Aphorisms - 20 for the road

APHORISM: A SHORT, POINTED SENTENCE EXPRESSING A WISE OR CLEVER OBSERVATION OR A GENERAL TRUTH.

1. The nicest thing about the future is that it always starts tomorrow.

2. Money will buy a fine dog, but only kindness will make him wag his tail.

3. If you don't have a sense of humor, you probably don't have any sense at all.

4. Seat belts are not as confining as wheelchairs (Datuk Suret Singh, use this slogan please)

5. A good time to keep your mouth shut is when you're in deep water.

6. How come it takes so little time for a child who is afraid of the dark to become a teenager who wants to stay out all night?

7. Business conventions/seminars/conferences are important because they demonstrate how many people a company can operate without.

8. Why is it that at class reunions you feel younger than everyone else looks? (Tigers, you know I mean)

9. Scratch a dog's belly and you will have a permanent job.

10. No one has more driving ambition than the boy who wants to buy a car.

11. There are no new sins; the old ones just get more publicity.

12. There are worse things than getting a call for a wrong number at 4 in the morning. It could be a right number.

13. No one ever says 'It's only a game.' when their team is winning.

14. I've reached the age where the happy hour is a luxury.

15. Be careful reading the fine print. There's no way you're going to like it.

16. The trouble with bucket seats is that not everybody has the same size bucket.

17. Do you realize that in about 40 years, we'll have thousands of old ladies running around with tattoos?
(And rap music will be the Golden Oldies!)

18. Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comfortable to cry in a BMW than in a Proton.

19. After 50, IF you don't wake up aching in every joint, you are probably dead!

20. Always be yourself because the people that matter don't mind, and the ones who mind, don't matter!

The more things change, the more they stay the same

So, what really has changed in more than 2000 years of "civilisation"?
Hahahahahaha............


The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt.
- Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BC)

My work is done

Had a unpleasant online encounter with one of those UMNO radicals. It's like walking through a beautiful garden called the Internet and then accidentally stepped on dog poo. You didn't mean for it to happen but it did.
All I did was pass a comment because most of the comments in this Demi Negara blog was getting racist / seditious. I forgot, they ARE racist.
And for them to accuse me of being racist against Malays, hahaha, that was funny. Or even Islam-phobic. Just because I said that Malays / Muslims becoming apostates are their own personal business.
First, and foremost, my preferred leader is Nik Aziz. Hmm, yes, so I want a Malay leader and still I'm racist? You gotta be kidding, I have Malay friends AND relatives too.
To me, Islam is a beautiful religion, and I feel that it's amazing that Muslims think of God 5 times a day. Do YOU think of God at least ONCE a day?
Then the threats came. Physical violence. And racially-tinted insults too.
The surprising thing was that this KijangMas or whoever had a good grasp of the language. Good enough to string a sentence with good grammar for someone who was so uncouth and uncultured.
Using some language akin to Manglish in his blog to signify the low standards of BM among non-Malays.
Condescending, impervious to logic nor reason.
Rilek lah brader. Oi bang, jangan gitu. Wak, boleh sabar tak? I also can speak "pelat" Malay, ok?
He's such a bloody moron, I probably scored higher in BM than him in SRP and SPM, unless he also scored A1.
The same kind of munafiq who fights for halal standards but buka puasa in a hotel that is not halal. (Pop quiz: Who can tell me how many halal hotels there are in this country? Zero?)
Questions about the blueness of my IC arose. As if my father arrived on the shores of this country on 30 August 1957 and 1 day later was given citizenship in exchange for nothing.
I told my friends last night about this joker and one of them laughed like hell. He is a Chinese who can easily trace his ancestry back to 550 years ago when they settled in this country.
So I asked myself, for someone who seems educated, why is he such a hooligan?
Someone who benefitted somehow from NEP, got sent to US / UK for an education but never grew beyond his coconut shell.
Yes, you can take the UMNO radical out of Malaysia, but you can't take the radical out of UMNO Malaysia.
Demi Negara KONONnya.
He was even smart enough to know Bobby is derived from Robert. Hmm, shocking.
Now, for a surprise. It's partly my fault.
I shouldn't have provoked them. God knows how I landed in that blog, I remember it must've been mentioned in MT or somewhere.
Funny thing, he called me a failed blogger. Hmm, how does one fail at blogging? The number of hits? Yes, I admit I got carried away on the political stuff.
Fail as a blogger like him, ok, but at least I don't fail as a human being. I'm decent to people and I respect their opinions. This guy has the audacity to tell people not to enter his blog if they don't agree with his opinion. Typical UMNO arrogance.
Watching Punisher last night was only good for 1 thing (sorry, Fireangel, you were right, CRAP SHOW!). I remembered Matthew 7:2.

