We're No. 1! : A Nation of Firsts Arms the World

By Frida Berrigan
TomDispatch.com

Sunday 20 May 2007

They don't call us the sole superpower for nothing. Paul Wolfowitz might be looking for a new job right now, but the term he used to describe the pervasiveness of U.S. might back when he was a mere deputy secretary of defense - hyperpower - still fits the bill.

Face it, the United States is a proud nation of firsts. Among them:

First in Oil Consumption:

The United States burns up 20.7 million barrels per day, the equivalent of the oil consumption of China, Japan, Germany, Russia, and India combined.

First in Carbon Dioxide Emissions:

Each year, world polluters pump 24,126,416,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the environment. The United States and its territories are responsible for 5.8 billion metric tons of this, more than China (3.3 billion), Russia (1.4 billion) and India (1.2 billion) combined.

First in External Debt:

The United States owes $10.040 trillion, nearly a quarter of the global debt total of $44 trillion.

First in Military Expenditures:

The White House has requested $481 billion for the Department of Defense for 2008, but this huge figure does not come close to representing total U.S. military expenditures projected for the coming year. To get a sense of the resources allocated to the military, the costs of the global war on terrorism, of the building, refurbishing, or maintaining of the U.S. nuclear arsenal, and other expenses also need to be factored in. Military analyst Winslow Wheeler did the math recently: "Add $142 billion to cover the anticipated costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; add $17 billion requested for nuclear weapons costs in the Department of Energy; add another $5 billion for miscellaneous defense costs in other agencies…. and you get a grand total of $647 billion for 2008."

Taking another approach to the use of U.S. resources, Columbia University economist Joseph Stiglitz and Harvard Business School lecturer Linda Bilmes added to known costs of the war in Iraq invisible costs like its impact on global oil prices as well as the long-term cost of health care for wounded veterans and came up with a price tag of between 1 trillion and $2.2 trillion.

If we turned what the United States will spend on the military in 2008 into small bills, we could give each one of the world's more than 1 billion teenagers and young adults an Xbox 360 with wireless controller (power supply in remote rural areas not included) and two video games to play: maybe Gears of War and Command and Conquerwould be appropriate. But if we're committed to fighting obesity, maybe Dance Dance Revolution would be a better bet. The United States alone spends what the rest of the world combined devotes to military expenditures.

First in Weapons Sales:

Since 2001, U.S. global military sales have normally totaled between $10 and $13 billion. That's a lot of weapons, but in fiscal year 2006, the Pentagon broke its own recent record, inking arms sales agreements worth $21 billion. It almost goes without saying that this is significantly more than any other nation in the world.

In this gold-medal tally of firsts, there can be no question that things that go bang in the night are our proudest products. No one makes more of them or sells them more effectively than we do. When it comes to the sorts of firsts that once went with a classic civilian manufacturing base, however, gold medals are in short supply. To take an example:

Not First in Automobiles:

Once, Chrysler, General Motors, and Ford ruled the domestic and global roost, setting the standard for the automotive industry. Not any more. In 2006, the U.S. imported almost $150 billion more in vehicles and auto parts than it sent abroad. Automotive analyst Joe Barker told the Boston Globe, "it's a very tough environment" for the so-called Detroit Three. "In times of softening demand, consumers typically will look to brands that they trust and rely on. Consumers trust and rely on Japanese brands."

Not Even First in Bulk Goods:

The Department of Commerce recently announced total March exports of $126.2 billion and total imports of $190.1 billion, resulting in a goods and services deficit of $63.9 billion. This is a $6 billion increase over February.

But why be gloomy? Stick with arms sales and it's dawn in America every day of the year. Sometimes, the weapons industry pretends that it's like any other trade - especially when it's pushing our congressional representatives (as it always does) for fewer restrictions and regulations. But don't be fooled. Arms aren't automobiles or refrigerators. They're sui generis; they are the way the USA can always be number one - and everyone wants them. The odds that, in your lifetime, there will ever be a $128 billion trade deficit in weapons are essentially nil.

Arms are our real gold-medal event.

First in Sales of Surface-to-Air Missiles:

Between 2001 and 2005, the United States delivered 2,099 surface-to-air missiles like the "Sparrow" and the "AMRAAM" to nations in the developing world, 20% more than Russia, the next largest supplier.

First in Sales of Military Ships:

During that same period, the U.S. sent 10 "major surface combatants" like aircraft carriers and destroyers to developing nations. Collectively, the four major European weapons producers shipped thirteen. (And we were first in the anti-ship missiles that go along with such ships, with nearly double (338) the exports of the next largest supplier Russia (180).

First in Military Training:

A thoughtful empire knows that it is not enough to send weapons; you have to teach people how to use them. The Pentagon plans on training the militaries of 138 nations in 2008 at a cost of nearly $90 million. No other nation comes close.

First in Private Military Personnel:

According to bestselling author Jeremy Scahill, there are at least 126,000 private military personnel deployed alongside uniformed military personnel in Iraq alone. Of the more than sixty major companies that supply such personnel worldwide, more than 40 are U.S. based.

Rest assured, governments around the world, often at each others' throats, will want U.S. weapons long after their people have turned up their noses at a range of once dominant American consumer goods.

Just a few days ago, for instance, the "trade" publication Defense News reported that Turkey and the United States signed a $1.78 billion deal for Lockheed Martin's F-16 fighter planes. As it happens, these planes are already ubiquitous - Israel flies them, so does the United Arab Emirates, Poland, South Korea, Venezuela, Oman and Portugal, not to speak of most other modern air forces. In many ways, F-16 is not just a high-tech fighter jet, it's also a symbol of U.S. backing and friendship. Buying our weaponry is one of the few ways you can actually join the American imperial project!

In order to remain number one in the competitive jet field, Lockheed Martin, for example, does far more than just sell airplanes. TAI - Turkey's aerospace corporation - will receive a boost with this sale, because Lockheed Martin is handing over responsibility for parts of production, assembly, and testing to Turkish workers. The Turkish Air Force already has 215 F-16 fighter planes and plans to buy 100 of Lockheed Martin's new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter as well, in a deal estimated at $10.7 billion over the next 15 years.

$10.7 billion on fighter planes for a country that ranks 94th on the United Nations' Human Development Index, below Lebanon, Colombia, and Grenada, and far below all the European nations that Ankara is courting as it seeks to join the European Union - now that's a real American sales job for you!

Here's the strange thing, though: This genuine, gold-medal manufacturing-and-sales job on weapons simply never gets the attention it deserves. As a result, most Americans have no idea how proud they should be of our weapons manufacturers and the Pentagon - essentially our global sales force - that makes sure our weapons travel the planet and regularly demonstrates their value in small wars from Latin America to Central Asia.

Of course, there's tons of data on the weapons trade, but who knows about any of it? I'm typical here. I help produce one of a dozen or so sober annual (or semi-annual) reports quantifying the business of war-making. In my case: the Arms Trade Resource Center report, U.S. Weapons at War: Fueling Conflict or Promoting Freedom? These reports get desultory, obligatory press attention - but only once in a blue moon do they get the sort of full-court-press treatment that befits our number one product line.

Dense collections of facts, percentages, and comparisons don't seem to fit particularly well into the usual patchwork of front-page stories. And yet the mainstream press is a glory ride, compared to the TV News, which hardly acknowledges most of the time that the weapons business even exists.

In any case, that inside-the-fold, fact-heavy, wonky news story on the arms trade, however useful, can't possibly convey the gold-medal feel of a business that has always preferred the shadows to the sun. No reader checking out such a piece is going to feel much - except maybe overwhelmed by facts. The connection between the factory that makes a weapons system and the community where that weapon "does its duty" is invariably missing-in-action, as are the relationships among the companies making the weapons and the generals (on-duty and retired) and politicians making the deals, or raking in their own cut of the profits for themselves and/or their constituencies. In other words, our most successful (and most deadly) export remains our most invisible one.

