Lack of Patriotism, Really?

by Damian Denis

In 1995/6 after my STPM exams I went to the Penang Police HQ (Penang Rd.) to apply for the post of Police Inspector. The requirement was a STPM qualification at that time.

Once there we were given a physical routine check up and those who were qualified were given the application form. Simple as that!

But went it came to my turn the officer in charge refuse to hand-over the application form to me on the basis that my STPM results were good. My physical check up was fine.

He said “kamu tak payahlah masuk polis. Buang masa aje dengan result yg bagus cam tu”. (You don’t need to enter the Police Force. Just a waste of time since you have a good STPM results.)

Read more here.

Aung San Suu Kyi Released

YANGON, Myanmar – Myanmar's military government freed its archrival, democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, on Saturday after her latest term of detention expired. Several thousand jubilant supporters streamed to her residence.

A smiling Suu Kyi, we aring a traditional jacket and a flower in her hair, appeared at the gate of her compound as the crowd chanted, cheered and sang the national anthem.

"If we work in unity, we will achie ve our goal. We have a lot of things to do," she told the well-wishers, who quickly swelled to as many as 5,000. Speaking briefly in Burmese, she said they would see each other again Sunday at the headquarters of her political party.

The 65-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate, whose latest period of detention spanned 7 1/2 years, has come to symbolize the struggle for democracy in the Southeast Asian nation ruled by the military since 1962.

Read more here.

Appreciation

A very interesting and meaningful story to share with your friends and those who have kids...

Story of Appreciation

One young academically excellent person went to apply for a managerial position in a big company. He passed the first interview, the director did the last interview, made the last decision.

The director discovered from the CV, that the youth's academic result is excellent all the way, from the secondary school until the postgraduate research, never has a year he did not score.

The director asked, "Did you obtain any scholarship in school?" and the youth answered "none".

The director asked, " Is it your father who paid for your school fees?" the youth answered, my father passed away when I was one year old, it was my mother who paid for my school fees.

The director asked, " Where did your mother worked?" the youth answered, my mother washes clothes for people. The director requested the youth to show his hand, the youth showed a pair of hand that is smooth and perfect to the director.

The director asked, " Did you ever help your mother washed the clothes before?" The youth answered, never, my mother always wanted me to study and read more books, furthermore, my mother can wash clothes faster than me.

The director said, I had a request, when you go back today, go and help to clean your mother's hands, and then see me tomorrow morning.

The youth felt that the chance of landing the job is high. When he went back, he happily wanted to clean his mother's hands, but his mother felt strange, happy but mixed with fear, she showed her hands to her son.

The youth cleaned his mother's hands slowly, with his tears falling as he did that. It was the first time he found his mother's hands so wrinkled, and there were so many bruises in her hands. Some bruises incited pains so strongly that brought shivers to his mother's body when cleaned with water.

That was the first time the youth realized and experienced that it was this pair of hands that washed the clothes everyday which earned him the school fees, the bruises in the mother's hand was the price that the mother paid for his graduation and academic excellence and probably his future.

After finishing the cleaning of his mother hands, the youth quietly cleaned all the remaining clothes for his mother.

That night, mother and sons talked for a very long time.

Next morning, the youth went to the director's office

The director noticed the tears in the youth's eye, and asked: " Can you tell you what have you done and learned yesterday in your house?"

The youth answered, " I cleaned my mother's hands, and also finished cleaning all the remaining clothes'

The director asked, " please tell me your feeling."

The youth said, Number 1, I knew what is appreciation, without my mother, I would not be successful today. Number 2, I knew how to work together with my mother, then only could I realize how difficult and tough it was to get something done. Number 3, I knew the importance and value of family relationship.

The director said, " This is what I am asking, I want to recruit a person who can appreciate the help of others, a person who knew the sufferings of others to get things done, and a person who would not put money as his only goal in life to be my manager. You are hired.

Later on, this young person worked very hard, and received the respect of his subordinates, every employee worked diligently and in a team, the company's result improved tremendously.

A child who has been protected and habitually given whatever he does, develops "entitlement mentality" and always puts himself first. He is ignorant of his parent's efforts. When he starts work, he assumes that everybody must listen to him, and when he becomes a manager, he would never know how the sufferings of his employees and would always blame others. He could have good results, may be successful for a while, but eventually would not feel a sense of achievement, which would be full of complaints and full of hatred as he wants to fight for more. If we are this kind of protective parent, are we loving the kid or destroying the kid?

You can let your kid live in a big house, eat a good meal, learn piano, watch a big screen TV. But when you are cutting grass, please let him experience it. After a meal, let him wash his plate and bowl together with his brothers and sisters. It is not because you do not have money to hire a maid, but it is because you want to love your child in the right way. You should want them to understand, no matter how rich their parents are, one day their hair will grow gray, same as the mother of that young person. The most important thing is your kid learn how to appreciate the efforts and experience the difficulty and learn the ability to work with others to get things done.

