Menjadi Golput : Benar Atau Salah !

Golput adalah singkatan dari Golongan Putih yaitu orang-orang yang tidak menggunakan hak pilihnya dalam proses Pemilihan Umum, baik karena sengaja maupun karena penyebab lainnya. Kenapa Putih, bukan hitam? Karena putih identik dengan bersih, yaitu bersih dari segala noda-noda dalam proses pemilu tersebut. Ada berbagai macam penyebab orang berlaku Golput dan bila dibahas disini mungkin menjadi panjang di samping karena saya sendiri tidak mahir dalam hal ini.
Hasil dari pemilu berefek selama 5 tahun, di mana rakyat sebagai pemilih hanya dilibatkan dalam kurang lebih sebulan atau bahkan sebenarnya sekejap yaitu ketika proses pemilhan berlangsung. Rakyat kini semakin banyak yang golput, ditandai dengan meningkatnya angka golput di berbagai pemilihan kepala daerah.

Golput kini menjadi pro dan kontra. Ada banyak yang setuju golput karena sudah tidak percaya lagi dengan proses pemilu dan politik di negara ini. Banyak juga yang menentang tindakan golput. Bahkan sebuah kelompok keagamaan terbesar di negara ini mengeluarkan fatwa haram terhadap tindakan golput. Padahal sudah jelas tindakan golput adalah hak setiap warga negara.
Saya yakin rakyat tidak sebodoh itu untuk melakukan golput jika bukan karena ada suatu sebab. Penyebab inilah yang seharusnya dicari oleh mereka yang tidak setuju tindakan golput. Ibaratnya ketika anda menjual suatu barang dan pembeli enggan membeli barang yang anda jual, jangan salahkan pembeli, tapi lihatlah barang yang anda jual. Mungkin sudah busuk dan bahkan penuh ulat dan lintah yang siap menghisap darah para pembeli. Anda bisa saja berkata pilihlah buah yang terbaik di antara buah yang busuk dan tetap berusaha menjajakan barang anda yang sudah tidak layak konsumsi tersebut.

Seorang teman pernah berkata kepada saya, bahwa politik di negara ini akan bisa mengarah ke arah yang lebih baik jika satu generasi dipotong dan dimusnahkan, agar budaya buruk yang sudah kronis tidak terus-terusan menular ke generasi dibawahnya. Saya setuju dengan pendapat itu, tapi saya tidak yakin hal itu bisa dilaksanakan. Lihatlah di tahun 1999 ketika sebuah era yang bernama Orde Baru diruntuhkan, mungkin sebagian besar rakyat menaruh harapan agar sebuah generasi yang sudah usang dan bobrok bisa diganti dengan yang baru dan bersih. Tapi lihatlah, penyakit yang bernama KKN itu tetap saja ada bahkan dari lembaga yang paling kecil.
Lalu, di mana letak kesalahannya. Mirip seperti analogi penjual buah di atas, mari kita lihat kepada diri sendiri, jangan-jangan kesalahan dan penyebab semua ini ada pada diri kita, rakyat. Apa salah rakyat? Bagi saya, lebih tepat kita menyebut dengan kata keliru, bukan salah.

