Jakarta Quotes

“1. Bangladesh.... In 1971 ... Kissinger overrode all advice in order to support the Pakistani generals in both their civilian massacre policy in East Bengal and their armed attack on India from West Pakistan.... This led to a moral and political catastrophe the effects of which are still sorely felt. Kissinger’s undisclosed reason for the ‘tilt’ was the supposed but never materialised ‘brokerage’ offered by the dictator Yahya Khan in the course of secret diplomacy between Nixon and China.... Of the new state of Bangladesh, Kissinger remarked coldly that it was ‘a basket case’ before turning his unsolicited expertise elsewhere.

2. Chile.... Kissinger had direct personal knowledge of the CIA’s plan to kidnap and murder General René Schneider, the head of the Chilean Armed Forces ... who refused to countenance military intervention in politics. In his hatred for the Allende Government, Kissinger even outdid Richard Helms ... who warned him that a coup in such a stable democracy would be hard to procure. The murder of Schneider nonetheless went ahead, at Kissinger’s urging and with American financing, just between Allende’s election and his confirmation.... This was one of the relatively few times that Mr Kissinger (his success in getting people to call him ‘Doctor’ is greater than that of most PhDs) involved himself in the assassination of a single named individual rather than the slaughter of anonymous thousands. His jocular remark on this occasion—‘I don’t see why we have to let a country go Marxist just because its people are irresponsible’—suggests he may have been having the best of times....

3. Cyprus.... Kissinger approved of the preparations by Greek Cypriot fascists for the murder of President Makarios, and sanctioned the coup which tried to extend the rule of the Athens junta (a favoured client of his) to the island. When despite great waste of life this coup failed in its objective, which was also Kissinger’s, of enforced partition, Kissinger promiscuously switched sides to support an even bloodier intervention by Turkey. Thomas Boyatt ... went to Kissinger in advance of the anti-Makarios putsch and warned him that it could lead to a civil war. ‘Spare me the civics lecture,’ replied Kissinger, who as you can readily see had an aphorism for all occasions.

4. Kurdistan. Having endorsed the covert policy of supporting a Kurdish revolt in northern Iraq between 1974 and 1975, with ‘deniable’ assistance also provided by Israel and the Shah of Iran, Kissinger made it plain to his subordinates that the Kurds were not to be allowed to win, but were to be employed for their nuisance value alone. They were not to be told that this was the case, but soon found out when the Shah and Saddam Hussein composed their differences, and American aid to Kurdistan was cut off. Hardened CIA hands went to Kissinger ... for an aid programme for the many thousands of Kurdish refugees who were thus abruptly created.... The apercu of the day was: ‘foreign policy should not he confused with missionary work.’ Saddam Hussein heartily concurred.

5. East Timor. The day after Kissinger left Djakarta in 1975, the Armed Forces of Indonesia employed American weapons to invade and subjugate the independent former Portuguese colony of East Timor. Isaacson gives a figure of 100,000 deaths resulting from the occupation, or one-seventh of the population, and there are good judges who put this estimate on the low side. Kissinger was furious when news of his own collusion was leaked, because as well as breaking international law the Indonesians were also violating an agreement with the United States.... Monroe Leigh ... pointed out this awkward latter fact. Kissinger snapped: ‘The Israelis when they go into Lebanon—when was the last time we protested that?’ A good question, even if it did not and does not lie especially well in his mouth.

It goes on and on and on until one cannot eat enough to vomit enough.”
― Christopher Hitchens

“Jakarta itu cinta yang tak hapus oleh hujan tak lekang oleh panas. Jakarta itu kasih sayang.”
― Sapardi Djoko Damono

“Dulu saya pikir Indonesia itu Jakarta. Pemahaman saya tentang Indonesia itu absurd.... Setelah saya keliling Indonesia, saya paham betul bahwa tidak mungkin Jakarta jadi tolok ukur untuk menggambarkan Indonesia karena sangat tidak mewakili Indonesia secara keseluruhan.”
― Pandji Pragiwaksono, NASIONAL.IS.ME

“I guess it could be worse. My name could be Tlaquepaque, or Irkutsk, or Pyongyang. Or, you know, Pittsburgh. Sometimes I flip through the atlas just to remind myself of all the names that would be worse than mine.”
― Tamara Summers, Save the Date

