Anti-war protesters gave former British premier Tony Blair a torrid reception when he turned up to sign copies of his autobiography at a book-store in Dublin.
One activist, Kate O’Sullivan, who managed to enter the book-store, tried to make a citizen’s arrest on Blair for war crimes in Iraq. Here is her account:
The global financial crisis? We were set up by insiders, this revealing documentary proposes.
“You were robbed. There was a bank robbery. And the bank robbery wasn’t done by someone who came in with a gun, it was the bank president.” – Oscar-nominated filmmaker Charles Ferguson
Check out the background to the film on Indiewire here.
Have a look at one Malaysian firm’s role at the epi-centre of the crisis on Sarawak Report here.
… why not Penang and the rest of Malaysia? We don’t need incinerators and more land-fills, just a well thought out recycling, composting and waste reduction policy.
Thanks to sinyc for the heads-up on this GreenBiz article:
Image by Getty Images via @daylife
SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Recycling and composting helped the city of San Francisco divert 77 percent of its garbage from landfills in 2008, which it hailed as a national record and the highest of any city in the U.S.
Khazanah wants to sell its 32.21 per cent stake in Pos Malaysia – soon after postal tariffs were substantially hiked. What’s the rationale?
Why raise tariffs so much from 1 July and then sell its stake? Shouldn’t the profit from the higher tariffs remain in government hands instead of transferring the immediate benefit to private hands or other entities?
It’s not as if the postal company is losing money. Not by a long shot. Despite all its inefficiencies, Pos Malaysia posted a profit before tax of RRM109 million for the year ended 31 December 2009 – up from a loss before tax of RM0.5 million the previous year.
Many Malaysians have expressed disappointment over the BBC’s backing down from a ‘HARDtalk’ interview with RPK.
Much of this sentiment, I believe, stems from a perception that the BBC is a bastion of impartial, independent reporting.
Far from it. The BBC reflects the establishment viewpoint in the UK. Its positions on the illegal invasion of Iraq, the US-UK role in Afghanistan and the Israeli occupation of Palestine are well documented.
The MIC appears to have slid out of the picture after its poor showing in 2008 as Prime Minister Najib reaches out directly to Indian Malaysians in a series of events. Giant cut-out of Najib at Batu Caves - Photo courtesy of Mkini
30 Jan – Najib visits Batu Caves on Thaipusam eve. He becomes only the second PM to visit the site after his father. But a giant replica of him at the venue becomes an issue – as did the refusal to allow the Selangor MB to speak at the same venue.
23 April – Najib officiates at the 1Malaysia Vaisakhi Open House at the Indera Mulia Stadium in Ipoh. He announces an allocation of RM4 million to assist in “strengthening cultural aspects, language teaching and repair and maintenance of Sikh houses of worship across the country”. See Berita Harian report here. “You help me…”?
12 June – Najib launches SMC2010, endorsed by the Sri Murugan Centre, and reportedly offers “more scholarships and direct financial aid for Tamil schools under the 10th Malaysian Plan”. See Malaysian Insider report here.
If you are finding it difficult to forgive someone, then this tale of reconciliation might be helpful.
Richard Moore has forgiven a British soldier who fired a rubber bullet and blinded him when he was just a child aged 10 in Northern Ireland. Now, they are friends.
Selected highlights from the Teoh Beng Hock inquest featuring DPP Razak sparring with Pornthip. (Notice the lawyer at the bottom left with his hand on his forehead!)
Happy Merdeka, folks! It’s time once more to reflect on the state of our nation and where we are at the moment.
We have much to be thankful for. Despite the best attempts of certain quarters to divide us on the basis of race and religion, Malaysians by and large haven’t fallen for the bait. We have grown into maturity and can now see through such diabolical tactics.
A two-day trip to Malacca proves to be an eye-opener. And a cruise along the Malacca River after dark reveals more than just the gaudy lights of the illuminated river banks.
When I arrived in Malacca last weekend for a two-day stay, residents there told me quite a bit about the city and its questionable spending on various projects. Mostly they centred on and around various modes of transport:
Here’s a good reason for moving to public transport: we are not going to significantly reduce traffic congestion anytime soon by using improved traffic modelling and management methods.
