Coolin' off period for General Elections?

Anyone heard of a 'coolin' off' day before voting? Read here if you don't believe me.

Hmm... whoever gave such a highfalutin idea?

I have only known of someone getting 'heated up', or rather to be precise - 'lighted up' during a 'Meet the People' session. Surely I have never heard of anyone flamin' up before voting. Maybe only the human torch.

Perhaps the ugly truth is that the people have stored pent-up 'heat' throughout these years. Heated and worked up because they have not been voting for the past donkey years.

Or perhaps the day of elections will be a hot one. You know, higher mortals can predict 'golden era'. So one can surmise Election Day will be hot with a 'golden sun' in the sky.

Surely you would have thought Singapore being a developed country would have her mature citizens voting with their cool heads.

Rest (Part 2)

Matt 11:28 - 30
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

These verses are often used in evangelical outreach - rest for the weary souls from worldly affairs, materialism chasing, personal glory and success building. Only Jesus can fill the void in our hearts and bring refreshment to the needy soul. But during the time of trial, new revelations about this verse emerged.

Rest (Part 1)

It has been a good long while since I have written any encouragements. Allow me to give you a glimpse of my struggles in the past two months.

I have been swarmed at work since my Sydney holiday trip on 1 Oct. I have been working at least 55 hours per week including weekends. My customers are UK-based, thus conference calls usually start at 7:30pm and end around 9:30pm.

I had a new assignment to a project which had gone off-rails. My job is to get it back on track. All sounded easy until I realised the huge financial impact for the year if this project fails. All other projects within that account are tentatively ‘put on hold’ until this project goes successful ‘live’. To miss the deadline is to miss two major payment milestones. Now that something the executives do not want to hear.

What language does your heart speak?

Proverbs 4:23 (NLT)
“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.”

Our senses are bombarded with a lot of news and information everyday. Most news we hear from the media and sometimes even well-meaning colleagues and friends are usually not healthy news.

“1 in 11 Australian women will develop breast cancer before the age of 75.”
“If your family member has died of cancer, you had better go for a check-up.”

Is that good news to you at all? Does it not cast doubt, bring fear and worry into your life?

General Motors (GM) ran out of gas

Wow... how the mighty automobile icon of America has fallen! It actually ran out of gas!

GM stocks tumbled from a >$20US two years ago to a mere $2.67US today! And GM is now considering (or perhaps have already considered) bankruptcy. Just a year ago, the reowned financial institution Citibank fell heavily, wiping out 93% of the stock value. And not too recent it traded for $1.00US! Wonder if one can actually buy a bank from eBAY.

What gives? Why the sudden shake-up? Didn't we pay millions to the top executives to put in place robust measures so that the company stays afloat during crisis? What had happened?

I am fully convinced that paying top dollar to senior executives will NOT steer a company away from disasters or crisis. I believe rewards and encouragements go all the way down to the last man in the company doing mundane or administrative tasks.

We are worth much more

If you happen to see a $10,000 dollar bill (I know it doesn't exist but let's assume it does) in the mud, would you pick it up? Many I know would pick it up because of the stated value of the bill. There is substantial value in it.

Does it matter if it is made of paper? Does it matter if it is covered in dirty, yucky mud? All these matters little to none at all. All because of the value stated on the paper.

What happened to Jesus during the three days of His death?

I pray this sharing will shed light to what happened to Jesus during the three days of His death.

I want us to focus on Jesus - God's redemption and the eternal home He had prepared for us. I do not find joy speaking about Hades or hell. However hell is as real as Jesus claimed it to be.

Read Luke 16 The Rich Man and Lazarus
19"There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22"The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried.

23In hell (original Greek is Hades), where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.'

25"But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.' 27"He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, 28for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.'

29"Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.' 30" 'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.' 31"He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.' "

Is love a chore?

I read something about reasons for obeying and serving God. Are we doing it because because He first loved us, or we love Him, or because it is the right Christian thing to do, or because we want His blessing, or because we fear His wrath?

1 Corinthians 13:4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8Love never fails.

I used to think this is the kind of love we must exhibit as Christians. I used to think this is the kind of love I must show to my neighbour. I was wrong. I can never in my lifetime reach or achieve this kind of love. Only God can. Thus this verse is the kind of perfect love God has for us.

Love will automatically fulfill His commandments, of which the two pillars are based upon - Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and all your mind. And love my neighbour as myself. I can never do it. But Jesus can.

No way, Jose... er, Josie

The response from DBS in relation to Josie Lau's appointment as AWARE President is laughable.
Quote:
“Banks worldwide are facing very challenging times and her role as VP in the credit card space today is even more challenging, given the environment we are in,” the spokesperson said.

How ironic and absurd. If I remember correctly, one of the core values in large MNC is to do volunteerism work, isn't it? I guess it isn't so for DBS since there aren't gonna be any monetary gains.

I felt it was eerily high-handed and arrogant like the PAP. Pray tell me, do you pay her after-hours 24 x 7? What has her role in AWARE got to do with her VP appointment in DBS? Are there conflict of interests between the goals of AWARE with that of DBS for you to make such a statement? My finite mind thinks not.

Let me ask you a truthful question:
Can you be certain none of your senior management has ever held a post as an Executive Committee member in golf resorts or town clubs before? I think you'd better do your checks before you response to my question.

Anway who are you to tell what I can or cannot do in my free time as long there is non-conflict of interest and it does not degrade my performance at work? You don't jolly pay me for after-hours outside the office and it is not as if Josie gave a credit card fraud teaching session to your competitors.

For that matter, I know of a Victorian senior policeman who is casually employed by universities to give talks on youth and crimes. And yes he is paid hourly. I am proud of him because he went beyond his call of duty to teach and enhance public awareness in youth crimes since he has the knowledge.

In Australia, organisations allow and encourage employees to be part of the volunteerism work. Hey, the staff are even honoured for their effort especially during the Victorian Bushfire Black Saturday!

I wish you could praised her. Praise her for her dedication and for her leadership qualities which the members saw to lead them. In addition AWARE is a non-profit organisation to help women, and doesn't even come close to the functions of golf resorts or town clubs.

Our Minister Mentor says it best about knowledge sharing. To quote:
"Singapore will assess a country’s ability to absorb the transfer of ideas and knowledge before deciding whether to collaborate with the country on joint projects."

