dotsnodds.blogspot.com

Sepanjang Jalan Kenangan (Glenn Fredly)

2012-02-09T12:36:00.000+08:00

Sepanjang Jalan Kenangan (Album Version)

How much does it cost to study in the UK?

2012-02-01T11:09:00.002+08:00

Someone emailed me a question -- what is the estimation cost of studying in the United Kingdom?

Well, I wanted to give a straight and simple answer like = To study in the UK you must have £60,000 or RM300,000...that's all, but fortunately I do not like to give simple answers to a big question like that.

Of course I wanted the enquirer to be more specific.

What course do you plan to study, which level, which university, which part of UK, how many years of study, do you have the qualification, is your English language proficiency up to the required standard, do you have friends or family in the UK, are you staying in the UK alone or with your friends and family members, etc, etc..?

All these needed to be answered first before anyone can give you a rough estimate of the cost of fees, monthly expenses or per year of living in the UK.

Okay, first of all, you need to know if you qualify for the desired course you intend to apply for. Some courses, especially medical courses, engineering or the sciences, depending on the university or college in the UK, can be very strict with their basic requirements. And these requirements also include a pre-requirement English proficiency test at the level of your desired course.

For example, if you intend to apply to do a bachelors or postgraduate degree, you need to pass the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) or TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) at a minimum desired level requested by the UKBA (UK Border Agency). The UK Border Agency is like the Immigration Department of Malaysia.

A potential student must have evidence of English language skills at a minimum of level B2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) in each language skill. UKBA rate B2 is equivalent to IELTS 5.5. Details of the UKBA Secure English Language Test Providers including TOEFL minimum scores can be found here.

And all these qualifications and pre-requirements, including the English proficiency test minimum score are what the UKBA wants to see as part of the visa application requirement. Meaning you have to apply for a study visa first before you can go study in the UK.

But before you apply for the visa, the UKBA needs to see that the university has accepted you with the right qualification you have plus the English test that you must pass at a minimum score.

Whoaaa...you think it is easy to study in the UK just because you have the dough! Unlike in Malaysia, in the UK money and 'connections' cannot buy everything!

Then only comes the question of how much money you must have to fund yourself there in the UK.

First of all you need to have a statement of evidence (as in the amount of money in your bank account) that proves you can really afford to finance yourself for the stated (how many) months/years in the UK. For sponsored students you need to provide a letter from your sponsors that claims you are being sponsored by them (Govts, GLCs, Companies, etc.).

For the visa application, usually the UKBA wants you to have a bank statement proof of at least three months of self sufficiency at the area of your stay. Meaning, if you stay in London the cost of living is higher. But lately, the requirement has been reduced to one month (28 days).

It has been established that to meet basic living expenses in the UK, not including fees, a student:
1. Studying in inner London for the majority of his/her study needs £800 per month;
2. Studying in outer London or anywhere else in the United Kingdom for the majority of his/her study needs £600 per month.

You can check the document here.

But those are for basic expenses like food, transport and utility bills (phone, internet, gas and electricity). For a comfortable accommodation plus some entertainment, it would be safe to add another £200 to it.

So you need to have about £1000 a month to live in inner London and £800 to live anywhere outside London. But it all depends on the standard of living you expect to enjoy.

And now to answer 'how much does the fees for your study cost?'

If you are an 'overseas' student, assuming you are, and since this person who posed me this question is from Malaysia - ‘overseas’ fees can range from £3,500 to about £18,000 per year depending on the institution, the level of course and the type of course.

You can find some of the answers here.

The fee will probably (or may) increase each year by the level of inflation. Meaning, if this year you have paid £3,500 for a Higher National Diploma (HND) course, next year the fees might increase to £3,700 due to the rate of inflation, and so on.

To know the exact fees, you should contact the institutions you have applied to and whether they can tell you what the fees will be for future years. Your institution will probably ask you to give them some information about yourself and your family to help it assess your fee status. It will use the information you give to check if you fit into one of the 10 categories in Categories for 'home' fees.

Okay, say for example you are applying to do a 3 years full-time Bachelor of Arts Advertising & Media at Northumbria University in Newcastle-upon Tyne in North East England, (which is outside of inner London, and the cost of living is much cheaper than outer London).

Northumbria University's tuition fee for International Students full-time undergraduate Arts courses commencing in the 2012/13 academic year is £9,900 per year. But as it says in its website, this figure may rise annually in line with inflation.

If you multiply this by 3 (meaning three years of study) then you will have to proof (bank statement) you have £29,700 (approximately RM148,500) altogether in your/parent's bank account (or your sponsor's statement) when you apply for this course.

But say you are interested in and you qualify to do a science course and you want to do a 3 years full time Bachelor of Science in Applied Biology at Northumbria University. The University's tuition fee for International Students full-time undergraduate Science courses commencing in the 2012/13 academic year is £10,600 per year. So do your maths if you intend to do the three year course.

Some of these courses also carry additional costs to cover items which may incur during normal studies, for example field trips and equipment, books and writing materials.

So, to summarise what I have gathered above -- to study in the UK for an arts undergraduate course at anywhere in outer London, you need to have £800 a month x 12 x 3 years (£28,800) for the living expenses, plus £9,900 x 3 years (£29,700) for the fees. Altogether it will cost an arts undergraduate student £58,500 or RM292,500 for the three year course and stay.

To study in the UK for a science undergraduate course at anywhere in outer London, you need to have £800 a month x 12 x 3 years (£28,800) for the living expenses, plus £10,600 x 3 years (£31,800) for the fees. Altogether it will cost a science undergraduate student £60,600 or RM303,000 for the three year course and stay.

Actually, this example on the cost of living expenses in Newcastle (outer London) is based on my current personal experience. It may a bit of on the loose side (not too tight, just to be safe) and it may differ if you are the thrifty type or otherwise.The choice of university and the fees as gathered from Northumbria University is also one of the lowest in the UK.

If I had chosen other prestigious universities like Newcastle University (which is ranked 146th in the world both by the Times Higher Education (THE) and QS rankings in 2011), then the fees would be higher. Take for example the annual fee for the Arts undergraduate and the Science degree programmes, which starts from £11,165 and £14,320 respectively, are much more expensive than those in the lower leagues like Northumbria University.

The Newcastle University website also provides a living cost guide in Newcastle City which it says is approximately £833-£888 per month.

So, there you are a quite detailed explanation of what and how much you need to have before you decide to do an undergraduate study in the UK. And don't forget to include the return flight fares from your country to the UK, unless you decide to just drive or swim across the English Channel from France, then it will definitely be cheaper.

Check-out my next posting on the cost of studying at postgraduate level in the UK. Of course, as a guide, the above explanation is suffice, but studying at postgraduate level, especially for a masters degree, you usually need a year. But you can also study and work at the same time, which may take you longer than a year.

So, if you are not very rich or you are on a tight budget, that's the good thing about studying at postgraduate level in the UK.

Newcastle upon Tyne, Fenham dan Komuniti Orang Melayu Part 2

2012-01-21T19:36:00.171+08:00

Zainuddin Yahaya aka Tukdin

Restoren Tukdin di 41 Craven Road, London akhir-akhir ini menjadi sebutan orang-orang Malaysia yang menetap di UK serta mereka yang melancong ke London. Restoren ini mula beroperasi dipremisnya sekarang pada Julai 2009.

Restoren Tukdin ini bukan saja terkenal kerana keenakan masakannya yang meliputi masakan asli Melayu dan Asia, ia juga menjadi tempat pertemuan (lepak) orang-orang Malaysia di UK. Sebut saja Tukdin, semua akan tahu tempatnya yang berdekatan dengan Malaysian Student Department di Queensborough Terrace, Bayswater, London.

Restoren ini adalah bisnes milik keluarga Melayu yang diasas dan dimiliki oleh Tukdin atau nama sebenarnya Zainuddin Yahaya. Zainuddin berasal dari Alor Star, Kedah dan bersama keluarganya sudah menetap di London lebih 30 tahun.

Bagi pelajar Malaysia yang pernah menetap di sekitar London pada tahun 90an dan kakitangan Malaysian Student Department khasnya sudah pasti mengenali Tukdin yang mengusahakan kantin Malaysia Hall di Bryanston Square satu ketika dulu.

Kantin Malaysia Hall di basement Malaysia High Commission

Kemesraan yang sama juga dapat penulis rasakan apabila pertama kali berkunjung ke kantin Malaysia Hall di Queensborough Terrace, yang ketika itu dibawah pengurusan Pak Awie pada awal 2009. Staf yang mengendalikan Malaysia Hall ini telah berjaya mewujudkan suasana Melayu dan Malaysia di London apabila bercakap bahasa Melayu ketika mengambil pesanan dan melayan pelanggan dan menggunakan istilah ringgit dan kupang (sen) menggantikan pound dan pence semasa bayaran dibuat. Secara tidak langsung pelancong Malaysia, seperti saya dan isteri terutamanya dapat merasakan suasana berada di negara sendiri apabila disapa sedemikian walaupun hakikatnya kita jauh beribu batu dari kampung halaman. Saya rasa suasana yang serupa ini yang diwujudkan di Malaysia Hall dulu telah dilanjutkan di Restoren Tukdin menyebabkan ia menjadi popular dikalangan orang-orang Malaysia di sana ketika ini.

Tiga Chef Rasa Nusantara, dari kiri Chef Ron, Khairil
dan Chef Amran. Wak Dean, 2 dari kanan menyertai
RN setelah Khairil pulang ke Malaysia

Suasana mesra yang seperti ini jugalah yang saya rasakan ketika pertama kali menjejak kaki di Restoren Rasa Nusantara di Newcastle upon Tyne pada tahun lepas (2011). Walaupun sibuk dengan pelanggan yang begitu ramai, Chef Ron atau nama sebenarnya Khaironnazam Muhamad Baharun, 43 tidak lokek masa untuk berbual mesra seketika dengan saya dan isteri.

Menurut Chef Ron, restoren Rasa Nusantara ini dimiliki oleh Cikgu Abrahim dan isterinya Cikgu Norma Adahari. Sebelum ini Chef Ron bersama dua lagi rakannya hanya berniaga dengan menyewa premis restoren peniaga lain. Pada bulan Februari 2011, Chef Ron dan rakan-rakannya telah bergabung dengan Cikgu Abrahim untuk mewujudkan Restoren Rasa Nusantara secara sah disisi undang-undang.

Chef Ron memiliki pengalaman yang luas sebagai tukang masak di Malaysia. Malah Chef Ron yang memiliki sebuah restoren, Sambal Cafe di Kelana Jaya, Selangor telah menjual bisnesnya kerana mengikuti isteri, Nurul Hudha Ishak menyambung pelajarannya diperingkat LLB dan LLM di Northumbria University.

Menu khas setiap Ahad di RN, Nasi Kerabu Ayam Percik

Selain Chef Ron, dua orang lagi rakannya ialah Chef Amran dan Khairil Zailan. Pada asalnya, ketiga-tiga mereka berminat untuk memulakan perniagaan. Oleh kerana dua dari mereka adalah Chef, maka mereka bercadang untuk membuka sebuah restoren. Kebetulan pada awal 2011 seorang pengusaha restoren makanan ala Italy di Newcastle telah menawarkan restorennya yang bernama Sofia Restaurent untuk disewa.

Maka kesempatan ini diambil oleh Chef Ron dan rakan-rakannya untuk memulakan bisnes masakan Melayu/Malaysia dengan mengekalkan nama Sofia Restoren sebab mereka tidak memiliki lesen berniaga. Pemilik asal restoren telah membenarkan mereka menggunakan lesen perniagaan Restoran Sofia untuk sementara waktu sehinggalah Chef Ron dan rakan-rakannya memiliki lesen sendiri yang sah.

Pada satu hari seorang rakan yang belajar di Sunderland dan bekerja secara sambilan di Restoran Sofia telah memperkenalkan Chef Ron dan rakan-rakan kepada Cikgu Abrahim, seorang rakyat Malaysia yang bertaraf PR di UK. Berkebetulan pula Cikgu Abrahim ada pengalaman dan minat dalam bidang perniagaan makanan, maka mereka berempat pun bersetuju dengan cadangan pendaftaran sebuah syarikat.

Cikgu Abrahim Hj Idris, 53 tahun, menetap di Sunderland berdekatan Newcastle dan sudah bermastautin di UK semenjak 1976 ketika belajar diperingkat O-Level di Cambridge University. Kemudian Cikgu Abrahim terus tinggal di UK sehingga memperolehi ijazah pertama dan ijazah sarjana di University of London dalam bidang Biological Sciences and Microbiology.

Pada 23 Februari 2011 dan setelah lebih kurang 3 minggu beroperasi dengan menumpang atas nama Sofia Cafe, permohonan lesen mereka diluluskan. Lesen tersebut adalah atas nama Saudagar Nusantara Limited yang dimiliki sepenuhnya oleh Cikgu Abrahim. Dengan perniagaan restoren yang sah ini maka bermulalah satu lagi episod kejayaan perniagaan orang Melayu di bumi Inggeris.

Dalam kesempatan berada di Newcastle selama 6 minggu, penulis tidak bertemu Cikgu Abrahim, bagaimanapun sempat menemubual beliau melalui talipon. Bila ditanya apakah beliau akan mengembangkan bisnes dan syarikat ini untuk membuka satu lagi restoren seumpama ini ditempat lain, beliau berkata dia tidak akan berbuat demikian kerana dia melakukannya secara sambilan. Pada siang hari dia mengajar di Durham County Council, dan pada petang pula dia terpaksa bergegas ke Newcastle, dan semua ini memenatkannya.

Cikgu Norma Adahari dan Chef Ron di dapur RN

Urusan dikaunter restoren biasanya dijaga oleh isteri Cikgu Abrahim, iaitu Cikgu Norma Adahari, 46 tahun. Cikgu Norma adalah lulusan Sarjana Muda Pendidikan, USM dan kedua-dua mereka berasal dari Sabah. Mereka berkahwin pada tahun 1999 dan mempunyai seorang anak.

