Lat, the Kampung Boy. A picture is worth a thousand political speeches.

A bit of news about our Ipoh-mali (well, sort-of lah) cartoonist, Lat.

Lat, The Kampung Boy, A Hit In Washington DC

WASHINGTON, Oct 24 (Bernama) -- Lat, Malaysia's famous cartoonist, drew a crowd of Malaysian and American fans here Tuesday who could not get enough of his depiction of the simple life of a kampung boy in Kampung Lalang in Kota Baru, Perak.

Datuk Mohammed Nor Khalid, better known as Lat, who is here to promote his Kampung Boy and Town Boy books published in English by the First Second, a publishing company in New York, talked about his simple childhood. - Bernama

One of the things I've always loved about Lat was that his insights on Malaysians of all races and Malaysian life in general are so on the money, so compelling, that it hits the nail on the head like a pneumatic nailgun. Each cartoon manages to articulate a socio-political comment that is clear and concise, but at the same time, is not abrasive and makes his 'victims' laugh at themselves rather then get defensive. A talent that Malaysia needs more than ever... (tell me about it ;p)

Good luck and fair winds, datuk.

Show me your Sloggi, baby

Damn, the Japs have all the fun. Reckon we'll see a similar contest here anytime soon? Show me your Sloggi, baby.

An 18-year-old girl, Kaho Watanabe, was surprisingly crowned "Japan's best bottom" babe at Triumph International's "Show Me Your Sloggi" Japan contest held on Tuesday (October 16, 2007) in Tokyo after a freak accident scorched her rump days before the contest.

Besides posing in Sloggi bras and panties, ten contestants in the Japan contest, who passed the preliminary selection out of 112 online entries, showed off their skills such as dancing, playing an instrument, and even singing a traditional enka song in a skimpy S&M type of costume. - Mainichi Daily News

The only colours that matter are Red, White and Blue

Something uplifting from the states.

I like the governor-elect's quote:

"People want to make everything about race. The only colours that matter here are red, white and blue," he said last week, referring to the colours of the American flag.

If only some of our politicians had that sort of maturity and spirit.

And what's more apt is that the colours quoted [red, white and blue] apply equally to Malaysians, since we did a Mamula Moon on the American flag as well.

Iceman winneth... 2007 F1 World Driver's Championship

Kimi Raikkonen finally wins it. Hail the 2007 F1 World Driver's Champion.

Other reading...

The battle: Kimi beats Lewis to maiden title glory

The aftermath: McLaren appeal puts title result in doubt

Angkasawan nothing more than lab rat

We've been bombarded by all sorts of cheerleading news about our Angkasawan's progress. For eg. this ridiculous report from Malaysiakini about eating Hari Raya goodies in space.

I'm no Houston Mission Commander, but aren't their diets very, very tightly controlled?

I'm pretty sure that astronauts (and space flight participants) really... REALLY don't need a bout of diarrhea in space. Especially when there's no gravity to make sure everything ends up neatly in the toilet bowl, instead of say.., the ceiling or smeared all over your arse. And the time it takes to get out a space suit will probably feel like an eternity when barbarians are at the door, and you really need to take a crap... and take it right now.

Anyway, here's something more interesting I read from Bernama about the details of our Angkasawan's "research".

Malaysian astronaut Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Sheikh Mustapha, who is currently at the International Space Station (ISS), is also assisting the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) in their research.

OK, sounds good so far.

National Angkasawan Programme Director Col Dr Zulkeffeli Mat Jusoh said the research involved the effects of microgravity and solar radiation on the astronaut's body system.

And that's the first clue that our spaceman is not conducting research as such, but merely subjecting his own body to 'research'.

It goes downhill from there...

"The ESA research is on the effects of microgravity on the back portion of the body, movement perception, resilience before and after the ISS trip and the stability of visibility and the body," he told Bernama when contacted in Moscow today.

Effects of microgravity on the back portion of the body... got any back pain?

Movement perception... how's your hand eye coordination?

Resilience before and after the ISS trip... any changes to your health due to the space flight, Mr participant?

Stability of visibility... any blurry vision? Double vision? Cross-eyed?

Stability of the body... can stand and walk straight?

The JAXA study is on the level of exposure to radiation by the astronaut in space.

"JAXA introduced a gadget which is placed in the astronaut's shirt pocket to study the radiation level," he said.

Put a rad sensor in your pocket and THAT'S IT? I mean, how complicated is that? Isn't the sole requirement for successfully 'conducting this research' simply remembering to wear a shirt that has a pocket?

