I saw this over at The Huffington Post (thanks to Anita McKay for showing the link).
I know some especially difficult children. They, though, are not in need of any charity.
16 October 2010
Especially Difficult Children...
I saw this over at The Huffington Post (thanks to Anita McKay for showing the link).
I know some especially difficult children. They, though, are not in need of any charity.
"The Sex Business Behind Bars"...
I was reading The Jakarta Globe earlier on. Unfortunately, this is not the post to bag the Riady clan out over the quality of their publications. But, one can always get a good little chuckle reading the agenda that rears its head between the lines. It should not be too long and they will dispense with the charade, like Rupert Murdoch has done, and just get on with the job of trying to convince people they are legitimate alternative news providers.
Anyways, "The Sex Business Behind Bars". Now SCTV has produced a documentary on the sex business as it happens in Indonesian prisons. The fact that sex happens in prison should not be a shocker to anyone, the fact that in Indonesian prisons (and a whole lot of prisons elsewhere in the world) it is possible to 'benefit' from the services of prostitutes is not really much of a revelation either. Nevertheless, the hidden camera footage of the business end of these transactions being done might have been more revealing than the act itself, particularly with respect to 'who' was facilitating this.
Yet, this is only a story because SCTV claim that the Ministry of Law and Human Rights has been onto them, and at them, non-stop to pull the show from their programming schedule. The Ministry has also made it known that it intends to investigate. So, let them investigate. There is nothing from stopping them from launching an internal investigation on the issue, even without having seen the documentary or getting a copy of it before or after it is shown on the idiot box (aka television).
Yet, it seems that all manner of groups will be joining in the investigation phase, and will be presumably investigating each other. The media have vowed to investigate the pressure the Ministry has allegedly been exerting as this is considered to be a form of censorship. And, censorship is a restriction of the freedom of speech. Ho hum...
However, the Ministry spokesperson, Martua Batubara, has gone on the record to say that the only request from the Ministry is for a copy of the tape after it is shown for the Ministry's documentation (and presumably archiving) purposes. This would not strike me as a particularly onerous request in light of the fact that SCTV would have already shown the documentary. Now, if the request was for a pre-screening and then some sort of editorial right to alter the content, then that would be an issue of interference. Yet, when it is all said and done, SCTV could still conceivably run the gauntlet and tell the Ministry to bugger off and just go ahead and screen the documentary.
What is not clear from The Jakarta Globe article is just why SCTV has apparently bowed to the Ministry demand. Is there the threat of legal action along the lines of "You show this program and we will commence immediate legal action and sue you into bankruptcy and then out of business!"? The idea that there is hidden camera footage in the documentary suggests that SCTV was not entirely up-front with prison officials as to what they were doing whilst inside prisons, or outside prison and dealing with prison officials.
So, I guess the point is I still really do not feel any the wiser with respect to why SCTV pulled the plug.
Well, I might have to do a quick survey of the Indonesian language news sites and see what is trending over in Indonesian news-land. If I learn anything, then I might post it here as a postscript.
Yet, this is only a story because SCTV claim that the Ministry of Law and Human Rights has been onto them, and at them, non-stop to pull the show from their programming schedule. The Ministry has also made it known that it intends to investigate. So, let them investigate. There is nothing from stopping them from launching an internal investigation on the issue, even without having seen the documentary or getting a copy of it before or after it is shown on the idiot box (aka television).
Yet, it seems that all manner of groups will be joining in the investigation phase, and will be presumably investigating each other. The media have vowed to investigate the pressure the Ministry has allegedly been exerting as this is considered to be a form of censorship. And, censorship is a restriction of the freedom of speech. Ho hum...
