For more about me, please read this.
I shot nearly 20 photos a couple of days ago and I like these two the best.
The first picture was shot in the KLCC conference center, or something like that. There was a UK education fair there. But seriously go to the US instead. It’s cheaper in the US and sometimes, UK schools are, ahem, overrated.
Next is a photo of a building called Maxis Tower, I think. It stands right beside the Petronas Twin Towers.
Yesterday, I went to meet several people, mostly people behind ReCom.org. One of them was Nick Choo, one that dreamt up Impianku.org at Malaysia Forum 2. During the meet up, he kept bugging me and everyone else to submit something to Impianku.org. And I did later.
I dream for world peace!
And there I go – possibly a material for Miss World competition. If only I were one of the fairer sex.
Like many Malaysians, and Miss World candidates for that matter, I do have my version of the future. I do hold a paper cup in hope that someday, some kind of leisurely liquid (will fall) from the blue sky above. That liquid is something that will somehow make Malaysians go crazy and see other beings around them differently, more respectful of Gaia.
I wish we as Malaysians see the jungle not as another resource to exploit, see not the air to be taken for granted for free, look not the land for just another place for some ill-designed buildings or another golf course.
We cannot act as if what we do recklessly upon mother earth will not affect us adversely. We must see the environment around us as part of an ecosystem – a system that you and I, they and us are part of. If you ask why, I’d say because we, humans are part of an ecosystem called Earth.
It is harrowing to see our parks are being replaced by hard cold concrete structures, our jungles razed for timbers, our waters polluted in the name of progress. Slowly, in the named of progress, we are killing the Earth subsequently, ourselves.
We can move forward without sacrificing everything that is green or blue. We do not need to industrialize ourselves like others have done. We are living in a different age where almost everything is possible. Hybrid vehicles are there to reduce emissions while solar and wind powers are there to satisfy our need for energy. All we need right now is a proper mindset – a perception that our lifestyle is unsustainable for our system.
There is an old Cree proverb – “Only when the last tree has died and the last river has been poisoned and the last fish has been caught will we realize that we can’t eat money”.
Yes. I dream for a green Malaysia. And for world peace too. Arrr!
And Impianku.org is featured in Malaysian newspaper The Star today; the article written by minishorts.
I hope Nick is happy now.
I once told a friend before returning to Malaysia that I would feel restricted in Malaysia and would eventually miss greater liberty that I had enjoyed in the US. Nearly two months later, I still stand by that statement firmly.
One of the favorite publications is the National Geographic Magazine and my father subscribes to it. So, that basically means I get to read it for free. The magazine offers great articles with exhilarating photos from all over the world. Reading National Geographic sort of satifies part of my hunger. Unfortunately, today, that hunger turns into anger – the August issue has been censored. To be precise, the Zip USA section. I have a photo to prove it:
Other copies have also been “sanitized“. Another shot to prove my words:
Perhaps, the censoring process is the reason why the August issue only reached my home just today – late in the month – instead of the time it should have had, which is way doggone earlier.This is outrageous. While it is a picture of a naked person, whoever that ordered the censorship has no right to say what I – and truly we – can enjoy and what I can’t enjoy. I can think for myself and even if I were aroused by the picture, of which would be ridiculous, nobody has the right stop me from being excited. To make things worse, National Geographic is not even pornography.
It gets even worse when it gets to television. Sometimes, the censorship is so heavy that you couldn’t possibly make sense of a show. Alright, I’m exaggerating but the fact is most of the times, all those censored words are not meant to be expletives.
Hey, what are they saying?
They are saying “fuck fuck fuck, fuck fuck fuck fuck, bitch”.
Oh.
In truth, for instance, it’s a documentary about snails and the actual words go, “snails are bisexual”. The word bisexual is censored.
This just drives me nut. There might be subtitles but most of the times I find the translators responsible for subbing failed to accurately translate one language into another. And you can say goodbye to good comedy due to censorship. I mean, who would watch a comedy by reading subtitle?
And what good is a classification system if everything is censored?
The reason for classification in the first place is to tell viewers what they should expect from a show. There is no need for classification if everything is censored. Any classification system would be a farce if a program rated as matured content is censored and practically being transformed into “suitable for general viewing”.
Those that directed these censorships think consumers are stupid. I feel insulted by this. You should too.
If I were a true fan of George W. Bush, I’d already commit a either-you’re-with-us-or-you’re-against-us kind of fallacy – either you believe they are wrong, or you agree with those censorship zealots that you’re stupid.
Heh, imagine if PAS rules Malaysia…
p/s – racist UMNO MP in the Parliament. Keep this in mind the next time you vote. The saddest thing is, MP of Jerai clearly violated a rule but got away just because he is on the side of the majority. This is what we call tryanny of the majority. (via)
Ajax has been drawn into Group B of the Champions League along with Arsenal.
