run up to GE13 - if they still govern ....

The below is by courtesy of Malaysiakini. (edited )

Quote "...for 54 years they have been in power. Its a mighty long time for a one race one party to rule and govern a nation." Unquote.

Around the time of independence, UMNO had people of quality within its ranks. Today, it's alleged loyalty is determined by money. Is that what Umno think the Malays are proud of...that their allegiance is easily bought? Umno strips Malays of self-worth and self-respect.

Instead of using intelligent discourse and logic to dissect issues, UMNO uses sexual allegations or character assassinations to blacken the reputation of members of the opposition. Aren't the opposition Malays too? If you say you champion the Malays and yet you smear the sanctity of others, what do you call that? Leaders(mostly Malays)  had their characters or their children’s character tarnished with untrue allegations in pro-UMNO blogs.

Gutter politics are prevalent in UMNO. Name calling and snide insinuations seemed to be the order of the day. The men and women, who are supposed to be leaders and pillars of Malay society, are a disgrace to themselves and the nation.

In UMNO, men who were guilty of sexual acts, against their hired help or against minors, talk about the sexual behaviours of others, as if they lead blameless lives. Those who are guilty of money politics try to distract attention by calling on opposition members to resign. What happened to accountability and responsibility?

These men and women who talk about religion profess they are free of sin. These same people use any opportunity to say the failure of the Malays is because of the dominance of the non-Malays.

In education, the Malays are given the best chances for obtaining a higher education on a better platform. The nation has systematically built higher institute of learning to tailor suit the Malays and yet the non-Malays do it better even on unequal and ill quiped platforms. The undesirable side-effect which is a fact is that their children grow up lacking aspiration and ambition.

Malays who wanted to improve themselves by learning English are now considered traitors. Many Malays who study overseas have a poor grasp of English. Many who were not allowed to mix with other races at home, find great difficulty adapting to life with non-Malays. Is this what UMNO leaders want of the Malays?

Malays have lost the respect of the other races and nationalities. Worldwide, people are breaking down walls which prevent intermingling, but not, it appears, in the Malay race. Malays have tunnel vision when it comes to understanding social morals. They see non-Malays and non-Muslims as a threat to their very existence. They feel they're far superior to the other races or nationalities, and their belligerence prevents them from accepting others superior to them in many fields; be it education, business, social integration and civility.

UMNO leaders have tried to use the Ketuanan Melayu concept to champion Malay interests. In truth, believe it or not, Ketuanan Melayu only champions the interests of UMNO leaders. UMNO is not for the Malays. It exists only so its leaders will thrive to the detriment of the normal, ordinary Malay.

Does UMNO practice equality and fairness? Who gets the contracts and government tenders? Is this UMNO’s idea of helping the Malays? Even amongst the Malays, fairness is not practiced. The UMNO cronies have the monopoly on the staples of life like rice, bottled drinks, bread, beer, brandy, cattle, airlines and their associated industries, APs (Approved Permits), electricity, contracts for school supplies, NS (National Service) uniforms, cars, petrol and petrol stations, road construction, taxi permits, whisky, water and gambling.

Does UMNO encourage the opportunity for growth and expansion? Those who have fallen out of favour or those who no longer enjoy the patronage of various government ministers, probably wished that legitimate competition had been around, in the first place.

Without healthy competition, how can confidence be inspired in foreign investors so that their investments will bring employment and opportunities to Malaysians? As a nation, do we have confidence in our own public institutions like the police, the judiciary and the various services which support society?

Are we confident when things go wrong, the help of agencies which tackle corruption, or investigate criminal acts can be relied upon?

Are the leaders in UMNO able to understand that without progressive reforms, the country’s growth is retarded, the people are held back and opportunities to improve the lives of the rakyat are few? Does UMNO realise “Brand Malaysia” is a sum of its individual races and that the contribution of each community is important?

