Is it really going to be June 13th?

Then we don't have much time.


The current disruption and opposition to the ABU movement is the best illustration to date of what BN's Malaysia looks like. 

It is a Malaysia where the lawless, unaccomplished, ignorant and incompetent rule. 

It is a Malaysia where those who have sacrificed nothing, pillage and destroy the lives of those who have sacrificed greatly. 

It is a Malaysia where history is rewritten to honor dictators, murderers and thieves. 

It is a Malaysia where violence, racism, hatred, class warfare and murder are all promoted as acceptable means of overturning the Malaysian civil society.

It is a Malaysia where humans have been degraded to the level of animals: defecating in public, having sex videos screened in public, devoid of basic hygiene. 

It is a Malaysia where the basic tenets of a civil society, including freedom of faith, family, a free press and individual rights, have been rejected. 

It is a Malaysia where our founding documents have been shredded and, with them, every person's guaranteed liberties.

It is a Malaysia where, ultimately, great suffering will come to the Malaysian people, but the rulers like Najib, Pak Lah, Dr. M, miseducated professors, union bosses and other loyal BN members will live in opulent splendor. 

It is the Malaysia that BN has created with the willing assistance of the judiciary, police, unions, universities, other enforcement agencies and numerous foreign entities.

BN has brought more destruction upon this country in the past thirty years than any other event in the history of our nation, but it is just the beginning of what BN and it's comrades are capable of. 

The current disruption and opposition to the ABU movement is just another step in their plan for the annihilation of Malaysia.
"If ever a time should come, when vain and aspiring men shall possess the highest seats in Government, our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots to prevent its ruin."

-  Samuel Adams, 1780

If NOT NOW, WHEN? If NOT US, WHO? 

Time to go to war

King Henry V


In peace there's nothing so becomes a man
As modest stillness and humility;
But when the blast of war blows in our ears,
Then imitate the action of the tiger:
Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood.



 - William Shakespeare, "King Henry V", Act 3 Scene 1

Thought of the Day

To be blind is bad,

but worse is to have eyes and not see.

 - Helen Keller

A poem for Malaysians

Saw my friend, Hafiz, having poetic fun at his site
So I'll have mine too!


Father, must I go to work? 
No, my lucky playa
We're living on Easy Street
On subsidy from Putrajaya

We've left it up to BN
So don't get exercised
Nobody has to give a damn
We've all been subsidized

But if BN treats us all so well 
And feeds us milk and honey
Please, daddy, tell me what the hell
They are going to use for money

Don't worry, bub, there's not a hitch
In this here noble plan
They simply soak the filthy rich
And helps the common man

But father, won't there come a time
When they run out of cash
And we have left them not a dime
When things will go to smash?

My faith in you is shrinking, son
You nosy little brat;
You do too damn much thinking, son
To be a BN autocrat.

School system debate

There are people out there baying for a one-school system.
That, at least to me, would be the death knell for what is already an ailing education system.
My opinion, and I sure am entitled to it, is that the vernacular schools outperform the national schools in almost every factor.
That is the main reason I'm sending all my children there.

In a post by Din Merican, which was an opinion by the academic Farish Noor, the argument was that vernacular schools are a factor against national integration.

Populist Democracy made cowards of us all

Which was laughable.
Because the Chinese don't get less Malaysian as they go to a Chinese vernacular school.

I argued my point there.
But there were a few detractors who could not see the woods for the trees.

I'll post the comments chain here.
You let me know what YOU THINK.

1. It is true that Malaysia is unique in that vernacular schools get government financial grants. Nowhere else do you find that.
2. Mr Bean - February 25, 2012 at 8:34 am
4. Finanicial grants? Hahaha.
   Pittance compared to national schools.
   Most vernacular schools have to get addtional funding via other channels.
   But I digress.
   The real issue here is integration vs existence of vernacular schools.
   1. Integration is an issue not because of different school systems. It is because of our stupid politicians who harp on race.
   2. Vernacular schools have better methods and more dedicated people than national schools.
   I’m not knocking those hardworking teachers in national schools. My father was a teacher in Darul Ridwan for 28 years.
   I’m just saying I’m astounded by the amount of effort the teachers in vernacular schools put in and I have to say they’re better.
   Also, let me state 2 reasons why my 2 boys are in Harcroft:
   1. I believe it’s important to know their mother tongue. It will help them when China becomes the no.1 nation in the world in 10 years time.
   It will also help Malaysians of ALL races if they know Mandarin. Imagine Malaysia being the no. 1 trading partner with China.
   2. Like I said, I like what I see in the school. The teachers are organising additional classes. Robotics, Computer etc. Sure, I have to pay a little extra, but I know my boys are also getting extra knowledge and it’s worth it.
   I was educated in SM King Edward VII, possibly the greatest school in the history of Malaysia.
   My classmates are percentage wise the same ratio as our Malaysian population.
   Until today, I keep in touch with them regardless of their ethnicity.
   But I have 1 regret. The Mandarin classes those days was not sufficient to give me a proper grounding in the language.
   If I did read and write Mandarin well enough, I would have been accepted by that company to work in China and earning RMB 1 million annually.
   I passed everything in that interview except the language factor.
   