Heck, I'm no expert on the intricate techniques of space bound research.., but it sure sounds to me like our Angkasawan is no more than a convenient test subject on which to conduct some physiological experiments into the effects of space travel on humans.

A crash test dummy, a laboratory rat, a Durex condom tester, a tube of glucose gel to grow a colony of fungus in. He's subject matter rather than subject expert.

And we PAID 95 million ringgit for the privilege of being experimented on like Bubbles the chimp?!

Majulah Program Angkasawan Nasional. Damn, I'm proud. Aren't you?

Other reading:
Angkasawan selection process - brains or brawn?
Astrocannot is also Cosmocannot
Our Malaysian Astrocannot
Outer Space - The Final Frontier for Malaysia Bodoh... oops Boleh

3.1 Megawatts of lighting for S'pore F1 GP Night Race

The obscene Happy Balls palace (Istana Zakar-ria)

How else can one describe Happy Balls Zakaria's palace, except with the word "obscene"?

Besides being disgusted with how he manipulated 400 orphans to show off his wealth, there's also a couple of questions I like to ask:

1. Why isn't the ACA or IRB curious where he got the money from to build this architectural monstrosity? Why hasn't the ACA's probe into Happy Ball's illegal residence, unpaid assessments, illegal restaurant and his tenure as a councillor been finalised? Has the investigation even gotten off the ground?

2. Has Happy Balls benefited from any of the 'poverty eradication' programs under the NEP? Has he gotten any govt contracts or licences meant for 'disadvantaged' bumiputras? Has he received any bumiputra discounts on the purchase of property? Has any of his 11 kids been given govt scholarships?

Is the objective of the NEP to produce Happy Balls and other filthy rich people like him, with taxpayer money? And the govt wonders why so many people are against the NEP?!

From The Star: The mansion has 21 bathrooms and 16 bedrooms, where his 11 children would occupy one each.

Palatial: Zakaria’s brightly lit mansion.

There's a jacuzzi in the master bedroom's bathroom.

Cool sight: A swimming pool is part of the facilities at the mansion.

Spacious: The master bedroom has a changing room as well as a jacuzzi.

Besides this, the mansion also has a swimming pool, several gazebos, an orchard, a two-hole mini golf course, a VIP room, three living rooms, a prayer room, an office, a store room, two rooms for maids, a dining room, a wet kitchen and a dry kitchen.

Holding a red IC, but a Malaysian by any other name.

I think it'll be very interesting to do an objective comparison of the number of people who have been granted Malaysian citizenship or permanent residence in the 50 years since independence. Compare the figures of those who have applied, and those whose applications were accepted and rejected in terms of their home countries, racial and religious backgrounds, and political affinities.

The immigration dept and home ministry should also be compelled to reveal their reasons for accepting and rejecting citizenship and residence applications. I'm sure red IC holders like Mr Kon (ref to article below), anyone who has ever married a foreigner and all Malaysians would be very, very interested in their reasoning.

Born in KL in 1949 but still not a citizen
The Star

KUALA LUMPUR: Kon Foo Chin, 58, has always called Malaysia home.

Born in 1949 in Kuala Lumpur to a Chinese immigrant father and a Malaysian mother, Foo Chin calls himself a Malaysian – but his red identity card (IC) and the authorities say otherwise.

“He applied for citizenship in the 1960s, but the only problem was that he failed the Bahasa Malaysia test which he took as a young man."

“Not being granted citizenship has been difficult because my father does not get the same kind of privileges that citizens get. Applying and renewing passport is one example,” said his son Kek Heong, 29, when contacted Tuesday.

He said his father had filled in the application forms and attached the necessary documents, including his father's birth certificate and his grandmother's death certificate in his application for Malaysian citizenship. Foo Chin's five children and even his siblings all hold MyKads, but he is still waiting.

And Foo Chin is not alone.

According to Federal Territory MCA Youth deputy chairman Yee Poh Ping, he estimated that some 200,000 Chinese residents in Malaysia are still holding red ICs.

“Most of them are senior citizens who have been living in Malaysia for many years. Some have been here even before Independence. Over the years, they have paid their taxes and contributed to the Malaysian economy, and their families are all here,” he told the press yesterday.

Religious bullying (1) Filial piety (0).

Apparently, this miscarriage of justice and filial piety has been dragging on for 7 years.

