Does Management know their Staff?

On walking into the factory, the MD noticed a young guy leaning against a wall, doing nothing. He approached the young man and calmly said to him, "How much do you earn?"

The young man was quite amazed that he was asked such a personal question, but
replied none the less, "I earn $ 2 000.00 a month, Sir. Why?"

Without answering, the MD took out his wallet and removed $ 6000.00 in cash and gave it to the young man and said, "Around here I pay people for working, not for standing around looking pretty! Here's 3 months' salary, now GET OUT and don't come back."

The young man turned around and was quickly out of sight. Noticing a few onlookers, the MD said, "And that applies for everybody in this company."

He then approached one of the onlookers and asked him, "Who's the young man that I just fired?"

To which came an amazing
reply.

" He was the pizza delivery man, Sir!!!

Robby's Night

At the prodding of my friends, I am writing this story. My name is Mildred Hondorf. I am a former elementary school music teacher from Des Moines , Iowa . I've always supplemented my income by teaching piano lessons-something I've done for over 30 years. Over the years I found that children have many levels of musical ability. I've never had the pleasure of having a prodigy though I have taught some
talented students.

However I've also had my share of what I call 'musically challenged' pupils. One such student was Robby. Robby was 11 years old when his mother (a single Mom) dropped him off for his first piano lesson. I prefer that students (especially boys)! begin at an earlier age, which I explained to Robby.

But Robby said that it had always been his mother's dream to hear him play the piano. So I took him as a student. Well, Robby began with his piano lessons and from the beginning I thought it was a hopeless endeavor. As much as Robby tried, he lacked the sense of tone and basic rhythm needed to excel But he dutifully reviewed his scales and some elementary pieces that I require all my students to learn.

Over the months he tried and tried while I listened and cringed and tried to encourage him. At the end of each weekly lesson he'd always say, 'My mom's going to hear me play someday.' But it seemed hopeless. He just did not have any inborn ability. I only knew his mother from a distance as she dropped Robby off or waited in her aged car to pick him up. She always waved and smiled but never stopped in.

Then one day Robby stopped coming to our lessons.

I thought about calling him but assumed because of his lack of ability, that he had decided to pursue something else. I also was glad that he stopped coming. He was a bad advertisement for my teaching!

Several weeks later I mailed to the student's homes a flyer on the upcoming recital. To my surprise Robby (who received a flyer) asked me if he could be in the recital. I told him that the recital was for current pupils and because he had dropped out he really did not qualify. He said that his mother had been sick and unable to take him
to piano lessons but he was still practicing 'Miss Hondorf I've just got to play!' he insisted.

I don't know what led me to allow him to play in the recital. Maybe it was his persistence or maybe it was something inside of me saying that it would be all right. The night for the recital came. The high school gymnasium was packed with parents, friends and relatives. I put Robby up last in the program before I was to come up and thank all the students and play a finishing piece.. I thought that any damage he would do would come at the end of the program and I could always
salvage his poor performance through my 'curtain closer.'

Well, the recital went off without a hitch. The students had been practicing and it showed. Then Robby came up on stage. His clothes were wrinkled and his hair looked like he'd run an eggbeater through it. 'Why didn't he dress up like the other students?' I thought. 'Why didn't his mother at least make him comb his hair for this special night?'

Robby pulled out the piano bench and he began. I was surprised when he announced that he had chosen Mozart's Concerto #21 in C Major. I was not prepared for what I heard next. His fingers were light on the keys, they even danced nimbly on the ivories. He went from pianissimo to fortissimo. >From allegro to virtuoso. His suspended chords that Mozart demands were magnificent! Never had I heard Mozart played so well by people his age. After six and a half minutes he ended in a
grand crescendo and everyone was on their feet in wild applause. Overcome and in tears I ran up on stage and put my arms around Robby in joy. 'I've never heard you play like that Robby! How'd you do it? 'Through the microphone Robby explained: 'Well Miss Hondorf. Remember I told you my Mom was sick? Well, actually she had cancer and passed away this morning And well . . . She was born deaf so tonight was the first time she ever heard me play. I wanted to make it special.'

