I'm Running out of Time

In one of my blogs before, I had said that the reason I started putting my thoughts for public-reading is because I'm running out of time. I've been feeling like I'm running out of time for 20 years now. The people in my inner-circle wonder why I have such a morbid view of life yet can be so optimistic about living. I'm not running out of time because I'm dying; technically we're dying with every breath we take. I feel like I'm running out of time to START Living.

I delayed a good 20-25 years of my life. I think it's fair that I take my chances now, to prepare more groundwork for the next-gen to take over. I often feel like I'm going to be one of the few Gen-X-ers who will be able to link the glories and virtues of the old-world/old-capitalism/old-intellect with the new evolving world, a world where Information is Plenty but the Knowledge to utilize and Power to Magnetize Information is scarce.

I found some of the meaning for my drive when I realized the threat, the pursuit of English, is posing to cultures and languagues and thought processes around the world. I realized how significant this was when I began acquiring Mandarin at about the same time I'm sold on Steven Pinker's writing;our thoughts, which influences our perspectives and actions, are based upon the way we process information and express them; language. I'm not advocating that we abandon English wholesale. I'm merely expressing the opinion that no one language should dominate another in terms of 'importance'. Even if only 10,000 people speak one language while 10million people speak another, the right to learn and feel confident about the validity of either should be preserved.

Perhaps some Malaysians realize this, perhaps many still don't; learning English is NOT the answer to a better future, it is only one of several enablers that can only work in synergy with other things present. Many people out there are profitting from this grand illussion, I call them, "Peddlers of false prophecies". (I'll TM that if the phrase hasn't been TM-ed yet!) So you sign on to a contract with illussions of a car and 15 years later you realize all you have is the steering wheel.

I am not against the pursuit of English as a second-language, I am against the idea that a proficiency and thought-immersion in the American-English culture determines a person's currency, validity and worth within a certain economic frame. A majority of people pursuing the acquisition of English as a second language will never reach the sort of proficiency in reading, writing and speaking to benefit from a perceived advantage in an "English-speaking" world. What I'm concerned with is that these people will constantly be left with a feeling of reduced self-esteem, not because they truly believe they are worth less economically or otherwise, but because of the looming illussion that their English is not 'good enough'. I doubt even the native-speakers of English wish this upon others, and I doubt it's their fault. It is the fault of a collective of people who were misguided in their ambitious frame of thoughts about 'the future'.

It is the lessened view of non-native speakers of themselves and the pursuit of false prophecies that I am concerned about. "Poverty" is not a lack of money, "poverty" is the perception that a person lacks opportunities and empowerment to create as much wealth for themselves, and those they care about, as possible. I do not wish to see a world with a new kind of 'mental poverty' when automation and technology has facilitated the creation of enough abundance and information yet people still feel lacking.

I am fortunate that I have a very strong ability to magnetize information, resources and support towards myself. I feel fortunate to have moved from Zero to where I am today, in a matter of a few years when it comes to understanding the myriad of questions I have about the history of politics and schooling and how everything else ties in, things from finance, economics (including the offshoot of marketing;branding, positioning, distribution, mass-media, etc) psychology, sociology,...

I received a gold nugget again today - in the form of a comment left by a reader. It introduced me to an option I've been searching for - Esperanto. I somehow knew that I would not be able to make it in time to reduce the degree of myopia we make up our worldview from. In fact, I am not even in a position to say I have transparent, omniscient knowledge of the evolving world.