Alright. This is the last throe. No more Arsenal for me. I will no longer associate myself with Arsenal. Screw all English teams from now on. And earlier:
I’m not sure whether that is encouraging or not but according to reports, Ajax played quite well and was simply unlucky. On the side note, Ajax has got to stop playing Arsenal. OMG, every year, it’s all about Arsenal, Arsenal and Arsenal. If Ajax is going to meet Arsenal again this season in the Champions League group stage (of which thank goodness, that prospect is too minute for me too worry on), I’m going to be an ardent supporter of the Red Devils. With van der Sar on that cursed team, I think I could live with that, temporarily.
My ass. Screw all English teams. From Manchester United to Arsenal to Cambridge to whatever teams in the history of English football. I will only support former Ajax players in the EPL. To hell with everything English.
On the bright side though, it is all too possible that Ajax might easily qualify for the next round. Reason is Group B comprises of Ajax, Arsenal, Sparta Prague and Thun of Switzerland. At the very least, second place. With a little luck, even champion of group B. Arsenal has always been overrated in European competition anyway.
More about the Champions League draw is at the new UEFA site.
And oh, the most interesting group is probably Chelsea and Liverpool’s. Both have been drawn into a same cesspool.
Anyway, these are my predictions of whom will go through into the next stage:
Group A: Bayern and Juventus
Group B: Arsenal and Ajax
Group C: Barcelona and somebody. The second club is quite though to predict since the three of the rest, Panathinaikos, Bremen and Udinese do seem equally strong. But I’ll go with Bremen.
Group D: ManUre and Benfica
Group E: Milan and Schalke. PSV might replace Schalke but PSV has been stripped of its firepower. Many of its players are gone.
Group F: Real and Lyon
Group G: Liverpool and Chelsea
Group H: Inter and Porto. Rangers might cut in at Porto’s expense.
p/s – maybe Ajax doesn’t have to worry too much about Arsenal. Somebody at Ajaxtalk, in reaction to my post said:
I hear you but they struggle in the Champions League EVERY year the past few years, even though they seem to have always had a fairly easy group to qualify from, until now…..
Not too worried about them, their most consistent striker is bound for Jail!
Guess who we are talking about at Ajaxtalk. Hint: some Dutchboy that Arsenal bought recently from Feyenoord.
Suddenly, I’m seeing the current negotiation for the new Iraqi Constitution with a certain shade of green.
The United Nations had planned to carry out a conference to rehabilitate of what was once the largest marshland in the world – the Tigris-Eupharates marshes – in Tokyo this week. The conference was expected to be attended by those that are interested in sponsoring the noble effort to care the land of the two rivers. Japan in particular has pledged $11 million for the rehabilitation project. Currently however, according to Associated Press, due to the current situation regarding the Iraqi Constitution, the United Nations has decided to postpone the meeting.
Iraqi politicians haven’t made much progress towards a charter that is agreeable to all sides. On the floor right now in Baghdad, three fractions – the Shiites, the Kurds and the Sunnis – are contending on three major issues – Islam, oil revenue and governance. The US has relented on Islam’s influence on a new constitution. I’m not quite happy with that but the Iraqis deserve to decide their fate for themselves but American’s compromise on Islam has allowed the negotiation to move forwards.
The deadline for negotiation was first set on August 15 but the Iraqis have agreed to give themselves a 7-day extension after failing to show up at their own date. Hence, the next deadline was to be on the 22nd but again, negotiation failed and the Iraqi Parliament gave the negotiators three more days to discuss the charter. The new deadline is looming and major disagreements still exist. With three fractions on three issues, many suspect that the Iraqi politicians will again fail to beat the deadline.
The NYT has said that the imposition of deadline on this issue is unhealthy. Part of me is starting to agree with them.
The difficulty of the issue at hand has led some to speculate the eventuality of civil war. Nobody wants a civil war but already there are sect clashes in Iraq, however minor it might be. And if civil war is an inescapable scenario, effort to restore the marshes will come to a halt.
The restoration project has been going slowly but steadily. Once covered nearly 20,000 sq km, Saddam Hussein audaciously reduced the marshes to less than 10% of the original size. Since the fall of Saddam Hussein, the United Nations Environmental Protection and others have restored up to 40% of the area. With Japan’s aid, it is possible to run the project at a sustainable pace. Yet, all this ultimately depends on the development of the Iraqi Constitution.
At the same time, a civil war will putthe constitution talk to a stop indefinately. Therefore, subsequently, civil war is the last thing that all self-declared greens, and in fact the world, need in Iraq.
The rehabilitation effort must not come to a standstill. It must be carried out until the Garden of Eden on Earth is fully restored to its former glory. For this very reason, all greens should support any effort that might produce a constitution acceptable to all three Iraqi sides.