LifeMinder

Mbatik..

"No one knows how long artisans in Southeast Asia have been making batik, the brightly colored fabric that is printed using a wax-resist process. Although batik is also crafted in Japan, China, India, and some countries in West Africa and South America, there is no other region as inextricably linked with batik as Southeast Asia. Indonesians, and especially Javanese, have swaddled their infants in it, married in it, wrapped their dead in it; batik is an essential element of daily living", quotes from National Geographic's Traveller, October 2009 edition.

De ja vu ... in the dusk

~ * * * ~

I was driving on one afternoon last week. As I ascended a flyover going to the west, sun light struck and follow me me as if the sun was rising.

I drove slowly as the lanes was quite. Enjoying the beautiful rays. The sun was really like it was rising.

On top of the bridge the road is flat. I saw lots of banners and billboards used by the political parties. You can see at the picture, a big billboard used temporarily by Partai Golkar. As seen, maybe the wording is "memberi bukti, bukan janji" -I forgot what exactly written- which means nothing to me anyway.

I smiled realizing that the "sunrise" mood was over when my car descended the bridge, tried to get rid of those "meaningless" slogan.

Maybe it works for others:)

So I backed to reality, the dusk was falling.

~ * * * ~

a girl on the road

I see a child from a distance. Girl.  She's not far physically from my daughter. Maybe older.  Five years old or something

It was cloudy afternoon, the road was quite busy, as usual if you go to Bandung on weekend. If you go straight after the intersection -to the west, you enter toll gate to Jakarta. If you go left, you will go to the Airport. I  waited to turn right -to the north, where my house is located  around 15 minutes drive thru uphill roads.

I remembered when I was 12 years old, I drove a Fiat on this road for the first time.  My father had found me riding a motorbike so he got his driver tutoring me hoping I could forget motorbikes. It was exciting -even though it was not stopping me riding bikes, cousins' or teacher's. This road was not completed yet at that time. Another end of this road heading the city center was still under construction, so it was  a perfect track for a first timer. Several years ago they built a fly over to connect end of this road which is in a west part of the city crossing the Cikapundung river to the city center and all the way to the east.  Seems that the fly over relieves much of traffic congestion, even though it sowed many critics  from urban planners and environmental activists when the plan was announced. I remembered it also stopped for some years due to financial difficulties. I was also sorry my grandmother's house underneath was one to be banished.

The queue started to move approaching the intersection before it stopped again. The red lights only allow less than a minute for cars going right. I was pulling the hand brake when I saw a child. A girl. She's not far physically from my daughter, Danika. Maybe older. Five years old or something. As  most cities in Indonesia, it is very usual you find beggars from old-middle-young men and women, teenagers, to babies carried (rented) by "the mother".

I sighed.

I often wave behind the windshield, an unfriendly gesture for them. Few years back, UNESCO distributed leaflets, asking people to not entertain beggar for their own good.  Many abandoned babies and children, -some were kidnapped- were sold, abused, humiliated, tortured by such organized street mobs. I always wonder where the hell is government attention on this.

I was expecting her to come closer. I wondered how much time she spend on the roads everyday? how did she eat and sleep? How a five year old kid could really survive?  I took a deep breath knowing surely that she would never survive.  Most abandoned kids like her are prone to sexual crimes, many of them are also drugs addict with sexual diseases, and some were death by illegal abortion. I think I was kind of maniac  (looking at a showcase of poverty and social illness) by expecting her to come closer. But she came to a standstill.

She stared to the north. Maybe she looked at some people or cars or advertisement billboards or maybe mountains. I could not guess what was in her mind. I realized that she probably had different cognition with us. She might not see a nice car as our kids' whom wish their father could bring them out with such nice cars -as in 'uneducated' TV commercial. She might simply think if those car could give her more coins today. Or maybe she had thinking of step into the roaring car. Suicide. She probably were waiting for somebody from a car giving her clothing or doll. Or she was just hungry?

The traffic light was going red to traffic from the north. It woke her from her dream as she down barefooted to the hot asphalt knocking car doors for coins, I assumed. I did not remember whether she got coins from cars in front of me. I saw her approaching me as I grabbed two one-thousand-rupiahs left in the coin box. I sometimes feel sorry for not having breads ready to share with them as two thousand rupiahs would only add up her boss' satisfaction a bit. But absolutely not hers.

I lowered my window, called her, she took it and that was it. No thanks no smile no blinking eyes. No nothing. 

And I was so embarrassed hoping for such idiocy.

I stared to the rear view, saw her stopped from one car next to the others. She did not mind. No passion. And no option. Since she dead already. Did we have option?

The thinking swept straight away by horn blown by unmannerly drivers, the green light blinked.



"a girl on the road" in youtube

 





 

Gallery of savagery, Lapindo

A friend of mine shared some nice, satirical yet ironic composition pics in weblog Galeri Kebiadaban Lapindo. Recent posting is a love letter to Adinda Bakrie.

