A I S E H M A N . O R G

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March 31, 2006

Gone Potty

I love this blog.

Killer wit, I tell you.

Posted by aisehman at 09:46 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

In The Alphabet Soup

Adik-adik, today we will learn about the letters E, H, I and K:

E is for equity. No plan will be complete without reference to corporate share ownership. It is a common knowledge that the 30 per cent target for Malays is some way off from being met. Statistics also showed that the Indian share of corporate ownership shrunk during the Eighth Malaysia Plan. Any plan has to touch on how these two vexing problems can be resolved.

... H is for handouts. Anyone expecting a free ticket to fat contracts and endless variation orders to make money are going to be disappointed. This administration does not believe in short-term remedies.

I is for infrastructure. This is a no-brainer. The country needs a few more bridges, a better public transport system, more schools, better highways, and better quarters for teachers and policemen. Plus, it needs a more vibrant construction sector.

... K is for Key Performance Index. The current buzzword in corporate circles, expect it to be be used to measure all frontline services in the public sector. [New Straits Times]

NST's E and H are at odds with each other. I mean, what is the Bumi quota if not a handout?

I've got my own guide:

E is for enough. Enough of this quota bullshit.

H is for habis. Emphasis on the second sylable - Ha-BIS. Ask your Malay friends if you don't get it.

I is for ikan tongkol. Look out for the infrastructure projects that are going to be the equivalent of the infamous RM45 kari kepala ikan tongkol.

K is for KJ and Kamaluddin Performance Indices. You wanna watch these KPIs over the next five years. They are set to boom. [Jeff would probably add another K in there]

Will I be forced to eat my words? We will see.

Please remind me if I have to.

Posted by aisehman at 12:31 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack

Local Accreditation

Aiseh, what happened?

Universiti Malaya deputy vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Mohd Razali Agus has been appointed acting vice-chancellor following the departure of Prof Datuk Dr Hashim Yaacob, whose tenure, has ended, the Higher Education Ministry announced in a statement.

... An English-language daily had reported that National Accreditation Board chief executive officer Prof Datuk Dr Sharifah Hapsah Shahabudin would be appointed the next vice-chancellor. However, when contacted, Dr Sharifah Hapsah refused to comment. [The Star]

Sharifah Hapsah is highly qualified to be the UM vice-chancellor, I must say.

That they're now putting off the announcement of her "appointment" has sent my spider sense tingling.

Who "chose" her? Obviously, not the university. Clearly, not the Prime Minister or the Higher Education Minister.

Because if one of these three parties did, we wouldn't have this "VC-less" situation at UM.

How did the New Straits Times know she was chosen?

Almost two years ago, Dr Sharifah Hapsah wrote a letter to the newspaper, in which she proclaimed:

We are here to kill green-eyed monsters. They are everywhere. They permeate every stratum of our society. They are the proverbial crabs that will pull down any crab that is succeeding in climbing out of the barrel.

... We have to be ruthless in killing these monsters if we are to progress in this world. They are green with envy. Envy is the blood of mediocrity. The National Council of Women's Organisations has seen too many bright young people, women in particular, being sidelined for jobs they are competent to fill.

... For once we shall ignore what the green-eyed monsters are saying and let us silence them by continuing to identify good performance indicators and place people where they should be, based on their abilities. If an appointment has been identified to suit Khairy's abilities, by all means let us put him there without any apologies. [New Straits Times]

I blogged about it, and I asked this of her:

... where was your outrage when, as you say, the NCWO saw "too many bright young people, women in particular, being sidelined for jobs they are competent to fill"?

I don't see any Letter to the Editor from you on their behalf.

Why the special treatment for Khairy?

Mum's the word, I tell you. You go do the math.

Posted by aisehman at 09:41 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 30, 2006

Slick Manoeuvres

As you listen to the Prime Minister speak on the Ninth Malaysia Plan Friday, bear this in mind:

Oil climbed further above $66 on Thursday, towards its $70 record, after Iran rejected a U.N. Security Council demand that it halt uranium enrichment.

"There's got to be a crunch point over Iran," said Geoff Pyne, an independent oil analyst. "At the end of the day Iran is intent on uranium enrichment and the West won't allow it."

... In real terms oil is at levels unseen for a quarter of a century.

... Analysts Goldman Sachs stuck to their forecast that U.S. WTI crude would average $69.50 a barrel over the rest of 2006. They noted world economic growth was on a firm footing.

"Although Goldman Sachs economists expect a slowdown in the U.S. economy in the second half of 2006, the continuing recoveries in Europe and Japan, combined with strong growth in China, should make global growth more balanced, and more sustainable into 2007," they wrote in a research note. [Reuters]

The Government promised no more price hikes this year, but if prices go higher as expected, we're gonna be hit hard, again, next year.

All projections in the Plan will be based on an oil price assumption.

It would be good to know what it is.

Posted by aisehman at 11:40 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

What The World Will Be Watching

Coming soon to a TV near you:

... though Al Jazeera International's competitors have ... laid claim to the think globally, act locally mentality (and dispute that Western ownership leads to Western-centric newscasts), the new channel is turning the idea into a physical reality.

Its broadcasting day is expected to begin in Kuala Lumpur, 9 a.m. local time, and over the next four hours the journalists there will drive the report.

The following 11 hours will come out of Doha, before the London broadcast center takes the reins for five.

Then, for four hours beginning at 4 p.m. on the East Coast of the United States, Washington will gain its measure of control. [New York Times; registration required]

Osama bin Laden in your living room. Heck, Osama in your face.

It's gonna be a blast.

Posted by aisehman at 07:54 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Aye, MF

I wonder what Dr M would say to this:

We do not find evidence that Malaysia's September 1998 controls were essential for recovery or structural reforms.

Our analysis of the key macroeconomic and financial indicators confirms the empirical findings of Hutchinson (2001) that Malaysia’s macroeconomic performance after the imposition of capital controls was comparable to other countries recovering from the Asian financial crisis.

The controls were imposed late, after a big depreciation and after a large amount of capital had already left the country, and this limited the potential macroeconomic benefits.

At best, the controls played a preventive role in guarding against perceived risks to financial stability, but in this role they were not tested by any observable pressure.

As far as we can determine, Malaysia’s successful recovery resulted from the country’s strong fundamentals, sound policies, and effective institutions, rather than from the capital controls.

It would thus be misleading to draw any general lessons applicable to other countries based on Malaysia’s experience with capital controls during the Asian crisis. [IMF Working Paper - Malaysian Capital Controls: Macroeconomics and Institutions; PDF format]

Then again:

The presence of political connections in East Asian economies does not mean that these connections caused the crisis or even that relationship-based capitalism was necessarily a suboptimal system for these countries.

While politically connected firms were hit harder [by stock market investors] during the crisis, the data do not indicate that this was a punishment for past misdeeds and deficiencies.

The evidence suggests rather that investors interpreted the crisis as indicating that previously favored firms would lose valuable advantages, while the imposition of capital controls indicated — at least initially — that these advantages would be restored for some firms.

Based on the actual financial performance of firms after the crisis, it is hard to discern the extent to which firms actually received special advantages.

This could be because financial and corporate sector reforms resulted in fewer advantages for connected firms or because connected firms did not end up making good use of their privileges.

What does it all mean, exactly?

Any of you finance/economics types out there care to read all 51 pages of the shite and explain it to us in plain English?

And Tun, you can put in your two cents too. I'll gladly post your reply, and I'm sure it would make for good reading.

ALSO READ The Wall Street Journal: Let It Flow [subscription required]

Posted by aisehman at 04:08 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

You Haven't Got A Prayer

Kena:

Mohamad Taib, from Kedepal here, pleaded guilty to not attending Friday prayers at a mosque in his area three consecutive times, an offence which in Kelantan carries a maximum RM1,000 fine or a six-month jail term.

The labourer was caught by Pasir Mas Religious Affairs Department officers after two months of surveillance at the mosque.

Pasir Mas Lower Syariah Court prosecutor Rohani Kadir said the officers and mosque officials found that Mohamad had not attended Friday prayers at the mosque between June and July last year. [New Straits Times]

A two-month stakeout, just to catch one guy not attending Friday prayers.

Never mind. Maybe it's a small place, Kedepal; so small that if you don't turn up for Friday prayers, everyone at the mosque notices.

Maybe.

But I got a bone to pick with the Syariah Court judge.

Mohamad said the reason why he didn't turn up for prayers was because he was constantly ill from asthma.

Rather than ask the dude to provide evidence of his medical condition, the supposedly learned judge dismissed it off-hand.

That is hardly Islamic justice.

MAYBE NST should find out who else has laws against "Friday-prayer absenteeism".

I think it's an offence in Selangor too.

Posted by aisehman at 10:27 AM | Comments (12) | TrackBack

March 28, 2006

Natural Gas

Well done, Sarawak ... this is good shit:

A project is underway at a boarding school near here [Kuching] to turn faeces into gas.

The project, started three months ago at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Padawan with RM200,000 funding from the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry, is expected to save the school RM3,500 a month that would otherwise go to buying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

Environmental Advisor to the Sarawak Government, Dr James Dawos, said the project involved redesigning the toilets and building a bio-digester to extract methane gas to the kitchen. [Bernama]

Alternatively, you could build a pipeline to the Dewan Rakyat.

I know, I know ... it's expensive, but with the amount of gas our MPs produce, I think the ROI for the project would be pretty good.

Posted by aisehman at 05:51 PM | Comments (13) | TrackBack

Talk Cock

There's a lot of that going around in Parliament, and here's the latest example:

Teresa Kok (DAP-Seputeh) told Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Nazri Aziz that the directive [for policewomen to wear tudung during parades] had violated human rights.

