Upcoming Penang events for the coming week or so

For the following week or so there are quite a few events lined up. I would like to draw your attention to this event next week:

Young People's Showcase Exhibition

Young Designer’s Arts Camp

By Anak Anak Kota , ARTS-ED

When: 20 Nov 2008 (Thursday), 1 -3pm

Venue: Youth Center, Acheh Street

Featuring children and youth work process and creative products
with heritage theme from 4 workshops

1) Silkscreen Printing

2) Handmade Rubberstamp

3) Heritage Conservation Board Game

4) Traditional Costume Plaque


Any inquiries please call fidel at 012- 4565867

Arts_ed_penang@yahoo.com

So, remember to keep the date in mind and check out the event if you have the time. Otherwise, here are some other events over the weekend:

Blood donation campaign

by

Amata Free Medical and Diabetic Centre

Venue: Mahindarama Buddhist Temple

When: Sunday, 9.30am to 12.30pm.

Tel: 04-2825944

Diabetes in Children and Adolescents Talk

Venue: LohGuanLye Specialists Centre, Penang

When: Saturday, 2pm to 4pm

Admission is free.

Tel: 04-238 8888 ext 8087/8088

Enzyme water workshop

by

Friends of Penang Botanic Garden Society

Venue: Botanika Outreach, 673-A, Jalan Kebun Bunga

When: Sat, 9.30am to 11.30am

Fees: RM3 for member and RM5 for non-member.

Tel: 04-2279915

On another note, I wonder what's wrong with some people who could be so blind to the faults of others due to absolute devotion and hero-worshiping? It really boggles my mind over how naive and gullible some people are over the promises made by people they DO NOT EVEN KNOW personally.

All they know is through the newspapers and at some public functions where they may have heard them talk. And they presume they KNOW everything about their 'heroes' and anyone else who dared criticise their so-called 'heroes' must either be supporters of other groups.

Well, let me state clearly here again. This blog nor any of my other blogs nor me in particular DOES NOT have any ties or affiliations to any political parties, good or bad. I blog what I see and what I know. I can criticise whomever I want BECAUSE IT IS MY BLARDY BLOG.

I don't blardy care what you think about what I blog here.

Don't like it, then, blardy eff off and go set up your own blog to rant all you want.

I may have a lot of friends in the political field but this does not mean I have to support and trust whatever they say blindly and without using my brains to think about what their actions mean. And yes, politicians ARE humans too. They make mistakes and and yes, they too HAVE weaknesses. The sooner the public sees this, the better. No human is perfect and much more, no single politician should be SO perfect that he is above reproach.

See? This government is just like the previous one

It is obvious.

They'd rather have George Town be taken off the Unesco's World Heritage Site list than to review the approved high rise building projects within the inner city. 'Legal repercussions' is merely an excuse.

And a simple 'We were not aware about the new heritage guidelines' is NOT GOOD ENOUGH to explain why the state government had rushed into approving those four projects mere weeks before the Unesco inscription.

Coincidence?

HAH. Yeah, right.

Didn't I say all politicians are crooks? And yes, to all you LGE fans and faithful followers out there, he is no different. He may have a clean front but still, there are things that he could not do because his hands are tied. And there are things that he had to do because he had some 'debt' to pay. This is the fact of life. It is the same with any politician. He can be from BN, DAP, PKR, whatever. He is still the same. They all have 'debts' to pay and some 'parties' to please.

And those four projects? We do really need towering buildings right in the middle of the old city of George Town? Do you think tourists came all the way here to look at high rise buildings towering over and shadowing pre-war buildings?

Seriously, why can't they just build five-storey boutique hotels instead of high rise buildings?

And to Lim Guan Eng, yeah, sure now you have the excuse of saying that you can't cancel the planning approval now. But I only have two simple questions dear Chief Minister:

Why the hell did you approve those four projects WITHOUT checking what was within the new guidelines KNOWING FULL WELL that the decision on the Unesco inscription is just 10 days away?

Why can't you wait till after the inscription but you had to rush the approvals?

So, yep. This government is just like the previous one. Just as the previous one would simply approve any development project (which caused the landslides in Tanjung Bungah), now this government had obviously rushed the approval of FOUR high rise projects within the Heritage zone and risking George Town's listing in the Unesco's World Heritage Site.

Brilliant move, Lim Guan Eng. Absolutely brilliant. While you are at it, why don't you just approve plans to knock down all of the pre-war buildings? Or better still, just take a bulldozer to all those decrepit buildings.

It is rather pointless to have so many pre-war and heritage buildings around anyway since so many of you seem to think that high rise buildings are more important.

The tourism exco and his many 'failures'

First it is the absolute failure of the Asean Culture Centre event over at Pesta site.

