Stand Up For Malaysia! .

Malaysiakini: Perak defections - Pakatan tastes its own medicine

2009-02-07T23:11:00.000+08:00

So what happens when Badawi suddenly decides to 'hand over' that position of his to Najib? What if I voted for Badawi because I liked him being the Prime Minister but I disagree with Najib being the next one? So, people like me do not have a say when Badawi decides to just allow Najib to 'inherit' the title of Prime Minister. If party defections are enough to call for fresh elections, how is a resigning Prime Minister not?

Politics in Malaysia has been shamefully reduced to unethical methods like party-hopping, defections and 'position inheriting'. This is not true democracy. True democracy lies in the hands of the people - the rakyat who decides who stays and who goes. The politicians do not decide for themselves who we should or should not support! We decide.

Malaysiakini: Perak defections - Pakatan tastes its own medicine

2009-02-07T21:09:00.000+08:00

As unethical party-hopping may be, the same applies to 'position inheritance' as being currently practiced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and his second-in-command, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak. Badawi announced that he will step down in March 2009, making way for Najib to ascend to the country's top post. Is this not 'position inheriting'?

Look at it this way. Badawi did not intend to retire if it wasn't for the heavy losses suffered by the BN in the 2008 March 8 Elections. He naturally took the blame for the poor results as he was also pressured by many groups to make way for a new and 'stronger' leader. But Badawi ran as Prime Minister in the General Elections and people who voted for him genuinely supported him to retain his position.

Malaysiakini: Perak defections - Pakatan tastes its own medicine

2009-02-07T19:07:00.000+08:00

The Perak saga has Najib beating Anwar to his game. There has been suggestions for an anti-hopping law for politicians fond of switching parties while in office but the the High Court declared in 1992 that the anti-hop law was unconstitutional as it went against the freedom of association as enshrined in the Federal Constitution. The Pakatan justified party-hopping in the post -General Election months as it appeared to have the edge in the political race to form a new government.

However, the Pakatan are now calling for the implementation of the anti-hopping law and fresh elections to re-decide the fate of affairs following party defections. Unfortunately, I don't hear them saying the same things when Anwar audaciously predicted mass defections from the BN camp a year ago. Politicians are just hypocritical.

Malaysiakini: Perak defections - Pakatan tastes its own medicine

2009-02-07T17:05:00.000+08:00

Post-March 8 Elections (2008) have seen the Pakatan Rakyat denying the BN its 2/3's parliamentary majority it has always enjoyed. By all means, the BN only managed to retain federal power with landslide victories in Sabah and Sarawak. The so-close-yet-so-far dilemma soon settled in and Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (image) stunned everyone by claiming the Pakatan was able to form a new government by September 16 (2008) with the help of defecting BN MPs - 30 of them. Of course, September 16 came and nothing happened. Personally, I was looking forward to it and was disappointed it did not happen. However, I was glad it didn't because it would not be right to entice opposing MPs to switch loyalties in order to form a new government. It is undemocratic, in my opinion. If the Pakatan wants to do so, they would just have to wait till the next General Elections. That's democracy.

Malaysiakini: Perak defections - Pakatan tastes its own medicine

2009-02-07T15:03:00.000+08:00

This is the ugly side of Malaysian politics. I have personally grown to disagree with party defections simply because it is unethical. Regardless of whether the outcome favours the party I support or not, such methods of gaining power is indeed improper. What is the point of having elections when someday our elected representatives could decide for themselves which ship to jump. Would that constitute as cheating the voters at the end of the day? I believe so.

Say I voted MP Bob, who is running for Party A, because I disliked Party B. And one day, to my horror, MP Bob decides to join Party B. What happens to the votes that put him in office in the first place? Those votes were for Party A too.

Malaysiakini: Perak defections - Pakatan tastes its own medicine

2009-02-07T13:01:00.000+08:00

Malaysiakini: Perak defections - Pakatan tastes its own medicine

2009-02-07T11:11:00.000+08:00

Malaysiakini: Perak defections - Pakatan tastes its own medicine

2009-02-07T08:08:00.000+08:00

Are we anti-war or simply anti-Israel? - malaysiakini

2009-01-17T23:11:00.001+08:00

So, why aren't there any similar protests against the corrupt Mugabe regime in Zimbabwe or the eternal civil war in Somalia? Or what about the time when Hamas and Fatah members were senselessly killing each other to control Gaza a few years ago? Where were the appropriate 'protests for peace' back then?

Racial and religious extremism?

Are we anti-war or simply anti-Israel? - malaysiakini

2009-01-17T21:09:00.001+08:00

Our protests can and will slowly turn into a platform for extremism like anti-Semitic sentiments witnessed across the world recently. Many were calling for the extermination of the entire Jewish population with banners that carry derogatory statements against the Jewish community. Some demonstrations in Europe have even expanded into an almost pro-Nazi rally to call for the death of every Jew; thus reviving one of Europe's darkest history to potentially repeat itself. That sounds like racism to me.

Are we anti-war or simply anti-Israel? - malaysiakini

2009-01-17T19:07:00.001+08:00

Apart from racism, we should also prevent our protests from escalating into a religious cause. The crisis grappling the people of Gaza currently should be viewed from a humanitarian perspective. Umno Youth deputy chief Khairy Jamaluddin was quoted earlier saying the Gaza conflict is a 'humanitarian issue which transcends religion' . And I believe he is right. However, that does not mean religious groups may not come forward to condemn Israel's actions. The Gaza conflict cannot simply be a religious war as people in Gaza are getting killed for the politics of their government, not because of their faith.

Are we anti-war or simply anti-Israel? - malaysiakini

2009-01-17T17:05:00.001+08:00

The United Kingdom is currently on high alert as they fear that the Gaza conflict may fan religious extremist thoughts among the general public [link]. France and Sweden are also monitoring the situation as violence due to racial and religious extremism are currently on the rise [link].

Are we anti-war or simply anti-Israel? - malaysiakini

2009-01-17T15:03:00.001+08:00

It's not about religion or politics, it's about the innocent people of Palestine

Are we anti-war or simply anti-Israel? - malaysiakini

2009-01-17T13:01:00.001+08:00

If we do take to the streets again, it is only right to ensure that the rallies organised are in support of the Palestinian people. Recent events have already shown that there are many who are oblivious to the harsh reality of Palestinian politics while there are also some who protest simply because it is against Israel. Thus, we must also not allow religious and racial extremism to take root in our society while we protest against the Israeli aggression.

Are we anti-war or simply anti-Israel? -malaysiakini

2009-01-17T11:11:00.001+08:00

The Socialist Party of Malaysia has done the right thing by organising an anti-war rally to protest against violence and war. But it is a shame to see the double standards currently employed by our government and the Home Minister as we occupy ourselves to condemn Israel. War is war. Gaza is no different from any other war where innocent lives are lost over conflicting ideologies.

Are we anti-war or simply anti-Israel? -malaysiakini

2009-01-17T08:08:00.001+08:00

Only the Palestinian people deserve our support and deepest sympathy - not Hamas, Fatah or Israel. The world must understand that innocent civilians in Gaza are paying the price of war- not with money but with their lives.

End the war first, argue anti-Jewish sentiments later! - Malaysiakini

2009-01-14T22:10:00.000+08:00

On the other hand, Hamas said in an interview with Al-Jazeera that they want Israel to stop the onslaught immediately but they cannot guarantee they will stop firing rockets into Israel in the future. This kind of statement is absurd! How do they expect a peace agreement to be brokered when the root cause of this latest Israeli incursion was sparked by Qassam rocket fires? What chance is there for peace when both sides refuse to back down?

