Making the Right Decision

Having decided to browse for some samples of the so-called Indonesian indie music, I found myself listening to Jason Tedjasukmana's podcast interview with singer Tompi. (Yes, I know that Tompi is NOT considered an indie artist and neither is this post about indies. It's about me being astonished by a young, promising talent in Indonesia. )

He unpretentiously explained to Jason that he never intended to have a career out of music. It's merely his way to make money to realize his dream in becoming a cosmetic surgeon. All in a well-spoken manner, almost flawless English, and without a single hint of vanity -- which would be understandable. A medical student in a society that still places doctors in the elite group (regardless the fact that many of them still struggle to earn some money in smaller puskesmas and clinics!), a gifted singer who has sold thousands of records and definitely become the object of affection of Indonesia's jazz-lover crowd, he surely has plenty of options, and I admire him for knowing he wants for his future.

On the contrary, Once left his work in a more formal environment (a law firm? Correct me, please), to pursue his dream in the music industry. Stepping into the shoes of former Dewa frontman Ari Lasso another whiz kid in the industry, and with the prospect of working together with the Talented-yet-an-Ultimate Snob Dani Ahmad, many would have seen the decision highly risky. As we have witnessed, it worked out well for both parties, Once and Dewa.

A few years ago, I was a bit shocked when a good friend of mine quit from a big corporate in shipping industry, despite his new promotion, and went to his hometown to work as a supervisor and manager of a then undeveloped conservation park. I knew that he was (still is) an avid reader of National Geography magazine and he had long dreamed of working as an environmentalist. I just didn't think that he would take such a dramatic step, though I also know that materials never really attracted him. I never asked him how his parents reacted to it, but I assume he had discussed it with them earlier. Each time we communicate (which is, like, every 6 months!) he sounds happier.

They are lucky people. Some don't have the luxury of making their dream real. Or simply having opportunities.

Or are the rest too blind to see the open doors?

Kolom Aju Bijak: Duri Dalam Daging

Aju Bijak yang moga-moga memang bijak,

Saya (30 sekian tahun), tergabung dalam sebuah forum dunia maya yang para anggotanya adalah penggemar makanan khas kota tertentu. Berawal dari pembicaraan bilateral antar beberapa perantauan di ibukota mengenai tempat-tempat yang menyediakan makanan tersebut (hampir) seenak di kota asal, kami kemudian sepakat untuk membentuk forum ini. Selain sebagai wadah tukar informasi mengenai restoran/warung/depot yang patut dicoba, juga sebagai ajang mempererat tali silaturahmi. Forum ini cepat berkembang, dan dalam beberapa bulan saja jumlah anggotanya meningkat pesat. Meskipun banyak yang kemudian menjadi anggota pasif, atau hanya sekali-sekali memberikan saran atau menulis berita, tapi jelas kawan kami bertambah.

Barangkali memang sifat dasar penduduk asal kota kami yang cepat akrab, meskipun usianya relatif baru, tapi percakapan dalam forum sudah sangat informal. Bahkan anggota yang tidak berasal dari kota kami pun langsung melebur di dalamnya. Meskipun belum pernah bertemu muka rasanya kami sudah sangat kenal satu sama lain, sehingga ketika kopi darat digelar pertama kali, kami seolah-olah sedang mengadakan reuni saja. Bagi saya sendiri, mereka sudah seperti keluarga, dan hal ini sedikit mengobati kerinduan saya pada kota asal saya.

Yang jadi persoalan adalah salah seorang anggota yang, menurut saya, berpotensi merusak kesolidan forum ini dengan perilakunya yang sering mau menang sendiri. Kalau ada yang melontarkan pernyataan yang membuatnya tersinggung, dia langsung ngambek dan menuliskan kata-kata tidak enak, mengancam mau undur dari forum, dan sebagainya. Padahal dia sendiri kerap mengeluarkan tulisan yang bagi saya seperti personal attack terhadap anggota lain. Walaupun mungkin baginya hal tersebut hanya candaan, saya tidak menganggapnya lucu.

Anehnya, perilaku demikian seolah-oleh diakomodasi saja oleh anggota forum yang lain. Saya pernah bermaksud untuk menegurnya secara pribadi, tapi dicegah oleh beberapa teman. Alasannya, acuhkan saja dia, toh yang bersangkutan tidak punya hubungan pekerjaan dengan yang lain yang dapat merugikan. (Kebetulan dia tidak pernah muncul dalam berbagai pertemuan anggota). Tapi begitu dia offline, langsung yang lain membicarakannya (tentu dengan nada negatif) .

Menurut Aju, bagaimana seharusnya saya menyikapi hal ini? Saya pikir, daripada kita semua ngerasani dia, lebih baik kita langsung bicara dengannya. Mungkin dengan demikian dia bisa memperbaiki tingkah lakunya yang sering menimbulkan rasa tidak nyaman pada saya dan teman-teman lain.

