The World This Week

– that Warmonger Bush dined in the famed French Quarter of New Orleans, to meet with local leaders on rebuilding the city and other communities devastated by Hurricane Katrina. (Forget about the blasted levees. Just fill in the hole and build a new one on top of the ruins.)

– that Syrian Interior Minister Ghazi Kanaan, who was questioned over former Lebanese Premier Rafiq Hariri’s murder, committed suicide in his Damascus office. Earlier in the day, Mr Kanaan, 63, spoke to Voice of Lebanon radio to make a ‘final declaration’ and deny Syria’s involvement in Mr Hariri’s murder. “This is going to be the final declaration that I can make,” the former military intelligence chief for Lebanon, where his country deployed troops for three decades before their withdrawal in April, told the radio station. (Mea Culpa!)

– that ‘Palestinian’ television featured a senior PA academic, Dr. Hassan Khater, founder of the Al Quds Encyclopedia, saying the killing of Jews is mandated by the prophet Muhammad. Khater, quoting what he said was Islamic tradition, told viewers, “Muhammad said in his Hadith: ‘The Hour [Day of Resurrection] will not arrive until you fight the Jews, [until a Jew will hide behind a rock or tree] and the rock and the tree will say: Oh Muslim, servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him!’” (Now I am utterly confused. Isn’t Islam a religion of peace? So where does this genocidal piece fit in, or did this Khater make it up?)

– that there are speculations if Osama bin Laden’s secret lair crumble in the earthquake that devastated northwest Pakistan. However, U.S. gover-min officials and terrorism experts caution against too much speculation about whether the al Qaeda chief may have been killed, injured or forced from hiding. (If it did happen it once again reaffirms the meaning of ‘Divine Justice’.)

– that Junk-ichiro Konkz-umi has visited the controversial Yasukuni war shrine that honors the war dead, a move that has prompted outrage from China and South Korea in the past. This is Koizumi’s fifth visit to Yasukuni since taking office in 2001, and he has repeatedly insisted his visits to the shrine are to honor Japan’s war dead, and not to promote militarism. (When most of those war dead, not including the war criminals, died in wars of aggression against other countries, it is hard to accept that honoring them isn’t promoting militarism. So quit trying weasel out of it already, Konkz!)

– that Junk-ichiro Konkz-umi rejected objections by China and South Korea to his war shrine visit, saying foreign gover-mins should not interfere in matters of personal belief. “In principle other people should not meddle with matters of the heart,” Konkz-umi told reporters hours after he visited the Yasukuni war shrine in Tokyo, seen by Japan’s neighbours as a symbol of the country’s past militarism. “Much more, foreign governments should not say ‘you should not’ when the Japanese are offering sincere condolences to the war dead from Japan and other parts of the world,” he said. (Sincere condolences to invaders which rape and pillage most of East Asia. Right. I’ll let my asshole pay its respects to the Yakusuni branch at home every morning.)

– that Chen Shui-bian intensified calls for a massive arms build-up to thwart what he said was a growing military threat from China. Speaking to a crowd gathered to celebrate the island’s National Day, Chen also vowed to continue reforms launched since his DDP seized power in the 2000 presidential polls. (Well, 5 years ago they vowed and did nothing. With about 3 years left what the hell can they do?)

– that Chen Shui-bian’s popularity rating has dropped to a record low of 25% in the wake of a major bribery scandal, a newspaper poll showed. The figure compared with about 34% support that Mr Chen drew a year ago, according to the United Daily News yesterday. (It’s a miracle that he isn’t yet ‘character bankrupt’ [人格破产] by now.)

– that Annette Lu has blamed men for all the evils in the world and urged more women to join politics to achieve peace. “The great forces of nature and the great transformations in the 21st century show us that the structure with men in power is crumbling in many countries,” Ms Lu told a women’s conference. The responses of gover-mins to the tsunami and earthquake in South Asia highlighted the problem, Ms Lu said, according to the Taipei Times. “Ninety-nine point nine per cent of wars are waged by men, so women should join politics and become policymakers because only women bring peace to the world,” she said. (Well, then one of the greatest evils men has bestowed upon Taiwan is definitely by Lu’s father. I don’t have to elaborate lah hor?)