“Jakarta. Aku setuju. Kota ini biangnya dualisme. Antara ingin Timur dan berlagak Timur, sembari terdesak habis oleh Barat sekaligus paling keras mengutuk-ngutuk.”
― Dewi 'Dee' Lestari, Supernova: Ksatria, Puteri, dan Bintang Jatuh

“It was radicals like you and your father that hijacked your faith, hijacked a few planes, and made thousands of children orphans in a single day. You pretend my country beats you because you are poor, but you ignore that it was people of your faith that made this war. People like your father made this war. People like your father called for jihad. Well now you got it. You don’t like it? Tell the Imam that his ignorance made his people poor. You don’t understand Americans at all. We don’t beat you because you’re poor. You pissed us off. We’d beat your ass rich or poor.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“It’s not that I had more important things to do or that I didn’t want to help with whatever problems were interfering with her students being successful—rather, it’s this horrible truth that life has taught me: misplaced hope is the most devastatingly painful thing you can give someone.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“The sun appeared between the twin spires of the cathedral as its light reflected off the crescent and star that rose out of the dome on top of the mosque. It was beautiful, and surreal. In one instant, the bells rang out from the cathedral and if I closed my eyes then I could easily imagine that I was back home in Europe, but in the next, the call to morning prayer sounded from the mosque, and it was a stark reminder of how far away I actually was from my true home.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“We obviously don’t live in a perfect world. If we did, then my dad would never have volunteered for Vietnam so he could use the GI Bill to pay for college, Uncle Google would have more important things to do than searching for eight hundred million reasons why our schools suck, and I wouldn’t be at an education leadership conference in Jakarta because there’d be no need for it … right?”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“The first ring glowed in the distance, lit up by consumerism that was brought to Jakarta courtesy of western cultures and Christian nations, and it influenced impoverished Muslims in the third ring, who wore Manchester United tee shirts with 'Rooney' on the back, twisting further the attitudes and perceptions of those who were bent already toward radicalism.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“I said, “Je parle français.” Indira gave me a weird look. Or a look that said I was weird. Whichever. The point is, I don’t really speak French, but it’s a useful phrase for confusing people you don’t wish to speak with. However, it’s apparently more useful in Europe, where no one enjoys speaking to the French.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“It was only a couple of chickens. Real chickens. The kind that walk around clucking and pecking. Which is what they were doing. Only no one else seemed to care, or even notice. This is normal? Obviously I had a little hiccup reading my notecards. Understandable. I was talking to forty orphans who had to share a dirt floor with two chickens. No one in college had ever prepared me for this scenario.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“The Delta agent saw my itinerary and said, 'You’re flying to Jakarta via Atlanta, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur? You must have really pissed off your travel agent.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“The only thing I knew for sure is I hadn’t slept in ten years. Not really. I’d been fighting my own monster since nine months after 9/11. I had regrets. I had pain that I still can’t find words to describe. But sooner or later you have to make a choice. Maybe fate or luck or God had a plan for me in Jakarta that was greater than an educational leadership conference, a few papers and a book deal. If Vietnam was for Dad, then maybe Jakarta was for me. Indira says I shouldn’t discount that it was Allah’s plan. The way I see it, Allah’s plan is what started my war.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“I don’t like it when Christianity and western cultures are used as propaganda to sway impoverished Muslims into becoming self-detonating radicals.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“The night skyline was stunning. I could see the Monas and Istiqlal Mosque bathed in brilliant white lights and a dozen other places of cultural and historical significance. It’s an amazing, beautiful world we live in … despite Uncle Google’s abysmal view of American schools, the security checkpoints and vehicle inspections that seem to be everywhere, and the need to be vigilant because of the things we do to each other.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“I’d see the arrow. I’d think about attitude and perception. Maybe the green arrow on the ceiling is to Muslims as the KJV in the Motel 6 nightstand is to Christians.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“Far to our left I could see a commercial airliner on final approach to Soekarno-Hatta. Far to our right I could see the outline of tall city buildings. The imagery was hard to ignore. In the midst was an impoverished world filled with dangerous radicals. Some believed it was God’s will to crash airplanes into buildings. Some recruited children to self-detonate on buses and in coffee shops. It must be incredibly difficult to hold fast to hope when you live in such a world. It’s also hard to keep faith with humanity when religious ideology is used as an impetus for war. But I also believe that for every war there is a hero … and for me, Jakarta will always be Indira’s city.”
― Tucker Elliot, The Rainy Season

