Melbournelife: Media and multiculturalism Aussie

Last night I saw Insight, a talkshow program in SBS TV. The topic was about multiculturalism, in particular about the conflict, identity confusion within migrant family who comes to Australia. Firstly, It shown how young migrant generation is feeling as being part of Australian, and adopting Australian values (even though without any clear explanation about what values they are adopting), which is often create conflict within their families. there are some people from Bangladeshi background, lebanese, gereek, egypt. Some are parents and children, husband and wife, gay coples from malaysia, different religion couples from pakistani and Greek, etc.

The discussion was introduced by the host as type of cultural conflict between first and second generation of migrant Aussies. But then, I get impression that the host tend to focusing on that the conflict of egneration within this migrant family is not only a matter of age or cultural issues but she seems like bring into the religious conflict between islamic values hold by some of these migrants and Australian values hold by others. This is my point which I really concern about what media do. I cannot prove that the host deliberately try to bring the issue to conflict between muslim value as contradictory with australian value, because what she did is not obvious or direct statement. This is what I said in teh previous journal about feeling of being treated differently by others.
Despites the attitude of the host that I think is not professional in that matter, I think everyone in that show also implicitly doesn't agree with the notion of contradictory values between Australian values and muslim values. I respect the Monash University experts who talked about the universal values. Young migrant generations admitted that they have some conflict of dientity within family especially when it is related with idnependency, freedom etc, but they are also sure that all of conflicts they face can eventually resolved through compromising. The same views of old generations. But seems like, the host already has certain frame of thinking which prevented her from listening of these different perspectives. Yeah, I think racism is rarely happened obviously, but it happened in subtle ways which is often very dififcult to be proved. The key to avoid this behaviour which can hurt other people who are different with us is 'to start justice from our mind', being just even from our thinking, before we can translate it in our attitude.

Another interesting issue is about the citizenship test about adopting Australian values. Most of attendees think that this test is rubbish, for many different reasons.
This is interesting because I suddenly think in terms of evaluation, particularly program theory approach. If I take evaluation of this citizenship test program, fistly I will ask, what is assumption within this policy? From the explanation of Minsiter of multiculturalism something (Ms. Gambiro or someone I forgotten), it is assumed that it is reasonable that everybody who wnat to be Australian citizen to adopt Australian values such as equality, etc. But then, the question is: are these values that she mention is exclusively Australian values, aren't they universal values which some of tehms adopted in teh legal framework such is in teh UN human right charter, etc? I need to read ind etail to ensure what does it means by australian value which should be adopted. Firstly, there is possibly confusion or unclear definition of australian values. secondly, who define these values? why should this type of test and not others? What is the objective of this test? With many unclear parts of this policy, would this objective possibly achieved? So many questions on this issue. But I will not elaborate here, should remember to write again next time.

Back to the talkshow, the citizenship test is considered by many attendees as offended, rubbish, etc. This kind of test is also cosidered by these attendees of the talkshow as udnermining the contribution of migrant to the australian societies. An inetersting comment was if the citizen have to know australian history and values, how about the history of aboriginal people. If the integration of migrants into the society is now considered as a problem, why it was not a problem that the white settlers not only didn't want to integrate with the existing society, Aboriginal culture, but also try to devastate this culture by forcing aboriginal children to integrate with the white fellas. Australian values is about contesting knowledge, I think this values is a representation of powerful actors values which is imposed upon others. It is often happened in more tightly control society in developing countries, but it is truly ashamed that it actually happened in a democratic countries like Australia.

I will write about the media (editorial in The Australian) position in the refusal of Australia to ratify the UN charter on indigenous rights. This is about how media (the fourth estate of democracy) in developed countries are also not truly neutral and can be partial to the power.

