SJWs and Woke People: Just a Bunch of Easily Offended Idiots

 (Warning: Strong Language and Rants Ahead)

 

            "Prepare your pitchforks and torches! He's offending us!" 

            "I'm just eating my brisket sandwich, dude."

            "Shut up you animal abuser!"

            "Dude, what the fuck?"

 

            Let's face it. Based on the (paraphrased) conversation, we've all deal with a fair share of those who claimed to be Social Justice Warriors (SJWs). You know those people that are so into social justice, they are willing to dumb down to the level of a baboon to force other people to an agreement with them. These guys are the reason why the true social justice activists (those who are perfectly SANE) are being driven off. 

 

            But why this term is now viewed in a negative connotation then? Well, the term social justice can be traced back to 1824. The term itself refers to justice on a societal level, it means that everyone should have equal rights and equal opportunity in life. That's basically it. The term social justice warriors however, at least according to Merriam-Webster, can be traced to as early as the 1940s. At that time, this is only harmless word. It's meant to be those who engaged at social activism. Nowadays, it’s a pejorative term aimed at people who engage with this thing in an overly fanatical fashion.  

 

            Let's dissect the social problems of today to understand just how deep is this shithole of the so-called "Political Correctness". By the way, this is by no means dismissing these issues, it's just that these things are so blown out of proportions that some people (including yours truly) are, to be quite frankly, tired and fed up to see it being shoved to everyone else who is not even involved in the first place. The first one is (no shocker) discrimination. It can be in any shape or form, but most of the time is either discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity or based on race and cultural identity. Let's face it, not every country in this planet recognizes LGBTQ+ rights. Hell, in some countries, it's even criminalized. I get it, your sexuality and gender identity are yours and yours only, but you must be in serious case of special snowflake syndrome to blow up this issue so fucking hard, you must be offended whether there is someone who is only telling a harmless joke about those things and proceeded (in your delusional mind) to tear them a new one. I know it's a serious issue, but don't ruin someone's sense of humor just to please your fragile ass! You're not being a progressive, you're just an easily offended jackass. And stop crying crocodile tears and labelling anyone who is (genuinely) interested to learn new cultures as "cultural appropriation"! Goddammit people! You think that by doing this kind of stupid shit makes you the savior of the world? FUCK NO! Maybe they were just curious, maybe they are still learning, or maybe the people of certain ethnicity allowed them to use it. I am personally impressed by how the Japanese responded to foreigners wearing the kimono and yukata. They are not offended, instead, they are delighted. This is (according to them, probably) one way to introducing their culture to the rest of the world (besides anime, manga, and video games of course). The second issue in today's world is gender equality. The way this works is men and women on an equal position in every walk of life. The feminist movement is used to be ensuring that women can be equal to men, but now its main idea is to eliminate men from the Earth. Their "motto" is "all men are pigs" (no, seriously, this is real). These "FemiNazis" claimed that women should be superior, and all men are the plague that has been infecting this God's Green Earth. I mean what the fuck! Is it a cardinal sin for men like me just to exist here? Men are just try to live peacefully, just like all beings! Speaking of which, that brings me to the third point: Animal Abuse. Now, at this point, we all know what's the kicker here, animal testing. This is mainly done by cosmetic companies to test their whatever concoction they are making at that moment (I have no understanding in this matter, so don't fling your virtual pitchforks at me). It's cruel, it's harmful, and it should be illegal. What grinds my gears the most is to spin that rhetoric into forcing people to turn into veganism. I don't know what kind of weed or crack cocaine they're smoking, but this is insanity at the highest level. To force someone to turn vegan just because you are one, is an equivalent to being harassed! You say that everyone is entitled to their own lifestyle, but what you are doing is being a living, breathing irony. The fourth is the Body Positivity Movement. I know everyone carries different genes, which in turn give them different body types. And I know everyone should be celebrated, but the real dealbreaker is to use it as a platform for body shaming. It's either fat shaming or thin shaming, in this case however, it's more on the latter. Seriously, this movement has been turned upside down into glorifying morbid obesity! When you are so morbidly obese that you are basically one fucking tray of large pizza away from suffering a heart attack, and instead of listening to health experts and at least move around (I don't know, try walking?), you put up this façade of "fat acceptance" to justify your seriously unhealthy lifestyle! Seriously, you are being out of touch from reality. As far as I know, the body positivity movement works on situations beyond their control (amputees, skin conditions, etc.) not as a platform for few quasi-Godzilla weighing almost half a ton eating like rabid dogs during hunting season promoting their deadly lifestyle. I can guarantee you, the only thing you will get is diabetes topped with heart attack. And another thing I would like to add in terms of this is women who chose not to shave their body hair, and how men cannot have an opinion about it. I say fuck it. You do you, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but turning your own body into a walking bush? Are you pulling my legs here? I know it's natural, but it's as disgusting as a puddle of piss! Others wouldn’t care two shits about that, but for me, it's gross. It's not a political statement, it's basic human hygiene! I think this Australian comedian says it all about this type of bullshit.

