Intolerance Thrives in Malaysia

Malaysian police blurred faces in this photo showing officers arresting a suspected IS supporter at an undisclosed location. Photo courtesy of the Royal Malaysian Police @ http://www.benarnews.org/english/news/malaysian/police-raids-03242017150905.html

The Islamic State ideology represents extreme intolerance, embracing brutal savagery and deliberate murder. And it is pure evil.

What is frightening is the fact that the arrest of Malaysians with IS affiliations is becoming more frequent. And more numerous.

 

Since 2013, Malaysian authorities have arrested 294 people with suspected IS links, of whom 66 have since been freed, according to the latest figures obtained by BenarNews on March 24, 2017. This precludes additional arrests in April and May.

Soldiers patrol the streets of Marawi as the Filipino army moves in to free the city from the murderous clutches of IS-linked fighters, May 25, 2017. Photo credit: Jeoffrey Maitem/BenarNews

We seem to even get involved in the Marawi siege in the Philippines by IS-linked militants. Malaysians are fighting alongside the local terror groups Maute and Abu Sayyaf. As well as combatants from Indonesia and Singapore – all providing back-up firepower to the hostiles in the Mindanao conflict.

 

In fact, the fierce gun battles had forced Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to place the whole of Mindanao under martial law.

 

The Star on Friday had quoted intelligence sources as saying the Malaysians killed in the battles had been identified as Ustaz Abdurahman Asmawi, from Kelantan and Dr Kamsa Yahya from Kedah.

 

But Bukit Aman Special Branch director Mohamad Fuzi Harun said “We cannot confirm (the identities of) those who were killed as there are a number of people (Malaysians) over there”.

Reports indicated at least five Malaysians are believed to be in Marawi City – Malaysian police seem to suggest.

In fact, Sunday Mail yesterday had cited a Manila-based intelligence official as saying: “Intelligence from ground operatives disclosed 28 Malaysians arrived in Marawi early last week for a 'religious' event. We suspect there must be more who arrived separately”.

 

The Coverage on December 11, 2015 had published a Pew Research Center study that claimed that over one in ten Malaysians hold favorable views of the IS despite the horrendous violence committed.

 

The findings come at a time when Malaysia is grappling with the spread of IS ideology among the local populace.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the study of Muslims’ attitude towards IS, which the Pew Research Centre gleaned from its 2015 Global Attitudes survey, support level for the group in Malaysia was tied in second place with Senegal among 11 nations with significant Muslim populations polled.

 

It’s not just the IS whom we should be worried about.

 

The Red Shirts and many so-called Muslim NGOs that are spewing hatred and creating a dangerously volatile situation is already alarming many non-Muslims.

 

The call by Jaringan Muslimin Pulau Pinang chairperson Mohd Hafiz Noordin to Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng forbidding him to attend “buka puasa” (breaking of fast) events unless he converts to Islam is belligerently bigoted as it is peculiarly preposterous.

 

I am not saying Islam is the enemy. But a perversion of Islam is.

 

It conceives intolerance. And intolerance is becoming the curse of our country.

 

Still, I am not giving up hope.

 

As American stand-up comedian, writer, actor and voice artist, Patton Oswalt had said: “So when you spot violence, or bigotry, or intolerance or fear or just garden-variety misogyny, hatred or ignorance, just look it in the eye and think, 'The good outnumber you, and we always will'”.

 

And I am consoled. For now, at least.

Gross National Happiness

Gross National Happiness (GNH) is a development philosophy as well as an index which is used to measure the collective happiness of a nation. 

In 1979, the then King of Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck (right) himself had declared that “Gross National Happiness is more important than Gross National Product”.

 

With that pronouncement, he challenged the conventional and materialistic notions of human progress.

 

Listen to the TED Talk by Bhutan’s Prime Minister, Tshering Tobgay on GNH:

The concept is indigenous to Bhutan, and was enshrined in the country’s 2008 constitution which states that “the State shall strive to promote those conditions that will enable the pursuit of Gross National Happiness”.

