Time Magazine running a Poll; Should USA INVADE Myanmar?

I wrote this in one of my previous posting a couple of days ago.

READ HERE

I have just checked TIME magazine website, they are running a poll;

Should USA INVADE Myanmar to distribute aids?

I would vote yes, but apparently most USA voters voted NO.

You can vote HERE.

The Impending Economic and Food Crisis; what are we doing about it.

The headline says, PM: Krisis Makanan Boleh Tumbangkan Kerajaan.
And that the Govt is discussing the issue.

READ HERE

So what are we going to do about it? Let me post what others have to say first.


A Malaysian in London wrote this short summary:

1. The current inflation and food crisis is a phenomenon that extends well beyond M'sia. What the gov should do is to provide subsidies, rebates and even outright cash to those in need.

2. But not surprisingly we can't do this. Why? Because we have been operating on a national budget deficit for some time now; this means the gov is already spending more than it collects from taxes etc. How come? Because Malaysia's economy is not really that healthy which means less money coming in from taxes and gov is wasting money through unnecessary projects, corruption and bad planning. How bad is Malaysia's economy? Some simple numbers: when I graduated from UM in 1996, my first salary was RM2,400 and a plate of nasi ayam around RM2.20. Today, a fresh grad gets around RM2,200 but nasi ayam is at least RM3.50. In 1996, one USD = around RM2.50, now one USD = RM3.20. Is this progress?

What are the immediate options? We can dip into our foreign reserves which stands at a healthy USD120 billion now. Bank Negara is actually doing a reasonably good job on the investment front. But spending our national savings now means less money for our children and our children's children. For the long term, we need to grow our economy to get more taxes. But how? Our education system really sucks now which means our students will not be competitive in terms of knowledge and skills and foreign companies will not want to come and set up a branch in Malaysia. Also note that our Trengganu oil reserves are finishing fast which means no more royalties from Petronas in less than 20 years. In short we are in deep shit. That's why I said whoever takes over will have a tough time.

The long term priorities should be the following:
1) Drastic reforms in the education system: Get the smartest Malaysians back as professors in our local universities and pay them well. Listen to them to revamp the primary and secondary education system. Pay teachers well. Remove as many 'dead wood' as possible.

2) Drastic reforms in the civil service. If you have idiots running the gov, nothing will help. Send our brightest students overseas on scholarships then make sure you bond them to serve in the gov. All races. MOST importantly, seriously clamp down on corruption. How? Make sure gov workers are paid decently. Do you know how little Malaysian policemen are paid? Maintain strict controls and send the offenders to long time in jail. Integrity and meritocracy should be key operating principles.

3) Drastic reforms in the economic/finance sectors. My proposals here would be quite technical.

When you have good people in gov, a strong education system and strong economic fundamentals, you can reasonably plan for the future. The problem? All these need money, where is the money coming from? You can raise money from gov bonds, borrow from foreigners etc but don't forget the interest payments. In short you can't do everything at once, you got to go step by step but any wrong step will result in one step forward, two step backwards. Of the 3 above, I think eradicating corruption is key, unless you have good honest people in the gov, everything will go to the drain.

Am I optimistic? Unfortunately not. I think my country has really too many deeply rooted problems and it takes at least 50 years before we can catch up with countries like S'pore. But as they say, hujan emas...

My 2 cents
Alvin

Myanmar Cyclone Nargis: Death Toll 216,000, military junta ship rice to Bangladesh

WATCH VIDEO HERE

There is more to this, 1.5 million people are exposed to the elements without food and water. Their source of water contaminated. Their source of food destroyed.
So the toll could be much higher in the days and months to come.

Did you know what the military junta did?
They prevent aid from coming in to Myanmar. they dont want foreign aid workers, but they want the food and medical aid. Once these aids land in Myanmar, they will relabel with their General names so as to get goodwill from their people.
So pathetic.

If no country, Asean or any other country invade Myanmar now, the suffering will continue, millions might perish...slowly.

Death toll in Myanmar could be 216,000
Sun, 11 May 2008 03:48p.m.
video


Aid workers now believe the true number of deaths in Myanmar could already be as high as 216,000. If accurate, that would make it one of the world's biggest natural disasters, almost on the scale of the Asian tsunami which killed 280,000 three years ago.