And if that is not bad enough, Mr Absolutely Ball-less Idiot of the World is not man enough to admit his failure.

Instead, he gave this stupid, ridiculous excuse.

Maybe he should learn to grow some of these?



Now, it is the Kings of Tennis event failure.

Of course, once again, he tai-chi'd it away...

He said the state had merely endorsed the Kings of Tennis event but was not a sponsor or co-organiser.

"We did all we could to help the event organiser. We waived the RM2 million deposit they would need to pay to use the Esplanade field and offered them a special rental rate," he said.

- The Sun

Okay, so maybe the state government is not the organiser nor the sponsor. So the failure is not its fault.

But why endorse such an event without any background check just like the Asean Culture centre thing where he admitted to being cheated?

I mean, come on...use some brains lar.

From insider information, it seems that Mr Ball-less is actually more Clueless than anything. Being ultra-blur and not very bright, it seems that he had simply approve and endorse any project that came his way.

He probably thought the Asean Culture Centre thing is great so he endorsed it. Then it failed.

He then thought the Kings of Tennis event sounds great, so he endorsed it. Then it failed.

Oh my, he sure do have the failure touch, doesn't he?

And people wonder why he suffered such a setback at the DAP state elections...

Oh whoopee, free wireless internet is on!

I know there's been countless grouses about the Penang Free Wireless project by some private company which is fully supported by the state government until some groups start going all up in arms about the harmfulness of WiFi.

So, looks like the recent forum on this project has left the government with the decision to continue supporting this project.

Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi said the state would proceed with the project as long as there was no conclusive evidence of health risks posed by the initiative.

I don't know about its harmfulness (or not) but I sure do know how handy it'd be IF the project do take off.

Heck, they have just only started it and the first spot to have free WiFi in Komtar does NOT even work properly. It is SLOW, it is HARD to connect and yep, damn lousy.

But then, what do we expect from freebies, eh?

Sigh. Oh well. So, even if we eventually have free WiFi at public places, don't put your hopes up that you'd get speedy internet connection.

Just think about it lar. Free + high usage + low speed = Turtle pace

It'd probably beat Streamyx in a race of the slowest!

Of course, I am just saying lar. We won't know for sure yet since they are still installing all those thingamajics needed for wireless internet connection everywhere. Just don't put your hopes up, okay?

In Malaysia, we must look upon any GRAND project with scepticism, regardless of who is doing it. Anything could happen.

A legal suit over signboards of all things - Malaysiakini

It is obvious that some people have nothing better to do than to treat this frivolous, non-issue as a big huge ISSUE and then blow it ALL out of proportions (over at Malaysiakini).

Will multilingual signboards cause the country's economy to nosedive?

Errr...NO.

Will multilingual signboards cause prices of things to increase?

Errr... NO.

Will multilingual signboards cause petrol prices to increase?

Errr...NO.

Will multilingual signboards (with the BM boards STILL up and NOT removed) cause Malaysians forget that BM is the national language?

Errr...NO.

Does multilingual signboards control the world?

Errr....NO.

Does multilingual signboards cause poverty?

Errr...NO.

Does multilingual signboards cause people to lose their jobs?

Errr...NO.

Does multilingual signboards cause increase in crimes such as robberies and rape and murders?

Errr...NO.

You get my point.

Methinks this group of people are probably too free and have nothing better to do with their time than to go through with this...

A newly-formed NGO comprising Malay graduates today filed a suit seeking a High Court injunction against both the state government and the Penang Island Municipal Council (MPPP) from erecting the signboards.
- Malaysiakini

Oh wait. I forgot. This is DEFINITELY another CHEAP PUBLICITY STUNT. Want to know what the silly suit is about? Check out the full news over at Malaysiakini.

All the fuss over the multilingual road signs

There's this recent furore over the use of different languages for road signs over here in Penang. I just don't see what all the blardy fuss is about.

For one thing, why can't the state government just maintain it at BM with an English translation for the tourists?

Why must be have so many different language road signs anyway?

I mean, when I go overseas, to say, Thailand, I don't see them going out of their way to include BM or even English in their road signs. It is all strange symbols to me. Only sometimes I'd see shop signboards with English on it.

And to think, Malaysians probably made up one of their largest number of tourists each year.

English is a universal language. So, add that in if you must but WTF do we need Chinese, Tamil, etc, etc, in the roadsigns? For what? Just to prove that your party is all for ALL the races? And in the process make us look like a joke?

Also the reaction from various fractions is really ridiculous. Here we are in an impending economy crisis and them leaders are crying foul over one state government's plan to place roadsigns in various languages.



I don't know about you but putting additional languages on a roadsign does not insult another language. The idea of it is stupid.

