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Jan 19

Dear all,

I know, it’s 2010! What have you done in 2009? Have you been good or bad? Remember we don’t have much time as 2012 is coming fast hahaha :P   So, start doing the things that need to be done!

I have made some of my 2010 wish-to-do list: (1) Finish studying (formally at the VU); (2) Read my bible again (from back to back)

That was probably it. Too few? Well, I have some minor ones, but those are not really important such as exercise more or improve my Dutch :P Anyways, this would be – supposedly – my last year of studying here in the Netherlands. I have some writing projects coming up, and should write more articles for publishing. *note to self. I came up with this silly commitment that I’m not going to shave until I finished my 4th chapter draft.

This year is going to be fantastic. I have a feeling it would be a great one. I had an ‘understanding’ (in Steve @ Coupling’s term) ;) Feel more energized for writing (even stayed up almost every night for the past 2 weeks to write). Feel content with my life and looking forward to serve the BOSS with my abilities and The Almighty’s guidance :)

Oh, and I have a new feature on the right bar –> there’s a twitter bar where you will be able to see what’s on my mind. It should be more up-to-date because I will post many stuff there about news links, or just rants on a Tuesday morning. You can follow me @ http://twitter.com/binsarpakpahan

Have a blessed year everyone!

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Mar 05

Good resource for Lent prayers. http://bit.ly/dy6WNC Today’s meditation: ask and receive; seek and find; knock and find the door opened.

SeaWorld trainer dies in killer whale attack in Orlando http://bit.ly/9xxH53

Best quote of Dalai Lama: Who’s Tiger Woods? http://bit.ly/cERIft

Feel sorry for thw guy: Video: Marriage Proposal Rejected at BasketBall Game http://bit.ly/bfMS40

Inter Boss Jose Mourinho Suspended For Three Matches; Cambiasso, Muntari, Samuel & Cordoba Banned Too. http://bit.ly/9copEt

Terendus Pers, SBY Batalkan Pertemuan Cikeas. http://bit.ly/ch6eGL

Sblm pengumuman Pansus Century SBY panggil pimpinan parpol koalisi http://bit.ly/c76fZi Alasannya: doa buat ibunda SBY? http://bit.ly/bvgwpP

Did anybody know about this? Saturday Evening: Amsterdam metro crash injures 31, http://bit.ly/coN5BA

I admire Dalai Lama’s physical ability and humility showed by his flip flop during crazy winter in Washington. http://bit.ly/98mQPS

Winners photos of the 134th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. http://bit.ly/9tKKRy

If ur telling everybody that ur leaving home via social network, ur being watched and invite crime against you. http://pleaserobme.com/

Banyu officially dismissed from his teaching position at Parahyangan University over plagiarism http://bit.ly/9RE3zm

Nodar Kumaritashvili Crash VIDEO: Luge Slider DEAD In Olympics Accident http://bit.ly/9y1UsO

Britain releases new UFO files - http://bit.ly/9XefUh

for our IT women out there, the new barbie profession: computer engineer http://bit.ly/aEtfos

Bang Ruhut, kenapa pulalah kau jadi begini? Bikin malu saja kau nyanyi dangdut depan wawancara wartawan. http://bit.ly/bH8hQP

Remember this: Your personal interests and queries are also being collected while you are browsing. http://bit.ly/9eDoml

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Mar 03

“Never give up without putting up a good fight if you feel that she is the one!”

Kalau kamu sudah menemukan seseorang yang kamu tidak bisa hidup tanpanya, I think, you should always put up a good fight for your love. Kenapa? I’ll explain it in this three steps.

Pertama: Mencari

Finding ‘the one’ bukanlah masalah yang mudah. Buat beberapa orang ini adalah masalah yang mudah, sementara buat yang lain mereka belum menemukannya meskipun sudah ‘buka mata buka telinga’.

Banyak sekali faktor yang harus dipertimbangkan sebelum kamu benar-benar bisa mengatakan bahwa dia adalah pasangan sejatimu. Bagaimana kita bisa benar2 tahu? Sepertinya akan sulit untuk menjawab pertanyaan ini berdasarkan pengalaman karena memang belum ada pengalaman. Tapi toh, ada juga share dari pengalaman orang, dan bagaimana idealnya kita bisa menemukan pasangan yang tepat.

