sometimes, it reaches to the verge where it's pretty scary. Yes, you can't predict what's going to happen in the future, and that itself is just plain freaky.

Nevertheless, it gives me a chance to reflect upon my experiences, achievements and expectations in law school. What a ride it was. I flashed back on the awesome time I had with my friends...the things I had done to make myself proud...the things I had tried to do to make the faculty shine...everything. And it comes to that defining threshold of moment when you extrapolate the shadows of the past to the glimmering sparks of the future...but eventually realizing that those may just be illusions or smoke...visible, but will never be really felt, touched and embraced.

Yet, the heaviest boulder that has been halting me to dive to the deep sea are the obligations I promised & left behind, which will possibly never be fulfilled. I do realise I have signed up for certain activities and have vowed to fulfill the responsibilities that come with them. However, things may change one day. And if my desertion causes any inconvenience, trouble and dissapointment to the individuals that have hinge their hope upon me, then I am truly sorry for this unexpected turn of events. It was never once in my intention to betray your trust, discard your hard work or ditching everything into a selfish pursuit without taking into account the feelings of people around me. No, that was never in the equation.

Whenever I signed up for any posts or commitments, I meant every word I said during the interview and honestly had great plans to fulfill my tasks as a responsible member. For that, I extend my sincerest apologies to all that are affected. Maybe it's fated that I shall not be able to serve for this time around.

Of course, all of these falls into place IF I do sail away from the safe harbour? Why would I want to do so? Why risk the material & emotional wealth in search of something particularly oblivious?

Because you have chosen to let go of it. To free yourself from the shackles of predictability to be unleashed to the great, exciting unknown. To search for greater sparks, greater glory and a greater state of mind...for that is every man's dream, well, maybe MY dream which I'm so keen to pursue all this while.

"And that's a sacrifice you have to take, mate", that's what my inner self always say.

It's not hard to make decisions when you know what your values
are"
~ Roy Disney

I think I know where mine falls. It's just a matter of time, patience and that big leap of faith.

The Art of Debates

2011-05-24T19:46:00.000-07:00

It has been a year since I've ventured into the debating scene. The first time when I wanted to commit myself in this 'intellectual art', I knew I had to make certain sacrifices. To be absent from gatherings with friends on Monday night, play a never-ending chasing game with time in order to keep up with every nook and cranny in law school and missing the opportunity to pursue college stuff for me to have a roof on top of my head the next semester.

It's an occupation that comes with very little appreciation and unjustified paybacks. No one really extends you credibility when you do not win tournaments. It feels even worse when college kicks you out, ignoring the immense sacrifices and hard work a person has undergone to bear the UM flag into the debating arena.

Of course, there are a few perks and it really doesn't sound that bad to a somewhat optimistic soul like myself. I had the time of my life during those months of having debated with the top teams in Malaysia and Asia as a whole. With boss around, I giggled, laughed and had a wonderful time joking around with the UM team. And I sure did enjoy tremendously when I made a fool out of myself on stage.

Thus, it comes to a point where I ask the question that has been lingering in my mind all this while: "How has debating changed my life?". Not many people see things in retrospect, and that is one of man's greatest failures. Bearing in mind the ideology that "Debating Is The Way Of Life", I went on a journey in search for the pieces of precious jewels I could discover in the battering & messy sandstorm of debating.

Before that, it is crucial that a paragraph of Steve Job's speech in 2005 at Stanford University's graduation ceremony is thrusted into this discussion:

"If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.

Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life."

~ Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios.

Was it the few trophies I managed to collect throughout this one year? Was it the number of triumphs that measured one man's success?

The answer is no. There has to be a far better yardstick to see how critical discourse has shaped my learning and living curve.

I strongly believe that debating has changed the way I perceive things, challenged my mental machinery to its limits and transformed the way I live my life. But I want to narrow the scope of my 'analysis' (a term used so often in debates), and focus on how exactly, I think, that debates has made me a better law student. All right, straight to the chase....

#1 The precious value of organisation

It is very crucial that we organise our thoughts and speech during debating. It has also been a norm for me to signpost new points in order for the judges to be extremely clear of what I'm hitting at. No one likes a messy, unoriented and disarrayed speech like a loose cannon.

I don't know why, but since debating, I have a tendency to shun reading notes right from textbooks. If it's a whole chunk of unpalatable information, how can a person digest the points properly? It's like munching down a 12 inch Subway just so your tastebuds can lick around a few pieces of pickles. So, as much as I hate it, I tend to make my own notes. Short, concise and straight to the point. Then, only you further elaborate using your own imagination. (Read: Goreng out of thin air. Yummy!) Just like in debates. No one writes an essay just to deliver a 7 minute speech. And I'm pretty certain it has helped me breeze through thick textbooks in ease, especially when you don't have much time in revision week. In the exam hall, things come back to your mind faster than usual. Even when answering the question, do you tend to write in brutal military precision & structure...rather than on a scampering rampage of...erm, poetry writing?

#2 To think and respond fast

In the debating dynamics, you are expected to respond to a POI with decent counter-answers and have the uncanny ability to analyse your opponent's arguments & break it down to pieces. In split seconds. Because time waits for no one, especially when you're about to speak in 2 minutes. You gotta learn to stay calm, think maturely and respond adequately in lighting speed.

How does this tally with studying law? Everything, actually. Whenever you read those super long and complicated Family Law question, your mind instantly goes to work. Digesting the key terms, analyse how best to address the problem and start writing. No time for hesitation and a blur face smacked in the exam hall.

#3 Deeper analysis

No one appreciates a shallow analysis of ideas in debates. Merely knowing that WTO facilitates trade among countries and nothing else, is a pure recipe for disaster. I have learnt that you always need to dig deeper, because, well, that's where the treasures lie.