With the military junta refusing entry to outsiders - even aid workers - the delays are proving fatal on an overwhelming scale.

Hungry crowds of survivors stormed the few shops that opened in Myanmar's stricken Irrawaddy delta, where food and international aid has been scarce since a devastating cyclone hit. The top US diplomat in Myanmar says 100,000 may have died in cyclone and 95 percent of buildings in the affected area are demolished.

Corpses floated in salty flood waters and witnesses said survivors tried desperately to reach dry ground on boats using blankets as sails. The UN said some 1 million people were homeless in the Southeast Asian country, formerly known as Burma.

"Basically the entire lower delta region is under water," said Richard Horsey, Bangkok-based spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Aid.

"Teams are talking about bodies floating around in the water," he said. This is "a major, major disaster we're dealing with."

But internal UN documents obtained by The Associated Press showed growing frustrations at foot-dragging by the junta, which has kept the impoverished nation isolated for five decades to maintain its iron-fisted control.

"Visas are still a problem. It is not clear when it will be sorted out," according to the minutes of a meeting of the UN task force coordinating relief for Myanmar in Bangkok, Thailand on Wednesday.

It said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon "will contact Myanmar" Wednesday to arrange a meeting with high-ranking officials on the issue.

State television in military-ruled Myanmar, though, said that the government would accept aid from any country and that help had arrived Wednesday from Japan, Bangladesh, Laos, Thailand, China, India and Singapore.

Nearly 23,000 people died when Cyclone Nargis blasted the country's western coast on Saturday and more than 42,000 others were missing, state media said. But Horsey predicted the number of fatalities could rise "dramatically."

Local aid workers started distributing water purification tablets, mosquito nets, plastic sheeting and basic medical supplies. But heavily flooded areas were accessible only by boat, with helicopters unable to deliver relief supplies there, Horsey said.

A few shops opened Wednesday in the delta but were quickly stormed by people, said Paul Risley, a spokesman for the UN World Food Program in Bangkok, quoting his agency's workers in the area.

"Fist fights are breaking out," he said.

The UN World Food Program said some villages were nearly destroyed and vast rice-growing areas wiped out. The Irrawaddy delta is considered Myanmar's rice bowl.

The military junta normally restricts the access of foreign officials and organizations to the country, and aid groups were struggling to deliver relief goods.

"Most urgent need is food and water," said Andrew Kirkwood, head of Save the Children in Yangon. "Many people are getting sick. The whole place is under salt water and there is nothing to drink. They can't use tablets to purify salt water," he said.

Save the Children distributed food, plastic sheeting, cooking utensils and chlorine tablets to 230,000 people in Yangon area. Trucks were sent to the delta on Wednesday, carrying rice, salt, sugar and tarpaulin.

A Yangon resident who returned home from the area said people are drinking coconut water because of lack of safe drinking water. He said many people were on boats using blankets as sails.

Local aid groups were distributing rice porridge, which people were collecting in dirty plastic shopping bags. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he feared getting into trouble with authorities for talking to a foreign news agency.

Elisabeth Byrs, a spokeswoman for UN relief efforts in Geneva, said the UN received permission to send nonfood supplies and that a cargo plane was being loaded in Brindisi, Italy, but it might be two days before it leaves.

The UN is trying to get permission for its experts to accompany the shipment, Byrs said. She said UN staff in Thailand were also awaiting visas so they could enter Myanmar to assess the damage.

Some aid workers have told the AP that the government wants the aid to be distributed by relief workers already in place, rather than through foreign staff brought into the country.

Relief teams and aid material are waiting to deploy from Thailand, Singapore, Italy, France, Sweden, Britain, South Korea, Australia, Israel, US, Poland and Japan, according to minutes from a UN relief meeting in Geneva that were obtained by the AP.

However, Myanmar state-run television said Wednesday that Japan had sent tents, while planes from Bangladesh and India brought medicine and clothing. China sent 1,300 pounds of dried bacon, while Thailand sent 1.2 million packets of noodles.

Britain has offered about $US9.8 million to help the crisis, and the US offered more than $US3 million in aid. President Bush said Washington was prepared to use the US Navy to help search for the dead and missing.

