To Whom It May Concern...

Queen: "Friends will be friends"

Another red letter day,
So the pound has dropped and the children are creating,
The other half ran away,
Taking all the cash and leaving you with the lumber,
Got a pain in the chest,
Doctors on strike what you need is a rest

It's not easy love, but you've got friends you can trust,
Friends will be friends,
When you're in need of love they give you care and attention,
Friends will be friends,
When you're through with life and all hope is lost,
Hold out your hand cos friends will be friends right till the end

Now it's a beautiful day,
The postman delivered a letter from your lover,
Only a phone call away,
You tried to track him down but somebody stole his number,
As a matter of fact,
You're getting used to life without him in your way

It's so easy now, cos you got friends you can trust,
Friends will be friends,
When you're in need of love they give you care and attention,
Friends will be friends,
When you're through with life and all hope is lost,
Hold out your hand cos friends will be friends (right till the end).................

It has been a rather disturbing last few days and I am more so saddened by the fact that I am not entitled to have an opinion. I hold out an olive branch in one hand and reminisce an old saying............."a friend is one who knows everything, and I mean EVERYTHING about you, BUT loves you just the same" !

two scores and four years ago....

....on this day, you literally sent your mother "into labour" on Labour Day.....Happy birthday darling, for being there always as my pillar of strength !

* and to all workers of the world....Happy Labour Day !

when an old rogue speakth.........

“The Opposition coalition is weak and is built on political convenience and this could collapse anytime when you compare it to long-term working relations between parties in Barisan,”

-quote- the Barisan Nasional Backbenchers Club (BBC) deputy chairman Datuk Bung Mokhtar Radin-unquote.
( read here )

This is the same moron who is still one of those permanently hanging in my "rogues' gallery"( here ) for uttering that infamous "bocor"(leaking) remark. Remember him ? Let me up-date you of inmates in my rogues' gallery....... Yes ...he thinks we are fools to have forgotten his calibre as an MP who wasted tax-payers' money in the august house with stupid sexists remarks instead of spending quality parliamentarian time for the benefit of the rakyat ! The other thinks he is "Italian" and is making a come-back with a recent "grope" issue (still keeping in-line with that racist remark ? ) in a cigar shop but thinks he has "escaped" persecution ( with some very powerful hands moving the pawns ?) but a good lawyer thinks otherwise and as police investigations are underway we'll have to wait and see ! And yet another from that same gallery has gone totally "blind" to the cheers and approval of the "renaissance" of this nation ! Good for "ignorant" him !

Now back to this "bocor" MP......... can I ask what his contribution to his constituency in Kinabatangan are ? He seem to be lashing out at "Anwar's unethical political gimmick in wooing BN Member's of Parliament cross-over to the Opposition"....... no ? Is he afraid of the "new" Opposition's take on arrogant and corrupt BN MPs and that he too will suffer the humiliation, if or when exposed ?? Or does this sooth-saying, "bocor" MP live by any ethics in the first place ?

There seem to be an air of "anticipating fear" from all non-performing, corrupt and arrogant MPs of BN (and who should have known better...if only !) and rather than be caught or exposed by some loud-mouthed Opposition MP in that sacred house come Monday, will jump/abandon ship just so as to be in the "right" camp and will seek that impending "immunity" when that time comes ! Or so they think !

So Anwar should not be too hastily ambitious, if so are his intentions, in his quest for making the "numbers" to form his "new government"........... otherwise God bless Malaysia and all Malaysians !

Who's holding the baby now ?

Last night as I was watching BBC's World News- 30 minutes of Hardtalk interview by Stephen Sackur with the former Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir, I couldn't help but notice Tun's body language. He was uncomfortably grimacing many times and at one point even had to take a sip of water.

Sackur was grilling the Tun ( and this depends on which/whose angle you want to look from !) on issues of the Judiciary, Anwar, ISA, dictatorship, equal distribution as in the NEP, his wrong choice of a successor Pak Lah, press freedom and Tun did take it in his usual stride to answer albeit answering questions citing other governments/countries as examples to what does not constitute as a straight answer to the questioned and issues closer to home.