I only learnt how valuable this somewhat crazy chase for further knowledge is in my second semester. Fortunately, I had the luxury of the time to spend a few days in the library. And it was an amazing and exhilarating experience going on a journey beyond the conventional textbooks which lecturers provide. Winfield & Jolocwiz replaced Norchaya's Torts and books on the Straits Settlements written in the 1920s were my staple for MLS besides Dr.Johan's lectures. And I daresay I have benefited a lot from going deeper into the twists and plots of the law. Opinions from different scholars give you an edge and liberates your mind. Even when I don't have the time to apply it in exams, it's a great experience nonetheless. You tend to appreciate the value and complexity of the law more.

#4 To be in a better position to judge

When you're in debates, you have the opportunity to weigh in both sides of the divide to choose which one is better. Even to the extent of using the other side's arguments against themselves. Which means, even if you think vegetarians are a bunch of psycho 'save the earth' wackos, you gotta put on those green gloves and start squeezing something in defence of the vegetarian cause. See? Getting into the other side and trying to understand their point of view? It makes us better citizens who are matured in making decisions in life.

That's why I don't tend to buy arguments easily on face value, even when the speaker is some distinguished Datuk or something. We have to think critically before becoming slaves to another mind control mission. That's what makes law students different from others: we have our own opinions, we look beyond what is forwarded to us and we judge people better.

That's all for now. Of course, there are many more changes I have experienced in my social life in communication since debates. But that's another story to tell.

(SapphireDragon is bored of economics. Can someone make it spicier to digest?)

Library Rants

2011-05-12T06:51:00.000-07:00

I'm in the library now. Fiddling around Malaysian legal history texts. Yes, we do have a LEGAL ASPECT to add to an already pre-conceptual negativism towards history after 5 years of torment in high school. Frankly, it's more enjoyable than good-old Sejarah. Never fail to roll my eyes whenever those writers add in their own "the definition of tamadun according to Western idealogy is not right, boycott McDonalds!" and "ooh, the Brits didn'd discover astrology, it's one of those Indian gurus , all hail the great Asians!" brand of thought. I mean, come on man, I thought History is supposed to be subjective? Impartial? Unalligned to anyone?

I guess, through the eyes of the law, there is always a black and a white. That's what makes it a little appealing. It's up to us to decide whether Francis Light governed Penang as well as Lim Guan Eng or if he's a pompoys doushbag that chased those few Malay fisheren away to plant the Union Jack. And boy oh boy, who doesn't love the eerie, mysterious shades of grey?

I have to admit, my relationship with the library has grown fonder by the days. On first glance, it's a monstrous edifice of hauntingly thick legal statutes, robotically arranged amidst the freezing unwelcoming air that sentenced the death knell on a freshie's inate curiosity for knowledge. These days, books seem to be dancing happily along the catchy rhythm of mental orgasm, as I plough the brilliant legal illustrations of past luminaries of this faculty. Not bad after all, yeah.

I guess I'll miss the library after I'm gone. The books, magazines and the toilets. Yes, they're super squeaky clean. It's as if an invisible makcik cleaner is standing at the corner waiting to wipe your pee off the toilet seat. Together with the walkway, cafe and tutorial rooms. It'll be a long time till I see these places again. Yeah, 1st year is gone. Just like that.

But, then again, time waits for no one. Time to move on. The world, like I dream of, awaits in the future.

10 Dos & Don'ts of Law School

2011-05-05T00:38:00.000-07:00

It gives me the jitters whenever I reflect how fast one year of law school has passed. Dramas as controversial as chick fights in Desperate Housewives. Burgeoning workload which lecturers so devilishly designed to haunt us greenhorns. A tsunami of legal jargons such as ignorantia legis non excusat (which really explains why you get a C in exams, if you know what I mean) smashing into the overburdened neurons of us eager beavers.

It’s a story that deserves to be told to the world.

Therefore, in the light of my sordid, intriguing, head-spinning, zestful and roller-coaster concoction of experiences, I hereby, in my position as a distinguished Law Lord of the Phony Council, declare the “10 Dos and Don’ts of Law School”.

1) Never decline for an invitation to catch a movie or to hang out with friends. Yes, even 24 hours before an exam.

Those moments of giggling in the cinema watching Fast & Furious, random excursions to I-City in Shah Alam, getting lost in Kelana Jaya along our gastronomical hunt and searching for pontianaks in the faculty at 3am in the morning are undeniably the BEST moments one can ever experience. It’s this beautiful journey down the alley of friendship which makes your life in university so colourful. Who cares of exams when you have such great buddies? I haven’t been thinking of Contract Law in first semester since a gazillion years ago, but I sure hell do remember word-by-word Yeo’s super humorous perverted jokes whenever he’s with us.

Now, wouldn’t that be awesome (!!!) to tell your grandkids than “From July to December 2010, I, erm….studied. Yup, that’s...pretty much it.” ?

Read: BORING.

2) Don’t take up scholarships if you can’t afford to keep up with a 3.5 CGPA. Especially, when you’re in UM’s law faculty.

It’s no secret that to score an A in any paper here, you need a hypothetical situation of an Emeritus Professor sitting for your brother’s UPSR English paper. For an extra bloody 15 minutes, just in case. Yup, University of Malaya’s law faculty sets extremely high standards. I’m perfectly fine with it. I just find that some people are pretty stressed up to achieve their scholarship targets. Opt for PTPTN, a scholarship that has lower requirements or FAMA funds so that you don’t cut short 5 years of your life.

3) Take the opportunity to join the myriad of activities & programmes the faculty has to offer. Each is special in its own.