 

Malaysia should learn from this country. But then, we are too proud to learn from this tiny kingdom that is sandwiched between China and India.

 

 

This is so very true!

I received good news on Friday. Kementerian Sumber Malaysia and HRDF informed me that I am exempted from attending PSMB TRAIN THE TRAINER. Certificate No. 4976.

Symbol of Justice No More

The sculpture personifying justice that was removed in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Credit Abir Abdullah/European Pressphoto Agency 

Bangladeshi authorities in the predawn hours on Friday swiftly and quietly removed a statue, supposedly that of the goddess of justice – after angry protests from hardline Islamists.

 

Protestors had issued an ultimatum for its eviction from the Supreme Court complex in Dhaka by May 26, 2017.

 

The two-and-a-half-ton stainless-steel sculpture, was commissioned by the court and erected, at a cost of about $22,000, only five months ago.

 

Last month, Bangladesh’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, signaled that she agreed with the protestors – describing it as a depiction of Themis, the Greek goddess, who is traditionally seen blindfolded and carrying scales and a sword.

 

Mrinal Haque, the sculptor, denied that the statue represented the Greek goddess.

 

Still, protestors claimed it hurt the religious sentiments of Muslims and they had long asserted that the figure amounted to idolatry.

 

The statue became a proxy for simmering tension between proponents of secularism, which is enshrined in Bangladesh’s Constitution, and those favoring Islamic conservatism. By the look of things, the latter is set to take over the country.

 

Note: About 90 percent of Bangladesh’s citizens are Muslim, with a steadily shrinking Hindu minority and small groups of Christians and Buddhists.

 

Oasis inspired a woman to break out in song at a memorial for the bombing victims that took place in Manchester, UK on May 22, 2017.

 

Thursday’s impromptu rendition of Oasis' "Don't Look Back in Anger" was a tribute to victims of the terrorist attack and the heart-warming moment was captured in a video by The Guardian.

 

A moment of silence at the city’s St. Ann's Square was broken by Lydia Bernsmeier-Rullow who began singing as she cradled a bouquet of flowers. A few amongst the crowd joined her, but by the time she got to the chorus of the Oasis' hit song, most of those present were singing along.

 

Bernsmeier-Rullow, speaking to The Guardian after the incident said: "'Don't look back in anger' – that's what this is about. We can't be looking backward to what happened, we have to look forwards to the future… We're all going to join together, we're all going to get on with it because that's what Manchester does".

 

And here’s that 1995 song from Oasis:

 

Poems by JR Tolkien

I am a fan of JR Tolkien.

 

If that doesn’t ring a bell, then I’m sure you know of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit?

 

Epic movies – if you are not familiar with his books, that is.

But he wrote poems too – listen to Clamavi De Profundis sing two of them:

 

 

It was an oppressive afternoon. The temperature was a 91 degrees Fahrenheit and the humidity was 58%. I was being baked in the hot sun.

 

In the end, the sweltering heat forced me into an A&W outlet in USJ 10/1A in USJ Subang Jaya for a refreshing Root Beer Float.

Yes-s-s!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A regular RB Float @ RM5.95.

 

In Malaysia, they refer to it as RB instead of Root Beer because the word 'beer' is "haram". LOL! Only in Malaysia.  

Work-life Balance is a Myth

Malaysian employers, together with their counterparts in Singapore and Hong Kong, are ignoring the importance of work-life balance – this conclusion came from a study by recruitment firm Randstad.

 

Based on this year’s Randstad Employer Brand Research, the significance of work-life balance has continued to rise to become one of the most important attractiveness factors in the above-mentioned countries.

 

Employers in all three markets performed “so poorly in the aspect of work-life balance that the factor ended close to the bottom of the ranking”, Randstad pointed out yesterday.

 

Financial health and good reputation are ranked the highest for employers.

 

But to potential employees, a company’s financial health is considered “fairly important”, although good reputation is not much of a priority.

 

This, according to Randstad, further highlighted the expectation gap between employers and employees.