There wasn't a dry eye in the house that evening. As the people from Social Services led Robby from the stage to be placed into foster care, noticed that even their eyes were red and puffy and I thought to myself how much richer my life had been for taking Robby as my pupil.

No, I've never had a prodigy but that night I became a prodigy. . . Of Robby's. He was the teacher and I was the pupil for it is he that taught me the meaning of perseverance and love and believing in yourself and maybe even taking a chance in someone and you don't know why.

Robby was killed in the senseless bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in April of 1995 And now, a footnote to the story.

M'sian in trouble for offering needless bribe to cop

Wed, Oct 31, 2007
The Straits Times

KUALA LUMPUR - A MALAYSIAN man apparently fearing he had too much to drink tried to play it safe by bribing a policeman to avoid a breath analyser test.

It turned out he passed the test, but was fined for bribery.

Aw Cheng Fatt offered a police officer RM50 (S$21.7) after his car was stopped at a police check point for drunk driving three years ago, The Star reported on Wednesday.

The alcohol screening test showed the man's blood level was in fact within the permissible limit.

However, Aw wound up getting arrested for corruption and was fined 1,000 ringgit in court on Tuesday, the report said.

Court and police officials could not immediately be reached to confirm the report.

Readers Comments:

Wrong! The ONLY problem here is that the bribe was too small. Maybe RM200 could have done the trick.
Posted by: max728129 at Wed Oct 31 15:13:06 SGT 2007

majority M sian police are corrupted. It starts from very top level too. see news about a high ranking policeman who got investigated for possible corruption. He was told to resign but said he would not as he only have few month to go before he retires. -Andrew
Posted by: clerics at Wed Oct 31 14:57:48 SGT 2007

The Morale should be.... Ask before you gives....:D
Posted by: optio209 at Wed Oct 31 14:53:59 SGT 2007

Warsaw, Poland

I was told Eastern Europe and Western Europe are worlds apart, and I think the only difference that I can really see is the price difference. Things are generally cheaper. I can’t really say how cheap Eastern Europe is, but from Warsaw, which is supposed to be the most expensive part of Eastern Europe, is quite affordable. I'm so looking forward to visit the rest of Eastern Europe.

I arrived at the train station and I didn't get to see my host, because it was way too big to meet up. But it was quite an interesting experience to find my way to their place, and to realize that Malgorzata was actually still looking and waiting for me in the train station. I feel so bad.

At the same time when I'm staying at her place, Cherie who is from Australia is surfing her couch (for 3 weeks), because Malgorzata did not want her to leave. lolx. The whole family with Tomek and their son was a joy to be with. It just feel that there is so much love, and I can simply stay there forever.

This is me having fun with Franek. My fatherly or kidish instinct is calling. He is so adorable....

I met up with Meg and Lech in Warsaw, the last we met were at Mexico and this time, is kinda funny how we found a Mexico City art exhibiton and decided to reminisce the place we spent half a year together. Both of them have mexican partners, how lucky they are....

They showed me around the city and was really interesting. The most prominent building in Warsaw must be the palace which was given by the Russian as a "rememberence of communism", which I think the polish either love it or hate it. Love it because is like a trademark of Warsaw but hate it because they just want to leave a scar in their previous territories.

Warsaw has an old town which was somewhat nice, maybe because I have been to too many places, that sometimes I just find everything almost the same. lolx. But like I say, the atmosphere is different and I think it is still nice in its own way.

This is me, is only typical that I have to order half litre of beer for every meal i eat. I have been drinking every single day since I started on France tour. My poor liver and kidneys, they worked so hard....gotta let them rest man.

This is a Warsaw speciality, De Volaille, Chick fillet stuffed with mushrooms, butter and cheese. Gosh is so nice. And the white stuff around it is noodles made from potatoes. Yum....

And then I visited a very very nice garden in the east of Warsaw, it is so nice, I call this my enchanted garden.

I met up with Urszula for breakfast and she sent me to the airport. I never meet people just to send me to the airport. This is really amusing, and I also finally found someone who travelled to Singapore and she quite like it.

