Tuesday, November 25, 2008

I'm back...


Have been tied up with some work related stuff lately... has not been the most smooth sailing of all times.. But hanging in there and going through the motions..

Does life get harder when u turn 31?? Ohhh wtv!!!! :P

Malaysian news & politics been the dogs bollocks lately too.. & the economy outlook of nx year is "Go stick yr head in a hole & u will not be affected!!!". I too, sometimes practise the phrase "ignorance is bliss" but i think it may apply on case to case basis lo...

Over & out... will keep posting!!

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Breaking News in Malaysia!!!


2 very interesting pieces of news today...

ITEM 1
Court frees Raja Petra (Update 2)



Friday, 07 November 2008 14:14

By M. MAGESWARI in The Star

SHAH ALAM: Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Raja Kamarudin succeeded in his bid to obtain a release order from his two-year detention under the Internal Security Act (ISA).

High Court judge Justice Syed Ahmad Helmy Syed Ahmad allowed the blogger’s habeas corpus application on Friday.

Justice Syed Ahmad also ordered for Raja Petra to be brought to the Shah Alam High Court before 4pm Friday for his immediate release.

Upon hearing the court decision, the crowd seated at the packed public gallery clapped and cheered.

This prompted the judge to tell the crowd that “this is a court of law”, which caused the court to be silent, albeit briefly.

The court erupted again with claps and shouts from the public gallery when the judge said that Raja Petra had to be brought to the court for his release on the same day.

At the outset of court proceedings, Justice Syed Ahmad ruled that the grounds for the detention order by Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar for the blogger did not fall under the scope of Section 8(1) of the ISA.

Therefore, the judge said the Sept 22 detention order was unlawful.

Raja Petra was detained on Sept 12 on the grounds that he had intentionally and recklessly published articles which were critical and insulted Muslims, the purity of Islam and the personality of Prophet Muhammad.

It was said to have caused anxiety and anger among Muslims in the country.

He had also allegedly published defamatory articles concerning national leaders which could affect public order and prejudice national security.

He was said to have published the said articles in the Malaysia Today news portal between Jan 16 and Sept 12 this year.

The Home Minister was named as the sole respondent in the application.

Raja Petra was taken to the Kamunting detention camp on Sept 23.

The minister had issued the order against the blogger under Section 8 of the same Act.

However, the judge said Section 8 of the same Act is constitutional as it falls within the ambit of the Article 149 of the Federal Constitution.

(Article 149 is regarding actions to be taken against anyone who participates in any activities which could pose a threat to national security even if it violates their fundamental liberties).

“I find that there is no merit by the counsel’s argument that Section 8 is unconstitutional as it does not fall under Article 149,” he said.

“Section 8 can only be reviewed under procedural non-compliance as provided under Section 8B(1) of the same Act,” he added.

On lead counsel Malik Imtiaz Sarwar’s argument that the order was mala fide (in bad faith), Justice Syed Ahmad said:

Mala fide is not procedural non-compliance under the ISA,” he said.

The judge said the court only has the power for judicial review for matters which violated the procedures under the ISA.

The judge also commented that the ISA was promulgated not only to counter communism or subversive activities but also to halt any activities which caused a threat to national security.

Outside the court later, Raja Petra’s wife Marina Lee Abdullah said she was very happy with his impending release.

“I am glad that everything turned out well as I had hoped. It is a fantastic breakthrough. “I hope there will be a change in the country,” said Marina, who was accompanied by daughters Sarah, 19, and Suraya, 34.

Original post here


ITEM 2

Rulers Can Reject Govt Advice

2008-11-07 13:59

KUCHING: The Rulers shall not agree with advice given by government leaders which goes against the spirit of the constitution, rule of law and universal principles of justice, the Raja Muda of Perak Raja Nazrin Shah said Thursday (6 Nov) night.

"Generally, the Rulers act based on the advice by government leaders elected by the people. Nevertheless, the Rulers cannot accede to acts which do not symbolise justice or sanction moves which do not mirror truth.