Kalau kamu berharap untuk menemukan jawabannya di Alkitab, maka tidak ada jawaban hitam dan putih soal hal ini. Kita tidak akan membahas apa yang Alkitab katakan untuk hal ini, melainkan kita akan melihat bagaimana intisari iman bisa diterapkan dalam hal mencari pasangan hidup. Doa tentunya merupakan hal yang paling utama. Tetapi ada juga beberapa hal yang bisa digunakan untuk mengukur kompatibilitas kalian. Continue reading »

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Feb 19

Setelah Berlin, destinasi selanjutnya dalam Euro Trip saya adalah Praha. Saya memilih untuk pergi dengan bus Eurolines karena pertimbangan harga dan waktu perjalanan. Di tengah perjalanan bus dihentikan oleh para petugas imigrasi yang memeriksa semua paspor penumpang dengan cermat. Bus berangkat pukul 12 malam dan tiba pukul 5.45 pagi di terminal bus di pusat kota.

Terminal bus Praha memiliki pusat informasi turis yang memberikan peta gratis kepada setiap turis yang membutuhkan, mereka juga membantu menunjukkan di mana penginapan yang saya tuju dan bagaimana menuju ke tempat itu.

Praha adalah sebuah ibukota Ceko. Berlokasi di sungai Vlata, Praha telah menjadi pusat politik, ekonomi, dan budaya dari negara Ceko. Praha dengan 1,9 juta penduduknya juga pernah menjadi ibukota Kekaisaran Roma di bawah pemerintahan Charles ke IV pada abad ke-14. Ini adalah puncak kejayaannya. Continue reading »

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Feb 18

Another study on Lapindo case: New study links drilling to Indonesia mud volcano. New study shows that the drilling is most likely the cause of the devastating mud volcano eruption.  http://bit.ly/ab9GrE

Di Kalimantan Timur, buaya diduga memangsa penduduk sekitar akibat habitatnya mulai terganggu. Seekor buaya yang pernah tertangkap memiliki ukuran yang besar sekali. –> Disambar Buaya, Bedu Ditemukan Tinggal Paha http://bit.ly/dCwAAj

Dutch sea water heating faster than expected. Government are expected to take cautious measures. http://bit.ly/cg3tvZ

Netherlands’ population tops 16.5 million. 111,000 emigrated last year, while 147,000 came plus 15,000 asylum seeker. http://bit.ly/aRvbFy

In Indonesia religious freedom only exists on paper. More churches are closed and radical groups are being left roaming free in closing churches. http://bit.ly/aOL7ll

Pendirian Gereja lebih sulit daripada mendirikan rumah hiburan. Pemerintah diminta untuk mendengarkan kebutuhan peribadahan rakyatnya. http://bit.ly/c3TKk5

Satu lagi perusahaan donatur SBY-Boediono diduga menerima Dana Century melalui seorang pemiliknya.  http://bit.ly/9vG00v

GVB, perusahaan transportasi kota Amsterdam memperoleh keuntungan sampai miliaran euro karena banyak orang lupa untuk check out kartu OV mereka. “Chipreizigers vergeten uit te checken” http://telegraaf.nl/s/5999379

Seorang laki-laki memutuskan untuk tetap menikahi jenazah calon isterinya yang meninggal beberapa hari sebelum pernikahan dan menguburkannya setelah upacara pernikahan. Man trouwt dode vrouw http://telegraaf.nl/s/6002063

5 Reasons Why Google Buzz Will Fail. http://bt.io/ET3m

The real-time news is faster in social networking than in real life. Twins Discover Teenage Brother’s Death on Facebook http://bit.ly/9HQLWj

Post-Avatar Depression Hits Thousands of Fans [VIDEO http://bit.ly/58ELuY

The Indonesian/Belgium Radja Nainggolan made his Serie A debut against Inter when Cagliari lost 0-3 at 85 mins for Jeda. http://bit.ly/bVqjOM

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Feb 18

I have just joined Twitter the last month for the sake of this blog and, thanks to my gmail account, apparently I was also automatically listed as the new Buzz user by Google. While I have been enjoying the benefits of these social networks in my line of work, I also realized that these social networks have put privacy at risk.

Just a few days ago I was able to see the location of my tweeps (people whom I followed in twitter) with the proximity of 800 metres. Not bad. Then yesterday I was able to see the location of people who apparently updated their status on Google Buzz, and was able to see the location of other people I don’t even know, whom apparently are connected to my friends. The automatic roll in as user, the showing of location, in my opinion, are a bit over the top. The advancement of social networking sites makes us vulnerable in controlling information about ourselves. Who can view our location? Why do you want to share your location? What about your personal pictures, email address and phone numbers? What about the safety of you children’s picture? What about our privacy?

