Steakhouse Stakeout

I am a carnivore, I only eat meat. Red meat. The following is a list of watering holes for steak lovers. The list is not exhaustive as there are many more steakhouses in the city that I have never had the chance to patronise but I think I have found a few worthy of a mention.

Coliseum Café, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman

Step into Coliseum Café and you will be transported back in time. Unlike the KL landscape, the café retains its history, charm and soul. I hope it will stay that way for a long time. I first went to the café 30 years ago and the place still looks the same today. The décor is simple, the chairs don’t match, the tablecloth is old but clean, the salad bowl is plastic. As for the food, I have never had anything other than sizzling steaks. During my most recent visit, I had the Chateaubriand steak, medium well. The brown sauce is superb.

Las Vacas, SS5 Kelana Jaya

Unassuming would be the word to describe this steakhouse cum butchers. Excellent would be the word to describe their steaks. Reasonable is the word to describe its prices. Go to the counter to order and choose your steak. Must go again and again and again.

Big Plate, Subang Permai

A steakhouse in Subang Permai? Subang what? Permai where? Go on a Saturday nite and you’ll end up waiting one hour for your meal. Wagyu beef is not on the menu but the variety of side dishes that comes with the steaks cannot be found elsewhere. Drinks come in huge tumblers. RM100 will get you a nice meal for two plus change. Avoid the pizza and avoid sitting inside if the place is full, it can be quite stuffy. Best time to go is 7.30pm and the best dish is the 'Big Plate Steak'.

Jake’s, Medan Damansara

They have one in Starhill but the prices are more expensive than the one in Damansara. The steaks are nice, making it a very safe choice. I love their escargot.

San Francisco Steakhouse, various locations.

I have been to the one in SS17 Subang Jaya and KLCC. I wasn’t really impressed. Las Vacas and Coliseum are better.

Victoria Station, various locations

Were they ever good? Probably, but my recent visits were quite disappointing to the point I’ve decided not to go there again.

And then there is Prime …

A Man’s House is His Castle

I went out on a “lunch date” a couple of days ago with; let’s call her Siti, because that’s her name, or at least the first part of her name. We ate at a café in a shopping mall near her office. It was a nice outing; we were talking all the way from her office lobby to the café and back to her office lobby. Topics were general, almost everything under the sun, almost.

No, I’m not bragging about my date. There is nothing to brag about and it’s probably not a date. Actually, I was passing some stuff to her and since its lunch time, we decided to have lunch together. Damn, it’s not a date after all!

What I want to talk about is one of the things Siti and me talked about – safety and security.

There has been so many cases of theft and robbery reported in the newspapers lately, from petty thievery like snatching handbags to house break-ins and car thefts, to mention a few. The robbers are getting bolder, my colleague’s girlfriend’s house was broken into in broad daylight in full view of everyone, thank God she was unharmed. There is even this case where two thieving brothers smashed the windscreen of a car at the stoplight to snatch the driver’s handbag. They however didn’t get far because they crashed and died after being chased by the victim and other good Samaritans (actually they got quite far, all the way the meet their Maker). What about the pregnant mom who was killed when thieves snatched her handbag causing her to fall off her bike?

I had a strange experience when I was in Basel recently. I was at a road side café having lunch with a friend and we both decided to go to the men’s room at the same time (no weird ideas please). I wanted to take my jacket with me as my passport was in one of the pockets and the loo was in the main restaurant building. My friend told me not to worry and just leave it there; no–one will take it. So I left it there and it was still there when I came back. That kind of confidence cannot be applied in KL.

Look at our houses, look at the grills and alarms we install just to keep the intruders out. Some even employ guards. Grills in addition to being ugly are also potential traps. We have heard many stories of people dying in a fire trapped by the grills.

Borrowing from Edward Coke (the 17^th century English parliamentarian), Calvin’s dad once said, “a man’s house is his castle but it shouldn't have to be his fortress”.

*this piece was written in August 2009.

Another Piece of History Disappears

Pudu Jail (formerly Pudu Gaol) in Jalan Hang Tuah (formerly Shaw Road), was built and designed in 1891 and completed 1895 led by British state engineer and Director of Public Works Department, Charles Edwin Spooner at a cost of RM 15,360.90 Its design was copied from the Kandy prison in Bogambia, Africa and shaped like a butterfly or X structure.