Chef Amran atau nama sebenarnya Amran Mahmood, 40 yang saya hubungi melalui email telah menyatakan hasrat dan objektif asal mereka disebalik pembukaan restoren ini. Yang pertama katanya ialah untuk menyediakan alternatif makanan halal kepada komuniti Melayu Islam khasnya dan kepada semua orang Islam di Newcastle amnya. Selain itu restoran ini juga dapat menjadi pusat perjumpaan bagi rakyat Malaysia, selain menjadi pusat rujukan/persinggahan pelancung Malaysia di UK.

Chef Amran Mahmood (sedang bakar sate)

Restoren Rasa Nusantara ini juga berhasrat memperkenalkan makanan Malaysia kepada masyarakat luar di sini kerana restoran Malaysia yang terdekat cuma terdapat di Manchester atau Glasgow. Seterusnya, Chef Amran berharap restoren ini dapat turut membuat kebajikan dan bekerjasama dengan komuniti Balai Malaysia Newcastle bila restauran ini telah stabil dan berkeupayaan.

Sebenarnya saya merasakan restoren ini sepatutnya wujud di era aktif dan kegemilangan Balai Malaysia Newcastle pada tahun 2008-2010, yang pada pendapat seorang pelajar PhD dalam bidang Nutrisi dan Kesihatan di Newcastle University, Dr Wan Adnan Wan Omar, 36 adalah zaman Balai Malaysia Newcastle paling aktif ketika dia mula-mula sampai disini membuat Sarjana Perubatan Penyelidikan pada 2008.

Menurut Dr Wan, ketika itu ada sekurang-kurangnya 68 keluarga Melayu di Newcastle, dan ini tidak termasuk bilangan pelajar diperingkat sarjana muda yang rata-ratanya bujang. Balai Malaysia Newcastle dibawah penghulunya ketika itu, Sdr Mohd Shaukhi Hashim sentiasa meluangkan masa bersama ahli dan AJK lain untuk menjalankan aktiviti sosial, ilmiah dan kebajikan. Pada ketika inilah juga Balai Malysia Newcastle berupaya menyewa Headquarters sendiri dimana aktiviti-aktiviti terancang dibuat dengan lebih kemas dan berkesan melalui HQ ini.

Baca posting selanjutnya mengenai Bisnes dan Komuniti Orang Melayu di Newcastle dan UK, insyaAllah.

Related Article:

Rasa Nusantara - Malay kitchen in Newcastle

Newcastle upon Tyne, Fenham dan Komuniti Orang Melayu

2012-01-07T08:12:00.003+08:00

Kota Newcastle upon Tyne atau kependekkannya Newcastle pada awalnya membangun sebagai sebuah kota agro dan pusat penting perdagangan bulu biri-biri. Ia kemudiannya menjadi sebuah kawasan perlombongan arang batu dan menjadi maju disebabkan perdagangan hasil bumi ini.

Kota ini juga menjadi masyhur sebagai pusat pembinaan dan pembaikian kapal terbesar di dunia. Pelabuhannya dibangunkan pada kurun ke-16 dengan limbungan kapal di sebelah bawah sungai Tyne.

Pada kurun ke 18 dan 19, ketika tercetusnya revolusi perindustrian, kota ini berkembang menjadi pelabuhan yang terpenting di England. Setelah perdagangan industri berat menurun, pembangunan kota Newcastle terhenti.

Kini Newcastle membangun semula sebagai sebuah pusat perniagaan, pelancongan, kebudayaan dan pendidikan yang termaju disebelah utara England.

Kota Newcastle dikatakan bandar yang kedua puluh paling ramai penduduk di England. Apabila digabungkan dengan Tyneside yang lebih besar, di mana Newcastle membentuk sebahagiannya, ia adalah bandar gabungan keenam terbesar di United Kingdom.

Kebanyakan penduduk kota ini mempunyai asal-usul Scotland atau Ireland. Menurut perangkaan 2001, penduduk Newcastle berjumlah 260,000 orang.

Terdapat juga kelompok-kelompok kecil bangsa Cina, Yahudi dan Eropah Timur (Poland, Czech, Roma). Dianggarkan antara 500 dan 2,000 penduduk berbangsa Bolivia yang berbahasa Sepanyol menetap di Newcastle, dan jika digabungkan dengan bangsa-bangsa lain (lihat senarai dibawah), ia membentuk sehingga 1% daripada peratusan penduduk.

Menurut perangkaan 2009, pecahan etnik di kota ini adalah seperti berikut:

Orang Putih British: 83.6%

Lain-lain Orang Putih: 4.1%

Asia: 7.0%

Pak Hitam (Negro): 1.6%

Cina: 1.3%

Campuran-bangsa: 1.4%

Lain-lain: 1.0%

Melalui pengalaman penulis dan rakan-rakan lain yang menetap disini semenjak 2009, daripada 7% penduduk Newcastle dari kumpulan Asia (menurut data di atas), bangsa Pakistan merupakan kelompok Asia yang paling ramai disini. Pakistani atau bangsa Paki, sebutan kependekannya, mungkin sama atau melebihi jumlah bangsa Cina (1.3%).

Kelompok terbesar dari Asia seterusnya (menurut anggaran penulis) ialah bangsa India, Arab dan akhir sekali kelompok nusantara, iaitu gabungan bangsa Melayu dan Indonesia.

Sebahagian besar masyarakat Melayu dan Indonesia yang menetap di Newcastle ialah golongan pelajar dan kaum keluarga mereka. Orang Melayu dan mereka yang berasal dari Malaysia yang menjadi penduduk tetap (UK permanent resident) di Newcastle adalah sangat sedikit, mungkin boleh dikira dengan jari. Ini disebabkan syarat-syarat untuk mendapat PR sangat sukar.

Satu kumpulan komuniti eksklusif orang Melayu Malaysia yang boleh dijadikan panduan mengenai jumlah orang Melayu di Newcastle boleh dicapai melalui internet iaitu di Yahoo-groups. Komuniti ini dikenali sebagai Balai Newcastle dan dari senarai keahlian yang terdapat di Yahoo-groups ini pada 6 Januari 2012 cuma seramai 321 orang.

Mungkin ada sebahagian dari ahli di dalam senarai ini yang sudah pulang ke tanah air menjadikan jumlahnya lebih kurang dari 300 orang, dan mungkin ramai juga dari ahlinya tidak mendaftar sebagai ahli di Yahoo-groups dan ini menjadikan kiraannya amat sukar diagak.

Bagaimanapun penduduk Newcastle berbangsa Melayu sememangnya sukar dianggarkan jumlahnya. Pertama kerana tiada usaha dari mana-mana pihak untuk mengumpul dan menyenaraikan penduduk Melayu disini. Kedua sebab kumpulan komuniti Melayu yang ada seperti Balai Malaysia Newcastle (BMN) ini tidak bersifat terbuka dan ramai pelajar yang muda belia terutamanya yang belajar diperingkat sarjana muda tidak dipelawa secara formal untuk menyertai kumpulan ini.

Dalil bahawa komuniti ini adalah sebuah komuniti eksklusif ialah pengalaman penulis pada Mac 2009, sebelum bertolak ke Newcastle (April 2009). Penulis ketika itu meminta untuk menganggotai Yahoo-group BMN ini dan menjadi subscriber kepada mailing-listnya. Permohonan penulis ditangguhkan sehingga beberapa bulan dan akhirnya ditolak tanpa apa-apa alasan.

Saya mengandaikan ada tiga kemungkinan mengapa permohonan saya ditolak. Pertama, komuniti Balai Malaysia Newcastle ini yang diketuai dan disertai oleh pelajar-pelajar postgraduate dan ahli keluarga mereka kurang bergaul dengan kumpulan undergraduate dan lain-lain orang yang tidak dikenali. Kedua, mereka yang mengetuai kumpulan ini mungkin paranoid dengan kehadiran orang baru dan oleh sebab itu mahu mengekalkan eksklusiviti kumpulan ini. Ketiga mungkin terdapat aktiviti-aktiviti anti-kerajaan yang dianjurkan oleh kepimpinan komuniti ini yang mahu disorokkan daripada orang luar yang tidak dikenali.

Secara ringkasnya Balai Newcastle mempunyai Biro atau Jawatankuasa seperti Biro Kebajikan, Biro Dakwah, Pembangunan Insan, Sukan & Rekreasi, Pembangunan Wanita dan IT & Pengurusan Kelab. Penghulu Balai Newcastle ketika ini ialah saudara Azizul Haqim Abd Rahman dan timbalannya ialah saudara Ibrohim Hanif Ahmad Shah (website Balai Malaysia Newcastle).

Antara aktiviti yg dijalankan oleh Balai Newcastle ialah mengadakan ceramah dan usrah mingguan, berkumpul dijamuan Hari Raya Aidil Fitri dan acara korban Aidil Adha, membantu ahli untuk mencari dan berpindah rumah atau mengangkut barang dalam kontena bagi mereka yang akan pulang ke tanah air dan juga pertandingan bowling.

Pada 2009 komuniti Balai Newcastle telah menyewa sebuah rumah yang dinamakan Rumah Balai beralamat di 67 Ladykirk Road, Fenham. Rumah ini dijadikan ibupejabat kepada semua aktiviti komuniti Melayu dan Balai Newcastle. Rumah ini berjaya dikekalkan selama setahun iaitu sehingga 2010 sebelum pihak Balai merasakan adalah lebih ekonomikal jika aktiviti Balai dijalankan dari rumah ke rumah.

Aktiviti BMN - angkat barang ke dalm kontena

Pada pendapat seorang ahli yang ditemuramah penulis, komuniti Melayu di sini agak rapat, dimana kebanyakannya bertumpu di kawasan perumahan Fenham, Heaton dan Jesmond. Aktiviti tetap hujung minggu ialah menyelenggarakan sekolah balai yg digerakkan oleh tenaga pengajar sukarela.

Sekolah Balai merupakan kelas al quran dan fardhu ain kepada kanak-kanak Muslim Malaysia yg menetap di sekitar Fenham. Aktiviti Biro Wanita yang diadakan ialah kelas masakan di hujung minggu yang digerakkan secara bergilir-gilir dengan mengambilkira resepi-resepi kegemaran orang Melayu atau Inggeris.

Komuniti lelaki Muslim juga berkumpul pada sembahyang Jumaat biasanya di masjid University Newcastle atau di masjid-masjid sekitar Fenham.

Kebanyakan orang Melayu/Islam lebih sukakan penempatan di Fenham kerana sewanya yang murah dan jarak yang berdekatan dengan banyak kemudahan kedai-kedai menjual makanan halal.

Aktiviti ekonomi penduduk Islam Newcastle banyak tertumpu di sepanjang Stanhope Street dan Westgate Road dengan kedai2 halal yang didominasi oleh pedagang India Muslim, Pakistan dan Turki.

Convenience Store halal di Westgate Road

Di Fenham juga terdapat banyak convenience store seperti Londis, ASDA dan Iceland. Di jalan utama Fenham, iaitu Stanhope Street terdapat kedai sayuran dan buahan Hutchinson yang menjual barangan dengan harga ekonomi dan borong.

Di Fenham juga terletaknya General Hospital yang dikhususkan kepada kesihatan warga tua selain terdapat banyak kedai Farmasi, Health Centre, Bowling Abbey, pusat renang dan berbagai kemudahan lain.

Pada Februari 2011 satu aktiviti ekonomi orang Melayu Newcastle telah muncul dengan pengambilalihan sebuah bisnes kedai makan di tengah-tengah kota Newcastle iaitu di 34, Leazes Lane, Newcastle. Restoren ini dimiliki oleh syarikat Saudagar Nusantara Limited yang diasaskan oleh dua orang yang berasal dari Sabah iaitu Cikgu Abrahim Hj Edris dan isterinya Cikgu Norma Adhari.

Pada Mac 2011 restoren ini mula beroperasi secara sah setelah syarikat ini mendapat lesen berniaga dari Newcastle City Council yang berkuatkuasa pada 23 Februari 2011. Dengan wujudnya restoren ini ia menjadi lambang kepada satu entiti yang sangat membanggakan kepada orang Melayu khususnya di Newcastle dan UK amnya.

Baca cerita selanjutnya mengenai kejayaan perniagaan restoren orang Melayu di Newcastle ini dalam posting yang akan datang.

Artikel berkaitan: Malaysian Restaurants in the UK

Larian Obor Olimpik dan Kota Newcastle upon Tyne

2012-01-07T04:45:00.004+08:00

Lands End, Cornwall

Larian obor Olimpik 2012 akan bermula di Land's End, Cornwall, England pada 19 May ini. Nyalaan obor Olimpik akan tiba dari tapak sukan Olimpik Kuno di Olympia, Greece sehari sebelum itu.

Larian berganti-ganti ini melibatkan 8,000 pelari obor dan akan menjejaki daratan, udara dan lautan ke seluruh Britain serta melalui 1,019 perkampungan merangkumi jarak sejauh 12,800km.

Larian obor ini akan mengambil kira tempat-tempat menarik terutamanya kota-kota bersejarah dan mercu tanda di sekeliling Britain. Keseluruhannya, larian ini akan mengambil masa 70 hari untuk sampai ke destinasinya.

Pelari-pelari obor dipilih dari pemuda-pemudi berusia antara 15-24 tahun dan mereka akan membawa obor menggunakan pelbagai pengangkutan antaranya bot terusan, kereta kabel, trem, kereta api stim, belon udara panas dan juga kereta roda tiga.

Pada hari kesebelas, iaitu 29 May, obor Olimpik akan dibawa menggunakan rel untuk mendaki puncak Snowdon di Wales, gunung ke 4 tertinggi di England (1,085 meter dari paras laut).

TT Sidecar race in Isle of Man

Pada 2 Jun, iaitu hari yang ke 15, ia akan dibawa menyeberangi Laut Irish ke Isle of Man di mana obor Olimpik akan dibawa menaiki kereta roda tiga (TT sidecar) dan tram elektrik semasa TT Festival 2012.