Oh wait, being an AWARE President doesn't benefit the bank. Hey, you don't even get paid. You should have assessed if AWARE is able to absort your transfer of ideas and knowledge before you decided to collaborate with them.

Heh, no wonder Josie, you got the shaft. I guess you are only allowed to hold appointments where there are significant financial gains, connections or networking.

You can forget about being a president. That goes for us, lesser mortals.

There are Leaders, and there are Leeders

Told missus that the Top 10 Best Paid Politicians should be filled with all Singaporean ministers. I wonder if their salaries include other director fees they had received. They beat even the second-placed Donald Tsang hands down without a blink of an eye! (Read the rest in The Australian)

Anyway, I had a good laugh when there was a proposal to up the pay of Australian MPs. Result? There was a furore and backlash by the public to even dare mention it during this period.

In addition I was following the G20 summit in London. The Australian showed all the other countries' figures. There were Korea, France, Japan, Canada, Germany, even Luxemburg! But no Singapore. Checked the actual countries - no Luxemberg. Luxemburg was categorised with Singapore and Switzerland on the tax havens list. Read here.

Then I realised Singapore was not invited because she was not in the Top 20 largest economies of the world! But her leader sure is paid the highest. Mind-boggling, isn't it? Sheesh we must really be so unique.

Indeed there are Leaders, and there are Leeders.

1. Lee Hsien Loong - Singapore
   Salary in dollars - $2.47 million
   Salary in local currency - S$3.76 million
   
2. Donald Tsang Yum-Kuen - Hong Kong
   Salary in dollars - $516,000
   Salary in local currency - HK$4 million
   
3. Barack Obama - United States
   Salary in dollars - $400,000
   
4. Brian Cowen - Ireland
   Salary in dollars - $341,000
   Salary in local currency - €257,000
   
5. Nicolas Sarkozy - France
   Salary in dollars - $318,000
   Salary in local currency - €240,000
   
6. Angela Merkel - Germany
   Salary in dollars - $303,000
   Salary in local currency - €228,000
   
7. Gordon Brown - UK
   Salary in dollars - $279,000
   Salary in local currency - £194,250
   
8. Stephen Harper - Canada
   Salary in dollars - $246,000
   Salary in local currency - C$311,000
   
9. Taro Aso - Japan
   Salary in dollars - $243,000
   Salary in local currency - Y24 million
   
10. Kevin Rudd - Australia
    Salary in dollars - $229,000
    Salary in local currency - A$330,000

Missing links?

This 'thoughts and rambling post' was in draft. Until the recent Cabinet re-shuffle announcement triggered the release.

Currently I am pretty busy at work. Blog time is whatever spare time I have. Being busy is a good thing in this 'so-called' time of downturn. Well, I had never believed in downturns as a matter of fact. My perception is what people often see as failures are really opportunities. Read Joseph (of Eygpt) in the bible and you won't be far off.

Anyway back to the main topic. This re-shuffle got me seriously thinking about the recent slew of questionable and mind-boggling events that had occurred recently.

David Widjaya's death
The MSM (mainstream media) reports were highly suspicious when they began to publish the likely causes of the death in spite of in-progress investigations. More sickening was pointing the finger at World of Warcraft. Right... that made me a 'suicidal person' since I had been playing it for many years. The most striking thing was that an official coroner's report had yet to be published!

I did remember commenting on MM Lee's statements some time ago about the Mat Salamat's escape. He said those statements while an independent inquiry was investigating. MM Lee is a very highly respectable person in Singapore. His words can effect and affect the outcome of a situational crisis. So it was no surprise when the independent inquiry report showed the lack of vigilance and total complacency. Duh! I for one felt two persons actually walked away scot-free.

Anyway it was as if MM Lee had either knew the details of the report beforehand or that he had sat with the 'independent' inquiry throughout the investigations.

Censorship on Dr Alan Ooi's farewell letter
Now that was really uncalled for. What was the MSM trying to achieve when it played the 'mind-game' of censorship?

Don't you think the truth will be out sooner considering how information is now shared on the Internet? Well it cuts across human barriers for one. The later the truth got out, the more the disgruntlement is bottled up. Be it through blogs, alternative reads, or just foreign press coverages - when people want to get the information, they will get it.

And I had to read the whole letter posted online by the Wayang Party instead of the MSM (though Wayang Party initially posted a partial letter to protect the farewells to personal friends and family).

Following this the MSM decided to publish the letter as an act of damage control. At a national level, it seemed all good to put to rest unanswered questions about the death of a scholar. The catch however was that a whole paragraph about Dr Allan Ooi's grievances with the SAF was 'snipped out'! And we had to read the unadulterated and unblemished version in Wayang Party blog!

Wow... that sure was a sinking feeling, isn't it? To have the truth withheld from me. What are you hiding? Could it be true about his grievances? Even if it was, it should be the people to decide how they want to digest the information. These are real opportunities for Ministers and SAF to stand up and respond. Instead the MSM chose the censor... what gives?

It's no fancy that the bloggers had a field day of throwing 'rotten tomatoes' and 'bad eggs' at the MSM. So much for our national paper global rankings.

CDC 8-month bonus to 2 senior managers
I will never blog about it. Except now.

In my opinion that is NWC (National Wage Council), PA (People's Association) and/or Dr Teo Ho Pin's business. And they are free to declare it and rightly so too, without any misgivings or misinterpretations. Well, on a personal note, to say 'I don't know' is a lousy answer to give to the press. Afterall Dr Teo himself is drawing money from the taxpayers too.

Just like the Perm Sec Tan Yong Soon open declaration in spending S$46,500 to learn French cooking. It's his business anyway. Who am I to say if it was well-spent or not? It's not as if he had taken his salary through underhand methods. And I truly respect him for even saying it aloud. Takes a lot of guts and confidence. Hmmm... perhaps not so smart in this 'economic recession'; maybe he should have published it in ICON or Plush magazines. At least the people who read them are in his category.

The disgruntlement became more acute within the blogsphere when the online media started a 'black-out' on this topic (read here). To make it inaccessible is to openly declare that 'we have something to hide'. Well, sort of.

This categorises under a major PR department glitch.

BBC interview with PM Lee
In the recent interview, PM Lee was asked, “Finally, Prime Minister, I read that you are apparently the highest paid head of government in the world. Your salary is about four or five times what President Obama gets. Are you worth all that money?”