 

A gap in expectations of a pleasant work atmosphere was also found between employees and employers. The attractiveness factor ranked fairly highly among employees.

 

However, employers scored poorly in this area – just one position higher than work-life balance – the study revealed.

 

Randstad Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia managing director Michael Smith reiterated: “It’s widely known that work-life balance has become highly important for employees of all demographics. Our research just reaffirmed and measured that attribute”.

 

Smith added: “The stakes are high for these organizations. By not addressing the evolving wants and needs of employees, they risk losing the very talent that helped them build their strong reputations and financial health”.

 

I don’t believe most companies care enough about work-life balance. It's just a myth.

And sad to say, most of us are slaves to our jobs too.

Soldiers on UK Streets

British troops take on duties to guard high profile buildings. Photo credit: Eddie Mulholland for The Telegraph

Terror attacks are becoming almost routine – these have occurred in major cities around the world: Berlin, Brussels, Cairo, Istanbul, Jakarta, London, Paris, Stockholm. A long list. 

 

And the latest is Manchester, UK on Monday night.

 

A suicide bomber had targeted the Ariana Grande concert at the Manchester Arena. Twenty-two people died in addition to the man responsible for the attack. And fifty-nine other concert goers were injured.

 

By Wednesday, almost one thousand soldiers were deployed on UK streets.

 

This is Operation Temperer – the government plan to put thousands of soldiers on the streets in response to a major terrorist threat. [Note: It was devised in 2015 and had been a secret until it was accidentally leaked to a newspaper].

 

A terror attack in the UK has been highly likely since August 2014. Now the country has been put on ‘critical’ alert – meaning an attack is expected imminently.

 

Prime Minister Theresa May (left) made the bold decision to deploy up to 5,000 armed troops to guard key strategic sites – in a resolute show of force.

 

This put May at odds with her predecessor David Cameron who was reluctant to use the controversial power.

 

Cameron was fearful that implementing the said plan would provoke comparisons to the violent troubles in Northern Ireland, when British soldiers patrolled the streets for decades.

 

He was also worried that it might give the impression that the government had lost control and was imposing martial law.

 

The only other Prime Minister in recent times to deploy soldiers in mainland Britain in response to a terrorist threat was Tony Blair, who sent tanks and 450 members of the armed forces to guard airports in 2003 after warnings of a plot to bring down an airliner.

 

He was strongly criticized for risking undue panic, and military chiefs have since warned that once soldiers are deployed, it is difficult to justify pulling them back without also lowering the terrorist threat level.

 

The fact of the matter is the global jihadist insurgency is flourishing. And its evil tentacles are spreading in every direction.

 

Time to get the soldiers out of the barracks.

A Very Special Futsal Court

Facebook/Harimau Malaya

Check out this impressive futsal court neatly tucked away in a rural part of Sabah.

 

A remarkable photo showing a futsal court covered in creepers amidst lush greenery has left Malaysians in awe after it went viral on the Harimau Malaya Facebook site.

 

Located in the Nabawan district, the court is the training grounds of students from SK Logongon, located miles and miles away from the city.

 

According to the teacher who sent in the breathtaking image, the court can only be reached via a two-hour drive through logging roads using a four-wheel drive. After the arduous journey, it can take up to another hour to cross a river before reaching the field. From the school, students have to walk through hilly terrain for 15 minutes to get to the court.

 

The court was said to have been built this way to avoid the heat from the sun and provide fresh air.

 

The image which was captured by a drone has been shared over 600 times, and has been described as akin to a "fantasy world".

 

I attended the maiden meeting of The Lectern KL Advanced Toastmasters Club yesterday at the Dancing Fish Restaurant in BSC, Bangsar, KL.

 

Thirteen of us made it to this meeting where we heard five project speeches and three Table Topics speeches. A very productive meeting, that’s for sure!

 

The Lectern KL is a breakaway club of Liquid Gold Advanced Toastmasters Club. Seventeen of us have crossed over.

