Cakap Tak Serupa Bikin

Balik Kampung

2012-01-20T22:14:00.005+08:00

Another year has passed and another new year begins.

2011 was a year of tumultuous challenges and I had to accept some drastic events that was undesirable. It was a year where I had to learn that friends that we hold dear would betray us. It was a year of major decisions and though I had to accept some drastic move, fortunately, towards the end of the year, I had been richly blessed when I was rewarded with a big project assignment which will make 2012 a fantastic year. It was what we called - "Blessings in disguise" - I lost one but I gain another. What was suppose to be bad events turned to be a great happening with fantastic rewards. November 2011 was tough but December was the turning point for me. The month of Jan 2012 has given me the greatest satisfaction with so many good news. I can now look forward to another bountiful year of harvest.

Let's now get ready to celebrate 2012 Chinese New Year and have a nice holiday before we embark on a new journey in life. I will be traveling tomorrow - "Balik Kampung" and is looking forward to celebrate the Chinese New Year with all my family and friends.

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR AND WE PRAY FOR A SAFE JOURNEY FOR EVERYONE.

SUCCESS QUOTES & SAYINGS

2012-01-13T20:01:00.000+08:00

He has achieved success who has lived well, laughed often and loved much; who has gained the respect of intelligent men and the love of little children; who has filled his niche and accomplished his task; who has left the world better than he found it, whether by an improved poppy, a perfect poem, or a rescued soul; who has never lacked appreciation of earth's beauty or failed to express it; who has always looked for the best in others and given them the best he had; whose life was an inspiration; whose memory a benediction.

~Bessie Stanley, 1905
----------------------------

Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

~Author Unknown
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Success is more permanent when you achieve it without destroying your principles.

~Walter Cronkite
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Something in human nature causes us to start slacking off at our moment of greatest accomplishment. As you become successful, you will need a great deal of self-discipline not to lose your sense of balance, humility, and commitment.

~Ross Perot
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There is only one success - to be able to spend your life in your own way.

~Christopher Morley
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How do you achieve success? Well, for one thing, you don't define it before you achieve it.

~Robert Brault, www.robertbrault.com
----------------------------------------

The toughest thing about success is that you've got to keep on being a success.

~Irving Berlin
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Some people succeed because they are destined to, but most people succeed because they are determined to.

~Author Unknown
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Success is getting what you want; happiness is wanting what you get.

~Dale Carnegie
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Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome.

~Booker T. Washington
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Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.

~George Smith Patton
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The road to success is wherever people need another road.

~Robert Brault, www.robertbrault.com

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***

Today's Thoughts

2012-01-09T22:17:00.002+08:00

FIVE RULES TO REMEMBER

Money cannot buy happiness, but it’s more comfortable to cry in a Cadillac than on a bicycle.
Forgive your enemy, but remember the asshole.
If you help someone when they are in trouble, they will remember you when they're in trouble again.
Many people are alive only because it’s illegal to shoot them.
Alcohol does not solve problems, but then, neither does milk.

---------------------------------
Source: BayiSingh of Africa
---------------------------------

Today's Thought

2012-01-09T08:07:00.001+08:00

The true measure of a man is how he treats someone
who can do him absolutely no good.

~ Samuel Johnson

All high achievers plan their work and work their plan,
for they are keenly aware that "luck" is most often
being prepared to take advantage of a situation.

~ Unknown

"Put your heart, mind, and soul into even your smallest acts.
This is the secret of success."

~ Swami Sivananda

***

Today's Thoughts

2012-01-08T09:26:00.002+08:00

"To think I'm living proof of what I believe in ...
that I'm living in a dream of my own creation."
--Deepak Chopra

"True wealth is wisdom, creativity and humanity."
"Wealth is a state of consciousness and money its abstraction."
"Wealth is defined as the enjoyment of abundance in all aspect of life."

"What we are experiencing now is a manifestation of our collective consciousness. We create the conditions that we are living in. Whether enjoyment or suffering, hope or despair, we have enabled it through our awareness and allowed it by our behavior. By our participation - through action or apathy - we have created a world around us. Who among you dares to make that journey within to realize what you are really worth? For only then will you lose the shackles of your indebtedness."

--Tessie Lim (tessielim@tessielim.com)

Can you afford such luxuries?
Do they provoke deep thoughts?

2012: Beginning of a New Year!

2012-01-02T22:30:00.001+08:00

2012

2012-01-01T00:01:00.000+08:00

A Night with Mila & Alley Cat

2011-12-31T19:17:00.006+08:00

I had to attend a family function in Ipoh yesterday.

It was to celebrate the 5th Anniversary of our corporate achievement.

David Arumugam of Alley Cat was with us.

And so was Mila (Nursyarmila Jirin)

Mila was the winner of Akademi Fantasia 5

She is much more beautiful in person.

Happy New Year 2012 to everyone!
Tonight we are celebrating again (over some recent achievements)

***

Bayi is back to Malaysia for Christmas

2011-12-22T09:35:00.003+08:00

My good buddy is back in KL city for his Christmas holidays. It has been quite a long absence since his last visit.

I caught up with him at KL Pavilion complex and was surprise to receive a Christmas present. He gave me an Explorer II. It's a nice Christmas gift and we will be celebrating Christmas together at a resort on Saturday.

Merry Christmas to everyone.

***

A Christmas Message from Sibu

2011-12-20T11:48:00.002+08:00

Salute to A Courageous Lady
Posted by Dr Clement Chen (Sibu)

L.C. presented to my clinic in 2007 with a raised serum tumour marker CA 19.9 .She was in her earlier 30`s . There was a strong family history of cancers . Two siblings had already died of cancers . Two nieces died of leukemia before their 12th birthdays . One other sister subsequently diagnosed to have cancer and died shortly after diagnosis . .

L.C. was completely asymptomatic . Subsequent investigations found a lung cancer . There was the beginning of her long battle with cancers till her death 2 days ago . She was referred to KL to have part of her lung removed , followed with Chemo and radiotherapy . Unfortunately , in 2009, she was found to have another primary cancer in her right breast . She went through surgery , chemo , radio again . Life had not been fair to her , she was soon found to have metastatic lung cancer and have more chemo till she died 2 days ago .

It all sounded like just another case of cancer . Ya , she was a bit young but so many young ones had died of cancers . The WHO had already announced that 38% of us will die of cancers and certainly more will have cancers but survive with treatments .

The amazing things about this lady were:

1) throughout all these years , she continued a very active life : raising few children ( her husband was overseas most of the time ) popped in and out to have the ' killing ' treatment in hospitals in Sibu and Kuching in between her routines . Never saw her complaining . So many times , I had no good news for her : cancers growing , serum tumor markers rising ... She would just bow her head for a second or two and continue living !

2) she had been a very active volunteer with our cancer counseling group ( part of Sibu cancer society ) , visiting all the cancer sufferers . She wore head scarf most of the time as she was bold most of the time . The hair never had a chance to grow back with almost continuing treatment ! You could see her always smiling , laughing , joking . She lightened up many lives and had given great hopes to them too ! Last year , she wanted to join our trip to Similajau in Bintulu . She rush back from Kuching immediately after her Chemo but too weak to join us at the end .......... . .

3) I often looked at her with amazement , admiration and highest respect ! How could someone dying from cancers could still go around smiling , laughing , giving , helping ..... I was sure she was in pains , was crying .. but I just could not see a trace of that in her ..... She was a real fighter!

4) Her fighting spirit was extra ordinary . So many times this year , she had been admitted with shortness of breath ( lungs replaced with cancers ) and put on Oxygen etc ...Every time , I though this was going to be her last admission ! Before long , she was discharged and I bound into her around in town , gatherings .. walking around without oxygen !

5) Few days ago , I came back from overseas and was told that she was admitted again and was very sick ! I saw her , she was really in distress , gasping for breath . I put her on morphine to ease her sufferings . She asked " is this drug going to send me to haven quicker ? " I replied " Are you scared ? " She laughed through her Oxygen mask ,in between coughs ..and choking .......I could not hold back my tears , I knew her answers .................... Actually , she was such a brave soul throughout her ordeal ...She died at 6am the next morning .

Her funeral is tomorrow . she had lived and would be remembered by many for a long long time . Her soul would sure rest in peace in Heaven !

Dr. Clement

------------------------
The above notes were posted by Margaret at the Kuching Toastmaster's web-group

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A Trip to Kuching

2011-12-18T22:43:00.005+08:00

I had wanted to make a trip to Kuching for sometime. Finally, after 2 years, I made the trip to Catland yesterday.

Thanks to my buddy Mr. Au and Arthur Yip, I got to Grand Margherita Hotel and was offered a beautiful room, a studio suite. The room is so cosy and big.

And it has a nice view from my room - you get to see the beautiful river and a swimming pool below.

I attended the Kuching Toastmasters Gala today.

Tonight's theme is: A celebration of Love

The members had a great time.

I met up with so many good friends and partners.

I will be going back to KL tomorrow and hope to be back soon.
It had been a fruitful trip with lots of excitement and plenty of business propositions.

Good night!

POEM FOR TODAY

2011-12-11T17:59:00.000+08:00

BE THANKFUL
By Author Unknown

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire.
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?
Be thankful when you don't know something,
for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.
Be thankful for your limitations,
because they give you opportunities for improvement.
Be thankful for each new challenge,
because it will build your strength and character.

Be thankful to your enemies. They had taught you valuable lessons.
Be thankful when you're tired and weary of them,
because it means you've made a difference.

It's easy to be thankful for the good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks.
Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.
Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,
and they can become your blessings.

***

POEM FOR TODAY

2011-12-10T18:53:00.001+08:00

LIFE IS...
by Mother Theresa

Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.

Life is beauty, admire it.

Life is a dream, realize it.

Life is a challenge, meet it.

Life is a duty, complete it.

Life is a game, play it.

Life is a promise, fulfill it.

Life is a song, sing it.

Life is an adventure, dare it.

Life is luck, make it.

Life is too precious, do not destroy it.

Life is life, fight for it.

POEM FOR TODAY

2011-12-04T19:58:00.000+08:00

A NEW DAY
Dr. Heartsill Wilson

This is the beginning of a new day.

I have been given this day to use as I will.

I can waste it, or use it.

I can make it a day long to be remembered for its joy, its beauty and its achievements, or it can be filled with pettiness.

What I do today is important because I am exchanging a day of my life for it.

When tomorrow comes this day will be gone forever, but I shall hold something which I have traded for it.

It may be no more than a memory, but if it is a worthy one I shall not regret the price.

I want it to be gain not loss, good not evil, success not failure.

***

POEM: GOD'S ROSEBUD

2011-11-26T23:00:00.001+08:00

A new minister was walking with an older, more seasoned minister in the garden one day.

Feeling a bit insecure about what God had for him to do, he was asking the older preacher for some advice.

The older preacher walked up to a rosebush and handed the young preacher a rosebud and told him to open it without tearing off any petals.

The young preacher looked in disbelief at the older preacher and was trying to figure out what a rosebud could possibly have to do with his wanting to know the will of God for his life and ministry.

But because of his great respect for the older preacher, he proceeded to try to unfold the rose, while keeping every petal intact.

It wasn't long before he realized how impossible this was to do.

Noticing the younger preacher's inability to unfold the rosebud without tearing it, the older preacher began to recite the following poem...

"It is only a tiny rosebud,
A flower of God's design;
But I cannot unfold the petals
With these clumsy hands of mine."

"The secret of unfolding flowers
Is not known to such as I.
GOD opens this flower so easily,
But in my hands they die."

"If I cannot unfold a rosebud,
This flower of God's design,
Then how can I have the wisdom
To unfold this life of mine?"

"So I'll trust in God for leading
Each moment of my day.
I will look to God for guidance
In each step along the way."

"The path that lies before me,
Only my Lord and Savior knows.
I'll trust God to unfold the moments,
Just as He unfolds the rose."

***

POEM FOR TODAY

2011-11-20T19:24:00.003+08:00

MY COMFORT ZONE
By Author Unknown

I used to have a comfort zone where I knew I wouldn't fail;
The same four walls and busywork were really more like fortress jail;
I never thought too much about things I'd never done before;
But stayed inside my comfort zone and paced the same old floor.

I said it didn't matter that I wasn't doing much;
I said I didn't care for things like commissions, fat checks and such;
I claimed to be so busy with the things and people inside the zone;
But deep inside I longed for something special of my own.

I couldn't let my life go by just watching others win;
I held my breath and I stepped outside to let the change begin;
I finally took a step and with new strength I'd never felt before,
I kissed my comfort zone goodbye and closed and locked the door.

I now walk out of the comfort zone, not afraid to venture out;
I remember that all other winners were at one time filled with doubt;
I now take a step forward with words of encouragement that will make my dreams come true;
I now reach for my future with a smile; confident that a new found success will come true!

***

LESSONS FOR TODAY

2011-11-20T17:58:00.000+08:00

Hi Friend,

Victor Frankl once wrote, "Everything can be taken from a person but one thing: the last of human freedoms - to choose one's attitudes in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way." Frankl was right. Attitude is a choice. You could be faced with a thousand problems, many or most over which you have absolutely no control. However, there is always one thing you are in complete and absolute control of and that is your own attitude.

When you surrender control of your attitude to what appears to be a negative situation, you will react to that situation. More often than not, reacting is inappropriate. On the other hand, if you were to remain objective, you would respond to the situation appropriately, thereby creating a winning situation.

If attitude is such an important word, why do so few people understand it? To be honest, it wasn't until I was in my late 20s when I finally understood its full impact. All through my teens and into my early adult life, I can't tell you the number of times that I heard, "Bob, if you'd just change your attitude, you would do a lot better." In retrospect I can easily see the cause of my problem. I didn't know what attitude was, let alone know how to change it!

Attitude is the composite of your thoughts, feelings and actions. Your conscious mind controls feeling and ultimately dictates whether your feelings will be positive or negative by your choice of thoughts, then your body displays those choices through action and behavior.

Attitude is actually a creative cycle that begins with your choice of thoughts. You do choose your thoughts and that choice is where your attitude originates. As you internalize ideas or become emotionally involved with your thoughts, you create the second stage in forming an attitude; you move your entire being - mind and body - into a new "vibration." Your conscious awareness of this vibration is referred to as "feeling".Your feelings are then expressed in actions or behaviors that produce the various results in your life.

Positive results are always the effect of a positive attitude. Attitude and results are inseparable. They follow one another like night follows day. What I mean by that is: one is the cause, the other, the result. There is a term we use to distinguish this "cause and effect" relationship, it is called The Law of Cause and Effect. Simply stated, if you think in negative terms, you will get negative results; if you think in positive terms you will achieve positive results. Ralph Waldo Emerson reiterated that same point when he said, "A person is what they think about all day long." The results you achieve in life are nothing more than an expression of your thoughts, feelings, and actions. Take a close look at your life and evaluate the results you are achieving in various areas. See if you are able to relate your attitude to your results.

Winning and losing are opposite sides of the same coin - and that coin is attitude. There are many things wrong in this world; unfortunately that is all some people are able to see. Those who view the world in this light are often unhappy and somewhat cynical. Usually, their life is one of lack and limitation and it almost appears as if they move from one bad experience to another. I know people who are like this and I'm certain you do as well. It would appear as if they were born with a streak of bad luck and it has followed them around their whole life. These individuals are quick to blame circumstances or other people for their problems, rather than accepting responsibility for their life and their attitude.

Conversely, there are others who are forever winning and living the good life. They are the real movers and shakers who make things happen. They seem to go from one major accomplishment to another. They're in control of their life; they know where they are going and know they will get there. They are the real winners in life and their wins are a matter of choice.

You can experience that kind of life as well, you only need to decide. Making that simple decision is the first step to a new life. Dorothea Brand once said, "Act as if it were impossible to fail," and I challenge you to do so. By simply becoming aware that you can choose your thoughts each and every day, you will change your entire outlook. You have the power to choose an abundant life no matter your circumstances. That active choice will allow other positive people and opportunities to be attracted into your life. Don't wait to experience all the wonderful things the universe has in store for you. Start today by working on your attitude and welcome the abundant life that you were meant to lead.

To your success,
Bob Proctor

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SOURCE: FROM STANLEY NGU
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Astounding Quotes

2011-11-10T17:51:00.006+08:00

The quotes below were mailed by Stanley Ngu of Kuching.

They are inspirational & thought provoking:

Thanks, Stanley!
***

Poetry: If

2011-11-08T12:26:00.000+08:00

If

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master,
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!

by Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936)

-----------------------------------
Rudyard Kipling's (1865-1936) inspirational poem 'If' contains mottos and maxims for life, and the poem is also a blueprint for personal integrity, behaviour and self-development. 'If' is perhaps even more relevant today than when Kipling wrote it, as an ethos and a personal philosophy.

Poem for Today: Integrity

2011-11-07T18:57:00.007+08:00

How many of us live with true integrity every day?
I do my work to the fullest, never cheat in any way.
I will continue to stay to the path I made up my mind to tread,
Falling away from truth never entered my head.

However hard the way, if I have integrity in me,
I'll strive and never give in even when I was betrayed.
I'll maintain my honor and trustworthiness to all my friends.
My words will be my bond, always fit to greet.

I will never give into temptation however strong,
Never on purpose would I ever do anything wrong,
No bribe would ever be large enough to lead me astray,
For integrity would always show me the right way.

God give me the strength to have integrity through my life,
That however hard the struggle, however much strife
I will stand strong and true, until my earthly life is through,
That I will be honorable and honest in all the things I do.

***
Integrity will stand the test of time. Nothing can cause me to lower my values of life and cause me to depart from the fundamental principles that I had upheld all these years. I am very fortunate that I had sufficient reserves to be able and capable to deal with all situations. God has blessed me!

***
Ref: Poem adapted from M. Ann Margetson

Jokes for Today: Seeking Peter

2011-11-07T17:25:00.001+08:00

Two prostitutes were riding around town with a sign on top of their car which said:

"Two Prostitutes" $50.00

A policeman, seeing the sign, stopped them and told them to remove the sign or go to jail.

Just at that time, another car passed with a sign saying: "JESUS SAVES."

One of the girls asked the officer, 'How come you don't stop them??'

'Well, that's a little different,' the officer smiled, 'Their sign pertains to freedom of religion.'

The following day the same police officer noticed the same two professionals driving with another large sign on their car. He figured he had an easy arrest until he read the new sign:

"Two Fallen Angels"
Seeking Peter -- $50

***

Story: Are you God's Wife?

2011-11-04T11:44:00.000+08:00

An eye witness account from New York City , on a cold day in December, some years ago:

A little boy, about 10-years-old, was standing before a shoe store on the roadway, barefooted, peering through the window, and shivering with cold.

A lady approached the young boy and said, 'My, but you're in such deep thought staring in that window!'

'I was asking God to give me a pair of shoes,'was the boy's reply.

The lady took him by the hand, went into the store, and asked the clerk to get half a dozen pairs of socks for the boy. She then asked if he could give her a basin of water and a towel. He quickly brought them to her.

She took the little fellow to the back part of the store and, removing her gloves, knelt down, washed his little feet, and dried them with the towel.

By this time, the clerk had returned with the socks.. Placing a pair upon the boy's feet, she purchased him a pair of shoes..

She tied up the remaining pairs of socks and gave them to him.. She patted him on the head and said, 'No doubt, you will be more comfortable now.'

As she turned to go, the astonished kid caught her by the hand, and looking up into her face, with tears in his eyes, asked her, 'Are you God's wife?'

***

Story: Good Reason

2011-10-31T18:23:00.000+08:00

A woman announces to her friend that she is getting married for the fourth time.

"How wonderful! But I hope you don't mind me asking what happened to your first husband?"

"He ate poisonous mushrooms and died."

"Oh, how tragic! What about your second husband?"

"He ate poisonous mushrooms too and died."

"Oh, how terrible! I'm almost afraid to ask you about your third husband."

"He died of a broken neck."

"A broken neck?"