End the war first, argue anti-Jewish sentiments later! - Malaysiakini

2009-01-14T20:08:00.000+08:00

The reality is this: Israel say that they are acting in defence of its territories against terrorism. But that cannot justify the magnitude of military force it is unleashing over Gaza; punishing the civilians for the crimes of a political cum militant party they are targeting. Quite recently, international watchdogs reported that Israel are using white phosphorus in their artillery shells (image). White phosphorus is a controversial chemical which sticks to human flesh and burns it to the bones. International law permits the use of white phosphorus in order to cover troop movements and prevent enemies from using certain guided weapons - not over the skies of civilian homes. Israel is literally trying to kill ants with cannons. [link]

End the war first, argue anti-Jewish sentiments later! - Malaysiakini

2009-01-14T18:06:00.000+08:00

While many argue over the justification of Israel's aggression, there are some who say that Israel has the right to retaliate, given the fact that it was Hamas who not only refused to renew the 6-month truce but drew the first blood when they launch Qassam rockets into Israeli territory a week after the peace agreement had ended. What came after that soon escalated into what we see today in the news.

End the war first, argue anti-Jewish sentiments later! - Malaysiakini

2009-01-14T16:04:00.000+08:00

The United Nations, a body supposedly mandated to maintain world peace continues to remain indecisive under Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon and we could well expect the usual reluctance of the United States to put a stop to the bloodshed.

End the war first, argue anti-Jewish sentiments later! - Malaysiakini

2009-01-14T14:02:00.000+08:00

Israel has confirmed sending thousands of army reservists into Gaza, raising concerns that a deadly "third stage" of its offensive - targeting urban centres - could soon begin.[Al-Jazeera.net,12/1/09]

Have Dr Mahathir and his protestors gone too far? - malaysiakini

2009-01-11T20:08:00.000+08:00

Enough said.

This article is preceded by Boycotting US products a really dumb move for Malaysia dated (5/1/09). Images are courtesy of Malaysiakini.

Have Dr Mahathir and his protestors gone too far? - malaysiakini

2009-01-11T18:06:00.000+08:00

As everybody else, we are deeply touched by the human side of the situation in the Middle East," Kadri Taib, Coca-Cola Malaysia public affairs and communications director, said in a statement. [BBC News, 9/1/08]Coca-Cola Malaysia, who has a plant in Shah Alam, currently employs 1,700 Malaysians and interestingly enough, 60% of whom are Muslims.

Have Dr Mahathir and his protestors gone too far? - malaysiakini

2009-01-11T15:03:00.000+08:00

In response, Coca-Cola Malaysia spoke out against the boycott of its drinks and other US labels, saying such a move would only hurt the local economy and the local citizens.

Have Dr Mahathir and his protestors gone too far? - malaysiakini

2009-01-11T13:01:00.000+08:00

The Malaysian Islamic Consumers Association, and the Muslim Restaurant Operators Association, on the other hand, is spearheading the boycott of US products by removing Coca-cola from the menu of more than 2,000 Muslim restaurants. They, along with Mahathir, suggest that Malaysians should also boycott American brands like Starbucks, Maybelline and Colgate to further their cause.

Have Dr Mahathir and his protestors gone too far? - malaysiakini

2009-01-11T11:11:00.000+08:00

Have Dr Mahathir and his protestors gone too far? - malaysiakini

2009-01-11T08:08:00.000+08:00

Now, why would the Arabs do that when they are earning millions of dollars from the sale of their crude oil? The people who make such ludicrous statements fail to understand or rather, fail to realise that the Arabs need the Dollars and the Americans need their oil. It's a love-hate relationship.

Malaysiakini: Boycotting US products a really dumb move for Malaysia

2009-01-06T22:10:00.000+08:00

But do they not know that these companies are franchises and hire Malaysians by the thousands in their workforce? I'd like to advise them to walk into any American fast food outlet mentioned in the above and see how many Americans are there behind the cashiers and in the kitchens. Or try visiting the Intel plant in Penang and count how many Malaysians are currently employed there.

Click here for the list of American companies and brands with Israeli connections (?).

Malaysiakini: Melaka wants RM37 billion bridge to Indonesia

2009-01-03T22:10:00.000+08:00

One has to brace for the ultimate worst case scenario: Could Mohd Ali's super bridge eventually turn out to be a strait-crossing white elephant built to greet ships caught in a massive maritime traffic jam? You bet it could!

Malaysiakini: Melaka wants RM37 billion bridge to Indonesia

2009-01-03T18:06:00.000+08:00

A PFI project also lacks transparency and in Malaysia's case, the project to link Malaysia and Indonesia could well pose an excellent environment for corruption. This is because contracts issued under the PFI are off-balance sheet and does not show up as part of the national debt statistics.

Malaysiakini: Samy Vellu and Khairy contradicts each other

2008-12-31T18:06:00.000+08:00

.e figure in the ruling coalition to have gone public over the issue was the Prime Minister's son-in-law and deputy UMNO Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin. In his blog, he described PAS as “appearing to be brave and in high spirits” during the campaign but was now “listlessly bowing down to the intimidation of DAP”.

“It has not even been two days since Datuk Husam loudly guaranteed his supporters that hudud will be implemented if Pakatan Rakyat took...

Malaysiakini: Samy Vellu and Khairy contradicts each other

2008-12-30T19:07:00.000+08:00

The obvious contradiction both Khairy and Samy Vellu expressed in their criticism towards the Opposition shows that Barisan Nasional were merely playing a political word game to exploit the situation to their favour.

If the same principle applies, would it then be safe to say that UMNO had also once 'surrendered' to MCA who pressured UMNO to discipline a certain Ahmad Ismail for his racist slurs against the Malaysian Chinese community?

...or had MIC also 'surrendered' to UMNO at one point of time for their silence over the mass demolitions of Hindu shrines and temples in Selangor?

Malaysiakini: From pig farms to Ketuanan Melayu, says Pewaris

2008-12-26T19:07:00.000+08:00

The Heritage Associations, Malay Cultural Organisations and Related Bodies Cooperation Network (Pewaris) recently held a protest against pig farming in the district of Masjid Tanah, Malacca where the majority of its population are Muslim Malays. Pig farming in a Malay majority area has been a hotly debated issue for some time as pork consumption is strictly forbidden under Islam. But of course, other non-religious reasons include sewage management and health related issues. After all, who would like a pig farm in his backyard?

Malaysiakini: Hillside developer sues residents association

2008-12-16T17:08:00.001+08:00

The government have since succumbed to public pressure and have suspended all hillslide development projects until proper geographical inspections on soil stability were carried out.

Malaysiakini: Cycling activists more terrifying than Mat Rempits?

2008-12-09T20:48:00.001+08:00

Similar attempts to deter another JERIT expedition group where also reported in Johor. This time it was not errant vandalisers but the authorities themselves; who were on high gear to disrupt the campaign. JERIT reported on their website that members of the expedition were constantly harassed by the police, a couple of police cars and a police van were seen following them as they move from one town to another. Many unidentified cars were also reported stalking the expedition group even while the participants were on lunch breaks. According to JERIT reports, roadblocks were also erected along expedition routes.

Malaysiakini: Why, as a non-Malay, I agree with Mukhriz?