"For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again."

So, with that, I realised that I had lost my focus.
The original purpose of starting this blog was to be used to record down my thoughts, after all, I was never good with a diary.
Hate begets hate, and negativity generates more negativity. The vibes of this blog had been all negative (about BN and all that). No more judging BN and whoever.
New "old" direction: This blog is for personal thoughts and for keeping memories of the family.
Anything political, will only use my vote and influence during election time. No need for any more political comments.
It will be good to follow my collegemate's example that way. Passive way of demonstrating your disagreement.
So, what's with the title? Yes, the work is done.
Summary of politics
1. The pro-change blogs way outnumber the pro-BN blogs. When RPK goes, there will be 1 thousand RPKs created. So, leave it to them to continue the good work.
2. Realised that some BN political blogs are so low-class that they have to resort to name-calling, racism etc. Like I said, it's like stepping in dog-poo. So, why bother with them when they continue to drive people away from their corner?
3. PR must realise that they are different from other coalitions that used to come together every election time. BN can continue shouting racist slogans to isolate themselves from the real issues.
Also, calling the Trengganu King "natang" (animal) last year but then this year suddenly choose to defend my favourite Sultan.
4. Malays: 60% of population, 3 parties to choose from. Chinese, 3 parties. Indians, 8% of population but 8 parties to choose from. That's the real problem for them.
5. Malaysian' memories are too short. The current hot topic will only last until the next hot topic. I expect Eli Wong's issue to be over within the next week.

My name is Ong Keng Hsing, and Bobby was given as a name by my mother 25 years ago because her favorite TV show at that time was Dallas (you know, Bobby Ewing).
My address is 7, Jalan Merpati, Taman Kamunting, 34600 Taiping.
I am Malaysian, and I will bleed on the flag of Malaysia to keep the red stripes red. Although Chinese by ethnicity, but I have absolutely no problems with anyone who is of different ethnicity.
I am Buddhist, and by that, I mean the Buddhist way of life. I do not believe in the Taoist elements. I also have absolutely no problems with anyone who is Christian or Muslim or any other religion.
Whoever threatens me or family with physical violence for saying what we are entitled to say, come over and I'll defend my rights by pummeling the bejesus out of you. Then I'll sue you for injuring my knuckles with your nose. See how you'll deal with that.

There, work is done.
Now, time to enjoy life with the wife and the kids. The golf and the parties.

FIGHT!

Had a conversation with my Ipoh collegemate.
I will take his opinion seriously and it is this. The people of Perak do not want BN in their state.
They had enough of daylight robbery via projects and what-nots that only serves to enrich BN themselves.
I suppose the only question left to answer is, what will be the majority of PR's wins in the 3 Hills by-elections?
To the people of Perak, I dedicate these words by one of my favourite authors.

The world you desired can be won, it exists, it is real, it is possible, it's yours.
But to win it requires total dedication and a total break with the world of your past, with the doctrine that man is a sacrificial animal who exists for the pleasure of others.
Fight for the value of your person.
Fight for the virtue of your pride.
Fight for the essence, which is man, for his sovereign rational mind.
Fight with the radiant certainty and the absolute rectitude of knowing that yours is the morality of life and yours is the battle for any achievement, any value, any grandeur, any goodness, any joy that has ever existed on this earth.

