Eldon-Online

The Power of "C"

Amongst my more annoying habits - and people will tell you I do have a few - is a fascination with words. Etymology, the study of the history and origin of words and phrases is, to me anyway, a source of entertainment, amusement and ... okay, education. It often sidetracks my thought process although that doesn't take much to do these days - witness the lack of blogs.

But I have suddenly sunk into "micro management" and developed a somewhat persistent relationship with the letter "C". It is an important letter to me being the start of so many words relevant to our world today. For example words like Confusion, Corruption, Criminal, Chaos, - all of which are overshadowing better words like Compassion and Caring, but playing very well to one of my favourites (no not that one!!) - cynic!

I have been a cynic pretty much all my life, not believing that people do things for me out of a genuine desire to do so but because there is an ulterior motive. I will be honest, I don't let many people into my inner self because I find it hard to do - and perhaps fear they will take advantage of it or find fault, and let me clarify that this is not nearly as "sad" as it might sound, it is just who I am.

So, as one person I do know well might say after all that  ... "the point being?". Simply this ... my cynical distrusting world, where the only point of agreement I have with the present US President is his distaste for the media, is going downhill. He talks about "fake news" or perhaps "alternative news" but there is in reality little news that is truly fake. There is no smoke without fire. But the media do have an uncanny ability to twist stories to suit their headlines rather than providing a full and balanced view of events, global or otherwise. It's not funny - you read an article about something of which you have a lot of knowledge and you note that what is written is correct in parts - but then the other side of the story that would provide context is conveniently omitted, leaving the reader with an impression of dastardly goings on when actually the opposite is true.

But back to my "C" list; I for one am Confused by the lack of leadership in our world that as a result leads to even more confusion. Our in many cases, but not all, elected leaders go through a process of constant mind-changing leaving their audience scratching its heads in a manner of uncertainty. Then I am concerned by what appears to be growing disregard for honesty and the rise of Corruption. The accusations levelled against former and current leaders in countries such as Malaysia and Pakistan, and by the behaviour of certain African leaders - now mostly fallen it is true but who have still not been brought to account. My vision is further clouded by the level of Crime - hate (racism), knife, gun, and not excluding crimes committed in the name of religion - that is becoming a more regular feature of our daily lives. Lives by the way where greed and a desire for dominance have overtaken our more decent traits. It is not pretty, and one can only hope that a wiser generation of young people eventually get tired of these antics and begin to veer back towards tolerance and decency - although I suspect the younger generation is currently just as confused.

But in the Chaos and uncertainty that surrounds us can we really see a way through? In Britain the annual results are out for this year's batch of school leavers. The highest number of top grades (A), being awarded in the last five years. The suggestion is that the pass marks were lowered to ensure that enough pupils got top marks. (Obviously true - I read it in the media!!). But if that is the case, then who is kidding who? And with Britain about to leave the European Union the number of people studying languages appears to be on the decline. It seems to me that someone is not thinking straight - chaotic. For me, Britain leaving Europe (and remember I live in Hong Kong so why should I care?) all just adds to the confusion and ultimately to the chaos. And it is not helped by changing words initially spoken, and sometimes misspoken, by people in authority. Oh, and where the hell did "misspoken" as a word come from anyway - and to save you looking it up, actually it comes from a Middle English word of the 12th century - misspeken!!

My concern with letter "C" words focuses on the negatives. Where is the Compassion and the Caring in our Community today? Well there are some totally amazing people in this world who display and practice such positive traits but they are hugely in the minority. If the luckier ones in this world, and yes I am amongst them, could just go that extra step to demonstrate by our actions rather than merely words that we do care and we do have compassion, the world overall would be in a better place - but we need help to deal with the bullies the corrupt and the criminals. So who, my friends, is brave enough to take on that task? Our leaders - or do they just conjure up visions of yet another word beginning with the  letter "C"?!!

History - The Amended Version!

Oh where is all this going to end up? Rhetorical question I guess.

I know I have been somewhat quiet of late - put it down in part to there being far too many stories about the POTUS, and a lack of desire to add to that commentary - and as an aside I have never seen so many cartoons in circulation about someone who is supposed to be revered in the world - and clearly is not! Plus the fact that I have a lot on - and have lost focus on doing some of the things I enjoy, like this blog. In fact I have been dabbling with one topic for a few weeks now - all to do with the letter "C"!! But one particular article I read today had me with my head firmly in my hands which, for once, was nothing to do with any excesses of the night before.