Chinese Version:

感恩的故事

一名成績優秀的青年去申請一個大公司的經理職位。 他通過了第一級的面試，董事長做最後的面試，做最後的決定。

董事長從該青年的履歷上發現，該青年成績一 貫優秀，從中學到研究生從來沒有間斷過。

董事長問，你在學校裏拿到獎學金嗎？該青年回答，沒有。

董事長問，是你的父親 為您付學費嗎？該青年回答，我父親在我一歲時就去世了，是我的母親給我付的學費。

董事長問，那你的母親是在那家公司高就？該 青年回答，我的母親是給人洗衣服的。董事長要求該青年把手伸給他，該青年把一雙潔白的手伸給董事長。

董事長問，你幫你母 親洗過衣服嗎？該青年回答，從來沒有，我媽總是要我多讀書，再說，母親洗衣服比我快得多。

董事長說，我有個要求，你今天回家，給你母 親洗一次雙手，明天上午你再來見我。

該青年覺得自己成功的可能很大，回到家後，高高興興地要給母親洗手，母親受寵若驚地把手伸給孩子。

該 青年給母親洗著手，漸漸地，眼淚掉下來了，因為他第一次發現，他母親的雙手都是老繭，有個傷口在碰到水時還疼得發抖。

青年第一次體會到，母親就是 每天用這雙有傷口的手洗衣服為他付學費，母親的這雙手就是他今天畢業的代價。

該青年給母親洗完手後，一聲不響地把母親剩下要洗的衣服都洗了。

當天晚上，母親和孩子聊了很久很久。

第二天早上，該青年去見董事長。

董事長望著該青年紅腫的眼睛，問到，可以告訴我你昨天回家做了些什麼嗎？

該青年回答說，我給母親洗完手之後， 我幫母親把剩下的衣服都洗了。

董事長說，請你告訴我你的感受。

該青年說，第一，我懂得了感恩，沒有我 母親，我不可能有今天。第二，我懂得了要去和母親一起勞動，才會知道母親的辛苦。第三，我懂得了家庭親情的可貴

董事長說，我就是要錄取一個會 感恩，會體會別人辛苦，不是把金錢當作人生第一目標的人來當經理。你被錄取了。

這位青年後來果真工作努力，深得職工擁護，員工也都努力工作，整個公司業績大幅成長。

假如一位孩子從小嬌生慣養，習 慣了被人圍著寵著，什麼都是“我”第一，父母的辛苦都不知道，上班後，以為同事都應該聽他的，當了經理後，不知道員工的辛苦，還要怨天尤人。這樣的人，會有好的學校成績，會有得意風光的一時，但社會上的這類人，都不能成大事，都不會感覺到幸福，都要跌跟鬥，那父母是愛孩子呢還是害孩子呢？

你可以讓你的孩子住 大 房子，吃大餐，學鋼琴，看大屏電視，但你在割草時，也要讓你的孩子在大太陽下拔拔野草，你在吃飯後，也要讓你的孩子洗洗碗，不是你沒有錢雇人，而是你真心 愛孩子。你要讓孩子知道，即使父母掙不少錢，但早早的白髮，和那位洗衣服的母親沒有本質的差別。但更重要的是，要讓你的孩子學會感恩。

Source: An email from Mr. David Ng

What is Love?

For those who misuse the word love, even kids have a better understanding than adults. A group of professional people posted this question to a group of 4 to 8 year olds: "What does love mean?" The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined.

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

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

3. Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving Cologne and they go out and smell each other.
Kari - age 5

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

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

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

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

8. Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.
Bobby - age 7

9. If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate.
Nikka - age 6

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

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

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

13. Love is when mommy sees daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford.
Chris - age 7

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

15. When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.
Karen - age 7

16. Love is when mommy sees daddy on the toilet and doesn't think it's gross.
Mark - age 6

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

Source: An email from Mr. David Ng

Would You Try This 'Miracle Drink'?

MIRACLE DRINK - CARROT, POTATO AND APPLE

It is like a Miracle Drink! It is simple.
You need one potato, one carrot and one apple that combine together to make the JUICE !

Wash the above, cut with the skin on into pieces and put them into the juicer and immeadiately you drink the juice.

You can add some lime or lemon for more refreshing taste.

This Miracle Drink will be effective for the following ailments:
1. Prevent cancer cells to develop. It will restrain cancer cells to grow.
2. Prevent liver, kidney, pancreas decease and it can cure ulcer as well.
3. Strengthen the lung, prevent heart attack and high blood pressure.
4. Strengthen the immune system.
5. Good for the eyesight, eliminate red and tired eyes or dry eyes.
6. Help to eliminate pain from physical training, muscle ache.
7. Detoxify, assist bowel movement, eliminate constipation. Therefore it will make skin healthy and look more radiant. It is God sent for acne problem.
8. Improve bad breath due to indigestion, throat infection,
9. Lessen menstrual pain.
10. Assist Hay Fever Sufferer from Hay Fever attack.

There is absolutely no side effect.
Highly nutritious and easily absorbs.
Very effective if you need to loose weight.
You will notice your immune system will be improved after 2 week routine.
Please make sure to drink immediately from the juicer for best effect.

WHEN TO DRINK IT;
DRINK IT FIRST THING IN THE MORNING WITH THE EMPTY STOMACH! AFTER ONE HOUR YOU CAN EAT BREAKFAST.

IT DOES NOT COST YOU MUCH MONEY!

Source: An email from Mr. Simon Ng.

