Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Ah. I remember this song from when I was real little.....
Never knew it had an english version!! Very funny, this is XD
Wednesday, November 18, 2009 11:14 PM by SmYLe =)
Sunday, November 01, 2009
Faith: Trusting without thinking. Following blindly without reasoning.
Hope: Sheer optimism. Unwillingness to face reality.
Love: A concoction of attraction, affection and lust. Termed as "love" simply to make it appear special.
Sunday, November 01, 2009 11:56 PM by SmYLe =)
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
When a pope get's killed by lightning, people say God wanted to take him to a better place and that he has finished his work here on Earth.
When a wanted criminal gets killed by lightning, people say God is giving him what he deserves, punishing him for his sins.
When an average unknown person gets killed by lightning, he's just unlucky.
Why? Why the difference? 3 people die the same way, so many different kind of explanation come up for their death? Can't it just be accepted that statistically for every few thousand popes, 1 will get struck down, and for every few thousand criminals, similarly one will suffer the same fate? Can't it just be accepted that he was at that point of time a part of the path of lowest resistance between the oppositely charged clouds and ground?
Moving along. Next issue. I can write all my biggest problems here. I can write them on facebook. I can talk about them. People can make a joke out of it. Fine. It's ok. I don't mind. But what I don't understand... The moment it is mentioned "Let's share our prayer requests", I can mention the dumbest and most insignificant problem, and it's a serious matter. The very same people.... The very same people who laughed at my major problems less than an hour ago... Suddenly become very serious and show lots of concern even at the most ridiculous requests. You have to designate 15mins of OFFICIAL SHARING TIME where people actually listen. Anything outside this OFFICIAL SHARING TIME, you don't care. HYPOCRITES!!
And on the following week when I go back there again, it's going to be just the same. The people who call the shots won't see this cos they're too busy to notice.... Which is also why I don't tell them, cos they don't have the time to listen. And those who actually do see this, you'll throw this to the back of your mind and pretend you never see anything.
Yes, there's a plank in my eye, but I know it's there and I'm full willing to acknowledge it. I know I'm fucked up. But so are you. Thanks for reading.
(Please. Prove me wrong.)
Tuesday, October 27, 2009 11:11 PM by SmYLe =)
Monday, October 26, 2009
The Influence of Religion
Religion has been around almost as long as humans have walked the Earth. What makes religion so powerful and influential? Well, religions are somewhat like diseases. To thrive, a religion must be able to
1) Spread (infect new people)
2) Survive (keep an infected person infected)
How is this done? I have done some observation and analysis, below are my results.
Religion Answers Questions
Humans beings are curious and inquisitive creatures. We ask many questions, and we seek answers. Religion does a good job answer them.
Q: Why is the sky blue?
A: God made it blue.
That sort of thing. Religion gives answers to the most difficult questions. How was the universe created? Why are we here? What is our purpose in life? What happens to us after we die? Quite often, people cannot come to terms with what Science tells us (Our purpose in life is to survive and reproduce. When we die, that's it, no more, your thoughts end there. Human beings evolved from apes. Etc.) Religion gives more meaning to life. As a result, many people who feel confused and lost in life turn to religion to find answers they seek.
Promise and Judgement
All religions have their own sets of teachings and laws which believers must follow. Being human beings, we all need some sort of incentive in order to be motivate to do something. Hence all religions offer some sort of promise and/or judgement.
Promise
Promise is basically incentive to follow the teachings of the religion. These include health, wealth, peace, happiness, stature, recognition, going to heaven, reincarnating into a higher lifeform after death etc. These serve as great marketing tools to convince new believers, who would definitely want to know "What's so good about your God/religion?".
Judgement
Judgement is the opposite to promise. It is the disincentive should one not follow the teachings or break the laws of the religion. These include poverty, hunger, unrest, pain, suffering, sorrow, shame, burning in hell for eternity, reincarnating into a lowly lifeform after death etc. This, too, helps serve as a marketing tool, albeit a very scary one. Sort of like a threat. "If you don't ......... , you will ........." It is this fear that prevents believers from going astray too. In addition, some religions bring it a step higher. They tell believers that they MUST spread the word and convert others, or face judgement too. This works very well as believers are afterall, believers. They do believe that this judgement is real and therefore will do their best to convert the people around them.