The Plan to Make Anwar Ibrahim PM

Placards that read 'Anwar PM Ke-7' (Anwar as 7th PM) at the PKR's national congress in Shah Alam, Selangor on May 21, 2017. Pix by Yusof Mat Isa

Yesterday, PKR’s Rafizi Ramli outlined how his party planned to make Anwar Ibrahim the prime minister even though the PKR de facto leader is presently incarcerated.

 

The party vice president explained that if Pakatan Harapan takes over the government, the coalition would first make current parliamentary Opposition Leader Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail interim prime minister, which has been agreed by DAP and Parti Amanah Negara.

 

Rafizi spelled out that Wan Azizah, who is PKR president and Anwar’s wife, would then help her spouse to be released from prison and a by-election would be held to make Anwar a Member of Parliament, and subsequently PM.

 

Rafizi also stressed that the only reason Anwar was imprisoned was because he had been “victimised by political enemies”.

 

The Pandan MP also shot a warning to his party leaders to always remember Anwar as he was the one who helped them rise in their political careers.

 

“When we go back to our constituencies, we are indebted to Anwar. If it wasn’t for him, we won’t have our seats”, he added.

 

That's good but first, the opposition bloc will have to win GE14. Don't screw it up!

 

On Sunday, champions Celtic beat Hearts 2-0 to become the first team to complete a Scottish top-flight season unbeaten in 118 years.

 

Leigh Griffiths (50) and Stuart Armstrong (76) secured a thirty-fourth win of the campaign for Brendan Rodgers' side, who were then presented with the Scottish Premiership trophy.

 

And Celtic with 34 wins and 4 draws join Arsenal (2003-04) and Juventus (2011-12) in being unbeaten over a 38-game league season. What an amazing achievement!

 

On the same day too, Liverpool finished in fourth place and secured their return to the Champions League with a solid 3-0 win over Middlesbrough in this last EPL match of the season.

 

Georginio Wijnaldum drove an unstoppable effort in at the near post in the forty-fifth minute. Five minutes later, Philippe Coutinho kept his cool to bend a 25-yard free-kick round the Middlesbrough wall and into the back of the net. And six minutes after that, Wijnaldum nodded into Adam Lallana's path on the edge of the area and the midfielder slotted home.

 

Tougher US Scrutiny of Visa Applicants

Another goofy idea from the US administration, supposedly to toughen scrutiny of selected visa applicants.

Their State Department has put forth a proposal mandating about 65,000 visa applicants per year whom consular officers believe warrant enhanced screening to provide all prior passport numbers, five years’ worth of social media handles, email addresses and phone numbers and 15 years of biographical information.

More than 50 academic and educational groups across a range of social and physical sciences and representing college admission counselors and advisers said in a letter to State Department officials yesterday that the changes would cause “uncertainties and confusion” leading to “unacceptably long delays in processing” and applies to a “vague and ill-defined” class of visa applicants.

“We are very concerned that if the proposed changes are implemented, international undergraduate and graduate students, scholars, and scientific collaborators may be discouraged from coming to the United States”, the letter said.

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the letter.

Anyway, the proposal came earlier this month, as part of a push toward the “extreme vetting” sought by President Donald Trump.

A view from Level 28, Menara Hap Seng 2 in Jalan P Ramlee, KL

I was at a training yesterday in the heart of the city. And I found my Sarawak laksa, just next door! Yay-y-y!!!

Taylor's University Cancels LGBT Event

A three-day LGBT public awareness campaign that included a pride march that was scheduled for June 6-8, 2017 at Taylor’s University was cancelled yesterday.

The event, called “Courage in the Face of Adversity” and organized by their students was axed following protests since Tuesday by pro-Islamists blogs that were incensed it would be held during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

The university authorities were quick to explain on the same day that the organizers who called themselves "Pride Not Prejudice" had not obtained their approval. And they also said they must consider all sensitivities when deciding whether to allow an event to be conducted on their premises.

A lame excuse!

The Campaign for Equality and Human Rights Initiative (or Pelangi) says it was distressed that Taylor’s University had placed “business interests above safeguarding academic freedom and integrity”.

