Blogging Creates a Boundless Platform for Writing

Hi everybody! I’m Neranja. Do forgive me for being too late to join the Emerald Blog which is becoming an increasingly interactive forum for writing.

Although I haven’t been able to contribute to EB until now, I’ve been a great fan of it. Many times I’ve seen that my friends have made really interesting posts. Those writings and, especially the way they put their thoughts in to written word, inspired me to place myself in the blogosphere as soon as possible.

It’s obvious that this is a great opportunity for us to help improve our writing in English, and since blogging is a very dynamic endeavor of social media in the online communications, I think it really builds up strong enthusiasm for writing in one’s mind rather than any traditional medium of communication. So, it’s a very sensible idea that our teacher, Mrs. Liz, selected this medium to teach us writing in English.

I’ve been learning English here at BC since last April, but to tell the truth, I had bad experience in the first term, because we were very unhappy with the way our former teacher taught, and most of my friends decided not to continue classes anymore. However, at the end of the term, I attended the Young Learner parents-teacher meetings as an interpreter. In that occasion, I met some very successful teachers, and owing to the inspiration they created in me, I decided to continue learning in Advanced Classes further. Now, I’m fully satisfied with our present teacher, and the teaching methods that she uses.

From now, I hope to work to be an avid blogger as many of my classmates, and I, however, assume that one of us won’t suffer from blogarrhoea because EB is going on and on.

Facebook-Good or Evil?!?!?!?

Facebook, the leading social networking site was found by Mark Zuckerberg. It launched in February 2004 that is operated and privately owned by Facebook but with more than 500 million active users in July 2010. The website's membership was initially limited to the students of Havard University but was later expanded to other universities. It first expanded to other university students then to high school students and finally to anyone aged 13 and over.

Facebook has met with some controversy. It has been blocked in countries like Pakistan, Syria, People's Republic of China Vietnam and Iran. It has also been blocked at many companies and places of work to discourage employees from wasting time using this service. Privacy has also been an issue. Despite of all these, in January 2009 compete.com study ranked Facebook as the most used social network.

Facebook allows you to find your old friends, keep in touch with your long distance relations and to interact with your friends. It helps to maintain a healthy relationship with your friends. Now instead of twice a year phone call covering up all the bases, you can get to know everything in real time. Many get- togethers have been organised through Facebook and there are many more features Facebook lend us. I don't have to tell you about those because almost everyone is using it so you'll know them already.

An example for the fact that Facebook unites people is the incident that happened in the U.S.A in June 2010. A US woman whose two children were reported missing 15 years ago had tracked them down using Facebook. The mother had come across her child's Facebook account and had identified her children. Facebook had reunited a family.

On the other hand, few months before this happened, an Australian girl was murdered. She had posted some information about her and posted that she's interested in helping animals. A guy who had introduced him as a social worker had contacted her and they had met and the girl was murdered. The friendship gained through Facebook is the reason for the death of that girl.

Kimberley Swann, at 16 year old in the UK, was sacked from Ivell Marketing & Logistics for posting on her Facebook profile that her office administration job was boring. It was her first real office job, yes she was employed at a call centre before but this was her first office job. The company only found out after she allowed another employee to become a friend on Facebook. A post on Facebook has been the cause for losing the job.

Another incident which occurred very recently is the suicide of a 16 year Srilankan girl. This girl had had a relationship with a 19 year old Srilankan boy but who currently lives in UK. This relationship had started and had been maintained through Facebook. The guy had come to Srilanka on the 2nd of August and had visited the girl's house too. After returning to UK he had ignored this girl and it had ended up in a break up. The girl was hurt and was mentally affected. She had tried contacting him through mail and Facebook but he had ignored her. Being affected mentally the girl committed suicide.

These incidents arise the question, Is Facebook good or evil?.....

Its you and me who makes it good and evil. Facebook can be a very good social networking site until we know and be within the limits.

How to make use of Facebook???

Use Facebook as a distraction only on occasion.

