Can the world be healed?

Lately I have been musing on the state that our world seems to be in, large gaps better the haves and have nots, food shortages, fuel shortages, wars, terrorism, starvation, diseases, a spike in the crime rate and a whole host of other problems.
there should be something wrong when some people can throw away steaks that are 'left' for 5 minutes and yet there are millions of others around the world that have to seek their next meals in the trash. It is rather a sad situation where the world has enough food for all it's people and yet not all of it's people are getting food..somewhere along the line of human history a sort of survival of the fittest mentality has taken shape, 'survival of the fittest' seems to be the rule of the day where people fight to stay on top of a mountain and do not care on who they have to step on to get there. We all have grown so selfish (this writer included) caring only of our personal needs and whining as if we are going thru the biggest pain in the world, for example the person that complains bout the fact that they will be furthering their studies abroad because they will miss home, they have an arguement, but spare a thought for those that can't afford an education those that has to be given away to orphanages just so they can go to school, seems fictional? It is real, it is happening right next door in Indonesia. Closer to home people in the interior areas of East Malaysia sometimes dont even have desk to sit on to study, sitting on the floor is the rule of the day, did they complain? NO.....so who gave us the right to complain bout the fact that we will be 'far away from home' when in reality we will come home every month or so?

certain places the poor have to sell thier children just to make ends meet, some resort to selling their body parts such as kidneys and all just so they can get their next meal. The world is in a very sorry state with no end in apparent sight.....I could go on and on complaining bout the state of the world , the fact that many are homeless due to conflict in Darfur, Palestine, Iraq, Afganistan and closer to home Southern Thailand. World peace remains elusive, nations get bullied and pushed around on the international level because , yet again it is survival of the fittest.

Back home in Malaysia, corruption seems to be the sourge of the country, an estimate by JP Morgan puts the figure at RM432 BILLION lost to corruption over the years. Who's money is this supposed to be? Not the elite but the nation's money, meant for the poor and the downthrodden, corruptions steals from the people that should be aided by the money, with that figure image the hospitals, schools and other public ammenities that can be provided, yet again it is survival of the fittest, those already in power uses their power to stay in power by robbing, yes robbing, from the poor in the country. Then there is the treament of migrant workers and the high level of rape and prostituition, are our human values so eroded that we decend to the level of animals and giving in to lust, without demand the flesh trade will stop, men should treat women with respect and not some1 u can pay for a one night stand...

I could go on and on about the problems plaguing our world, but the question is, can anything be done to stop these things from happening?? The problem is basically human instinct, most people say it is human nature to get ahead of the rest....It is true btw, without competition there will not be any progress, but how sweet is progress if half the world is still left behind. I frankly dont seem to have much ideas about this matter because we cannot please everybody but things should be done for the greater good and not the good of the individual, for the community and not the person, but even I am a hyprocrite when it comes to this matter, we are all talk but no action, another reason why the world is where it is now. But there are individuals who put others before themselves, people such as Nelson Mandela, mother Theresa and Martin Luther King. The civilians that would help wounded enemy troops, this are all signs that there is still hope in this world, and that it might possibly be saved. As I am writing this the famous 'heal the world' song from Michael Jackson comes to mind
Heal the world, Make it a better place
for you and for me, and the entire human race,
There are people dying, if you care enough for the living,
So make a better place for you and for me

I hope we all could have the resolve to strive and make this world a better place, together!!!

the debate

Usually I don't blog much about politics but today has to be an exception, for the 1st time in the history of this Country a pressing National Issue is debated under life public telecast........Althought this is the norm in some countries throughout the world, it is something that we sorely lack...
The topic of the day was on the fuel price hike, something which affects the livelyhood of many of us in this country and well I shall include the rest of the world as well.....
The debate was between the De-facto Opposition leader (not to be confused with the post of Opposition leader) and our new information minister.
This is now my personal view on the debate, both sides seem to have points which were not addressed by the other party, the point raised by the Opposition leader that went unanswered is the fact that if corrupt practices are reduced then the government would have more money to tackle the fuel price increase, this point went unanswered by the government rep.
The minister did ask quite a good question though, what happens when Malaysia becomes a net oil importer, what shall we do then?? Althought Mr. Anwar should be congratulated for trying to address the issue it still remains unanswered, but overall I feel that the opposition leader seemed to have won this round as many of his point went unanswered, kudos to him.
As for the minister? I find it rather disgraceful that a member of the cabinet has to stoop to personal attacks when he can't answer a point, this does not bode well for the nation when our minister uses such tactics in the debate instead of addressing the issue at hand which was the fuel price and the economy...
He also compares Malaysia with both ends of the fuel price spectra, Venezuala and Europe, (for the uninitiated Venezuala has the lowest fuel prices in the world while Europe has the highest)
This is where I thought Mr. Anwar really controlled the debate.