Right now, only Malay interests are treated with reverence, whilst the others are sidelined. Will UMNO ever see the need to discard its racist policies? UMNO does not seem to appreciate that it needs to rebuild its core values. If it continues down the path of racism and religious intolerance, the party which once sustained its members, may never be able to recover.

Perhaps, that is not such a bad thing after all.

In a nutshell - given the yardstick and taking into account all trivialities, is UMNO anywhere relevant?

Quote and Unquote....

I've friends who are die-hard patriotic and staunch believers of UMNO being in power forever. And these are my new found friends in a very small circle of work-environment. Sometimes I couldn't help but to eavesdrop on their open conversation with friends or with me.

The below are some of their comments when asked why UMNO and the present government should helm and rule Malaysia forever and ever in ever so eternity.

-- "you see, without UMNO, Malaysia cannot build Twin Towers and then nobody will come to Malaysia...no tourist...."

(ex Engineer) 

-- "same party but always different people. Very healthy"

(ex bank employee)

--"Only UMNO can guarantee Malaysian jobs and people come here for investment. Without UMNO banyak akan jadi miskin..(without UMNO, many will become poor" )

(ex bank employee)

-- on Anwar Ibrahim. "I don't like talk about people who play behind."

(ex bank employee)

--"I suka Najib. Dia memang bijak. Tengkok la, sekarang duit kita very strong" (I like Najib. He is intelligent. See now..our money is strong.)

 (ex Engineer)

--"BN must take Malaysia tapi I nak PR take Selangor" (the same ex Engineer)

--1Malaysia is a very good concept. Only UMNO and Najib only can do it. Najib memang bijak cipta 1Malaysia concept...PKR mana ada?"(Najib is indeed clever. Who else can invent the 1 Malaysia concept")

 - a freshie. Yet to learn anything about this person

--PKR is only alat-alat sahaja. Talk only. They very greedy and tamak. How can they know what is good for Malaysia? PKR only know cakap-cakap sahaja..dia orang taktau economy" (PKR is only a tool. They are greedy and selfish. PKR talk only. They don't know economy.)

- the same ex engineer who whats PKR for Selangor

--"tak abis-abis Anwar...Orang lain tak de ke? (why always Anwar. Isn't there any other person?)

(ex bank emoployee)

--"now orang Melayu sudak bijak jaga economy. Tengkok UMNO. Tak de corruption. Malaysia sekarang sudah jadi moden. Even Mat Salleh also want to live here." (now the Malays are clever, can look after the economy. Look at UMNO. No corruption. Malaysia is now modern. Even white people like to live here)

(ex-government employee)

--"contract-contract bagi kat UMNO sebab only UMNO tau macamana nak runding...kalau bagi orang lain, habis semue duit makan diorang. Sapa rugi? India and China rugi. Thats why I tell you, if no UMNO..memang Malaysia jadi macam Africa" (all the contracts are given to UMNO because only UMNO know how to negotiate. If give to other people, all the money will be eaten up by them. Who loose? The Chinese and Indian only. I tell you, if no UMNO, Malaysia will be like Africa.)

(the same ex-government employee)

...and the killer ..

--"You see now America recover already. Because of Obama..if not lagi huru-hara America. He is very good because he is Moslem." ( see, now America had recovered already. All because of Obama. He is good because he is Moslem)

(ex Engineer)

MY REMARK : I don't mean to be rude but honestly I rather choose hell then listen anymore from these cave dwelling planks.

R.I.P.

 RIP.... 

PI P. Balasubramaniam

Hindraf...hello macha..what is the problem now?

Hindraf, what is your problem? Why do you need PR (Pakatan Rakyat) or BN (Barisan Malaysia)? Both these parties are in no way to help or guide you. When are you numbskulls ever going to learn that. Year after year, you know and have seen the outcome perils and plights of Malaysian Indians and yet you seek them to 'guide' you.

picture : courtesy of Malaysia Kini.