Sometimes when you're sitting in your room working the whole day, you need a mental break. Taking a quick look at Facebook can be a good way to feel like you're connected to the outside world after being locked up doing whatever task you may be doing. However, don't forget that Facebook isn't the only way to break your mental block.

Don't overuse Facebook breaks.

It is all too easy for your five minute Facebook break to turn into a half hour to an hour Facebook "break". Don't let that happen; do whatever it takes to make sure your mental break doesn't turn into procrastination

Don't use Facebook to friend people you barely know and try to get in touch with them.

You friend people to start talking with them or viewing their information, or you just want more Facebook friends, this isn't the best way to use Facebook. It isn't quite evil until you start creeping on people.

Keep your informations private.

Let your informations visible and viewable only to your friends. Do not allow any one else view your profile or your photos.

Facebook will be of great help until you maintain the limits and be careful. So, think twice before you do anything. Use Facebook for your relaxation and to stay connected to your friends and relations. Look before you leap so that you won't get into problems like these.

A free hit on the game spirit!

A humiliating incident happened during the last cricket match between India and Sri Lanka played in Dambulla last Monday (16.08.2010). It happened just before the end of the match when India were one run away from the victory and in-form batsman Virendra Sehwag was on 99 not out. Sri Lankan off spinner Suraj Randiv delivered a no-ball deliberately to give the one run required to seal the Indian victory, by denying Sehwag’s century. Although Shewag sent the ball over the boundary rope for a six for that delivery, the runs were not counted according to the game rules and he remained at 99 not out at the end of play. The act by Randiv is a clear violation of the spirit of the game and never expected from a member of a team like Sri Lanka which won the 'ICC Spirit of the Game' award for two consecutive years.

After the incident, Randiv was suspended by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) for one match and punished by deducting his match fee. Tillakaratne Dilshan who was reported to have encouraged Randiv to bowl the no-ball was also punished. Captain Kumar Sangakkara has regretted the incident by pretending he was totally unaware of the incident and denied playing any role in it.

Unfortunately (or fortunately!), I couldn’t watch the live telecast of the last few overs of the match but I saw the incident via youtube. I observed that Sangaakkara was aware of what was going to happen just before delivering the last ball. He was shouting at the bowler but didn’t taket any action to stop it. The dialogue is clearly heard through the batsman’s end microphone. This shows he was not taking it in serious and didn’t oversee the gravity of the offence.

Interestingly, just before the last delivery, TEN Sports commentator Roshan Abeysinghe was talking about what would happen to Sehwag’s century if Randiv balled a no-ball. It seems Roshan - a long-term official of SLC and one of the three Sri Lankans working with the international team of commentators covering the series - also predicted the player’s intention correctly. Although it was correct, I rank this as a sloppy type of commentary and I don't think any of the renowned commentators should make such a negative comment on that kind of occasion. Simply it was not an expert’s comment! As a whole, does this incident indicate a sign of a new trend in Sri Lanka Cricket?

(Click here to see the incident with the commentary via youtube.)

Turkey - A blend of East and West

Very recently, I got an opportunity to visit Turkey and inspect couple of Hydro Power Projects. It was a very short visit with tight schedule but I managed to visit several places and meet several people. So I thought of sharing the experience with you.

Turkey is located in between Europe and Middle East, bordering Greece, Bulgaria, Georgia, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Armenia and Azerbaijan. It has shores of Mediterranean Sea, Black sea, Aegean sea, Marmara Sea and Black sea. Woooo, I think I am finish with explaining the borders of Turkey and Turley is really lucky to have lot of neighbors and lot of seas.

If you carefully observe the world map, you will see Turley has a land strip (near Istanbul) which is the only land which connect the East and the West. Otherwise one from Europe should travel long way through Russia and Kazakhstan to come to India or China. This was the main advantage of Turkey and it was like a trading hub between East and West.

Turkey has long history and it stretches from the ages of Trojans,Romans, Persians and Ottomans in to modern Turkey. Ankara is the capital of Turkey but they claim Istanbul is the “Cultural Capital of Europe “. I am not sure that the rest of Europe agrees with this but I would say Turkey has a rich culture. There are lot of historical places with rich architecture. Mosques in Turkey has a unique tower so one can identify a mosque if he is several kilometers away from that.