And last but not least, your Poland trip will never be complete if you do not see this....

Night Courses

Ah Beng went to take night courses with the reasoning in future can get promotion or better job

During work, Ah Beng likes to show off to Ah Seng about his knowledge.

Ah Beng: Ah Seng ah... I've been taking night courses for 3 months already, next week is the exam.
Ah Seng: Oh... Good luck ah.

Then Ah Beng started show off...

Ah Beng: Ok, I test you, who is Graham Bell?
Ah Seng: Don't know
Ah Beng: He is the inventor of phone la... in 1876, see... if you take night courses, you would know this.
Ah Seng: ........................ *speechless*

The next day, Ah Beng shows off again...

Ah Beng: Ah Seng ah... let me ask you, who is Jean Jacques Rousseau?
Ah Seng: Wash your toilet one ah?
Ah Beng: No! He's the author of "Confessions", nah nah nah... told you already, if you take night courses, you would know this.
Ah Seng: ......................... *speechless + frustrated*

The next day, once again...

Ah Beng: Do you know who is Alexander Dumas?
Ah Seng: Your gay partner?
Ah Beng: Choiii!!! If you don't know don't simply answer la. He's the author of "The 3 Musketeers", if you take night courses, you would know this.
Ah Seng: ....................... *speechless + frustrated + irritated

This time Ah Seng cannot tahan (stand) anymore and ask Ah Beng...

Ah Seng: Eh... Do you know who is Ah Kaw?
Ah Beng: Errrr... No!
Ah Seng: He's the guy sleeping with your wife!! If you stop night courses, you would know this!!
Ah Beng: ........................ *fainted*

Left Brain vs Right Brain

This picture rotates in only one direction, but u should be able to see it rotating 2 directions. If u only see one, try to look away and look at the picture again.

If you have very strong brain powers, you can control the directions. Try it....

Estudiant en Espana

Yes, I have finally arranged my lessons and accommodation in Barcelona, so I have gotten the most headache part of this trip (to arrange all these) out of the way. And I’m going to be studying Spanish in Barcelona, Spain for the whole month of November. Everyone is telling me is so wrong to study in Barcelona because everyone speaks Catalan. But I think it is still possible to interact with each other with the use of Spanish. Anyway, it is free, so just make the best of the situation.

It is so amazing how last year this time, I was struggling so hard for my Spanish, but this year, I’m so looking forward to learn it. I think I’m extremely motivated to learn Spanish because I long to return Mexico and visit Latin America. One thing is for sure is that I will definitely want myself to be equipped in this language before I go to Latin America. And I so hope that this will happen eventually, and I do not get too obsessed with work.

Berlin, Germany

It was love at first sight. I almost bought the t-shirt, I Love Berlin. Is just so impressive that I came out from the train station, and everything was surreal. And after I get to see the nice sun shinning, so it just add to the list of why it is so nice to be here in Berlin.

Then there was the impressive Reichstag, which requires u to queue for an hour before getting in.

This used to be Hitler's bunker, and I must say, it is really craftfully designed.

There was the Berlin Wall where so many people died while trying so hard to get over the walls. Many tried, few have made it, why are so many people dying to move from East Germany to West Germany? Is freedom really that important???
The weather was only good for my first day there. The rest of the 3 days was crap. I couldn't even see sun for the next 3 days, even though there wasn't any rain at all. Winter just came too early too soon. =(

This is a picture of spring trees that I took when I was in Berlin. A new effect that I came to mastered. :)

All was not lost, as I literally walked the whole of Berlin. It is not really small, but I really love walking into neighbourhoods and discovering new things. I live in a Turkish neighbourhood, and I got my kebak for 2 euros and it is even bigger than Carl's Junior burger.

This is my host Nadja. She is really nice, told me about her bad experience from the past CS.

The first night, we had a party at home. It was great, we have a cooking session together. So I was taught how to cut potatoes. We have curry and wine, and the party consist of mainly couchsurfers who are host of Berlin.