Yesterday was International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, when activists worldwide co-ordinate international events to raise awareness of LGBT rights violations.

The local LGBT community remains in the shadows, particularly Muslims, fearing persecution from religious authorities in the predominantly Muslim country that has religious laws prohibiting same-sex relationships and cross-dressing.

A Click Farm

If you are infected with the maddening expectation to have as many likes on your “pages” – then you will need to secure the services of a “click farm” for immediate gratification.

 

In fact, everyday business operations involve and not limited to: liking and commenting on social media, making fake ratings for mobile apps on the App Store and Google Play, and even leaving fake product ratings on websites like Amazon.

 

A "click farm" is a business that pays employees to click on website elements to artificially boost the status of a client's website or a product.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Images via @EnglishRussia

 

Supposedly, a video of a "click farm" based in China has emerged online and it is said to be pretty disturbing. The footage shows rows of rows of phones lined up on shelves to give ratings and "Likes" to pages on multiple social media websites.

 

According to the Russian reporter who filmed the set-up, there were around 10,000 handsets.

 

Certainly, it is not uncommon for celebrities (and politicians too) and companies to pay thousands of dollars to get their apps and pages more likes by using the services these places offer, the Daily Mail had reported.

 

Suddenly, PM Najib Razak with his 3,280,074 likes on his Facebook page comes to mind!

 

After all, the more "Likes" and good reviews a page gets, the more popular it'll become. These liking-machines are a way of making sure something goes viral and gets seen by a gargantuan audience.

 

According to UK's Daily Mail, much of the current digital manipulation is carried out in China and Russia, with influences being felt worldwide. 

Western media appears to find it very convenient to point their fingers at these two countries. And these days, media reporters are just as untrustworthy.

A Groo-vy Kind of Hero

In Star 2 today in The Star newspaper, there’s a gem of a piece on Groo.

 

A firm favorite of mine, Groo has two katanas, a Walkman-like device on his chest, and mindless but supremely powerful battle skills. Boosted by pure dumb luck, he always emerges victorious, though often at the expense of his own side. His one-man wrecking machine style is his trademark and joining/starting any frays is his specialty!

 

Awesomely created by legendary MAD Magazine contributor Sergio Aragones, Groo remains (arguably) the most consistent comic offering in today’s comics, in terms of quality (from the first to the last panel), comedy (even the same “mulch” joke is still funny now!) and creativity (the creative team of writer/artist Aragones, editor/co-writer Mark Evanier, letterer Stan Sakai, and colorist Tom Luth is irreplaceable.

 

I challenge you to pick up a ‘Groo’ and read it. I guarantee you will find it riotous fun. More so, if you are fed up with the reboots, revamps and resurrections in mainstream comics.

 

Groo is featured in a number of comic book universes – thanks to Aragones’ “mastery” at switching publishers. While Groo’s first two homes – Pacific (1982) and Eclipse (1984), were short lived, the subsequent stints at Marvel (120-plus issues), Image (12 issues), and Dark Horse (50-plus issues and counting) were the ones that immortalized him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sure, Groo has been labelled a cretin, moron, dumb and even a … (whisper it softly) mendicant. But the fact remains that this gourd-nosed barbarian is an acquired taste and a very addictive one, too.

 

Certainly, I am addicted.

 

Groo comics don't quite get the respect they deserve, probably because they've been so consistently good, for so long, that everyone just takes Groo for granted. Okay, not everyone. I, for one, know they are brilliant reads, and not just for the laughs.

 

Groo comics are not just tales of adventure – but also satirical takes on today’s problems (complete with regular “moral of the story” nuggets of wisdom at the end of each story.

 

Welcome to the world of Groo!

End to Zika Virus Threat

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brazil declared an end to its public health emergency over the Zika virus on Thursday.

 

The country declared a national emergency in November 2015 when cases of the mosquito-borne virus, which can cause babies to be born with abnormally small skulls, spiraled out of control.

 

The number of cases peaked before the 2016 Rio Olympics, drawing international attention and warnings against travelling. A huge mosquito-eradication campaign began in response to the outbreak.

