"Two of her children Teck Chai, 16, and Pei Fei, 14, quit school to help their mother. They sold their school text books to a recycling centre just to buy rice for the family."
I know poverty. I've seen and gone thru' that myself so I ask, "are we really living in a civilised land or in some remote time forgotten jungle?"
School kids selling their school books to buy food!!! Oh! come on...this is UNACCEPTABLE.
Books should be kids' best friend. This I learned from my late father and in Malaysia we have school going children selling books for food.
The Malaysian government spends and buys billions of ringgit on stuff we Malaysians don't need or require and yet they can't look after kids in schools. Education is a priceless gift and it should never be traded, not even for gold or let alone all the gold or diamonds amassed.
I understand the poverty stricken kids were given help in the form of money, food and clothing and school books after their story was highlighted by a local daily.
When school children fail to attend school or drop out, it is the onus of the teacher or the Principal of the school to highlight this to the Ministry of Education. Not wait for the whole sympathy showcased to the country via the local government controlled dailies just to insinuate the opposition or the public.
As far as education is concern, issues concerning education, kids truancy, schools not able to provide proper teaching facilities, absenteeism of teachers and low salaries are the paramount onus of the Government of the day.
The very moment we fail to provide that to our kids, we fail as guardians as well period.
Money should be well spent caring and educating the young. We should never at any cost neglect but ensure the future generation are not left out of the mainstream knowledge-gaining spectrum. This is the paramount, a blue print to build a better nation then we have now. What we sow and reap is our utmost responsibility and it is also our duty to leave behind a better future for the younger ones to embrase.
54 years and beyond; never mind who is ruling the country, we're still living in a cloud of shame.
We never should lick what we spill..now should we?
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Thursday, August 18, 2011
...and this the month of Ramadan ... I remember
I remmy well some long time ago, teaching children from the estates as part of my 'puny" service to the poor and destitute. What I do many call it noble. I call it the answer to my existence.
There was this eleven year-old girl; parents both drunkard and she looking totally ragged out would come to a dilapidated shelter in the middle of a grassless brown pasture. The shelter looked like it had gone thru' a storm and had survived. On weekends, a teacher from a nearby school is always present at this little shelter to teach and guide children who have difficulties with their school work. I was asked to assist. I complied.
This little girl, whom I got to know was rather different and a bit difficult. She, coming from a broken home and not knowing proper manners or any form of chivalry, and there I was on this particular day to help her cope with her little stammering English and Maths.
She was an eager beaver indeed, vibrant as I saw it but something was amiss in her. She gave me a difficult time teaching and this got me angry with my ego busted as well. So, I decided to take a different approach to see if at all I can get to know why she is acting strangely and behaving rather "sapless"
This episode took place in tamil, so I shall translate. In Tamil, "padee" could mean read or learn.
Me : Are you here to study or to fool around? (rough tone)
Little girl : "Padeeke" (to study, and answered lethargically)
Me : I don't see that in you.
The little girl looked up at me startled. She frowned and lay one arm on the old broken table and with the other flipped a few pages from her Science book.
Me again : So, do you want me to teach you or not.
She nodded her head with yesses.
Me : OK, then start reading. I want to hear you read loud. "Padee."
Little girl : "Padee, padee.." everyday "padee padee".. How can I study? Since yesterday I have not eaten anything. Yesterday also no breakfast, today also no breakfast. Aiyooo..uncle, how to "padee"...I am so hungry.
(this was exactly what she told me. My heart stopped and it aches me till now)
No kid let alone a 11 year old had ever made me cry out loud silently.
And there I was to teach her! huh!
And this the month of Ramadan....
There was this eleven year-old girl; parents both drunkard and she looking totally ragged out would come to a dilapidated shelter in the middle of a grassless brown pasture. The shelter looked like it had gone thru' a storm and had survived. On weekends, a teacher from a nearby school is always present at this little shelter to teach and guide children who have difficulties with their school work. I was asked to assist. I complied.
This little girl, whom I got to know was rather different and a bit difficult. She, coming from a broken home and not knowing proper manners or any form of chivalry, and there I was on this particular day to help her cope with her little stammering English and Maths.
She was an eager beaver indeed, vibrant as I saw it but something was amiss in her. She gave me a difficult time teaching and this got me angry with my ego busted as well. So, I decided to take a different approach to see if at all I can get to know why she is acting strangely and behaving rather "sapless"
This episode took place in tamil, so I shall translate. In Tamil, "padee" could mean read or learn.
Me : Are you here to study or to fool around? (rough tone)
Little girl : "Padeeke" (to study, and answered lethargically)
Me : I don't see that in you.
The little girl looked up at me startled. She frowned and lay one arm on the old broken table and with the other flipped a few pages from her Science book.
Me again : So, do you want me to teach you or not.
She nodded her head with yesses.
Me : OK, then start reading. I want to hear you read loud. "Padee."
Little girl : "Padee, padee.." everyday "padee padee".. How can I study? Since yesterday I have not eaten anything. Yesterday also no breakfast, today also no breakfast. Aiyooo..uncle, how to "padee"...I am so hungry.