 

            Well, there are a lot more examples that I can think of, but right now I'm just too pissed just to even think about it. All I can say is Social Justice Warriors used to be those brave men and women who just want equality for all, nowadays, it's those brain-dead assholes who like to shove their opinions into someone else who just wanted to have a peaceful life. It's not worth it. It's either vegan "activists" who disrupt everyone's day at a restaurant just to say, "fuck you, you animal abusers, go vegan" or some snowflake who claimed to be "gender non-conforming" and willing to ruin the basic English language grammar to satisfy their planetary-sized ego. Everyone deserves a peaceful life, but don't forsake others. And to end this, I have notice that these guys always identify themselves with many labels, so I guess I use your standard by saying: I am a straight, cisgender, metalhead, carnivore Indonesian man (I'm looking at you, Oli London. You're not Korean, you are a British citizen you cultural appropriating asshole!) and I don't give a fuck about your opinion, as long as you keep them to yourselves. Stay safe, get your vaccine shot, and for God's sake, two meters apart at all times.

Cash on Delivery Systems for e-Commerce: An Easy Entrance for Entitlement

    Well, let me open this piece by stating that since the pandemic, I've done a lot of online shopping. It's mainly for things that I have saved enough money on (Lego sets and football (soccer) jerseys). Perhaps for most of us who have done online shopping on various e-Commerce platforms or businesses that allow delivery orders must have been familiar with perhaps a plethora of payment methods aiming to ease a consumer's experience. There are a lot of options of cashless methods (bank transfers, electronic money, credit cards, etc.), and if you are in no hassle to go to a nearest ATM, there is always something called Cash on Delivery (COD) service. 

            The idea of this system is, plain and simple, is to wait until your ordered items are delivered, and then you pay the courier (or anyone who works with the specific company) with the exact amount of cash stated during the ordering procedure. On the positive side, this relieves the consumer from the obligation of owning a credit card, since the main premise is to provide the exact number of cash and pay the courier once the goods are delivered. This will also increase the impulsive purchases since the payment is not due at the time of the ordering. But on the flipside, if the goods delivered are not as advertised, those same stuff might be returned since the buyers aren't as committed as if the payment was made in advance, and it would charge the logistic partners more if said buyer decided to use this payment system. On paper, it should be easy and without nonsense. There are some kind souls who are willing to pay extra just as a token of appreciation for the courier for doing an excellent job. But this system is not without a fair share of cases of entitlement. You know, the usual thing.

 

            There are rules and boundaries that also come with this, enforced by various e-commerce platforms. Rules such as the courier has the authorization to not comply with the request of refund if the package is already opened by the customer (and paid for by the moment of its arrival), and the receiving party must be present at the time of the delivery, and failure to comply with the rule twice in the span of 60 days would result in a permanent ban of using the system ever again. If there is a complain, it should be directed to the seller, and can request a new item to be delivered, but another payment must be done using the same system.

 

            Before I proceed, I want to stress that all stories took place in my home country of Indonesia (since it's a lot easier that way). Like I said, there are cases of entitlement when it comes to abusing this COD system. from berating at the unfortunate soul who happened to be on task of delivering the goods to straight up abandoning them. The most recent case I came across is when a delivery courier in Tangerang Regency was threatened with handcuffs just because of the buffoon of a customer claimed that his ordered item is not the same as advertised (this can be problematic for the seller though). What annoys me the most is all the rage was channeled to the courier, instead of filing an official complaint to the seller or the e-commerce platform that the seller is using. It's either a misplaced emotion, or straight up ignorance, as this type of case usually involved entitled idiots who wouldn't even bother to study or at least pay attention on how the payment system works in the first place. There is another case, this time in South Tangerang, where a man, expecting his IDR 85.000 (around US$ 6) watch ended up arrested by the police for pointing a sword to the courier with the exact same reason above. Other times however, innocent bystanders are affected by some nutjobs ordering things online, and for some reason, addressing it to someone else. Like the story of blogger Agus Mulyadi, who in December 2020, got an anonymous package containing a wireless speaker, with the COD payment of IDR 100.000 (US$ 7). The problem being that he didn't order the speaker in the first place. This is another form of irresponsibility if there even is one. The fact that someone had the audacity to do this is beyond me. Seems like these people are willing to lower their IQ points for something like this. Entitlement is indeed everywhere, even in the online sphere.

 

            I personally only use the system once, and let me tell you, despite the benefits, I've instead became anxious while waiting for the package to arrive, especially when there is something else to do, I've just hoped for the courier to arrive quickly, hand me the goods as I pay him, and quickly onto something else I go. Nowadays, I usually pay it upfront and wait for my shipment. But somewhere else, let's say, Karen (yeah, it's easier that way), waited so long for her shipment of various cosmetic products, but ended up making a huge embarrassment out of herself, for refusing to pay, berating the courier, and straight up dumping those products (which she opened without paying) onto the poor dude. To be honest, if I were the customer, as much as I want to do that, it's not the courier's fault that the package turned out to be not the ordered goods that you thought it was. There is an old saying, "Don't kill the messenger", and I think it perfectly fits the situation. Moreover, I have to say that this system is prone to abuse by these entitled folks, those who thought that they are the most important people in the world, and everyone else are beneath them. These people have the audacity to use this payment method, and then berate them just because "This is not the thing that I ordered" and much more.