 

The Brazilian health ministry had said that the number of cases reported from January to April this year had fallen by 95 percent to 7,911 compared with the same period last year, when there were 170,535 cases. And no deaths related to the virus had been reported this year, it added.

 

Needless to say, the end of the emergency does not signify the end of being vigilant and taking preventive measures. We can expect vigorous steps already taken to reduce the number of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which carry the Zika virus to continue.

 

But the WHO have warned that Zika is "here to stay", even when the zika situation is drastically improving, and that fighting the disease will be an ongoing battle.

 

Adriana Melo, the Brazilian doctor who raised alarm bells in the early days of the outbreak about a link between Zika and birth defects, said the lifting of the emergency was expected following the decline in cases.

 

"The important thing now is that we don't forget the victims", said Melo.

The Pope and Donald Trump

A mural signed by 'TV Boy' depicting Pope Francis and US President Donald Trump kissing appeared in Rome, Italy. Photo credit: Alessandra Tarantino/AP

A life-size mural depicting Pope Francis with a saintly halo kissing US President Donald Trump sprouting devil’s horns appeared Thursday morning in the Borgo neighborhood, the warren of streets in front of the entrance to the Vatican.

The mural, which was painted on paper and pasted on to the wall during the night, was the latest work by street artists depicting the pope to appear in Rome.

This one shows Francis, wearing a simple crucifix around his neck, embracing Trump, who wears a gold watch and sports a pistol in a holster. The pope’s halo is the same bright yellow color as Trump’s hair. The two are locked in a mouth-to-mouth kiss.

The caption – in English and Italian – written on the sash of the pope’s cassock reads “The Good Forgives the Evil”. And it is signed “TVBoy”, who is believed to be Italian street artist Salvatore Benintende.

“It is very provocative but not too shocking for someone coming from America”, said a tourist from Burbank, California who gave only his first name, Victor.

[Note: Francis and Trump are due to meet at the Vatican on May 24, 2017].

The mural evokes the controversy surrounding a 2011 advertisement by the Italian fashion company Benetton depicting Pope Benedict XVI kissing Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb of Cairo’s al-Azhar University as part of its “Unhate” campaign.

Image credit: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062423/Benetton-Unhate-advert-Pope-kissing-imam-withdrawn-Vatican-calls-disrespectful.html

The Vatican spokesperson at the time, Father Federico Lombardi, said the advertisement was “unacceptable,” and showed a “serious lack of respect” for the pope. The same day, Benetton withdrew the ad, apologizing for “offending the sensibilities” of the faithful.

Francis has been the frequent star of Rome street art. In fact, the first was in January 2014, when he painted Francis as a flying superhero. He has also portrayed the pope as a street artist himself, and playing tic-tac-toe with a Swiss Guard standing watch.

Three murals depicting Pope Francis by street artist Maupal which have appeared over the years in Rome’s Borgo neighborhood. Photo credit: Maupal/Facebook

Although popular with locals and tourists alike, the pictures never last long. The local police usually remove them within 24 hours.

Last year, a priest working at St. Peter’s Basilica, Monsignor Americo Ciani, said the destruction of the work was a “great sadness", adding that those who ordered their removal “do not understand anything about art”.

Yesterday, I was in Jalan Genting Klang in KL – and I came across this place – Tea Garden Rstaurant in Metro Genting Klang – where they serve street snacks.

The steamed tapioca priced at RM5.80 

I ordered steamed tapioca with coconut milk and gula Melaka – and it sure brought back childhood memories. Back then, I used to dip the tapioca in sugar instead.

Actually, I was there to attend the One World Toastmasters meeting and deliver my CC#10 speech titled The Chicks and the Eaglet. An interesting and inspiring speech but I was guilty of being draggy towards the end – as rightly pointed out by the General Evaluator.

It was nice to be able to be there for their meeting #143. I also won the Best Speaker award.

My speech evaluator was Amenny Chua. She is Group Manager at One World Realty Sdn Bhd