Sehari kemudian pelari obor akan dibawa ke pulau Ireland menggunakan bot. Setelah mengelilingi kota-kota utama di Ireland Utara seperti Belfast, Portrush, Derry-Londonderry dan Newry pada 3, 4 dan 5 Jun, delegasi obor ini akan singgah di Dublin, ibu kota Republik Ireland pada 6 Jun.

Republik Ireland yang bukan sebahagian dari United Kingdom sebelum ini tidak terpilih sebagai antara laluan obor Olimpik. Mengenai pemilihan semula Dublin ini dalam senarai larian obor, Menteri Sukan dan Kebudayaan Ireland, Michael Ring dalam satu kenyataan akhbar berkata: “Majlis penuh bersejarah (Olimpik) ini mengiktiraf persahabatan, keamanan dan kerjasama yang kini wujud di pulau Ireland dan menunjukkan kuasa penyatuan sukan.”

Stornoway, di Isle of Lewis

Seterusnya pada 8 Jun larian ini akan menyeberangi Northern Channel ke Scotland melalui pelabuhan Stranraer. Pada 9 Jun, ia akan singgah di Glassgow dan seterusnya ke Stornoway, di Isle of Lewis sebelum ke Kirkwark dan Lerwick di kepulauan Shetlands, kedua-duanya pada 10 dan 11 Jun. Singgahan terakhir di Scotland ialah di kota bersejarah Edinburgh, sebuah Bandar Warisan Dunia UNESCO iaitu pada 14 Jun 2012.

Setelah mengelilingi Scotland selama enam hari, larian ini akan menuju ke selatan dan singgah di Newcastle upon Tyne pada 15 Jun melalui Alnwick. Kedua-dua kota ini mashyur kerana keindahan kastil-kastilnya dan sejarah penaklukan Rom, konflik serta peperangan dengan Denmark dan bangsa Normandy.

Di Newcastle, dimana penulis kini menetap, persiapan sedang dibuat untuk upacara keraian malam secara gilang gemilang, di mana obor api Olimpik akan diterbangkan melintasi Sungai Tyne melalui wayar zip dari Jambatan Tyne.

St James Park Stadium, Newcastle

Newcastle juga akan menjadi tuan rumah kepada beberapa perlawanan penting sukan bolasepak Olimpik. Stadium ternama di Newcastle, St. James Park akan menjadi hos kepada sembilan perlawanan, termasuk suku akhir dalam kedua-dua pertandingan lelaki dan wanita.

Kota Newcastle upon Tyne atau pendeknya Newcastle adalah sebuah bandar bersejarah yang kini muncul sebagai kota metropolitan yang terbesar di daerah timur-laut England. Didirikan di Era Romawi oleh Kaisar Hadrian sekitar 2000 tahun yang lalu, nama kota ini sebelumnya ialah Pons Aelius. Nama Newcastle atau Kota Baru dalam bahasa Melayu diperolehi dari nama kastil yang dibina pada 1080 oleh Robert II, Duke Normandy, anak sulung William si Penakluk (William the Conqueror).

Penulis depan bangunan bersejarah di Newcastle pada 2009

Baca mengenai sejarah pembangunan serta perkembangan ekonomi kota Newcastle dan Komuniti Melayu di Newcastle dalam posting:

Newcastle upon Tyne, Fenham dan Komuniti Orang Melayu

Selepas singgah di Newcastle, delegasi pelari obor akan dibawa ke bandar-bandar besar dan perkampungan indah di seluruh England selama 7 minggu selanjutnya.

Acara larian obor ini sebenarnya memberi peluang kepada masyarakat tempatan untuk mempromosikan kepada dunia mengenai keindahan kampung halaman dan persekitaran kota mereka yang dapat ditawarkan melalui pelancongan kepada dunia - termasuk perayaan budaya tempatan, landskap yang menakjubkan dan kawasan-kawasan bandar yang dinamik.

London Olympic Stadium 2012

Kemuncak larian obor ini ialah apabila pelari terakhir (yang namanya dirahsia sehingga saat terakhir larian) sampai dan menyalakan obor di kawah London Olympic Park, Stradford, London pada 27Julai 2012.

Baca mengenai pelari Burnham yang dipilih sebagai pelari obor.

Dengan nyalaan obor dikawah Olimpik ini bermakna bermulalah Sukan Olimpik ke 30 (London Olympiad XXX) menjadikan kejayaan kali ketiga kota London dipilih sebagai hos kepada acara terulung di dunia ini. Sebelum ini London pernah menjadi tuan rumah kepada sukan Olimpik pada tahun 1908 dan 1948.

Artikel berkaitan: Where is the Olympic Flame going?

Dublin included on London 2012 torch route

Malaysian Restaurants in the United Kingdom

2011-12-19T19:18:00.009+08:00

Did you know that Malaysian restaurants and eateries in the United Kingdom are sprouting like mushrooms after the rain (tumbuh macam cendawan selepas hujan)?

Among them is the Rasa Nusantara Restaurant & Cafe in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, where my family and I frequent the past few weeks (pics). Apart from that, Hamzah F. M. Nordin, an MBA Student from the University of Wales UK, who is doing a research on

"Consumer Behaviour of Malaysian restaurants in the UK"

has a list of the popular Malaysian eateries in the UK.

Most of these Malaysian restaurants are located in London, except otherwise stated.

Here's the list in alphabetical order:

1. Awana

2. Blue Rays (Rochester)

3. Bonda Cafe

4. Bunga Raya Bar & Restaurant (Surrey & Cheshire)

5. C & R Restaurant

6. Champor- Champor

7. Chikara

8. Delima restaurant

9. Ferringi Bay

10. Georgetown

11. Georgetown (Nottingham)
12. Georgetown (Stratford Upon Avon)

13. Gourmet Garden

14. Jaya House

15. Jom Makan

16. Kampung

17. Kampung Ah Lee (Edinburgh)

18. Kaya House

19. Kelong Restaurant (Croydon)

20. Kiasu

21. Lime Leaves

22. Lotus (Manchester)

23. Makan Cafe

24. Makan La (Oxford)

25. Malaysia Kopitiam

26. Malayba (Peterborough)

27. Malay House (Croydon)

28. Malaysian Delight (Birmingham)

29. Malaysian Delight Buffet (Norwich)

30. Matahari

31. Melati

32. Melur

33. Ming Court

34. Ning (Manchester)

35. Olio’s Brasserie

36. Pelangi

37. Puji-Puji

38. Pulau Pinang (Birmingham)

39. Rasa Sayang

40. Rumours (Glasgow)

41. Satay House

42. Secret Recipe

43. Sedap

Sedap on City Road, London

44. Selera

45. Street Hawker

46. Tuk Din
47. Yum Yum
48. 54 Pinang

Tuk Din, pic taken from http://www.guikp.blogspot.com

Check the list here to get the address & contact number of these restaurants

Also check out the MasterChef Live 2011 video:

As part of his role as Malaysia Kitchen ambassador, Tim Anderson highlighted the merits of Malaysian food and demonstrated how to cook Nasi Goreng. In addition to Tim's demonstrations there was a Malaysian product market, stocked with essential ingredients for cooking Malaysian dishes.

Check out: Malaysian Restaurants in London

Also check the Malaysia Kitchen website, which it claims to be home to 50+ Malaysian restaurants in the UK. This website is also packed full of recipes, events and promotions on Malaysian restaurants and eateries in the UK.

Is your immune system ready for winter? Pune Speaks Up

2011-12-19T03:02:00.000+08:00

Reproduced from: DNA: Daily News & Analysis

Published: Thursday, Dec 15, 2011, 12:48 IST
Place: Pune | Agency: DNA

During winters, our immunity tends to get low, making us vulnerable to various ailments like common cold, flu, joint pain, constipation and respiratory infection. Speak Up finds out how to stay fit and healthy during this season

A well balanced diet is the key to a healthy body
Your immunity can be innate or acquired. The innate immunity prevents entry of foreign bodies into the tissues. It eliminates virus before it cause any disease.

Acquired immunity only occurs in response to an actual infection as the immune system adapts itself to fight these foreign bodies and rid your body of potential disease. The best way to avoid cold is to prevent it in the first place. Wash your hands frequently using soap and water or alcohol-based sanitizers. A well balanced diet, which includes carbohydrates, proteins, fats and micronutrients, is the key to maintain a healthy immune system.

In winters, keep your body warm. If your body is cold, it will have a hard time to fight germs. If people around you have cold, ask them to wear a mask so that when they cough or sneeze, they won’t spread the germs. If you are sick, stay at home and keep your distance from other people to prevent the spread of flu.

It is also important to exercise regularly for a healthy working body. Also, drinking lots of fluids helps to flush out the toxins from the body. Drink at least 8 glasses of water per day. Lemon and orange juices have high amounts of vitamin C, which boost the immune system. The use of anti-viral drugs can also help to protect you against contracting flu.

—Dr Rohinee Motwani, dietician

It is best to avoid antibiotics to treat viral infectionsChildren are the most affected due to seasonal changes and they are prone to respiratory tract infections. The most important thing for parents to realise is that cold, cough and other respiratory tract infections are viral in origin. Therefore, it is best to avoid antibiotics and steroids to treat the disease. Using these will only hamper the child’s natural immunity system.

Most of the viral infections stimulate the natural immune system and it is of utmost importance that it is developed without disturbing it. There are instances where viral infections stimulate pneumonia and other diseases. In such cases, parents should watch out for symptoms such as flaring of the nostrils and
retraction in the front of the neck and chest.

If these symptoms are noticed, the child must be taken to see the doctor immediately. Respiratory infections usually settle down in 4-5 days. They can easily be cured by using home remedies. Adults suffering from cold and cough should stay away from children as they easily catch infections.

—Dr BS Ratta, paediatric surgeon

The body dehydrates during winters, so have lots of waterIt is important to build your immune system by following a well balanced diet. Certain food items like fruits, vegetables, wholegrainsand nuts help in building a strong immune system.

Also, vitamins A, C and E, iron and zinc help in boosting immunity.
All the yellow and red fruits and vegetables are rich in carotenoids that get converted to vitamin A in our body. Intake of vitamin C is equally important and is found in citrus fruits, amla and guava.The body tends to dehydrate during winters so it is important to keep it hydrated with water and soups. Drink tea and coffee in moderation as these are diuretics. Along with a balanced diet, sleep well and do some yoga.

—Rekha Sharma, nutritionist

Avoid viral illness with the help of natural remediesYou can gear up for the winter season by adopting a proper lifestyle. One option is to drink homemade herbal tea every day. One can make it using ginger, cinnamon or nutmeg, among other things. Also, inhaling steam helps to clean your respiratory tract.

Regular exercising is also of utmost importance. It rejuvenates and helps the body recuperate faster from illness. I also tell my patients to take care of the six tastes. The sweet taste must be kept proportionate while the others (sour, salty, bitter pungent and astringent) suit the body more during winters. Viral illnesses can be easily avoided with the help of natural remedies and precautions.

—Dr Sachin Nandedkar, Ayurveda Specialist

Wear warm clothes and avoid cold food items in this seasonThe most important advice I give to all my patients is to stay warm during the winter season. Wear warm clothes and avoid cold food items in this season. Keeping warm avoids direct exposure to a lot of illnesses. Also, cold food items multiply the viruses already present in your body.

On the other hand, anything hot or warm kills germs. Another important thing is to maintain good hygiene. For example, wash your hands regularly. It helps in getting rid of germs. A lot of upper respiratory illnesses can be prevented with care and caution. But it is important to treat cold and cough otherwise it could lead to serious diseases.

—Dr Seemab Shaikh, ENT surgeon

Ariff Alfian Rosli, the reigning queer of Malaysian infamy in the UK (& British Isles)

2011-12-16T23:36:00.010+08:00

Bow over Fatine - Pondan Malaysia Glamer di UK, here comes the bigger kick ass problem ever created by a Malaysian in the UK and British Isles and by any standard at the moment.

At a time when it would be better without something that could put us Malaysians living abroad in embarrassment, this Malaysian gay student is creating ripples and making waves that could re-ignite intellectual wars between conservatives and the liberals again.

The father of this Malaysian, Rosli Harun (56) is at loose ends with the problems created by his son, Ariff Alfian Rosli. Ariff, a medical student supposedly studying under a Petronas scholarship in University College Dublin (UCD) in Dublin, Ireland has 'disappeared' in the British Isles. He has refused to meet his family members or the Malaysian embassy officials since 2009.

Ariff did his preclinical studies in 2003 - 2005 and later clinical (2005 - 2008). He is supposed to graduate in 2008 but has yet to finish his studies. He needs another 38,000 Euros (RM160,000) for another academic year to complete, but unfortunately Petronas has refused to extend his stay here. Petronas, on the other hand claimed RM890,000 from his father as the first guarantor as Ariff had violated the loan agreement with the former.

In early 2009 Ariff came back home and made an attempt to complete his studies locally and it was at this junction his relationship with his father declined. In June that year he left the country for Ireland again and was not heard of ever since.

Since 2009 Rosli Harun and his wife Kamariah Hashim, 55 went eight times to Dublin and Universiti College Dublin (UCD) in search for their son, but couldn't locate him.

On 13 December Utusan Malaysia reported on the missing of Ariff and related the father's worry of his son's safety and aqidah (religiosity). The news report: Pelajar Perubatan Hilang di Dublin.

On 14 December, Malaysian Envoy to the Ireland, Datuk Ramli Naam revealed that the Malaysian Embassy and Wisma Putra cannot disclose the whereabouts of Ariff Alfian in Ireland due to the Dublin Personal Data Protection Act. The Immigration Dept of the Republic of Ireland also refused to reveal facts on the boy due to the said act. The immigration status of Ariff Alfian in Dublin is said to be valid and all his documents including visa is also valid.

The latest news on Ariff as virally reported on several blogs the past few days is that he is now married with the name Jim Alfian in a glorious ceremony with a youth named Jonathan in Ireland.

I do not know whether to congratulate, commiserate or sympathize to the family on this boy's marriage to another man. But one thing for certain is that Jim Alfian has reign over the glamour of Fatine for being the Malaysian boy of infamy in the UK and the British Isles.