Maybe the only way to break through this paralysis of analysis would be to stop talking about weapons exports as a trade at all. Maybe we shouldn't be using economic language to describe it. Yes, the weapons industry has associations, lobby groups, and trade shows. They have the same tri-fold exhibits, scale models, and picked-over buffets as any other industry; still, maybe we have to stop thinking about the export of fighter planes and precision-guided missiles as if they were so many widgets and start thinking about them in another language entirely - the language of drugs.

After all, what does a drug dealer do? He creates a need and then fills it. He encourages an appetite or (even more lucratively) an addiction and then feeds it.

Arms dealers do the same thing. They suggest to foreign officials that their military just might need a slight upgrade. After all, they'll point out, haven't you noticed that your neighbor just upgraded in jets, submarines, and tanks? And didn't you guys fight a war a few years back? Doesn't that make you feel insecure? And why feel insecure for another moment when, for just a few billion bucks, we'll get you suited up with the latest model military… even better than what we sold them - or you the last time around.

Why does Turkey, which already has 215 fighter planes, need 100 extras in an even higher-tech version? It doesn't… but Lockheed Martin, working the Pentagon, made them think they did.

We don't need stronger arms control laws, we need a global sobriety coach - and some kind of 12-step program for the dealer-nation as well.

---------

Frida Berrigan is a Senior Research Associate at the World Policy Institute's Arms Trade Resource Center

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/052107F.shtml

Carter Criticizes Bush and Blair on War in Iraq

Reuters

Sunday 20 May 2007

Washington - Former President Jimmy Carter criticized George W. Bush's presidency in interviews released Saturday as "the worst in history" in international relations and faulted Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain for his loyal relationship with Mr. Bush.

"I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history," Mr. Carter, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, said in a telephone interview with The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette from the Carter Center in Atlanta.

"The overt reversal of America's basic values as expressed by previous administrations, including those of George H. W. Bush and Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon and others, has been the most disturbing to me," Mr. Carter told the newspaper.

In an interview on BBC radio, he criticized Mr. Blair for his close relations with the president, particularly concerning the Iraq war.

"Abominable," he said when asked how he would characterize Mr. Blair's relationship with Mr. Bush. "Loyal, blind, apparently subservient."

Mr. Carter, who was president from 1977 to 1981 and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his charitable work, was an outspoken opponent of the invasion of Iraq before it was begun in 2003.

"I think that the almost undeviating support by Great Britain for the ill-advised policies of President Bush in Iraq have been a major tragedy for the world," he said.

In the newspaper interview, Mr. Carter said Mr. Bush has taken a "radical departure from all previous administration policies" with the Iraq war.

"We now have endorsed the concept of pre-emptive war where we go to war with another nation militarily, even though our own security is not directly threatened, if we want to change the regime there or if we fear that some time in the future our security might be endangered," he said.

The White House declined to comment on his statements.

Mr. Carter told the BBC that if Mr. Blair had opposed the invasion he could have reduced the ensuing harm by making it tougher for Washington to shrug off critics, even if the British prime minister had not been able to stop the war. "It would certainly have assuaged the problems" that have arisen, he said.

He characterized one of the defenses of the Bush administration in America and worldwide" as "O.K., we must be more correct in our actions than the world thinks because Great Britain is backing us."

Mr. Carter told the BBC that the combined support of Mr. Bush and Mr. Blair for the war "has prolonged the war and increased the tragedy that has resulted."

In the newspaper interview, Mr. Carter, who brokered the Camp David accords between Egypt and Israel, also criticized Mr. Bush's Middle East policies. "For the first time since Israel was founded, we've had zero peace talks to try to bring a resolution of differences in the Middle East," he said. "That's a radical departure from the past."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/052007Z.shtml

Don't Be Fooled by Propaganda

by Charley Reese


There is an ongoing slander campaign against Islam, claiming that it is a religion that promotes violence and hinting that it seeks world conquest.Before you buy the malarkey that is being produced by people with their own agendas or prejudices or who are just plain ignoramuses, follow these few suggestions:

Compare the history of Islam with the history of Europe, which for centuries was called Christendom. An objective look will show you that Christendom wins by a landslide when it comes to violence and wars. After all, Europe and its offspring did not come to dominate the world, including the Islamic countries, because they practiced the gentle virtues of Jesus.

As for the common practice of cherry-picking Scripture from holy writings and presenting it out of context, just check out what Christians call the Old Testament. There you will find God advocating a double standard of morality, condoning slavery, ordering the Israelites to commit genocide and committing infanticide himself on a mass scale. I don't believe you will find anything comparable in the Quran.

The word "jihad," which is so over-used these days, has, like a lot of words, more than one meaning. It means basically to struggle, but this can be personal or spiritual, or a peaceful political struggle. Only if Islam is attacked are Muslims required to defend it.

As for that obnoxious propaganda term "Islamo-fascist," just recall that fascism is a European invention by nominal Christians. To my knowledge, the only fascist governments ever to exist on this planet were all European and nominally Christian.

Another canard is that Islam promotes forced conversion. Not so. Even when the Arab empire was expanding, rarely were any of the conquered people forced to convert. The Quran even forbids it, as I recall. Naturally, once Muslims were in charge, a lot of people decided it was in their own self-interest to convert, but this is just one of the sleazy aspects of human nature.

I remember when Florida elected its first Republican governor of the 20^th century. I saw plenty of people crawl out from under their rocks and convert to the Republican Party, drawn by the smell of patronage. With some rare exceptions, human beings always act in what they perceive, rightly or wrongly, to be in their self-interest.

It was Christian Europe that slaughtered the Jews, and nothing remotely resembling the Holocaust is to be found in the history of Islam. In fact, during the past, when Jews were being persecuted by Christian Europe, they frequently fled to and found sanctuary in the Muslim countries. Until Israel was established, practically every Muslim country had sizable Jewish populations dating back centuries. And there are still Jews and Christians in some Muslim countries.

A final suggestion is that when you hear some individual radical Muslim being quoted, just remember he is one of a billion people and speaks only for himself and his small following. And be wary of the quotations he uses, for they are often deliberately fabricated or distorted.

If Muslims really desired to conquer the world, don't you think it's strange that we've been living in peace with them for nearly a millennium and a half, except for those times when we attacked them (the Crusades, the European colonial movement and our invasion of Iraq)? Don't forget either that some of the countries the Bush administration calls allies are themselves Muslim – Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, etc.

You have nothing to fear from Islam. The al-Qaida movement is a tiny percentage of Muslims and wouldn't be the force it is except for the fact that the Bush administration has gone out of its way to make all of Osama bin Laden's propaganda become true.

May 5, 2007

Charley Reese [send him mail] has been a journalist for 49 years.

Source: http://www.informationliberation.com/?id=21857

Bullying Di Sekolah

Menyedihkan sekali ini:

The latest research by non-profit organization the Sejiwa Foundation, conducted in three cities, revealed that 27.5 percent of interviewed teachers considered bullying to be harmless to children's psychological wellbeing.

18.3 percent of respondents also said bullying was normal and should not be policed [= tidak perlu dicegah] by teachers. (Jakarta Post, 8 May, 2007)

Masa!!!???!!!

