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memorylang · 2 years

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Southeast Asia in Malaysia and Singapore | #56 | August 2022

Less than two months from now I’ll be back in Mongolia, serving again with the United States Peace Corps. It won’t be long now.

The noble Vanessa from humble beginnings sang “It Won’t Be Long Now” during Lin Manuel-Miranda’s “In the Heights.” I saw his film adaptation June 3, 2O22 aboard my first transatlantic flight since Peace Corps Mongolia’s evacuation 2O2O. The flight saw me from Paris to Detroit, on a particularly bizarre itinerary from Prague through Paris, Detroit and Nashville, ultimately to Kansas City. Thankfully it was affordable!

I’ve nine months of tales to share with you since I last blogged on this site. So much has changed.

On a much needed walk yesterday evening (Aug. 17, 2O22) in the Vegas heat, I pictured as though stretching my hand to a dark, crystalline wall. When my fingers touched its central indent, the crystals' darkness illuminated at once with a multitude of possibilities for future versions of me playing out across the shining walls. I claimed one of these crystal stories and held it close to my heart. From this shard grew more. Before long I was suited in a shimmering armor of cyan, teal and aquamarine. The road ahead would not be easy, yet I felt protected against woes that would attempt to demoralize. I chose the ‘foreign service’ path.

I share this anecdote because I think it suits the ultimate decision from these past nine months of development. In the time since I last wrote here, I have at last become aware again of my sanity’s need for me to log what I find, perhaps to make sense of it. I share the fruits of that sense-making with you.

Consider this blog entry a “Part I of II.” This entry will tackle the winter and spring from here to abroad, December 2O2I through the mid-May 2O22. Part II pick up overseas from May 2O22 through my reacclimating to then leaving again America amid summer’s end.

Why Write Now?

I have another story for you. Earlier that night (Aug. 17), before my walk, I was catching up on “The Chosen,” a series recommended to me by the kind American Christian couple I’d known when I’d lived in Erdenet, Mongolia, fall 2OI9 to spring 2O2O. The next episode for me that night was season 2, episode 2. Coincidentally, I had already seen clips from this one three weekends prior on a Jesuit vocational retreat at their novitiate in Culver City, near Los Angeles. Fr. Radmar Agana Jao, SJ, who led the retreat, played for my fellow nine retreatants and me clips conveying the call of Nathanael.

In that night’s watching, Philip’s kindness to Matthew spoke more to me. Matthew in the series is a writer, who records what happens on the journey. In Matthew I recognized me, who writes because that’s what I do. (Or at least, that’s what I had been doing.) I’m grateful that “The Chosen” Season 3 is in development.

Call to Mission | December 2O2I

Dec. 3, 2O2I, on the Feast of St. Francis Xavier, I received an invitation to serve in Asia with the St. Francis Xavier Lay Missionary Society. As I had written last Nov. 2O2I, I’d been singing first tenor in the Reno Philharmonic Chorus for "Spirit of the Season" concerts at the downtown Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts. I still remember having just parked before our opening night show, sitting with my tuxedo on in the ol’ silver 2OO5 Camry LE when I saw that email they invited me.

Later that December, as I’d written last November, I wound up attending the wedding of my Knights of Columbus mentor Worthy Phillip, who had helped teach me to drive when I was an undergrad. Since flight prices rose too high before my friend Halley had purchased, she couldn’t make it. Serendipitously, the sister of my fellow Knight Thomas had also wanted to attend the wedding. So I attended with Worthy Thomas and two of his sisters. Interestingly, the sister with whom I went attended Benedictine College in Kansas, from where my Dad’s family comes.

I enjoyed staying that weekend on the ranch of my Worthy Brother and attending my first Tridentine Mass with his family the following Sunday. We attended Saint Joseph's Catholic Church in Modesto, Calif. Turns out that Latin I studied during the pandemic’s first autumn came in handy! I hadn’t recalled whether I’d received Holy Communion on my tongue prior to this, so that felt new to me. The kind community reminded me of fellowship at the St. Vincent de Paul parish in which I grew up in southern Indiana till our family’s 2OO8 move.

Extended Family Adventures

Following these, and according to plan, I returned to Vegas for Christmas and headed to Kansas for my first Lang Christmas get-together since perhaps December 2OI4 when I was a senior in high school. For the trip, I stayed with my youngest brother’s godparents, who were also my most Bavarian German and Austrian culturally-inclined uncle and aunt. We spoke so much about the faith I have come to know as a young adult. My uncle had also worked in Singapore and recommended I check out the Bird Park there.

I felt such love among our relatives. We gathered at an older aunt’s home where I still recall having learned to play the card game War as a first grader from my slightly cousin Sarah nearly 2O years ago. (The reason why in June 2O22 I would fly into Kansas City would be to attend her wedding reception in Topeka.) Some relatives were into wearing masks against COVID-19, and others weren’t. Regardless, I kept safe!