"Yeah, he wouldn't eat the damn mushrooms."

-----------------------------

STORY BY BAYISINGH

***

A Surprise Birthday Gift from My Son

2011-10-28T11:40:00.002+08:00

My son, William gave me a surprise this morning:

A Golden Egg

RISES GOLDEN EGG

The egg is traditionally a symbol of life and new beginnings.
The shape of the egg which has no beginning or end, stands for the cycle of life perpetuating itself endlessly.

Made from natural ostrich, goose, hen or quail eggs, the eggs are plated in 24K gold using a unique process developed by RISIS and handcrafted to perfection.

Each RISES Egg conveys the golden wish of good luck and fortune.

A Chinese Belief

Ancient China has always been full of exotic legends and the egg has always had a unique place in this glorious mystique.

For many centuries, it was believed that if an egg was placed on its end exactly at noon on the day of the Dragon Boat Festival (the 5th day of 5th Lunar month), and the egg could stand upright on its own, the person would be blessed with good luck and fortune.

***

Thank you, William and I am sure this signifies a blessed period.

***

Happy Birthday to Myself

2011-10-28T08:39:00.003+08:00

Today is my birthday.

It is my 55 birthday, a day where most of us ponder retirement.

I will like to spent today to thoroughly review & remap my journey in life; the time remaining hereof!

Poem for Today

2011-10-27T23:03:00.000+08:00

I was shocked, confused, bewildered
As I entered Heaven's door,
Not by the beauty of it all,
Nor the lights or its decor.

But it was the folks in Heaven
Who made me sputter and gasp--
The thieves, the liars, the sinners,
The alcoholics and the trash.

There stood the kid from seventh grade
Who swiped my lunch money twice.
Next to him was my old neighbor
Who never said anything nice.

Bob, who I always thought
Was rotting away in hell,
Was sitting pretty on cloud nine,
Looking incredibly well.

I nudged Angel, 'What's the deal?
I would love to hear Your take.
How did all these sinners get up here?
God must've made a mistake.

'And why is everyone so quiet,
So somber - give me a clue.'

'Hush, child,' He said, 'they're all shock...
No one thought they'd be seeing you.'

LOOK IN THE MIRROR!!

Remember...Just going to shrines or temple and giving alms and reciting prayers doesn't make you any holier any more than standing in your garage makes you a car.

Every saint has a PAST...
Every sinner has a FUTURE!

Wedding of Henry & Karen

2011-10-23T11:54:00.003+08:00

My son Henry finally tied the knot with his sweetheart Karen.

Congratulations to Henry & Karen.

Both families have a nice time together at the reception dinner.

***

Today's Thought to Ponder

2011-10-21T23:42:00.003+08:00

Are we aware that if anyone of us died tomorrow,
the company that we are working for could easily replace us
in a matter of days;
But our family and loving friends we left behind will feel the loss
for the rest of their lives?

And come to think of it, we would pour ourselves more
into work than into our own family and close friends,
an unwise investment indeed,
don't you think?

***

"Do you feel proud hurting the person who loves you?"

***
When you are angry, you have every reason to be mad,
but you have no reason to be cruel.

***

There are some 6.9 billion people in this world.
Only a very very small percentage of them loves us.
These people who love us thus become very rare and precious.

***

Every year we go back Sibu for Ching Ming.
We pay respect to the dead and we hurriedly come back to Kuching.
I realized that, in our rush, we often neglected visiting our 90+ year-old grandpa.
We respect the dead but forget the living!

***

CONTRIBUTED BY:
STANLEY NGU & CH TAN

***

Story: Why Women Lie

2011-10-21T13:18:00.002+08:00

One day, when a seamstress was sewing while sitting close to a river, her thimble fell into the river. When she cried out, the Lord appeared and asked, 'My dear child, why are you crying?' The seamstress replied that her thimble had fallen into the water and that she needed it to help her husband in making a living for their family. The Lord dipped His hand into the water and pulled up a golden thimble set with sapphires.

'Is this your thimble?' the Lord asked The seamstress replied, 'No.'

The Lord again dipped into the river. He held out a golden thimble studded with rubies.

'Is this your thimble?' the Lord asked. Again, the seamstress replied, 'No.'

The Lord reached down again and came up with a leather thimble.

'Is this your thimble ?' the Lord asked. The seamstress replied, 'Yes' The Lord was pleased with the woman's honesty and gave her all three thimbles to keep, and the seamstress went home happy.

Some years later, the seamstress was walking with her husband along the riverbank, and her husband fell into the river and disappeared under the water. When she cried out, the Lord again appeared and asked her, 'Why are you crying?' 'Oh Lord, my husband has fallen into the river!'

The Lord went down into the water and came up with George Clooney. 'Is this your husband?' the Lord asked.

'Yes,' cried the seamstress. The Lord was furious. 'You lied! That is an untruth!'

The seamstress replied, 'Oh, forgive me, my Lord. It is a misunderstanding. You see, if I had said 'no' to George Clooney, you would have come up with Brad Pitt. Then if I said 'no' to him, you would have come up with my husband. Had I then said 'yes,' you would have given me all three. Lord, I'm not in the best of health and would not be able to take care of all three husbands, so THAT'S why I said 'yes' to George Clooney.

And so the Lord let her keep him.

The moral of this story is:

Whenever a woman tell lies, it's for a good reason and she believed it to be an honorable reason, and in the best interest of others.

***

SOURCE: BAYISINGH

***

Malaysia Secures Projects Worth RM10 Billion In Bangladesh

2011-10-19T16:50:00.005+08:00

October 19, 2011 10:04 AM
Bernama Business Report
From E. Sivabalan

DHAKA, Oct 19 (Bernama) -- Malaysia has secured infrastructure projects worth a whopping RM10 billion in Bangladesh to be implemented beginning early next year over a period of between two and five years, says Malaysia's Special Envoy, Datuk Seri S.Samy Vellu here Wednesday.

Signing of MOU Ceremony at Pan Pacific Hotel, Dhaka on 18 October, 2011

Kuala Lumpur and Bangladesh inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to facilitate the implementation of the projects here last night.

The document would be handed over to the Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina by Samy Vellu here on Thursday.

Bangladesh Minister for Housing and Public Works Abdul Mannan Khan & Malaysia's Special Envoy to India & South Asia (Ministerial Rank) Dato' Seri S. Samy Vellu.

Bangladesh State Minister for Local Government, Rural Government and Cooperatives Jahangir Kabir Nanok & Malaysia's Special Envoy to India & South Asia (Ministerial Rank) Dato' Seri S. Samy Vellu.

Describing the deal as a "win-win", the former Malaysian works minister who is on a four-day working visit to Bangladesh, said the projects include housing; satellite townships; a flyover and water treatment, and sewerage treatment plants.

He said the first project involving the construction of 161 blocks of 16-storey apartments, worth almost RM3 billion, in Uttara near here would commence early next year.

"Both governments (Malaysia and Bangladesh) sealed the MOU after more than six months of negotiations. It is indeed a proud achievement for Malaysia," Samy Vellu told reporters after signing the MOU on behalf of the Malaysian government.

The signatories from the Bangladesh government were State Minister for Housing and Public Works Abdul Mannan Khan; and the State Minister for Local Government, Rural Government and Cooperatives Jahangir Kabir Nanok.

Samy Vellu, who was appointed the Special Envoy with Ministerial rank for Infrastructure to India and South Asia last January, said work on the RM3 billion apartment project was expected to start in a few months after the signing of the agreement.

Another project that would take off next year would be the 10.8km four-lane Poltan-Mawa Road flyover project worth RM1 billion, he said.

Samy Vellu said other projects include the construction of affordable housing for squatters and a new satellite township on a 400 hectare land at Kamrangichar and another similar development in Mohammadpur here.

"Malaysia will also construct the Dhalla-Jamirta well field to supply clean water to Dhaka," he said, adding that several Malaysian companies have shown interest to participate in the RM10 billion project.

Samy Vellu said the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) would monitor and act as the executing agency for the projects to be jointly undertaken with the respective departments in Bangladesh.

"I am happy that after months of discussions and negotiations, we (Malaysia and Bangladesh) have finally agreed to implement the projects," he said.

Samy Vellu also said the next step would be to finalise the costing and other aspects of the projects and then seal agreements between CIDB and the respective departments in Bangladesh.

He added several Malaysian companies have been identified to undertake the projects, some through joint ventures, with interested parties.

"I will brief Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak upon my return to Malaysia (on Friday) and then hold a media conference to explain about the projects in detail," he said.

-- BERNAMA

SOURCE: BERNAMA

Joint Press Conference at Sheraton Hotel, Dhaka (now called Ruposhi Bangla Hotel) on 19 October, 2011

This is the daily traffic situation in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.

Poem for Today

2011-10-18T16:38:00.002+08:00

poem by Rabindranath Tagore

Vanshaj’s
Go not to the temple to put flowers upon the feet of God,
First fill your own house with the Fragrance of Love …

Go not to the temple to light candles before the altar of God,
First remove the darkness of sin from your heart …

Go not to the temple to bow down your head in prayer,
First learn to bow in humility before your fellowmen …

Go not to the temple to pray on bended knees,
First bend down to lift someone who is down-trodden …

Go not to the temple to ask for forgiveness for your sins,
First forgive from your heart those who have sinned against you.

***

Today's Thought

2011-10-14T20:35:00.004+08:00

Everybody sees how you seem, however,
only some know who you are

The most difficult lesson to learn is:
Which bridge in life to use or which one to break off

He who would like to have something he never had,

will have to do something well, that he hasn’t done yet

***
I will never live to betray,
But I had to live with betrayal.

I can be wrong to blow my head,
But it was letting out of inner feelings.

I must learn to contain those feelings,
And accept that fate will have it, whatever it shall be.

But life is beautiful because there's a God above,
who cares and who is merciful.

So, Life must go on,
And we had to deal with whatever that comes;
And to uphold to those virtuous principles,
And leave the rest to the Almighty.
Amen!

Religion & Patriotism: What is the Virtue of Life?

2011-10-14T10:32:00.003+08:00

CAUGHT-IN-ACTION - ACT 1, SCENE 1:

Girl Holds Umbrella for Disabled Old Beggar in Rainstorm

In the middle of a rainstorm, a thin frail girl was seen holding an umbrella for a handicapped old beggar while she herself was soaked in the rain. This scene was captured by a netizen in Suzhou who happened to witness the precious moment with his camera.

In Malaysia, we, the diverse society, the various races and the two sides of politicians, are busy and working hard to find fault with each other and one another. If we can't find the real faults, we create them so that it looks real. We are still busy with: (1) whether we are Malaysian First or Malay First, (2) whether Nasi Lemak 2.0 is seditious, (3) whether the church is evangelizing the Muslims, (4) whether Rosmah has bought the $24mil diamond ring, (5) whether Anwar was in Thailand prostituting, (6) whether ........... , uh, too long to narate .... but the nation is hardly concern: (1) whether recession is imminent, (2) whether another economic crisis similar to the American sub-prime crisis is imminent, (3) whether & why our universities are not on par with the top 500 universities international, (4) whether & why our graduates are unemployable, (5) whether we will become the next Zimbabwe, (5) whether our banks will collapse with piles of debts unserviced, (6) whether & why ..... uh, too long to narate ....

Love, care, charity and co-existence, we hardly can observe!!! Oh, Malaysia, what had happened to us??? Religion? Religion didn't teach us to find fault with others; Religion didn't teach us to hate others; Religion didn't teach us to be evil? Oh ya, Satan is part of religion too.

---------------------------------
SOURCE: posted by Fengniao “金桥tj” & XiCi netizen “林听海安”

COURTESY: BAYISINGH

---------------------------------

A Story from a Woman

2011-10-13T13:08:00.002+08:00

I was walking down the street when I was accosted by a particularly dirty and shabby-looking homeless woman who asked me for a couple of dollars for dinner.

I took out my wallet, got out ten dollars and asked, 'If I give you this money, will you buy wine with it instead of dinner?'

'No, I had to stop drinking years ago', the homeless woman told me.

'Will you use it to go shopping instead of buying food?' I asked.

'No, I don't waste time shopping', the homeless woman said. 'I need to spend all my time trying to stay alive.'

'Will you spend this on a beauty salon instead of food?' I asked.

'Are you NUTS!' replied the homeless woman. I haven't had my hair done in 20 years!'

'Well, I said, 'I'm not going to give you the money. Instead, I'm going to take you out for a nice dinner with my husband and me tonight.'

The homeless Woman was shocked. 'Won't your husband be furious with you for doing that? I know I'm dirty, and I probably smell pretty disgusting.'

I said, 'That's okay. It's important for him to see what a woman looks like after she has given up shopping, hair appointments, and wine.'

------------------------------------------

SOURCE: Stanley from Catland

------------------------------------------

LESSONS LEARNED:

So, please allow women to go shopping, saloon and dining if you don't want a shabby & disgusting wife.

***

Today's Thought

2011-10-09T16:57:00.002+08:00

No one can go back and change a bad beginning;
But anyone can start now and create a successful ending.

Contributor: Mmudahlupa Thow SP of Kuching

***

A Trip to the Portugese Colony

2011-10-06T22:49:00.008+08:00

CHEGADAS - I think it means "Arrival"

GRAND LISBOA HOTEL & CASINO (owns by Stanley Ho)

Centro de turismo de Negocios de Macau
(Macau Business Tourism Centre)

Senado Square
More than 200,000 tourists arrived in a single day and almost everyone will visit this place in the central of the business district

The Ruins of St. Paul's

The Historic Centrepiece of Macau

The Ruins of St. Paul's refer to the facade of what was originally the Church of Mater Dei built in 1602-1640, destroyed by fire in 1835

All that remains of the greatest of Macau's churches is its magnificent stone facade and grand staircase.

St. Dominic's Church

Standing on the site of a chapel and convent built by the Dominicans in the 1590's St. Dominic's Church dates from the early 17th century.

Venice? Ya, Venetian Hotel

At the Venetian hotel

It's time to find a nice place for dinner. We traveled to Sai Kung, Hong Kong

Fantastic seafood

Giant Garupa fish

Big crowd at Sai Kung Promenade - a fishing village.

PM: Malays must look beyond protectionism

2011-09-30T08:57:00.002+08:00

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak urged Malay entrepreneurs to rely on their own ability in order to be have dignity and be respected.

“Don't just talk about rights. What is more important is what are we doing to do to increase our wealth” Najib said when officially opening the newly-formed United Malay Economic Action Council (MTEM) in Serdang last night.

This is the second time in three days that the premier had spoken on the need to move away from preferential treatment for the Malay business class.

On Monday, the Najib told the Khazanah Megatrends Forum that bumiputera quotas will be done away with in the future in order to increase competition.

“We never took from other people. We created new projects in order for the people to feel that we did not take away the rights of others, so that there is fair distribution,” he said.

“We must change because our environment has changed. If (you) depend on (government) protection, it cannot guarantee our future,” he said.

------------------------------

SOURCE: Malaysiakini.com

------------------------------

Comment:

Najib is courting trouble with Perkasa & hardcore UMNO businessmen who had depended on the government for handouts. These people will not like the message as their survival and fortune is at stake.

USM Convo 2011

2011-09-25T19:15:00.007+08:00

My sweetheart finally got to wear the mortar headgear and the robes that signifies she had finally graduated.

Today I had to be at National Science University (USM) to witness her graduation. She is the youngest in the family and the whole family is so proud of her. Of course, she is dad's sweetheart.

The future scientist

A lovely kiss for dad!

I failed to attend my two sons' convo. That was the last few years. Back then, I was struggling to earn enough to meet the family's need. It was tough then. Back then, I had to travel to various states to conduct seminars, workshops and classes all over the country and overseas. I also had to perform corporate duties as advisers and consultants. No excuse; and I admit I am sorry to my sons. If there is any way I can make up to them, I would readily do so. In fact I was scheduled to travel overseas last Friday and will be forced to miss this convo event. Thank God the trip was postponed and I finally made it to the hall to watch my daughter walk up there to receive her scroll.

I'm back to KL now and the hours of journey has drained away my energy. Good nite.

***

Bahasa Malaysia Lesson

2011-09-13T09:22:00.000+08:00

This is really funny, take time to read especially the examples.
I am not sure whether it was written by which author ..............

Ban on BERSIH extends to Dewan Bahasa
By Kuldip Gangaram
Monyet News Network, 19 July 2011

Kuala Lumpur, 19 July. Dewan Bahasa dan Perkasa (DBP) today confirmed that the word ”BERSIH” will be banned and taken out from the Malay lexicology. The chairman of DBP, Tan Sri Faizal Suresh Abdullah announced the decision at a press conference held at DBP’s main campus at Jinjang, north of the city.

“We are only following the Government directive. They said BERSIH is illegal, so we also follow lah. We are part of the same government, you know. From today onwards, nobody can use the word bersih. Anyone caught doing otherwise can be fined RM 5,000 or jailed for two years or both”, stressed Tan Sri Faizal.

When quizzed by newsmen what alternative words the public could use instead of bersih, Tan Sri Faizal added “we are not stupid. We have already thought about the inconvenience this ban might cause to the public. So, we had a lab, chaired by none other than Datuk Idris Jala, which studied the problem closely. And we came up with a brilliant alternative”.

To a question by MNN correspondent, Lattalilat Thamplom, Tan Sri Faizal said “since this problem was started by that freakin Indian woman, Ambiga, we have decided to replace the word bersih with ambiga. Very clever isn’t it”.

According to DBP "since this Indian woman started the problem, we are going to substitute bersih with her name. Clever isn't it ?"

DBP has released guidelines for this change of terminology that advises the public the right way of replacing bersih with ambiga. Extracts from the guidelines are appended below :

Contoh ayat menggunakan perkataan ambiga

Contoh 1
Cara lama
Murid-murid perlu menjaga kebersihan bilik darjah masing-masing
Cara baru
Murid-murid perlu menjaga keambigaan bilik darjah masing-masing

Contoh 2
Cara lama
Pantai itu sungguh bersih
Cara baru
Pantai itu sungguh ambiga

Contoh 3
Cara lama
Kamar itu dibersihkan oleh orang gaji saya
Cara baru
Kamar itu diambigakan oleh orang gaji saya

Contoh 4
Cara lama
Cuci bersih
Cara baru
Cuci ambiga

MNN has been reliably informed that many Local councils are now considering using the AMBIGA rating system for assessing cleanliness of restaurants. Instead of the conventional A, B and C or star ratings, restaurants may be rated 1Ambiga, 2Ambiga or 3Ambiga.

News Network
Your most reliable source of reliable news

--------------------------------------------------
SOURCE:Planet of the Monyets
--------------------------------------------------

Someone told me there is now a new English lexicon for the word "Sodomised" - it's now "saifulled"
Example: Anwar was saifulled ...

------------------------------------------

BayiSingh: Chemical Analysis of Woman

2011-09-13T08:56:00.000+08:00

My good friend BayiSingh just completed his PhD thesis at the University of Otaklongkong, South Africa.

His research thesis and results were graded equal to President ObamaSingh. The summary of his thesis was published worldwide and I got a copy of it from him.

Today's Thought

2011-09-07T21:57:00.004+08:00

"It's better to look ahead and prepare than to look back and regret."

-- Jacki Joyner-Kersee, Athlete

------------------------------------------------------

The above quote was sent to me today by my good buddy Stanley. It was thought provoking and a good reminder for me; that what can be envisaged in the near future, we should get prepared to deal with the probabilities and outcome. It is important to chart our journey in life.

The fundamental principles of life is: Trustworthiness & Reliability. The moment it cracks, it will never be the same again.

Good nite!

TODAY'S PARADOX

2011-09-06T23:48:00.003+08:00

Why are wives more dangerous than the Mafia?
The mafia wants either your money or life...
The wives want both!

-------------------------

Marriage is like a public toilet:
- Those waiting outside are desperate to get in; &
- Those inside are desperate to come out.