Kembali ke topik awal tentang golput, tentu saja penyebab golput yang sebenarnya adalah tingginya KKN. Rakyat menjadi kehilangan kepercayaan kepada pemerintah dan menganggap apapun pilihan kita tidak akan berpengaruh dan bahkan tidak ada pengaruhnya sama sekali ketika pemilih melakukan golput alias tidak memilih.
KKN, inilah penyebabnya, KKN sudah menjadi hal yang lumrah dan rahasia umum. Jika dipersentasekan, mungkin 99% dari kita pernah melakukan perbuatan ini, hanya saja berbeda besarannya dan tidak semua masuk dalam tindakan yang melanggar hukum. Bahkan ada yang melakukannya secara tidak sadar. Bagaimana tidak, KKN sudah menjadi budaya di negeri ini. Lalu 1% lagi kemana, mereka mungkin adalah orang gila dan para rakyat miskin yang tidak punya apa-apa untuk di korupsi dan jelas dalam piramida mereka berada pada level paling bawah.
Lihatlah diri kita dan sekeliling kita, KKN terjadi di mana-mana. Ketika anak kita ingin masuk sekolah, kita mencari kolega kesana-kemari agar anak kita bisa diterima di sekolah negeri walaupun lewat jalur belakang. Sang kolega tersebut pun malu menolak karena dulu pernah meminta “bantuan” pada kita. Budaya tolong-menolong yang salah sasaran inilah penyebab awal lingkaran setan yang kita sebut KKN.
Sekarang ini adalah musim kampanye, jika ditanya jujur, mungkin bisa dihitung dengan jari mereka yang ikut berkonvoi dan mengikuti kampanye itu dengan tulus tanpa pamrih. Selainnya adalah mereka yang berharap balas jasa, mulai dari imbalan berupa kaos bergambar partai, imbalan makan nasi bungkus gratis, imbalan uang bensin, dan yang terakhir imbalan agar suatu saat mereka bisa diberikan pekerjaan oleh politikus yang duduk menjadi wakil rakyat. Contohnya adalah imbalan menjadi PNS atau tenaga honorer.
Saat si mujur yang telah menjadi PNS dan menduduki jabatan atas bantuan wakil rakyat tersebut, datanglah anak wakil rakyat diatas meminta tolong dan tentu saja proses lingkaran setan menjadi semakin melingkar dan sangat sulit menemukan ujungnya atau mencari siapa yang salah serta siapa yang memulai semua ini. KKN sudah mendarah daging, sangat kronis, hanya bisa disembuhkan dari titik yang paling bawah yaitu kita sendiri.

Marilah jalani hidup dengan lebih bersih, walaupun belum bening, setidaknya kurangilah tindakan yang salah itu, mulai dari diri sendiri, keluarga, lalu ke tingkat yang lebih besar. Dan di pemilu 2009 ini anda mau golput atau tidak, itu pilihan, dan tidak memilih mungkin juga merupakan sebuah pilihan.
Golput atau tidak dalam Pemilu 2009 ini menurut saya tidaklah terlalu penting, karena berapapun jumlah Golput, toh hasil Pemilu tetap akan disahkan. Menurut saya yang lebih penting adalah kita ‘Golput’ dalam artian tidak ikut dalam lingkaran setan di atas, dan jikalau pun kita merasa terlibat, mari berusaha untuk keluar, mulai dari diri sendiri.

What Is Succes In Life And How To Achieve It?

Everyone has a different definition to what is success in life. To some, success in life would mean to have great mansions and luxurious cars to decorate the house porch and credit cards to accompany the shopping trips. Whereas others would think that success in life is when you are able to scram out of your parents' lounging and stand on your own two feet. If you ask a 16-year-old kid what is success in life then she will say it is when she is accepted into college. Everyone has a different success pictures painted in front of them. But despite all these different views, all of this success in life can be attained y using the very same technique.
Success in life does not come easily. If you think that you are not up to the challenge, then there are possibilities that you are going to struggle with accomplish your goals. Talking about goals, you probably heard of goal setting back then in the olden days when you were just in junior high. It might seem kind of ridiculous to you to adhere to this junior high method of meeting up with you goals, but did you know that this method is recognized as one of the most effective methods to achieve success in life?
Instead of letting your goals and aims linger around your mind, set them straight and set them right, just by using the primitive tools of paper and paper. Doesn't seem too tough to puff does it?
By why is it that by scribbling down your goals and aim will make you be successful. I mean it's just paper and pen after all. This is where people go wrong. Other than the obvious reason, did you know that by jotting your goals down onto paper allows your mind to work hand in hand with you towards the goal? While you might not read it word for word every day, you subconscious mind will tell you that there are goals to complete and hence subconsciously you will work towards the goal. Don't ever doubt the power of the mind. With just a tweak of the mind, you are able to move mountains. That is also the reason why people are using self-hypnosis techniques to help them to reprogram the mind to help them to work towards to goals faster. However, do not mistake it as a technique used to fool the mind for the selfish purpose of achieving your goals. By using self-hypnosis, it means that you are able keep your focus and attention towards a goal and hence giving you the extra push to keep you moving towards your goal.

