Time Travel.

Is it real? Will it ever be? Will it possibly happen within our lifetime?
Well I have the answer to that last question.

All you really need to do is write a letter to yourself in the future, with explicit instructions on what to do if time travel was already invented.
Record the date and the time that you want to know the truth in the letter, asking your future self to come back to this particular time, so as to hasten the discovery of time travel and perhaps further advance the technology whilst you are still alive and of course the possibility of claiming credit for such an invention should your future self decide that your present self would just need to wait till when time travel was actually invented IF it would actually be invented. You would need to be hungry for fame and fortune to the extent that you'd be willing to risk the disruption of the space-time continuum for this to work. But really, who isn't these days?

And of course, the latter reason would give many individuals a reason to come back in attempt to gain said fame and fortune for themselves, that's if these time traveling machines or portals or whatever means is widely distributed (which is probably the case should your future self actually appear at the stipulated date and time in your letter, unless you are a genius scientist/inventor that can invent time machines - which would go against the required conditions of this entire experiment, not to care about the possibility of disrupting the continuum. Doesn't apply of you are an evil mad scientist - in either case it would be wiser to keep the machine hidden from the public, which on second thought, would prove this experiment a failure should someone else be the inventor of said time machine. This outcome is highly probable in my case since I currently have no knowledge of manipulating time my joining materials together to form a system capable of interacting with a manmade idea.

There is also the possibility of time travel being pulicized but controlled with rules and regulations such as never leaving a trace or letting the people in the past know of your existence in their times. You could try asking yourself to leaving a nonexplicit sign, perhaps creating 7 markings on your bedroom door frame etc.

But these signs no matter how discreet, may also have been thought of by the time governing body of the future and there mgjt be measures already implemented to ensure they never happen. Maybe someone will destroy the letter? Who knows.

So results?

If your future self appears, time travel will exist.

If a sign you stated in the letter appears, time travel exists OR someone read your letter while you went to the toilet and tried to fool you.

Nothing happens. Now, this is tricky. It doesn't necessarily mean time travel won't exist. It may mean it exists but you didn't manage to acquire a machine (all this past tense grammar for a future action is whack), time travel exists but only in the distant future after you've died (you can also rule out resurrection here), you didn't meet the conditions of th experiment, the time trail rules were too stringent that even your greedy self-loving future self didn't manage to bypass it, OR your letter got destroyed/lost before the machine was invented.

Here's the problem with Nicole Seah's foreign worker policy:

quota on foreign workers -> more jobs for singaporeans -> higher wages -> companies have less overall workers + no increase in productivity since increase in wages independent of work -> lower productivity -> slower growth -> lower demand for SGD -> depreciating ex rate -> increased costs since s'pore is not a mainly exporting country + effect of inflation (which overwrites increase in wages)-> depreciating assets -> bad investing environment -> increased emigration + lower FDI -> slower growth -> repeat

It's a cycle of self-destruction, Singaporeans are not willing to accept the low wages foreign workers take, plus even if they were, the low birth rate wouldn't produce the sufficient manpower.

Foreign exposure isn't necessarily a bad thing, you get different styles of working and point of views on things. 2 heads are better than 1.

These are short-term goals and imo a pretty shallow point of view focusing on the selfish needs of individuals, rather than the long-term goals of the country's economy, which would ultimately benefit their them anyway.

Okay, I've been inspired by the diligence of Harvey, so here are my goals for now:

-Actually go out and make that film (and hopefully win)
-Study 1 chapter (or at least half) of finance every duty
-Master violin
-Bench 50-50

Once these are done, they'll open the door to more things.

So let's do it. No more slacking.

If the 2012 apocalypse comes, this is my prediction on how it's going to happen -

and it is very possible that this happen, it's all up to the politicians to stop or start it.

Sometime between Dec 18-21, South Korea is scheduled to conduct a live-fire artillery exercise on Yeonpyeong island, supported by 20 US troops. North Korea has warned that it would 'retaliate', like it did about a month ago, if the exercise went on as planned because it does not recognize the Yellow Sea border drawn after the Korean War. It threatened a much deadlier attack than the last.

So, if South Korea goes on to conduct live-fire exercises with the 20 supporting US troops, the North is going to attack Yeonpyeong island (it is warning that its military does not speak and not do). This may possibly kill some of said troops, including the supporting US marines, leading to a retaliation on the South's and US's part, seeing how it would be the 2nd time and condoning 2 attacks within a span of a month would be stupid (think Hitler and the Policy of Appeasement) and that US has been a long standing ally of the South and an enemy of Communism.

With this, a declaration of war (or finishing what was started) will follow.

I don't know what China is going to do, but what it does would have a major impact on the tide of war.

And as these 2 forces' superior combined strength begin to overwhelm the North, the latter is going to turn to nukes, which will spark a nuclear war, and eventually the end of all things as we know it.

The Mayans predicted the world would end in Dec 2012, and that timing is fitting for our current political crisis.

Kim Jong Il has nothing to lose because he'd already suffered a stroke, and there's age. North Korea isn't exactly thriving economically and its citizens aren't wealthy and powerful people that control the global markets. Kim Jong Un is young and young men like violence and war. So what would you do if you had a whole military with nuclear weapons at your disposal. What would you do with such power at the ripe young age of 26/27?

There you have it. We may all be doomed.
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In other news, I drove to Woodlands to have my violin class today, shifting up needs a little getting used to.
Then I drove to NTU. On the way there, I saw an RTA with station personnel. It caused a jam.
Anyway at NTU, I bought a financial calculator at Yunnan. With the amount of visits I've made to NTU, I think I know the campus pretty much in and out. Love it.

I was supposed to go for martial arts classes at Raffles Place with Justin but he had something on, so we're signing up next month.