However, the Myanmar military, which regularly accuses the United States of trying to subvert its rule, was unlikely to accept US military presence in its territory.

The US military started positioning people and equipment as it awaited word from Myanmar's government. An Air Force C-130 cargo plane landed in Thailand and another was on the way, Air Force spokeswoman Megan Orton said Wednesday morning at the Pentagon.

"When they accept, or if they accept — and we know what supplies they need — those planes will be there to transport those," she said.

The Navy also has three ships participating in an exercise in the Gulf of Thailand that could help in any relief effort — the USS Essex, the USS Juneau and the USS Harper's Ferry — but Navy officials said they are still in a holding pattern.

The Essex is an amphibious assault ship with 23 helicopters aboard, including 19 that are capable of lifting cargo from ship to shore, as well as more than 1,500 Marines.

Because it would take the Essex more than four days to get into position for the relief effort, the Navy is considering sending some of its helicopters ahead, according to an official who spoke on condition of anonymity because it was still in the planning stages. The aircraft would be able to arrive in a matter of hours, and the Essex could follow, he said.

In Yangon, many angry residents say they were given vague and incorrect information about the approaching storm and no instructions on how to cope when it struck.

Officials in India said they had warned Myanmar that Cyclone Nargis was headed for the country two days before it made landfall there.

The state-run Indian Meteorological Department had been keeping a close watch on the depression in the Bay of Bengal since it was first spotted on April 28 and sent regular updates to all the countries in its path, department spokesman B. P. Yadav said.

Myanmar told the World Meteorological Organization in Geneva that it warned people in newspapers, television and radio broadcasts of the impending storm, said Dieter Schiessl, director of the WMO's disaster risk reduction unit.

State television news quoted Yangon official Gen. Tha Aye on Wednesday as reassuring people that the situation was "returning to normal."

But city residents faced new challenges as markets doubled prices of rice, charcoal and bottled water.

At a market in the suburb of Kyimyindaing, a fish monger shouted to shoppers: "Come, come the fish is very fresh." But an angry woman snapped back: "Even if the fish is fresh, I have no water to cook it!"

Electricity was restored in a small portion of Yangon but most city residents, who rely on wells with electric pumps, had no water. Vendors sold bottled water at more than double the normal price. Price of rice and cooking oil also skyrocketed.

The cyclone came a week before a key referendum on a proposed constitution backed by the junta.

State radio said Saturday's vote would be delayed until May 24 in 40 of 45 townships in the Yangon area and seven in the Irrawaddy delta. But it indicated the balloting would proceed in other areas as scheduled.

A top US envoy to Southeast Asia said Wednesday that Myanmar's military junta should be focusing all its efforts on helping victims of a devastating cyclone, not pressing forward with a planned constitutional referendum.

"It's a huge crisis and it just seems odd to me that the government would go ahead with the referendum in this circumstance," said Scot Marciel, who was appointed last week as the first US ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962. Its government has been widely criticized for suppressing pro-democracy parties such as the one led by Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who has been under house arrest for more than 12 of the past 18 years.

At least 31 people were killed and thousands more were detained in September when the military cracked down on peaceful protests led by Buddhist monks and democracy advocates.

AP and TV3

Altantunya - main wayang in court.

Raja Petra has been released on bail from the Sg Buloh prison. And he bring out a story of being shouted at by the two accused in the murder of Altantunya, Chief Insp Azilah Hadri and Cpl Sirul Azhar Umar.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

Hmmn, why do you think they shouted at Raja Petra?

In my opinion (hey, I might be wrong here) by highlighting the Altantunya case, and exploring the truth about the case, Raja Petra bring back the attention of the media and hence fellow Malaysians that a gross injustice would be passed in court. ie the two accused, Chief Insp Azilah Hadri and Cpl Sirul Azhar Umar would be found NOT GUILTY and the real person who directed them to commit murder wouldnt be exposed either.

In my view, Govt/police/Najib has shot themselves in their foot (kiasan) by charging Raja Petra with Sedition Act. Najib could have just say "I had nothing to do with it." and the case wouldnt have got that much attention. Now that the Govt has charged Raja Petra with sedition, they practically keep the spirit of BERSIH and protests alive. Public opinion certainly shifts against the Govt.