 

            To summarize this, the Cash on Delivery system offers little hassle to customers while doing online shopping or basically using services that utilize a delivery courier (food and beverages, logistics, etc.) by requiring the receiver to pay with cash once the package in question arrived. It has its own regulations that both parties must oblige, such as being present by the time the delivery was scheduled, and no refunds once the payment was done and the package was opened. Although there are some cases where few entitled idiots who should be thinking twice before doing stupid things, such as berating the courier or even threatening them (handcuffs and sword? you must be joking), this payment method, nevertheless, is still widely used as one of many payment methods for online shopping. And as always, stay safe, wear the mask, get your vaccine when it's your turn, and always wash yourself and stay two meters apart at times.

Incels: Out of Luck or Out of Touch?

 Warning: Strong languages and rants ahead

 

            It's been too long since I last write on this blog. Yes, the COVID-19 pandemic is still ravaging on, and somehow, we are now instructed (at least in Indonesia) to wear double mask to further protect ourselves from this disease. And since my last article, I've been stuck in a rut, unable to find any ideas to write about, until today. 

 

            I remember writing something related to romantic relationships like that one time I wrote about the Red String of Fate article or the Valentine's Day, but until recently, I have no idea that such community, the one that I'm about to dive into ever existed on the Internet, those who rejected romantic advancement because (in their mind) they are not worthy of any kind of affection. Yes, members of the Internet, I am talking about those who are call themselves "incels".

 

            At first, I have no idea on what is "incel" supposed to mean, but after some extensive research, it actually stands for "involuntary celibate". According to Meriam-Webster, an incel is a person (usually a man) who regards himself or herself as being involuntarily celibate and typically expresses extreme resentment and hostility towards those who are sexually active. It is a term of someone who identify themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring for one. These people also have some resentment or at the extreme, hatred and malice for people who are sexually active. For them, if he can't experience any sort of an affectionate relationship, then nobody should too. Imagine yourself wanting to have a conversation with a beautiful girl, and despite all of your efforts, she ended up not interested or for some reason, repulsed by your appearance. Others might interpret this as "maybe it's me who got this all wrong, or she might have been in a relationship", and backed out, but for these incels, rejection is a taboo, and the girl must accept his advancements, even if the girl wasn't interested in you. 

 

            The history of incel itself can be traced back to 1993, when a Canadian university named Alana created a website in order to discuss her sexual inactivity with others. The website was named "Alana's Involuntary Celibacy Project", designed to welcome men and women who have the same experience as her. She eventually left the website after discovering that she was bisexual, and now is at peace with herself. At first, these communities were created for men and women to vent on their rejection due to social awkwardness, marginalization, and mental illness, but over time, especially in the 2000s, The Incel community became extremist by adopting tactics from message board sites like reddit and 4chan, where extremist posts were encouraged as a form of visibility. Hell, as of now, incel is classified as a terrorist ideology, as it promotes violence to a specific group of people (which in this case, men or women who are in some kind of a romantic relationship). 

 

            It's fairly easy to spot an incel online. Stereotypically, think of it as a guy who gives no fuck about his hygiene or his appearance, only cares about himself and his hobbies only, socially awkward, and have no efforts whatsoever to improve on either his appearance or social skills. He constantly wanting to experience at least a romantic relationship, sex is only a bonus, but a jackpot nonetheless, but literally has no idea, or even any efforts to at least learn how to converse around women without making any moves they consider as a "turn off" so to speak. He also believes that men are superior in every way, hence the sexist views on women. He is also prone to self-loathe and self-hatred whenever their romantic advancements is denied, saying along the lines of "girls only dates bad motherfuckers who like to abuse them" or "all girls are the same, they only view you as a friend". But on the flipside, his understanding of a relationship is pretty narrow for these guys. The main reason of this is because of their belief that men are entitled to sex and sex only, and romantic relationships can be formed in an instant. Everything they do, every move they've done, if it's accepted well, they should expect to get laid at that moment, or at least to expect the girl to become his girlfriend. As a normal man, I find this disturbing and to be frank, totally fucked up to say the least. Relationships like this takes time, resources, and most importantly, trust. There is no guy or girl in their right mind that would instantly date you when they only know you for a short amount of time. And this is not limited to the male gender. "Femcels", or female incels is also common on this case. Think of the same stereotypical appearance of the same but switch the gender. They have everything in common, such as they would only date really beautiful men and women, but they themselves look like an absolute train wreck without any awareness of hygiene, feeling  entitled to a sexual relationship, and a TON of misogynistic and misandrist views. The only difference is femcels aren't prone to violent acts.

 

            There are some instances of violence committed by incels that I can think of, but two of the most notable are the 2014 Isla Vista Killings in Isla Vista, California, and the Toronto Van Attack in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 2018. I'm sorry, although I am not condoning these things, but to kill innocent people over your inability to find a romantic partner? you have to be kidding me. The first one of the two was a murder-suicide carried out by Elliot Rodger, who killed 7 (including himself) and injuring 14 others, all because of him not be able to find a romantic partner. And not only that, but he was also diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder not otherwise specified and autism spectrum disorder. Before the attacks, he already showed some indication toward the incel behavior, like when he threw coffee at a couple out of jealousy. I have to say that I know murder is the most fucked up crime ever existed, but this is beyond fucked up, he even rejected any attempt to help himself! This is what I call "screwed up since day one". Another one was done by Alek Minassian, who apparently inspired by the fucker mentioned above's crime (he is literally praised as a hero by the incel community). And what he did is also insane. Among the 26 total victims, 10 was killed while the rest is injured as a result of a vehicular attack using a van driven by Minassian himself. He was found guilty on 10 accounts of first-degree murder and 16 accounts of attempted murder by the Ontario Court of Justice. 