The pictures tell the story.

Folate fortification in food – a necessary nutrient or a potential health hazard?

2011-12-15T04:03:00.000+08:00

Folate is a form of naturally occurring folic acid in the body. Folic acid is also known as vitamin B9, vitamin Bc or folacin.

Vitamin B9 (folic acid and folate inclusive) is essential to numerous bodily functions. The human body needs folate to synthesize, repair and methylate DNA as well as to act as a cofactor in biological reactions involving folate.

Folate is especially important in aiding rapid cell division and growth, such as in infancy and pregnancy. Children and adults both require folic acid to produce healthy red blood cells and prevent anemia.

Folate was isolated in 1941 from spinach and named after the Latin word folium (= leaf). Although the initial impetus for research on folate metabolism was to find a cure for anemia, it was soon recognized that the administration of folate enhanced the growth of existing tumors and that folate metabolism may be a promising target for anticancer drug design.

A lack of dietary folic acid leads to folate deficiency, which is uncommon in normal Western diet. This deficiency can result in many health problems, the most notable one being neural tube defects in developing embryos. However, a complete lack of dietary folate takes months before deficiency develops, as normal individuals have about 500–20,000 µg of folate in body stores.

Common symptoms of folate deficiency include diarrhea, macrocytic anemia with weakness or shortness of breath, nerve damage with weakness and limb numbness (peripheral neuropathy), pregnancy complications, mental confusion, forgetfulness or other cognitive declines, mental depression, sore or swollen tongue, peptic or mouth ulcers, headaches, heart palpitations, irritability, and behavioral disorders. Low levels of folate can also lead to homocysteine accumulation. DNA synthesis and repair are impaired and this could lead to cancer development.

Folate is now commonly used by food producers to fortify our diet, normally in grain products. In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration mandated the folate fortification of grain products in January 1998 and it was also implemented in Canada. The primary driving force behind this policy was the recognition that periconceptional folate supplementation in addition to normal dietary folate intake significantly reduced the incidence of neural tube defects (NTDs), one of the most common birth defects.

Initial data suggest that this public health measure was successful, resulting in a substantial reduction in the prevalence of neural tube defects.

Although these reports were reassuring in that the population fraction with low serum folate was minimized (from 16% to 0.5%; ref. 16), they also raised concerns that fortification exceeded the original daily intake target by as much as 2-fold (17-19). This intake of folic acid from fortified food (f100 to 200 Ag/d) coincides today with high consumption of nutritional supplements in the U.S. population (f400 Ag/standard multivitamin) as well as increased availability and marketing of nutrition bars, drinks, and other fortified foods (often supplemented at 400 Ag/serving), resulting in a markedly elevated intake of folic acid in the population from multiple sources (http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/15/2/189.full.pdf).

Food fortification rather than supplementation in planning pregnancies was deemed necessary because:

1. There is a perceived failure of public health efforts to influence those persons most at risk

2. The neural tube closes during the fourth week of gestation, a time when many women are unaware of their pregnancy.

3. Due to concerns that folate fortification may mask symptoms of vitamin B-12 deficiency, primarily in the elderly population, the level of fortification chosen was estimated to provide on average 100 µg additional folic acid daily with only a very small proportion of the population receiving >1 mg. The upper limit of 1 mg was a round number chosen by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) as unlikely to produce masking, although the folate intake that produces masking is controversial, with some arguing that intakes <1 mg may cause this effect. (http://www.ajcn.org/content/77/1/8.full)

However other studies suggest that the maximum benefit of fortification has already been achieved. Over the past few years, the US population has been exposed to a significant increase in folate intake, for which there are essentially no data on safety.

Folic acid is generally regarded as safe, but there is concern that folic acid fortification may have adverse effects in subpopulation groups not originally targeted for fortification. In this regard, an emerging body of evidence suggests that folic acid supplementation may enhance the development and progression of already existing, undiagnosed premalignant and malignant lesions.

The accumulation of good news—ranging from the established reduction of neural tube defects to the putative prevention of several types of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and possibly dementia—has made it seem that folate is a ‘‘wonder drug’’ that is not only inexpensive, but also safe for use as a chemopreventive agent.

However, recent research on the effect of this nutrient on animal shows that folate could be detrimental to human health and could even cause cancer. Although research to date supports several of these claims, these warnings have appeared to be true, challenging us to adopt a more nuanced view of folate use and raising the need for investigations of the potential health hazards of excessive intakes.

Recent data also suggest the need to distinguish between naturally occurring folates and folic acid, the synthetic form added to supplements and fortified foods. This further complicates the already complex story of folate as a potent vitamin. The potential masking effect of folate on vitamin B-12 deficiency is not only a traditional measure of toxicity, it is a very serious concern from a public health viewpoint because of the high prevalence of vitamin B-12 malabsorption in the elderly.

The AUKU is unconstitutional - who would have thought of that?

2011-11-01T15:12:00.001+08:00

On 31 October 2011 the Court of Appeal has set aside the earlier decision of the Kuala Lumpur High Court on 28 September 2010 which ruled Section 15 (5)(a) of the Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA) as not violating the Constitution after deducting their originating summons.

Section 15 (5)(a) is a provision in the UUCA or AUKU (1971) which restricts students from expressing in support of, or opposing, any political party. In the landmark 2-1 majority decision, the three-man panel held that the Section was unreasonable and violated freedom of speech.

Who would have thought of that?

Four student leader of the new generation.

Watch out for the rising political stars of four ex-UKM Political Science Club Supreme Council leaders who have made headlines by winning a historic legal battle against the government of Malaysia vis-a-vis challenged the political status-quo of the present powers-that-be.

They are Muhammad Hilman Idham (President), Ismail Aminuddhin (Vice President), Azlin Shafina Adzha (Secretary General) and Wong King Chaì (Exco). The four was slapped with disciplinary action for being present during the campaign for the Hulu Selangor parliamentary by-election on April 24 last year.

The 'students' have since graduated and moved on with their lives.

See the excitement after the court ruling:

The Bernama news report: Appellate Court Declares UUCA Provision Unconstitutional

The Sun Daily: UUCA Unconstitutional

Banking on your sperm for fertility and the next generation

2011-09-20T17:53:00.004+08:00

What do you do if you are old enough to get married and you've decided to wait for the right moment, but the right moment hasn't arrived yet and you think you are fast getting old for a healthy fertility?

Answer: store your sperm for potential future use, should something terrible happen to you... accidents, premature death, ED or other worst-case scenarios.

Storing sperm are also crucial for people who have a high-risk occupation, or are undergoing chemotherapy, surgery for testicular or prostate cancer or a vasectomy.

But, storing sperm for fertility or other health reasons can be very expensive and tiring.

You think it’s easy to get your wife pregnant all the time? Sometimes yes. But most of the time, after looking at the numbers, it seems surprisingly hit-or-miss.

So, if you are not the 'sharp-shooter' who always misses the bulls-eye, then it's time to visit the sperm bank. A sperm banking keeps a stock of sperm from a donor so that women may have the choice of additional children from the same donor.

First of all you need to find a sperm bank in your country where you need to store or 'freeze' them. The next step is to go for a health check, 4 days prior your visit to the bank to be tested free from STD and this will cost you some money.

Cost of initial consult: US$100-150
Cost of STD lab panel: US$150-200

You also need to abstain from sex and masturbation 48 hrs but no more than four days before each 'session'. If you keep more than four days, dead sperm cells begin to accumulate and cause trouble, as you need a certain ratio of live sperm to dead sperm per 1 cc (cubic centimeter) of volume.

At the bank, you have to 'do it yourself' until you can ejaculate for 6 times (you should make six sperm deposits for each child you’d like to have). Why six times? -- 50%+ of your sperm count is annihilated from the freezing (or storing) process.

The sperm deposit is then transferred into vials which are stored (frozen) in liquid nitrogen for at least six months before being made available for use.

Cost per sample frozen: US$150-200 (x 6 = US$900 – 1,200 per potential kid)
Cost per year: US$300 – 600 (often for all samples)

In Malaysia, the Gleneagles Medical Centre Penang has the facilities for sperm banking and fertility treatment.

Well, unless you're in China (Shanghai) where they have pretty girls to give you a 'hand job'. At the Shanghai Sperm Bank, the girls were reportedly willing to go that extra mile to give you a hand! But in this case, those guys in the pic are not there for storing reasons, they could be there for donations or simply being paid for their sperm (or just having fun getting a free hand-job). The website purportedly said that these donors are getting paid RMB200 (US$30) at the end of each session.

Anyway, if you think this story is true, then read this:

Shanghai Sperm Bank Denies "Helping Hand" Rumor

Related article: Banking on your Sperm
About Sperm Banking
My fertility preservation choice to freeze embryos with donor sperm

Email to Chief Minister on PDCP regarding Ixora Heights

2011-09-20T08:55:00.000+08:00

Dear Mr Chief Minister Lim,
I am an owner of a unit at Ixora Heights, a newly completed project of PDCP, located at Lengkuk Nipah 3. I'm thoroughly disappointed in how the PDCP has handled the issues concerning the OC of my house.

I received a letter asking me to make full payment of the house plus all the interests for late charges (I'm servicing a government housing loan), a 3-month maintenance fee and sinking fee to be fully cleared before receiving the vacant possession. I have hastened all the process for the final payments, plus going to some considerable length to find money to pay all the payments due.

I finally received my house keys just 2 days before Hari Raya. I felt overjoyed, but it was very short-lived when I was told we couldn't start moving in because there was no OC obtained for various reasons i.e.the extra parking lots were not complying to the safety rules by jabatan parit dan saliran. I wonder, how the developer could even consider selling these extra parking lots, like it was an afterthought, and not in the original plan? And secondly, how the architect could miscalculate the distance of the roof from the drains, aren't PDCP using certified architects? This is an obvious incompetence on their part.

I attempted to visit my unit frequently, however was denied entrance many times at the gate because the Guard says he did not have a key to allow us into the compound. What's the use of giving us house keys, if we cannot even enter our house? the maintenance fee was paid for 3 months in full, but we are not even using the service? this is an injustice to house buyers.

My biggest problem is, I'll be leaving for United Kingdom this Monday (19 September 2011). I have arranged my departure to coincide with moving into our new house. I'd like be assured that my family could move out of our rental house and not having to pay rent as well as the loan installments. But all my hope is crushed due to the inefficiency of PDCP. They took 3 years to complete this project, and now the time has long expired. the VP was given to save PDCP from paying compensation, but we're still unable to 'take possession' of our house in true essence. this is cheating in disguise.

All in all, what is more frustrating is, none of the PDCP top management has made any attempt to address the issues concerned with house buyers. if what i hear is correct, even the "official" front entrance has been identified as a potential hurdle to OC approval, and this will further delay the process.

Mr Lim, i appeal to you to have a serious look into this matter and not let us become the victims of what should be a prestigious state project. I bought this house with the PDCP highly credible name associated with it, and my perception of that is slowly diminishing...

Thank you for reading this email.

With Best regards,
Dr. Bakiah Shaharuddin
USM

Best advertising schools in Malaysia and the UK - 3

2011-08-04T16:12:00.000+08:00

This posting will present and discuss the Advertising schools or programmes currently offered in Malaysia and which are also academically respected. The programmes may not be considered the best, but they are usually mentioned, meaning regarded highly when degree courses in Advertising are discussed.

There are not that many Advertising programmes in Malaysia as compared to in the UK, but rest assured the programmes offered here are as good as those in the UK.

Why do I say that?
1. Because many of these programmes are tailored to justify the needs of the advertising environment in this country, so they are producing graduates that meets the demand of the advertising industry and market.
2. Many of our advertising agencies are UK based, for e.g. Leo Burnett, BBDO, Mcann Erikson, PTM Thomson, Saatchi & Saatchi, Ogilvy Mather, so the programmes here are most of them UK oriented based curriculum or meets the requirement of a UK degree.

Here's the list (in an order that does not signify anything, but the fisrt two programmes are offered in publc universities and the rest from private universities):

1. B. Comm Hons (Persuasive Communication) at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM)

Mode of study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: School of Communication

Location: Minden, Penang

Selected promotional write-ups: Persuasive Communication integrates several academic fields related to persuasion and influence, i.e. advertising, public relations, public communication campaign and event management. Students specializing in Persuasive Communication will be able to understand various intellectual paradigms, theories and knowledge, which they will then be able to apply to various practical-oriented courses.

2. Bach. of Mass Comm. (Hons) (Advertising) at Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM)

Mode of study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: Faculty of Communication & Media Studies

Location: Shah Alam, Selangor

Selected promotional write-ups: This three – year programme adopts a professional approach to advertising, providing theoretical background and practical knowledge. Students are exposed to the principles of advertising and persuasion, the art of writing copy and script for the print and electronic media, storyboarding work, marketing, understanding the strengths and limitations of the various media and computer technology applications. The programme is designed to encourage creativity and innovation through critique sessions, proposal writing, and deliberations as students present their creative and mass media recommendation to the class.

3. B. Comm (Hons) Advertising at KLIUC (formerly known as Ikram College of Technology (iCT)).

Mode of study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: School of Communication and Language Studies

Location: Taman Ilmu Ikram, Jalan Serdang-Kajang, Kajang, Selangor

Selected promotional write-ups: The Bachelor of Communication (Hons) in Advertising (BCA) trains students to explore a career in the advertising and publication fields. Students who graduate with this qualification design and create attractive advertisements that generate attention for brands and products. Students are armed with the knowledge needed to work with broadcasting companies, the Internet and the print media. In addition, this programme provides students the opportunity to develop problem-solving and analytical skills to seek new and unexpected solutions in the world of advertising.

4. B. of Mass Communication (Hons) (Advertising) at Taylor's University

Mode of study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years (RM80,000)

Faculty: School of Communication

Location: Lakeside Campus, Jalan PJS 7/5, Petaling Jaya, Selangor

Selected promotional write-ups: Bachelor of Mass Communication (Hons)(Advertising) prepares the students with skills, techniques as well as theoretical knowledge of creating, designing and strategically thinking of real-world solutions for business challenge. Students will be exposed to hands-on training with state-of-the-art, industry relevant equipment and software where they will be trained both in creative and managerial aspects of the advertising industry.