Mr minister: Venezuala has low fuel prices but high Inflation.

Opp leader: BUT MALAYSIA HAS HIGH FUEL PRICES AND HIGH INFLATION.

Mr Minister: Countries like Finland, Norway has much higher fuel prices than Malaysia but yet they have a low inflation rate.

Opp Leader: They have a percapita Income 10 times higher than Malaysia.

Based on the answers given by we can see who the real gentleman is and who's the better debater and who is the better choice for our nation.

But the sad thing about Malaysian politics is the fact that a lot of it revolves around race, it is sad that 50 years on we are still having communal sentiments calling ourselves, Malays, Chinese, Indians, Bidayuhs, Ibans and lots more instead of the fact that we are all Malaysians 1st and foremost.

2008 the year that America might be electing it's 1st black president, Malaysia is still stuck in it's racial quagmire which seems to have no sign of abetting.

and there is also the possiblity that the de-facto opp leader might be arrested 2mrw, it is not rumours I saw it on the 8pm news, well we just have to wait and see,
Here's hoping for a better Malaysia

The boring days

Haven't had a new post in here for quite some time, probably because I have nothing to post about, everyday it is the same old routine.....I think I have too much time on my hands but too little stuff to do, sleep at 2am every night and wake up at 10am. 10am mostly to watch parliament proceedings as sometimes it does get amusing.....I really wish I got something interesting to do so I can blog about, maybe I'll blog about TV programmes, yea that is possible
till the next post, chao

Stuck in MidValley

Today after our farewell gathering for Alex I had to head back home via the KTM Komuter trains. Well as I stepped on to the platform I heard to announcer say "train ke Seremban telah mengalami gangguan waktu perjalanan kerana masalah teknikal". I was like "WTH? now what am I supposed to do in MidValley till the service resumes, so I went and had Mc D first....hmmmmm the new double chicken Mc Deluxe was certainly great....
Then received a msg from Amanda ' shoot, Alias Grace'....... I was supposed to pass her the Alias Grace Literature text book but I kept forgetting....so dashed across the complex and headed to the south court to pass her the book, saw Perasanth, Justin and Devan there too..they were trying to get a cab..
so after that I went back to the crowded KTM station, since I already complain much about the KTM in the previous post I wont do so here. so I sat there with nth but a cell phone with me......so what else could a person do with a cellphone in such a situation except text message or play games....since I phone lacked the latter I had to make do with texting...... Thanks Rachel for actually spending time to Text with me.... I owe u one.... anyways had to wait for almost 2 hours before boarding the train...but thanks to Rach and a few others such as Mei San and Alexander the wait didnt seem that long, thanks guys.,.....I blogged this just out of randomness

KTM blues

It's time to really start blogging, at first I thought about blogging on our trip to MidValley (yet again) as it was the last outing with our very own 'Uncle' Alex, but something happened at the end of the day to make me change my plans.......

It involves the bane of many KLites, dont know what I am talking bout? Well then I guess u must be one of the lucky one that do not have to ride one of the most unreliable train systems in the world.... THE KTM KOMUTER....

When KTM started it's commuter train service it touted itself as being a clean, efficient and reliable way to bring in people from Kuala Lumpur's suburbs into the city itself, but over time this system which once proudly boasted that it runs with 'German Punctuality' (the Germans must be really embarrassed by this) has ran into dissaray, most probably due to our typical Malaysian Mentality....we build the biggest and the best.....but eventually it will detiorate due to our notoriously bad mantainance system....from our public toilets to the commuter train, from the humble dustbins to our world class sports complex it all has fallen into disuse by this build and leave mentality, but I'll save that for another post, as for now it is time to flame KTMB.

If you are one of the unfortunates that have to put up with the KTM you'll most probably agree with me that the train almost never comes on time, it is as if the ETA on those blue flashy boards are for display purposes only, wow we Malaysians certainly have a knack for expensive ornaments (large metallic flowers anyone?) On usual days the train would be delayed by a few minutes to half an hour....This is normal and must be factored in if we want to have an accurate estimate of our travelling time, for example if classes or work starts at 8 and the train ride would take u 20 mins to get there, u must be at the station at around 6.30am if u want to be on time (remember factor in the half an hour delay sometimes more). This delays are at a tolerable level as it has been taken in as a normal way of live, but remember...it wasnt always like this I'll elaborate on that later.

and then there are the monster delays, delays streching for hours on end, these delays would cause the crowds at KL sentral station and many other stations on the network to swell to epic purportions, the crowds at this station could probably be compared to the crowd at a North Korean workers day parade.. hmmmm maybe not, but still the conditions at the station will get so bad that it is hardly bearable for a country that wants to acheive developed nation status in the year 2020, the poor ventilation, high density of people and the iritated commuters are some of the most pressing of all problems at those instances... when u have so many combustible elements together it will certainly not bode well...There were many instances where tempers would start to flare up.