– that Indonesian Vice-President Jusuf Kalla said that the gover-min cannot ban the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) despite Australia’s insistence it do so – because it never recognised it in the first place. “If we have never recognised the existence of that organisation, how can we disband it?” Mr Kalla was quoted as saying by the Detikcom online news service. (“I can’t treat my wound because I don’t acknowledge that the wound exist.” Just how the hell did this fellow made Vice-President in the first place?)

– that the Bali suicide bombers are still unidentified. Photos released by Indonesian police showed their severed heads, blown off their bodies when they detonated their deadly bombs, their features swollen but clearly recognisable. All three men were between 20 and 25 and looked Indonesian. Twenty-two people were killed and 100 injured in the blasts. (They should just let them die ignominiously – un-named, unknown, reviled and forgotten. And instead of leaving them nameless graves, the tombstone should read: “Here lies a beast in the skin of a man.”)

– that Mama-thir Mohamad is not backing down from his claim that Anwar Ibrahim is a homosexual, setting the stage for a courtroom showdown. (This is bad drama. These two should just enter a boxing ring, try to pummel one another senseless and be done with.)

Singapore This Week

– that 3 day after Mr Ralf Lee caused a traffic jam at Empress Place by parking a Mercedes Benz SLK along a bend in the narrow road – outraging some readers who wrote in to TODAY — he has just this to say: ‘The readers are right. And he is sorry.’ He even agreed with those who said that the $70 fine he paid simply wasn’t enough. (Ralf Lee 知错能改，善莫大焉。Girlfriend can afford car, how come cannot afford carpark?)

– that as a feature in this year’s Road Courtesy campaign, the wave will be road users’ way of saying thank you on the roads. Ho Peng Kee said at the launch of the campaign yesterday that he hopes ‘The Singapore Road Wave’ will become standard practice on the roads here. (When we need campaigns to do even the most common sense of things, there’s really a serious problem with our educational system. We are taught the skills to earn a living, but we are apparently not taught the skills to be proper human beings!)

– that Baby Lee point out in his Nuremberg National Day Rally Speech, those considered poor in Singapore are still in possession of significant wealth, according to a detailed breakdown released by the Singapore Department of Statistics (SingStat). Referring to the household equity of the poorest 20% in terms of per capita household income, Baby had said: “That means the value of the house, subtract the mortgage not paid, this is what it is worth to him. So it’s not bad for the bottom one-fifth to have $138,000 of wealth in an HDB house.” Some 71% of the lowest 20% households, per capita, had equity of at least $100,000 in their HDB flats while 7.8% of this lowest income group had equity exceeding $250,000 in their property. (Ya. Just too bad if they’ve got no money to buy food they can’t eat the bloody house. And if they sell their house to get food they will be sleeping in void decks.)

– that the LTA says that closing some CTE exits may help to improve traffic speeds, but such a move will cause much inconvenience to the thousands of motorists who use these every day in response to a letter of on the TODAY freesheet to close the Braddell exit. (Well, it’s either the inconvenience of going a bigger round, or the inconvenience of having to pay for the ERP. But one of them inconveniences don’t generate any revenue.)

– that media exec Kalin – not her real name -, 21, is glad she made that call because now bloggers know with free speech comes responsibility. She was the person who made the call to the police one Sunday morning in June at 3am. (Confuse Us says: “There is less trouble when people sleeps early.”)

– that this ‘genius’ RETNAM THILLANINATHAN asked why wasn’t the taxi driver traced because he is the culprit who started the chain of events leadng to the two bloggers posting on racists remarks on their own blogs and forum. He said that the authorities did not act fast enough to nab the taxi driver, to drive home the point that it is illegal to transport pets using public transport. (And why can’t pets use public transport? Isn’t the onus on the pet owner to ensure that the pet does not dirty the cab? What has it got to do with the taxi driver? If this was the attitude of the person who complained about the dog in the cab, then now I can understand, though I will not and cannot agree with, the outburst of those two bloggers. Their actions admit no explanation.)

– that this same ‘genius’ that the authorities were also not vigilant enough to detect the bloggers’ racist remarks and urge the authorities to be more vigilant. (The authorities should also be vigiliant in dealing with such intolerance and animal-discrimination too.)