Sympathy to Lapindo victims.

(Dont worry..) Crisis ends 2010

I always have a high skepticism to Indonesian businessman's wishes. Some -if not most of them- were quite satisfied with less-justified assumptions supplied by their managers working under their guidance, some were hesitate to use statistics and to hear facts that against their plan, some were blindly believe in their past experience forgot that world has changed, some were too soft to get rid of flaw judgments and using those to please business partners or banks (whom also like to be fooled as well:) and they together composing a nice wishful thinking scenario.

Men conversation

 

It monotone wordings simply reflects an uncomplicated thoughtful man.. Yet his narrative nailed me down this evening.

PT. Kereta Api corrupt security officers

Corrupt security officer, originally uploaded by A_ndre mobile's pics.

I was about to picked up my wife at Gambir train station at 4.30 am last Thursday. Entering the concourse, I tried to find concourse ticket booth (tiket peron). Gate security told me that the booth open at 7am and asked for IDR 1,500 (15 cents) for allowing me to go upstairs. No ticket whatsoever.. just keep whispering asking for the 15 cents. I called my wife tell her that I prefer waiting downstairs instead of bribing or arguing with those pathetic officers and ask her to get a helper to carry luggage.

No new toll road please...

empty lane vs traffic, originally uploaded by A_ndre mobile's pics.

The city administration of Jakarta is planning to build six inner city toll roads which will cost more than IDR 40 trillion. Jakarta now is one of the highest motorcycle ownership about 339 units/1000 people. Cars is about 180 cars/1000 people, in contrast with one of the most advance city in Asia, Shanghai's 50.

Undisturbed meat seller strike

Food hawkers @Priya school, originally uploaded by A_ndre mobile's pics.

After the soybean.. now turn to meat to get kicked.. The price was IDR 45.000/kg (USD 5/kg) before end up with IDR 52.000/kg (USD 5.7/kg) in only few days. The Jakarta Post reported that the price surge brought hundreds of meat sellers from Greater Jakarta to protest at the State Palace in Central Jakarta on Wednesday, demanding the government stabilize rising price. 

Food (in)security

It should be an enjoyable morning with a healthy breakfast, low GI muesli, blendered LSA beans and soybean milk. But to my surprise.. no soybean. The milk seller apparently wasn't show up for several days.. At the dinner, everyone's favorites, tempe, was out too.  The fermented soybean cake had been missing in the nearby wet market for several days. In East Java, police arrested group of people that were accumulating a large amount of soybean in their warehouse.

Last week, soybean price was increase up to IDR 8500/kg from IDR 5000/kg or 70% increase. Cooking oil's raise from IDR 8500/kg to IDR 11000/kg at local wet market. In Sulawesi, local bean rose from IDR 2000/kg to IDR 7000/kg Some seller claimed that their sales was down to 30%. Former President Megawati who is running for the 2009 election wasn't forget to blow up 'tempe' issue during her informal campaign last week.

Bhutto

The world ended the 2007 with probably one of the most tragic politic assassination within the past decade. Benazir Bhutto was assassinated after she had finished her campaign in Rawalpindi. Everybody turns to her political opponent and parties that was responsible for the death of her father.

Long before she started her campaign, Benazir Bhutto had found herself being threaten by the government.  She had sent an email to Mark Siegel, US advisor and friend, as reported by CNN, stating that if she is assassinated, the government is the one whom dance behind the scene. As she cited Mr Musharraf denial of her request for additional security measures after the trial of suicide bombing in October. She knew.. there was a risk, deadly risk. Maybe the risk is 20% if she's quite optimist or maybe 50:50 or in other words, she knew her life is no different with coins thrown in a roulette wheel. 

Worst ingredients ever.. if you really aware of what you eat

Do you know what is the trans fat is? Calorie counter site says that it is the absolute worst ingredient your food could possibly contain.

Human isn't designed to eat food that we mostly eat now.. Human on the other hand is designed to adapt and evolving until certain extent, but this doesn't means that human digesting system could easily adapt to a large amount of such aliens. Humans best food is a raw fresh food.. steam ones and probably portion of sauteed meals. Now if we eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, and minimize meat, frying foods etc.. we called it detox -once in a month and so on...when this should be part of every day's life.

Kembali ke Lap....top...

"Apa itu lap...top...?"

"Tukul adalah ikon dari ketertindasan. Ia adalah antagonis dari berbagai bentuk kekuasaan yang serba elite dan glamor yang menghidupi televisi. Inilah dunia wong ndeso. Inilah ikon rakyat jelata yang rela dimaki bersama dan boleh mengolok-olok dengan kata-kata kasar." Tulis Garin Nugroho di Harian Kompas beberapa minggu lalu.

Tentang negara : haruskan menjadi bangsa setan-setan?

