Brave New World Indonesian Edition

Dalam novel Brave New World, Aldous Huxley memperkenalkan sebuah dunia baru: dunia kita, beberapa abad di masa depan. Dunia di mana suatu pemerintahan telah berhasil menelusuri akar ketidakbahagiaan manusia, yang bermuara pada tiga hal: keluarga, seni, dan Tuhan. Demi menanggulanginya, bayi kemudian diciptakan dari dalam botol; melalui proses genetika yang canggih ia dihilangkan dari penyakit, dilepaskan dari kecacatan, untuk kemudian terbebas dari derita besar bernama orang tua. Tumbuh besar, mereka hanya belajar apa yang pemerintah ingin mereka pelajari. Maka seni pun dikebiri, menjadi tak lebih sekadar alat hiburan dan propaganda untuk masyarakat. Sementara sains dijadikan buku resep untuk hidangan industri. Konsumerisme diajarkan sebagai jalan hidup yang utama. Kitab suci diharamkan. Kebahagiaan dipusatkan pada dua sumber utama yakni seks bebas dan candu—konsumsinya dilegalkan dan dipantau ketat oleh pemerintah. Melalui cara-cara inilah perkembangan jiwa manusia berusaha diredam, karena apapun yang merangsang jiwa sesungguhnya adalah benih kegusaran yang pada akhirnya bakal menimbulkan ketidakstabilan masyarakat. Dengan melindungi status quo, maka kebahagiaan hakiki, utopia, dapat diraih. Tidak dengan murah memang, namun sekalinya tercapai, sistem sosial tersebut mustahil diruntuhkan. Sebuah tonggak keberhasilan peradaban manusia di depan alam serta Tuhan penciptanya. [Mizan, Bentang Pustaka, Hidup, Dunia, Tuhan, Bumi, Indonesia]

The papers and commentary in this publication grew out of the 2002 MIGA-Georgetown University Symposium on International Political Risk Management, held at Georgetown University, 25 October 2002

Wandering into Brave New World explores the historical contexts and contemporary sources of Aldous Huxley’s 1932 novel which, seventy years after its initial publication remains the best known and most discussed dystopian work of the twentieth century. This new study addresses a number of questions which still remain open. Did his round-the-world trip in 1925-1926 provide material for the novel? Did India’s caste system contribute to the novel’s human levels? Is there an overarching pattern to the names of the novel/s characters? Has the role of Hollywood in the novel been underestimated? Is Lenina Crown a representative 1920s “flapper”? Did Huxley have knowledge of and sources for his Indian reservation characters and scenes quite independent of and more accurate than those of D. H. Lawrence’s writings? Did Huxley’s visit to Borneo contribute anything to the novel? New research allows substantive answers and even explains why Huxley linked such figures as Henry Ford and Sigmund Freud. It also shows how the novel overcomes its intense grounding in 1920s political turmoil to escape into the timelessness of dystopian fiction.

The insolvency of sovereign debtors is a virtually timeless phenomenon and yet the existing international financial architecture does not provide any legal framework to deal with this issue. Following an overview of the main proposals as to how to bridge this gap, this study analyses the extent to which public international law can be used as a source for the establishment of a reorganisation system for sovereign debt. While there is no adequate customary international law relating to sovereign insolvencies, reference can instead be made to the growing body of general principles of law. This is illustrated by a comparison of the systems of corporate financial reorganisation in insolvency in six representatively selected countries - Argentina, England, France, Germany, Indonesia and the U.S. Due to the inherent lack of enforceability with regard to sovereign debtors, in order to be able to provide a basis for a reorganisation system for sovereign debt, these principles need to be complemented with a compliance control mechanism. This study suggests how such a system could be constructed and implemented.

To a conservative, this book is kryptonite. But, for liberals who love to hate George W. Bush, Our Brave New World is addicting. Rants, which originally appeared on the internet concurrent with his Presidency, will take you back to the inanity and malfeasance of Bush and his cronies - Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice, Rove, Ashcroft, 'Brownie,' Gonzales and Abramoff. Relive such unforgettable moments as Bush proclaiming 'mission accomplished,' the search for the weapons of mass destruction, the revelations at Abu Ghraib, the paranoia of Plamegate, the horror of Hurricane Katrina, and the helplessness of financial meltdown. With sardonic wit, and allusions and quotations from anti-utopian literature, popular culture, and the works of authors like T.S. Elliot and Joseph Conrad, Our Brave New World chronicles a nightmare era in American history.

Globalization and the shifting tectonic plates of the international system have led to an increasingly competitive world. If Canada hopes to gain advantage from the dramatic developments underway it will have to aggressively adapt its foreign and domestic policies and priorities under the clear direction of the federal government or accept being left behind. In Brave New Canada, Derek Burney and Fen Hampson identify the key trends that are reshaping the world's geopolitics and economics and discuss the challenges Canada confronts with the rise of China and other global centres of power. Their examination of a wide range of themes - including the place of pluralistic democratic values in diplomacy, economics, and trade, the ways that Canada should reset relations with its neighbour to the south, as well as how to manage new global security threats - paints a picture of how Canada can become bold, assertive, and confident and easily adjust to a new global landscape. Arguing that a successful foreign policy cannot be crafted by looking at the world in the rear-view mirror, Brave New Canada offers evidence-based, provocative prescriptions for both the public and private sectors that should stimulate discussion and command widespread attention.

Sultans, Spices, and Tsunamis: The Incredible Story of the World's Largest Archipelago Indonesia is by far the largest nation in Southeast Asia and has the fourth largest population in the world after the United States. Indonesian history and culture are especially relevant today as the Island nation is an emerging power in the region with a dynamic new leader. It is a land of incredible diversity and unending paradoxes that has a long and rich history stretching back a thousand years and more. Indonesia is the fabled "Spice Islands" of every school child's dreams—one of the most colorful and fascinating countries in history. These are the islands that Europeans set out on countless voyages of discovery to find and later fought bitterly over in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. This was the land that Christopher Columbus sought, and Magellan actually reached and explored. One tiny Indonesian island was even exchanged for the island of Manhattan in 1667! This fascinating history book tells the story of Indonesia as a narrative of kings, traders, missionaries, soldiers and revolutionaries, featuring stormy sea crossings, fiery volcanoes, and the occasional tiger. It recounts the colorful visits of foreign travelers who have passed through these shores for many centuries—from Chinese Buddhist pilgrims and Dutch adventurers to English sea captains and American movie stars. For readers who want an entertaining introduction to Asia's most fascinating country, this is delightful reading.