Indonesia Bombing---Mixed Feelings

The 2003 Marriott Hotel bombing occurred on 5 August 2003 in Mega Kuningan, South Jakarta, Indonesia. A suicide bomber detonated a car bomb outside the lobby of the JW Marriott Hotel, killing twelve people and injuring 150. All those killed were Indonesians with the exception of one Dutch businessman, one Danish, and two Chinese tourists. The hotel was viewed as a Western symbol, and had been used by the United States embassy for various events.

Another similar bombing, which is the 2004 Australian embassy bombing also took place on 9 September 2004 in Jakarta, Indonesia. It also occured at Mega Kuningan.

A one-tonne car bomb, which was packed into a small Daihatsu delivery van, exploded outside the Australian embassy at Kuningan District, South Jakarta, at about 10:30 local time (03:30 UTC), killing 9 people including the suicide bomber, and wounding over 150 others.

Ritz and JW Marriot are just milestones away from ‘my dungeon’.I was shocked to hear my mum breaking this tragic and barbaric bombing news to me after school dismissal. Immediately, tears were flowing down my cheeks as I asked if everyone at home was safe as our home is also at Mega Kuningan which is about 300 m away from JW Marriot.

I was told by mum it is forever unsafe for us Chinese, to walk on the streets of Indonesia. At the entrance of every hotel or even the shopping centres, there are security guards carrying scanning gadgets to search our vehicles. So I simply don’t understand how the terrorists managed to smuggle in bombs to blast the highly secured twin hotels!

The suicide bombing of the Australian Embassy occurred during my September Holiday in 2004, just as I was in Jakarta, eating my brunch joyously. I remembered vividly that it was at 10.30am while I was having my brunch alone in the vast dining hall. I heard a thunderous blast nearby, followed by the shaking of window panels and I also could see the wobbling of the chandelier lights in the hall. Our house maids ran to me nervously to make sure that I wasn’t frightened from the blasts. Immediately ,mum called from office, asking me to stay put at where I was and watch CNN to get myself updated with the situation while she was held up in Notary office located at Mega Kuningan Barat. At the age of 8 at that time, I was extremely terrified and burst into tears. But now, I am already 13. I felt differently, so raged with anger. I simply despise this kind of barbaric acts as it is simply inhumane.

However, in 2009, there is a similar bombing at the twin hotels, JW Marriott and Ritz Carlton, which are both very prestigious hotels to live in. On 17/7/09, the two suicide bombers entered both of the hotels at the same time and the bombs went off almost simultaneously at 7.30 a.m. The two suicide bombers dressed as hotel guests and just walked into the hotels, but in the first place, how did they enter the hotel with a metal device, when there are scanners at the entrance of the hotels.

The blasts at the neighboring Ritz-Carlton and Marriott hotels blew out windows and scattered debris and glass across the street.International hotels, which by their nature must be open and accessible for visitors and guests, make attractive targets for terror attacks. Complete security is virtually impossible, despite security barriers, metal detectors and high-tech surveillance gear.Anyway, latest reports in Indonesian capital Jakarta say that the death toll in two bomb blasts at luxury hotels on Friday has gone up from nine to twelve, while the injured list is still pegged at 50.

Don't the attackers know that by doing so, it not only ruins the economy of poor Indonesia but also keeps foreigners who want to travel to Indonesia away? Does Indonsia forever have to be living in poverty and insecurity? I am fuming but sad by the ‘terrorists’ acts and the terrorists who tried to destroy my home, my dungeon!!!

I simply don’t understand why Jakarta is always the target for multiple terrorist attacks. On the other hand, it also explained why Indonesians find Singapore a safe haven to land in.

This is a video about the bombing of the JW Marriot and the Ritz Carlton. Please take a look:

Cosmetic Surgery--Should I go or not go?

“It is just as acceptable for adolescents to undergo cosmetic surgery, as it is for adults. They have the right to decide what they want to look like, and how they want to achieve that look.”

As this is the debate topic for tomorrow's panel discussion, I might as well write a blog post on it.