Every morning for five years I pass Pudu Jail on my way to school. At 10 p.m. 23 June 2010, Pudu Jail is no more.

Amateur Photographer

My feeble attempts at photography. I took the following pictures at Lang Tengah using an Olympus FE-230 camera. According to Will Greenwald (a camera reviewer) the FE-cameras almost completely automate their shots, making them literal point-and-shoot cameras. In other words, it's a camera for dummies. 

Biggest Losers

A few hours ago Portugal trounced North Korea 7 - 0. I was wrong to expect a repeat of the 1966 classic when the Koreans led the Portuguese 3-0 before succumbing to a Eusebio led fightback to lose 5 - 3. Anyway, that seven goal hammering by Ronaldo and company is not good enough to top the records. The World Cup biggest loser is El Salvador who were trashed 10 - 1 by Hungary in Espana 1982. The rest of the biggest losers are;

Zaire 0 - 9 Yugoslavia (1974)
South Korea 0 - 9 Hungary (1954)

Saudi Arabia 0 - 8 Germany (2002)
Cuba 0 - 8 Sweden (1938)

South Korea 0 - 7 Turkey (1954)
Scotland 0 - 7 Uruguay (1954)
Haiti 0 - 7 Poland (1974)

Let's hope for more goals in the coming games ... starting with Spain's game against Honduras :)

Cup of Upsets

First it was Italy, and then Spain followed by Germany and finally Italy again. Everyday the punters lose money and the bookies make more money. This edition of the Copa Mundial keeps true to its tradition of springing surprises not unlike 1982 when Algeria defeated the mighty West Germans only to be cheated out of a place in the second round.

I (and probably the rest of the world) predicted Germany, Italy and Spain to ease through the group matches and I (and probably the rest of the world) have been proven wrong. I must admit I hardly support the underdogs, and was quite frustrated with the heroics of the Kiwis against the Italians and the Swiss against the Spaniards. Parking the bus in the box has always been the game killer, and I often accuse (with proof) the smaller teams for packing the box with 9 players but then again how else would you contain attack after attack, without sending everyone back to defend the goal?  

I have nothing against the Kiwis or the North Koreans but they are ranked 78^th and 105^th respectively by FIFA so I wonder if their participation is justified when teams like Croatia (10^th) and Russia (11^th) are watching the tournament on TV. Whatever it is, the system has brought them to South Africa and they have proven their capability of holding their own in the company of the world’s top teams, its only fair to congratulate them for making the show more interesting.

Despite the upsets and especially the unconvincing display by the Spaniards, my money is still on them. Given the current state of affairs, I won’t be at all surprised if Italy, France and maybe even England get dumped at the group stages.

Micasa Sucasa

That’s Spanish for my house your house.

My house is a very nice house; it has a few bedrooms and bathrooms, an area to receive guests and another area to dine. It also has a kitchen! It cost some hundred thousand Ringgit and hopefully one day it will be worth six figures.

I heard they are building a house costing RM800 million. It comes with a dedicated flyover costing RM130 million. I also heard that initially the house only needed RM450 million to build but after further negotiations with the contractor, the figure ballooned to RM 800 million.

I’m quite disappointed with the revelations. I’m now actually paying for two houses, my house and that house. My employer takes a part of my salary and pays to Lembaga Hasil every month but every March, the e-filing system tells me I owe the Lembaga more money so I pay more money to the Lembaga. I’m sure some of the money I paid to the Lembaga goes towards building that house.

That house will be empty most of the time because the occupants have another house in another town in another state. A new family moves in every five years into the house.  

But wait … there is already a nice house. I used to go eat ikan bakar behind that house. It’s a nice house, I heard there is even a 6 hole golf course within the 28 acre compound.

AND there is another house in Putrajaya. Both the houses are in excellent condition, maintained by a team of PWD directors. So, why the need for another house?

I have no qualms about paying my hard earned money to the Lembaga but please use it wisely. Building live-able houses for the poor would be a good idea.

Do We Need a New Building?

There is this ‘rumour’ that the government is considering moving parliament to Putrajaya; that is, if you believe The Malaysian Insider lah.