- Ayn Rand (1905-1982)

Of proof and Elizabeth Wong

2008 was good for many things.

Humbling of banks.

Great golf.

And Malaysians got to know who Elizabeth Wong is.

She's been an activist for a long time, and it's great that panned out into a political career for her too.

Barely a year after she was elected, a scandal breaks out about her.

It's disgusting in Malaysia how a victim can be painted to be the guilty one. Of course, BN controls the mass media, so they can use it to project whatever views THEY want.

Why is BN asking for proof that they started this whole scandal?

First, the people should ask them, is there a need for proof?

You see, in a crime, first, the motive must be established above anything else.

For instance, in the assasination of JPK, Jack Ruby/Lee Harvey Oswald said,"The culprit isn't me, it's the person who would benefit most (from this murder)".

To me, it seems like Lyndon B. Johnson was the biggest beneficiary.

After all, he became President.

Now, who is the biggest beneficiary from seeing a PR assemblyperson being scandalised?

BARISAN NASIONAL.

Not her stupid "boyfriend".

It would be Khir Toyo and gang.

And to think he had the gall to ask people to resign.

What she did was something of integrity. She quit because she didn't want PR to be scandalised together with her.

Integrity is something very alien to BN people because they have no clue what it means.

So, with the motive established, do we still need proof?

NO.

This event has become another reason for the people to HATE BN.

Thank you, BN, for driving another nail into your own coffin.


Btw, for a list of all the crimes Khir Toyo has committed against the citizens of Malaysia, pls go here:

http://kerajaanrakyat.com/?p=4864


I hereby demand an arrest (police or citizen's) of Khir Toyo and immediate prosecution. Even if he's not brought in, his immediate family will suffer from the curses of the people for all the money he has robbed from them.

NEP and Darwinism

This year marks the 200th anniversary of Darwinism. The recent publicity about Charles Darwin reminded me of something.
Some of my friends used to complain and argue with me on the crooked policies of this government. I said, why bother, they're killing themselves.
My friends went,"huh? How is that?".
Ok, let's go back to the topic.
NEP was formulated as a policy to help redistribute the wealth of the nation, especially since the majority of the poor were Malays. This policy was formulated after the incident of May 13, which was also an UMNO product.
The problem with the system was the policy itself. You cannot help people if they do not help themselves. This policy lent even more credence to the myth of the "lazy Malay".
In a serious kind of way.
You see, no matter what, man is also an animal. Of a different sort.
When Herbert Spencer talked about "survival of the fittest" (Charles Darwin didn't coin this term, in case you didn't know), he was talking about how species would adapt themselves to survive in the environment they were in.
How UMNO destroyed the Malays through NEP was that they kept telling the Malays, even today, that don't worry, we will always fight and PROVIDE for you.
But they didn't. They only provided the illusion that they were helping the Malays.
In most cases, the only ones that did get rich were the UMNO cronies who used the NEP to demand 30% equity of something they didn't deserve in the first place.
In fact, every time there's a crisis (1974, 1986, 1998), you will see UMNO businessmen dying. Because they did not learn to survive. They thought their party would see them through without them needing to do anything.
The ripple effects were actually much worse. Throughout the general Malay population, the next generation after May 13 became too dependent on the government.
My father used to do social work in Family Planning. He was once threatened with ISA because they thought he was trying to tell the Malays not to reproduce.
Actually, what he was trying to disseminate in the kampungs was that, if you want your children to be succesful, YOU yourself must plan properly. If you have too many children but the same size of resources, each additional child will get less share of your attention and resources.
So, UMNO "spoiled" the Malays.
And made them less "adaptive" to the rapidly changing, globalising environment.
If there's any single factor to blame for the decline of the Malays, it's UMNO.
They used the excuse of May 13 to come up with the self-enriching policy of NEP.
I don't know if they'll ever learn to survive properly, but to all those who oppose NEP, you should understand that it's a suicide policy. So why bother if you're really peeved about it?
Forget it.
Let UMNO commit harakiri.
You should focus on how you yourself will survive the next 2 years.