 

            In a nutshell, an incel is actually someone who desires to be in a romantic relationship, but for some reason (mostly self-inflicted) is not able to do so, and as a result, they developed the behavior of self-loathe, self-hate, and also hatred and resentment towards sexually active people, and could extend to outright narcissism. These behaviors could manifest itself as a sense of entitlement to sex, and they must have it. they can't take rejections properly, and often resorted to misogynistic and misandrist comments. In the most extreme case, incels are 

capable of violence, all because of their own inability to socialize and in turn, develop a loving relationship. For those single guys and girls out there, remember what I have told you in the red string of fate article, that there is someone out there who loves you for who you are, you just have to find them. Don't be these guys. If your attempt for a relationship is unsuccessful, evaluate yourself. Maybe it's you, not the circumstances that you are thrown into. And to end this, stay safe, get vaccinated, wear the mask, and always two meters apart at all times.

Cultural Appropriation: Covertly Racist or Just Plain Stupid

 (Warning: Strong languages and rants ahead)

 

            Let me establish one thing to open this piece. When it comes to appreciating other cultures, if you are an anthropologist like me, it means that understanding its history, heritage, and core values are critically important, otherwise some easily offended bunch would brand you as a racist. And in this time where a small remark would easily upset someone, I suggest that you have to get up to speed with your cultural knowledge. 

 

            First of all, what in the living hell is cultural appropriation anyway? According to Oxford Learner's Dictionaries, it can be described as "the act of copying or using the customs and traditions of a particular group or culture, by someone from a more dominant group in society." On Lexico Powered by Oxford Dictionaries, it is defined as "the unacknowledged or inappropriate of the customs, practices, ideas, etc. of one people or society by members of another and typically more dominant people or society." In a nutshell, this can be described as someone or a group belonging to a more dominant ethnicity that take one or more elements from another culture group (mainly the oppressed one), and use it for their personal gain, without having the sufficient knowledge of the significance, core values, or the history behind it. In short, it's like that one asshole (for the sake of the writing, let's call this person "Karen") who wears a clothing element or adopting a specific piece of another culture, but at the same time knows absolutely jack shit about its history, and only wears them because they look "cool". This alone can be described as "culturally insensitive". Hell, every individual from every race or ethnicity can be involved in this type of self-embarrassment, if you are ignorant enough to do it. 

 

            But is it the same as cultural appreciation or assimilation? No, it's plain and simple, no. Assimilation is in effect if that same people group have to adopt the other cultural values as a means of survival (in colonial times, most of the time with force). It can also mean that someone willingly assimilate other cultural values to broaden their cultural knowledge (Kind of like acculturation). Whilst appreciation can be applied for someone who has enough knowledge of the subject at hand, understands the significance and the core values of that cultural element. Someone who genuinely appreciative of that culture are highly sensitive about the context in which it was applied. Whilst someone can be considered appropriating a cultural element if that person is unaware of its significance, or with the intention of pure mockery. 

 

            But some individuals are just too thick-headed or too ignorant to realize that appropriating a cultural element just to play out a stereotype or (even worse) mocking them is plain stupid, and a step further when it comes to human idiocy. K-Pop industry has a TON of scandals of this caliber. from Mamamoo's blackface scandal to (G)I-IDLE's Jeon So-yeon's "African Hip" remarks, the K-Pop industry has been accused countless times for racial insensitivity and cultural appropriation. Hell, the industry's first (and only) African American idol, Alex Reid of BP Rania was treated like a big hunk of horse shit just because of her skin color. Another example of this is when BLACKPINK (Yes, BLACK-fucking-PINK) released their music video for the song How You Like That. In the video, during Lalisa Manoban's rap part, some eagle-eyed viewers noticed a statue of Ganesha, The Hindu deity of knowledge, intellect and wisdom placed on the floor. Unsurprisingly, both the band and the agency (YG Entertainment) were met with lots of backlash, especially coming from fans that adhere to the Hindu faith. The backlash is mainly how the statue of Lord Ganesha is used only as a prop for aesthetic purpose, and Manoban being a Thai-born idol although can be justified, doesn't help the case either. The original video has since deleted, and the scene was re-edited.

 

            And this is not limited to K-Pop. Modern Pop Music artists have a fair share of cultural appropriation gone absolutely wrong. Katy Perry once performed at the 2013 American Music Awards dressed as a Japanese Geisha. What went wrong was the dress that she wore doesn't even originated from Japan, but a variation of a dress from China. The performance can also be viewed as a blatant stereotyping of East Asian women, based on the fact that although she was accompanied by few Japanese backup dancers, some elements of the pop fanbase accused her as such. Avril Lavinge made it even worse when she released the song Hello Kitty. This is where it gets from bad to worse. She (perhaps deliberately) butchered the Japanese language, dressed appropriating the Harajuku culture, and most importantly, playing to the general stereotype of said culture. The music video was also a cringefest. Another instance (although this is more like a mockery) was when Donald Glover, under his rap name Childish Gambino released This is America, a song that tackles police brutality, racism, gun violence, and ignorance. Somehow, Canadian comedian Nicole Arbour managed to take that amazing song, and proceeded to tear it limb-to limb, and present it in a more sexist way (no, really, she even named that atrocity as the "Women's Edit").