PM Lee laughed and said:
"I am not comparing myself and I don’t look at these rankings. We go on a system which is open, honest, transparent – what is the job worth, what is the quality of the person whom you want. We need the best people for the job and these are jobs where you make decisions which are worth billions of dollars.

And you cannot do that if you are pretending and you just say, ‘Well, we are all in it for the love of King and Country’. We want it to be honest, we want people not to come in for the money. But at the same time the sacrifice cannot be too great. And at times like these, you want the best possible government you can have."

Now you have just gone and shot yourself in the foot.

In lieu of the recent predicaments by the MSM in trying to publish 'half-truths' or hide them (I don't know which), how can you say "we go on a system which is open, honest, transparent"?

What about how the President approval of touching the reserves? Was it open? Or based on trust? Surely not open if you had asked any man on the street until you were pressed for more answers.

Let me also draw you to the recent Town Council, Temasek and GIC invesments. Can you truly say it's transparent? I'm not too sure... and if I have doubts, it means you haven't been very transparent at all.

So if there is 'little' openness and much improvement for transparency (in my opinion), how can the word 'honest' be thrown it? It's pretty contradictory, don't you think?

And to top it off - now hear this:
Your whole answer (yes, your answer, PM Lee) was MISSING from Straits Times publication!

Why? Isn't the act self-contradictory again? It looked so, so silly from my point of view. Really. Anyone can just pick it up the missing pieces quickly (just like here) especially reading from other foreign online press. So it behooves me about the unnecessary censorship.

I'd reckon the current MSM wouldn't had 'blacked-out' your answer if there had been another independent media publishing the full transcript of your interview with BBC.

I just don't know where to hide my embarrassed Singaporean face. Again I ask - why?

Cabinet re-shuffle
Why on earth do you need these people when you are the highest paid politician in the world?!!

• 1x Minister Mentor
• 2x Senior Ministers
• 2x Deputy PMs
• 3x Ministers in the Prime Minister’s Office

Mind-bloggling, isn't it? Gee, that's a lot of top-notched salaries to give out. And under the super-super scale salary scheme, they must be drawing millions! They must be truly the best politicians in the world.

On a personal note, if I were a Chairman of a company, I'd fire the CEO straightaway. Either the CEO is totally incompetent, or his workload is so uniquely 'out of this world' that he needs all these 'supporting' seniors. I wonder also how in the world does one justify drawing all these million-dollar salaries without declaring their assets?

Competition
So where does all these ramblings lead to? I'd reckon the missing links are choices and competition.

Think about it. They are the same reasons why many readers turn towards online media like blogs and foreign press to have an alternative read. It is not that the current newspaper is lousy (well, it may be but that's another topic) but people want choices and competition. We want to see from another angle but alas, we don't really have a choice, do we?

I mean if I want to know more about aerodynamics physics, it would be foolish to just read from a book or article or from one author, wouldn't it? And how much I want to read depends on how much information I want to get from the various sources of whitepaper, academic books and analytical findings.

We agree that not all these theories are correct. Well, so does reading it from one academic source alone, isn't it? In fact it's even riskier!

And how does one get better in sports or in a soccer game? Well, simply pit your skills against your opponents on a level-playing field. Of course sometimes the referee is kayu (biased).

So why should it be different in reading about news and politics in Singapore? Wouldn't alternative read enable us to question and fine-tune the system better? If we are really open, honest and transparent, then healthy competition should be encouraged. Shouldn't it?

Competition brings in healthy checks. More often it draws the best candidate too! If the government can think that a company would pay a lower wage to a foreign talent to compete on the same job, would not the people think likewise to have a lower-paid government yet performing up to par with the incumbent?

I mean that's why we have tender processes to evaluate and pick out the best company to deliver the solutions. And that's why we have more than one interviewee for a job opportunity and then another round for the short-listed candidates. To instill choices for employers and competition among the employees.

Shouldn't it be likewise for elections and MPs representing us? But we don't seem to have such a choice because the MPs and policies have already been selected for us. At least for me because I have never had a chance to vote.

Why would it then be different in Singapore politics and the MSM? Perhaps the missing links are choices and competition.

Sheer genius, or complete dodo

I... AM... STUMPED.

Speechless. Flabbergasted. Silenced. Call it whatever you want.

After reading this article from Today, I no longer know the depth of rubbish-ness that can come out from the Singapore msm (main stream media). Seriously. I don't know how to react, or comment any further.

Maybe it is such a brilliant move to be so unorthodox, obscure and uncomprehensible that bloggers kena stunned (caught off-guard). I mean, how are we going to answer that article? Snubbed. Totally pwned.

Either it's sheer genius, or complete dodo.

It's like saying we should go back to postage because emails and e-cards are causing world-wide companies to be obliterated. Fax machines will no longer exist and post-boxes will no longer be seen. And stamp collectors will soon fade away. There goes First-Day covers...

Wow, where did that analogy come from?

I don't know. Just like the electoral boundaries, the lines keep changing until it's all blurred now. Perhaps it is using ridiculous and highly questionable articles to increase readership. Maybe there is an angle which I had failed to see. Mayhaps it wants to test its media boundaries, or even try to stretch the limits of Singaporeans' patience to get a reaction.

I really don't know.

This is my fourth article back to back concerning the Singapore msm. Doesn't help when the press is ranked a lowly >140 out of 195 countries.

You are losing readership because you suck. No one wants to waste money for useless stuff that continues to produce junk, especially in a recession. Either you change your content or ship out. As far as I can remember, the blogging community has been telling you for ages .

You still don't get it, do you? Anyway, the Elite One has spoken. Doesn't matter a hoot to him, so why should it bother you?

"Singaporeans are free to read whatever they want, the influential founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew said of his country, which ranks near the bottom on a watchdog's index of press freedom."

Sheesh, I'm beginning to sound like a broken record now...

Did you leave your brains on your desk, or was it bashed out?

Online editor of Straits Times, Joanne Lee, wrote such a stupid, moronic piece of goondu (silly) junk that left me aghast and disgusted.

Appalled to be precise. First I have politicians who claim to be qualified psychiatric doctors enough to call an opposition party leader lunatic. Now I have editors who are qualified Aunt Agonys enough to give domestic violence advice to public.

