Cheap booze brings pain

I refer to the letter, Cheap booze brings pain and this brings to mind several things.

If the reason for the Malaysia's very high tax policy on beer and liquor is to stem, if not eradicate, the conspicuous consumption of alcohol, it sure looks to me it's an abject failure. As the writer said so piquantly in the letter, the misery compounded by cheap and easily available liquor is very painful to witness, and difficult to ignore.

I also wonder if our nation's high tax levy on alcohol {believed to be among the highest in the world, next to Norway}, is also having the desired objective in the mainstream beer market. Let me illustrate. For example, we can easily buy a can of 320ml of locally brewed 'C' beer from sundry shops, grocery shops, coffee-shops, and hypermarkets at prices ranging from RM4.50 to 5.80 per can. However, we can also easily purchase similarly sized cans of foreign 'F', 'SM' or 'KF' etc etc at a standard price of RM10.00 for three 320ml cans! (All these brands have approx 5% alcohol content). That is, at RM3.35 per can.

What is even more amazing is in these outlets, we can also purchase the bigger and stronger foreign beer {500ml and alcohol content ranging from 8% to even 15%} at a standard price of RM5.50 per 500ml can! Some of the brands are 'B', 'KFstrong', 'SM', 'H', etc etc.

It would seem to me that high taxes is not the solution to our drinking woes, rather it's the lack of enforcement and the absence of guidelines on the sale and the imbibing of liquor that is the root of the problems outlined by the writer.

The availability of cheaper, stronger and more popular foreign brands in our market is a sure sign that something is not right in this sector of our business.

Don't politicize water issues

Reading the reports, Water crisis looms in Selangor  and Solve water woes fast, say Selangor residents among the many that have been published recently, gives us the distinct perception that water issues in the nation have been heavily politicized, much to the detriment of the long suffering public.

We feel the authorities are not serious in solving our water woes, but are just using them for their political ends. Let me give you an example. In a recent TV news {NTV7 to be exact}, highlighting the 'imminent' water disruptions in the {Selangor} State, the TV reporters decided to interview, of all people, a car wash worker. We all know that the Car Wash business wastes a lot of water, and in the most UNproductive way. Furthermore, most of these carwashes are apparently illegal in nature, employing many "similarly status" sourced foreign workers. Can the local authorities tell us that they approve of most of the car washes in the State?

So, instead of addressing the issues properly, and taking drastic action to prevent water wastage, we have the authorities from both sides of the political divide using the issue for 'grandstanding' purposes. All parties should put aside political differences and work for the better good, as water is a depleting resource.

Sometimes it's a wonder why people decide to vote at all

 Don't politicize water issues (page 10 Selangortimes)

Learn ethics from the Japanese

I refer to the letter, Learn ethics from the Japanese by Hasan Talib, and I was particularly struck by his saying that "we should learn to be grateful to the British who gave us a very good system of government, education, parliamentary democracy and above all, the English language. ..".  The Japanese, though they have had  their 'bad days' during the Second World War, are willing to accept learning and knowledge from those who defeated them and as the writer mentioned, are even grateful for Western help in rebuilding their devastated nation.

Likewise, I observe that the Koreans, even though they have been 'colonized' by China for hundreds of years, still proudly use the Chinese language besides the Korean language (Hangui script), invented by King Sejong to overcome the difficulty of learning the Chinese script in the 15th century.

The underlying reasons why the Japanese and the Koreans do so, is that they do not have the 'inherent insecurity' and distrust of anything foreign, and they are confident that they will not be 'less Korean or Japanese' even if they accept foreign influence and languages into their mainstream culture. They also do not harbour any inferiority complex, and they do not choose to hide behind false nationalistic values to cover their ineptitude.

It is this confidence and trust in ourselves that all Malaysians must inculcate, and we should ask ourselves, "Are we any less Malay/Chinese/Indian/Malaysian if we speak excellent English or French? Are we less loyal to our nation, if we wear the ubiquitous coat and tie to the office and to the Parliament?"

Self denial to cover up our inadequacies is surely the way to mediocrity. Have we all not learned in school the saying, "Katak di bawah tempurung?"

"Supper" Robbery at Section 11 PJ

For me, reading this report, Robbers prey on customers having supper makes it even more scary, as the robbery

1. happened in Section 11 P Jaya, not even 200 metres from my house;
2. this was the second robbery at the same restaurant in more than a month,
3. a Star reporter almost lost his hand in the robbery {if the ring had remained stuck on his finger}

Are we being lulled into a false sense of security by those Government reports that the crime rates have decreased? I am now very apprehensive, as Section 11 has always been known as a 'safe' section. I guess with the "midnight teh tarik" and 'suppering' culture among the fashion trends in Malaysia, we will most likely see "supper robbers" turning into a lucrative profession among our growing unemployed.
Unless I am sure the Police and the authorities come up with measures that deter such crimes, I intend to sadly avoid going for my regular Friday late night supper with my badminton friends, which is really unfortunate, for me and for a beer company.

Suu Kyi — a figure of reconciliation

I refer to your column, Suu Kyi — a figure of reconciliation and it's certainly inspiring to read about this phenomenal lady. She is a woman totally devoid of any ego, but with a heart burning with desire to help her country and its poor and downtrodden. She sacrificed her freedom and stood by her principles for more than two decades, but she chose not to seek vengeance, but instead preached forgiveness. When she again won back her political voice, she immediately went about nation building and reconciling her people. She is indeed a massive personality.

I am also very impressed by her pragmatism, and even as Myanmar actively pursues foreign investment and capital, she is so right to caution against reckless optimism and insist that investments must provide for a tangible 'trickle down' effect, and not for pure profits for the investors only. I quote, " I understand investors invest because they hope to profit from ventures. I agree with that, but our country must benefit as much as those who invest. I want this commitment to mean quite simply jobs – as many jobs as possible.”What an awesome lady and leader she is turning out to be. Many politicians of the world would do good to follow her example.

Suu Kyi a model for politicians all over the world

Is Malaysia competitive?

Dato,  After reading this, >> Much is being done to make sure M'sia can compete with the best on the world  I got a headache.. to a simple retired man with limited thinking facility, I find it very confusing, when we keep on harping on making Malaysia competitive, but at the same time, we seem to be opening our "floodgates" to cheap under-skilled and underpaid foreign labour, in plantations,in construction, in restaurants, in semi conductor factories, even in the 'Security' industry. How can we call ourselves competitive, when we depend on foreign labour, who, on top of grabbing our jobs, destroying our environment, using up our potable water and living space, also send the BULK of their earnings back to their motherlands.. Pray tell me, does this make Malaysia competitive??

We should bravely dive into the renewable energy solar cell sector, using every roof to generate RE, create thousands of new jobs, partner with China to lower the Solar cell cost. We should massively modernise the agricultural sector and its downstream activities, thus enabling the poor farming and fishing sectors. etc.. Instead, we import Nepalese guards, Vietnamese for Semi Con factories, Myanmars for restaurants, where is this going to end.
I am tired of reading all transformation stuff, when it doesn't translate into tangible results, except enriching the same few BIG tycoons... Am I wrong???