Then there is the frequency of the train, usually when one rides the LRT or the Monorail missing a train does not matter as the next train is merely 5 minutes away (at most) sometimes it is only a minute apart, but for the KTM missing one train would mean having to sit at a station where we are exposed to all the elements in all their fury for 20 minutes at least, but usually (as mentioned earlier) it will take around 30 mins, this is certainly a major put off for the consumers...... the frequency of the trains used to be 1 every 15 minutes but due to the Malaysian Boleh attitude the once sufficient fleet of 62 trains has dwindled to just 28....this certainly puts extra strain on the already overworked train......which by virtue of being overworked becomes unsafe and hence dangerous to us, the consumers....

and then some smart aleck decided to run before they can even run properly, even before the complaints above can be rectified they decided to add extra stations to the already long route, it is really crazy because they cannot even properly run the Rawang-Seremban and Klang-Sentul route and yet they wanna add stations all the way the Kuala Kubu Bahru, really brilliant stuff here..... in a later post I will elaborate on why this is a problem..

As a conclusion to this rather long piece on the KTM, I would like to request those that decided to ask the public to change their lifestyle and take public transport to first come experience the problem faced by the rakyat firsthand instead of sitting in their chaffeur driven beemers and Merc and tell the rest of the population (who voted them in btw) to ride this rickety old service!!!

IMPROVE THE KTM!!!!

It's Spain

Spain became European champions for the second time after Fernando Torres's first-half goal in Vienna proved enough to defeat Germany in the final of UEFA EURO 2008™.
History an inspirationSpain had won their only previous piece of silverware in this competition in 1964 and had not been beyond the quarter-finals of any tournament in 24 years, yet Luis Aragonés's men chose to use that history as an inspiration rather than a burden. After a strong start from Germany, seeking a fourth title themselves, Spain were the more dangerous side throughout an entertaining final at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion although it took just one goal – in the 33rd minute, courtesy of Torres's pace, perseverance and unerring finish – to end their long wait.
Ballack boostGermany received a significant boost before kick-off with captain Michael Ballack included despite a much-publicised calf problem, and, perhaps buoyed by that news, Joachim Löw's team settled quickly. Much had been made of the contrast in style between the sides yet in the opening exchanges it was Germany whose passing looked crisper, Miroslav Klose and Thomas Hitzlsperger failing to make the most of glimpses of goal. Meanwhile Spain, shorn of four-goal leading scorer David Villa due to a thigh injury, struggled to find their feet in a new 4-5-1 formation in which Cesc Fàbregas was rewarded for a fine semi-final display with a starting place.
Instinctive stopAs an indicator of the pattern of the match, however, Germany's bright beginning proved misleading. Spain soon worked their way into the contest, with Germany goalkeeper Jens Lehmann – becoming, at 38, the oldest player to appear in a UEFA European Championship final – forced into action for the first time in the 14th minute. Although his instinctive save came when his own defender, Christoph Metzelder, inadvertently deflected Andrés Iniesta's cross towards his own goal, Xavi Hernández's fine through pass had unpicked the Germany defence and showed the Spanish were finding their feet.
Torres on targetRight-back Sergio Ramos was then allowed to cut inside and deliver a deep cross, Torres peeling away from Per Mertesacker to create space for the header only for the right-hand post to come to Lehmann's rescue. The warning signs were there for Germany, yet they failed to heed them and duly fell behind three minutes past the half-hour. Again Xavi was the architect, playing a pass in behind the Germany back line towards Torres, who outmuscled a hesitant Philipp Lahm and clipped the ball over the diving Lehmann and just inside the far post. David Silva then volleyed over Iniesta's cross when given time and space inside the area as Spain threatened to increase their lead.
Spain openingsSpain had more openings in the early stages of the second half, Lehmann getting the merest of touches to Xavi's low shot before Ramos nearly guided in Silva's drive from the resulting corner. Yet a hint of the threat Germany still posed arrived on the hour, substitute Marcell Jansen and Bastian Schweinsteiger combining for Ballack to shoot centimetres wide. Klose then deflected a Schweinsteiger effort past the post and, in response to Germany's renewed menace, Spain coach Aragonés promptly introduced Xabi Alonso and Santi Cazorla in place of Fàbregas and Silva. The switches reinvigorated Spain instantly, Lehmann making smart stops from Ramos and Iniesta while Torsten Frings blocked another Iniesta effort on the line.
CelebrationsAs the final moved into the last 20 minutes, Spain had had seven shots on goal to Germany's one, but with the Mannschaft having turned virtually one in two of their attempts on target into goals en route to the final, that would have been scant consolation to Aragonés and his side. In the event, however, it was Spain who continued to carve out chances as the match reached its conclusion, Marcos Senna narrowly failing to apply the finishing touch to an unselfish header from substitute Daniel Güiza – but the celebrations would not be delayed much longer.