RPK: The making of a martyr

I read Malaysia Today and was a little surprised to see RPK's post, "Probably my last message to Malaysians".
He is right about one thing. He's probably going for good.
The 2008 Elections result could be attributed to mainly 2 persons. RPK is one of them. The other is Citizen Nades or Nadeswaran of The Sun newspaper.
From thereon, the BN government realised what a threat he was to them. Especially the DPM.
When Mahathir sacked Anwar, he wanted to teach Anwar a lesson. Don't mess with me, why can't you wait to be PM?
He also told his people not to "take him out". Why make him a martyr? It would have been unnecessary.
It would also have created the same kind of split in UMNO when Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah decided to contest the presidency in 1987.
For whatever Mahathir has done, one thing is that he remains one of the most brilliant Malaysians ever. He also learns from history, although he might seem forgetful at the wrong time.
The present leaders of our country is nothing of his calibre. Sadly, we lack leadership in fact. They do not have the vision that Mahathir has, but still intent on plundering the country without thinking of the after-effects.
And one grave mistake is that when they send RPK to his grave, it will kickstart a revolution.
It will be a revolution unlike anything this country has ever seen.
It will be nothing along the racial lines. There will be Malays, Chinese, Indians standing together. Rich and poor. Old and young.
All standing together, chanting,"We want Change!".
If 2008 was a tsunami, the next Election (I hear that we won't have to wait until 2013) will be a giant earthquake. Only the BN people will fall into the open cracks. They will be buried so badly they wished they could repent earlier.
The PEOPLE are currently not united.
They are divided by social standing and race due to the racial policies of BN.
With the death of RPK, they will come together and ask,"Why was this Malay man fighting so hard for justice and rights of non-Malays? Are we really that different from one another?"
They will realise that the real enemy are the people in power. Who have stolen from them in the past 50 years. Who used the excuse of Malay poverty in order to keep them poor and enrich themselves further.
I would not like to see RPK die. In fact, I would hate it.
I am writing this to say that despite BN getting ready to put him away for good, even greater things will come out of it.
It will be a sad day in Malaysia.
But it will be the catalyst for change.
If Martin Luther King's assasination paved the way for Barack Hussein Obama's presidency, then RPK going to Kamunting (again) will start the way for a change in Federal Government.
Regardless of whoever becomes the Prime Minister, we will begin to see a better government in place.
Pakatan Rakyat may not be the perfect government, but like I said, they're a much better option than BN.
BN will make a good Opposition, so they will keep PR on their toes.
Don't forget, BN, what goes around comes around.
Public lynching may be a little outdated, but I wouldn't discount it happening.
There are too many people disenchanted with BN, and coming to 1 year after March 08 2008, they still don't realise they have been stricken with fatal political inertia.
One good example is Hee Yit Fong. Now she realises that she has money but no one will serve her food.
The people want Change. They DEMAND it.
And they WILL get their wish.

From the heart of a Muslim - Dr. Tawfik Hamid

After yesterday's post, I really wish that all Muslims, not only in Malaysia, but around the world, feel and think the same way as this man. Everyone could do with more tolerance, especially in a multi-cultural country like ours.

