The welfare side of taxation: where is it?
by Jennie S. Bev Benjamin Franklin once said that the only certain things in the world are death and taxes. Indonesia is definitely suffering from lack of transparency in taxation system, so death could be more favorable. And by “transparency,” I’m referring to the...
Productivity and the myth of laziness
by Jennie S. Bev Laziness is something we encounter every day, at home, at school and on the job site. We see lazy people of all ages, shapes, and colors everywhere. Some of them are obvious; others are not so obvious, from those who simply do nothing to those who...
Therapeutic writings
by Jennie S. Bev In an interview with a tabloid, I once answered, “I write for the love of it. I do business for a living. I volunteer for love of humanity.” I find writing valuable for my own mental health and increasing public awareness on certain issues. In short,...
Multiculturalism and pluralism: failed fad?
by Jennie S. Bev German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that multiculturalism in Europe has failed. Prior to that, Thilo Sarrazin, the author of Germany Does Away with Itself stated that Germany failed due to too many “unfavorable” immigrants. Those are strong...
The arduous road to prosperity in USA
by Jennie S. Bev Creating a balanced society where the haves and the have-nots live in harmony is always a challenging task. According to UC Berkeley economist Robert Reich, the culprits have been the insufficient earnings and low savings for the poor and...
Katrina, Merapi, and humanity
by Jennie S. Bev The United States has its fair share of natural disasters and experience in handling emergencies because of them. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), this year alone 78 major disasters were declared. Some made it into the...
The truth about happiness
by Jennie S. Bev An old adage goes, “Money doesn’t buy happiness.” Well, this has proven to be a fallacy. Economists Angus Deaton and Daniel Kahneman found in a survey of 450,000 Americans in 2008 and 2009 for the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index that those who...
Developed Indonesia and third world American
by Jennie S. Bev Indonesia is enjoying a rosy economy with a 6.3 percent GDP growth predicted in 2011. The United States’ economy, however, is slowing down rapidly with a predicted 2011 GDP growth of 2.5 percent. Assuming optimized economic, political, and legislative...
Tipping point, terrorism, and crimes against humanity
by Jennie S. Bev It’s mind-boggling that the National Police have claimed they are one of the best police forces in the world in tackling terrorism and that the government has claimed it is an administration that governs a pluralistic country. Their claims are far...
Death, midlife crisis, and family life
by Jennie S. Bev We grow into multiple directions externally and internally, which we have been enduring and will continue to endure through the changes of inner weather and turmoil. As we age and grow a wee bit older every day, we take steps toward our final...
Doubt and why good people do bad things
by Jennie S. Bev Indonesia is renowned for its kind, smiling and warm-hearted people, beautiful culture, strong values, high morality, and for being very religious. By the same token, Indonesia is also enigmatic, mind-boggling and paradoxical. Minorities have been...
Healthcare for Indonesia: Universal or not?
by Jennie S. Bev The Indonesian Health Ministry claims to have spent eight years drafting a universal healthcare bill, but has been facing a series of hurdles: lack of funding and other technical issues. The 2008 health insurance scheme for the poor, Jamkesmas, is...
Las Vegas, Indonesia, and fashion morality
by Jennie S. Bev I visit Las Vegas whenever I want to watch my favorite singers performing. A few years ago, Celine Dion dominated Caesar Palace’s center stage, now it is Cher. Barry Manilow at Paris Las Vegas and Jubilee at Bally’s are two other top shows to see....
Outsourcing integrity and cultural transformation in fighting corruption
by Jennie S. Bev Integrity is a rarity in Indonesia, which explains why it’s ranked the 111th in the corruption perception ranking according to Transparency International. While many kinds of efforts have been undertaken to prevent and eradicate corruption,...
Interpreting Koran as the source of living fatwas
by Jennie S. Bev In Indonesia, clerics and their “political” organization Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) have been making headlines with their so-called “fatwas.” Even though some fatwas make sense, like forbidding smoking, which is bad for one’s health, other fatwas...