I bet she must have left her grey matter on her desk when she wrote it! Perhaps her boyfriend had bashed her on the head hard enough to write in such a concussed state.

By gawd, she is the _EDITOR_, mind you! Not just some freelance, or small-fry journalist! Doesn't it make anyone wonder about the quality of journalism the msm (mainstream media) has been dishing out these days? Why would anyone want to pay to read junk anyway? And to think I had just blogged about it here and here.

And it has to be Straits Times again? Wow... these days they seem to be desperate for readers thus these controversial articles to boost their readership.

Stupid is as stupid says, dear Joanne Lee.

It’s like saying maybe a wife should change her attitude towards sex if her husband had raped/violated her. Afterall, the husband had provided for the family so she should change herself to suit his needs. What a dumbo statement!

At no point, even provoked should a man hit a woman. Period.

So just because a driver in front of me provoked me, I can come out and bash the daylights out of him so that he can LEARN something from my bashing?

Gee, are you nuts?!! Just look at the picture and you say it's semi-ok? Or do you have to write some moronic commentaries to get paid? Wake up your idea and get a life!

Here is what Joanne Lee wrote. You make your own judgement, readers.

---
Was Rihanna semi-responsible?
March 13, 2009 Friday, 06:08 PM

Joanne Lee looks at her own experience with dating abuse.

I ONCE dated a guy who hit me.

Not in the full-on Chris-Brown-biting-Rihanna's-ears kind of way, but we'd argue and he'd get so worked up, he'd punch the wall and shove me around a little. (It'd usually be a one-off punch because he was inherently a decent guy who knew it was wrong to hit anyone.)

Domestic/dating abuse has obviously blown up in the news since the R&B stars' violent episode last month came to light and Chris Brown was charged in court this week. Oprah Winfrey dedicated her show to the two of them and, while sending her love to the two, also said: "If a man hits you once, he will hit you again."

Initially, the condemnation all over the Internet and media was against Chris Brown. A man raising his hand against the weaker sex is just something absolutely socially unacceptable.

But a second strain of judgement has surfaced, turning against Rihanna, saying: Yes, she might be a victim but she also probably provoked Chris Brown to violence.

Domestic abuse social workers would absolutely dismiss this secondary reaction, and I don't purport to know the natures of Chris Brown or Rihanna at all, but I can understand why some people would think the victim is not entirely blameless.

You see, my ex was Chris Brown's age, 19 (give or take) at the time. We were young, we had tempers and we had not the maturity to control those tempers. When he hit me those few times, I'll freely admit, I had a part to play in the outcome.

When I was younger, I was argumentative and it didn't help that I had a way with words - twisting words, to be precise. If he got frustrated and ended up hitting out at animate (me) or inanimate objects (mirrors), I honestly can't say it was entirely his fault.

Was this the case in Rihanna's situation? I don't know. Is it the case in all domestic abuse situations? Absolutely not. Some men just cannot control their violence and there is nothing to be done for it except for the woman to leave the monster to protect themselves and, God forbid, their children.

But what I do know, is that in my case, I contributed to his anger - which is why I forgave him time and time again (not that there were many times) and did not leave him. When we broke up in the end, it was for entirely different reasons.

As far as I know, he's now happily married, a father and doing well in his career. As for me, I think I've learned to bridle my tongue and be a more give-and-take kind of partner. (And I stress, give-and-take. Not give-and-give.)

So my humble advice to anyone out there facing mild cases of domestic/dating abuse is this: If you can help the situation by changing yourself, perhaps that's something to try if you truly love the guy.

Operative word: MILD.

If he's saying "I'm going to kill you", arm-locking you and biting your ears, no matter how much you look within yourself to try to improve your relationship, I really doubt your man is going to grow out of his temper tantrums.

Rihanna, leave the dude already.

I must be a mushroom

That's how the Singapore msm (mainstream media) and SPH (Singapore Press Holdings who owned the msm) treat me. A mushroom. Why?

Because they keep me in the dark and feed me nothing but bullsh*t all day.

---
I could have included Temask Holdings also owns SPH. But I won't sink to your underhand methods and rather keep things in perspective and objective. However you, SPH, time and again have brought in unnecessary details to smear others.

For a good example is bringing in Chia Tik Lek's Tan Lead Shake's name in an article over his brother's death. You also did not fail to mention him as the Slippers Independent Candidate in an election. Pray tell me, what has that got to do with the death?

But for Mas Selamat's escape, you conveniently heaped the blame on us Singaporeans for being complancent, on the guards and duty officer-in-charge, and the upgrade of the TV cameras, etc. Everything except the real people who ought to get the boot - MHA minister and the Head of the Detention Centre.

Does not take a rocket scientist to wonder why you are stuck at 154th media position in the world.

Now there is a furore over how the MSM skewed the article to pin the blame on Dr Allan Ooi. And even censored parts of the letter to protect the SAF. Oh the audicity of it!

I mean what have we been fed all these years?! Yes, bullsh*t.

So I concur then that the government must have foreseen huge investments and profits in mushroom farms in the coming years.

Coz definitely we are all mushrooms.

More read here.

What you read is not what you read

Oxymoron? Yeah you bet!

Especially when SPH has sunk to a new all-time low in gutter journalism. Yes I'm refering to the death of Dr Allan Ooi.

See for yourself here and here.

Everyone was taken for a ride if you had just gardner the contents from SPH. I mean it's so blatantly different and the spin story will spin you until you feel the late Dr Allan Ooi is just a love-sick puppy. Which he is NOT!

Really, I’m absolutely disgusted and appalled that even a letter has to be censored! I mean it’s his last letter for God’s sake!

Why would you do that, SPH? Isn’t it as bad as North Korea to have a tightly-controlled media? Why hide the facts and truths? It doesn't bring you any glory except now you have lost your pride and credibility? And it’s not as if in recent years you have had any.

You used to be good. I liked reading the newspapers many years ago. I don’t know what had happened. You had just lost the plot. Totally.

Thank you Wayang Party for portraying the truth. I cannot imagine how we would think of the late Dr Allan Ooi if you hadn’t published the first half of the letter not omitting SAF.

You truly sicken me, SPH! I’d never thought you will sink to a new low. Pui! You had left an utterly bitter (and not even close to satisfying) aftertaste as my punchline for this blog Kaffein-nated goes.

