Why China's Behavior Alarms Her Neighbors

By Vic Odarve

In history, it is the military might coupled with aggressive totalitarian leadership that increases the risk of an incident or miscalculation or fueled by overconfidence bring the world wars. And China has all these elements! China’s exponential military budget over the past few years; military posture over the South China Sea; and aggressive totalitarian leader that defies international norm on settling disputes thru United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea worries her small and relatively weak neighbors. 

Commercial airlines flight across South China Sea

Yes, China is militarily strong and is still growing. According to the survey conducted by Global Firepower report, China has the third most powerful army in the world next to Russia and United States. 

China military power rises exponentially in the past five years. Beijing is undergoing massive military modernization program widely regarded as among the most aggressive and advanced in the world; aspiring to build a truly powerful 21 st century military with budget excessive for the country’s legitimate defense needs. The elevated budget levels for the past few years may build even more potent forces; attempt to intimidate potential competitors in Asia; and suggests that the primary purpose is projecting power across long distances, not defending the homeland anymore. Today, China has its strategic missile forces combat ready and has also developed a broad array of space weapons designed to destroy enemy’s satellites; and also built the world’s largest army of cyber warriors, and drones. 

Moreover, Chinese government, with its Communist party in power, is authoritarian in structure and ideology usually headed by few influential people. Most often than not, authoritarian government can be abused by leaders who are corrupt; people under the leadership just follow the leader without questions; and may lead in making a bad decision. In authoritarian government, there's a political stability, but it is sometimes ruled with fear. 

History always reminds mankind that country with powerful military and authoritarian rule usually have expansionist policy and intimidate the smaller neighbors. That is what happened in Europe before World War II. Germany, with Hitler authoritarian rule backed up with the powerful military machine, invaded her neighbors without considering the international norm of respecting sovereignty. Few months ago, Russian under Putin absorbed Crimea by demonstrating her military might and authoritarian regime rule. Today, China’s behavior is alarming; claims that China’s territorial seas extend into much of the South China Sea and declare to be within their Exclusive Economic Zones and establishes a new demarcation line on the air and naval navigation. 

AS always shown in history, military might coupled with an authoritarian leader increases the risk of an incident or miscalculation or fueled by overconfidence bring the world in flames. China’s behavior is likened to Germany and Japan before World War II. This behavior alarms her relatively weak and small neighboring countries such as the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei.

History Repeats Itself

By Vic Odarve

Have you seen your television every morning? The world’s situation is a giant mess!  News on Syria, Egypt, South China Sea, and Russian invasion in Ukraine caught your attention. Russia and China, both looks like a Poseidon holding a trident, are ready to smite their own oppositions. And the world seems gasping its last breath! History is to repeat itself!

They had experienced World War II

Look at Crimea, Ukraine! It is an aftermath of Georgia. In 2008, Mr. Putin invaded Georgia and paid no price for that action. NATO and its western allies were on standstill. No action. And lately he proceeded to takeover Crimea, saying his country could not “ignore calls for help” from ethnic Russians in Ukraine.  Putin declared that he acted accordingly with the international law. That was his point.

On opposite side of the globe China bullied his small neighbors by making her own demarcation line on the South China seas and claimed to be its integral part of the mainland. China has bullied the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Brunei and unilaterally staked claims to wide swaths of international air space and sea lanes. China also

This generation  has not yet experience the cruelty of  war

claimed Senkaku Islands from Japan in the East China Sea. 

Both their actions are against the UN Charter and international law. Russia’s action in Crimea is a clear “violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.” China’s rejections to its settlement thru UN arbitration are also against the international law like the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS. And she shows no sign of backing away from its growing assertiveness in disputed waters in the East China and South China seas.

Today, these powerful nations Russia and China are becoming more frightening because of the various excuses such as reuniting their own speaking people and thru intimidation, flex their muscles over their small neighbors.  

This is exactly what happened before World War II. Yes, history seems to repeat itself. Germany under Hitler launched his own expansionist drive with the annexation of Austria in March 1938; Czechoslovakia, the Sudetenland and its 3.5 million ethnic Germans in September 1938; and Poland in September 1, 1939. Japan, too, by late 1938 had seized control of most of northeast China and imposed several measures designed to assimilate the Korean population.

As always in world history, United Nations and the western allies are the last walls to deter the expansions. Red lines establishments, calculated sanctions, and enforcements of the international laws and UN charters are some of the measures to save peace rather than to force military experts to their own drawing boards.

These current situations are very delicate and a mite too late to resolve may result to another apocalypse. Like matter and anti matter which annihilates each other, there are always pros and cons, as violators and followers to international law. Nobody wants to fight like the World War II.

As shown, Russia and China are like Germany and Japan of old. Both appear to lose the touch of reality of our real world. History seems to repeat itself!

How E-Learning Combined with Traditional Teaching Method Works in Math

By Vic Odarve

Although traditional classroom based instruction works well in math, the method can be improved with the inclusion of e-learning technology. This teaching strategy is advantageous in math courses as computers or laptops bring the students to a new heights of modern technology application in mathematical calculations; blogs and  websites facilitate learning instructions outside the classroom lectures and allow the students to study at their own pace. As a result, university can be a world class teaching institution.

University needs E-learning

Yes, math lectures must go hand in hand with our advancement in science and technology especially with computers. This combinative math teaching method allows students to use computers or laptops and its application to mathematical computation. Laptops have programs, such as MS Excel, etc., that would make calculations in courses such as statistics, economics, matrices, linear programming, etc., easier and faster. 