99% of the 72 million of Turkey population is Muslims and most of them are Sunni Muslims. I came to know there is a another variation of Islam which is known as "Alevi" who believes in all human being are equal, equality of men and woman, tolerate other religions. Further, in Turkey I observed that there are less restrictions on dress code of women.

Turkish people like their local food and Kebab and Turkish Pizza are unique cuisine for them. Tea is a popular drink in Turkey and they have unique tea cup which has a shape of hour glass. "Dondurga" is the name for Turkish ice cream and Turks Claim their ice cream is the world best. There are lot of sweets which are very unique to Turkey. Fasting for Ramadan is done as high priority even though it is not a law as in some other Muslim countries. I also tried to fast one day but it is really a hard task but I think if we try to do it gradually, it can be done. Everything is extremely cheap comparing with Europe and I think it is little bit expensive than in Sri Lanka.

Fiat is a popular brand in Turkey and I saw lot of Fiat cars on the roads. They have good infrastructure such as roads, airports ect. However when we are in Istanbul we face a dead lock traffic in a junction with very narrow roads but drives and local people managed to solve that is 5 minutes. In another instance, I saw a fight of two people in Gaziantep but in a matter of minutes Police appeared in that location.

Most of the people I met called me “brother” and I think it is the way they show their friendship and affection. However, one book salesman in Istanbul call me “brother” and tried to sell a book about Istanbul for 37 Turkish Lira (1 Turkish Lira = 75 Sri Lankan rupees). When I refused to buy that he gradually reduced the price to 7 TL and finally I agreed to buy the book because I am also interested to learn about Istanbul. I never expect this somewhere closer to Europe but felt like I am in Sri Lanka after bargaining with that person.

It was scorching when we are there and thermometers hit 40 centigrades. I was traveling with one of my colleague who is in his 50's and was very reluctant to go outside in that weather. However, I manage to convince him and visit Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Istanbul which is known as The Blue Mosque in Turkey (I don't know why they call that blue because I didn't see any thing blue on that. May be the color of the Marmara Sea in the background ) and Castle and Musiam in Gaziantep.

If you are planing to travel abroad, I would recommend Turkey because there are lot of historical places to visit. There are nice terrains in rural areas and the people are very friendly even though most of them can't speak English (Specially in suburbs). Most of them are very enthusiastic to get along with foreigners and good in sign language. Expenses are affordable. I think Turkey is a very unique country and you will have a unique experience.

I Dreamed Of Africa-A Story About Life With Full OF Challanges

Film was released in 2000.Though it wasn't able to receive any aword and didnt break any records as a blockbuster.I think it is a good film to watch becouse it explains how tough our lives realy can be and we should find a way to go through any obstacles.It expalains us that we should never ever give up living when we receive the last thing having to face in our lives.It isnt the best film when it comes to see a happy ending but it almost like a real story that anybody could have faced in the life time.
Film is about a women(kuki) who wasn't receive her life as she wants to.Film begins with getting a proposal for her from poul who is looking to move in to kenya..she accepted his proposal and move in to kenya with her son of preveaus marrage.Then her life begining to change and she had to go thoruogh lot of challanges since they are living in a bunglow in delapilitated ranch in kenya.I'l here stop here otherwise all of u know the whole story.