UM law faculty is just like the present BN government: as much ETPs, GTPs, NKRAs, PEMANDUs and agencies it sets up, we have it all here in equal numbers. For those who want to contribute back to the society, we have Community Awareness and Outreach programmes. If you want to mingle with some hot Korean chicks and Thai guys, there’s always ALSA to build your international connections. Couple that up with LawNites, Law Career Conventions, Law-Med Challenges and a few more, the opportunities are endless. Choose wisely.

4) On hindsight, sometimes it’s better NOT to choose too wisely. Just jump into the heat of the action if you’re even slightly interested. It helps and you often come up saying “Awesome! Didn’t know I could experience that!”.

Like what Russ Cargill in The Simpsons Movie said: “Anyone can pick something when they know what it is; it takes real leadership to pick something you're clueless about”. Ok, it may sound pretty dumb, but trust me, it’s a risk that comes with satisfying rewards. If I hesitated and thought too much about things, I wouldn’t have hopped onto the plane and experienced such an awesome study trip to Seoul, Korea. On the other hand, don’t join too much stuff, especially in law school. Juggling 5 burning bowling balls on a unicycle above a pool of sharks isn’t a pretty sight.

5) Spend more time in the library. Yes, flip those books and get nerdy!

The Tan Sri Professor Ahmad Ibrahim library is undeniably one of the best stops for indulging in legal reading, what with its wide source of textbooks, dictionaries and journals. In fact, it’s the freaking largest law library in South East Asia! If you’re bored with the academic stuff, there are always the newspapers, computers to do some Facebook-ing, autobiographies of Lord Denning, novels and some real funny written jokes on lawyers. And no, you won’t feel sleepy because you’ll be too embarrassed to do so, especially when you start drooling. That’s what Dr. Johan said, anyway.

6) Push yourself when you feel like giving up. Yes, everybody experiences that. It’s the time when you learn to be strong and move on.

The stress will start to haunt you when examinations come. Some people might wonder why they’re in law school in the first place, but the lesson here is to always have faith in yourself. Refer to rule number 1 if you need to release stress. As for me, I’ve been joining debates for a few months and now and I do feel extremely pressured looking at how ass-kickingly good the debaters out there are. It is demoralizing and you feel you will never achieve that kind of level. Learn from them and you’ll get better one day.

7) Make friends and interact with your lecturers. You’ll be amazed how interesting they are.

Enough said, we have sufficient wacky encounters to tell for 10 days and nights from our friendship with Mr.Zokhri. It’s refreshing to listen to his experiences of travelling around Europe, studying for a Masters in Japan and his future PhD direction, which seems to be at some mercenary camp deep in North Korea at the moment. Ditto to Professor Norchaya and the other lecturers too. Open up your world, through their eyes. That’s why they joined the academia in the very first place.

8) Raise up your hands and ask questions in class.

I know it’s this creepy, mysterious and widespread disease affecting Malaysian students that makes us passive parrots in class. But, do make an effort to contribute to the subject discourse. It’s particularly insulting to the lecturer whenever the class goes awkwardly quiet for a good 10 seconds when he or she asks for our opinions. Only when after the class, in typical Malaysian fashion, do we stampede ourselves to the front and bombard the poor lecturer with stuff. This gets particularly embarrassing when we have guest speakers to our faculty. And guess what: people will tend to label a person “berlagak pandai” or “saja nak tunjuk-tunjuk” behind their backs when that person does ask questions. Screw them and their childish demeanor, and good luck to them staying in their cocoons.

9) Law students are judgmental and love to gossip. Plus, like what Winston Churchill said “A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to put his pants on”.

Yes, people are naturally Gossip Girl material, but it kinds sucks when things get ugly and out of hand. Hypothesis formed: The smaller a faculty is, the greater the volume of gossips, the bigger chance for clashes and controversies. It’s funny that law students get so judgmental even when they’ve not become judges. It gets even funnier when the maxim of “getting your facts right” and “having authority to back up your case”, which us law students are so accustomed to, hardly comes into effect when people start speeding recklessly at the gossip highway. Anyway, it’s best if you engage with them and tell them the truth. Get things cleared. You have nothing to fear if you know what you’re doing is right. Justice shall prevail!

10) Sit back and enjoy the ride in lectures. It’s the most fun part of coming into this faculty.

Lecturers here are never short of swashbuckling life encounters and spicy opinions on Malaysian society to transform lectures into a juicy arena of excitement. From jaw-dropping Thai kickboxing demonstrations to ponytail-swishing speeches on human rights, charming Constitutional law lecturer smile that can melt a girl’s heart to ferocious Datins that can shred that same heart to gruesome oblivion, and the good old story of sexual intercourse between spouses…who needs ASTRO when you have law lecturers here?

It’s a journey where you explore your weakness and potentials. No doubt, you’ll fall down along the way but it’s important to learn how to get right back up. That’s what I learnt after one year.
Mark Twain once said: "Don't let school interfere with your education". He’s both right and wrong this time. University exposes you tremendous lessons to education, but it’s also those adventures beyond the walls of the Sultan Azlan Shah building which opens the windows of your life to much greater things. Soar, fly high and never look back.

P.S. : Almost certain subject to change when I reach my final year. SapphireDragon will not be accountable for any misrepresentation, misstatements and misinterpretation which result in you taking this list seriously. Some people think law school is a honey flowing heaven, while some swear on their life they see demons and hellfire everywhere here. Each person has his or her own version.

Trying

2011-04-28T07:02:00.000-07:00

Supposing you have tried and failed again and again. You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call "failure" is not the falling down, but the staying down. ~Mary Pickford

Throughout your entire life, you will meet failures in life. And whenever the inevitable demon of dissapointment starts creeping into the veins of our heart, we all begin on a quest to find the sparkling glitter at the end of this deep dark tunnel. We turn to our friends, our parents and sometimes, we turn to those magical sentences coined by men of great stature - quotations.