– that another ‘genius’ TAN KHEE SHIAN wrote to the Stooge Times Online Forum and asked ‘Why is there a bias towards Chinese shows on TV mobile?’ and suggest that “SBS Transit should have been more thoughtful and considerate when implementing what it thinks are ‘value-added services’ instead of just focusing on capturing viewership to attract revenues, which shows its myopic profit-mindedness.” (We have come a long way from complaining about the loudness of TV Mobile and its bad quality. Now ‘racism’ is an excuse to justify one’s complaints about TV Mobile! Anyone with enough neurons to make a synapse would have realised that SBS Transit has always maintained that it cost them nothing to implement this ‘value-added service’. And since it is free it simply means that the advertisers paid for it. And can one call that myopic profit-mindedness, when TV Mobile chooses to show stuff that attracts the most audiences, which is TV Mobile’s obligation to the advertisers, who paid to have this service on the bus? When even such simple business acument is non-existent, no wonder Singaporeans are such pathetic entrepreneurs! And above all these whinings, where’s the suggestion on where to get non-Chinese programs to show? So, for goodness sake, TV Mobile is free. Watch it, or don’t. Some people should stop acting self-righteous and trying to be politically correct.)

– that yet another ‘genius’ ALLAN TAN wrote to the Stooge Times Online Forum and talked about how his poor 12-year old daughter was totally shattered by the difficult paper because she could not finish all the questions and panicked in the first hour in the examination when she encountered the difficult multiple choice questions. He asked why are we subjecting young kids to difficult exams set by ‘cruel, insensitive examiners’. (All trials and tribulations are cruel and insensitive. Should I blame God of being ‘cruel and insensitive’ for my share losses, or for having a bad day in office, or for a booked cab not coming on time even when I am going to be late for work, or for some shit thrown my way by a particular idling, tai-chi master colleague? Just face it and move on. If you have a fall because of a hole, cry all you want, learn your lesson then pick yourself up and move on instead of staying at the damned hole and whine about it.)

– that one more ‘genius’ ROSALIND LIM KWANG SUAN wrote this to the Stooge Times Forum: “I agree the major problem faced by most pupils sitting for the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) mathematics paper is insufficient time. The current time frame of two hours and 15 minutes is unrealistic.” She further wrote: “If the purpose of the exam is to assess pupils’ attainment in mathematics at the end of their primary education, then it is only right that they be given a realistic and appropriate time frame to complete the paper. Also, the questions should be set within their ability to solve them.” (Say, increase to 3 hours lah. And if they can’t finish in 3 hours also, then got people say it’s unrealistic, how?! Then half day enough? Or give them all the time they want until they say give up? Why has no one considered an exam also a test to see how people performed under pressure, and a test of EQ and AQ? * vomit blood *)

– that Associate Professor Lee Wei Ling stands by her claim that many Singaporeans are ‘gullible’ when it comes to donations. (The money is others to give and has nothing to do with you, ma’am. Whether they are ‘gullible’ or not is subjective.)

– that the 50-year-old neurologist, who is director of the National Neuroscience Institute, recently penned a letter to the Stooge Times in which she criticised the ‘propensity of the press to sensationalise’ and the gullibility of Singaporeans. She was also ‘disappointed’ with Singaporeans’ ‘unthinking reflex response to stories in the press’. (In the matter of the press, she’s right. All that news about Huang Na, Liu Hong Mei, Constance Chee, Guen Garlejo Aguilar. But whether people are gullible or not they go it out of their own good heart so it has got nothing to do with her at all!)

– that she was critical of several treatments which she deemed unnecessary, such as those of conjoined Nepalese twins Ganga and Jamuna, which were paid for with public money. When the media reported about the twins’ plight, $660,000 in donations poured in for their surgery. In the case of Chen Shuyun, a Batam child whose head was nearly thrice as large as a normal child’s, again the public gave generously, with more than $50,000 raised for the operation. She deems such reactions as ‘misplaced compassion’ due to the media sensationalising these stories. She said in an interview, “I look at repeated incidences where the public wastes large sums of charity money, in response to the press playing up to an audience that does not understand complex medical problems.” (What kind of world is it when even showing compassion is criticised? Personally speaking, I think the brain is such a complex organ that even neurologists don’t understand so can I ask Associate Professor Lee to shut up keep her comments to herself?)

– that she harks back to the murder of eight-year-old Huang Na last year to drive home her point. An undisclosed sum, believed to be a six-figure amount, was collected in bai jing (Mandarin for ‘white gold’), money donated by well-wishers for the girl’s funeral. Reports have revealed that Huang Na’s mother is currently using part of that money to add another floor to her two-storey home in China. “It’s a sensational murder. (There’s) no patient alive to benefit from the generosity, so you give the money for the mother to build a new life. How many other Singaporeans have lost close relatives, some who are sole bread winners, but the death is not sensational, (so) they may get a tiny sum from the social welfare department.” (There are many injustice in the world. So should we all become cold and calculative and in the end even compassion dies in this world simply because there is not enough facts to help us make an educated decision?)

