SIMULATING BEING OLD

Source: Straits Times

Would caregivers for the elderly do a better job if they could experience the daily challenges that their patients or loved ones go through?

The Tsao Foundation of Singapore believes so. The voluntary welfare organization has been running workshops to train staff of the SingHealth group to better understand the daily challenges faced by the elderly in carrying out simple tasks. So far 400 of the 20,000 employees have attended the workshops in batches.

My mom's daily calendar on the left, and my wallet-size 2010 calendar on the right. As we age, we need larger text to enhance readability.

Given that about one in 11 Singaporeans today is aged 65 and above, and one in five by 2030, this initiative is timely.

Workshop participants don partially blurred glasses to experience what it is like to perform tasks like reading labels on medicine bottles, or buttoning up a shirt with their fingers bandaged and unable to bend.

If you have missed this year's programme, make sure you sign up for it in 2011. 

Malaysian Healthy Ageing Society conducts a comprehensive training programme for caregivers for the elderly. If you are looking after an elderly parent or relative, you will find the 2-day programme extremely helpful.

CREDIT CARD DISCRIMINATON AGAINST RETIREES

Source: Straits Times

Over the past weeks disgruntled readers, mostly senior citizens, have written to the Straits Times complaining about being discriminated against when applying for credit cards. I can empathize with them as it too happened to me several years ago when my credit card application was rejected by Public Bank. It was my first encounter with age discrimination, and my first bitter taste of a loss of self-esteem. I was left with no choice but to apply for a supplementary card under my daughter's name in Singapore and my other daughter's name in Malaysia.

Once you hit retirement age, banks assume you are no longer credit-worthy. Overnight you become persona non grata and considered a credit risk, never mind that you may have an impressive share portfolio or healthy FDs with the banks. What is of paramount concern to them is that applicants must have a steady monthly income.

Younger people have hardly any savings and habitually run up credit card debts. Yet they are able to apply for multiple credit cards just because they have a regular job, whereas retirees with sizeable savings and investments are considered a financial security risk. How absolutely ridiculous!

The media focus on this issue has put banks on the defensive. DBS, OCBC, UOB, HSBC and Standard Chartered have reiterated that they do not discriminate against elderly credit card applicants. Maybank says elderly applicants are eligible for a 'secured credit card' provided they have at least S$10,000 in fixed deposits to cover any credit card debts incurred.

The banks can say all they want about welcoming eligible applicants regardless of age, but rejected applicants tell a different story on the Straits Times online forum. Banks need to work on their credibility quotient as much as they expect their older customers to be credit-worthy.

It's high time banks re-looked their eligibility criteria for older credit card applicants. With Singapore's ageing population on the rise, banks will stand to lose out if they continue to practise discriminatory policies against the elderly.

NO MORE EXCUSES TO REMAIN TECH-ILLITERATE

In this day and age, I am often amazed at the number of older people I meet who confess to being computer-illiterate. They tell me they regret not picking up pc-skills in their younger days, yet refuse to entertain any suggestions to learn. Their stock response: "Oh, I'm too old. Technology is for young people." They probably don't see the benefits of being tech-savvy at their age.

It's all to do with attitude and interest, and nothing to do with age. Lillian Lowe is proof of this. She turns 104 in two months, and is probably the world's oldest Facebook user. She regularly accesses her Facebook account from her grandson's iPad. She signed up only a few weeks ago to keep track of what her seven grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren are up to, and is now a huge fan of the social networking site.

Some of the students I teach at the open university are in their 50s and 60s. They come to my Learning Skills class with zero knowledge of pc basics. But after just one hands-on session at the computer lab, they are ready to do their research and assignments using their new pc-skills. It is that easy to learn the basics these days, unlike the 1980s when we had to learn all the DOS commands to perform simple computer functions.

Do forward the website at http://www.teachparentstech.org/ to your friends.

Google has come up with a 'TECH SUPPORT' care package that you can send to your parents (or grandparents, grandaunts and granduncles). The package consists of short videos with simple step-by-step instructions on how to perform basics e.g. how to copy and paste (a favourite with students!) and how to make text bigger (a favourite with older folks!).

There are other categories as well, including how to access the world wide web and use online communication tools for social networking. I discovered this technical care package on Eldergadget, a must-visit website if you are interested in elder-friendly gadgets and gizmos. Or if you are looking for the top 10 pick of Christmas gifts for your friends.