Minnesota Mom Hit With $1.5 Million Fine for Downloading 24 Songs

What's the value of a song? Jammie Thomas-Rasset has spent the last few years in court debating that question. The Minnesota mother of four is being penalized for illegally downloading and sharing 24 songs on the peer-to-peer file-sharing network Kazaa in 2006, but how much she owes the record labels has been in question. The jury in her third trial has just ruled that Thomas-Rasset should pay Capitol Records $1.5 million, CNET reports, which breaks down to $62,500 per song. It's a heavy penalty considering the 24 tunes would only cost approximately $24 on iTunes, which was Thomas-Rasset' argument, too.

Thanks to Thomas-Rasset's colorful case, she has become the public face of the record industry's battle with illegal downloaders. In her first trial, in 2007, the jury demanded she pay $222,000 for violating the copyright on more than 1,700 songs by Green Day, Aerosmith and Richard Marx, to name a few. (Marx said he was "ashamed" to be associated with the "farcical" prosecution of an illegal downloader.) Thomas-Rasset maintained she wasn't the computer user who did the file sharing, and her legal team cited an error in jury instruction to secure a second trial in 2009 that ended with a much harsher result: an astronomical fine of $1.92 million. However, earlier this year a U.S. District Court judge found the $1.92 million penalty against Thomas-Rasset to be "monstrous and shocking" and "gross injustice" before lowering it to $54,000, or $2,250 a song. Thomas-Rasset and her legal team decided to appeal that decision, too.

Read more here.

Can This Be A View For 1Malaysia!?

The view of a true Malaysian

Received this email from a good friend and the content of the view of this prominent person who has hold numerous significant positions in the government, has taken me deeply.

I would like to share his view over here and for us to ponder about, hopefully something better, even how small it is, conciously or unconciously can be done.

Dominating role not healthy for nation, I think we are farther apart now than we were in 1969. But you have to remember that I grew up going to an English school, to a university where there were people of all races. At that time, although we did think in terms of race, it wasn’t in the way people do now. We felt that we were Malayans. We socialised much better than we do now.

Bahasa Malaysia can be a unifying factor. But it can be a factor separating people, too. As Sukarno would say, “The important thing is the jiwa.” You don’t have to have a common language, if you have the same jiwa (heart, spirit, passion, devotion). This is what we don’t have right now....

In 1956, the historical society of Universiti Malaya went to India . There were lots of Indians in the group, but they didn’t think of themselves as Indians, they thought of themselves as Malayans. That’s the jiwa. But later on, because of certain reactions, suddenly people stayed away from this jiwa - they don’t feel as though they are fully Malaysian. They are made to feel that way.

When I was in the service, there were lots of non-Malays in the civil service, holding good positions. But do you see them now? If you go to the universities, where are the non-Malay professors? After 1969, suddenly there was this drive to make sure that all university vice-chancellors and faculty deans were Malay. So, in the end, we chased away all the best brains among the non-Malays.

When schools say you must start school with a doa (Muslim prayer recitation), you push away all the non-Muslims. When I was at school, we never had any prayers. Whatever we learnt in religious class was a separate thing. I think it’s more important that we bring people together, rather than pushing religion so hard that it alienates other people. This is what’s happening. I can’t blame the Chinese and Indians; why should they go to a sekolah kebangsaan (national school), when they have to do all these things?

All the things are breaking down. Our school system is not as it used to be. We are producing supposedly so many students with so many As, but what do they know? Are we happy about it? The leaders seem to be happy about it. We came up with the Rukun Negara because, after 1969, there was the feeling that the nation was breaking down.

People had forgotten what it was all about. So, we thought we could bring people back together - unite them. That’s what the first part of the Rukun Negara is about: the objectives of the nation. Unfortunately, we did practically nothing to promote an understanding of the Rukun Negara. And when schools make mistakes, nobody corrects them. That should have been the role of the Department of Information.

In the beginning, Tan Sri Ghazali Shafie did try to apply the test of whether something was in consonance with the Rukun Negara or not. But then, the government just forgot about this.

We are supposed to be a united nation, not only in terms of state, but also in terms of people: that they would all consider themselves as Malaysians, and that this was their country and their nation.

We wanted all these people to share the wealth of the nation. One of the things we thought contributed to ’69 was the economic disparities, joblessness. The New Economic Policy was a policy for all Malaysians; not just for the Malays. But we wanted to restructure the economy so that the Malays would come out of the rural agriculture sector into the commercial sector.

We wanted Malay participation at all levels of economic activity. We wanted to uplift the Malays without reducing the position of the others.. - “eradicating poverty regardless of race”. And this was supposed to be in a situation of growth. Not just sharing the existing cake, but the cake must grow, so that these people also have the opportunity to grow.

At the same time, we also hoped that the Malays would grow a little faster. So, they set this target of 30 per cent equity in 20 years. I was not much in favour of that because I didn’t think it was achievable. I felt that participation was more important than wealth.

We never thought that we would produce multi-billionaires. That was never the intention of the NEP. If some people can come up as everyone comes up, it’s okay. But it wasn’t supposed to be about some people getting contracts. We did say that we should have Malay millionaires just as we should have Chinese and Indian millionaires, but not so much so that you don’t have to do anything.

You must differentiate between dominance and domination. As Tun Dr Ismail said,
“We want to be dominant, but we don’t want to dominate.”

