Tenacity & Determination
On October 14, 2012, I watched the history being written as Felix Baumgartner reached the speed of 373m/s in a free fall from 121,800 feet in the sky. During the ascent and the descent, Baumgartner had issues with the visor and unwanted rotation in all three axes, which could have jeopardized the mission to break the sound barrier in a free fall. Because of tenacity and determination of Baumgartner and his team, Red Bull Stratos Mission left a feat that will remain unchallenged for the years to come.
As Manny and Jay said in Modern Family, the difference between try and triumph is a little umph. Quite often, we, including myself, are a little too quick to give up and victimize ourselves. Likewise, we do not hesitate to give up on our governments and carry on with our lives when the governments make the decisions based on poor judgment.
Over the course of history, representative democracy has become a cyclical process in which voters only get engaged once every few years. Politicians are quick to be targets of political satires where they are criticized for representing themselves rather than the voters whose interests should be aligned with those of the politicians.
We should not let the activist groups do all the job for us, as their agenda may not be in our best interests. Continuing to educate ourselves from reliable sources to become more resilient against the political swings both left and right is one thing that we can do to stay engaged. I truly believe that education is empowerment, and with the tools that are available today, it is possible to have our voice heard at all levels of the government.
The journey to real democracy will not be as straightforward as I make it sound to be. Many efforts will be shot down as energy is absorbed before water starts boiling. We should not let it deter ourselves from the goal, and stay determined and tenacious with the destination in sight as Baumgartner and his team did.
Day 58 (October 13)
Day 59 (October 14)
Day 60 (October 15)
Day 61 (October 16)
As Manny and Jay said in Modern Family, the difference between try and triumph is a little umph. Quite often, we, including myself, are a little too quick to give up and victimize ourselves. Likewise, we do not hesitate to give up on our governments and carry on with our lives when the governments make the decisions based on poor judgment.
Over the course of history, representative democracy has become a cyclical process in which voters only get engaged once every few years. Politicians are quick to be targets of political satires where they are criticized for representing themselves rather than the voters whose interests should be aligned with those of the politicians.
We should not let the activist groups do all the job for us, as their agenda may not be in our best interests. Continuing to educate ourselves from reliable sources to become more resilient against the political swings both left and right is one thing that we can do to stay engaged. I truly believe that education is empowerment, and with the tools that are available today, it is possible to have our voice heard at all levels of the government.
The journey to real democracy will not be as straightforward as I make it sound to be. Many efforts will be shot down as energy is absorbed before water starts boiling. We should not let it deter ourselves from the goal, and stay determined and tenacious with the destination in sight as Baumgartner and his team did.
Day 58 (October 13)
Day 59 (October 14)
Day 60 (October 15)
Day 61 (October 16)