The MI report says that the government is considering moving the Parliament to the Putrajaya administrative capital, a move which could cost up to RM800 million. However, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz told reporters that the Cabinet had yet to discuss the relocation. “It’s not decided yet. We will bring it to the Cabinet to be discussed,” he said. He added that the Cabinet would also look into possibly demolishing the current Parliament building. “We will look into every aspect. The Parliament is actually a heritage building so we would have to see if we could demolish it.

The minister said another option would be to refurbish the existing building, which would cost substantially less than a new construction. “We would need the RM150 million for upgrading [works], like fixing the roof and the electricity supply. while for the construction of a new Parliament [building], we might need RM800 million. So we will consider on the best proposal,” Nazri said.

This news/rumour is indeed shocking especially after we have been threatened with bankruptcy if we don’t cut down on our spending.

The current parliament building is one of the first national monuments built after independence. We shouldn’t even think of demolishing it. And what is wrong with convening our national assembly in that building? And what’s with this [bad] habit of demolishing buildings and erasing history? Who is the ‘identified’ contractor for the new parliament building? The existing building is a beautiful piece of architecture, why can’t we just maintain and preserve it for the future generations to enjoy?

Let’s not waste money la ok? We don’t need a new parliament building.

WWF’s SOS (Save Our Seafood)

The World Wildlife Fund recently produced a leaflet listing down the types of seafood we should avoid, not for health reasons but for environmental reasons. Some of the seafood in our waters has been over harvested for the past 20 years and if we do not contribute to ensure their continuous existence, our children might not be able to enjoy delicacies from the ocean that we take for granted today.

Below is some of the species we should avoid over consuming because their numbers are dwindling very fast:

• Silver Pomfret (Bawal Putih) – shouldn’t it be Bawal Perak or White Pomfret?
• Black Pomfret (Bawal Hitam)
• Ray (Pari)
• Threadfin Breams (Kerisi)
• Dorab Wolf-Herring (Parang)
• Flounder (Ikan Sebelah)
• Silver Sillago (Bulus)
• Indian Squid
• Needle Cuttlefish
• Mud Spiny Lobster (Udang Karang)
• Slipper Lobster (Udang Lobok)
• Most types of Grouper
• Brownstripe Red Snapper (Kunyit)

Below is the species we should think twice before consuming:

• Terubuk
• Timun Laut
• Jenahak (my favourite L) (John's Snapper)
• Senangin
• Ketam Bunga
• Ikan Merah
• Udang Putih (Banana Prawn)
• Siakap
• Udang Harimau

The following seafood is currently still in abundance, so I guess we can enjoy them as we please, for now:

• Lala
• Ikan Bilis
• Selar kuning
• Sotong Mengabang
• Belanak
• Tongkol (Tuna)
• Kembong (Indian Mackerel)
• Tenggiri (Spanish Mackerel)
• Cencaru
• Siakap Merah
• Bawal Emas
• Kupang
• Tiram
• Ketam Batu
• Kerapu Tikus
• Kerapu Kertang

What about fish farming? I’m sure they taste almost the same so why can’t we only consume fish/seafood from farms instead of from the ocean? After all we are already eating farm chicken, beef and lamb. The Tilapia (fried crispy) is a fresh water fish but not found in the wild, all the Tilapias sold in this country are from fish farms. I’m sure most of the prawns sold in our markets are from farms too. If I'm not mistaken, most of our Siakap (Seabass) are also farmed. The tasty Patin is definilty farmed, on the banks of the Pahang River in Temerloh. Never buy Patin unless they are from Temerloh!

Maybe we should ban open sea/river fishing and go all out into seafood farming. 

Before anyone asks "what will happen to the poor fishermen? Kesian, they'll lose their punca rezeki and most of them are Malays" (the last part from a Perkasa AJK), let me just say they can be the fish/seafood farmers. 

Size Matters to the Heart

According to a new study published in the European Heart Journal, your height can increase your risk for heart disease.

Tuula Paajanen, MD, a researcher at the Department of Forensic Medicine at the University of Tampere in Finland, and her team conducted the first systematic review and meta-analysis to determine if height is a factor in CHD with a forward look toward “to finding out the possible pathophysiological, environmental and genetic mechanisms behind the association”.