Dominant in the sense that we wanted the Malays to be everywhere; but not to dominate all the others. But we seem to be dominating; and I don’t think that’s healthy for the nation. It’s not about taking your share and not caring about the rest.

My Friends Are My Enemies

"History has shown us that humankind is more brutal to its friends than its enemies."

Raja Petra Kamaruddin, (RPK)

Read more here.

Tsunami at Mentawai Islands - Have Been Expected Earlier By Experts

I would like to re-post the following article I have excerpted from The New Strait Times published on 27 December 2009 as we are feeded with news of the tsunami at the said location.

Next Big Earthquake Due Under Mentawai Islands, Indonesia (and Tsunami too)
(Excerpted from NST 27/12/2009 - p.46)

A massive undersea earthquake is long overdue beneath the Mentawai Islands in Indonesia and could trigger another deadly tsunami.

Unlike the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami which killed about 226,000 people, this tsunami is expected to be smaller but may be very deadly as it would hit Sumatera's densely populated coast, according to Kerry Sieh, director of the Singapore-based Earth Observatory.

A major quake measuring around 8.6 magnitude is expected beneath Siberut Island, along the Sunda megathrust, where the Indonesia-Australian tectonic plate butts up against the Eurasian plate.

Sieh said, the big quake will most likely strike in next few decades, somewhere from thirty seconds to 30 years. He predicted such occurance of the quake based on the study of geological records which showed that major quakes have occured along the Sunda megathrust every 200 years for the past 700 years.

According Sieh, there have been three major quake cycles: the late 1300s, the 1600s and between 1797 - 1833 and the timing between those three sequences is about 200 years. Therefore the next cycle will be between now and the next 30 years!

The Sunda megathrust extends from Myanmar in the north and sweeps in a south-east arc through Sumatera, Java and towards Timor.

In 2004, the northern 1,600 km section, from Myanmar to Acheh, ruptured, sending the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed about 226,00 people.

In March 2005, a powerful quake hit the second section near Nias Island, though there was no occurance of tsunami but causing more than 11m defomations beneath the island.

In 2007, an 8.4 and a 7.8 earthquake hit the southern end of the third section, called the Mentawais Patch.

In September 2009, an earthquake hit Padang, Sumatera but that quake resulted not from the rupture of the megathrust beneath the Mentawais but was on a deeper fault.

This means that another 300 km section of the northern part of the Mentawai Patch has not yet broken up into a quake. The last time this section has broken up into a quake was in 1797.

Comment: So, from now on to the next 300 years, anytime, a massive quake could occur from that section of the Mentawai Patch and it could create a significant tsunami and deadly too. Be alert to those who frequent to enjoy yourself at the beaches surounding the area!

October 28, 2010 - A massive, about 7.7 magnitude on Ritcher scale, earth quake has erupted at this location and caused a significant deadly tsunami. Numbers of death at this moment are more than 400 and still counting..... But will this the end of it or the super calamity is yet to come!

Becareful When Eating Bananas!

Be Cautious When Selecting Bananas.

At the rate of RM 2/- a dozen, death is being sold nowadays in our markets. My request is for everybody to be vigilant.

Friends, we all love bananas and we eat a lot of them but the bananas available in the market are forced ripe by dipping in water mixed with Carbide. The consumption of these bananas is likely to cause Cancer or some other infection in the stomach. Therefore, such types of bananas are to be avoided.

But, how does one recognize the bananas ripened with the help of Carbide?

Bananas which are ripened naturally are dark yellow and there are small black spots here and there on the bananas and the stalks are black.

While those which are forced to ripen with Carbide are lemon yellow and their stalks are green and moreover they are clear yellow without any black spots.

Now, what is Carbide and how is it harmful? Carbide is a chemical which if mixed with water, emits heat and the heat emitted by a closed tank mixed with Carbide is even more than that emitted by a LPG Cylinder so much so it can be used for Gas Cutting (which means the calorific value is so high that it can replace LPG gas).

In the same way, when the bunch of bananas are dipped in the water mixed with Carbide, the gas gets absorbed into the bananas and they get to ripen earlier.

However, the banana vendors are not that educated chemically and pharmacy-wise, and therefore they do not know the safe proportion of Carbide to be used for treating bananas.

As a result they end up using excessive quantity of Carbide which gets absorbed into the bananas and ultimately enters our stomach.

Due to this excessive use of Carbide tumours can be formed in our digestive system.

So, next time you purchase bananas, make sure you select those that are ripened naturally. Buy green bananas and allow them to ripe in a few days.

Source: An email from Mr. Simon Ng

Paul the Octopus Dies

World Cup soccer’s psychic octopus dies in Germany
October 26, 2010

File picture shows two year-old octopus Paul, the so-called ‘octopus oracle’ as it predicts Spain’s 2010 soccer World Cup final victory over The Netherlands by opening and choosing a mussel from a glass box decorated with the Spanish national flag instead of a glass box with the Dutch flag on July 9, 2010. – Reuters pic

BERLIN, Oct 26 – Paul, the oracle octopus who shot to fame in the World Cup this summer for his uncanny ability to predict the results of Germany’s soccer matches, has died at his home in Oberhausen at the age of two.