(X di Y)

Ananda X yang baik,

Dalam pandangan Aju, pertemanan di dunia maya mensyaratkan hal-hal yang dibutuhkan juga dalam dunia nyata, seperti toleransi, saling menghormati, dan sikap DEWASA. Apalagi dalam forum yang Ananda ikuti ini, yang Aju asumsikan usia para anggotanya kurang lebih sepantaran Ananda, walaupun memang usia tidak menjamin kedewasaan.

Menjawab pertanyaan Ananda di atas, pertama-tama Aju sarankan Ananda melakukan "riset" dulu, apakah rasa tidak nyaman Ananda ini dirasakan juga oleh banyak anggota yang lain. Seandainya hanya Ananda, tentu Ananda perlu melakukan introspeksi, kalau perlu membahasnya dengan teman-teman seforum yang Ananda percayai.

Namun sekiranya perasaan tidak nyaman itu melanda banyak anggota lain (kemungkinan inilah kasusnya, menilik dari tulisan Ananda mengenai rerasanan para anggota setelah si Duri Dalam Daging (DDD/3D) offline), Aju setuju bahwa sebaiknya yang bersangkutan diajak berbicara baik-baik. Bagaimana caranya, Aju serahkan kepada Ananda dan teman-teman Ananda yang lain, karena kalian tentunya lebih memahami karakternya. Ada kemungkinan dia tidak menyadari bahwa apa yang dilakukannya telah meresahkan sebagian anggota forum, sehingga bisa saja dia justru berterima kasih bahwa kalian telah mengingatkannya. Hanya saja, bila yang bersangkutan kurang dewasa, resikonya adalah dia tidak bisa menerima teguran teman-temannya. Untuk itu ada beberapa kemungkinan: dia hengkang dari forum, atau dia berupaya agar yang menegur yang keluar dari forum.

Bila hal terakhir yang terjadi, pilihan ada di tangan kalian: apakah kalian akan bertahan di forum tersebut dengan menebalkan mata dan telinga terhadap si 3D, atau kalian memutuskan untuk keluar saja dari forum itu, toh kalian dapat tetap berhubungan secara pribadi dengan anggota-anggotanya.

Selamat "berjuang", Ananda. Sekiranya telah ada keputusan yang diambil, barangkali Ananda berkenan membagi hasilnya dengan para pembaca kolom ini. Siapa tahu ada yang mengalami masalah serupa!

Sebel dan Maaf

Sudah nulis panjang-panjang, diinjeksi bergelas-gelas kopi (kalau ini sih memang dasar doyan), calon isian blog hilang begitu saja, persis setelah saya mengklik "publish". Ya, salah saya juga, karena tidak menyimpan salinannya di harddisk. Salah saya juga, karena tidak sabar menunggu Blogger mengunduh tulisan saya. Tapi kalaupun ada masalah teknis di tubuh Blogger itu kan seharusnya bukan problem sayaaaa...!!!

Murka berlipat-lipat.

Tak pernah terpikirkan sebelumnya bahwa kegagalan mengisi blog bisa merusak mood saya. Tapi saya tidak mau berlarut-larut di dalamnya ah. Soal kecil begini! Lagipula, walaupun bukan muslim, boleh dong saya mengikuti semangat memaafkan di Hari Raya Idul Fitri ini, terutama memaafkan Blogger yang sudah berhasil membuat saya bete.

Untuk para teman-teman yang merayakan Lebaran, saya haturkan selamat sekaligus dengan rendah hati meminta maaf sekiranya ada yang salah dari kata dan tindakan saya selama ini. Walaupun gak janji kalau tidak akan mengulangi lagi, hihihi...

Buat kawan yang menunggu postingan itu (saya tidak tulis nama maupun tautannya di sini untuk menjaga confidentiality. hihihi.. ), maafkan saya juga karena tulisannya belum ada. Ini gara-gara Blogger ke****t itu! Saya lagi mengumpulkan semangat saya ya untuk menuliskannya kembali.

Selamat berlibur semua!

Bad Boys and Chocolate!

Bad boys are like chocolate. We know they will cause us migrain, yet we always crave for them. Though we have promised ourselves that we'll stop taking them, we always find reasons to have a single bite -- which will later be followed by more and more. In the end, when we have to struggle to button the shirt since we've gained significant kilograms or when we are in our bed, suffering from severe headache, we will only be cursing ourselves.

The Wall of Jer-Ego


Complains on Americans paranoiac policies, from issuing numerous travel warnings to places that are way safer than Bronx in midday, to bugging all telephone lines in the country (in addition to, well, governmental buildings in other countries), are already countless. Protests have been made to no avail by foreign missions as their high rank officials are told to take off their shoes -- many times in not a very nice way -- once these important people step on the Land of the Free. Hats off to the late composer of the Stars Spangled Banner: this is indeed the home of the brave. Brave enough to face the threats of bomb explosions, lunatics firing schools, serial killers serving in religious places, and megalomaniac actors who vehemently scan all tabloids to find even the smallest column on their love lives.