2008-12-04T23:31:00.001+08:00

So, this is my take. Politicians from both sides should not over-react with the idea of unifying vernacular schools into a single system. Likewise, the issue should not be politicize and be blown out of context let alone being turned into a racial dispute. To conclude, while vernacular schools are not the sole cause of racial polarization, unifying the school systems and allowing Malaysians of all races to study in a truly Malaysian environment is definitely a good way to improve race relations among younger Malaysians. I'd say, why reject a possible solution to a problem?

Malaysiakini: Learning in English makes me lesser Malaysian?

2008-12-02T08:39:00.000+08:00

Now, before I am lambasted for being a 'lesser patriot', let me just say that no one is disputing Bahasa Melayu as the national language to begin with. Likewise, I believe learning science and mathematics in English is no way an act of betrayal to the national language. In fact, forsaking the Malaysia's ability to compete in the developed world is the mother of all betrayals.

Malaysiakini: Retirees hired as full-time Pro-Govt bloggers

2008-11-26T19:11:00.001+08:00

It was estimated that as many as 2 million young voters would be eligible to cast their ballots in the next general election, many of whom rely heavily on the internet as their main source of information. In fact, they will form 20-25% of the number of votes the next time around. With the perception that the internet is mainly tainted with critical literature against the government found mainly on blogs, it is high time for the authorities to ensure 'correct' information is being passed on internet users. The internet is therefore a powerful tool that could influence public support for the government or the Opposition.

Retirees hired as full-time Pro-Govt bloggers

2008-11-26T19:07:00.001+08:00

Malaysiakini. It is still unknown as to whom this brilliant idea belong to but State Information, Science, Technology and Innovation Committee chairman Datuk Mohd Sharkar Shamsudin said the bloggers would be paid allowances and be given computers and internet access in their homes.

Malaysiakini

Malaysiakini: Have you heard of a pro-ISA rally?

2008-11-24T19:13:00.000+08:00

Malaysiakini: Have you heard of a pro-ISA rally? On November 23, the Edisi 7 prime time news on the public channel, NTV7 reported that a pro-ISA gathering was held in Kuala

Malaysiakini: When fuel subsidies cease, Malaysians pay petrol tax

2008-11-20T10:28:00.000+08:00

Subsidies or no subsidies, it does not seem to be any of any difference as Malaysians are still asked to pay more than what is written on the price tag.

Malaysiakini: When a Malay disagrees with the Ketuanan Melayu...

2008-11-18T18:06:00.001+08:00

The term Ketuanan Melayu was never mentioned in the Federal Constitution. However, Article 153 is a provision in the Constitution that guarantees and protects the special position of the Malays and the Orang Asli (indigenious people). UMNO have exploited the lack of definition on the term of 'special position of the Malays' and have clearly twisted the meaning to serve its own interests.

Malaysiakini: ACA reports RM45 million bribes in 10 months

2008-11-15T12:12:00.001+08:00

The ACA was said to have successfully nabbed 548 people guilty of corruption; 252 of whom were civil servants and 296 from the private sector. The agency also managed to seize property worth RM8.8 million and collected RM1.3 million in fines in the same period.

Malaysiakini: Malaysia under Najib spells dictatorship, says Anwar

2008-11-12T22:10:00.001+08:00

One might also argue that such bureaucratic corners had to be cut when an immediate response by the government is needed in the wake of a dire situation, in this case, the global credit crunch.
But why the double standards when the 2009 Budget was given the privilege of a parliamentary debate while a similar 'hypothetical' solution in the form of the stimulus package was approved without the need of one?

Malaysiakini: Royal Police the real threat to public order?

2008-11-10T23:11:00.001+08:00

The only thing the Royal Malaysian Police deserve a gold medal for is their inability to recognise priorities as a body that has the royal mandate mandate to serve and protect the public. When police officers should be roaming the streets to flush out crooks and vices, precious manpower was senselessly put to waste when a peaceful rally for peace and justice was considered a menace to public order

Malaysiakini: BN MP calls DAP MP a bastard in Parliament

2008-11-06T21:09:00.001+08:00

The Parliament is not new to the occasional vocabularic fracas by elected representatives who are, most of the time, guilty for their poor choice of words in their speeches. The senseless quarrels over offensive words may just prove to be a waste of time and effort as national issues that require urgent attention are momentarily neglected for MPs of both sides to settle their score.

Malaysiakini: Johor and NS princes in a brawl at nightclub

2008-11-04T20:08:00.001+08:00

Sources close to the Negeri Sembilan royalty said there was intense lobbying to get Tunku Nadzimuddin and his friends to withdraw the police report. That would explain the limited if not, non-existent coverage by the local press on the matter which could embarrass both the Johor and Negeri Sembilan royal houses. Nonetheless, the Negeri Sembilan royal family remained unfazed and had called on the police to launch an investigation.

Malaysiakini: Khir Toyo receives RM100k from PKNS.

2008-11-03T17:45:00.001+08:00

Khir Toyo assured that the money he received was recorded in the account books which were checked and audited by the State Treasury. He also said he would welcome any investigation into the matter, including one by the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) in order to clear his name of the bad press.

Malaysiakini: Govt defers another helicopter deal

2008-10-31T11:06:00.000+08:00

Nonetheless, the question arises as to how many more mega projects are still hovering behind the backs of the Malaysian public that need to be scrapped to weather the global economic uncertainty. Whose call is it to make then, on which project goes and which ones stay?....

Malaysiakini: PAS joins UMNO in racist notion against PKR

2008-10-30T23:11:00.001+08:00

Low Siew Moi was a corporate and accounts deputy general manager for PKNS prior to her latest installation as the agency's general manager. Khalid said Low's appointment was only temporary as the current Selangor PKNS general manager Datuk Harun Salim would be retiring at the end of October, while Low herself admitted that a bumiputra should be appointed to continue steering the government agency.

And yet, UMNO refuses to back down despite the appointment of Low being temporary.

Malaysiakini: Govt scraps Eurocopter deal!

2008-10-27T22:15:00.001+08:00

...The deal itself had received some flak from the Opposition who have called on the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to investigate the irregularities surrounding the high profile purchase. DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang demanded that the deal be put on hold until the air is cleared by anti-corruption agencies before the government proceed with negotiations. PKR Youth have also lodged a police report at the Anti-Corruption Agency in Putrajaya...

Malaysiakini: Syed Hamid says other countries envy our ISA

2008-10-25T13:17:00.000+08:00

Opinions on the ISA may vary from person to person. However, the reality that the law is being abused to achieve political agendas cannot entirely be ignored. The debate on the relevance of the ISA today may go on forever but in any case, the freedom of Malaysians should firstly be upheld and restored.

Malaysiakini: Not all Pakatan MPs are smart

2008-10-25T02:16:00.001+08:00

Zulkifli's latest outburst may fuel speculation that he is to switch allegiance to perhaps, UMNO in order to forward his ultra-religious cause when clearly the multicultural settings of the Pakatan Rakyat seemed to be holding him back. Nonetheless, Zulkifli has not announced any plans to defect to any sides.

Malaysiakini - Syed Hamid: Other countries say Malaysia lucky to have ISA

2008-10-23T21:13:00.000+08:00

For as long as there is no guarantee that the arrests under the ISA are transparent, properly monitored and backed with solid evidences, the ISA should all in all be abolished for its doors are forever open to possible abuse and the oppression of freedom and liberty.

Syed Hamid: Other countries say Malaysia lucky to have ISA -malaysiakini

2008-10-23T21:09:00.000+08:00

Malaysiakini: Brazil buys Eurocopters at half of our price

2008-10-21T21:16:00.001+08:00

Former Defense Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak who was oversaw the deal was questioned for his ministry's decision to purchase the Eurocopter when similar and cheaper models were available from other manufacturers.