Yeah, that's what drives me everyday. To seek the embers of inspiration from the various messages these successful people want the younger generation to embrace before their twilight years have passed. I have learnt to stand up after I fall. I have learnt to keep flying towards my dreams even when my wings break. And most importantly, I have learnt to always believe in my own capabilities, to carry on with our life in dignity and to uphold whatever I think is RIGHT.

Sounds very idealistic, right? People say that you can never survive in this society, me living in the clouds with my own sense of righteousness and all. But over the years, I have pushed on in life. Even when I feel so deeply hurt and betrayed by displaying values which I feel I ought to uphold as a fellow human being.

To be honest. To trust the system. To believe that with hard work, comes the reward.

More often that not, you get hurt. It's okay if your standards aren't up to par. I can always accept that, as it's a chance for me to improve. But when your race and finance (both which is beyond my powers to choose) gets in the way, and you realise that you were rejected not because you weren't good enough, but because of external factors, that's when you start losing hope.

I remembered my first rejection. Government sponsored scholarship. Boy, was I buoyed by the prospect of flouting my ego in UK studying law. I placed my entire hopes on it. Crashed, burned. We may never know why, but we know the accusations of affirmative action policies do not magically appear from thin air. I strived on, believing in myself.

There were a few more which rejected me based on my parent's income. I don't have anyy problems with that, knowing that perhaps a kid whose parents were low-income earners will take my place instead. That felt good. It's just that being from a middle-income group family really places you in the unenviable middle: your bank accounts don't have enough zeroes at the back to finance your kid to Australia and your income slip have an extra numerator which denies you because you're "finacially capable". I thought it was a load of bollocks at one time, though. What about my grades and achievements? Doesn't anyone actually appreciate that? Still, I knew I did the right thing and my conscience is clear. I moved on.

Don't misinterpret that I think that every organisation that rejected me were at facult. To the interviewers at Shell, Khazanah Group, Sime Darby and others, a very big thank you for giving me the opportunity to improve myself. Thanks for giving me a chance to polish my interviewing skills and to gauge myself with fellow interviewees who are so inspiring and deserving. I shall never forget those moments. I failed, but I felt elated. Because I knew that I wasn't good enough, that I have to keep my feet on the ground, that I can always do better to have another shot next time. During those times, my deepest appreciation for making me believe there's still hope. I learnt, and stepped forward.

Despite setback after setback, I chose to stick on. To believe. To never cheat on the paper. To never succumb to the capatilastic and utilitarian mindset of rampaging your way, knocking others off to satisfy your individualistic hunger at the expense of morality, honour and deep-rooted values which my family taught me. To disclose the truth. To say to those people: "This is who I truly am. Take it or leave it". Because I so honestly and faithfully place my highest belief to trusting that God is fair; and I shall have my luck one day. One day. I just needed time for it to come.

And it defintely feels great that it has finally came true. I guess I'm pretty lucky to hit the jackpot. It was beyond what I expected. Certainly not an ordinary one, I would say.

Not many people stick on long enough to strive for what they believe in. They think that the quotes we so often read on the walls are pure humbug. They think that it is better to discard our values to fulfill desire. Never giving a chance for nature and the shining rewards of meritocracy to take its time to develop, grow and bloom into a satisfying encounter.

I am proud to say that I have been there and done that. And I'm smiling so happily now. A dream come true. Now, how many times can you say that in life?

To all out there, believe in who you are. The time will come. Trust me, but most importantly, there's no single person out there in the world whom to better trust, than YOURSELF.

Exam Week

2011-04-20T06:12:00.001-07:00

There's one thing I just hate about exam week. No, not the amount of material that needs to be scrutinised deeply. I love reading Torts, Family Law never bores me and Contracts is miraculously interesting this semester. I just HATE to spend so much time in front of my laptop typing out the notes. It makes me filthily lethargic and extremely abnormal.

I miss those times when I could just read blogs all night long and jolt up at 9am for Dr.Vince's MLS class the next morning, which starts at...erm, 9 am. Not to mention rushing around the faculty for some ALSA or LawNite meeting. Or even lepak-ing around with the gang at the cafe or turning into Gossip Girl mode with the 3 Idiots. Gosh, I miss the faculty.

I can't seem to believe how time flies so freaking fast. It has been a year already. KMPP boys and girls have just finished their final exam today. And after 13 May, my first year in law school shall officially ride into the sunset, with the hope that certain subjects don't come scuttering back in search for me.

Not much words can describe how amazing my 1st year experience has been like. I should write a book or some journal about it, compile it for 4 years and pubish for the world to see. Yeah, maybe that's what I'll do. All ze spicy storaayy inside!

Again, God has been playing funny tricks on me. He's at it again; dishing out to me a choice which I have to make. And this time around, the stakes are wayyy BIGGER than anything I've ever been into.

(SapphireDragon is searching for some inspiration for his next try on Loyarburok. He's also looking forward to his next overseas trip of 2011: HongKong! This time around, the flight and accomodation has been, thankfully, subsidised. He's pushing forward to finish the last hurdle of exams in first year, and the journey has been tiring but rather satisfying too. And yeah, he's sorry for the long hiatus from the political scene in Malaysia because like many out there, he's just too disgusted and sick of all the happenings)

Why?

2011-04-11T22:03:00.000-07:00

Chatted with Daniel today on the good old' topic of Malaysian politics. Disregarding the stares at us looking like two over-enthusiastic ah peks at a kopitiam, we talked about Mahathir, judges, Taib Mahmud, future of Malaysia and all the typical stuff about Boleh-land.

Just now, I browsed through a blog of a senior. She wrote about the dismay bloggers had over the mess we have in Malaysia. That they have tried their best to fight for a future their grandchildren deserve. But to no avail, so far. She ended with a note: "Why do we sometimes go through life like nothing matters?"