Nazri disagreed, saying the directive concerned uniformity.

This could be seen from the fact policewomen were not compelled to wear the tudung except when taking part in parades.

"It is not going against human rights, it is a matter of uniformity. For instance, parliamentarians wearing the Number One uniform are required to wear a songkok, even though they are Chinese or Indians.

"These people still remain Chinese or Indians and have not converted to Islam. Yang Berhormat (Kok) only shows her hatred for Islam when she brings this subject up," he said. [New Straits Times]

Nazri is too clever to be stupid.

Unlike the tudung, which is a religious head covering, the Malay songkok, like the Arab kefiyyeh, is a traditional headdress.

Some Muslim Malay men wear the songkok to cover the head, usually during prayers. It is not worn because Islam requires the songkok itself to be worn.

This is the same with the kefiyyeh, which is also worn by many Arab Christians in the Middle East.

So, Teresa Kok did not supposedly "show her hatred for Islam" when she brought up the tudung issue.

She did nothing offensive to Islam by doing so.

Rather, it is Nazri who risks being seen as one who is ignorant of Islam -- his professed religion -- and of Malay culture.

Since he has more brains that he cares to use properly, Nazri here is simply talking cock.

Posted by aisehman at 02:50 PM | Comments (12) | TrackBack

The Route Of The Problem

UPDATE: MAS to offer VSS to 6,500 staffers.

*****

I'd like to see how they're gonna do this:

Malaysian Airline System ... said in a prepared statement that it will have to fire 6,500 of its 23,000 employees because of the reduction in its operations.

This bears out the fears of labor unions, which last week urged the government not to transfer Malaysia Airlines' domestic routes to AirAsia. It wasn't immediately clear if any domestic routes will be terminated. [Wall Street Journal; subscription required]

You think the "garmen" is gonna let them fire 6,500 people?

Heh heh heh ... I don't think so, even if it's the "right" thing to do.

And so we get to the root of the whole problem with this country.

ANOTHER THING None of our mainstream newspapers has the item above in their reports on the route allocation.

CORRECTION: The papers did have it, in their business sections.

Posted by aisehman at 09:49 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

March 27, 2006

Happy Days Are Here Again

So here we are, about two years after the last General Election, and how wrong things have turned out for the man who won the biggest majority in Parliament ever on the back of public support for him to right the wrongs.

Today, not only are they running rings around the Prime Minister, some have been openly defiant.

He is giving in to their demands, and from the looks of it, he will cave in further.

You'll see much in the Ninth Malaysia Plan. Much to fill the grumbling stomach and empty the head of any rebellious thoughts.

Malaysia, it's gonna be back to business as usual.

Whether that's good or bad, depends on where you stand.

Posted by aisehman at 06:05 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

March 26, 2006

Die-A-Tribe

Here's an interesting opinion:

Lawyer and independent researcher Salbiah Ahmad ... rejects the inference that those against the death penalty are un-Islamic.

... there were apostates during the Prophet’s lifetime, [but] there was never any question of war or punishment against them.

"The 'war on apostates' arose after the death of the Prophet during the caliphate of Abu Bakar (632-634 AD).

A number of tribes outside Medina refused to give allegiance to Abu Bakar and refused to pay the zakat as token of their allegiance. They declared that they had abandoned Islam.

"The Quraysh tribe, to which Abu Bakar belonged, had long been known to have hegemonic ambitions. Death for apostasy is, therefore, not a religious rule, but a political rule in the service of authoritarian politics." [New Sunday Times]

I support the death penalty, but not for apostasy.

However, I think Abu Bakar made war on the tribes concerned because of their treason, rather than their apostasy.

Yes, many members of the Quraysh tribe could be said to have had hegemomic ambitions, but to accuse Abu Bakar -- the second person to embrace Islam after the Prophet's wife and later, the first Caliph -- of harbouring such tribal ambitions and waging an "un-Islamic" war in their pursuit is probably going too far.

After all, Muhammad was also of the Quraysh: Shall we accuse him of inventing a religion in pursuit of his tribe's hegemonic ambitions, Salbiah?

I don't think so.

Posted by aisehman at 06:15 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack

Blowing Sunshine

Kalimullah Hassan has a story:

I remember asking Dr Ling [Liong Sik] over dinner about a story that I heard from one of Abdullah’s closest friends, about when Abdullah had been dropped from the Cabinet in 1987 and became a political outcast overnight.

Those were the days when lesser politicians and the media had developed a surreal skill for survival, and to please their masters, were shamelessly sycophantic and brutal in their treatment of those deemed as political foes of the establishment.

Abdullah was such a foe, ignored by the mainstream media, and harangued and insulted by these people.

Many of them, including some editors, were rewarded, some with positions, others with privatisation projects and management buyouts of their companies. [New Sunday Times]

Oooh. I wonder who the editors were? I think I know.

Anyway, you don't need to go into the storeroom and rummage through your stockpile of old newspapers to find examples of people being "shamelessly sycophantic and brutal in their treatment of those deemed as political foes of the establishment".

That you can see in Kalimullah's very article today:

Dr Ling has been an exemplary political retiree, keeping his peace and volunteering his assistance when asked, never interfering but still providing his views and inputs privately.

He deftly sidesteps discussions on the political intrigues of the day, be it within his own party or elsewhere, and he continues to be respected by his former colleagues and friends.

If Ling is exemplary, who is not, Kali? Heh, heh, heh.

And here, ball-carrying to the max:

But one thing he [Ling] would always say was that Abdullah had always been a very decent and sincere person ...

... But one thing Dr Ling will unhesitatingly comment on is that his friend, Abdullah (Ahmad Badawi), is among the most sincere and decent persons he has ever known.

Twice. In the same article.

Finally, if you read the whole thing carefully, put the newspaper down, sit back and think about it, you'll find that although the name "Ling" and references to the person are peppered throughout the article, the whole point of the exercise is hardly to praise the MCA ex-president, but to "angkat" the writer's ultimate boss: Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Shameless sycophancy? It's more than that. It's propaganda.

Oh, did I mention that Pak Lah is decent and sincere ... I have? And Ling is an exemplary poli ... you've heard that one too?

Posted by aisehman at 05:19 PM | Comments (11) | TrackBack

Coming To A Head

Look at how they've tried to worm their way out of a difficult situation:

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said it was optional for women police personnel to wear the "tudung" (headscarf) while performing their daily duties but the headscarf was compulsory for those taking part in parades.

"There is no problem and dispute (on the wearing of the tudung by women police personnel). Members of uniformed services, including the police, must abide by the regulations on the wearing of their uniforms," he said at a news conference after launching the 199th Police Day celebration at the Police Training Depot here. [Bernama]

Actually, you have to be stupid to not see the bullshit in the argument.

Since when has the need for uniformity in police parades over-ridden the individual right to freedom of religion?

The tudung is a Muslim headdress; it is worn by Muslim women who believe that covering the head, with the exception of the face, is required by their religion.

Let me ask this question: If there are fewer tudung-wearing policewomen in a particular parade than those not wearing the tudung, which of the two groups are not "uniformly dressed"?

The answer is, girls and boys, the group wearing the tudung.

Does this mean that we force them to take off their tudungs?

Of course not, as that would mean we are infringing on their right to freedom of religion.

Similarly, we allow Sikh policemen to wear turbans.

If they happen to be chosen to take part in a parade, do we force them to take it off?

Would it be right to exclude turban-wearing Sikh policemen from taking part in parades because their presence would disrupt "uniformity"?

If not, do we force other policemen in the parade to wear Sikh turbans in the interest of "uniformity"?

No. No. And no.

Posted by aisehman at 01:28 AM | Comments (7) | TrackBack

Deadly Conversion

In Afghanistan, a man is about to lose his life for converting to Christianity:

Afghan officials, trying to resolve a crisis over an Afghan who may face the death penalty for converting to Christianity, struggled on Saturday to satisfy conflicting international and domestic demands.

The controversy over the man who abandoned Islam, Abdur Rahman, 40, threatens to drive a wedge between Afghanistan and the Western backers who ensure its security and finance its development. Rahman's trial is due to start in a few days.

... Rahman told a preliminary hearing last week he had become a Christian while working for an aid group helping Afghan refugees in Pakistan 15 years ago. He later lived in Germany before returning to Afghanistan.

He was detained after his family told authorities he had converted, apparently following a family dispute involving two daughters, a judicial official said. [Washington Post; registration required]

Australian Muslims described Abdur Rahman's prosecution as "barbaric and un-Islamic":

Australian Muslim leaders yesterday condemned moves in Afghanistan to execute a man who converted to Christianity.

The Australian Federation of Islamic Councils said the prosecution of Abdul Rahman in Afghanistan was "barbaric" and "un-Islamic".

Spokesman Haset Sali called on the Australian Government to see if the Afghan prosecutors could be charged with crimes against humanity unless the religious charges against Mr Rahman were dismissed.

"Such barbaric action by anyone seeking to quote Islam as supporting their criminal action needs to be dealt with as a crime against humanity," Mr Sali said. [Sydney Morning Herald]

I don't believe it would be right to put Abdul Rahman to death for apostasy, but I think he is going to die for it.

What does the OIC say about this?

What about you, Pak Lah?

Posted by aisehman at 12:46 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

March 25, 2006

Sco-More

I just stumbled upon this. It's five days old but useful information, nonetheless, to get the let's-give-Pak Lah-a-chance crowd thinking:

Scomi Group Bhd is believed to have won a contract worth as much as RM50 million from KTM Bhd, the national railway company, to overhaul and maintain its wagons, sources said yesterday.