---------------------------------

It takes thousand workers to build a castle,
million soldiers to protect a country,
but just one woman to make a Happy Home
--------- A Good Maid!

------------------------------------

All girls are devils,
but my wife is the queen -- of them!

------------------------------------

HAVE A NICE DAY!

----------------

SOURCE: BAYISINGH

------------------

English Lesson

2011-09-06T00:01:00.002+08:00

When I was 10-year-old, I was taught that -

rubber means eraser,
ass means donkey,
gay means happy,
straight means linear,
making out means 'logical detection',
Cock means rooster,
pussy means cat,
stag means a male deer,
prick means a jab,
poke means a nudge,
chick means a baby hen,
screw means a carpenter's implement, and
a Tit was always for Tat!!

Damn it! - Today's English has changed so much !!!!!

------------------------
SOURCE: BayiSingh
------------------------

Hong Kong Trip

2011-09-02T11:20:00.002+08:00

From airport to Kowloon

This is the 4-Star hotel bedroom- so small & narrow

Walking down Temple Street

Breakfast at a restaurant along Canton Street
See how narrow the restaurant?

Rental is the reason!

At the Airport Lounge - nice seats

Nice seatings at the lounge.

Selamat Hari Raya

2011-08-30T10:54:00.003+08:00

Selamat Hari Raya to all Muslims.

I'm back in KL for the Raya holidays.

Need a break and may go to Hong Kong after Raya.

Travel time

2011-08-23T19:21:00.003+08:00

Woke up at 4am. Have to be at Penang by 8.30am for a meeting with China International Water Corporation. At 11am have to visit Penang 2nd Bridge project and finished off with another meeting at Seberang Prai. Had to rush back to KL. Tomorrow I have to take a early flight to China.

Good night!

A trip to Dhaka

2011-08-21T19:03:00.004+08:00

If we think the traffic jam is horrific in Kuala Lumpur, then you have to visit Dhaka to appreciate KL. It took us nearly 5 hours to get to a destination which is only 5km away from the Pan Pacific Hotel in Dhaka.

See the traffic ahead of our car.

If the traffic is bad enough, you have to experience the driving skills of the Bangladeshi.
Michael Schumacher would be terrified by the driving manners.

It was an honour to meet up with our Malaysian Ambassador to Bangladesh,
H.E. Jamaluddin Sabeh

and we met up with the Minister of Housing & Public Works (PWD),
Advocate Abdul Mannan Khan

Journeying along the streets of Dhaka, we will learn to appreciate our own streets:

Along the journey we also learn what it means to be poor.

What is a home? See below:

I will be making another trip to Dhaka next month.

***

1Malaysia New Vocabularies

2011-08-15T09:22:00.005+08:00

13 AUGUST 2011

Malaysiakini.com

[QUOTE]

Umno Senator Mohd Ezam Mohd Nor said today he will wage war in defence of Islam, including burning two online news portals, which he claimed to be agents against Islam.

"We are saying here that we will launch an all-out war to defend our faith if they (anti-Islam elements) do not stop (and) use their agents - Malaysiakini and Malaysian Insider - which were biadap (rude) towards the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department (Jais).

"Malaysiakini, Malaysian Insider, we are giving you a very last warning. Our warning is a serious one. If you do not stop this rubbish, we are going to burn you down!" Ezam (left) declared.

Ezam issued his threats at a highly-charged rally of some 200 people inside the compound of the Selangor state mosque in Shah Alam.

Also present were Kulim Bandar Baru MP Zulkifli Nordin and Umno Youth exco member Lokman Noor Adam.

[UNQUOTE]

14 AUGUST 2011

Malaysiakini.com

[QUOTE]

Senator Mohd Ezam Mohd Nor has back-pedalled from his highly-charged attacks against news portals on Friday, denying he had meant plans to “burn” them over the coverage of the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) and the controversy.

In tweets sent out today, the former opposition-turned-Umno-activist said there is no way to burn news publications in cyberspace, and claimed that what he meant was to “burn” Malaysiakini and The Malaysian Insider as they have “burned” the hearts of Muslims over the issue of apostasy.

“MK/MI portal news dialam siber.mcmana BAKAR alamsiber?x ancam bakar reporter/bangunan.ianya simbolik kemarahan terhdp mrk yg BAKAR hati umat,” (MK/MI (Malaysiakini/Malaysian Insider) are cyber news portals. No threat to burn (any) reporters/building. (The remarks) were only symbolic of the anger towards them for burning the hearts of the Muslim community),” tweeted Senator Ezam.

[UNQUOTE]

---------------------------------------

1Malaysia Vocab:

Burn can mean "burning the hearts" (it depends!)

I will Kill you can mean "I love U" (it depends!)

It depends on who said it ....

Anything can be seditious; or nothing can be seditious;

Anything can be threatening; or at times, when necessary and convenient, it will not be construed as threatening;

Then, what is apprehension? What constitute threats? What is discrimination? Check every dictionary but you will not get the right answer ..... in the Malaysian context.

The Answer: It depends; it depends on what our police want it to be construed; it depends on what the Attorney-General would have it interpreted.

Language is now flexible and esoteric! Because we are now 1Malaysia!

A journey to Hong Kong

2011-08-13T20:36:00.002+08:00

Hong Kong is now the shopping haven for the mainland Chinese. See this:

The people have to queue up to enter this boutique - Gucci!

Look at how many people are queuing at Louis Vuitton shop?

Oh my dear, even at a simple fast food Chinese restaurant!!!

Businesses are having good times!!!

I will be in Dhaka next week. Hope things are as good over there. After Dhaka I may have to go to Fiji. I'm not holidaying ... it's work assignment and hell of tiring and my legs are giving me problems.

***

Jokes from Malaysian Court of Law

2011-07-26T10:03:00.002+08:00

Extract of the TBH Coroner's inquiry between Malaysian Prosecutor and the forensic expert from Thailand.

Abdul Razak representing the Public Prosecutor's Office
Dr. Porntip Rojanasunand Thai pathologist.
__________________________________

ABDUL RAZAK: Now doctor, isn't it true that when a person dies in his sleep,he doesn't know about it until the next morning?
PORNTIP: Did you actually pass the bar exam?
____________________________________

ABDUL RAZAK: Doctor, how many of your autopsies have you performed on dead people?
PORNTIP: All of them...The living ones put up too much of a fight.
_______________________________________

ABDUL RAZAK: Do you recall the time that you examined the body?
PORNTIP: The autopsy started around 8:30 p.m.

ABDUL RAZAK: And Teoh Beng Hock was dead at the time?
PORNTIP: If he was not dead, he would be dead by the time I finished autopsy.

ABDUL RAZAK: Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?
PORNTIP: No.

ABDUL RAZAK: Did you check for blood pressure?
PORNTIP: No.

ABDUL RAZAK: Did you check for breathing?
PORNTIP: No.

ABDUL RAZAK: So, then is it possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?
PORNTIP: No.

ABDUL RAZAK: How can you be so sure, doctor?
PORNTIP: Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar.

ABDUL RAZAK: I see, but could the patient be still alive nevertheless?
PORNTIP: Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and practicing law.

-------------------------------
INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE ...

BUM 2011

2011-07-24T17:33:00.006+08:00

BUM 2011 Luncheon Forum ended at around 3pm today.

It was a success and the crowd were there.

A group picture of the BUM Organizing Committee

The man in the centre of the picture is the Prince from Africa. He came, he saw and he went back to Africa. He says he will be back. I asked him if the £3 Billion Yacht was his; he didn't answer. Maybe he will give us the answer in the next forum.

MB Tan Sri Abdul Khalid & YB Tian Chua were the guest of honour. Tony Pua was also there. YB Niz Nazmi could not attend as he was away.

AB Sulaiman, Tian Chua, Maria Chin Abdullah & Maverick were the panel speakers.

En. Wan Shariman greeting MB

Helen Hoh presenting the Commemorative Plaque to the MB.

Maverick & Desi presenting the BUM t-shirt to MB. It is just a coincidence that it is yellow. BUM is not Bersih, but Bersih members may be bloggers.

Wan Shariman receiving a copy of Zunar's book

The special guests of honour - Ismawati, Christine, Shariman, Amro & Mave.

The youngsters wanted to have a picture with MB & YB. They are Facebook addicts.

Oh, I'm tired!!! Got to take a rest and prepare for tomorrow's mission. Bye!

Dr. Ambiga Bersih

2011-07-21T23:16:00.005+08:00

University of Exeter
Honorary graduands 2011-12
Ambiga Sreenevasan (LLD)
Thursday 21 July 11:30am

Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan will receive her honorary doctorate in law today from the University of Exeter,UK.

Congratulation, Datuk Dr. Ambiga!

Have a nice holiday at Exeter, Dr.

MACC men include ‘abuser’, ‘bully’ and ‘the arrogant leader’

2011-07-21T19:00:00.002+08:00

RCI names MACC men as ‘abuser’, ‘bully’ and ‘the arrogant leader’
By Debra Chong
The Malaysian Insider
July 21, 2011

The Royal Commission appointed to nvestigate Teoh Beng Hock's death concluded that most MACC officers in its Selangor office were prone to lying apart from being abusers and bullies.

The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Teoh’s death said that “Arman the bully” would “manipulate his witness to obtain evidence.”

“Ashraf the abuser.” it said, was described as Machiavellian in his method to secure evidence.

But what was most damning in the report’s assessment of MACC methods was their description of the deputy director for Selangor Hishammuddin Hashim.

“HH the arrogant leader who would have no qualms about lying as long as his ends were achieved, regardless of the means employed,” the report said.

As a boss, Hishammuddin was also said to instill fear among his officers.

Under Hishammuddin, most officers also had the inevitable habit of lying, the report concluded.

Below are the panel’s other remarks:

“TBH appeared to have been propelled into a fear-inducing situation as shown by the pattern of calls that he made when the MACC officers were conducting their investigations into the office. He needed reassurance form his colleagues... he was pacified when given the chance by Anuar to discuss his concerns privately for a few minutes with both YB and Manoharan in the SUK building before he was taken away to the Selangor office but when not allowed to see them after that he was cut off from outside world

“Taking away his mobilephone would have meant robbing him of his means to reality and sanity. And the MACC officers did just that. Thus for the first time in his life, TBH found himself totally and completely isolated from the outside world and thrust into desolation... This was a gross violation of TBH’s personal right, whch would have compounded his anxiety and worry

“Arman and Ashraf behaved like inquisitors in an inquisition at the second stage of the interrogation. They instilled doubts and fears into TBH as regards the Treasury directives... TBH had to face MACC interrogation heavyweights like Arman the bully [who would manipulate his witness to obtain evidence], Ashraf the abuser [who was Machiavellian in his method to secure evidence] and HH the arrogant leader [who would have no qualms in lying as long as the ends were achieved, regardless of the means employed].

The RCI noted that HH had been described by his fellow officers as a “workaholic” and an ambitious person who put fear in his colleagues, “Thus, it was not at all surprising that most of his officers... had the inevitable habit of lying.

“By the time the fourth or final stage of the interrogation was over, TBH would have been almost a mental and physical wreck.”

SOURCE: The Malaysian Insider

Hypochondriac Misanthrope

2011-07-21T16:03:00.004+08:00

Prominent lawyer and politician Zaid Ibrahim questioned whether nominations for the Ibrahim Ali award was open to all races in UiTM, including the Kadazan and other indigenous people who have shown the same criterion of "having an outstanding ethnic awareness", or whether it was exclusive to Malay students.

"What does 'ethnic awareness' mean? Does a Malay who has the value and spirit of fascism, like (Adolf) Hitler who hated the Jews and other races, qualify (for the award)? What are the methods and activities to prove the 'ethnic awareness' of that student?

"Does the student need to talk and orate on issues in accordance with Ibrahim Ali (right)? Should the speech and actions of the student comply with the laws? Does the student, in order to qualify, need to fan the spirit and emotions of other students to hate other races without any positive element and universal human values?" Zaid asked.

Zaid stressed that a race could only advance if the community practiced progressive, positive contemporary and healthy values and attitudes.

Apart from providing tertiary education, knowledge and exposure to the young generation of the community, he said, they also need to be instilled with global, rational and scientific thought.

"A successful race is a race that can make concrete contributions for common interest. It is not enough for the race to be good in politicking, which is full of empty rhetoric, and only good in giving speech and oratory."

Zaid has suggested an award for a towering bumiputera student that will emphasize mutual respect and harmony among races.

SOURCE: Extracted from: Malaysiakini.com

______________________________________________

What Zaid is expressing is about an insidious precedence that, if allowed to materialized, may trigger a chain effect within the various communities; eventually promoting a nation of discordants, communal paranoia that are deleterious to a plural society.

There are more than ten races in our society. What happens when each race would offer similar type of award which are ethnocentric bias? All our universities will then be promoting and encouraging their students to vie for such awards and the students will have to act, behave and promote ethnocentric groupings and each social groupings will fight the other to gain popularity and awards which ultimately divides the society into classes, promoting discrimination, divisions and megalomaniacs.

RM5,000 award? That's f**king cheap; many individuals can afford to sponsor such award. RM5,000 can draw 15,000 students to desecrate a society and promote hate and satanic cult. Do we need a Hitler or Nero? No, we don't; we need only an Ibrahim Ali to sent the society to hell.

1Malaysia? What's the difference with One World Order & the Illuminati?

Malaysia, oh Malaysia, what will we be? Hypochondriac misanthrope.

................................
Dictionary

Hypochondria - extreme depression of mind or spirits often centered on imaginary physical ailments;

Misanthrope - hater of mankind

Socrates defines misanthrope in relation to his fellow man: "Misanthropy develops when without art one puts complete trust in somebody thinking the man absolutely true and sound and reliable and then a little later discovers him to be bad and unreliable...and when it happens to someone often...he ends up...hating everyone."

BUM2011 LUNCHEON FORUM (UPDATES)

2011-07-11T22:41:00.003+08:00

I wish to thank many of my friends for their moral and financial support of the BUM event. To-date I have received confirmation for bookings from my friends and colleagues of about 60 pax, i.e. 6 tables. I hope to get at least 20-30pax more.

For those who read this blog I hope you will join us at the luncheon forum. It is on a Sunday (24th July) and the event starts at 10.30am and should end by 2.30pm. We can have lunch together and have fun.

Please note that BUM is not affiliated to any political party. It is basically intended for bloggers and blog-enthusiast. The BUM organizing committee had invited BN and PR members and VIPs. We are not Bersih 2.0 nor NGO. We are bloggers and we invite bloggers and non-bloggers as a way to create interest in the blogosphere. Previous BUM meets, we had Mahathir and Khalid Ibrahim as guest of honours. At BUM 2009 we had Nuraina A. Samad, Haris Ibrahim, Ahirudin Atan aka Rocky Bru, Malik Imtiaz, Bernard Khoo, Salah aka AVoice, Howsy, Helen, Big Dog, eWoon, Raja Petra and his wife and many others who are now YBs, ADUNs & MPs. I think in 2008 we had Marina Mahathir too. However, after 2008 GE, the bloggers become Pro-BN or Pro-PR, Dato', YBs or paid-bloggers and we saw the rising of cliques and sectionalism and profiling amongst the Big guys or Super-bloggers.

However, BUM stays neutral as a group while individuals have their own political ideology and affiliations. BUM organizing committee are unknown individuals and non are superstar bloggers and non are active politicians. We are ordinary bloggers who just wanted to have fun and would love to listen to political views and opinions regarding issues of national and domestic interests. We are a social groupings and we will stay at such.

BUM2011 LUNCHEON FORUM

2011-07-08T20:49:00.003+08:00

B.U.M. 2011 LUNCHEON FORUM
Theme: Nation Building Across The Political Divide

Date: Sunday, 24 July 2011
Time: 10.30am to 2.30pm
Venue: Maju Palace Restaurant, Maju Junction, Kuala Lumpur

ADMISSION: Open to the Public, Fee Payable at RM50 per pax with Table booking at RM500 per table for 10. Everyone are most welcome!

Programme Outline:

10.00AM: Registration of Guests starts
10.45AM: Welcoming Speech by BUM 2011 Organising Committee Chairman, YL Chong, Desi
11.00AM: Keynote Address by YB Menteri Besar of Selangor Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim

BUFFET LUNCH TO BE SERVED 12.15PM to 1.15PM

1.15PM to 2.30PM Forum on Topic “Transformation & Reform: Sloganeering, Lip Service and Performance” featuring:

1. MP for Batu YB Tian Chua
2. Kim Quek (Author of “March to Putrajaya”)
3. Dr SM Yeoh, Maverick, Blogger-lawyer-management guru who gives free advice with a wit’ and a dosage of Malaysian profanities
4. AB Sulaiman, malaysiakini.com columnist

Please come and join us.

To all my readers and friends, please come!

****

The dilemma of Yellow color & the word "Clean"

2011-07-03T19:34:00.005+08:00

“We don’t pick our victims, and we don’t pick the circumstances under which these cases come to us.”

“As prosecutors, our duty is to do what is right.”

--- Cyrus R. Vance Jr., the Manhattan district attorney, which is handling the sexual assault case against Dominique Strauss-Kahn

-----------------------------------

Malaysians have more worries than before - they can't wear anything yellow in public - shirts, shoes, pants, tie and even underwear.

If you do, you can be arrested and detained under sections 3(1) and 4(1) of the Emergency (Public Order and Prevention of Crime) Ordinance 1969.

Section 3(1) provides for the arrest and detention of any person without warrant or trial under grounds contained in 4(1) that the person is acting in a manner prejudicial to public order, to suppress violence, or prevent other crimes for any period not exceeding two years.

The nationwide Royal Malaysian police force had associated wearing the yellow T-shirts or shoes with sedition, provocation and prejudice, or acting in a manner prejudicial to public order. Inspector General of Police Ismail Omar said anything which could be construed by the police as seditious or has elements of threats would face the repercussions. (Reference: Malaysiakini Report)

Even those who wear t-shirts for a gotong-royong event in Taman Pelangi, Johor, were arrested. (Reference: Reported by Malaysiakini)

"Negara Bersih, Rakyat bertuah" -'A clean nation, a fortunate people'. Oh, sorry, it's yellow!!! The gotong royong group should have use black or red, not yellow.

Last week the police had called national laureate A Samad Said to give a statement over his poem recital during a Bersih 2.0 event. He is being investigated under Section 4(1)(b) of the Sedition Act 1948 and Section 27(5) of the Police Act 1967 which is related to unlawful assembly.

If you are arrested for yellow shirts or shoes, you may even be charged for waging war on the Yang diPertuan Agong.

30 Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) members, including Sungai Siput MP Dr Michael Jeyakumar were investigated for “waging war against the Yang DiPertuan Agong.” Deputy Penang police chief Datuk Abdul Rahim Jaafar said remand orders would be applied to detain the 30 activists under Section 122 of the Penal Code.

The group of 30 people were detained, including 14 women and aged between 16 and 64, while traveling in a bus from Sungai Petani towards Penang to attend a function. Out of the 30 the police detained six Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) members and they will be charged under the Emergency Ordinance for waging war against the King.

Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Khalid Abu Bakar said the six, including Sungai Siput MP Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj, have been found to be involved with foreign and subversive elements. (The Star Reported & also reported at The Malaysian Insider)

Under Section 122 of the Penal Code, “Whoever collects or attempts to collect men, arms or ammunition, or otherwise prepares to wage war with the intention of either waging or being prepared to wage war against the Yang di-Pertuan Agong or any of the Rulers or the Yang di-Pertua Negeri or abets the waging or the preparation of such war, shall be punished with imprisonment for life or imprisonment for a term not exceeding twenty years, and shall also be liable to fine.”

Section 122 was used to prosecute militant terrorist group Al Ma’unah who were involved in an audacious arms heist at an army camp in 2000 and a tense stand-off in the jungles of Perak in 2000. Now it will be used more freely.