Of course putting Pak Lah or anyone else for that matter, in that same position would have been even more disastrous but it was Tun here, so it agitates me to hear him shift the entire malfunctioning of this current government on the current administration. This government as it is, indeed corrupted, as the Tun accuses, is a product of his then administration. Remember he had 22 years to right the wrongs (and boy, there were many) and then, when he left, by his own choice of successor Pak Lah, and thus is now left standing with Tun's "cancerous" baby ! The rest is history as everything took to an even new and greater level in chaotic proportions too as we, the matured Malaysian know and have witnessed, until March 8, 2008 that is, when all hell broke loose !

Now pointing fingers is so passe and might even open a bigger can of worms ! And that, with all due respect, is MY opinion on this issue !

*23-4-2008-update on videos-courtesy of hanief.blogspot.com

No copper in sight !

Where have all the coppers gone ?? Crime rate is soaring to dizzying heights in the city and in the suburbs but what is being done ?? I have decided that we must have the laziest police force in the world, right ?? Read here .

The police are nowhere to be seen and are only seem to be seen at "mamak" stalls at any time of day ! They must be the hungriest people doing nothing all day and yet are positioned for better pay ( to counter bribe taking ) , better housing, better allowance, better uniforms, better working hours, better working conditions and better cooperation from us tax-paying citizens !! Why ? Just why do we need to give them all the "better this and that" mentioned above just so they can sit on their bottoms and demand for more ??

Equipped with this knowledge is what makes all those psychos and snatch thieves in our neighbourhood so daring ! Knowing the police are nowhere nearby and it takes a good 30 minutes before they get their arses to the crime scene !

Snatch thefts are the most common of crimes and the easiest to get away scott-free and these thieves are getting more bold as to even break windows of cars and grab handbags of the victim ( especially lone lady drivers) at road junctions ! Now if we had foot-patrol and policemen on motor-bikes patrolling vigilantly at all parts and all day long instead of in patrol-cars.......snatch thieves on motor-bikes would not brazenly commit such vile acts.... right ? See a thief on a motor-bike can easily escape into small lanes or into "no entry" roads to shake-off an ensuing patrol-car ! And don't give me that lame-duck excuse of not having enough man-power....I've seen hundreds and hundreds of police personnel sent religiously to cordon peaceful marches and ceremas organised by harmless citizens for no apparent reason !

Mr IGP sir, get off your butt and your high horse and send your men out on motorbikes everywhere in and around the city and make my home a safer place ! Otherwise get out !
It is your job to rid the nation clean of thieves and give every citizen a feeling of security as we walk down any street in the country !

I once called the local police station to ask why I had not seen any patrol car cruising in my neighbourhood at night and the reply was "Dia orang muda dan baru, malas nak patrol lah encik..... saya operator saja !" (they were young and new and were lazy to patrol, sir,.... I'm only an operator !!) Can you imagine that ?

Now you know why the crime rate is soaring ??

khinzir terbang !

Of recent reports of protest over the integrated "khinzir" issue and of the location of these farms is getting me all riled-up and I find it absolutely hypocritical.

After all let us not pretend the government does not profit in terms of revenue on taxes, right ? Like all those 4-D outlets, casino, slot machines in places of entertainment and race courses licensed and approved by the government ?.... that's business as usual ??

Otherwise why did the Selangor state government go on a "lawatan sambil belajar"( see here ! ) to visit pig farms in Germany and the Netherlands....... and that too with public tax-payers money, huh ?? If there is money to be made OR spend.... compromises are made. Why ?

Yes of course there is an even bigger market out there with huge profits to be made for the farmers and the government, in pig farming, that is - if implemented with an open-mind ( and religious sensitivities adhered to ! ) and managed the modern way and if you are really curious, click here ........hmmm....... otherwise all the "belajar" in the "lawatan" is wasted including your "taxed ringgits"!!

Education (of any kind) is always good for the nation!

Citizen Nades and one expensive "chick" !

• Grants RM1.18 million
• Meals and Accommodation RM2.1 million

• Media and Advertising RM932,000

• Post and Production RM710,000

• Printing and Stationery RM710,000

• Rental of Equipment RM865,400

• Volunteers’ Allowances RM242,000

• Wages RM117,700

• Entertainment RM1.4 million

• Travelling and Transportation RM858,000

Pheeew !.........................and for the rest of the expose' click here
Cheers !!!...this is Malaysia folks !!

of sins of their fathers ?

Well, well....well, what can you say about son's coming to the defense of their fathers ? ( here )

It is very sad indeed when a son has to be the one who has to clear the name of his own daddy even if that daddy is a rotter and is standing accused of an awful lot of misdeeds. Reasoning becomes blind and family name has to be redeemed..... at any cost ! Yes.....on one corner we have a former premier and on the other a stalwart of the opposition and who have both seen better days and coming to their defense are their sons !