Then I met an Italian call Miryam. We met up for 3 days we were there. She is so relax about life and told me about amusing life stories.

I also met up with Susi, a CS ambassador for Berlin. She was really cool and treated me to Szegediner Gulasch (pork rib with potatoes). It was delicious.

Then saw Klinke, she travelled the asia so many times and use to have a Thai boyfriend, she is really cool.

I also met up with my best friend when I was in ITAM, Nadja who is now working in Berlin as a consultant. It is just so nice again to meet up with her. And there are so much that we have to catch up and talked about. And I hope to catch her soon in Barcelona or somewhere else soon.

And how can I forget to try some of the hotdogs in Germany. Currywurst.

Hamburg, Germany

We were greeted by our host at the train station, luckily we contacted him and told him about the change of plans, if not he will be waiting for us. He drove to the train station and was very nice. In a way, I think he was looking forward to see us and we too were looking forward to see him.
He drove us around Hamburg and showed us the habour, and brought us to the ‘famous’ red light district - Reeperbahn. There was this one street that only allows ONLY MEN to go in, and no women are allowed. It was really sleazy. I heard it is almost as famous as Amsterdam, but I have yet to visit that place, so I cannot comment. You do get occasion soliciting asking from 50euros (for a tits f***) and 200euros (for a ‘everything’). And mostly the whores are from Eastern Europe and Russia. Peter cooked a wonderful dinner of Frikadelle (dish from Hamburg) and Crème Catalan (dessert from Barcelona). He also invited his boyfriend - Wolfgang (sitting beside me) along for the Dinner. He cannot speak English, but he is a really nice who helps with the setting up for dinner. The next day, we took a walk in the city, and Hamburg was by far the nicest place in Germany that I have seen, but the only problem is that it is too cold. Even when the sun was shinning so strongly, I was in 2 layers of coat. *Shivers*
I met Thilo (whom I got to know on board the plane while returning from Vietnam to Singapore) for dinner. He is a media law graduate and waiting for his job, and has been traveling quite a lot. And come to think of it, is so amazing how we finally get to meet each other in Hamburg when the first and the last time we met were on board the plane. Then we also met up with Helle and she just finished her work. So we accompanied her for dinner. She is a graduate of social and cultural anthropology. She is working as a social worker, administrator for the TV station and as a tour guide. Before we parted, Peter gave us a each a souvenir- a personalized CD with our pictures and German songs and a coaster of Hamburg. He is so nice and sweet, and I really think it is almost impossible to get all this done in such a short period of time, but he did it rather well. I’m so going to miss him and he promised that he will come and decorate my house in Singapore (because the way he design his house is so beautiful). See you soon Peter.

Cologne, Germany

This is a very over-rated city. Many have heard how nice this place is, but it is just a student town after all, with exception of The Dom, which is a Cathedral. It is enormously huge, and is of course flooded with tourist. And beside this nice sight, there is the Rhine River which runs through Cologne, and a major shopping street.
Spend much of my time here resting and preparations for the rest of my trips in Nov and Dec. I finally got all my tickets to Portugal and Morocco. :)

We hosted by Leo and Luis who are really nice guy. Leo is from India and Luis is from Portugal. Both are doing their PHD in Stem Cells research, how cool right? I learnt something new today about the way you cheers to people. When you cheers to people, you have to always look into the eyes, rather than doing it for formality sick, because, if you do not do it, you will have 7 years of bad sex. At least this is what was told to me. Now, I will definitely look into the eyes of the people that I’m toasting to.

They are really nice people and guess what; they invited other couchsurfers along too. We have had 6 people sleeping in the living room for the first night. Thank god, I learnt to say “I’m sorry but I’m really tired, and I need to retire early”. This allows me to leave the bar early and get myself a good spot to sleep. With the 9 hours of rest, I so deservingly need, there is nothing more I can ask for. We missed our train AGAIN. Sad to say, my alarm clock didn’t ring because my time was an hour too late. DAMN. Fred did not set his alarm clock despite me reminding him 3 times last night. Argh….

But thankfully, we caught the next train at no extra cost.

