Who's in charge here?

I'm no psychologist. I'm no visionary. Nor am I an anthropologist. But my mind does wander, and, scary though that might be at times, it leads me occasionally to something worth sharing. This was one of those times...

During one of these mental roaming, I came up with my own theory regarding human behaviour. I based it on what I'd like to call the Four Command Centers of the Human Body. (Lame? Yeah, I know... it had a cooler name the first time I typed this)

Consider the following question if you will: If you had time to pull only one thing from a burning building, what would it be? Pick the first that comes to mind.

a. A backpack
b. A memento of a loved one (not necessarily departed)
c. An extinguisher
d. A pack of condoms/ birth control method (for ladies)

Got your answer? Read on ONLY if you do...

Right, let's see what my theory has to say about people who picked Option number one: the backpack. Now, I'm guessing you picked the backpack as it either contains or will contain all your essentials within. You let your head lead you and always pick the logical course of action, carefully weighing the pros against the cons before making a move.

On the plus side, you're more or less a high-intellect person who has all the answers and have a pretty high perfection streak. Unfortunately, you tend to overthink things and waste time pondering a choice/ list of choices instead of going ahead and doing it. Your perfect record's very important to you too, and tend to do all it takes and then some to keep it going. Failure to do so can upset you rather badly and lead to fits of depression.

Next we have Option Number Two, the memento. Now, if this was your first choice, you value your feelings, morality and the well-being and happiness of other above all. Your main command centre is your HEART, and it's quite a big one too.

Your strengths include being a nurturing and caring person, willing to sacrifice what you want for the people around you. Your moral compass always points true North and you always consider the people around you's well -being and value fairness and equality. On the flipside, people see you as a softy, a pushover and easy. And they're right. You're so busy looking out for others you neglect yourself and your interests.

Command Centre Three, option three: the extinguisher. I'd say you picked the extinguisher (if present) because you'd rather save the building than one single thing. You possess great courage and you know what must be done to save all that's important. Major Guts leads your actions and your credo is "No one gets left behind."

Perks of following your gut is that you're a natural leader and you have the initiative to get things done. You generally do the right thing although you tend to veer south of the moral equator. Regardless, you do everything boldly and lack fear of reproach. Bravery is admirable, but following your gut can lead to some rather short-sighted actions.

And finally, Door number four: the condoms- slash- birth control apparatus. You, my fine yeomen, are led by "Napoleon Bonaparte" or your 'Little General', for sake of censorship. You live in the here and now. Life's a party, and thinking about it is a waste of time. Napoleon takes point when something that requires a lot of balls comes up, and in most cases, you tend to do things because

a. It's fun
b. You want to
c. You can
d: All of the above

You know how to have fun and you let no one stand in the way of having it or doing what you please. You have the drive to get what you want and everybody knows it. You're also extremely self-confident and never let doubt cloud your decision-making. A little warning though: Following Napoleon too closely for too long results in you making a dick of yourself (or the female equivalent in the case of the ladies)

Try to strut for a moment please (Chest out, eyes staring the world in the face, leaning back in a bit of a swagger as you walk) and tell me: which part of your anatomy's in the lead? and who's bringing up the rear? I see you get my point... When you let Napolean lead your charge, and you hit the "Oh, sh*t" brick wall, you end up hurting where you simply should not.

Lastly, I'd like to say this theory is not perfect. Freud may use it for lavatory paper. Kubler-Ross may scoff. And so may you. But I think there's some merit to this hypothesis. And I also agree that I need something profitable to occupy my time.

I've said my piece. Time for you to say yours.

Hooray for Mob Justice!

... not.

It's all over the airwaves, the newspaper(s), it's rapid spread over Youtube and Facebook were quickly halted... but the story cannot be stopped if people are ready to voice out about it.

For those who may not be aware of the latest from our tertiary system's news front, a quick recap:

Early Thursday morning, a young woman dubbed/named Amina Eunice, was caught stealing from one of the halls of one of our most prestigious universities. After handing her to the university authorities, some members of the hall felt she had not been "punished enough"... and took the law into their own hands. Taking her back from the security guard, they proceeded to beat her up, shred her clothing and sexually abuse her in a group. After much pleading and tears fell on deaf ears and stony hearts, these "intellectuals" finally left her to the authorities once more to handle formalities.

Mob justice is altogether sadly not an unusual occurrence in our society today. From beating would-be thieves to bloody pulps or worse with two-by-fours to lighting "witches" on fire (A couple of centuries slow, folks), many of our countrymen have taken it upon themselves to act above the laws which have been drawn to govern a country as a law unto themselves (if I got that wrong, someone correct me please.) As the nastiness of the punishment meted out increases, one can only wonder if these lynch mobs are trying to outperform each other (sick as that may sound) and how far they will (be allowed to) go before they reach the threshold of self-realisation that "this has gone too far."

While I truly wish the perpetrators of this horrendous act are brought to swift and well-deserved justice, we must wonder how often this has happened and how often those responsible are allowed to get away with it. Such mob action, whether in the name of "upholding the law" or breaking it, has been running rampant for ages. And when I think that it's the "intellectuals" of our societies, those to whom most will entrust our nation's future who play a major part in some of the worse and most publicized instances, the question that pushes to the forefront of my mind is "Just how safe is our future?"

Answer: not very much.

But let's be frank: would any crime warrant mob action as a result? And what can be done to get this mentality that anyone can be the law out of our heads? We're not really setting the "land of peace and development" aura we want the world to perceive, wouldn't you say?

On the thirteenth day of Christmas...

... what would you want from me? I know what I'd want:

- A complete set of Ironfist Chinmi manga (in English)
- A Nintendo Wii (for stress relief and general recreation)
- One new Nokia battery
- Our government to be serious (fuel prices are, safe to say, totally insane at the moment...)
- My Ipod to be working
- An HTC Tattoo
- A fully-furnished five bedroom flat/house (in a good location with fast, reliable internet access)
- My driving license (and a good car too...)
- A lovely lady with brains, who would truly love meee... (Relax, I'll love her in return with all I've got)
- A PS3 with the God of War Trilogy ( and the Jak and Daxter series. Again, for stress relief...)
- A clean bill of health
- Goodwill to all man
- and a diary/day planner for me year! (Don't ask why, I really wouldn't tell.)

How about you? If you were giving twelve gifts to your loved one (or receiving them), what would you give, or want?It's never too late to wish... after all, that's what birthdays are for...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!