One of the most annoying things to watch on TV is the way that some documentaries, especially historical programmes attempt to skim the surface of history.

I can understand tight recording schedules but to miss out fundamental aspects of history is an absolute sin and should be exposed immediately.

What really got me the other day was the way that Michael Wood, (The Story of India, Friday, 9pm, BBC TWO) painted an incorrect image of the Mughal empire. He misrepresented them, suggesting them as attempting to create harmony between the various religions. He missed out communicating their barbaric acts of ethnic cleansing that are truly unforgivable.

In addition, although he mentioned Sikhs for approx 2 minutes of footage, he made no attempt to explain who the Sikhs are and continuing to be defenders of the defenseless.

I also find it amazing that the same people are selected again and again to cruise around the word, for example, Michael Palin.

Back to my issue with Michael Wood. Although I find his presentation style, engaging and enthusiastic, what are we being presented with? Is it his opinion or is there simply not enough time to research fully such sensitive areas? Michael is described at the BBC shop site as…
’an historian and acclaimed writer’. I’m sure he is but what went wrong? There is no doubt that the filming is outstanding but documentaries are about more than landscapes, they are about documenting the truth!

At a recent couple of presentations I suggested that Sikhs need to create more media, for example documentaries, both audio and video, else we may have a situation on our hands where the media could potentially distort the truth.

The problem is that creating media takes time and dedication. We have to applaud www.siknet.com for their outstanding work, together with the Spinning Wheel festival – These initiatives help us all communicate positive messages.
This years participant categories range from juniors to the age of 126!
If you get a chance, watch the videos online and be impressed with the dedication that participants have put into create unique and engaging content.

It is such as shame that if you type in Michael Wood, The Story of India into Google, all you are returned with is a list of products, DVDs and books. Some damage has been done!

We need more curators to validate what is being researched, recorded and then eventually communicated. We need these people to have no political agendas or miss-out essential facts.
We need to speak-up against a potential tide of distortion.

We can only do this if we become so prolific in our investment in national education and a hope that truth will prevails.

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Its seems that the whole world is now on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com) and literally, pardon the pun (!) every time I pick-up a copy of The (UK) Times, there is always an article from a journalist / writer providing an opinion on its use and potential abuse. However, rarely do I find a piece on its social implication.

I wonder sometimes if Facebook is just a case of a fad or the development of another evolution in the world of online communication. Remember Friends Reunited? They are still around and have also innovated further. I guess the question to really ask is if it such technology brings people closer together?
Facebook is a great tool to connect and reconnect with people we know or have known. There is potentially the fear of rejection if they do not wish to engage with you any more. There is also the potential for your personal profile to be restricted or running an application within the system called, ‘Top friends’!

Of course there those that strongly resist its charm, don’t believe that they need it and many others who are techno phobic. Does this mean that we are creating a society that will have multiple levels of Information Technology competence and dependency. Certainly, Facebook like Instant Messenger (MSN, Yahoo) can be addictive. In addition, there are some users that believe that it is all about competition, i.e.: How many friends they can accumulate. I’m surprised that at this stage that know one is chasing specific people online!
In addition, some employers have begun to restrict its use in the workplace.

Ultimately, it can be peer pressure that bring some online. Or, businesses that believe that it can add to a customer experience. I’ve heard some people, Facebook opponents, suggest the following:

* It was always a student thing!
* How sad that you have to use it!

With regard to the latter, serious users will appreciate that Facebook is not the only social networking site but a potentially an extension to everyday living.
In this context it can be a potentially, ‘excluding technology’, i.e.: a system that prevents people from engaging with each other.

Facebook also makes a huge assumption that it is easy to share, video, audio and picture. The latter, appears to be the most popular form of content that is shared today. For example, over 8 million pictures are uploaded to Facebook daily.

So what is next in the world of online communication.
There is the potential that networks that are purpose built, private and even more exclusive could develop.
Ironic, in the context that a technology that has the potential to bring people together can also be divisive in keeping humanity apart!

Today, more than ever we need people to connect with each other.
I just realised that today is Sept 11th and as I am writing this, it was 6 years ago that we witnessed the awful Twin Towers attack. It is one of those events that automatically makes people remember where they were and what they were doing. It was two years before I started blogging (I wrote my first online journal in Oct 2003) or blogging was even heard of. Online tools can help people share their experiences and most of all potentially bring out the best in people!

If you get a chance, check out, ‘Facebook not for close friendships’ research results…

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I’ve just returned from what could be described as island hops between Singapore and Malaysia.
The trip was lasted two weeks and for me personally it was a bit of an eye opener.

I have been to Singapore on two previous occasions but this time it was different. Different in the context that on my previous two visits I was much younger and probably a bit more carefree. I’m not suggesting that the older one gets the more get the cynical one becomes. NB With time hopefully comes experience and I hope, wiser perspectives.

I was fascinated by the history of the Sikhs who are now in their 3rd, 4th and 5th generations. Not quite in parallel with the UK, probably and obviously because these islands are a lot closer to India than the UK. A large Southern Indian population is also resident in both countries.

I did not get a chance to visit the Gurdwara in Singapore but did visit two in Penang.

Penang had some interesting history at Fort Cornwallis. Fort Cornwallis was originally built for the Royal artillery troops and the military (by the way, founded by Captain Francis Light), its function historically was more administrative rather than defense. In its entire history, the fort was never engaged in any battle, Apart from being used for the British Royal artillery troops, the fort was once occupied by the Sikh police of the Straits Settlements (the latter date back to the 1800s, i.e.: The establishment of the Straits Settlements followed the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 between the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, by which the Malay archipelago was divided into a British zone in the north and a Dutch zone in the south. This resulted in the exchange of the British settlement of Bencoolen (on Sumatra) for the Dutch colony of Malacca and undisputed control of Singapore. Its capital was moved from Penang to Singapore in 1832) during the 1920’s. Interestingly, one of Penang’s three Sikh Gurdwara’s is called, ‘The Police Gurdwara’!

On the outside of the oldest one I visited the inscription, ‘Diamond Jubilee Gurdwara’ was mounted in large blue lettering.

Inside we were greeted with Tea and biscuits by some really nice people. We had a chance to learn about how they (some of the congregation/ Sangat) have been living in Penang for almost 5 generations. I really wanted to record some of their stories on my recorder but was a bit shy to ask!

Later I wondered if we can do more to document the lives or Sikhs around the world, their experiences, challenges and heritage. It is almost a project in its own right and another opportunity to communicate who we are.

We purchased a point to point ticket, this meant that I had to arrive and leave via Singapore. We spent the last 2 nights in Singapore and although it had gloss I could not help thinking how some many Western brands have and continue to ‘thrust’ themselves on countries, especially in some of the giant malls of both Singapore and Malaysia. More about that another time!

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