Resolution and Formation | January 2O22

Back in Vegas after that heartwarming trip to see my Kansan family, I reunited with ol’ classmates from my high school Class of 2OI5. Of particular delight was reuniting with my friend from even earlier, middle school Class of 2OII, Damaris, who was performing with her band on New Year’s Eve atop Taverna Costera in the Arts District. There I met her rad boyfriend and bandmates, too! I’d driven Dad’s gigantic pick-up again, since my Camry was up in Reno.

My new year’s 2O22 theme was “rhythm.” I quickly realized that rooting my unstructured days and weeks in prayer certainly helped me to have something familiar each day. I began to realize soon how many lovely feast days happen every season!

With the New Year, I was getting back into the swing of attending weekday Masses at my home parish of St. John Neumann. In addition to celebrating the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, I was even present for other Christmastide Masses, including our parish feast day on Jan. 5. After the SJNC feast day Mass, we enjoyed a light reception in the familiar fellowship room.

At fellowship I got to catch up with Mary Santos. A couple years ago, she and I chatted in this very room as I applied to volunteer with the Diocese of Las Vegas as a music minister in our parish. She too recalled our conversation, how we'd chatted chatted about my being a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer fluent in both Mandarin Chinese and Mongolian. Nearly two years later, as a lay missionary postulant tasked with fundraising for my journey back to Asia, Mary was a huge advocate. She recorded me to introduce myself and our cause to the parish through video announcements.

Later that Jan. 5 feast day, I noticed “Violet Evergarden: Echo Through Eternity” on Netflix. I devoured the film at once. I felt deep feels, tearing up on five occasions. To this day, I still listen to Evan Call's music on its soundtrack. I still recall deeply words from its protagonist Violet in her final letter of thanks.

From Austin, Tex. to Los Angeles, Calif.

The next week met again with musician and videographer friend Damaris. I taped with her a Lunar New Year’s piece not long before she would leave for Austin, Tex. Then I left for Austin.

I enjoyed a bittersweet wrap-up of my work at Modern Intelligence with childhood friend Joe. I met new hires since my coming aboard. In Austin I also reunited with one of Damaris’ and my mutual friends from high school, Brian, as well as his kind girlfriend Sofi. (I hadn’t seen them since a fall 2OI8 conference there!) I saw more friends in Austin, too including fellow evacuated Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Malin! I began as well my monthly participation online with the Springtide Ambassador Program in the sociology of religion.

When our week ended, I flew straight to Los Angeles for a National Park trip to Channel Islands with pals Victor, Jared and more. On my flight from Austin to L.A. I felt as though entering the start of a new book, as I return overseas. (Now to finish typing its 2OI7–2O2O predecessor…) In L.A., I took in their Natural History Museum and realized it was the architecturally pretty building that stood across from sister Becky’s campus at graduation May 2O2I, some six months before. The trip with my buddies became my sort of farewell trip, after having for months embarked with them on such travels.

From Reno, Nev. to San Francisco, Calif.

From L.A. I flew back to Reno for a surgery on my remaining health insurance, gave a talk at a local Kiwanis Club virtually, packed what I needed for mission formation, then boarded an Amtrak bus to San Francisco. I arrived that Jan. 2O night. Upon seating for dinner, I found from my director that instead of heading to Hong Kong, for which I was originally invited, we were instead likely to serve in Singapore. The amount of times life has redirected me from China prepared me for this.

The parish with which I stayed in San Francisco happened to be pastored by the same Fr. Illo who had presided before in Modesto. So the family with whom I stayed in December also knew him. To my great amazement, teachers I met at the parish had also been childhood friends of my Brother Knight Thomas, at whose home I'd stayed the month before, in December!

On a weeknight Mass in the parish, we also received Communion on the tongue, which now felt a little more familiar. I loved gazing at the fresco of Mary in this Stella Maris “Star of the Sea” shrine church. I loved access to perpetual adoration there, too.

Preparations and Patience | February and March 2O22

After formation with the lovely Dominicans of St. Dominic’s, Salesians at St. Peter’s and Paul’s, Missionaries of Charity in Pacifica and Franciscans at Stella Maris, I frantically caught a Greyhound back to Reno. Events led me to feel the great inspiration to continue learning about St. Teresa of Ávila, among my heroes. I also felt curious to investigate this St. Edith Stein about whom I kept hearing.

I continued my formation practices of the Divine Office and Eucharist weekday mornings. A morning at our local Carmelite Monastery, gazing down at my brown scapular labeled “Our Lady of Mt. Carmel,” I inquired about St. Teresa. Sr. Cecelia delighted at my question and brought from the library St. Teresa’s “The Life.” Sr. Cecelia also mentioned to me that St. Edith Stein had read this very story and converted. What a patron!