English-born Paul made headlines across the globe after he correctly forecast how Germany would fare in seven matches, before his psychic powers were tested again for the final.

After Germany’s semi-final defeat, Paul tipped Spain to beat the Netherlands in the final, which prompted one news agency to report he had spurred a jump in demand for Spanish government bonds. Paul’s prediction duly came to pass: Spain won.

Staff at the Oberhausen Sea Life Centre in western Germany said in a statement they were “devastated” to learn of Paul’s death when they returned to work today.

“He appears to have passed away peacefully during the night, of natural causes, and we are consoled by the knowledge that he enjoyed a good life,” said the centre’s manager Stefan Porwoll.

Before matches, two containers of food were placed in the eight-legged creature’s tank, each one bearing the flag of one of the teams about to compete for their chance to become world champions. The container Paul picked first was seen as his pick.

Following the World Cup, a Spanish zoo made a transfer bid for Paul but his German keepers refused to sell.

Paul will be kept in cold storage until the centre decides how to mark the mollusc’s extraordinary life, Porwoll added.

“We may decide to give Paul his own small burial plot within our grounds and erect a modest permanent shrine,” he said.

Paul, who was hatched in Weymouth, England, may yet continue to dazzle the world with predictions from beyond the grave.

A Russian newspaper said in July it had got Paul to predict who would be Russia’s next president – but that the results would be kept secret until the election year of 2012.

Sea Life said Paul would live on as the object of a host of commercial enterprises ranging from special clothing lines to mobile phone applications inspired by his fame in Oberhausen, one of Germany’s most cash-strapped cities.

Meanwhile, donations made in honour of Paul’s achievements would help to fund a planned permanent rescue centre for sea turtles on the Greek island of Zakynthos, Sea Life said. – Reuters

Source: Here

Amazing!

These pictures were taken by a French photographer, Alain Delorme in Shanghai throughout 2009 & 2010. He called the series, Totems.

These couriers - mostly migrant workers from other parts of China - not only need strong legs but also acrobatic skills to balance these massive loads on their tricycles & bicycles while on the move. A lot of you must be wondering where the centre of gravity is in each case.

Source: An email from Mr. Simon Ng

Becareful When Eating Apples

Be Careful when eating apples.

Please don't eat the skin of the apple because it's coated with wax.

Check before you eat many of the fruits.

WAX is being used for preservation purposes and cold storage.

You might be surprised to find out some apples have been kept for more than one year old, though they look fresh. This is because wax is coated, preventing bacteria to enter. So it does not get dry.

Please eat apples after removing the wax as demonstrated below.

Source: An email from Mr. Lim Chin Hong

Rooney's U-Turn

Shock change of heart as Rooney stays at United

UPDATED @ 11:36:13 PM 22-10-2010

October 22, 2010

MANCHESTER, England, Oct 22 — Wayne Rooney performed a stunning U-turn today by signing a five-year contract to stay at Manchester United and end a week of bombshells with yet another shock.

The England striker had looked destined to leave Old Trafford in the next transfer window after saying two days ago that he wanted to quit because of United’s lack of clout in attracting more top players to the club.

He attributed his change of heart to manager Alex Ferguson, whom Rooney called a “genius” and said had convinced him that he belonged at United.

Ferguson, who had been visibly shaken this week when describing how his striker had wanted to quit, said Rooney had apologised to him and the players and had changed his mind after understanding “what a great club Manchester United is”.

But Rooney, who earlier this month publicly contradicted Ferguson by saying he was not injured when his manager said he was, still faces the tricky job of winning over fans who feel betrayed.

“I’m delighted to sign another deal at United. In the last couple of days, I’ve talked to the manager and the owners and they’ve convinced me this is where I belong,” Rooney said in a statement.

Read more.

Sultan of Kelantan Revokes Awards of Four People

Written by Bernama
Wednesday, 13 October 2010 16:04

KOTA BAHARU: The Sultan of Kelantan, Sultan Muhammad V, on Wednesday, Oct 13, revoked the awards conferred on four people, among them Pasir Mas Member of Parliament Ibrahim Ali.

Read more.

PM Najib - "Cina Bukan Pendatang"

Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak hari ini berkata rakyat Malaysia keturunan Cina bukan pendatang sebaliknya merupakan warga setia negara ini.

Kata-kata hinaan dan sentimen negatif seperti itu perlu dikikis, kata Perdana Menteri.

"Saya setuju dengan anda bahawa kaum Cina Malaysia tidak boleh digambarkan sebagai kaum pendatang."

"Itu mungkin bagi beberapa generasi sebelum ini tetapi hari ini, anda adalah warga Malaysia yang setia."

Read more.
Also watch video here.

Racial Harmony???

Following are some parts of an article written by blogger steadyaku47 titled ".... ......" and I strongly believe should lead us, Malaysians to do some thinking and to analyse the real situation in front of us!

"Do you Chinese know that we Malays do not say that a Chinese has died? No we have this term we use – “.... .....” ….I really cannot think of an English equivalent that would do justice to the venom and contempt that the phrase intends to conveys! But for me personally that phrase has not been used or even thought of for a long long time. It came back to me just now when I was trying to find a way to make the Chinese understand the depth of hatred that some Malays still do have for you infidels and pork eating people who dare to call Malaysia their home! And so my friend you need to take this in the context that I am trying to frame it. Racial harmony is not an easy thing. Racial harmony will not come naturally for a number of Malays. And of course for some Malays they need racial harmony like they need a hole in their head!