No wonder your government bosses are so afraid of the Internet because truths will be exposed and outrightly published without your control. And you have sought time and again to discredit bloggers, especially socio-political blogs.

So now I being to wonder if you had been telling us the truth about the recent deaths of David Hartanto Widjaja and Zhou Zheng.

I feel total disdain for you, SPH!

One man's ideas? I think not

If you want to have an analytical overview and alternative read about what PAP claims, go no further and read Part 1 and Part 2. These articles are a really, really good. I think these should be in the history lessons, or at least an economic model of how not to screw up.

I have always had my misgivings whenever the PAP blows its trumpet that the modern day Singapore attributes herself to the wisdom and analytical vision of my godfather - LKY. Eversince I had started reading alternative views and commentaries (with just a simple pick up of an SDP newsletter at Orchard Road ages ago), I had begun to suspect that there are underlying truths that will never be published or made known publicly. You can get yourself a copy of the book - 'A Nation Cheated' here. There are also other alternative reads.

These articles not only walked through how Singapore had progressed through the years but also debunked the fact that the succes of Singapore was just LKY’s vision and wisdom that brought her thus far. Rather LKY had also followed other economic models, an example is the Switzerland one. There is nothing wrong with such claims but to attribute the country's success were based on his ideas/vision and his alone is a tad far off.

No, I am not saying he did not contribute to the success. In fact, I rather liked certain policies like making education compulsory. Yet again, it was not just his idea alone. Another one of the good policies is the death penalty on certain major crimes like drug trafficking, firearms possession, kidnapping, murder, etc. I am not a strong advocate on death penalty because life is precious. However there are some 'jokers' who are not only a menace to society by their mere existence, they are also sinisterly dangerous to our kids and well-being. They ought to be locked up for life, or perhaps life snuffed out of them.

Of course we have questionable ones like the 'Speak more Mandarin, less dialects' and the 'Stop at Two' and many others which we are now seeing the 'side-effects'.

I have digressed.

Now that Singapore has developed and progressed (at least at the educational and academic level and has been called a developed country), I believe we ought to be mature enough to handle alternative political reads. Many of my colleagues and friends (while I was still in Singapore) still hold the passive approach that 'government knows best' and continue to have the 'don't touch this if it ain't broken' attitude.

Like I have written a comment in Lucky's 'Diary of a Singaporean Mind', many Singaporeans need to open up their thinking and see the world for themselves. I do not claim that I have reached a thought level good enough to advise others. But after reading the comments published by some (young?) Singaporeans in response to the David Hartanto Widjaja saga, I could not help lamenting that they have a rather silo view of 'the state media is always right else it won't be published, will it?' mentality.

So much for musings. I believe it's time to move on from our past victories and successes so often trumpeted by the PAP who claimed to have brought Singapore thus far. It is starting to sound like a broken record these days.

Photos galore @ Tasmania (26 Sep - 4 Oct) - Part Three

More photos as promised (see also Part 1 and Part 2).

The remaining three days of our trip were spent at Cradle Mountain. There is a reason why it's called Cradle Mountian.

The drive from Launceston took slightly more than two hours at a good leisurely pace. We stopped for lunch break at a small town named Delorain. Remembered we did a couple of wrong turns too during the journey.

A very beautiful countryside church

Once we reached the base of the Cradle Mountain, the drive got more scenic and beautiful . It was drizzling on our way up so there was a misty and surreal feeling like we were in heaven when we finally reached Cradle Mountain Lodge. We stay there for two nights.

During the day, there are a lot of graded forest walks and hikes (check here). We took The King Billy track (~1 hour) and also the 45-min The Waterfalls Walk (Pencil Pine Falls and Knyvet Falls).

We were told the weather changes frequently. So we brought along our jackets. As usual Rachel became grouchy and irritable after a while as there wasn't any kids to play or chat with. And missus showed her displeasure. I got sandwiched in-between.

Beautiful, lush and natural forest

Sunlight creeping through the canopies, on the forest floor and a creek



Family shots, waterfall in the background

It got colder at night. and the wild noturnal animals came out looking for food. In fact there was a wallaby standing just outside our cabin door. We also came up close and personal with different varieties of possums running along the rails and beams.

Another small creek, a wombat having lunch out in the open



Trekking to Pencil Pine Falls and Knyvet Falls, Rachel the Amazon Princess
(Apologies: too dark to take good pictures of the waterfalls)

On the way back to Hobart we stopped by Richmond. The Richmond Bridge (built in the 1820s) is the oldest bridge in Tasmania. The town itself was quaint and cozy.

Beautiful mansion overlooking the Richmon Bridge


Beautiful and all grown-up Rachel

Did you see how much my dear princess has grown up? She indeed looks so different from her earlier photos (see here and here). Gee, they grow up so fast. Don't we love family trips?

Latest: Got money also cannot use?!

This 'no travel deposit' feature in the new ez-link card is a no-brainer (read here).

Here are my long-standing grouses against the LTA and transport companies (which I think are all in cahoots together):

• Public transport is er... public transport.
  
  What can I say? I don't know how you justify your profits if you are providing a public service. Shouldn't your profits be channeled back into the public in terms of stablising fares and providing better systems?
  .
• When you lower your fares, you say as if you have done us a great service and feel that you have given me an orgasmic feeling. You don't. Get over it.
  .
• From the newspaper article: "But the Land Transport Authority (LTA) explained that the new features of the card make this system more convenient."
  
  Shouldn't you be making the system more convenient for the PUBLIC? Gee, this one absolutely no-brainer. I guess the word public is no longer in your vocab.
  .
• Nobody asked for special features like Mobile TV, electronic tags or cards, or even high-tech transport systems implementations.
  
  If you had taken public transport like we do, you will find that people just want to get from one place to another through the more accessible route, at a reasonably comfortable journey and in the quickest time.
  
  All other jazz pales in comparison.
  .
• If you want to move towards a cashless society and use the latest technology, by all means do it. Support yourself with the profits you have been having all these years. The common man should not be penalised.
  .
• Paying for something which is useless is... useless. The inital purchase of the ez-link card can't be returned. Till now, you have not told me what I can do with this card?
  .
• Do care to explain how much you have earned from advertisement alone? I could hardly look outside the windows these days without straining my eyes when I visited Singapore three months ago. They have been blanketed by your advertisement posters.
  