Traffic snarl in Sao Paulo - Image via Wikipedia
Building new roads is not the solution either. The Wall Street online quotes Martin Wachs, director of RAND Corp’s transportation, space, and technology programme, as saying that new roads lead to more travel (traffic) due to an effect known as ‘triple convergence’: if new roads are built, many drivers who had shifted their trips 1) to off-peak hours, or 2) to different roads, or 3) to public transport, would resume their previous pattern and converge onto the new highway. See Wall Street article here.
Global food prices are projected to rise in future as a result of changing weather patterns, water scarcity, higher oil prices and increased demand from emerging markets like China and India.
Agricultural research station, Thailand
As if that’s not enough, financial speculators are turning their attention to agricultural commodities and gambling on food products. See the Spiegel article here and the Green World Investor blog here.
We were warned in 2008 of a global food crisis. But have we learned any lessons? Are we doing enough to promote food security and sustainability in Malaysia (other than corporate agriculture)?
While we are obsessed with FDI, are we doing enough to chart out a sustainable – and the key word is sustainable or organic – agriculture blueprint that would meet the needs of our people in the future?
Alarm bells have started ringing after it was found that children under five in Australia who had been given seasonal flu jabs suffered from fits at a rate that was ten times higher than normal.
Doctors have been alerted to use alternatives. Adults were not affected.
Up to one in 100 children given the jab, made in Australia by CSL and marketed in the UK by Pfizer, suffered febrile convulsions in the following hours and days, reports the Daily Telegraph.
Did you catch the front page of theSun today? It’s an important story not to be missed – for KTMB needs all the money it can get to upgrade its archaic rail system.
For a glimpse at what visitors think of our railway system, check out a feature in TIME here.
Yesterday, we saw how the Sarawak government would lose hundreds of millions of ringgit if land in Kuching was sold at bargain basement prices. And now this. The big question in this case is – apart from KTMB being deprived of the full value of the land – who is going to be the ‘lucky’ developer?
Image via Wikipedia
An unfair deal?
Terence Fernandez and Llew-Ann Phang
KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 26, 2010): Is Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) getting a raw deal in the development of a piece of railway land in Bangsar?
This is the question on the lips of those concerned with recent developments of the 8ha site behind the former the Unilever headquarters along Jalan Bangsar.
Said to be worth at least RM400 million, the national railway company may be paid only RM50 million for giving up the prime real estate.
This is a piece on the trams of Penang that I wrote as a guest blogger for The Guardian:
Image via Wikipedia
George Town on the island of Penang in Malaysia used to have a viable tram system in the early
20th century. It was part of a fairly integrated and efficient transport system.
But then the trams faded away in this British ‘Crown Colony’, with the advent of buses and private motor vehicles, at about the same time some of the tram systems in Europe disappeared.
DPP Abdul Razak Musa demonstrates during the Teoh Beng Hock inquest how a person might strangle himself.
This clip is an except of a much longer video that was uploaded to the AG’s website this afternoon. Thanks to Malaysiakini for the editing.
Blog reader Ganesh was alarmed by what he stumbled upon at Gasing Hill the other day.
Photo by Ganesh
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Ganesh shares with us what he discovered:
I saw plots of land being sold, starting from the bottom right up to the top, on both sides of the road leading to its peak.
PopTeeVee interviews Pas MP Mujahid Yusuf Rawa on the party’s efforts to draw in non-Muslim supporters.
What do you think? Is Pas really genuine in reaching out to the non-Muslims or is it merely for political expedience?
Are you interested in mansions in the United States?
Check out the Sarawak Reporthere, which features a couple of exclusive tastefully appointed mansions in Seattle linked to the family of a familiar politician.
Happy Merdeka, folks! It’s time once more to reflect on the state of our nation and where we are at the moment.
We have much to be thankful for. Despite the best attempts of certain quarters to divide us on the basis of race and religion, Malaysians by and large haven’t fallen for the bait. We have grown into maturity and can now see through such diabolical tactics. 
Photo by Ganesh