Nation Building.... by an architect.

OPEN LETTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER

I have taken the liberty to send you this feature Absolutely floored, ARCHITECHTURE INSIDE OUT,By MOHAMAD TAJUDDIN MOHAMAD RASDI by Prof Dr Mohd Tajuddin, in part because I know you will not have to time to seriously browse through the papers, given the mess that those MACC guys got you into, but also because I was surprised and very impressed to have read such views from an unexpected source, a feature on buildings and architecture. Nonetheless, I think we would agree with what he has said, {if we really WANT to believe in 1Malaysia} and I take the chance to extract some of his views for us to ponder. :

Extract.... " How can there be racial unity and tolerance if one ethnic group is sidelined right where they live?............But because town and city administrators are predominantly from one racial group, the sentiment seems to be “why should I help these immigrant groups”, or “my religion forbids me to help these people spread their religion”. Again, as a Muslim, I have to say that I feel such attitudes are far away from the true teachings of the Prophet Muhammad that I have come to understand..........Do you see why I wonder whether we’re serious about achieving racial unity? How can we say we are when we cannot even provide a proper neighbourhood gathering place?....."

Herein lies our problem. The attitudes of those in the administration are almost all against what your notion of 1Malaysia is about, and unless there is a revamp of thinking and attitudes at all those levels, Dato, you are bound to fail.I am no politician, only a humble old man, but I know you need more than just political backbone to change Malaysia, and I am reminded of a story about Gandhi.. In the midst of violent racial riots in India, a Hindu came to him and told him his son was murdered by Muslim mobs, and he wanted vengeance. And I understood that Gandhi instead took him aside, and told him to adopt a Muslim child whose parents have suffered a similar fate! In fostering multiracial unity in Malaysia, can we "adopt a child" of a different religion in our midst, say, can we see temples in the midst of a Malay kampong, and mosques in the midst of 'Chinatowns'? Can we have multiracial worhsipping places in schools, wherein no one religion has seemng superiority over the others? Of course it's not easy, and I never said it is. But if all those in the Administration do not want to "listen" to Gandhi, then I guess we can say goodbye to 1Malaysia, and Vision 2020, whatever that is...

Calling a spade, a spade.... Susmaryosep!!

Reading the letter in TheStar , Forced to be maids due to poverty... I have to say that I am amazed at the simple truths expressed so well by a person so looked down by our politicians, and I am pressed to quote from her... " I feel sorry for those who are willing to improve their knowledge by learning English because individuals like you are a hindrance to their efforts. With due respect, Sir, you are a perfect example of someone who doesn’t know what he’s talking about. " What is there for me to add, except that maybe the politician involved should be magnanimous enough to issue an apology to the offended party. Suffice to say that, giving all sorts of excuses and blame to parties who have absolutely nothing to do with one's inadequacies represent the thinking of a VERY shallow mind, which maybe improved by some voracious reading of English books?

Air New Zealand grabs attention...

I would like to think that, more than just attention grabbing, AIR NEW ZEALAND GRABS ATTENTION the airline must be also trying to improve Sales? I can't see how a 'naked' body will help me learn how to wear my safety belt, after having flown for more than 30 years; more likely I would forget to buckle up.... hohahah

The Perils of Screaming Sex

The Perils of Screaming Sex, or Soundproof your room!!! =))

"..................A 16-year-old girl thought she heard her mother being assaulted by her boyfriend and rounded up some friends who beat him up, only to learn later that the couple actually were having sex, the woman and police said. The girl misinterpreted the woman's amorous screams,..............""

This news reminds me of an ex neighbor, more than 25 years ago, whose wife makes long moaning sounds like a cat on heat.. At first, we neighbors thought it was just that, 2 horny cats making out, but when it got too long and too loud, we came out to check, and found out the moans came out of the window next door, (52 Jalan 11/10).. Susmaryosep!! Another neighbor, a lady, was quite embarrassed by it, and had to tell the newly weds to quieten down the music.

Miaaaooooo!