Mail Money was told that the contract is for five years, and will involve the maintenance and overhaul of as many as 1,000 wagons.

Scomi did not respond to questions sent by Mail Money over the last two weeks, but a senior executive confirmed the award of the contract.

The contract was awarded last year by KTM, after it had invited several companies to participate in a closed door tender exercise. [Malay Mail]

So besides this contract, and these potential deals, what else do you think we should give Scomi?

I have it ... let's outsource the entire Ninth Malaysia Plan to the company.

Ooops, I forgot KJ.

OK, let's give the first two-and-half year's worth of projects to Kamaluddin, and the remainder to Khairy.

How about it, Pak Lah?

AISEH! FINANCE The contract is also worth LESSUP166,666,666. [What's a LESSUP?]

Posted by aisehman at 12:51 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

Foreign Invasion

Fuckers:

Malaysia's Securities Commission Friday said foreign companies that seek a listing in the country won't need to comply with racial quotas as far as their shareholding base is concerned.

"Any company with substantial foreign ownership does not have to comply with bumiputra requirements" when they seek a listing in Malaysia, said Ranjit Ajit Singh, director of the Securities Commission's Strategy and Risk Management Division. [Dow Jones Newswires via Yahoo! News]

This is a clear contravention of the universally-acknowledged principle of "To each (Bumi) his own (30%)".

Where is the justice?

And who the hell is Ranjit Ajit Singh to make such a statement?

For God's sakes, he's not even a Bumi. He has no inkling of the oppression we Bumis face in our own country.

This is neo-colonialism. Heck, this is neo-imperialism perpetrated by shameless neophytes of Western capitalsm.

KJ, say something!

Posted by aisehman at 12:25 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack

March 24, 2006

Flood Money

What a choice:

Residents of Taman TTDI Jaya here who were badly affected by the recent floods can choose between compensation or more floods, the only solution from Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohamad Khir Toyo.

"You want more floods or compensation," asked Dr Khir when a representative of the Taman TTDI Jaya residents association raised the question on compensation during the People's Problem Inventory (IMR) with Menteri Besar here, Thursday.

"We understand and sympathise with the victims. However we are now concentrating on efforts to alleviate the flood menace so that the people won't have to face the floods again," he said. [Bernama]

If it were me, I would go for compensation.

Because for all intents and purposes, the Selangor state government has to "alleviate the flood menace."

It would not be good for Khir Toyo's political career if there is another flood, regardless of the cause.

Moreover, according to TTDI Jaya Community Association President Abdul Jabar Kasim, since 1994, TTDI Jaya has been flooded 17 times, including three major floods in 1996, 2000 and 2006, respectively.

So howzabout it, guys?

Here's a chance to have your cake and it eat too.

Posted by aisehman at 03:42 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Melayu Baru

One hundred Malays applied for a name change in their MyKad "following a change in religion":

Home Minister Datuk Seri Radzi Sheikh Ahmad said there were 9,788 applications for a change in name in the MyKad from 2001 until 2005 following a change in religion by the applicants.

Of the total, 7,443 applications had been approved, 107 were rejected while 2,238 applications were being investigated, he said.

In terms of racial composition, there were 100 Malays who had applied for the name change following a change in religion and 10 per cent had been approved, four per cent were rejected and 86 per cent were being investigated, he said in a written reply to Teresa Kok (DAP-Seputeh) at the Dewan Rakyat today. [Bernama]

What was the religion of the ten Malays who were succesful in their applications, prior to their name change?

Were they Muslim or non-Muslim?

I think they are former Muslims who have now converted to another religion.

Why? Because officially, a "Malay" is a Muslim. And this is the Home Minister providing an official reply to a query in Parliament.

If it's true they are former Muslims, then this is evidence that it is possible to officially leave Islam in this country.

What did they have to go through, I wonder?

And does this now mean they are no longer officially "Malay"?

Posted by aisehman at 02:03 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack

March 23, 2006

A Charge Of Foul Play

Waa, so angry one:

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has demanded assurances from Malaysia Airports Holding Berhad (MAHB) that passengers and airlines using the main terminals at Kuala Lumpur International Airport will not be subsidising those using the low cost carrier terminal (LCCT).

IATA also demanded that the low cost carrier terminal be available for any carrier wishing to use its facilities.

Last week, MAHB announced a lower departure tax of RM35 for international passengers using the LCCT.

At the same time, IATA said MAHB failed to give any assurance that the LCCT would be available for use by any airline. [Bernama]

At the same time:

KLIA's unilateral announcement contravenes the charging principles adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

ICAO principles state that all charges should be based on sound economic principles and be reached through consultations with airlines.

ICAO also requires transparency and cost relatedness in the charges.

It seems that the "Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) had held consultations with regards to the Singapore low cost terminal" and that "IATA accepted CAAS' proposals on the operating and charging principles for the low cost terminal."

You know what I think?

I think our charges are way below what Singapore plans to charge.

I think we out-flanked the Singaporeans on this one.

I think they are the ones complaining, via IATA.

We've scored in the first minute, and our opponents are claiming handball.

Posted by aisehman at 06:13 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack

WTO Rules OK

Classic:

On the move to abolish Approved Permits (APs) by Dec 31, 2010, Najib said most of the holders knew that the policy could not go on forever.

"One fine day it will be the end of the APs. I think everyone knows that. Of course, some people expect it to go on a bit longer. But we had decided that in consistence with WTO ... because APs are not allowed under WTO," he said. [Bernama]

So in other words, it's not that the AP system is no good or that we are giving it up willingly, it's that we have to comply with WTO rules ... no, correct that ... we have decided to comply with WTO rules.

What a bunch of cow leavings, Najib. Pure poppycock. A mountain of malarkey.

[Look, Ma ... no swear words]

Posted by aisehman at 05:50 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Swearing Off Profanity

In my previous blog post I asked:

So, my dear blog readers, shall I continue spewing unprintables (on paper) as and when I feel like doing so on this blog, or shall I reign in my foul mouth?

If you look carefully, I used the wrong word -- reign instead of rein.

No, I don't wanna be known as "Aisehman, in all his majestic profanity" ... LOL ROTF. Maybe it was a Freudian slip, you think?

On a more serious note, I will try as hard as I can to keep it clean, but sometimes, I can't help it, you know.

I just can't see myself using prim and proper language when I'm extremely upset, but I will try.

Having said that, I don't get into such a state very often. It's only when I'm dealing with idiots and the dickless.

It's true ... some of these people have no dicks.

Posted by aisehman at 09:25 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack

March 22, 2006

Swearing In

All the arse-covering and ball-carrying at the office make you wanna screw 'em all to hell?

Go ahead. Let it all out. Heck, you might even give your standing at the workplace a boost in the process:

... profanity is a barometer of corporate culture because cussing up a blue streak may be taboo to some companies and expected in others.

It's used as everything from a social bonding tool to a badge of status, from a weapon to a substitute for it.

Not least, it's a stress reliever when a paper tray doesn't know it's already full, a voicemail system doesn't recognize a password, or when an automated restroom faucet splashes your pants, suggesting incontinence that is good for no one's career.

"Uttering a profanity is almost like enjoying a breath of fresh air," concedes P.M. Forni, author of "Choosing Civility" and co-founder of the Johns Hopkins Civility Project. [Wall Street Journal; subscription required]

But, Fomi says:

"As a form of respect for the people around you whose sensitivities you cannot individually gauge, you should abstain from uttering profanities."

Timothy Jay, a professor of psychology and author on cursing argues:

... "profane language can be very effective in gaining credibility," and has been a privilege of rank. Traditionally, "it works down the hierarchy, not up," he says.

In any case:

Certain workplaces tend to lend themselves to swearing.

... In almost any work environment, profanity can be a way to signal a level of intimacy among colleagues.

So, my dear blog readers, shall I continue spewing unprintables (on paper) as and when I feel like doing so on this blog, or shall I reign in my foul mouth?

Here's something we all should keep in mind:

"Profanity will always offend someone, but the lack of profanity will never offend anyone."

That is so f#%king true.

Posted by aisehman at 03:39 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack

Rustic Outing

Another classic ad via Google Adsense.

The town is a charming place -- I've been there several times -- but I don't think you would call it a tourist destination.

But really, I should have no complaints.

Every time you guys click on the ad, I get paid.

Anyway, TripAdvisor actually has a recommendation for the place: The resthouse.

A review of the property by a Japanese tourist (Japs will go anywhere) describes it as "tranquility beyond expectation" and gives it three stars out of five:

"Quiet and clean. Good for newly wed couples for honeymoon. Please try the otak-otak and fried rice."

So what are you waiting for? Head on to the Kuala Pilah Rest House Bed and Breakfast.

Posted by aisehman at 08:51 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 21, 2006

Guiding Cronyism

Feeling down?

Here ... have a good laugh:

The U.S. recently initiated free-trade talks with Kuala Lumpur, and a central issue is whether foreign companies can get fair access to Malaysia's growing markets and, more specifically, whether bidding on lucrative but murky government-procurement contracts will open up.

... In April, Khazanah is expected to issue new procurement guidelines for government-linked companies. In the past, these companies have doled out lucrative contracts to businesses owned by Malaysia's politically dominant ethnic Malay Muslim community, which represents about 60% of the country's 25 million people. These guidelines will test how serious Mr. Abdullah is about an overhaul, analysts say.