Immunity to Falsification
Some religions teach about the rightful way of life. Others preach the existance of an omnipotent being, a God. Either way, it is impossible to prove or falsify much of the claims. Consider the religions that teach about the rightful way of life. Does following the teachings make life better? It is impossible to measure the quality of life. There are too many factors such as health, wealth, happiness, or how fulfilling a life was. In addition, people place different weight and importanct for the different factors. Also, non-physical factors such as happiness and how fulfilling life was are impossible to measure fairly without biase. A religions person may rate his life as extremely fulfilling to "make his religion look good". Furthermore, for religions that mention life after death (heaven, hell, reincarnation), this is yet another important factor that can be neither proved nor falsified, neither practically nor theoretically. The possible existance of a God is another claim that can never be proven. An omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient being that cannot be measured, observed, seen, felt, heard, smelled or tasted, can neither be proven nor falsified. When "miracles" appear to happen, it is again impossible to know if it was an act from a divine being, or merely a coincidence. To add to this problem, advances in quantum physics have shown that everything is possible, just not probable. The dead coming back to life, a cooked egg becoming raw again, money mysteriously and suddenly appearing in my bank account, these are all possible, just improbable. The point at the end of the day is, since religion cannot be disproved with any significant level of certainty, it is here to stay.
Teaching Good
Religions generally have good teachings that benefit society. They condemn "evil" deeds such as murder, theft, dishonesty etc. At the same time they promote "virtuous" deeds such as helping others, listening to parents, mutual respect, tolerance etc. These teachings help society progress, makes the society safer, and also makes the world a more pleasant place to live in. As a result, leaders of many states and nations do support and promote religion directly or indirectly. This plays a major role in the growth and survival of religions.
Hope to the Hopeless
A follower in need is a follower indeed. Many devout followers cling on to religion so strongly because they feel religion is the only source of hope for them. These people include the sick, disabled, poor, broken-hearted, ostracised etc. Afterall, there is no problem too big for God.
The terminally ill turn to religion when science and medicine is unable to heal them. The only hope they have left is that a divine force cures them of their disease. Same for the disabled.
The jobless may decide to become a full-time devotee (no qualifications, experience, or any form of entry requirements), perhaps becoming a monk or missionary.
The broken-hearted who feel that life is meaningless turn to religion as religion gives them a reason to live.
As for the ostracised.... "Well, if nobody cares, remember that God does." "Everybody is equal in God's eyes." Religion tells them that they too have an equal chance to live a meaningful life. Furthermore, religious circles may be the only place where they are not ridiculed.
As a result, all kinds of people facing all kinds of problems in their lives turn to religion. The greater their problems, the stronger their hold.
Giving Thanks
Many religions encourage people to give thanks and be optimistic in every situation and circumstance. When good things happen, thank God that it happened. Bad things happen, thank God as it could have been worse. After it's over, thank God that it's over and thank God for helping you survive through the ordeal. This also applies to religions that do not preach the existance of a superior being, only difference being that instead of giving thanks to God, you simply just be grateful. What exactly does this do? Three main things - Reaffirmation, testimony, and anchoring.
Reaffirmation
This sort of giving thanks helps remind believers that following the teachings of this religion will bring benefit and not harm to them. It brings attention to God's endless grace, measureless mercy and boundless love. Convertees will feel that their lives are better than it was before even if it's actually the same, as they now pay more attention to all the littles blessings in their lives that they never noticed before.
Testimony
Believers who are able to give thanks in all circumstances will ultimately appear to live much happier lives. Every moment of every day is a blessing, even at times of adversity. When others (believer or non-beliver alike) look at such a person, it is "evidence" that this religion indeed improves the quality of life. Non-believers who see this will be somewhat more convinced that what this religion teaches is indeed rightful and true. They will therefore more inclined to convert. Among believers who share about the blessings in their lives, this further enforces their faith as they see more "evidence" that following these teachings will ultimately improve their lives.