I remain extremely puzzled with the things Malaysian voters take for granted.

They don't seem to care that a certain Sarawak Chief Minister has been embezzling precious timber resources for his own gain, leaving behind a legacy of fallen trees & barren mountains.

They don't seem to care that certain newspapers continue to spin blatant lies and manipulative statements like some Soviet-controlled government propaganda machinery.

They don't seem to care that our education system, university standards, economic competitiveness haven been rotting all this while. Pursuing the cowardly standard of mediocrity over the race to be the best in the region.

Above all, they don't seem to care that Malaysia has so much talent, potential and people for a bright future.

Why? Why do we always, in typical Malaysian fashion, criticise heavily on certain issues laden with rhetorical anecdotes and amazing linguistic flair...but then just leave the table in nonchalant fashion as if nothing had happened a few seconds ago?

(SapphireDragon is starting to appreciate Contracts. Dreams of singing karaoke sometimes. Dah, he must be mad. A pleasant night to y'all)

Names are NOT changed, SPECIFICALLY to reveal friend's identity. Lesson: Don't ever talk to me if you're afraid you'll get named in my blog.

Time

2011-04-07T17:42:00.000-07:00

"Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein."

~ H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

Recently, I discussed with 2 of my friends on one of life's greatest mysteries, something that physicists are trying to unlock: TIME. Of course, no quantum theories from me but I would very well like to walk to the Science faculty someday to find out. Rather, I'm gonna write about what perspective that university students often, so cliche-ly, look into when the notion of time comes to mind - the lack of it. An abysmal, temperamental and desperate chase in the race against the 24 hours of a day.

Image from http://www.timeforresults.com/images/TimeIsMoney.png

Before that, let's do some light reading first on the issue of time. Here's a good article on it in the Putik Lada section of The Star.

Let us scope down on what are the 5 main avenues in UM that generally utilise time best and reap in the better rewards. In no particular order: Academic studies, faculty activities, college events, central university programmes and what I call the "social & personal experiences which every normal human should have". (sleep, Facebook, Twitter, movies, karaokes, reading novels, relationships, eating, etc. You get the point) There are those who often say, often with a smirk in their face thinking they're some high priest descending from heaven preaching a religion: "There's a need to balance between all activities. Don't join so many...yadda, yadda, yadda". On face value, I say "F*** you". (Of course, never to my mum. LOL. But to close friends who don't mind, yeah, that's what I'll say to you) On second look, M-A-Y-B-E... I should take it back. Sorry, I just can't stand that some people are trying to stifle the imagination, ambition and passion of others just because they screwed up due to their lack of self and time management a few Stone Ages ago. To me, what you're essentially doing is indoctrinating an ideology into the mind of the young ones to be cowards...lacking the balls to plunge into the pool. There's where you miss out the fun playing in the water and learning how to actually swim.

No worries, the shark will look like some pathetic headless ikan bilis once you get the hang of it. Image from http://4.bp.blogspot.com/

Maybe this perception of mine isn't exactly well received by many. And yeah, of course there are a few failures that come with it. But I sure hell did not regret one bit in the many cesspools, ditches, swamps, peats, rivers and seas I have dived into. I learnt a lot. My mind was exposed to the many colourful dimensions of life. I knew how to prioritise and identify which kind of activity to avoid the next time rather than judging things prematurely. Sure, I fell down and was bruised all over. So freaking what? It's university lah brother, you are MEANT to experiment, discover and experience FAILURE. For God's sake, I'm not asking you to invest 30 years of your life's savings into a turbulent stock market. Or into Liverpool FC. Forgive the arrogance (contributed partially by the broken heart of knowing Chelsea losing yesterday) but I'm just putting the message over in a way to convince my friend to take chances in life. Because I really care about his well-being and future. That's what friends are for.

I can't judge what activities out of there are the best for a particular person. You yourself know best. Being in a choir, organising a blood donation campaign, being an emcee in a gala dinner, arranging chairs in a career convention, singing in front of hundreds, writing for a magazine, dancing in a play or going in student exchange programmes to Thailand - it is all up to your interests and what serves you best. What you can define as a "meaningful university experience". Something that you're proud to tell to your children and grandchildren when you grow all white in the hair some day.

Or, try debating. It's heaps of fun and there's this occasional feeling of being stupid. I like that. Image from http://images.publicradio.org/content/2008/10/07/20081007_obama_mccain3_33.jpg

But don't ever, EVER, hesitate to join 2, 3 or 4 activities at once. You may be busy but if you're truly passionate about something, there's always a way to sort things out. God works in wonderful ways. I've tried it. That doesn't mean you also should; but it's only an advice from me as a friend. Not binding, but hopefully as persuasive as Lord Denning's dissenting judgements.

Talking about education (which should be distinguishable with our academic syllabus at hand), I don't know what you think but - students nowadays should actually read more. Not on law related stuff but other stuffs out there. A trip into the world of Scientific buffoonery, spicy entertainment stories, international news on Newsweek, football leagues or just the local newspapers like The Star. (You can read other BN related media, but congratulations on being a few notches dumber after a few weeks. The symptoms appear real fast. Trust me on this.) The world needs a lot more perspectives and colour besides having a conversation on law everyday.

This is the thing that I realised about students. Ok, say we have 10 days to go before an exam. A reasonable man would only take say - 4 days - to concisely cramp in all those facts and regurgitate it into exams. Some people may only need 2 days, especially when it comes into law subjects such as Torts that don't require an over-inflated memory but merely critical application skills. But that's where the ember of kiasu-ism in Asians bursts into an inferno of destructive proportions - its flames licking on our conscience in those hellish 10 days. We'll arrange a timetable to stretch the syllabus as wide as possible in all the 10 days altogether; to cover all those unnecessary topics and cases just so we can feel 'prepared' when we enter the examination hall. Padahal we can ALSO amble in as cool as a cucumber if we're given 5 days. What a bloody waste of time. That's my analysis and it only stands valid on the assumption that a reasonable student only needs 4 days. But I'm pretty sure we all fall victim into this theory at some parts of our lives.