....

But we Malays are also mindful of the deep seated feelings that lies within the mentality of the Chinese youth and those who have grown up under the oppressive rule of the ............... We Malays are only too aware that feelings just as intense against the Malays are also rooted in the physic of the Chinese – possible more in those Chinese in secondary and higher institution of learning. Where they have already developed the ability to think and reason for themselves what they want to think of the Malays. The same Malays that is the privileged ethnic group. The same Malays that is privy to the best education, almost all business opportunities from the government and the same Malays that asks them to speak in Bahasa, write in Bahasa and learn in Bahasa!

The tension for the Chinese and the Malays lies just below the surface. Real and not imaginary".

Read more here...

Rabbit or Duck?

Source: www.mixpod.com

Ministry To Find Out Why Commonwealth Gold Medalist Used Sabah Flag

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 8 — Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Razali Ibrahim said today he would hold talks with the Malaysian Weightlifting Association over Commonwealth Games gold medalist Aricco Jumitih’s decision to wear a vest with a Sabah flag on it during his event in New Delhi this week.

Aricco’s vest also had the word “Sabah” on the back instead of “Malaysia.”

Read more...

Kajang New Landmark

Old Kajang Stadium for New Kajang Square

Old Stadium making way for....

New Kajang Square

The iconic landmark of Kajang town - Kajang Stadium was scheduled to be demolished on 15th August 2010.

The 40-year-old Kajang Stadium will make way for the new Kajang Square project with cost estimated at RM5.5 millions.

The stadium, built in the late 1970s, will be turned into a public square where people could jog or enjoy a stroll.

The project would include a multi-million rinngit sports complex with futsal and badminton courts, field for tai chi, yoga and aerobic activities, a children’s playground and kiosks selling various wares.

The first phase, a playground will be built at a cost of RM200,000 which is almost completed.

The second phase will include the building of two futsal courts. Part of the walls will be torn down but the field will remain.

There will be a bitumen track instead of synthetic rubber, which will incur more cost.

The Kajang Square will also have kiosks and a stage.

The whole project would take about three years to complete.

(Source: Email from Mr. David Ng)

Myths About Eating Eggs and Mircowave Cooking Which Are Untrue!

( Excerpted from http://shine.yahoo.com - 6 biggest lies about food busted )

by The Editors of Eating Well Magazine, on Thu Sep 16, 2010 7:57am PDT

Myth: Eggs are bad for your heart.

The Truth: Eggs do contain a substantial amount of cholesterol in their yolks—about 211 mg per large egg. And yes, cholesterol is the fatty stuff in our blood that contributes to clogged arteries and heart attacks. But labeling eggs as “bad for your heart” is connecting the wrong dots, experts say. “Epidemiologic studies show that most healthy people can eat an egg a day without problems,” says Penny Kris-Etherton, Ph.D., R.D., distinguished professor of nutrition at Penn State University. For most of us the cholesterol we eat doesn’t have a huge impact on raising our blood cholesterol; the body simply compensates by manufacturing less cholesterol itself. Saturated and trans fats have much greater impact on raising blood cholesterol. And a large egg contains only 2 grams of saturated fat and no trans fats. The American Heart Association recommends limiting cholesterol intake to less than 300 mg daily—less than 200 mg if you have a history of heart problems or diabetes or are over 55 (women) or 45 (men). “That works out to less than an egg a day for this population—more like two eggs over the course of the week,” notes Kris-Etherton.

Related: Two Dozen Easy, Healthy Egg Recipes

Myth: Microwaving zaps nutrients.

The Truth: This is misguided thinking, says Carol Byrd-Bredbenner, Ph.D., R.D., professor of nutrition at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Whether you’re using a microwave, a charcoal grill or a solar-heated stove, “it’s the heat and the amount of time you’re cooking that affect nutrient losses, not the cooking method,” she says. “The longer and hotter you cook a food, the more you’ll lose certain heat- and water-sensitive nutrients, especially vitamin C and thiamin [a B vitamin].” Because microwave cooking often cooks foods more quickly, it can actually help to minimize nutrient losses.

Related: How to Cook 20 Vegetables

Myth: Radiation from microwaves creates dangerous compounds in your food.

The Truth: “Radiation” might connote images of nuclear plants, but it simply refers to energy that travels in waves and spreads out as it goes. Microwaves, radio waves and the energy waves that we perceive as visual light all are forms of radiation. So, too, are X-rays and gamma rays—which do pose health concerns. But the microwaves used to cook foods are many, many times weaker than X-rays and gamma rays, says Robert Brackett, Ph.D., director of the National Center for Food Safety and Technology at the Illinois Institute of Technology. And the types of changes that occur in microwaved food as it cooks are “from heat generated inside the food, not the microwaves themselves,” says Brackett. “Microwave cooking is really no different from any other cooking method that applies heat to food.” That said, microwaving in some plastics may leach compounds into your food, so take care to use only microwave-safe containers.

Good or Bad, Hard to Say!

Another interesting article emailed by Mr. David Ng.