... "This is one of the key issues we would see in [free-trade agreement] discussions between the U.S. and Malaysia," says Dom LaVinge, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Kuala Lumpur, which is providing input to U.S. negotiators on key issues for the talks. "Procurement should be done fairly and transparently, and go to the companies that are most qualified -- whether those are local companies, Malay companies or foreign companies."

... The 15 largest Khazanah-controlled companies spend about 60 billion ringgit ($16 billion) annually on procurement, Khazanah estimates.

... It isn't clear how far Khazanah's new guidelines will go to reduce political favoritism in the tender process. [Wall Street Journal; subscription required]

It isn't clear if Khazanah's new guidelines will go anywhere near it in the first place.

My test? This.

Say ... no wonder Scomi is scrambling to score more before the end of March. You think these guidelines, due in April, have anything to do with the rush?

Posted by aisehman at 06:03 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

Unfaithful

Leaving Islam? Here is a suggested route:

Sebuah jawatankuasa khas telah ditubuhkan bagi merangka draf penyelarasan undang-undang berkaitan murtad yang tidak seragam di setiap negeri.

Jawatankuasa ini sedang membincangkan proses dan syarat-syarat yang membolehkan seseorang itu keluar daripada Islam.

Jawatankuasa tersebut, yang melibatkan Jabatan Peguam Negara, Jabatan Kehakiman Syariah Malaysia dan Persatuan Peguam Syarie Malaysia (PPSM), akan menyatakan bidang kuasa yang jelas bagi mahkamah membicarakan kes-kes murtad.

Selain itu, draf undang-undang ini juga memasukkan cadangan untuk memperkenalkan tiga langkah (proses) sebelum seseorang boleh dianggap murtad.

Azmi Mohd Rais, Ketua Biro Penyelarasan Undang-undang Sivil dan Hukum Syarak PPSM berkata satu laporan perlu dibuat kepada Majlis Agama Islam Negeri sebelum seseorang itu ingin keluar daripada Islam. Laporan ini termasuk salah satu daripada proses dan syarat yang dicadangkan oleh jawatankuasa tersebut.

"Dia (seseorang yang ingin keluar Islam) akan diminta bertaubat dalam satu sesi kaunseling bimbingan dan dakwah selama tiga bulan. Sekiranya tidak berjaya, dia akan dihantar ke pejabat Mufti di mana dia akan menerima khidmat nasihat seterusnya.

"Jika tidak berjaya juga, dia akan dihantar ke pusat pemulihan akhlak," katanya dalam satu diskusi di Akademi Pengajian Islam, Universiti Malaya minggu lepas.

"Jalan terakhir adalah Mahkamah Syariah. Tanggungjawabnya seperti nafkah anak, hutang, harta sepencarian dan sebagainya akan direkodkan sebelum dia mendapat kebenaran keluar daripada Islam." [mStar]

It's kinda torturuous, don't you think?

The three-month "sesi kaunseling" sounds like it includes three months of incarceration.

And why send the dude to the "pusat pemulihan akhlak" after counseling sessions and the Mufti's advice have failed?

Then again, all these measures can be said to amount to nothing more than kindergarten play, as the consensus opinion among the four main schools of jurispudence on the punishment for apostasy is that the apostate is put to death.

Azmi brought up another interesting point on how apostasy affects marriages.

As you know, if a husband or wife apostasises, their marriage is annulled.

The problem is:

Mahkamah Syariah boleh mengesahkan pembubaran sesuatu perkahwinan namun mahkamah itu tidak boleh mengeluarkan apa-apa perintah terhadap pihak yang telah murtad seperti nafkah, mutaah, pembahagian harta sepencarian dan hak jagaan anak.

"Ini kerana Seksyen 46 (2a) da (2b) Akta Pentadbiran Undang-undang Wilayah Persekutuan dan Seksyen 4 Akta Agama Islam Wilayah Persekutuan menyatakan Mahkamah Syariah tidak mempunyai kuasa ke atas orang-orang yang bukan Islam," katanya.

Now how do you overcome all these problems without amending Article 121 1A, Nazri?

Posted by aisehman at 03:56 PM | Comments (16) | TrackBack

Life Or Death Situation

Should we do away with the death penalty?

The Bar Council said over the weekend that it would campaign for the death penalty to be abolished, arguing that the punishment was barbaric, inhumane and an insufficient deterrent.

It also called for an immediate moratorium on all death sentences pending amendments to the law.

The country’s de facto law minister yesterday threw his support behind the move to do away with the death penalty. [New Straits Times]

We know too well that some of our fellow "human" beings are capable of barbaric and inhuman acts.

For such crimes, the death penalty is fair punishment.

Therefore, I disagree that the death penalty be abolished because it is barbaric and inhumane.

As for the insufficient deterrent bit, I would argue that under normal circumstances, "normal" people are restrained largely by their sense of morality, and less by the fear of getting caught and punished.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz said:

"For me, a life is a life. No one has the right to take someone else’s life, even if that person has taken another life."

Are there no limits on the right to life?

What about war and self-defence?

Posted by aisehman at 02:04 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

March 20, 2006

Big State, Little Progress

A comment from blogger Pierce:

I'm from Sarawak.

Though I may not agree 100% with my CM or DCM on getting 10% of the RM 4.4bil subsidy to subsidise the operation in Sarawak, but I do know their plights.

May I enticed you to come to Kuching and take the same bus ride with me as the same to my offer to the members of cabinet.

After you have taken the bus ride, you will realised that you are very fortunate to have much better public transportation in KL and West Malaysia.

And as to why those buses remained in such pitiful conditions, I would say that most of the maintenance allocation by the bus company is now been channelled to keep the bus going - pay for fuel; leaving most deep in debts to maintain the buses.

Ask the local garages that maintains the buses and I can bring you to visit CLL Maintenance center down at pending, some garage at Jalan Mendu, you will see for yourself how much these buses companies still owe to the garages and spare parts suppliers.

It came to light because one of my relative is selling spare parts and these buses companies seems to have a tall stack of unpaid bills.

Though I am not related to the buses companies, but being a user, I do know what is their woes. They are not allow to increase any of the buses fares because it is already high and it is their social obligations to keep it affordable to the public. But on the other hand, they are still oblige to run the operation even at a lost.

Bus drivers here makes less than RM 700 average a month. The distance for one route could be more than 20 KM (in Kuching alone). So, I don't mind if the buses is made out of trucks' engine and frame. So long as they are able to travel the distance.

You might want to read my post before you reconsider your points to mock our Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri.

You should consider that some operations such as transportation here in Sarawak is way beyond your consideration as compare to your KL / West Malaysian. You have LRT, Monorails, ERL and etc. We have no rail. You have Puduraya, We have only Batu Tiga.

The distance you considered as "long" is "short" to us. You can travel from Johore Bahru to Ipoh in 6 hours on highway, we make the same time taken only to make from Kuching to Sibu... There are Bintulu, Miri and onwards.

You can travel by car from Sg. Petani to KL Sentral in 4 hours time on PLUS, we have only single lane trunk road from Miri to Bintulu (same distance).

You get COLA and we don't.

If you are in Bario, you will cry for the hike in Diesel cause the COST of having 1 Litre of diesel there is almost above RM 7.00. As compare to your confort of paying RM 1.58 for Diesel in West Malaysia... Please consider the logistic.

The west Malaysian has benefited from Sarawak A LOT. You all knew the fact that Sarawak produced some majority of the oil in Malaysia.

I would think you should give our government the benefit of a doubt before you start to mock them; considering the fact that you have the complete twin towers standing tall, and we only managed to build one at 1/8 the height.

All I can say is this: With all that oil, why don't you go ask Taib Mahmud why you are not better off than the rest of the country.

No one can take anything away from you unless you let them. Remember that.

Posted by aisehman at 12:43 PM | Comments (20) | TrackBack

Sarawak Rules

Some of you Sarawakians are angry that I dissed the State government in my previous blog.

Dudes, the issue here is that the RM4.4 billion fund's stated purpose is to improve public transport.

The State government wants 10% to re-subsidise fuel for some people in the state. My question was how does this improve public transport?

You are angry at being short-changed by the Federal Government while Sarawak is producing oil. That is another issue ... understand?

And speaking of being short-changed, allow me to point out a few things.

Firstly, don't dump everything on the shoulders of us "Orang Malaya". The people who have sucked your blood the most is Taib Mahmud and his cronies.

Now tell me, why have you Sarawakians voted for him come every election?

Secondly, the sooner you people start acting like you are part of Malaysia, the better.

You don't want to be a part of Malaysia? Dudes, wake up. Your oil is gonna last only for so long. After that, what is "Negara Sarawak" gonna live on?

So go on, vote for Taib Mahmud again.

Posted by aisehman at 08:53 AM | Comments (19) | TrackBack

March 18, 2006

Idiot's Guide To Public Transport

This is stupid:

The enhancement of public transportation using the RM4.4 billion savings from the reduction of oil subsidy would also include transportation in the rural areas, but the public are advised not to expect things to change overnight, [Transport Minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy said]. [Bernama]

You wanna know why it's stupid?

It's stupid because no one is stupid enough to expect our world-class transportation problems to be solved overnight, that's why.

And that's why people are disputing the Government's promise that it would put the money to good use, because the problems are much deeper than a mere RM4.4 billion could solve.

If fixing everything that's wrong with public transport was simply a matter of throwing money at it, people would not be so upset and continue to remain upset.

What's worse is that there are already people lining up with a "proposal" in one hand and a plastic cup (you know ... the sort that the beggar with festering wounds on his legs holds up to you as you pass by) in the other, looking to earnestly "help" ease the burden of the travelling rakyat.