We have been aware over many years of the denials or the re-writing of history books by a particular country, to hide previous acts from gaze and hope that, over time, people will forget. The Japanese invasion of China before the second world war is a case in point and in particular the rape of Nanjing that according to Japanese history books never happened. And I cannot forget a dear German friend who came out of the movie Schindler's List in tears saying she "never knew". It had certainly not been a feature of her education in Germany.

And now, in their ongoing quest for so-called creativity we have the movie makers - always ones to portray their own slant on the world - who want to change history. As they say, why spoil what would be a potential blockbuster film by allowing a bunch of facts get in the way. On this occasion it is the true story of a balloon ascent made in the mid 1860s, and which reached what was the highest altitude reached in such a contraption. A story which involved two men, Henry Cowell and James Glaisher, the latter who fell unconscious on the ascent and the former bringing the balloon down safely while having lost the feeling in his hands. Great story from real life! But, say the film makers, wait a minute, wouldn't it be so much better if one of the men was portrayed as a woman? Sure it would - but it would be totally inaccurate, and therefore fictional. And it's not as if there not other women of that era who would have been worthy of movies being made about them. The Scottish suffragette and soccer player Helen Matthews for one.

This seems to me to be yet another manifestation of our desire to be absolutely politically correct, and I am not sure we haven't gone mad over our desire to be equally cognisant of the roles played in the world by women and men. And in this regard there have been some appalling injustices that took place and still exist. Forget simple things like equal pay for which there is no excuse today not to pay the same for the same job irrespective of gender, but it goes all the way through to the Boardrooms of some of the biggest companies globally where the representation of women on boards remains appallingly low and must be fixed. But should we really be tinkering with history? And if that becomes fair game, wherever do we draw the line? The present POTUS will soon have us believing he won the second world war on his own - despite not having been born at the time.

By removing references to people whose behaviour, judged by todays standards, was bad but normal in its time, will eventually lead to our history books becoming unreal and totally inaccurate.

Humankind has been responsible for all sorts of dreadful behaviour - in the past and indeed in the present. The behaviour of some countries leaders who are so corrupt (one the letters "C" I referenced earlier) that their citizens flee their homes and end up as migrants floating around in the ocean in the hope of a better life; the shortages of food, jobs - and heaven help us when AI takes over most of the menial tasks - are we also going to write that out of our history books because there is a better film that could be made with a different slant to it  to make it more appealing.

We are now so careful in what we do or say (unless you're Boris or POTUS of course), that it's like treading on eggshells and is stifling real human interaction. No wonder the younger generation is confused. But if we change nothing else, could we not at least leave history alone? It happened. You cannot change it - no matter whether it was right or wrong. What you can do is learn from it.

 

Leadership, Facebook, Cricket ... and Pooh!

... and of course for those of you thinking about all manner of nasty things related to Pooh - shame on you :-)

I spend a fair bit of time these days talking about leadership, either to individuals for whom I might be able to share helpful thoughts, or to cohorts of attendees at events such as those run by the Global Institute for Tomorrow (GIFT).

Leadership comes in a variety of forms and in many cases is the result of a good number of years spent understanding a business and the people in it. Some people are natural leaders, and display such qualities at an early age. Others get "taught" leadership skills - and yes I do think that a natural yet rough talent can be smoothed into leadership qualities with training. And then there are some people who find it hard to make the distinction between bullying and leadership - and we all know a few of those I think.

Then you have other leaders - the new cohort of leaders of companies, young companies - some profitable others not ... yet, but leaders none the less who have little experience of understanding that leadership brings with it responsibility. A requirement of them that says when things go wrong in your company you have to face the music and not run away from it saying "it's not my fault!"

Or as that interesting philosopher, Winnie the Pooh might have said "When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you Think of Things, you find sometimes that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it.”  Let me be clear; in this case I am not saying that some of these new leaders have very little brain - quite the opposite in fact, but what they do and what they are responsible for, like it or not, becomes quite a different beast when things come out into the open and has other people looking at it!.

Facebook's leadership for example, has been found wanting. Seriously. Was it only last year ago or a little longer, I believe, when Mr.Zuckerberg said that he was getting out more and talking to people? That must have been a revelation to him, as long as he listened to what people were saying. But last month, in 2018, he was certainly NOT getting out and about more. In fact as the scandal over Facebook's potential role in the Cambridge Analytica debacle broke Mr. Zuckerberg was conspicuous only by his absence both physically and verbally - and by his lack of an apology at least initially. He didn't attend a meeting of the company - an internal meeting no less - to respond to questions about the breach. This though isn't a piece specifically about Mr. Zuckerberg's failures - of which this has not been the only one - (he previously had to close a site he founded due to data privacy issues!!) but it is more about leadership and responsibility generally. Pooh said “You can’t stay in your corner of the Forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.” A real leader comes out of the forest immediately and ... leads! It's not rocket science.