5. Bachelor of Communication (Hons) Advertising at Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR)

Mode of study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: Faculty of Arts & Social Science

Location: UTAR Perak Campus, Kampar Perak

Selected promotional write-ups: This programme provides in-depth knowledge of the advertising field, and also introduces other areas of mass communication such as public relations. Students learn how to integrate the various communication tools into a corporate strategic plan. In addition, students will be provided a solid foundation on the latest in multimedia communication developments.

6. Bachelor of Communication (Hons) in Advertising/Corporate Communication at Sunway University

Mode of study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: Communication Dept School of Creative Arts Communication

Location: Bandar Sunway

Selected promotional write-ups: The three years honours degree programme is well-structured as each year of our Communication undergraduate study has specific aims and learning outcomes. In the first year students acquire a solid foundation in the principles of communication; in the second year students specialise in their chosen areas of interest – Advertising Design or Corporate Communication; in the third year students conduct research projects in their areas of interests to apply knowledge and skills acquired in their research methodology class, take up interdisciplinary electives on campus or at Lancaster, to broaden and synthesize knowledge across disciplines as well as gain industrial experience in their internships.

7. Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication (3+0 with Curtin University) at Limkokwing University of Creative Technology

Mode of study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: Location: Cyberjaya Campus, Putrajaya WP

Selected promotional write-ups: This degree programme enables the graduate to be versatile and apply his knowledge and skills to a variety of fields, including international marketing, sales, services, management, multimedia, healthcare, manufacturing and biotechnology (consumer education). Graduates from this programme will find tremendous opportunities to gain employment in all businesses, the government sector and international organisations. A graduate of this discipline can enter the industry as:

Copywriter
Multimedia Producer
Broadcast Producer
Film Producer/Director
Journalist
Photographer
Photojournalist
Newscaster
Creative Director
Digital Designer
Advertising Manager
Media Manager
Research Manager
Brand Manager
Account Manager
Public Relations Manager
Marketing Manager

Best advertising schools in Malaysia and the UK - 2

2011-06-23T17:07:00.000+08:00

Here's the continuation of the list of Ad schools or Advertising programmes offered by well known UK universities (London Ads Schools) :

FYI if you are from Malaysia and wants to attend these courses, have no fear as all the schools/universities and colleges listed here are certified by the Malaysian government's Qualification Accreditation or eSISRAF-Sistem Pengiktirafan Kelayakan.

5. BA (Hons) Advertising & Brand Communication at University of the Creative Arts (UCA) Farnham

Mode of study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: UCA Farnham Campus

Location: Falkner Road Farnham Surrey GU9 7DS

Selected promotional write-ups: BA (Hons) Advertising & Brand Communication (ABC) at UCA Farnham takes an integrated approach to both branding and advertising. It provides you with an in-depth understanding of the creative and strategic processes behind successful advertising and brand communications, with a focus on developing skills through practical scenarios and industry experience.
Industry Links: The ABC Alumni Society gives students direct access to London's top 20 advertising and branding agencies. We also have direct links with: Ogilvy & Mather, Profero, FRED Talent.

6. BA (Hons) Advertising at University of Gloucester
Mode of study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: Cheltenham Campus

Location: Cheltenham, UK

Selected promotional write-ups: The Advertising degree is a multi-award winning course, the essential training ground for anyone seeking a career in the creative side of advertising. This highly successful course is dedicated to achieving excellent creative results. It’s an essential platform for anyone seeking a career on the creative side of advertising, offering students an exciting mix of practical and theoretical study in modern studios.

Employability: According to recent Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) performance indicators, the University of Gloucestershire was ranked eighth out of 160 higher education establishments for employability. In 2006/07, 97% of our graduates found employment or went onto further study within six months of leaving.

Agency links - Mother, Ogilvy and Mather, Abbott Mead Vickers, Lowe, Abbott Mead Vickers, BBDO, Saatchi & Saatchi

Best advertising schools in Malaysia and the UK

2011-06-16T15:29:00.003+08:00

Does anybody know which or where is the Best advertising school in the UK?

I've been scouring the net for the last few weeks trying to figure this out, but to no avail. Well, I guess that's what you get when you scour instead of really look for it in a systematic way by categorising or itemising it in detail.

Okay, in this posting I will try to do the exact by categorising or itemising it in a systematic way (whatever that is). First, I will start with UK's best Ad School.

This is in brief of what exactly I am looking for?
1. The Ad school or programme must be a full time Bachelors degree level.
2. It must offer the subject Advertising (with PR or Marketing) as major, but the faculty that offers it doesn't matter -- it could be from the Communications or Design Faculty, Marketing or even from the Management school.
3. The programme content must concentrate on the management aspect of advertising, with design-focused modules enabling students to develop an appreciation of the creative side of the job.
4. The Ad school must be rated one of the best or the most popular (in the UK) and must also be highly visible (online).
5. It must have the highest percentage or a reasonably high percentage of employability rate based on recent tracer studies either gathered from the university's own study or from HECSU's What Do Graduates Do? or HESA's Destination of Leavers from Higher Education Institutions.

6. Apart from their employability traits, the graduates are well known to have good prospects in job marketability and sustainability.

Wow, quite a tall order!

Here's a list of the Ad schools or Advertising programmes offered from well known UK universities (London Ads Schools) I have found from the web:

1. Advertising: Creative or Advertising Management and Digital Communications at Bucks New University, London

Qualification/Level: BA (Hons)
Mode of study: Full Time
Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: Design Media & Management
Location: High Wycombe Campus

Selected promotional write-ups: If you choose to study Advertising at Bucks you will be joining a course that has built impressive reputations with industry, based on student successes in the job market and in international awards. Students develop abilities to think conceptually and strategically, employing creativity, research and analysis to inform their solutions. Much emphasis is placed on reaching the target audience employing the most appropriate media.

2. BA Hons Advertising at University of West London

Mode of study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: Ealing School of Art, Design and Media

Location: Ealing Campus, St Mary's Road

Selected promotional write-ups: The philosophy of this course is to help students to develop as advertising strategists who can think and act creatively, and creative’s who can work strategically. The course is based on real-life advertising work practice, with the aim of producing future advertising strategists, planners, handlers and creative’s.

3. BA (Hons) Advertising at University College Falmouth

Mode of Study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: Scool of Media & Performance

Location: Tremough Campus

Selected promotional write-ups: Our BA(Hons) Advertising degree has been designed in consultation with marketers, brand managers and ad agency professionals to create informed practitioners ready to shape the future of the industry. This forward-looking course is highly vocational and will equip you with the relevant skill sets, market knowledge and professional contacts to begin a fulfilling career on graduation.

4. BA (Hons) Advertising at London College of Communication

Mode of Study: Full Time

Duration: 3 Years

Faculty: School of Design

Location: Elephant & Castle, London. SE1 6SB.

Selected promotional write-ups: This course seeks to challenge current preconceptions and definitions of advertising by fostering an atmosphere of experimentation and interrogation of existing practises. Taught by a team of advertising practitioners and academic theorists integrated with support from technical and studio experts, students will be equipped with contemporary and cutting edge knowledge to be able to understand the theoretical and practical aspects of every level of the advertising process from planning right through to creative output and client industry presentation.

To be continued...

Related article: Best Colleges/Universities with a Major in Advertising?

Is Dr Rohaya taking her wives club on the right track?

2011-06-10T16:17:00.001+08:00

Off late, almost everyone has given their two cents worth of opinion on the recent furore about wives being obedient to husbands and at the same time able to satisfy his lust like a first-class prostitute -- be it on print media, online and social networking sites.

But many are stating their anger rather than putting a rational argument to the matter. At least two persons, the Perak mufti and another by the name of T S Ramasamy has refused to join the bandwagon of denouncing Dr Rohaya and the group, The Obedient Wives Club.

In a theStar report dated 7 June, the Perak mufti Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria has given his backing to the Obedient Wives Club, which offers “sex lessons” to help women keep their husbands: Perak mufti supports Obedient Wives Club

While TS Ramasamy says Dr Rohaya’s wives club is on the right track

Read Ramasamy's reasoning here as published by the Star today (10 June 2011):

THE outburst on the notion that wives must learn how to “serve their husbands better than a first class prostitute” (The Star, June 5) is indeed overwhelming.

It cannot be denied that in the majority of cases the need for free sexual indulgence is the major reason for marriage whilst, companionship, love and affection operate as supplementary ingredients.

Therefore, Dr Rohaya Mohd and her Obedient Wives Club should be welcomed to continue in their task of helping to promote harmonious marriages.

Lifelong matrimonial happiness is embedded in the proper management of Dr Rohaya’s advocated principles as embodied in the services of her club.

T.S. RAMASAMY,
Kuala Lumpur.

Other related articles: Daud: Unfair to blame wivesObedient Wives Club to offer sex lessons on how to pleasure husbands
O.W.C : Wife is a Sex Worker

Barang lama -- ditukar sukar, dibuang sayang

2011-05-16T16:31:00.002+08:00

Today I finally had my car battery changed.... exactly after 5 years, two and a half months -- since I first drove the car home from Kota Bharu Toyota's showroom on 28 February 2006.

This is also the first time after some 30 years of driving had I used a car battery for this long.

As we all know most batteries usually wear out every 1 to 3 years and need to be replaced. The normal battery warranty is around 1 -2 years.

Actually I was adamant against having it changed, since it was still serving the car well, starting the engine at first strike of the ignition almost every time -- be it for the first time in the morning or when the engine is hot.

But the mechanic at Toyota's Prima Pearl Auto in Penang thought it was timely that I had a battery change.

They gave me a call when I was having breakfast with my daughter 20 minutes after I left the car at the workshop for a routine service. The odometer had clocked 58,000km.

The new battery costs RM205, and after a discount it comes to around RM195. I thought they would change it with the same model, so I said okay as really liked the factory fitted brand.

When I came to collect the car, I asked the service advisor, Mr Dinesh what was the voltage of the battery that made them wanted to replace it. I also told him the battery had served me well ever since I bought the car and I believed it is still okay.

He then went in to ask the mechanic who said they had checked the battery voltage and it was only 12.24V. The normal battery voltage is 12.50V.

Whoah...! after 5 years plus and it had only waned 0.26V.

I asked to open the hood to look at the new battery. Unfortunately, it wasn't what I had expected. The battery was replaced with a smaller size Toyota brand. I asked Dinesh if I can recharge the old battery but he said cannot, so feeling satisfied with the answer I left home without it (the old battery).

Now I am having second thoughts about the old battery. Bukan ler apa, rasa sayang betoi kat barang lama ni. Dah jadi sentimental lah kunun..5 tahun serving the car well...heheh!.

So a few minutes ago (while writing this note) I gave the workshop a call to have the battery back. Dinesh was out, but I reminded the fella on the line that I was going to collect the battery this afternoon.

I'll try to put it in my daughter's 10 year old Proton Iswara. We'll see whether the battery can still work after this.

Moral of this story : Old habits are hard to change, but old things that had served you well may become very sentimental too.

Lastly this Malay expression might explain or justify the above expressions: Barang lama dibuang jangan, sebab ia tetap berharga, Dibuang Sayang, Ditukar Sukar

Related article: How to Check a Car Battery

Mistaking Batok with Batuk (Cough) in "Seperti Melepas Batuk di Tangga"

2011-05-12T14:55:00.000+08:00

Have we ever thought that the Malay proverb Melepas Batuk di Tangga does not really mean like we use to think it does?

Over the years, experts in the Malay language like those in GAPENA and university lecturers has in numerous occasion reminded us of the wrong use or perception of the proverb. These misperceptions although trivial but are important if we want to safeguard the sanctity, pureness or the correct use of the language.

But I wonder why these messages did not get to us after all these years.

In one of the conferences in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah as was related by Hussaini Abdul Karim (pic below), the writer was informed by a speaker that the word Batuk in the proverb mentioned above was actually Batok, a water dipper made of coconut shell commonly used in traditional Malay homes in those days.

Below is a reproduction (with permission) of a letter sent by Hussaini Abdul Karim, a Singaporean businessman cum writer to Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka recently. Hussaini said a copy of the letter was also sent to Utusan Malaysia and Berita Harian.

From Hussaini Abdul Karim

Tuan,
...
Saya terlihat satu kesilapan didalam bahagian akhir buku yang di tulis oleh Tun Dr Mahathir Muhammad, 'A Doctor in the House' di mana Tun telah menggunakan peribahasa, “melepaskan batuk di tangga”, yang beliau telah menterjemahkan kedalam bahasa Inggeris seperti berikut: 'cough at the foot of the stairs” dan beliau maksudkannya sebagai “empty formality” (perbuatan formal yang kosong atau yang tidak bererti) dan “to let you know that they are there and to get some credit for having been around” (untuk memaklumkan kepada orang ramai yang mereka berada di tempat itu supaya mereka boleh mendapat pengakuan yang mereka berada di sana dan menerima kepujiannya). Saya rasa penggunaan peribahasa tersebut dan dimaksudkan seperti itu adalah kurang tepat.

Semua orang tahu yang peribahasa tesebut bermakna,' membuat sesuatu kerja sambil lewa', atau untuk mengatakan yang sesorang itu, 'malas'. Menterjemahkan 'batuk' sebagai 'cough' adalah dimana kebanyakkan orang telah tersilap, termasuk Tun.

Lebih kurang lima tahun yang lalu, di satu konferens yang di anjurkan oleh GAPENA di Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, saya telah berpeluang untuk bertemu dengan beberapa orang ahli ahli-ahlinya yang terdiri daripada tokoh-tokoh bahasa negara termasuk dua orang Sasterawan Negara dan saya telah berpeluang menghadiri satu bengkel bahasa dimana salah satu daripada topik yang telah di bincangkan adalah 'Kesilapan Biasa di dalam Penggunaan Bahasa di dalam Sastera Melayu dan Nusantara' secara tidak formal.