However, the Ministry spokesperson, Martua Batubara, has gone on the record to say that the only request from the Ministry is for a copy of the tape after it is shown for the Ministry's documentation (and presumably archiving) purposes. This would not strike me as a particularly onerous request in light of the fact that SCTV would have already shown the documentary. Now, if the request was for a pre-screening and then some sort of editorial right to alter the content, then that would be an issue of interference. Yet, when it is all said and done, SCTV could still conceivably run the gauntlet and tell the Ministry to bugger off and just go ahead and screen the documentary.
What is not clear from The Jakarta Globe article is just why SCTV has apparently bowed to the Ministry demand. Is there the threat of legal action along the lines of "You show this program and we will commence immediate legal action and sue you into bankruptcy and then out of business!"? The idea that there is hidden camera footage in the documentary suggests that SCTV was not entirely up-front with prison officials as to what they were doing whilst inside prisons, or outside prison and dealing with prison officials.
So, I guess the point is I still really do not feel any the wiser with respect to why SCTV pulled the plug.
Well, I might have to do a quick survey of the Indonesian language news sites and see what is trending over in Indonesian news-land. If I learn anything, then I might post it here as a postscript.
The Birds & The Bees...
Life used to be so much more simple when the conversation was really only about when to have that "talk". You know, the one about the birds and the bees. However, the conversation is no longer a conversation hut a fully-fledged debate, and perhaps rightly so. There has been an increasing trend, courtesy of the internet, for our children and their youth to be tested by the bounds of what is 'right'.
Some of the more interesting debate centres on child stars as they grow into adulthood and begin testing the waters with respect to finding themselves, finding an identity that they are comfortable with, and moving from the relative safety to the less safe world of being an adult. This is exacerbated by the youngsters themselves when they avail themselves of the technology at their disposal and post pictures of themselves. Miley Cyrus as the childhood sweetheart of the Hannah Montana series is a prime example of this need to adult-me-up crossover from childhood star to wanna-be taken seriously adult.
Another 17-year-old looking to have a much more adult image of late is Taylor Momsen. Her recent appearance on the cover of Revolver magazine is tribute to that desire to ratchet-up to the next level the desire to be an adult.
As I was looking for some images that were tame enough to attach to this post, it struck me that once an image is posted to the internet then it forever remains "out there".
I guess the point of this post is really to ponder why there is a need to sexualise our children through the media, how we should deal with it as a community when these youngsters bring it on themselves by posting pictures of themselves, and should this topic be addressed in schools as a means of trying to prevent the most negative outcomes of what seems to be out of control at the moment?
As I was looking for some images that were tame enough to attach to this post, it struck me that once an image is posted to the internet then it forever remains "out there".
I guess the point of this post is really to ponder why there is a need to sexualise our children through the media, how we should deal with it as a community when these youngsters bring it on themselves by posting pictures of themselves, and should this topic be addressed in schools as a means of trying to prevent the most negative outcomes of what seems to be out of control at the moment?
15 October 2010
Cut Tari and Law No. 1 of 1951...
In any event, it would seem that making a porn film and being in a porn film are not illegal per se. This is true for the 2008 Anti-Pornography Law. Although the arguments being made by Cut Tari's lawyer, the 'I am everywhere you are', entertainment lawyer, Hotman Paris, rely on the inability of a 2008 law being applied retroactively to a sex video filmed in 2005. He has a point. Yet, it would seem that being naked in front of a digital camera probably falls under the indecency provisions (Art. 282) of the Criminal Code.
However, where this gets really sad is that the police and prosecutors are going all out to find laws to try and apply in this case. So, it was back into the archived Statute Books to play a little "pin the tail on the donkey". The end result was Law No. 1 of 1951, an emergency law that was enacted under a provisional Constitution and in 1951 Indonesia was tinkering with the way the Republic was to be governed. Nevertheless, Article 5(3) of Law No. 1/1951 has a nice 'catch all' element to it:
where an act is considered to be a crime, but where there is no relevant article in the Criminal Code prohibiting that act, then customary (traditional 'hukum adat') law can apply.