And as we are on leadership - news blew up this last week about young leaders of sporting teams. Australian cricket witnessed a pretty shocking display of cheating - look there's no other word for it - in South Africa and got caught. Any form of cheating is reprehensible but particularly in the sporting arenas. We have had the scandals engulfing cycling with the Tour de Farce for many years where participants were doing their best to beat the odds - illegally - and then we have the Olympics and other events where it has almost become a case of let the best chemical compound win. It just demeans the effort of those genuine talented athletes who train so hard to better their skills, but who cannot compete against drugged sportspeople.

In the case of the cricket, the Australian authorities stood up and acted quickly. They sent the identified ring-leaders home and made them face the music, which resulted in lots of tears and apologies. But was that even genuine? [A cartoon in a newspaper I read this morning shows two crocodiles together with one saying "are those cricketers tears?'] I have no expert knowledge on what to base the "genuineness' comment other than reading the reports that are available to all of us, and listening to a couple of psychologists who seem to think that there has been some media coaching going on to attract a more sympathetic attitude to these misdeeds. I cannot say, but a cheat is a cheat is a cheat and whatever the ultimate and necessary punishment faced by these particular leaders needs to be appropriate to the "crime".

Leadership is all about taking responsibility, and we are plagued on a daily basis by examples where leadership and responsibility is not being demonstrated by those on whom it falls. I know that my late Mother was a stickler at least for the responsibility bit, as you might expect from an ex-gunnery sergeant, who said ... if you do something wrong then admit it straight away, apologise for it immediately, and deal with it quickly. You will probably still get into trouble but the degree of trouble only grows with the length of time you delay.

And of course leaving the final word this time to Christopher Robin himself who said to Pooh "Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think"

Grumpy Old Man!

Well let's face it - everything's relative isn't it! (Rhetorical).

Grumpy? Well, increasingly so I fear as the world order changes to one that instead of being inclusive seems to revel in introspection, intolerance and isolation; a lack of compassion and, as I have said before, a lot of people with a sense of entitlement. Old? Only some days - but in general not really, and now that Li Ka Shing has set a new benchmark for retirement ages I've got a while to go. Man? Yeh, well, that's what I put on official forms.

I have a page on Wikipedia, and I sometimes wonder whether anyone bothers to look at it. I don't, not these days anyway - mainly because it is out of date and was in some cases inaccurate, so I used to look at it to see if anyone was "tinkering" with the information. I didn't put it there in the first place (and I don't know who did), and I cannot correct it because the information apparently comes from self-published sources, whatever they are. I am still compos mentis enough to know what I am doing, so heaven knows why I can't amend this "false information". And yet I still get asked to make a contribution to keep Wikipedia going, so why the heck should I? Anyway, there is a phrase at the end of the page that reads "...and he intends to remain in Hong Kong". Really?

As often happens in life, things change. These days, actually, a little too often it seems. We live in a disposable society with the things we buy to wear; with the jobs we have for three years and then move on; with the relationships that are supposed to be for life but which end up on the scrap heap after a few years because one or the other person got "bored" or they had an argument. Life itself seems to be a pretty disposable commodity these days - look at Syria at present, Da'esh - beaten temporarily perhaps, but coming to a community near you unless (or perhaps even if) you are vigilant; schools in the USA, until they do something about the gun laws, and I applaud the students who have found their voice. I sincerely hope they keep their interest, and use their votes when they have them.

Let's face it - even if the above is not enough, there are a few other things I get grumpy about.

Back in the day when I tried my hand at singing folk songs, and admittedly I was far better in the shower where no-one else could hear me, there were all sorts of things to sing about, but I would be much more careful about singing Tom Paxton's songs "Natural Girl" or "My Lady's a Wild Flying Dove" today, in case I offended someone. And open a door for a lady today, when I might get a string of abuse for being courteous, or walking on the outside of a woman to afford protection from cars that splash or drive off the road - forget it! Well, actually, I cannot forget it because despite the strident voices - and I am the first to admit that there is plenty to be strident about when properly focused and directed (I am not totally insensitive) - the majority of people that I am fortunate enough to know DO still like to have life's little courtesies observed. 

But back to Hong Kong.

