Reading Habit and Library: Lesson #5 from India

An Indian professor once was invited to deliver a general lecture in Malang Islamic University (UIN – Universitas Islam Negeri) East Java. From Surabaya airport he went to Malang city by bus. After coming back to India, he told us, Indonesian students in India, his impression thus:

Between Surabaya and Malang, I was so amazed to see so many hypermarkets, great supermalls and big restaurants. I saw a restaurant which is so big that I never see it before in India. What “amazed” me even more was that I did NOT see any public library at all.

He then blasted (with “emphaty”) a question that unable us to answer with pride: “So, what are you people doing other than shopping and eating out?”
Read more

Communism

Communism is a socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless society based on common ownership of the means of production and property in general.[1]

… is the political and economic doctrine that aims to replace private property and a profit-based economy with public ownership and communal control of at least the major means of production (e.g., mines, mills, and factories) and the natural resources of a society. Communism is thus a form of socialism—a higher and more advanced form, according to its advocates. Exactly how communism differs from socialism has long been a matter of debate, but the distinction rests largely on the communists’ adherence to the revolutionary socialism of Karl Marx.[2]

—
[1] Wikipedia
[2] Encyclopaedia Britannica

Center Left

The centre-left (or center-left) is a political term commonly used to describe or denote individuals, political parties or organizations (such as think tanks) whose views stretch from the centre to the left on the left-right spectrum, excluding far left stances.[1]

Ideological definition of the centre-left
The centre-left includes social liberals, social democrats, democratic socialists, progressives, and some greens. Centre-left supporters accept market allocation of resources in a mixed economy with a significant public sector and a thriving private sector. Centre-left policies tend to favour limited state intervention in the economy in matters pertaining to the public interest. The centre-left also often favours moderate environmentalist policies and generally, though not universally, supports individual freedom on moral issues.[2]

—
[1] Wikipedia
[2] Ibid

Atheism

Atheism is the denial of the existence of God.[1]

Atheism, as an explicit position, can be either the affirmation of the nonexistence of gods, or the rejection of theism. It is also defined more broadly as synonymous with any form of nontheism, including the simple absence of belief in deities.
Read more

Agnosticism

Etymology: Greek agn?stos unknown, unknowable, from a- + gn?stos known, from gign?skein to know — more at know
Date: 1869
1: a person who holds the view that any ultimate reality (as God) is unknown and probably unknowable; broadly : one who is not committed to believing in either the existence or the nonexistence of God or a god
2: a person unwilling to commit to an opinion about something [political agnostics] [1]

Agnosticism (Greek: ?- a-, without + ?????? gn?sis, knowledge; after Gnosticism) is the philosophical view that the truth value of certain claims — particularly metaphysical claims regarding theology, afterlife or the existence of God, gods, deities, or even ultimate reality — is unknown or, depending on the form of agnosticism, inherently unknowable.[2]

—
[1] Merriam Webster Dictionary
[2] Wikipedia

Kosovo a Muslim State in Europe

Finally, people of Kosovo struggle to gain independent realised, thus becomes the only Muslim-majority nation in Europe. Despite its claim as embrcaing the “laid-back” version of Islam, some of its neighbors feel “unsafe”. Considering many factors, this pre-conceived notion is understandable.

That’s said, I think the existence of independent Kosovo is good to let European people in to more understanding towards Islam and that Muslims, many of them, just like any other who are busy to make a dissent living for themselves and their family. Every single Muslim represent a mozaic of Muslims as a whole, it’s NOT a homogeneous entity as one in other parts of the world might or is led to think.

Blogger Indonesia of the Week (80): Rob Baiton

Frankly speaking, I dislike anonymous blogger or ghost blogger as I prefer to call it, particularly those who blog/write on such sensitive issues as politics and religion. Speaking of the latter topic without giving a clear name and identity, to me, does not represent a good intention, and thus credibility. A writer or a blogger who rigorously writes on those issues while hiding one’s true identity and name –such as the one behind indonesiamatters.com deserves our suspicion of having a hidden agenda. Specially when one is critical to certain religion while generously flattering or defending another most of the time.
Read more

Top 100 Richest People Forbes 2008

This list of the 100 wealthiest people is a list of the world’s 100 richest people as of February 11, 2008, based on each person’s total net worth according to Forbes Magazine.