   Bobby - February 25, 2012 at 9:50 am
5. Harcroft, where is that?
   Since they have al this over here too guess what, the Asians are taking over in studies over here but there ares till very very clever Australians we cannot discount that.
   M’sians , poor, poor Ms’ians have benn cheated over what an excellent education can do to one self esteem, holistic develiopment and outlook adn help one participates in ones community effectively. Poor poor M’sians, cheated.
   

   Kathy - February 25, 2012 at 10:00 am
6. I was told by a Malay gentleman friend of mine that recently his child started in a new 1 Malaysia Smart School…and he found out that the children were made to assemble by race…and Bahasa Malaysia only was to be used in school. He promptly removed his child from the school.
   Din, quite obviously, the Wisma Putra is not the only establishment that requires closer scrutiny.
   Bobby is right …the fear among parents is that the standards will be lower in national type schools as compared with vernacular schools. Why should we accept this? It is not from lack of funds!
   

   Tony - February 25, 2012 at 10:59 am
7. let me say my bit; my father was a headmaster in a vernacular school and I have taught for a couple of years. for the chinese from vernacular schools it is no problem getting a job in the private sector because there are many chinese companies. now they can easily get jobs in China. which is not the case for others.
   a pupil who goes to a tamil school and excels would do the same if he goes to a chinese or national school.
   here, we are concerned about Malaysia. we should not prepare our students to go to China, India or Australia; on the contrary we should give them an education that is proper, to BUILD malaysia – attract investment, research and development, new job intensive companies. businesses and a service sector which give jobs to OUR unemployed.
   once and for all, get rid of vernacular schools. malay and english should become the main languages keeping the arts subjects in the national language and science subjects in english. make Pupils Own Language(POL) compulsory. wether you are chinese, indian or malay should not be a problem for the education department. make sure. the education minister is qualified for the job. get more non-malay teachers, they can do a lot of good for the future of this country.
   once and for all GET RID of MCA and MIC who are making use of this theme for their own profits, splitting the people further.
   Malaysia should be for Malaysians, there should be no chinese or indian politics.
   Education should be non-political and non-racial so there can be only ONE TYPE of school. jibs would start 1School soon?
   p.s.,
   in germany they have extra schools for trees!! (Baumschule)
   

   reeperbahn - February 25, 2012 at 4:49 pm
8. “The real issue here is integration vs existence of vernacular schools.
   1. Integration is an issue not because of different school systems. It is because of our stupid politicians who harp on race.” – Bobby
   Firstly, politicians who harp on race are not stupid. They know exactly where their bread is buttered. The very existence of vernacular schools will ensure that Malaysians will never be united. Exactly what these “clever” politicians want. Is that what you want, Bobby?
   “2. Vernacular schools have better methods and more dedicated people than national schools.” – Bobby
   True. These better methods and dedicated teachers will be doing their good work in National schools once vernacular schools are abolished. Win win.
   “1. I believe it’s important to know their mother tongue. It will help them when China becomes the no.1 nation in the world in 10 years time.
   It will also help Malaysians of ALL races if they know Mandarin. Imagine Malaysia being the no. 1 trading partner with China.” – Bobby
   I repeat my call for English medium schools with compulsory Malay language passes. Mandarin and Tamil to be optional language subjects. This way, no child will forget their mother tongue – if the parents opt for the mother tongue, of course. The great thing is that they don’t have to. As Malay is already compulsory, I would hope that more Malay parents will choose either Mandarin or Tamil for their kids as their second language choice. It’s a lovely dream, isn’t it?
   “2. Like I said, I like what I see in the school. The teachers are organising additional classes. Robotics, Computer etc. Sure, I have to pay a little extra, but I know my boys are also getting extra knowledge and it’s worth it.” – Bobby
   This is achievable in National schools too.
   What we need is national unity.
   And, dedicated teachers.
   Vernacular schools will always divide us – no matter how good they are.
   

   Ai Tze - February 25, 2012 at 7:59 pm
9. The U.S. is a melting pot of cultures, of languages etc Everybody is from somewhere else. However, nobody comes to the U.S. to set up ethnic schools so they could send their children to learn their native languages and get an education in their native languages. They compete to get into schools administered by the local school boards and financed by state and federal governments.
   But Malaysia has had to be different. Why? Was it because national schools are not good enough? In that case Malaysians should be given the choice of sending their children to state schools or private schools for their education. Until recently, private schools are limited to children of expatriates serving in Malaysia.
   The existence of vernacular schools is grounded in history. In Malaysia the colonial administration had allowed vernacular schools and these have continued to this day. Recently Chinese vernacular schools gained popularity with some Malays who lacked the confidence national schools gives them.
   In terms of a national education policy and objectives the existence of vernacular schools is an aberration. Where do graduates of these schools go to get their tertiary education?
   As for the learning and teaching of Mandarin, it is increasingly popular with Americans today as it never was. It is just reality. On the other hand we have Chinese nationals from China coming here to complete the course to become attorneys and be admitted to the Bar here in the U.S. and then return to China. The world has become a lot smaller and borders don’t mean the same thing as they used to.
   To Bobby
   KE VII ? Yes, I remember leading the school chess team in the late ’60s. The school had a strong chess team. But we trounced them.
   