  If you already have a steady stream of income from these advertisements, how come you are still justifying transport hikes? Reminds me of TV licenses.
  .
• Now you implement an absolutely confusing system/policy and we have to adapt. See how moronic your statement in the article is:
  "When you bought the old ez-link card, you had to pay an extra $3, known as a travel deposit, and this was not reflected in the card's balance.
  
  So, when the card reader shows a balance of $0.01, there is actually $3.01 still on the card. And you can still take a bus or a train.
  
  With the new card, the $3, which is no longer known as a travel deposit, is reflected in the card balance. That's all."
  
  Wah how come so cheem (hokkein meaning complicated)? There is $3 but actually it is $0? Pray tell me, which smart-alec government scholar made simple mathematics so complicated? At least in the old card, the travel deposit is not reflected. So when you reach $0 or close to it, you know it's time for top-up.
  
  Now it is there but still cannot use? Sounds like the dreaded CPF blackbox. *koff koff*

Photos galore @ Tasmania (26 Sep - 4 Oct) - Part Two

Procrastination.

The bane of man. If it hadn't been for missus' constant nagging reminder, I would have conveniently forgotten about them. I am certain God thought Adam had procrastinated far too long in naming all the animals He had created.

Left alone, I reckon Adam will still be naming them today. No wonder God said Adam needed a helper. And a secretary.

Remember to thank missus, dear readers. Here's Part One to refresh your memory.
---

Some coastal beach (very cold with Antarctic wind blowing)

We travelled from Hobart to Bicheno. Along the way, we visited the Freycinet National Park.

The park is very scenic and beautiful. I was told the hike to reach the Wineglass Bay lookout used to be >2 hours from the old carpark.

I believe the Tasmania Tourism Board decided to spare tourists like me from fatigue torture and had constructed a new carpark further uphill. It now takes 1 - 1.5 hours.

The hike up was totally worth the view as you can see below.

Rachel trying to convince the wallaby to hike along

I think it retorted, "Are you crazy?!"

Do you see the mountainous backdrop in the photo below? The Wineglass Bay is just behind it. No wonder the smart wallaby refused to tag along.

Rachel's partners in 'crime', family photo


Solid as a rock

Breath-taking scenery! Worth every effort...

... and the after-effects

After spending a night in Bicheno, we continued our journey to Launceston.

Launceston is much smaller compared to Hobart but definitely more bustling than Bicheno. Bicheno feels like a surfers' town.

We visited the Penny Royal World & Gunpowder Mill. Unfortunately it was under renovation and closed to public. There is also a nearby hand-made sweet factory named Gourlays Sweet Factory.

Gunpowder Mill and Gourlays

Quaint cafe and service apartment reception


Random photos shots, prominent windmill in town

Click to view Part One. I will be uploading Part Three with Cradle Mountain photos soon... :P

Of godhood, divinity and deity

Before you read further, this is a political rant. Just read an article by Gerald Giam (read here).

I will like to respond to that letter. (Un)fortunately I don't subscribe to lousy newspapers which people use to pick up dog poo. This satirical strategy-game advice I have written has this underlying statement:

"We make lousy gods. Stop playing one!"
---
There are numerous PC games like 'Black and White' and Sims-series to keep your air-level godhead and godhood status satisfied. Bear in mind, your worshippers have a 'happiness index' too. As in the games, there are repercussions if you are a lousy god.

Anway, here is how not to bring your 'diety' status to an all-time low:

1. Be wary of burnt offerings.
   You may consider it pure joy when people 'tithe' or bring offerings to you through taxes you have imposed. However a minority might be fanatical enough to decide that burnt offerings albeit human ones are the holiest.
   .
2. Size does matter... with shoes.
   Being a lousy god, you might jumpstart a shoe fetish or craze among the public to own the largest and fattest size. Both American and Chinese gods have had no trouble reading labels and their respective sizes in close personal encounters of the flying types.
   .
3. Use better priests.
   Wisecrack statements by your clerical mouthpieces like "...squandered opportunity for a higher degree of self-regulation", "I am so happy whenever I see my monthly CPF statements", "5-day week is to be more reproductive" to "lesser mortals" don't make you popular with your worshippers.
   
   You need an A-team to deliver best results. If the A-team fails, use foreign imports. It's cheaper anyway.
   .
4. Do unto others as you would have others done unto you.
   Packing off your old, ex-worshippers into neighbouring countries will not only incur the wrath of your worshippers, it stirs righteous indignation among your neighbours. This hurts diplomatic ties big time. Not unless you want to get pk-ed and pwned.
   .
5. Some LEEders don't know when to quit.
   You don't get many chances to restart in failed missions. So 'save' often and quit while you are ahead.

(Testimony) More than a conqueror in Christ

I have been wanting to publish this testimony that I had written in early 2009 and emailed to my friends. Now I wish to share it with you readers.

May you be blessed by the goodness of God.

---
Wishing you a blessed 2009.

I executed a project implementation on 2 Jan. Towards the end of the day, I received an email from a senior manager (whom I shall call Cathy) from my client company. She had accused me of executing the implementation without her approval. To add fuel to the fire, another manager from the client company (who was covering for the approvers on leave) had said that no approvals were required since the implementation was not pertaining to any production environments.

I called Cathy to explain the situation. She was furious and adament that I had flouted a very serious offence. Before putting down the phone, she would escalate to the senior management accordingly. Though she was rather rude and aggressive throughout, I responded politely and professionally.

Help for bushfire victims

Many people have lost their homes and loved ones in one of Australia's worst tragedy. If you wish to donate, go to the Australian Red Cross website (more details).

Let us provide whatever assistance to the victims, be it through prayer and donation (financial, clothes, blood).

Australian Abortion Laws To Blame For Bush Fires?

For my Singaporean friends, I am alive and well. Thank you for your concern.

These are my thoughts and opinions in response to a certain dream from a person named Danny Nalliah linking abortion laws to the bush fires (read here).

I have been waiting for preachers to come forward and proclaim God's judgement upon Australia and Victoria. Seems like it's so common these days - doom and gloom. If they really had a word (or dream) from God, I'm sure the disaster would have been averted if they had stood up before then. No offense, gee anyone could have done it, with or without a word of knowledge. Even a terrorist claims his god is just and mighty in the 911.