Bullying = mengganggu anak lain dengan cara mengejek, menghinakan, mengacam, memeras, mendorong, memukul, menganiaya, menyiksa, dan bahkan juga menghajar sampai mati. (Kata “bullying” ini tidak punya terjemahan yang persis sama dalam bahasa Indonesia)

27.5% dari guru yang disurvei menganggap bahwa bullying tidak mengganggu keadaan psikologis anak kecil????????!!!!!!!!!!!?????

Astagfirullah al adzim!!

Bagaimana anak bisa belajar kalau dia dalam keadaan tertekan? Bagaimana bisa berhasil kalau ada yang mengancam dan memukulnya setiap hari? Kok bisa dianggap “normal” atau “biasa” oleh ¼ dari para guru??

Kok guru bisa menyatakan bahwa ini bukan tugas guru untuk mencegahnya?

Kok orang dewasa yang mempunyai otak (guru) bisa melihat anak kecil yang diancam dan dianiaya, tanpa ada rasa kasih sayang atau kepedulian yang muncul di hatinya dan tanpa ada keinginan untuk membela anak yang tidak berdosa yang ditindas dan diteror oleh orang lain?

Bangsa apa ini? Bukannya penuh dengan orang Islam? Bukannya mayoritas dari guru ini beragama Islam?

"We have also questioned teachers and the principal but have found no indications of negligence," he added.

Benar? Atau barangkali lebih tepat mengatakan:

“Kita sudah memeriksa para guru dan kepala sekolah, tetapi mereka tidak siap mengakui bahwa mereka adalah orang lalai yang tidak pedulikan muridnya dengan cukup baik. Dan sekarang karena salah satu muridnya sudah wafat karena ‘bullying’, mereka tidak ingin disalahkan, padahal mereka sudah lama mengetahui bahwa ada geng anak yang suka mengancam dan menghajar anak lain yang lebih kecil. Tapi jangan salahkan para guru ya! Mereka lagi sibuk di ruang guru pada saat murid malang itu sedang dibunuh. Mereka tidak perlu bertanggung-jawab. Mereka tidak salah.”

Saya merasa sangat sedih sebagai seorang guru pada saat saya baca hasil survei ini dari orang yang juga menyebutkan diri “Guru”. Apakah mereka ini guru? Atau penjaga anak di suatu gedung yang kebetulan dinamakan “sekolah”?

Apakah ini yang terbaik untuk masa depan bangsa ini? Yang jelas, para guru ini yang tidak melihat ada efek buruk dari ‘bullying’ perlu training sehingga mereka bisa paham. Dan kalau mereka belum paham juga setelah training selesai, saya siap memukul dan membanting badan mereka sampai mereka mengatakan “paham”. Barangkali kalau mereka sendiri dipukul pada saat belajar, baru mereka akan menjadi sanggup memahami apa yang dirasakan anak kecil yang mereka jaga (atau tidak jaga) di sekolah.

Insya Allah mereka akan menjadi paham sebelum anak anda atau anak tetangga anda menjadi korban berikut.

Boleh kita minta Menteri Pendidikan baru yang peduli pada pendidikan, sehingga dia siap melakukan perbaikan dengan secepatnya….?

Kapan ya…?

*******************************

When it comes to bullying, ignorance is not bliss

City News - May 08, 2007

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Who is to blame when children become violent? Fathers often beam with pride when their sons show off their macho side while mothers react with joy when their brave daughters tell them stories of how they bettered a boy at school. Little do we realize that the smallest violence can lead to devastating loss.

"Ma, I'm getting beaten up, Ma. I'm getting beaten up," Edo Renaldo, 8, mumbled while taking an afternoon nap. What at first looked like a mere fever turned into tragedy for the second grader and his parents Theresia Leli and Yohanes last week. "When I checked, I noticed bruises on his neck, waist and on both of his thighs," Yohanes told the daily Warta Kota on Friday. After she insisted Edo tell her what really happened, the boy said he had been beaten up by four of his seniors at school.

On April 28, Edo, an unfit child, was exhausted after PE class. He went to the toilets where a boy a year older than him knocked him off of his feet while three female classmates stomped on him, Leli said. The bullying continued after Edo returned to the classroom, where he was pushed in the chest by one of the girls.

Edo passed away a week later.

No conclusive cause has been found for Edo's death. But doctors have said they found a 10-centimeter rupture to Edo's intestines during autopsy. East Jakarta police resort head Sr. Comr. Robinson Manurung said the final result of the autopsy would come out within the next two weeks. "We have questioned the four students as well as teachers," Manurung said. During questioning the students, who were accompanied by their parents, admitted having beaten up Edo, Manurung said.

"We have also questioned teachers and the principal but have found no indications of negligence," he added.

Meanwhile, Edo's parents said they were disappointed with the school's response to their complaints about their son's injuries. "They said it was normal for someone to have bruises after working out," Leli said.

A study from Plan International Indonesia indicated that such violence in schools ranked second after domestic violence. The latest research by non-profit organization the Sejiwa Foundation, conducted in three cities, revealed that 27.5 percent of interviewed teachers considered bullying to be harmless to children's psychological wellbeing. 18.3 percent of respondents also said bullying was normal and should not be policed by teachers.

Bullying by nature is a reaction to perceived difference: being too attractive, too fat, too shy or having different cultural background, psychologist Ratna Djuwita said. A private school principal whose institution mainstreamed bullying prevention efforts, Ratna's message has long been when it comes to bullying that "ignorance is not bliss."

National Commission for Child Protection chairman Arist Merdeka Sirait said the Child Protection Law stipulated that schools be held responsible for any violence on their premises. "Whatever the form (of violence) and whoever does it, schools should be violence-free zones and should protect their students," he said. (01)

http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20070508.C01

Anak berumur 8 tahun masuk penjara…

Sungguh menyedihkan anak ini ada di penjara. Seharusnya tidak. Kenapa tidak ada peraturan atau hukum khusus untuk anak di negara ini? Dan kalau ada, kenapa tidak dijalankan? Sayang masa depan anak ini menjadi rusak, padahal di jelas2 pintar. Bisa nggak kita mulaikan sebuah petisi untuk mengajak pemerintah/Hakim Agung melakukan Judicial Review terhadap kasus ini? Bikin petisi: "Lepaskan Arif!"?

Harus dipertanyakan apakah dia adalah orang yang berbahaya bagi masyarakat? Sepertinya tidak. Kalau begitu kenapa masuk penjara? Allah sendiri tidak menghukum anak kecil disebabkan dosa2nya. Kenapa kita mau melebihi Allah dengan hukuman tersebut?

Ada pembunuh lari dari penjara menggunakan tape uli...

Posted by Reza on Apr 23, '07 10:10 PM for everyone

Terus terang, meski sudah beberapa kali mengadakan penelitian Kriminal di LP, pengalaman kali ini adalah pengalaman pertama saya ngobrol langsung dengan seseorang yang didakwa kasus pembunuhan berencana. Dengan jantung dag dig dug, pikiran saya melayang-layang mengira-ngira gambaran orang yang akan saya temui. Sudah terbayang muka keji hanibal lecter, juga penjahat-penjahat berjenggot palsu ala sinetron, dan gambaran-gambaran pembunuh berdarah dingin lain yang sering saya temui di cerita TV.

Well, akhirnya setelah menunggu sekian lama berharap-harap cemas, salah satu sipir membawa seorang anak kehadapan saya.Yup, benar seorang anak berumur 8 tahun. Tingginya tidak lebih dari pinggang orang dewasa dengan wajah yang diliputi senyum malu-malu. Matanya teduh dengan gerak-gerik yang sopan.