Melbourne life: busyness and learning journal

The middle of semester, getting busy as usual. Assignment due, group presentations, whilst thesis progress slowly. Too many things I read, too many things I think in my head, too many things I am interested in, too many things I want to do at the same time. Lists all things I want: to raise the children properly, better than before and better than our parents generation, to maintain a very happy family, to achieve my best career, to do something for the poor and disadvantages people around me, if possible in the big scale, to achieve my personal development and satisfaction, etc, etc. the lists can go further.

Life in this era of modernity means the feeling of the time limitation, much more than what my parents generation probably experienced or what people in my village is experiencing. Life is so busy. 24 hours is not enough. What actually I am or other people doing recently. If I count on time I spend for my activities daily in general, 6-8 hours for sleeping, 4 hours in the morning for children, around 5-7 hours doing study activities (within this, probably minimum of 1 hour I spend for email (especially from mailist)- and most hours in the internet (browsing materials), another 3-4 hours with family in the evening.
So, besides sleeping most activities I spend in front of computer or internet. I can imagine how much time other people, who really into internet or net-chatting, need to spend in the internet jungle. Wuih, hours and hours. Everyone feel busy on the internet, which is foten an excuse for lack of real life social relationships, while actually what we are doing is wasting hour time, wasting energy, electricity, and wasting a great opportunity to explore the real world.

I felt that I myself could control internet addiction (addiction for being popular by making comments on the mailists, inviting friends into facebooks or friendsters, multiply or blogs, etc) as many of my friends and colleagues experiences. What I experienced here is my addiction to read all study related materials from journal, from many important sources etc, which is available easily by login into my university account. The results are I read this topic, and find another interesting topic, which lead me to another hot issues of my concern, and so forth and so forth. It's never ending. I read, I read, I read. The more knowledge in my head, do I become a smarter person, do I become a better person?

Well the answer is relative. As the traditional proverb says: the more you read, the more you know. But knowing is not enough. I believe that after knowing something, we need to reflecting. After we read something, we need to reflect on our reading. This is what we, modern people, lack of. We read something, know about this thing, and than in the next minutes we read another new information, and then we just pass on that ifnromation without actually reflecting it in our mind. This process continue in a cycle. What a pity! The internet has gave us opportunity to access all of information that the previous generation couldn't easily get access. But the internet has decreased our opportunity to reflect on information that we get on the internet, which our parents generation enjoyed.

So, I decided and promised to myself to do reflection, at least once a week, if not once a day about what I have learnt in this weeks, and how it may affect me to be a better person who can do something for others, for humanity and for the world. I will keep learning journal, since I can't keep it in paper, too slow too write with pen, I want to keep my learning journal in this blog. The promise that I couldn't delivered until today. I learnt about keeping learning journal for one of my subject I am taking this semester. Despites additional work burden, I am actually enjoying the experience of reflecting on my learning process. I enjoyed the feeling that I have actually learnt about something, I actually have certain vision that I want to achieve in the future, and I documented what I really want to achieve using knowledge that I acquired in my study, in my social life, in my internet searching, etc, etc.

So, I am promising myself, started with this writing, that at least everyweek I need to spend an hour to write my learning journal. Yes, I am busy, but if I still can open email in mailists, why can't I do reflection on my learning process or even to make reflection about my life. If I can do that regularly, I am sure I will be a better person, who is thankful to the god bersyukur for what I have get, what I have enjoyed and what I have achieved in my life. I remember how peaceful my feeling when I am walking alone near the Merry Creek in the afternoon of my birthday to reflect on my 28 years, or probably the last 10 years. A peaceful feeling was coming into my mind, because the more I reflect the more I realise what I have achieved, what I actually want, what strength and weaknesses in my life, or even what mistakes I have actually done.

Get busy is alright, but don't let all of the knowledge I have get just passed on my mind without I can actually use it for benefits of others. get busy is alright, but let I make this busyness to be more useful. So, when we get busy, and busier, just stop for a while, sit down and write down a reflection of what we are actually doing. One tool to do that is our learning journal.