The Finnish researchers analyzed, “the relationship between height and mortality, controlling for age and other traditional risk factors” amongst 52 studies that included 3,012,747 men and women. The average height for men defined as short was 165.4cm and tall 177.5cm; for women, short was 153cm and tall, 166.4cm.

The authors concluded, “short stature was associated with” 1.5 increased likelihood of “cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in both men and women” and intend to “explore possible pathophysiological and genetic background of this peculiar association.”

“The reasons remain open to hypotheses. We hypothesise that shorter people have smaller coronary arteries and smaller coronary arteries may be occluded earlier in life due to factors that increase risk, such as a poorer socioeconomic background with poor nutrition and infections that result in poor foetal or early life growth,” said Paajanen.

“However, recent findings on the genetic background of body height suggest that inherited factors, rather than speculative early-life poor nutrition or birth weight, may explain the association between small stature and an increased risk of heart disease in later life.” Therefore, “we are carrying out further research to investigate these hypotheses,” continued Paajanen.

The researchers wanted to clarify that height is an uncontrollable factor and making healthy lifestyle choices with respect to smoking, drinking, exercise and diet can all impact the risk of heart disease. Plus, “...the average height of populations is constantly increasing, this may have beneficial effect of deaths and illness from cardiovascular disease.”

Jaakko Tuomilehto, MD, MPolSc, PhD, a professor of public health at the University of Helsinki, also published an editorial in the publication of the European Heart Journal and said, “Most of us know approximately our own height ranking, and, if we are at the low end, we should take coronary risk factor control more seriously. On the other hand, tall people are not protected against coronary heart disease, and they also need to pay attention to the same risk factors as shorter people.”

Full study - “Short stature is associated with coronary heart disease: a systematic review of the literature and a meta-analysis”
The above piece is unedited, original write-up from the folowing sources:

[Source: MI and Science Codex]  

Bankrupt? Not if We Plug the Leak

I pity Idris Jala. Ever since he came out with the “we will be bankrupt by 2019” prophecy, he’s been getting bashed from all sides. The latest hit is from his boss PM Najib when the Treasury officers briefed Barisan Nasional (BN) backbenchers in Parliament today and indicated Idris had overstated his case for subsidy cuts with flawed statistics. Why the Treasury officers only briefed BN and not all MPs baffles me. Treasury officers are supposed to be civil servants and not BN servants.

Some commentators have commented that Idris was not too far off the mark when he said cutting subsidies could lower Malaysia’s debts BUT the cuts will only be successful if other leakages are also plugged.

I found some interesting allegations on the www. I wonder if there is any truth in them.

Apparently;

• There is a 20-year interest free loan of RM 320 million given to SYABAS, the Selangor water company.
• In 2008, global price for crude oil is about USD140 per barrel, and the fuel subsidy paid by the government was RM17 billion. Today the global price for crude is about USD70 per barrel, yet the government spent RM23.5 billion on fuel subsidy. Why?   
• Recently the govt has spent RM8 billion on purchasing armoured vehicles and tanks.
• The Auditor-General's Report revealed that the government spent RM500 to purchase 1 unit of screwdriver, the same government car being filled a full tank of petrol twice 1 minute apart.
• In Malaysia, local students take PTPTN loans of about RM21,000 for 3-year undergraduate studies. Foreign students pay only about RM15,000 - RM17,000 for the entire 3 years of studies. The government is subsidising foreign students so that we can become the education hub. Why use taxpayer's money to subsidise foreign students?

And finally,

According to Pemandu’s figures, total subsidies per household amounted to RM12,900 but the Finance Ministry said the amount of subsidies per household is only RM3,246. Sapa yang betul ni?

Since the statistics were gathered from the www, it may not be entirely correct but even if there is a grain of truth in it, then maybe there is something wrong with how this country is being managed.

Free Zone

Riddle – what is Free but yet cost RM12billion?

Bernama (the national news agency) reported that newly appointed Transport Minister YB Dato’ Seri Kong Cho Ha said there is NO NEED for further investigation into the PKFZ scandal. Kong says the previous investigation into the issue was sufficient thus further investigation into it was not necessary. He also said he would take time to study the issue to understand all about the scandal.

The minister's exact words (as quoted by Bernama was “I think (we have) enough of the investigation, enough of all the study. All had been done on this issue so I don’t think there is any need for further re-look into it”.