Saya pun membaca berkas kasusnya yang diserahkan oleh sipir itu. Sebelum masuk penjara ternyata ia adalah juara kelas di sekolahnya, juara menggambar, jago bermain suling, juara mengaji dan azan di tingkat kanak-kanak. Kemampuan berhitungnya lumayan menonjol. Bahkan dari balik sekolah di dalam penjara pun nilai sekolahnya tercatat kedua terbesar tingkat provinsi. Lantas kenapa ia sampai membunuh? Dengan rencana pula?

Kasus ini terjadi ketika Arif sebut saja nama anak ini begitu, belum genap berusia tujuh tahun. Ayahnya yang berdagang di sebuah pasar di daerah bekasi, dihabisi kepala preman yang menguasai daerah itu. Latar belakangnya karena si ayah enggan membayar uang ‘keamanan’ yang begitu tinggi. Berita ini rupanya sampai di telinga Arif. Malam esok harinya setelah ayahnya dikebumikan ia mendatangi tempat mangkal preman tersebut. Bermodalkan pisau dapur ia menantang orang yang membunuh ayahnya.

“siapa yang bunuh ayah saya!” teriaknya kepada orang yang ada di tempat itu.

“Gue terus kenapa?” ujar kepala preman yang membunuh ayahnya sambil disambut gelak tawa di belakangnya.

Tanpa banyak bicara anak kecil itu sambil melompat menghunuskan pisau ke perut si preman. Dan tepat mengenai ulu hatinya, pria berbadan besar itu jatuh tersungkur ke tanah. Arif pun langsung lari pulang ke rumah setelahnya. Akhirnya selesai sholat subuh esok paginya ia digelandang ke kantor polisi.

“Arif nih sering bikin repot petugas di Lapas!” ujar kepala lapas yang ikut menemani saya mewawancarai arif sambil tersenyum. Ternyata sejak di penjara dua tahun lalu. Anak ini sudah tiga kali melarikan diri dari selnya. Dan caranya pun menurut saya tergolong ajaib.

Pelarian pertama dilakukannya dengan cara yang tak terpikirkan siapapun. Setiap pagi sampah-sampah dari Lapas itu di jemput oleh mobil kebersihan. Sadar akan hal ini, diam-diam Arif menyelinap ke dalam salah satu kantung sampah. Hasilnya 1-0 untuk Arif. Ia berhasil keluar dari penjara.

Pelarian kedua lebih kreatif lagi. Anak yang doyan baca ini pernah membaca artikel tentang fermentasi makanan tape (ingat loh waktu wawancara usianya baru 8 tahun). Dari situ ia mendapat informasi bahwa tape mengandung hawa panas yang bersifat destruktif terhadap benda keras. Kebetulan pula di Lapas anak ini disediakan tape uli dua kali dalam seminggu. Setiap disediakan tape, arif selalu berpuasa karena jatah tape itu dibalurkannya ke dinding tembok sel tahanannya. Hasilnya setelah empat bulan, tembok penjara itu menjadi lunak seperti tanah liat. Satu buah lubang berhasil dibuatnya. 2-0 untuk arif. Ia keluar penjara ke dua kalinya.

Pelarian ke tiganya dilakukan ala Mission Imposible. Arif yang ditugasi membersihkan kamar mandi melihat ember sebagai sebuah solusi. Besi yang berfungsi sebagai pegangan ember itu di simpannya di dalam kamarnya. Tahu bahwa dirinya sudah diawasi sangat ketat, Arif memilih tempat persembunyian paling aman sebelum memutuskan untuk kabur. Ruang kepala Lapas menjadi pilihannya. Alasannya jelas, karena tidak pernah satu pun penjaga berani memeriksa ruangan ini. Ketika tengah malam ia menyelinap keluar dengan menggunakan besi pegangan ember untuk membuka pintu dan gembok. Jangan tanya saya bagaimana caranya, pokoknya tahu-tahu ia sudah di luar. 3-0 untuk Arif.

Lantas kenapa ia bisa tertangkap lagi? Rupanya kepintaran itu masih berada di sebuah kepala bocah. Pelarian-pelariannya didorong dari rasa kangennya terhadap ibunya. Anak ini keluar dari penjara hanya untuk ke rumah sang ibunda tercinta. Jadi dari Lapas tanggerang ia menumpang-numpang mobil omprengan dan juga berjalan kaki sekian kilometer dengan satu tujuan, pulang!

Karena itu pula pada pelarian Arif yang ketiga, kepala Lapas yang juga seorang ibu ini meminta anak buahnya untuk tidak segera menjemput Arif. Hasilnya dua hari kemudian Arif kembali lagi ke lapas sambil membawa surat untuk kepala Lapas yang ditulisnya sendiri.

Ibu kepala Arif minta maaf, tapi Arif kangen sama ibu Arif. Tulisnya singkat.

Seorang anak cerdas yang harus terkurung dipenjara. Tapi, saya tidak lantas berpikir bahwa ia tidak benar-benar bersalah dan harus dibebaskan. Bagaimanapun juga ia telah menghilangkan nyawa seseorang. Tapi saya hanya berandai-andai jika saja, polisi bertindak cepat menangkap pembunuh si ayah (secepat polisi menangkap si Arif) pastinya saat ini anak pintar dan rajin itu tidak akan berada di tempat seperti ini. Dan kreativitasnya yang tinggi itu bisa berguna untuk hal yang lain. Sayangnya si Arif itu cuma anak pedagang sayur miskin sementara si preman yang dibunuhnya selalu setia menyetor kepada pihak berwajib setempat. Itulah yang namanya keadilan!

http://rgardino.multiply.com/journal/item/28

Survei Tentara AS: Tidak Keberatan dengan Penyiksaan

Washington Post melaporkan bahwa tentara AS di Iraq telah mengikuti survei resmi dari Pentagon. Hasilnya:

· 2/3 dari tentara di Iraq percaya bahwa penyiksaan diperbolehkan kalau akan menghasilkan informasi yang penting tentang “insurgent” (penyerang).

· 4/10 akan setuju dengan penyiksaan bila dianggap bisa menyelamatkan nyawa prajurit lain.

· 2/3 dari Marinir [termasuk pasukan paling terlatih dan elit] dan 1/2 dari tentara biasa menyatakan tidak akan melaporkan rekan yang sengaja menganiaya/mengganggu orang sipil atau merusakkan barang milik orang sipil tanpa alasan yang benar.

· Kurang dari 1/2 dari marinir dan prajurit biasa percaya bahwa orang sipil [“non-combatant” = orang tua, ibu, anak, lelaki tidak bersenjata] harus diperlakuan dengan kehormatan dan kesopanan.

· 10% dari prajurit mengaku telah memperlakukan orang sipil secara tidak benar, dengan menendang mereka atau merusakkan barang milik mereka.

· Petugas menegaskan bahwa semua pengakuan ini atau hasil survei tidak sesuai dengan peraturan dan etika tentara AS yang melarang penyiksaan terhadap tahanan perang dan pengangguan terhadap orang sipil.

· Hasil studi ini juga menerangkan bahwa makin lama prajurit ditugaskan di daerah perang, dan makin sedikit waktunya di rumah di AS, makin mungkin prajurit itu akan mengalami gangguan mental seperti trauma kombat, stres, dan depresi. Belakangan ini, Pentagon telah mengirim pasukan yang sama ke Iraq berkali-kali [berarti masing2 prajurit kena “tour of duty” beberapa kali] dan juga memperpanjang durasi tour of duty tersebut menjadi 15 bulan dari 12 bulan sebelumnya.

· Tugas ini lebih berat daripada yang dialami pasukan AS di Perang Dunia II. Sekarang, ada Marinir dan prajurit yang harus melakukan “combat operation” setiap hari, dari 10-12 jam per hari, untuk berbulan-bulan. Ini pertama kali dalam sejarah tentara AS bahwa prajurit dan marinir harus menghabiskan waktu selama 6-7 bulan di garis depan.