The notorious burning clock. http://www.zoomstart.com/category/productivity/

That's when I feel people should read on other stuff other than law in place of those moments of obsession with something almost imaginary. One friend of mine reads the economic news and stock market all the time like some Warran Buffet wannabe. The other reads up feverishly on political and social happenings in the Chinese media. Both scored well in exams. Here, all people know the law, most people know how to apply the law, half know how to analyse the law but few people know stuffs OTHER than law. In my humble opinion, it is those who utilise their time to the maximum in sharpening their mental capacity with new knowledge that stands out from the rest. You can reasonable foresee that the first guy is going to be a successful bloodsucking corporate lawyer which has synergistic knowledge of the economy and law. The second one could be a DAP or MCA politician for all you know, being conscious to politics and the rule of law. If everyone of my friends became advocates and solicitors behind a desk inside the corners of four walls, life's a boring ride, ain't it?

Therefore, like what Datin said "Read". Except that I encourage people to read other stuffs that will churn out liberal, open-minded and confident graduates in the future. Preferably after we have all passed the Family Law exam, that is.

“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

~Steve Jobs.

This quote may sound contradictory with the things I have written just now. But, well, I do it all the time. Things change fast. But like what the great American entrepreneur said, it is always best to follow our hearts. Despite the setbacks, failure and downfalls, I think I'm still on the right track.

(SapphireDragon abhors take-home test. Like what he posted on Facebook: "Regardless of the ragged riguours of risible roundabout riddles of the word "single parent" in rogue re-examinations, UM's rookie rugrats resultantly rejoiced in reaching a result after immeasurable rigmarole. Of course, rarely in the rampant rat race; do the risky rhthym resolve readily in the recesses of restless runners of realization. Alright, realistically, ain't this all reaching the rank of ridiculousnes?)

Choices

2011-04-02T08:23:00.000-07:00

I've never actually been a great fan of Albus Dumbledore (my fascination towards Voldemort probably clouds my appreciation towards other characters) but here's a quote I really like:

"It is our choices, Harry, that show what we are, far more than our abilities."

Thus, as we amble (or scamper like a mad-dog, depending on who you are) towards the twilight of our 1st year with exams looming ahead, the season of choices greets us with its warm smiles, praying on our unsuspecting naivety. And as we shall realise later that the summer breeze is just a calm before the approaching storm, we are thrown into a whirlwind of confusion, contemplation, hesitation and head-scracthing moments when us puny humans are bestowed the almighty gift of MAKING A CHOICE.

Why does making a choice hold such magical significance? Because, as according to the old dude in pyjamas, the process of making a choice in life is an important indicator of what our personalities truly are. How our futures shall be charted. Screw the fact that you have the ability to cast a Petronus spell in 1st grade. If you don't calculate the risks carefully enough like some nerdy statistician, you have to bear the brunt of the consequences that lie ahead.

I would say that the people who normally fall between a rock and a hard place are those who ask for it. "Good for you!" or "Serves you right!" I might say.

I have to admit, it's not normal for me to sit down like some melodramatic dimwit staring to the sky, weighing the pros and cons of some issue. But apparently, as the stakes get higher and I'm erm, MATURED enough (finally) to transform myself into an accurately as possible mechanical pro-con calculator, that's when things start to look more serious. It's always easy to be swayed away with the winds of random enthusiasm and instant passion which sweeps you into a world of trouble. But having said that, I don;t think I have regretted being such a person who penetrates into every sphere of activity...it's those moments of random-ness that brings the colour, excitement and education on how to manage your time.

So, here I am today, on a see-saw of choices. And after thinking hard, I think its human nature that we want to pursue something that we are passionate about above the "I want to be there just because it feels not OK to leave" mentality.

Some people have to understand that when you are into a quest to achieve something, there are sacrifices in terms of time and energy that comes with the swing of the sword towards the battlefield. And it is never an easy task to choose who you want to spill your precious blood for.

Thing is, some human beings have a diverse range of interest as well as a constant knack for curiosity. That's when sometimes I think it's rather unfortunate that we have to put our conscience to the gizzards in selecting which areas of passion we want to bloom in. Because God doesn't give us a palm that can fit everything. You have to choose.

Yup, I think I have made up my mind. Next, it's just a matter of time to face the consequences of it. And hell, who's scared of whom?

Final Message to KMPP Juniors

2011-04-01T08:38:00.000-07:00

A message to my juniors in KMPP which I posted in Facebook:

I’m writing this, bearing in mind that you guys only have a few more weeks to go before the final PSPM exams, and voila – THE END OF MATRICULATION! Whether you leave this place called KMPP (or some people say, Kiam Pi Pi, which God knows what that means in Hokkien) with the memory that it is a wretched hellhole in the middle of nowhere with dysfunctional toilets, yucky food and lecturers from LazyLand OR it is a paradise of beautiful experiences and forged friendships that changed your life’s perspective drastically, it is very much up to how you spent your 11 months there.

Firstly, I want to convey my heartiest congratulations to Jason and you all for organizing such a fantastic CNY performance. The pictures taken and posted on Facebook (which, of course, could never compare to the actual euphoria) were testimonials of superb cooperation, dedication to deliver the best performances and most importantly, building bonds and having the time of your lives. I’m not sure what the other seniors think of your year’s CNY performance, but I’m quite sure they’ll think alike. You all have definitely raised the bar of what success is all about! With that, comes the deserved praise and you should be very proud of yourselves!