Do Vampires Realy Exist

I'm sure, you definetly have watched dracula films..Specialy in these days, when twilight series breaking all records and making a name on it.But do you ever think about how vampire stories were originated?? do you ever thought have they been realy existing?? If u don't know that, these facts will help you to get a some kind of idea.
The story of vampires actualy based on a disease called porphyria.Hemoglobin is responsible for transporting O2 in the blood.In this disease hemoglobing synthesis in the body is disrupted and a defective molecule is being synthesised instead of hemoglobin.Formation of a defective molecule breaks down normal body function and leads to anemia.Anemia mean decrease in normal red blood cells in the blood.
These patients lack fresh blood in their bodies due to above mention reasons.They look more whiter than other people. They cant go through direct sunlight.this is becouse of the defective molecule formed in the body instead of hemoglobin.It reacts in direct sunlight.So when they expose in to direct sunlight their skin will be damaged.These patients should avoid sunlight and it is better for them to go out at night.these patients are treated by injecting blood.Few centuries ago patients were treated by drinking blood.
These symptoms of these patients is the origin for vampire legends since vampires also share these symptoms.It is the main reason for the creation of falk stories about them making deadly creatures who are hunting people for blood at night time.Existing of these patients make the misconception that vampires were realy existing in medieval time but actualy they were not.Porphyria is a rare disease and today we have lots of treatment fot it and we cant find out people having those symptoms.So dont afraid to go out at night, You will never meet vampires in streets.If u meet one like vampire, dont afraid he or she might be just a patient.

Global Warming-A real Warning for All man kinds....

Global warming is becoming a real threat to all lives from the samallest species to largest..Most people talk about global warming but do you know realy what it is?? How is it occur? Then how does it become a threat for all living species? How we can prvent this from bocoming a threat? What we can do for that? It is sure that we should do something for that otherwise it is like coommitng sucide.
Global warming is a result of strengthning the green house effect and it increase the temperature of the earths's surface.though global warming is threat to all of us, Green house effect is very important to maintain life on the earth. Without greenhouse effect earth's surface temperature is even below than zero celcius and life would not exist on the earth.Green house gases such as C02, CH4, H20,N02 and So2 gases trapped infared radiation which being emmited from the earth and it is the main couse for greenhouse effect.Industrial evolution and constructions of more and more colonies leads to deforestation and burning lot of fossil fuels.This increases the amount of C02 in the atmosphere and strengthen the green house effect to end up with global warming.Main reason for global warming is continuese increase of C02 in the atmosphere.
There are so many bad effects from global warming which directly threten to the exisisting life on the earth. Climate changes can be resulted from global warming.Evidence to climate changes are increasing temperature,rising in sea levels and decreasing snow cover in top of mountens and increasing the tropical cyclone activity.those climate changes produce major problems not only for humans but also for every living species.
Increase in temperature activate lot of pathogenic microorganisms(bacteria and viruses) that can't exist in normal temperatures.Those microorganisms will couse various deseases which are new to humans.excesive increase of temperature in summer give rise to lot of deaths in living species which is becoming a tradigy now. Expansion in water due to increase in temperature increases the sea level and it will be a major problem for small islands like maldives.Withdrawing of snow from top of the mountens disrupt lot of eco systems and also freshwater systems which begins from mountens. Elevated Co2 levels interfer with cultivations of crops and will decrease the food supply.If we continue to increase C02 level there will be more problems for sure.
Main solution to prevent global warming is reduce the amount of green house gasea that are being released.Most countries have been trying to come up with ways of reducing them individualy and working together as well.reducing the use of fossil fuels is a good way of reducing C02 level becouse elevation of C02 level mainly due to increase in fossil fuel burning.we should find alternative energy sources otherthan fossil fuels and should control our energy consumption to a lower value.At the same time increasing forestland will also help to decrease the C02 level in the atmosphere.Unfortunatly these solutions are not effectively implemnting in most of western countries like USA. Today atmospheric C02 level is going up greatly.For the sake of the exisisting of human beings, atleast we should try to reduce the ways of emmition of green house gases individualy as well as in organisation level.Most of the people in the world dont know how danger global warming is.So lot of acknowledging programmes should be carried to convince the important in preventing global warming.

Learning English can be one of the most beneficial decisions an individual can make because it has become language which is used all around the world.

The truth of the matter is that most information is exchanged worldwide, in English. Many citizens of foreign countries do speak English as a secondary language. This will help to communicate with tourists, as well as during professional business meetings. In the countries all around the world, English is used fluently, or at least basically understood by the people. If you plan to travel abroad, you may also want to consider learning English. Because many countries in the world are fluent in English, and the language has become the standard communication method for the tourists. Learning this language will help you not only to navigate a country, but also to hire a taxi and find your way out an airport.hehe....