I wonder if the hukum adat that might apply here has any Sharia elements to it. Then again, both profess to not being able to remember where the film was shot. Maybe it was shot overseas and not even in the jurisdiction of Indonesia?
The cold hard reality for the coppers and the prosecutors here is that if you have to go back to a 1951 law that has not been used for this purpose previously then things are looking a little forlorn on the successful outcomes stakes. Let's face it, the drafters of the 1951 law hardly had amateur sex tapes at the forefront of their minds when drafting Article 5 of that law. It is a real stretch, drawing a long bow, if you prefer, to try an make this stick.
Final points...you really have to wonder why the police and prosecutors are persisting with this case. The again, if the SBY can railroad the DPR into approving a suspect candidate for Chief of Police, and the DPR can see no reason why the man who presided over the, still unexplained and unresolved, murder of Trisakti students in 1998 should not be Chief of Police, then what hope do a couple of amateur porn stars have?
Now for some obligatory pictures of Cut Tari...
13 October 2010
Getting to Know Your President: A Question of Civil Service Exams...
There are two things that are consistently getting me into that shaking my head mode and muttering, "are you serious?" Yes, the FPI and SBY. Funny how each prefer to go by the acronym rather than the full version of their monikers. I wonder if their are any other similarities or like interests?
Anyway, this is not a post about why the FPI and SBY are equally bad for Indonesia. This post is to focus only on SBY.
The recent Prospective Civil Servant Entrance Exam (CPNS - Calon Pegawai Negeri Sipil) was held at the Ministry of Trade recently. It was different from all previous exams in one very noticeable way. It included a question on SBY and his musical talents. Specifically, the question asked, "which of the following songs was on President SBY's third album?" It was multiple guess with A, B, C, or D as your choices. So, if you are like me and think the President cannot sing for crap, then you still had a chance at guessing the right answer.
If you are shaking your head and going WTF is this all about, then you are probably not alone. I am still smiling at the thought of the question making it onto the exam in the first place. I am also chuckling at the prospect of how the president might answer the questions that will undoubtedly be asked about the appearance of the question in an exam of this kind.
The Minister of Trade has gone on the record saying that she was not aware of the question being there, in fact the Minister needs to check and confirm first. It will be interesting if this is just a case of a candidate wanting to cause a bit of a firestorm of bad press. But, I guess time will tell.
However, if the question is there, then this begs the question, "how did it get there?"
Is the appearance of the question in a civil service exam a result of some good old fashioned corruption, collusion, and nepotism? Or is it just a simple case of a low-level employee in the Ministry of Trade finding something to amuse themselves with now that "all" the porn sites have been shut down?
Whatever the case may be, this is just a little bit more bad press for the president to deal with. The president seems to be in a bit of a downward spiral, at least in the sense of being in a state of constant spin in order to maintain his personal popularity. My guess is that history will be less kind to him and his legacy will be a non-legacy. A president that did two terms and achieved well below expectations.
I would have said "C". When in doubt it is always "C", isn't it?
Ho hum...
What? The FPI Have A Problem With Tera Patrick...
The FPI make it too easy for me to find reasons to post pictures of porn stars. The fact that none of the pictures I post are technically porn in any other sense than the FPI one, it is still worth writing about the FPI and the free advertising they provide for porn movies and porn stars.
The beauty of this latest spat is that the FPI have not been the erstwhile premature ejaculators they have been in the past. These white robed hoodlums missed the boat on this one until after the horse bolted. It sort of reminds me of that nasty little phrase that one might hear in their youth of "have you cum yet?", to only hear in response "I have already been! What's holding you up?" Boys, Miss Patrick has been and gone or came and went, whichever you prefer.
The film is scheduled for release on 14 October 2010. This, if I am not mistaken, is tomorrow. Hmmm, so how did Ms. Patrick get into the country shoot the film and get out again without anyone knowing?