Both respective sons, distinguished in their own right..... are blind to reality, and will swear on their fathers and will see no evil in their father's past sins, but of course, pray tell me, which child would speak ill of his father more so when "such prestigious family" name is at stake ? Hmmmm....maybe unless they are disowned ! Why would these sons also risk their "budding" political careers and be dragged through mud for their father's sins ? Even now as they continue to stand on opposite ends of their political beliefs and camps they are not letting-up where their father's left-off !

I see no end to this "accusing/defending" bickering by the 2 sons and only God can judge their fathers, when that time comes......and the rest of you back-off !

With all due respect, both these sons should just shut-up because their arguements here in the Malaysian context is obvoiusly very biased and won't convince us tax-paying citizens...right ?? And we the long suffering rakyat know the better of the 2 evils ! Don't we ?

from the mouths of babes..... !

What does Love mean?
A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8 year-olds, "What does love mean?"

The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think:

---

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore.
So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love." Rebecca-age 8

---

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different.
You just know that your name is safe in their mouth." Billy-age 4

---

"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other." Karl-age 5

---

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs." Chrissy-age 6

---

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired." Terri-age 4

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"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK." Danny-age 7

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"Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more.
My Mommy and Daddy are like that.They look gross when they kiss" Emily -age 8

---

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen." Bobby-age 7 (Wow!)

---

"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate," Nikka-age 6
(we need a few million more Nikka's on this planet)

---

"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday." Noelle-age 7

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"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well." Tommy-age 6

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"During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling.
He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore." Cindy-age 8

---

"My mommy loves me more than anybody
You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night." Clare-age 6

---

"Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken."Elaine-age 5

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"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford." Chris-age 7

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"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day." Mary Ann-age 4

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"I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones." Lauren-age 4

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"When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you." (what an imagination) Karen-age 7

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"Love is when Mommy sees Daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross." Mark-age 6

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"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget." Jessica-age 8

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And the final one-Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge. The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child.
The winner was a four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said,

"Nothing, I just helped him cry"

A Towering Malaysian !!

I met this impressionable young, tanned and athletic gentleman last night...though honestly it was an embarrassing moment for me......see I didn't know him from Adam !

He introduced himself as Joe....hmmm...so...,ok another regular and polite Joe, who spoke with an accent, I thought and left it out of my head and continued doing what I was doing and it took me a good 15 minutes after his host had told me he was a Malaysian cycling or keirin track champion preparing to represent Malaysia at the Beijing Olympics !... hmmm....still didn't stick so when they both went downstairs to have their dinner I continued browsing the net on Malaysian cyclists upstairs (here) and then it hit me......yes, this was Josiah Ng ! The Malaysian Olympian of the year 2004 in the flesh !

How could I not know of him....huh ? Well call me ignorant if you like but honestly I have heard this name vaguely but not enough to leave a lasting impression except now for his handsome smile flashing a nice set of teeth ! Maybe he was not a "house-hold name" in my books so when I had finished surfing the net, I sauntered downstairs to join him while he was having Loy's famous "mee Hailam"( less oil and no seafood, please !) and "chillified" omelette and a glass of fresh orange !

Talking to him for a few minutes over his meal made me realise, here was a young man totally committed and passionate in his discipline- track sprint cycling or keirin ! He spoke of his training in Melbourne and of the level of "world class" standards set by his trainer/coach John Beasley who single-handedly and without an entourage of fitness/physical and technical staff as others would have, due to a lack of funds, and whose methods are absolutely light years ahead, as he puts it, from the facilities in our self-acclaimed boasts ! And he confesses he is one proud Malaysian to be representing us !

Joe is a reservoir of knowledge (perhaps from the many years he spent learning, training and participating in races in countries the world over ! ) when it comes to ways and ideas to improve our standards of cycling and the suggestions totally baffled me ! Very good indeed !

Somebody out there in authority and in the related sport, LISTEN to him please and I plead cos there will come a time in the not too distant future when cycling is not going to put "food on this young man's table" and that is the time he'd be looking out for more lucrative and greener pastures....so go engage, LISTEN, tap the ideas and learn from this young man NOW before it's too late to regret !!

