thomasterry.com

Baseball a Bud and a Babe

2008-08-15T13:43:00+08:00

I almost missed out on one of my best days here.

I have to confess that my "vacation" hasn't been all that relaxing at times as unforeseen circumstances have heaped some stress my way. I'm so thankful for the graciousness of my hosts, and today was no different. Chris snagged some behind home plate tickets for us to the Tacoma Rainiers game. I haven't been to a baseball game in 13 years.

Earlier today I was feeling emotionally drained, and not in the mood to go to a baseball game. Without realizing it I think I was just setting my mind to brood mode. But Rochele really wanted to go to the game and it was hard to say no to her. So, we met Chris' son-in-law, Joe, at his place in Tacoma and he took us to the ball park for a night of baseball.

I thought about taking my camera and seeing what kind of sport shots I could get. I routinely shoot the Eagle TV sporting events and Nadaam, so I figured, why not shoot a bit tonight? But as I was getting ready to go I realized, "Why do I need to turn this into something to accomplish? Why can't I just go and watch some guys hit a round ball with a round bat and run around the bases? Why can't I just chill out?"

I left the camera home.

Best decision I've made all week.

My deep thanks to Chris and Joe for the tickets, transport, and company; and to Rochele for the nudge.

Mount Rainer from 50 Miles

2008-08-14T11:03:00+08:00

While on the way to pick up Rochele to help her with shopping for a used car and handling other transition issues, I noticed that the view of Mount Rainer from Gig Harbor was unusually clear today. So I scooted back to my host and picked up my camera. I shot this from the front yard of a house looking over a hill. Just as the title says, this image was shot from 50 miles away.

For those of us from the Southwest, shooting a mountain from a distance of 50 miles might be viewable as a group of 4 pixels on the screen. So the awesome size of this mountain really takes the breath away. I think I need another whole day off just to go there, chill out, and shoot it from up close. See the larger version of the picture here.

Since I arrived in Gig Harbor nearly three weeks ago I've been wanting to eat at a fancy fish joint called, Anthony's. I finally padded my wallet, picked up Rochele, and made our way. We had a great view of the harbor. I only wish Diane could have been with me. During the dinner Rochele said, "Dad, I hate fish. You brought me to a place with nothing but fish." But being the girl who tries anything she ordered mahi mahi tacos. I had the sturgeon. Both were great. This is actually Rochele's fifth kind of fish she's shoved down her gullet (salmon, mahi mahi, sturgeon, shark, catfish) and she's liked them all, so she had to give up the idea that she "hates fish."

Tomorrow we're going job hunting then we're having a two-family phone conference with families here and in Mongolia to talk through transition issues.

Dirty View

2008-08-12T15:59:56+08:00

This is what happens when you don't properly clean your lens or mirror in your camera. It's hard to tell from the shot here, but if you really want to see it, click over to the full size image on my Flickr page. Tomorrow I'll have to get the gear I need to properly clean the lens and mirror.

I was hoping to get some great shots of the Perseid Meteor Shower tonight. The dust particles made that impossible. Of course, the strange and unfriendly noises in the forest also had something to do with it.

The longer exposure times for night photography send light through the dust particles and it ends up imprinting on the sensor.

I'll have to venture out another night for some starfields once I get the camera properly cleaned.

Piper on Prosperity

2008-08-10T02:27:00+08:00

Some time ago I posted a YouTube video with John Piper's comments about the prosperity gospel. Found this version online this morning.

Hard Goodbyes

2008-08-08T10:32:02+08:00

Today Diane and Whitney boarded a plane to head back home to Ulaanbaatar. Stefani, Rochele and I saw them off to the airport. After the boarding passes were arranged we had a few moments together with Pastor Chris Bayer (whom we've been staying with on this trip), then it was time for Diane and Whitney to say their goodbyes to Stefani and Rochele. It was an especially emotional time as this goodbye for Rochele was the big one. Rochele will not be returning to Mongolia. I won't go into all the details here on this blog since Diane has not landed in Mongolia yet. She will be talking with friends back home about the details, and I want to give her time to take care of that first. Suffice it to say, for this moment, Rochele will be remaining in the Gig Harbor/Tacoma area for at least the next 9 to 10 months before moving elsewhere. Once the decision was made there was a lot of high emotion from everyone. It was especially hard for me since I was the one who had to make the final decision. Rochele and I are very close and I was really looking forward to her return to Mongolia to spend another few months with her before going off on her own. But after a couple of days we had all settled into reality and we came to an agreement that this was the best option to help Rochele prepare for her future. So Rochele, never one to wait for reality to totally set in, decided to make a little reality of her own and started working on her future even before the decision was finally made. She's already secured a job after her current employment ends. It's a job paying between $15 and $25 an hour depending upon the project she's on. "Holy cow!" I told her. "You'll be making more money than me!" In the last two days she's also scouted potential vehicles to purchase, began researching areas it might be best to live, and thinking through second job possibilities to broaden the kind of experience she wants to get. At the same time she's been working on strategy prepare for her GED test. If there's one thing that's always been true about Rochele, it's that she does not wait around for life to happen, she makes it happen. This is not to say that things won't be difficult. The break from home, as we experienced with Stefani, is always difficult. I'm going to miss her beyond words. But by remaining here now (and she's already been here three months), she'll be preparing herself for her future. For me that's far more important than the few months of her company I could steal for myself. I'll have more about her move in a few days.

A Perfect Day

2008-08-06T13:09:00+08:00

Today the rejoined Terry family took a ferry from Bremerton to Seattle to see the Space Needle and do the tourist trap thing. As my friend Chris Bayar says, "It was a perfect day."

We spent the hour-long crossing goofing off and enjoying the sites. The ride reminded me a bit of my time living in Istanbul where I used to cross twice a day from the Asian to European sides. Of course, Seattle is much cleaner. The best part though, was just having all of us together—especially having Stefani and Rochele together again. You begin to feel your age and how much life changes when the kids leave home...for the other side of the planet...so today was pretty good.

This is me with Rochele (L) and Stefani (R), at lunch just before hitting the elevator to the Space Needle.

Overall the Space Needle was cool. I've always found souvenir shops a general waste of time and money, but they can be good for a few interesting pictures if you know what to look for. See here for an example.

Having Diane with me on the outing also made the day great. This is our first whole-family vacation in 5 years. So when me and the mighty missus got to hang together a few hundred feet above Seattle, it was cool. The shot on the right was taken by Rochele. The pretty one is my wife.

The day was not without its antics, which seemed to start right away. Put Stefani and Rochele together in the same room and watch the sarcasm fly (the humorous kind). They're not "experts" at it yet ("Dad, your sisters are "experts at it, they're awesome"), but my girls are on their way.

When we pulled into the downtown area and saw the Science Fiction Museum, immediately Whitney, Stefani, and I were overcome with excitement. Poor Rochele was overcome with long disparaging sighs. I hate to say it, but she was right. If you visit Seattle, skip the SciFi museum. A perfect waste of $62 for entry fees. You can learn more about the genre by wandering the SciFi aisles at your local bookstore. But hey, we had a great time groaning at cheesy displays—except for Robbie the Robot. That was cool.

Dinner at Outback and a bag full of cheesecakes to go rounded out a perfect day.