I am not quite sure what the attraction is between local movie producers, horror movies and international porn stars outside of the controversy and free advertising that the FPI and other hardliners are likely to bring. Nevertheless, a film titled Rintihan Kuntilanak Perawan (or the Moans of a Virgin Ghost) is undoubtedly going to pique the interest of the white-robed initiators of violence in the name of Islam (aka embarrassment plus plus).
The title gets the imaginative juices flowing in trying to work out exactly why a virgin ghost is moaning anyways. And, how do we know she is a virgin? And, how could Tera Patrick ever play a virgin? Maybe she is not in the lead role. Can the other stars, Catherine Wilson or Angelique, of this horror flick play virgins either? Just thinking that Angelique has a role is too funny for words. I wonder how her former husband, the King of Dangdut, Mr. Rhoma Irama, is handling the good news.
But even funnier than the prospect of a Rhoma Irama meltdown is the response of Habib "Hey Baby" Salim Alatas, the Head of the Jakarta Branch of the white-robed hoods, who is stressed because he did not even know that Ms. Patrick had come into the country and shot a film. It appears Hey Baby is stressed because the film producers had been so covert. Let me say this Hey Baby, Film Producers = 1 and FPI a big fat 0!
On the scary front though, Hey Baby is threatening to bring out the FPI masses in protest. This is not good. When the FPI get into large groups they have more trouble than a 14-year-old with a Hustler magazine with respect to the self-control stakes. The FPI seem to get off on violence and scaring the crap out of people.
Now, you really do have to give it to the film production house responsible for this little film coup, K2K. According to them, the negotiations to get Tera Patrick to do this here horror flick was a 16-month process that involved four or five approaches before agreement was secured. It was a hell of a job to go that long, seal the deal, shoot the film, and get Ms. Patrick out of the country without anyone being any the wiser over at FPI-ville. How do you keep a secret like this one from not being outed on Twitter or Facebook or somewhere?
Getting back to the funny. It would seem that while Tifatul Sembiring was talking up the shutting down of all porn sites coming into or operating out of Indonesia, one of the world's biggest porn stars had come into J-Town in the weeks before Ramadan and shot a film and departed again. Mr. Minister, how does that happen?
Well, it seems that the international porn actress shooting low-budget horror films will continue...it is time for the FPI to loosen up a little and let Miyabi come back and shoot her horror film!
The only decision I had with respect to this post was should the pictures be at the front-end or the back-end of the post...the back-end!
The beauty of this latest spat is that the FPI have not been the erstwhile premature ejaculators they have been in the past. These white robed hoodlums missed the boat on this one until after the horse bolted. It sort of reminds me of that nasty little phrase that one might hear in their youth of "have you cum yet?", to only hear in response "I have already been! What's holding you up?" Boys, Miss Patrick has been and gone or came and went, whichever you prefer.
The film is scheduled for release on 14 October 2010. This, if I am not mistaken, is tomorrow. Hmmm, so how did Ms. Patrick get into the country shoot the film and get out again without anyone knowing?
I am not quite sure what the attraction is between local movie producers, horror movies and international porn stars outside of the controversy and free advertising that the FPI and other hardliners are likely to bring. Nevertheless, a film titled Rintihan Kuntilanak Perawan (or the Moans of a Virgin Ghost) is undoubtedly going to pique the interest of the white-robed initiators of violence in the name of Islam (aka embarrassment plus plus).
The title gets the imaginative juices flowing in trying to work out exactly why a virgin ghost is moaning anyways. And, how do we know she is a virgin? And, how could Tera Patrick ever play a virgin? Maybe she is not in the lead role. Can the other stars, Catherine Wilson or Angelique, of this horror flick play virgins either? Just thinking that Angelique has a role is too funny for words. I wonder how her former husband, the King of Dangdut, Mr. Rhoma Irama, is handling the good news.