Malaysiakini: And now the Malays are called immigrants too?

2008-10-20T20:07:00.001+08:00

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi chose to give Tan the benefit of the doubt when he said that Tan would be given a chance to explain herself to Barisan Nasional leaders regarding her alleged statements. [Malaysiakini, 15/10/08]

Malaysiakini: Police pack and leave for fear of high crime rates?

2008-10-17T17:05:00.001+08:00

A police beat base is a kiosk, manned by a few police officers with the intention to establish a police presence over a designated area.

The Titiwangsa MP had asked why was the police beat base removed from an area where vice-related activities and crimes were rife. He also demanded an explanation by the Home Ministry over the actions taken by the police so far to curb such activities...

Malaysiakini: Utusan Malaysia wants Teresa Kok dead?

2008-10-16T18:30:00.001+08:00

Utusan Malaysia may be playing safe this time by cooking up a fictional story in order to avoid any legal complications that may arise from a direct commentary on racial politics. But if Chamil Wariya's story was not meant to call for the death of a certain female politician the name of racial harmony, then what was it intended for?...

Malaysiakini-UMNO members splash cash to save Utusan Malaysia

2008-10-14T18:06:00.001+08:00

In the midst of a legal battle, Cheras UMNO has launched a donation drive in a bid to rescue their party's mouthpiece as the prospect of losing the legal suit comes knocking on their door. Its division chief, Datuk Syed Ali Al Habshee got the ball rolling with a personal contribution of RM20,000...

Malaysiakini - Up next: Datuk Homer Simpson?

2008-10-13T23:11:00.001+08:00

Nonetheless, the decision to award the Darjah Mulia Seri Melaka to Shahrukh Khan did not go down to well with the public. DAP veteran and party advisor Lim Kit Siang noted that he was not against the conferment of titles to deserving people but priority should be given to Malaysians. He also said that if Shah Rukh Khan deserved the award, so should Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta-Jones in their movie, Entrapment which was filmed at the Petronas Twin Towers in 1999...

Malaysiakini: Police tempered with evidences used against Raja Petra?

2008-10-10T15:42:00.001+08:00

This was not the first time the prosecutor embarrassed themselves over Raja Petra's sedition charge in court. On the first day of the trial, deputy public prosecutor Farhan Read summoned Harme Mohamed, a 39-year-old information technology expert from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) as trial's first witness. The commission was responsible for the closure on the Malaysia Today on August 27 but the ban on the site have been lifted...

Malaysiakini: The reason why Tengku Razaleigh makes a better UMNO president

2008-10-09T16:34:00.001+08:00

...Tengku Razaleigh also intended to implement some form of term limit among party leaders of UMNO. He suggested that the party presidential office term should perhaps be restricted to 8 or 9 nine years the most. The longest serving UMNO president thus far was former Prime Minister Tun Mahathir Mohamad who held his post for 22 years...

Malaysiakini: UMNO to make BN a single multi-racial party?

2008-10-09T14:15:00.001+08:00

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has decided not to defend his Umno president post and will quit in March next year when the ruling party meets at its annual general assembly. [Malaysiakini, 8/10/08]

The Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (image) has signalled that he will stepped down from his post in March 2009; making way for his second-in-command Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak to succeed him in office. Badawi initially announced that he will see his term through until 2010 but his latest move seemed to have accelerated his resignation.

The biggest concern for Malaysians now is the very man who will take Badawi's place come March 2009. Though Najib was single-handedly picked by Badawi to replace him, the Deputy Prime Minister still have to endure the final internal hurdle within UMNO to be able to cement his place as party president and hence, Prime Minister...

Malaysiakini: Another BN component party threatens to quit

2008-10-07T14:02:00.001+08:00

United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (UPKO) threatens to quit Barisan Nasional unless the federal government takes serious efforts in resolving the issue of illegal immigrants in Sabah acquiring Malaysian citizenship. [Malaysiakini, 6/10/08]

UPKO's threat to quit the coalition should be taken seriously by Badawi's regime when another Sabah party, the Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) had already pulled out of the Barisan Nasional coalition last month. The SAPP claimed that the ruling polical bloc has lost its spirit of "racial unity" and defiled by racial supremacist policies. SAPP, however chose to remain independent until they feel it was fit to rejoin the government...

Malaysiakini: Does Sarawak really need 12 dams and 7,000MW of power?

2008-10-06T21:51:00.000+08:00

PETALING JAYA: Sarawak plans to build 12 hydroelectric dams to meet its future industrialisation needs. [The Star, 23/7/08]

The mega project will include the construction of new dams on the rivers of Ulu Air, Metjawah, Belaga, Baleh, Belepeh, Lawas, Tutoh, Limbang, Baram, Murum and Linau. The existing Batang Ai dam, on the other hand will undergo an extension.

With the Bakun dam already under construction, these dams will push Sarawak's output to 7,000MW by 2020; an increase of 600% from the current capacity.

However, Sarawak currently only consumes about 750 MW of power...

Malaysiakini: Where is your hak bumiputra when they need it, UMNO?

2008-10-06T18:32:00.000+08:00

The Jaringan Orang Asal SeMalaysia (Indigenous Peoples Network of Malaysia)'s hopes of handing a memorandum to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong were dashed when their procession to the Istana Negara was told to stop by the police. [Malaysiakini, 13/9/08]

September 13 marked the first anniversary of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2007. The Jaringan Orang Asal SeMalaysia (JOAS) latest cry for justice against the exploitation of their rights left many Malaysians wonder whether the ever so controversial hak istimewa (special rights), fervently preached by UMNO, apply also to the indigenous peoples of the country...

Malaysiakini: Has Viagra been distributed freely in Sabah?

2008-10-06T13:39:00.001+08:00

Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) parliamentarian Eric Majimbun got a rude shock recently when he discovered that he shared the same surname and address in a MyKad allegedly belonging to a Filipino illegal immigrant. [Malaysiakini, 5/10/08]

The population of Sabah have jumped 285 per cent from 1970 to 2000. [NST, 2/10/08]

Sepanggar MP Datuk Eric Majimbun made an astonishing revelation to the Malaysian public when he discovered that an immigrant residing in Sabah shared his surname and address; but they are not related nor do they know each other.

Click Here to Read More

The Glorious 90s

2007-11-30T16:48:00.000+08:00

Most of us college/university students, regardless of race, religion or nationality, share a common heritage, one which no other age group shares with us. The generation before us would be too old while the generation after us would be too young. What is it that binds us all together? It is the 90s-the decade where everything happened.

The 90’s was a decade which saw many changes: music, fashion trends, our currency, food, education, politics, movie styles and so much more. But is there anything particular that would remind you of the 90s? Is there anything from your childhood which makes you smile every time you think about it? Here are some of the highlights of 90’s:

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Music

We all know how great music was in the 90s. Back then melodies were not cliché; lyrics held meanings and bands have numbers in their names. Remember Nirvana and their hit, Smells Like Teen Spirit? That made everyone listened to rock. What about The Cranberries and Zombie which conveyed an anti-war message to the world? It was one of those songs where everyone seemed to know the lyrics and school children, like us then were the ones going around singing, “Zombie, Zombie, Zombieeee- eah eah eah eah oh!”. Funny enough, we only knew how to sing the chorus and never really went pass that.

Does Michael Learns to Rock ring a bell? They were gods among men! Who could forget the tune of Sleeping Child and That’s Why You Go Away. It was the time when music had meanings attached to them compared to pointless/meaningless songs we listen to on radio today. Back in the 90’s, it was Paint My Love. Today we have I Fell In Love With The DJ. It’s sad to see how music has come to this.