Tomorrow it's back to Kopachuck State Park to wander the beach, shoot a few starfish (with a camera) then hit a zoo. Thursday morning Diane and Whitney leave for Mongolia.

I've posted several images from today's outing on my photo viewer.

Last shot is all of my girls together, over Seattle, with a little wind. ;-)

The Everchanging Plans

2008-08-05T22:19:37+08:00

The illness that apparently came with me from Mongolia surged again this week so I end up at the Urgent Care Monday morning to discover that I have, according to the doctor, "massive infections in both ears." Ear infections? What am I, four? So now I'm on a drug store of medicines. Hopefully I'll be on the mend quick enough to suck as much enjoyment out of my remaining vacation time as possible. Meanwhile, Stefani flew in from Arizona yesterday. So now all five of us are together. This is very cool. We haven't had a family vacation with all five of us together in five years. Stef flies out on Friday, the day after Diane and Whitney return to Mongolia. Which brings up another issue. As it turns out, I'm not leaving Gig Harbor on Thursday as planned. I need to remain a while longer to help Rochele through some issues we've been discussing for the last few days. My plan was to stay an additional week, then go home. But it turns out I can't get a flight back into Mongolia until the 26th of August! Gulp. Another 18 days out of country? That's a lot more than I bargained for. But at least I can run things by live video conference with the office as well as work on scripting and other issues by Skype with the staff. So once I'm done helping Rochele, I'll just be in waiting mode, working by remote from here. We're heading out this morning to take a ferry to Seattle. We'll spend the day downtown, visit the space needle and the tourist trap areas before heading back to our hosts late tonight. Of course, I'll be snapping pics left and right.

New Mongolia Life Site

2008-08-03T00:34:37+08:00

I took some time yesterday to create a new site for MongoliaLife.com. I used to maintain a separate site for the images from Mongolia, but it became too difficult to maintain properly, so I sunk everything into Flickr. Things have changed and the new tools available make it simple to feature my Mongolia photos on a new dedicated site.

The new site is still in a bit of a "beta" condition. I haven't put in the little visual tweaks to spruce it up yet, but all of the images are there.

The real drawback to the site is that I haven't really shot any new Mongolia images of significance in more than a year. So I guess now that I have the new interface up I need to get some new images up as well.

UPDATE 3:35PM - Added images from today's outing to Kopachuck State Park in Washington State. See today's images in the Tiltviewer. Will spend the day in Westport tomorrow with my aunt and uncle. Look for pictures of coast tomorrow.

UPDATE 9:34PM - Added two more images from tonight's dinner with friends. Shot them in the backyard garden.

Traditions

2008-08-01T16:08:00+08:00

It's a family tradition. Go on vacation to decompress then Tom gets really sick.

Been down for more than two days with a bad cold. I've been so "down" that I've been in bed or sleeping about 18 hours of the day. However, I seem to be on the mend, at least enough to make a run to Albertson's this morning and shoot a few pics in the front yard of our hosts. See today's images on my new 3D title viewer.

If we were in the Southwest I'd sit outside and let the sun and heat "burn" it out of me. But this is the Pacific Northwest. Cloudy. Rainy. No burn.

I'm hoping my head and other symptoms will clear out by the weekend so we can get back to seeing a few sites and enjoying our time here.

But there's good news. Today is my brother's birthday! The old man is 43 today. Happy birthday Troy. Here are some flowers for your birthday.

UPDATE at 2:50PM PST:
Ah, but there is more good news. My head was clear enough that I was able to join Diane and Whitney for a walk and photo shoot at a nearby beach. I put the images on my new 3D tilt viewer. Now I'm down for a nap, then I'm hoping to feel mentally coherent enough to spend some time in the book of Acts.

3rd Day Chill'in

2008-07-29T13:48:12+08:00

The time off continues.

We had a leisurely day today. We took a walk downtown by the bay of Gig Harbor, saw the sites and enjoyed the scenery.

After an Italian lunch, we went to a movie (Journey to the Center of the Earth), then relaxed back at Chris' house for the rest of the day.

Some of my personal time is being spent in Acts, studying how the Apostles confronted the cultures they were ministering in over many missionary journeys.

I'm posting a few images from our vacation time on my Flickr page, including a large shot of this panorama of Gig Harbor.

Thanks again to everyone who has helped us with this trip.

I'll post more images here later, as well as insights to the book of Acts as my thoughts begin to coalesce.

1st Day Chill'in

2008-07-28T06:23:55+08:00

It's our first full day in Gig Harbor and we've already:

Slept way too long (12 hours)
Gotten lost (but enjoyed the drive through forested neighborhoods)
Spent too much money (I bought my wife a present)

All in all it's not a bad first day of vacation, though I am exhausted. The plane ride wasn't any worse than normal, but I had some kind of ear problem and was convinced my left eardrum would burst before landing. It didn't, but the day and half of travel wasn't a picnic--in fact, much of it was downright painful. No matter, most of the symptoms are gone now, and though I feel exhausted, I'm okay.

Today we're relaxing with friends. We'll probably catch a movie at home, take a nap, do nothing. Tomorrow we'll go for a walk, do a little sightseeing, and maybe I'll take a few pictures.

Later.

Haboring

2008-07-25T20:47:27+08:00

I'm boarding a plane in three hours for a two week hiatus in Gig Harbor, Washington. This time my family with be with me and even Stefani will be joining us for part of the trip. All five of us will be together and I can't wait.

This will also be the first vacation I've taken where I will have zero contact with the office. At least, that's the plan. On every trip and every vacation I've taken I've always had to remain in daily contact with Eagle to render decisions by phone, text message, email, or Internet video conference. This time I said, "Don't call me. I'm not gonna call you. Need a decision? Ask the Board. For the next two weeks I don't exist."

I'm sure I'm going to feel orphaned for a while. I was telling two of our staff at lunch today that it's hard for me to imagine going on a trip and not hearing from the station almost daily. Just the thought is causing me stress! I guess that means I really do need a break. The other cool thing was when the senior staff was told this morning that I was leaving for a holiday—I could see it on their faces—they were genuinely happy that I was going to get some rest. Seeing their reaction reminded me why I love them so much and hate to be away from work.

Before I sign off for the next few days I want to thank the myriad of people who have emailed me from Mongolia and the States, with their loving support and encouragement during the weirdness of the last few weeks. What a blessing to know that there are so many people who are fully behind our work for both Faith and Freedom in Mongolia.

"Those who are with us are more than those who are with them" (II Kings 6:8-23).

Now...my jeans and shorts are packed. I'm wearing sneakers. Yeah. Me. Sneakers. I've got my Bible, some eBooks, my camera, and I'm ready to fly.

Buh bye!

You Know You are Loved When...Dude, Are You Crazy or Sump'tin?

2008-07-25T01:19:19+08:00

Okay, this is a first for me. I know it's nearly 1:30am and I should be snoozing after a good day of teaching the scriptures (see previous post). But, but, but...Oh. My. Gosh.

See this pic? It's a frame capture from my Skype video window during a video call. Notice anything...uh...absolutely WRONG in this picture?

No, I don't mean the face. I blotted out the face to protect my friend's identity. After all...I don't want him to lose his job over this.

Oh. My Gosh.

So, back to the pic. It's a video call. Let that sink in. It's from one of those states where it's illegal to drive and talk on a hand held phone. Got it? Okay. It's. A. Video. Call.