· Dari hasil survei, 20% dari prajurit dan 15 % dari marinir sedang menderita dari depresi atau stres. 40% dari pasukan melaporkan “low morale” (perasaan tidak semangat) di dalam unitnya.

· Gangguan terhadap keluarga militer juga muncul. 20% dari prajurit melaporkan ada niat untuk cerai atau berpisah dengan isteri. Jumlah ini meningkat dari jumlah 15% tahun kemarin. Isteri dan anak sering memberikan komentar “Bapak sudah berubah dan tidak sama dengan orang yang berangkat ke Iraq.” [maksudnya, telah terjadi perubahan mental/sikap sebagai hasil dari keterlibatannya di dalam perang.]

· Sersan Scott Shore (Pensiunan) mengaku sering mengalami mimpi buruk, dan itu salah satu faktor dalam perceriaannya. Dia mengaku tidak suka berada di keramaian orang, tidak suka membawa mobil dan banyak hal yang lain karena selalu merasa takut akan diserang secara tiba-tiba (padahal sekarang dia berada di AS).

Mau berkomentar apa lagi? Hasil usaha sendiri! Selamat deh.

Sumber:

Troops at Odds With Ethics Standards

By Thomas E. Ricks and Ann Scott Tyson

The Washington Post

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050507Z.shtml

US to Make History Trying Alleged Child War Criminal

By Mark Tran
The Guardian UK

Wednesday 25 April 2007

A human rights group today attacked a US decision to file murder charges against a Canadian national and alleged Taliban fighter who was captured in Afghanistan when he was 15.

Omar Khadr was wounded by US soldiers during a battle near Khost, Afghanistan, and taken into US custody in July 2002. He has spent most of the past five years in the US military prison at Guantánamo Bay.

During his capture he was shot three times and is nearly blind in one eye as a result of his injuries. The US military says Mr Khadr threw a grenade that killed a US Green Beret sergeant, Christopher Speer, and wounded another sergeant, Layne Morris.

Mr Khadr's Pentagon-appointed lawyer, Marine lieutenant colonel Colby Vokey, said the US would become the first country in modern history to try a war crimes suspect who was a child at the time of the alleged violations if a trial went ahead.

Mr Khadr has been charged with murder, attempted murder, providing support to terrorism, conspiracy and spying under rules for military trials adopted last year. The conspiracy charge is based on acts allegedly committed before Mr Khadr was 10, according to his defence team.

Amnesty International strongly criticised the decision to subject Mr Khadr to a military tribunal.

"To have held a 15-year-old boy in the harsh and lawless conditions of Guantánamo for five years has already been a travesty of justice - and to put him before an unfair 'military commission' trial simply adds to a disgraceful record in his case," said the Amnesty International UK director Kate Allen.

Ms Allen said the US authorities should transfer his case to a civilian federal court on the US mainland.

Toronto-born Mr Khadr faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

The Pentagon said Mr Khadr must be held accountable.

"The defence department will continue to uphold the law and bring unlawful enemy combatants to justice through the military commissions process," it said.

Mr Speer's widow and Mr Morris filed a civil lawsuit against Mr Khadr and his father. In February, a judge awarded them $102.6m (£51m).

Dennis Edney, a Canadian lawyer for Mr Khadr's family, said the new tribunal system, which allows coerced and hearsay evidence, "provides Mr Khadr with almost no chance of proving his innocence.

"The aim is to provide a showcase to justify the US administration decision to arrest Mr. Khadr and other men like him in the first place," Mr Edney told the Associated Press.

Mr Khadr's attorneys urged Canada and the US to negotiate a "political resolution" of the case to spare Mr Khadr a guaranteed conviction by "one of the greatest show trials on earth".

Several of Mr Khadr's family members have been accused of ties to Islamist extremists. His Egyptian-born father, Ahmad Said al-Khadr, was killed in Pakistan in 2003 alongside senior al-Qaida operatives and Canada is holding Mr Khadr's brother Abdullah on a US extradition warrant accusing him of supplying weapons to al-Qaida.

Mr Khadr will be the second prisoner to face terror charges under new military tribunals after the US supreme court in June struck down the previous military tribunal system at Guantánamo as unconstitutional. Congress then passed a law establishing a new system, which is also being challenged.

In March, the military tribunal at Guantánamo sentenced an Australian, David Hicks, to nine months in prison after he pleaded guilty to supporting terrorism - the first conviction at a US war crimes trial since the second world war.

Under an agreement with the court, he will serve his sentence in an Australian prison, but must remain silent about any alleged abuse while in US custody. Prosecutors say they plan to charge as many as 80 of the 370 men held at Guantánamo on suspicion of links to al-Qaida or the Taliban.

"We are increasingly concerned that with 80% of Guantánamo detainees now held in solitary confinement, there is mounting evidence that some are dangerously close to full-blown mental and physical breakdown," Amnesty said.

Source: Truthout

George Galloway speaking about War in Iraq

The Best Testimony of The 21st Century

British MP George Galloway speaking before the US Senate about the War in Iraq

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9AbVbYAAYk

QuikClot: Kapan muncul di indonesia?

Sebuah penemuan baru bernama QuikClot. Bahan ini adalah bahan kimia seperti "Pasir" yang kalau ditumpahkan ke dalam sebuah luka besar yang berdarah, maka terjadi "clotting" (pengentalan darah). Sebagian besar korban yang ditembak atau mengalami luka besar setelah kecelakaan justru wafat di jalan karena pendarahan. Dengan penemuan baru ini, yang secara rutin sudah diberikan kepada polisi di beberapa wilayah di AS, jumlah pasien yang selamat meningkat secara drastis.

Pada saat diujicoba dengan babi, yang saluran darahnya terpotong dengan sengaja, maka jumlah babi yang selamat dari luka tersebut adalah 100%.

Kapan kita bisa mendapatkan ini di Indonesia, ya? Kayanya banyak korban kecelakaan di sini pasti wafat sebelum sampai ke RS terdekat karena macet di jalan dan lamanya menunggu ambulance.

Sachets of sand-like material called QuikClot are carried by every US marine and navy soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan. When poured into a bleeding wound, it accelerates clotting by more than 80%, dramatically increasing the likelihood of survival. Unfortunately a chemical reaction during clotting can heat QuikClot enough to cause serious burns: tolerable in life-or-death situations but less acceptable for civilian use. But a new generation of materials from QuikClot's makers will soon offer even faster, cooler clotting. Make room in your first-aid kit..

Read the full article here: New Scientist

Tenaga Anak Untuk Pompa Air

Kenapa kita tidak bisa mendapatkan ini di Indonesia? Karosel ini digunakan untuk memompa air. Dipakai anak-anak setiap hari, dan setiap putaran memompa air. Berapa banyak desa dan gedung, terutama gedung sekolahan bisa menggunakan teknologi sederhana ini. Dengan menggunakan sistem tersebut, anak menjadi sehat, tagihan listrik berkurang, dan beban terhadap suplai listrik PLN akan menurun. Win-win solution. Kalau ada niat….

A company in South Africa has found a way to harness youthful energy in solving the constant problem of water supply in rural villages.

It uses a playground roundabout to power a water pump. Roundabout Outdoors is now hoping to take the concept to other African countries where water infrastructure languishes behind South Africa.

The play-pump benefits women and girls in particular who can spend hours each day fetching water. "African and Asian women spend up to six hours a day walking to collect water," Roundabout Outdoor's Trevor Field told the BBC's World Today. If we put a play-pump in, if you look at the saving on time alone it's phenomenal, and it does have a massive impact on the health of children and people in general."