Krisis yang tak kunjung selesai membuat saya kembali lagi berpikir tentang eksistensi suatu 'negara', tentu konteksnya Indonesia. Sementara negara-negara lain sudah lari, Indonesia masih belajar berjalan. Kalau dipikir-pikir secara sederhana dan cepat, apa yang membentuk suatu 'negara' ? Satu, geografis tentu; dua, sumber daya manusia; tiga, sistem filosofi negara; dan empat, sistem pemerintahan.

Geografis bukanlah determinan utama. Sejarah menunjukkan bahwa keunggulan atau kemajuan suatu bangsa bukan ditentukan oleh besar atau kecil, ada sumberdaya alam atau tidak. Sumberdaya manusia, saya kira Indonesia tidak ketinggalan secara individu. Tapi secara kolektif atau sistem pemberdayaan kolektif mungkin benar. Sistem filosofi negara, Pancasila... Saya kira Soekarno tidak membuat kesalahan dengan hal tersebut. Yang terakhir, sistem pemerintahan... -ini yang dengan mudah terlihat-  sering menjadi kambing hitam. Saya, semua orang, termasuk SBY-JK, tentu berandai-andai untuk mempunyai solusi. Saya yakin tidak ada rumusan solusi yang ces pleng... sampai batas-batas tertentu dapat dipastikan bahwa aksi lebih berarti dibanding rumusan -praksis. Berantas korupsi, tetapkan deregulasi, ciptakan budaya politik yang sehat, dan sebagainya. Pasti ada perubahan jika dilakukan konsisten (ini yang sulit) dan didukung oleh mayoritas rakyat/partai/golongan, dsb... dan memang inilah yang tersulit. Orang Indonesia terbiasa untuk individual, tidak melihat kepentingan yang lebih luas... Apakah "ikatan"nya sehingga orang-orang Indonesia dapat bersatu padu? karena kita melihat terlalu banyak kepentingan individu, golongan. Baik itu atas nama ketenaran, kekayaan pribadi, partai bahkan agama.

Artikel kompas Sabtu 1 Oktober memberikan perspektif yang kontekstual dengan memberikan label ekstrim sebagai model dari sistem filosofi dan pemerintahan suatu negara, yaitu setan-setan egoistis yang rasional dalam "Bangsa-bangsa Setan" dan Universalitas Lunak. Immanuel Kant berjudul Zum Ewigen Frieden atau Menuju Perdamaian Abadi, menunjukan kelemahan manusia untuk menjamin kelangsungan bernegara jika negara men-sahkan atau melandaskan sistem kenegaraannya berdasarkan kekuatan kelompok yang berbasiskan kebenaran absolut agama, moralitas atau kultur!

Mayoritas akan menekan minoritas atas nama kebenaran tersebut, dan pluralisme akan terberangus habis oleh doktrin puritan. Konflik akan selalu terjadi antara mereka, dan kehidupanpun makin menurun atau terombang ambing turun naik. Sebaliknya setan-setan kantian (demikian disebutkan oleh DR F Budi Hardiman, si penulis -entah apa disebutkan juga demikian di literatur tersebut), lebih dapat mengatur kehidupan bersosial dan bernegaranya karena mereka saling menjaga privasi pribadinya.

Buat Kant, setan-setan akan lebih pragmatis dibanding manusia yang religius karena setan pragmatis akan lebih mudah bersepakat dibanding manusia religius yang senang memaksakan kehendaknya dan terus bertengkar demi 'absolutisme' yang dianutnya.. Kontradiktif memang.... setan-setan lebih suka bersepakat, manusia lebih suka bertengkar. Membuat rukun setan melalui suatu sistem hukum dan administrasi adalah lebih masuk akal dibanding mengatur manusia-manusia religius bermoral......Buat setan kantian, moral dan politik bukan masalah karena mereka tidak bermoral... buat mereka politik adalah untuk mencapai mekanisme alam atau dalam istilah ekonomi "mekanisme pasar" sementara buat manusia antara moral dan politik sangat masalah. Politik untuk moral atau kebalikannya, itulah yang menyingkirkan rasionalitas.

Dan masih banyak hal menarik untuk menjadi "wacana" perbincangan tentang suatu "negara". Penulis di Kompas diakhir tulisannya menambahkan suatu "kondisi" untuk terciptanya "ruang" bagi moralitas dan religiositas tapi tidak saya lanjutkan disini. Tapi kembali kekonteks pembicaraan Indonesia, apakah Indonesia telah terjebak dalam kontradiksi kelompok-kelompok manusia religius? Kalau demikian adanya, praksis tak akan banyak berbicara..... Kita enggan menjadi setan (menjadi lebih pragmatis rasional), lebih memilih menjadi manusia adiluhung dengan moralitas tinggi....... (?) Oh.... Kant pasti sudah gila..........