As for my opinion, I disagree that it is acceptable for adolescents to go for surgery. Adolescents are also going through the period in which he goes through maturity and puberty, they all want to look nice and handsome so that they will be able to fit into the gang.This is also known as peer pressure. As other students look handsome, they feel that they are left out, and thus, wanting to follow them and be friends with them, they do not mind risking their lives and their parents' hard-earned money to look nice. Well. adolescents are also known for their rashness. They do not think twice before doing a task and just go straight into it. They do not consider their parents' feelings on wasting their money or their own feelings or even their friends' feelings before going for cosmetic surgery to change their looks and appearances, to look like a completely different person.

Not only that, but people who go for cosmetic surgeries are taking a gamble---to look better or to look worse. In fact, adolescents are risk-takers and they will do anything just to get what they desire for. Adolescents are also very stuuborn and they do not listen to their parents, and do the contrary of what their parents wish for them to do--- which is studying and make normal friends. The teenagers are always trying to defy their parents by going against their wishes as they tgink that they can handle themselves as adults. They think that they are able to make the right choices and desicions and need not follow what their parents want them to do. they are probably afraid that their classmates will laugh at them or mock them when they know that he or she is a goody-two-shoes and follow what their parents want them to do. This is also peer pressure as I had mentioned above.

However, if the adults can do it, why can't adolescents, besides, adults should set a good role model for their children,so if they do it, their children will follow in tow, and thus, it will be a vicious cycle that their family will be doing it too. Not only that, but adolescents are old enough to have their own thoughts, their own views and their own perspective of things. They need not follow what their parents want them to do. Adolescents are also matured enough to know what their dreams are and what they need and want. If they want to undergo surgery and risk their facial appearance to follow or even look like Michael Jackson, who needs to wear a mask to cover his cheekbones, then let them go ahead. As adolescents like to look nice to attract girls or for other motives, they always want to achieve that kind of look that girls will just gawp in shock and follow him wherever he goes.

Anyway, I still think that adolescents should not go for the cosmetic surgeries as they will not only risk their lives but also waste their parents' money.

Here is a short video on the risks of doing cosmetic surgeries. Take a look of the video from 23 seconds onwards:

Lesson 5 on IT Home Eleaerning--Blog Entry

The casino being built in Singapore is supposed to be a money-maker and job creator. However, many people have spoken against it. Talk to a parent or adult and get their view on the casino. Listen to the NPR and YouTube offerings and choose one that substantiates your viewpoint and include a quote from it as well. Your blog entry has to be at least 200 words and you must either support the casino or condemn its construction and ultimately the hardships it will cause in Singapore.

By creating the casino, a money-maker and a job creator, I think it would be helpful in Singapore after a careful decision by the government.

After interviewing my father for his views, he said that by building the casino, it would create many job opportunities for the citizens of Singapore and boost our Gross Domestic Product( a rate on how the country is doing on their economy) thus, boost our economy as there is much more cash. Also, the workers in the casino will be able to receive a stable income from the casino, thus, there is a sense of stability for their families. By building the casino, it would also promote tourism and thus, more tourism and more cash flowing in to the government. Tourists from Indonesia had to go to Genting to gamble, but now they can come to Singapore to gamble and tourists from Las Vegas or LA will also think that the casino in Singapore is newly-opened, and thus, they would probably come to Singapore too as they are also probably sick of their casinos in LV or LA. Not only that, but he also said that more tourist will look forward coming to Singapore for a tour and go to the casino for a spin of luck. This will create more money from the casino, and thus, the government will get all the money, reducing our loads on the taxes and the ERP. I totally agree with my father that it is good to build the casino in Singapore.

However, on the other hand, by building the casino, it will also cause some harm to Singaporeans. A quote from the National Council and Problem Gambling said,"20 years ago, only just a handful of women were gambling, but now, almost half are female." What does this show? This shows they there are more gambling addicts in the entire world. Not only that, psychologist Paul Goods from Atlanta even said," Women gamble to escape their routine everyday lives." Women and men are getting more addicted to gambling and this is a problem which will be happening in Singapore. More men will get addicted to the casino and they will have a broken family, ruining their family because of a man’s foolishness to gamble for once and get addicted forever.

Based on the points that I have written above, I think that by building the casino, it will be helpful to the Singapore’s economy.