 

            But perhaps it is the fashion world that always involved in some form of appropriation. A Vice article from 2019 detailed when Kim Kardashian (yep, that same woman from the infamous Kardashian-Jenner clan who got her fame from making a fucking sex tape) released her lingerie line called "Kimono", taken from his name. Unsurprisingly, the name also bears similarity with THE Japanese national dress with important significances. The dress is mainly worn for special occasions and important events. Either a wedding or a funeral, the kimono is always worn for those events. Even someone like Yuka Onishi took that as an insult as told to the BBC. On The Atlantic's article titled The Dos and Don'ts of Cultural Appropriation, One instance of a cultural element being used only as an accessory for aesthetics was when Victoria's Secret model Karlie Kloss walked down the runway modelling the new bikini collection while at the same time donning a Native American head dress, the one that symbolizes leadership among Native American tribes. From what I understand, the head dress is passed from one leader to another, and only those who are appointed as the leader of the respective tribe that are allowed to wear one. On this instance, it's taken way out of the context.

 

            But when does cultural appropriation not a cultural appropriation? This seems like the million-dollar question. Although it might seem unlikely, but there are some easily offended individuals that can judge someone of appropriating a culture just because of the accused party enjoys food (no, really!) from another country. Comedian and MMA commentator Joe Rogan once ranted about this on his podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, about a white chef named Rick Bayliss who learned how to properly mastered Mexican cuisine by travelling all over Mexico in order to understand more about its history and its authenticity, but accused of cultural appropriating the Mexican culture, just because of the poor guy opening a Mexican restaurant. English comedian Jonathan Pie also ranted about this when he told a story of some individuals walking around confiscating sombrero hats given by a local Mexican restaurant as a means of promoting said restaurant. Now, accusing someone of cultural appropriation on the basis that the accused party enjoys eating, cooking and understanding food from another country or ethnicity is just plain idiocy. One time I was surfing on a social media platform named Quora, and most of the time on my timeline, there is this one white girl who likes to wear saree and bindi, both are India's traditional dress. It's easy to accuse her for appropriating the Indian culture, but she is actually married to someone from India (after a brief research, and some of her post that also has her husband in the photo). So, on that fact alone, it can be justified for her to do such thing. She might be already aware of the significance of the dress, since her husband is from the country, or have enough knowledge of the Indian culture. Either way, that is the case of cultural appreciation. 

 

            It's safe to say that cultural appropriation is an instance where you take some elements of one society or ethnicity, without any awareness of the significance, or its history, and using it just for others' personal gain or simply for aesthetics. Those guys are either unaware of this, or just plain ignorant to the point of mocking those elements. But some people can also accuse others of this behavior, even though the one they accuse have enough knowledge and appreciation of the matters at hand. In short, if you want to adopt a cultural element from other people, make sure you are well informed about its context, history, and the norms behind it. Don't be a dick and take it all for granted. You only embarrass yourself. As always, stay safe, wear the mask, wash your hands, and two meters apart at all times.

Mixed Martial Arts: The Most Exciting, Yet the Most Bloodied Combat Sport in the World

            During the first days of this blog, I've written a bit about combat sport, as I explain on how I became a Pro Wrestling fan. But to be honest, Professional Wrestling is part combat sport, part soap opera. At first, I wasn't aware of the existence of this particular combat sport until 2012. Up until that point, the only sport I watched was Boxing, but I found that a bit boring at times. And once I watched it for the first time, my heart was dead set on one thing: mixed martial arts (MMA) is the most exciting combat sport in the world. As of the time of writing, I've been following MMA sporadically for the past seven years, and we are only three days away from another scheduled UFC event, dubbed UFC 253, which features Nigerian-New Zealander Israel Adesanya versus Brazilian Paulo Costa for the promotion's Middleweight Championship. 

 

            It's been believed that the history of MMA can be traced back to the Ancient Greece. The sport, then named Pankration, was featured as one of the programs at the Ancient Olympic Games. First introduced at the XXXIII Olympiad (648 BCE), the rules of the sport pretty much resembled the modern Unified Rules of MMA, but with only biting and gouging that were recognized as forms of foul. At the time, the only way to decide a winner is by knocking his opponent unconscious. In 393 CE, however, Emperor Theodosius I of Rome banned the Olympic Games, which was also the end of Pankration. The fighting style later resurfaced in 20th-Century Brazil, instigated by brothers Carlos and Hélio Gracie, naming itself as vale tudo (anything goes). The brothers would issue challenges in local newspapers, saying that they welcomed all types of fighters. The sport of MMA was finally brought the attention of the masses in 1993, with the first event dubbed The Ultimate Fighting Championship (subsequently known as UFC 1, the first event by the promotion). The main idea was to put every fighters of different martial arts and make them compete in a tournament. In a nutshell, they pitted a boxer against a wrestler, a taekwondo fighter versus a kung fu practitioner, and so on. The rules were the same as its ancient counterpart, no biting and eye gouging. In this event, another Gracie, Royce, won the inaugural tournament utilizing his family's Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu style, which emphasis on ground fighting and submitting their opponents rather than going with striking power. Few events were marketed as a "No rules event", but with the times changing, the sport has to evolve. In 2001, the weight classes, rounds, time limits and a revamped set of rules were introduced to make the sport safer. In 2013, the UFC held their first event to feature Women's MMA as their main event. UFC 157 featured Ronda Rousey taking on Liz Carmouche for the Women's Bantamweight Championship. Rousey submitted Carmouche with an armbar in the first round. 