Is that a seat belt?

"Dude, are driving and calling me on Skype" I ask?

Laughter behind the wheel.

"Dude, you are seriously scaring me."

More laughter, then he says, "I've been thinking about you and wanted to see how you were doing."

"Well yeah, but couldn't you wait until you got home?"

I won't tell you about his efforts to pan the video around by maneuvering his laptop...er...uh...whoops.

You know you are loved when a guy risks his neck to call and check up on you. Either that or he's just doing a test before he tries it out on a Harley.

"Dude."

Teaching the Scriptures is Like Christmas in July

2008-07-24T17:32:58+08:00

Today was almost like a vacation. Today and tomorrow I'm teaching all day seminars on Spiritual Growth. The seminars are primarily for our new Steppe-by-Steppe team members, though we did have a few people attend from the ministry department.

I love to teach. But I don't get enough opportunities to do it. With all of the garbage of the last three weeks, today was almost like a vacation before my real vacation next week.

Even though I don't get to teach as often as I would like, I do get the satisfaction of knowing that the material I'm teaching will be replicated at least 600 times during the next three years. The Spiritual Growth seminars are duplicated by all twelve of the team members when they do follow-up training in the countryside. It's very humbling to know that the material that I developed, or helped to develop, is being used to transform thousands of lives across the country. So in a real sense it doesn't matter that I don't get to teach very often. I have the satisfaction of knowing that the people I'm teaching will be doing the more important work of outreach and training that I'm just not equipped to do at their level.

Training, however, isn't without it's ups and downs. There are significant problems with the most often used Bible translation in Mongolia—especially when it comes to dealing with certain, even simple, theological concepts. There are some concepts that are, frankly, so poorly translated that it can present major difficulties when helping people to identity certain patterns in scripture, or key concepts used to tell the Bible's story. As an example, the key elements of the covenants, starting with Adam and Noah, are so poorly translated that we actually had to explain the details of the passage from the Hebrew or from English in order for it to make sense through the whole context of the seminar. The Mongolian translation of the text was sadly deficient.

Early on there was a bit of a small debate on how to translate the term, "spiritual man" or "spiritual young man" as classifications in spiritual growth. Unless you are careful the usual terms would mean child ghost (think "Casper"), or a spirit person related to the ideas of shamanism. Neither are acceptable for biblical instruction! I'm grateful that I have a translator who is cautious enough to not simply translate a simple term, rather, she translates it descriptively to properly convey the meaning I intend. The whole Buddhist terminology thing can really play havoc with training if you're not careful.

Hopefully these types of difficulties will lessen once a new descriptive terminology translation is released (possibly early next year, if the rumor mill is correct).

Aside from a few minor translation difficulties things went remarkably well. It's a joy to be able to unfold the scriptures with people hungry to know God's word. Today one attendee asked me, "If we are always interpreting the scriptures through preconceived filters that color our understanding, how can we really know that we are correctly understanding what we are reading?"

What a fantastic question! For the answer, you have to book a free seminar. ;-)

Mongolians have their own cultural filters, just like Americans do. But theirs tend to come from the spiritual darkness of the Animist and Buddhist worldview. Even many Mongolian believers approach the scriptures from these worldviews! One of the things we talk about in the seminars is how to recognize our filters, and drop them when we approach the word of the Living God.

Tomorrow we're getting into the core spiritual growth material, The Secret to Becoming a Spiritual Young Man. I can't wait. For me, it's like handing out Christmas presents.

Tomorrow: The Fun Stuff I Like

2008-07-23T14:03:35+08:00

I've been looking forward to tomorrow for some time. In fact, tomorrow and Friday will be the highlight of my week until I split for some R&R on Saturday.

Starting tomorrow I'm leaving behind my usual schizophrenia to conduct a two-day training seminar on the Stages of Spiritual Growth. In fact, this is my favorite series to teach and I don't get to do it often enough. So when the opportunity arises, I jump at the chance. For me, this is the fun stuff I just don't get to do enough. With my normal duties at Eagle TV my teaching opportunities are limited. Perhaps I should more?

The training is being held for our new Steppe-by-Steppe (SBS) team members, but this year we've opened it up to any of our ministry staff that can break away from their normal duties to attend.

I've taught the spiritual growth series for a number of years, including to our ministry staff when I first arrived in Mongolia almost six years ago. I've found, through experience and getting to understand the culture, that the series needed some overhaul to address unique Mongolian perspectives not found elsewhere that I've taught—especially the tendancy some people have to try and artificially blend ideas of Animism and Buddhism with Christianity.

By the way, this will be the first use of our new Ministry Center for a small-scale seminar series.

The Stages of Spiritual Growth series is used by our SBS teams in the countryside as part of their follow-up work after they show movies and do the character-driven Bible studies. Foundational discipleship is critically important, especially in the countryside, where the normal practice is to blend things like Animism and Buddhism into Christianity instead of taking Christianity exclusively to oneself. Such a syncretistic approach to faith usually leaves the adherent with confused theology and confused ethics. The Spiritual Growth lessons help drive home to attendees the absolute supremacy of the scriptures for faith and practices, as well as the supremacy and Lordship of Christ.

One of the lessons I added to the original series is a session on God's Design for Man. We've found, in Mongolian culture, it's absolutely essential to begin a lesson series like this by communicating God's plan for man, from the beginning of creation. Then we trace how God's plan manifests itself through biblical history to our day. The key, of course, is personal application leading to transformation. Once a person gets a grasp on exactly what God is doing in his or her life, it becomes easier for the previous myths to fall away. Another session I added deals with the filters people often try to read and interpret the Bible through. I take attendees on a journey through John 10:10 to demonstrate that the passage doesn't mean what the majority of Christians think it means. Once a new believer learns how to recognize their bias filters, they begin to see the word of God for what it really says about Jesus.

Though the original notes for the Spiritual Growth series are online, I haven't updated the content in at least 3 years. I'll probably try to do that in the coming weeks. In fact, we're already planning to produce a video version of the entire seminar series for Together Through The Bible this fall.

As for Steppe-by-Steppe, our guys are out in the field today teaching a seminar on overcoming alcoholism. Tonight they will show a movie and lead a Bible study. They were specifically asked by local government officials to present the seminar and show Bible movies. Of course we are only too happy to help address these issues from the biblical perspective, whenever asked.

I hope I have enough time to post a story about their exploits tomorrow.

Denied Access

2008-07-23T11:46:28+08:00

Today is the first day of the new parliament session. TV stations are broadcasting the new session live, but not Eagle TV. We've been denied access for live coverage. Our staff is having to cover the first session through tape delay instead of a live feed. On Monday we received a verbal commitment from the press office to do the live coverage. The official letter went out Monday afternoon. Today we are denied. The "official" explanation is that we were late getting in our letter to the press office. Of course, the verbal permission was granted by the same office earlier that day, and our staff was told that the late arrival of the letter would not affect the situation. So much for that.

Truth More Powerful Than a Cyclone

2008-07-22T15:02:32+08:00

I'm a few days late in posting this, but what the heck. It's a little quote from a guy in Myanmar who was helped by missionaries after a cyclone all but destroyed that country.

"Buddha did nothing while we were suffering. But your Jesus loves us."