I took time in Reno to drive where I used to live in Sparks on Wildcreek Drive. The week after, I packed all my Reno belongings and drove the farewell road with my Camry down to Vegas. ‘Twas my first and only time to make the solo trip. Days later, Feb. 2I, 2O22, I sold my Camry to my youngest stepsister at the price for which I bought it. I was a grateful steward of the venerable machine. I’d retrieved from it my phone mount and Bluetooth connector and transferred these to Dad’s truck.

Having Sold My Possession

Throughout March, I prayed with local Third Order Carmelites in formation at my home parish, St. John Neumann, as I waited to go on mission. Three times I had to rebook my Southwest flight from Vegas to California. International delays postponed my flight from Vegas to Singapore, which would land ultimately in Malaysia, where our trip would begin. In the meantime, I finished, with generous support from parishioners and Knights of Columbus, my fundraising. What a relief.

Since my beloved pastor Fr. Nathan in Reno announced his retirement, I returned to Reno after students’ spring break, riding with the undergraduate Glee Club president, a friendly Lutheran senior. I stayed with an Australian friend and his family, hearing stories from travel to Malaysia and Singapore years ago. In Reno, I witnessed the dress rehearsal of this year’s Living Stations of the Cross. This was the first performance in person since 2O2O. I also spoke with Fr. Nathan, who suggested I consider after mission priesthood with the Society of Jesus.

During my last days in Vegas before mission, I had the opportunity to attend the funeral of a beloved priest, Fr. Philip O'Donnell. Apparently he had been a champion of the Tridentine Mass in Vegas. I felt stunned to hear in our auxiliary bishop’s homily that Fr. O'Donnell had also frequented both St. Dominic’s in SF and the Carmel of Reno. During my night before mission departure, I attended the Chrism Mass and saw again old friends, including, to my amazement, the Deacon Dan who presided over my mother’s funeral five years ago.

Malaysia and Singapore | April and May 2O22

I left Vegas for Los Angeles on April 1, no joke. Getting through LAX with the COVID-19 PCR test was nuts. I made it aboard. Getting to know two flight attendants on Singapore Airlines felt touching.

I arrived in Kuala Lumpur then Petaling Jaya (PJ), Selangor, Malaysia. (I later learned that a high school classmate of mine was born in PJ!) In PJ, my director and I attended a Congregatio Discipulorum Domini (CDD, Congregation of the Disciples of the Lord) parish St. Ignatius.

Turns out the father of the host family with which we stayed is a Kiwanian, wow! I loved the Chinese Catholic communities overseas. My director and I also served in KL with a street ministry. And Ramadan was going on while we were there. I found hearing the call to prayer so different. I loved how by sundown the whole city came alive with celebration.

For Holy Triduum, my director and I celebrated in Melaka. In Melaka I felt amazed to walk the hallowed grounds of a 152I church named for my confirmation St. Paul, where our patron St. Francis Xavier once frequented in life. I bartered for a lovely short-sleeve dark blue Chinese-style shirt and bought postcards to write as thank-yous, too. During Eastertide we traveled to Johor Bahru, through the Woodlands and into Singapore.

Singapore

In Singapore, my director and I stayed with a Franciscan parish, St. Mary of the Angels. We frequented a Jesuit parish St. Ignatius on Sundays to present to and sing with their youthful De Vita Christi music ministry. I supported a diocesan parish group on the east side certain days too.

I spent time also with a Carmelite parish that celebrated the Tridentine Mass. So that May I’d gotten to celebrate the Latin Mass for my second time, since Modesto, Calif.! (Coincidentally, 'twas May 8 in the U.S., the fifth anniversary of Mother's passing.)

On my first week's day of rest, I checked out the Bird Park recommended to me by my Kansan uncle. Other days off saw me by the Bay as functions reopened for the first time since pandemic closures. I loved the musical-themed Garden Rhapsody, the peculiar Merlion and other opportunities for witness. I felt surprised to learn the Marina Bay Sands was owned by the same Sands as that in Vegas! Singaporeans knew 'Vegas' when I said that's where I'm from.

I’ve plenty more to share about mission, but I’m still processing. I published five stories overseas, though:

From Vegas to Asia - Daniel Lang on a mission for God (April 22, 2O22)

Chinese ancestry, Mum’s death and first journey to Asia (April 3O, 2O22)

God’s authorship, spanning generations and places (May 7, 2O22)

Companions in Mary, St Paul and Matteo Ricci (May 2O, 2O22)

To Thank and Encourage People We Served (June 2, 2O22)

Leaving Singapore

Toward the end of mission, my director said a campus outreach minister role at Purdue University in my childhood state of Indiana may be possible for me with a Dominican. I took this to prayer on my first silent retreat during my final mission weekend. The retreat curiously took place at the same retreat centre where I first went for a recollection on my first Singapore weekend.

