No smoke without fire !

Have you noticed the pictorial warnings on cigarette packets these days ?
It really is traumatising to view the pictures, especially the picture of a baby !.... but hey.....our Health Ministry in Malaysia has made a booboo again of the warning messages !

Just take a good look at the warnings written on both sides of each cigarette packet in English and Bahasa (go get a pack and read for yourselves...the photos are "al blur" ...taken with my cell-phone camera in bad light !)

Cigarettes don't cause miscarriages or throat and mouth cancer ! Trust me...if they really caused death via the above said diseases then all employees of cigarette manufacturing and distributing companies would have died or would be stricken with the diseases, right ?
It is SMOKING cigarettes that causes the above listed deformities...."smoking cigarettes" and not cigarettes, stupid !

Guess some big cigarette company will be suing the Health Ministry for misleading advertisements, yes ? Or would they just slyly grin and say, "semuanya okay "?

Which bring me to the point of the double standards set by this government......did you know of the millions of "business loan" ringgits granted to tobacco farmers/ planters, big and small, in the eastern states of our peninsular ?

Now why would the government approve such grants/loans in the first place and then spend millions again on "Tak Nak" cigarette campaigns and threaten the very livelihood of these farmers and their families, huh ? Will they consider banning the import of cheap cigarette lighters from China next...."no light...no fire" so nobody can light his cigarette....huh ?

All this pictures are making me "sick".......hmmmm.....got to end now for a "cigarette break"...to calm my nerves !

are we not all sons of Adam ?

Maybe I just want to be mischievous but seriously with all these talk of non-Muslims barred from using the word "Allah" in print or in sermons and banning other words like "Altantuya" and "Mongolia" in our speech is getting way out of hand in this multi-ethnic and diversely beautiful country of ours ! We have been systematically divided ! By whom....that is the big question, no ?

With all due respect to everyone, I'm not prejudiced neither am I a racist. I grew-up in the most culturally mixed neighbourhood back in Taiping. Ask anyone from Taiping and they'll tell you about "respect" "unity" and "harmony" in Taiping back in the 60's and 70's !

All my life, I ( and almost every other Malaysian irrespective of race or religion) have in an excited instance shouted "allah mak " or "ya tuhan" when we hear of an astonishing piece of news or gossip whether good or bad in our daily conversation, yes ? So how now....with this ban ?

Why do I say this ? If the word Allah was for the exclusive utterance of my Muslim brothers only in this country then it goes against every Malaysian Muslim to stand in attention, patriotically, and proudly singing the "national anthem" for king and country ! Let's take a look at the lyrics of our national anthem.....(please stand !)

Negaraku
Tanah tumpahnya darahku
Rakyat hidup bersatu dan maju
Rahmat bahagia Tuhan kurniakan
Raja kita selamat bertakhta
Rahmat bahagia Tuhan kurniakan
Raja kita selamat bertakhta.

Its idiomatic translation is:

My country, my native land
The people living united and progressive
May God bestow His blessings and happiness
May our Ruler have a successful reign
May God bestow His blessings and happiness
May our Ruler have a successful reign.

Should not the word "Tuhan" be substituted with "Allah" for my Muslim brethren ?

And for good measure, our courts ( sounds like a joke, right ?) have prohibited the Christians and the Sikhs from using this revered word Allah........so go here and see what the good Dr. Zakir Naik has to say !

And I am hoping with our new PM and in an educated and matured nation like ours, we would be able to exercise greater freedom of speech and expression in our own responsible way !

What do I say when in excitement now huh...."pukimak" ?..... that's not a very nice thing to say, right ? Sheeesh !!

this one's for you Ina !

Well, my fb friend Ina Monde (pic) wrote this piece I am posting (in italic) below in verbatim which I think is worthy of mention... an everyday hazard kids face. It is also every parent's silent prayer for their kids safe return from school ! And boy , it sure needs some urgent addressing by the various authorities and the public at large !

Have we become soooooo bloody stupid when we get behind the wheel or even when on a motorbike ? I for one have never seen a motor-cyclist completely coming to a halt at a red-light.....they somehow stop carelessly throttling to see if there are any cops around and before you know it.....vrooom they're off, with no regard to wait for the light to turn green !

