Karena terinspirasi oleh perdebatan tentang laporan penelitian dan thesis ilmiah yang akan berakhir hanya sebagai Toilet Paper, saya menemukan etika atau tata cara memasang toilet paper yang 'seharusnya' seperti tampak pada gambar di atas. Jika ingin menyimak alasan-alasan yang mendukung atau menolak setiap cara pemasangan toilet paper, bacalah artikel ini.99I've been waiting so longOh 99Where did we go wrongOh 99I love you99I keep breaking your heartOh 99How can we be apartOh 99I love youI never thought it would happenI feel quite the sameI don't want to hurt you anymoreI never knew it would work outNo one to blameYou know I love you 9999You keep holding my handOh 99They don't know who I amOh 99I love youI never thought it would happenI feel quite the sameI don't want to hurt you anymoreI never know it would work outNo one to blameYou know I love you 9999I can't take it no moreOh 99Oh we were so sureOh 99I love youI never thought it would happenI feel quite the sameI don't want to hurt you anymoreI never knew it would work outNo one to blameYou know I love you 99
Dari Catatan Pinggir (Caping) oleh Goenawan Mohamad yang berjudul Ahimsa:
"Sebab tak semua perlawanan nonkekerasan berakhir bahagia. Apalagi jika yang disebut "berhasil" bukanlah hanya makzulnya seorang penguasa, tapi hadirnya sebuah kekuasaan lain berdasarkan ahimsa. Prinsip ini memang berakar dari kata "tak melakukan tindakan yang mencederai". Tapi ia juga bagian dari sikap yang menampik untuk membenci apa pun, berdusta, dan mengutarakan kata-kata bengis.
Betapa tak gampang... "
Memang tak gampang ketika kita ingin memilih jalan yang 'ideal'. Setidaknya sebagai sebuah cara pandang dan atau cara hidup, ahimsa telah membuktikan bahwa kekerasan bisa dihindari (bukan dihapuskan) jika memang manusia menginginkannya.
Sayangnya, manusia sering kali lebih mampu untuk mendustai dirinya sendiri. Ia mengklaim dirinya pembawa kedamaian tapi membuktikan klaim tersebut dengan melakukan pembunuhan terhadap sesamanya. Yang lebih ironis, dusta dan klaim tersebut digunakan dengan dalih membela Tuhan. Dan inilah sebabnya ahimsa tak akan pernah menjadi cara yang gampang untuk dilakukan dan tak akan pernah menjadi cara yang gampang untuk berhasil. Karena manusia banyak tidak menginginkannya...
If I may recall history of the most long lasting and the best gadget or computer devices that I ever have, I would like to call them ‘a basket of Apples’. Yes, all of those non-hassle, tough, beautiful but powerful gadget or computer laptop I have so far are Apple brand.
My first introduction with Apple was the black 32GB iPod Nano (see left below). It was my third portable music player after an AIWA Walkman and [brand here] MP3 player. From this iPod, I learnt about iTunes and some interesting knowledge about Apple product especially computer. My Apple bites continue with first generation of 120GB White MacBook (see left above). After almost 3 months of intensive quest for making sure on compatibility issues, I decided to switch totally to Mac OS X Leopard and leave the idea of Microsoft product. I learnt iWork and iLife, and I used Parallel Desktop to operate several application in Microsoft Windows XP operating system which Mac OS X did not support at that moment. Now, I rarely used them since Mac OS X already supply all application I need. Since then, my white MacBook never failed me; it was a stable, fast and reliable partner in my computing work.
It is obvious that Apple devices are undeniably expensive. That is why I have to wait several years before I am able to add up the next Apple in my basket. It was used 32GB iPod Touch (see second from left below). With this new iPod Touch, I can pass the iPod Nano to my wife so she can start being indulged by Apple. After I successfully won a used 16GB iPhone 3GS from eBay, she upgrade her Apple into iPod Touch. After some hassle with her laptop, she decided that she is ready for bigger Apple stuff. So, I won another used 80GB MacBook Air from eBay and my wife start her experience with Mac OS X Snow Leopard. And my final Apple that I won it via eBay was 16GB iPhone 4 which makes my wife now used the iPhone 3GS. Overall, I can roughly claim that we are an Apple Family now. Finally, I also completed my Apple computing experience with some accessories including Magic Mouse, Mighty Mouse and Apple Wireless Keyboard (not seen in picture).
Here they are, my basket of Apples. One thing that I really proud with all of my Apple is all of them extremely reliable whether they are brand new or second hand condition. It’s something that I could not get from any other devices. They are exemplary of cutting-edge technology!
"We not only tend to compare things with one another but also tend to focus on comparing--and avoid comparing things that cannot be compared easily."
Ide "pembubaran" satu ajaran/agama, slalu mgingatkan saya dgn "pelarangan PKI" yg berujung pd diskriminasi hingga genocide. Resiko yg mahal!
We live in an age of "policy wonks" who judge programs [policies] by their effects on productivity, output, or work effort. Wonkian analysis uses the jargon of economics while ignoring its content.I can't hardly disagree with the above quote...