We can never forget the King, Michael Jackson. His Majesty of Pop back then was known for his moon walks ,high-pitched “Ow”s and his relationship with Elvis Presley’s daughter. Today, anything related to paedophilia or child molestation is attributed to the fallen superstar. Remember the oxymoronic, Black or White featuring Home Alone star, Macaulay Culkin in the music video? We all knew the song and of course but we could only sing the chorus. Never went further.

School

How many of us remember being as guinea pigs for the PTS (Peperiksaan Penilaian Tahap Satu) examination? Those of us who were privileged enough to be born in 1987 were the pioneers or in other words, lab rats for this experimental paper. It was basically a large scale IQ test conducted among Standard 3 pupils. However, most of our brains were not properly developed yet back then. Only a handful of us made it through. Good for them!

We also used to have music classes incorporated in our academics. Girls loved it because it was fun and boys despised it because it was boring. We were forced to purchase plastic recorders and it was to be our primary instrument. No fancy violins, classical guitars or pianos but plain plastic, beige-coloured YAMAHA recorders. We played songs like Ais Kacang, Choo Choo Choo Keretapi and of course, our beloved Negaraku. Classic!

Remember how every school had a dentist’s room? It was already scary enough to go see the dentist but back then, the dentist came to us… in a government van! At the same time, brushing our teeth after recess was made mandatory. It proved unpopular among us because it meant we had to sacrifice 10 minutes of our precious recess time. No kid likes to be told to rush his food! We were also given so called dental report cards where the dentist would mark on a diagram which tooth was pulled out or which had cavity in it. And at the end of the year, they would return the card back to us and the horrible truth of the state of our teeth would be revealed to us, much to our horror most of the time.

Entertainment

Oh yes, cartoons! No childhood is complete without cartoons. How many of us remember waking up early on Saturday mornings to watch cartoon all the way till noon? Kids nowadays are pampered with cable television and 24-hours of cartoons. And if that’s not enough, they have more than 1 channel devoted entirely to cartoons and cartoons only. Talking about spoilt kids! Cartoons that were worth waking up for were Thunder Cats, G.I Joe, Smurfs, Care Bears, He-Man, Transformers and etc. It is a waste that kids today just don’t get to watch these classic works of art anymore. In the 90’s, watching cartoons was our typical Saturday morning.

Remember the video games back in the 90’s? We did not have fancy state-of-the-art consoles to play with. No Playstation, X-Box or Wii. All that we had were ancient machines to today’s standards, called the Atari and Micro Genius. We were obsessed with Super Mario, Donkey Kong and Pac Man. Games such as these were on cartridges which required us to blow the dust off from the inside every time before jacking them into the slots. Speaking of gadgets, nothing beats the classic Tamagotchi and Digimon. It was the digital pet mania. We just loved it, didn’t we?

We never knew who was Hiro Nakamura or Michael Scofield during the 90’s. Our television heroes back then were Power Rangers, Transformers, Captain Planet and so many more. Take Power Rangers for example. During the 90’s, the series was at its purest form. Remember Zordon and the annoying robot slave of his, Alpha? Today we have a whole range of abomination such as Power Rangers: Time Force, Power Rangers: Dino Thunder and the most recent Power Rangers: Jungle Fury. All these are blasphemy to us all who grew up watching the original, uncorrupted version of the series. Please bring originality back!

To conclude, we may never travel back in time and re-live our childhood days again. However, we can always look back and be thankful for the 90’s. It was our childhood and will always be a part of us that will remain close to our hearts. So, it doesn’t matter really, if we are from opposite ends of the globe. What matters is that we all grew up in this golden age and had a smashing time. Long live the 90’s!

maturity is questionable

2007-10-16T01:09:00.000+08:00

People should learn how to laugh at themselves sometimes. Well, not all the time or else you'll be deemed crazy but laugh, for most of the time. Anything and everything can be funny if you think about it. The only thing that matters is how you react towards something that is meant to be funny . Well, some say humour depends on every individual. Some find Senario funny, some don't. (In fact, I find it really stupid) Some find Charlie the Unicorn funny, some don't. Yes, but at the end of the day it is the response towards a joke that is more important, don't you think?
Here's a scenario:

Example 1:
You've just got a haircut and you met up with your friend.
"Hey! Look at my new hairdo!"
And your friend answers,
" Who cut your hair? Stevie Wonder?"

Would you laugh or punch your friend in the face?
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People should seriously learn how to laugh at themselves sometimes. We should give ourselves a break once in a while from the harsh reality of life. Laugh! Just laugh! I mean if you are ugly, then laugh because you look like the man in the mirror. If you can't play ball, then laugh because you can't play ball. And if you look like Confucius, then just laugh simply because it's funny. What's the harm? I would appreciate a good laugh after a long day.Who wouldn't?

Example 2:
After a game of futsal with a female friend.
" Gosh, you're such an elephant in front the goal. I couldn't score!"

Well, is he really saying that his friend is an elephant or is he saying that she had been a good goalkeeper? Jokes can be a compliment too eh! :)
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People should desperately learn how to laugh at themselves sometimes. Some people take jokes too personally. That's what I've seen lately and it disturbs me greatly. If someone intended to insult you, he wouldn't be wasting his time making that insult sound like a joke now, would he?

Example 3:
" You know, my hair was really long and so I went to the saloon today. I tried having my hair cut this way"
And your friend says,
" Well, try harder! Haha."

If insult was intended, the latter would have said, " OMG, your hair looks like sh*t ! Please wear a hat and go away ." Jokes are not personal attacks. Sadly, there are people who can't distinguish both.
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So, who are those that can't laugh at their own selves? Are they those people who take jokes personally? Those who bite back at every funny comment made? From my point of view, those who can't laugh at themselves are the immature.

What then, is maturity you may ask?

Maturity begins when you are able to laugh at yourself and not be an ass about it...

(Note: All example dialogues in the above are based on true life incidents)

Kuala Lumpur is like a packet of jellybeans

2007-06-06T01:48:00.005+08:00

It has been a while since anything was written on this poor blog of mine. How long has it been? A year? Gosh. When my blog was dead (I mean inactive if you can't visualize metaphors), I was alive (I mean active if you think I don't have a life with Prison Breaks, football and all). What I really mean is that for the past year, I was too busy to write stuffs on my blog. And now, since I have a sweet loooong holiday ( FYI, it's 3 months +), I have all the time in the world to write anything I like and whenever I like! Sweet.

To stay alive these days, I have to do something. Blogging is one thing. But there's so much things to do!!! Like sleeping, sleeping and....sleeping. That's not too bad actually. At least I get to dream different dreams. So, it's like watching TV without actually watching TV. So, since I only get inspiration during ungodly hours (like now), I'd better post something before my inspiration decides to pack and leave. And it's about: KUALA LUMPUR (oh yes! very "interesting")

But hey, it's Visit Malaysia 2007 and I'm doing my part. Hail ME the patriot~ :)

Kuala Lumpur or Mud City is a very chap city. The chap here is referred to the same word as chap fan or mixed rice. It is the staple food of the working class because not only it's cheap, it's good. If you still don't know what chap fan is and you dare call yourself a Malaysian, please go hang yourself. No kidding. It's like the next best thing to mamak. Though I have to admit, some chap fan stalls suck big time.