To call you stupids will be a waste of time. And PLEASE don't go and wage your demands with Indians(INDIA). Those swines there are equally numbskulls and pea-brain as well ... they have their own internal and domestic problems to solve. So, please do not embarrass us the Malaysian Indians here and take all your hopeless and worthless grievances to India. If you have a problem, solve it here, right here in Malaysia coz you AIN'T INDIAN. You're Malaysian.  Get that straight and right.

The mere fact, Hindraf though its ban lifted but still irrelevant in Malaysia, speaks well of its irrelevance to mainstream society. Why harbour on hopes and put forth all your 18 demands when it is falling on deaf ears? Do you honestly think anyone in Malaysia, let alone Malaysian Indians give a damn?  I think not. If Hindraf is granted all its 18 demands asked for, the entire mindset and the well being of the other races will change overnight. The forces and the would be forces know that well. They can't and will not make that happen. Even a lame duck knows that. How come you don't?  In no way any government would grant all your demands, well give or take one or two but never all the 18.

It might take ages but if its ages, then let it come. Hindraf - you should lay the ground work and like a cherry tree, plant the seed NOW and wait. If an asteroid or a super earthquake does not decimate Malaysia, then that very cherry tree will go on one day to blossom and that will be the day Hindraf's all its 18 demands will bear fruit.

Simply put, lay the foundation now and let our younger future generation prosper from what we sow. 

So, I urge all you machas and machies, be patient.  Make it political and stand in the forth coming 13th Malaysian General Elections.

That's one way to a good start.  

Hindraf chairperson P Waythamoorthy has embarked on a solo hunger strike to press BN 

and Pakatan Rakyat to endorse and recognize the 18 demands set by Hindraf.
(courtesy of Malaysiakini.)

stuff I got from BN .. enough lah!

                                                                  

 Barisan National (National Front) can shower us the moon, the stars
and the heavens. 

Yes, we'll take them BUT the principal idea still stands... 

WE DON'T WANT YOU NOMORE. 

54 years is enough. 

When are you ever going to learn that. 

Just resign yourself and go away.

Go bury yourself in hole, a time capsule, in a museum or 

send yourself to the moon. 

Come back maybe 30 to 40 years from now.

We're already SICK AND TIRED listening to you.

COMPRENTE

George Town ..Hip Hip Hooray..Happy Retirement...

George Town - the view from mainland Malaysia

George Town, Penang rated Top 4 in the ‘8 Great Places to Retire Abroad’ by Kiplinger

George Town was voted the fourth best place to retire by Kiplinger, a publisher of business forecast and personal finance advice based in Washington D.C. 

George Town is listed after Medellin in Columbia, Dubrovnik in Croatia, and Salinas in Ecuador and the ranking is based primarily on cost of living and other factors such as health care, ease of traveling to the U.S. and the climate.

Cities after George Town are Bilbao in Spain, Coronado in Panama, Galway in Ireland and Tlaxcala in Mexico.

In terms of lowest living cost alone, it is mentioned Penang, and Malaysia came in third after Thailand and Philippines. Their research shows Malaysia My Second Home received 19,488 foreigners over the past decade. 

George Town is also stated in the article to provide affordable and quality medical and dental services.

Well, I'm from Penang and no 

wonder I retried early even before this came up.

looks juicy YES, but ...

Will it or can it be fulfilled?

Bukit Merah to Kuala Kangsar - a rail trail diminishing ...

I'm a huge fan of train travel. Trains fascinate me. I still remember my first train ride - a full 9 hour journey from Penang to Kuala Lumpur way back in the 70's. My late father was a railway man so taking a train ride to anywhere was the norm in the family.

Tho' it's been a long time, I still savour the good old train journeys, especially listening to the clanking sounds of the dieseled fueled locomotives back then. The trains then looked monster raged with  thunderous blow-horns for a "voice". With the noisy gigantic engines and screeching steel wheels, every journey I took was heavenly. The swaying and bouncing of the coaches cutting thru' the endless country-side was ever-so-breathtaking. Each scene was a postcard viewed fast-forward. Crazy it may sound, each train ride is always new and could never get me bored.