But even funnier than the prospect of a Rhoma Irama meltdown is the response of Habib "Hey Baby" Salim Alatas, the Head of the Jakarta Branch of the white-robed hoods, who is stressed because he did not even know that Ms. Patrick had come into the country and shot a film. It appears Hey Baby is stressed because the film producers had been so covert. Let me say this Hey Baby, Film Producers = 1 and FPI a big fat 0!
On the scary front though, Hey Baby is threatening to bring out the FPI masses in protest. This is not good. When the FPI get into large groups they have more trouble than a 14-year-old with a Hustler magazine with respect to the self-control stakes. The FPI seem to get off on violence and scaring the crap out of people.
Now, you really do have to give it to the film production house responsible for this little film coup, K2K. According to them, the negotiations to get Tera Patrick to do this here horror flick was a 16-month process that involved four or five approaches before agreement was secured. It was a hell of a job to go that long, seal the deal, shoot the film, and get Ms. Patrick out of the country without anyone being any the wiser over at FPI-ville. How do you keep a secret like this one from not being outed on Twitter or Facebook or somewhere?
Getting back to the funny. It would seem that while Tifatul Sembiring was talking up the shutting down of all porn sites coming into or operating out of Indonesia, one of the world's biggest porn stars had come into J-Town in the weeks before Ramadan and shot a film and departed again. Mr. Minister, how does that happen?
Well, it seems that the international porn actress shooting low-budget horror films will continue...it is time for the FPI to loosen up a little and let Miyabi come back and shoot her horror film!
The only decision I had with respect to this post was should the pictures be at the front-end or the back-end of the post...the back-end!
11 October 2010
Schlieffen Plan and Teaching Modern History...
As the last post suggests, I am in Cootamundra! I am teaching at Cootmaundra High School for my final practicum. I have completed Day One. So, there are only 19 more days to go...
I am teaching the Core component of the HSC Modern History syllabus (well, at least part of it anyway). I am pretty well prepared, but like anything else there is always the prospect of Mr. Murphy turning up and bringing along his laws of chaos. Besides, in my limited high school teaching experience to date, if there is one thing that I have learned it is this, lesson planning is critical. Now, that said, it is possible to prepare a lesson which covers all the bases; syllabus outcomes, content, differentiated learning styles, quality teaching outcomes, and whatever else takes your fancy in the buzz words stakes. However, no matter how good this lesson is on paper, it can all go arse about face in a matter of seconds.
I only mention this because I wonder where my arse about face moments are going to spring up. I have prepared a whole series of lessons to teach the bulk of the four week practicum that I am currently on with a view to just adding little bits and pieces to have a complete package, and if I do say so myself - they are good, very good. Engaging and all that other "right" stuff that is expected of graduate teachers.
Anyway, I digress with the blowing my own trumpet thing. Back to the Schlieffen Plan.
I have a lesson plan to teach the Schlieffen Plan. It is a lesson that runs for 50 minutes. However, in terms of preparing it, doing the research, putting the materials / content in place, and setting it up to be taught, I have spent a considerable amount of time learning about the Schlieffen Plan. The background reading and the deep knowledge / understanding stuff takes a whole lot of time to master. People do undergraduate and post-graduate degrees on this topic alone.
So, this is where I am thinking Mr. Murphy might show up. I am wondering at 03.29 (yes, that is the am) whether I can truly impart the deep knowledge and understanding that my lesson aims for in the 50 minutes that I have to do it. I wonder this even though my lesson looks good, very good, on paper.
This is the thing about teaching; the process. I have written about the "lights on" moments a couple of times in the blog. I am really hoping that later this morning when I teach the Schlieffen Plan that there are at least 10 lights on moments (maybe 11 if I include the teacher supervising my practicum. But his lights on moment would be, "wow, the boy can teach!)!