Sam asks;

• If there is no need for further investigation does that mean those responsible have been identified and will be brought to book?
• The Hon. Minister admitted he needs time to study and understand the issue but how can he study and understand if he does not investigate? Is he saying he’ll rely on the existing already available reports?
• If the minister admits to not understanding the issues involved, how could he justify stopping further probe on something he himself doesn’t understand?
• What happened to Dato Wira Chor Chee Heung?

Alor Setar MP and former PKA Chairman Dato Wira (warrior?) Chor Chee Heung was elevated to a full minister last week. In July last year, Dato’ Chor was summoned to appear before Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) which was probing the PKFZ project which was initially estimated to cost RM1.96 billion but ended up costing RM12.45 billion. The PwC report mentioned that there could have possibly been a conflict of interest, since Chor was both non-executive deputy chairman of Wijaya Baru Global Bhd (WBGB) and chairman of PKA. WBGB is linked to PKFZ’s main developer Kuala Dimensi Sdn Bhd (KDSB). [source: here].

The most important question is – how do we get back the billions wasted on the project?

God of Gamblers

Three weeks ago or so, there was a lot of hoo haa when the government announced that the sports betting licence has been re-awarded to Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd. NGOs suddenly appear out of no where to condemn the move. PR led governments immediately announced that they will ban sports betting in their states. Everyone seems to have something to say about the issue.

Today a different story surfaced … apparently, no licence was issued to Ascot.

The Star – The government has yet to issue or give the licence to Syarikat Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd to carry out football betting operations in Malaysia, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

Najib, who is also the Finance Minister, said the government had also not finalised discussions on the licensing terms and conditions with the company to undertake bookie activities in Malaysia.

Malaysian Insider – The Finance Ministry today denied awarding a sports betting licence to tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan's Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd despite earlier reports that the company will accept wagers for next season's English Premier League.

In a written reply in Parliament by Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, who is also Prime Minister, to questions from four MPs, the ministry said the government has not yet concluded its discussions and terms regarding the legalisation of sports betting.

But yesterday it was reported that tycoon Tan Sri Vincent Tan will donate the proceeds of RM525mil from the proposed sale of his 70% stake in Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd to a foundation he has renamed “Better Malaysia Foundation.’’

On the 14^th of May, Sin Chew Daily reported Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Chor Chee Heung as saying “Now, the Government has discovered that people are interested in sports betting regardless of whether the activities were legal or not. Therefore, the Government has to reissue a sports gaming licence to fight illegal sports gaming activities,”

So, what is going on? Was there a licence or not? Is this a policy u-turn by the government after seeing the objections from the public, including non-Muslims?

I’ve never agreed on gambling, legal or otherwise. Maybe it’s due to my risk averse nature. Mostly it’s due to my fear of taking too much risk. And of course my religion prohibits maisir so gambling is a no-no. I also know you can never beat the house, so the punters will always lose and the bookies/casinos will always make money.

In a plural society with unlimited freedom of choice guaranteed by the constitution, it would be difficult to ban all forms of gambling completely. If I was the government, I would restrict gambling opportunities, limit the number of Magnum and Toto outlets to maybe one per district and any district with Muslim population exceeding 51% cannot have any gambling outlets. Close all the other race courses and keep only one with monthly race days instead of weekly. Increase gaming taxes and make it compulsory for gaming companies to maintain at least one waste management facility in every state. One armed bandits and jackpot machines in private clubs will also be heavily taxed. Severe penalties will be imposed on illegal gambling operators. Severe mean those convicted of running illegal gambling operations should expect to face at least 5 years in jail and a fine of not less than RM500,000 and will have to undertake at least 500 hours of community service in the form of cleaning public toilets.

Given the underworld connections of the illegal bookies, I’d probably have a price on my head …

Reds Hot Seat

It is not a complete surprise that LFC and Rafa Benitez have finally parted company. Having said that, I don’t think Rafa’s six years at Anfield was a complete disaster; he brought in 2 major trophies, got into 2 CL finals and came in second in the league in 2009. In fact his record for the last 6 years is better than Arsene Wenger who has not won anything since 2005’s FA Cup.