Do I intend to remain here and anyway - who actually cares what I intend to do? I may stay in Hong Kong, I may not. There is still much to do, a lot to see. While I have something of a brain left and can contribute - I want to think I can be useful. But rather than spending my time left on this earth being grumpy and getting fed up with people who I may consider to be stupid - even when others do not - why not just try for once to be a decent human being. Tolerant of others, although not standing for irrational impositions. Understanding another point of view and stating clearly your own but recognising that you are not always right. (Hard one for me!!). Or as someone considerably more eloquent of word than myself wrote in an article I read the other day " ... there isn't much alternative to being kind-hearted in thought as well as action".  I would like to help guide my grandchildren down the modern pathway that is opening up in front of them. A totally different pathway from mine - and I would be wrong to try and mould them in an old-fashioned way.

Maybe I'm just grumpy because I see an end to all of this. We have more than a smattering of self-important and senseless politicians in it for themselves and not their constituents, and certain world leaders trying to gain an upper hand here, or an advantage there. People trying to impose their own will on an unwilling public through persuasive oratory, and ultimately on an unwilling world. Forget the warmongers, the land grabbers, the power hungry - think more about our resources that are getting stretched. Water is becoming more scarce and unless things change soon and we find some answers, we are going to have wars over those resources. 

The students in America are standing up for what they see is wrong with their gun laws. Perhaps we need a few grumpy old men to use their wisdom and common sense to try and turn this enormous global tanker away from destruction ... but it's not going to happen, is it?

Cold Turkey

Happy New Year - Occidental, and Oriental when it comes.

Apologies for the delayed First Post for the year, but let me explain.

I don’t know about you but there is a sinking feeling that always exists after Christmas when the leftover turkey gets re-cycled into every new recipe imaginable. That said I would really draw the line at turkey ice cream - although I have now found the answer to the leftover turkey problem – roast beef!

Anyway – this is not about a turkey or Turkey, but “cold turkey” the name given to someone who is trying to break free of a perceived addiction. In this case, digital devices!!

(With acknowledgement to "Off the Leash" by Rupert Fawcett)

I started January 2018 in travel mode and in the company of friends - in fact I was with much of the same group for the majority of the month. These are friends of long standing, ranging from 40 years of friendship to the most recent, only 25 years, and from various parts of the world. One or two of them, and I do understand,  have not really come to grips with the modern era and were thus somewhat critical of anyone using digital devices especially when we were supposed to be on holiday, relaxing and catching up by the use of face to face communication.

I admit it, I'm not very well-behaved when it comes to disciplining my own use of devices, and therefore confess to a "certain amount" of addiction which I have - honestly - been trying to overcome. I am supposed to be sort of retired although I do, thankfully, have a number of commitments that require my attention. That said, I am also conscious that even within the workplace these days, when people take a vacation some companies actually forbid their use of emails and the like. Two purposes here - one is to ensure that in the unlikely event someone has been been misbehaving an absence from the use of their business device might bring misdemeanours to light (sadly and surely a forlorn hope these days because if they are actually cheating their own company intentionally, as they will be ultra-cautious!!), and the rather more altruistic ideal of giving people a real break.

So, I set out to prove that I was not addicted to my devices (other than downloading my daily newspaper), and could operate on a minimal-use basis just as well as anyone - and in the full understanding that I would have unfettered access on my return to the real world. Whatever real world means for someone partly retired and ultimately heading down towards the fully retired bucket in the foreseeable future.

Thus it was, dear readers, that for a little over three weeks I was permitted to at least read and respond to the occasional unavoidable work email, but others were either put on hold or may have received a holding reply. Of course the problem is that I have, over the years, cast something of a rod for my own back by keeping generally up to speed with and using technology, and by responding quickly and at whatever time to emails.

It was - shall we say - interesting!! I had questions about my health because my lack of response was out of character, and I am sure that some people thought I was being rude by not responding immediately but hey, once I am retired I will have plenty of time to respond to emails and the like - and who's going to send me emails then anyway.

But I'm not retiring just yet - and when I do I am still trying to work out where I am going to live - and so for me, experiment over. I am happy with my generally "controlled" addiction. A functioning e-coholic you might say, and emails will in future be answered/sent as they used to be. Oh, and if I haven't replied to one of you yet, my apologies, it will be with you shortly!!

Season of Goodwill?

This time of year traditionally, and for a whole variety of reasons, is known as being a season of goodwill. I have to be honest and say that this year, more than most, has left me with more a feeling of nausea than goodwill. 