I am of the opinion that the court case is just a wayang. Keep it long enough, stretch the episodes and fill in with boring bits, people will lose interest and fall asleep. In the end they wouldnt care if the judgement is fair or not. The two accused might getaway with it on technicality or be handed down short jail sentence. As a sacrifice. And they would be compensated handsomely at a later date.
And the real culprit, the person who directed the murder would get away scot free.

Please End Burmese Suffering, INVADE Myanmar NOW

Photos from BBC website.

Lets forget Raja Petra, Najib and Abdullah Badawi for a moment. What is happening in Burma, or Myanmar merit our attention. Now the military regime doesnt want foreign aid, simply because they are afraid that the foreigners would influence Burmese to start a revolution, which is possible, given the human catastrophy there.

We Asean and other countries, cannot just stand here and do nothing. We must end this Burmese military nonsense and suffering of the people.
After the killings of the monks not so long ago, its clear that the Burmese people cannot do anything.
Burmese suffering has to end now. Asean, India, USA and whatever countries that care, should INVADE Burma NOW. ANd help the victims of cyclone Nargis.

NASA PIC HERE

Kabus Di Perbukitan Bicara Sastera UKM

My brother's novel Kabus DiPerbukitan was discussed in Bacara Karya Sastera at UKM.
This novel won a prize at Sayembara Novel DBP.

No I havent bought it yet.

KLIK HERE

Ilmu diterap dalam karya sastera
Oleh Nazmi Yaakub

MENGGALI KHAZANAH SASTERA: Sebahagian daripada pelajar yang mengikuti Bicara Karya Sastera Zon Tengah.

Kedudukan bahasa Melayu dalam Perkara 152, Perlembagaan Negara dan Akta Bahasa Kebangsaan 1997 dikesan dalam teks

BICARA Karya Sastera Zon Tengah di Pusat Pengajian Bahasa, Kesusasteraan dan Kebudayaan Melayu (PPBKKM), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi, baru-baru ini, menilai sastera sebagai karya yang tidak terpisah daripada unsur keilmuan dan penyelidikan.

Aspek psikologi dan perbezaan pandangan Barat dengan kaca mata Timur terhadap unsur eksotik Asia dalam tiga naskhah daripada genre berbeza, Naskhah Kabus di Perbukitan, Kumpulan Cerpen Masitah dan Kumpulan Puisi Permata Budi, turut ditinjau.

Pensyarah PPBKKM, Che Abdullah Che Ya, melihat Kabus di Perbukitan memperlihatkan hubungan akrab novel dengan pengarangnya, Mohamad Kholid Hamzah berdasarkan pemilihan latar dan pengaruh daripada pengetahuannya dalam bidang Psikologi.

“Pengalaman berkhidmat di kawasan tanah tinggi dengan persekitaran indah, mempengaruhi Mohamad Kholid untuk mengambil latar itu sehingga beliau melukiskan persekitaran Cameron Highlands tanpa sedar walaupun turut menggunakan Bukit Fraser sebagai latar penceritaan.

“Hal ini selari dengan konsep dan pendekatan psikologi yang menggariskan pandangan bahawa hasil kesusasteraan lahir daripada keadaan manusia yang berada dalam situasi bawah sedar,” katanya ketika membincangkan Kabus di Perbukitan: Lara Insan yang Kehilangan.

Bicara anjuran Bahagian Teori dan Kritikan Sastera, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) dengan kerjasama Persatuan Penulis Selangor (PPS), PPBKKM dan Kelab Persuratan Melayu UKM itu turut dihadiri Pengerusi PPBKKM, Prof Dr Zulkifley Hamid dan Ketua 1 PPS, Datuk Dr Anwar Ridhwan.

Selepas mendapat lakarannya, bahan karya itu disusun secara sedar, selain pengarang turut memperlihatkan pengetahuan sebagai lulusan diploma psikologi dalam bidang kaunseling apabila mengemukakan konflik emosi dalam diri watak.

“Pengarang berjaya mengolah psikologi watak dengan berkesan kerana kelebihan menguasai bidang terbabit yang banyak membantu beliau mengawal watak, sekali gus menunjukkan wataknya hidup dan terkawal. Hubungan roh antara watak Faridah dan Rohayu walaupun bersifat mistik boleh diterima akal kerana banyak misteri dalam sains yang belum terungkai di sebalik hubungan pasangan kembar,” katanya.

