Philip Jong - www.philipjong.comThis blog is a personal journal of random thoughts I have about my life and the world around me.2024-01-12T20:39:56ZCopyright (c) 2024, Philip Jong - www.philipjong.comPhilip Jong - www.philipjong.comtag:https:,2024:01:01Main Character Syndrome In Social Mediatag:https:,2024:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.106802024-01-01T06:01:00Z2024-01-01T06:01:00ZPhilip JongThe desire for attention has led to the emergence of a new form of maladaptive behaviors among self-professed influencers on social media in recent years. Colloquially dubbed main character syndrome, it describes the distorted behaviors of influencers who fantasize themselves as the protagonists of their own life stories that are being played out publicly in front of an imagined audience. They act as if they are the star of their own shows and people in their lives exist solely as supportive cast of their performances. They romanticize (manufactured) struggles of their lives so to seek validation from others for their (faked) triumphs. While these influencers may also exhibit traits of narcissism, their behaviors are largely performative only to benefit the specific narratives they want to shape. Recently, a number of social media influencers with this syndrome are being called out for acting out in public while ignoring basic cultural and social norms. Their actions are often racist, misogynistic, or culturally insensitive and are deliberately made to provoke individuals whom the influencers regard as the antagonists in their twisted narratives. They ignore criticisms of their wrongdoings but are blinded by false approvals from their fans who are motivated to cheer them to continue their self-absorbed behaviors. A few of these influencers have even been arrested for public nuisance and harassment because of their actions. For these individuals, the toxic main character archetype they have adopted has grown beyond the social media persona which they initially imitate to become a part of their self-identity which they now use to reinforce their fictional lives.
]]>Is Generative Art The End Of Human Artistic Creativity?tag:https:,2023:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.103672023-07-01T05:01:00Z2023-07-01T05:01:00ZPhilip JongArtistic creativity has long been a defining trait of the human species. Since the advent of civilization, the creation of art has been a measure of human spirit and imagination through which human intellect is expressed. In a painting, for example, a painter’s creativity is conveyed solely through a deliberate application of pigments on a canvas by the painter. With recent advancements in artificial intelligence, however, a new form of generative art has challenged the conventional paradigm of artistic expression when a computer algorithm can now be used in part or in whole to create the artwork. Artificial neural networks employing different models of machine learning, such as those used in DALL-E, Midjourney, and Stable Diffusion, are being trained to develop complex algorithms with which an artist can use to direct with ease the creation of a generative image. Because the resultant artwork no longer uniquely represents the artist’s vision since it can be perfectly replicated or regenerated, critics are calling into question the originality of generative art in how it degrades the essence of artistic creation. On the other hand, proponents argue that generative algorithm is merely another tool akin to a paintbrush which an artist can use to paint on a digital canvas. While generative art will unlikely herald the end of human artistic creativity, the utility of its practice needs to be weighed carefully to ensure that it will not stifle or trivialize artistic endeavors that have historically defined human culture.
]]>Death Of A Monarch: A Canadian Perspectivetag:https:,2023:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.100652023-01-01T06:01:00Z2023-01-01T06:01:00ZPhilip JongThe death of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022 marks the end of the longest reign of a British monarch. For many Canadians, the Queen’s passing has reignited the longstanding debate on the relevancy of the constitutional monarchy in Canada. Her reign, which lasted for 70 years, heralded a period of remarkable but also turbulent transition for the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth. Yet, in the later years of her reign, the Queen had stood as a symbol of stability and resilience in an increasingly divided world. She was most admired for keeping a sense of duty above all else and for humanizing the otherwise detached monarchy while modernizing the institution from the fallout of colonialism that once defined the British Empire. For Canada, the monarchy is deeply embedded in the country’s constitution that governs its parliamentary and judicial systems. Abolishing the Queen (or now the King) as the head of state would require fundamental changes in the constitution that are unlikely to happen in the current political climate. While the rise of nationalism over the past decades in Canada will continue to champion republicanism as a replacement, it may be mere indifference toward the monarchy among most Canadians that will dictate its fate in this country for the foreseeable future.