And that pretty much says it all.

Reflections on the Superior Life of Jesus

2008-07-19T18:21:53+08:00

While most of the Eagle TV staff is enjoying a well-earned weekend retreat in the countryside (paid for by Eagle TV, of course), I'm spending my weekend script writing. Oh poor me? Not at all! This time of script writing is also an important and useful reflection on the character and nature of God.

Today I've been working on a script for next season about the personhood of Jesus. Here's a small excerpt, posted as today's blog.

Consider some of the most respected figures in religious or political history. Moses is revered by the Jews as their lawgiver. Yet Moses was a murderer. Mohammad is honored by 1.6 billion Muslims worldwide as a prophet. Yet Mohammad was a pedophile, having sex with a child bride when she was just nine years of age. Buddha is revered by more than 300 million Buddhists. Yet Buddhism’s founder abandoned his family without warning to search for enlightenment. Karl Marx is revered by atheists and communists. Yet Marx’s philosophies led to the murder of more than 30 million people in the 20th century.

Every great religious or philosophical figure has some dark, stained past that even their so-called good deeds later in life can never erase. The same is even true in Christianity.

Christians regard Paul as the greatest Apostle, and most of the New Testament was authored by him. Yet Paul was a man of cruelty bent on murdering Christians before he became one himself. King David is revered by Jew and Christian alike for his tender heart to toward God and his unswerving devotion to righteousness. God called David a man after his own heart. Yet David was also an adulterer, a murderer, a man even the scriptures call, “a man of war [who has] shed blood”

Jesus Christ is altogether different, wholly remarkable, and completely superior to these men. Unlike these significant figures of history, Jesus Christ lived without sin.

When his enemies publicly opposed him to draw the crowds away from Jesus, he challenged his detractors directly:

“Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me?” (John 8:46).

His enemies remained silent because none of them could produce any evidence for sin committed by Jesus. It was his sinlessness that made Jesus so powerful. While he had the natural authority that comes with being the Son of God; and while he had the authority that came with being a descendant of King David; and while he had the authority that came from being uniquely conceived and birthed; his sinless nature gave him a moral authority to speak, teach, and act, that no one else on earth possessed.

Even though Jesus was totally sinless, he did not use his position of absolute moral authority to condemn those who had sinned. Instead, he stood in their place, taking the punishment for the sin they deserved—the punishment that we deserve for our sin.

“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (II Corinthians 5:21).

Jesus’ sinless life was not lived in a vacuum or in some useless state as one who meditates in a lonely dessert focused on their own spiritual self-condition. Jesus’ sinless life was lived in real life, with real relationships, in real hardships, like every other normal person—yet without ever having felt, said, or committed a single wrongful thing.

“For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15).

Jesus “…committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously” (1 Peter 2:22-23).

Jesus’ sinless life makes him superior to every other religious teacher and philosopher. In fact, his sinless existence makes him superior to every person, everywhere, at all times. There has never been anyone, and never will be anyone like Jesus Christ.

If Jesus’ life was lived in such a remarkable, supernatural fashion, then what Jesus said, and what he did on our behalf must also have great power. If other religious teachers and philosophers have flaws of character, human failings, weaknesses, and evil deeds to atone for, and yet we regard their teachings as important, then how much more important and superior should we regard Jesus Christ, who spoke, taught, and lived, and even died without sin.

Eagle TV and Press Freedom In The Crosshairs...Again

2008-07-18T12:52:50+08:00

Here's an unreported development from yesterday's parliament session that is relative to not only Eagle TV, but also Mongolia's basic rights to freedom of speech and press. During the session that saw the democrats demand the resignation of Prime Minister Bayar's government (which was refused), Member of Parliament Su. Batbold questioned not only whether Eagle TV should be allowed to exist, but seemed to question the role of private media as well.

Here's a transcript from the session:

We need to pay attention to several issues in the future. A patriotic heart, a heart of respecting elders, respecting culture, these are missing today. July 1st demonstrated this. We need to change the education system. We need to insert discipline and patriotism in education. Secondly, our last 18-year state structure seems that it had used all of its power. If things continue this way, I think, the government structure must be changed.
We must also be heedful of the press and media. Should a 100% foreign-invested media exist or not? What should the private media [be like]?

The fact that after nearly 20 years of freedom this kind of Putin-esque comment might be made about the media is at least disturbing. Batbold's comments about foreign-owned media are targeted solely at Eagle TV. Also disturbing is the fact that the ownership structure he mentions has zero to do with the events of July 1st. Now, it just so happens that the station that exercises its legal rights to freedom of press the most is Eagle TV. I.E., we're not under any politican's control or influence. We are independent, as Mongolian media is supposed to be. If Eagle TV has done nothing more than exercise its legal rights according to the law—the same rights which are granted to all media regardless of ownership—then why are Eagle TV journalists being targeted simply because of who signs their paychecks?

I want to clarify that I'm not opposed to most of what Mr. Batbold said. In fact, with 90% of what he said about education and fidelity to country, I'm in complete agreement. I'm in hearty agreement! In fact, I wish American politicians would take Batbold's comments to heart about the need for patriotism and discipline in American education! Amen Mr. Batbold!

Batbold is correct when he says that young people seem to be growing up without respect for authority or family. But his statements, one right after the other, seem to imply that private media and specifically, Eagle TV, helped facilitate that development. Was that his intention? I'm not ready to go that far. But for Eagle TV's sake, I believe the values that we represent, specifically our Christian programming, run contrary to such a claim. In fact, our Christian emphasis requires respect and obedience to the authorities, regardless of who exercises legal power. The Scriptures, our ultimate and final authority, commands every Christian, whether Mongol or foreigner:

"Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same; for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil. Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience’ sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing. Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor. Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. (Romans 13:1-8).

The Apostle Paul did not draw a distinction between those who are good rulers or bad rulers—in fact, Paul lived under some of the most violent and corrupt rulers in history! He did not draw a distinction between the honest government or the corrupt. He simply required respect and obedience to authority without personal or political distinctions. Even Jesus told his disciples, "The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you." Jesus said this even though it was the Pharisees who were trying to kill him! So the issue is not the person who wields the authority, but the office of the authority that must be respected.

The only major difference between Jesus' and Paul's day, and ours, is that the highest authority in Paul's day was usually a king, governor, or some other such official. But in modern democracies, such as we have in Mongolia, the supreme authority is The Law, which even ruling authorities are required to obey.

The advantage of Eagle TV's Christian emphasis and Bible education is that it encourages and advocates respect for law, respect for the governing authority, and devotion to the nation. It would be a shame to lose the free speech and free press advantage that the advocacy of Christianity in Mongolia brings to the law, and the advantage it brings to the authorities responsible for its execution.

Getting Back to Normal

2008-07-17T21:20:21+08:00

I confess that it feels good to get back to normal, or mostly normal, after the bizarro world of the last couple of weeks. Today was the first day I was able to focus primarily on ministry concerns, and ministry programming issues for the Fall season. I even managed to finish a script for a September episode of Together Through The Bible (TTTB). Three down, twenty-three to go! I often find myself so bogged down in the business side of operations that it can be difficult to stay focused on the purity of our mission—educating and discipling Mongols in Christ. Just having the time to review the script, consider the truths of scripture, and develop the themes really lifted my spirits. It's amazing what the simplicity of the Word of God can do.