Sarawak already says it wants 10% of the spoils, and dickheads there want to use the bulk of the money to pay for fuel.

Now you tell me, how the fuck does using the money to "re-subsidise" fuel improve public transport?

Just as stupid is Ali Rustam in Melaka, who wants to build an LRT system there.

But wait a minute ... wouldn't an LRT system improve public transport?

Yes it would, if Ali Rustam had the people of Melaka in mind.

He wants it "in view of the increased tourist arrivals there."

Tourists don't have to travel to work and back Monday to Friday, Ali ... your frickin Malaccans do.

He also wants "to replace old bus stations in the small towns in the state like Jasin, Merlimau, Alor Gajah and Masjid Tanah."

For fucking out loud, Ali ... use your fucking brains.

These dickheads can't even come up with good reasons to why they need the money.

Can you believe it?

Can you fucking believe it?

Posted by aisehman at 06:55 PM | Comments (43) | TrackBack

A Fleet of Fabrications

More potential business for Kamalludin Abdullah's business interests:

Scomi Group Bhd will submit a bid by the end of March for a contract worth some RM120 million to make body parts for about 400 buses for state-owned Syarikat Prasarana Negara Bhd, sources said.

Scomi is also pitching for another job from a big GLC (government-linked company) to manage its fleet of 6,000 vehicles. [Business Times]

To be fair, nothing's set in stone yet.

I mean, other bidders -- if there are any others -- stand an equal chance, and just because he's Pak Lah's son, doesn't mean his company's a shoo-in for the contracts ... right?

Right?

Hello ... right?

Why are you all so quiet?

You fuckers, like Jeff Ooi, are too damned sceptical, you know.

Didn't the Prime Minister tell you not to question?

Sit down and shut up.

AISEH! FINANCE The bus deal is worth LESSUP400 million. [What's a LESSUP?]

Posted by aisehman at 06:11 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack

March 17, 2006

Cili, The Cancer Killer

Men, listen up ... cili padi is hot:

Capsaicin, which makes peppers hot, can cause prostate cancer cells to kill themselves, U.S. and Japanese researchers said on Wednesday.

Capsaicin led 80 percent of human prostate cancer cells growing in mice to commit suicide in a process known as apoptosis, the researchers said.

Prostate cancer tumors in mice fed capsaicin were about one-fifth the size of tumors in untreated mice, they reported in the journal Cancer Research.

"Capsaicin had a profound anti-proliferative effect on human prostate cancer cells in culture," said Dr. Soren Lehmann of the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and the University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine.

"It also dramatically slowed the development of prostate tumors formed by those human cell lines grown in mouse models." [Reuters via Yahoo! News]

So load up on the arse-burning sambal. The repeated trips to the toilet will be worth it, I tell you.

Posted by aisehman at 05:18 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Put To Good Use

He misses the point:

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has asked the people not to question the government's efforts to use the RM4.4 billion savings from the reduction in oil subsidy to improve the public transportation system.

He said the government vowed to spend the money wisely and would make efforts to improve the public transportation system throughout the country for the people's benefit.

"I hope the people will no longer question the money received ...we will put the money to good use so as to improve the public transportation system in all states. See where the priority is, perhaps, the total amount is not enough, we'll have to see," he said. [Bernama]

What the people are worried of is the "put the money to good use" part of the promise.

You see, in these very trying times, RM4.4 billion is a lot of money ... for frickin' "businessmen" thirsting for projects.

Maybe you wanna do this: All the "improvement" projects to be paid for by the fund should be dished out transparently, under open tenders.

And how about really opening it up, in the sense that the best bids win, regardless of ethnicity ... get what I mean?

If I'm gonna suffer due to the 30sen petrol price hike, I'm gonna make sure the money saved is damn well "put to good use".

Prove my skepticism wrong, Datuk Seri ... prove me wrong, and just fuckin' do the right thing.

Posted by aisehman at 03:45 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack

Right On

The Sun, page 17: Let the 'taklik' do the talking.

[Read for free in The Sun e-paper, registration required]

A bit cynical, but an excellent article nevertheless.

Writer Rafidah Abdullah has gotten to heart of the issue of the marriage rights of Muslim women, as far as I'm concerned.

Took the words right out of my mouth.

In short, know your rights, assert them, and you will be protected.

Posted by aisehman at 10:15 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

March 16, 2006

No Charges Against Jyllands-Posten

UPDATE

Read the Director of Public Prosecutions of Denmark's decision in full [in PDF format].

Read it. Read it carefully and thoughtfully.

The following is the press release [in PDF format] on the decision:

Press Release

15 March 2006

The Decision of the Director of Public Prosecutions in the case of Jyllands-Posten's Article "The Face of Muhammed"

I have today decided not to institute criminal proceedings in the case of Jyllands-Posten's article "The Face of Muhammed", which was published on 30 September 2005 and where complaints were filed against Jyllands-Posten for violation of Sections 140 and 266 b of the Danish Criminal Code.

My decision is that there is no violation of the said rules of the Danish Criminal Code.

My decision is published on the homepage of the Director of Public Prosecutions (www.rigsadvokaten.dk).

Although there is no basis for instituting criminal proceedings in this case, it should be noted that both provisions of the Danish Criminal Code contain a restriction of the freedom of expression.

Section 140 of the Criminal Code protects religious feelings against mockery and scorn and Section 266 b protects groups of persons against scorn and degradation on account of their religion among other things.

To the extent publicly made expressions fall within the scope of these rules there is, therefore, no free and unrestricted right to express opinions about religious subjects.

It is thus not a correct description of existing law when the article in Jyllands-Posten states that it is incompatible with the right to freedom of expression to demand special consideration for religious feelings and one has to be ready to put up with "scorn, mockery and ridicule".

My decision in the matter cannot be appealed to a higher administrative authority.

This follows from Section 99(3) of the Danish Administration of Justice Act.

Henning Fode

*****

Read it and tell me what you think:

Denmark's top prosecutor said Wednesday he will not press charges against the newspaper that first published the Prophet Muhammad cartoons that angered Muslims worldwide.

... Director of Public Prosecutions Henning Fode upheld the decision of a regional prosecutor who ruled the drawings published in Jyllands-Posten Sept. 30 did not violate Danish law. Fode's decision cannot be appealed.

His ruling said the 12 cartoons, one of which shows the prophet wearing a turban shaped like a bomb, did not violate bans on racist and blasphemous speech.

"My decision is that there is no violation of the said rules of the Danish Criminal Code," Fode said in a statement.

A regional prosecutor said Jan. 7 that the drawings were protected by Denmark's freedom of speech and did not violate bans on racism and blasphemy.

... In his ruling, Fode noted that there was "no free and unrestricted right to express opinions about religious subjects" in Denmark.

He said Jyllands-Posten had thus been wrong in writing that religious groups had to be ready to put up with "scorn, mockery and ridicule." [Associated Press via Wall Street Journal Online; subscription required]

A few key items -- that there was "'no free and restricted right to express opinions about religious subjects' in Denmark."

And that the newspaper was "wrong in writing that religious groups had to be ready to put up with 'scorn, mockery and ridicule.'"

But nothing the newspaper did amounted to a crime under Danish laws, according to the prosecutor.

ALSO Read The Editors Weblog: Is Jyllands Posten relaunching the Mohammed cartoons controversy?

Posted by aisehman at 09:25 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 15, 2006

Petronas, The World's Orang Minyak

Petronas.

The name evokes admiration in many Malaysians, for there stands a towering national company; a benchmark and an example for all other GLCs.

Indeed, some go so far as to say that it is Malaysia's only truly world-class company, up there with the best.

Well ... actually, that depends on how you measure "best":

Shell tops the list of the worlds most sustainable and ethical oil companies for the third year running.

In the 2006 study Shell achieves the highest score of any oil company ever, achieving 89.01%.

This is the result of the third in-depth study measuring oil companies' compliance with over 280 key areas of sustainability, corporate governance, ethics, social responsibility and transparency by the Madrid-based ethics research and rating company Management & Excellence S.A. [Management & Excellence press release]

The study was conducted on 15 of the world's major oil companies, Petronas included.

Petronas came out 15th, and you might think that's not too bad.

Think again.

Petronas' overall score was 20.15%.

The press release says "fourteen of the 15 companies ranked here publish annual environmental reports", but doesn't name the company that didn't.

But here's a clue: Petronas had the lowest score of 25% for Environmental Policies.

The second lowest was Chevron, with 67%. The average score was 83%.

For Corporate Governance (where have I heard that before?), Petronas scored 4.17%.

The second worst was Gazprom with 25% (yes, even the corruption and Mafia-ridden Russians got a better score). The average score was 58.61%.

For Transparency, Petronas propped the table with a score of 21.43%. The average score was 67.54%.

For Ethics, the company scored 19.23%, accompanied by Russian bottom-feeders Gazprom (23.08%) and Lukoil (30.77%).

The average score was 73.33%:

Ethics in essence means having and promoting a detailed code of conduct and staying out of trouble.

Companies with low scores, such as Gazprom and Petronas, largely failed to communicate and implement a code of conduct and ethics, although this is among the least expensive ways of gaining points.

Top performers, such as Chevron, Statoil and Total, implemented codes explaining how employees should deal with difficult cases of bribery and conflicts of interest.

Only in one area was Petronas not last -- sponsorships, where the company came in second last with a score of 42.86%. But that was still far off from the average score of 72.74%.

So there you have it.

Our national pride and joy.

