The Power of Music

Above is the ending sequence for Japanese dorama Beautiful Life.

It is the sombre love story involving a girl in a wheelchair who eventually dies of leukemia by the end of the show. The eleven episodes are entertaining, heartwarming, and educational (thoughts of a disabled person in Japanese society). What I remember most; however, is the theme song for the series: 今夜月の見える丘に by J-pop/rock duo, B'z.

In the beginning, I liked the song. It was a catchy tune, it had a great sound, and a very powerful chorus. Now, the song makes me cry everytime I hear it. When I listen to this song, especially the chorus, I see the final image of the ending sequence where the two main characters are in a fantasy land (perhaps heaven?). The girl can walk again, and she is free of her wheelchair. Hand in hand, the two run across an open field, leaving the wheelchair behind. Only in death, is she finally free of her wheelchair and her disease. I hear that out of this world, super powerful chorus, and all these feelings and emotions rush into my mind.

That is the power of music and imagery.

Welcome Back, Baseball!

Ichiro Mania

Excited with the 2007 season so far. A couple things:

Its funny how so many were so upset about JD Drew. As of now, he's been the most productive Red Sock. A slight upgrade defensively, and a major upgrade with his offense: hitting, base running. A pretty complete player. Eric Hinske and Wily Mo Pena need more playing time. Hinske had a very impressive game during his only start. If only Coco Crisp could hit like he plays defense. When is Matsuzaka going to get some run support? I love how the Sox bullpen may have Papelbon handle the tough innings, and have the rest of the relievers handle everything else. It is a great strategy. Use Paps as a your trump card when absolutely necessary.

Red Sox baseball... I'm definitely feeling the excitement!

Keep me out of this

36% of Hong Kong people consider themselves "Chinese"

Hong Kong people associate themselves with Hong Kong rather than their mainland counterparts. Well of course! Who would want to be associated with all that lying, cheating, corruption, absence of human rights, spitting, smoking, extreme poverty, dirty money, scams, fake shit, fake shit that will kill you, China's rich, China's poor, pollution, communism, crappy health care, crappy health care that costs money, trumped up charges, laziness, lack of responsibility, politicians playing god, and believe me... the list goes on.

Apache Remix

Happy Friday

What have you done for me lately?

The above letter to the editor is old. However, since the recent buzz is all about Donald Tsang getting "reelected", I feel it is relevant. Chinese premier, Wen Jiabao, just yesterday affirmed Tsang's position as the Hong Kong's Chief Executive. He praised Tsang's victory by a large majority vote, saying that the people of Hong Kong have a firm belief in his ability. When I heard that on the radio, I couldn't help but swear out loud. It is by far the biggest crock of shit I've heard in a long time. Wen's words couldn't be further from the truth. He knows it, and everyone in Hong Kong knows it. Who was he trying to fool? Oh that's right... China.

Yesterday on the radio, a rowdy caller complained about Tsang's track record. What has Tsang done for Hong Kong people? What has he done for the poor? The answer is obvious: nothing. He has done plenty for his buddies in big business. Tsang's campaign slogan was, "我會做好呢份工" (I will get the job done). The problem here lies in that Tsang never actually read the job description.

Big Business vs. The People

Last week's fire that destroyed the shops and product of countless merchants is not over. The fire has been put out, but small business owners are left without a business. They have no shop to operate from, and no product to sell. Many of the victims sold dried seafood goods that come with a high cost. They have lost tens of thousands of dollars worth of merchandise.

Property owning giant, The Link (領匯), eloquently refuses to pay for any damages to the victims, despite failing to notify them that the emergency sprinklers were turned off 15 days prior to and during the fire. Not surprisingly, they immediately went into PR mode after the fire. Experts went on television and radio to explain how it wasn't their fault.

Some may think that The Link is making perfect sense, and that the merchants are hysterically trying to recoup their losses. What many don't understand, is the situation that these people are now in. They have basically lost everything. Anyone in their situation would be hysterical. Who wouldn't try to get their life back? While The Link's corporate fat cats sit around and skirt responsibility, the reality is that these victims have lost their business and some of them will starve.

A Nation of Prisoners

Doesn't it seem like so many of China's internationally recognized people are in prison?

Chen Guang Cheng is one of those people. A blind, rural activist who exposed China's forced abortions and mistreatment of women.

Despite being handed a 4 year prison sentence for the trumped up charges of, "damaging property and organising a mob to disturb traffic", Chen is highly praised and recognized internationally. He has received many awards for his efforts. In any civilized nation, he would be regarded as a hero. Instead, he is a prisoner.