Another lift came when I walked into Studio B this morning to see Ganbataar carving away on foam props for the new set of TTTB. Ganbataar does all the video editing on the Mongolian version of my program. His work is fantastic. But I didn't realize how talented an artist he really is! I can't wait to see the finished product for the new set.

A few days ago our production team was also taping the upcoming episodes for the 2009 season of Supermom, in front of their new set.

This is the first time Eagle TV has ever been able to put increased resources into constructing real sets for multiple ministry programs. Our previous efforts amounted to painted backdrops, printed overlays on boards, etc. They were cheap, and worked. But to have sets with color and depth, and the ability to move things around interchangeably will be a great boon for ministry programming. The average set costs us about $1,500 to construct. Compared to the tens of thousands, or more, in the States, that's a gonga. In the case of Ganbaatar, there's a ton of man hours devoted to carving details into the foam with a single exacto knife. When he's done and the painting and "weathering" is applied, the set will look like a background of a 2,000 year old archeological find.

One final note before I hit the sack...

I want to express my deep appreciation to everyone who has emailed and called with encouragement these last few days. As noted on this blog recently, some pretty nasty and deceptive claims have been made about Eagle TV since the riots, and about me in particular. Your prayers and encouragement have sustained us and given us that extra boost. We'll keep pressing forward in our efforts to transform lives. And your prayers will continue to help empower us to make a difference.

Thanks.

Good Words

2008-07-16T16:24:14+08:00

A briefing about the Mongolia riots, democratic conditions, and media freedom will be held for members of the U.S. Congress at the end of this month. Part of that briefing will include information provided by Globe International in Mongolia.

Globe International produced a short synopsis of the situation and their recommendation for actions the Mongolian government should take. Included in their recommendations are important points relative to media freedom and Eagle TV.

With Globe International's permission I'm posting an excerpt from the paper here. The paper is entitled, Media in the Conflict Situation:

Some members of the Television Union, namely leaders of Channel 25, UBS, TV5 and TV9 convened a press conference during the state of emergency. They said that the President’s Decree on state of emergency was a timely and wise decision. They support the temporary stoppage of other television channels.

Mr. Z. Altai, the President of the television Union and director of the Channel 25 was running for elections as an independent candidate and won.

During the extraordinary Parliament session some Members of Parliament accused Eagle Broadcasting Company (EBC) of encouraging the riot, and there were some opinions on the need of a law to prohibit the foreign ownership of media. Globe International opposes such opinions. The EBC journalists’ live reports on the demonstration and riot were the most professional. They know what is news, and news values. The modern journalism of Mongolia should be proud of the brave reporters who risked their health and lives.

Conclusion

The event showed the media freedom is still very fragile in Mongolia and we should take actions on safeguarding and promoting media freedom
Some legislation should be improved and some newly passed, particularly:
1. Media related provisions of the law on State Emergency should be reviewed and amended,
2. Laws on the public radio and television should be reviewed and amended,
3. Mongolia should enact a general broadcast law,
4. Law guaranteeing and protecting the foreign ownership of media should be enacted.

(All emphasis mine.)

One of the things I deeply appreciate about Globe International is that they don't play favorites. They are doing their best to evaluate Mongolia's media freedoms independently and fairly. Me saying that after their statement might seem a little self-serving. Maybe so. But GI has not been afraid to criticize us in the past—even strongly. Therefore, their words of praise ring loudly in my ears as being fair and independent and not based upon political favorites.

My gratitude to Naranjargal and Globe International.

АНУ-ын конгрессийн гишүүдэд Монголд болсон эмх замбараагүй байдал, ардчилалын нөхцөл байдал, хэвлэлийн эрх чөлөөний талаарх товч мэдэгдэл энэ сарын сүүлээр хийгдэх гэж байна. Монгол дахь Globe International ТББ-аас гаргасан мэдээлэл энэхүү мэдэгдэлд багтах юм.

Globe International нөхцөл байдлыг товч тоймлоод Монголын Засгийн Газар авах шаардлагатай гэж үзэж байгаа арга хэмжээнүүдээ дурдсан байна. Хэвлэл мэдээллийн эрх чөлөө, Ийгл ТВ-тэй холбоотой чухал саналууд бичигджээ.

Globe International-ийн зөвшөөрлөөр тэдний мэдээллээс хэсэгчлэн авснаа энд толилуулж байна. Тэд тайландаа Зөрчлийн Үе дэх Хэвлэл Мэдээлэл гэсэн гарчиг өгчээ.

ТВ-үүдийн холбооны зарим гишүүд, 25-р суваг, UBS, TV5, TV9 телевизүүдийн захирлууд онцгой байдлын үеэр хэвлэлийн бага хурал хийлээ. Тэд Ерөнхийлөгчийн онцгой байдал тогтоосон зарлиг цагаа олсон ухаалаг шийдвэр байсан гээд бусад ТВ-ийн сувгууд үйл ажиллагаагаа түр зогсоосныг дэмжиж байгаагаа илэрхийллээ.

ТВ-үүдийн Холбооны Ерөнхийлөгч, 25-р суваг ТВ-ийн захирал н.З.Алтай энэ удаагийн сонгуульд бие даан нэр дэвшээд ялалт байгуулсан юм.

УИХ-ын хаалттай хуралдааны үеэр зарим гишүүд Ийгл Бродкастинг Компанийг (Ий Би Си) эмх замбараагүй байдлыг өдөөсөн хэмээн буруутгасан төдийгүй хэвлэл мэдээллийн салбарт гадаадын эзэмшлийг хориглох хууль хэрэгтэй байгаа тухай байр сууриуд ч мөн илэрхийлэгдсэн. Globe International ийм байр суурийн эсрэг байгаа. Ий Би Си-ийн сэтгүүлчдийн хийсэн жагсаал, эмх замбараагүй байдлын үеэрх шууд сурвалжлагууд хамгийн мэргэжлийн түвшинд байсан. Тэд мэдээ гэж юу болохыг, мэдээний үнэ цэнийг мэддэг. Монголын орчин үеийн сэтгүүл зүй эрүүл мэнд, амь насаа үл хайхран ажилласан сэтгүүлчдээрээ бахархах хэрэгтэй.

Дүгнэлт

Болж өнгөрсөн үйл явдал Монголд хэвлэл, мэдээллийн эрх чөлөө маш эмзэг хэвээр байгааг, хэвлэлийн эрх чөлөөг хамгаалж, хөгжүүлэх арга хэмжээ авах хэрэгтэй байгааг харууллаа. Зарим хуулийн заалтуудыг боловсронгуй болгох, заримыг нь шинээр батлах шаардлагатай байна, ялангуяа:

Онцгой Байдлын Тухай хуулийн хэвлэл, мэдээлэлтэй холбогдох заалтуудыг дахин хянаж, өөрчлөлт оруулах,

МҮОНРТ-ын тухай хуулийг дахин хянаж, нэмэлт өөрчлөлт оруулах,

Монгол Улс өргөн нэвтрүүлгийн хуультай болох,

Хэвлэл мэдээллийн салбарт гадаадын эзэмшлийг баталгаажуулж, хамгаалах хуультай болох.

(Би өөрөө хараар тодрууллаа.)