How effective are cameras at selected street junctions ? Maybe they should have an in-built camera that go snap-snap on the red and amber lights itself ! Then again.....do the authorities really care....when their own kids are chauffeured to and from whereveeeeeer ??

Thank you Ina....and Godbless !
This is her story......

I was driving back from sending Chay Chay to school and came to a pedestrian crossing traffic light. The light turned red and naturally I stopped. A boy of about 12 was on the left side of the road waiting for the lights to turn green so he can cross the road.

Suddenly on my left, a van filled full factory workers screeched beside me and stopped just in time. On my right, a car slowed down but didn’t totally come to a halt and when I turned to look at the driver, he was peering around trying to see if there is anybody trying to cross the road. I bet you penny to a pound that he would have just sped off if not for the fact that he can see the boy timidly taking his hesitant steps, looking at us anxiously while crossing the road.

I followed the boy with my eyes as he paced and he too locked his eyes on us, probably not confident that the red light is enough to stop the traffic. A few motorbikes disrespectfully whizzed pass behind the boy making my blood curdle. As soon as the boy crossed the first 3 lanes, the van and the car on my right and left went off without waiting for the green light. I looked at them and cursed under my breath, like as if this is the first time I'd seen that. The boy crossed successfully through the next 3 lane road and I thank the heavens above for that.

This is what I see every day and at every road I take. I am sure all parents who has schooling children shares my concern on this matter. Even if you are not, the thought of your loved ones exposed to this kind of avoidable danger is horrifying. What goes on the minds of these drivers, I cannot imagine but I wonder what would their minds be thinking if its their kids who were trying to cross the road and something like the above happened? Would they just slow down but not halt relying on the judgment of a kid to understand that he can still cross the road but he better make it fast. The best part is some of the more abiding motorist would have been given the honk for stopping at pedestrian crossings.

So, where is the root cause of the problems? How did we become so uncaring? So many traffic campaigns have been launched but it seems it falls on deaf ears. As children, we were taught some of the traffic aspects like how to cross the road, what are zebra crossings etc. However, once we got our wheels, all the things we learned seemed to be ignored. The sentiment that almost everybody have is, as long as it is not somebody I know, it didn’t matter that much, I need to rush to that destination, pronto!

I think it comes down to love. We don’t love enough. We don’t feel enough. We don’t care enough. We feel so heart broken for the victims of calamities and tragedy cases around the world but we don’t pay two hoot on the calamities that we can avoid on our roads.

Frankly, I am not one to complain without giving possible solutions but all the solutions I can think of have already been carried out. Fines, media awareness, deterrent traffic offense police, gadgets, jail sentences…you name it, we have tried it! I have run out of avenues. Is there anything else that can be done to coax our motorists not to be so selfish? Should there be re branding in our campaigns and make it more children oriented? Can Yasmin Ahmad concoct one of those tearful advertisements that feature young people as victims? Maybe our scientists can come up with a 'love' pill, prescribed to those with the selfish driver symptoms.

Would turning to the divine power be too cliche? Everyday, on top of sending my kids to school myself, I pray for my kids and all the kids in the school so that they are protected from heartless Malaysian motorists. I wonder sometimes, these kids, what kind of motorist would they be one day, having presented with our examples?

Could something like this work?

Time-out !

This video- clip gave me goose-bums.....now you enjoy this ! And I think what Amanda said in the final analysis rings true......very very true !!
* Please buffer-up for the full 7:34 minutes and then watch the clip.....enjoy !
p.s.Thanks, John W!

....not again, Sam !

Aiyoyoo Samy....please make up your mind lah...... !!! (read here )

Either you're in or out man. Don't be so indecisive, as going by the way you're running YOUR party for over 30 years and since your 11th. "hands-down" win in the recent MIC election and the by-elections in Perak and Kedah where you were definitely seen as irrelevant- take my advice and GET OUT while you're still ahead !

Do you think you would be considered for a senatorship with threats ? Just leave those other 3 where they are and you do the nation a big favor, okay ?

Better still resign lah...and criticise from the side-lines.....that way you can still "demand" what little respect you have as the longest serving politician in Malaysia !

And while you're still about, do check-out your randy-dandy dentist member cum branch leader of yours who has not only been just doing "fillings" in a teenager's mouth ! ( here)

* And to all my Sikh brethren wherever you are...."A Blessed Baisakhi" !

this one's for you, doc' !

