After I posted on my leave plans on Sunday, a few of you asked what was on my reading list, so I am sharing some books I have read / am reading / or hope to read. Three of the books are available from the National Library Singapore. Do check out the NLB app (iOS: https://go.gov.sg/moiqhc | Android: https://go.gov.sg/hu17bc). It is a marvellous resource, and you will definitely be able to discover many books to suit your interests.
[ Nuclear Folly, a History of the Cuban Missile Crisis
by Serhii Plokhy ]
The Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 brought the world to the brink of nuclear war. I had read "13 Days", the short memoir by Robert Kennedy about it as a teenager, and later Graham Allison's "Essence of Decision", a seminal study using the Crisis to analyse decision making from different perspectives. Both were mainly based on US records. Plokhy's book draws on Soviet archives, to present events from both the US and Soviet points of view. Many mistakes were made on both sides. The saving grace was that both President John Kennedy and General Secretary Nikita Khrushchev desperately wanted to avoid a nuclear war. But even then the two sides avoided a nuclear exchange only by a hair’s breadth, and only by chance, because events once set in motion were no longer entirely within the two leaders' control. A gripping read.
[ The Bilingual Brain, and what it tells us about the science of language
by Albert Costa ]
Having learnt several languages myself, and grappled with our bilingualism policy in schools, this book was a natural choice. I am still reading it. Did you know that a newborn infant already recognises and prefers the language (or languages) which their mother spoke while they were in her womb, and within hours of birth can also distinguish between two different languages that they have never heard before? Infants pick up a language (or two) naturally in their first years, but learning a second or third language later in life is much harder. This book explains why.
[ Capturing Light, the Heart of Photography
by Michael Freeman ]
A book about the different sorts of light, how they influence the photo you take, and how to use them to create the effect and mood that you want. Photographers know about the golden hour and blue hour, hard light and soft light, direct and indirect lighting, front and back lighting, haze, mist and fog, and so many more variations. The book includes lots of the author’s photos illustrating his points, taken over many years. Hope to pick up something from reading it. But the key in photography (as in so many other skills) is to practise and practise, if you want to improve.
[ Bettering Humanomics, A New, and Old, Approach to Economic Science
by Deidre Nansen McCloskey ]
The author, a distinguished economist, argues that economics is not just about incentives and institutions, mathematical models and observed behaviour. It should take a broader, more humanistic approach, paying attention to ethics and values, “what people believe, and the stories they tell one another”, as one reviewer put it. Certainly in government we must think about these broader factors all the time, while making sure we get the economics right. Not just in trade and industry or finance, but also in national development, education, health, manpower, sustainability and the environment, social and family development, and so much of public policy. I haven't read this book yet, but saw an enthusiastic book review, and look forward to reading the book itself.
Happy reading! – LHL
同時也有1部Youtube影片,追蹤數超過6萬的網紅AkwaArifin,也在其Youtube影片中提到,aku cuma bagi fakta. bukan nk brainwash sesiapa. korang dah besar kan. boleh fikir sendiri kan haha #akwagang ni reference video ni : https://www.you...
national archives singapore 在 Lee Hsien Loong Facebook 的最佳解答
Deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Tun Hajah Rahah, the widow of Malaysia’s second Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak, and the mother of former Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Tun Hajah Rahah was a source of strength, courage and inspiration for her family and for all Malaysians. She stood resolutely beside her husband, Tun Razak, when he led Malaysia at a critical period in its history. She will be remembered for her devotion to country and family. Our thoughts are with her family and the people of Malaysia during this time of mourning. – LHL
(Photo courtesy of National Archives of Singapore)
national archives singapore 在 Eric's English Lounge Facebook 的精選貼文
[翻轉視界12] 外籍移工的悲歌
你能想像一周七天每天工作17個小時以上嗎?
音檔: https://www.instagram.com/p/CH85KwdF3GJ/
★★★★★★★★★★★★
Can you imagine working over 17 hours a day, seven days a week? Thousands of foreign domestic workers in Taiwan do it every day, with some being on call 24 hours a day and performing household chores that are not a part of their jobs.
1. foreign domestic worker 外籍家庭傭工
2. on call 24 hours a day 一天24小時待命
3. perform household chores 做家務事
你能想像一周七天每天工作17個小時以上嗎?台灣每天都有成千上萬的外籍家庭傭工如此,其中一些人每天24小時待命,並且要做不屬於他們工作範圍的家務活。
★★★★★★★★★★★★
Foreign domestic workers in Taiwan do not have a weekly mandatory rest day, despite this being a global standard already enforced in Hong Kong and Singapore. According to statistics by the Ministry of Labor (MOL), 34.7 percent of foreign domestic workers did not receive any days off last year.
4. a mandatory rest day 法定休假日
5. day off 休息日
6. the Ministry of Labor 勞動部
台灣的外籍家庭傭工沒有每週的法定休假日,儘管在香港和新加坡已經實施的這項全球標準。根據勞動部(MOL)的統計,去年有34.7%的外籍家庭傭工沒有獲得任何休假日。
★★★★★★★★★★★★
The record is a strike against Taiwan’s achievements in human rights and freedoms for its own citizens, especially stark after the internationally-lauded legalization of same-sex marriage in May, 2019. Compounding the lack of rest days are the long work hours — an average of 17.72 hours a day, according to a separate study commissioned in 2012 by the Executive Yuan’s Research, Development and Evaluation Commission (now part of the National Development Council).