Import Skills, not Stupidity

I read the report Dr M: Govt can consider PR status for skilled foreigners to attract investments to Cuberjaya (by the way, where is Cuberjaya?), and as usual our ex PM Tun Dr M has again hit the nail on the head of our country's policy makers.

May I quote him.. " “If I were in the Government today, I will allow intelligent people to come in. Give them a permanent resident status then, maybe later on, citizenship....We don’t allow intelligent people to come in while we allow our intelligent people to go out. At the same time, people with less intelligence are coming in and with great numbers,” Mahathir said, adding that as a net result, Malaysia would become “more and more stupid.”

While I feel Tun M should bear a portion of the blame, for "all the stupid" people that have crept into the country legally or illegally, I think it's not too late that the present Govt heed his call. From what little I know of the labour policies of most countries, including that of the Philippines, these countries like Australia and the rest of the Asia Pacific region will only allow skilled workers to come into their countries to work, reserving all menial labour and those NOT requiring special skills for locals. In Malaysia, the reverse seems to be true, as the Govt prefers to allow businesses and homes to "import" foreign workers to work, often under 'slave like conditions'.. Try interviewing the workers in factories, restaurants and plantations and you will understand what I mean. On the other hand, I have a VERY senior Govt official friend whose foreign wife, a Phd holder was unable to get a job, even after residing in the country for more than 12 years, besides being pushed about annually on her PR status renewal. Malaysians, especially those in Govt., should really learn to like and trust all other races, and not feel that anyone who has a diploma will be a threat to our security and 'culture'. It is quite "stupid" thinking, to borrow Tun M's word, for Malaysians to accept certain types of foreign workers while distrusting the more 'intelligent' types.

Is it because Malaysians in their hearts, like to practise slavery? God forbid

Malaysia, haven for Gambling?

Reading this article Syndicate offers 'live' betting through the Internet gives me the eerie feeling that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Malaysia already has numerous gambling opportunites in the form of our own casino, the Horse Races, and of course the ubiquitous "Numbers Forcast" companies and their normal and special Draws. I almost forgot, we also have numerous slot machines in those "clubs" conveniently located in all parts of the country, who appear to be untouchables. Likewise the rampant illegal betting on football and Four digit Games. We do not need more than these to bankrupt our citizens. A statement in your news report made me curious, " It remains unknown how the syndicate is able to provide such clear video conferencing as it would require a big bandwidth..."

Are we taking effective actions to curb this gambling menace, or are we, to quote an erstwhile famous politician, "closing one eye" to this new internet 'business' in town? It takes very little intelligence to realise that, the next step that will be taken by these "operators" is to provide exactly the same 'mini casinos' right in the comfort of our homes. What can we do about this.?

"Brainy" people

YB Tan Sri,
Reading your comment to the question, extracted for ease of reference below, Service with an attitude I must say that you certainly know how to 'skew' some facts to justify the government's failings. While I do not dispute the fact that the 'smarter' non Malays have always opted for the private sector, I think it's a grave fallacy to think that the Malays in the civil service got promoted because they are 'brainier'!! How do you explain those non Malays, in spite of better performance and better confidential reports, STILL get overlooked for promotions, ALL the time in the Civil Service. Ask me, I can provide Tan Sri with some 'live' examples. And I leave it to my friends to comment on your statement that the Malays got promoted in the Civil Service because they are brainier.


Extract..(underline, mine) "Why do you think people are not applying? Is it because the non-Malays believe their prospects will not be so good?

If you are talking about perception, please help me address that with the public. When I joined the civil service in 1974, I had 10 Malay housemates. Some of us had received degrees with honours, but none of us had first-class or second-class upper honours. I got second-class lower.

Some of my housemates got general degrees and couldn’t join the government. So, the best Malay brains joined the government. Those who got general degrees joined the banks and the MNCs (multinational corporations). My Chinese friends who had done well (in university), joined their fathers’ companies or the MNCs, or started their own businesses.

The not-so-clever ones joined the government. So when there are so many Malays in civil service – and the best ones at that – who joined the government, who gets promoted? The brainy Malays, of course.