So you ask, what's so chap about Mud City. I shall first define the word chap. In Cantonese, chap would be roughly translated as... ... ... erm I can't seem to match it with any English word. But let me put it this way. Picture: Jinjang as a packet of jellybeans. (Don't be offended if you are from Jinjang because it's a fact. However, it's not applicable to cool people from there) Mud City can be as classless as Jinjang and yet have much variety as a packet of jellybeans. We have Chinese, Indians, Malays, Bangladeshis, Nigerians, Arabs, Whites, Japanese, Koreans and etc, all in Mud City. Very colourful, eh? Yeah, just like a packet of jellybeans. Get it? Well, don't believe me? Just spend 1 hour in KL Sentral and you know what I mean. We have different races and cultures in Mud City and at the same time, we have places like Petaling Street, Chow Kit, Brickfields and Kampung Dato' Haron - the notorious places.

There was once a group of students on the train which I boarded to downtown. They were speaking Mandarin and Cantonese so loud that I don't think they actually knew they were on a train; a train WITH LOTS OF PEOPLE.

I was like, "Hello??? We are not interested in how many creatures you've slained in DOTA or who's the next big Taiwan star with the cute face."

Frankly, I was just as annoyed as everyone else on board. My first conclusion was that they were from Jinjang (Don't get offended if you are from Jinjang but seriously - you guys do tend to speak loud). And I laughed to myself. Cruelty is found in jokes sometimes. :)

There was also once when I was walking down on a pedestrian path and I saw the most uncivilized thing a civilized man (which is me in this case) could ever encounter: Someone spitting his concoction of saliva and phlegm right onto the road. My immediate reaction was;

" ... " x1000

And to make things nastier, there were tourists walking around. And don't get me started on the littering. Sigh. The people Mud City do need to know a little something called 'civic conscience'.

To actually experience first-hand the chap-ness of Mud City, you could just go to any shopping mall and observe the sense of dressing some people have. What you'll see is either over hip hop-ish or too much of Taiwanese influence (Lala). And once in a while, you'll get people who wear slippers and shorts in shopping malls, t-shirt of wrestling stars, metal chains and so on. I'm not fashionably vain or something but at least I know how to dress. Sometimes I wish I could just say,

" Dude, bell bottoms and slippers just don't mix. And yeah, lose the dragons. Dragons are so not cool. "

And then walk way. That will make a great scene in a movie.

Despite Mud City being chap and all, it is still a nice place. It may not be as classy as Milan, Paris or New York but it certainly has the flair and colours of a metropolis. When different types of cultures diverge in one place, there could only be one outcome - the food. The people of Mud City take pride in the variety of cuisines they have: Chinese, Malay, Indian, mamak, Italian, German, Korean, Japanese, Thai and so much more. However, as chap as Mud City can be, our food definitely compensates for the chap-ness. If not, we still have the Twin Towers to boast about, at least...

when crap talk leads me to this...

2006-04-07T01:01:00.000+08:00

The thought that continues to linger in my head for the past 3-4 months can be quite annoying. It's like whenever I had nothing to do, my brain somehow has an automated function to channel all my brain-waves to a particular topic to think about. And that topic was the word, "Significance".

Well, I used to assume that this only occurs to 30 year old men-better known as the mid-life crisis. But, I'm turning 19 soon and I'm already thinking about doing 'something' significant in my life. This is no mid-life crisis, however I also hope that being 19 won't mean that I'm already halfway through my life!!! [ that would mean my life would end at 38? ] . Touch wood. My life has barely begun...and that is what worries me.

I always had this personal philosophy, dictating how I should live my life. I believe that if we can't do something significant with our lives, then there is no point in living. So, just being a year shy of turning 20, one like myself would begin to wonder whether the life I'm living right now is significant enough to leave its mark in our generation. If I were to die today, would I leave a legacy or simply, would anyone remember me after 40 years?My point is: Is life really that significant after all?

...Is my life now significant? Or heck, are our lives significant? We are only 1 among 6 billion inhabitants on Earth and if one of us should die, would that make any huge difference to the population. Perhaps numbers in this case [ since there are 6 billion+ people here] would make neither of us significant. If the Earth has only 5 people in it and one of us should die, then there would be a 20% drop in the population! So, as the number of Earthlings are on the steady rise, people become less significant. Ultimately, our lives become less...significant.

Unless you want to LIVE a life and not just SURVIVE, you might probably ask; what then can make our lives significant. A certain guy from our history books once said that, "What we do today echoes in eternity." Hence, I believe it's important for us to live with ambitions. It doesn't matter whether our ambitions are high or low, as long as we set our purpose to live... then it is all that matters in the end.

But somehow, during the stillness of the night [like now...], with my WinAmp playing softly in minimized mode on my Windows taskbar, I still doubt my very own existance. I still question whether my life is really that important...or significant? So, while I was chatting on MSN with a friend of mine one night, we were talking crap and then we came up with this topic: What if I weren't born?

Har?

Tough one. The "what if" seems to be very subjective. But heck, for the fun of it I came up with this:
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What if I Weren't Born?

My room would probably be a store room.
My parents would have extra money to spend on their own.
More ugly people.
Fewer smart people.
Others would have a bigger share of oxygen.
Government suffers in lesser tax revenue.
McDonalds won't have any other reason to sell BigMacs.
Stupid people wouldn't know that they are stupid.
Smart people wouldn't know that they are not so smart after all.
My school wouldn't be famous.
My guitar would still be on the shelf in the shop.
Digi has lesser profits from monthly top-ups.
There will be no Star Trek fan in Malaysia.
Petroleum reserves could last for another 100 years instead of 50 years.
The world would not know what is 'elegance'.
Kepong would probably be an independent state.
There would be no reason to build an F1 circuit.
Mamak stalls have no reason to sell Sirap Limau.
Arsenal has one less hard-core fan and...
I would not be typing this right now.

After thorough analysis of the list above, I came to a conclusion that my life is significant after all. These 20 possible scenarios could take place if I didn't exist. Either way, my life did alter the course of history. My life did affect the timeline in which I am in. My life did influence mankind...that is if you agree with my list of probabilities above. Now, I'll probably create another list, but with a different title. I would start with, " Now that Jonathan is here..." and carry on with 20 more entries [ probably more] on what might happen since Jonathan is here. Or I should say, what WILL happen since I am here...

to forget or not to forget...

2006-01-08T23:41:00.000+08:00

I forget things easily. I'm so forgetful that my Mom cannot depend on me to remind her on things which I would eventually forget what she reminded me to remind her about in the first place. Confused? Me too. I almost forgotten what I was writing halfway through the sentence. However, being adsent minded isn't always a bad thing. In life there are incidents which we would like to forget and some we would not like to forget.

I would like to forget the bad stuffs. I mean, who wouldn't? Rite? But our minds are not computers. We cannot simply 'choose' to forget. If there is a button which says "Delete" at the back of my head, then I would not be writing this blog entry and would probably be watching TV right now. That's why, for me, to forget (on purpose) is the most difficult thing to do. Simply because you just cannot do it. Jumping off the cliff is easier because it's executable. One cannot force one's self to 'forget'.

But we CAN forget things. That is my point. The things in life which we do not want to forget...we forget. Taking me as an example, I did not want to forget the year 2004. It was a great year! But as time passed by, my memory of 2004, every detail of it faded away... like falling pieces of jigsaw puzzles. A year ago (2005) I could recall the colour of shirts, the weather, the smell of food, etc. And now, I could hardly describe what happened. Though I have tried my very best, my every amount of determination that runs through my veins to retain all the great memories, it did not work...somehow.