Salah seroang tokoh bahasa yang berada di situ telah berhujah, 'Pada masa dahulu, kebanyakkan rumah-rumah yang di bina di kampong-kampong di bina di atas panggong untuk mengelakkan daripda dimasuk air semasa musim air bah dan semua rumah mempunyai tangga. Kemudian, ada di letakkan pula satu tempayan besar yang berisi air dan di tempatkan di hadapan rumah di sebelah tangga utama. Satu 'batok' (bukan 'batuk') yang mempunyai batang (handle) akan di gantungkan di tiang disebelah tangga itu dan ia digunakan oleh tetamu-tetamu yang datang ke rumah untuk menceduk air untuk mencuci kaki mereka sebelum mereka masuk ke rumah.

Selepas menggunakan batok itu, maka ianya akan digantungkan semula kepada penyangkut yang telah di sediakan di tiang di sebelah tangga itu tetapi ada sestengah tetamu yang malas dan hanya melepaskan, meletakkan atau membuang batok itu ke atas tangga sahaja dan peribahasa 'melepaskan batok ditangga' telah tercipta kerana perbuatan
itu'.

Bezanya di anara 'batok' dan 'batuk' dalah di dalam sebutannya: i.e., batok: BA : Baa (seperti sebutan huruf jawi yang kedua selepas 'Alif, and TOK: seperti sebutan perkataan Ingeris 'Talk', dan sebutan 'batuk' adalah 'baa' 'tuk, (seperti 'datuk').

Apa komen Ibu Nening Mahendra, seorang penulis puisi dan sajakorang dari Purbalingga, Jawa Tengah: "Nama barang itu yang benar adalah 'siwur' terbuat dari bahan baku batok atau tempurung kelapa. Fungsinya untuk menyiduk air. Itu adalah gayung yang dipakai oleh nenek moyang kita di Jawa, ketika belum ditemukan plastik".

Apa pendapat tuan?

Terima kasih.

Yang benar

Hussaini Abdul Karim

Related article: Seperti Melepas Batuk diTangga by MAB

Hussaini Abdul Karim's blog: hak55

My Mother's Day Notes

2011-05-09T14:27:00.002+08:00

Wife and me

I realized the gloomy look on my wife’s face.

Her gestures also tell me that something is wrong.

When I asked why, she said “panaslah hari ni…”

I know that she knew that I know that it wasn’t the real reason she was a little bit on the edgy side.

She understands me very well. Conversely, so do I.

I know she was a little bit upset that I had not accompanied her to the mall today.

I did ask a stupid question why she took so long at the supermarket. She got a little upset and answered I should have been with her as Aiza (12 year old son) was not much of a help.

Later in the day I told her it was mother’s day today and mentioned about the status on our friends FB wall.

“Hmm…takda sapa pun nak ucapkan happy mother’s day kat I..?” she cried.

I kept quiet and but I was giggling inside….heheh!

But knowing that she knew very well of my sense of sarcastic humour, I did not try to turn her weep into a cruel joke (as I ~~always~~ sometimes do).

That evening I took the right moment to hug and kiss her and expressed my heartfelt thanks to her (as a mother). She smiled and said..”I nak bunga…!”

I replied, “nanti kita pergi taman kat belakang tu I petikkan bunga…!”

That evening we went out for a sumptuous sea-food dinner with the children at a sea-side restaurant in Marina Bay, courtesy of third daughter.

She just completed her diploma (in Agro-Business) and was getting her first full pay for last month working as a clerk at an electronics shop. We were pestering her to belanja us makan and it was a sort of pay-day for her. So, since today was mother’s day, it was really nice that she fulfilled her duty to make all of us happy on this lovely occasion.

Just before we were to call the day off my wife asked if I was ‘happy’ and I said yes. “ …if you are happy then I am happy too..” she rejoiced. I knew what she meant and we both went into a slumber.

It was really a day to remember.

But that was yesterday..

Today I stumbled on some friend’s FB status and read about how they reminisced their mother in their younger days.

One of them remembered how her mom likes to make a pocket on in front of her baju kurung which is quite odd. FYI the baju kurung fashion in those days (and today still) does not have front pocket/s. Only Baju Melayu worn by Malay boys (and men) have pockets, usually 3 in front (one on the left top and two below).

If you are an FB friend of Nani-Syed Osman you can read her beautiful notes about how she remembers her mom in: Poket Depan Baju Kurung.

My wife also often reminisces her sweet moments with her mom and reminded me many times how she misses her. Every times she does that I listened to her attentively. Sometimes, she even cried while doing it.

I did not reciprocate by crying with her, but I do know how to understand her feelings when she does that. I buat muka sedih je!

I know… I know… mother’s love is a precious gift from God.

It is something so worthy we can’t even exchange it with all the riches in the world.

Even if your mother is no longer around, but if you ever had mother’s love try to remember the beautiful moments you’ve had with her, and please do not lose them (the moments) – recall them, rekindle them, cherish them, adorn them, embellish them, treasure them.

In the end it will make your life more meaningful every time you mention of your mother and her love of you.

Somebody wrote a nice poem on a mother’s love:

A mother's love is a precious gift
To be treasured along life's highway
For the wonderful love they give
Will be taken from you someday.... (click here to continue reading the set of poems)

But what do I know about mother’s love?

I’ve never really remember I’ve had mother’s love.

How do I recall those moments, rekindle those moments, cherish those moments, adorn those moments, embellish those moments or even treasure those moments…when they weren’t there in the first place.

Mother died when I was a baby, when I was still supposed to be in her cradle, crying out for her hug, her love, her attention (and not to mention her milk).

But where were you mom, when I needed you and your love?

Why did you go so early when I needed you so badly like other babies do when they cry out for their mummy? Mummy…mummy…mummy…where are you?

I was barely three years old when she left me for good.

But I was a strong kid. I didn’t cry when I was told later that my mother was gone.

I remember some of my aunties cried and hugged me and told me about my mum’s passing away. But I couldn’t remember a word they say about her. However, I do understand that they felt sorry and told me that later I may be having a new mum.

So this is actually my answer to my wife and my friend’s lovely written notes:

I wish I had a moment to recall with my mother, but I have none!

I wish I had a mother to make me a Baju Melayu with many pockets, but I have none!

I wish I had a mother to help her with household chores but I have none!

I wish I had mother around to tell me about manners and how to behave, but I have none!

I wish I had a mother who would scold me when I am naughty, but I have none!

I wish I had a mother to correct me when I make mistakes, but I have none!

I wish to carry on with more wishes, but I think I’ll save myself and also you readers from those tears that are dwelling in your eyes…!

So for you people who still have a mother out there to reach out to, please do so while you can!

I am specifically talking about those who still have a mother but are “not on speaking terms” or “just not getting along well” … by intentionally and occasionally building a wall of arrogance between you and your parents.

But at the end of the day you do have that sense or feeling that a set of maternal (or paternal) eyes are out there looking after you.

And you know what I mean.

Life’s too short to keep the flame of arrogance burning in our hearts. We the young ‘uns should be the ones that should bow in humility in front of our elders. Even if the elders are wrong.

You still have a mother, but many unlucky ones like me are without any (no more). So be there with her when you are supposed to (on Hari Raya or any other day),… before it’s too late.

To my mother Allahyarhamah XXXXXXXXX who died at the age of 29 (1934 - 1963) although I can't remember any sweet moments we've had together, you are still my mom. This is for you.

Happy Mother’s Day 2011.

The inventor of the first Digital Camera

2011-05-05T17:13:00.001+08:00

Above is a picture of the first digital camera and the person who invented it.

Steven J. Sasson, the person who created the first digital camera is an American electrical engineer (born July 4, 1950 in Brooklyn, New York).

In 1974, Sasson began working with a very broad assignment from his supervisor at Eastman Kodak Company, Gareth A. Lloyd. He was asked to investigate the imaging properties of charge-coupled devices to create an image sensor for a film-free camera.

Lloyd posed this question to Sasson: Could a camera be built using solid state electronics, solid state imagers, and electronic sensor known as a charge coupled device (CCD) and then gather optical information?

So he set about constructing the digital circuitry from scratch, using oscilloscope measurements as a guide.

There were no images to look at until the entire prototype — an 8-pound (3.6-kilogram), toaster-size contraption — was assembled.

In December 1975, Sasson and his chief technician produced the first black-and-white digital image, captured at a resolution of .01 megapixels (10,000 pixels), took 23 seconds to record onto a digital cassette tape and another 23 seconds to read off a playback unit onto a television.

Then the picture popped up on the screen.

And the rest as they say, is history...!

In 1978, Sasson and Lloyd were issued U.S. Patent 4,131,919 for their digital camera.

Sasson now works to protect the intellectual capital of his employer, Eastman Kodak Company.

On November 17, 2010, US President Barack Obama awarded Sasson the National Medal of Technology and Innovation at the White House. This is the highest honor awarded by the US government to scientists, engineers, and inventors.

The video below has more info on the workings of first digital camera:

Inventor Portrait: Steven Sasson from David Friedman on Vimeo.

Malaysia, the Brain Drain and Social Injustices

2011-04-29T17:36:00.002+08:00

Malaysians residing overseas have likely reached one million in 2010, indicating a serious brain drain from the country, a World Bank official says.

Philip Schellekens, the bank's senior economist for Malaysia, said the brain drain was estimated at a third or equivalent to 335,000 people of the total diaspora estimated.

Conventional wisdom suggests that international migration of the highly skilled from poor to rich countries — or the so-called brain drain phenomenon — threatens development.

But what could be the rationale for the B rain Drain phenomenon?

Last February, the World Bank conducted an online survey of 200 Malaysians living abroad and found that social injustice is one of the top three reasons behind the country’s brain drain.

Social injustice is a concept relating to the claimed unfairness or injustice of a society in its divisions of rewards and burdens and other incidental inequalities.

The concept is distinct from those of justice in law, which may or may not be considered moral in practice, or from the concept of justice within a coherent ideological system, which focuses on just process rather than on incidental inequalities.

The World Bank also said that Malaysians are only willing to return if the government shifts from race-based to needs-based affirmative action policies.

In its fourth issue of the Malaysia Economic Monitor, the report stated that 60 per cent of the respondents found that social injustice as their main concern to migrate or return-migrate, citing unequal access to scholarships and higher education especially among the younger generation within the non-Bumiputera community.

Of those surveyed, 66 per cent found that lack of career prospects was a major factor and 54 per cent agreed that unattractive salaries as underlying factors in the Malaysian diaspora.

Statistics revealed in the report included a conservative estimate of a one-million strong Malaysian diaspora, largely located in Singapore, Australia, Brunei, Britain, the United States and New Zealand.

Of this, nearly 90% were of ethnic Chinese descent while for the diaspora as a whole, one-third had tertiary education with the rate of the qualified migrating having risen in recent years.

The report added that Singapore was the destination of 57% of those who had left.

Philip Schellekens painted a gloomy picture of the Malaysian brain drain situation today saying that it not only grew rapidly but is likely to intensify, further eroding the country’s already narrow skills base.

Schellekens said that the number of skilled Malaysians living abroad has tripled in the last two decades with two out of every 10 Malaysians with tertiary education opting to leave for either OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) countries or Singapore.

“Brain drain from Malaysia is likely to intensify in the absence of mitigating actions,” he said at the launch of the World Bank report titled “Malaysia Economic Monitor: Brain Drain”.

The report defined brain drain as the outflow of those with tertiary-level education.

Related article: World Bank: 1m Malaysians live abroad

Malaysia's Brain Drain Hinders its Economic Progress

Beating your meat, flicking the bean: Some facts about masturbation

2011-04-22T09:44:00.004+08:00

According to many religion, masturbation is forbidden. In Islam, many ulama' (Islamic scholars) considers it as haraam.

But fact is, most people do it — and yet they worry about doing it either due to their religious faith or out of conscience towards their physical and mental health, as many believe masturbation is unhealthy.

But most people are unwilling to masturbate just because they are embarrassed if they are caught doing it or if other people knew they are doing it.

Nonetheless, there are a lot of myths out there that masturbation is unhealthy, dangerous and so on.

Click on the pic (right) to learn some interesting facts about Masturbation.

Source: Facts About Masturbation (Infographic)

Read the discussion on the topic: here

Slang terms for masturbation

Malaysia's Rich and The Giving Pledge

2011-04-16T23:06:00.005+08:00

The Giving Pledge was initiated and made public in 2010 by two of the wealthiest men in the United States, billionaires Warren Buffett and Bill Gates.

It is a campaign to encourage the wealthiest people in the United States to commit to giving the majority of their wealth for philanthropic causes. The campaign specifically targets billionaires and as of December 2010, 57 billionaires in the US have joined this campaign and pledged to give 50% or more of their wealth to charity.

A minimum total of at least $125 billion has been promised from the first 40 donors based on their aggregate wealth as of August 2010.

Go to the Giving Pledge website to see those who have given their pledge.

I made a count on the site today and the pledgers has increased to 59 and the latest person in the list is Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg.

So how about having a Giving Pledge the Malaysian chapter?

A writer from My Sinchew has related this noble cause by a local businessman's effort to initiate a similar philanthropic mission. The plan is to get at least 100 wealthy men in the country to fork out a million ringgit towards a RM100 million medical assistance fund to provide medical assistance to the underprivileged in the society.

If the plan materializes, the businessman said, yearly interests would sum up to around five or six million, and this interest revenue alone could help foot the medical bills of some 500 to 1,000 impoverished patients in the country.

Now, that really sounds like a noble idea.

The only problem, the writer suspects, is how to persuade these filthy rich people to take out RM1 million each? Everyone will come when we talk about making money, but not about digging into our own pockets, he wrote.

Read the whole translated article: Giving Pledge

Actually, this rightly reflects the way Malaysia's rich and famous think of their wealth, the writer sums up.

Well, not entirely so!

Tan at the launch of Berjaya Founder's Day, 26 Feb 2011

In February this year, one of the country's rich and famous, Tan Sri Vincent Tan, the Berjaya Corporation Bhd founder, announced his decision to join “The Giving Pledge” that was initiated by Bill Gates, his wife Melinda and Warren Buffett.