If you want to see here how a disaster was averted as God gave a word of knowledge, see here (in Youtube) by a healing evangelist named TD Joshua. For info, see the other videos how a leg cancer was healed and also how a dead man had been raised.

So what is the difference between us Christians and the rest of this world?

The BIG difference is while we were lost in sin, our God came down and showed us how much He loved us by dying on the cross for us and saved us from the uttermost. All these He had done while we were still deep in sin.

There are some things flawed in his account:

1. How can anguish and agony and death bring glory to God?
   The God I know who loves the world enough to send his Son to die for us while we were sinners. If his theory holds true that God is judging the world, He wouldn't have sent a saviour. He would have sent a destroyer.
   
   And God didn't send a destroyer, He sent His own Son whom He loves.
   .
2. Since when in the bible has God's wrath brought repentence?
   Rom 2:3 clearly states "So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God's judgment? 4Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?"
   
   Read again. God's kindness leads us to repentance, not His wrath. If it was His wrath, the people of Israel would have turned to God. But they didn't.
   
   See the Samaritan woman example. It was an encounter with Jesus and His love for her that brought her change. Jesus didn't condemn her at all. Look at the woman caught in adultery. Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more."
   
   When people know how much God loves them in Jesus Christ, they will change and sin will lose its hold. The more we focus on sin and how we should address it, the more we give sin power and sin consciousness and will soon get entangled in its snare.
   .
3. What about Jonah? Didn't God's wrath was averted when Jonah preached and the Ninevites repented?
   Read carefully again. Jonah's words were "That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity." Jonah knew his God. Do we?
   
   Anyway, he was to preach that God loved the Ninevites in spite of their sin. Instead he preached judgement. And he had hoped that through the message of judgement, they would turn further away from God.
   
   See Jonah 4:1 "But Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry." If he knew they would be changed with his preaching on wrath and judgement, why would Jonah be angry?
   
   And "5 Jonah went out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city." Jonah was expecting judgement to come upon the city. However God had compassion and by God's grace, the city repented and was spared.
   
   That was why God asked Jonah, "Why are you concerned for a vine you did not grow? If you can be so concerned about a mere vine, how much MORE am I concerned about the city who knows neither its left hand from its right hand!"

My personal thoughts:

1. The world preaches doom and gloom all day.
   God through Jesus preaches love and hope. We the church are not like the world.
   .
2. Disasters and calamities are NOT from God.
   The keys of this world had been given by Adam to Satan when Adam fell. Satan still rules and holds sway in this world on how it is run. However the good news is his time is limited when Jesus died on the cross. Jesus is restoring what the first Adam had lost to us His bride. Not only that, He is giving us greater honor than what the first Adam had because Christ is the firstborn of the new Adam.
   
   Psalm 110:1 The LORD says to my Lord:
   "Sit at my right hand
   until I make your enemies
   a footstool for your feet."
   
   God is putting every enemy under Jesus' feet and the last enemy is death. This is an on-going process and each day Satan is losing his grip while more and more people turn to Christ.
   
   However one day, we will be raptured and that's when Satan's full fury and anger will be unleashed on the earth. "We are light and salt of this earth" - our presence are vital to the world not going amok!
   .
3. In the old covenant under Law, when a person sins, he has to pay for his sins and curses follow through. Sometimes this comes in the form of diseases, disasters, failed crops, drought, etc.
   
   It is not that God brought the curses. How could God be evil? Rather God had to remove his protection and that was how Satan could enforce disasters and diseases upon a person. Eg. The snakes in the wilderness. All these while the snakes had been there with the Israelites. But God protected them from the snakes until the Law came. Then God had to be the Righteous Judge and remove His protection whenever the Israelites sinned.
   
   In the new covenant in Jesus Christ however, all sins of mankind had been put on Jesus' body at the cross 2000 years ago. There is no more curse on a believer in Christ, UNLESS the believer chooses to believe he can still be cursed under the old Law covenant.

For further read, read my response here on the global economic recession.

Singapore Budget 2009: Wage Credit

Regarding the employer's CPF contribution reduction in the Budget 2009, I have coined this synomyn LPO-RPI. It means Left-Pocket-Out, Right-Pocket-In.

The budget attempts to 'save jobs' by having a wage credit for companies. Up to 12% of the first $2500 of wages will be subsidised by the government. It seems like a really innovative approach at the first glance.

I have a different take altogether. In the nutshell, nothing has changed for the common man actually.

In this wage credit, the government tops up the remaining employer's CPF contribution. This top-up amount is taken from the CPF. After topping up the employer's contribution, it goes back to you and back into your CPF account. And ultimately back into the government's hand.

Simply:
CPF (can't touch this) -> Wage Credit -> You -> CPF (can't touch this)

All in all, there is nothing to 'dip into the reserves' coz it's all transparent to you. It's like using your own money to fund yourself.

CPF is not like an account where you can withdraw at your whims and fancy. Neither were you given cash. So I do not see how the budget has helped a common man in this aspect. The only advantage it has is the employer pays less CPF contribution. How that constitutes to you saving your job is yet to be seen. I hope it does.

However this employer CPF contribution policy is also set by the government. So if companies feel the pinch, isn't it because this government's policy has created such scenario? Wouldn't it be better if the employer's CPF contribution be part of a worker's pay?

I do not want to dwell into past histories of the benefits of the CPF. There are a few angles to look at it.

Basically I do not think this Budget 2009 was impressive. One would have thought 'rainy days' might demand a more radical approach.

Let's hope I am wrong.

Get out of my 'greater mortal' face!

You know, I'm all for Perm Sec Tan YS going to the famed Le Cordon Bleu culinary school for holidays with his family. It's his money, all 46k of them (albeit getting from tax-payers). He's entitled to spend it how he likes.

I believe the online grouse is that in times like this, the least these high-earners could do is SHUT UP. I remember a story about a bird who likes to sing but fell into some sh*t and then got eaten because it could not keep its voice down.

Exactly. Be SENSITIVE. And smart enough to know when to keep your gap shut.

So here we have Minister Teo CH rapping Perm Sec Tan for his insensitive article in Straits Times on 'damage control' mode, MP Charles Chong then decidedly and purposely(?) stepped into another landmine with his wise-crack remarks.

Of course it blew up right into his elite, uncaring face. And kinda wiped out whatever was said by Minister Teo.