By late May, on my last day in Singapore, my friends Murshed and Sarah (who wed December 2OI9) arrived from Bangladesh. We saw the Spectra light show on the Bay then took what I think was a Grab (Uber/Lyft equivalent) to the airport. Then began Day 1 the pilgrimage, travel to Munich, Germany, where we would meet up with Fr. Nathan, parishioners from Reno and others.

Day 2, having landed amid the sandy skies of Doha, Qatar, I boarded for Germany. Turns out my luggage got lost somewhere between Qatar and Germany, though. I found this out after at last getting through immigration in Germany. So, those first nights I had just my backpack. I thrifted a sleek white button-up, at least!

Up Next: Germany and Austria

Here are enough stories for now. Thursday morning, Aug. 18 (today, in fact), I made the executive decision to separate the back half of this blog from the front. I’d already finished 2OOO words last night and figured more would come. Indeed, I put in another 2OOO this afternoon at the Aliante Public Library in North Las Vegas. So I came home to flesh out the rest, which you've read here. Now you have the more to anticipate when September starts!

I look forward to bringing back the blog when I'm in Mongolia again.

You can read more from me here at DanielLang.me :)

#Peace Corps #Mongolia #memoir #story #Catholic #God #memoryLang #USA #Germany #Las Vegas #summer #Austria #Singapore #Coronavirus #COVID-19 #Nevada #culture shock #Malaysia #WithMe #pilgrimage

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krazyshoppy · 2 years

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सिंगापुर के उप प्रधानमंत्री जर्मनी में कोरोना वायरस से संक्रमित हुए, आधिकारिक दौरा किया रद्द

सिंगापुर: सिंगापुर (Singapore) के उप प्रधानमंत्री (Deputy Prime Minister) हेंग स्वी कीट (Heng Swee Keat) ने रविवार को बताया कि जर्मनी (Germany) में कोविड-19 (COVID-19) जांच के दौरान उनमें संक्रमण की पुष्टि हुई है और चूंकि वह आइसोलेशन (Isolation) में रह रहे हैं, इसलिए यूरोप का अपना आधिकारिक दौरा जारी नहीं रख सकते. 61 वर्षीय हेंग ने फेसबुक पर लिखा कि यूरोप दौरे के दौरान उन्होंने न सिर्फ हर समय…

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#Coronavirus #COVID-19 #deputy cm #Europe #germany #Singapore #कोरोनावायरस #कोविड-19 #जर्मनी #डिप्टी सीएम #यूरोप #सिंगापुर

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don-lichterman · 2 years

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Relief, Revival as Singapore Scraps Its COVID Curbs | World News

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Office workers queued for trains, restaurants and elevators and delivery riders raced from building to building as the buzz returned to Singapore’s business district on Tuesday, its first day free of COVID curbs. The city-state’s high-rise commercial heart of global banks, malls and tech firms was in full swing again, with swarms of people headed to work and queues outside…

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#Collections: World #Coronavirus #Covid #curbs #epidemics #News #Relief #Reuters #Revival #Scraps #Singapore #Vaccines #World #World News

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dreaminginthedeepsouth · 5 months

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LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

November 16, 2023

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

NOV 17, 2023

The summit of the leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies continued today in San Francisco, California.

Formed in 1989, APEC is made up of the economies of 21 nations around the Pacific Rim: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Chile, Peru, Russia, Vietnam, and the United States. Together, these economies make up about 62% of global gross domestic product and almost half of global trade.

David Sanger of the New York Times today noted an apparent shift in the power dynamic between President Joe Biden and Chinese president Xi Jinping, who met yesterday for a four-hour conversation. Earlier in his presidency, Xi was riding on a strong economy that overshadowed that of the U.S. and looked as if it would continue to do so. Then, Xi favored what was known as “wolf warrior” diplomacy: the aggressive defense of China’s national interests against what Chinese envoys portrayed as foreign hostility, especially that of the U.S.

Under that diplomatic regime, Xi emphasized that liberal democracy was too weak to face the twenty-first century. The speed and momentous questions of the new era called for strong leaders, he said. In early February 2022, Russia and China held a summit after which they pledged that the “[f]riendship between the two States has no limits.”

Things have changed.

The U.S. has emerged from the coronavirus pandemic with a historically strong economy, while China’s economy is reeling from a real estate bubble and deflation at the same time that government crackdowns have made foreign capital flee. This summer, Xi quietly sidelined Qin Gang, the foreign minister associated with wolf warrior diplomacy, and in October, he replaced Defense Minister General Li Shangfu, who is under U.S. sanctions for overseeing weapon purchases from Russia.

Indeed, China has also been quietly pushing back from its close embrace of Russia. Just weeks after their February 2022 declaration, Russia invaded Ukraine in an operation that Russian president Vladimir Putin almost certainly expected would be quick and successful, permitting Russia to seize key Ukrainian ports and land. Such a victory would have strengthened both Russia and China at the same time it weakened Europe, the United States, and their allies and partners.