Just for Laugh

(1) DON'T LOOK AT NAKED LADY

Boy 1: Why do you run from a naked lady?
Boy 2: Becos my mum said that if I look at a naked lady, I'll turn into stone. A part of me is getting hard already!

(2) NAMES OF WIVES

A malay man had 4 wives, and he called his...
4th wife..... baby doll
3rd wife.....china doll
2nd wife.....barbie doll
1st wife..... panadol !

(3) HOW INDIA GOT ITS NAME

This is how India got its name.....
The king was having sex with his mistress while thinking a name of his country and his mistress ask him "is it In Dear?"...

(4) RESEARCH FINDING

Research shows men are fatter than women because every-night men get fresh milk & 2 big papayas women only get 1 banana, 2 peanuts & 1 tea-spoon of starch!

(5) ARAB MAN

An arab was being interviewed at a US checkpoint.
'Your name pls.'?
"Abdul Aziz "
"Sex? "
"Six times a week!! "
"No, no, I mean male or female! "
"Doesn't matters, sometimes even camel !"

(6) SERVICE

Sex is like a restaurant.
Sometimes you get full satisfactory service, and sometimes you have to be satisfied with self-service"

(7) HAPPY MAN

What makes a happy man?
Daughter on the cover of cosmo.
Son on the cover of sports illustrated.
Mistress on the cover of playboy and .. Wife on the cover of "missing persons"

(8) SWIMSUIT

Why was the 2-piece swimsuit invented?
To separate the HAIRY section from the DAIRY section.

(9) GOOD AMBITION

Teacher: What do you want to become?
Little Johnny: Doctor !!
Teacher: Why?
Little Johnny: Coz its the only profession where u can tell a woman to take off her clothes and ask her husband to pay for it.

(10) DENTIST

Woman complaining to dentist: "It's so painful, I'll rather have a baby than have a tooth removed."
Dentist: "Make up your mind soon, I'll adjust the chair accordingly."

(11) VIRGIN

Old lady, 85, a virgin, about to die. wanted her tombstone to read :
BORN A VIRGIN, LIVED A VIRGIN, DIED A VIRGIN.
The engraver shortened it to: " RETURNED UNOPENED "

(12) OLD MAN AND YOUNG GIRL

75 yr old man got married to a 15 yr girl.
On their first night both were crying - why???
Coz she didn't know anything, and he had forgotten everything.

Investing in Singapore

I'm frequently asked what my favorite part of Asia is.

For tourism, I have a hard time answering. I love the history and charm of Beijing … the natural beauty of Taiwan's mountains and beaches … the vibrant bustle of Shanghai … the stunning views of Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor … and the colorful culture of Thailand.

However, from a business and investment perspective, Singapore offers an unmatched combination of modern comforts, sophistication, cleanliness, and an energetic enthusiasm for commerce.

Those values are precisely why Singapore's GDP is surging, and why its major index, the Singapore Strait Times index, is up 38.8% so far this year!

In a moment, I'll tell you how you can get a stake in this great country. First, I want to explain why Singapore has been — and will continue to be — such a wonderful place for making money …

For centuries, traders traveling between the Indian Ocean and South China have sailed through the Straits of Singapore. Its unique position as one of the primary commercial gateways to Asia makes it a key crossroad for global trade.

» After rising steadily against the U.S. dollar for years, and …

» As the Fed's recent tidal wave of printed money floods the world with unbacked dollars …

» These currencies are now set to explode in value — handing investors who buy now historic gains of up to ten times your returns.

By the late 1800s, three developments had turned Singapore into one of the most important ports of call in the world:

The advent of the steamship
The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869
And the widespread adoption of rubber
Explaining how each of these factors bolstered Singapore's position is a whole story in and of itself. But suffice it to say that by the close of the 19th century, Singapore was enjoying unprecedented prosperity.

The next major stepping stone came in 1965, when Singapore, by mutual agreement, separated from Malaysia. Its new status as an independent republic only furthered its powerful growth, which continues to this day.