No more excuses to remain pc-illiterate. And welcome to a whole new world of knowledge, fun-learning and social networking.

AGE-DEFYING MARRIAGES

In 2006, centenarian granny Wook Kundor married her 23rd husband. She was 104 at the time, and he was 34. Recently, an under-aged 14-year school girl married her 23-year old teacher. The public furor hasn't even died down yet, and now we have another marriage that's making headline news around the world. I am referring to the marriage of Chief Minister of Sarawak, Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, 74, to a 28-year old former Lebanese flight attendant.

Is Malaysia becoming a land of age-defying marriages?

 Grandma Wook is a picture of joy in the arms of her husband. She claims she has a secret recipe to keep her husband happy.

 

Abdul Manan and his student-bride 14-year old Siti Maryam. Their marriage was approved by the Syariah Court. Can a young man of 23 remain faithful to his wife for the rest of his life? For a Muslim man, this isn't a problem as he can have four wives. Or he can choose to divorce his current wife and marry again. All it takes is for the man to 'utter the divorce declaration' to his wife, and if the Syariah Court approves it, the divorce becomes valid. 

 

No small feat for a 74-year old grandpa with 15 grandchildren to win the heart of a beautiful 28-year old woman. He must be the envy of men everywhere. If age is not on your side, being immensely wealthy helps.

IS AN INTERFAITH COUNCIL A PIPE DREAM?

Click on image to enlarge.

Came across the above while clearing my backlog of papers this morning. It's a picture we will never see in Malaysia - a Rabbi, a Buddhist monk and a Muslim cleric chatting and smiling at an interfaith dinner. Indeed, every attempt to set up an interfaith council to foster religious harmony has been shot down by the BN government for 101 reasons mostly to do with FEAR - from fear of causing confusion to fear of conversion, plus all the 99 other reasons in between.

What we have instead is the Malaysian Consultative Council on Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism. How can this council be effective when the majority faith is not represented? How can we ever have a platform to discuss interfaith issues affecting the citizens, especially the minority groups?

The Inter-Religious Organization of Singapore (IRO) was launched in 1949 as the Inter-Religious Organisation of Singapore and Johor Bahru. In 1961 it was renamed the IRO. Members come from the 10 major religions: Hinduism, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Taoism, Jainism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, and the Bahai Faith.

This year's recipient of the annual IRO award went to 72-year old Mufti Syed Isa Mohamed Semait, possibly the world's longest serving mufti. He will be retiring after 38 years of service. The award is a recognition of his role in linking the Muslim community to other faiths. He also received the Public Administration Medal (Gold) at the 2009 National Day awards, for the advice and guidance he provided to the Muslim community and the Government on matters pertaining to Islam.

Bearing in mind that Muslims form only 15% of the population, both awards speak volumes about interfaith harmony in the island nation.

Now imagine a similar award being given to a leader of a minority religious group in Malaysia. Oh dear, even in my wildest of imagination I have difficulty visualizing such a picture!

CALLING A SPADE A SPADE

(Source: The Sunday Age)

No need to waste any more energy protesting about our draconian Official Secrets Act. Wikileaks is doing everyone a favour by releasing classified documents. And governments all over are squirming.

I happened to be at an SABM dinner talk on Saturday night where MP Khairy Jamaluddin was the guest speaker, when he received an sms informing him that his name was mentioned in the latest Wikileaks. Peter Ho, former head of the Singapore civil service was quoted as saying at a meeting in 2008: “The political knives will be out for Abdullah’s son-in-law, Umno politician Khairy Jamaluddin, whom nobody likes because he got where he is through family ties.”

The latest leaks have the Singapore government hot under the collar, and their Malaysian counterpart fuming. Senior Singapore officials have labelled our politicians INCOMPETENT and made other unflattering remarks about them in meetings with US officials in 2008-2009.

Nothing really new. The rakyat have known this about our political leaders all along, but it takes outsiders to say it for us. Our mainstream press certainly don't have the guts to say it in print for us. Thanks, Peter Ho, Bilahari Kausikan and Tommy Koh, for calling a spade a spade.

(From Wikileaks)

About 1000 of the hundreds of thousands of documents released so far are related to Malaysia, including cables that deal with Anwar's sodomy case in 2008. With 1.2 million documents in the Wikileaks database to date, the world is waiting to see what else will show up in the coming weeks.

Diplomacy is fast becoming a farce, and diplomats are the best actors that ever strut the world stage.