For example, after our traditional board and eraser presentation in classrooms, students must countercheck the results using the computer program. In economics, students learn how to apply the software in computing depreciations, simple and compound interests, and annuities.  In linear algebra, they learn in matrices on how to compute unknown quantities using inverse method, eigenvectors and eigenvalues, and a sort of programming on vectors. In stats, students learn on how to compute measures of central tendency and dispersion using software, and many more in descriptive and inferential. In this manner students will appreciate the importance of computer in math calculations, time savings it entails, and benefits it brings as more accurate, faster and easier. Math solution is at your fingertips!

Modern Technology is a part of our life

Lecturers or teachers can do more tricks!  Quizzes and exams must be solved by manual computation and by computer generated solutions.   It’s another challenge and they will love it!

In addition to the use of computer to do mathematical computation, this math teaching method also encourages the use of websites or blogs to further the course discussion not finish in the classrooms. With web or blog sites, lecturers can post, for example, unfinished classroom business, areas of concentration for students to study on final exams, additional instruction, and exam results of a particular course and post the top performers. Or even post the grades a few more weeks after the exam and let the students see their grades before submission to the Head of Department and Record Office.

Further, students can scan the web or blog and revisit from time to time as often as they want to review the lessons and topics discussed; study at their own pace outside the classroom; believe they have more retention in the lessons especially if we posted video tutorials in a particular course. With blogsites students can ask their questions, discuss their ideas, and even offer some more suggestions thru e-mails and responses. This is something classroom instruction cannot usually offer. 

It is now a rapid changing world where an education acquired 10 years ago is no longer relevant or maybe obsolete today if not upgraded. It is a paradigm shift!

This combined traditional and e-learning method in math teaching is indeed a great help to the students as well as the lecturers. Students appreciate the use of computers in math calculations and lecturers, too, benefited by posting important additional instructions in websites where students can enjoy learning at the own pace outside the classrooms. A whole new package! 

Whether we like it or not, it’s simply the way the technology is heading! And we have to embrace it and slowly and slowly we have a world class university in the making!

How Bad Friends Influence Your Life

                                                             By Vic Odarve

Bad friends do influence your life negatively. They can alter your view of the world by changing our perception and turning you into a different person; bring a tremendous change to your characters, lifestyles, manners, and actions, and destroy your life.

Friends influence study on our lessons

 

While you seek friends for support and encouragement during bad times; find enrichment and guidance in your life’s journey and enlightenment of your soul; bad friends can alter your view of the world, change the way how you look up things in life, and develop you into a different person. Unknowingly you meet bad friends usually in social gatherings. People in upper class of our society usually meet bad friends in parties, religious and civic organizations, political acquaintances, and other forms of activities among society’s bigwigs. 

Influence from bad friends is powerful. It is more serious to the people who live in the upper echelon of our society. Take the case of Ruby; a beautiful woman at early 50’s, established her name by making friends, and held important positions among the social organizations. With her friends, she found a connection to influential lawmakers; amassed wealth and became famous; and acted as conduit to a graft and corruption. Aware of her impending arrest from government for her role, she left the country without any traces. But things go differently for her. She was troubled. She could not sleep and eat well. Few months later, she returned as government witness on a pork barrel scandal that implicated several senators and other famous personalities. Being haunted by her own conscience and why she turned as government witness against her former friends, she concluded by saying, “I don’t want to die with 80 million countrymen hating me. I don’t want my grandchildren being ashamed of me so I felt I have to do something and I have to correct my mistake and I can’t possibly right a wrong with another wrong”. That’s it. She regretted what she had done. Bad friends influenced and eventually ruined her life.

Mathematics Class

Bad friends also bring a tremendous change to your behavior, lifestyles, manners, and actions. By keeping in company and hanging around with bad friends in your work areas, offices, meetings, and other functions, you are strongly connected with their common objectives, likes, and point of views, and gossiping activities. You could not feel and sense the threat at the beginning because slowly and slowly you are engulfing to emulate your bad friend’s way of living in one way or another. Some of the effects are extremely disastrous to your future. You do not know that your constant companionship with these bad friends seems to program your way of thinking and develops into a habit.

Negative influence from bad friends knows no boundaries. Even a short time in company, the influence is great. It can change the world! Imagine what happened to the daughter of newspaper magnate and publisher Randolph Hearst. The kidnapped Patricia Hearst, his 19-year-old daughter, after 3 month long in company with kidnappers, became friends and converted herself a member of the terrorist organization. She sympathized of the cause of Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA) and participated willingly in the bank robbery. Just a short period of friendship, the daughter of a wealthy and famous family became a robber. It ruined her life!

The same thing happened to once a shy and religious friend of mine. In one of the invitation for a dinner, he was seen lifting a red wine to his bag secretly; drinking too much, talking negatively about other people in excess, and doing some illegal activities. These lifestyles were developed gradually from his constant company from his bad friends. He slowly and slowly adopted similar interests and behavior from his friends. Birds of feathers spent time together! Bad friends ruined his life!

There are many ways to avoid falling to bad friends. Look, associate, and surround yourself only  with friends that give with positive influence; hang only to those that are supporting and enhancing your life; and filter their background and stick to one with the same mission and ambitions in your life.

Indeed, bad friends negatively influence your life far more powerful than you imagine. It can change your outlook in how you perceive the world and behave you in darker side. By putting yourself in the midst of bad friends, like Ruby on the pork barrel scam and Patricia Hearst on bank robbery with kidnappers, you are inviting to a disaster. Bad friends, like a giant black holes sitting quietly at the center of our Milky Way, are lurking for someone impending for his own destruction. The bible puts it 2 Cor 6:14-15;

14Do not make unsuitable covenants with those who do not believe: can justice walk with wickedness? Or can light coexist with darkness, 15 and can there be harmony between Christ and Satan? What union can there be between one who believes and one who does not believe?

The choice to join bad friends is yours. After all life is what you make it!