The perils of irrationality and diplomacy
by Jennie S. Bev The world is both rational and irrational. Specifically, the world of politics is full of irrationality throughout the history of mankind. Thus, it might attest that men are intrinsically irrational, or at least those with power are. In Laws, Plato...
In search of a voice and chivalry in fighting corruption
by Jennie S. Bev News on corrupt officials, intellectuals who work for oppressive conglomerates, and businesses causing extreme pollution and catastrophe have been selling newspapers and magazines. Indonesia is in crisis and we aren’t talking about finances or...
Mystery of life, awe, and ecstasy
by Jennie S. Bev I live with a strong sense of awe and wonder. I love and adore mysteries. They are all around and inside me. Things unknown, things in the future, things far away, and things I keep close dearly to heart. Mysteries keep me alive and craving for more....
The constrained and unconstrained views
by Jennie S. Bev Raphael’s painting The School of Athens depicted Plato pointing to the sky and Aristotle pointing to the ground. It encapsulates the two approaches in how we perceive the world: perfection and grounded reality. These perspectives divide the...
Soccer and politics
by Jennie S. Bev In 16 years after the apartheid ended in South Africa, Johannesburg has already become the host of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. This achievement has made Africa proud as it is the first time this continent has hosted a prestigious sporting event...
Lessons from the Jews and conflict resolution
by Jennie S. Bev The historical backdrop of the Israel-Palestine conflict can be traced back 5,000 years to 3000 BC. The story of struggling Jews is part legend, part scriptural, part psychological, and entirely political. Religions happens to be in the picture...
Anniversary of Indonesian Riots Spurs Talk on Pluralism
[Read directly on CommonGroundNews.org.] San Francisco, California - This month marks the 12th anniversary of a critical event in recent Indonesian history – the May 1998 riots. Following the death of four university students who were participating in a protest to...
Anniversary of Indonesian riots spurs talk about pluralism
by Jennie S. Bev This month marks the 12th anniversary of a critical event in recent Indonesian history –the May 1998 riots. Following the death of four university students who were participating in a protest to demand the resignation of President Suharto, people took...
The license to kill, punish, and discriminate
by Jennie S. Bev Justice and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar said recently the Indonesian government was no longer prioritizing the search for the culprits responsible for The May 1998 Tragedy. He said, “It’s a bit difficult for us to look for who...
Manicheism in Indonesia
by Jennie S. Bev Along with Serbia, Iraq, Iran and North Korea, the peace-building approach in Indonesia is both polarizing and dualistic. In a term used by Johan Galtung, these traits are “manicheistic.” Manicheism itself is a term originated...
Loneliness and introverted writer
by Jennie S. Bev Reality is the one word that Vladimir Nabokov said shouldn’t go without quotation marks, despite the fact it is something that most artists and writers have been pursuing and imitating as closely as possible. This explains why every...
Forgiveness and justice after May 1998 Tragedy
by Jennie S. Bev Twelve years ago, our family and my parents’ house were saved by a mosque. A mob came to torch down the neighborhood but a good Muslim neighbor shouted, “Don’t torch our homes. There is a mosque nearby!” I was fortunate I was there and not on the way...
Why I love the land of the free
by Jennie S. Bev We Americans are fortunate. We live where ideas of democracy, equality, and freedom live on. It is a privilege that I can’t stop being grateful for. In other parts of the world, such as Indonesia, the country where I was born and raised, even...
Liberal democracy and compassion for Indonesia
by Jennie S. Bev Barack Obama has not confirmed when he’ll be visiting Indonesia, thus it is not too late to remind ourselves that Indonesia is interested in promoting liberal democracy alongside the United States. It is good timing for Indonesia to end its ambiguity...
Persecution, minority rights, and being human
by Jennie S. Bev Immanuel Kant posited that not all humans are considered as persons. He argued that being a human isn’t sufficient to make one and to be considered as a person. A human being is considered a “person” when he or she possesses more than rationality, but...