   Mr Bean - February 25, 2012 at 9:07 pm
10. Wow, to be able to elicit responses like that from my own simple heartfelt opinion.
    1. Harcroft is a relatively new school in Puchong. It’s almost privately funded by Tan Sri Lee, since government funding cannot cover a proper curriculum.
    Which is a good and bad thing.
    Good that there is someone like him concerned enough about education to take charge and my children will benefit from a well-funded school (and that’s why Harcroft is over-registered 3 times each year)
    Bad, because I can imagine more than a few schools that could do with that kind of funding.
    2. Tony, it’s not a fear that vernacular schools are better. They ARE better and that’s a fact.
    I would accept with all my heart for my boys to go back to my alma mater, KE VII, if it was still as good as it was 20 years ago. Unfortunately, the Education Ministry has managed to screw it up, together with all the missionary schools in the country.
    3. Actually there is a solution but it will never be implemented due to politics.
    I will agree to abolishment of vernacular schools with the condition:
    Put some Chinese in charge of revamping the Education Ministry. We Chinese have always prioritised education above all things for the past 3000 years, from the time Officials were selected based on their examination results.
    Let’s put meritocracy at the top of everything.
    Also, it doesn’t help if 40% of the syllabus is about a racial agenda. Why is there 5 chapters in Sejarah about Islam civilisation? We never had this in the 80s. Why start now?
    Islam is a great religion, but certain Muslims in Malaysia make a mockery of it. We should learn about ALL civilisations, at least our children will be better informed and well-rounded instead of just knowledgeable about 1 religion.
    4. It seems the proponents of the 1 school system here are also pro-PAGE.
    The PAGE people are dreaming if they think they can achieve progress. As long as the DPM is more concerned about Malay votes, PAGE is dead in the water.
    People like Ai Tze are too idealistic and have their heads in the clouds.
    Science and Maths in English is possibly the ONLY good thing Dr. M did in his 22 years. But as we all know, politics takes priority instead of the country’s future.
    So in the meantime, we parents have to be PRACTICAL and send our children to the best school possible, which is Harcroft and co.
    This is called DOING SOMETHING within your means. Not fighting for some idea which may not happen in your lifetime.
    Why do you think the government allowed private schools to flourish? You would be stupid if you can’t figure it out by reading my analysis.
    Which brings me to the last point, Mr. Bean.
    An aberration?
    5. The Federal Constituion provides for the freedom of vernacular education.
    As for Malay parents who admit their children to vernacular schools. I spoke to my son’s classmates’ parents. They are happy their son is there. They know it too that this school is better. So what if he speaks Mandarin instead of BM? Doesn’t make the boy any less Malay or Malaysian.
    Footnote: Mr. Bean, KE VII was not known for it’s chess team. We were the best in rugby, football, hockey, tennis and managed the time to get the prettiest girls too.
    You won because I was not there to play you.
    Fancy a game?
    

    bkho - February 26, 2012 at 11:54 am

Success

It's March 2012!
Well, 60 days to go.

Success is about working towards what you want to achieve.

            Conrad Hilton, the founder of the Hilton chain of hotels, said: “Success is made to order.”

He was right.

An achievement is a sum total of many things – talent, aptitude, knowledge and desire.
           
If you analyse each of your achievements, you will soon discover that it all started with the goal that you wanted to achieve.
           
Well-defined goals, tackled with competence and confidence through a proper plan of action, are the building blocks of achievements.

They are our escalators to tomorrow, a vehicle that takes you to success.
           
What are some of the important points to remember when you go about setting goals and planning for them?

BE ENTHUSIASTIC
           
The worst bankrupt is the person who has lost enthusiasm, lose everything but enthusiasm and you will come through your trials and find success.

TAKE EFFECTIVE DECISIONS
           
Most people have no idea how much stress they can create through indecision.
           
If you are the kind of person who cannot decide between two courses of action, afraid that the course you choose might turn out to be a mistake, bear in mind that indecision is expensive and nearly always the worst mistake you can make.
           
Some decisions require a great deal of thought and plenty of information.

But once all the facts are available, the successful individual will reach a decision and stop thinking about the various pros and cons, so that he can devote all his energy and effort to making the decision work.

AVOID PROCRASTINATION.
           
Procrastination is the greatest disease that afflicts mankind.
           
Successful people do not procrastinate, especially in matters they know are important to them.
           
As someone has rightly said, “People don’t fail because they intend to fail.

They fail because they fail to do what they intent to do”.


" The hero is an ordinary person with extraordinary level of commitment "