To kick-start his plans, Tan will donate RM20mil this year to various charities that will be announced soon.

Eventually, Tan said, he would like to give away half of his wealth and hopes that it will inspire more wealthy Malaysians to donate money for charity. This pledge was made during an impromptu speech at the launch of the Berjaya Founder’s Day event,

According to a Bernama report, Tan's assets is worth RM2.43bil. He is ranked the 9th richest person in Malaysia and 828th on the Forbes 2011 world billionaire list with a net worth of US$1.25bil (RM3.66bil).

To all the doubting Thomases out there who think his pledge to donate half his fortune is just a publicity stunt, read about why Tan made the pledge: A pledge from the heart

Now, what about the country's other wealthy people? Have they made any announcement to make the pledge?

Below is a list of the nation’s 15 richest personalities and their worth:

Do you think by donating RM1million for a good cause would make them any less poor?

Rank Net worth (USD Million)

1	Robert Kuok (12,500)
2	Ananda Krishnan (9,500)
3	Lee Kim Hua (6.600)
4	Lee Shin Cheng (5,000)
5	Quek Leng Chan (4,800)
6	Teh Hong Piow (4,700)
7	Yeoh Tiong Lay (2,700)
8	Syed Mokhtar AlBukhary (2,500)
9	Vincent Tan (1,250)	1,250	58
10	Tiong Hiew King (1,200)
11	Lee Oi Hian/Lee Hau Hian (900)
12	Azman Hashim (785)
13	Lim Kok Thay (665)
14	A.K. Nathan (600)
15	Mokhzani Mahathir (560)

A case of mati-hidup-semula in Seberang Jaya

2011-04-15T11:07:00.001+08:00

The Resurrection of Lazarus by Vincent van Gogh

A rare medical phenomenon known as the Lazarus Syndrome has now become the talk of (Seberang Jaya) town, in Penang.

Today's theStar reported that a 65-year-old who ‘died’ comes back to life two hours later.

Relating the incident, the man's son, known only as Wei, said he had rushed his father to hospital at about 11am yesterday when he stopped breathing at their home.

“The doctors performed CPR (cardiac pulmonary resuscitation) and pronounced him dead an hour later. We then left for the police station when we received a call from a doctor at about 1.30pm,” Wei said.

They then rushed back to the hospital and saw him being transferred to the CCU (Cardiac Care Unit).

A hospital spokesperson said, “doctors pronounced the man dead, and after monitoring him for almost two hours we noticed that he suddenly began breathing. We then put him on a respirator.”

It is said that the man and his 70-year-old brother had a quarrel outside their house at about 10.30am. The man apparently sustained an injury on his right hand and collapsed shortly after returning home.

Michael Wilkinson was declared dead in 2009

The Lazarus Syndrome is very rare. According to The Telegraph report, there were only 38 recorded cases in the world up to June 2009.

In medical terms the syndrome refers to the spontaneous return of circulation once attempts at resuscitation had failed. In many cases the patient's breathing and heart rate would drop to an extremely low level before returning back to normal.

The syndrome takes its name from the biblical story of Lazarus being raised from the dead by Jesus.

In simple terms the Lazarus Syndrome is a case of mati-hidup-semula or coming back to life after being pronounced dead a few hours (or even a few years) earlier.

Other reads: The Lazarus Syndrome by Rodney Davies (book)

Lazarus Syndrome Q&A

Dead woman moves, breathes

Ian Young spent RM60,000 to help Fatine win visa

2011-04-13T14:22:00.001+08:00

The breaking story in the Derby Telegraph

Transsexual bride insists that she loved caretaker Ian

By ed hill ehill@derbytelegraph.co.uk

THE Malaysian transsexual bride who ditched her husband after she received a visa to stay in the UK has explained her decision to leave.

Fatine Young spoke out after her husband Ian told the Derby Telegraph yesterday how the couple split after he spent £12,000 on helping win the visa battle.

But Fatine, 38, has defended her actions, saying she made major sacrifices to move to the UK and live with the school caretaker, whom she claims eventually pushed her away with his behaviour. Speaking from Blackpool,

Fatine said: "In the end he was totally ignoring me. It's horrible when the man you love treats you like that. I've sacrificed my life because of him."

Mr Young admitted he had not treated her as well as he could have done.
The night before she left, Fatine said the couple had a "massive argument", with her husband storming out of the house they shared in Pear Tree, leaving her alone.

"He left me without any money," she said.

Mr Young previously told how he was hounded out of jobs at three Derby schools by angry parents because of his love for Fatine, who was born a man.

The saga left the 32-year-old jobless and homeless, and at one stage he tried to take his own life by downing a bottle of pills.

Mr Young met Fatine while working in Malaysia. The couple first started chatting in a coffee shop but Mr Young did not realise Fatine, who was born Mohammed Fazdil Min Bahari, was a transsexual.

After she told him, the relationship continued. Fatine moved to Derby and the couple tied the knot in a civil ceremony at Derby Register Office in 2009.

They fought for a visa for Fatine after a request was initially turned down by the Home Office, saying she could be jailed if she returned to Malaysia, because Fatine has not had sex-change surgery and homosexuality was illegal there.

Fatine & Young during happier times

Both told the Derby Telegraph how in love they were.

But life became difficult after Mr Young left a number of schools following complaints from parents who disapproved of his lifestyle.

Speaking in yesterday's Telegraph, Mr Young said: "I feel like a fool.

"It was supposed to be the happiest time of my life. Now she won't speak to me and she won't get a divorce."
Fatine admitted she had been ignoring her husband's repeated telephone calls as she did not want to talk to him. But she said there was little chance of reconciliation and she would agree to his requests for a divorce.

She said the matter was in the hands of her solicitor.

"How could we get back together when my husband has said a lot of bad things about me?" she said. "I want to move on with my life.

"I'm living with a friend, who has given me a place to stay and I'm trying my hardest to find work. I loved Ian not just for a visa. I had no friends, no family over here – I was totally dependent on him."

Related news: 'Bride born a man' dumped me after £12K fight for visa
Transsexual Fatine and hubby go separate ways
'Male' visa bride was 'driven away'

Malaysia's morality has gone down the gutter - Harussani

2011-04-09T23:11:00.003+08:00

After more than a week since the surfacing of the sex video implicating opposition leader, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, here we have a statement from the honorable Mufti of Perak.
This news report is a direct translation from today's Sinar Harian news: Malaysia sudah jadi negara tidak berakhlak: Harussani
KUALA LUMPUR - Perak Mufti, Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria described Malaysia is now a country lagging in morality and condones immoral activities by allowing the recording and pictures of sex acts to be made public through the media.

Harussani said the actions of humiliating a person through the exposure of their sexual acts in a video is illegal in Islam.

"Opening and revealing other people's secret to disgrace them in public are illegal, if you want to demand justice do it in the courts... do not disclose to the public. The country currently happens to be a country that has no moral ... (people) have become immoral, why is it like this? If you want to (seek justice) take it to court, but now even we can't confirm who is in the video, "he said.

Thus he urged all parties to stop raising the issue.

"Please stop (this), stop ... Why do you want to say things other people are ashamed of? Prove it in court if you want to say anything about it, let the court decide.

But certainly it cannot be proven, because the person who made the charge must bring in four witnesses, if not he/she shall be liable to qazaf (false accusation of zina), a sentence of whipping of 80 times, because this (video) is not clear ... I look at the newspapers today, the image of the man in the video is not clear and no one can prove that it is Anwar, " he said.
MY TAKE:
I AM WONDERING IF THE MAJORITY OF THE POLITICALLY INCLINED MALAYSIANS (on both side of the divide) WOULD HEED TO THIS ADVICE?
I AM ALSO WONDERING IF THE LEARNED MUFTI WANTS TO ISSUE A FATWA (OR EMPHASIZE WHAT SHOULD BE DONE) ON THIS MATTER AS THE 'MORALITY' OF THE COUNTRY IS AT STAKE!
If the morality of the country has gone down the gutter (just like what Haji Harussani has mentioned above, does it not reflect that the ulama' (Islamic scholars and jurist) in the country has failed in their duty?

Just like the case of the poco-poco edict (fatwa), many would just 'make dono' (buat tak tau) or 'make deaf' (buat-buat pekak) to the ruling!
What is the value of a country if its leaders and people are lacking in morals and when advised by the ulama', they either do not pay heed to it or find excuses to spin the matter so that their political interest can be guarded.
Do pray tell?
Related article:

Vedio seks bukan bukti zina – TS Harussani Zakaria

10 things to learn from Japan and only one from Malaysia

2011-04-04T17:49:00.000+08:00

10 things to learn from Japan in the aftermath of the recent earthquake and Tsunami:- The Japs are a well disciplined lot (wonder where they get their religious upbringing from?)

1. THE CALM
Not a single visual of chest-beating or wild grief. Sorrow itself has been elevated.

2. THE DIGNITY
Disciplined queues for water and groceries. Not a rough word or a crude gesture.

3. THE ABILITY
The incredible architects, for instance. Buildings swayed but didn’t fall.

4. THE GRACE
People bought only what they needed for the present, so everybody could get something.

5. THE ORDER
No looting in shops. No honking and no overtaking on the roads. Just understanding.

6. THE SACRIFICE
Fifty workers stayed back to pump sea water in the N-reactors. How will they ever be repaid?

7. THE TENDERNESS
Restaurants cut prices. An unguarded ATM is left alone. The strong cared for the weak.

8. THE TRAINING
The old and the children, everyone knew exactly what to do. And they did just that.

9. THE MEDIA
They showed magnificent restraint in the bulletins. No silly reporters. Only calm reportage.

10. THE CONSCIENCE
When the power went off in a store, people put things back on the shelves and left quietly!
Let us also learn from calamities in our life to be a cause for respect and a lesson to bring out our human values!!

...and

One thing to learn from Malaysia:- Sending your kids to a religious school does not necessarily mean they are safe!

Seven-year-old dies after alleged assault by teacher

By EMBUN MAJID and AMINUDDIN MOHSIN

ARAU: A seven-year-old boy died after he was allegedly tied up and repeatedly assaulted by a teacher at a religious school hostel here.
Saiful Syazani Saiful Sopfidee, who was admitted to the Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital with multiple head injuries two days ago, died at about 8am yesterday.

It is believed that the boy was beaten for two hours after being accused on Thursday night by the 26-year-old teacher of stealing from the Sekolah Agama Al-Furqan hostel.

Saiful Syazani's adoptive mother Hazirah Chin, 38, said she received a call from the school informing her that the boy had been admitted to the Tuanku Fauziah Hospital in Kangar after being injured.

“The teacher, who is also the hostel warden, told me that he needed my consent to transfer my son to the Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital as his condition was worsening.

“When I arrived at the Tuanku Fauziah Hospital, a doctor told me that he believed my son was tied up before being assaulted as there were rope marks on his wrists,” she said.

Hazirah, who had been raising Saiful Syazani since his mother died in 2007, described him as an obedient and cheerful child who never complained of any problem in school.

“I decided to send him to a religious school as he was keen on Islamic studies. I last saw him when I sent him to his hostel on March 27,” said Hazirah, who has four children of her own.

The boy was buried at the Muslim cemetery in Kampung Tok Paduka last night. Saiful Syazani's father Saiful Sopfidee Marzuki, 34, said the boy was put up for adoption after his wife died.

“The last time I met him was a year ago as I lived in Langkawi and only moved back to Jitra recently,” he said, adding that he had lodged a police report after seeing the bruises.

When contacted, the school authorities declined to comment. Perlis CID chief Supt Mohd Nashir Ya said the teacher was detained at about 10pm on Saturday. The case has been classified as murder.

Dr Asri says poco-poco is lawful

2011-03-31T14:39:00.003+08:00

Former Perlis Mufti Assoc Prof Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin had different views from Perak Mufti Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria and the Perak State Fatwa Committee, who recently ruled the poco-poco dance haram (illegal according to Islam).

He argued, all human daily affairs, including dances, are lawful (harus) unless there is clear evidence that can substantiate the religion (Islam) to forbid it.

However, he added, if there are bad elements in the dance, the matter shall be managed by thoroughly removing the bad elements, rather than banning the whole thing.

"On this basis, in my opinion, the poco-poco dance is lawful, unless it is the person's wish to practice it based on his/her appreciation of the beliefs of another faith or religion" he said, who is also a lecturer at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM).

The Perak Mufti, Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria was reported to have said, the Fatwa Committee of the State had decided that the dance was illegal because it has elements of other religious beliefs and worshiping of spirits.

The gazetting of the fatwa would be made soon.

In a statement made last night, Dr Mohd Asri also stressed that the Muslim community should know about the broadness of Islamic teachings, even more so in today's society of diverse knowledge and practice.

"So, the ruling in the case of dance, exercise, games and the like, should be broad and by giving some leniency granted by Islam," he said.

According to Dr Mohd Asri, if the ban is just based on its origin which is not Islamic, it will then create a trend of banning a host of other activities such as Tai Chi, Taekwondo and the Qiqong exercise.

He however stressed that he respected the opinion of the Fatwa Committee and the Perak Mufti, Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria and the decision of banning the dance.

He is just giving an alternative view.

Translated from Malaysiakini's Malay section article: Dr Asri: Poco-poco harus, bukan haram

Check also the comments section where most commentors are having a field day with their dissenting views and also poking fun at Tan Sri Harussani and the JK Fatwa's decision: 71 comments so far, and still counting...!

Related articles: Look beyond poco-poco, Perak mufti told

PAS leaders defend poco-poco, slam Perak Mufti

Poco-poco - is it really a religous dance?

Foot in Mouth SHOCKER!

2011-03-22T16:58:00.001+08:00

I spent most of the time today reading about the Sex Video Shocker supposedly 'implicating' or the person in the video act resembling oppostion party leader Anwar Ibrahim - the newspapers, online newsportal and comments, facebook status and comments, blog postings and comments, you name it.