– that in her letter published, Lee had also suggested that the Nepalese twins’ parents’ motives for coming to Singapore was to get more sympathy money. The parents have denied this, claiming that they needed funds to help their children. But, as Ms Angella Cheng, who was the guardian of the twins when they were in Singapore, has pointed out, they have since been unable to account for the $70,000 they received in donations four years ago. This amount is on top of the original $660,000 raised, said Ms Cheng. (But these haven’t got shit to do with complex medical problems anymore, yes? Leave Singaporeans to make their own decisions on these!)

Trivial, Jokes and Thoughts from Discussions

– that Sony has been left red-faced after Australia’s High Court rules that the installation of mod-chips in PlayStation consoles is not against the country’s laws. The chips that allow gamers to play pirated and imported games on their modified consoles are found not to be the primary protection device and therefore not covered by copyright laws. This means that while it is illegal to duplicate pirated copies of games in Australia, it is not illegal to play ‘unauthorised’ discs. (Ouch. That hurts. Because it’s the discs that makes money. Not the consoles.)

– that a lawyer for Boy George has denied that drugs found in the British singer’s apartment belonged to him. The singer, whose original name is George O’Dowd, was released without bail after being charged with fourth-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. He had called 911 to report that his home had been burglarised at around 3am, said a police spokesman. Officers arrived at O’Dowd’s apartment and discovered a small amount of cocaine next to a computer. (He would need to move mountains and fill oceans to make someone believe that the burglar who broke into his house forgot about his drugs and left it next to the computer.)

– that Boy George faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted on charges of drug possession, while his lawyer said the flamboyant entertainer had no idea how 13 plastic bags of cocaine got in his apartment. (Might as well say they were there since the place was built!)

– that in retaliation, teachers should start blogging, flame and write bad things about their students too. (Hmm.. greatteacheronizuka.blogspot.com sounds like a damned great idea.)

– that I am a ‘racist’ too. Yes. Die, you freaking, slimy, disgusting reptilian shits!! DIE!!! (Sorry for my ‘seditious’ * erhem * outburst and not so flattering comments against the reptilian species. I get really mad when I read news about pythons eating house cats and the likes. ;))

– that Taiwanese actress Lu Ching sobbed as she admitted to having filmed a popular TV host naked in her apartment, but denied she used the video to extort money from him. Lu, 33, an emerging starlet, has not made any public appearance since comedian Peng Chia-chia revealed three weeks ago that he was being blackmailed over a naked video of him. He did not identify the blackmailers, but media reports said she had filmed him at her apartment. (The man likes to play. The woman didn’t like being played without getting paid. And thus a lousy third grade drama surrounding this misdemeanor. It shouldn’t even be news worthy in the first place!)

– that while waiting at the MRT station, a son complained about his father holding him away from the door and telling him not to block the doorway. This was what he said, “I am your son. Why are you treating me like this?” (No one is going to treat you like this as long as you aren’t their kriffing son.)

– that it is a personal opinion that all those opinion about religious tolerance and free practice of religion under the Singapore Constitution on the Stoooge Times Forum is a load of kriffing bull. (How is it tolerance when Christians are asked to tolerate everyone else but whenever a Christian tried to evangelise everyone complain? Evangelism is part of Christian practice and if there are conditions prventing it, then so much for free practice!)

– that a study found that night-time temperatures in downtown Orchard Road were up to 7 deg C higher than those in Lim Chu Kang, the closest Singapore has to a rural hinterland. The maximum temperature in Orchard Road was 30 deg C, while it was 23 deg C in Lim Chu Kang. (And it is damned cold at about 4am in the morning if you are in Sungei Gedong Camp.)

– that this female elephant’s left foreleg was seriously hurt after treading on a landmine at the Thai-Myanmar border. It received care at Hang Chat Elephant Hospital in Lampang province, 510km north of Bangkok. Vets operated on the two-year-old elephant to cut away dead flesh and shattered bones, using enough anaesthetic to floor 50 humans. (Damn the blasted landmines and the shitheads who put them there.)