So the main reason to study English is, in order to become educated and to face successfully in foreign affairs. Also to advance in the professional world, you should have proper English and good speech.

But unfortunately, learning English is not a simple task. That's mainly because learning English never ends. Many language experts state English is one of the hardest languages to learn, especially when fluently speaking another language. But because of the above given reasons, if you learn English well anyhow, that would be the path of success in your life.

About me....from Buddhika

Before I start, I apologize for the delay in writing for the Emarald blog. The opportunity is extremely useful for us to improve our writing skills and I hope it is not too late and wish to contribute to it frequently and get the full use of it.

Why did I select the BC for studying English?… I believe, nowadays, English is the key for almost everything. For myself, I felt the need to improve my communication skills. I frankly believe that my writing is not up to the standards I require. I also know I struggle in speaking most of the time and make huge mistakes. Reading of course is not a big issue for me though my speed is not very good. I face a bit of difficulty in understanding the pronunciation of foreigners specially the people from non-Common wealth countries. So I decided to join with BC to improve my English. In fact I sat for the placement test last April and got selected for the advanced course but there were no vacancy at that time and had to wait for the next term.

In brief about me…, I was born in Matara - my parents are from there – and since my father was working in public sector, we had to move several times as he got transfers. As a result, during my school days I attended several schools in Hambantota, Galle and finally Colombo. My childhood ambition was to become a scientist! I was addicted to reading and I used to read almost everything irrespective of the subject - specially science fiction and about scientists. After my education I joined several manufacturing companies but I didn’t enjoy the factory work conditions. I changed my career to my interest in the field of environment and joined an environmental management consultancy firm. Since then I have been working as an environmentalist and I think the time I worked in Nuwaraeliya and Uganda are two of the great opportunities in my carrier. Because of the nature of my job, I get opportunities to visit many places in Sri Lanka. I have traveled to almost all parts of Sri Lanka except some parts of the war affected areas.

As I mentioned earlier, I am interested in reading mostly the news, local and international politics, science and technology etc. I am not interested in finance and economics. During my higher education I was addicted to internet and I used to read about scientists and the latest developments in science and technology.

I am a music lover and I enjoy music by Kasun Kalhara very much. It’s a different style of music and I feel very young when I listen to his music! I also like Brian Adams, oldies by Harry Belafonte and country style music.

I married Vindhya 2 1/2 years ago and she also loves music. And she is a good photographer too. She works in a different field - in accounting - but again for an environmental management consultancy firm.

Finally, no difference from the others, I am a big fan of cricket - luckily not like in my school days. In my school days, I was like a statistician about matches and players! My favorite players are Aravinda De Silva, Viv Richards and Allan Border. I like fighting cricketing characters such as Hansie Cornje, Mark Boucher, Moin Khan and Chris Cairns too.

Teenage Pregnancy

Teenage pregnancy rate has been increasing in the world since early 1990s. According to a research done by the 'Save the Children Foundation', annually 13 million children are born to teenage mothers under 20 years age. 90% out of this is from third world countries. Who are teenagers? What are the causes affected to increase teenage pregnancy? What are the problems that could be arised and possible solutions to reduce teenage pregnancy rate?

Children age between 13 - 19 years can be considered as teenagers. Age 20 is considered worldwide as the normal age for marriage. However, women in some countries like Africa are tend to marry at an early age. Because they consider having a baby at an early age as a blessing since it is a proof of a young woman fertility.

There are many reasons support to increase teenage pregnancy in general. Due to lack of sex education from parents, school or otherwise, teenagers are not aware how to deal with pressure come from peers, the risk of having unsafe sex, birth control methods, health problems, impact on the child born and other social and economical issues. Drug addiction is a another reason since it may encourage unintended sexual activity. Between 11% and 20% of the teenage pregnancy rate are direct result of sexual abuse. In some countries, domestic violence is a main reason to increase the rate. Socioeconomic factors are also highly contributed.

Infants of teenage mothers are more likely have health problems such as underweight, disabilities, abnormalities and many other. Due to the problems come from society and economy, this will lead to lot of other problems. The probability of daughters of a teenage mother getting pregnant is very high.