Globe International-д миний хамгийн ихээр талархаж явдаг зүйлсийн нэг бол тэд тал засдаггүй юм. Тэд Монголын хэвлэл мэдээллийн эрх чөлөөг хараат бус, шударгаар үнэлэн дүгнэх ажлыг бүх чадлаа дайчлан хийж байгаа. Тэдний хэлсэн үгийн дараа миний ингэж хэлэх нь арай л өөрийгөө бодсон хэрэг болох вий. Магадгүй. Гэхдээ тэд өнгөрсөн хугацаанд манайхыг зоригтой шүүмжилж байсан, бүр их хатуу ч шүүмжилж байсан. Тиймээс, шударга, хараат бус байдгийн төлөөх тэдний магтаалын үг миний чихэнд их чанга дуулдаж байна.

Наранжаргалд, Globe International-д талархал илэрхийлье.

Responding to Dishonesty

2008-07-14T17:00:18+08:00

This morning I sent the following the the UB Post and requested publication. The longer piece I wrote last night has been moved to the full page for this article. However, I've only submitted this first portion for publication.

On July 10th, the UB Post published a letter to the editor by Egil Lothe, President of the Buddhist Federation of Norway. In the letter, Mr. Lothe falsely states that I wrote an article claiming that Buddhism is the cause of corruption in Mongolia. In addition, the letter, as presented in the UB Post, did not clarify where or when the article was published, leaving the reader with the impression that it was published recently, and perhaps in the UB Post. In fact, my article was written almost two years ago and appeared solely on a personal website.

In his letter Mr. Lothe claims that I explain...

"...the prevalence of corruption in Mongolian society as the result of a flaw of character in the Mongolian people due to the influence of Buddhism and Atheism."

Mr. Lothe's statement is in every way, false. Contrary to Mr. Lothe's misleading title and false accusation, I have never, on any occasion, publicly or privately, verbally or in writing, ever claimed or implied that Buddhism is the cause of corruption in Mongolia. Nor does the article I wrote on December 15, 2006 say or imply any such belief.

Mr. Lothe's use of a deceptive title, and his claims in his letter about me are patently dishonest and intentionally misrepresentative of my views. It is regrettable and shameful that the leader of an organization claiming to represent the Buddhist way of life should intentionally resort to deception to advance his agenda in Mongolia.

PREVIOUS ARTICLE:

Apparently, an article I wrote December 15, 2006 has at least one prominent Buddhist up in arms so much that's he's written a letter to the editor of UB Post and had his piece publishing online through Mongolia-Web. Aside from the nearly two-year lateness of the response, Mr. Egil Lothe, the President of the Buddhist Federation of Norway, has used his article, Buddhism—The Cause of Corruption in Mongolia?, to advocate that for reasons of personal religious expression, the laws of Mongolia should be changed to disallow foreign ownership of media.

The basis of Mr. Lothe's misguided domestic policy recommendation is his protest of my personal views, which were expressed solely on this website in the article, Why Do Mongolians View Corruption as Acceptable?

I want to state up front, categorically, that contrary to Mr. Lothe's erroneous and misleading title, I have never, ever, either publicly or privately claimed or implied that Buddhism is the cause of corruption in Mongolia. There is a vast difference between cause and preventative effect. Mr. Lothe's use of such a deceptive title in his article about me is patently dishonest and intentionally misrepresentative of my views.

Norway is well known as a country whose people cherish religious freedom. It is therefore discouraging to see the leader of an important, though small organization, advocating restrictions on speech and company ownership solely for reasons of religious expression. His reasons for his positions stand contrary to freedom of religion and freedom of speech. That's a shame.

According to Mr. Lothe, my opinion regarding a USAID report...

"...should lead to renewed discussions about whether Mongolian media should be allowed to be controlled by foreigners."

I should note here that like me, Mr. Lothe is a foreigner, however, he does not live in Mongolia, and seems to have no vested interest here beyond his attachment to Buddhism, and apparently, restrictions on the religious expressions of other foreigners.

Mr. Lothe has taken to criticizing me in these published forums even though I've not published an article with either organization. While my article is a social/religious commentary that attacks no one, Mr. Lothe's final conclusion leads me to suspect that his article is nothing more than a thinly disguised attempt to foster anti-foreign sentiment for religious reasons. Why?

Because of an apparent distrust and/or dislike of Christianity.

What was missing from Mr. Lothe's published articles was a line that he included when he emailed me a copy of the article on July 8th. What was missing from the published version was his statement:

"As a recent visitor to Mongolia I got got somewhat aquanted with the local situation regarding various attempt by foreigners to make Mongolians change their religion in favour of Christianity" (exact quote).

Aside from characterizing me as accusing all Mongolians of being corrupt (which I've never said or done), what Mr. Lothe is really protesting is the open expression of Christianity in Mongolia. More specifically, he doesn't want Christianity expressed through media, which I must admit is a very powerful medium of promotion. But since Christian expression in media here is the extreme minority of media expression, I have to wonder about his motives.

Mr. Lothe has mis-characterized my article, and me. He falsely charges me with attacking the Mongolian people because I stated that Atheism and Buddhism "don’t seem to be able to effect the kind of character in society that makes corruption a source of personal shame" (that's
preventative effect, NOT cause). I did not deny that moral teachings are present (in Buddhism). I was simply making a comment on the apparent lack of ability of those teachings to have a strong, positive effect toward anti-corruption in society. The track record, historically, doesn't seem to be there. He claims that my statement is an insult to the Mongolian people, and that for such an insult no foreigner should be allowed to control a media operation in Mongolia.

That's some jump.

Contrary to Mr. Lothe's misunderstanding, my statement (indeed, the whole article) is not an attack on the Mongolian people. What I did do was make a social commentary on the historic influence of Atheism and Buddhism and ask why, if these worldviews are so constructive, hasn't their increasing influence and exercise here facilitated a dramatic drop in corruption? To his credit, Mr. Lothe tries to answer that question. Had he simply done that I might have applauded him. Instead he is distributing his article in an attempt to foster anti-foreign sentiment against Eagle TV on solely—and sadly—religious grounds.

The final conclusion of my 2006 article refutes the idea of suffering as the primary cause of corruption. It focuses on the Christian world view that man's own sinful nature is the root cause of problems like corruption. The assessment of the sin nature that I presented was done so covering all of humanity, not simply Mongols. I, and Mr. Lothe, and all Mongols, and all Americans, and all Norwegians, and all people everywhere at all times, suffer from the same coruption of sin.

In the end, it is that idea of sin, and the expression in Mongolia of the Christian worldview that Mr. Lothe is actually protesting. He is welcome to do so, and has the right. But if Mr. Lothe stands for freedom and tolerance as would seem to be intimated by the principles of his religious faith, then his assertion that a media company not be permitted to have foreign owners simply because of the personal view of a single person would seem to contradict his cherished values.

Eagle Television is owned by a foreign non-profit organization. That organization receives no profit or benefit from its support of Eagle Television. Eagle TV is the only foreign owned media entity in Mongolia. It was also the first private, independent TV station in Mongolia specifically committed to supporting Mongolia's freedom of speech, press, and conscience. That mission was established because of the Christian world view that guides its ownership. Eagle TV's Christian programming airs 4 hours a day out of the 17 hours we are licensed. Our Christian programming is specifically targeted to educate the already existing Mongolian Christian community about the teachings and practices of their own faith. In other words, less than one-fourth of Eagle TV programming is dedicated to religious instruction for Mongolian Christians. I'm forced to wonder if Mr. Lothe wants to deny Mongolian believers the priviledge of receiving religious instruction through television.