The senselessness of it all came to a head with a video clip that was sent to me two weeks ago. It was one I had seen before but given that North Korea has spent so much of this year in the news, I thought it worth sharing once again. As if you ever needed reminding, it does in fact highlight the situation faced by ordinary North Koreans and which for as long as the current regime is in piace will not change. But it makes one very telling remark - which says concentrate on the plight of North Koreans and focus less on the leadership. If you have time - click on the link. Even if you’ve seen it before I think it merits a re-watch.

Season of Goodwill? Fat chance ... or not?

This has turned into a “season of contrasts”. In many places Christmas is celebrated by hanging up all sorts of ornaments and encouraging consumers to go out and spend, spend, spend. Quite probably NOT what Jesus would have intended. Christmas is above all a Christian festival, although some cities in Britain, which is supposed to be a predominantly Christian country, have banned the celebration in deference to the feelings of “other religions”. Not that in the countries where those other religions are practised would generally think of reciprocating.

Of course there are many suggestions and counter arguments as to whether the Winter Solstice festivals of the Pagans that pre-date Christianity is not in fact the reason why 25 December was chosen as being a suitable day for celebration. But let’s be honest, if you want to end up having a heated, tending to acrimonious, debate - even with close friends - choose a topic like religion. Because of all the issues surrounding Da’esh or ISIS, Islam is a favoured topic these days and more often than not results in derogatory comments about Islam in general as there is no distinction made between Da’esh and Islam proper. Given DA’esh seem hell bent on blowing up anyone who does not believe in the same as they believe, and particularly at this time of year ... it’s not surprising where the talk goes.

These days I really do not profess to be a religious practicioner of anything - Christian or whatever. My own faith and belief in Christianity has been dented by what appears to be an enormous hypocrisy. Churches that have hidden rampant paedophilia, and practitioners who seem to prefer glitz and glamour in their churches to the more austere version of how I think Christianity should be practiced. But doesn’t interpretation stretch to all beliefs? Spreaders of rhetoric - compulsive, believable people who attract their own brand of followers who can do either good or evil. But even though I personally think as I do, does not mean that I have the right to be critical of people who believe otherwise - or in the broader sense, critical of other religions or beliefs. There is something in the world today that is seriously lacking - and that is respect.

You know that I spend quite a lot of time in the Middle East. I am lucky enough to count many people of differing beliefs as people who extend an arm of friendship. It came therefore as no surprise to me to receive messages in the last week or two wishing me a Happy Christmas from people in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, but elsewhere in the region. Not westerners, you will understand, but local people of the Muslim faith. I was also sent a book by one of the correspondents written by an eminent Muslim scholar about the true interpretations of the Koran - not those snippets taken out of context by Da’esh et al. And you will have heard that Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, wants Saudi to return to being the moderate face of Islam. Some people laughed at that suggestion ... but having first lived in Saudi almost 50 years ago I can tell you first hand that it’s a lot different now from what it was.

When I lived in Malaysia years ago and when it was Ramadan the majority of people - be they Hindu or Christian respected the behaviour of their Muslim colleagues and in most cases became a part of the month. At Diwali the celebrations were joined in by everyone and it was the same with Christmas. What has happened to our world? Why have we become more isolationist in our beliefs, and in our geographies and in our trade. You name it - we are becoming insular,

If you live in someone else’s country - respect their beliefs or don’t go live in it in the first place. If you accept someone into your country, don’t shut them out but encourage their integration. Can it really be so hard to put aside ones differences - if you have the right mindset?

We enter 2018 in a state of nervousness. Belligerent rhetoric, an “it’s actually all about me” mindset, senses of “entitlement” - a growing wealth gap where the rich get obscenely richer and the poor do a little better, a world where water will become a commodity far more precious than oil or anything else - and over which wars will likely start. And the thing is, as we become apparently more civilised, we behave in a less civilised manner.

It’s not a pretty picture in this “season of goodwill”. And why should goodwill be for just a season anyway - why can’t it always be like that - but there I go, being naive again!!

Happy New Year.

Britain - Redefining The Third World

When you hear stories about injustice in countries such as China, Indonesia, Zimbabwe the natural reaction from the west is to shrug and say, "well, what do you expect from these developing or third world countries"? Uncivilised, corrupt, uneducated and generally not a part of the rest of the civilised world. Well guess what folks, Britain is catching up rapidly. The country of my birth, but one I have watched now from overseas just one month short of 50 years, is filling me with dismay. A young man, accused of rape and facing a significant jail sentence was only saved at the last minute by the prosecution lawyer who discovered the police had sufficient evidence in their possession to prove the man was innocent, but they had failed to hand it over. What? And this, say the lawyers is just the tip of the iceberg. Let's be honest (okay ... not a great choice of words), the police in Britain have not come across very well in the last few years with cover-ups and other misdemeanours. They blame it on underfunding - so let's just get convictions and forget the ethics then! How embarrassing.