http://www.tawfikhamid.com/
I was born a Muslim and lived all my life as a follower of Islam. After the barbaric terrorist attacks done by the hands of my fellow Muslims everywhere on this globe, and after the too many violent acts by Islamists in many parts of the world, I feel responsible as a Muslim and as a human being, to speak out and tell the truth to protect the world and Muslims as well from a coming catastrophe and war of civilizations. I have to admit that our current Islamic teaching creates violence and hatred toward Non-Muslims. We Muslims are the ones who need to change. Until now we have accepted polygamy, the beating of women by men, and killing those who convert from Islam to other religions. We have never had a clear and strong stand against the concept of slavery or wars, to spread our religion and to subjugate others to Islam and force them to pay a humiliating tax called Jizia.
We ask others to respect our religion while all the time we curse non-Muslims loudly (in Arabic) in our Friday prayers in the Mosques. What message do we convey to our children when we call the Jews "Descendants of the pigs and monkeys"…. Is this a message of love and peace, or a message of hate?
I have been into churches and synagogues where they were praying for Muslims. While all the time we curse them, and teach our generations to call them infidels, and to hate them. We immediately jump in a 'knee jerk reflex' to defend Prophet Mohammed when someone accuses him of being a pedophile while, at the same time, we are proud with the story in our Islamic books, that he married a young girl seven years old (Aisha) when he was above 50 years old.
I am sad to say that many, if not most of us, rejoiced in happiness after September 11th and after many other terror attacks. Muslims denounce these attacks to look good in front of the media, but we condone the Islamic terrorists and sympathise with their cause. Till now our 'reputable' top religious authorities have never issued a Fatwa or religious statement to proclaim Bin Laden as an apostate, while an author, like Rushdie, was declared an apostate who should be killed according to Islamic Shariia law just for writing a book criticizing Islam. Muslims demonstrated to get more religious rights as we did in France to stop the ban on the Hejab (Head Scarf), while we did not demonstrate with such passion and in such numbers against the terrorist murders.
It is our absolute silence against the terrorists that gives the energy to these terrorists to continue doing their evil acts. We Muslims need to stop blaming our problems on others or on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. As a matter of honesty, Israel is the only light of democracy, civilization, and human rights in the whole Middle East. We kicked out the Jews with no compensation or mercy from most of the Arab countries to make them "Jews-Free countries" while Israel accepted more than a million Arabs to live there, have its nationality, and enjoy their rights as human beings. In Israel, women can not be beaten legally by men, and any person can change his/her belief system with no fear of being killed by the Islamic law of 'Apostasy,' while in our Islamic world people do not enjoy any of these rights.
I agree that the 'Palestinians' suffer, but they suffer because of their corrupt leaders and not because of Israel. It is not common to see Arabs who live in Israel leaving to live in the Arab world. On the other hand, we used to see thousands of Palestinians going to work with happiness in Israel, its 'enemy'. If Israel treats Arabs badly as some people claim, surely we would have seen the opposite happening. We Muslims need to admit our problems and face them. Only then we can treat them and start a new era to live in harmony with human mankind.
Our religious leaders have to show a clear and very strong stand against polygamy, pedophilia, slavery, killing those who convert from Islam to other religions, beating of women by men, and declaring wars on non-Muslims to spread Islam. Then, and only then, do we have the right to ask others to respect our religion.
The time has come to stop our hypocrisy and say it openly: 'We Muslims have to Change'.

UMNO - inciter of racial hatred

Take a GOOD LOOK at this picture.

Is there any doubt left on why UMNO deserves to be kicked out of our system?

This is a picture of people protesting against Karpal Singh, who has planned to launch a legal suit against the Sultan of Perak for his decision to appoint a new Menteri Besar.

One question.

What has the Chinese people got to do with any of this???

WHAT? TELL ME???

From May 13 1969, to Najib in 1987, and Mr. Kerismuddin as recent as the year before, UMNO has time and time again used racial hatred to push their own agenda.

I thought of letting it go but no, let's state the facts.

The text on the placard says," Malays demonstrating, Chinese shaking legs at home"

1. It is a recession now, so perhaps these jobless people have nothing better to do than demonstrate and the jobless Chinese are at home.

2. This demonstration does not have a permit, so shouldn't they be arrested?

3. For inciting racial hatred, the whole lot of them should be sent to ISA camp in Kamunting. I might visit them once in a while to see if they have reformed and accepted the fact that they have to live with other races in Malaysia.