So my good doctor Shafi came up with the simplest and perhaps the most comprehensive way to do damage control ! He reckons all our so called YB's and wannabe YB's touch base with the "rakyat" in the most unceremonious of ways. And that is the ONLY way to go about and not just giving hand-shakes during election campaign time alone too !

Have you noticed how our YB's go about at in "ceremahs" ? Yes they are always surrounded by an entourage of "important-looking" people ( always a bunch of local vips and some in suits too !) who make this YB they are escorting "so important" that it practically freezes the simple and individual "rakyat" from actually expressing what he really feels whilst being made "inferior" and under glaring stares by these "hangers-on" ? And to think that at the most crucial of times (as in the actual election day itself !) it is this one individual's singular vote that's gonna make the difference whether the YB gets elected or not, yes ?

These so called "vip's" are always placed seated in big comfortable cushioned chairs right in front at "ceremahs" and that individual is left lurking/standing at the back of the hall completely ignored by the "waving" YB. These YB's don't make that lowly individual feel as important ! But that individual MATTERS....... with his vote !

The good doctor goes on to say, that if a certain YB can really , without any "entourage" but by himself unannounced and without fanfare meet any individual "mano' a mano' " in the street, a coffee shop, a humble home or even round the corner, rolls up his sleeves ( here.....ala Obama ) and sits down to LISTEN to that individual (whether he's an office worker, labourer of even a street bum ) and ask him or her the real issues that he/she would like to see change in the coming election, at least that one individual, come election time will stop and remember his choice of candidate....someone whom he'd met before and who had LISTENED to his views and that's all that matters, right ?

Arrogance and pompousness puts the ordinary and simple "prospective" voter off ! He'd be able to warn-up to this lone YB away from the vips and body-guards and speak from his heart to the YB. But the YB has to be sincerely concerned of that lowly individual's grouses and views and be able to explain what he, IF elected can or cannot do in his capacity ....otherwise it will be a wasted effort if he (the YB) was hypocritical in the first place !

The crux of the matter is THAT individual, matters and that alone converts into votes ! Not a YB who comes around with a "bus-load entourage" only at election time to give speeches and condemning his challenger !

Sounds simple huh, yes ?

Cheers doc' !

* YB translates as "Yang Berkhidmats" and shall remain so !

Bukit Gantang by-election (7-4-2009)

Well folks, by the time you see this post you'd know the out-come of the results, yes ? Okay so PAS won by a good 2,789 majority. But let's have a look at what I saw, as seen through the lens of my camera and on a motor-bike around the Trong area, in Bukit Gantang today. Here goes....


...probably the best selling mask for this by-election....... ....fishing for votes....this guy actually dangled a RM10.00 note at passing motorists displaying the opposition posters or flag...... ....and Husam Musa too "turun padang" to meet the voters......hmmm..... ......a campaigner with arms raised cursing the driver for displaying an opposition flag and voting for the wrong party.......or so he seemed to stress...... ....of course I will not miss out the pretty maidens, eagerly posing for me, near Trong..... ....and another angry campaigner.... perhaps giving the car a flying kick ? ....more angry party members slamming a van for displaying the wrong poster ? ....and they stood side by side in the beginning....and then they took to the other side of the road....
...my favorite campaign "exhibit" decorated with Altantuya's photos and a "corpse" atop a car.....but sadly this car and driver were arrested and secretly hidden behind the Padang Gajah Police Station....... when I had to sneak into a neighbouring kampung house and "shoot" this photo..... Dato Hj. Mustafa Ali (PAS election director) and Surianarayanan (PAS support club,Manager in Perak) middle left and right respectively with Sungei Rotan campaign workers. ....button badges adorn this man.....who needs a bullet-proof vest ? ...and the heat was too much to bear......so a little rest under the shade would do me good too, but.......I had a large area to cover.....the entire Bukit Gantang ....... ....more action and taunting between the sides ! frustration and anger written all over this guy's face as he stares at the antics from across the road...... ...our Light Strike Force keeping the peace between the sides...... .....more face-offs between the sides....

There you go folks.....by the time I finished my tour of Bukit Gantang......I was soaked to the skin.......and I arrived back at the hotel around 6pm.tired but excited as I knew I was going back to a warm shower and a cold beer....okay....a few beers lah !