Mongolia also has 24 terrestrial and cable-only TV channels owned by Mongols, virtually all of which are friendly to Buddhism. All of Mongolia's print media is very friendly to Buddhism. All of the more than 25 radio stations (except one) are friendly to Buddhism. So, of the more than 50 media entities in Ulaanbaatar (not counting the rest of the country) only one is openly friendly to, and supportive of Christianity on behalf of Mongolian Christians. Mr. Lothe recommends that minority position be legislated into nonexistence.

Shame.

I can only wonder what Mr. Lothe is afraid of, and why he, as a foreigner not living in Mongolia, seems so intent on openly attacking a foreigner who is investing his life in Mongolia, for Mongolians.

Culture & Christ or Christ & Culture?

2008-07-14T10:08:37+08:00

It was with disappointment that I read this article from Thaindian News: Indianised Version of the Bible Hit Among Christians.

The new Catholic translation of the Bible, which apparently went on sale in India this month, has sold like hotcakes, with 15,000 grabbed up in just 10 days. Those are big numbers.

It's also a big problem.

Apparently the new translation draws "references to other religions like Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism." This means that the terms from these religions are used in the Bible's text to explain Christianity. Actually, this is not an unusual concept. The same is done in Mongolia with one of two Bible translations called, in English, The Blue Bible. While the translation is popular here, for many it is also controversial.

But back to India...

According to one Indian believer, who is apparently a fan of the new translation, the translators "have also drawn the Indian mythology into it. It's not only based on [the] Bible like you know foreign standards" (emphasis mine).

This is not good news for Indian Christianity. But it does provide an interesting insight into the application of Christianity in Asia. Syncretism is a common problem in Christianity, but especially in Asia. The blending of words, concepts, and even practices of one faith into—what is supposed to be—Orthodox or Evangelical Christianity usually ends up corrupting the expression of Christianity so much that that expression of Christ becomes unrecognizable for what it was intended to be in the first place.

According to one poster on the Indian forum site iVarta, "It portrays Jesus as Hindu." Another remarked, "It would be funny if this version of the Bible slowly converts these Catholics back to Hindu practices."

Holy cow, what are the Indian Catholics thinking?

Adapting presentations or emphasizing certain stories or passages is one thing, but altering the text by melding anti-Christian concepts into the scriptures is a violation of every principle of valid ministry I can think of. It distorts the message of the cross and puts it on par with the myths of Hinduism, Buddhism, or any other nonChristian "ism."

The contextualization of Christianity in a culture is a controversial work. How much of the presentation of the Gospel must be adapted to a culture, and honor the culture? When must culture be ignored in favor of the supreme truth of Christ? I'm not going to answer that question here, except to say while these are difficlut issues that every missionary and indigenous Christian must wrestle with, there is one thing that must be clear.

You must not change the text of Scripture, or introduce within its text, concepts which are foreign to its original meaning.

Note what one person who bought the new Indianised version remarked, "It's not only based on [the] Bible like you know foreign standards" (emphasis mine).

Christianity is a foreign religion. There's no sense denying it. But being foreign to a culture doesn't automatically invalidate its truth. The indigineous desire to "culturalize" Christianity, or in this case, the Scriptures, very often places the expression of culture over the expression of biblical truth. Certainly there are many aspects of many cultures that are compatible with Christianity. But where traditional beliefs conflict with the Scriptures the Christian is left with no choice. He must abandon that which is contrary to Christ.

In the July 2007 issue of Christianity Today, Dr. David Hesselgrave, Professor Emeritus of Mission Trinity Evangelical Divinity School noted:

"Hindu and Buddhist concepts such as bodhisattva, karma, dharma, samsara, and nirvana can be understood only in the context of the religious worldview of which they are part. Jesus is the Son of God, the only Savior and mediator between God and man. He is no one’s bodhisattva. He died for our sin, not our karma. Hindus and Buddhists have re-made Jesus into an avatar and bodhisattva in order to make their false religions more appealing. When Christians do the same they sacrifice true religion and contribute to Christ’s diminishment.
Contextualization is necessary but it has boundaries."

Doing what the Indian Catholic church has done reads to me like an abandoning of the exclusive truth of Christ in favor of myth and superstition. If the Indianised translation becomes the Bible of choice of India's catholics, then I predict it won't be long before Indian Catholism becomes unrecognizable as Catholism, much less as Christianity.

Rewarding Greatness

2008-07-12T16:25:00+08:00

The Nadaam holiday went into full swing yesterday, which gives me a three-day weekend to decompress from the stress of the last two weeks. I confess. I need it. So I'm glad for the time off.

Usually I spend a day or two at the opening celebrations at the main stadium and shot pictures. Not this year. Instead, I decided to hang home, chill out, take a couple of naps, do a little extra work out (I'm losing weight again, praise God), and shed my responsibilities. Diane and Whitney wanted desperately to go to the countryside, but I couldn't bring myself to go, even as beautiful as it is this time of year. I just need a bit of alone time today.

I may shed my responsibilities for the holiday, but my mind never takes a day off from work. Case in point, I was thinking about our staff today and the little celebration we had for them on Thursday morning, which I'm just getting around to blogging about two days late.

Some of my blog entries of the last few days have focused on the scandal and failures of the last week. Scroll down the main page to see my article about the censure of MNTV for disseminating propaganda during the State of Emergency. Also see the article from the same day about the leadership of TV9, TV5, and TV25 intimating treason by Eagle TV. While these organizations fell terribly short in their duties, and their subsequent criticisms during the State of Emergency were irresponsible (to say nothing of being false), there were a group of people (not just Eagle TV people), who deserved high praise. Because my concern is with Eagle TV, I naturally want to first talk about our staff.

My regular readers may remember that a number of our staff risked their safety to report on the riots of July 1st, now known in Mongolia as Black Tuesday. Last Saturday, only hours after I returned from the States, we held a Senior Staff meeting to discuss the coverage. During the meeting it was agreed that the staff that worked that day deserved to be recognized, officially, for what they had done. Mongolia had not experienced anything like Black Tuesday in its history. When it came to providing news coverage there was only one team that was truly prepared for the day—the Eagle TV news team. So on Thursday morning we gathered the entire staff of the station, nearly 129 employees, into the newsroom and held an awards ceremony with plaques and bonuses for the staff who risked themselves on Black Tuesday.

Joining us for the ceremonies was Globe International Executive Director, Naranjargal Hashhuu, pictured next to me. There probably isn't a better organization in Mongolia acting as a champion for the right of freedom of press and speech. And they don't play favorites. In the past we've received high praise by GI. And they haven't been afraid to criticize us when we really deserved it. Understanding the independence of Globe International, I couldn't think of a better person to invite and present the awards to our staff. Naranjargal was so impressed with Eagle TV's work that day, that when I asked if she was willing to come, she jumped at the chance.

After saying a few words of encouragement to the staff I handed the ceremonies over to Naraa and our Station Manager, Bayarsaikhan (see right-side image, blue dress). Bayaraa was four days into her honeymoon, but graciously agreed to attend the ceremonies and address the staff. That's dedication.