Although we always have a privacy agreement with every sites we joined, we never fully understand the effect of such agreement. As I am sure that only few really takes time to read those agreements thoroughly, do we understand what is at stake with the challenge on privacy issue? How can we really control the information about us? Or, who actually controls our information?  Is there such thing as private information? Or is privacy becoming a thing of the past? Continue reading »

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Feb 18
Ok, mungkin kamu mengira dari judulnya bahwa posting ini terdengar terlalu personal untuk dibagi ke semua orang. Tetapi sebenarnya saya mau membagi my brother’s words of wisdom. Belakangan ini saya menghadapi pilihan hidup yang harus saya tentukan dan hanya ada beberapa orang dekat yang mengetahuinya dengan jelas. Salah satunya adalah adik saya, dan berikut adalah email penguatan yang dia berikan.
I want to share my brother’s words of encouragement when I have to make an important decision over my life. He reminds me that God should always be at the center and that will take all the doubts away.
Wah ribet juga masalah loe yah bang?

I’ll keep praying for you, so that whatever step you’re taking or about to take, is the best decision for your future and your ministry.

GOD have sent you there, so HE must have something special for you, and only you can fulfill. If it’s only about your financial problem, don’t you worry because in that particular matter i know that HE never leaves nor forsaken HIS chosen one. But think beyond the problem, what is that you desire the most, that GOD has put in your heart? Because if you’re asking everyone here, perhaps the answer will be similar, we want you to come home as soon as possible. But then again, its not about us. Its not about our desires. But its about your life, and your vision in life. The one that GOD has placed inside of you when HE choose you in the first place. Continue reading »

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Feb 12

Recently a news article has caught my attention. Expatica has reported that a group of prominent Dutch has launched a people’s initiative for a bill allowing people over 70 to end their lives under professional supervision. Read the full news here.

The article mentions, that “the essence of the group’s proposal is that assisting at suicide should no longer be punishable if several experts have given their agreement according to a narrowly defined procedure.” They would be able to start a discussion if they managed to gather at least 40,000 signatures.

I am really troubled because of this plea and I will explain why. Euthanasia, the process that they are pleading, is an assisted process of “ending one’s life or letting one’s die.” There are variants in euthanasia procedure. First is the method: (1) active which is injecting something or giving something; or (2) passive which is pulling out the life-support plug or simply stop giving the patients their medicine. Second is the will of the patient: (1) voluntary which means the patient is in good mental condition to say that he/she is willing to be ‘assisted’; or (2) involuntary which means the patient does not have the capability to willingly support the procedure – in most cases the patient is in a coma. And the third variant is the reason, and this can be varying from economic reasons down to tired of life.

The Netherlands and Belgium are the only countries that legalize assisted suicide (which other people say as the same as euthanasia). Swiss allow physicians to prepare the lethal dose but patients must take it themselves.  The Netherlands legalize Euthanasia since 2002 with the conditions: the presence of 2 physician and only done for intolerable pain and the incurable – and not for people who are tired of life. Continue reading »

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Feb 11

paper yang ditulis 8 tahun yang lalu untuk kelas Bacaan Filsafat.

Hubungan Majikan dan Buruh di Indonesia pada era Modal Global

Sumbangan Pemikiran Zygmunt Bauman

Pendahuluan

Majikan dan buruh[1 adalah dua pihak yang saling membutuhkan dan saling tergantung satu dengan yang lain. Majikan membutuhkan buruh untuk mengerjakan produksi dan menghasilkan barang/produk untuk kepentingan usaha/pabriknya. Sementara buruh membutuhkan majikannya untuk mendapatkan upah atas tenaga yang diberikannya kepada kepentingan produksi barang sang majikan.[2 Jadi kedua pihak tersebut, baik buruh maupun majikan sebenarnya saling membutuhkan.

Namun, yang lebih sering terjadi pada hubungan antar kedua belah pihak tersebut adalah sang buruh seringkali berada pada posisi yang lebih lemah daripada sang majikan. Buruh dianggap bukanlah mitra yang sejajar bagi majikan. Buruh hanyalah sebuah obyek bagi majikan untuk melaksanakan kepentingan mereka. Buruh sering diperas majikan dengan upah yang relatif kecil karena – untuk konteks Indonesia – banyaknya tenaga kerja yang tersedia tidak sebanding dengan jumlah lapangan kerja yang tersedia. Secara sosiologis buruh itu tidak bebas sebagai orang yang tidak mempunyai bekal hidup yang lain kecuali tenaganya dan kadang-kadang terpaksa untuk menerima hubungan kerja dengan majikan meskipun memberatkan bagi buruh itu sendiri. Continue reading »

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Feb 10

*these tips are not based on real research. These are jokes that have some level of truth in it.