Then came home for a Christmas party. I ate from the buffet and left :)

Duty yesterday was awesome, because I was no longer the DSC or Control Room IC. I slept in a place other than the watchroom for the first time in weeks. But the thing is - I couldn't sleep till about 1am because we were watching markets jumping - and consequently, I didn't hear the fire calls that, I was told later on, came at night. I'm lucky it wasn't my appliance. Next time I'm sleeping downstairs.

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Anyway, today I met up with Sujay, Benedict, Nick & Chew to watch "Skyline". I thought it was pretty good. Loved how the creatures looked like zerg and/or infested protoss, and I loved how they used a nuke just when you began to wonder why they hadn't. Also the VFX was tight, not perfectly integrated with live action, but still great.

Before that, I went to Raffles City Tower, and joined a crowd of crowds of businessmen. I was wearing a Darth Vader t-shirt, really felt like I fit in. Anyway, I followed a bunch of people to the 17th floor, because I didn't know that a certain elevator was an express one to the upper floors. So I stepped out of the 17th floor and got the suspicious-suspect-gazes fixed on me. It was a nerve-wrecking few seconds as I waited for the car headed downwards. Stranded there, with nothing but Vader to back me up.

After that episode, I met Sujay and ate BK with him. At that time I had about a thousand+ in cash in my wallet after some hasty transaction that left me a remainder. So I was on constant guard throughout, ready to strike at anyone who looked at my wallet.

Just kidding. I was preparing to run.

Then we met the rest and Ben went to play in the arcade while we cheered him on as he sniped and punched and hadouken-ed enemies.

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I also emailed HomeTeamNS for my card, which has been quite overdue, and they replied saying it would come next week. Oh yea, finally!

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I think I'm going back to blogging.

Literally just 15 mins ago I lost in a competition. The moment the radio DJ's said they would be calling the winner, I knew I'd lost, coz I didn't give them my phone number in the first place. Ah well.

Yesterday, I met up with John again, as well as Khairul and Hidayat to film for the Singapore Media Academy's Creative Video Awards. I lost last year, and I might again this year, because I don't know how the editing's gonna turn out, and I'm kinda regretting entering the professional category because apparently I can't even make a music lyric video, haha.

Here's my losing competition entry:

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Anyway, the reason why I stopped blogging about 7 months ago was because I was called unto by the government, not personally of course, to serve my national service, and I've been preoccupied with training ever since. At least, until now.

I've successfully passed out of the 6 month course and am now a sergeant, working 10 days a month with an awesome allowance. I'm loving NS so much that I might even extend it for a couple of months before my tertiary education starts in 2012.

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Recently, there's this thing going on on Facebook.

"Change your Facebook profile picture to a cartoon from your childhood and invite your friends to do the same. Until Monday (December 6), there should be no human faces on Facebook, but a stash of memories. This is for eliminating violence against children."

Sound familiar?

I don't know why so many people go along with it. I can guess that it's because:
a) They're just going along for the fun of it.
b) They think this will help fight child abuse.

If you're one of the b) people, you should realize that it's just a meme going on, and the fight against child abuse part is most likely there to convince people to follow up. This is a fact: Changing your profile pictures to cartoon characters will NOT help the fight against child abuse. And no, it's not going to bring greater awareness to the cause. I mean, would you decide to start searching for such causes and donate to them after changing your picture and seeing so many others do so? I think not. You'd probably just go on about your Facebook business. If you really wanted to fight child abuse, you'd do something that would actually fight child abuse.

A lot of children are being bullied on the internet by people who pose themselves as someone else, using pictures of other people and/or cartoon characters. I use my own face and therefore stand firmly against any acts that violate or abuse children.

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Remember in primary school, when it was taboo for males and females to like each other? Well, now that sacred bond is being formed all around me, people are getting married! Some already have children. In youth, we vow never to participate in exchanges of saliva with the opposite sex because there existed, but when we grow old, suddenly it's impossible to live without them. We're all hypocrites.

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It's hard to earn money in this world. Recently, I've been looking at supercars, reading about the luxurious lives of the rich, and just.. envying. I want that too. I know you should be happy with what you have. But I also heard that you should live life to the fullest, right? My understanding of that is that you'd want to do and try everything there is to do and try - and that requires some capital.

So, this is what I did for the 6 months that I was in NS:



and now, I'm on my 1 week block leave, doing the thing that I've always wanted to do since the day I enlisted - NOTHING. The feeling of boredom never felt so good.

Anyway, I'm officially a sergeant now, and I'll be your friendly neighborhood Fire Fighter at Changi Station from next Monday onwards. So call 995 if you have an emergency :)

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I've been going to NTU these past few days, with a couple of trips here and there with Huz, Harvey, Ilyas, Sujay, Bryan, WZ, & Choon Boon. There was the midnight drive to random place till 2am+, the sleeping in NTU carparks, shopping(sorta) in town, gym, museum, libraries etc. My fuel tank is nearly drained, and all that town parking (not to mention ERPs) is really draining on my monetary supply. I'm talking about $30 in 2 days. Damn.

In my free time, I practiced violin, re-played Warcraft III RoC + FZ and.. hmm nothing much actually.

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I don't like growing up. Sigh. Growing up has changed me, changed people around me, in ways that are diminishing. Barriers start to form over silly things and relationships are formed for benefits. You start to see the cruel world. But this cruelty was forged by grown ups in the first place, so it doesn't make sense to continue fueling it. Nonetheless, we do it anyway.

I find age has tired me of many passions. I used to be enthusiastic and wanting to 'just do it'. But that's nearly gone. There are fluctuations between such optimism and apathy. I don't understand it. Is it fatigue? Perhaps.

This blog used to be updated everyday, but I have grown tired. This is an example.