Anything can be seditious now. It's such sensitive to the Barisan Nasional government ... anything, albeit with exceptions; such as Ibrahim Ali's rhetorical call for crusade against Christians, and a group of silat experts who warn those July 9 participants that they should expect violence. Malay daily Utusan Malaysia carried a report saying that more than 50,000 Silat exponents are prepared to “wage war” with Bersih activists.

It was also reported that Mahaguru (grandmaster) of the Pertubuhan Seni Silat Lincah Malaysia (PSSLM) Omardin Mauju threatened to “wage war” against Bersih activists and he will be meeting with 180 silat lincah masters from across the country (Reported at: freemalaysiatoday.com and Reported at Malaysia-Today)

BTW, Prime Minister Najib Razak said: "Practitioners and members of the silat martial arts can be regarded as the third line of defence prepared to safeguard the nation's sovereignty from enemies" (Reference: Silat 'warriors' third line of nation's defence: Najib) I'm sure the reference of "Enemy" is not Singapore, or America or China. Your guess is as good as mine.

It can be observed that government of Najib is getting paranoid and distressed, with the police suffering from nostalgia and defective vision and insane delusion - they captivated illusory enemies. Even those lawyers who had represented plaintiff or defendants on legal issues related to religion 0r the constitutional rights of individuals can be classified as an enemy of Islam or anti-Islam. (Reference: Reported at The Malaysian Insider)

Datuk S. Ambiga may lose her Malaysian Citizenship because she is Bersih 2.0 Chairperson. Malacca Chief Minister Ali Rustam has called on the federal government to strip S Ambiga of her citizenship for being the chairperson of Bersih 2.0 (Reference: Reported at Malaysiakini and at youtube)

I think Ambiga will not lose her citizenship; she will only be required to stay at the new Kamunting detention centre which was only renovated lately. I told Ambiga that the newly renovated place is quite nice and she would likely be the first guest of honor soon; she agreed.

"Some people want us (government) to use whatever power at our disposal," PM Najib said (Reference; 'Emergency ordinance used as preventive measure')

Some people, boss? Siapa? Ali Rustam? Ibrahim Ali? Mahathir? We Malaysians should be worried over these "some people".

NIK NAZMI: LEGISLATING FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT IN PARLIAMENT

2011-06-14T09:58:00.004+08:00

KEYNOTE SPEECH BY KEADILAN COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR AND SELANGOR STATE ASSEMBLYMAN NIK NAZMI NIK AHMAD AT BLOGGERS UNIVERSE MALAYSIA 2011 FORUM: BLOGGERS SOLIDARITY WITH THE PRESS

11 JUNE 2011, KUALA LUMPUR SELANGOR CHINESE ASSEMBLY HALL

INTRODUCTION

I am honoured to be asked to deliver the keynote speech at BUM 2011.

I attended the first one – BUM 2007 and have spoken at one or two other BUM events. I was asked to arrange for Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim to speak at the BUM event last year.

Some of us have reverted to the mainstream press that we criticised so strongly as bloggers. Some become politicians and consequently caught in the political intrigues. Being a blogger first before a politician, I am pleased to be among familiar faces and friends and hope to never join the first two categories!

On 1 April 2011, the Selangor State Assembly created history after passing the Freedom of Information Enactment.

This was the third and final reading before the Enactment was sent to the Sultan to be signed as law.

It was a long three years from 9 March 2008, when Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim announced that a citizen’s right to information would be among the agendas pursued by the new state Government in Selangor to April 2011.

I believe that the experience in Selangor is useful for the next step – to push for a repeal of the Official Secrets Act 1972, the Internal Security Act 1960, the Sedition Act 1949 and the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 while introducing a Freedom of Information Act at the Federal level.

Except for Selangor, Malaysia is truly lagging behind.

Other than the Western democracies, countries such as India, Bangladesh, Albania and Uganda have some form of Freedom of Information legislation. Recently, Nigeria passed its Freedom of Information Act.

This is one case that Malaysia tak or belum boleh.

EMPOWERMENT

Freedom of Information is a key institutional reform to keep up with the times – about what the rakyat demands from the government but also about what the rakyat can do in spite of government with all the technology available.

Since 2008, Malaysians have become more interested not only in politics, but most importantly in how the government conducts its business. Malaysians demand more transparency and accountability, particularly in how their hard-earned tax money is spent.

Opening the government up is key towards empowering the rakyat, and ultimately strengthening our democracy. Democracy flourishes with well-informed citizens.

Yes, there will always be the need for official secrets but under our current framework even a tissue paper at a government meeting are theoretically deemed as an Official Secret!

Last year, the Kuala Lumpur High Court made a landmark ruling ordering the Syabas concession agreement and audit report to be released based on an application by the Coalition against Water Privatisation.

Judicial commissioner Hadhariah Syed Ismail had stated in her 19-page judgement that she was not convinced such a disclosure would be harmful to national security or public interest, as claimed by Syabas and the Government.

However the Energy, Water and Green Technology Ministry and the Federal Government requested a stay order and filed an appeal, claiming that disclosure would “upset the administration of government.”

Institutional reforms are important to ensure that the emerging two-party (or coalition) system that we have today actually have lasting benefit for the rakyat.

There is no use for a two-party system if it means more of the same old policies.

MORALITY

Ultimately a democratic government rests on a government by the people, for the people. Thus the rakyat have a right to know about what their government does, how their government spends their hard-earned tax money.

We have seen how tens of billions of ringgit are lost each year through wastage, leakages and corruption. These cases flourish simply because the rakyat has very little oversight over government.

Legislating Freedom of Information is the first step towards empowering the rakyat to stand up for their rights.

EFFICIENCY

By preventing wastage, leakages and corruption, Freedom of Information legislation can actually make government more efficient. More money would be spent for the direct benefit of the rakyat, not for cronies or contractors. Not for holidays abroad or to privately pursue a daughter’s wedding.

TECHNOLOGY

Then we had the Wikileaks incident. I actually mentioned Wikileaks in my July 2010 speech at the State Assembly when the Freedom of Information Enactment was first introduced. But then the United States diplomatic cable incident grabbed the world’s attention.

This I believe illustrates how fast technology is moving – and how far behind we are when we are still dictated by an ancient OSA.

Remember – the entire diplomatic cable incident over Wikileak that not merely brought blushes on Hillary Clinton’s cheeks but actually strained diplomatic relations between the United States and many key allies across the globe was caused by 23-year old Bradley Manning.

The intelligence analyst merely brought a Lady Gaga CD and then copied all the data into the CD while singing to Lady Gaga tunes.

Keeping secrets from the rakyat is getting more difficult these days.

TRUST

Ultimately, Freedom of Information legislation is key towards restoring the rakyat’s trust with politicians. The tendency to govern by secrecy makes many politicians treat the rakyat as fools. Governing must cease to be a mystery for the rakyat.

Thus, it should come to no surprise that politicians tend to rank low in the trust scale for the public – along with lawyers and salesmen. Datuk Ambiga – being a law graduate, I empathise with you!

Rumours and gossip are treated seriously in Malaysian politics because of the lack of information. In the absence of reliable and credible sources of information, any piece of information is valuable, no matter how sensational and ludicrous it may seem.

But when the rakyat knows more about what the government is doing, what the civil servants are doing, what the politicians are doing – this will definitely build their trust towards the many unsung heroes who plough on berkhidmat untuk rakyat but who get painted in the same brush as the rotten durians because of the lack of information.

THE SELANGOR EXPERIENCE

As mentioned above, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim actually mentioned on 9 March 2008 that one of his first acts as Selangor Menteri Besar would be to “ask the Legal Adviser to enact a law that will enable the state to give the public the right to information”.

On that same day, Tan Sri Khalid asked me to join his office to assist him in the task of governing, which ended me in holding the position of his political secretary for over two years until July last year.

Thus I was privy to the discussions that took place not long after that involving Khalid and Elizabeth Wong, along with various NGOs, most prominently the Coalition for Good Governance in drafting the Freedom of Information Enactment.

The first hurdle we faced were those from within Pakatan Rakyat who felt that Freedom of Information should not be a priority. Of course, we demanded for it when we were the Opposition but now that we’re in a position of power, they felt this would only hurt us.

But believers of Freedom of Information such as Khalid, Elizabeth and I argued that this is exactly the task before us.The test is not about demanding it while we had no power but to actually implement it when we have power.

This is not unique to Malaysia.

Tony Blair, in his memoirs actually expressed one of his regrets is introducing the Freedom of Information Act that would later be a tool used by the media against his government towards the end of his tenure.

The State Government actually almost adopted wholesale the draft from civil society.

But when the Bill was presented to the State Assembly in July 2010, it was a much watered down version thanks to some members of the civil service that are under Federal control. At times, it read almost like an Unfreedom of Information Enactment.

The Pakatan backbenchers, including myself, supported for the Bill to be approved but with amendments to restore the original intent and spirit of the law.

BN on the other hand took two contradictory approaches.

One was that the Freedom of Information Bill did not go far enough to ensure the right to know for the rakyat. Two was that it was in contradiction to the Federal Constitution. Maybe one was advised by Khir Toyo and the other, APCO.

The Bill was passed at the first and second readings.

It was then decided that for the first time in Selangor’s legislative history, a Select Committee would be formed to engage in a public consultation with stakeholders and find ways to improve the Bill before being presented to the Assembly again for the third and final reading.

Saari Sungib (PAS-Hulu Klang) was selected as chair while I, Hannah Yeoh (DAP-Subang Jaya), Dr. Ahmad Yunus Hairi (PAS-Sijangkang), Amirudin Shari (KEADILAN-Batu Caves), Datuk Dr. Karim Mansor (BN-Tanjung Sepat) and Abdul Shukor Idris (BN-Kuang) were the members.

Sadly both the BN reps did not attend a single Select Committee meeting as we sat from July 2010 to March 2011. They had a golden opportunity to present their objections about the Bill, even call their own academics and NGOs, yet they ignored the process altogether!

The consultation was extensive – not only with CGG members but also religious NGOs, government departments, GLCs, academics, think tanks and lawyers.

The result was a substantially improved Bill. Among other things, the revised Bill is better than the previous version by:

1) allowing local councils and government-owned entities to be covered under the Enactment;
2) changing the Appeals Board into the State Information Board; and
3) adding the penalties to include obstruction to access to information.

CONCLUSION

The Selangor experience provides a useful template for any efforts to introduce Freedom of Information legislation at the Federal Parliament.

Personally for me the process educated me on the various vested interests against Freedom of Information and how this can be circumvented through an extensive consultation process with all the stakeholders.

The expertise and passion of NGOs such as the Centre for Independent Journalism and the Coalition for Good Governance have been very useful in building the framework for Freedom of Information legislation.

At the same time, we need to take into account the practical views of those who will be at the frontline of implementation, namely civil servants and GLC employees who frequently end up as scapegoats in the battle between the rakyat and politicians.

While the Selangor Freedom of Information Enactment may not entirely please everyone – which I have learnt is part and parcel of governing – it takes into account the point of view from every stakeholder across the spectrum, except BN of course who chose not to participate.

However, as the experience in other countries has taught us, the real battle is not between political parties but in reality those who are for Freedom of Information and those who are against Freedom of Information (and those who pretend to be for FOI).

Ladies and gentlemen,

Malaysia is at a crossroads.

While many Malaysians on both sides of the fence are excited about the coming years, a great many more are apathetic or disillusioned. The brain drain and capital outflows, as well as our weakened education system are a sign that something is dreadfully wrong about our country.

Much of Malaysia’s problems emerge because our people feel hopeless and disempowered. They feel like pawns of the elite, jerked around by a wealthy and unaccountable few who care nothing about their needs.

But without the support of these Forgotten Malaysians, all the bold plans for transformation, whether the Vision 2020, the ETP/GTP/NEM or Buku Jingga will fail because a country’s strength is in its people and not the plans of its leaders.

Freedom of Informationis the first step to reversing this dangerous trend because it will restore the confidence and faith of Malaysians.

It will draw them back into a sense of national mission and make them feel part of a coherent whole again.

Thank you.

Awang & his Utusan's hypocrisy

2011-06-12T13:15:00.003+08:00

Utusan says Bersih dirty, calls for boycott
By Shannon Teoh
The Malaysian Insider
June 12, 2011

Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia has called on Malaysians not just to boycott next month’s Bersih rally, but also to gather against the movement that calls for free and fair elections.

The paper’s Mingguan Malaysia weekend edition also told Malaysians “who love peace and reject hypocrisy” to gather on the streets of Kuala Lumpur on July 9 “with banners of the opposition leader’s scandals” in reference to sodomy and sex video allegations against Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Display also newspaper cuttings of the sodomy victims. They are the ones that should be defended if we support a clean culture. Awang believes the gathering will be a senjata makan tuan (backfiring weapon) for the opposition.

“This gathering is dirty,” it said in its Awang Selamat — the nom de plume of the newspaper’s editors — column today.

Read the full report at The Malaysian Insider

---------------------------

What has "Free and Fair Election" got to do with Sex Video and Sodomy trial?

Those who love peace must reject hypocrisy - YES!!! I am sure we know what is loving peace and who is hypocritical.

Senjata makan tuan, Awang, pasti makan tuan! This is getting dirty, oh ya! It is and will be with your type of hypocrisy.

We sure know the factual hypocrite.

Definition of HYPOCRITE
1: a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion
2: a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings
3: a person who pretends to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, etc., that he or she does not actually possess, especially a person whose actions belie stated beliefs.
4: a person who feigns some desirable or publicly approved attitude, especially one whose private life, opinions, or statements belie his or her public statements.

Nothing is more unjust, however common, than to charge with hypocrisy him that expresses zeal for those virtues which he neglects to practice; since he may be sincerely convinced of the advantages of conquering his passions, without having yet obtained the victory, as a man may be confident of the advantages of a voyage, or a journey, without having courage or industry to undertake it, and may honestly recommend to others, those attempts which he neglects himself.

-- Samuel Johnson

Hypocrisy has been called "the tribute that vice pays to virtue" and it will corrode the well-being of those people who continually make use of it.

As Boris Pasternak has Yurii say in Doctor Zhivago, "Your health is bound to be affected if, day after day, you say the opposite of what you feel, if you grovel before what you dislike... Our nervous system isn't just fiction, it's part of our physical body, and it can't be forever violated with impunity."

The over-attribution of hypocrisy, however, could lead to excessive tolerance of deceit and destructive behavior.

"Every individual needs revolution, inner division, overthrow of the existing order, and renewal, but not by forcing them upon his neighbors under the hypocritical cloak of love or the sense of social responsibility or any of the other beautiful euphemisms for unconscious urges to personal power" (Jung, 1966:5).

"It is under all circumstances an advantage to be in full possession of one's personality, otherwise the repressed elements will only crop up as a hindrance elsewhere, not just at some unimportant point, but at the very spot where we are most sensitive. If people can be educated to see the shadow-side of their nature clearly, it may be hoped that they will also learn to understand and love their fellow men better. A little less hypocrisy and a little more self-knowledge can only have good results in respect for our neighbor; for we are all too prone to transfer to our fellows the injustice and violence we inflict upon our own natures" (Jung, 1966:par. 28).

SOURCE: Wikipedia

This is what Todd Strandberg has to say: "A hypocrite is someone who "pretends to be better than he really is or to be pious, virtuous without really being so. A hypocrite is someone who says one thing and does the opposite. The people committing hypocritical acts normally try to use some form of rationalization to justify their actions. The grievous nature of some people's moral blunders proves that no one is immune from stumbling from a lofty perch." (SOURCE: www.raptureready.com )

Awang spend far too much time assessing the sins of other people. The fact that people are unable to live perfect lives is not really breaking news.

Why Blog? To Change the World — and Blow Off Steam

2011-06-12T12:43:00.003+08:00

Why do bloggers blog? It sounds like a trick question, but a study of top political bloggers finds their motivations evolve over time.

By Tom Jacobs

Blogging has its burdens. If you doubt it, try coming up with an interesting thought every hour or so, shaping it into a coherent, compelling and carefully worded item and then sending it out into the world for potential ridicule by everyone with a laptop and a point of view.

For the few bloggers who manage to draw a large readership, the financial rewards can be significant. But the hours are ridiculous, and the pressure to produce enormous. So why do it?

Newly published research suggests people are motivated to start a blog by one set of reasons and motivated to continue by quite different considerations.

In the journal New Media and Society, a research team led by Brian Ekdale of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison reports on a survey of 66 top American political bloggers. They were selected from 2006 rankings of most-popular blogs and represent points of view across the political spectrum. Web sites they blog for include Daily Kos, Hullabaloo, Right Wing News and Pajamas Media.

The bloggers were presented with a list of 13 motivations for starting a blog and ranked the personal relevance of each on an 11-point scale. Reasons included, “to provide an alternative perspective to the mainstream media” and “to help your political party or cause” and “to let off steam.” They then went through the list again and recorded how well each reason reflected their current motivation to continue blogging.

The researchers found the three strongest initial motivations for blogging — “to let off steam,” “to keep track of your thoughts” and “to formulate new ideas” — were all based on the bloggers’ personal emotional or intellectual needs. Blogging, at the outset, was an outlet to clarify the person’s thoughts and/or express feelings such as frustration or anger.

But when asked why they’re blogging today, those three foundational motivations either decreased in importance or increased very slightly. In contrast, the extrinsic motivations — notions such as “to serve as a political watchdog” and “to influence public opinion” — saw “significant and sizable increases.” (The one exception was “to critique your political opponent,” which only increased marginally.)

“As they continued to blog, and their blog posts reached wider audiences, they realized they could extend influence out to their audience, the media and political parties,” the researchers write. While their initial motivations did not fade away, this newfound influence provided additional motivation, leading these bloggers to be even more enthusiastic about what they do.

In a particularly interesting aside, the researchers report the respondents who rated the extrinsic motivations most highly “were more likely to post both favorable and unfavorable information about candidates they support. They were also more likely to participate in political activities such as signing petitions, contributing money to campaigns and attending protests or rallies.”

In other words, if you feel your job is to inform the public, fact-check the mainstream media or simply help society, you’re more likely to present a fuller picture of the politicians you report on, even if you have a specific point of view. On the other hand, if you’re basically using the blog as an outlet to channel your anger or hone your already-solidified positions, you’re less likely to admit the other side may have a point.

That’s a distinction worth pondering for both bloggers and their readers.

---------------------------------
SOURCE: www.miller-mccune.com

--------------------------------
***

Can bloggers be in solidarity with the media?

2011-06-12T12:20:00.003+08:00

Speech by Dr. Lim Teck Ghee
Director of CPI
Delivered at the B.U.M. Forum
11 June 2011

In Malaysia, bloggers have been engaged in a battle to correct the spinning and political bias which has become part of the normal business and deep culture of the media. Since Independence, the majority of the media has been a willing partner in the Barisan Nasional’s one overriding pursuit: that of self-promotion, self aggrandizement and opportunism. In the process, the old media has contributed to the corruption, injustice and bad governance that are the hallmarks of BN rule, especially during Dr Mahathir’s administration and continuing today.

The reason why journalistic ethics and principles of truthfulness, accuracy, objectivity, impartiality, fairness and public accountability are in short supply is not difficult to fathom. When these qualities do exist especially amongst younger and idealistic media practitioners, the calls from the Home Affairs Ministry, Special Branch, and the political bosses are quickly there to remind them of the Printing Presses and Publications Act; the ISA; the Sedition Act; and the major roadblocks to career advancement should they offend the authorities with their writing.

We salute the journalists and media practitioners who have retained their integrity and want to get the truth out to the public. We salute Saudara Hata Wahari for his stand on not just mouthing the rhetoric of compliance with journalistic ethics and good practice but on practicing them and in pushing his colleagues to higher standards. Shortly after being elected NUJ president last September, Saudara Hata called on “all mainstream journalists, especially of Utusan Malaysia, the New Straits Times, Berita Harian and The Star to return to their true function as deliverers of objective information to the public, and not as tools of propaganda for the government, or any political party or individual, for their personal gain.” He has paid the price for standing up for his principles but let not his sacking be in vain.