By far, the least ethical, least transparent organisation with the weakest corporate governance among the world's top oil companies.

The Government and Petronas owe us an explanation.

Posted by aisehman at 01:29 PM | Comments (13) | TrackBack

First And Foremost

Here's an interesting development:

Moderate Muslims and non-Muslims, fearful of incursions by Islamic Shariah law into their private space, have launched a movement to rediscover Malaysia's secular constitution and restore it as the country's supreme law.

In a nationwide campaign they will persuade Malaysians to endorse a memorandum worded in guarded English that "reaffirms the supremacy of the constitution".

The campaign is being organised by the Bar Council and Article 11 -- a coalition of 14 non-governmental organisations, named after the constitutional provision that upholds fundamental rights for all Malaysians "regardless of religion, race, descent, place of birth or gender". [IPS via Malaysia Today]

Among the concerns is that "the country is inexorably moving towards an Islamic theocratic state as officers of the government, judiciary and parliament are abdicating their duty to defend the secular constitution."

"They took an oath to defend the constitution but they are not doing it," said lawyer Malik Imtiaz Sarvar, an outspoken defender of secularism, civil law and democratic rights.

... "The minds of politicians, judges and civil servants have become clouded as they see themselves as Muslims first and citizens second," said Malik.

If you have taken an oath to defend the constitution, then you must defend it.

But what do you do if you are a Muslim and there are provisions in the constitution that you believe contradict your religion?

As Malik says, if you see yourself as a Muslim first, your mind becomes "clouded".

But it's gonna be OK, as the people behind the campaign say non-Muslim Malaysians and the silent, moderate Muslim majority will be made fully aware that their "fundamental rights have significantly eroded over the years":

Already, over a 1,000 people, including prominent politicians, lawyers and retired judges -- Muslims and non-Muslims alike -- have signed the memorandum, addressed to Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, urging that his government gives preeminence to the constitution.

Wow, that's a substantial number of silent and moderate Muslims on the side of the campaign, if you ask me.

All that needs to be done now is to collect the several million other signatures of the rest of the moderate Muslims (whose rights have significantly been eroded, BTW) in this country, and hey, we have a people's movement.

... Yes, you can pretty much conclude that I am sceptical.

But that's not the point.

If, as Malik says, more and more highly-educated Malays in positions of influence and power are seeing themselves as Muslim first, what more a lowly know-nothing nobody like me?

For how do you convince Muslims that it is somehow "wrong" for them to see themselves as Muslims first?

Posted by aisehman at 12:05 AM | Comments (18) | TrackBack

March 14, 2006

Mars Beckons

Holy shit. Had fun with Google Earth? You gotta check this out:

Working with researchers from NASA at Arizona State University, the search engine has compiled images of Mars on a map Web site, making it possible to view the dunes, canyons and craters of the red planet as easily as the cul-de-sacs and cityscapes of Earth. [Washington Post]

Mars.google.com. Go.

Posted by aisehman at 08:44 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

A Coverup

The learned ulama in NST have issued a fatwa on the "tudung":

...contrary to the assertions of those who insist on the tudung, the whole question of aurat and hijab is open to interpretation and there has never been a consensus in Islam on a dress code for women. [New Straits Times]

I agree that the "whole question of aurat and hijab is open to interpretation", but to say that "there has never been a consensus in Islam on a dress code for women" is devious.

For one thing, there has never been a consensus in Islam on a truckload of issues.

In many areas and on many matters, what we have are majority opinions.

When it comes to issues related to the Islamic dress code for women, there is a majority opinion -- and a pretty strong majority at that -- that women can show their hands and face.

Hands and face. Which means that as far as the head is concerned, a tudung fits the bill nicely.

Whether you wear one or not is a different matter.

My wife doesn't wear a tudung.

I should ask her to cover up, you say? Thank you for the reminder.

The point is, I will not try to put forward disingenuous arguments to defend her choice.

I am not going to tell you that "there has never been a consensus in Islam on a dress code for women" as justification for her actions (or inaction, rather).

That would be wrong.

Posted by aisehman at 02:34 PM | Comments (10) | TrackBack

March 13, 2006

Barreling Towards War

Once more, the world is on path to conflict:

In private meetings, Bush and his advisers have been more explicit.

Members of the Hoover Institution's board of overseers who met with Bush, Vice President Cheney and national security adviser Stephen J. Hadley two weeks ago emerged with the impression that the administration has shifted to a more robust policy aimed at the Iranian government.

... Some analysts believe this year will lead to a decision point for Bush whether to use a military option.

For now, Bush and his aides say all options are on the table, but as a practical matter no armed strike is likely until diplomacy has been exhausted. [Washington Post]

What's worrying is that diplomacy has been getting much closer to the point of exhaustion:

Iran rejected an offer from Russia to enrich uranium on its behalf Sunday, closing the door on what had been the most promising diplomatic resolution to international concerns over its nuclear program.

... Iran's dismissal "destroys the last and real possibility of a compromise," said Konstantin Kosachyov, chairman of the international affairs committee in Russia's lower house of parliament, the State Duma, the Interfax news agency reported.

"By all accounts, Tehran's decision will seriously radicalize the upcoming debates over the IAEA report in the U.N. Security Council, since trust in Tehran's plans and ambitions has been strongly undermined," he said. [Washington Post]

This is not good.

Are you still angry at the 30sen petrol price hike?

Well, you ain't seen nothing yet.

Posted by aisehman at 09:30 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Heading South

So here's the true story:

The SBB deal would also be Khairy Jamaluddin's largest corporate mandate to date.

Khairy, a main driver in the deal, was the lead invetsment banker from ECM Libra.

ECM Libra is the financial adviser to the Sultan of Selangor and Datuk Syed Mohd Yusof Syed Nasir as well as Killinghall (M) Bhd. [The Star]

Did Tan Teong Hean even have a prayer in "defending his position" against the combined juggernaut of Nazir and Khairy in the first place?

I don't think so.

Having said that, a merger of this kind will only strengthen the collective position of the local financial sector as it opens up to the world.

The only thing that bugs me is the stench of nepotism wafting around the entire deal.

THANKS to reader khanazri for the pointer.

Posted by aisehman at 12:43 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

March 12, 2006

Dancing Around Mak Yong

The New Straits Times' story begins promisingly with the question:

Where is the proof that overt Hindu and Buddhist elements exist in the mak yong to deem the Kelantanese dance theatre un-Islamic? [New Straits Times]

First off to bat is a heavyweight, and the be-"serban"-ed people in PAS look set to be in trouble:

Universiti Malaya Professor of Ethnochoreology and Ethnomusicology Dr Mohd Anis Md Nor said the [Kelantan] State Government should be brave enough to back up its claims.

"The ban speaks of insecurity. Our culture goes back many, many years.

"Why blame history for the present?"

He said decisions against the arts should not be made for political expediency.

What? That's it? The learned professor didn't even answer the fricking question.

OK, OK ... maybe the next guy, "veteran bangsawan exponent" Mohd Bahroodin Ahmad, will:

"What is there in mak yong that is supposed to be Hindu and Buddhist elements? I wish the people who are saying this would come up with some facts first."

Bahroodin suggested a way out — certain rituals in mak yong like calling upon the spirits for protection be replaced instead with asking God for help.

Amazing. He contradicts himself in a single breath, asking for proof as if there is none, and then providing evidence -- "certain rituals in mak yong like calling upon the spirits for protection" -- that it is unIslamic.

But wait. There's more. Here's the great Professor Shamsul Amri Baharuddin, who surely will save the day:

He said the Pas Government was taking the religious aspect too seriously, forgetting that Malaysia had attained great heights because of the fusion of religion and culture.

... "For Pas to ban mak yong is to deny the catalytic effect of the fusion between Islamic, Malay and indigenous cultures."

Nope, no answer from him either. Anis tries again after Shamsul Amri, and fails miserably.

Anis and Shmasul Amri forget one thing about their religion: They and I are Muslims first, before we "are" anything else.

Bahroodin the mak yong exponent actually has a suggestion that I think should be explored:

"Mak Yong is a living culture so it can evolve to suit the situation," he said.

That is the way.

MAYBE The next time NST wants to explore issues closely related to Islam, they should send Muslim reporters?

If not, you'll have stories like these which will have the PAS guys ROFL. This is too easy.

Posted by aisehman at 05:15 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack

March 10, 2006

Maximum Rigidity

This criminal was spared prison, but in in way, he's still doing hard time:

A court sentenced a burglar to jail but then spared him prison - because he suffers from a permanent erection.

Maurice Baumann has been prescribed medication, acupuncture and even loose trousers to help with his problem.

Baumann, 32, was sentenced to a year's jail for burgling homes in the British Army garrison town of Bielefeld in Germany.

But he escaped prison after entering hospital as an "emergency case" for severe priapism.

Yet even after a week's treatment, doctors admitted they could only get him down to "half mast".

... Baumann's clinical report explained: "He has erections of maximum rigidity." [Daily Record]

The headline was something else: Rigid Robber's Stiff Sentence.

The Sun had a good one too: He's a hardened criminal.

The newspaper has an excellent picture of the unfortunate (?) man, captioned "Bulging Burglar".

Baumann's condition is truly ironic, as he can hardly be regarded as an upstanding citizen.

Posted by aisehman at 08:13 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Halal Food For Thought

More "halal" developments:

A comprehensive blueprint for halal food is needed to cover the entire supply chain to cash in on the US$150 billion (RM557.99 billion) industry worldwide, said World Halal Forum chairman Khairy Jamaluddin.