What I fear the most now is to forget. When time has taken over my memories, all that I could recall would be vague and 'colourless'. Lifeless, in a sense that those memories do not seem 'real' anymore. I fear. I do not want to forget my good times with my friends, the pranks on teachers and the fun of being in high school. I seriously, resiliently evermore to the ends of the universe and the depths of the earth, do not want to forget them.

Forgetting something can be both a great thing and an embarrassing one. Great because it's great (duh) to never remember again those sad things that had happened in our lives. Forgetting, say someone else's name can be very very very very (100x) embarrassing. This happened to me yesterday. It was like this :
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I was in KLCC when a girl approached me. She looked at me and said, " Jonathan?". I didn't recognise her. I thought she was one of my juniors in high school. So, I said dryly, " Erm...who are you?". I lifted my eyebrow to show her that I'm lost in this conversation. She said, " I'm from the youth camp!"

"Which one?" I asked.

"The one that is printed on your shirt la!" Heck, I was wearing the camp T-Shirt.

"Huh...is it? Are you sure?" I was still very blur.

" Yeah, I was in the same group with you!!!" She walked away...

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I was embarrassed simply because I forgotten who she was. For heaven's sake, I yelled to myself, she was my groupmate! And the worst of all, I had the 'ability' to forget her!!!
Forgetting is a crime when it pisses people off...

Don't Look Back In Anger

2006-01-05T22:31:00.000+08:00

Oasis's "Don't Look Back In Anger" probably inspired me to write this blog. It has been 5 days since the New Year and 2005 is really gone for good. As you all have read my previous posts (if), you guys might have concluded that I hated 2005. Yes. I still do. But I think I have learned to come to terms with 2005. "Don't Look Back In Anger".

How ironic it was when December 31st of 2005, it was indeed a significant day. It was the day that made me realise that I should not enter the new year (2006) with discontentment and anger. It's a new year, ain't it? New year brings along new hopes and resolutions. Hence, I wondered why I should carry the 'luggages of the 2005' for 2006, only to suffer when I could just throw it away. True enough. Decemeber the 31st was the Day of Redemption...for me that is. Haha

Issues that were unsettled were discussed and settled ( I used the word 'settle' twice already in this sentence. Not that my vocabulary is limited but I couldn't think of another word :P). For the first time in a long time (again), I felt so relieved. It almost felt like a huge weight was lifted from me (cliché, I know). Things are now clearer between me and that person and I was glad. Very glad. Both of us came clean with our issues and now everything is back to normal :) Sweet.

Then came 2006. I just got a job as a waiter. Boy Oh boy, I didn't know what I got myself into. Being a waiter does not look easy as one might think. Everything has to be in order, in stirct detail and precision. Yes. True. Uhuh. I'm a perfectionist myself but being a waiter just meant that I have to be perfect in being a perfect waiter. Even arranging the fork and spoon has special coordinates on the the table. My boss expects every waiter to see an invisible grid on the table.

Nevertheless, I enjoyed my first day as a waiter. I learnt a lot from my workmates and gained a lot from working with them. So I guess I will enjoy my work here. I think there's still a lot for me to learn. Let's just hope that when 2007 comes, I won't look back in anger.

the innocence of youth

2005-12-30T01:25:00.000+08:00

Enigma's Return To Innocence is an amazing song. Brilliant in musical terms. Magnifique in French. But do you know of any song which when you hear it, it reminds you about your childhood? I had a few of such songs and one of them was the Return To Innocence.

What seemed like a vague memory hidden behind all other memories are our childhood days-our youth. I perceive that youth comes with a sense of innocence and that sense is what all adults long for. Ask your parents and they would be happy to tell you that they would give anything to be a kid once more. How ironic it may sound that when we were young, we would dream of being an adult. When I was 5, I could not wait to be 18. And now, when we are finally at that stage of maturity, we long for our childish days where worries and anxieties did not seem to exist.

After my SPM examination, a thought once strucked me in the head. Such thought felt like a bolt of realisation that kind of jolted me from my daze, to finally come to an understanding that I was no longer a high school kid. 11 years of school did not do much to help me cope with such feelings that one day I would leave school and venture into the outside world. Though, honestly, it sounded fun and exciting at first but such naiveness came with a price. A heavy one indeed.

You see, when we were young, our parents protected us. We were unfamiliar to what the adults call : financial problems, social inequalities, prejudice, injustice and etc. In fact, when we were kids, we did not use such words at all simply because our lives were shielded from such negative vibes. And then, when we moved on to school, we were surrounded by concrete walls. They protected us again from the outside world. All that we cared were getting good grades, chasing the hottest girl in school, football, eating and having a good time with our friends.

Such innocence which came like a package alongside youth often eludes us from knowing the truth about adulthood. The world expects school leavers to behave and think like a grown-up and currently, like all 18 year olds, I am struggling to live up to that challenge. It's not an easy life. Heck. Life isn't easy anyway. Being an 18 year old is like getting stucked between a partying teenager and an 48 year old accountant in the train. It feels like you are torn between two realities.However, I sometimes would wish that I could return to days of my high school-the best moment of my life!

What I cherished the most of my youth were my high school days. I could still remember fondly how playful me and my friends were., how we studied together, how we survived detention classes together, how we would break school rules... and that was what I longed for again even now. I have always known that I had the best classmates in the world. The best that any student could ask for. Most of them whom I did not know before Form 4, we became close friends in just the first week of school. More like brothers should I put it in a more intimate way. No. I may sound gay but I'm not one. Trust me. But it was them who stood up for me, defended me whenever I faced problems or arguements with other students. Such friends are irreplaceable and could only be replaced by angels. No. I'm still not gay. Please excuse me for using such girly terms. But the fact is that I missed my classmates since all of us have gone our separate ways.

There is a part of our innocence which each and every one of us would remember and cherish for the rest of our lives. This coming new year drags us further from that innocence. It was hard to accept that my youth ended when 2004 ended.

Returning to our innocence seems more impossible as the years go by. But at least we know that we were once innocent simply because we were young once...

Have A Great New Year

when my new year has to be really happy...

2005-12-29T03:15:00.000+08:00

This December would be my 19th December in my entire life simply because I was born in the month June and my first December fell on the age of 0. My 'entire' life, however, only stretches to a miserable 18 years. Living on this planet for 18 years doesn't seem to fall under the category of a 'life'. Talking about people who lived for 50 years, then that's what I would call a 'life'. Alright. So I have not lived a life yet. Hence, I would call my duration here as an appearance-like a stage appearance. Afterall, a certain Shakespeare once said that life is like a stage. Bla bla bla.

Ok. Enough of literature crap. My brief appearance here could be divided to sub-categories known as "years" by the people of this inhabited planet.Hm, intriguing. So, the human year of 2005 is actually Jonathan Year of 18. And when January 1 strikes, 2006 will arrive and Jonathan Year of 19 takes hold. So, how was Jonathan Year of 18? In normal terms : How was the year 2005? Good? Let me summarize the year in this short blog post. Let's see whether a year's length of happenings could be compressed to a few connected lexicons which holds no other meaning than what I am trying to say itself. I shall divide ( I don't know what's with me and divisions) the year to quarters ( 3 months). Since I would be taking a business undergraduate course, so I had to use those 'quarter' terms as often as possible. Bare with me.

First Quarter
I initially had some difficulties trying to believe that 2004 (JY of 17) was gone. It went to the extent that I had to slap myself every morning and say, " Yes. It's 2005. No. It's not 2004." Hence, born was a habit that was rooted within me throughout this year. I had problems dealing with my new-found life in colllege. I had to cope with certain obstacles relating to my physical and of course, emotional well being. However, no matter what happened, I still had to adjust myself to the fact that 2004 is gone...gone forever.