He left soon after dinner to rest....but Joe... you are no average Joe but Josiah Ng....a towering Malaysian and I'm proud to be of your acquaintance !

May you carry the Malaysian flag high and our hopes proudly, in Beijing, Josiah Ng............Cheers and Godspeed !

BTW this 28 year old also blogs (here) and has a website (here)
*pic-from my 3G handphone

Oh...Azalina...not you again !

Thursday April 3, 2008

Azalina: Tourism MoUs with Opposition-ruled states to be terminated....... (here) and today.....

Tuesday April 8, 2008

The Tourism Ministry has been urged to reconsider its controversial decision to terminate its memorandum of understanding on tourism with Pakatan Rakyat-held states. ( here)




This is indeed the most despicable action by a Minister of the Tourism Ministry !! My... oh..my...what childish behaviour ! And this smacks as a punishment to all the voters (both for and against ) in the current Pakatan Rakyat-controlled states by the Barisan Nasional after the "insulting" trashing they got in the last GE !!

Just whose money does she thinks she's messing with, huh ?? This Minister is acting like she is paying-out from her own pocket or her grand father's bank account, and forgetting that she is using the tax-payers monies (read yours and mine !) for these allocations !

Shame on you Datuk Azalina Othman.....shame on you and the Ministry you are in charge of, and shame on the sore losers in the Pak Lah administration to take a unilateral decision such as this !! It is best at this point of time that the entire Barisan Nasional cabinet resign en-bloc ! Because Pak Lah's team has no regards for all those in the Pakatan Rakyat-run states and to those who actually even voted for the Barisan Nasional ! Obvious and blatant selective persecution, one would say, right ??

Instead of looking for a win-win solution and forging towards for a better future as one would hope for, she resorts to this "tit-for-tat" attitude !! It is beyond me how her little mind works...and you, my dear Azalina, really,.... do you really care for the rakyat's well being at all ?? My arse !

*poster- courtesy of TV Smith

“BETTER the devil you know than the angel you don't”

Partai Islam SeMalaysia or PAS often conveys a fundamentalist, hard-line image to non-Muslims. Getting behind the rhetoric, Insider's DEBRA CHONG shows there's a more engaging, even openly embracing, side to some PAS politicians.

“BETTER the devil you know than the angel you don't”. Those familiar with this phrase by Ethiopian satirist Hama Tutu usually hear it advocated in the face of change, when those in power anticipate a revolt.

In Shah Alam, however, some 2,000 Christians have learnt that it's better to embrace the unknown entity than to put up with and suffer a known demon.

On March 27, Khalid Abdul Samad became the first elected Muslim Member of Parliament to step into the Roman Catholic Church of the Divine Mercy since it was completed in 2005. The congregation gave him a standing ovation.

Perhaps more stunning is that Khalid is from Parti Islam SeMalaysia and was the one to initiate contact. And he reassured the Christians in attendance that they could continue to use the word “Allah” in their worship without fear of persecution.

Previously, the federal government had banned Christians from using the word “Allah” in referring to God in their worship for fear that it would confuse the Muslim Malays and lead them astray from Islam. Bibles printed in the national language were also seized. This was reversed sometime last year, but the damage was already done.

Khalid said that in all Arabic-speaking communities, “Allah” just means “God”, therefore it is not “unique to Islam”. He had once attended church in the Middle East and heard a Christian priest preach in Arabic with no trouble.

“For us, the problem is we're not an Arabic-speaking country. Therefore some people question why non-Muslims have to use this word when it is not really necessary. People then make all sorts of speculations about idealogy. But there's no reason for the word to be banned from Christian worship. We're quite happy if people use it.

“It's not just my personal opinion but is consistent with the party's view. Basically it shouldn't be any problem. And I made it quite clear to the people in church that night,” Khalid explained over the phone yesterday.

The parishioners were especially impressed that Khalid was the one who approached them.“It was his own initiative. He contacted our parish priest, Father Paulino Miranda, and said he wanted to come and talk to us,” Joseph Victor, chairman of the church's parish pastoral council told The Malaysian Insider on behalf of Fr Paulino who is away on sabbatical till April 18.

“That's a good sign. Everybody was very happy. This is the first time a Pas MP is coming to a Catholic church. It shows they're not against Catholic churches,” he added.

