Living and working as a 'foreigner' in China forces a massive revision of one's own concept of culture, lifestyle and perception of Society.  For starters, there is the huge amount of people here.

I did a University unit here (from Australia) which offered the interesting concept of 'them and us'. The 'in crowd' vs the 'out crowd'. Especially in terms of ter***sm. We take formalised Democracy as a hard-earned right. However there are some folks who consider Democracy... an instrument of Satan, a society corrupted to its very roots.  

The main paradigm of Australian Soldiers is to 'not leave your mates behind'.... because they would not leave you behind. Many Australians have won the Victoria Cross, the highest decoration for galliantry under enemy fire.

This kind of action is not exclusive to Australian Soldiers, they are not the total shining warriors. Acts like this are done by Soldiers from every country.

That means running across a muddy field, getting shot at with a machine gun, grabbing your mate, putting him in a fireman's carry and squelching back in the mud, back to safety and a medevac chopper flight for emergency treatment.

In most Western societies, especially Australia, most people have access to wealth of education and employment opportunities. In Australia the minimum wage is (maybe more now, this was a while ago) AUD $13.47/hour : USD $11.09915 /hr, 83.970/hr Chinese RMB.

If the boss pays less that this, he/she will be in deep shit. Really deep. We take our societal responsibilities very seriously.

Getting back to my positive approach to the world :  Just in. Good news, as Jamieson has tried to stay positive.

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Taliban militants in Afghanistan have now released 12 of the 19 South Korean hostages they have been holding for the past five weeks.

The International Red Cross says the first three Christian missionaries to be released were all in good health.

The Taliban has said the remaining seven South Korean hostages will be released over the coming days.

South Korean presidential spokesman Cheon Ho-Seon has defended the Government's decision to strike a deal with the Taliban.

"I believe it is the Government's duty to act flexibly when it comes to saving its people's lives," he said.

"I can't elaborate on details, but we stuck to international principles and attempted to save people's lives."

Their release comes a day after the Taliban announced it would free all 19 hostages in the wake of South Korea's pledge to withdraw its small military force from Afghanistan, and ban missionary groups from the country.

Copyright belongs to BBC.

Even Mrs. Jamieson who usually does not care about any International news reported this to me, so I had a quick look-up on the web. Great, guys... after you shot and killed 2 Korean missionaries.

You lot disgust me. "If you save the life of one peson, you save the life of the whole world. If you take one life, you have taken the lives of everyone".

Fuck 'em. Find these illiterate, subservient Taliban arseholes, root them out, drag them out kicking and screaming and shoot them on the spot.

Muslim or not, an eye for an eye. As I will mention below, I am a Muslim, but I have no time for Muslims. Nor their petty bullshit primary school approach to Islamic teaching, ridiculous "kill them" teaching,the sequestration of women.

Those Korean Missionaries were gentle, kind, soft. They perhaps wanted to spread the kind, loving Gospel of Jesus, without violence. The love of Jesus is the love of God - and the love of humanity. Did they come to Afghanistan with weapons ? No, they came with self-sacrifice and Bibles.

http://www.google.com/search?q=christians+koran&hl=en&newwindow=1&start=10&sa=N

B. Islam Teaches Salvation by Law-Keeping without Sacrifice.

"Islam offers only a vague concept of how man is saved. Evil is balanced against good, and if good outweighs, a person might be saved. Outward obedience is emphasized, not faith, love, or the condition of ones heart. [CRI-81f,84f]"

I just love it when the boot arrives to give Islam a good kicking. Knowing the inside story provides a different perspective.

As a Muslim convert, I believe this is NOT true. Yes, in Islam, animal slaughter is permitted on certain festivals, but the meat is given to the needy. They are ceremonial 'sacrifices' but nothing is wasted.

Bah, the condition of one's heart is a private matter between yourself and God. Faith and the expectation of love from God is paramount in Islam. Trust me. Accepting that you will probably fall well short of the requirements is normal. Just try harder.

For instance, I will not give money to beggars in China. I pay tax here, and the Central Government has provided shelters for the homeless and beggars, and provided repatriation benefits. However, it is more lucrative to beg in the big cities !

Revise my lifestyle.

It is a work in progress.

Love to you all, Jamieson.

PS: I will get back to you later about the Hendrpriyono arsehole later.