 

            The rules at the time of UFC 1 were pretty simple. There was (almost) no rules. Fighters can either knock their opponents out cold (the referee also has the power to stop the fight if a fighter was taking excessive amount of damage to the point that they cannot intelligently defend themselves, a significant injury like broken bones or laceration or if he/she appeared to lost consciousness while being struck) or submit them (The submitted party can initiate a tap on the mat or the opponent or signaling the referee with groans of pain) with chokes or manipulation of limbs and joints with the intention of inflicting serious injury. Under the Unified Rules, aside from those two mentioned above, if the fight goes the distance, a panel of judges (usually three judges) will determine the winner using a 10-point must score system used in boxing. Since there were no weight classes, a combatant could be placed inside the cage with either a bigger size opponent or smaller sized ones. Only in 2001 that the weight classes rules were put into place. As of 2020, the UFC recognizes 9 weight classes. Those nine are: Strawweight (women only) (115lbs/52kg), Flyweight (men and women)(125lbs/57kg), Bantamweight (men and women) (135lbs/61kg), Featherweight (men and women) (145lbs/66kg), Lightweight (155lbs/70kg), Welterweight (170lbs/77kg), Middleweight (185lbs/84kg), Light Heavyweight (205lbs/93kg) and Heavyweight (265lbs/120kg) (men only). Fighter attire was also regulated, with fighters must wear padded fingerless gloves, but with no shoes or headgear. The fighters then placed in either a ring or a cage. Under the Unified Rules of MMA, an MMA bout would last for 3 rounds, each round lasts 5 minutes, with one-minute rest period between each round. In a championship setting however, there are two extra rounds, making said fight a five-rounder. The fighters can either punch, kick, use their elbows and knees, grapple with one another, and initiate a takedown. The only thing that differentiate this sport with other combat sports, is that those strikes can be launched either from a standing position or from the ground. A fighter can be reprimanded, penalized or disqualified if he/she headbutting their opponents, biting, gouging, fish hooking, hair pulling, kicking or kneeing a grounded opponent in the head, launched a downward elbow strike (also known as 12 to 6 elbow), strikes targeting the throat, spine, and the back of the head, and initiate a small joint manipulation (twisting fingers). 

 

            Even though MMA nowadays can be pretty much in equal terms with other combat sports discipline, In the early days, it was viewed as the most brutal sport in the world. Hell, even the late Senator John McCain (RIP) once called the sport as "human cockfighting", due to the fighting surface being an eight-sided cage. Despite the bloody nature of the sport, there are only sixteen recorded deaths, seven of them came from injuries sustained from a sanctioned MMA bout. None of those 16 deaths ever occurred in the UFC. In comparison, there are over 500 fatalities that resulted from injuries sustained after a boxing match ever since the Marquees of Queensberry rules were introduced in 1884.

 

            When it comes to exposure, Let's face it. For me personally, I know more MMA fighters than boxing legends. Sure, I know some legendary boxers either currently active or already retired, like Mike Tyson, Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather Sr and Floyd Mayweather Jr, Tyson Fury, Amir Khan and Anthony Joshua, but names like legendary fighters Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell, Royce Gracie, Tito Ortiz, Chael Sonnen, Anderson Silva, Frankie Edgar, Fedor Emelianenko, Melvin Manhoef, and modern fighters like The Notorious Irishman Conor McGregor, Khabib Nurmagomedov, the recently retired Daniel Cormier, The Diaz Brothers, Nick and Nate, Tony Ferguson, Henry Cejudo, and even Brock Lesnar (The dude was the UFC Heavyweight Champion at some point before returning to WWE) are just some of the MMA fighters known today. 

 

            Mixed Martial Arts in essence is basically a hybrid of various fighting styles. Someone can be considered a mixed martial artist if that person masters two or more different combat disciplines. Sure, the first events were as bloody and as violent as it can be, but the sport continues to evolve to be the sport we know and love today. After this, I'm going to treat myself in three days to UFC 253. In the meantime, I can also watch past fights and highlights of my favorite fighters on various streaming platforms. And as always, I want to end this by constantly reminding you all to always adhere to medical protocols. Wear the mask, wash your hands, and always two meters apart at all times.

Indonesian Food: Beloved and Renowned

 Well, this is it. After months of inactivity, I finally write again. But this time, the pandemic still rages on, I've got a new hobby (assembling Lego cars) to go with that, and some other work-related business I've had to attend. I've been tested twice for the coronavirus (rapid blood testing and PCR), both came back negative (phew!). Ushering the New Normal era means that we can go back to our normal activities, albeit still have to adhere to medical protocols (masks, two meters distance policy, and washing the hands frequently). But back when we still under quarantine (well, partial quarantine in Indonesia to be honest), I've walked down memory lane with older rock and metal songs, watching old YouTube videos, and watching cooking shows, especially if the host is the one Gordon Ramsay. 