Energy

Mr Field describes the device as "basically windmill equipment". "It's a positive displacement water pump, and as the children spin around it transfers their energy into vertical or reciprocal motion, and that pumps water from an underground borehole or well to the surface where it's stored in a tank for future use."

With the children pushing the roundabout around 16 times a minute, the play-pump can produce 1,400 litres of water per hour from a depth of 40 metres. The pump is effective up to a depth of 100 metres. Its manufacturers say a typical hand pump installation cannot compete with this delivery rate.

The play-pumps require an initial investment of 50,000 rand ($9000). Advertising billboards above the pump raise the funds for maintenance. The South African Aids awareness organisation, LoveLife, is currently paying for advertising space.

Roundabout Outdoor has entered a partnership with the South African Department of Water Affairs and Forestry to help it meet commitments to supply water to rural communities.

BBC News

Drugs in schools

A total of 81,702 students used illegal drugs in 2006 (Jakarta Post, 11 April). The National Narcotics Agency (BNN) reports that 8,449 of those drug users were elementary school students and those are the ones we know about. With the assumption that those who were detected represent the tip of the iceberg, just how many children in this country are taking illegal drugs?

First, where did they get the money from? I’m assuming that illegal drugs are not that cheap.

Second, where did they get the drugs from? Are drug dealers standing outside schools beside the snack vendors? (“Meatballs, ice cream, ecstasy!”) Are other kids selling the drugs inside the schools? How? Considering the small size of most schools and the large number of students, it’s not as though there are many private places for child drug dealers to hide.

Third, when and where are these children using drugs? At home, a friend’s home, at school or on the street? None of these locations seems like an optimal location for using drugs without being detected.

Fourth, where are the parents and teachers while this wave of “stoned” children is sweeping the nation? How is it possible that so many children had the time, access, money and freedom from observation to take drugs?

Is no one taking care of the children in this country? How about a hotline for children to report suspected drug use in their school? How about random urine testing in schools where there is a suspicion of drug use? Then, appropriate sanctions for those caught using drugs and more severe sanctions for those caught dealing drugs. How can we build a prosperous future when some kids are already getting “stoned” in elementary school and public officials are too concerned with their latest project to care about the future leaders of this nation?

Gene Netto

Jakarta, Indonesia

(Published in Jakarta Post 16 April, 2007)

Tolong! Anak Saya Bukan Anak Jenius!

Dari Milis. Email ini dari 2 tahun yang lalu tetapi masih relevan. Gene.

###

Tolong! Anak Saya Bukan Anak Jenius!

SUARA PEMBARUAN DAILY Jum’at, 17 Juni 2005

Surat Terbuka kepada Mendiknas:

Tolong! Anak Saya Bukan Anak Jenius!

BAPAK Menteri yang terhormat. Saya telah me-layangkan surat ini ke lembaga Bapak. Akan tetapi, mengingat surat ini ditulis bukan oleh orang yang penting, melainkan dari rakyat jelata, dari seorang ayah yang merasa prihatin melihat nasib pengajaran anaknya, besar kemungkinan Bapak tidak akan menerima surat ini. Atau, kalau toh Bapak menerimanya, besar pula kemungkinan Bapak tidak bersedia membacanya.

Karena alasan itulah, saya memutuskan untuk menjadikan surat ini “surat terbuka” yang dapat dibaca oleh semua orang, khususnya para ayah-ibu yang prihatin melihat hancurnya sistem pendidikan dan pengajaran di sekolah-sekolah tempat anak mereka menimba ilmu. Sebab, menurut saya, apa yang terjadi pada anak saya lebih kurang dapat juga dirasakan pada anak-anak seusianya.

Bulan ini, jika tidak ada aral melintang, anak saya akan menghadapi ujian kenaikan kelas. Kini ia kelas II di sebuah SLTP Katolik yang cukup terpandang di daerah Jakarta Timur. Akan tetapi semenjak dua-tiga bulan terakhir, kata “sekolah” dan “belajar” baginya telah menjadi hantu yang sangat membebani pikiran dan perasaannya. Awal Mei lalu, tepat pada “Hari Pendidikan Nasional”, misalnya, anak saya menyatakan mogok pergi ke sekolah. Alasannya sederhana: “Aku benci sekolah!” Sebagai orangtua, saya memang dapat memaksa agar dia tetap pergi ke sekolah. Namun, menurut saya, model pemaksaan seperti itu tidak akan memecahkan persoalan. Jadi saya membiarkan ia tidak pergi ke sekolah, dan menjadikan hari itu sebagai kesempatan untuk mendiskusikan alasan-alasan ia mogok bersekolah.

Hasilnya sudah dapat diduga, akan tetapi tetap mengejutkan bagi saya sebagai orangtua. Pertama-tama dia berkeluh kesah tentang begitu banyak mata pelajaran yang harus dia telan mentah-mentah, tanpa dia tahu untuk apa dan mengapa dia harus menelannya. Kata “telan mentah-mentah” sengaja saya pilih, karena hanya itulah padanan yang paling tepat bagi system pengajaran yang (masih terus) mengandalkan pada “hafalan mati” - walau pun sudah begitu banyak kritik pedas ditujukan pada sistem seperti itu.

Standar Kurikulum Memang benar, dewasa ini orang berbicara tentang KBK (Kurikulum Berbasis Kompetensi) dan “otonomi khusus” masing-masing sekolah. Akan tetapi, pada praktiknya, tetap saja setiap sekolah akan berusaha memenuhi standar kurikulum yang dibuat Depdiknas, agar tidak dinilai “ketinggalan” dari sekolah-sekolah “favorit”. Apalagi, dalam sistem KBK, faktor pendidikan guru sebagai “fasilitator” (perhatikan: bukan sebagai guru tradisional, sumber-segala-sumber ilmu pengetahuan!) akan sangat menentukan. KBK mengasumsikan tersedianya sumber-sumber ilmu pengetahuan yang terbuka, seperti internet, fasilitas perpustakaan, lingkungan yang memadai, dan seterusnya, serta kemampuan guru mengolah mata pelajaran tanpa harus membebek pada standar kurikulum. Kedua asumsi itu, pada praktiknya, merupakan kemewahan yang tidak dimiliki oleh sekolah-sekolah pada umumnya. Alhasil, sistem “telan mentah-mentah” kembali merajalela.

Mari! saya beri contoh konkret. Seorang siswa SLTP di Jakarta, seperti anak saya, paling tidak harus “menelan” 16 mata pelajaran (mata pelajaran umum, ilmiah, dan khas daerah), mulai dari Agama, PPKN, Fisika, Ekonomi sampai Komputer dan PLKJ (Pendidikan Lingkungan Kehidupan Jakarta - untuk siswa di Jakarta). Itu berarti, setiap siswa harus “menelan mentah-mentah” setidaknya 15 buku - saya mengasumsikan Matematika tidak menghafal! - untuk menghadapi ujian kenaikan kelas. Masalah lain yang disinggung anak saya, bukan saja jumlah mata pelajarannya sangat banyak, tetapi juga kandungan masing-masing mata pelajaran sangat rinci, dan karena itu terlalu berat bagi seorang siswa SLTP kelas II. Ini mudah dicermati jika Bapak Menteri sempat meme-riksa buku-ajar standar yang dipakai di sekolah-sekolah kita. Mungkin Bapak Menteri tidak memiliki waktu cukup untuk memeriksa dengan cermat isi buku-ajar itu. Jadi, izinkan saya memberi contoh yang saya petik secara acak dari buku-ajar anak saya.