Every LFC manager since Bill Shankly has won at least one trophy during their tenure. Even Roy Evans’ short stint saw him bring the League Cup to Anfield. Graeme Souness may have dismantled Dalglish’s winning team but Liverpool won the 1992 FA cup under his guidance. All in all, Rafa did better than Souness and Evans.

Now that Benitez is an ex-manager, who should take his seat? Sammy Lee was never in contention, so we can count the ‘boot room boys’ out. Apart from King Kenny, no other ex-player has the credentials, maybe Phil Thompson comes close but his name is not mentioned. Gary Ablett is short of top flight experience and Paul Ince didn’t impress at Blackburn Rovers.

A club of LFC’s stature need a high profile manager and I don’t think Roy Hodgson is high profile enough. With all due respect, Roy is a good manager but I don’t think he is a big club manager. He can (and has) work wonders with a small-ish club like Fulham but I can’t see him doing the same at Liverpool. If he is appointed, I seriously hope I’m very wrong about him.

Guus Hiddink has firmly said no (for now) and there is no way David Moyes is crossing Stanley Park to Anfield. Martin O’Neill’s name comes up all the time but he’s having a good time at Villa (or so the paper says), so we can count him out too. Marcello Lippi is an interesting name; he is a very successful coach but has never managed a team outside Italy. Juergen Klinsmann like Lippi has never coached outside Germany but he has played (well) in almost every league in Europe giving him a slight advantage over the other prospective candidates.  Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler somehow thinks Harry Redknapp is the man for the job.

I personally would like to see Kenny Dalglish (thats him in the black and white photo) back as manager. Failing that, Klinsmann would be my second choice.

2010 FIFA World Cup Champion

My money is on Spain to win the 2010 World Cup. En-route to the finals, Torres, Villa, Casillas et al will top Group H, beat Portugal in the second round, demolish Italy in the quarters and end Germany’s campaign in the semis. In the final, Dunga’s boys will be conquered by the Spanish Armada.

My other predictions:

• England will lose to France in the second round.
• Mechanical Germany will beat Argentina in the second round
• Only four African teams will make it to the second round and all will lose in the second round
• No Asian team will progress beyond the group stages
• Fernando Torres will be the tournament’s top scorer

I will pay for my Mini Cooper on July 12^th …

Melayu Boleh

Dato’ Jema Khan has this to say about Perkasa and its struggles vis-à-vis that of a Liberal Malay:

The essence of Perkasa’s ideology, if one can even call it that, is to make the Malays feel like the master race in the country. As the master race, all that belongs to the country belongs to them. They, of course, have yet to get their just desserts.

Even if they had already got it before, they still want it now because they presumably were not able to make much of the benefits they once enjoyed. Their demands, though, are cloaked under the guise of the poverty and disabilities of the Malays in Malaysia.

The Perkasa mindset plays on the Malays’ fears that without rent seeking, corruption, subsidies and abuse of power, the Malays are doomed. Yes, the Malays are generally poor but the so-called affirmative action as proposed by Perkasa will not make the majority of them better off.

The liberal Malays, on the other hand, are well exposed to other races and nationalities. We are confident of ourselves in relation to other people. We have long left behind the village mindset and are disdainful of being the village champion as we know there is a great big world out there, with many who are indeed smart and capable human beings. Yet we welcome an environment that is based on meritocracy.

I am inclined to agree with him on both counts. Not because I disagree with Perkasa’s philosophies and their ideas but because I feel that rights should be earned and should not be a birth right.

Let’s consider this; a king has three sons and technically the eldest has the birth right to the throne. However, if the eldest son hasn’t got the traits of a leader, wouldn’t it be better for the country if the king chose any other (more qualified) son (or even a daughter) to succeed him? The eldest son is only entitled to the throne if he is fit to wear the crown, meaning he has to work to earn the right. Likewise the Malays. We cannot just sit back and expect university places and scholarships to be reserved for us. We cannot expect equity ownership to be given to us without lifting a finger to build the business. We cannot expect jobs to be given to us even when we are not qualified (or interested). We can only claim what we work for; we can only claim the fruits of our efforts.

I am not saying the Malays are a lazy bunch. The truly successful Malays did not get where they are by just demanding and claiming everything is their birth right. The successful Malays got where they are by putting in real effort. By saying successful Malays, I’m not talking about the rent seekers or the IPO beneficiaries. I’m talking about those who took advantage of the government policies to free themselves from the “crutches” and make a better life for themselves.