Is it a coincidence that Singapore's Fountain of Wealth is the largest fountain in the world?

With a population of about 4.6 million, the country generates $44,600 in per-capita gross domestic product. That's the third highest in Asia, behind only Hong Kong and Japan. Singapore also has a sky-high literacy rate of 95%, and the highest standard of living in Asia.

The World Bank calls Singapore, "the world's easiest place to do business." The country has gotten that moniker by concentrating its manufacturing base on industries like financial services, biomedical research, technology and oil refining.

American Express, AIG, Boeing, Cargill, Dell, Exxon Mobil, Ford, General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, Merck … they all have significant operations in Singapore.

Simply put, Singapore is an economic juggernaut:

GDP expanded more than 7.9% in 2006

Inflation is very low — around 0.7%

The unemployment rate is an enviable 2.8%

It has the largest current-account surplus (28.5%), as a percentage of GDP in Asia

And its budget surplus is equal to 6% of GDP
No wonder the Singapore Strait Times index, which tracks the country's stocks, has risen almost 40% this year!

How Can You Profit from
Singapore's Strength?

What are exchange-traded funds (ETFs)?

ETFs track indexes but trade like individual stocks. They have several advantages over mutual funds:

Advantage #1: ETFs can be bought and sold throughout the trading day.

Advantage #2: Investors have the option to either buy or sell short ETFs, and even use margin (borrowed money) if they so desire.

Advantage #3: Management fees and expenses tend to be relatively low.

Advantage #4: ETFs are often tax efficient and usually pay out lower distributions than mutual funds.

Advantage #5: They give international investors the ability to get diversified stakes in individual countries.

One way to profit from Singapore's growth is through an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that is specifically indexed to Singapore.

One choice: the iShares MSCI Singapore Index (NYSE: EWS).

This ETF is essentially the Singaporian equivalent of the Dow Jones index. I say that because it is a basket of the largest publicly-traded blue chips in the country.

Looking a little deeper into the ETF also reveals something else that's very interesting: Although EWS contains 43 stocks, 70% of its portfolio is concentrated in its top 10 holdings. And those top 10 holdings are heavily weighted to financial and banking shares.

In fact, three of EWS' biggest constituents are financial companies:

United Overseas Bank (11.27% as of 8/31/2007) is a one-stop shop for the wealthy. It offers private banking, trust services, venture capital investment, merchant banking, brokerage services, insurance, fund management, derivatives and precious-metals trading, along with life insurance.

DBS Group Holdings (9.98%) is the largest bank in Singapore. It provides mortgage financing, funds management and brokerage services. It is also Singapore's primary dealer of the country's government securities.

Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (9.35%) provides banking, brokerage, corporate banking, asset management, venture capital, and trustee services.

Now given the recent credit crunch, you might be wondering if a heavy financial weighting is a bad thing. In the case of Singapore, I think it's actually a good thing. Here's why …

Singapore is rapidly becoming the Switzerland of Asia!

Singapore's private banks currently manage about $200 billion, or 5% of the world's wealth. What's more, they have been growing by 20% a year.

FACT: Credit Suisse recently moved its world private banking headquarters from Zurich to Singapore.

It sure doesn't hurt that Singapore is close to India and China, the two fastest-growing economies in Asia. However, the real attraction to investors is that Singapore levies NO TAXES on capital gains!

Money is pouring into Singapore so rapidly that there is an acute shortage of private bankers. The business-friendly Singaporean government came up with a solution: In 2004, it funded the establishment of a Master of Science in private banking at Singapore Management University (SMU)!

The privacy laws in Singapore are also very strict. Divulging private financial information is now punishable by a fine of up to $78,000 and a prison sentence of three years.

That secrecy isn't lost on the newly minted multi-millionaires in China. Think about it: Would you keep all your wealth in China, which is still controlled by the Communist Party?

Get this: foreigners may apply for permanent residency if they deposit at least $5 million (Singapore dollars) into a financial institution overseen by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. The Singaporean government is in essence, selling citizenship to the very rich.

It's also worth pointing out that the EWS is yielding about 2.3% because that heavy financial weighting means dividends galore.

