Don't come near, I bite. (:

Monday, May 26, 2008

The perceived racism of the West against Japan is not really the main reason that led to the outbreak of war in the Asia Pacific. However, it is one of the driving factor that led to war.
Some Japanese believed that their invasion of China was a way of protecting them from Western interventions. The Japanese were convinced that the Western powers did not treat Asians as their equals. At the League of Nations, the Western powers refused to allow a statement in the covenant indicating that all races are equal. Furthermore, at the Washington Conference, the Japanese had been forced to reduce the size of her navy and to return Shandong to China. She was also unhappy that the Western powers did not agree with the equality of all races.

Another eeason that led to the outbreak of war is economic issues. As the Japanese population increased in the 1920s, she faced shortage of food as most of the country was mountainous. She did not have enough farmland to produce food that she needed and did not have raw materials such as coal and iron in her country. Hence, to import these resources, Japan needed to have the necessary funds, which she managed to obtain from her exports of silk and other products. However, the import of raw materials made Japan vulnerable as she would not be able to survive on her own. It also meant that is foreign countries did not buy her exports, she would not have the money to ensure the survival of her country. This was the case in 1929 when the Great Depression occured. America was the biggest importer of Japanese silk and with the fall in demand, many factories clased down and peasants were reduced to poverty.

Above all, I think the main reason that led to the outbreak of war is militarsm in Japan. Strong nationalistis feelings rose in Japan once fighting began in China. Any political leader who went against the invasion of China were assasinated. There were many assasination plots against those Japanese politicians who were weak in dealing with Western powers. Army and navy officers dominated the Cabinet were only answerable to Emperor Hirohito who in turn had to led with whatever decisions made link to war. With military in power, Japan had to invade and control places that were rich in resources and land so that she would be able to use them as she pleased.

The Japanese need for economic security and race inequality itself is not the main reason that led to war. It is the combination of this need and the rising nationalistic feelings and militarism in Japan that led her ambition to expand her economic empire beyong shores. Thus, militarism is the most important reason that led to war but without the other two factors, Japan would not have gone to war in the first place, which makes them important too.

Rawr-ed @ 8:20 PM :D

Sunday, March 30, 2008

Some people like being alone; others are happiest when they are with a crowd of people. Which do you prefer?

To me, I think I will rather prefer being with a crowd than to be alone. I will tend to relish myself as I have company around and could communicate with them easily. In such cases, my friends are the ones whom I will be spending my time with. We usually laugh upon listening to one another’s joke and with them too, I could share my feelings and probably, they will understand my emotions. That moment will be the precious and happiest one for me as I felt really pleased having them around to cheer me on and they really make my day a better one in one way or another. At home, I feel secure when I am with my family. Mostly, we would spent our time watching television and enjoying our dinner together and not forgetting, listening to one another’s day at work or school. I would often spend my time with my cousins as I think they understands me most and would voice out their opinions and often advices me to make wise decisions for myself.

At the same time, I think that being alone is not really a bad thing. For instance, we would certainly want some peaceful moment for ourselves when we are studying and having to endure a terrible incident or depression. Tranquility is all we need when experiencing that particular moment. Sometimes, we need our mind to remain calm so that we will be able to think better and make wise decisions. Precisely, problems can sometimes be solved alone without having to involve people around us. By doing this, we learnt to make decisions of our own and apply the term independent.

But still, I would prefer sharing my problems with my family or friends than to have the problems kept bugging me all the time. At least, there are people whom will be able to help me around and listen to my sorrows as I am sure there are problems that I will not be able to handle it on my own. Rest assured, I will change to be much more independent and sensible without having to depend on others.

Rawr-ed @ 10:25 PM :D

Monday, March 3, 2008

Favourite Food.

As you all know, food is our daily consumption. They provide energy to the body and enable us to do work more effectually. Different people have their own preferences in food. As for me, I love shish kebab a lot. It is absolutely scrumptious and worth trying.