7. a strike against… 對…的打擊、重創
8. human rights and freedoms 人權和自由*
9. internationally-lauded (adj.) 獲國際讚譽的
10. the legalization of same-sex marriage 同性婚姻合法化
11. compound (v.) 使加重,使加劇,使惡化
該記錄是對台灣為自己的公民在人權和自由方面所取得的成就的重擊,特別是在2019年5月國際上稱讚的同性婚姻合法化之後。根據行政院研究,發展和評估委員會(現為國家發展委員會的一部分)在2012年委託進行的另一項研究,外籍移工平均每日工作時數為17.72小時,冗長的工作時數加劇了休息時間的缺乏。
*freedom: https://bit.ly/3nvyjhM
★★★★★★★★★★★★
The lack of rest and even basic privacy can cause mental and emotional strain to workers — effects that have already been reported to the government. A 2013 Control Yuan investigation into human rights issues faced by foreign domestic workers found that the lack of regular days off caused workers to fall into states of anxiety and stress in the long-term, and recommended that employers build “breathing time” for workers into their contracts.
12. basic privacy 基本隱私
13. mental and emotional strain 精神和情感壓力
14. Control Yuan 監察院
15. fall into states of anxiety and stress 陷入焦慮和壓力狀態
監察院
缺乏休息甚至基本隱私都會給工人帶來精神和情感壓力,這種影響已經被通報給政府。 2013年,行政院對外國家庭傭工所面臨的人權問題進行的調查發現,長期缺乏定期休假會導致工人陷入焦慮和壓力狀態,並建議雇主為工人在合同裡建立「透氣時間」。
★★★★★★★★★★★★
On average, foreign domestic workers earn a total monthly salary with overtime amounting to NT$19,927, according to the MOL. In contrast, the average monthly salary for a Taiwanese domestic helper or caretaker in the Taipei area ranges from NT$45,000 to NT$75,000, according to the China Long-term Care Association (中華長照協會).
16. monthly salary 月薪
17. overtime (n.) 加班費*
18. amount (v.) to 達到、總計
19. caretaker 看護人員
根據勞工部的數據,平均來說,外籍家庭傭工的月工資總額為新台幣19,927元。相比之下,根據中華長期照護協會的統計,台北地區的台籍家庭傭工或看護人員的平均月薪在45,000至75,000新台幣之間。
*overtime: https://bit.ly/36MbH60
★★★★★★★★★★★★
About 38 percent of foreign domestic workers in Taiwan have been verbally or physically abused by employers or household members, while less than half seek help, a survey conducted by the Garden of Hope Foundation found.
20. be verbally or physically abused 受到口頭或身體虐待
21. seek help 尋求幫助
希望花園基金會進行的一項調查發現,台灣大約38%的外籍家庭傭工受到雇主或家庭成員的口頭或身體虐待,而不到一半的人尋求幫助。
★★★★★★★★★★★★
About 250,000 migrants work in Taiwanese households, more than 240,000 as caregivers and 1,800 as maids. As shown by 35 percent of respondents, most victims do not seek help after being exploited, physically attacked or even sexually assaulted because they fear losing their job.
22. migrant 移民、移工*
23. caregiver 看護員
24. maid 女傭
25. respondent 受訪者
26. be exploited 被剝削
27. be physically attacked 被人身攻擊
28. be sexually assaulted 被性侵
29. lose one’s job 失去工作
約有25萬移工在台灣家戶裡工作,其中24萬為看護員,1,800為女傭。正如35%的受訪者所表明的,大多數受害者在遭受剝削、人身攻擊甚至性侵後都不會尋求幫助,因為他們擔心失去工作。
*emigration, immigration, migration 的區別: https://bit.ly/36YcP6v
★★★★★★★★★★★★
We need to provide better conditions and treatment for those who come thousands of miles to care for our elderly and the sick. It is the least we can do to thank them for their help.
30. provide better treatment 提供更好的待遇
31. the elderly and the sick 老人和病人
32. the least we can do 我們至少能做到
我們需要為來千里而來照顧我們老人和病人的外籍看護提供更好的條件和待遇。這至少是我們為感謝他們的幫助所該做的。
★★★★★★★★★★★★
資料來源:
https://english.cw.com.tw/article/article.action?id=2281
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2019/12/25/2003728138
http://taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2019/11/23/2003726340
https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2015/02/17/2003611746
https://www.bbc.com/indonesia/majalah-53039490
延伸閱讀:
Why the case of a maid who battled a millionaire has gripped Singapore: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-54174598
Domestic slavery, Maid in Taiwan: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2015/02/17/2003611746
★★★★★★★★★★★★
翻轉視界: https://bit.ly/3fPvKUs
national archives singapore 在 AkwaArifin Youtube 的最讚貼文
aku cuma bagi fakta. bukan nk brainwash sesiapa. korang dah besar kan. boleh fikir sendiri kan haha #akwagang
ni reference video ni : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48r1wJh8z20
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48r1wJh8z20
https://reason.com/archives/2014/05/07/a-short-history-of-game-panics/1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvo-Yep16FY
http://christopherjferguson.com/Meaner%20World.pdf
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-4275262/Countries-play-violent-video-games-safer.html
https://www2.ed.gov/admins/lead/safety/preventingattacksreport.pdf
https://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/releases/gpr-14-2-82.pdf
https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/officials-confirm-ddr-video-newtown-shooter-adam-lanza-article-1.2541644
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6P2fw7ZftF8
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