Anchoring
Anchoring is an NLP technique where certain emotions are "anchored" to a trigger. The easiest way to explain this is through a simple example. Say, there was a song playing in the background during a very romantic dinner. After that incident, listening to that particular song may bring back a rush of emotion experienced that evening. What happens here is that the song acts as a trigger, with the emotions "anchored" to it. Similarly, positive emotions are "anchored" to the thought of God or simply the religious teachings. When something good happens, a believer makes it a point to thank God, or simply give thanks as this is what his/her religion has taught him/her. This will anchor these positive emotions to God or the religion. Although this is a very weak anchor, consistent thanksgiving will gradually intensify this effect resulting in a very powerful psychological device. With this anchor in place, whenever the thought of God comes to mind, the believer feels all these anchored emotion, which often include peace, happiness, relief, and assurance.
More information on anchoring can be found from the following links:
http://www.unlimitedchoice.org/blog/daily/anchoring/
http://ezinearticles.com/?NLP-Anchoring-Techniques---How-to-Use-NLP-Anchoring-Techniques-to-Master-Your-Emotions&id=3109376
Praise and Worship
It is a fact that if you tell yourself something over and over again, you will believe it. That's what praise and worship does. Believers regularly offer praise and worship to their God. This acts as a constant renewal to their faith, strenghtening it over time. Here, music is often used. Music greatly facilitates this as a catchy tune with powerful lyrics can easily get embedded into the heads of listeners, playing itself over and over again. A non-believer who has gotten such a song stuck in his/her head may start singing the song over and over to himself/herself. Over time, such a person will find meaning within the lyrics and will be very easy to convert.
Investing on Religion
Believers spend on religion. They spend on offerings (churches, mosques, temples etc need money to operate), idols, amulets, etc. What happens here? The more one invests in something, the more one will treasure it. This investment can come in the form of money, time, emotion, fasting, piercings, tattoos, pilgrimage, prayer, praise and worship, whatever. Each time one invests in religion, he/she becomes more tightly bound to the religion. In the end you get is a devotee unwilling to be moved.
Pact for Life
What's the best way to retain believers? Make a pact with them, one that lasts a lifetime. Baptism, pilgrimage, circumcision, tattooing, piercings, better if it leaves a permanent marking on their bodies. What does this do? Not much explanation required, but basically, the believers are bonded for life. As good as signing a contract with no escape clause.
There are many other factors that I have not included in, for the following reasons:
1) It's getting late
2) I do not have sufficient evidence
3) They're difficult to put in words
4) They're insignificant
5) They're somewhat subjective
If you disagree to any portion of this entry, kindly enlighten me, perhaps we can all learn together.
Monday, October 26, 2009 9:45 PM by SmYLe =)
Friday, October 23, 2009
HIV FFI: Stupid medics poke 3 holes just to get 1 tube of blood. My vein so hard to find huh?
My Forecast Of Events
orD-DAY - 14 (23 Oct) : Day off, but go back camp for photo taking in morning and FFI in afternoon.
orD-DAY - 13 (24 Oct) : Saturday
orD-DAY - 12 (25 Oct) : Sunday
orD-DAY - 11 (26 Oct) : 9 DIV sports day, attending as spectator.
orD-DAY - 10 (27 Oct) : Day off, dental FFI in morning @ SAFTI.
orD-DAY - 9 (28 Oct) : Day off
orD-DAY - 8 (29 Oct) : Day off
orD-DAY - 7 (30 Oct) : WOSPEC training day (paintball session @ HQ NCC)
orD-DAY - 6 (31 Oct) : Saturday, HALLOWEEN!!
orD-DAY - 5 (1 Nov) : Sunday, halloween hangover
orD-DAY - 4 (2 Nov) : Leave
orD-DAY - 3 (3 Nov) : Leave
orD-DAY - 2 (4 Nov) : Day off
orD-DAY - 1 (5 Nov) : Back to camp, sign leftover clearance...
orD-DAY (6 Nov) : ORD FFI @ Medical Center, collect pink IC, ORD LO!!
Friday, October 23, 2009 8:44 PM by SmYLe =)
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Fucked up I'm losing sleep every night. It's getting worse and starting to drive me mad.
This is awesome.....
.....
...
...
....
Too bad it's staged.
Not real.
Fake.
Haiz.
But it's still damn cool.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009 1:03 AM by SmYLe =)