Untuk mata pelajaran ekonomi, seorang siswa SLTP kelas II diharapkan mampu memahami mulai dari koperasi sampai pembangunan nasional. Dan, masing-masing subjek bahasan diurai dalam rincian yang hanya dapat dipahami oleh mereka yang kuliah ekonomi di perguruan tinggi. Misalnya, subjek bahasan koperasi, dirinci mulai dari pengertian, asas, landasan (idiil, struktural, mental, operasional), fungsi dan peran, macam-macam kegiatan dan jenis, sampai segala peraturan yang terkait! Dan, subjek pembangunan nasional dirinci sejak kegiatan negara dalam kehidupan ekonomi (seluruh aspek budgeter, APBN-APBD, jenis-jenis pajak, bagaimana menghitung pajak, dan peraturan yang terkait) sampai tahap-tahap pembangunan jangka panjang (Pelita I sampai Reformasi). Hal yang sama juga terjadi dalam mata pelajaran lain. Ambil contoh buku-ajar biologi untuk SLTP kelas II. Siswa diharapkan memahami mulai dari sistem pencernaan (manusia dan hewan), sistem pernafasan (manusia dan hewan), sistem transporta! si
(manusia dan hewan), sistem saraf, sistem indera, dan seterusnya.

Lagi-lagi, masing-masing subjek bahasan diberi rincian yang luar biasa mendalam: siswa SLTP kelas II harus memahami perbedaan antara Diapedesis dengan Fibrinogen, gambar penampang kulit lengkap (Anda tahu Globmerulus dan di mana letak Kapsul Bowman?), gambar hubungan antarsel saraf (mana bagian Akson, Dendrit, Vesikel Sinapsis?), dan seterusnya. Karena itu, tidak heran jika seorang dosen biologi di sebuah universitas berkomentar, “Kalau SLTP sudah sejauh ini, apa lagi yang perlu diajarkan di Universitas?”

Perlukah saya menunjukkan materi PLKJ, mata pelajaran khusus untuk siswa yang (kebetulan) tinggal di Jakarta, kepada Bapak Menteri? Seorang siswa SLTP kelas II di Jakarta harus menghafal mati pasal-pasal mana dalam KUHP yang dipakai untuk menghukum “perkelahian pelajar secara per orangan yang mengakibatkan satu pihak luka atau mati”, pasal-pasal mana untuk “perkelahian pelajar secara berkelompok”, dan pasal-pasal mana yang dipakai jika “pelajar menyerang guru”!

Juga, jangan lupa, pasal-pasal KUHP mana yang dipakai jika “pelajar mabuk-mabukan, minum-minuman keras”, atau jika terjadi “pemerasan oleh pelajar”, atau “pencurian di kalangan pelajar”, atau “pelajar membawa senjata api atau senjata tajam”…

Bapak Menteri yang terhormat. Sengaja saya menguraikan secara rinci beban mata pelajaran yang harus ditanggung anak saya setiap hari saat ia pergi ke sekolah, dan khususnya saat ia menghadapi ujian kenaikan kelas. Menurut saya, hanya anak jenius saja yang mampu menanggung semua beban itu tanpa masalah berarti. Dan, saya harus akui dengan jujur, anak saya bukan anak yang jenius, seperti juga anak-anak pada umumnya.

Jumlah mata pelajaran yang begitu banyak, dan kandungan informasi yang sangat padat tanpa memperhitungkan kesiapan mental maupun kognitif anak sesuai tahap-tahap perkembangannya, membuat guru tidak memiliki cara lain kecuali kembali pada sistem kuno: Telan Mentah-mentah! Jangan Tanya, Hafal Saja! Itu pula yang dituntut oleh soal-soal ulangan umum. Mungkin di permukaan, cara itu kelihatannya berhasil. Tetapi, jika dipandang dari sudut pendidikan, sesungguhnya kita telah gagal total! Kita telah ikut berpartisipasi menjadikan kata “sekolah” dan “belajar” momok yang sangat menakutkan bagi anak-anak didik - mereka yang akan menggantikan kita di masa depan.

Seorang teman anak saya bahkan hampir bunuh diri, karena frustrasi menghafal mata pelajaran Biologi. Saya tidak mau peristiwa itu terjadi pada anak saya. Karena itu, Bapak Menteri, tolonglah! Anak saya bukan anak jenius! Dan jutaan anak Indonesia juga bukan anak jenius! *

Penulis adalah Direktur Eksekutif MADIA (Masyarakat Dialog Antar Agama), Jakarta

Ada Yang Menebak: Revolusi Pendidikan

Assalamu’alaikum wr.wb.,

Tetapi perlu dipahami juga ada suatu hal yang lain yang baru terjadi dalam 100 tahun terakhir ini di negara2 barat, dan tidak ada hubungan dengan teknologi sama sekali! Apakah ada yang tahu? (Dari Post: Jangan Membatasi Diri + Belum Ada Yang Menebak)

Ternyata hanya sedikit yang ikut menebak. Yang paling pertama mendapat jawaban yang benar adalah Ibu Shamara (di Blog). Dia mengatakan “negara2 yang telah maju ini melakukan revolusi pendidikan”. Dengan mengadakan wajib sekolah K-12 dalam 100 tahun terakhir di negara barat, banyak sekali yang berubah di masyarakat. Ini bukan alasan satu-satunya kenapa negara2 barat lebih maju, tetapi menjadi salah satu landasan untuk semua keberhasilan yang lain.

Kalau kita periksa sejarah lebih dari 100 tahun yang lalu, seorang anak petani akan ikut menjadi petani, anak tukang jahit menjadi tukang jahit, dan seterusnya. Mayoritas dari masyarakat buta huruf, dan hanya anak orang kaya dan bangsawan bisa mendapat pendidikan. Ada sedikit sekali sekolah swasta (misalnya sekolah Eton yang didirikan pada tahun 1440 AD) dan tidak ada sekolah negeri. Selain dari itu, ada anak orang kaya yang mendapat pelajaran di rumah dengan guru khusus (tutor) yang datang ke rumah setiap hari.

Untuk anaknya orang miskin, yang paling utama adalah mendapatkan pekerjaan supaya bisa makan setiap hari. Tidak kerja = tidak makan. Uang yang dihasilkan bapak dan ibu belum cukup untuk memberi makan kepada anaknya. Lalu setelah terjadi revolusi industri, ada banyak hal yang berubah dalam waktu yang relatif singkat. Dimulai sistem serikat buruh. Gaji karyawan, buruh dan tukang mulai naik. Kesejahateraan anak mulai dipikirkan pemimpin bangsa. Sekolah menjadi wajib. Awalnya, hanya sampai kelas 9-10, atau umur 15-16 tahun, dan hanya anak yang berniat kuliah akan teruskan sekolah sampai Kelas 12. Tetapi secara bertahap, setiap negara mulai wajibkan K-12, dan tentu saja kualitas pendidikan dan kualitas guru meningkat terus.

Dengan demikian, mayoritas dari masyarakat menjadi sanggup membaca dan menulis. Penjualan koran dan buku meningkat. Orang yang lahir dalam keluarga yang miskin ada harapan baru untuk “melebihi” bapaknya dan mendapatkan pekerjaan yang lebih baik dengan gaji yang lebih baik. Ini merupakan sebuah revolusi pendidikan yang belum pernah terjadi sepanjang masa.

Tingkat “literacy” (sanggup baca tulis) di Selandia Baru, misalnya, mencapai 99% dari masyarakat. Membaca buku menjadi hal yang biasa. Hampir setiap rumah ada koleksi buku buat anak. Di Amerika, jumlah sekolah, perpustakaan umum, universitas dan jumlah pemenang piagam Nobel meningkat terus-terusan di dalam 100 tahun terakhir. Beda dengan Indonesia.