(this was exactly what she told me. My heart stopped and it aches me till now)
No kid let alone a 11 year old had ever made me cry out loud silently.
And there I was to teach her! huh!
And this the month of Ramadan....
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
On board the Angel Pitt express...
I've heard about car, buses, boats, planes for charter and have also heard of train charters, but these two with their brood chartered an entire train 'The Virgin' and travelled from London (England) to Glasgow (Scotland).
That's a 667 km journey (5 hours) and the entire train accommodated Brad Pitt , Angelina Jolie and their children. No one else except the crew.
These best Hollywood couple just told the world money can sure buy anything.
Who in the right frame of mine would wana charter an entire train. Huh!!
That's a 667 km journey (5 hours) and the entire train accommodated Brad Pitt , Angelina Jolie and their children. No one else except the crew.
These best Hollywood couple just told the world money can sure buy anything.
Who in the right frame of mine would wana charter an entire train. Huh!!
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
A real monster...
 |
| Killer father |
A father in Louisiana admitted to chopping his 7 year-old son's head off with a meat cleaver and left it in the roadside outside his home so that the child's mother would see it.
A passing motorist saw the decapitated head of Jori Lirette, from Louisiana, and alerted police.
Detectives later found the boy's body in a rubbish sack dumped nearby.
The boy's father, 30-year-old Jeremiah Lee Wright, is alleged to have confessed to decapitating his son.
Jori was a wheelchair bound cerebral palsy kid and fed through a feeding tube.
 |
| Cerebral Palsy son |
Saturday, August 13, 2011
another moron on the billboard!
This 17-year old with an impending typo-error last name is plastered all over Hollywood after his famous father was found to have fathered a love child.
This is Patrick Swa-too-many-zzz-ggg-eee.
What better way to earn when the father, an ex-barbarian, ex-bodybuilder and ex-Governor was in the news lately.
This is Patrick Swa-too-many-zzz-ggg-eee.
What better way to earn when the father, an ex-barbarian, ex-bodybuilder and ex-Governor was in the news lately.
Do this ....
If you're in a restaurant and find you need to get the waiter/waitress attention but they are nowhere to be seen, or you're neglected even though you been been sitting and waiting to be served, and none cares or bothers to attend to you, then do the below.
wonder who is missing the point!
The recent raid by JAIS on a certain gathering to raise funds under the AIDS program held in a church got many groups and political parties cooking hot. The issue raised by JAIS was rather bemusing - Christians trying to convert Moslems into Christianity. This episode had surely made Malaysia again famous for the most unfathomable and usurious reason.
Ohh! and before I take you any further, PROSELYTISE!... have you come across such a word..If you did, wow lucky you. I had to dig deep into Goggle and Webster to get to the meaning. Phewwww.
Now back. Let me tell you this, I did at some point in my life grow up in a church, but never knew such a Jurassic work even existed.
Now here's the thing.
In one corner, we've a group that says Moslems were being proselytise by the Christians. In the other, a certain group says what JAIS had done is not constitutional. Both strong accusations. And to the ruling government, this is exactly what they had been waiting for - to have two factions from the same creed to go at-logger at each other whilst they sit and watch the show. Couple with that they sent in their media to make it look like an ape fiesta.
Then came the Selangor state government. The MB said what JAIS had done is wrong blah blah blah and put a gag order over them. This really did not go well and many poked their noses in and a bashing session was in display. I need not say more on this. It's all in the papers but ...
Away from all that cursing, blaming, finger pointing and even brandishing others as kafir, there are things lost in translation that needs gentlemen attention.
Things like ...
Welcome to the Planet of the Apes?
Ohh! and before I take you any further, PROSELYTISE!... have you come across such a word..If you did, wow lucky you. I had to dig deep into Goggle and Webster to get to the meaning. Phewwww.
Now back. Let me tell you this, I did at some point in my life grow up in a church, but never knew such a Jurassic work even existed.
Now here's the thing.
In one corner, we've a group that says Moslems were being proselytise by the Christians. In the other, a certain group says what JAIS had done is not constitutional. Both strong accusations. And to the ruling government, this is exactly what they had been waiting for - to have two factions from the same creed to go at-logger at each other whilst they sit and watch the show. Couple with that they sent in their media to make it look like an ape fiesta.
Then came the Selangor state government. The MB said what JAIS had done is wrong blah blah blah and put a gag order over them. This really did not go well and many poked their noses in and a bashing session was in display. I need not say more on this. It's all in the papers but ...
Away from all that cursing, blaming, finger pointing and even brandishing others as kafir, there are things lost in translation that needs gentlemen attention.
Things like ...
- Moslems raiding churches! Is this allowed?
- Can Christians raid masjids?
- Can Moslems in Malaysia be converted to any other religion?
- The PM visited the Vatican, shook hands with the Pontiff; exchanged diplomatics ties with the Holy-See. Why isn't JAIS questioning the PM?
- Why do all these problems ONLY occur in Selangor and Penang?
- What has all this got to do with the political parties on both divides?
Welcome to the Planet of the Apes?
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