"The Rulers' views, observation and counsel in the administrative affairs of the country touching on the question of integrity which encompasses justice, law, judiciary, misappropriation, power abuse, corruption and wealth distribution, are with the desire to strengthing the government so that it is stable and receives people's trust," he said at a dinner in conjunction with the National Integrity Day here.

To ensure the Rulers' integrity is not questioned and the throne remains respected, Raja Nazrin said, the Rulers shall always be intelligent and wise, master knowledge, understand the surroundings and changes, and possess a group of advisers comprising experts and people knowledgeable in the relevant fields.

"This will enable the Rulers fulfil their roles with integrity and make the smart, accurate, just and fair decisions," he said.

Present were Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud and Chief Justice Tan Sri Zaki Tun Azmi.

Raja Nazrin said the Rulers are part of national institutions whose role is to strengthen the democratic system by carrying out the check and balance responsibility and the function as an independent tribunal for the legislative, executive and judiciary branches.

As a source of reference should a crisis occurs, he said, the Rulers function as the balancing mechanism which safeguards national stability, protects people's wellbeing, ensures justice, enhances the government's integrity and strengthens the democratic practice in the country.

"The Rulers have a role as the pillar of stability -- source of justice, thrust of unity -- hence enhancing the level of people's confidence in the systems of governance and society based on democratic practices, rooted on the doctrine of separation of powers.

"The Rulers have constitutional responsibilities and the responsibilities need to be carried out intelligently so that it can help build a high-integrity country," he said.

Raja Nazrin said the institution of Rulers shall have the role and function to productively and constructively contribute to the nation.

"The Rulers reside at a special position, have the opportunity to give smart views to influence and determine the direction of the nation positively and constructively through counsel, encouragement, persuasion, reminder and admonition," he said.

To strengthen integrity practice, Raja Nazrin said, the Rulers shall hold consultations and negotiations, gather opinions and be open minded to assess each advice rationally, objectively and fairly. (Bernama)


Original post here

Monday, November 3, 2008

Bangkok Dangerous - Movie

Bangkok Dangerous - Movie Poster

Aom - Panward Hemmanee.. :D

Just picked up this movie & watched it over the weekend.Enjoyed it thoroughly. Action was fast, plot was expected, chics were HOT!!! LOL..

From Wiki:

"Bangkok Dangerous is a 2008 crime film written and directed by the Pang Brothers and starring Nicolas Cage. It is a remake of the Pangs' 1999 debut film of the same name, a Thai film for which Cage's production company, Saturn Films, purchased the remake rights.[2] Known by its working title, Big Hit in Bangkok,[3]Time to Kill, it began filming in Bangkok in August 2006, with locations that include Soi Cowboy.[4][5]"

The movie stars, Nicolas Cage. Think they did it very tastefully with inserting some Thai culture into the movie.

My favourite part of this movie must have been the all scenes with the dancer, Aom in them (view it below). Aom was played by a Thai model/actress Panward Hemmanee. For those who are abit more familiar with Thai Pop(T-Pop) Panward or Pie as she is popularly known made it famous when she appeared in Ice Saranyu's hit song Kon Jai Ngai, 2 years back (view the MV here).




Nose bleed material.. Pass me the tissue PLEASE!!! ;)

BTW, for more pictures of Panward, go here or here. What u waiting for go la!!! ;)

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Kuala Lumpur vs Bangkok , A Malaysian Illusion


Long Live H.R.H. King Bhumibol!!!
- Photo from The Jazzy King by Bangkok Post.

Just something that I realized today, was that over the past several months I've have had this conversation several times with different friends, family & acquaintances, of many who are Malaysians of different ages as well as a Thai friend or two.

Many of us(Malaysians) have been brought up with the illusion that we have and are always next to Singapore. I don't mean in a physical sense but more from an economic, social & infrastructure developement point of view.