Kenapa revolusi pendidikan membantu negara2 ini maju? Karena orang yang hanya lulus SD (atau putus sekolah sebelum lulus SD) belum mendapat daya pikir yang terbentuk untuk menganalisa, membaca, menulis, berargumentasi, berbeda pendapat dan tetap berteman, bermimpi dan seterusnya. Yang sering saya jumpai di sini adalah orang yang lulus SD, menjadi pembantu rumah tangga atau tukang, dan sikapnya “nrimo” saja. Pasrah. Ini dunia saya. Saya tidak bisa menjadi lebih dari ini. Dan sikap ini ada dulu di dunia barat, lebih dari 100 tahun yang lalu.

Seseorang yang sudah lulus SMA dengan kualitas guru dan pendidikan yang bermutu tentu saja, sangat berbeda pikirannya dengan orang yang hanya lulus SD. Tambahan pendidikan itu membentuk daya pikir yang membantunya dalam semua hal. Untuk bisnis misalnya, pada saat orang lain hanya bisa melihat 1 solusi, anak yang sudah mendapatkan pendidikan yang baik bisa melihat 5 solusi. Hal yang sederhana seperti ini mendorong banyak perubahan di masyarakat di dalam semua bidang.

Semua kemajuan di negara barat bisa dikaitkan dengan peningkatan pendidikan masal di masyarakat. Orang yang sebelumnya bisa “dibohongi” mulai membaca sendiri undang-undang negara dan ingin terlibat dalam pengurusan kotanya atau negaranya. Orang bisa menyebarkan informasi secara tertulis untuk mencapai ratusan ribu orang, tanpa harus ketemu. Sebelumnya, seorang pemimpin harus bertemu langsung dengan rakyat untuk menyampaikan suatu ide. Sekarang, cukup ditulis artikel oleh wartawan dan efeknya sama. Informasi dan ilmu menjadi milik rakyat dan bukan milik kaum elit dan politikus.

Di Indonesia masih ada yang menginginkan seorang Presiden yang hanya lulus SMA. Menyedihkan sekali. Kita seharusnya mencari yang terbaik untuk masa depan bangsa, bukannya mundur ke masa lalu.

Saya dulu menjadi orang pertama di keluarga besar saya yang masuk kuliah di Australia. Sekarang ada beberapa sepupu yang lebih muda yang kuliah juga. Hal itu hanya terjadi karena pemerintah di Australia memberikan subsidi untuk kuliah bagi orang yang tidak sanggup. Kalau saya diwajibkan bayar penuh, saya juga tidak sanggup kuliah. Inilah yang bisa terwujud kalau sekolah diwajibkan dan kuliah dipermudah. Sampai sekarang, niat saya untuk melakukan S2 dan S3 belum tercapai karena saya memikirkan biayanya dan juga waktunya yang harus dihabiskan untuk mendapatkan gelar itu.

Lebih dari 100 tahun yang lalu, anak yang pintar dari keluarga yang miskin tetap tidak bisa sekolah. Sekarang, semua anak diwajibkan bersekolah dan anak pintar yang miskin itu mendapat kesempatan yang hampir setara dengan anaknya orang kaya. Inilah yang perlu kita utamakan untuk masa depan bangsa Indonesia.

Di Indonesia masih ada “penjajahan mental” yang tersisa dari zaman Belanda dan Orde Baru. Bentuk pemikiran ini hanya bisa berubah kalau masyarakat mendapatkan pendikan yang layak dan pendidikan menjadi hak setiap anak bangsa dan bukan orang elit saja.

Wassalamu’alaikum wr.wb.,

Belum ada yang menebak...

Belum ada yang menebak apa yang saya bicarakan di sini:

Tetapi perlu dipahami juga ada suatu hal yang lain yang baru terjadi dalam 100 tahun terakhir ini di negara2 barat, dan tidak ada hubungan dengan teknologi sama sekali! Apakah ada yang tahu? Saya dengan sengaja tidak akan memberikan jawaban sampai hari Jumat. Kalau ada yang bisa menebak, saya akan salut pada anda sebagai pemikir yang baik. (Traktir kopi juga boleh.)

(Dari Post: Jangan Membatasi Diri)

Tidak ada yang menang kopinya. Kenapa negara maju begitu hebat, dan negara Indonesia begitu ketinggalan? Apa yang terjadi di negara sana? (Tidak ada kaitan dengan teknologi).
Ayo, coba menebak...

Letting the TV Baby-sit Your Child

(Letter to Jakarta Post 10 August 2006)

A front-page article in the Post (9 August) was about “Wanti” and her addiction to TV gossip shows, which were recently pronounced haram (forbidden) by Nadhlatul Ulama (NU). What struck me more, however, was not just Wanti’s addiction but another glaring fact that slipped quietly by and was easily missed: who looks after her children when she goes out?

According to the article, Wanti watched TV most of the day as her husband was at work and her seven year old son was at school. Her 18 month old daughter was left to flounder on the floor by herself, with cookies for breakfast (no time to cook – busy watching TV).

“By 6 p.m., Wanti had watched almost a dozen shows; the number would have been 15 but she went to a Koran recital for two hours and let Aldi watch cartoons.” So, who is looking after her seven year old son while she goes out? Is he at home alone? Is her husband there? I would hope that Wanti took her baby with her, but was anyone watching her son? The article makes no mention of other adults in the house. (Please let there be a loving grandmother there).

What about turning the TV off and spending time on the floor playing creative games with the children? What around reading with them to make them love books? What about just being a caring and attentive adult in their lives?

Why care about TV shows? Why doesn’t NU declare “bad parenting” to be haram instead? That could be followed up by free workshops in mosques all over the country to teach basic parenting skills like “paying attention to children”. That would surely have a much greater impact on Muslims and society in general than bothering with what people watch. Forget about TV shows. Put society’s focus back on how to be a good parent. Then TV gossip shows will disappear by themselves when parents are too busy playing to watch them anymore.

Gene Netto

Jakarta, Indonesia

10 August 2006

Schools and teachers matter

(Letter to Jakarta Post 05 May 2006)

As a qualified teacher with more than 10 years classroom experience, I can only wonder about what The Jakarta Post wishes to achieve with its regular articles on education by Simon Gower, who actually has a degree in engineering.

His latest attempt (the Post, May 2) is truly saddening. His argument that classrooms are not "real" just proves how little he understands about the field of education, as opposed to giving job-skill training to future factory workers.

Having a "surplus" of university graduates in European countries is a blessing. There was a time when only the rich and privileged could get a degree. Now almost anyone can, yet Gower sees that as bad? Should we allow entry to university based on the amount of land owned by parents? That would sure keep the numbers down.

And if having more graduates means a "(lower) quality" of education, then how can we explain the hundreds of Nobel Laureates in the UK, Europe and the U.S.? Low quality "surplus" graduates? There are none in Indonesia, which has a low ratio of graduates. Isn't society better off with more great thinkers? Should we have fewer thinkers in society, perhaps, and more mindless drones to fill the factories owned by those who believe that the only purpose of schools is to "teach" "skills" to children so that they can work for companies when they graduate? God save us from curriculum dictated by CEOs.

Schools are not "self-serving". And we teachers are not in this field in order to keep ourselves employed. Studying the Roman Empire can show us what may befall the new U.S. empire. We can learn lessons from the "deadly dull textbooks" that good teachers can make "real" by turning the focus onto something topical. (Or, we can just ask for new textbooks).

The article shows contempt for teachers who spend "their entire working lives" in their chosen field. So what? So do many great doctors, engineers, police officers, and many great stay-at-home mothers.

GENE NETTO
Jakarta

05 May 2006