]]>Inflation Crisis In Canada: A Perfect Stormtag:https:,2022:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.97302022-07-01T05:01:00Z2022-07-01T05:01:00ZPhilip JongIn June 2022, Canada experienced the highest inflation rate recorded in almost four decades. The pervasive inflation has resulted in higher prices of almost all consumer goods and services including food, gas, and rental. It mirrored the inflation surge also observed in many other countries around the world since last year. Economists theorized that the current inflation was caused by a combination of global supply shortages secondary to manufacturing slowdowns during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, volatility in the international energy (particularly oil) market, geopolitical instability from war in Eastern Europe, and even a paradoxical consumer demand increase as the world emerges from a protracted period of economic downturn and high unemployment due to the pandemic. So far, counter-inflationary monetary policies taken by the Government of Canada have not been sufficient to ease the varying economic pressures that are driving up the inflation rate. Not surprisingly, low-income, underprivileged, and marginalized populations have been impacted the greatest by the current inflation. As a Canadian, I am shocked by the rise in the cost of living over the past months which I have not witnessed before in my adult life. Aggressive economic measures are needed immediately to quell the perfect storm that is now fueling the inflation crisis in Canada.
]]>Toxicity Of Celebrity Culturetag:https:,2022:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.93992022-01-01T06:01:00Z2022-01-01T06:01:00ZPhilip JongModern celebrity culture first took shape in the 19th century in the US when societal elites sought to gain social prominence and publicity among the general populace. Over time, it expanded to include individuals who aspired for influence in the public eye by overtly allowing their own personal lives to be exposed for mass consumption. The rise of mass media during the past decades has propelled celebrity culture into the public consciousness by constantly bombarding us with the latest celebrity gossip in the endless news cycle. Despite its popularity, critics have long contended that it is a toxic culture perpetually fueled by the maladaptive behaviors of celebrities and their followers. For celebrities, influence is not attained by being a positive role model whose moral virtues inspire their followers to be better. Rather, these celebrities often confuse greatness with notoriety and seek only to achieve the latter through manufactured drama and spectacle ("famous for being famous"). For their followers, celebrities are seen as legitimate targets of public scrutiny and criticism merely because of their fame. Worst yet, these followers are quick to invoke cancel culture to take down celebrities so to shame them into disrepute. Social media has further diminished the boundaries separating these groups, providing a direct avenue through which the toxic elements of the culture are amplified. Until our obsession with celebrity culture can be curtailed, it will forever threaten to erode our common decency and mutual respect toward each other.
]]>Tragic Legacy Of Canadian Residential Schoolstag:https:,2021:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.90802021-07-01T05:01:00Z2021-07-01T05:01:00ZPhilip JongThe recent discovery of large numbers of unmarked graves, mostly of children, at sites of former residential schools in Canada has reignited the nation’s attention on the tragic history of the Canadian Indian residential school system. Amended in 1894, the Indian Act mandated the compulsory schooling of all Indigenous youths, mostly in residential schools, with the misguided goal to assimilate them into the dominant Christian and Euro-colonial culture. Funded mostly by the federal government, these schools were largely administered by churches in many provinces where they were nominally operated. More than 150,000 children were forced into the system until the closure of the last residential school in 1997. Displaced from their families, these children suffered from both physical and mental abuse while being deprived of their ancestral heritage. At least 6,000 children died from malnutrition and disease, particularly tuberculosis and influenza, in residential schools due to poor living conditions. Bodies of these children were not returned to their families but were simply buried in large grave sites on school grounds. In 2008, the Government of Canada finally issued a formal apology to the Indigenous communities over the utter failure of the residential school system. The landmark findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada in 2015 further concluded that actions taken by residential schools amounted to cultural genocide to systematically extinguish the spirit of the Indigenous people. More recently, discovery of these grave sites has sparked widespread public outcry across the country demanding the removal of public monuments and statues of historical figures considered to be key architects of the residential school system. Over a century later, it is time for all Canadians to rise up to confront the country’s tragic legacy and to make amends with those who had been wronged by it.