Then you read on ... same newspaper ... where it reports that thirty per cent of the UK does not have good enough mobile coverage to make calls and texts on all four networks. M-Pesa in Kenya is one of the fastest developing-world Banks using telephony. The citizens of Shenzhen in Southern China now do not need to carry cash because all payments - stores, transport, and restaurants are done using payment channels like WePay or Alipay, and other cities in China are going the same way. Alright, you say, but UK has legacy systems that take time to change, I understand that - but surely if Kenya and China have coverage in some out of the way places you would think Britain should be better equipped. And take Korea (South of course) - now a developed country admittedly and with legacy systems, but it is the world leader in internet connectivity, with the world's fastest average internet connection speed. About 45 million people or 92.4% of the population are internet users.

Medical services - and actually I am a fan of the NHS given the amazing way they treated my Mother - is continuously being criticised in Britain again for being under-funded, facing staff shortages and doctors leaving in droves. And what they will do when all the foreign doctors they have in place are forced to leave, following Brexit, who knows? Oh, by the way whatever happened to the money the Brexit supporters were persuaded would go the N HS rather than to Europe?  What I do know is that my annual medical visits to the hospital I have used in Thailand for well over a decade, for a very modest fee, does me very well. It reminds me also of a trip I made to Ecuador a few years back to visit my daughter who was studying there and I ended up with an eye problem. My inclination was to put up with it and wait until I was back in Hong Kong to have it dealt with, but the pain became too much so I succumbed to an Ecuadorian ophthalmologist who, frankly, was brilliant and charged very little.

Then there are negative reports on education, train services, roads ... the list goes on. It can't all be fake news - can it?

Now, you say, what a "moaning minnie" and what is the point of all this? My point is simply that Britain for many years was at the forefront of world opinions and impressions. It had an acute sense of morals and ethics. It had a judicial system that was the envy of many and a police force that people looked up to (my rather famous amateur running uncle - Stan Eldon - was a policeman and you wouldn't find someone straighter). It had a good health service, and a reputation for being innovative, particularly in the engineering sector. It didn't necessarily hand over its colonies in the greatest shape, but had provided initial infrastructures in many countries and therefore a base from which to work, but without always telling them how to do it.

But today I feel personally, and although many will disagree with me there are many others who see it the same way - the shine, almost a halo even, has gone. The reputations gained, indeed hard won, are being eroded but - even from a distance I have considerable affection for the place. And let's be honest where I live now, and the other countries where I have resided, are not perfect - as does everywhere for that matter but what I see around me in this region in particular is a desire to improve and get better, while at the same time the more I read about Britain suggests the movement is in the opposite direction.

Can I just say, then, that as with all these things at least in a democracy, the solutions are in the hands of the people. The interested, not the self-interested!

 

Where Social Media Fails Society

I actually love technology ... most of the time. All of those good things that it has brought to our lives to make them easier, simpler, quicker ... and enables us to keep in touch. With my travel schedule, family in various parts of the world, visiting offices in different locations and all that entails, technology including social media means I am almost always in touch or at least contactable. That's the upside. But I worry about a growing downside - especially involving the technology we call social media.

 

During the last few months I have started to hear the word empathy used an awful lot more than I have previously. It is a valuable human trait that we are in real danger of losing, and if we do so it will be to the detriment of the world, but let me explain the connection.

 

On August 18, 1988, George H. W. Bush received his party's nomination for President of the United States of America. In his acceptance speech, he called for a "kinder, gentler nation." A sentiment echoed and welcomed I am sure by the majority of people around the world, not just in the USA. Fast forward 30 years and I'm not entirely sure where it has eventually led us, but I don't see much of that sentiment in evidence today. And it has been a growing concern for me. For example, go back to the trolling that was going on when someone supported a particular course of action that others disagreed with - only to find they were then subjected to unidentified and vitriolic attacks on them via "social media", by people who did not have the courage to be identified as being behind an alternative viewpoint and - worse - using highly charged language to vent their anger.

