Malaysia battles beer, dogs as Indonesia shines
William Pesek
If Malaysian leader Najib Razak thought he already had problems at home, now he also needs to worry about a "Jokowi effect" spreading from neighbouring Indonesia. Last Monday, fresh-faced Joko "Jokowi" Widodo took the helm of the world's fourth-most-populous nation. Throughout Southeast Asia, young voters have been gripped by the rise of this small businessman – effectively a nobody – to his nation's highest office. Jokowi isn't the scion of any political dynasty or wealthy family, the normal routes to power in Southeast Asia. He's a self-made outsider known for hands-on solutions and personal incorruptibility.
Voters have to ask themselves why Jokowi's story can't be replicated in their own countries, many of which are crying out for more credible, effective leaders. Najib has particular reason to be concerned. His personal background – as the son of Malaysia's 1970s Prime Minister Abdul Razak Hussein – is one of privilege. More importantly, even as hopes rise that Indonesia might finally achieve its true growth potential, Malaysia seems consumed by petty political infighting and religious small-mindedness.
Najib is hardly alone here. If anything, next-door Thailand seems even more paralyzed by political divisions. But Malaysia's failings are especially frustrating because they are so unnecessary.
Consider this: Jokowi is Indonesia's fifth president since dictator Suharto was ousted in 1998, and the second to be elected directly by the nation's 250 million people. In contrast, the political establishment that's controlled Malaysia for six decades is still trying to silence opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim. Since 1998, Anwar has faced many questionable trials and prison sentences on charges ranging from corruption to sodomy. The latest verdict is due this week – just days after Jokowi publicly buried the hatchet with his political opponents, who pledged to work with him to move Indonesia forward.
Malaysians are understandably angry about surging living costs. Meanwhile, earlier this month, local politicians from Najib's United Malays National Organisation raised a stink about provocative posters for Oktoberfest, which some Muslim groups tried to ban. There's even a debate among some UMNO members about whether Muslims should be allowed to touch dogs.
Even though Malaysia's government is technically secular, religion is increasingly being wielded as a political weapon. This week, a delegation of opposition lawmakers visiting Canberra urged Australia to speak out against creeping Islamization in Malaysia. "In an environment where the state subtly and indirectly endorses criticisms and intimidation against a minority, it is easier for the messages of radical groups like IS to take hold," delegation leader Rafizi Ramli told reporters.
Malaysia cannot afford to get bogged down in such side issues. To increase the country's competitiveness, Najib should have begun scaling back the four-decade-old affirmation action program that favors the ethnic Malay majority; instead, he's expanded it. Malaysian leaders should be striving to improve the investment climate through stronger corporate governance, and expanding education and training to raise productivity. Subsidies for state-connected companies need to be scaled back and eventually eliminated.
No one's saying that Indonesia doesn't face immense hurdles, too. As skilled and well-meaning as he may be, Jokowi can't single-handedly eradicate the endemic corruption and dysfunction that has relegated millions of Indonesians to poverty. Despite the current bonhomie in Jakarta, he still confronts a determined and well-financed opposition keen on protecting vested interests.
But Malaysians should remember that globalisation enables all economies to grow quickly. If their country refuses to open up and become a true meritocracy – the kind of place where a figure like Jokowi could come to power through the ballot box – neighbours like Indonesia and the Philippines will steal away investment and industries. Then the problems they're focusing on today won't seem so large.
More than 1.4million people are expected to be infected by the Ebola virus by
January as it spreads exponentially across Africa.
Over 3,000 people have been killed by the virus so far, and at a major
conference in London yesterday there were calls for international military
forces to get involved to help stop its spread.
Here’s what you need to know:
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12 Useful Tricks Around the House !!!
From removing gloves to removing odor, from the kitchen to the bathroom, here are 12 great quick and easy tips for your home, that will save you time and effort each day !!
1. How to use honey for cooking ???
Before you pour honey into a glass or a measuring spoon, drip just a bit of cooking oil, so that the honey will slide out that much easier.
2.How to remove stubborn rubber gloves ???
Remove annoyingly sticky rubber gloves by placing your gloved hands under a cold water faucet for a few seconds, your hands will easily slide out.
3. How to wipe down a glass window ???
Wipe the inner side of the window horizontally and the outer side vertically, so if there is a stain in the end of the cleaning, you'll know what side it's on.
4. How 2 remove scratches from a glass container?
Rub the glass container with a cloth that has toothpaste on it to remove small scratches.
5. How to fix a problematic zipper ???
Try to rub a pencil on the teeth of the stuck zipper. The lead with grease the teeth and allow the zipper to open and close more easily.
6. How 2 prevent steam from clouding your mirror?
Use shaving cream and a hand towel to rub the bathroom mirror, and it will not fog.
7. How to get all the juice out of citrus fruits ???
To enjoy a great amount of lemon or orange juice, roll the citrus fruit on the counter a few times, back and forth, before cutting and squeezing it.
8. How to get pillows back to their original fluffines...
Renew old pillows by putting them in a dryer on low levels for 10 minutes, and they'll be as new.
9. How do you get wax off candlesticks ???
To remove wax off candlesticks, put them in the freezer for 20 minutes, and the wax will come right off.
10. How to remove the smell of garlic from your hands ???
To get rid of this strong and persistent odor, rub your hands on a stainless steel surface, such as your kitchen faucet.
11. How to deal with a leaky faucet ???
To stop a leaky faucet that is driving you crazy, tie a string of linen around it, so the string hangs underneath the opening. This will buy you precious quiet time until you find enough of it to fix that annoying faucet.
12. How to get rid of stinky shoe odor ???
Spread some baking soda in reeking shoes, leave it in for one day, and you will be rid of the smell.