Shish kebab is a dish containing small cubes of meat that are grilled or roasted. Any kind of meat can be used such as chicken, lamb or beef, and fruit or vegetables are often mixed together with the meat as well. I am sure that one could not resist the temptation of the heavenly shish kebab that will melt your mouth. Sure enough, one would drool even by looking at the way the kebab is being prepared.

It is really common in Turkey and other parts of Middle East. This kebab is often eaten with naan bread. The taste of naan bread was somewhat similar to ordinary bread except that it was rather tasteless. It is really suitable if eaten with the mixture of kebab and containing other ingredients that is needed. Whenever my family head to Geylang, I will tend to bought them at a stall located near Geylang area.

Rest assured that the food is worth trying and you will certainly not regret eating them.

Rawr-ed @ 4:33 AM :D

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Letter to Mrs Angeline Sim

Dear Mrs Sim,

Reflecting back to the past, I sense that I have made great changes; socially and academically. However, I could vaguely remember the first half of my school life. I enjoyed my sec 2 life with wondrous classmates and having to learn Literature. I thought that Literature was sort of tedious. But, I found myself passionately learning the subject. I did find the courage to interact with most of my classmates and not forgetting other schoolmates too. My academic results back then were not satisfying enough but I managed to pull through and continued to be promoted to sec 3. Most of my classmates had gone to the geography class whereas a handful of us were promoted to commerce class instead. As far as I am concerned, different people have different abilities and opinions about their future.

Every year I have promised myself to be vigilant and show more concern to my studies. I had gotten to know new classmates in sec 3, where we are supposedly be together until sec 4. Some of them are loquacious; however there are also a couple of quiet ones. I managed to socialize with them and I find them entertaining. I asked them to help me out whenever I am in doubt and they would always offer their help willingly. It is true enough that most of the teachers said we should consider one another as our siblings since we spent most of the time in school. We could also expand our social circle and communicate well with each other.

It is now the end of January 2008. We are left with about eight months. I am going to be persistent for sure and I believe that this year I will really get busy with school staffs, as I am about to experience a very important exam in my life. Lastly, there’s one thing that has not changed and I was really grateful for that. I have build up a very strong friendship with Nabilah through my life in Kent Ridge and I was hoping that it will continue as it is.

Rawr-ed @ 9:47 PM :D

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

First Day Of School.

On the first day of school, I was extremely nervous but on the other hand, I was anxious as to whether I would get to know new friends. I remember I could not sleep well the previous night. I woke up really early, washed up and put on my brand new school uniform. I was neatly dressed. I went to school with my cousin and while walking, a lot of things came running through my mind. Would I be able to make new friends? Or will I just be alone? The part that frightened me most was the word ‘alone’. I just hate being alone and I am sure no one want to be alone. Hopefully, I could adapt to the school well, having newfound friends including the teachers and enjoying every part of school life. Importantly, I hope I could find familiar faces to avoid feeling awkward.

When I reached the school foyer, it was packed with students murmuring and some looking rather curious. Firstly, I saw my first new friend and classmate, Nabilah. We went up to the assembly grounds together and there was not much conversation going on as we had just gotten to know each other. Then, we were asked to sit according to register number. The principal and teachers had given plenty of talks which are really long and honestly, it was mundane. They were explaining school rules, attire and the school achievements. Finally, the talk was over and we went to our respective classes to meet our form teacher. My class was 1E5 and our form teacher was Madam Wong. Mainly, we were asked to introduce ourselves and our interests. I was with Nabilah and Eileen throughout the day. During recess, the canteen was really full of students and being the new student in that school, we intended not to buy anything but instead we examined the foods sold and the canteen itself. I flashed a quick smile at some of my schoolmates, trying to be friendly. However, there some who seemed to be less friendly and showed no concern at all.

Later, we had our mass dance and I guess the dance steps was quite easy provided if we put our interest on it and wanting our class to win in the inter-class competition later on. However, most of the boys stood frostily by and some feeling shy. Next, we played some games and there was also introduction made.

Overall, I think I am comfortable with Kent Ridge and the friends I made there.

Rawr-ed @ 9:16 PM :D