 

But it really sank to low depths last week in Hong Kong when, following the suicide of the 25year old son of the Undersecretary for Education, cowardly internet users were taunting the Undersecretary, and "congratulating" her on the suicide. Whilst she may not have been the most popular recent appointee to Government - that is absolutely no excuse for such behaviour. Thankfully many right-minded people have come out publicly to express their outrage at this misuse of social media: although that said, perhaps not quite everyone! The Students Union said they regretted the suicide but also said that one should ensure that the concept of freedom of speech must be respected. What?? Oh well ... that's all right then, say anything you like because it is "freedom of speech". I am sorry, no it's not!!! Freedom of speech, yes I am all for it, but where do these people get their ideas that making callous, cruel and personally hurtful remarks against an individual while hiding behind an anonymous mask counts as "freedom of speech"? It goes against every idea of common decency, and indicates a complete lack of empathy.

 

But look, isn't the cause of this becoming embedded in the way in which children grow up today. (And before you jump up and down - no, not all children). Having been handed a means of communicating with other people without actually having to look them in the eye, or allowing them to operate remotely behind an alias - even using someone else's pictorial identity they suddenly adopt a meaner, less caring attitude to life. They will of course point out, they have lots of "friends" - except they haven't met many/any of them yet, at least not in real life. And they feel emboldened by their ability to use strong language and words - and feel "braver" for it because they do not run the risk of identification. So far anyway - although I am very against the "big brother" scenario that this suggests is the only way to curb these outrages.

 

And the other downside to using "social media" for communication purposes is the inability to understand from the inflections or tone of voice a situation that a real life conversation would convey. The ability to misinterpret, sometimes deliberately, what has been written is high - often because it has been written ambiguously, which leads to further, misunderstandings, hate mail even ... and all in the name of "freedom of speech". A child brought up with the ability to be empathetic would stand a better chance of understanding.

 

The amount of hate in our world is on the increase, which means we must encourage our children to use social media for all the right and positive reasons, but also teach them to communicate verbally with one another. To understand emotion, to create feelings and speak out their thoughts directly to one another and to adults so that if they have a point of view - they should express it clearly and confidently,  and watch the reaction on someone's face as to the impact it has.

 

But for now ... a kinder gentler world? ... I wish.

Targets Of Terror - A Global Issue

Not for the first, or sadly even the second time in my Blogs do I repeat the phrase ... "coming to a city near you".

Attacks on innocent people - as in Barcelona and Cambrils - just cannot continue. Who gives these people the "right" to take other peoples lives? And in this case it came a little too close to home as very good friends were but 100m away from the Ramblas incident, and other friends just a little further. It was by chance they escaped any harm. And listen - it's not going to stop any time soon. Police and security services around the world stand very little chance of catching every little worm that creeps underground with the intent of doing harm to people - and believing that if they die in the process then they go to heaven, or whatever they call it. They want to destroy people - any people and if Muslims also get caught by this murderous intent, then the terrorists don't care. They also want to destroy places of worship - other than Mosques of course. Why? What is it that drives them?

Of course there are probably many simplistic reasons that we can all think of ... it is attractive to people from a rotten lifestyle with no hope of betterment, or no jobs through lack of education and the promise of a better life as promised to them by a person more educated than they are. Someone with the gift of persuasion.

And let's be frank, we have heard persuasive orators before. Hitler was one, as was the odious cult leader Jim Jones who led many people to their deaths. But if we are talking persuasion - and although I could not and would not put him in the same category as the other two but merely use him as a example - look how successful evangelists were; Billy Graham for example, although he preached love and forgiveness - not death and destruction. But persuasive none the less.

Does anyone have the solution? Long term education should be one possibility, but how long does that take to bear fruit - and who checks the content of the "education" anyway? In a rather novel twist I noted the other day an initiative being taken in Egypt where a group of Imams have established an "Advice Centre" on one of the cities Metro stations. It is they say "A means whereby they try to distinguish between the Islam twisted by extremist groups and the true meaning. It's hard" they say "as the extremists quote Koranic verses out of context. They manipulate it". It's a brave attempt and I wonder both how successful it will be and how long it lasts. But it's a tiny step. Look at the origins of this latest terrorist group, Moroccans - certainly not the first place in the world you would have looked, so terror spreads its wings.