UN declares China to be 2014 Best Country in the World
UN Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon awarded today on behalf of the 193 member states reunited under the banner of the United Nations Parliamentary Assembly it’s first honorary title to the country judged best of the world in 2014. The award went to the People’s Republic of China which the panel of judges from every country of the world elected to be the best country in most categories such as health, education and the economy.
The booming chinese economy which has an employment of more then 100% has practically taken the world by surprise with it’s efficient managing of it’s billion people population. « In the aftermath of the 2008 crash, China has overcome the recession and given jobs and financial opportunities to all it’s citizens » explained UN’s Secretary-general to it’s members. « With larger and larger populations to manage, it seems that political trends for nations in the next century will tend to go toward communism and socialism instead of capitalist democracies, which economies are in deep decline » he assured.
China is also known for it’s thriving organ harvesting industry which employs more then 2 million people. « There is a revolution of ideas in China. They like to think outside of the box. They are definitely trend setters » explains UN economist, Jack W. Blake.
Prison population has also dramatically dropped since China has traded it’s prison system for rehabilitation camps. « A prisonner is of no use to society and is very expensive to take care of. To become useful to society, we must reform him. Through our rehabilitation camps, they learn to work and become a productive force for society » admits a chinese government official, present for the ceremony.
« China is and will always be the greatest country » explained UN’s chinese ambassador Li Baodong, who accepted the award on behalf of his country. « Japan’s economy is going down the toilet, US is being crushed by the economy of the chinese dragon, soon the world will be ours » he exclaimed with dry humor. « All nations of the world tremble before the mighty chinese empire » he concluded.
- See more at: http://worldnewsdailyreport.com/un-declares-china-to-be-2014-best-country-in-the-world/#sthash.3HZPzC3O.dpuf
"It seems that political trends for nations in the next century will tend to go toward communism and socialism instead of capitalist democracies, which economies are in deep decline.
"The Nanking Massacre: Facts, Pictures, WW2, Documentary Photos, Book, Women (1997)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYBZhsNVLBQ
The Nanking Massacre, also known as the Rape of Nanking, was an episode of mass murder and mass rape committed by Japanese troops against Nanking (current official spelling: Nanjing) during the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937. The massacre occurred during a six-week period starting December 13, 1937, the day that the Japanese captured Nanking, which was then the Chinese capital. (See Republic of China). During this period, hundreds of thousands of Chinese civilians and disarmed combatants were murdered by soldiers of the Imperial Japanese Army. Widespread rape and looting also occurred. Historians and witnesses have estimated that 250,000 to 300,000 people were killed. Several of the key perpetrators of the atrocities, at the time labelled as war crimes, were later tried and found guilty at the Nanjing War Crimes Tribunal, and were executed. Another key perpetrator, Prince Asaka, a member of the Imperial Family, escaped prosecution by having earlier been granted immunity by the Allies.
The event remains a contentious political issue, as various aspects of it have been disputed by some historical revisionists and Japanese nationalists, who have claimed that the massacre has been either exaggerated or wholly fabricated for propaganda purposes. As a result of the nationalist efforts to deny or rationalize the war crimes, the controversy surrounding the massacre remains a stumbling block in Sino-Japanese relations, as well as Japanese relations with other Asia-Pacific nations such as South Korea and the Philippines.
An accurate estimation of the death toll in the massacre has not been achieved because most of the Japanese military records on the killings were deliberately destroyed or kept secret shortly after the surrender of Japan in 1945. The International Military Tribunal of the Far East estimates more than 200,000 casualties in the incident; China's official estimate is about 300,000 casualties, based on the evaluation of the Nanjing War Crimes Tribunal. Estimates from Japanese historians vary widely, in the vicinity of 40,000--200,000. Some historical revisionists even deny that a widespread, systematic massacre occurred at all, claiming that any deaths were either justified militarily, accidental or isolated incidents of unauthorized atrocities. These revisionists claim that the characterization of the incident as a large-scale, systematic massacre was fabricated for the purpose of political propaganda.
Although the Japanese government has admitted to the acts of killing of a large number of non-combatants, looting, and other violence committed by the Imperial Japanese Army after the fall of Nanking, a small but vocal minority within both the Japanese government and society have argued that the death toll was military in nature and that no such crimes ever occurred. Denial of the massacre (and a divergent array of revisionist accounts of the killings) has become a staple of Japanese nationalism. In Japan, public opinion of the massacres varies, and few deny the occurrence of the massacre outright. Nonetheless, recurring attempts by negationists to promote a revisionist history of the incident have created controversy that periodically reverberates in the international media, particularly in China, South Korea, and other East Asian nations.
During the 1970s, Katsuichi Honda wrote a series of articles for the Asahi Shimbun on war crimes committed by Japanese soldiers during World War II (such as the Nanking Massacre). The publication of these articles triggered a vehement response from Japanese right-wingers regarding the Japanese treatment of the war crimes. In response, Shichihei Yamamoto and Akira Suzuki wrote two controversial yet influential articles which sparked the negationist movement.
On August 15, 1995, the fiftieth anniversary of the Surrender of Japan, the Japanese prime minister Tomiichi Murayama gave the first clear and formal apology for Japanese actions during the war. He apologized for Japan's wrongful aggression and the great suffering that it inflicted in Asia. He offered his heartfelt apology to all survivors and to the relatives and friends of the victims. That day, the prime minister and the Japanese Emperor Akihito pronounced statements of mourning at Tokyo's Nippon Budokan. The emperor offered his condolences and expressed the hope that such atrocities would never be repeated. Iris Chang, author of The Rape of Nanking, criticized Murayama for not providing the written apology that had been expected. She said that the people of China "don't believe that an... unequivocal and sincere apology has ever been made by Japan to China" and that a written apology from Japan would send a better message to the international community.
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