On the possibility of not being used as tools of propaganda for the government, I have little faith that the old media is capable of the change to an honest and truthful profession on their own volition. Too many have “been kissing up to the regime” – and have been too well paid off for them to be able to make that change. With the death signs of the old regime increasingly visible, the mainstream media are acting as the cheerleaders and fear leaders of the government with an increasing vengeance – hence the frenzied playing of the racial and religious card by certain papers.

Change will eventually come but it will not happen on its own accord. It will happen though if we have a more conscientized and engaged public joining in the fight for media freedom. Bloggers have a key role to play in this ‘reclaiming the media’ and ‘restoring dignity and respect’ exercise.

Today, we see a superheated and hotly contested political environment which needs truthful reporting and analysis more than ever. Bloggers can provide that fair and objective analysis because they are generally their own masters. The great majority of activist bloggers have taken to blogging not because they are paid to do it but because of disenchantment with the system and the desire to share with fellow Malaysians their ideas on how to bring change to the country.

How long can this idealism last? A recent study of motivations for blogging in the United States provides guidance. The researchers found the three strongest initial motivations for blogging — “to let off steam,” “to keep track of your thoughts” and “to formulate new ideas” — were all based on the bloggers’ personal emotional or intellectual needs. In our case in Malaysia, it has been mainly a response to perceived injustices and the bad governance of the establishment that have pushed bloggers to put aside their time and resources to write. For most, it is a solitary undertaking with few rewards except the emotional and intellectual satisfaction that comes with exposing abuses.

But when asked why they’re blogging today, those three foundational motivations either decreased in importance or increased very slightly. In contrast, the extrinsic motivations — notions such as “to serve as a political watchdog” and “to influence public opinion” — saw significant and sizable increases.

“As they continued to blog, and their blog posts reached wider audiences, they realized they could extend influence out to their audience, the media and political parties,” the researchers write (see www.miller-mccune.com). While their initial motivations did not fade away, this new found influence provided additional motivation, leading these bloggers to be even more enthusiastic about what they do.

What has been noted in the US is also happening in Malaysia. Reaching out to the larger public and acting as a political watchdog are natural developments. In the process, bloggers have also built a community of bloggers and supporters who share similar values and ideologies – at least in terms of the need to protect and widen the space for democratic values and expression. This community is a precious seedling in Malaysia. It needs nurturing and patience especially since there will be strenuous efforts to divide and destroy the community. Make no mistake about it – winning the internet war has been the priority of the BN since March 2008 – and they will engage in whatever trickery necessary.

For the internet to be free and for the community of activist bloggers to continue as leaders against spinning, fear mongering and outright lies, the community will have to close ranks. Sometimes though, bloggers are their worst enemies in their rush to quick judgment especially in relation to those within the community.

With regard to this negative tendency of turning against their fellow activist bloggers, I have full confidence that Raja Petra Kamarudin has not cut a deal with the government on coming back to Malaysia and nor has he sold out on his principles. Knowing this man personally – more important – going by his record of standing in the frontline in fighting for truth, justice and good governance, it is a sorry reflection of the state of our bloggers’ community and mindset that so many have jumped onto the bandwagon of criticism against RPK for giving the interview to TV3.

We can fault him on the timing of the interview; we can contest him on what he disclosed or failed to disclose; we can reject his critical views on the opposition but let’s not question his integrity and his commitment to a just and better Malaysia. In his campaign for transparency, accountability and justice, and his whistle-blowing on corruption, racism and money politics, RPK exemplifies the best of blogging activism: independent, idealistic, unwavering and telling it as it is. RPK literally puts his life on the line with every major column he writes exposing what no one else dares to put out in print. Let’s recognize and appreciate his service to the nation.

Know your friends from your foes; close ranks and go back to the basics which are to focus on the priority problems and issues in the country, and expose and bring down bad governance, wherever that may emanate. This should be the bloggers’ creed for our tumultuous times.

-------------------------------------------------

The above is a summary of Dr Lim’s speech to the Bloggers’ Universe Malaysia (BUM) forum, delivered on June 11, 2011.
----------------------------------------------
***

Tonight's BUM 2011 Forum News

2011-06-11T23:47:00.006+08:00

The BUM 2011 Forum ended at 11pm.

We started at 8pm and we had Dr. Lim Teck Ghee of CPI (Centre for Policy Initiatives) to deliver the welcoming address. After Dr. Lim we had Desiderata YL Chong, the BUM 2011 organizing committee chairman to give his speech.

The first session, we had YB Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, State Assemblyman for Seri Setia, Selangor and former political secretary to MB Selangor Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim to deliver his views on "Legislating Freedom of Information Act in Parliament".

At Right is Dr. TG Lim, Centre is YB Nik Nazmi & Left is Maverick the MC

Desiderata YL Chong is the Organizing Committee Chairman of BUM 2011

In the second session of the night we had Mr. Cheam Toon Lee, the ex-chief editor of East Malaysian newspaper, En. Zunar, Malaysiakini Cartoonist (who just won a pseudo "Nobel prize" for his courage in Cartooning the establishment), En. Hata Wahari, the ex-NUJ President & ex-Utusan Malaysia senior journalist.

The last speaker and the rose of the night, Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan.

Datuk Ambiga is the immediate Past President of Malaysian Bar Council and currently the Chairperson of BERSIH 2.0.

Datuk Ambiga won the “International Women of Courage Award” in 2009 which was presented to her by US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in Washington. Datuk Ambiga was chosen for the prestigious award, established by the US Department of State, for being a forerunner in advancing human rights, the status of women and religious tolerance in Malaysia.

From Left to Right: Zunar, Hata Wahari and Datuk Ambiga

From Left to Right: Moderator Mr. Shanker of Donplaypuks, Mr. Cheam Toon Lee & Zunar

This year's Forum was attended by about 30 people. Many could not come (such as Mob & Helen & AVoice) and many won't come, such as Rocky's Bru who cannot attend now probably because he is now Datuk Ahirudin Attan; Haris Ibrahim of The People's Parliament, Raja Petra from Malaysia-today (he is in London), Art Harun of ARTiculations, Zorro-Unmasked Bernard Khoo, Eric Woon of iammalaysian, Nuraina Samad of 3540 Jalan Sudin, Marina Mahathir of Ranting by MM (I think she is overseas), Fahri Azzat who blogs at LoyarBurok, Zainol Abideen of Mahaguru58, Zakhir, AVoice Salah of Another Brick in Wall (absence conveyed to Desi), Jeff Ooi who blogs at Screenshots but he is now a YB and so had no time for blogging) William Leong, Elizabeth Wong and many others who are also YBs of Selangor.

Well, Zunar said we should not be discouraged but to carry on blogging as he will start blogging soon. Hata Wahari has to blog soon as he can't write for Utusan anymore. Datuk Ambiga may also have to start blogging soon.

Anyway, it was a fantastic night and we did have a good time. I hope YL Chong will start organizing the second forum soon which will include some good food and maybe, Anwar Ibrahim or Ibrahim Ali should be invited to speak. Maybe, we should also invite Najib or Rosmah to grace the occasion.

I will let Shanker and YL Chong write about the subject matters of tonight's topic.

Good night!!!

Bloggers Universe Malaysia (BUM) 2011 Forum to Feature Star-Studded Speakers

2011-06-10T13:18:00.002+08:00

PRESS RELEASE

KUALA LUMPUR: A field of star-studded speakers has been lined up for the BUM2011 Forum to be held at the KLSCAH Auditorium on Saturday, June 11, 2011.

Themed “Bloggers’ Solidarity with the Press?”, the forum which is being held to mark “World Press Freedom Day” (which fell on May 3, 2011), will start at 7.45PM with a Keynote Address by Selangor’s Seri Setia State Assemblyman YB Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad on “Legislating Freedom of Information Act in Parliament”.

The forum that follows will feature Mr Cheam Toon Lee, a veteran journalist who had served as a former editor-in-chief in Sabah/Sarawak, Zulkiflee Anwar Ulhaque, popularly known as Zunar, Malaysiakini cartoonist, Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, former Bar Council president and current Bersih 2.0 chairperson, and Mr Hata Wahari, former senior journalist at Utusan Malaysia who was also serving as President of the National Union of Journalists when his employer sacked him from his job recently.

CPI director Dr Lim Teck Ghee said that with the political environment becoming more hotly contested and the mainstream media working overtime as cheerleader and fear leader for the establishment, it is vital that bloggers and those with integrity in the mass media quickly close ranks and provide Malaysians with truthful, fair and objective news and analysis.

“I hope this forum will serve to galvanise media practitioners and bloggers to reassert their adherence to the norms of journalistic ethics and independent reporting,” Lim added.

BUM2011 Organising Committee chairman YL Chong aka Desiderata said this year’s event almost never got off the ground as the Sarawak State elections came in April and interrupted the preparations as the previous BUM gatherings were all held in the month of May.

“Nevertheless, I was motivated to press ahead after learning about Hata Wahari’s plight of his sacking by his employer and that explains the theme for our fifth BUM outing,” he added.

Admission to the forum -- being co-organised by a group of bloggers in their individual capacities, the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH), and the Centre for Policy Initiatives (CPI Malaysia) -- is free and open to the public.

More background and updates on the event are posted at our dedicated website www.bum4msia.wordpress.com

KUALA LUMPUR
June 7, 2011

Contact person: YL Chong at 012-9702285

B.U.M. 2011: Bloggers’ Solidarity with the Press?

2011-06-07T11:01:00.004+08:00

BUM 2011 Is Now at the Starting Blocks!

An exciting panel of speakers has been lined up for the BUM2011 Forum on June 11, 2011 to mark World Press Freedom Day. The evening forum is co-organised by a group of bloggers in their individual capacities (who call themselves BUMmers) together with the support of he Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall and the Centre for Policy Initiatives headed by Dr. Lim Teck Gee..

The central theme of the Foreum is: Bloggers’ Solidarity with the Press?

Date: Saturday, 11 June 2011

Time: 7.45pm to 10.15pm

Venue: Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall Auditorium (KLSCAH)

Admission: Free and Open to the Public

Zuhar, our cartoonist will be there; Hata Wahari, ex-Utusan Malaysia journalist and ex-NUJ president will also be there; YB Nik Nazmi will be there too. I'll be there too!

It's Free!!! Lets go!!!

EPU: "Economic Plundering Unit"

2011-06-03T19:54:00.003+08:00

Former Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) Executive Chairman Tan Sri Ani Arope dubbed the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) as the "Economic Plundering Unit".

Ani Arope blames the EPU, saying the powerful agency, under the Ministry of Finance, forced TNB to sign lopsided purchase deals nearly 20 years ago.

In his Facebook posting three days ago, Ani Arope wrote: "You don’t need to go to a fanciful business school to figure out why we need a tariff hike — just revisit the terms given to some IPPs."

“With the take-or-pay clause and with the 40 per cent excess reserve that we have today, one only has to produce half of one’s capacity and be paid 80 per cent of the agreed capacity. Well done the then-EPU — Economic Plundering Unit,” he added, mocking the economic unit under the Prime Minister’s Department.

Tan Sri Ani refused to be forced, by those in power, to sign the imbalanced IPP deals and had to resign from his executive chairman post, which saw the first generation of IPPs created, such as YTL Power Services, Powertek and Malakoff during the Mahathir administration.

“TNB is the whipping boy. TNB has no control of the price it has to pay to the IPPs. Get to the source of the problem,” said Tan Sri Ani who is now in his early 80s.

The Malaysian Government announced a 7.12% hike in electricity rates in order to trim the subsidise that would otherwise double to RM21 billion this year.

But power prices will now rise by as much as 2.3 sen per kWh in areas taking TNB’s electricity supply, a potential source of public anger just ahead of a general election expected within the year.

SOURCE: The Malaysian Insider

..................

So, who was the Finance Minister of Malaysia in 1990s? Anwar Ibrahim!

Who was the Prime Minister then? Dato' Seri Mahathir Mohamad (Now, Tun Mahathir)

Both of them cannot deny being responsible for the collaboration, though each may want to blame the other.

Surely, we can't exclude Tun Daim.

Those of us who are in the industry and who are part of the looting regime knows how it was operated. The ignorant ones must be the kampung folks.

Blame the Chinese? Hahaha ... they pay to get the loots!!! Who did they Pay? Your guess is as good as mine. Why did they pay? It was the system processes that provides the opportunities to those discriminated by the same system. Did Ibrahim Ali benefit from that system? Ask him ... he can swear; for everyone who is part of the pillaging system were all part of the fortune wheel. Did the Chinese become rich because of the system design setup? Ya!!! Thanks to Mahathir; we appreciated his NEP design and exceptional generosity while we partake. He has to continue to behave innocent and ignorant of the Golden train-ride.

There is no evidence good enough to indict anyone. You can't be guilty in law unless there is evidence beyond reasonable doubt - that is the law.

The economy is much better when Umno is the Government; not PKR, nor Pakatan, nor MCA or MIC or Gerakan. We need Umno, for Umno is beneficial to all Chinese, of which I am one.

Women encouraged to join "Obedient Wife Club"

2011-06-02T21:04:00.003+08:00

Global Ikwan Sdn Bhd is launching 'The Obedient Wife Club' in what it claims to be a move to change wives to be better persons.

"We want to share with them, so that they will return to play their roles, that is, as their husbands' lovers who will always be there to obey, serve and entertain their husbands," Global Ikwan's spokesperson Maznah Taufik said in a statement yesterday.

Two years ago, the movement successfully launched the Polygamy Club of Malaysia.

Maznah said in this age, with the era of science and technology gripping society, wives did not deceive their husbands. They were loyal, but did not know how to satisfy their husbands.

"When husbands come home from work, wives do not welcome them with warm alluring smiles and sexy dressing sprayed with beautiful fragrance to stimulate sexual arousal - but with stale saliva. This is the reality today.

"Much of the problems in society are caused by disobedient wives who do not bring joy and happiness to their husbands and do not serve their husbands well," she said.

Maznah said a husband who was happy, cheerful and contented because he was fully fed with obedience, service and entertainment from his wife would not be cruel to his wife and women abuse would thus not happen.

"He will not go for prostitution, will be a responsible husband in all matters. It is on this ambition that we, the women in Global Ikwan, set up this club," she added.

She said the authorities had spent so much time, effort and money to overcome the problems of women abuse, rape, sexual harassment, prostitution and trading in women - but all of these had been futile.

"Prostitution continues to increase and has become a source of business.

"Husbands look for prostitutes, while not a small number of women look for gigolos.

"Where can we find men and women as loyal as Romeo and Juliet?" Maznah said.

"Wives who they hope will be angels have become annoying queen-control persons. Husbands become so shaggy, their minds are deeply disturbed and their souls unsettled.

"So, the solution is for the wives to change for the better, by being obedient," Maznah added.

............................
SOURCE: Malaysiakini.com
***

Men thinks with their head and women with their heart

2011-05-25T10:02:00.004+08:00

This was written by a guy...called Stanley from CatLand

Once upon a time, a man told his story:

I never quite figured out why the sexual urge of men and women differ so much. And I never have figured out the whole Venus and Mars thing. I have never figured out why men think with their head and women with their heart.

FOR EXAMPLE:

One evening last week, my girlfriend and I were getting into bed. Well, the passion starts to heat up, and she eventually says, 'I don't feel like it, I just want you to hold me.'

I said, 'WHAT??!! What was that?!'

So she says the words that every boyfriend on the planet dreads to hear...

'You're just not in touch with my emotional needs as a woman enough for me to satisfy your physical needs as a man.'

She responded to my puzzled look by saying, 'Can't you just love me for who I am and not what I do for you in the bedroom?'

Realizing that nothing was going to happen that night, I went to sleep..

The very next day I opted to take the day off of work to spend time with her. We went out to a nice lunch and then went shopping at a big, big unnamed department store. I walked around with her while she tried on several different very expensive outfits. She couldn't decide which one to take, so I told her we'd just buy them all. She wanted new shoes to compliment her new clothes, so I said, 'Lets get a pair for each outfit.'

We went on to the jewelery department where she picked out a pair of diamond earrings. Let me tell you... She was so excited. She must have thought I was one wave short of a shipwreck. I started to think she was testing me because she asked for a tennis bracelet when she doesn't even know how to play tennis.

I think I threw her for a loop when I said, 'That's fine, honey.' She was almost nearing sexual satisfaction from all of the excitement. Smiling with excited anticipation, she finally said, 'I think this is all Dear, let's go to the cashier.'

I could hardly contain myself when I blurted out, 'No honey, I don't feel like it.'

Her face just went completely blank as her jaw dropped with a baffled, 'WHAT?'

I then said, 'Honey! I just want you to HOLD this stuff for a while. You're just not in touch with my financial needs as a man enough for me to satisfy your shopping needs as a woman.'

And just when she had this look like she was going to kill me, I added, 'Why can't you just love me for who I am and not for the things I buy you?'

Apparently I'm not having sex tonight either... but at least the bitch knows I'm smarter than she thought.

All right Ladies, If you agree, say, "AI"; Hell even if you disagree!!!

Tell Stanley what you think ....

***

The Balinese Hindus are a perfect example of good Muslims.

2011-05-20T21:34:00.002+08:00

The proof of the pudding is in the eating
NO HOLDS BARRED

Friday, 20 May 2011 Super Admin

Raja Petra Kamarudin

QUOTE:

“Why can’t the Muslims in Jakarta be like the Hindus of Bali?” I commented to my wife. I was so impressed with the Balinese Hindus and disgusted with the Jakarta Muslims. And it is the Muslims who cause all the commotion in Bali with the bombings and whatnot.

I would like to believe that Muslims have reduced Islam to a religion of rituals minus the commitment to the ideals of the religion. But then the Balinese are even more ritualistic than the Muslims. In fact, they appear to be constantly in prayer.

I am yet to put my finger on it. There is something about the Balinese version of Hinduism that makes them extremely honest and decent people. But what is it?

I think I am going to go back to Bali and spend some time studying the people there, in particular their religion. I need to find out what it is they are doing right and we are doing wrong.

The Balinese Hindus are a perfect example of good Muslims. That is what troubles me. The Balinese Hindus are what Muslims should be but are not. And I really need to find out why this is so even if it is the last thing I do.

UNQUOTE
------------------------------
SOURCE: Malaysia-Today

------------------------------

Fear of their own shadows

2011-05-19T19:37:00.004+08:00

Former KL CID chief Datuk Mat Zain insisted today that Utusan Malaysia’s reported claims of a purported Christian uprising against the Muslims was “artificial” in nature.

He pointed out that it was unprecedented in the country’s history that the Christians, who represent the minority group, had risen to usurp Islam from its position as the religion of the federation.

“In my opinion, only irrational Muslims who fear their own shadows will believe and view seriously this likelihood,” he said.

Mat Zain also reminded Najib of the killing of Othman Talib at Felda Lubok Merbau, Padang Terap, Kedah, in 1985, which he said was the result of an “intense political turmoil” during the Padang Terap election campaign.

He explained that he knew the full details of the incident as he had been installed as the Padang Terap district police chief just three days before it occurred.

“As a Muslim, I was saddened to see a group of Muslims weeping and mourning the death of a fellow Muslim, while at the same time, not far off, there was another group of Muslims who cheered as if celebrating a war victory.

“Even more distressing is that there were other rogues proclaiming themselves as Muslims who took the opportunity to ignite the fires of hostility among those of the same race and religion,” he said.

Mat Zain added that he hoped the event would bring Malaysians to realise that it is not the followers of Hinduism, Buddhism or Christianity who were trying to destroy Muslims but the Muslims themselves.

“We should be ashamed of ourselves and not find a way out by issuing threats and attempting to intimidate those who are innocent,” he said.

Mat Zain said that it would be a clear case of power abuse if Najib chooses to protect an offender for his misdeeds simply because he considers the latter an ally.