Wait, are we talking about the United States or about Indonesia? I'm getting more and more confused. Either I need a lobotomy or yes, like the Ambassador always points out, the United States and Indonesia do have a lot in common. Well, well, well, ain't THAT interesting?

There I go rambling again.

Anyway, the Bush administration's plan to extend the walls along the border with Mexico has become the main issue since last year in the latter country -- raising fears on the possible drainage of incoming dollars from the migrant workers. The illegal migrant workers, to be exact. Some have even likened it to the Berlin Wall, calling the plan as "insulting".

What the Mexicans don't quite understand, to my opinion, is that the wall plan doesn't only cater security concern, in all aspects: literal, political, and economic. There is a bigger issue here, and the keyword is: China.

With Chinese made products flooding American market, its traditional influence in Asia now stretching to other areas, its warfare getting more and more modernized, the US is watching over the Dragon state cautiously. It's not just about factual or potential threats. It's actually the EGO thing.

You see, by the time the walls along all US borderlines are completed, the US will have the longest wall ever: 12,032 km -- exceeding the Great Walls which goes as far as 6,232 km. Some may argue about the incorrect statistics: both countries' border total length is only 3,141 km. Try to add the length of US-Canadian border and you'll get the above number.

But the US doesn't have problem with Canada, right?

Indeed, not at the moment. But problem could always be created, especially when the Mexicans will try to enter US territory through Canada.

And don't forget, the main objective here is DEFEATING CHINA. The US's "Great Wall" will finally replace China's as one of the World's Wonders, hehehhe...

For the sake of our own national interest (read: Indonesia and its citizens' interest), we should support this policy. The Mexicans and other Latinos claim that they have become the pillar of US' economy and think that they are indispensible. Ayayayay.. Amigos, I have news for you: millions of future migrants from Asia and Eastern Europe are READY to plunge into the Land of Foreigners. And certainly they are more than happy to speak English rather than demanding that their native language be officially recognized!


Pic is taken from the Prickly City comic strips.

Bahasa Indonesia as a UN official language?

Yes, why not?

And I am proposing this as a means to promote moderate Islam - to everyone's benefit.

Prior to the execution of Tibo, Riwu and da Silva, the telephones in my division rang inexhaustedly. The callers questioned, begged, cursed, gave sermons -- different ways and expresions for one purpose: that the execution be stopped, and the three defendants be given amnesty. One conversation, though, still left an impression on me. That is when I tried to explain the difference between "Islam in Indonesia" and "the radical Islam."

"You may see that those 'stereotypes' about a Muslim society don't apply in Indonesia," I answered him. "For instance, we already had a female President, the largest Buddhist temple in the world, and more Christian holidays than in the United States!"

I can't remember other things that I told him, but obviously he was so taken that he asked: "Why don't the moderate Indonesian Muslims speak out?". To which I replied, "They did. Only they were not quoted by the American media!"

He agreed that it is indeed one of the core problems: the lack of media attention to the voice of the moderate majority.

I was reminded to the dialogue when I read this article, written by a Reuter's correspondent, and later another article published in The Jakarta Post, by an Indonesian Muslim scholar. Both underline the need of the moderate Muslim population in Southeast Asia (Indonesia in particular) spreading out their progressive approach in translating the Islamic teachings into daily life. This will have dual advantages: the changing perspective AND attitude towards the Muslim society, and the catalyst for moderacy AND democracy in the more "conservative" Muslim nations.

Unfortunately, as Jonathan Lyons captions, there is this language barrier: many of the moderacy proponents don't speak English. Let alone WRITE in English, in proper grammar.

While an abundance of sources to improve English fluency are available everywhere, including here *hi Edsye!*, perhaps another thing that we can do at the same time is proposing Bahasa Indonesia as a UN official language.

This way, while we expedite the process of spreading the moderate views on Islamic teachings embraced by the people in the Malay-speaking zone of Southeast Asia, we will also get more gains, such as:
1. Less time for our delegation's preparations in UN-related conferences and meetings -- we won't have to translate policy documents!;
2. We don't have to worry about our president's (or other high dignitary's) pronounciation when he/she is delivering his/her speech;
3. Pride, folks, pride!
4. Etcetera (I can't think of one, now *confession mode on*).

But of course, there is the not-so alluring prospect of having Bahasa Indonesia as a UN official language, like, we will probably not be able to say something nasty on their face (or, worse, on their back), as more and more people are learning Bahasa Indonesia. When a TV station airs a scene in which a group of people shouting insults, or insensible action plans ("Sweep out all Westerners from our country!", "Kill the infidels!"), we can't say that, "Well, they are not really happy about a situation here, but they are understanding..."

And there will be more parliament members getting disturbed when they visit a country and Bahasa Indonesia is not even recognized by their counterparts (or whomever they meet there) -- and demand that the respective country's government do something to increase the usage of Bahasa Indonesia in that country. After all, Bahasa Indonesia IS an international language, right?

Now that we come to that point, I guess it's not a brilliant idea after all. Let's just send the moderates to English courses, and the radicals to obedient schools.