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Friday, November 10, 2006

Word has it the Democrats have taken Congress! Both houses!

Woohoo!

I've never really stood for the Republican policy programme, or more correctly, lack of a policy programme. The stubbornness over Iraq in the face of reality was appalling, almost as if it was meant to secure the big businesses that had interests there, and wait for their pullout before the military follows suit. The economic policy was virtually nonexistent. The scandals, well, added up...

So it's really great, I think, for a change of leadership to happen. Of course, the next step is for Nancy Pelosi and her followers to actually deliver on the changes that will bring about a better future for America at home and abroad. That's important, mostly because like it or not, America's fate is heavily intertwined with that of the rest of the world. A weak America in economic terms is bad for the world. Good political morality and values will strengthen the world too. As for the military, it's good to keep and build strength as long as you don't start using it indiscriminately like the bloody Texan Yank has.

I'm fine with the small victories people like Schwarzenegger get in California, as long as he actually does something right for the state. But the big clinchers in knocking out Santorum and forcing Rumsfeld to resign are huge things worth celebrating. Of course, it'd be nice if Rumsfeld was not forced into resignation, but voted out of office. Now the call, I hear, is to impeach Bush and Cheney. I think the momentum is building, but it's wise to keep that momentum in check and concentrate on building America all over again. Fact is, fight the battles you know will win productively.

Otherwise, you're going to end up with the mess that is Taiwan, and the whole Chen Shui-bian business. Now a third recall bill is being proposed. I'm not sure it'll pass, especially given the DPP stonewall. But the acrimony of the whole thing should be ample evidence that sometimes, the sentimental battles aren't going to win it outright the way you hope they will. Little technicalities and the presence of adequate morally bankrupt numbers will get in the way.

And so what if Chen is downed? Does it prompt a fundamental change in culture? Not necessarily. Could it lead instead to chaotic anarchy? Absolutely possible. We'll just have to keep our fingers crossed on that one.

But enough about politics for a while already.

gambitch [ 3:42 PM]

Sunday, November 05, 2006

So I finally managed to put in some time for my Sunday football session. Not too bad, actually.

Okay, my defending sucked, my stamina was way down, my goalkeeping was unspectacular. But... I scored a goal! Always nice to be able to do that, and straight off a free kick too.

What happened was that there was a free kick, and I decided I was a bit bored, so I thought I'd step up and take it. A couple of people were suggesting against it because goalkeepers don't usually score, plus I wasn't known to be a good shooter. But then I decided there was really no harm trying, and measured my steps properly before taking the low shot. It went in at the far end, and as I jogged back to my goal, I kept a straight face before turning around and having a good laugh. Vindication? Hell yes!

Too bad the rest of the game time didn't live up quite as well. I think I definitely need to find some way to restore my stamina. Maybe I should go swimming in the next two months? I'm going to be a bit freed up after all...

I got a call from my editor at the newspaper. They told me I can basically stop writing for a while. It's not my fault, actually. What happened was that the regular space for which I wrote is actually sponsored under a contract, and the contract had expired and was not renewed, hence giving no space to write. And hence my services were no longer necessary, because no income for the paper meant no reason to spend. Okay, simple enough business decision, I suppose.

The sadness to this is that, first of all, the situation was really preventable. The contract should have lasted longer than it did, because it didn't make sense to have a contract end slightly earlier than the event it was meant to cover. For some reason, though, that's what happened. And you can't depend on the kindness of heart of the newspapers to simply follow through out of support for the event. Nowadays newspapers are commercial outfits, and sadly, money is the language that gets the news in. I'd wish it wasn't. But that's the reality, and as much as I would like to engage in wishful thinking, it just isn't possible here when I'm not the acting party.

The second silliness is the whole way in which the event organizer tried to extend the contract. First they said they had no money. And then when talks broke down, instead of the bosses keeping on the talking, they decide to send a subordinate. What did they think the subordinate could do that they couldn't? It's that perception of sincerity, you know, and having started the negotiations yourselves, you should have just seen it through to the very end, rather than throw it at someone else who's of even lower rank. This was very unfair.

So what do I do now? Sit around for a little while. I do have other sources of income, and at least I have been accumulating a bit of savings, so things aren't in a desperate situation for me personally. But the institution has to be a little cleverer than they were this time around, or else there'll be so many other people suffering for the stupidest of reasons.

Wake up, people!

gambitch [ 3:09 PM]