There are D-I-Y self-hypnosis books available off the shelves. So you might want to refer to them to learn more about the hypnosis techniques that you can use to keep yourself always on the roll for some yummy goals. Alternatively, there is self-hypnosis Success CDs that are meant to reprogram your mind with positive affirmations that will help you to acquire the right kind of attitude to help you work your way to success. It seems ridiculously easy doesn't it? But of course to top it all up, you will need your discipline and determination to achieve the things you want in life. Remember, these Success CDs are there just to give you the extra push. It is still up to you to determine how successful you will be.
Looking at my life, there are many life lessons I’ve learned. Some of them are the fruits of difficult experiences. Some others are the advice I got from wise people. They came from different sources but they all have something in common: they are all useful to guide my life into the future.
Here I’d like to share with you eight life lessons that have significantly affected my life.
Apply them and you will achieve true success in life. Here they are:
1. Be grateful
Being grateful is perhaps the most important attitude you must have to live a happy life. No matter how bad the situations around you are, you can always choose to respond positively. Being grateful makes you look at the world through positive lens and energizes your life. Don’t take things for granted.
2. Follow your heart
Nothing can replace following your heart. People may tell you about the right thing to do or what they expect from you, but at the end, it’s your life. If you don’t live your own life, who will?
So slow down and listen to your heart. What does it tell you about your career? What does it tell you about your relationships? Listen to your heart and find the courage to follow it.
3. Have a Dream big
How far you go is very much determined by how big your dream is. Having a small dream is like putting yourself inside a small box. You might end up living far below your fullest potential.
Of course, it’s not easy to dream big. Perhaps your failures in the past scare you. Perhaps you don’t think you have what it takes to achieve your dream. But don’t let negativity push you down. Be dare to dream big.
If you can dream it, you can do it. Always remember that this whole thing was started with a drea.
4. Good is the worst enemy of best
When you reach a position that is good enough, you may become comfortable and think that it’s no longer worth it to continue fighting for the best. That’s why good is the worst enemy of best: it makes you stop before you achieve your fullest potential. It distracts you from pursuing your best life. Be grateful for what you have but understand that you still have a lot more in front of you.
5. Run your own race
Your race is different from other people’s races. Realizing this is liberating because it frees you from envy. When you hear that other people are successful, you can sincerely be grateful since you are not in competition with them. At the same time, it also pushes you to live your best life. Why? Because you are competing against yourself.
6. Focus on what you can control
Sometimes you might have bad experiences that you can’t do anything about. If that happened, don’t dwell on it. You are wasting a lot of mental energy if you do. Move on and focus instead on things you can control. Applying this frees you from a lot of stress and worries.
One application of this principle is on changing people. Which one do you think you can change: yourself or other people? You can’t change other people but you can change yourself. So focus on changing yourself.
7. Failure is your friend
Befriending failure makes you dare to try new things. It puts you on the path of inventions, breakthroughs, and innovations. Failure is often the price of progress.
8. Relationships are your greatest treasures
At the end, what do you want to achieve in life? Will it be meaningful to have a lot of money if you have broken relationships? Will it be meaningful to be famous if you lose love? I don’t think so. Your relationships are your greatest treasures. Understand

How to be a clever student

1. Enroll in a math class.
2. Pay attention in class. You're not going to get any better at math if you don't listen or if you don't know what's going on. Listen and pay attention to what the teacher is saying.
3. Pay particular attention to the rules, properties, formulas, equations, and methods, if you are to that point in math. Those are the tools of math, and will make math and computation much easier for you. So learn to rely on them like a good carpenter would his saw, tape measure, hammer, etc.
4. Participate. Even if you don't know the answer to a question, you can surely make an educated guess. So what if you're wrong? At least you tried. And hey, you just may be right!
5. Ask many questions. Even Einstein asked questions, so why shouldn't you? If you don't understand something, ask the teacher. You're not going to suddenly understand it by staring at the problem. If you don't want to ask a teacher, ask a nearby student, or friend.
6. Seek math help. If you still need help, ask the teacher if there is somewhere you can go for assistance. Find out if there is a study hall or tutoring program, or ask if a teacher could give you extra help before or after class.
7. Memorize your multiplication tables. This is crucial for mastering arithmetic.
8. Write out your work. For example, when working out equations, divide your solution into steps, writing down what you did you get to the next step.
o Writing out your work helps you to keep track of the work as you do it, and it may help you get partial credit if you make a mistake somewhere.
o Writing your steps out will show you where you went wrong
9. Attempt ALL the work that is given to you. After attempting a few examples, you will get the hang of it!
10. Review your graded homework assignments when they are returned to you. Try to figure out where you went wrong. Ask your teacher to help you review any problems you still don't understand.