Good or bad, hard to say! Once upon a time, there was a king. The king liked one of his followers very much, why? Because the follower was very wise and always gave very useful advice. Therefore the king took him along wherever he went. One day, the king was bitten by a dog. His finger was injured and the wound was getting worse. He asked the follower if that was a bad sign. The follower said, good or bad, hard to say'. In the end, the finger of the king was too bad that had to be cut. The king asked the follower again if that was a bad sign. Again, the follower gave the same answer, 'good or bad, hard to say'. The king became very angry and sent the follower to prison. One day, the king went hunting in the jungle. He got excited when he was on the chase of a deer. Deeper and deeper he went inside the jungle. In the end he found himself lost in the jungle. To make thing worse, he got captured by the native people lived inside the jungle. They wanted to sacrifice him to their god. But when they noticed that the king had one finger short, they released him immediately as he was not a perfect man anymore and not suitable for sacrifice. The king managed to get back to his palace after all. And he finally understood the follower's wise quote, 'good or bad, hard to say'. If he hadn't lost one finger,he could have been killed by the native people. He ordered to release the follower, and apologized to him. But to the king amaze, the follower was not mad at him at all. Instead, the follower said, 'it wasn't a bad thing that you locked me up.' Why? Because if the king hadn't locked the follower up, he would have brought the follower along to the jungle. If the native found that the king was not suitable, they would have used the follower. Again, the quote 'good or bad, hard to say' stands. The moral of the story: Everything that happens in this world, there is no absolute good or bad. Sometimes good things turned out to be bad things eventually. While bad things become a gain. Whatever good things that happen to you, enjoy it. But don't have to hold too tight to it, treat it as a surprise in your life. Whatever bad things that happen to you, don't have to feel too sad or despair. In the end, it might not be a total bad thing after all. If one can understand this, he or she will find life much easier.

A Nurse's Heart Attack Experience

NURSE'S HEART ATTACK EXPERIENCE

I am an ER nurse and this is the best description of this event that I have ever heard. Please read, pay attention, and send it on!

Diane K

FEMALE HEART ATTACKS

I was aware that female heart attacks are different, but this is the best description I've ever read.

Women and heart attacks (Myocardial infarction). Did you know that women rarely have the same dramatic symptoms that men have whenexperiencing heart attack .. you know, the sudden stabbing pain in the chest, the cold sweat, grabbing the chest & dropping to the floor that we see in the movies. Here is the story of one woman's experience
with a heart attack.

'I had a heart attack at about 10 :30 PM with NO prior exertion, NO prior emotional trauma that one would suspect might have brought it on. I was sitting all snugly & warm on a cold evening, with my purring cat in my lap, reading an interesting story my friend had sent me, and actually thinking, 'A-A-h, this is the life, all cozy and warm in my soft, cushy Lazy Boy with my feet propped up.

A moment later, I felt that awful sensation of indigestion, when you've been in a hurry and grabbed a bite of sandwich and washed it down with a dash of water, and that hurried bite seems to feel like you've swallowed a golf ball going down the esophagus in slow motion and it is most uncomfortable. You realize you shouldn't have gulped it down so fast and needed to chew it more thoroughly and this time drink a glass of water to hasten its progress down to the stomach. This was my initial sensation---the only trouble was that I hadn't taken a bite of anything since about 5:00 p.m.

After it seemed to subside, the next sensation was like little squeezing motions that seemed to be racing up my SPINE (hind-sight, it was probably my aorta spasms), gaining speed as they continued racing up and under my sternum (breast bone, where one presses rhythmically when administering CPR).

This fascinating process continued on into my throat and branched out into both jaws. 'AHA!! NOW I stopped puzzling about what was happening -- we all have read and/or heard about pain in the jaws being one of the signals of an MI happening, haven't we? I said aloud to myself and the cat, Dear God, I think I'm having a heart attack!

I lowered the foot rest dumping the cat from my lap, started to take a step and fell on the floor instead. I thought to myself, If this is a heart attack, I shouldn't be walking into the next room where the phone is or anywhere else ... but, on the other hand, if I don't, nobody will know that I need help, and if I wait any longer I may not be able to get up in a moment.

I pulled myself up with the arms of the chair, walked slowly into the next room and dialed the Paramedics ... I told her I thought I was having a heart attack due to the pressure building under the sternum and radiating into my jaws. I didn't feel hysterical or afraid, just stating the facts. She said she was sending the Paramedics over immediately, asked if the front door was near to me, and if so, to un-bolt the door and then lie down on the floor where they could see me when they came in.

I unlocked the door and then laid down on the floor as instructed and lost consciousness, as I don't remember the medics coming in, their examination, lifting me onto a gurney or getting me into their ambulance, or hearing the call they made to St. Jude ER on the way, but I did briefly awaken when we arrived and saw that the radiologist was already there in his surgical blues and cap, helping the medics pull my stretcher out of the ambulance. He was bending over me asking questions (probably something like 'Have you taken any medications?') but I couldn't make my mind interpret what he was saying, or form an answer, and nodded off again, not waking up until the Cardiologist and partner had already threaded the teeny angiogram balloon up my femoral artery into the aorta and into my heart where they installed 2 side by side stints to hold open my right coronary artery.