Now, I'm not suggesting that you rush out and buy immediately. In fact, I think you're better off waiting for the next pullback or until I return from my next trip there. Who knows what individual companies I might find?

But I do want you to realize that China is not the only story in Asia. There are plenty of other booming countries worthy of your attention.

Malaysia Spaceman

American Spaceman is called Astronaut
Russian Spaceman is called Cosmonaut
Chinese Spaceman is called Taikonaut
Malaysian Spaceman??? - Can-or-naut

Datuk Najib was thinking about sending somebody into space. Three potential can-or-nauts were called for an interview - one Indian, one Malay and one Chinese.

Najib interviews the Indian first: "So, Muthu, this is a dangerous mission.
How much do you think you should be paid?"
Muthu replied: "Ten million ringgit."
"Why so much?" asks Najib.
"Very dangerous mission, Datuk. Maybe no come
back!" replied Muthu.
"That's understandable," says Najib. "Thank you..

Please ask the Malay guy to come here,"
So the Malay walks up, and is asked the same question.
"Alamak!...20 million, Datuk," replied the Malay candidate.
"Twenty million? That's twice as much! Even the aneh before you
asked for only ten million."
"You see, Datuk," explains Mat, "I have 4 wives and 15 children ... With 20 of us, it is a big family to support when I am gone...!"
"I see," says D.Najib. "Okay, can you ask that Chinese guy to come then?"

The Chinese guy comes in and Najib asks, "Ah Chong,
given this is a very risky mission, how much do you want?"
Ah Chong thinks for a while, and says, "30 million."
Najib appears shocked. "What?!? 30 million!
Why so much?"
Ah Chong beckons Najib to come closer.

He quietly whispers into his ear, "Datuk, you take 10 million, i take 10 million, and then use the extra ten million, send that aneh to space lah!"
And...the Muthu was finally sent out to space.....

Malaysian Facts.... Is there anything to celebrate?

Are all these facts true?

Can we celebrate Malaysiaku Gemilang (50 th Independence ) when the country we are suppose to defend and love treats non-Malays differently?

The list below covers a period of 49 years since Independence Day in Malaysia , since 1957.

Banks
1. Out of all the 5 major banks in Malaysia , only one bank is own by multi-racial, the rest are controlled by Malays.

PETRONAS
2. 99%of Petronas (the only one petroleum company) directors are Malays.
3. 3% of Petronas employees are Chinese.
4. 99% of 2000 Petronas gasoline stations are owned by Malays.
5. 100% all contractors working under Petronas projects must be "bumi's status" (Malay).

CORPORATE PRACTICE
6. 0% of non-Malays staff are legally required in Malay's companies. But there must be 30% Malays staff in Chinese companies. And big companies in Malaysia require a 51% shareholder Malay hold as director status. Which this mean non-Malays own company needs to give their property to Malays. And non-Malays citizen can't really own their business.

CIVIL SERVICE
7. 5% of all new intake for government police, nurses, army, are non-Malays.
8. 2% is the present Chinese staff in Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF), drop from 40% in 1960..
9. 2% is the percentage of non-Malays government servants in Putrajaya ( Malaysia main government office). Malays make up 98%.
10. 7% is the percentage of Chinese government servants in the whole government (in 2004), drop from 30% in 1960.

GOVT. CONTRACTS AND OTHER GOODIES
11. 95% of government contracts are given to Malays; even it is an open tender. Non-Malays contractors tender the lower price and use better materials can't get the contract that government given.
12. 100% all business licensees are controlled by Malay government e.g. Taxi permits, Approved permits, etc. and all the license are given to government officer families.
13. 80% of the Chinese rice millers in Kedah (north of peninsular Malaysia ) had to be sold to Malay and controlled by Bernas (Government Org.) since 1980s.

14. 8000 billions Ringgit is the total amount the government channeled to Malays pockets through ASB, ASN, MARA, privatization of government agencies like Tabung Haji etc, through NEP over 34 years periods.