Belief is a strange thing. I would much prefer to have things proved to me, which I don't think makes me a whole lot different from many other people, but if you can be persuaded to believe in something or in someone, I see there is an attraction. Christians have a strong belief in the teachings of Jesus, as do the followers of Islam. But unless I have totally misunderstood those teachings there is nowhere I can find that specifically suggests you need to seek out the destruction of human beings and property. If that had been the belief over the centuries, then the world would be in a dreadful state (okay - an even worse state!). This latest spate of terrorist attacks in general, and now lone wolf or small cell attacks is therefore generally new. And if it is new then there must be an opportunity to stop it by getting the right people to speak out against it. For respected leaders of a religion to condemn what is happening. To say that this is not the teaching of the Koran - but they need to do so now before it is too late. Parents need to be alert to the behaviour of their children and recognise that if they let their children go astray it will grown, to the detriment of the world.

Does the USA believe that these car attacks will not happen on their soil? I wouldn't count on it - and I wouldn't wish it on them either in the same way that I just hope it will stop, or our future generations are going to grow up in a very miserable world where Muslim communities will become isolated ... or worse, and fear will walk every street.

We must not allow that to happen ... we need a solution, now!

Who's Bluffing Who?

"I don't know", as Teresa Norton used to say in her newspaper column some years ago, "maybe I'm nuts", but am I the only person in the world who has no real idea what is happening in this war of words between the USA and North Korea? Everyone has a "view", but I'm not sure on what such views are based.

I was always told that if you make threats, there comes a time when you have to carry them out or be seen as weak.

So, the USA is saying to the young, inexperienced despotic leader of a country that still believes it is at war "Do something like that again - and we will destroy you". Meanwhile, the young leader who either possibly believes he's finished anyway, or who is totally convinced of his infallibility and therefore can't lose, continues to push. He doesn't carry out precisely his earlier threat but comes somewhat close. What does the USA do then; send yet another warning, or act? Or, does he keep us waiting by saying - okay "I'm good to go - but not yet" - as he just seems to have done. Perhaps as a result of getting out of bed on the right side this morning - but then we have the next day.

This "game" of brinksmanship is becoming dangerous for the whole of mankind. I do not want to even think about who is going to blink first because unless there is a peaceful settlement I see this ending in tears all round. In the case of North Korea the deaths of many totally innocent but brainwashed, undernourished, ill-educated people who have no idea what truth looks like. Collateral damage may well spread to South Korea, given the proximity of the North Korea border to Seoul, or fallout could affect China and Japan. This will set wheels in motion that could be almost impossible to stop.

And the irritating thing about it all is that we - that is you and I - can do nothing about it. How comfortable does that make you feel?

It seems there will be many in America who applaud President Trump's "tough" stand, and say that anything the USA does is only in defence of its borders and safety. Okay, I get that - but how is it that the President is saying one thing, openly and publicly, thereby provoking an open challenge to someone who doesn't really care and who is clearly enjoying the attention, while the President's closest advisors seem to be saying "the best solution is a political one, and that is what we need to achieve". The rest of the world, it would appear, is in agreement with the sentiments expressed by the advisors. One man tweeting threats, versus a few billion people who think there is something wrong with that methodology. A President, let us not forget, who has only just and under pressure, read from a script a statement condemning the white supremacists in the USA.

There is no doubt a huge amount of complexity here - there always has been as far as North Korea is concerned. As I said, the North still believes it is at war and that while the Korean war ended for the rest of the world in 1953 this was not reflected by the North. A political or economic solution whereby the South absorbs the North (a la Germany - East/West) is not feasible - the South could not afford it for a start, but even if there was a cooperation agreement between the North and the South, Japan would become very nervous because if there is anything on which the "Koreas" agree it is a burning sense of ill-will towards the Japanese. (I was going to write hatred - I am not sure today if that is still so prevalent). But it has surely not gone unnoticed that Japan has significantly increased its defence spending. Then if the USA were to somehow take control of North Korea - not something would appeal to the Chinese at all - you would have a situation where US troops could be camped on China's border - which would not be tolerated.

There are no easy answers. Think for a moment about the psyche of North Korea's leader. A man who with no compunction has had his brother killed, his closest uncle killed - and who does not really bother about what the world thinks. In the opposite corner you have someone who - from a relatively safe distance, depending on whether the reports of North Korea's nuclear capability are accurate or not (remember, only one agency has so far reported this to be fact) who is prepared to make threats which, if not supported by actions, are going to indicate weakness.

If North Korea backs down fully - and at this stage it looks like a very big if - I suggest it will almost certainly be because China has done something positive. Of course President Trump will claim credit for "forcing China's hand" even though China has been concerned for a very long time about the behaviour of North Korea but have acted behind the scenes.

Call my bluff, a long running series on British radio, was described as a duel of words and wit. In this particular global version there's plenty of words and zero wit. This is a more ruthless version where rather than getting points you will be counting success by bodies.