1. Drink – in order of use – milk, coffee, beer. (They do it the other way around in Germany)
2. Have a calendar in your toilet with birthday dates of your loved ones.
3. Shower max 3 times a week, but for guys: never leave the house without styling your hair with jelly/foam.
4. See a football match and wear something orange.
5. Sing loudly at a bar.
6. Complain about the weather.
7. Say “I have leftovers,” instead of “I saved some” when giving food to unexpected guest.
8. Be good at math. It’s really handy when it comes to counting how much your part-of-the-bill-plus-tip expense is when eating out with your friends (even maybe with your significant other).
9. Leave your work when it’s time to go home, even when you only need to press enter to get the job’s complete. Your work for the day is finished when the time is up.

10. Expect the ‘there’s always something missing’ files when dealing with bureaucracy. Continue reading »

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Feb 10

Homer might not be smart, but he has some wise words to share. Here are my 10 favorite Homer’s quotes:

1. And how is education supposed to make me feel smarter? Besides, every time I learn something new, it pushes some old stuff out of my brain. Remember when I took that home winemaking course, and I forgot how to drive?

2. *reading a motivation book “Live your day as it is your last day” … *sobbing the whole day “I don’t want to die…”

3. Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that’s even remotely true!

4. Marge, please. Old people don’t need companionship. They need to be isolated and studied so that it can be determined what nutrients they have that might be extracted for our personal use.

5. Trying is the first step towards failure.

6. Oh, everything’s too damned expensive these days. This Bible cost 15 bucks! And talk about a preachy book! Everybody’s a sinner! Except this guy.

7. Because sometimes the only way you can feel good about yourself is by making someone else look bad. And I’m tired of making other people feel good about themselves.

8. I’m not a bad guy! I work hard, and I love my kids. So why should I spend half my Sunday hearing about how I’m going to Hell?

9. I want to share something with you: The three little sentences that will get you through life. Number 1: Cover for me. Number 2: Oh, good idea, Boss! Number 3: It was like that when I got here.

10. You tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is ‘never try’.

See more quotes Homer Simpson quotes or 50 funniest Homer Simpson’s quotes.

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Feb 09

Crazy thing I found disturbing from Dutch liberal culture:groups starts initiative to allow over 70s to end their lives. A group of prominent Dutch has launched a people’s initiative for a bill allowing people over 70 to end their lives under professional supervision. http://bit.ly/azrOQH

Profesor Hubungan Internasional Unpar Diduga Lakukan Plagiat.  Beliau ternyata menulis beberapa artikel di media nasional dengan menggunakan tulisan dari artikel orang lain tanpa mencantumkan sumber kutipan.  http://bit.ly/beKaVp

Sepak Bola Lebih Sehat dari Angkat Beban dan Lari. Bermain bola dalam sejam jauh lebih efektik untuk membakar lemak dan menguatkan tulang daripada lari.  http://bit.ly/aWW9VM

Dutch Church Atheist preacher,Klaas Hendrikse, “To me God is not a being,but a word for what can occur between people.” Dutch church agree to not reject an atheist as their preacher.  http://bit.ly/9daEUp

Netherlands bans sex with animals to put a stop to a flourishing trade in animal pornography based in the NL. http://bit.ly/cPh15P

I just found out that there’s a small town in Southern Bulgaria called ‘Batak’. I wonder if we are related? http://bit.ly/bOLla4

Pemberitahuan: Jangan asosiasikan Ruhut Sitompul dengan Batak, suaranya memang keras, tapi omongannya tak berisi http://bit.ly/ahyh1J

Jakarta Post ranked 76th in the world (1st in Indo),Kompas is at 106th,de Telegraaf is at 114 (1st in NL). Kompas is definitely going down the gutter because its lack of quality of late.  http://bit.ly/322lzj

Orang ini betul2 tidak tahu malu, cara paksa lebih tepat buat ganti dia. Nurdin Halid Mengaku Tidak Gagal Urusi PSSI meskipun prestasi PSSI tidak kunjung membaik, dan fakta bahwa dia pernah dipenjara lebih dari satu tahun dan tetap bersikeras tidak mau mundur dari jabatannya di PSSI. http://bit.ly/aUrBKT

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