]]>History Of Vaccine Hesitancytag:https:,2021:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.87512021-01-01T06:01:00Z2021-01-01T06:01:00ZPhilip JongThe World Health Organization identified vaccine hesitancy as among the top threats to global health in 2019. Simply speaking, vaccine hesitancy refers to the reluctance or refusal to be vaccinated against vaccine-preventable diseases despite availability of effective and safe vaccines. Even before the introduction of the first vaccine in 1796, opposition based on religious grounds already existed for centuries earlier against the practice of variolation used to induce immunity against smallpox at a time when the disease was endemic and highly lethal. Nowadays, resistance against vaccination is mostly rooted in systemic misinformation and public mistrust over ethical, political, or medical pseudo-arguments. Social media on the internet further gives rise to a platform by which anti-vaxxers can spread vaccine falsehood that ignores current scientific evidence. In recent years, inadequate vaccination has led to a resurgence in measles, pertussis, and other contagious diseases around the world. The current COVID-19 pandemic has reignited the dangers of vaccine hesitancy, as countries race toward mass vaccination to attain both host and herd immunity in order to protect their populations. While working as a frontline health professional, I had been personally confronted by anti-vaccination protestors who sought to spread false anti-science rhetoric about vaccines to the public. Until more is done to combat vaccine hesitancy, we will remain at risk of undoing the progress in global health we have achieved with vaccination and putting ourselves at risk for another pandemic in the future.
]]>COVID-19: A Global Threattag:https:,2020:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.84672020-07-01T05:01:00Z2020-07-01T05:01:00ZPhilip JongIn March 2020, the World Health Organization declared the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (or COVID-19) as a pandemic. First identified in China, the disease has now been registered in more than 200 countries worldwide. At least 12 million cases have been reported so far, resulting in over half a million deaths. The pandemic has exposed both inadequacies and inequalities in healthcare in countries that did not respond expeditiously to this global health crisis. In addition to unparalleled social and economic impacts, the pandemic has also unmasked great cultural injustice (including racism and xenophobia) and even greater political divide. While many countries have succeeded eventually in mounting public health measures to “flatten the curve” to slow down regional spread, a few countries are still failing consistently at present to implement similar strategies (such as diagnostic testing and contact tracing) in time to control the outbreak. As a health professional myself, I feel strongly that a continual and coordinated federal, provincial, and municipal public health effort is mandatory for Canada where I live in order to maintain the success that the country has achieved thus far in limiting the impact of this pandemic on Canadians. Until a vaccine or cure becomes available, COVID-19 will continue to be among the greatest global threats—health or otherwise—that humankind has ever faced to date.
]]>Dangers Of Cancel Culturetag:https:,2020:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.80912020-01-01T06:01:00Z2020-01-01T06:01:00ZPhilip JongIncreasing reliance on social media to resolve interpersonal discourse has led to the rise of cancel culture. In its most basic display, individuals of high social stature are being called out in public for a seemingly questionable act or opinion made in their past and are subsequently boycotted by the general populace until they are shamed into contrition for the transgression they have allegedly committed. It is an escalation of the current call-out culture, solely aimed to bring its targets into permanent disrepute. While such act might be rooted in social justice that has rightly exposed the immoral behaviors of certain public figures, its frequent misuse has also served to amplify the already toxic and mob mentality of the growing net (or internet) generation. Further, critics question both the fairness and the effectiveness of this new form of cultural boycott, arguing that it is often disproportionate, petty, impossible to defend, and easy to manipulate. Celebrities who received such backlash have rarely suffered any long-lasting consequences. Worst yet, some instigators seek to leverage the resultant drama to boast their own notoriety, thus delegitimizing any effort by genuine victims to call for public justice. As it exists now, the cancel culture cannot be seen as a form of social activism—to promote positive changes through moral behavior modeling and to resolve civil discourse through mutual tolerance and respect.