Good night folks, sleep well and cheers !!!

beware the judases' amongst us !

Somebody I met by chance here in Taiping asked me what will happen to the government servants of Perak IF BN won in Bukit Gantang. My answer was simple.......nothing, as long as you have taken a solemn oath of office to serve the public and work as honestly to your conscience and pledge to up-hold good governance to the government and ruler of the day !

I asked him who he'd be voting for tomorrow (BUT cautioned him that he did not have to answer me and that his vote was a secret ) and he replied he will vote for PAS. Fine I said, but were you not in the government service before March 8, 2009 and he replied in the affirmative, but had a boss still sympathetic to the old government under BN and since the recent "coup" by that Pangkor UMNO fellow, his boss has been sneakily watching his every move.

I have in one of my postings pre-March 8, 2008 written about this. Yes, Judases' are people from any previous regime in any government sectors are in position to sabotage entire contingency plans made by the current government, making proposed plans impossible and likely to crumble....just as to please their former "masters" so that the old regime can at some time later play-up and criticise the successors out of pure hatered and jealousy. All in the name of POLITICS !

We have clearly seen the out-come of such grand plans "crushed" by these Judases' and used as damning factors at ceramahs by the now "irrelevant" factions at all by-elections since March 8 2008, have we not ?

In parting I told him to vote wisely and to use his heart and his head ! The future of his children also depended on the wisdom he exercises in tomorrow's by-election !

And to all in Bukit Gantang, Bukit Selambau and Batang Ai voters......"think hard" as you lay on your beds tonight !

Cheers !

....and the people are getting angry.......very angry !!

Came back to my hometown Taiping again, but this time there was no rain...looks like there will be sunshine for the next few days....but then again let's hope against hope, cos it's Taiping that we're talking about here.

Seriously folks,the reason for my visit so soon was last night's ceremah in Simpang, a junction town just outside of Taiping and about 4km. west from the town-centre.

A dinner organised by Perak DAP and supposedly dubbed the "mother of all ceremahs" with an all-star ensemble of heavy-weights from PAS, KeAdilan and the DAP.

And the tickets for the 5,000 odd audience were snapped-up within a few hours of the announcement. There were people everywhere and this sleepy hollow called Simpang, which was the focal point for the first railway line between Taiping and Port Weld ( now known as Kuala Sepetang) never saw the likes of such traffic jams ever before.Below I post photos for your viewing pleasure............as we walked into the humble zinc-roofed make-shift area where the dinner was held.....

Tan Seng Giaw mp for Kepong, taking to the mike......
...followed by A. Sivanesan........
then the star of the state.....Dato Seri Nizar, the crowd's favorite appeared, causing such a thunderous uproar from everyone present.....here accepting a bouquet from the lady-folks of DAP.
.....and the "special bunch" took their positions.....
as usual Anwar made an a speech that got everyone demanding for more............as anger on the ground want to see change......
.....Nizar locking hands with Zaid Ibrahim amidst loud and approving cheers from the eager crowd....
even my face-book friend was there.....guess ?
a pensive moment by two veterans as the younger Lim speaks in the back-ground.......
Ronnie Liu, Gobind, Uncle Lim and grand master Nik..........
.......even when Lim Jr. spoke in Mandarin catch words like "Altantuya", "Mongolia" and "derhaka"and to the roars of the audience very little is required to grasp the gist of the speech !
.....this man was probably the oldest person here......hmmmm....but then again not !
.....touching shot of Gobind helping carry dad on the stage............
looking frail but with a fire still burning in his eyes, Karpal said he felt "safe" in this crowd,unlike his recent face-off with the rowdy UMNO Youths in the lobby of the parliament...
....watched attentively by his son.....the "Puchong Panther"..........
.....and yes, even busy Jeff Ooi mp for Jelutong checking his messages......surely hoping he could be in 5 places at any given time.....

beware the prophets......

This by-election ( and the other 2 in Bukit Selambau and Batang Ai ) is crucial for the people of Bukit Gantang and of couse, Perak my state ! They will come bearing "gift" and promises of "goodies" but surely you Perakians have seen it all before, yes ?

So vote wisely.....don't just think of yourselves but of your kids' future too ! Don't let the false "prophets" of doom sway your focus ! Okay ? Because after the 7th. of April 2009 whatever the results you have to live with it and forever hold your peace (piece/piss) !