It was the first time an MP for Shah Alam had, unasked and unaided, actively engaged the non-Muslim community in public discourse in their own backyard, at least on this side of the peninsular. It spurred a parishioner, Tony Yew, to blog about the experience on his newly created website (http://myblog-tv.blogspot.com/2008/03/pas-mp-of-shah-alam-yb-khalid-abd-samad.html).

“What was evident from the points raised by those who could get their voices heard was crystal clear, abundance of local council issues and the fear of 'subtle religious' persecution.

“With no one to turn to, YB Khalid took all the questions one by one and stressed that the newly-formed coalition government of PKR-Pas-DAP (in no order) was one of consensus by nature,” he wrote.

But Khalid was quick to disclaim credit for the unprecedented move. He said the discourse was made possible because of the mixed effort on both sides.

“Our people working in the (Shah Alam) area heard that the parish priest was campaigning for change in the elections and advocated the congregation to use their votes to bring about change,” said Khalid.

He recounted that he wanted to speak to them, to thank them for giving the Opposition their mandate for change. “I tried my best to answer most of the questions. We talked about government policies, about discrimination – there shouldn't be any! – enforcement and implementation, which would require more detailed explanations, but I just talked about it in short.”

HAPPY BIRTHDAY !

ohhh.....Azalina !.....ohhh.... Mahdzir !

Below are some of the excerpts(in italics) from the main stream media over the past few days which I produce here for your evaluation against your better judgement.... ( parenthesis-my take ! )

Tourism Minister Azalina Othman Said believes that the PKR-DAP-PAS alliance will not last long given their different policies, unlike the BN which had the same manifesto for all. “Politics is a marriage of convenience. Politicians can say anything they want to gain the people’s support. “Maybe Pakatan Rakyat will work for a month or a year but it will break up in the end as they are too different,” she added.

Well Azalina...why can't you accept the fact that your cyber-troopers failed miserably in their plot to discredit real and truthful news from reaching the voting citizens of the nation, huh ? And you do admit politicians (meaning YOU too !) will say anything to gain the people's support ?... (like now ??) What do you think of Malaysians of today huh ?......stupid to "buy" any spin woven to them ? The sooner you give credence to blogs( not a generalisation ) the better it will be for you and all the "dinosaur" BN politicians to get into the real and present world of alternative media...i.e. computer savvy !

You sound like a real "sour grape" or "prune" when you say Pakatan Rakyat will break up after a month or a year ! Well the BN had an over-stay of some 50 years and look what happened huh ?.... they are "on the rocks" too now...what have you to say to that ! The BN too were "too different" all along......always playing up the race-riots and religious issues ? It was just a matter of time my dear...a matter of time and NOW is that time !

Kedah BN chairman Mahdzir Khalid pointed out that the DAP had on many occasions objected to Pas' intention of creating an Islamic state.

"Now, they are talking about a grouping to work on common goals. I seriously doubt their sincerity."

He said it was common knowledge that Pas president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang and DAP chairman Karpal Singh had been at loggerheads over the Islamic state plan. "The tripartite grouping is merely a political expediency. That is all and it will not last."
In contrast, he said the component parties under the BN enjoyed a good working relationship.
"The main parties - Umno, MCA and MIC - have worked together for more than 50 years.
"This relationship has served as a strong foundation for the ruling party to serve the people well."

And to the Kedah state BN chairman,what can I say ? ......hmmmm ! Even if the DAP had been in loggerheads with PAS....what's there for him to comment here and now ? Is there no bitching and in-fighting in BN or more precisely within UMNO, MIC and MCA then and even right now ?? What foundations is he talking about ?? Just look at the pathetic disarrayed display of its coalition members within first, please !

Yes there can be difference amongst the Pakatan Rakyat coalition but at least there's room for all to sit down and agree on one vision...that of the Bangsa Rakyat Declaration ! And hey...it's now only less then a month since they got together and given time and patience they can and will come to an agreement and compromise as to the "fair" treatment and level playing field for all of the various races that make-up this great nation. And trust me , we will always keep a keen and critical eye on that because this Pakatan Rakyat coalition KNOWS the power of the blogs and not sweepingly brush us off as a non-entity and with names of aminals too, like the people of the BN had ! Meanwhile enjoy the rest of your "stay-in-power" Azalina and Mahdzir !
Cheers !

MORON of the week !

A.Sivasubramaniam-(DAP)
Buntong Assemblyman
(To coincide with "all fools day" )
* for pulling an idiotic stunt (here) !!