Instead, Ukraine stood firm, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and allies and partners have stood behind the embattled country. As the war has stretched on, sanctions have cut into the Russian economy and Putin has had to cede power to Xi, accepting the Chinese yuan in exchange for Russian commodities, for example. This week, Alberto Nardelli of Bloomberg reported that the European Union is considering another round of sanctions, including a ban on the export of machine tools and machinery parts that enable Russia to make ammunition.

In a piece at the Center for European Policy Analysis today, Julia Davis, who monitors Russian media, noted that Russia lost an extraordinary 997,000 people between October 2020 and September 2021, even before the war began. Now it is so desperate to increase its population that its leadership claims to have stolen as many as 700,000 Ukrainian children and is urging women to have as many children as possible.

Holly Ellyatt of CNBC noted that to the degree they even mentioned it, Russian media sniped at the Biden-Xi summit, but it was hard to miss that although Russian president Putin was not welcome to attend, Xi came and engaged in several high-level meetings, assuring potential investors that China wants to be friends with the U.S. Also hard to miss was Xi’s pointed comment that the China-U.S. relationship “is the most important bilateral relationship in the world.”

Going into this summit, then, the U.S. had the leverage to get agreements from China to crack down on the precursor chemicals that Chinese producers have been shipping to Latin America to make illegal fentanyl, restore military communications between the two countries now that Li has been replaced, and make promises about addressing climate change. Other large issues of trade and the independence of Taiwan will not be resolved so easily.

Still, it was a high point for President Biden, whose economic policies and careful investment in diplomatic alliances have helped to shift the power dynamic between the U.S. and two countries that were key geopolitical rivals when he took office. Now, both the U.S. and China appear to be making an effort to move forward on better terms. Indeed, Chinese media has shifted its tone about the U.S. and the APEC summit so quickly readers have expressed surprise.

Today, Biden emphasized “the unlimited potential of our partnerships…to realize a future that will benefit people not only in the Asia-Pacific region but the whole world,… [a] future where our prosperity is shared and is inclusive, where workers are empowered and their rights are respected, where our economies are sustainable and resilient.”

Biden and administration officials noted that companies from across the Asia-Pacific world have invested nearly $200 billion in the U.S. since Biden took office, creating tens of thousands of good jobs, while the U.S. has elevated its engagement with the region, holding bilateral talks, creating new initiatives and deepening economic partnerships.

Today, Biden and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo announced that the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, an economic forum established last year as a nonbinding replacement for the Trans-Pacific Partnership former president Trump abruptly pulled out of, had agreed on terms to set up an early warning system for disruptions to supply chains, cooperation on clean energy, and fighting corruption and tax evasion.

In a very different event in San Francisco today, a federal jury convicted David DePape, 43, of attempted kidnapping and assault on account of a federal official’s performance of official duties for his attack on former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband Paul with a hammer on October 28 of last year, fracturing his skull.

DePape’s lawyers did not contest the extensive evidence against him but tried to convince the jury that DePape did not commit a federal crime because he did not attack Pelosi on account of Representative Pelosi’s official position. Instead, they said, DePape had embraced the language of right-wing lawmakers and pundits and believed in a conspiracy theory that pedophile elites had taken over the country and were spreading lies about former president Donald Trump.

DePape told jurors he had come to conspiracy theories through Gamergate, a 2014–2015 misogynistic online campaign of harassment against women in the video game industry, which turned into attacks on feminism, diversity, and progressive ideas. Trump ally Steve Bannon talked of pulling together the Gamergate participants behind Trump and his politics.

Also today, a subcommittee of the House Ethics Committee set up to investigate allegations against Representative George Santos (R-NY) issued its report. The Republican-dominated committee found that Santos had lied about his background during his campaign and, furthermore, that he appears to be a serial liar. Those lies also “include numerous misrepresentations to the government and the public about his and his campaign’s financial activities.”

That is, the committee found, Santos defrauded his campaign donors, falsified his financial records, and used campaign money on beauty products, rent, luxury items from Hermes and Ferragamo, and purchases at the website Only Fans. The subcommittee recommended the Ethics Committee refer Santos to the Department of Justice, and “publicly condemn Representative Santos, whose conduct [is] beneath the dignity of the office” and who has “brought severe discredit upon the House.”

Santos says he will not run for reelection.

—

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

#Letters From An American #Heather Cox Richardson #Ethics #Santos #Xi #China US relations #Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)#gamergate #Pelosi

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mariacallous · 10 months

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In the first four months of the Covid-19 pandemic, government leaders paid $100 million for management consultants at McKinsey to model the spread of the coronavirus and build online dashboards to project hospital capacity.

It's unsurprising that leaders turned to McKinsey for help, given the notorious backwardness of government technology. Our everyday experience with online shopping and search only highlights the stark contrast between user-friendly interfaces and the frustrating inefficiencies of government websites—or worse yet, the ongoing need to visit a government office to submit forms in person. The 2016 animated movie Zootopia depicts literal sloths running the DMV, a scene that was guaranteed to get laughs given our low expectations of government responsiveness.