Before you guys change to nerd mode for the exams, as a senior, I hope you cherish the friendships you have made here in KMPP. As much as we like to joke around saying that we will be able to get free medical treatment from our doctor friends 20 years from now, a lawyer buddy to defend in the instance when you become a corrupted asshole or discounts from accountant acquaintances when you request them to audit your company when you become CEO someday, MAYBE there is certain truth in those ripple of giggles we so often engrossed among ourselves today. Connections are important and your friends will help you very much in building a career. Of course, I’m not asking you to befriend as many people as possible so that you can climb up the corporate ladder faster, but genuine friendships can work wonders in many ways.

“Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away.” ~ Hilary Cooper

So, yeah, put those CNY memories, makan-makan sessions and occasional trips to Penang close to your heart. There are people whom you shall never meet again, so do appreciate the last few moments happily being together with friends instead of facing those dreadful books. The picnics you had with your practicum mates, falls into the tasik, movies to Queensbay Mall, running on a bridge, eating superb Penang char kuey teow and many more gleeful events in this short span of time can be composed into a fantastic scrapbook of memories for all. Oh yeah, and Joshua’s melodious voice too. Remember that.

Naturally, I think most of you are gonna have a hard time deciding on the courses you want to undertake after knowing your results. There are those people who are dead sure they’re gonna be an engineer, those who are terribly confused on choosing between the 2 different worlds of medicine or law and lastly, there are those who would rather be a househusband than have anything to do with Maths. Those are the times where you can always approach your seniors for advice and tips on university life. Like usual, we are always welcome to your questions and eager to help you all out. Seek answers enthusiastically, explore, dream and discover your destiny.

I’m terribly sorry that I’m not able to go back to Penang for a quick final visit to KMPP. As for Kishva, Sherlan, MiaoHui and other seniors, maybe you had the chance to meet them because they’re in USM. Enjoy your final days in KMPP and graduate, knowing that you have successfully passed tremendous hardships and achieved academic recognition for your future. The life ahead will be much more exciting, interesting and mind-blowing, trust me.

(Like always, matric students often overlook Law and will go in hordes to the MBBS, engineering and accountancy faculties, but I’m still crossing my fingers and hoping that I can see at least 5 familiar faces when the next academic calendar in UM starts. Good luck to y’all and all the best in exams!)

Wait A Minute, This Happened 2 Years Ago....

2011-03-25T05:00:00.000-07:00

And the SPM results are out! Pupils basking in praises amidst triumphant academic battle cries as the nation reveals the much-anticipated examination results a few days ago. HSM performed, well, reasonably OK....I think its kinda expected, even the brightest nerd from my batch last time would need to suffocate under tonnes of books every night to earn that intellectually orgasmic A+ medal of honour for every subject.

It's been 2 years already. Since the year I received my SPM results. Somehow, those celebratory moments of scoring....erm, erm, reasonably flying colours in 2009 has been overshadowed by the dark periods of my life subsequently. It's like the Japanese during World War 2...you thought you have kicked American ass and shown to the world that you're a rising superpower ready to take on a new world order...only to wake up one day and realise that those Yankees have dropped a few atom bombs, shattered your enthusiasm together with your dreams. And then miraculously, people today seem to have forgotten that you were once a great and proud empire.

Okay, it doesn't sound so bad nowadays. Like the Japanese, I think (or at least, I would like to believe I have) I have rebounded and gained the pride that seems so distant some time ago. Like the Japanese, I guess, recovering fast in post World War to dominate the global arena economically instead. Tasting failure and learning from it.

Living the life now, as it is. Well, life now isn't perfect either but I guess you just gotta deal with it, over and over again.

(SapphireDragon is sick of politicians flaunting other people's sexual endeavours. And he feels that the media is full of bull too, giving the undeserved attention to the monkeys out there. And last night's Itallianies meal was cheesy...but fantastic nonetheless, with the LawNite gang. Love you guys!)

Law-Med Aftermath.

2011-03-19T05:57:00.000-07:00

Somehow, waking up at 7.00 am on a Saturday morning isn't what I usually do. But we had an interesting Law-Med Challenge debate scheduled that morning on the motion "THBT euthanasia should be legalised in Malaysia".

No, not gonna dwelve into the mechanics and issues of the debate but to cut short, the law faculty won. Hey, those doctors may kick our 24 hour-library-seat-warming-doing-research asses in sports but we sure do have the oral mastery over them!

One thing I have to say though: the attendance of law students to the auditorium that day was....grosteque, to say the least. I could barely lift my head up high, seeing that not even one law student was around. No, not seeing us debating, but attending the medical forum itself after that which discussed about critical issues involving litigation and doctor-patient relationships. Which certainly can add some value to our torts understanding on the law of negligence. A medical professor, experienced lawyer and our own lecturer who were part of the forum. And....it just feels weird and discouraging that there was a huge lack of participation from the faculty.

I know the reasons for this. One year are having their moots...and us first years have our APK seminar, where everyone is rushing to attend to grab that 10% or marks promised. Well, I don't know what the response was like last year and the previous years before...but when you see medical students travelling all the way from 6th college (and they're not even getting prizes for the prize-giving ceremony later), you tend to question the question..."Erm, why is this happening?" (eyebrows raised). Questions which you, me, and most importantly, those outsiders of our faculty like the medical students and people invited to speak, know truly well will ask themselves too. It just doesn't bring a good name to the faculty, to put it simple.

I know, it's a Saturday morning, blah blah blah....we need to go for some outings later at Mid Valley and so on. But some of us could have spared some time and entered the auditorium after the APK seminar, right? Ok, probably it was a problem of publicity...but in most cases, it is often not. I guess. Or at least, that's what I sense.

It's just that chances like these are hard to come by and I think everyone should take the chance to learn a few things from these discussions. But I think what I want to highlight is not specifically this forum, but, like what Prof. Norchaya says " A helicopter's point of view". There's this lack of sense of involvement in our faculty events...of course there are as many exceptions as there are people who wash their hands off everything.