Kata-kata Suwardi dan Dekker terbukti jadi kenyataan 100 tahun kemudian, pada hari ini. Indonesia bukan sekadar multi kultural, tapi juga inter kultural: tiap orang jadi Indonesia karena memasukkan kebudayaan yang lain ke dalam dirinya. Sebab Indonesia bukanlah ke bhineka an yang bersekat sekat seperti dalam rezim apartheid. Indonesia adalah sebuah proses yang eklektik, bercampur, berbaur dengan bebas.
Kita sudah diingatkan berdiam di daerah rawan gempa, tapi kita menganggap remeh hal itu dengan mengabaikan persyaratan hidup di daerah rawan gempa. Kita selalu berpikir bahwa bencana adalah nasib sial, takdir buruk yang tak bisa dicegah. Bahkan sebagian dari kita sering menganggap bencana sebagai cobaan dari Tuhan, atau malah kutukan dari Tuhan. Ah, bukankah Tuhan mahapengasih, kenapa harus main kutuk segala?
Anak Agung Gde Agung , Jakarta | Sun, 08/09/2009 11:35 AM | Opinion
The rejection by the Bali administration to relocate 10 Komodo dragons from their natural habitat in Wae Wulu, West Manggarai, to the island province is a highly praiseworthy decision made for all the right reasons.
For one, forcing the komodo dragons to exist in a possibly harmful alien environment is worthy of mention. Secondly, Bali has shown it will not pursue its own goals as a cultural tourist destination at the expense of something more significant.
The second reason is a very important development in the mind set of Balinese officials, who have up until now only sought the maximum number of tourists by any means possible. The result has been catastrophic for the conservation of Bali's rich culture and environment.
The erosion of Bali's, tradition, culture and natural environment as a result of massive efforts to boost tourist numbers has occurred in a number of ways. The most visible is the overload in infrastructure and overuse of precious natural resources. Roads have become cramped with cars at all hours of night and day, while farmlands have disappeared at a rate of around 1000 hectares per year to make way for hotels, villas and malls.
All of Bali's 37 beaches and eight rivers have undergone serious transformations from their original states through development activities that have illegally violated building codes. Water levels at various points are so low they risk drying up altogether, inviting sea water to seep in. This problem and many more like it were foregone conclusions when the number of hotel rooms, set by French tourist company Sceto at a maximum 22.000 for Bali, exceeded the 70.000 mark. This excludes villas, home stays and condominiums which have mushroomed in quantum leaps these past few years.
The more fatal effect of this overload of tourists lies in the impact it has culturally. As farmlands are converted into tourist infrastructure, alienation not only occurs with the land but also to the temples, rituals, ceremonies and communal life - the essential lifestyle of the people who used to live on that land. The Balinese way of life, culture and tradition has been displaced in the blink of an eye.
Worse still, the hotels that have come to replace the indigenous farmers bring in their wake western values of individualism, meritocracy, efficiency and other modernist traits. These exist in stark contrast to the previous Balinese symbol-oriented society. Needless to say, rapid transformations occur wherever the Balinese language is abandoned for English as a sign of advancement.
Considering this tragic trend, the recent announcement by the Balinese administration that the focus of its tourist industry is cultural is therefore something of a landmark. If seriously adhered to, this could signal the reversal of some of these damaging trends Bali has been enduring.
Now that the intent is there, the administration needs to identify the means by which is plans to achieve its objectives, that is conserving the island*s cultural and natural heritage.
The important point here, as far as tourist management is concerned, is to heed to the basic idea that tourists travel to a place to experience its unique cultural and natural environment. With this in mind, the administration should focus on three strategies.
First, it should aim to preserve and enhance the special cultures, traditions and natural environment of Bali through multifaceted defensive and motivational policies.
Next, it should bring in the right type of tourists who can appreciate the culture and natural environment of the island. It should stop emphasizing the sheer number of tourists arriving and begin advocating for the right kind of people it wishes to host. This will prevent Bali from becoming everything for everybody and eventually nothing for nobody. In short, it will protect it from losing its uniqueness. Those visiting Bali for its unique culture will reinvigorate local pride in culture.
Finally, Bali's key philosophy on life, the Tri Hita Karana, should be strengthened. The premise of the philosophy teaches that man in his every action should always heed his impact on the three main surroundings - his fellow being, his natural environment and his god or morality. In meeting his needs, man should balance them in such a way that the needs of those around him are not impaired.
He should adhere to the way of the Tri Hita Karana, or the "Sacred Balance", which governs behavior to conform to propriety, reciprocity and interconnection, all of which mean honoring heritage and conservation. If Balinese can truly live the way of the Tri Hita Karana, they will refrain from achieving their objectives at the expense of their tradition, culture and environment.
While the clock is ticking fast and Bali is rapidly approaching this crossroads, it is not too late to turn fate around. May the rejection of the Komodo dragons wake the Balinese to the dire danger that their rich heritage faces and galvanize them toward the right course of action.
Dr. Anak Agung Gde Agung is a graduate of Harvard (US) and Leiden (Holland) universities and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy (US). He was a member of the Supreme Consultative Body (MPR - RI, 1999 - 2004) and was a Minister of Societal Affairs under President Abdurrahman Wahid.