A non-Muslim soldier (E. Ragu) serves in the army and names his mother (Rukumony Muthiah) the beneficiary of his army insurance under a trust deed. 7 months before his death, he converts to Islam but does not revoke the trust deed. In accordance with the trust deed, the mother claims the proceeds of his insurance policy, but Koperasi Angkatan Tentera has seen fit to set aside this legal arrangment (under civil law) by invoking the argument that under syariah law, a non-Muslim cannot inherit the property of a Muslim. Read NST and Malaysiakini for the background.

At the crux of the matter is whether a conversion to Islam conveniently erases all the legal responsibilities, under civil law, that the convert had entered into before his/her conversion?

Here's a fictitious example that illustrates clearly the legal illogicality of the parties contesting the trust deed by arguing that a conversion renders all previous legal undertakings by the convert, null and void.

From: Do conversions automatically end civil law marriages? Hell NO.

Can someone like Saravanan come to my coffeeshop one evening and consume RM1,000 of Guinness Stout on his tab, then he converts to Islam the next day and reneges on his contractual obligation to pay his RM1,000 tab - on the argument that Muslims are not allowed to be party to a contract that involves things that are haram? Notwithstanding the fact that he had already gotten nicely pissed drunk on my booze which he hasn't paid for yet? Is that fair?

So, it is again up to the civil court to uphold the integrity of contracts and legal arrangements made under civil law, and defend the rights of non-Muslims against the encroachment of overzealous Islamist entities like the Majlis Agama Islam Wilayah Persekutuan and Amanah Raya Berhad.

And we are told over and over again that Islamic laws exist purely to serve and implement justice. Tell me, where is the justice in denying the final wishes of a dead man to be a filial son where by his passing, he wants to lessen the [financial] sufferings of his grieving mother?

I have no doubts whatsoever in the innate justice of religious law WHEN implemented by biblical prophets and messiahs. But I have little confidence in mortal men who seek to rule other men (even those of other faiths) by purportedly acting on god's behalf, ESPECIALLY when (unlike a milennium or two ago) god rarely makes personal appearances nowadays to confirm that delegation of authority.

As I see it, many of these inter-religious issues (eg. Rayappan, Subashini etc) are always the result of conversions that sorely lack proper due-diligence. Which is why (unless there is an official state visit by god himself to Putrajaya), Malaysia must move quickly to have much stricter and tighter rules governing conversions. Read an earlier post: A Solution to the Article 11 Impasse. The case would be scenario #3:

Therefore, the answer is to compel a prospective convert to satisfactorily resolve all his/her non-Muslim affairs before conversion, for example:

• legally divorcing his/her spouse if the spouse will not convert with him/her, and distributing their marital property according to secular law,
  
• producing a written agreement between the prospective convert and the spouse as well as other logical legal guardians (like grandparents and siblings) regarding the religious status of any of their children (this point is important because if the convert dies, and his children were converted as well, they cannot be cared for in a non-Muslim home, even if those people are the children's closest living relatives, including the non-Muslim biological parent).
  
• resolving in a secular court any possible future conflicts arising from property jointly owned by the convert and a non-Muslim, or any property of the convert where secular laws and Islamic laws will treat differently in the event that a non-Muslim lays claim to it (eg. heir, family, business partner etc).

And as stated earlier, no conversion is possible if these matters are not fully resolved beforehand. In the event that the religious authorities fail in their due-diligence where a conversion is accepted, but the said resolutions required for the conversion are subsequently found to be insufficient or omitted at any time in the future - the earlier conversion must be deemed to be retrospectively invalid and any disputes that arise are to be adjudicated by a secular court.

Can't see his face, she cannot tell if it's her husband. But let's have sex anyway.

Here's a funny story.

She felt a warm body next to her. Thinking it was her husband, she did what came naturally.

Not until her husband entered the room and asked her about a man he had seen walking out of the room did she realise that she had had sex with another man.

The housewife, 40, then lodged a report at the Cukai police station at 5.30pm alleging she had been raped. Police later arrested the couple's friend, a 29-year-old labourer, who had been staying with them over the past two months.

The woman said she went to bed in their Chuping home about 5am on Friday after making preparations for Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebrations. Her husband had gone to work earlier.

About an hour later, she claimed, she felt a man next to her and she proceeded to make love to him. She claimed she did not see his face. - NST

I've got only one question and it's for the ladies. When it comes to your husbands and boyfriends, is his face the only physical feature you can recognise? Be honest. And do all men smell the same to women?

I reckon she's two-timing her husband and when he found out, this is her excuse.