RIFLE RANGE BOY

My body and mind went overdrive as things typically do while partaking in one of those age-defying mindless Sunday morning recreational run-cycle-run combo of Powerman Malaysia 2023 Edition. Staying mindful of the traffic flow of fellow madmen, the condition of the roads, my heart rate, race timing, the remaining distance to cover and gears, I had my hands figuratively full on top of everything else I was doing. Behind it all, buffering silently in the background, basking in the inebriation of all sanguineous perfusion of flurry vascular tributaries is the creative part of the brain. It wants to keep up with the rest of the body. It, too, tries its hand at neuroplasticity. It sprouts out dendrites to establish long-lost connexions. And it engages in its internal soliloquy. I just happened to be there eavesdropping the murmur.  Life is a battlefield. In modern times, the enemies we are supposed to fight are no longer the co-creations created in His image but the one in the mirror. T...

The Power of the Dog (2021) Director: Jane Campion King David, of the David and Goliath fame, went through troubles after troubles in his kingdom. He prayed to God. In the Book Psalm 22:20, it is said that King David had requested God to ' Deliver my soul from the sword; my darling from the power of the dog.' 'The power of the dogs', which the title refers to, is probably referring to the herd mentality of the mob that is out to humiliate, denigrate and decimate those who do not fall within the standard narrative. These dogs hide their deficiencies behind the strength of the pack. They may doubt their own convictions, but they know cognitive dissonance is too overwhelming. Hence, they just join in the barking match. The best way for the abused to fight the crushing power of the dogs, as suggested by the movie, is to stand tall against the pack. There is no point in clashing head-on against this unruly band but to win them over with wit, on the sly. The message behind th...

Bombshell (2019) They tell you it is right to speak up. How long are you going to be trampled upon? Where is your dignity? It is a matter of principle. You can be the change that you want the world to be. We will back you all the way. So you take the difficult first step. You bite the bullet, stand through the embarrassment, convincing yourself that you are doing it for the greater good. You persevere, you fight a good fight and find yourself drained of your finances. The friends who promised you to stay through thick and thin now become sparse. You proved your case. Your victimisation is proven. You should be happy, but then you have a bitter after-taste. Your image is tarnished. You will forever be frowned upon as a trouble rouser. You are a liability for peaceful coexistence. Somehow you get a feeling that others (read the purveyor of law and order, it seems) who benefitted most. They screamed for justice even though their methods remained much to be desired. You stand alone...

Thrilla in Manila (2008, HBO documentary) They say that nature is a violent creature. There is plenty of evidence that shows that the forces of Nature are both brutal and murderous. Its damage can be mammoth. It has no sympathy for the weak-hearted and even the righteous. It is a necessary evil that ensures only the best survives. Man can be equally inhumane. Over generations, the will to survive as a species has ensured that only the strongest survive. A reflection of our violent past is seen in the society sanctioned a display of legal murderous intent of boxing. Here two individual are put on display to knock each other blind as many around them prosper in more ways than one. We grew up at a time when a live telecast of boxing could paralyse a nation. In the 70s when live broadcast was new, a boxing match held half a globe away was a national event, especially one involving the World Heavyweight Championship, specifically one involving Muhamad Ali. The greatest boxing fight...

Thanks RS for contribution. http://www.theatlantic.com/static/infocus/wwi/introduction/ One hundred years ago, in the summer of 1914, a series of events set off an unprecedented global conflict that ultimately claimed the lives of more than 16 million people, dramatically redrew the maps of Europe, and set the stage for the 20th Century. Alan Taylor APRIL 27, 2014 A century ago, an assassin, a Serbian nationalist, killed the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary  as he visited Sarajevo. This act was the catalyst for a massive conflict that lasted four years.  More than 65 million soldiers were mobilized by more than 30 nations, with battles taking place around the world. Industrialization brought modern weapons, machinery, and tactics to warfare, vastly increasing the killing power of armies. Battlefield conditions were horrific, typified by the chaotic, cratered hellscape of the Western Front, where soldiers in muddy trenches faced bullets, bom...