Cheers !

*pic of Chairman Mao in the lobby of Cherry Inn, Taiping. Get the message ?

Greetings from Taiping !

As sure as it never rains in Southern California, I was greeted with just the opposite as usual as I arrived home in Taiping......the town of my formative years back in the 60's and 70's ! My "kampung"!

Only this time the roads were lined with flags blue and green all the way in. Sorry it doesn't rain in my hometown.......it pours ! So after meeting fellow bloggers Zorro, the Whisperer and Dave, I settled into my room, quickly showered and changed and did what every true blue Taipingite would do........umbrella in hand I strolled over in the rain to what used to be a fellow old Georgian's eatery in old Station Road, and had of course my first plate of the ever famous "Taiping char kuay teow"!

Okay so much about everything that's fantastic in Taiping the "cradle of civilisation"and it's famous food fare ! I was not here for the food, but to actually "feel" the mood on the ground, of the by-election in nearby Bukit Gantang.

We were informed by friends that there was a "ceramah" in Sungei Tinggi, Trong a "kampung" about 35km away and decided to "turun padang" with the gang to see for myself. It sure was a dark and stormy night..... and here I must remind myself to have a serious word with the Wisperer about his rainy-night driving skills.....it was a messy drive all the way there but by the time we arrived there, the rain had eased-up.

No, I did not see the PR's ousted favorite, Nizar nor the BN's local hopeful, Ismail but plenty of police personel everywhere ! What greeted me sure came as a surprise. So I leave you to enjoy the pictures below........and remember, vote wisely, fellow Perakians......vote wisely ! Don't be taken for a ride again and again and again ! Think !

.....seems there is still some place for some more badges, er ?????
....about 50 deep from here......

.....mostly local folks,, braving the over-cast night just to see one person..... was it Nizar.....wrong !

....no...it was for this man......and why do you think he's so happy here ?yes...of course, he's talking about his favorite subject.....the antics of people in BN, and about some foreign country north of China !

....surely these folks are from out of town, even journos perhaps....

...........and they left as soon as this man finished his speech about an hour later !

Cheers and good-night Perakians....wherever you are, come home and vote !

hahahahahahahahahahahaha !!!

click here Samy Vellu ( magnify and read pg.3-right lower corner !!!) ...oh my God.... wakawakawakawakawakakakakakakakak....hahahahah hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
hahahahahahaha"cough"wakawakawaka"cough"haahahahahahahahahahahahaha

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha calling himself a“Dale Carnegian” hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah

hahahahahahakakakakakakakakakahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah
hahahahahahahahahahahahawawawahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha“I studied human psychology and how to influence people.” hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha“I can go into any crowd of Indians and convince them to support the Barisankakakakakakakakakakakawawwakawaka Nasional(BN)”......hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha....stop it Samy....you're killing me.....I cannot take it anymore and I'm having stomach cramps lah !!!! hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah ....tears are rolling down my cheeks....from sheer laughter...hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha....... !! Phew....that felt goooooooooooooooooood !!

....20 million flies can't be wrong !!

Yeah....20 million flies can't be wrong ....that's what I thought and we will be told soon ! See....with so many unanswered questions , it's time someone way up there came out and publicly defended this reason for the "gag" on the word Altantuya, Mongolia or the Perak Sultan's decision to Perakians, during campaigning in all 3 on-going by-elections ! No reasons need to be given and automatically deemed racially sensitive by the Home Ministry !

We the tax-paying rakyat MUST be like cows.....with herd mentality or else..... risk arrest by the police. Just what does the Home Minister think he's doing to the nation ? Everything becomes a threat ! First the use of the word "Allah" for Christians (and Sikhs ?) and now this ! I am fed with threats everytime and I'm pissed-off with all this restrictive and controlled speech !!

Are we not allowed to think or have an opinion at all ? Have we not matured at all ? At least that's what Al-Blur thinks !

Soon our local cartographers will redefined the atlas for students in Malaysia....minus Mongolia, yes ?

....and as to the title of this post, I read in a piss-room of a pub back in the seventies....and it goes like this..."EAT SHIT....20 MILLION FLIES CAN'T BE WRONG" !

Sheeeesh......I'm going home to Taiping !