Affirmative actions are necessary to lift the standards of living of those economically left behind but it should not be a permanent feature of society. Children of NEP beneficiaries (like myself) should not be demanding that the government continue to provide us with special privilages. The policies instituted by Tun Razak helped to put our parents on a sound economic footing and in turn our parents are able to provide us with the necessary tools i.e. education and worldview to survive in this challenging world. That should be sufficient and it is not fair for us to continue to demand for special privileges.

The Malays in Singapore are probably as successful as we are but they did it without any special assistance, no NEP and no quotas. It’s about time we prove to the world that Melayu Malaysia pun Boleh!

Top 10 Things People Do While Driving

The Danish mobile phone headset company Jabra published survey results on May 27 showing how drivers are constantly distracted. They surveyed North Americans, Europeans and Asians, learning that people do a lot of odd things while driving, including:

1) 72 per cent admitted to eating food regularly

2) 29 per cent of respondents admitted to kissing others

3) 28 per cent confirmed they sent/read text messages

4) 25 per cent admitted to changing clothes

4) 25 per cent admitted to styling their hair or changing clothes while the car is in motion

6) 15 per cent said they had sex or [performed] other sexual acts

7) 13 per cent reported they apply makeup

8) 12 per cent admitted to writing or reading emails

9) 10 per cent also reported reading newspapers or magazines

10) 5 per cent confessed to playing video games

10) 5 per cent have shaved

Israel’s Attack on Us All — Jonathan Cook (www.counterpunch.org)

JUNE 1 — Nazareth. It is quite astounding that Israel has been able to create over the past 12 hours a news blackout, just as it did with its attack on Gaza 18 months ago, into which our main media organisations have willingly allowed Israeli spokespeople to step in unchallenged.

How many civilians were killed in Israel’s dawn attack on the Gaza-bound flotilla of aid? We still don’t know. How many wounded? Your guess is as good as mine.

Were the aid activists armed with guns? Yes, says Israel. Were they in cahoots with al-Qaeda and Hamas? Certainly, says Israel. Did the soldiers act reasonably? Of course, they faced a lynch, says Israel.

If we needed any evidence of the degree to which Western TV journalists are simply stenographers to power, the BBC, CNN and others are amply proving it. Mark Regev, Israel’s propagandist-in-chief, has the airwaves largely to himself.

The passengers on the ships, meanwhile, have been kidnapped by Israel and are unable to provide an alternative version of events. We can guess they will remain in enforced silence until Israel is sure it has set the news agenda.

So before we get swamped by Israeli hasbara let’s reiterate a few simple facts:

* Israeli soldiers invaded these ships in international waters, breaking international law, and, in killing civilians, committed a war crime. The counter-claim by Israeli commanders that their soldiers responded to an imminent “lynch” by civilians should be dismissed with the loud contempt it deserves.

* The Israeli government approved the boarding of these aid ships by an elite unit of commandoes. They were armed with automatic weapons to pacify the civilians onboard, but not with crowd dispersal equipment in case of resistance. Whatever the circumstances of the confrontation, Israel must be held responsible for sending in soldiers and recklessly endangering the lives of all the civilians onboard, including a baby and a Holocaust survivor.

* Israel has no right to control Gaza’s sea as its own territorial waters and to stop aid convoys arriving that way. In doing so, it proves that it is still in belligerent occupation of the enclave and its 1.5 million inhabitants. And if it is occupying Gaza, then under international law Israel is responsible for the welfare of the Strip’s inhabitants. Given that the blockade has put Palestinians there on a starvation diet for the past four years, Israel should long ago have been in the dock for committing a crime against humanity.

Today Israel chose to direct its deadly assault not only at Palestinians under occupation but at the international community itself.

Will our leaders finally be moved to act? — www.counterpunch.org

*  Jonathan Cook is a writer and journalist based in Nazareth, Israel. His latest books are “Israel and the Clash of Civilisations: Iraq, Iran and the Plan to Remake the Middle East” (Pluto Press) and “Disappearing Palestine: Israel’s Experiments in Human Despair“ (Zed Books). His website is www.jkcook.net.