CAR FERRIES

Indonesia is sprawling archipelago and boats and ferries provide an important link between islands. Pelni (Pelayaran Nasional Indonesia) is the national shipping company in Indonesia. It operates 25 passenger ships around the archipelago. On the busy crossings between Java and Sumatra and Java and Bali car ferries run twenty-four hours a day. The type of boat which is used is called a roll-on, roll off or RoRo. These Boats have built in ramps which allow the cars and trucks to be “rolled on” and “rolled off” the boat. Before the 1950’s moving a car on a boat was very expensive and difficult. The car was lifted onto the boat by a crane. Boats which have cranes to lift cargo on and off the called LoLo’s (lift on, lift off). RoRo ferries between Bali and Java carry about 45 cars. The largest car ferry in the world was launched on the 1st of September 2000. Called Ulysses, this ferry can carry 1,342 cars or 240 trucks. A ferry from Bali to Java would have to do the trip approximately 30 times to carry the same number of cars! What a long queue that would be!

Dead Snakes and Sick Roosters

Since moving to Palangka Raya (Central Borneo) 5 years ago from Banjarmasin (South Borneo) I’ve had some funny Experiences. In Palangka I had that very interesting experience with cats (February 2005). Here are two of my recent animal related experiences with a snake and some rooster in Palangka Raya.
One day I found a dead snake in my garden. I didn’t know if it was a dangerous one or not so I decided to ask a local person. It was a small snake so I put it in a plastic bag and took it to my local warung. I asked the teenage son of the owners, Is this a dangerous snake?”. He looked at me like Iwas bit crazy and shook his dead. Then he answered, ‘No. It’s dead!’.
Another day I saw a man holding a beautiful rooster. I stopped to talk to Him because I like chickens. He said to me ‘I have sick roosters’ I was startled because bird flu is a problem in Indonesia. I was trying to think a way to leave quickly without being too impolite when he pointed to some bamboo cages and said I Was trying to think a way to leave quickly without being too impolite when he pointed to some bamboo cages and said‘One, two, three, four, five, sick roosters!’

Faktor penyebab pelanggaran dari berbisnis yang tidak sehat yakni Ambisi untuk menjadi the BiggesT, The GreatesT, The Market Leader, And The NumbeR On

Dalam psikologi ada fenomena orang-orang yang sudah mencapai sukses tertentu, mengalami kondisi over confidence, yaitu keyakinan “aku tidak mungkin salah, aku tidak mungkin gagal”. Orang-orang yang ada dalam kondisi demikian, adalah orang-orang yang tidak bisa lagi mengakses nilai-nilai dasarnya atau kodratnya, menantang keterbatasannya. Titik over confidence seringkali menjadi turning point dari sukses sehingga menjadi tragedy.

Bisnis yang merugikan masyarakat, penuh dengan kebohongan,dan tipu daya sebenarnya bertentangan dengan kodrat manusia sendiri, karena bisnis tersebut melawan diri manusia sendiri, yaitu hati nurani. Seberapa kuatorang tersebut berperaNG dengan dirinya? Bukankah definisi sukses adalah kebahagiaan?
Jika sukses yang bertentangan dengan kodrat manusia itu tidak membahagiakan, maka cari duit banyak tetapi bertentangandengan kodrat kita, bukanlah suatu kesuksesan, karena salah satu harganya adlah kehilangan kebahagiaan kita.

Banyak yang menganggap bahwa berintegritas dan beretika itu justru hambatan untuk mencapai sukses. Memang jawabannya bisa ya atau tidak. Kalau yang dimaksud adalah sukses gila-gilaan, maka jawabannya adalah ya, tetapi jika yang dimaksud adlah sukses yang membahagiakan maka jawabannya jelas tidak.
Sukses itu pada akhirnya adalh perilaku, atau ditentukan oleh perilaku. Etika berbicara tentang perilaku mana yang baik dan yang benar. Perilaku yang etis, salah satu jantungnya alah integritas. Perlilaku etislah yang membawa keberhasilan jangka panjang dan sesuai dengan kodrat manusia.

The Power Of ApPreciation

Apkah Pengghargaan Itu ?

Ketika Anda berpikir mengenai penghargaan, apa yang pertama kali muncul dalam pikiran anda? Barangkali Sesuatu yang seharusnya anda lakukan, seperti dalam ungkapan " HArgai Atap di atas kepalamu, ada orang yang tidak memilikinya", atau sesuatu yang anda lalai lakukan, seperti dalam " Kamu tidak menghargai sedikitpun apa yang kulakkukan untukmu