Bagaimanapun, Che Abdullah menegur kelemahan ketara yang membabitkan watak Rohayu yang tidak mengetahui kewujudan Faridah walaupun berpisah pada usia 7 tahun, sedangkan secara logiknya minda watak sudah cukup kuat untuk mengingati tempat tinggal kembar dan ibunya.

“Meskipun bahagian pertama novel menunjukkan kejayaan pengarang menjadikan penceritaannya kemas dan menarik, bahagian kedua pula memperlihatkan penumpuan pengarang kepada watak sampingan secara berlebihan sehingga hubungan pembaca dengan watak utama terputus,” katanya pada bicara yang dipengerusikan Pegawai Perancang Bahasa DBP, Saifullizan Yahaya.

Hakikat itu dapat dilihat terlalu banyak penumpuan kepada watak sampingan seperti Malina, Benny dan kenalannya dalam gerakan Islam, selain sorotan terhadap kehidupan Zain, sekali gus menyebabkan watak utama, Faridah tenggelam.

Pensyarah Universiti Hitosubashi di Jepun, Togari Yasuka, melihat watak berbangsa Jepun dalam Kumpulan Cerpen Masitah karya Dr Mawar Shafie, tidak berbeza daripada gambaran stereotaip dalam novel dan filem Barat seperti The Bridge on the River Kwai, Shogun, Black Rain, Rising Sun serta Last Samurai.

“Dalam filem yang mengambil fokus Jepun termasuk siri James Bond, ada kecenderungan berfokus kepada kebudayaan Jepun yang dianggap eksotik pada pandangan orang luar. Begitu juga filem yang menggambarkan imej Jepun masa kini seperti joshikosei,” katanya ketika meninjau Jepun dan Watak Jepun dalam Kumpulan Cerpen Masitah.

Joshikosei bermaksud pelajar sekolah menengah tinggi berpakaian seragam berkeliaran di kawasan hiburan dan yakuza, iaitu kumpulan penjenayah terancang, selain ahli perniagaan yang memakai kot serta jarang tersenyum.

Togari mengakui kekagumannya terhadap watak Jepun dalam Kumpulan Cerpen Masitah yang diberikan gambaran sejagat sehingga jika watak Jepun dimainkan oleh watak bukan Jepun, cerita itu dapat dijalankan juga.

“Kumpulan cerpen ini membayangkan watak yang merindukan ibu atau isteri sudah pergi atau seseorang yang menyayangi anaknya. Hal ini disebabkan watak orang Jepun berkahwin dengan warga asing dan menetap di luar negara sehingga sukar dikatakan sebagai orang Jepun tipikal,” katanya.

Pegawai Perancang Bahasa DBP, Shahrun Nizal Mohd Nor, pula mengangkat Kumpulan Puisi Permata Budi karya Ahmad Sarju sebagai mencerna pemikiran semangat patriotik, mengangkat isu bahasa dan alam sekitar serta melakukan introspeksi diri.

“Semangat patriotik mendominasi sajak yang terhimpun dalam buku ini, seolah-olah Ahmad menyeru pembaca untuk menyemai semangat itu, sekali gus menunjukkan penyair mempunyai suara dan harapan untuk dikongsi bersama,” katanya ketika membentangkan Antara Pemikiran dengan Estetika dalam Permata Budi.

Puisi bertema perjuangan memartabatkan bahasa turut mendominasi kumpulan puisi itu kerana pengarang melihat bahasa Melayu diperlekeh dan dipinggirkan di tanah air sendiri meskipun kedudukannya sudah dijamin dalam Perkara 152 Perlembagaan dan Akta Bahasa Kebangsaan 1967.

Good News, Melanie Won The Winding Road Trust Scholarship

My firstborn got a scholarship from The Winding Road Trust. That will pay for her schooling up to 3 years of university studies. Thats a total of 6 years, 3 more years at high school.
Depending on what course she is pursuing in the future, at least her first 3 years at Uni will be taken care of.

It was her and another girl from who got the scholarship.