When we consider the solutions, especially, parents have to take the significant part of the responsibility of their child. Parents should talk to their teen about pregnancy and sex even though it is the toughest talk for a parent. It is required to keep communication with them and parents should be approachable by taking examples from the society. They must be emphasised about family values, attitudes and thoughts. Encouraging of teens on education as top priority, advising them about the problems associated with unsafe sex and more importantly getting know about what they are doing, where they are going and what people they are associating with will be the easiest and the best way to minimise teens are getting pregnant. Keeping family values on top is the only sure method to decease the teenage pregnancy rate.

Hey Thirld World countries, say "poverty" Good-Bye !!! - Sachitha.

A recent survey has revealed that a two third of the Thirds World population are poor.Over the past decade, the poverty stricken population has gradually increased. Why is there still so much poverty in the Third World ? What ever the answer is, it should be eradicated.

The world is rapidly developing day by day. A wide range of instruments & varieties of food items are introduced to the world. Yet, poverty is one of the major issues of the Third World countries. There are two main reasons which has caused the poverty.

First is the wastage of the surplus production of the developed countries. Most of the 3 rd World countries do not suceed in producing the essential items to fulfill the requirments within the country. Whereas the developed countries produce twice the amount of the requiment which is both consumed & exported. Moreover, if there is a surplus, it's destroyed by burning or throwing to the sea to stabilize the prices of their goods in the world market. If they add the surplus to the exporting amount, the prices of the goods go down due to the availability.

Second is the unequal distribution of the gross domestic production. There's an immense gap between the per capita income of a doctor & a labourer. While the doctor bathes in a hot chocolate tub, the labourer's child cries for a slice of bread for his supper.

The one & only solution to eradicate poverty is to convince people that the service of a labourer is quite as essential as a service of a doctor & then to distribute the gross domestic production equally among the people.

Then the doctors might not be able to live heavenly, but each & every person in the country will lead Middle-Class lives & survive.

Global Warming - The Beginning of the End

Nowadays, Global Warming is a hot topic in everywhere form discussion tables in United Nations to schools and streets. It is a common truth that human driven activities are the main causes for this. What are those activates? What are the consequences of the global warming? How critical are they especially considering the future generation? What are the measures taken and can be taken today to save tomorrow?

Global warming means the rise of the temperature caused by green house effect of the atmosphere. In simple terms, a large amount or heat received from the sun get trapped inside the atmosphere because of the heat is reflected back to earth by Green House Gasses (GHG). Carbon Dioxide, Methane, Sulfur Dioxide, Nitrous Oxide are considered as the major gases which play in part in global warming.

Nature has set clear rules to maintain the balance and harmony on earth. As an example lion or tiger would not eat anything other than fresh meat even if they die in hunger. I think this is because they have better understanding about the nature than human beings. Animals and human produce carbon dioxide in the process of metabolizing the food and trees absorb that in the process of photosynthesis. This was well balanced system until man found fossil fuel and built the engines to work for them. They started to produce carbon dioxide beyond the trees can handle and in the same time deforesting continue to increase in name of development. This is like a digging his own grave or more precisely digging the grave of the future generations.

Former US vice president, Mr. Albert Al Gore in his presentation on global warming known as “An Inconvenient Truth” discusses about the consequences such as rising of sea levels, changes in weather patterns, increasing the chances of epidemics and slowing down the processes of the nature to equalize the inequalities on the earth. Further to that he stress that even though we experience those in small scale now, if we continue our irresponsible habits the consequences will become dangerously high in near future. Even though there are criticism about this film saying that some figures are inaccurate and he has personal agenda behind, this is definitely an eye opener.

As human beings can we see the future generations suffer as a result of our faults? There has been lot of discussions are going on at international level to act up on it. In 1997 Kyoto Protocol was established to reduce GHG as first global step to fight against global warming even though it was a half success story. In 2010, discussions at Copenhagen for wider plan were ended without achieving the objectives b. Although this problem should be addressed in global level and witnessing the failure of proper actions by global leaders , we as individuals should battle against global warming by using energy efficiently, reducing waste by recycling and reusing, changing life styles with less carbon footprint and growing more trees.