'I know it sounds like all my thinking and actions at home must have taken at least 20-30 minutes before calling the paramedics, but actually it took perhaps 4-5 minutes before the call, and both the fire station and St. Jude are only minutes away from my home, and my cardiologist was already to go to the OR in his scrubs and get going on restarting my heart (which had stopped somewhere between my arrival and the procedure) and installing the stints. 'Why have I written all of this to you with so much detail? Because I want all of you who are so important in my life to know what I learned first hand.'

1. Be aware that something very different is happening in your body not the usual men's symptoms but inexplicable things happening (until my sternum and jaws got into the act). It is said that many more women than men die of their first (and last) MI because they didn't know they were having one and commonly mistake it as indigestion, take some Maalox or other anti-heartburn preparation and go to bed, hoping they'll feel better in the morning when they wake up ... which doesn't happen. My female friends, your symptoms might not be exactly like mine, so I advise you to call the Paramedics if ANYTHING is unpleasantly happening that you've not felt before. It is better to have a 'false alarm' visitation than to risk your life guessing what it might be!

2. Note that I said 'Call the Paramedics.' And if you can take an
aspirin. Ladies, TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE! Do NOT try to drive yourself
to the ER - you are a hazard to others on the road. Do NOT have your
panicked husband who will be speeding and looking anxiously at what's
happening with you instead of the road. Do NOT call your doctor -- he doesn't know where you live and if it's at night you won't reach him anyway, and if it's daytime, his assistants (or answering service) will tell you to call the Paramedics.. He doesn't carry the equipment in his car that you need to be saved! The Paramedics do, principally OXYGEN that you need ASAP. Your Dr. will be notified later.

3. Don't assume it couldn't be a heart attack because you have a normal cholesterol count. Research has discovered that a cholesterol elevated reading is rarely the cause of an MI (unless it's unbelievably high and/or accompanied byhigh blood pressure). MI's are usually caused by long-term stress and inflammation in the body, which dumps all sorts of deadly hormones into your system to sludge things up in there.

Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep. Let's be careful and be aware. The more we know the better chance we could survive..

A cardiologist says if everyone who gets this mail sends it to 10 people, you can be sure that we'll save at least one life.

The Right Way To Eat Mangosteen

Received this email from Mr. Simon Ng T.H.

I am sure this is a good lesson for many of us who have used any other way to eat a Mangosteen.

Magic-Gopher

Mr. David Ng emailed this very interesting mathematical game.

Play it and try to figure out how come!

Click here or onto the picture to play.

Malaysia Day 2010

To All Malaysians
Happy 47th. Malaysia Day
16 September 2010
Lets Move Forward Together
To Make The Necessary Changes
for a Progressive, Prosperous, Fair, Just
and Developed Malaysia

Sincerely from: nklpunya.blogspot.com

Are We Prepared To Shed The Extremist Label?

This posting is a part of an article written by a well known blogger which I find interesting. I have edited few words or lines to suit the purpose of my posting which is centered on the main theme ''are we prepared to discard the extremist label"?.

Bernama reported today that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak wants Malaysians to fight extremism and to accept 1Malaysia.

Before we can fight extremism we must first understand what the word means.

Extremist (noun): a person zealous about a belief (Synonyms: agitator, die-hard, fanatic, radical, revolutionary, revolutionist, ultra, ultraist, zealot, illiberal, immoderate, stubborn, obsessive, single-minded, biased, unreasonable, bigot, intolerant, prejudiced, passionate, etc.)

Going by the above, almost 100% of Malaysians can be described as extremists. After all, who amongst us could tolerate/allow what we would regard as an insult to our race, religion or nation? Would we not passionately defend what we would consider our rights, dignity, freedom or whatever?

That would make us extremists.

The entire world, not just Malaysians, is extreme. And the only way to fight extremism would be to be the opposite of that word. And what is the opposite of extremism?

The words opposite to extremist are: conservative, moderate, humanitarian, liberal, disinterested, impartial, unenthusiastic, limited, mild, tolerant, etc.

Now, for Malaysians to shed the extremist label and become the opposite of extremist they have to make a lot of sacrifices and offer a lot of concessions.

Are Malaysians prepared to do that?

Are the political, community and religious leaders in Malaysia prepared to do that?

Are the 20 or so other political parties in Malaysia prepared to do that?

Are all the races in Malaysia prepared to do that?

Read more.

What Happened When You Were Born?

Received an interesting email from Mr. David Ng which I would like to share with my visitors.

Do you want to know things happened in the year you were born?

Click here to find out more.

Iconic 911 Photos

Today 11 September 2010 is the 9th. anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. The following are the iconic pictures that flashed on TV screens all over world on that faithful morning in New York. I was just arrived for holidays with my family and relatives at one of the resort in Langkawi Island at about 10 p.m. When I switched on the TV, horribly I saw these pictures flashed on the TV screen, even saw in live the 2nd plane crashed into the other tower which was still standing intact. I thought 3rd World War has broken out or the begininng of the end of the world. These pictures always remind me of the unpleasant holidays I had in Langkawi Island.

Click here to read more.

Excerpted from yahoo news.

An Interesting Artcle To Read

Satu artikel dipetik dari Malaysian Chronicle, oleh Shen Yee Aun yang saya rasa sangat menarik untuk dibaca oleh semua.

Sila klik disini.