Pray tell me, folks, how is this sentence:

"Get out of my elite uncaring face" - Wee Shu Min's infamous quote different from:

"Maybe it made lesser mortals envious and they thought maybe he was a bit boastful. Would people have taken offence if his wife (a senior investment counsellor at a bank) had paid for everything?”- MP Charles Chong now infamous quote

Gee, our 'elite' PAP ministers seem to have an affinity for stepping onto landmines. Perhaps Vietnam might have greater use for them to clear out their minefields coz these elites can never quite get 'blown into pieces'.

Somehow they will miraculously dodge the sharpnels and come out unscathed. Then they step on another landmine and survive it. They might want to transfer this knowledge to our SAF soldiers.

Perhaps they should learn some wise words from the newly appointed US President. At least he feels 'humbled' to be in this position.

Some people think it's their God-given right to be in these ministerial positions.

I'm sorry that it had happened. Let's move on.

*grins*

Let there be Light!

I was listening to a sermon when the revelation about Jesus when suddenly His light hit me like a ton of bricks. It blew my finite mind beyond comprehension. It was so profound and yet simple to understand.

I saw how detailed and awesome the Word of God is - truly alive, full of Jesus footprints all over! Let me share my joy:

We know that God’s Hebrew name is Yahweh, YHWH (yodh-he-waw-he or pronounced yude-hey-vav-hey).

The term Yahweh is believed to come from these elemental root words:

• hayah, haw-yaw’; a primitive root; to exist, that is, be or become, come to pass (always definite in expression or action, and not a mere verb or helper)
• awah’, aw-waw’; a primitive root having to do with desire.
• (Take note of this!) hawa', haw-waw'; a primitive root; supposed to mean properly, to breathe; to be (in the sense of existence).

In the beginning, Genesis says God spoke, “Let there be light!” and there was light.

“Let there be light” = haw-waw ore (Hebrew)

Did you see God’s name in those words? If you had seen it, praise God! You’ll be jumping for joy like I did! Did you notice “haw-waw” in both the sentence “Let there be light” and in the root word of Yahweh?

In fact the accurate translation should be “Let HIM be light!” Wow… isn't it awesome? And whom do you think the HIM is?

Read Colossians (bold mine)

Col 1:15 [Now] He is the exact likeness of the unseen God [the visible representation of the invisible]; He is the Firstborn of all creation. 16 For it was in Him that all things were created, in heaven and on earth, things seen and things unseen, whether thrones, dominions, rulers, or authorities; all things were created and exist through Him [by His service, intervention] and in and for Him.
17 And He Himself existed before all things, and in Him all things consist (cohere, are held together).

The first time God created was light and there Jesus was! It confirms that Jesus had a hand all along in God’s creation from the beginning! ALL things were created in Him, by Him, for Him and through Him.

God’s words coming out from His mouth is Jesus Himself because Jesus is the living Word of God. He is so powerful that when those words “Light, be!” left God’s mouth, light came into existence by the power of Christ alone.

Light is so characteristic of Jesus’ person. Light (Hebrew ‘ore’) means illumination, happiness, or even revealing, revelation. Jesus is God’s revelation, God revealing Himself. That’s why so many verses confirmed that Jesus is the Light:

• Isaiah 9:2 The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.
• John 3:21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."
• Psalm 104:2 He wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent
• John 1:4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
• 1 John 1:5 God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.

Wow…. good stuff, eh? I’m sure now with this revelation, God’s light is flooding into our every person – spirit, soul and body as we behold the beauty of Jesus.

Then another revelation followed while I was meditating on those words above. If we replace the meaning of "Let Him be light!" with the Hebrew names (haw-waw = Jesus, ore = illumine, reveal), it can also be translated as:

"Let Jesus be revealed!" and God said that in the beginning in His Word. Double wow! Let Jesus be seen in the beginning of all creation.

No wonder Jesus is the Firstborn of all creation. I used to wonder why is He the Firstborn since Adam was in fact the first person created. Now I know - the first person God revealed was actually Jesus. Totally awesome!

Everything is about Jesus in His word. He is for us to discover and enjoy. Let us continue to see the marvellous beauty of God’s Word shed in the wonderful light of Jesus. May the Holy Spirit illuminate and reveal Jesus in every word and sentence, for He is the very living Word of God.

I am so blessed and excited by this revelation.

---
Food for thought:
In science, we learn that all matters are made up of atoms. In recent breakthroughs, we have discovered that atoms now consist of protons (+ve), neutrons and electrons (-ve). Take a proton. It consists of positive particles within. Likewise negative particles for an electron.

Science says: +ve (positive) and –ve (negative) attracts each other, while similar charge repels each other.

Now it doesn’t make sense according to the theory above because all the positive particles in a proton should repel each other. In fact the proton could not have existed. But science now says an ‘unseen but very powerful force’ holds the positive particles in a proton together. They just don’t know what it is.

But we know who holds the particles together. It has been Jesus. Wow, science has no answer and it can only point to Jesus.

If God can hold the minutest particles together, I’m absolutely sure he can hold your life, your marriage, your finances and your whole person together. Be blessed!

No joke, I'd rather have a shoe or two thrown at me

I condemn that attack on MP Seng Han Thong. My heartfelt sympathy to him and his loved ones.

No one needs to live in fear for serving the country. Using this dastardly attack is not the way to handle issues, personal or not. It was my missus who brought this up when she read Wayang Party blogsite. She was rather shocked.

I don't know what to say. This is the second attack on him. The first one was a punch in the face by a taxi driver concerning some revoked license. I'm not sure what provoked this second attack. Until the police publishes the investigation, we'll be left wondering with this haunting question:

WHY?

Coincidental that of all the MPs, he had been assualted twice. Gee, some group must have been really 'pissed' at him! Was this the act of a person with mental health issues? Or was it an old grudge?

This attacker is 70 years old. He probably doesn't think life is worth living. Perhaps he had lost all his savings in the minibonds? Maybe he was driven up the wall, backed into a corner with nothing else to live for... I don't know.

All I can surmise is this man is probably a very, very angry man. I do not think he has mental issues since he knows where to get the kerosene, plan carefully to approach the MP from behind and then light the fire.

All I can say to President Bush is "George, you had it easy."

May MP Seng have a speedy recovery from his burns. May God watch over him and his family in this hour of need.