]]>Public Discourse On The Internettag:https:,2019:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.77522019-07-01T05:01:00Z2019-07-01T05:01:00ZPhilip JongThe democratization of communication by the internet has given rise to a sea of opinions that invariably conflict with each other. Unfortunately, the virtual community is often too ill equipped to deal with the resultant public discourse in a civil and constructive manner. Rather, the internet has been transformed into an echo chamber in which the extremes of views are magnified until they become the dominant voices of the masses. Worst yet, social norms cultivated through millennia of civilized human interactions are quick to be discarded in the online world and are being replaced by a culture of perpetual interpersonal drama wherein ad hominem attacks against dissenters are both permitted and normalized. The collapse of social civility is most evident in social media, such that outrage and anger are now the driving currency of the medium to grab attention from the feuding public to be further exploited. Moreover, mainstream social networks are guilty of providing a platform to malicious outsiders (usually under the cover of anonymity) who seek to inflame the spectacle for their own gains. The collective lack of social restraint makes it difficult for the community to self-regulate and resolve any public discourse online. Until decorum is established, the increasing toxicity of the current internet culture will soon unravel all that remains of civility in the real world.
]]>Living Minimalismtag:https:,2019:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.74452019-01-01T06:01:00Z2019-01-01T06:01:00ZPhilip JongMinimalism as a lifestyle choice has gained traction as both a cultural and a social movement in recent years. In its most simplistic practice, it is a form of simple living that deemphasizes materialistic possession and promotes self-sufficiency. It is inaccurate to conflate minimalism with the mere act of decluttering of one’s belongings or reducing one’s consumption of consumer goods. Rather, minimalism encompasses an underlying philosophy to simplify living and not just reflects a set of rules to achieve such means. In fact, elements of minimalism are rooted in many religious teachings that aspire oneself to live in virtue and to embrace only the bare necessities of life. Further, Greek philosopher Epicurus believed that the true pleasure of life could only be attained by living modestly and limiting extravagant desires in order to achieve a state of equanimity. On the other hand, more contemporary origin of minimalism may be a countercultural reaction to the rise of the conspicuous consumption and the conspicuous leisure, coined by American economist Thorstein Veblen, over the last century that are now the hallmarks of modern consumerism. As someone who prefers a simple lifestyle, I value minimalism in freeing me from the obsession of materialism so that I may better focus on pursuing a more fulfilled and meaningful life.
]]>General Data Protection Regulation: A New Era In Personal Data Privacytag:https:,2018:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.71162018-07-01T05:01:00Z2018-07-01T05:01:00ZPhilip JongThe General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has ushered in a new era in personal data privacy in Europe. Implemented in May 2018, it provides comprehensive protection for consumers against organizations that seek to collect personally identifiable information and gives consumers explicit control on how the collected data are being stored and used by these organizations. Importantly, consumers now have the right at any time to revoke consent for their data to be accessed and to even request permanent erasure (with few exceptions) of their data with these organizations. Unlike previous privacy frameworks, the new regulation is binding and enforceable with severe financial sanctions against individuals and organizations that fail to comply. Moreover, privacy proponents have argued that the downstream effects of GDPR will likely reach worldwide, including Canada where I live, since many organizations that are outside of Europe but conduct businesses there will unlikely be tolerant of any criticism for allowing a double standard concerning data privacy to perpetuate. As a privacy advocate, I welcome strong regulations that protect the public from businesses that misuse personal data of their customers, intentionally or unintentionally, especially those that are collected without explicit consent through social media. Ultimately, however, I believe that consumers must take increasing responsibility of their digital footprint so to ensure that their own sensitive personal data are never unduly exposed or compromised.