Second Quarter
...And I was still adapting. At this point of 2005 (JY of 18), I had my semester breaks. And I couldn't thank God more for holidays. I hated or in a more 'subtle' way of putting it, I disliked my new-found life. Every day that passed only meant that I was drifting further away from my beloved year of 2004. And then, after the semester break, there were exams after exams. I felt like Hiroshima being bombarded by Allied warplanes. No, I was not bombarded with bombs but with exams. Exams are bombs, in a way. Never liked exams and I always held the fact that whoever liked exams were either crazy or insane. Yeah. Both have the same meaning but 'insane' simply translated to 'Crazy Level 2.'

Third Quarter
Morale fell like a dead orangutan being shot from the tree branch by an Orang Asli sharp-shooter. I couldn't feel more down in my life than ever before. I was sick of college, fed up with exams and bored with life. Though I am shy to say this but I felt lonely. Haha. Not funny. My close friends weren't as close as we were used to. Far away friends became "further" friends because I could hardly meet them and worst of all, my acquaintances somehow morphed to strangers-like those people on the streets. I badly missed my high school life at this point and I would give anything/everything just to re-live a day of high school again. Just once would do. But that wish didn't come. Sad.

Fourth Quarter
Still sad. A perfect ending to my lousy year. My final exams were tough and my results were mediocre enough to be called "not so good." But it wasn't all too bad. At least it was still an A! However, what made this quarter of the year more miserable than the other three was all the heartbreaks I had to endure. Actually it was only one if seeing Arsenal losing didn't count as a heartbreak. However, my mediocre results supplemented by other 'sad' incidents did not make this quarter a memorable one. One which I choose not to remember til the day that I die. I'll try.
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And now, at the end of this year, here I am trying to figure out what 2005 really did for me. To be honest, it did me nothing. Nothing good that is. Therefore, as the Earth completes its orbit around the Sun to start the journey around it all over again, I hope the next journey wouldn't be the same. I pray 2005 wouldn't repeat itself again. One lousy year in my life time is enough, given that my life at this point is only 18 years long.

In other words, Jonathan Year of 18 just sucks.

when tools are as important as the lousy workman

2005-12-28T00:38:00.000+08:00

Ever heard of this phrase : A lousy workman only blames his tools?

Well, I do not totally agree with this statement though somehow it does have some logic in it. But certain phrases just do not apply to just about everything-like exams.

Yes. I have just received my results for my matriculation and it was not very encouraging. Though I have to admit it was a mediocre one-not bad but not good enough. My average score was 75% ( an A grade) whilst the University of Nottingham required 85% ! Aiks. Fine. I figured I've run short of 10% to enter the undergraduate course and as a result, I have to do an extra year. However, all hopes are not lost. To look at the bright side, getting 75% wasn't that bad at all. I mean, c'mon it's still an A ! Unfortunately, certain people in my life do not share this view with me.

I have reasons for getting 75% and not 85%. And though it may sound like I am giving excuses like a little boy not satisfied after losing a board game, I am sincerely truthful that these reasons are valid. I did not do this just to cover up my shortcomings. If I do have one, I am more than happy to admit it. But when situation like this (getting 10% less) arise, if I have reasons for this to take place then I will say it.

The reason why I could not get 85% because there was a lack of resources for me to refer to during my course. In my college, which I refuse to disclose its name, do not have enough capacity to offer academic references for students to use to assist in their studies. Yes. this is true and no matter what others say, I can tell you it is true. I am not blaming falsely on the college for the missing 10%. But the fact is and it is this. I did not have enough academic assistance unlike my other friends in other colleges.

Also, the studying environment wasn't all very pleasant. There were certain incidents which kind of distracted me from concentrating on my studies. Hence, student morale comes into the picture. During my course, my morale was at an all time low, given the circumstances which I had to endure during my 10-month stint at the college. Imagine 10 months of total lack of morale-boosting catalysts ( guys would know what I mean). A year ago I couldn't imagine such of a scenario. But after this year, I had a first-hand experience. And it's tough.

Therefore, with the lack of resources to facilitate my academic endevours and with my morale running below optimum levels, it is understandable why the 10% seemed so illusive.

" If you put Alonso in a Minardi, you cannot expect him to win every race."

Hence, if you put me in that not-so-academically-encouraging situation, how could I ever fulfill my potential?

when....

2005-12-14T20:48:00.000+08:00

When boredom or 'sien-ness' ( in Manglish terms) reaches epidemic proportions and it almost crosses the line between "under control" and "out of hand", i frequently ponder what is remedical to appropriately address this. As all teenagers would agree with me, boredom/sien-ness is what we fear the most. Anyway, the downside of holidays is that boredom sometimes creep in like a cicak on the wall, silent, and it slowly overtakes your hopes and dreams of what a 'perfect' holiday should be. My interpretation of a 'perfect' holiday includes countless hours of TV, computer, futsal, shopping, eating, sleeping and everything that falls under the category of "FUN". It is almost a Law that dictates how holidays should be. But not all things, no things are perfect. Holidays are such things.

We try to pretend that holidays are enjoyable. True, for me. There are times when i would rejoice and give thanks for holidays and there are times when i would beg for some work to do. Not that i like work, but it's just that i dislike the not-working-for-a-long-period-of-time feeling. I dislike or i should dare say, hate being idle. It makes me feel like i'm the world's most fai chai (useless stick)-only capable of consuming resources and contributing none. I feel more complete as a person, if at least i have something to do.

Lo and behold, that was what i did today-trying to find something to do. Boredom has consumed so much of me that whether doing something fun or just for the sake of it wouldn't bother me any more. I just had to do something. Just had to! So, i followed my friends to MidValley to catch The Chronicles of Narnia. Note that i have watched it last week but decided, 'What the heck. I'll just watch it again'. So i did. I spent $7 when the contents of my wallet consisted only my IC, Driver's License, some sale receipts, coupons and yes, $9. 9 bucks?!??!?! Yes.Only 9. For a moment, the number 9 seems like an awful number to me.Awful to anyone when your wallet only has 9 One-Dollar notes. However one lesson which i learned today was to always keep stock of your wallet's contents. The amount of how many colour-printed papers with a portrait of an uncle with a keris determines whether you should go catch a movie or just stay at home staring at the TV. Hence, I told my friend I will pay for the movie ticket some other day...if i remember that is.

The movie started at 3.35pm. But I had no idea why I was already there at 12pm. Nevermind, i thought to myself. I had nothing to do anyway at home. So, I started my aimless stroll around the shopping mall just to pass the time. This was the first time I actually hated wasting time. Or was it because i had TOO MUCH time to waste? I walked and walked, up the escalator and down, stopped to look at some CDs, met a classmate and then looked at my watch and...it was only 1.00pm. I had nothing to say to myself. But you have to give credit to me. At least I could do all of those things listed in the above in just one hour. What do they call this? Multi-tasking? I deserve a salute for this. So, Lesson #2 today was : If you want to waste time, there is no point in wasting your energy.

To conclude, holidays may not be perfect as we all ought it would be. If you feel like kicking the boredom out of your day, do not EVER do something just for the sake of doing it.Don't just do something if you have nothing to do. I've learnt this the hard way today. I would consider boredom is not such of a bad thing at all from now onwards. If it's bad, at least it's not as bad as walking around in a mall for 3 hours with an empty wallet...