------------------------------------
SOURCE: The Malaysian Insider
------------------------------------

A Gift to My Children: A Father’s Lessons for Life and Investing

2011-05-14T18:35:00.005+08:00

A Gift to My Children: A Father’s Lessons for Life and Investing

By Jim Rogers
ISBN: 978-0-470-74268-6
Paperback; 106 pp.
US$16.00/S$26.70 including GST;

Available at all major bookstores

What makes for a successful investor? And more importantly, what makes for a happy and meaningful life? According to legendary investor Jim Rogers, the road to financial success and the road to happiness are one and the same.

Rogers co-founded the phenomenally successful Quantum Fund, which in ten years delivered a return of 4200 percent. He retired from Wall Street at the age of thirty-seven, and continued to manage and invest his own funds with great success.

A Gift to My Children marks his effort to share his wisdom and insights about finance, investing, and life in general with his two young children. It is anchored by the two basic rules Rogers invests and lives by:

The first is that you have to see the world up close if you're going to understand how it works.

Rogers begins with exhortations to work hard, think critically, trust your own judgment, and work to identify your passions and dreams beyond simply making money.

The second is that you must always question conventional wisdom, as many of his most successful investment strategies and ideas have resulted from swimming upstream.

Rogers is also a big proponent of the idea that it's essential for young people to study history and to experience world's culture first-hand through travel.

Rogers reveals how to learn from his triumphs and mistakes in order to achieve a prosperity:

(1) Trust your own judgment

(2) Focus on what you like

(3) Be persistent

(4) See the world

In December 2007 Jim Rogers and his wife Paige Parker and their two daughters, 7-year-old Hilton Augusta, nicknamed Happy,and 3-year-old Beeland Anderson, sold their New York mansion for USD16 million and moved to Singapore so that Happy can learn Chinese in a Mandarin-speaking environment.

Jim is quoted as saying: "If you were smart in 1807 you moved to London, if you were smart in 1907 you moved to New York City, and if you are smart in 2007 you move to Asia." In a CNBC interview with Maria Bartiromo broadcast on May 5, 2008, Rogers said that people in China are extremely motivated and driven, and he wants to be in that type of environment, so his daughters are motivated and driven. He also stated that this is how America and Europe used to be. He chose not to move to Chinese cities like Hong Kong or Shanghai due to the high levels of pollution causing potential health problems for his family; hence, he chose Singapore.

Rogers, who co-founded the Quantum Fund with legendary investor George Soros in the 1970s, has repeatedly said he believes China will be the next great country in the world.

"The best gift we can give our children is to let them learn Chinese and prepare them for the future," he tells The Straits Times, while carrying the baby in his arms.

Soon after Happy was born in 2003, they hired a mainland Chinese nanny in New York to teach her Mandarin. They also have a live-in nanny from Ningxia province here in Singapore.

This explains why the little girl is able to speak the language fluently, without the jarring accent that many non-native speakers have.

In fact, she is so confident in the language that she sang a Chinese song for the reporter and recited the national pledge in Mandarin, stumbling only towards the end as she forgot some parts of it.

"I like both Chinese and English lessons, but I like Chinese more," she says in Mandarin.

Her baby sister is also having an early start in learning the language--the nanny plays her Mandarin songs every day.

In the past few years, they have visited Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong many times to look for the perfect school for Happy, before deciding on Singapore.

"As much as we want to be in mainland China, the pollution there that you read about is real," says Parker.

"Singapore doesn't have that. It also has an extraordinary health-care system and great schools, and it's a wonderful place for a family."

Rogers says many people felt they were making a big mistake when they announced that they were uprooting to Asia.

"They thought we were crazy, because we were doing it voluntarily. Many people thought we moved to China. They don't know that Singapore is not China," he says.

"Some people told me I was smart to do it for my children, but they couldn't do it themselves."

Their plan is to "stay here forever, unless something else happens", he says, adding that he hopes to travel around China one day with his daughters as his interpreters.

When asked what his net worth is--believed to be billions of dollars--he replied: "I'm sorry, but I can't answer that."

After a pause, he adds, tenderly: "My net worth should not be measured in monetary terms, but it should be measured in how good a father I can be."

ABOUT MBA

Jim Rogers: I said before that one of the bubbles I see in the world is tertiary education in the United States. It’s bankrupt financially and probably other ways besides financially. Business school is basically a waste of time. Most of what you learn is inaccurate and incorrect. Learning things like efficient market theory and some of the other gibberish that they keep putting out and Black Scholes…

All that stuff is totally wrong.

Those poor kids who’ve spent a couple hundred thousand dollars going to business school – not only have they spent a lot of money, but the stuff they learned was wrong. It was inaccurate. Yes, it’s got to change. It’s got to change dramatically.

I certainly was telling students not to go to business school. If you want to spend a couple hundred thousand dollars, I would urge you to go down and short soybeans one day or start your own business. I tell you, you short soybeans a couple of times, you’ll learn more doing that than you could in 10 years at business school.

If you spend your time and money in the real world, you’re probably going to learn a whole lot more than what you would at business school, most of which is wrong.

To give you an idea, in 1958 America graduated 5,000 MBAs a year. In 1958, America was the richest, most powerful country in the world. There wasn’t a number two. Now we produce over 200,000 MBAs per year, and that doesn’t include all the MBAs in other countries. There are tens of thousands in other countries. Everybody else has jumped on this MBA bandwagon.

So MBAs are a dime a dozen at a time when finance is coming under more and more pressure from governments economically, financially and every other way. So MBAs are a terrible waste of time, energy and money. You should take your couple hundred grand and start a business. You’ll learn a whole lot more even if you go bankrupt and lose everything, then you will at business school.

I tell people frequently not to get an MBA but to become a farmer or a miner or whatever. I’m dead serious about it. People have no concept of history. Nobody bothers with history. Everybody thinks history started the day that they could start watching television or read the newspapers, but that’s not the way the world has ever worked. So finance is under great bubbles. There are great places to avoid going forward. The United States is certainly in decline. The U.K. is going into decline. European countries are in trouble.

Some of the little anecdotes:

"Always eat something before you go shopping in order to prevent yourself from purchasing things that you don’t want or just to satisfy particular cravings that you have at the time."

I would say one lesson we all need to learn is that after you’ve had a great success, you really should be very worried. Let’s say you sell and say you’ve made 10 times on your money. You should be extremely worried. You should close the curtains, not read, look at the TV, or anything because that’s when you’re full of hubris, arrogance, confidence. You think, “God, this is something easy,” and you’re desperate to jump around to something new. You should do your very best to avoid making another play until you’ve calmed down a lot. Just wait. It’s a very dangerous time.

You have to figure out a way to control your emotions and deal with your emotions if you’re going to survive.

The problem is we all think we need to jump around all the time and be jumping in and out.

Patience is what most investors need to learn. You don’t have to be doing things all the time. Most of the time the best thing is to do nothing. You just sit with what you have as an investment and let it ride or sit and wait until you see someone sitting in the corner.

One of the best things a person can study is history. Everybody – I tell students all the time what should be studied and I tell them to study history and philosophy, which they of course hate. They say, “Oh no, I want to be rich.” I say, “If you want to be rich you should study philosophy because history will teach you that everything is constantly changing.” No matter what it is you know today, it’s going to be totally different in 10 years whether it’s your life, your friend’s, your job – who knows?

One needs to understand this about everything one is looking at today in your business, in your personal life, in your professional life. That’s one of the most important lessons that people have to learn because the world – and life – is very unstable, even though we all think we have a stable life.

Everything changes. It has changed and will continue to. The way you become successful is to understand that and capitalize on it.

TEARS IN HEAVEN!!!

2011-05-08T15:22:00.002+08:00

Heaven cries until it has no tears ...

Seeing his creation becoming schizophrenic ...

The Christians will pray, not for power, nor political position, but for a place in Heaven.

Blesphemy, and blasphemous creatures will suffer as schizophrenic, for the rest of their years on earth.

Let's listen to the same old song ... tears in Heaven!!!

Congrats to Naim Cendera

2011-05-06T08:22:00.002+08:00

Naim Cendera puts up a one page advert at The Star and NST today.

I like to take this opportunity to congratulate Naim's staff for their success.

Just like to ponder the statements in the advert:

THANK YOU!
(1) For Making Us The Largest Bumiputera Contractor in Malaysia.
(2) For Completing Almost RM4.4 Billion Worth of Work

(3) For Completing Every Project On Time Or Ahead of Schedule, and

(4) For Your Dedication To Our Vision, And Your Commitment To Achieving Our Goals

Just a few comments:

Statement (1): I'm not sure Naim is the Largest Bumi Contractor in Malaysia ... I'm not sure how they measure it but I think it would be more appropriate to say - One of the Largest Bumi Contractor in Malaysia.

Statement (2): For completing RM4.4 Billion Worth of Work - why not say - RM4.4 Billion Project Value or Contract Sum. Anyway, it's just relative terms and I am certain they had done that sum over the last 10 years.

Statement (3): For Completing Every Project On Time Or Ahead of Schedule -- I am more inclined to accept that Naim had completed most of their project within the Contract Period, which includes any Extension of Time granted; but certainly, from my experience with them and my knowledge of the a few of the projects they had undertaken, some of the projects were badly delayed and certainly not on time neither on schedule. These projects were completed ultimately; after a few extension of time were granted.

The fourth statement is a good gesture and a show of appreciation of the employees contribution. However, many of the competent and qualified employees together with some senior management personnel had quit; most of whom had told me that it was largely due to the lack of appreciation. I think the senior management; oh, sorry,It should be the boss, should re-look at his senior management team and their corporate cultures, more so, the culture of truthful appreciation, not just a statement for the advert to reflect the core values and shared values of the management and staff.

IPAD 2

2011-05-02T18:52:00.003+08:00

Since there's so much hype about IPAD-2, I had to get myself one too ...

It's so light ...

The good thing is that I don't need another broadband line as I can use my IPhone-4 broadband connection - wifi.

This toy is 64gb - wifi costing me RM2,300.00

That's how I drain my pocket ...
***

Lessons for Today

2011-04-30T11:12:00.003+08:00

Distance learning via ICT

- technology & tools for English Lessons ...

Science & Mathematics Lessons in School - for Form 5 students ...

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Author & Source: Attorney Tan Cho Huat, Toastmasters Kuching

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***

Yong Vui Kong: Me and my life

2011-04-27T09:36:00.003+08:00

This letter from Yong Vui Kong was published at Malaysiakini.com

YONG VUI KONG, a Sabahan, was sentenced in November 2009 to death for drug trafficking. He was 19. On April 4, Yong lost his final appeal against a mandatory death sentence. He will be executed in three months unless he is granted clemency by Singapore's president.

I believe we can learn a few things from him and his experience, in particular, the young boys and those who do not treasure and appreciate what life and freedom means.

-------------------------------------

Yetian,

Yun Leong brought your letter when he came to visit me on Monday. He told me that the first letter has been published.

Thank you, and thank you to all the kind-hearted strangers who have helped me. Thank you to all those who read my letters. I hope that everyone can read them. This is the only way for me to connect with the outside world.

Yetian, you said that life is very precious.

To me, life is the most important thing in the world. There are many things that mean a lot to me. But even if you have a lot of money, or many material possessions, you still only have one life.

In the past, I did not value or respect my life. It was only later that I realised those who do not respect their own lives, cannot expect others to respect them.

After turning to Buddhism, I realised that I have a responsibility in life.

I watch my fellow inmates losing their lives, one by one, because of they were ignorant, or easily misled. It breaks my heart. Amitabha. I know I'll be just like them. So I would like to use every remaining day of my life to tell people my story.

I want to use the Buddhist philosophy to tell everyone not to make mistakes, not to end up on death row because of drugs. I want to tell them never to take drugs and destroy their lives.

Of course, I hope that I can have more time to meditate, to read more Buddhist books and to absorb more Buddhist philosophy so that I can continue teaching others. But ultimately, this will all depend on fate.

Thinking back to the day Yun Leong came to see me at the detention centre, I was crying like a child. I was so afraid. My hands and legs were trembling as I cried. I had broken down. All my macho bravado had disappeared.

I was very afraid of death. I didn't know what would happen to me after I die.

'I don't blame the Singapore government'

After reading the scriptures, I dreamed of the Earth Bodhisattva. I saw through many things, and learnt not to cling on to life. This life has been given to me by Buddha. He has made all the arrangements for me, and I accept them.

I am very grateful for my life. I am very grateful towards all those who have worked hard to try to save me, and to ask for the Singaporean president to grant me clemency. If I were to give up now, wouldn't I be letting them down?

I really don't want those who have supported me, helped me and encouraged me to be sad.

I don't know why, but I know that my case has caused a lot of quarrels between people. I said before that life is not something to be wasted, but to be cherished. Quarreling is a waste of life.

I don't blame the Singapore government. I don't blame anyone. I believe that every country has its laws. If you make a mistake and get caught, then you deserve to be punished. I also know that Singapore is governed by rule of law. Asking a country to change its law is a very difficult thing.

I don't yearn for anything. All I want is more time.

I am a death row inmate. I have no right to ask for the abolishment of the death penalty. But I still feel that the death penalty is not a workable solution.

I am grateful to those who have been able to forgive me. It is a miracle that I have been able to live this long. I will take good care of myself, study hard and improve myself.

'I don't yearn to leave prison'

You asked me what I would do if I were granted clemency.

I don't yearn to leave prison. In fact, that I think this is an excellent place to meditate. I've already devoted myself to Buddhism, but I hope to find a priest who will ordain me one day and officially accept me as a monk.

While I'm alive, I will work hard to share my experience with everyone. I want to be like the priest who visits me here regularly, and tirelessly share the wisdom of Buddhism with everyone.

I will devote my whole life to help those who other people are unable to reach.

Even if I do not get a second chance, I hope that everyone will always remember to give themselves a second chance. Life will be fuller this way.

Yetian, it's been hard on you. You have to write to me even though you have to work. I am really happy, and hope to keep writing. I will stop here today. Amitabha.

*******************
SOURCE: Letter from death row: Me and my life

***

'You've got to find what you love'

2011-04-22T10:33:00.002+08:00

Stanford University - Stanford Report, June 14, 2005

This is a prepared text of the Commencement address delivered by Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios, on June 12, 2005.

I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth be told, this is the closest I've ever gotten to a college graduation. Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That's it. No big deal. Just three stories.

The first story is about connecting the dots.

I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out?

It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking: "We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?" They said: "Of course." My biological mother later found out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college.

And 17 years later I did go to college. But I naively chose a college that was almost as expensive as Stanford, and all of my working-class parents' savings were being spent on my college tuition. After six months, I couldn't see the value in it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out. And here I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life. So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK. It was pretty scary at the time, but looking back it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The minute I dropped out I could stop taking the required classes that didn't interest me, and begin dropping in on the ones that looked interesting.

It wasn't all romantic. I didn't have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends' rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on. Let me give you one example:

Reed College at that time offered perhaps the best calligraphy instruction in the country. Throughout the campus every poster, every label on every drawer, was beautifully hand calligraphed. Because I had dropped out and didn't have to take the normal classes, I decided to take a calligraphy class to learn how to do this. I learned about serif and san serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can't capture, and I found it fascinating.

None of this had even a hope of any practical application in my life. But ten years later, when we were designing the first Macintosh computer, it all came back to me. And we designed it all into the Mac. It was the first computer with beautiful typography. If I had never dropped in on that single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple typefaces or proportionally spaced fonts. And since Windows just copied the Mac, it's likely that no personal computer would have them. If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.

Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

My second story is about love and loss.

I was lucky — I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees. We had just released our finest creation — the Macintosh — a year earlier, and I had just turned 30. And then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you started? Well, as Apple grew we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the company with me, and for the first year or so things went well. But then our visions of the future began to diverge and eventually we had a falling out. When we did, our Board of Directors sided with him. So at 30 I was out. And very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating.

I really didn't know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let the previous generation of entrepreneurs down - that I had dropped the baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob Noyce and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me — I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected, but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.

I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.

During the next five years, I started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar, and fell in love with an amazing woman who would become my wife. Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a remarkable turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, I returned to Apple, and the technology we developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple's current renaissance. And Laurene and I have a wonderful family together.

I'm pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn't been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.

My third story is about death.

When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.

About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn't even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor's code for prepare to die. It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you'd have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.

I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I'm fine now.

This was the closest I've been to facing death, and I hope it's the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept:

No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.

Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960's, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.

Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish." It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.

Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

Thank you all very much.

Copa del Rey Champion 2011

2011-04-21T20:25:00.005+08:00

Real Madrid signed Jose Mourinho from Inter Milan to win titles and, ten months later, the self-declared "Special One" delivered Madridista's first trophy by defeating Barcelona 1-0 in the final of the Copa del Rey and winning the trophy for Real Madrid for the first time in 17 years.

All those who thought Mourinho’s style was not enough to defeat Pep Guardiola’s team should now be corked.

The Madrid squad tossed him in the air in celebration because they know how just how much they owe him.

Cristiano Ronaldo scores a terrific strike in extra time to seal a victory for Real in a historic final.

I had watched the live telecast of the horrible 5-0 loss Real Madrid suffered at Camp Nou way back in November 2010. I had also watched how they only managed to snatched a late 1-1 draw at Santiago Bernabeu stadium. Watching that two games, I can only conclude that Real Madrid just wasn't good enough to beat FC Barcelona. But this morning's game, Real Madrid players played exceptionally well to contain Barca's flow. The game went into extra time and at the 102 minutes Cristiano Ronaldo headed in the winner. Thereafter, it was just a matter of defending the lead.

Neither the rain, the Easter holiday nor the late hours prevented Real Madrid fans from turning out by the thousands to celebrate the Copa del Rey title won at Mestalla against Barcelona. More than 150,000 people gathered at the emblematic plaza in Madrid for the festivities.

Shortly after Undiano Mallenco blew the final whistle in Mestalla, 352 kilometers away the first Madridistas began arriving at Cibeles chanting "Campeones, campeones!" Fans continued pouring into the surrounding area throughout the night decked out in scarves, shirts and flags and filling the night air with plenty of song.

Jose Mourinho is just incredible and Real Madrid will now fight to win the Champions League semi-final against FC Barcelona.

Barcelona is not the only loser ... Chelsea and Roman Abramovich are the greater loser.

I received this wallpaper from Real Madrid C.F.

A Tale of Malaysia Boleh

2011-04-02T21:05:00.002+08:00

Once upon a time, 20 years ago,

After having dug to a depth of 10 feet last year, British scientists found traces of copper wire dating back 200 years and came to the conclusion that their ancestors already had a telephone network more than 150 years ago.

Not to be outdone by the Brit's, in the weeks that followed, an American archaeologist dug to a depth of 20 feet, and shortly after, a story was published in the New York Times:

"American archaeologists had found traces of 250-year-old copper wire. They concluded that their ancestors already had an advanced high-tech communications network 50 years earlier than the British".

One week later, the Dept of Minerals and Energy in Malaysia, reported the following:

"After digging as deep as 30 feet in North Central Kedah region, Mahathir Mohammed, a self-taught archaeologist, reported that he found absolutely nothing. Mahathir therefore concluded that 250 years ago, Malaysia had already gone wireless."

Malaysia Boleh!!!

Next article: 1Malaysia ... (not written yet)

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SOURCE: Dunstan Chan's Tale of Copper Wire
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Power Brand 2011 Award

2011-03-28T00:02:00.007+08:00

27th March 2011

Congratulations to PAG for receiving the 5th Malaysian Power Brand 2011 Award for Outstanding Achievement of Best Quality Products and Services in Civil and Building Construction Category.

Mr. YK Lai, Chairman & Managing Director of PAG receiving the Award from YB Datuk Liew Vui Keong, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Malaysia.

Presentation of the Certificate of Achievement by Prof. Dr. Denver Tan, Organizing Chairman & President of Asia Entrepreneur Alliance.

That's me ... ugly man has no face!!!