More seriously, these doubts are reflected in the plummeting levels of public trust in government. From early Healthcare.gov failures to the more recent implosions of state unemployment websites, policymaking without attention to the technology that puts the policy into practice has led to disastrous consequences.

The root of the problem is that the government, the largest employer in the US, does not keep its employees up-to-date on the latest tools and technologies. When I served in the Obama White House as the nation’s first deputy chief technology officer, I had to learn constitutional basics and watch annual training videos on sexual harassment and cybersecurity. But I was never required to take a course on how to use technology to serve citizens and solve problems. In fact, the last significant legislation about what public professionals need to know was the Government Employee Training Act, from 1958, well before the internet was invented.

In the United States, public sector awareness of how to use data or human-centered design is very low. Out of 400-plus public servants surveyed in 2020, less than 25 percent received training in these more tech-enabled ways of working, though 70 percent said they wanted such training.

But knowing how to use new technology does not have to be an afterthought, and in some places it no longer is. In Singapore, the Civil Service Training College requires technology and digital-skills training for its 145,000 civilian public servants. Canada’s “Busrides” training platform gives its quarter-million public servants short podcasts on topics like data science, AI, and machine learning to listen to during their commutes. In Argentina, career advancement and salary raises are tied to the completion of training in human-centered design and data-analytical thinking. When public professionals possess these skills—learning how to use technology to work in more agile ways, getting smarter from both data and community engagement—we all benefit.

Today I serve as chief innovation officer for the state of New Jersey, working to improve state websites that deliver crucial information and services. When New Jersey’s aging mainframe strained under the load of Covid jobless claims, for example, we wrote forms in plain language, simplified and eliminated questions, revamped the design, and made the site mobile-friendly. Small fixes that came from sitting down and listening to claimants translated into 48 minutes saved per person per application. New Jersey also created a Covid-19 website in three days so that the public had the information they wanted in one place. We made more than 134,000 updates as the pandemic wore on, so that residents benefited from frequent improvements.

Now with the explosion of interest in artificial intelligence, Congress is turning its attention to ensuring that those who work in government learn more about the technology. US senators Gary Peters (D-Michigan) and Mike Braun (R-Indiana) are calling for universal leadership training in AI with the AI Leadership Training Act, which is moving forward to the full Senate for consideration. The bill directs the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the federal government's human resources department, to train federal leadership in AI basics and risks. However, it does not yet mandate the teaching of how to use AI to improve how the government works.

The AI Leadership Training Act is an important step in the right direction, but it needs to go beyond mandating basic AI training. It should require that the OPM teach public servants how to use AI technologies to enhance public service by making government services more accessible, providing constant access to city services, helping analyze data to understand citizen needs, and creating new opportunities for the public to participate in democratic decisionmaking.

For instance, cities are already experimenting with AI-based image generation for participatory urban planning, while San Francisco’s PAIGE AI chatbot is helping to answer business owners' questions about how to sell to the city. Helsinki, Finland, uses an AI-powered decisionmaking tool to analyze data and provide recommendations on city policies. In Dubai, leaders are not just learning AI in general, but learning how to use ChatGPT specifically. The legislation, too, should mandate that the OPM not just teach what AI is, but how to use it to serve citizens.

In keeping with the practice in every other country, the legislation should require that training to be free. This is already the case for the military. On the civilian side, however, the OPM is required to charge a fee for its training programs. A course titled Enabling 21st-Century Leaders, for example, costs $2,200 per person. Even if the individual applies to their organization for reimbursement, too often programs do not have budgets set aside for up-skilling.

If we want public servants to understand AI, we cannot charge them for it. There is no need to do so, either. Building on a program created in New Jersey, six states are now collaborating with each other in a project called InnovateUS to develop free live and self-paced learning in digital, data, and innovation skills. Because the content is all openly licensed and designed specifically for public servants, it can easily be shared across states and with the federal government as well.

The Act should also demand that the training be easy to find. Even if Congress mandates the training, public professionals will have a hard time finding it without the physical infrastructure to ensure that public servants can take and track their learning about tech and data. In Germany, the federal government’s Digital Academy offers a single site for digital up-skilling to ensure widespread participation. By contrast, in the United States, every federal agency has its own (and sometimes more than one) website where employees can look for training opportunities, and the OPM does not advertise its training across the federal government. While the Department of Defense has started building USALearning.gov so that all employees could eventually have access to the same content, this project needs to be accelerated.

The Act should also require that data on the outcomes of AI training be collected and published. The current absence of data on federal employee training prevents managers, researchers, and taxpayers from properly evaluating these training initiatives. More comprehensive information about our public workforce, beyond just demographics and job titles, could be used to measure the impact of AI training on cost savings, innovation, and performance improvements in serving the American public.