What a farmer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yesterday I watched CNN and one Kenyan farmer said his experience about the election violence. In 2007, Kenya election was a war. Thousands of people died. lot of people were displaced. He said that he went to a church with his wife and 6 children to protect their lives. A youth gang came and bolted the door of the church and set it alight. His beloved wife and 5 years old son were killed by this unfortunate incident.
He explained to CNN reporter that he is keeping two photos of them framed and think what a life he would enjoy like if they were still alive. life without a partner is very hard. Now no one he has to leave at home to look after his other 5 kids and money is the main problem. So he is doing a casual job now. He does farming and take care of his kids.
But he said " I'm not worried. I'm a Kenyan. Kenya is my country. we need a new constitution. I'm not afraid. I want to vote for a change. If I run away, I have to loss my vote. I'm proud of Kenya. I want to have a beautiful country for my kids".

He was a one of 12.5 million of registered persons to vote. They are expecting a change.

Reply to Dushy on Voter Apathy

I am also very much reluctant to vote but I keep track on politics. To most Sri Lankans' politics means entertaining the people at public rallies, politician who they can get a help such as get a job opportunity and show their sympathy or revenge.

Lot of Sri Lankans are borne with a party. They have different color blood which is same as the color of the party. It doesn't matter the policy of the party, whether they have changed, whether the politicians change the sides but voters don't change. It is their party. Latest trend is to do suicide because of the party reforms and I am really puzzled because how can a father with two kids can do something like this to a party.

When it comes to voting there are interesting trends too. In old days all the estate workers in plantations wait for their union leaders to tell who to vote. Most of them can't read and that is the reason that party symbol is more popular than any other thing because they remember the party symbol to put a cross. This is the same scenario in very rural area of the other parts of the country. So what can I talk about policies. I think most of the members in Parliament are not aware about the policies. However, I feel this is getting improving after looking at the last election results and hope for the best.

As a person I don't believe in democracy, voting and assume that the opinion with most votes is correct or is the best way of doing things. I think countries should have specialists for politics. Like in other professions, they should be trained and learned in schools and universities. They should maintain ethics and standards like other professions and industries. They should have hands-on experience with people in grass root levels and top level executives and entrepreneurs. They should be patriotic and transparent.

Parliament should be just a another institute to make policies and constitutes but no other authorities. Ministries should be regulatory bodies. I know this is not be a reality but this is my view. I don't trust present system even though I usually update my self about politics .

Although, I don't like to vote, I think my fellow classmates should be more informed about politics because the system will improve with the knowledge of the voters, which may lead to a system that I can trust someday. What really matters is not the voter turnout. Most important thing is the quality of the vote. It is how far you know about the voting system, candidates and consequences of that vote related to you, to your family, to your city and to your country as a whole.

Voting is compulsory in Australia and it is really interesting strategy to fight against voter apathy . If a voter do not vote, he/she has to give a valid reason for that or he/she has to pay a penalty. Do you think that as a good method to adopt in Sri Lanka ?

Hi everybody...thereendra here...

fist of all i must thank liz, giving us such a wondrful oppertunity to improve our english knowledge...sooo
im thareendra de zoysa, i'm following a special degree in molecular biology and biochemistry in university of colombo..i wish to continue my studies further after completing my degree..english is the universal language now and it is the key to get knowledge in this era and it is the best whent it comes to link with the whole world today, so that is why i wanted to follow a good english course and as far as english courses are concerned british council is probably the best so that is why im here now.here are some more details about me.... i studied in aluthgama vidyalaya up to grade 9 and then i moved in to srisumangala college untill i finished my O/L and finally ended up in royal college colombo where i finished my A/Ls..im realy interested in science and the researchs involved on that and im a great fan of srilankan cricket team..in my leasure time i normally play cricket,watching movies or read..i wish all of us in the class will be having a great time in nex two months and hope everyone will be able to achieve what they are looking for....cheers!!!!!!