PAG was the specialist contractor for the Design and Build/Turnkey Project of the Integrated Transport Terminal, Bandar Tasik Selatan and the Elevated Highway connecting Jalan Hang Tuah-Jalan Dewan Bahasa Dan Pustaka, Kuala Lumpur. Currently, PAG is also involved in the Penang Second Bridge Project as the specialist sub-contractor for China Harbour & Engineering Construction.

ManuLife Award Nite 2011

2011-03-26T06:56:00.003+08:00

My son and his wife had another wonderful evening at Manulife Award Nite 2011.

It was another good year for them.

Congratulations to William and Pauline. Hope 2011 will be another great year of success for them, in business and in life - wealth accumulation and the beginning of parenthood. William and Pauline will have their first child next month. They will be parents, and they will have a new phase in their lives, with an addition to the family, and a new challenge in life's journey.

Lessons for Today

2011-03-16T09:40:00.000+08:00

There's an old sea story about a ship's Captain who inspected his sailors, and afterward told the first mate that his men smelled bad.

The Captain suggested perhaps it would help if the sailors would change their underwear occasionally.

The first mate responded, "Aye, aye sir, I'll see to it immediately!"

The first mate went straight to the sailors berth deck and announced, "The Captain thinks you guys smell bad and wants you to change your underwear."

He continued, “Leo you change with Jerry. Tony you change with Bert and Bob you change with Ed."

THE MORAL OF THE STORY:

1. Someone may come along and promise "Change", but don't count on things smelling any better.

2. Most often than not, the message delivered may not be what you had intended it to be.

Quotes for Today

2011-03-16T08:42:00.001+08:00

"Statistic exist so that we can go out and contradict them"

--- Jose Mourinho

"It boils down to your beliefs. Goals are useless if you write them down without a strong belief that you can achieve them. It is all about determination and personal targets."

--- Lee Chong Wei

Berita Harian Newspaper pokes fun at Japan's tsunami disasters

2011-03-13T22:13:00.008+08:00

By CNN iReport -

Local Malaysian newspaper Berita Harian published a caricature in their editor's column today that depicts the popular Japanese cartoon character Ultraman as trying to outrun an incoming tsunami.

The publication has received tremendous criticisms by readers, who accuse the editors as being "inconsiderate and distasteful". Several political leaders have even stepped out and demand a public apology, to which the editors promptly made on their publication's Facebook fan page.

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SOURCE:

(1) ireport.cnn.com
(2) Berita Harian apologises for ‘tasteless’ tsunami cartoon

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An 8.9-magnitude earthquake hit northern Japan on Friday, triggering tsunami warnings around the world.
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LATEST NEWS ON JAPAN EARTHQUAKE

(1) Insured losses from Japan quake could hit $35 billion
(2) Scramble to avert meltdown after Japan earthquake, tsunami
(3) Japan nuclear crisis worsens as country braces for second huge earthquake
(4) Japan faces worst crisis 'since WWII'
(5) Japan death toll likely over 10,000 after earthquake, tsunami

***

MALAYSIA SENT 15 PEOPLE TO RESCUE JAPAN

PEKAN, March 12 (Bernama) -- Malaysia is rushing disaster assistance personnel, sniffer dogs and doctors to help with search and rescue efforts in Japan.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, said 15 members of the Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (SMART), and six dogs would leave for Japan in two C-130 aircraft at 6pm Saturday.

"This (assistance) demonstrates our sympathy and support for the government and people of Japan," Najib told reporters.

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SOURCE: BERNAMA NEWS
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POST SCRIPT:

We hope the 6 dogs that we had sent to Japan will do a good job and not let our country down ... the job is damn tough and the dogs must truly behave as a team and sniff well. It is an emotive act that will fill us with great pride and, especially, of gratitude from the Japanese people. The dogs must understand that it is an act of recognition, loyalty, solidarity and love for humanitarian. They must humbly feel unquestionable pride for belonging to Malaysia. Our strength has been, is and forever will be, our unity. We have proven this with our 54 years of complete devotion and fidelity to our history of unity, trust and love. This tenacity and fortitude will help us continue to be a leading charitable nation. Our charitable act should become increasingly significant. That's why we strive to use this occasion as the best opportunity by which we can prove to the world that we are better and more just. We stand together in this charitable endeavor to assure Japan and the rest of the world of our utmost charitable culture and devotion.

***

Real Madrid President's speech in 2011 Insignia presentation

2011-03-13T10:16:00.004+08:00

Dear Honorary President, Members of the Board, Club Members and friends of Real Madrid.

Every year, we celebrate a ceremony like today's, one of the events most anticipated by the Madridista family. It is an emotive act that fills us with great pride and, especially, of gratitude. It is an act of recognition, loyalty, solidarity and love for an institution that is proud of its 109-year history, and that possesses enormous strength and excitement to continue building the future.

It is also a day of reflection. It is a day in which we must ask ourselves why we are here. I always say that, withouot a doubt, the best thing this club has are its members. You have all contributed to make Real Madrid's legend eternal. Some with a 25-year passion, others with an unshakeable loyalty of 50 years, and others by keeping the essence of our values for 60 years. That is why I, as President, regard this act as one of our greatest examples. You are the strength that has turned Real Madrid into an unquestionable team and a worldwide icon.

The sentiment you have shown for the Club throughout all this time is part of a culture that has been maintained throughout our history. An identity that has allowed us to become what we are, and to face the utmost demands without a care for difficulties.

With your devotion, you have contributed to help Real Madrid be acknowledged in the entire world, not just for its achievements in sports, but also for its values. These are indestructible principles that last generation after generation and that constitute this club's raison d'etre. Talent, respect for opponents, honesty, devotion, sacrifice, solidarity and the constant strive for victory are, and must always be, the unchangeable signs of our identity.

You and your dreams are the most powerful reference we have to guide our work and our strategy at the helm of this institution.

You've spent a great part of your lives -in some cases all your lives- devoting your passion and love to Real Madrid. You've shared difficult times and moments of unforgettable victories. You've felt the sadness that comes from unrealised dreams, and also the satisfaction of seeing your wishes come true.

This devotion makes us wish to acknowledge you and express our gratitude today. My words as President carry more affection for all of you today because you are the strength of our institution, our guarantee for success and the security for our future.

We have all walked on common ground together and we humbly feel unquestionable pride for belonging to Real Madrid.

This pride allows us to face the greatest sports challenges in order to keep the worldwide prestige that turned Real Madrid into a universal club and a leading international institution admired by millions of supporters.

In order to face all of the great challenges that lie ahead, it is essential that we all unite. Our strength has been, is and forever will be, our unity. You have proven this for 25, 50 or 60 years of complete devotion and fidelity to our history. This tenacity and fortitude will help us continue to be a leading sports, financial and charitable institution.

To belong to Real Madrid is all this, and also to assume great responsibility. We all have the responsibility to maintain and improve this immense legacy so that future generations feel the same respect, devotion and pride for the Club we feel right now.

Throughout is more than 100-year old history, Real Madrid has always set an example for modernity and has placed us at the forefront of any sports institution.

Today's Real Madrid has nothing to do with the Real Madrid that was founded by several enthusiasts back in 1902. It is now a universal, modern and exemplary club. But we're here because those who created the Club were able to instill this special feeling of Madridismo in future generations. We inherited this from our elders and we have the responsibility to hand it down to our children.

And we must continue to advance firmly placed in modernity and defending our values, in which we have great faith. That must be the path to follow.

Those of us who are privileged to belong to this institution must work without rest to continue being leaders on and off the pitch. It is always difficult to win; history has taught us that. But if we head in the right direction, if we are patient enough, and if we offer total devotion, then success and victory will come our way. We have already laid the solid ground work, the essential stability and the adequate strategy to achieve this.

Institutional stability and serenity is an essential strength to have nowadays, and we have it mainly thanks to you.

This Real Madrid has a mission and a chellenge before it: to some day become the Best Club in the 21st Century, just as it was the Best Club in the 20th Century. And not just on the sporting field. We must take a new and important leap to perfect the functioning of our infrastructure, and to further boost and promote the image and international projection of Real Madrid.

We must continue to grow financially so that this team always belongs to its Club Members and may always compete with any opponent, no matter how powerful.

We must also set a charitable example through our Real Madrid Foundation in every country. Our charitable compromise should become increasingly significant. That's why we strive to turn the Foundation into the best tool by which to help the world be better and more just. I also know we will stand together in this charitable endeavour.

The 21st Century Real Madrid will be exemplary, more active, stronger, more modern, more agile and -naturally- always in pursuit of victory, just as we learned from our master: Honorary President Alfredo di Stefano.

You must never forget that you, the Club Members, are responsible for, and the owners of, this club. That is why it is your duty to continue making of Real Madrid an unquestionable example to follow.

During more than 100 years, we've become leaders in sports, finances, facilities, solidarity and the reaffirmation of our values.

Real Madrid was born to win through hard work and sacrifice. We Madridistas believe that hard work and sacrifice are not incompatible with fair play. The constant search for success and fair play are no doubt part of the special DNA that defines both us and the behaviour we've had throughout our history. We have strongly defended our institution against wrong behaviour and we will continue to do so.

But if we are ready to continue defending fair play and blameless ethics within our institution, then we must fight for this also in the sporting world we belong to. For many years, this institution has showcased what we've come to define as 'class'. Class is earned by acknowledging the merits of our opponents, but also by defending what we believe is just. Class is also earned by denouncing irregular behaviour both on or off the pitch. It is also an example of true Madridismo to defend Real Madrid from what we believe to be unjust, irregular or arbitrary. And that is exactly what our coach, Jose Mourinho, does. What Jose Mourinho says is also an example of Madridismo.

I ask you to continue to feel proud of what you are, of your sense of belonging and of that feeling called Madridismo. And of that responsibility, too. Because pride for this club comes from knowing that we, the Club Members -who regard ourselves as the owners of Real Madrid-, are just the administrators of this universal feeling. And that feeling we administer is a service to millions of supporters we must never forget.

Real Madrid belongs to all and there are no age, ideological, national or cultural differences here. Real Madrid has no frontiers. It is universal, and the diversity and plurality of its members and supporters makes the unity of Madridistas even greater and stronger.

I hope today proves unforgettable for you because it is no doubt a very important day for this club. It is a day of just and fair recognition of you all and of those who may not be here today, but who once taught you about the spirit of Real Madrid.

Thank you for your support, your firmness, your strength and for everything you give to Real Madrid each day. Thank you for your everlasting passion for Real Madrid. Thank you for your devotion. Thank you for everything you've felt along the way. Thank you, because you are Real Madrid.

Thank you all.

------------------------------------------------------
SOURCE: www.realmadrid.com
-------------------------------------------------------

Thought's for Today

2011-03-12T21:32:00.002+08:00

"No written word, no spoken plea
Can teach our youth what they should be,
Nor all the books on all the shelves.
It's what the teachers are themselves."

A favorite poem of John Wooden (Author unknown)

The character, rather than education, is man's greatest need and man's greatest safeguard, because character is higher than intellect. While it is true the difference between men is in energy, in the strong will, in the settled purpose and in the invincible determination, the new leadership is in sacrifice, it is in self-denial, it is in love and loyalty, it is in fearlessness, it is in humility, and it is in the perfectly disciplined will.

Thirteen Virtues of Benjamin Franklin

1. TEMPERANCE. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.

2. SILENCE. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.

3. ORDER. Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.

4. RESOLUTION. Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.

5. FRUGALITY. Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.

6. INDUSTRY. Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.

7. SINCERITY. Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.

8. JUSTICE. Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.

9. MODERATION. Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.

10. CLEANLINESS. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloths, or habitation.

11. TRANQUILITY. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.

12. CHASTITY. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another's peace or reputation.

13. HUMILITY. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.

From The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

A trip to Memory Lane

2011-03-09T21:04:00.007+08:00

1993 was an important year towards my career direction. That was the year I took a bold step to Kuala Lumpur in search for a job. It wasn't my first vocation ... I started working after I graduated in 1978 but 1993 was the year that was significant to my career path. In February that year I resigned as a General Manager of a construction outfit - it was an abrupt decision (due to differences with my boss). So I decided to drive down to KL in search of a job; as without job means without income and I had no savings at all.

My driver, or should I say, my ex-driver (since I had resigned; the driver is paid by the company and should not be driving me anymore) insist that he will drive me to KL. I told him that he can't as the company will be angry and would sack him. But he insist and he said he doesn't want to continue with that company and will continue to drive me even without pay.

We drove two hours and reached KL. Along the journey I brought with me The Star newspaper and I spent the two hours journey reading the news advertisement, looking up for employment opportunity. Almost reaching KL I say a tiny advert (about 50mm x 50mm) of a company looking for a project manager for a high-rise building project in KL. I straight away called the phone number indicated and I was told that I can have a walk-in interview immediately.

When I arrived at the office which is a double-storey terrace shoplot located at OUG (somewhere around Jalan Kuchai Lama) my senses tells me that this must be a small scale construction company. I rang the bell at the door and a nice-sweet lady open the door to welcome me as she was the person that took my call.

The company has only two staff in the office - the secretary-cum-purchasing officer-cum-account's clerk-cum-office assistant-cum-jack of all trade. She does everything that needs to be done at the office except quantity surveying works which is performed by a handsome man (around 30+). Of course there was another man - an elderly man - who is the boss, sitting in a room. I was taken to the room and introduced to that man. His name is Mr. Chew and everyone called him Uncle Chew. At the interview he asked me if I had high-rise building construction experience. I told him NO but I assure him that I have the ability to learn quickly and I am confident to perform to his expectation. To my surprise ... he gave me the job with a pay of RM3,000.00 nett; which means I had to pay for my own lodging, car and fuel. I needed a job desperately and I had to accept it.

So, that was how life began ... a new beginning, a new struggle, a new job, a demotion (as I was GM yesterday then), and a new life.

That project which I was engaged to manage is Robson Height Condominium, which is near Thean Hou Temple, off Jalan Syed Putra. It was completed in 1994 and after Completion I left Uncle Chew to join Pilecon Bhd and later, Suncon Bhd.

Today, coincidentally, I had an appointment at Thean Hou Temple. When I arrived at Thean Hou, the tall building along the left-side of the road caught my attention - it's my project: Robson Height Condo!!!

The first thing when I got down from my car, is to take my hand phone and take a few shots - so delighting to come back here and see my project.

My family members were with me.

They had to hear my old story ... I had to tell them ...

The building still looks good and sound.

The management must have done a good job of upkeeping and maintaining it well.

I'm so proud of this job that Uncle Chew entrusted to me!

Anyway, coming back to the visit to Thean Hou. Actually I had to be at Thean Hou, not because I had to pray. Today is my son's day of appointment; he and Karen was to be legally bonded - we are there to witness their marriage registration.

See ...

they took their oath ...

They both swore - I DO!!!

Karen's mother, brother and sister attended.

Me, my wife, my eldest son and daughter-in-law attended.

Henry's friends were with us too.

We all celebrate! It was a great day!

I had one advice for my son Henry: From today onward, you will find that you have to earn more as your needs have been altered significantly. The wedding ceremony is October this year and I presumed that he will be a father by next year. Mine was 30 years ago ... and my first child was born 11 months after. Now is my children turn. Oh, it also remind me that I am old ... an old man who will be a grandfather soon.

***

Thoughts for Today

2011-03-08T09:26:00.000+08:00

"The point of philosophy is:
- to start with something so simple as not to seem worth stating, and
- to end with something so paradoxical that no one will believe it. "

— Bertrand Russell

***

Parables of the Constitutional Chinese

2011-03-04T08:09:00.005+08:00

“I would not say I am a Chinese or Malaysian of ethnic Chinese origin. My mother tongue and home language is Chinese, my culture and tradition is Chinese and I am a Christian.

The constitution defines a Malaysian as a person who is a granted citizenship by operation of law or by virtue of any of the provisions of the Federation of Malaya Agreement, 1948. Once he is a Malaysian citizen, he is a Malaysian, not an immigrant. He can be a Malaysian of Chinese origin, or Malaysian of Indian origin, or Malaysian of Bugis or Javanese origin; but he is Malaysian, and no more an immigrant, just like Mahathir.

That's the same with those other who were immigrants and whose mother tongue and home language is now Malay, not his ancestor's mother tongue who may be Tamil or Javanese, who claim his culture and tradition is now Malay and is now a Muslim.

The Malaysian Constitution defines a Malay as a Malaysian citizen born to a Malaysian citizen who professes to be a Muslim, habitually speaks the Malay language, adheres to Malay customs, and is domiciled in Malaysia (or Singapore).

NOTE: Habitually speaking Malay language, practice Malay customs and being a Muslim isn't sufficient - he must also be a Malaysian citizen born to a Malaysian citizen.

The criteria to be a Malaysian citizen are:

Any person born before Malaysia Day who is a citizen of the Malaysia by virtue of these provisions; or
Any person who immediately before Merdeka Day, was a citizen of Malaysia by virtue of any of the provisions of the Federation of Malaya Agreement, 1948, whether by operation of law or otherwise
Any person born within Malaysia on or after Merdeka Day and before October, 1962
Any person born within Malaysia after September 1962, of whose parents one at least was at the time of the birth either a citizen or permanently resident in Malaysia, or who was not born a citizen of any other country
Any person born outside Malaysia on or after Merdeka Day whose father was a citizen at the time of his birth and either was born in Malaysia or was at the time of the birth in service under the Government of Malaysia or of a State
Any person born outside Malaysia on or after Merdeka Day whose father was a citizen at the time of the birth if the birth was, or is, within 1 year of its occurrence or within such longer period as in any particular case was or is allowed by the Malaysian Government, registered at a consulate of Malaysia or, if it occurred in Singapore, Sarawak, Brunei or North Borneo, registered with the Federal Government
Any person born on or after Malaysia Day, and having any of the qualifications specified below
Any person born within Malaysia of whose parents one at least is at the time of the birth either a citizen or permanently resident in Malaysia and
Any person born outside the Malaysia whose father is at the time of the birth a citizen and either was born in Malaysia or is at the time of the birth in the service of the Federation or of a State and
Any person born outside Malaysia whose father is at the time of the birth a citizen and whose birth is, within 1 year of its occurrence or within such longer period as the Malaysian Government may in any particular case allow, registered at a consulate of Malaysia or, if it occurs in Brunei or in a territory prescribed for this purpose by order of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, registered with the Malaysian Government.

Gaining citizenship

A person can become a citizen of Malaysia either by registration or naturalization. In cases by registration, where a person is by operation of law is a citizen but have yet to be registered, such person is entitled to citizenship upon application and be registered as a citizen of Malaysia. For cases by naturalization, this refers to the process of admitting a person not a citizen of Malaysia to citizenship. This is subjected to the requirements and conditions of the Federal Government. Any person holding Malaysian citizenship is also disallowed to hold any other country's citizenship. Malaysia does not allow dual citizenship.

Those applying for citizenship by registration must have "an elementary knowledge of the Malay language". Those applying to become naturalised citizens must have "an adequate knowledge of the Malay language" and have resided in the country for ten of the past twelve years, including the twelve months immediately preceding the application. These requirements are set out by Part III of the Constitution; however, as there is no objective definition of what constitutes elementary or adequate knowledge of Malay, in practice, the tests are often subjective, sometimes even varying in whether a written knowledge of Malay is required.

Mahathir said it was obvious some Malays were descended from people of the Indonesian islands, India and the Arabian peninsular.

“Having come here they were assimilated after they identified themselves completely with the Malays by adopting the Malay language, their customs and traditions and by being Muslims."

Do we become Constitutional Malaysian through assimilation or by virtue of the law of the land?

My ancestor is Chinese and I am a Malaysian by Chinese origin. My Indian friends who are Malaysian citizen are Malaysians too, and they are of Indian origin. My Indonesian friends who are Malaysian Citizen are Malaysians too; but they told me they are Javanese origin, Bugis origin, etc - ALL ARE MALAYSIANS WHO WERE ACCORDED WITH MALAYSIAN CITIZENSHIP BY OPERATION OF LAW!!!