4. At the same time, I might also ask them if they realise that the Chinese pay 80% of the income tax received by the government as stated by Tun Mahathir before. Leg-shaking must be a lucrative profession.

5. The income tax received by the government is somehow embezzled and used to partly fund UMNO, the organisation these people belong to. So, they are biting the hand that feeds them.

In some cases, dogs are shot for biting their owners. Death penalty would be too harsh, but I believe that Kamunting has magical powers to change people's thinking.

After all, I lived there for the first 20 years of my life, so I should know.

6. When Standard Chartered obtained a million dollar judgement in court against the Negri Sembilan royalty, I didn't hear a whimper. Why are these people protesting now? Oh, I forgot, they are jobless due to the recession.

7. The legal immunity for members of royalty was taken away during Sultan Azlan Shah's reign as King in 1992. By the leader of UMNO himself. Enough said.

I love HRH Azlan, as he is both a leader of my state and a close family friend. He made the best decision he possibly could, perhaps under duress from UMNO (and the Gamuda factor), and yes, he has dissappointed the majority of the Perak population. He is a Head of State, but that does not exempt him from any legal obligation to the people/citizens of this country.

If Karpal Singh truly believes he has a case, by all means proceed.

I am happy for one thing, that UMNO may have taken the state of Perak, but they have managed to incite hatred.

No, not racial hatred as they intended. It backfired.

They have managed to make everyone in Perak HATE Barisan Nasional.

The results will be shown in the upcoming by-election.

Pakatan Rakyat, the lesser of 2 evils

There was something I have been wanting to say out loud but I kept it inside me for the time being.
We Malaysians are stuck.
We are between the devil and the deep blue sea. Anyone heard of this expression?
Quite simply, it means that we do not have much of a choice. In terms of federal government.
In fact, it's been a substantive progress to see a political alliance such as PR giving BN a good run for our money.
Finally, we can see a two-party system emerging in Malaysia, whereas this has always been the case in matured democracies like US, UK and Australia.
I did not believe that PR would come in and give us a thorougly clean and transparent government.
However, I do believe with all my heart that PR is a much better option than BN.
Because PR is the lesser of 2 evils.
One of the easiest example is this, BN politicians prefer to buy Mercedes Benzes. At least the PR states "only" bought Toyota Camry's.
With the current situation in Perak, I am ready to go back to Taiping if there's a snap election.
I believe the biggest show of corruption is the wastage of our natural resources.
Petronas, our so-called state-owned company, is the main financier for most of the federal government's "projects". Including Barisan Nasional.
For a company that is in the Forbes 500, it's a sham.
If the oil and gas reserves in this country TRULY belong to the people, I believe the profits should be shared with EVERYONE.
It's accounts is classified under the Official Secrets Act, but Forbes Magazine (trust their figures, ok) estimates it's revenue at USD25 billion a year. Based on the current oil and gas industry standard, it's profit margin should be around 18%, which easily translates into at least USD 4 BILLION.
Or at least RM 14 (FOURTEEN) BILLION A YEAR.
No doubt that it hasn't been making this amount all this time, but take an average of 25 years and 10 billion a year.
There has been an acccumulation of RM 250 BILLION!
If this amount was made available and spent wisely on the development of this country, we would not see Malaysia in the state it is.

Therefore, I believe that if these funds were given to Pakatan Rakyat, we would see LESS embezzlement. LESS CORRUPTION.
Instead, we have watched while the BN government flounders in the wake of an incoming recession. Buying up assemblypersons with the PEOPLE's MONEY.

And if and when PR is voted in to rule as the Federal Government, one good watchdog for the people would be BN. So we will have a good system of check and balance.

Some people say there should not be a snap election as it would cost money and times are already bad.
Hello, who caused this to happen?
Barisan Nasional ! By getting 2 corrupt assemblymen to join them.

Footnote to PR: Get better qualified candidates for next election, ok?