He said the industry was fragmented with many government ministries handling different aspects and there should be one body that would implement the blueprint so the industry could be more efficient.

"The International Trade and Industry Ministry is receptive to the idea," he told reporters after accepting a RM200,000 cheque from CIMB Islamic on behalf of World Halal Forum in Kuala Lumpur on March 9.

He also hoped that the Ninth Malaysian Plan would allocate funds to an organisation that could be set up to work out the blueprint. [The Edge Daily]

Oh, I'm sure the Ninth Malaysia Plan would include such an item, Khairy ... you don't have to worry your clever little head about that.

Moreover, I can think of less than a handful of people who would be suitable to head such an organisation.

[Background information: Certifiable]

Posted by aisehman at 04:25 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Wild Life

Another reminder for Malaysia, this one from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in the US:

The area with the most potentially endangered species, 284, is Sumatra and peninsular Malaysia, the report said. Next, with 224 species, is Borneo ... [Associated Press via Wall Street Journal; subscription required]

The wildlife refered to are mammals.

Safeguarding the environment is one of the so-called principles of Islam Hadhari, but regardless, it is the right thing to do, by any standard.

All too often we disregard the impact of over-development on the environment -- just look at the floods in Shah Alam the other day.

Maybe we should add the residents of TTDI Jaya to the list of endangered mammals in peninsular Malaysia.

After all, nothing much has been done to prevent a recurrence of the floods, has there?

Posted by aisehman at 03:32 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Benz And A Bungalow

But I thought she was a millionaire in her own right:

Since making the big announcement that she is seeing someone, ... 27-year-old singer [Siti Nurhaliza] is said to have been presented with a house worth more than RM1 million in the suburbs and an elegant Mercedes Benz CLS350 said to cost RM888,888.

The talk of the town has it that Siti Nurhaliza is romantically-linked with ... 47-year- old businessman [Datuk Khalid Mohamad Jiwa].

It is believed that Khalid purchased the property for her and is spending a few million ringgit for renovations and the car is an alluring black. [New Straits Times]

There's gotta be more to Datuk K than just money for him to have swept Siti of her feet.

The house and the car would be nothing more than icing on the cake.

Posted by aisehman at 09:12 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

March 09, 2006

Origami Unfolds

Here's a first look at Microsoft's Project Origami:

It's everything a full computer or laptop is, minus the keyboard. It has a 7-inch touch-sensitive screen that responds to a stylus or the tap of a finger.

... Microsoft says they'll be about an inch thick and weigh less than 2 1/2 pounds — about the size of a large paperback book.

It will run on a full version of Windows XP ... and newly developed software called Windows Touch Pack will handle touch-screen functions. Future editions will support Windows Vista.

... Intel Corp ... makes the Celeron M microprocessor that runs the device. Three companies have built working models — Samsung, Asus and the Chinese manufacturer Founder.

The Samsung and Asus devices are expected to be in stores by April, and the Founder device in June.

... The screen is wide, bright and easy to see, even in low light.

... It doesn't have its own keyboard, but since the units are designed with USB 2 ports, one could be plugged in as needed.

Other units ... had SecureDigital Card and CompactFlash memory card slots, along with jacks for connecting digital cameras, headphones and speakers.

For users who don't want to jot down notes with the stylus, the Origami has a built-in program called Dial Keys that splits a standard QWERTY keyboard into pie shapes on the lower corners of the screen so that input can be typed — or thumbed in.

The battery power averages about 2.5 to three hours, and it will have up to a 60-gigabyte hard drive. [Associated Press via Yahoo! News]

How much?

Between US$600 and US$1000, which is a bit pricey.

Go to the official site for more details.

Posted by aisehman at 05:43 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Sub-Marina

Marina Mahathir, like Zainah Anwar earlier, is angry:

Muslim men may still contract polygamous marriages, may unilaterally divorce their wives for the most trivial of reasons (including by SMS, unique in the Muslim world) and are entitled to double shares of inheritance. [via Screenshots]

Would Marina have it that Muslims totally disregard the verses in the Quran that allow men to be married to up to four women at any given moment, and that men are entitled to double shares of inheritance?

I am personally uncomfortable with these rights too, but where should we shove these verses, Marina?

And she makes it sound like all married Muslim men are itching for a divorce; that we are nothing but husbands hell-bent on enslaving our wives and subjecting them to our whims and fancies.

Define trivial, Marina ... I don't like your face? When was the last time a divorce of that nature occured?

Maybe when the husband is angry at the wife?

Calling all Muslim men: How angry do you have to be before you come to the point where you even think of divorcing your wife?

Did Marina care to explain that in cases where the husband is in a state ranging from general to extreme anger, any words expressed amounting to divorce are invalid, meaning that there is no divorce?

And even if everyone agrees upon a set of circumstances that could be categorised as trivial, my question to Muslim women out there is: Would you even want to continue living with a man who has divorced you, willfully and intentionally, "for the most trivial of reasons?"

You would? You have my pity.

And speaking of SMS: Why should the medium of communication matter if all the religious requirements for divorce are fulfilled?

Yes, some men are cowards, but again, do you still want such dickless specimens of the human race to be your husband?

What adds to the unfairness of Marina's comments is that nowhere does she enumerate in her article the variety of reasons with which Muslim women can seek anullment (fasakh) of the marriage.

These include impotency (when even Viagra isn't of much help) and the refusal to have regular sex on the part of the husband.

You don't like her face anymore? I'm sorry, you are still duty-bound to get it on, brader.

To be free, one has to first of all, want to be free.

How many Muslim women see the door to freedom, but do not have the courage to open it and step out?

How many do not even know there is a door, in fact, many doors; their ignorance compounded by their unwillingness to educate themselves of their rights under Islam?

I shall not bother with Marina's comments on supposed gender apartheid in the Malaysian Muslim community.

It is clear that Marina Mahathir is in a state of extreme anger, in which case her words that purportedly amount to reasoned and reasonable opinion are invalid.

Posted by aisehman at 12:52 PM | Comments (22) | TrackBack

Certifiable

Malaysia is pushing hard to become the world's "Halal trade hub", and standardisation exercises such as the introduction of the Malaysian Halal standard MS1500:2004, as well as the following, are steps in that direction:

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Tuesday told all state governments to use the standard "Halal" logo issued only by the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim).

Melaka Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Ali Rustam said the directive was issued by the Prime Minister ... Tuesday.

"All states must use the Halal logo issued by Jakim only and no longer the Halal logos issued by the respective State Islamic Religious Departments," he told reporters. [Bernama]

Other moves include a World Halal Forum, officially supported by no less than the Prime Minister's Office, to be held in May.

Heck (if you would pardon the language), there's even a Halal Trade Hub portal, and a Halal Journal magazine and TV programme.

Why all the fuss? Well, there are many reasons ... approximately 150 billion of them, of the American variety.

Closer to home, you could say that projects of this size and scale require expertise beyond "mere" religious knowledge ... expertise that enterprising Malaysians could undoubtedly provide.

For instance, you can apply for halal certification online and check the validity of a particular certicate via SMS.

Excellent, I say.

Anyway, the World Halal Forum chairman is a young man named Khairy Jamaluddin.

The forum, the Halal Trade Hub marketplace and the Halal Journal are the work of a company called KasehDia Sdn Bhd.

KasehDia describes itself as a communications art company. Besides the stuff already mentioned, it also offers branding and marketing consultancy services:

The Halal Market is the new emerging market paradigm of the coming decade.

... Have you positioned your products and services to take advantage of this rapidly expanding market?

Does your branding actually work?

Does your company image really reflect the best of your organisation?

KasehDia can help. Find out how. [KasehDia website]

Clients include Tourism Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur City Hall and PNB.

Not bad for a "little company" that was set up "more for fun", but over the last few years, "sort of became serious."

Way to go, Nori.

Posted by aisehman at 01:50 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

March 08, 2006

Gerenti Punya

You people are so generous:

Penerbangan Malaysia Berhad, or PMB, the parent company of Malaysia Airlines, is planning to issue up to $1 billion of 10-year bonds, according to a term sheet provided by a fund manager.

The bond issue is described as "benchmark" size and will be guaranteed by the Malaysian government, according to the term sheet.

... The bonds, to be issued under 144a rules for institutional investors, is being handled by CIMB, Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley.

Moody's Investors Service has assigned an A3 rating to the proposed issue based on the full guarantee provided by the Malaysian government. [Dow Jones Newswires via Wall Street Journal Online; subscription required]

Full guarantee ... how nice.

Now, allow me to explain to the unwashed masses out there that such a guarantee is not like the promises the government regularly makes to you, in that this sort of promise, it has to keep.

Anyway, I don't know about MAS, but one thing I can guarantee you is that CIMB will make money from this bond sale -- that's US$1 billion, not RM, you're looking at up there.

How much do you think CIMB will be paid in fees and what-not?

Anyone can give us a ballpark figure?

Posted by aisehman at 09:44 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

All Your Base

All your data on Google:

The Web world was abuzz this week over rumors that Google is preparing a service that will let people store every bit of their data online.

Details about the GDrive product leaked onto the Web after Google accidentally posted notes online from a slide presentation given by executives during the company's analyst presentation day. [News.com]

Can't wait to take the GDrive out for a spin.

Check out the blow-by-blow account of Google's four-hour pow wow with the analysts.

You can also download the MP3 file.

Posted by aisehman at 09:22 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Lowest Price

Excellent Reggie Lee cartoon in The Star today; too bad it's not online.

It has a warong setting and goes like this:

Stallowner: What's the complaint about a 30sen increase in a bowl of noodles? Malaysia still has one of the lowest hawker food prices in the region.