Unlike other political reforms that could take generations to achieve in our highly partisan and divisive political climate, investing in people—teaching public professionals how to use AI and the latest technology to work in more agile, evidence-based, and participatory ways to solve problems—is something we can do right now to create institutions that are more responsive, reliable, and deserving of our trust.

I understand the hesitance to talk about training people in government. When I worked for the Obama White House, the communications team was reluctant to make any public pronouncements about investing in government lest we be labeled “Big Government” advocates. Since the Reagan years, Republicans have promoted a “small government” narrative. But what matters to most Americans is not big or small but that we have a better government.

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pcsasg · 6 months

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Is social media useful in spreading information on covid-19 in Malaysia or your country? What is your opinion?

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Hi there! This week’s blog is about public health and we will dive a little about the coronavirus disease, also known as covid-19 and in days gone by, named 2019 novel coronavirus. Coronavirus was first spotted at one of open air “wet market” in Wuhan, China. Afterwards, during that time, there was an assumption that there might a coronavirus originated in one of lab in China as a biological weapon. However, the newest reports concur that the coronavirus is not an engineered virus being developed to become a biological weapon.

What is social media role during coronavirus issue?

According to (Abbas et al., 2021), people usage time on social media is higher than usual during COVID-19 pandemic period since social media is the only platform where people can search for health information for their own and their loved one’s benefits. Due to global crisis and health disaster during the pandemic, social medias have become the most welcome relief for people.

(Abbas et al., 2021) also stated, typically, users will create or share about health information that already available via local or international sources as their response to an international public health issue.

As social media platforms can bring impacts to people, people also need someone who can share their own life experience or their knowledge about health issue and shared their experience or knowledge about health information. This method called peer support. The peer support concept on social media is referring to health information that will help people to know more about Covid-19 pandemic issue. People will be searching for health-related news regarding to Covid-19 pandemic in their social media account, for example the most common one is Facebook. Since Covid-19 pandemic brought “culture shock” to the world, people will be searching for the detailed health-related update and stay keep in touch with family, friends and peers. Public communication and interaction searching for accurate information and opportunity of Covid-19 to create proper virus prevention on social media. Since social media provides the latest news and trustable information to the world, social media have become the central role in answering in global health crisis issue.

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Social media and electronic government (E-government) role during Covid-19 pandemic in Malaysia

Image from YouTube

First Covid-19 case detected in Malaysia after three individuals had a close contact with one individual in Singapore. They had their trip into Malaysia from Singapore on January 24th 2020 and tested positive on January 25th 2020. After that, on the February 4th 2020, the very first Malaysian was tested positive Covid-19 after he returned from Singapore and started to cough and had fever.

During the pandemic time, the Ministry of Health of Malaysia take advantages of social media to educate and spread the awareness to the public about the Covid-19 precautions. On 18th March 2020 until 18th April 2020, the Malaysia Government implemented Movement Control Order (MCO) to control the Covid-19 from widespread.

During the entire period of Covid-19, social media accounts for example like X (previously known as Twitter) and WeChat were used to share the updates about preventive measure and healthcare. After Tan Sri Muhyiddin implemented MCO, the media started to actively using the #stayhome hashtag to spread the awareness. The government of Malaysia come up with enough latest information to the public via the Official Portal of the Ministry of Health Malaysia, verified Facebook page named Kementerian Kesihatan Malaysia posted about the Crisis Preparedness and Response Center (CRPC) and Telegram channel named CPRC KKM.

The Malaysia government also launched one application that can only used on mobile named MySejahtera in April 20202 to help all the users to keep track of their health progress, helping the authorities to collect the latest information, check in location and come up with the most essential and fast reply.

Screenchot of CPRC KKM telegram page

Screenshot of KKM Facebook page

Now, if you ask me, i would definitely say yes. I do agree that social media is useful in spreading information on Covid-19 because through social media is the way that Ministry of Health Malaysia can reach out to the people since gathering is not allowed during the MCO period. People will depend on social media to stay connected with their family or friend and also to get the latest update regarding to health issues.

Image from Facebook

References

Brennan, D. (2022) Coronavirus history: How did coronavirus start?Dan, WebMD. Available at: https://www.webmd.com/covid/coronavirus-history (Accessed: 01 November 2023).

Abbas, J. et al. (2021) Social media technology during COVID-19: RMHP, Risk Management and Healthcare Policy. Available at: https://www.dovepress.com/the-role-of-social-media-in-the-advent-of-covid-19-pandemic-crisis-man-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-

Elengoe, A. (2020, June). Covid-19 outbreak in Malaysia. Osong public health and research perspectives. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7258884/#:~:text=On%20the%2025th%20January,the%2024th%20January%202020.

