Endgame

“Everyone have been failed in fulfilling their fate,”

The dialog in Avengers: Endgame struck me to moment before my wife and I should have fulfilled our destiny to watch it on the best seat on the best schedule. We came to Botani Square around 12:30, more than one hour before we have managed to watch the movie at 14 pm. We were not directly went to the cinema, as the show has been booked previously through mobile app.

Long story short, 15 minutes before the movie started, we went upstairs. Unfortunately, there was an error while I scanned the QR code to get the ticket. Hence, we went to the receptionist to ask for a help. Then, we know that I have booked the wrong location. It was bought in Bogor Square. Located about 5 kilometers from where we were.

I can see sadness arouse from Windi’s face, for today has been planned since about one week ago. Without any further saying,  we ordered two new tickets. Of course—beside the price was more expensive—we got worse position than we planned before, but actually it was still fine. That was the second time I sit on P row, on the right side of the screen. Previously, I was in the same position when watched Samurai X: Kyoto Inferno. Anyway, at the end both of us enjoyed the movie. Here is several things I can share you about this last phase of Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Endgame started right after Thanos snapped his finger to demolish half of the universe’s creature. In it’s prequel, Avengers: Infinity War, this creature of Titan planet, decipher that he wants to make life on the universe being stable. At that moment, the population number is too gigantic. So the misery that came along it, could be abolished as well. Does it true? There was an interesting dialog regarding the situation. The conversation later on closed by one remarkable quotation from Thanos: I am inevitable.

I cannot tell you further about the story of this saga. I guess, the best way to enjoy this movie is not to know any information about the plot. Just trust to the upcoming surprises that you will watch—three hours duration was quite worth it. Unless, if you need to know the redline of this film, I can give you one statement: endgame tells about time heist, or simply “time travelling”. []

Journalism

As a news editor, everyday I receive at least 13 news to be broadcasted on news program called Buletin Jawa Barat. In some news—especially about disaster, or traditional culture preservation—sometimes written that government should take responsibility to fix it. Partially, it is true. Holistically, it was not only government’s responsibility. I’ll decipher it to you.

Last April, I met the governor of West Java, Ridwan Kamil. He said that his leading style uses principle called ABCGM. Ridwan named it as pentahelix principle. It contains 5 sectors that contributed to social condition: Academics, Bussiness, Community, Government, Media. So much so that collaboration become stronger, there was held a monthly meeting between Government and Media—whom I am part of the media industry.

In one session of question and answer, a TV journalist asked Ridwan Kamil to prepare one Skype team to accommodate live interview request from his central office. Ridwan knew that condition, for he was the media darling. He said, press often asks a direct comment of several governmental issues. Even though he delegated his team. Media crew always said, “it’s a different taste if the song is not sang by the singer”. 

There was also one interesting statement from the governor. He asked by the online journalist for not to publish his program through social media at the first place. Jokingly said, Ridwan chuckled about “how his follower on instagram would have an updates?”

Competition of journalism, still defined as the race of being the first one in informing news to audience. Yet social media challenged it. In one interview, a journalist from Philipines, Maria Ressa, said that the function of media (and journalist) as gatekeeper has now been outdated. People can instantly get the information from their social media account. The gate is not kept anymore.

Even so, right after the meeting ends, I have a chat with Ridwan Kamil. I asked him one question: how could journalism be survive? He said in this age of flooding information, the key is accuracy. Now, he prioritize that a source of information should come from the media. He also remind, that one way to determine whether some information is hoax or not, is by check it on the big (or mainstream) media. If it was not appeared, then it could be a false news. []

Fight

Last Thursday night I went to the ruin of taman sari, Bandung. It lies under pasupati bridge. Previously, there was a housing estate. Long story short, conflict arouses between the villagers and local government. The dispute was made their house have to be demolished. And here I am, stand on the ground that seems like it has been existed as a living room. With graffiti painted on the standing-still walls.

Ridho

Someone drop me a comment, right after I shot a photo of graffiti written “tanah kita tidak dijual”. He offer me that he could took me a photograph. I spontaneously said no—as I am not accustomed to be a photo model. Haha. Some kind of guilty feeling struck down on me. I change my mind. I said, “I guess it would be nice if I stand next to the graffiti”. Then he stood up and grab my phone. He took three different angle right before I did the same. We continued to have a chat.

His name is Ridho, IT student from Palu. He said his family is being okay, after I asked about the tsunami disaster in September last year. Ridho came by his own—same as me. That night was not his first visit to taman sari. Previously, he came to give some support to the resident who fought for their home. He seems to know a lot about the house-demolition case. He said, the latest judicial verdict confirmed that the lot is under the status quo condition. This means, whoever could proof that they are the owner of the place, could live on it. “Even the proof is only a photograph (not a legal sertificate)?” I asked. He said he’s not sure about it.

Film

Ridho and I came to taman sari to watch a movie called Sexy Killers. It was a documentary film made by production house named Watchdoc. Two of their team, Dandhy and Ucok, traveled around Indonesia four years ago. They were back with several documentary titles tells about Blue Economy Concept. It was the opposite of Green Economy Concept that produce and consume economic commodity in a massive and identical way, although the characteristic in each and every place is different. That’s why the expedition called Ekspedisi Indonesia Biru. They made a documentary series about several problems and solutions to each and every unique culture, based on the indigenous inventions.

In this last episode, they spoke about coal, and how it create martyrs for electricity industry. Dandhy and Ucok served story from coal mining in Kalimantan to steam electric generator (PLTU) in West Java, Central Java, Bali, and Central Sulawesi. Those two different type of places, victimized powerless people. A mother became the victim of irresponsible coal mining. Her son got drown in an unreclaimed coal mining area. One father got his home slowly broken due to coal mining activity, next to his rice-producing village. Meanwhile in PLTU area, there was a husband whose his wife suffer for a lung cancer as she exposed to dust particle from electricity factory nearby. There was also a farmer whose his coconut trees were getting withered. Who’s got credit for it? The oligarks in front and behind president candidacy.

The Battle

I remember to the patch that I has just bought in that movie screening event. It was the silhouette of Munir’s face. He fought for legal action to the perpetrators of Orde Baru repression. At the end of his life, Munir was killed. In front of me, on the giant screen shown Sexy Killers in its ending part, there was Surayah. His family insisted to live nearby PLTU though they’ve got the risk as if being stay: an asthma. Munir and Surayah were fought and face the consequences. Then what kind of fight that i could join to recover the bad energy production system? I guess, it is to be a nonvoter. []