My collegemate in Ipoh is truly dissapointed with the current turn of events. So is his family.
So is MY family.
I have been receiving SMSes, about 100 of them. And that's only this morning.
If these 100 persons know another 100 persons, that's another 10 thousand people who want a snap election.
I can easily speak for ALL Taiping, Ipoh and Sitiawan people.
We WILL BURY BN.
Sure, they have a "majority" to form the state government now.
The only hope BN has of clinging to power in Perak is to NEVER have an election there again.
EVER.

The state of healthcare in Malaysia

This is a pic taken in Christmas 2006. My mother in law, the 2 boys and my wife.

They love Christmas time. Although we are Buddhists, my family loves Christmas for the spirit the celebration embodies.

On the 2nd day of CNY, my mother in law was diagnosed with blood cancer.

So, she was hospitalised since then.

My mother in law is an extraordinary woman. She bore 7 children and raised them almost single handedly. She was a construction worker who tapped rubber at 5 in the morning before coming back to make breakfast for the family. She then cycled to whichever construction site she was working at and came home after 6 in the evening to cook dinner for the family.

The good news is that the cancer was detected early. The only problem is the curing part.

It will cost an estimated RM 300 thousand to cure her. This was the estimate given to us by the doctor.

In my previous post about the privatisation of IJN, I have previously raised questions on why only the rich can afford to be cured of illnesses in Malaysia.

Why will it cost 300 THOUSAND?

Mother has told us that if it is a serious disease, she does not want us to spend any more money. Let her die, she said.

I don't know any other person who would be brave enough to say that.

As I write this, my eyes are beginning to tear up. I lost my mother when I was 12. I am extremely fortunate to have someone like my wife's mother in our lives. I know my wife isn't coping too well with this situation either.

I have an aunt who used to work in the healthcare industry. She has referred me to UH, University Hospital, where they are apparently quite good with this type of cancer. Even then, she said, be prepared to spend.

How do you value the life of a person in monetary terms?

We have decided not to let Mother know what is her disease. Otherwise, she will give up on fighting for her life.

I wonder if private doctors differentiate in service levels for different patients. Let's say, a millionaire comes in for prostate cancer. Does he get better treatment than an ordinary person whose medical insurance limit does not cover certain procedures?

I saw the updated bill for Mother yesterday. So far, it stands at 9k. There's 1k for consultancy, which literally means that the doctor came in for 5 minutes to check her charts and blood pressure. Each visit is RM80.00, so 12 visits is RM960.

I do not know any other person in Malaysia who earns RM80 for 5 minutes of work.

It must have been one torturous hell of a time getting their medical degrees at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

So they are taking their revenge on others by charging at this rate.

How do these people sleep at night???

What do they do with all that money???

Is there anything remotely resembling a conscience inside them?

It seems perhaps the only alternative is to go to a government hospital and pray for the best. What our healthcare system in Malaysia tells us bluntly is, if you can't afford it, don't be sick.

Anyone who has met my mother in law will say that she's the kindest soul. There's always a twinkle of cheer in her eyes, and she always makes time for anyone and everyone.

This is my hope and prayer, that she will be cured soon.

I once said to someone, that a parent should not have to bury their child.

I now add, that a grandchild should not be too young to see their grandparent die.

Here's to you, Mother. The gentlest, kindest and most generous person I know.

There is a God, and I hope He will answer my prayers.