I am a life-long learner. I have learned a few things in putting this lesson together. Perhaps more accurately, I have come to appreciate a new perspective on how I might go about teaching this part of the core HSC Modern History course. Maybe, just maybe, I will get the students to do a major assessment task in this part. I am thinking a video where they explain, assess, discuss or even re-enact how the Schlieffen Plan came to be or was executed, and then why it failed. The failure, after all, is what they really need to understand in order to lead into the reasons the war of movement ended in favour of static war, which is the next part that I cover...trench warfare.
But, when it is all said and done, I am prepared! So, come what may (hopefully I am ready).
I am teaching the Core component of the HSC Modern History syllabus (well, at least part of it anyway). I am pretty well prepared, but like anything else there is always the prospect of Mr. Murphy turning up and bringing along his laws of chaos. Besides, in my limited high school teaching experience to date, if there is one thing that I have learned it is this, lesson planning is critical. Now, that said, it is possible to prepare a lesson which covers all the bases; syllabus outcomes, content, differentiated learning styles, quality teaching outcomes, and whatever else takes your fancy in the buzz words stakes. However, no matter how good this lesson is on paper, it can all go arse about face in a matter of seconds.
I only mention this because I wonder where my arse about face moments are going to spring up. I have prepared a whole series of lessons to teach the bulk of the four week practicum that I am currently on with a view to just adding little bits and pieces to have a complete package, and if I do say so myself - they are good, very good. Engaging and all that other "right" stuff that is expected of graduate teachers.
Anyway, I digress with the blowing my own trumpet thing. Back to the Schlieffen Plan.
I have a lesson plan to teach the Schlieffen Plan. It is a lesson that runs for 50 minutes. However, in terms of preparing it, doing the research, putting the materials / content in place, and setting it up to be taught, I have spent a considerable amount of time learning about the Schlieffen Plan. The background reading and the deep knowledge / understanding stuff takes a whole lot of time to master. People do undergraduate and post-graduate degrees on this topic alone.
So, this is where I am thinking Mr. Murphy might show up. I am wondering at 03.29 (yes, that is the am) whether I can truly impart the deep knowledge and understanding that my lesson aims for in the 50 minutes that I have to do it. I wonder this even though my lesson looks good, very good, on paper.
This is the thing about teaching; the process. I have written about the "lights on" moments a couple of times in the blog. I am really hoping that later this morning when I teach the Schlieffen Plan that there are at least 10 lights on moments (maybe 11 if I include the teacher supervising my practicum. But his lights on moment would be, "wow, the boy can teach!)!
I am a life-long learner. I have learned a few things in putting this lesson together. Perhaps more accurately, I have come to appreciate a new perspective on how I might go about teaching this part of the core HSC Modern History course. Maybe, just maybe, I will get the students to do a major assessment task in this part. I am thinking a video where they explain, assess, discuss or even re-enact how the Schlieffen Plan came to be or was executed, and then why it failed. The failure, after all, is what they really need to understand in order to lead into the reasons the war of movement ended in favour of static war, which is the next part that I cover...trench warfare.
But, when it is all said and done, I am prepared! So, come what may (hopefully I am ready).
10 October 2010
Heading to Cootamundra for Practicum...
To be honest, I am looking forward to the teaching. I enjoy teaching a whole lot. I most enjoy watching young people learn, particularly those "lights on" moments where it all clicks into place and the youngster finally gets it.
Funnily enough, I had a "lights on" moment today. I have been doing some work with a young fellow about to embark on his HSC, the defining end of high school moment for students in NSW. We have been working on English and Modern History. But, in the last 48 hours his English has gone from average to wow. And, it has been nothing more than re-arranging the pieces of the puzzle so that they are easier to spot. Hopefully, this carries over for him through the HSC exams.
But, I digress sort of.
In terms of blogging, I guess it will be a time thing. The place I am staying, the White Ibis, has a good wireless internet connection of reasonable speed. So, maybe I will log more or less unchanged. I am tending to think that I might have more time now than when I did while I was studying.
I will be sure to keep my loyal readers (and any others who only drop by because of the misleading "tags") updated and informed of the time in Coota.
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