I just wished that more people could come and cheer the futsal teams as if it was the World Cup when we're playing. I just wished that more people would scream like in crazy Super Junior concerts whenever our basketball players score. I just wished that there's that sense of belonging, support and unity when I stare high into the steps of the auditorium and see it filled with enthusiastic friends. That's all. Isn't that the spirit the Law-Med Challenge is trying to ignite among ourselves? You can go and see pictures of NUS's Law-Med Challenge if you want a model of comparison. Doesn't anyone appreciate the intense rivalry of this 2 great academic professions?

Mr. Ranjan, a lawyer from P.S. Ranjan & Co, come up and talked about how much fun he had back in UM last time. About the great judges like Tun Suffian. On Raja Abdul Aziz Addruse. And what he said at the very few paragraphs of his speech was true: That lawyers must not only possess the skill, but a sense of fairness and justice. A real understanding of the issues affecting our society and how important the laws which we practice in our everyday lives can change that. And essentially, change the fabric of our society. That' why it's great to enter COP, ALSA and other various activities. Or go to explore another subject of choice in university. Work as a singer, photographer and musician. It exposes you to the weaknesses of our system, it operates the human heart and stuffs it with compassion and it opens your eyes to our very imperfect world. And hopefully, one day, we'll make good lawyers.

Perhaps that's the message that I'll try to put into our coming junior batches. That law school, essentially, (omg, this is gonna be so cliche) is not only about opening books...but opening our eyes to the world too.

(SapphireDragon had an inspiring time at the Pusat Rakyat Loyarburok for Ops Pisang today. He doesn't know why, but somehow he is starting to hear voices of Lord Bobo Barnabus. Perhaps it is time to transform into one of his minions soon)

PS: No malice intended in this blog. Do read carefully and attempt to pick up the positive implied meanings instead of just browsing through the seemingly negative surface.

My Second Semester, So Far.

2011-03-16T09:33:00.000-07:00

Many things have been happening lately, from the awesome packed gatherings till the bittersweet you-know-how-it-feels competition syndrome. Just a recap on what's cruising through my life before my teenage pistons start shooting me into another adventure until I totally forget everything:

The 3rd Malaysian Debate Open 2011 at MMU Malacca. Although it sucks not winning the number of rounds targeted and evidently, not breaking into the octo finals, we had a smashing time nonetheless. On the 1st day itself, we were blitzkrieg by a exhaustively 4 number of rounds which left virtually everyone like a freaking virgin doing.....err, 4 times on his first try.

Fortunately, Prabha was there to entertain us with his wacky jokes. Didn't knew debaters had overflowing bucketfulls of humour. Well, that was the viagra that gained back my momentum, I guess.

At the dinner! Gorgeous girl beside me, kan?

Next, we celebrated Jimmy's birthday at some funky Chinese restaurant giving a huge tong of milk tea to guests whenever one of them is celebrating his or her birthday. Not to mention huge tongs of fun, laughter and juicy stories.

Law students can't get any more childish, eh?

Presenting LawNite 2010/2011! An annual gala dinner to commemorate the final years as they embrace the very last chapters of academia and hop into the (supposedly dark and unwelcoming) world of work.

Me and Affendy, always a charm. Also crowned LawNite King.

Me and the gang of organising committee members. Worked our asses off for 9 months for this very night.

I adore this picture to bits! All the 1st years that attended that night. Although the spotlight wasn't on us (well, it shined straight onto us LITERALLY in the picture) that glamorous occasion, I certainly had good memories with most of them. It's nice rushing around eating food on peoples' tables while working!

Buddy gathering cum barbecue party cum wet party at Celena's apartment at Pantai Hillpark. It's such a nice place to live in: the nice looking people, Lamborghinis, swimming pool (I was thrown into it. On freaking 2 times!) and nice ambience as a whole....wished I could stay here if I did get kicked out of college next year.

To end this, just a few snapshots of my trip to Korea. I have saved the best for a later blog post which I'm working on, but do enjoy all these!

In the air!

No, of course I don't wear like some 19th century Englishman with bookworm spectacles on normal occasions! It's a nerd party....where we're supposed to look like Ugly Betty Malaysian versions who pose with an outrageously outdated and lame 'peace' sign in front of the camera because we have been staying at home all the year reading books and don't have a clue of what's happening outside. And yes, that's Chrysanthemum tea in the bottle if you're curious, NOT some alcoholic beverage or Korean soju that will drive us nerds to the verge of losing control of our minds with just a sip.

You wanna drink soju, drink it like REAL men like us! Outside during the freezing winter amidst the falling snowflakes. By the way, from right to left: Lee Myung Bak, Kim Jong Il, and Rosmah Mansor with an obviously wardrobe-malfunctioned pink jacket. God knows what she's doing in Korea.

Taken at the National Museum in Seoul.

Sorry, but that's all for now. My sincere apologies, as evident in the picture above. Sometimes, a tourist wearing a Korean traditional hanbok and holding a sword in the middle of Incheon International Airport doesn't sound exactly like a good idea. We initally wanted to have pranks on some tourists, but the thought of being deported as a psychotic warrior wannabe on the loose to North Korea stopped us.

Till I blog again, bye!

(SapphireDragon is ready to spill some blood to regain back some pride for the faculty in the Law-Med Challenge debate this Saturday. Nevertheless, congratulations to our badminton and basketball team who gave their best. He is also trying hard to complete his Tort tutorials so that the prospect of being dwarfed mentally by his brilliant professor tomorrow doesn't materialise fully. And he's rubbing his hands in excitement with the interview with our very own Child Law expert in UM, Dr. Farah Nini tomorrow morning)