Ahamd, N. S., Zulkifli Hussain, Abd Hamid, H. S., & Khairani, A. Z. (2021, July 10). Roles of social media and counselling support in reducing anxiety among Malaysian during COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212420921004179

Kahe. (2021, May 4). Important role of social media during pandemic disaster. Karpagam Academy of Higher Education. https://kahedu.edu.in/important-role-of-social-media-during-pandemic-disaster/

Md Shah, A. U., Azrie Safri, S. N., Thevadas, R., Noordin, N. K., Abd Rahman, A., Sekawi, Z., Ideris, A., Hameed Sultan, M. T., & h. (2020, June 2). Covid-19 outbreak in Malaysia: Actions taken by the Malaysian government. International Journal of Infectious Diseases. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1201971220304008#:~:text=The%20Government%20of%20Malaysia%20enforced,personal%20protective%20equipment%20for%20frontliners.

Mat Dawi, N., Namazi, H., Hwang, H. J., Ismail, S., Maresova, P., & Krejcar, O. (2021, January 27). Attitude toward protective behavior engagement during covid-19 pandemic in Malaysia: The role of E-government and Social Media. Frontiers. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.609716/full#:~:text=Malaysia%20residents%20can%20get%20information,of%20CPRC%20KKM%20(24).

#Week7 #MDA20009

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crazylucciola · 1 year

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Do you want to come to Italy to study? Prepare yourself.

I was scrolling on Instagram yesterday and I came across an italian account: toxicschool. In their posts I saw one talking about the differences between Italian school or American school. I agree with them school Is toxic we have to Improve it. But should we see deep the world of scholarships in our globe?

State grade Percentage of GDP spent on education

1 Guinea Equatorial 0.7%

2 Myanmar 0.8%

3 Central African Republic 1.2%

4 Zambia 1.3%

5 United Arab Emirates 1.3%

6 Monaco 1.6%

7 Lebanon 1.6%

8 Liberia 1.9%

9 Sri Lanka 2.0%

10 Eritrea 2.1%

11 Liechtenstein 2.1%

12 Guinea-Bissau 2.1%

13 Dominican Republic 2.2%

14 Libia 2.3%

15 Iraq 2.3%

16 Pakistan 2.4%

17 Zimbabwe 2.5%

18 Qatar 2.5%

19 Antigua and Barbuda 2.5%

20 Democratic Republic of the Congo 2.5%

21 Chad 2.6%

22 Peru 2.6%

23 Cambodia 2.6%

24 Sierra Leone 2.7%

25 Georgia 2.7%

(Guinea Equatorial)

This is the ranking of the worst schools in the world. What's about the best schools in the world?

1.South Korea.

2.Japan.

3.Singapore.

4.Hong Kong.

5.Finland.

6.United Kingdom.

7.Canada.

8.Netherlands.

(South Korea)

In the world there are 244 million young people and children, between 6 and 18 years old, who do not go to school. This was announced by Avvenire, which points out that, of these, 40% live in sub-Saharan Africa, of which 20.2 million only in Nigeria.

So now we know the baddest and best schools in the world, but what's the school system more stressful?

Stress, especially when prolonged over time, can lead to many health problems, from the simplest to the most serious, because it alters the immune system: skin diseases, dry mouth and memory lapses, and, in the most serious cases, even heart problems.

The WeWorld report highlights how the Italian school system is one of the most stressful in the world: more than half of students say they feel nervous while studying, compared to an OECD average of 37%.

Among the 3651 students surveyed, 9 out of 10 confirm that they experience anxiety and/or stress before taking written and oral tests.

I'm an Italian student. I can confirm it.

But why do I think that is really bad the organization?

Is outdated and overly theoretical curricula, inadequate technological equipment, poor teacher motivation, school buildings and overcrowded classrooms. These are the 5 main weaknesses of the Italian school system, beyond the Coronavirus emergency that has further complicated the situation.

How is the Italian school system organized?

State compulsory schools are free and divided as follows: Primary school (elementary) - from 6 to 11 years, compulsory; Lower secondary school (middle) - from 11 to 14 years, compulsory; Upper secondary school from 14 to 19 years, compulsory up to 16 years old.

How toxic is the Italian school?

The European Commission brings us back to our difficult reality: Italy is among the five worst in Europe (out of 28) for dropouts: 17.6% of pupils leave their desks too early against the EU average of 12.7%.(-23 Oct 2016.)

My Testimony:

Italian school is really though, not because we have more hour to do but because teachers never said thing that can motivate us. They kick our butt if we aren't what they want us to be. If aren't good in their subjects we are a bunch of losers.

They insult us saying that we are going to make anything in our life. They said that to children, kids and teenagers.

For the new generation they have reserved us a bullshit.

Teachers don't teach us to live. They teach us about somethings that we have to know but they don't tell us how to survive.

In Italian we have two different options for saying teacher. "Maestro" is the one that teaches you life lessons explaining traditional lessons, "Professore" is the teacher that teaches you traditional lessons without a lesson . And I met only two teachers that are "Maestri".

#school #social justice #teacher #school curriculum #stress #students #my opinion

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