 

            If you are wondering where this piece is going to go, calm down. This would still have the correlation with the topic, which is about the local Indonesian culinary scene. As you all know, when it comes to Indonesian cuisine, there is only one thing that can be associate with the 18.000+ island nation: spice. It has influences from the Chinese, The Middle East, Indians, and Malay. When Gordon Ramsay's latest show Uncharted, airing on National Geographic channel broadcasted the Indonesian episode, I was head over heels excited, because I'm about to watch an iconic British (Scottish to be exact) chef visiting Indonesia for the first time and try the colorful dishes this country has to offer. Aside from his job as a celebrity chef, Ramsay, who is also known for his short temper and explosive personality in the kitchen, likes to travel the world to sample the best food that he could possibly find. And in Indonesia, he chose the province of West Sumatera as his destination, which means one thing: the dish known as Rendang. Yes. The one that once voted as the most delicious dish by CNN in 2017, edging out Nasi Goreng (Indonesian Style Fried Rice), another Indonesian staple. 

 

            In the aftermath of that episode, He released two more Indonesia-related videos on his YouTube channel, one where he incorporated the Rendang paste into his duck egg omelet, and the other where he attempted to make Nasi Goreng with a deliciously good result. Hell, one channel in particular, run by a UK-based comedian Nigel Ng, under his persona Uncle Roger, reviewed this particular video with nothing but praise and compliments. All jokes aside, I think Chef Ramsay nailed this one, because of two reasons. One, he knows his ingredients. Nasi Goreng typically uses leftover rice, although some of us can also go with freshly cooked rice at some point. Leftover rice is better at absorbing flavors being thrown inside the cooking surface (in this case a wok), while freshly cooked rice might have some moisture in it, so it can be a little soggy at times (sorry Hersha Patel, but you just don't wash the freaking rice after cooking it). In his recipe, Chef Ramsay uses sambal paste AND the rendang paste to enhance the spiciness, aside from the fact that he also uses galangal, and fresh chili as the base (sorry Jamie Oliver, but putting chili jam in your fried rice is just wrong). Two, he knows the right tools. If you watch that video in question, I swear to God, that was one of the most entertaining cooks I've ever watched. The dude even uses two woks! The previous two videos featured normal cooking pan as the cooking surface, which has flat base instead of a curved one that Chef Ramsay used. As one of roughly 248 million Indonesian residents, I give my stamp of approval to Chef Gordon Ramsay for this one.

 

            On another side, I must say, while this dish is a fairly simple dish, it can be deceiving. Why? You asked. Because it's all about NOT overcomplicating the cooking process itself. Yes, fried rice in general doesn't have a fixed recipe, but that doesn't mean that everything can be thrown into a fried rice. Some ingredients might work on other setting, but not necessarily fit into most demographics. You can use pork-based products into the dish, but that means Muslims can't eat it. The other thing is finding the balance. A good fried rice should be balanced on spiciness, saltiness, smokiness, and the overall flavor of the rice itself. I've learned through many attempts that aside from those factors above, there is one thing that can easily be overlooked while cooking this particular dish: the amount of oil being put inside during the cooking process. A greasy fried rice is something you absolutely hate to see after such a quick, fast-paced cook. Over-seasoning or under-seasoning a fried rice can be fixed, but a greasy fried rice? nope, throw it out, start a new one. 

 

            But Indonesian cuisine is not just about Rendang or Nasi Goreng. With the latter, if you swap out the rice with noodles, you got Mie Goreng, in other regions, different cultures mean different cuisines. In my home province of North Sulawesi, seafood is the frontrunner of the local food scene. Since Manado is a coastline city, you can easily find restaurants that specializes in Ikan Bakar, or Grilled Fish. They mostly do catch of the day, which means whatever the fish that were caught the night before, is cooked the following day. Going up in the mountains, towards the Minahasa Regency, wild game is more commonly known. Since this province is a Christian-majority region, you can find many unusual dishes made with the most unusual of ingredients, like Paniki, which was made from bats, or snake-based dishes, and even Rentek Wu'uk, which is made from (unfortunately) dog meat. One thing is for sure, when it comes to spice tolerance, Manadonese in general are notorious for having iron stomach, because of their fairly high tolerance for spices. There is a saying in Manado, that goes, "If there is no chili on your plate, then you are not living your life". Other instances of different cultural background influencing their cuisine is The Island of The Gods, Bali. Being a Hindu majority, pork-based dishes is more prevalent in this island, albeit some of them still enjoys Beef. When it comes to its signature dish, you must mention the Betutu, made from either chicken or duck. This dish is more like a set-it-and-forget-it type of dish, as the cooking process takes roughly 7-8 hours. The Javanese are known to be on the sweet side of the culinary spectrum. One dish that resonates to me the most is obviously Gudeg, found in the Special Region of Jogjakarta. This dish uses unripe jackfruit submerged and stewed in sugar, served with rehydrated spicy cow skin, chicken or beef, and coconut rice. The Sundanese in West Java, where I'm currently living nowadays, are more into the spice game than the Javanese. Case in point, seblak. This soup-based dish is known to be spicy and can be adjusted to whoever is eating it. It contains meat products like chicken, fish balls, meatballs, beef, hard-boiled eggs, noodles, soggy crackers, and various vegetables, with adjustable heat levels, usually level 1 for really mild, to level 5 for scorching hot, like when you are being thrown to the deepest parts of Hell. They are also known to feature raw vegetables in their dish. On the eastern part of the country, like the Maluku Islands and Papua, they have an alternative to rice called Papeda. Made from sago, Papeda is usually eaten as the substitute to rice, often accompanied by Yellow Broth Fish Soup. The texture is kind of a jelly, but starchy. If you want to taste extreme food without having to torture yourself with dog met, just hop over to Makassar, the southern tip of the Sulawesi Island. The dish, Coto Makassar is mainly made using every part of a cow, like the meat, tongue, gizzard, colon, longue, and other parts, drenched in peanut-based broth, with a sprinkle of salt, sambal, and lemon juice, enjoyed with ketupat rice cakes. 