1 Warren Buffett $62.0 billion United States
2 Carlos Slim Helú $60.0 billion Mexico
3 Bill Gates $58.0 billion United States
4 Lakshmi Mittal $45.0 billion India
5 Mukesh Ambani $43.0 billion India
6 Anil Ambani $42.0 billion India
7 Rinat Akhmetov $31.1 billion Ukraine
8 Ingvar Kamprad and family $31.0 billion Sweden
9 Kushal Pal Singh $30.0 billion India
10 Oleg Deripaska $28.0 billion Russia
11 Karl Albrecht $27.0 billion Germany
12 Li Ka-shing $26.5 billion Hong Kong
13 Sheldon Adelson $26.0 billion United States
14 Bernard Arnault $25.5 billion France
15 Lawrence Ellison $25.0 billion United States
16 Roman Abramovich $23.5 billion Russia
17 Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah $23.1 billion Brunei
18 Theo Albrecht $23.0 billion Germany
19 Liliane Bettencourt $22.9 billion France
20 Alexei Mordashov $21.2 billion Russia
21 Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud $21.0 billion Saudi Arabia
22 Mikhail Fridman $20.8 billion Russia
23 Vladimir Lisin $20.3 billion Russia
24 Amancio Ortega $20.2 billion Spain
25 Raymond Kwok, Thomas Kwok, and Walter Kwok $19.9 billion ? 56, 57, and 58 Hong Kong
26 Mikhail Prokhorov $19.5 billion Russia
27 Vladimir Potanin $19.3 billion Russia
28 Christy Walton $19.2 billion United States
29 Jim Walton $19.2 billion United States
29 S. Robson Walton $19.2 billion United States
31 Lee Shau Kee $19.0 billion Hong Kong
31 Alice Walton $19.0 billion United States
33 David Thomson and family $18.9 billion Canada
34 Sergey Brin $18.7 billion United States
35 Larry Page $18.6 billion United States
36 Michael Otto and family $18.2 billion Germany
37 Stefan Persson $17.7 billion Sweden
38 Suleyman Kerimov $17.5 billion Russia
39 Charles Koch $17.0 billion United States
40 David H. Koch $17.0 billion United States
41 François Pinault and family $16.9 billion France
42 Michael Dell $16.4 billion United States
43 Paul Allen $16.0 billion United States
43 Kirk Kerkorian $16.0 billion United States
45 Steven Ballmer $15.0 billion United States
45 Abigail Johnson $15.0 billion United States
45 Shashi Ruia and Ravi Ruia $15.0 billion India
48 Nasser Al-Kharafi and family $14.0 billion Kuwait
48 The Duke of Westminster and family $14.0 billion United Kingdom
48 Carl Icahn $14.0 billion United States
48 Forrest Edward Mars, Jr. $14.0 billion United States
48 Jacqueline Mars $14.0 billion United States
48 John Mars $14.0 billion United States
48 Birgit Rausing and family $14.0 billion Sweden
48 Jack C. Taylor and family $14.0 billion United States
56 German Khan $13.9 billion Russia
57 Susanne Klatten $13.2 billion Germany
58 Vagit Alekperov $13.0 billion Russia
59 Donald Bren $13.0 billion United States
60 Alain Wertheimer and Gerard Wertheimer $12.9 billion ? 59 and 58 France United States
61 Dmitry Rybolovlev $12.8 billion ? 41 Russia
62 Azim Premji $12.7 billion India
63 Naguib Sawiris $12.7 billion ? 53 Egypt
64 Anne Cox Chambers $12.6 billion United States
65 Iskander Makhmudov $11.9 billion Russia
66 Sunil Mittal and family $11.8 billion India
67 Alexander Abramov $11.5 billion Russia
68 Michael Bloomberg $11.5 billion United States
69 Viktor Vekselberg $11.2 billion Russia
70 Michele Ferrero and family $11.0 billion Italy
70 George Kaiser $11.0 billion United States
70 Spiro Latsis and family $11.0 billion Greece
70 Nassef Sawiris $11.0 billion Egypt
74 Alexei Kuzmichev $10.8 billion Russia
75 Philip Knight $10.4 billion United States
75 Viktor Rashnikov $10.4 billion Russia
77 Ernesto Bertarelli $10.3 billion Switzerland
78 Kumar Mangalam Birla $10.2 billion India
79 Leonardo Del Vecchio $10.0 billion Italy
79 Antônio Ermírio de Moraes and family $10.0 billion Brazil
79 Iris Fontbona and family $10.0 billion Chile
79 Edward Johnson, III $10.0 billion United States
79 Hans Rausing $10.0 billion Sweden
79 Vladimir Yevtushenkov $10.0 billion Russia
79 Igor Zyuzin $10.0 billion Russia
86 Serge Dassault and family $9.9 billion France
87 Alberto Baillères $9.8 billion Mexico
88 Ramesh Chandra $9.6 billion India
89 Charles Ergen $9.5 billion United States
89 John Kluge $9.5 billion United States
89 Ronald Perelman $9.5 billion United States
92 Silvio Berlusconi and family $9.4 billion Italy
93 Gautam Adani $9.3 billion India
93 Petr Kellner $9.3 billion Czech Republic
93 Alisher Usmanov $9.3 billion Russia
96 Adolf Merckle $9.2 billion Germany
96 August von Finck, Jr. $9.2 billion Germany
98 Onsi Sawiris $9.1 billion Egypt
98 Mohammed Al Amoudi $9.1 billion Saudi Arabia
99 Robert Kuok $9.0 billion Malaysia
99 George Soros $9.0 billion United States

Omar and Osama bin Laden

Media loves controversy because it drives attention from readers. ‘Bad news is a good news’ says the villain in the James Bond’s “Tomorrow Never Dies”. Bad news does not necessarily only means natural disaster, war, collateral damages, terrorism or anything that could easily be comprehended as closely related to blood and death. It could aslo stand for anything that consists of a sort of paradoxical meaning from the perceived understanding of common people about something or someone. That’s why the recent brouhaha of Umar (Omar) bin Laden son of Osama bin Laden who offered to bridge peaceful solution between his father and the West got so much attention from the media, and the readers because it offers the extreme paradox from what the world, particularly the West, perceived with the word “bin Ladin”
Read more