Customer: Wa, where you learn to speak like dat one?

Touche.

Posted by aisehman at 09:15 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 07, 2006

Big Time

They're crazy over Bigfoot in Johor Baru:

Bigfoot mania has hit this city with a shopkeeper suddenly making a small fortune by displaying an ape-like mask on his premises. [The Star]

But the mask is not what I'm worried about.

Take a look at the picture that came with the story and you'll notice that Bigfoot needs to mind where he puts his big hands :-)

Small fortune indeed.

Posted by aisehman at 03:53 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack

Broad Opinion

Even intellectuals have an off day:

We, in Malaysia, enjoy a high standard of living, with a relatively manageable cost of living.

Every time I travel abroad, especially to Japan, I feel that the people’s wealth levels are not commensurate with their standard of living — even though they earn a lot more money. [New Straits Times]

"We", Razak?

Most of us don't get to travel abroad, although you could say that some of us regularly travel with "a broad".

[I know, I know, I shouldn't call women broads ... I'm sorry]

Let's not let the petrol price hike get to our heads too much, ok?

A mind is such a terrible thing to waste.

Posted by aisehman at 12:18 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Roaring Trade

You don't just make money with Google Adsense, as once in a while, the ad engine dishes out some pretty interesting stuff, like this one.

I must admit that I never knew Malaysian political parties were active on eBay.

So what's the current bid?

BTW You think eBay will get into trouble for this?

You never know ...

Posted by aisehman at 09:35 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 06, 2006

Goh Ah Yang @ Mohd Yunus Kassim

Ok, here we go again:

He was born a Malay, carries a Malay name and is registered in his identity card as a Muslim.

But Mohd Yunus Kassim says he stopped practising Islam nearly 50 years ago and wants this made official to avoid "unnecessary complications" when he dies.

Now Mohd Yunus, 62, who is married to a Chinese and raises his children as Buddhists, is applying to the Syariah Court to declare he is not Muslim.

"I do not want to share the same fate as some other cases," he said today. "When I die, I want my funeral to be peaceful. I don’t want any problems."

Yunus said he was the second of six siblings born to his Malay mother, Che Putih, and Chinese father, Goh Fook Heng, who converted to Islam and took the name Kassim Abdullah. [New Straits Times]

And this time, it involves a living person. Goh Ah Yang, that's his Chinese name, looks set to take it to the limit:

Yunus said he intended to submit a Borang Keluar Islam (renunciation of faith) form very soon.

"I just want to have my last rites done according to the faith and customs I practise now."

The Syariah Court has to hear him out.

There will be no justice if it didn't.

BTW I didn't realise there was such a thing as a Borang Keluar Islam.

How long has it been in existence?

Posted by aisehman at 03:26 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack

March 05, 2006

Who's The Boss?

Why were the winners of the latest round of 3G spectrum allocations announced via a statement from the Energy, Water and Communications Ministry, and not by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission?

Why was the Commission totally silent on Friday (and it has remained silent) when the so-called "announcement" was made?

Legally speaking, who has the ultimate right to determine the winners: the Ministry or the Commission?

See Section 159 and Section 176 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.

Posted by aisehman at 11:26 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Full Pockets, Full Price

Why don't we make owners of cars -- private and corporate -- above 2000cc pay full price for petrol and diesel?

Posted by aisehman at 10:39 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

Where's The Difference?

UPDATE I think I just got my answer:

The Prime Minister said Petronas also suffered losses from the Government's move to subsidise oil prices. [Bernama]

That doesn't sound like the Government pays Petronas the full difference, if at all.

*****

I spent some time thinking over the weekend, and as usual, I get hit with more questions than answers.

For instance, (correct me if I'm wrong) the Government raised petrol prices by 45sen last year.

So how much was saved and what did the Government do with the savings?

And talking of oil subsidies, does the Government actually pay Petronas the difference between the full price and subsidised price?

I mean, the Government owns Petronas right?

And Petronas gives the Government a lot of money every year, right?

But does the Government actually pay Petronas the whole difference, year in, year out?

Pak Lah? Dr M? Betui bayaq penuh ka?

Posted by aisehman at 10:30 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

March 03, 2006

Paying For The Idiocy Of Others

This is news to me:

[Samy Vellu] had said earlier that the government would foot the RM40 million cost of repairs [on the MRR2 flyover] and claim the cost from the contractors of the flyover. [Bernama]

We -- yes, it's our money, not the Government's -- pay first and claim later?

When we gonna get it back?

Do the contractors even have that much money to pay us?

One thing I remember from economics class is that money in the hand is better than money you'll get later.

The thing that gets to me is that there would have been no need for this expenditure if the bloody thing had been built properly in the first fucking place.

BTW The cost of the repairs is equivalent to LESSUP133.33 million. [What's a LESSUP?]

Posted by aisehman at 08:48 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

TV Drama on 3G

You gotta be amazed at this:

Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission has awarded 3G licences to TTDotcom Sdn Bhd and MiTV Corporation Sdn Bhd.

DiGi Telecommunuications Sdn Bhd, one of three applicants for the two licences up for grabs, was not successful in its bid for 3G spectrum. [The Star]

Someone explain to me how DiGi can lose out to MiTV?

This is a joke. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission is a joke.

And DiGi is upset:

We would be extremely surprised by such a decision if this is confirmed, and we will immediately seek clarity from the MCMC on this matter.

DiGi is in a strong position in Malaysia with its widest high speed mobile coverage and advanced mobile solutions, financial capacity and extraordinarily committed employees. [DiGi website]

And I agree. So again, how did DiGi lose out to MiTV?

Anyone? Vinny?

Posted by aisehman at 08:07 PM | Comments (7) | TrackBack

March 01, 2006

Really Special

So much money for a SpecOps training centre?

Polis Diraja Malaysia (PDRM) akan membina sebuah kompleks latihan serba canggih bernilai RM1 bilion di Bentong, Pahang khusus untuk melatih anggota Pasukan Gerakan Khas (PGK).

Pemangku Pengarah Keselamatan Dalam Negeri dan Ketenteraman Awam (KDN/KA), Deputi Komisioner (DCP) Mohd. Anuar Md. Zain berkata, pihaknya telah memohon peruntukan untuk membina kompleks tersebut di bawah Rancangan Malaysia Kesembilan (RMK-9). [Utusan Malaysia]

I'm not trying to denigrate the police force here, but heck, RM1billion is equivalent to the amount the Government just saved on about 3,333,333,333 litres of subsidised petrol.

BTW I'm introducing a new unit of currency that will hopefully help us all adjust more quickly to the new economic environment.

It's called the LESSUP (pronounced like the Malay word "lesap", which means "vanished") or Litre Equivalent Savings of SUbsidised Petrol.

One LESSUP is worth 30sen. For instance, before its abuse came under the glare of publicity, car APs were reportedly worth as much as LESSUP100,000 each.

Heck, who's to say they aren't still worth that much?

Posted by aisehman at 10:58 PM | Comments (9) | TrackBack

Licentious Press

Well, what have we here?

Kilang tempat mencetak akhbar tabloid harian Eastern Times yang dirancang untuk diterbit dan dijual di pasaran negeri ini mulai bulan depan telah diperiksa oleh Unit Kawalan Penerbitan, Kementerian Keselamatan Dalam Negeri (KKDN) petang ini (Selasa).

Operasi pemeriksaan pada pukul 4 petang di bangunan The Sarawak Press Sdn Bhd di sini, dilakukan kerana pihak penerbit disyaki mencetak akhbar berkenaan tanpa permit sah mengikut Akta Mesin Cetak dan Penerbitan 1984. [Bernama via mStar]

Sarawak Press Sdn Bhd is the publisher of the now-defunct newspaper Sarawak Tribune, which kena the other day for publishing the Danish cartoons.

The company has yet to receive a permit to publish Eastern Times, but from the likes of it, the issuance of the permit is a foregone conclusion.

So what's going on here, Pak Lah?

Posted by aisehman at 02:49 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Big Spender

Kadir Jasin puts up a sterling defence of the Government spending-driven approach to economic growth.

He has this to say about the petrol price hike:

Harga dinaikkan kerana Kerajaan mahu terus menguatkuasakan pelaksanaan dasar mengurangkan subsidi minyak dan menaikkan hasil.

Bagi Kerajaan, kenaikan harga minyak memberi dua kesan positif kepada kedudukan kewangannya. Pertama, ia mengurangkan subsidi; kedua ia menambah hasil cukai.

Apabila harga minyak naik, nisbah cukai ke atas penjualannya juga naik.

... Dalam bahasa ekonomi yang paling mudah, Kerajaan memindahkan beban kewangannya kepada pengguna yakni rakyat jelata dengan menaikkan harga tanpa menurunkan cukai.

But the savings in subsidies and increase in sales tax revenue will hardly be used for development purposes, Kadir argues:

... kita semua tahu bahawa hasil Kerajaan habis dibelanjakan untuk menguruskan pentadbiran seperti membayar gaji, elaun, pencen, membayar hutang dan menyelenggarakan pejabat dan bangunan.

Untuk pembangunan – membina sekolah, hospital, jalan raya, pelabuhan dan sebagainya, Kerajaan terpaksa berhutang.

Given the current circumstances, the Government needs to borrow and spend to generate economic growth, he says, adding that it is all the more important because:

... kestabilan politik negara kita banyak bergantung pada kestabilan ekonomi.

What do I say?

A plan is only as good as its execution.

Read the blog.

Posted by aisehman at 11:48 AM | Comments (7) | TrackBack