“Bukannya mudah ya, berdiam sabar dalam
keheningan seperti petapa? Tapi coba untuk tetap sabar saat hujan turun jam lima sore, kamu berdiri dalam sebuah metromini padat penumpang, dua jam bus itu tidak bergerak, dan yang bisa kamu lakukan hanya menerima.”
― Lucia Priandarini, 11:11

“Walaupun pada kenyataannya, sebagian besar penduduk kota Jakarta masih jauh dari kerta atau makmur”
― Rachmat Ruhiat

“Jalan macet di Jakarta tak pernah menyisakan sedikit pun udara. Tak bisa bergerak, sekaligus tak bisa bernapas. Dan sang waktu mengepakkan sayapnya tanpa peduli. Meski telah menyengsarakan, karena membuat semua orang selalu terburu-buru. Membuat semua orang saling mengalahkan untuk menjadi yang lebih cepat.”
― Andrei Aksana, Lelaki Terindah

“Matahari tua,
Hai selamat malam wahai sang surya yang sedang di lahap oleh gemerlap bintang
Ku rindu kemilau jinggamu yang selalu menyipitkan mataku namun sangat sedap dinikmati dengan mata telanjang
Ku rindu saat jinggamu tersungkur tergantikan oleh awan kelabu
Saat itu juga...
Ku rindu bercengkarama dengan asap Ibu Kota menaiki kuda mesin dan menikmati sepotong senja yang telah hilang bersamamu.
Sampaikan rinduku padanya wahai senja abadi.”
― silviamnque

“Tak peduli betapa brengseknya bos, betapa culasnya teman kerja, betapa banyaknya pekerjaan walau gajinya sama saja, tetap saja... Di akhir bulan, gajian akan menjadi dewa penyelamat.”
― Ayu Welirang, Romance Is Not For IT Folks

“Sebenarnya start-up kayak kita kan ‘hidup segan, mati tak mau’. Kalau nggak ada pemasok dana, mana bisa ritme kerja kayak gini bikin bahagia padahal gajian telat mulu? Gue sih bisa aja punya sense of ownership tinggi karena berhasil mewu- judkan cita-cita perusahaan. Tapi, kalau nggak gajian, ya gue bisa kelaparan juga,” lanjut Yongki lagi.”
― Ayu Welirang, Romance Is Not For IT Folks

“Yang banyak mikir dan mewujudkan tujuan kantor pasti karyawan, tapi nanti di akhir bulan atau akhir kesuksesan, berita yang dibahas pasti soal para VP atau para CTO-nya yang keren dan tampak bonafide. Di balik semua kesuksesan itu, mungkin ada banyak karyawan yang nyaris tewas dan sampai diinfus beberapa hari karena kurang istirahat. Ya... walau memang dikasih bonus juga, sih.”
― Ayu Welirang, Romance Is Not For IT Folks

“Kita bekerja karena paling suka pas gajian udah datang berikut segala bonus-bonus karyawan. Hidup tuh, kayaknya bagi karyawan seperti kita, cuma satu bulan jaraknya. Dari gajian ke gajian.”
― Ayu Welirang, Romance Is Not For IT Folks

“So, what are we cooking for your mom?"
"One of her favorite dishes---nasi campur, a traditional dish from Jakarta, where my father was born." He pauses, flashes a wicked grin. "You'll love it."
"What if I don't?"
"Then there's something wrong with your taste buds." He grins again. "I assure you that you'll be licking your plate."
After giving me a sexy smirk, he unpacks the crate, unloading spices and ingredients, and says, "Nasi campur is one of Indonesia's national dishes---very traditional. The name means 'mixed rice,' and it's typically served with a variety of local dishes, such as chicken satay, beef rendang, prawn crackers.”
― Samantha Verant, The Spice Master at Bistro Exotique

“Ladies & Gentleman, we have a small problem, as in all four of our engines have failed, but we are doing our damnedest to get them working again. I trust that you are not in too much discomfort ...”
― Betty Tottell