Common excuses people use:
1) Money is the root of all evilMoney indeed can be used to do harmful things. But on the other hand, it can be used to do good deeds. It is just a leverage. People, who r evil, use money to do more harm. Those who r good use money to do more good. So money is neutral. It is the person behind the money that is the main culprit.
2) Life is short, play hard. You can't bring money with u when u dieIndeed!! This phrase can't be more correct! Life is short, and we can't bring our money away when we die. But the thing is, when will we die? Is there anyone who can tell us exactly when we'll die so that we can plan how to use the money? For example if you know u'll die in a month, u can withdraw all the money in ur bank and start to live a life of a king. But what if u're not dead? Ur life will be worst than dying if ur money outlived u.
So, yes. We can't bring money with us in the other world. But I rather my money outlive me than i outlive my money.
3) The rich r evil, or get money through evil meansThere r more rich who do charity then do evil. Bill Gates, has a charity foundation to help the poor in other countries. When the Japan earthquake and tsunami strike last month, one person donated $1 million to them.
Most of the rich got their money through business. Bill Gates got his money through Microsoft. Bernard Arnault got his money through the LV bags that women buys. Christy Walton got money through Walmart.
Liliane Bettencourt got money through Loreal cosmetic. So if this is the case, those buying their products are accomplice.
4) Stock market is dangerousDriving a car is as dangerous if u did not learn. Crossing the road is dangerous too. The reason why many said that the stock market is dangerous because they did not learn about it before they enter the market. Many follow the advice of their frens, who r equally blind, to buy a certain stock. The blind leading the blind, and end of the day, everyone dies.
Before Lehman Brother collapse in 08, professional investors, which comprises perhaps 20% of the investor's population, had already cashed out about $200 million from the stock market, in anticipation of the collapse of the market. Therefore, the rest of the 80%, not knowing what happened, are sucked into the abyss when the stock market collapse.
5) I dun need so much money. I just need the money to surviveIf our body can work till the very day we die, i agree, we dun need so much money. But the fact is that we will grow old. Our body will grow old. There will be a day when you cannot go to work. So what do u do when u cannot work and u have no money in ur bank?
Human beings are confused animals. 80% of human beings choose to be poor and they dun want to be rich. They pay lips service by saying they want to be rich, but did nothing. They buy 4D, although they know the odds of winning is very low. And even if they won $100,000, they first thing they do is to spend the money away and eventually, they're back to the same old poor person.
People want to be rich, but do not want to learn. They just hope and dun want to do anything. They are lazy, or afraid to take the risk. They do the same thing over and over again, expecting to get different results.
Seems like there's a lot of instability these days. The Jasmine Revolution in MENA, and the magnitude 9 earthquake, and the tsunami, and now the nuclear explosion in Japan.
The media has been focusing a lot in the aftermath of the disaster in Japan. Food were snapped out as people fear for the wind to blow the radioactive particles to them. In areas which were hit by the earthquake and tsunami, people r still living in fear and hunger, awaiting food and rescue to them. Roads had been cut off and resupply is hard. There is no electricity, no clean water and food to the survivors of the earthquake and tsunami. And they have to endure the freezing temperature due to power failure.
It is heart warming to see other countries offering their aid to Japan at this moment. It is also comforting that China offered their help at the very first moment, despite themselves hit by an earthquake a few weeks ago. On top of that, China redirect some of their raw material to Japan to help out in this disaster. US, Australia and many other countries also offer their aid to Japan.
On the web, there r many postings on facebook and twitter to encourage the Japanese to live on. Below are also some twitter posts on the condition and the resilience of the Japanese:
At Tokyo Disneyland:
Tokyo Disneyland was handing out its shops’ food and drinks for free to the stranded people nearby. I saw a bunch of snobby looking highschool girls walking away with large portions of it and initially though “What the …” But I later I found out they were taking them to the families with little children at emergency evacuation areas. Very perceptive of them, and a very kind thing to do indeed.
At a congested downtown intersection …
Cars were moving at the rate of maybe one every green light, but everyone was letting each other go first with a warm look and a smile. At a complicated intersection, the traffic was at a complete standstill for 5 minutes, but I listened for 10 minutes and didn’t hear a single beep or honk except for an occasional one thanking someone for giving way. It was a terrifying day, but scenes like this warmed me and made me love my country even more.
During the earthquake
We’ve all been trained to immediately open the doors and establish an escape route when there is an earthquake. In the middle of the quake while the building was shaking crazily and things falling everywhere, a man made his way to the entrance and held it open. Honestly, the chandelier could have crashed down any minute … that was a brave man!