As I've already reported, there's been a lot of criticism by national politicians and our competitors regarding our coverage. The criticism is leveled, as it always is, against the foreign influence in Eagle TV's news. Yet, what was amply clear to our viewers is that all of our news content is determined and shaped—100%—but our all-Mongolian news team. It's our team that decided what the coverage would be, and how to do it, and what to say. As always, it was 100% Mongol. My role was simply to ensure that independence was maintained. But to be honest, it wasn't really necessary for me to take part in that way during the cast (even from 8,000 miles away). They knew their role and performed with distinction.

On the same day as the award ceremony we also wanted to honor the journalists with other TV stations and newspapers who also paid a price for their work on Black Tuesday. So that morning we began running a 90-second spot recognizing the journalists, cameramen, and photo journalists with other organizations that were hurt or injured trying to cover the riots. The spot runs through the holiday and will end Monday night.

Ten journalists and cameramen were injured. Even though some work for organizations that frown on truly independent journalism, the journalists themselves still deserved to be recognized for their contribution to Mongolia's freedom and press and speech on that day. While most of the injuries were minor (including those received by our staff), two were very serious. One person was shot with a rubber bullet in the head and is still suffering. Another, a former Eagle TV journalist now working for MNTV, was severely beaten by the mob. He suffered head and brain trauma. See the video from Eagle TV honoring the injured journalists, here.

These are all great people, who took great risks, to do great things on a terrible day. They deserve to be honored.

As for Eagle TV, we aren't quite out of the woods just yet. There are still significant people in government making moves towards legislating us out of existence. Our hope is that the support of our audience and a love for freedom will help keep such moves at bay. I've been told many stories in the last week about average people who felt that Eagle TV came to the side of the average person through its coverage of Black Tuesday. Not to support the riots, of course, but simply to reveal what was going on and why, when the majority of our competitors would either not touch the story out of political fear or control; or would not give it the attention it deserved. (However, I do want to give a "hats off" to NTV. They also did a good job covering the riots.) I can't tell you how many people in the last week have said to me, "We only have two TV stations in Mongolia now. Eagle TV and NTV." Now, maybe that's a bit over the top. But it certainly reveals the sentiment of the TV audience.

Whatever happens, the journalists of Eagle TV, and those of our competitors who were unafraid to do their best that day, should never be allowed to forget that their work on Black Tuesday was an important part of the nation's development. And it is my hope that even these little encouragements, like awards, bonuses, and public recognition, will spur them on to even greater works on behalf of Mongolia's growing freedom.

Mongolian National TV Censured for Political Bias

2008-07-10T00:00:54+08:00

Yesterday, Mongolian National Television (MNTV) was censured by the Permanent Committee of Legislation in Parliament for it's failure to ensure journalistic independence during the riots and subsequent State of Emergency declared by the President.

See the article here.

Here are a few quotes from the story:

The sub-committee reviewed allegations of how the Mongolian National TV had constantly provided an inaccurate and biased coverage of the protests during the emergency days, when all other TV stations had been ordered to shut down. The MPs felt the state channel’s performance was unworthy of its status as a public TV.

Amen. I confess, I'd like Eagle TV to receive an on-air apology from MNTV for the false accusations and propaganda it aired regarding our news coverage, intimating treason by our staff. I think our staff deserves such an apology.

DP leader E.Bat-Uul wondered how these “terribly wrong” things could have happened. “There is no place for a Government representative in a media organization that knows its job. The organization has the right to not even let them in.”

Double Amen! Four years ago when I was negotiating a deal for our broadcast license I was informed by the other negotiating party that they would require an office at Eagle TV for their representative. I said, "Absolutely not." That killed the deal, and I was happy for it to die. Our independence is primary. You can never lose your integrity. You can only give it away. I believe many Mongolian journalists long for the day when MNTV would adopt this same attitude.

“Such action is unacceptable from a news channel funded by taxpayers’ money. It will take 2-3 years for ordinary people to forget all the misinformation planted in their mind in those four days. It has resulted in a nationwide crisis of confidence,” the MP said.

My last Amen for today.

Many former Eagle TV staff who work at MNTV. I have to believe that they must have felt some kind of internal conflict within themselves regarding what they were forced to do by the government authorites. At least, I hope they felt that conflict. Every one of them had a completely free, transparent, and open experience at Eagle TV. My great hope is that they will one day, preferably soon, be allowed to practices that kind of journalism at State TV as well. And if not, I hope that they will, along with others, take thier own independent stand for independence and truth through MNTV's journalism.

I think there's only one way the authorities can ever solve the problem of political bias and political control and take-over of MNTV. The oversight committee for MNTV should bring in a foreigner to reorganize and manage the operation for at least two years. Someone who can't be intimidated by the political parties, someone without a Mongolian political agenda, or Mongolian poltiical ties. Let him clean house from the top down. Let that person set the standards. It will forever change MNTV for the better and pave the way for all of it's Mongolian staff to exercise true freedom of speech and press on the national network for years to come.

And no, I know you're not asking, but, I'm not looking for a job.

When China Attacks

2008-07-09T20:25:15+08:00

There's a popular joke circulating among Mongolians about their problem with illegal Chinese workers. It goes like this:

Q: Why are there so many Chinese people constructing new buildings in Ulaanbaatar?
A: So they will have some place to stay after the invasion.

I gotta admit, I find that joke pretty funny even though the history and politics behind it is sobering. But it's apparently more sobering than I realized.

While reading a blog on today's Weekly Standard I came across translated quotes from China's People's Daily which seems to implicate Eagle TV in a U.S.-led, anti-Chinese effort to discourage Chinese investment in Mongolia's vast mining wealth. The article, while seeming to implicate Eagle TV, also insults Mongolians as being unable to grasp concepts of freedom and democracy!

Get this:

"It is acknowledged that democratization in Mongolia began 16 years ago...Why then is it that after all this time opponents of the government still feel they need to express themselves through “non-electoral” and “anti-electoral” means?"

Hey, maybe it's those meddling American foreigners (as opposed to those meddling Chinese foreigners?). The Standard notes:

"According to the article, the U.S.-Mongolian joint venture Eagle TV has been force-feeding the Mongolians ideas such as democracy and free elections. However, the piece continues, while both the ruling party and the opposition are well acquainted with these “fashionable words,” it is difficult for an “ancient, semi-feudal, and semi-nomadic” people to fully absorb and integrate these concepts into their own culture."

Oh. My. Gosh. Somewhere in the editorial office of The People's Daily is a little man with a mangled-English name plate that reads, Gene-yus, having his eureka(!) moment. "Let's implicate our American opponents and insult the country we want to invest in at the same time!"

Now, I don't want to blow this out of proportion, but come on, seriously...what kind of threat can a single, little, local TV station like Eagle TV possibly be to powerful Chinese interests in Mongolia? Unless, perhaps, someone, somewhere, wants to build a case that Eagle TV is a threat to future mining investment in Mongolia?

I have to admit I'm not entirely sure how to read this. But the timing on this is, shall we say, suspicious. But that's as far as I'll go on this blog.

What I might say face to face is another matter.

Read the Weekly Standard's blog article here. See the The People's Daily article (in Chinese) here.