So what is the problem? Mahathir was Prime Minister of Malaysia for 22 years; yet he seems to have a problem with this, is it or is it not?

***

REFERENCE ARTICLE:

Malays are not immigrants, says Dr M

***

Parable for Today

2011-03-03T11:32:00.002+08:00

When we wake up in the morning, we have two simple choices:

Go back to sleep and dream; or

Wake up and chase those dreams.

The choice is ours.

The problem often is,

we wake up, forgot about those dreams, and

continue to be awake at sleep mode and daydream.

Then, it's time to sleep again.

Paradox for Today

2011-02-21T15:20:00.002+08:00

We make them cry who care for us.

We cry for those who never care for us.

And we care for those who will never cry for us.

This is the truth of life!

We want things we haven't got.

We tried to find things we can't get.

Once we got it, we appreciate it ... for a while.

Then, we find another quite similar thing that we believed is better to have.

Life goes on, and on, and on ...

***

Constitution: Words & it's chosen Interpretation

2011-02-14T11:08:00.004+08:00

In a battle of knowledge between politicians with power and the public, the people fight unarmed. An elite group dominates through pseudo-legal finesse. It holds the high ground, established arbitrary rules and selectively interpreted them to suit their fancies with nothing more than discretionarily interpreting words written on paper and adopt selected words within an Article of Law, such as 'Privilege' discretionarily replacing by 'Rights', and special privileges for trading licence and scholarships taken to include rights to equity ownership without payment, and the free-distribution of the nation's wealth to special self-anointed breeds without the need to labor, and lately, the use of a few simple principles and the adoption of geographical name, nowhere officially recorded, to confer special rights of a class of migrants against other migrants. Its real power emanates from control of political institutions, primarily those dealing directly with monetary and fiscal policies. Misuse of this power for its own purpose and self-interest, with considerable encouragement from the privy class expecting to get something for nothing, led the nation's current economic predicament. The entire Political System desperately need renovation, if not, constructive destruction and revamping the entire culture that had accepted kleptomania as the chosen way of life.

"As men, whose intentions require no concealment, generally employ the words which most directly and aptly express the ideas they intend to convey, the enlightened patriots who framed our constitution, and the people who adopted it, must be understood to have employed words in their natural sense, and to have intended what they have said."

--- Chief Justice Marshall, 1824

"To evade clear constitutional intent by changing the meaning of words, Parliament cannot by any definition it may adopt conclude the matter, since it cannot by legislation alter the constitution, from which it derives its power to legislate, and within whose limitations alone that power can be lawfully exercised."

--- Justice Mahion Pitney, 1920

***

Today's Quote

2011-02-11T11:51:00.000+08:00

"It is the activity of our nerves, the flame of our desire, the acid of our fears, which daily consume our organism. He who succeeds in raising himself above his emotions, in suppressing in himself anger and the fear of illness, is capable of overcoming the attrition of the years and attaining an age at least double that at which men now die of old age."

--- Comte de Saint Germain

***

IPhone 4

2011-02-01T03:36:00.002+08:00

Today I received a nice gift from my good buddy - it's an IPhone 4. Last month I received an IPad-3G gift and with this IPhone-4 I may have to look forward to an IMac. In the meantime my Sony Vaio is still excellent; I can wait ... hehehehe

It took me just one minute to sync and upload the contact numbers from my Gmail; but it took me three hours to edit the name of all the contacts as the sync is not that intelligent to understand Malaysian names.

It's 4am now and I must get to bed. Tomorrow, I will be traveling back to Ipoh.

Good night and Happy New Year to all.

***

Tiger's year is ending; Hail the Rabbit!

2011-01-30T12:16:00.008+08:00

Toyota's advertisement parade the picture of a reluctant tiger being forcefully dragged away by a timid Rabbit. It aptly described the coming of an end to the year of the Tiger and the arrival of the Rabbit.

Another year had passed and it's good to review our efforts and achievements for the year 2010.

It was a reasonably good year for me. For me, January 2010 started with a bang before the Tiger year begins in February 15, 2010. Thereafter, the 12 months journey of the Tiger year was extremely challenging. Looking back at the results for the year, it was fantastic and satisfying; it was, to me, the best results I had ever achieved over the last 15-year. In fact, 2009 and 2010 were the best years for my career.

Over the past 24 months I had re-constructed my career, re-organized and improved my financial accounts and had a few good holidays overseas, with my family and business partners. Overall, 2010 was a good year for me.

In the next few days, the Chinese will be celebrating the Year 4709 - the arrival of the Rabbit year.

What will the outlook of the Rabbit year?

If the sentiments of the people over the last few days were to be the guiding factors, it seems that 2011 will be an extremely trying and challenging year for many, including me.

Last night I had a dinner at a roadside stall with some friends at Cheras, KL. Beside the stall there was a Pasar Malam (night market). Having a good view of the crowds at the pasar malam it wasn't too encouraging for the stall onwers.

After the dinner we had some beers and we had the company of a few stall owners who were friends of my buddies. We had a nice discussion about their businesses and the economic scenarios. According to the stall owners, the sales over the past few months had drastically contracted by more than 30% as compared with last year. I asked them what was the reasons for the poor sales. According to the various opinions, the disposable income of the people had contracted; in general, there is less income and higher cost of livings - literally, the people have less to spent. Being a business consultant, I can observed that many companies do not pay bonuses this year; many companies are facing revenue collection problems, while many others are having anxieties over the possibilities of becoming jobless should the economic state persists.

It is going to be a trying and an extremely challenging year for 2011. Entrepreneurs must get prepared and seek out opportunities everywhere and beyond their current business portfolios. Businessmen must be more creative and innovative in order to thrive and survive. The old ways of doing business and the dependence on existing customers and clients aren't going to be sufficient. We have to extend the boundaries and scope of the businesses and to expand our network and operations beyond the known(s) - we had to get connected with the unknowns - to bring in new businesses from people we don't already know and to replenish the much needed revenues in order to survive. It's going to be hard and challenging; it's going to be a tough year, it seems to be.

For me, I have began that mission; and I had started to re-construct my business portfolios and pursue those goals. It is January now and I will have the full 12 months to get those results. The land of the unknowns are full of surprises. Hopefully, there will be some good surprises for 2011.

Whatever it is, we still have to enjoy and celebrate. It's Chinese New Year time; it's time to attend reunion dinners; it's time to give Angpows and collect Angpows too. It's New Year celebration. Gong Xi Fa Cai!

Story for today

2011-01-26T19:35:00.005+08:00

A Chinese boss, in order to keep a mistress in China, bought a house in Shenzhen for her to live in plus a monthly allowance of 5,000 yuan.

The house cost him about 500,000 yuan．

He sold the house this year for 3.2 million yuan, after he broke off from his mistress.

He did a quick calculation:

After 5 years of a fling with the woman, he still had a nett gain of 2.4 million yuan.

When his wife found out about this, she was very mad and shouted at him:

"Why the hell did you keep only one mistress"!!

LESSONS LEARNED:

All decisions must be strategic and long-term benefits must be envisaged. Discuss with your wife, if necessary, particularly on the little sacrifice a man had to make that will bring a lot of financial benefits with a little mutual understanding and having a shared vision.

********************
Story by Stanley Ngu

********************

Mufti Perak clarification on use of loudspeaker

2011-01-19T10:18:00.003+08:00

Ketua Pengarah Institut Kefahaman Islam Malaysia (Ikim) Datuk Nik Mustapha Nik Hassan berkata dia berasa kecewa apabila isu azan telah dipolitikkan kerana pemimpin-pemimpin melihat ia dari sudut politik.

Nik Mustapha berkata isu azan telah dipolitikkan oleh pihak tertentu.

“Kenapa nak jadikan isu? Kenapa nak dipolitikkan?

“Kalau lihat dari sudut politik maka ia jadi isu politik, dulu perkara seperti ini tidak pernah berlaku pun.

“Jadi kenapa nak bincangkan perkara ini? Apa yang penting kita menghormati antara satu sama lain, menghormati adat resam. Yang penting hidup dalam keadaan harmoni, saya tidak faham kenapa ia dipolitikkan,” katanya dengan nada kecewa.

Beliau juga mencadangkan supaya semua rakyat di negara ini menghormati antara satu sama lain demi menjaga keharmonian negara.

“Azan berkumandang untuk memanggil orang Islam bersolat, jadi ia bukan masalah dan bukan isu.

“Ketika saya di Amerika dulu, ketika azan orang Islam di sana tidak menggunakan pembesar suara kerana tidak mahu mengganggu orang lain.

“Macam kita di Malaysia begitu juga, kita kena menghormati antara satu sama lain. Jangan sampai mengganggu mereka,” katanya.

Dalam satu surat bertarikh 20 Disember 2010 kepada Jabatan Perdana Menteri, Ng, meminta supaya tindakan diambil bagi memperlahankan bunyi azan di Masjid Al-Ikhlasiah di Bukit Kerinchi itu kerana didakwa mengganggu tidurnya.

Perkasa dan Pekida telah mengadakan protes di pekarangan masjid berkenaan bagi mengecam tindakan Ng yang dikatakan telah menyentuh sensitiviti umat Islam.

Mufti Perak Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria juga berkata pengurusan masjid atau surau tidak perlu menggunakan pembesar suara selain untuk tujuan azan.

Kata beliau, hanya untuk tujuan azan yang perlu menggunakan pembesar suara manakala bacaan-bacaan lain tidak perlu.

“Hanya azan sahaja yang gunakan pembesar suara, yang lain tidak perlu. Bacaan lain hanya gunakan (pembesar suara) dalam masjid sahaja.

“Tak usahlah nak ganggu orang lain, lagipun tak disuruhkan dalam Islam gunakan pembesar suara selain azan,” katanya.

“Apa-apa pun bagi saya, hanya azan sahaja yang gunakan pembesar suara. Yang lain tidak perlu,” katanya.

Sebelum ini bekas mufti Perlis, Prof Madya Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin berpendapat umat Islam patut menghentikan bacaan-bacaan selain azan, yang dibuat melalui pembesar suara supaya tidak mengganggu orang luar dan juga mereka dalam masjid.

Kontroversi isu azan timbul selepas seorang peguam bukan Islam mempertikaikan bunyi azan yang terlalu kuat sehingga mengganggunya.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
SOURCE: Mufti Perak: Pembesar suara selain untuk azan tak perlu

***

AirAsia & its more than once experience at Kuching Airport

2011-01-13T15:24:00.004+08:00

AirAsia's plane landed at Kuching on 10th Jan 2011.

The landing had been slippery and the plane had to glided off the runway.

It finally landed on the grass verge

The pundits blame the bald tyres .....
Others blame the rain ...

Others blame Singapore govt ... don't know why.

Mahathir, will you blame the Zionist?

I wonder if someone will blame god.

***

Why did Malays scorn their own brother?

2011-01-11T22:38:00.005+08:00

I was reading Sallehuddin's Blog today and in his article: Public Land And Rising Prices: Rakyat DiDahulukan, and at para 5 he wrote:

[Quote]

Maju is owned by entrepreneur Tan Sri Abu Sahid Mohamad or popularly known as Abu Juling (cross-eyed Abu). They developed the Bandar Tasek Selatan in Bandar Tun Abdul Razak, Cheras.

[unquote]

At later paragraph he quote from an sms which he had received from Ghaffar of Muar, [Quote]

This is an issue of people versus errant developer. Huff and puff by Abu Juling (is an) offshot (of) a row in the meeting (between developer and people) with Ministry of Federal Territory over a disputed land matter of Tasik Selatan.

Abu Juling walked out claiming that the whole of Tasik Selatan belong to him. He bought it in 1986.

(That is) Juling's unschooled and birdbrains spelt out by his ignorant and adamant (ways) as pictured.

[unquote]

What puzzles me is: why do you call someone as Abu Juling when that person is Tan Sri Abu Sahid, a successful Bumiputera, a Malay and a Muslim? How many times was Abu addressed as juling?

This is a man who was honoured with the Title: Tan Sri by our Yang Di Pertuan Agong. He comes from a poor family and over the decades he laboured - blood, sweat and tears - to ultimately build up his business empire to what it is today - a multi billion dollar empire.

He is a good example of a hardworking Malay entrepreneur, a man who sleeps at 5am daily, pondering over his business processes and making strategic decisions daily to make sure that his businesses are progressing in the right direction and ensuring sustainability over the next few years.

Tan Sri Abu's business empire has given employment to many thousands of Malays and he is one of the very few Bumiputera Contractor who has a competent and capable team of project managers and supervisors. The Integrated Transport Terminal (TBS-BTS) at Bandar Tasik Selatan was completed in a record time - without any Extension of Time - on October 2010; the contract completion date was Nov 2010. Take note that there was a 12 months delay due to squatters relocation problem (of which DBKL was responsible), underground services relocation problems, and the project also requires Maju Holdings to build a steel bridge over 3 railway lines (ERL, Rapid & KTM). There was also the problem of soft ground conditions and massive soil replacements and soil strengthening works. Yet, the project was completed ahead of schedule on October 2010. What is more impressive is that, the TBS-BTS was fully operational by 1st Jan 2011 - less than 2 1/2 months after CF/CCC. Which government facility/project was operational within 3 months of completion? None!!!

Why are the Malays not proud of their own people who have become successful? He was a poor Malay boy - a rag to riches Malay boy story. Ya, he was a beneficiary of the NEP; so is Syed Mokhtar, Amin Shah, Tajuddin Ramli, AP Hanif, Kamaladdin, Nasir Razak, Mirzan, Mukhriz & Mokhzani Mahathir, Halim Saad, Azman Mokhtar, Khalid Ibrahim, Azman Hashim, and various others. He may be Mahathir's protege, but he did not cheat to gain; he did not sell APs to become rich; he works hard when he was young; he works as a labourer, he later buys and sell scrap metals, he made some money and start his property development business, he got the opportunity when Perwaja was bankrupt by buying over the failing business and turning it around; he is a self-made billionaire.

Tan Sri Abu Sahid took the opportunities when it arises; he sought the governments approval to take over Perwaja when it was in deep shit; the opportunities were granted to him; he toiled, laboured and bled, and over the years of suffering he finally made it big and became successful.

So, shouldn't we be proud that there are Malays who has become successful and rich - they work hard; they suffered failures, falls down, get up and get on with the journey to dreamland.

This is a man who deserves to be applauded for his hard work and business acumen. Why can't we address him as Tan Sri Abu Sahid or alternatively call him as Encik Abu; why add Juling? Ada kah ini adat istiadat orang orang Melayu atau hanya satu-dua orang sahaja yang kurang upaya?

There are times businessmen makes wrongly advised decisions and he may have to suffer punishments such as losses or to pay compensations, or may even have to be indicted or incarcerated. But Tan Sri Abu Sahid is not a devil or is such devilish type of person as portrayed by some. He has, over the years, donated a lot of money, time and energy to do charity, build mosques and help many poor Malays. He has given employment to thousands of Malays.

The problem with the development land at Bandar Tasik Selation is not as devilish as it is made out to be. It concerns a development plan that was altered or modified and the proposed recreational park initially earmarked and submitted to DBKL as part of the development for the construction of about 2,000 Apartments; that proposal was later scrapped; revised design was resubmitted to the authorities for the construction of 5 bungalows for himself, his children and family members. At such, in view of the changed in design, he must have been advised that, since the original plan to build the Apartments was altered, therefore he need not surrender that part of land for recreational park. That allocated recreational park was intended for the owners of the proposed Apartments. If he was wrongly advised, or if the bylaws did not permit him to utilized that piece of land which was purportedly to have been surrendered to DBKL (which his consultants advised him that it was not), then DBKL can act against him. Equally, Abu Sahid can seek the court's jurisdiction to review the purported legal interpretation by DBKL. There are various differing legal opinions and it would be best settled if the case is brought to the court for a judicial decision that is binding.

So, while some of the surrounding house owners at Bandar Tasik Selatan may be unhappy and protesting, can we be civic-minded and have the courtesy to call that man as: Tan Sri Abu Sahid or just, Abu Sahid?

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Perkasa says no to Teoh royal commission

2011-01-07T22:49:00.005+08:00

Malay rights pressure group Perkasa instructed the federal government not to proceed with its plan to establish a Royal Commission of Inquiry into political aide Teoh Beng Hock's death.

At a press conference today, Perkasa chief Ibrahim Ali said there was no need for the commission because the inquest had already declared an open verdict on his cause of death.

"We should all just leave it. Given that the courts had already decided on the matter, having the commission to probe the matter was tantamount to disrespecting the courts and a waste of public funds.

"(What) if this commission does work? What else will we establish next?" Ibrahim asked.

Ibrahim commended Najib for attempting to show that his administration was transparent.

“For that I salute him,” said Ibrahim.

Meanwhile, Ibrahim announced that Perkasa's second national gathering will take place on Feb 26 at Pasir Salak, Perak, the site of JWW Birch's slaying by Maharajalela and his assistant Sepuntum in 1874.

Mahathir will officiate the event that is themed 'Bersatu teguh, becerai roboh (together we stand, divided we fall)'.

Ibrahim expects about 15,000 people at the event. Speakers would be talking about the Malay and bumiputera economic agenda.

“This will bring awareness for the Malays and the bumiputera. It is about Malay rights. It is not racist but (an attempt) to ensure we gets a fair share,” he said.

In another report, the Indonesian woman has vehemently denied that she was raped by Information Communication and Culture Minister Rais Yatim.

"The maid, who returned to Central Java after leaving Malaysia, is now living in peace and calm in her tranquil village," said National Agency for Placement and Protection of Indonesian Workers chairman Jumhur.

So, who says the Indonesian woman was raped? She wasn't!!! She is happy and living in peace and prosperity. Who is trying to tarnish Rais Yatim's good reputation? Who? Who?

Perkasa intent to punish those who didn't! But the Chinese didn't say it. But they can't deny that they have to be blamed even if they didn't ... it was their fault; otherwise how can Rais be blamed?

In another surprise news today, the Penang branch chairperson of the Malaysian Malay Contractors Association, Mohammed Fadzill Hassan, tendered his apology to Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng for making various attacks on him.

He said he apologised to Lim for his remarks because Malay contractors now wanted to work closely with the state.

In his latest attack last month, Mohammed Fadzill claimed that the Malay community was only awarded projects of insignificant value.

Utusan Malaysia challenged Lim Guan Eng to provide details of the projects.

In response, the Penang state government released statistics to show that Malay contractors have been getting almost all projects given out by the Pakatan Rakyat administration.

The record showed that 94 percent of the state's Public Works Department (PWD) contracts were awarded to Malay contractors, while the Department of Drainage and Irrigation awarded all of its projects to contractors from that community.

But Perkasa is still upset that there's still 6% that was not awarded to them! 6% is a lot!!! Ibrahim Ali is also a contractor and was not awarded any project. That's not fair to the Malays. How come the Penang Govt did not give half of the 6% to that Malay? That's not fair to the Malays! Perkasa will have to debate this at the Pasir Salak gathering on the Bumiputera economic agenda. They had not being fair to Ibrahim Ali's family and that's against the Bumiputera economic agenda. It's unfair; and Penang better be fairer.

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Read related news at:

Perkasa says no to Teoh royal commission

Indonesian maid denies rape by Rais

Malay contractors apologise to Guan Eng

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My Oscar Award

2010-12-26T22:41:00.003+08:00

Last night, Christmas night, I received a grand surprise - an Oscar trophy - delivered to me by my children - see below

My children gave me a nice gift for Christmas - the Best Dad Award!

They must have bought it at the shopping complex or gift shop.

Things like this is surely touching. My heart smile with delight; it is truly the most delighting gift I had ever received from my children.

Thank you, my dear and precious children. I love all of you. I surely hope that I had been a good dad; if I had not, I will surely do my best to be one.

Merry Christmas to everyone. I'll be back to office tomorrow.

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