3 frogs on a log

There's this tale of 3 frogs on a log. It's taken from a book on M&A (mergers and acquisitions) by my ex-company, PwC.
So, 2 frogs decide to jump. How many are left there on the log?
Answer is THREE.
Because deciding to jump isn't the same as jumping.
Now, on to the hot news in my home state, Perak.
Seems Barisan Nasional has decided that it isn't that "clean" and wants to bribe PR members to join them.
So, all that rhetoric about "Pakatan is immoral to lure BN members" is cow dung.
I would like to see a snap state election.
It would be a good opportunity to purge all the useless driftwood in the Perak state government out of their current positions.
If anyone should join PKR, it should be out of a desire to see change in this country.
After all, UMNO members are only concerned about getting contracts and how much commision they get out of screwing the Malays.
Some people have said they voted for the party, so the person elected should not be party-hopping.
Hello, wake up. You are supposed to put an X on the guy because he would be a good government servant and serve YOU and the COMMUNITY in YOUR AREA!
Even if the guy was not BN or PR, but you believed he would be able to make a good representative, then ONLY do you vote for him.
Doesn't even matter if his symbol is a condom (wonder if that's allowed).
Furthermore, under our Constitution, our Freedom of Association is assured, so there's no need to make such a big hoo-ha over who's jumping to where.
Anyway, Sultan Azlan Shah is a very just ruler. I remember meeting him when I was just a boy and my uncle was playing golf with him. We Perakians are truly blessed to have a Head of State like him. I am sure he will be making a good decision in his summit with the MB.
Raja Nazrin has grown to be a very fair and objective person too, despite him being a little stiff on protocol before. I really respect that he has the guts to say all the things he said last year about racial harmony.
The current price for a PR rep to cross over to BN is RM 15 million.
Imagine that. All that money for a signature.
Again, I don't have to remind you where that money is coming from.
It's coming from YOU.
And your FAMILY.
From the PEOPLE.
One more BN rep in the government means another robber taking money from the citizens of this country.
Like I said, comeon, let's have another state election.
Let's clean Perak up.

You've got to get mad

It's 6 in the morning and I can't sleep anymore.
Anyway, at the end of your life, you can sleep all you want.
Was thinking.........
Heath Ledger is getting a posthumous Oscar nomination for his role in The Dark Knight, surely the Movie of the Year for 2008. Strangely enough, the last time someone was posthumously nominated, it was for this movie called Network in the year 1976.
I also remember that Patrick Teoh quoted from this movie some time back. Rightly so. It's brilliant and for all of it's brevity, it packs a heck of a punch.
The quote below is applicable to us even today. Read it and you'll catch the drift. It was a heck of a performance.

"I don't have to tell you things are bad. Everybody knows things are bad. It's a depression. Everybody's out of work or scared of losing their job. The dollar buys a nickel's work, banks are going bust, shopkeepers keep a gun under the counter. Punks are running wild in the street and there's nobody anywhere who seems to know what to do, and there's no end to it. We know the air is unfit to breathe and our food is unfit to eat, and we sit watching our TV's while some local newscaster tells us that today we had fifteen homicides and sixty-three violent crimes, as if that's the way it's supposed to be. We know things are bad - worse than bad. They're crazy. It's like everything everywhere is going crazy, so we don't go out anymore. We sit in the house, and slowly the world we are living in is getting smaller, and all we say is, 'Please, at least leave us alone in our living rooms. Let me have my toaster and my TV and my steel-belted radials and I won't say anything. Just leave us alone.' Well, I'm not gonna leave you alone. I want you to get mad! I don't want you to protest. I don't want you to riot - I don't want you to write to your congressman because I wouldn't know what to tell you to write. I don't know what to do about the depression and the inflation and the Russians and the crime in the street.
All I know is that first you've got to get mad.
You've got to say, 'I'm a HUMAN BEING, Goddamnit! My life has VALUE!'
So I want you to get up now.
I want all of you to get up out of your chairs.
I want you to get up right now and go to the window.
Open it, and stick your head out, and yell, 'I'M AS MAD AS HELL, AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE THIS ANYMORE!'
I want you to get up right now, sit up, go to your windows, open them and stick your head out and yell - 'I'm as mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!' Things have got to change. But first, you've gotta get mad!... You've got to say, 'I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!' Then we'll figure out what to do about the depression and the inflation and the oil crisis. But first get up out of your chairs, open the window, stick your head out, and yell, and say it:
I'M AS MAD AS HELL, AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE THIS ANYMORE!"