]]>Traits Of Great Leadershiptag:https:,2018:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.68432018-01-01T06:01:00Z2018-01-01T06:01:00ZPhilip JongModern thinking on leadership has long abandoned the traditional aristocratic and autocratic views that leaders are born out of “blue” blood. In Sun Tzu’s Art of War, leadership is defined as the sole culmination of intelligence, trustworthiness, humaneness, courage, and discipline. Scottish philosopher Thomas Carlyle proposed the great man theory, which postulated that history of the world is mostly shaped by the interventions of few influential leaders. Contemporary scientific studies on leadership, however, have challenged and largely debunked these outdated maxims. While no singular theory has yet to exist to adequately describe the necessary and sufficient conditions for great leadership, emerging theories in psychology and sociology have argued that leadership is more than just a collection of endearing traits (trait theory) which allow an individual to rise above a group to become a leader. This is, in part, because effective leadership in one domain does not guarantee success in another (situation theory). Moreover, sound leadership must not be conflated with effective management (especially in business), for great leaders exhibit not only desirable outward behaviors and personality traits such as openness, extraversion, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and agreeableness (five factor model) but also an innate inner drive toward personal moral growth. True leadership is most needed in politics, as a righteous leader is one who must uphold the interests of the entire populace whose the leader is sworn to protect and not just the few who lend their support. Above all, great leaders must not abuse their power of authority but instead leverage this power for the betterment of their fellows.
]]>The Dark Side Of Data Encryptiontag:https:,2017:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.65712017-07-01T05:01:00Z2017-07-01T05:01:00ZPhilip JongOur increasing reliance on digital information has made the use of data encryption a necessity to protect our privacy and ownership of our personal data. Encryption ensures that only authorized personnel who possess the decryption key can fully access our data. Moreover, it allows our financial and medical information to be kept safe by third parties such as banks and hospitals and free from being abused by malicious threat actors. While the security benefits of data encryption are undeniable, recent cyberattacks by nefarious attackers using malwares to encrypt user data without permission also highlight the dangers from misuse of such practice. In May 2017, the WannaCry ransomware attack crippled computer systems worldwide by spreading through a previously unknown exploit in the target computers’ operating system that was leaked by hackers. The ransomware encrypted user data and then demanded a ransom payment in exchange for data recovery. The cyberattack received unprecedented media attention because of the significant service disruptions and economic losses resulted from its impact on hospitals, manufacturing plants, transport companies, financial institutions, government agencies, and elsewhere affected by the attack. Although the cyberattack was mitigated soon after its initial outbreak, the fallout had since led to a call by both governments and academics for an urgent need to establish the ethics on the responsible use of data encryption. This way, we can feel assured that our private data will be protected from intruders who seek to destroy the footprints of our digital life.
]]>I, Robot: Revisitedtag:https:,2017:/www.philipjong.com/index.php/weblog/2.62772017-01-01T06:01:00Z2017-01-01T06:01:00ZPhilip JongIsaac Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics, introduced in Runaround first published in 1942 and later republished in I, Robot in 1950, describes a set of “moral” directives by which a robot must obey when interacting with humans and each other. Though these laws were entirely fictional constructs, they had nonetheless become the underpinning for the framework in modern science (in the fields of robotics and artificial intelligence) in dictating how robots should behave when they functioned autonomously. Yet, it is now known that Asimov’s laws have significant shortcomings and fail frequently to provide fundamental safeguards against unpredictable behaviors in robots that may put human lives in jeopardy. Importantly, these laws ignore that robots are merely tools, at least in its present form, so that humans, not robots, are ultimately the responsible agents who must be held accountable for any wrongdoings committed by them. Indeed, in 2013, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the Arts and Humanities Research Council working group of the British Research Council declared a set of 5 rules dictating how robots should be used in society and 7 principles guiding how robotics research should be ethically conducted. An important conclusion drawn from this declaration is the recognition that robots must not be used for exploitation by evoking emotional responses in humans wherein robots are disguised to have human-like features. This restriction precludes the use of robots solely to entertain humans, when such entertainment involves physical or even mental abuse of either robots or humans (a common narrative theme explored in science fiction). With rapid advances in artificial intelligence, however, it is a near certainty that machine ethics guiding the autonomous behaviors of artificial moral agents will collide with human ethics which currently posit human concerns to be the overriding determinant of robot behaviors.
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