Bus stop mini episode:
It was freezing and bus was taking ages to arrive. “@saiso” left the queue to run to a nearby pharmacy. He bought heating pads and gave one to everyone in the queue!
Reminded of the goodness of the Japanese people
This earthquake has reminded me of that Japanese goodness that had recently become harder and harder to see. Today I see no crime or looting: I am reminded once again of the good Japanese spirit of helping one another, of propriety, and of gentleness. I had recently begun to regard my modern countrymen as cold people … but this earthquake has revived and given back to all of us the spirit of “kizuna” (bond, trust, sharing, the human connection). I am very touched. I am brought to tears.
Card board boxes, Thank you!
It was cold and I was getting very weary waiting forever for the train to come. Some homeless people saw me, gave me some of their own cardboard boxes and saying “you’ll be warmer if you sit on these!” I have always walked by homeless people pretending I didn’t see them, and yet here they were offering me warmth. Such warm people.
What foreigners are saying about Japanese people
At a supermarket where everything was scattered everywhere over the floors, shoppers were helping pick them up and putting them back neatly on the shelves before quietly moving into line to wait to pay for them. On the totally jam-packed first train after the quake, an elderly man gave up his seat for a pregnant woman. Foreigners have told me they are amazed witnessing sights like these. I do believe they actually saw what they said they saw. Japan is truly amazing.
Japanese people don’t shove
I'm looking at Yurakucho station from above. I see people standing in line, not pushing or shoving to get onto the Yamanote Line (probably the busiest line in central Tokyo), even at a time like this!
The bakery lady
There was a small bread shop on the street I take to go to school. It has long been out of business. But last night, I saw the old lady of the shop giving people her handmade bread for free. It was a heart-warming sight. She, like everyone else, was doing what she could to help people in a time of need. Tokyo isn’t that bad afterall!
Japan is a wonderful nation!
Both the government and the people, everyone is helping one another today. There are truck drivers helping evacuees move. I even heard that the “yakuza” (gangsters, organized crime groups) are helping to direct traffic in the Tohoku region! There have been many recent developments that have made me lose my sense of pride in my country, but not anymore. Japan is an amazing place! I’m just simply touched. Go Japan!
At the supermarket
I just came back safely from the supermarket! Man, I was so touched at how everyone there was mindful of others, buying only as much as they needed and leaving the rest for the people behind them.
A strong voice
Yesterday, I was impressed and touched by the actions of my neighbor’s 13-year-old-boy. He was home alone when the earthquake hit. But instead of hiding, as soon as the earthquake quieted down, he jumped on his bicycle and road around the block repeatedly shouting at the top of his voice, “Is everyone alright? Is everyone okay?” At the time, there were only women and children and the elderly in the homes. I cannot describe how comforting it was just to hear a strong voice asking if I was okay. Thank you!
Rest here!
Last night, I decided, rather than stay at the office, I should try walking home. So I slowly made my way west on Koshu freeway on foot. It was around 9PM when I saw an office building that had a sign that said “Please use our office’s bathrooms! Please rest here!” The employees of the office were loudly shouting out the same to all the people trying to walk home. I was so touch I felt like crying. Well, I guess I was too tense yesterday to cry, but now the tension is wearing off and am very much in tears.
Not enough money!
At the store where I work, a huge group of young men suddenly came in to buy booze. One of them suddenly said, “Oops, I only have enough money to buy booze, I can’t donate! Forget the booze, maybe next time!” and instead put ALL his money into the disaster relief donation box. One by one, every single one of the army of youths threw all their money into the box after him. What a heart-warming sight that was!
It seems like everything is a lesson by itself. It seems like life is trying to tell us something. Every person u met, everything u experienced, every pain u felt, has a lesson to teach you.
Everyone enters our life for a reason. Some people enter our lives to give us support and care and encouragement, some enter our lives to teach us how to handle things, some enter our lives to tell us more about ourselves.
Lessons in life is not like the lessons that we learn in school. There is no chapters. Everything is continuous and it is hidden in the things we do, the people we met. No one is going to tell u "I'm going to teach u this and this today". Lessons is always hidden in people or things that is not obvious. The person who is the most nasty to u may be the person who taught u the most. The person who is nice to u may be the person who taught u the least. Instead of disliking and blaming those who do us injustice, we might as well think of what they have taught us and change and move on. There's a reason behind everything a person does. There's a lesson behind everything.