 

            Indonesian cuisine is really colorful, and depending on which province you currently live, it can be either spicy, sweet, or something in between. Many would say that in order to enjoy a country, you must first enjoy its food, and as an Indonesian myself, I'm proud to say that Indonesian food is finally being recognized all over the world. When this pandemic finally over, I can promise you who would like to spend some time in this country, that you will enjoy this country, its beautiful scenery, and most importantly, the food. Until then, stay safe, keep washing your hands, keep wearing that mask, and always 2 meters apart at all times.

"Karens", COVID-19 and #BlackLivesMatter: A Really Bad Mix

(Warning: Strong languages and rants ahead)

            You must be wondering why in the gracious of God am I writing about this meme again. Sure, the previous piece related to this, albeit not entirely completed, but should provide you the explanation about entitlement behaviors of some members of the society, mainly white women in her 40s. But this time, I'm adjusting it to fit a certain theme, that being the COVID-19 pandemic and the current rise of the #BlackLivesMatter Movement. As we all know, it's been roughly 5 months since the SARS-CoV2 spread across the world, with over 10,7 million population infected. Now what's the correlation between "Karens" and this pandemic anyway? Well, in a nutshell, there are some people that can be called a "covidiot", but these "Karens" transcended idiocy and common sense. 

            I came across a video on 9gag of all sites, about how "masks kills people" in the wake of an announcement in the state of Florida, where Palm Beach County officials mandated all citizens to wear a face mask. This is totally made sense, since Florida is currently one of the worst hot spots for virus spread, with daily cases rising to over 205%. And the frontrunners of this baseless conspiracy theory? "Karens". Even one of them said (and I'm not kidding) "I don't wear a mask for the same reason I don't wear underwear: things gotta breathe." Even one of them have the guts to say that a face mask is "literally killing people". Some of them even play the religious card on this fiasco. Holy shit Karen, chill the fuck out! The move was made to ensure no further spread of the coronavirus, not to choke your shiny, white, middle aged ass! There is no evidence that a face mask has a capability to cause any medical risks, let alone death. Those thigs have a function of that of an air filter. It filters the air from possible bacteria or viruses that might be entering our system. And what these "Karens" are doing is turning themselves into a ticking time bomb of infection. 

            Let's not forget that "Karens" are those type of people who would play their privilege in the expense of others. With the current pandemic, it's usually those women who just won't adhere with health and safety protocols while shopping. There are countless videos on YouTube about Karens freaking out because they got rejected from the shops just because not wearing a face protector. They are also not a big fan of science, and always playing religious cards on any issues today. On the flipside, they are also not really considerate toward others, with one key phenomenon being them stockpiling a lifetime supply of toilet papers. I remember writing this thing about fecal transmission of the coronavirus being a non-factor of the spread. And remember those anti-lockdown protests? Some of the participants were Karens! One of them was named Diane, who attended such protest in Pennsylvania, who announced "What do I say to your science? I don't believe in your science." One woman in Tennessee even carried a sign read " SACRIFICE THE WEAK, REOPEN TN". Wow. you are really willing to put not just yourself, but others in danger just for the sake of you getting a fresh manicure-pedicure or a haircut. 

            Aside from the ravaging pandemic, the world has seen the rise of the #BlackLivesMatter movement in the wake of the death of George Floyd by the hands of a white police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The whole wide world is standing in solidarity with the black community, whether from North and South America, Asia, all parts of Africa, Europe, or even as far as Australia, New Zealand and The Pacific Islands. But it doesn't mean that it's "Karen-proof". This time the nickname is "San Francisco Karen", assigned to a white woman named Lisa Alexander, who, along with her husband Rob Larkins, called the police on a person of color just because the man was writing a #BlackLivesMatter stencil in his own private property. And the repercussions? Turns out Alexander is the founder of the beauty product LAFACE, and prior to the scandal, had worked with UK-based beauty product Birchbox. Since then, Birchbox officially cut ties with Alexander and would no longer associate themselves with her. Her husband also suffered the same fate, being fired from his job at Raymond James Financial Firm. 

            What can I say, in the times where the human race must stand together in solidarity to not just tackling a global health crisis, but also dismantle racism and white privilege, there are still some boneheaded individuals who just won't give a simple shiny fuck about these important issues for collective good. Instead, these ignorant, entitled, bigoted and privileged individuals went mad just because they have been mandated to wear a face mask, or even just to practice social distancing in public, because I can guarantee If I ever encounter a "Karen", she would most likely be standing too close to comfort, no face mask in sight while berating the cashier for rejecting her coupon (because it has expired) and demanded to speak to the manager. And afterwards, proceeded to writing a scathing review on Yelp, TripAdvisor or sites of similar function for not considering her needs (which again, is a total bullshit since the only source of trouble is the "Karen" herself). And on that note, I stress this time and time again, stay safe, stay healthy, always put yourself 2 meters apart, wear the damn mask, and always sanitize yourself.