Well I'm no economist or sociologist, so i won't be able to give you facts and figures to justify what I have to say. I speak only from my observations as a layman who grew up as a PJ boy(PJ is a suburb 15min from KL) and a visitor who has been to Thailand several times in the past few years. I also speak based on experiences related to me by friends and acquaintances.

Malaysians(here i generalise, just my personal opinion) has always had a notion that Thailand/Bangkok was always abit more 3rd world than Malaysia/KL. This could be due to the mainstream medias & governments' constant salvo of how great/developed/advanced our country was in the region. How we were no. 2 only to Singapore. etc, etc..

However, after visiting the country I beg to differ from this viewpoint and change my personal stand on this.

I have several very simple reasons to justify my viewpoint, as below:

  1. I've you've flown to BKK(my 1st was via Airasia), once you depart the Suvarnabumi airport you will hit BKK's multi-storey highways into the city. I thought, "Wow!! this is such an architectural feat(also a practical one)". I can't understand why can the Thai's build such straight & organized roads and Malaysia can only build curvy & pothole filled roads. First topics that come to mind for KL'ites when it comes to roads will always be MRRII incidents, potholes & tolls.
  2. This brings me to my 2nd subject tolls, I have done road trips around the Northern & Central regions in Thailand and never seen a tolled road. How does the Thai government do this??? KL have many tolls(with never ending payment to toll concessions, it seems) yet we still have incidents like MRRII.
  3. Well since we are on the subject of transportation, yes both BKK & KL have a traffic problem, but I dare say that BKK has a better public transport infrastructure as opposed to KL. They have the Skytrain(our equivalent of the LRT), easy availability of taxis which run on meters unlike KL's infamous taxi touts as well as tuk-tuk's & motor-taxis. Not to mention their taxis are mostly Toyota Vios or Altis compared to our 15 year old Proton Iswara's & Saga's.
  4. Yes their cars are cheaper but they pay world prices for petrol. However, we are easily looking at a RM20,000 difference in car prices for our CKD cars in Malaysia. A Vios in Malaysia would cost around RM70,000 but in Thailand it would cost RM50,000(500,000B).
  5. Having said that the Thai's pay world prices for petrol, however they already have 2 alternative fuels compared to Malaysia's 1. The Thai's have NGV and Gasohol. Yes Malaysia has NGV too, but the availability of NGV at petrol stations are a far cry from Thailand's.
  6. Well enough, of the costs comparisons above. I think Malaysia Tourism always used to say we are warm & frienly lot, yes we are, but depends on who la...(u know what I mean). Few years back if you meet a cop on the road to ask for help it seems like u asking him a big favour, see a Thai cop & ask him for help and see. I think the naming of Thailand as Land of Smiles is spot on. This may probably be due to the Thai's Buddhist upbringing of being polite.
  7. Freedom of speech/expression, look at the protests in Thailand. We only see the sacry part on TV, but if you are in BKK, u realize that it doesn't really affect yr daily going about town, just don't go to the affected area. Malaysia means, FRU & ISA.
  8. Ok la... this post is getting abit long. I'll end it with some food for thought la. GO check out the public toilets in both our countries. Check out the toilets in LCCT and Suvarnabumi and see for yrself la... Cleanliness is Next to Godliness.. I shy, shy wei!!!

Good on the Thai ppl, Malaysian's if we wanna stick to the claim we need to buck up..


Saturday, November 1, 2008

One Festival I'd go check out.. :)




Well if you don't already know the 21st High Times Cannabis Cup is just round the corner.

According to wiki;

"The Cannabis Cup is a festival that was started in 1987 by High Times editor Steven Hager, who came to The Netherlands for an interview with the founder of the first Dutch cannabis-seed company. The Australian owner, Nevil, lived in a mansion filled with growrooms that Hagar dubbed "The Cannabis Castle". The festival, held annually in Amsterdam, The Netherlands is one of the most famous cannabis events among cannabis smokers and cannabis-oriented businesses. The public is exposed to a large variety of marijuana strains which they then help to judge. A team of judges decides every year which company brought the best marijuana, best new product or nicest booth to the festival."

And its here;


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