But this is the dumbest comment I've read so far, and of all persons it came from a Malaysian Minister - Datuk Seri Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz:

(From Malaysiakini) Commenting on the screening of the sex video at a hotel yesterday, the de facto law minister insisted that it was not illegal for the people behind this to show the video to journalists and editors.

“You tell me what is wrong. Everybody says it is against the law, but tell me, which law? Whoever knows should come forward to inform us,” he said.

He noted that, if the screening was done to make money, then it “probably is” an offence.

Nazri also scoffed at Anwar's denial yesterday at a late press conference yesterday, pointing out that no one had reported his apparent involvement up to then.

“Why (deny)? It was supposed to be a private screening. Who is it (in the video)? It could be (DAP advisor Lim) Kit Siang, it could be (PAS president Abdul) Hadi (Awang),” he said.

Nazri joked that, if it were true that Anwar is the man in the footage, then this would amount to “a draw” between BN and Pakatan Rakyat.

“I think it's a draw now. We have (MCA president Dr) Chua Soi Lek and they have Anwar, if it's true that it is him... it's a draw now, God is great,” he quipped, referring to the 2008 sex scandal involving Chua when he was health minister.

You can read the whole article here: Nazri: Don't kill messenger 'Datuk T'

Fuyooo...he even has the cheek to say now this would amount to 'a draw' between BN and Pakatan Rakyat - macam main bola pulak, macam score goal, lepas tu kalau sama banyak goal kira draw-lah. Apa punya komen macam bebudak nih...?

Okay, no need to add anymore comments to this. I'll just post a Malaysiakini commenter's reply to Nazri's challenge on what this Datuk T has done to go against the law, etc:

senior citizen: This chap Nazri claims to be the defactor law minister. Is it really so? Then the one who appointed him must be either an idiot or a psychiatric patient. He dare ask if screening the porn video is against the law. Does he need someone to tell him this. Either he is the biggest idiotic pretender on earth or he has evolved himself into a mental retard. Is screening a porn video for a group of people an offence? No it is not just an offence.`It is a crime. Penal Code section 292 clearly states in unambigious terms that it is a serious criminal offence. Any pornographic or obscene material publicly exhibited is classified as a penal code offence under section 292. Now does Nazri understand the law or does he know the law. Nari should either resign or be dismissed by the government. He is a misfit and surviving on tax payers money. This is a phoney character and I wonder what his intellectual or moral background is. For all I know he is a pretender with a shady life style.

Onyourtoes Nasri, there are many things you said that are not logical. You said don’t kill the messenger; that is only proper if the message is true. If the message is a lie, why can’t the aggrieved party kill it? Right now you do not know the truth or otherwise of this video. So why are you in the hurry to defend this unknown guy? This Datuk T did not go to the police; instead he was showing it to selective journalists. Tell me is this fair? If he really has something authentic, he should have gone to the police (not that we trust the police very much). But did he do that? Must the showing of pornography materials involving making money before it becomes an offence? If that is the case, we can all make all kind of pornographic materials and claim that these are for fun, to bring someone down or it is based on our fundamental rights, can we? There is a new law now in Malaysia, it is our fundamental rights to make porno movie, show them to public so long as no money is charged.

Quigonbond First of all, BN smacks double standards for not killing the messenger, since they have always killed the messenger be it PI Bala, RPK or ISA detainees who brought up issues of (name it) corruption, abuse of power, gross negligence etc.. Secondly, if it is true that showing porn is not an offence, then I ask the BN government where to draw the line. What if I personally think (even though other people might not think so) that the dude in the video looks like the PM or the DPM (or perhaps both together) and I proceed to organise a porn viewing, am I to assume that since I'm just doing my part as a conscientious citizen that I won't be charged or fined for any offence?

2CTS WORTH Potato head--- it is not a draw PLs it is not football Do a wrong to equalise? What type of warp thinking is that !Dont kill the messenger? Where is RPK Where is Bala just to name a couple? Now in your wave of brainlessness you have approved porno watching Please go see a headshrinker before muttering something foolish

So do you still think this Malaysian Minister should get a good KPI score in his capacity as a Minister in the Prime Minister's Department? Or is it just because he can playact and 'kipas' his master kaw2 punya, so he can keep his post in the next election?

This commenter's reply can probably sum up what this Nazri guy is:

Nazri, go and fly your kite somewhere else. You are kaki bodek nombor satu di Malaysia. Dulu you bodek Mahathir, but when he was out, you hentam him like a samseng kampung. Then you bodek Pak Lah and now Najib, in fact Rosmah. Oh ya, much much earlier you bodek Anwar when he was DPM. Your words are nothing but rubbish, sampah. That is all.

Somebody should give this Nazri a Foot in Mouth Award!

Satellite Photos of Japan, Before and After the Quake and Tsunami

2011-03-18T15:59:00.000+08:00

See the satellite images, before and after the Quake and Tsunami here in the New York Times website

Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant

Japan's largest ongoing threat is at this nuclear power plant. There have been explosions at four of its six reactors and all four have released some radioactive material.

Memoir "A Doctor in the House" yang memualkan!

2011-03-09T16:44:00.003+08:00

It's good to hear that Singapore Minister Mentor, Lee Kuan Yew had admitted his mistake on the statement he made about Malay-Muslims in Singapore.

The Singapore Straits Times yesterday reported that the Minister Mentor said he stands corrected on how well-integrated Malay-Muslims are in Singapore.

Sun2surf carried the story today. The Malaysia Chronicle also has one.

Bernama also has it : Lee Kuan Yew Mengaku Silap Berhubung Integrasi Melayu-Islam Di Singapura

Lee was referring to comments he made in the new book Lee Kuan Yew: Hard Truths To Keep Singapore Going, and the reactions that followed.

"Hard Truths was a book based on 32 interviews over a period of two years," he said.

"I made this one comment on the Muslims integrating with other communities probably two or three years ago. Ministers and MPs, both Malay and non-Malay, have since told me that Singapore Malays have indeed made special efforts to integrate with the other communities, especially since 9/11, and that my call is out of date," he added.

I wonder when would Dr Mahathir Mohamed make a statement of such magnanimity on his rendition of others who go against his political will and judgment.

What is really there to celebrate of his much-maligned grandiose in his authoritarian legacy of 22 years?

In his quest to transform Malaysia into a ‘developed nation’, Mahathir had used all possible means, by hook or crook, domestic and external, to achieve his grand vision.

Nonetheless, within the country, as overseas, he was both loathed and loved by his countrymen.

But eight years since his departure, what has been his legacy? Just a 'memoir' yang memualkan!

In his memoir: A Doctor in the House, he was said to have dedicated 20 pages of his memoirs into detailing how he came to know about Anwar Ibrahim‘s alleged sexual liaisons with men and women, leading to the latter’s sacking in 1998.
Dr Mahathir wrote : “I also interviewed four girls who told me about how they were persuaded to see a very influential person, by an Indian man they knew by the name of Nalla. He had taken each girl separately to a house in Kenny Hills, a rich suburb in Kuala Lumpur. There they met a person they recognized as the D****y P***e Minister. They were asked to undress with the purpose of having sex. Two of them said they refused but the other two consented.”

We all are aware of his blunt way of writing and speaking to the media. But as a so-called 'statesman', you don't go spite and attack others in a no-holds-barred statement in your memoirs do you?

A memoir is something you want people to remember about the good things that you've done, and about the good things that other people have been meaningful to your life. You don't want to be remembered about the bad things you've said of other people.

But being the 'devil he is' he welcomes any lawsuit against the memoir. He said: “When I was writing, I tried to avoid hurting anyone’s feelings but I had to write the truth and I think there will be people who will be upset.”

“So I accept, if sue, sue lah,” he told reporters after the launch. All these in The Malaysian Insider's: Dr M tempts fate with memoirs, welcomes any lawsuit

The Malaysian Insider also claimed Mahathir's memoir is a work of fiction: A story-teller in the house— The Malaysian Insider. Reading the book, Malaysian Insider said, one will have to come to only one conclusion — he was not guilty of any wrongdoing in his time as Malaysia’s longest serving prime minister.

In the memoir, Mahathir also wrote about how Lee Kuan Yew was unhappy with his "municipal role" at the helm of the city-state, and harboured ambitions to lead Malaysia: Mahathir says Kuan Yew wanted to be Malaysian PM

What's wrong if Mr Lee Kuan Yew wanted to be the Prime Minister of this country when Singapore was part of Malaysia and if he can do the job better?

Somebody wrote: WE WOULD HAVE BEEN A GREAT COUNTRY IF LEE HAD BECOME OUR PM. LEE IS NOT A HYPOCRITE.

THIS MAN (Mahathir) RUINED THE COUNTRY AND IN HIS SO-CALLED CHEAPSKATE MEMOIR HE HAS BLAMED ALL OTHERS EXCEPT HIMSELF.

WHAT A JOKE.

THIS MEMOIR OF HIS IS FIT FOR THE SEPTIC TANK.

Related news: Malaysia's Mahathir writes memoir defending legacy

Dr M: Truth a bitter pill to swallow

I'm Yours - Jason Mraz (live)

2011-03-04T06:19:00.000+08:00

The MACC Jokers are in Penang

2011-03-01T11:37:00.001+08:00

No, this is not about its more famous namesake, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, although they are also a bunch of jokers (read: MACC Abu Kassim among 100 influential people in business ethics)

This is about the three-member stand-up comedy act who calls themselves the Malaysian Association of Chinese Comedians or its acronym - MACC.

Douglas Lim

And of course, these two groups are not related, except that the less famous one is, as they would put it, intentionally funny.

Phoon Chi Ho

The MACC comprise of Douglas Lim of former Kopitiam fame, and interlopers Phoon Chi Ho and Kuah Jenhan. They will perform in Penang on March 5 at at Dewan Sri Pinang.

If you are being called by the latter MACC for whatever reasons being, such as being a suspect or witness, don't worry about your safety for this MACC won't interrogate you in a building more than a storey-high.

Kuah Jenhan

But if they ever did, they would just put you in stitches!

And even if you are caught laughing so hard at their jokes, the only side effect you can get is not getting your gums dry (tak kering gusi). As the dentist would say, a dry mouth is susceptible to gum disease, which is the leading cause of tooth loss. So, if you don't want to loose your teeth early in life, laugh a lot until you get your gums wet. Source: What Dry Mouth Around the Gums Could Mean

Another site puts it better still: humor and laughter strengthen your immune system, boost your energy, diminish pain, and protect you from the damaging effects of stress. Source: Laughter is the Best Medicine

So, if you are in Penang this weekend, why not be a witness to this MACC! There is only one show...only this special show at the Dewan Sri Pinang on 5th March 2011 at 9pm. Get your tickets at the Red Rock Hotel, Jalan Macalister.

Related post: Here's Why You Should Not Miss the MACC (Penang Edition)

dotsnodds.blogspot.com

Sepanjang Jalan Kenangan (Glenn Fredly)

How much does it cost to study in the UK?

Newcastle upon Tyne, Fenham dan Komuniti Orang Melayu Part 2

Rasa Nusantara - Malay kitchen in Newcastle

Newcastle upon Tyne, Fenham dan Komuniti Orang Melayu

Larian Obor Olimpik dan Kota Newcastle upon Tyne

Newcastle upon Tyne, Fenham dan Komuniti Orang Melayu

Malaysian Restaurants in the United Kingdom

"Consumer Behaviour of Malaysian restaurants in the UK"

has a list of the popular Malaysian eateries in the UK.

Most of these Malaysian restaurants are located in London, except otherwise stated.

Here's the list in alphabetical order:

Is your immune system ready for winter? Pune Speaks Up

Ariff Alfian Rosli, the reigning queer of Malaysian infamy in the UK (& British Isles)

Folate fortification in food – a necessary nutrient or a potential health hazard?

The AUKU is unconstitutional - who would have thought of that?

Banking on your sperm for fertility and the next generation

Shanghai Sperm Bank Denies "Helping Hand" Rumor

Email to Chief Minister on PDCP regarding Ixora Heights

Best advertising schools in Malaysia and the UK - 3

Best advertising schools in Malaysia and the UK - 2

Best advertising schools in Malaysia and the UK

Is Dr Rohaya taking her wives club on the right track?

Barang lama -- ditukar sukar, dibuang sayang

Mistaking Batok with Batuk (Cough) in "Seperti Melepas Batuk di Tangga"

My Mother's Day Notes

The inventor of the first Digital Camera

Malaysia, the Brain Drain and Social Injustices

Beating your meat, flicking the bean: Some facts about masturbation

Malaysia's Rich and The Giving Pledge

Robert Kuok (12,500)

Ananda Krishnan (9,500)

Lee Kim Hua (6.600)

Lee Shin Cheng (5,000)

Quek Leng Chan (4,800)

Teh Hong Piow (4,700)

Yeoh Tiong Lay (2,700)

Syed Mokhtar AlBukhary (2,500)

Vincent Tan (1,250)

Tiong Hiew King (1,200)

Lee Oi Hian/Lee Hau Hian (900)

Azman Hashim (785)

Lim Kok Thay (665)

A.K. Nathan (600)

Mokhzani Mahathir (560)

A case of mati-hidup-semula in Seberang Jaya

Michael Wilkinson was declared dead in 2009

Ian Young spent RM60,000 to help Fatine win visa

Transsexual bride insists that she loved caretaker Ian

Bookmark with (what is social media?)

Malaysia's morality has gone down the gutter - Harussani

Vedio seks bukan bukti zina – TS Harussani Zakaria

10 things to learn from Japan and only one from Malaysia

Dr Asri says poco-poco is lawful

Foot in Mouth SHOCKER!

Satellite Photos of Japan, Before and After the Quake and Tsunami

See the satellite images, before and after the Quake and Tsunami here in the New York Times website

Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant

Japan's largest ongoing threat is at this nuclear power plant. There have been explosions at four of its six reactors and all four have released some radioactive material.

Memoir "A Doctor in the House" yang memualkan!

I'm Yours - Jason Mraz (live)

The MACC Jokers are in Penang