SCHOOLS
15. 48 Chinese primary schools closed down since 1968 – 2000
16. 144 Indian primary schools closed down since 1968 – 2000
17. 2637 Malay primary schools built since 1968 – 2000
18. 2.5% is government budget for Chinese primary schools. Indian schools got only 1%, Malay schools got 96.5%

EDUCATION
19. Chinese parent with RM1000 salary (monthly) cannot get school-text- book-loan, and a Malay parent with RM2000 salary is eligible.
20. 10 all public universities vice chancellors are Malays. And politics in universities are held by Malays. If non-Malays want to form a politics parties, there is no way to get approved.
21. 0 Chinese or Indians were sent to Japan and Korea under "Look East Policy".
22. 128 STPM (High Study / A Level) Chinese top students could not get into the course that they aspired to i.e. Medicine and doctors (in 2004). Malays with no qualifying results can get into the course.

POPULATION STATISTICS
23. 25% Malaysian Chinese population in 2004, drop from 45% since 1957 because no government support for non-Malays.
24. 7% is the present Malaysian Indians population (2004), a drop from 12% since 1957.
25. 2 millions Chinese Malaysians had emigrated to overseas since 40 years ago due to unfair politics.
26. 0.5 million Indians Malaysians had emigrated to overseas.

MIGRATION
27. More than 3 millions Indonesians had migrated into Malaysia and became Malaysian citizens with Bumi's status.
28. 600,000 Chinese and Indians with "red I/C" (a temporary identity card) were rejected repeatedly when applying for citizenship for 40 years. This shows racism of how easily Indonesians got their citizenships compare with the Chinese and Indians.

29. 5% - 15% discount for a Malay to buy a house.

PLACES OF WORSHIP/RELIGION
30. 0 temples/churches were built for housing estate. But every housing estate MUST have at least one mosque/surau.
31. 3000 mosques/surau were built in all housing estates throughout Malaysia since 1970 with full government support. No temples, no churches were built in housing estates that were supported by the government.
32. 1 Catholic Church in Shah Alam took 20 years to apply to be constructed. But told by Malay authority that it must look like a factory and can't look like a church. Still not yet approved since 2004.
33. 1 publishing of Bible in Iban language banned (in 2002).

OTHER
34. 12% is what ASB/ASN got per annum while banks fixed deposit is only about 3.5% per annum.

Frankfurt, Germany

This is definitely a financial city. With all the sky scrappers and almost nothing else. Ok, another street which can be covered by foot within half an hour at most, other than that, there is really nothing else.

I guessed my biggest takeaway was being able to meet my buddies Antonia and Mareen. Both of them were exchange student at my home university and I hosted them during my last semester of study. It was great fun. And meeting international friends again is really cool, because you never thought you will ever have the chance to meet again, and also the desire to see each other again is not as strong, because long distant relationship doesn't really last long. :)

We went to a nice german setting eating house and I tried the typical German Schnitzel. It is essentially pork chopped. I do not know why Germans like it so much, but I thought it was really ok.

Our host is Fee whose laughs every single little thing you say. She is really nice, and she and her sister Lea brought us to a german disco. After being so old, I still find some strengthen to dance. Just feel that I'm no longer that young to party anymore. =p But the whole dance floor was so packed and I must say that the experience is kinda cool.

We covered the city with great ease and we met up with a couple of people from CS. We met Svenja who is a Bio-Chemical student.

Then we met Yana who runs her own Lifystyle Management Company, and she is going to be my first friend from Ukraine. :)

At night, we met Alex at an opening of an Art Exhibition where it was something different from what we used to do.

Alex brought us to a German eating house again, and this time we tried Shweinenaxes (Pork Knuckles) and it was very very oily, but was deadly sinful and good. Yum Yum. And together with Apfel Wein (Apple Wine aka Cider).

A great evening and we got to know some directors from Simens at the bar, and they were so drunk that they are making a fool of themselves and they also revealed some trade secrets to us. lol. It was really funny to see how drunk they are. This is a picture of them marketing their Simens handphone and taking a picutre of their so called boss who is from Korea. All of them were dead drunk.