We are not in the 17th century, are we?

Recently, I have seen so may infomercials and TV news that just try to fool us like we were in the 17th century. Every time I sees this, I just want to scream. But you know, sometimes those messages are hidden, not so clear, or rephrased. Even educated people fall into the traps when those things are "packaged" in a different appearance. 

 #1 is a trick with Physics. For example, "This vacuum machine is so powerful that it can suck a bowling ball." If you have some basic Physics training, you know this is simply air pressure from atmosphere. It has nothing to do with the vacuum. 

 #2 is wrong logic deduction - A implies B so Not A implies Not B, correct? Deadly wrong. For example, "Eating greasy food makes you gain weight so not eating greasy good will make you lose weight." I do need to explain this further, right? But watch this, "A is not a nice person. If B is against A then B must be a good guy." No, B can still be bad person. I do not want to dive in further but I can tell you a lot of people still fall into this trap. 

 #3 is things against basic laws in Physics. For example, "This water purifying system will take out the bad chemicals and ADD BACK the good stuff... You will NEVER need to replace the filter..." Well, nothing is coming out of thin air. So if the machine can keep "adding" good stuff without changing any parts, I really like to know how. 

 #4 is bending the law. The "renaming" movement in Taiwan is a good example. The government waywardly did it before the law was passed by the Congress. People is supposed to follow the law and so is government, even if the law is no so right. You cannot just ignore the law because you think it is a bad law. Once you do that, then you become the judge and the justice system no longer works. Especially for government, it is crucial to abide by the law otherwise this government is just a evil machine of politicians in power. Listen if this sounds right to you - I can kill a man I do not like today and tomorrow I am going to change the law so that my behavior is justified." Sadly speaking, a lot of  people do not understand this importance. 

 #5 is fashion. Since when do we think skin is more important than brain? Since when a bag costs you 3 months of salary? A better to ask is why. Why is a handbag made from plastics and some man-made material so expensive? Why does a fashion designer dress which looks like a rag cost so much? You can see the facial product getting more fancier and expensive everyday. Beauty is only skin deep, isn't it? 

 #6 is wrongly linking two independent incidents. For example, "We should elect Mr. A because Mr. A is a good man." Well, that depends. If you are choosing a boy for your girl's date, it is fine. If Mr. A is doing something that requires professional skills, then being good is not enough. A good gardener is not necessary a good cook, right? The list goes on and on. Just think it over next time you see or hear something. 

Thank you my friend. mm

Do you verify your source of information?

Most of the Taiwanese people of my age are brought up by one-way brainwashing from teachers and text books. Teachers taught us history, mathematics, Manderin, geography and we had monthly tests. Those tests always had one and only one correct answer. Kids with good test grades were "good" kids. Under years of this personality molding, as a result, most of the Taiwanese people of my age take the information for granted without thinking its validity.

Once I thought things could get better over time, but now I think this system is bringing down the future of Taiwan. Actually, most of the countries have similar problems. In school, education becomes a tool of government to go on with certain propaganda. After school, TV takes over and goes on with the propaganda of other groups.

Don't just take my words. Think if

- you take so-called "good food supplement" without checking the claim
- you still believe history is fact
- you believe in whatever doctors tell you
- you think so-called "professionals" really know something you do not know
- you watch TV news or newspapers and believe the stories
- you believe in so-called science and experiments.

I have a really bad habit of questioning what people claim to be truth. What you see is just an observation from one angle and it may not be the truth at all. It is at best a fact. Unless you have all the facts from all angles, you cannot possibly come close to the real truth.

History writers, unfortunately, are not free to write whatever they can. They all live under some kind of government so go figure.
Numbers of scientific experiments depends how samples are picked so they can be biased.
TV stories can be made with reporters and actors to improve rating.
Doctors can be someone who did just D in all subjects.
Professionals lacks common sense most of the times.

We all know how movies are made right? What you see is not the original take. What you see if after the director's cut and special effect processing. Similarly, information presented to us is pretty much like a movie. Just give it a common-sense check before you decide to believe in something.

mm

Car ride from a different angle

Recently I had a chance to sit in the backseat of my own van to Oakland. It just happened that all my closest family members, including my parents, were all in the car.

All of a sudden, it just hit me that this short trip to Oakland is an analogy to real life. Think of it this way: The car is the symbol of family. You have your family member in the car, going through some trip together. Even though we usually say "We have been there" but eventually, each person sees different things. The person sitting in the back will have a different view from the person sitting in the front. The driver pays so much attention on the road that most likely he/she will miss all the siteseeing funs. The person sitting on the left may not know what happens on the right, and vice versa.

I always say to my wife "How can you not knowing which exit to take since we have been driving so many times?" Well, the fact is, you will never experience the same unless you are in the driver's seat. I have kids now. I have to remind myself not to assume too much and put burdens on them. Sometimes we just forget kids are individuals. They have their life and space. They are in the same car but definitely seeing different things and have different memories.

mm

Question #8 - Do you ever thank your enemy?

In Chinese, we have a phrase "恩人" which means someone did something good to you. But in fact, your "負面的恩人" may do you more good than you can imagine.

For example -
Someone forced you to do something and later you learned a new skill.
Someone pointed out your error in public and it was so humiliating that you never made the same error again.
Someone made you so mad but you held your temper. You have better magnanimity ever since.

Actually, these "someones" are our implicit teachers. They may influence us more than our school teachers. We usually complain about them instead of thanking them. These people helped forming our personality.

So next time, before you complain, think twice. Maybe you have to say "Thank you." in the end.

mm

What happened to me last year?

"Long time no post."

There are a few reaons:
1. Company started monitoring Internet activities so I avoided doing stuff at working hours.
2. Family occupied my time after work.
3. No resting on weekends - Need to visit Oakland to fix my back problem every Saturday.
4. Simply lazy.

Well, a couple of things happened, of course:
1. Had 2 car accidents within 3 months. Luckily no one was seriously injured, but a lot of money was spent fixing my cars.
2. Per-se got acquired by McKesson. Once I was pretty happy about work but now the future is in murky clouds.
3. Kids went to school.
4. Cooking skills got better and better.
5. Finally, we have some time to watch a movie in 7 years.

Overall, I have more positive stuff than negative stuff. I am thankful for both, which I will explain in my next blog.

mm