 Train crossing Bukit Merah Lake.

 

And when it rains, sipping a hot brew and watching rain streak down the glass panes of the train was such a lazy comfort. As the chugging train criss-crosses lakes and swollen rivers, race through paddy fields and palm plantations bellowing its thick black smoke and passing through the 'kampungs', one would want to forget its rendezvous.  And when the golden hour beckons, that is if you're lucky, you get to watch the evening sun burst through the clouds and cast its warmth on the mirrored Bukit Merah lake. Imagine you in the middle of the lake and the whole blue world looking down on you from above. That one particular moment is breathless. This is something many Malaysians have never experienced. It's one postcard view from Heaven, I tell you.

Apart from all that, you meet people from various walks of life sharing the same enthusiasm with you. These are the golden moments of train traveling. It may be slow, noisy and somewhat irritating, but the journey getting there is, I say again, postcard perfect.

Time Now - If you're living on the fast lane, sorry to say soon all that will be gone. The better part of the country is giving way to robust development. When modernization creeps in, nothing is going to bring back the glory days of retro train travel. I know many hate train travel. I don't blame you. Our trains are somewhat slow. You may have your reasons for the hate. I don't. Sometimes the rendezvous is well worth the slow journey.

The whole reason for this write-up is on a sadden concern with regards to the train journey between Bukit Merah and Kuala Kangsar in particular.... (if you're still with me, do read on) 

Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) is embarking on the double track project from Ipoh to Butterworth and onwards to the North - Padang Besar (Malaysia / Thai border). This project has been on going for some time now. At the time if this write-up fifty percent construction of this huge undertaking is almost completed. Work is still on going with the construction of building bridges, stations and crossings. Onwards to the North, land is being acquired and tracks are being laid out.

Recently, I took a train trip home to Penang. The trail from Kuala Kangsar to Bukit Merah craned me up to a somewhat nostalgic sadness. This part of the journey North has always caught my attention as I consider it the most loveliest, pristine green train ride one can endeavour in Malaysia. This is the part of the trail where hills, forest, rivers, creeks and tunnels  come together in one trail. As you meander thru', you get to reach out your hand and touch the green foliage as the train winds and pulls its weight up and down the hill, and on occasions bellowing its 'trumpets' struggling thru'.

s

The diminishing trail...

Due to the uphill trail, trains need to slow down and worm its way gradually into Kuala Kangsar. It'll meander through wild thick foliage with its winding and twisting trail whilst passing through long forgotten scary British built tunnels. The sounds of critters, water sipping down into the tunnels, the echoing sounds of the chugging locomotive reverberating are one of the "must-see-feel" Malaysian adventure.

THIS TRAIL WILL NO LONGER BE USED AFTER THE INTRODUCTION OF THE NEW ELECTRIFIED TRACKS.

I do remember my late father telling me one day while reading his morning papers that the Bukit Merah - Kuala Kangsar part of the rail was the most enduring railway project ever embarked. Many workers got bitten by snakes, wasps and prolly insects from hell. Some contracted Malaria and died. It was almost similar to the Malaysian version of the Death Railway in Thailand.

I really don't know what's going to happen to this unique part of train travel. I hope this trail be given reckoning and be included into the Malaysian Rail trail itinerary. It could make a good tourist attraction. Even locals could enjoy the trail rides. The present generation of Malaysians are going to loose dearly a Golden heritage rail travel.  I hope the relevant authorities preserve this piece of rail engineering and not let it be eaten up by greedy and wealthy entrepreneurs or leave it to rot and be forgotten by time.   

If you're a keen rail enthusiast, there isn't much time left to savour this one amazing rail journey. By this time next year, even this piece of write-up will be irrelevant too. 

** From 2017 onwards, this train journey is taken over by the lake-bridge route. (see clip). This is the only clip I have riding on a diesel train over Bukit Merah lake.