Hmm..look at the funny road names above. How do you translate those? Lemme try:

Cowshit Lane

Lorong Tahi Lembu

Gu Sai Lor (Hokkien)

Err...sorry, no tamil available, I've not taken that up yet.

Zzyzx Road

Jalan Zzyzx

Zzyzx Lor (Hokkien)

Okay. So, the conclusion is that we should name all our roads with strange unpronounceable alphabet combinations so that there is no need for translation because in the end, it'd be the same!

So, here's to:

Jalan Wtfwtt

Jalan Bsgvt

Jalan Shtbn

Jalan Wth

Easier, only problem is that people will forget how to spell the road names since they can't even pronounce it....heheheheh..

Deepavali at Little Penang Street Market

The monthly Little Penang Street Market is this weekend and in conjunction with the Festival of Lights coming up this Monday, it is themed 'Deepavali' naturally.

So, there's going to be some Deepavali cultural shows from a talk on the origins of the festival to some performances.

The Little Penang Street Market is a pretty cool bazaar full of artsy stuff and handicrafts. If you are looking for some great souvenirs, gifts, decorative items or pretty knick knacks, it's one of the best places you can check out.

However, prices are fixed so there's no bargaining here. Some of the prices here are pretty steep too but there are quite a few charity stalls so I usually buy from these knowing that the money goes to charity.

Now that they have a food section there too so you can even eat lunch there. Worth checking it out.

Where: Upper Penang Road

When: Sunday, 11am - 6pm (Every last Sunday of the month)

What: Handicrafts, art works, food, cultural events

Penangites beware of possible floods

Looks like we have wet, wet days ahead of us.

According to the meteorological department, we should expect more rain for the next week or so. Rain and thunderstorms are expected in the evenings so, be prepared.

And that's not the worse of it. Kuala Muda Dam is releasing its water periodically so the rivers on the mainland are swollen and threaten to flood nearby villages with very little rainfall.

Also, due to the wet weather in recent days, the lands in Penang are already highly saturated so it can no longer absorb water.

This means, whenever it rains, the water will flow on the surface and not be absorbed into the ground. Yes, that means, floods!

For those of you staying in the lowlands, well, remember to be on the alert and get your belongings up on high ground. Of course there is a possibility that it may not happen at all but we never know, right?

Do remember, the Air Itam Dam is also filled to capacity so even if they don't release water, there is bound to be an overflow due to this system they have had for decades (or else the dam might burst which will be worse, right?).

So, bring around an umbrella with you okay? Oh, yeah. Go buy a boat too if you stay in easily flooded areas. It would be a better mode of transport.

Looks like the second Penang bridge may be delayed AGAIN

But then I am not in the least surprised even if it is true that the second Penang bridge project were to be delayed.

In fact, I had been waiting for this announcement for quite a while already.

Lim said China Harbour had agreed to start building the foundation in November while UEM disagreed with the quoted price.

The government had offered the project to UEM for RM1.3bil but the latter asked for RM1.5bil, he added.

“With UEM enjoying close ties with political parties, it should be accepting the offer price,” he said, adding that if UEM can’t accept the offer, an open tender should be called quickly. [source]

Isn't that usual for any local mega projects especially the second Penang bridge project?

First there's this big huge hoo ha about it and loads of publicity.

They talk about the project as if it will be completed within days.

They paint pretty pictures of what the project may bring to the state and the people.

The second Penang bridge has suddenly develop this special super power where it will transform Penang's economy into a busy, bustling, growing state.

Suddenly, this structure of concrete and steel will be able to bring in investments.

It will be able to solve all traffic problems on the current bridge.

It will make all Penangites' lives better.

Short of being called the Super bridge of Penang, there is nothing this bridge won't do!

Yeah, right.

If you fell for all that crap, I guess you also believed in Superman and Spiderman and that there is really a Clark Kent working in the Daily Planet, and that grown men would dare to be seen prancing around in skintight red and blue costumes.

A bridge is a bridge is a bridge. All it will do is to let people go to the mainland. And we already have one such bridge. I don't deny that the current Penang bridge is not able to sustain the amount of traffic anymore but really, does building a second bridge actually solve the problem?

I don't know. I'm not an expert on that but say the traffic conditions increased over the years and ten years down the line, both bridges are always jammed. Then what? We build a third bridge? A fourth bridge? A fifth?

Or better still, since we are already reclaiming so many blardy foreshore land, we might as well reclaim all the way to the mainland and connect the island to the mainland for good. Then Penang will no longer be an island but a peninsular. Then we won't need anymore billion ringgit bridges.

Then the whole island will just be choked up with traffic because of easy access and an urgent lack of sustainable public transportation system.

What about the ecological impact, you ask? Heck, them politicians don't care about ecological impact. If they cared, why'd you think so much seabed land have been reclaimed? Why do you think there are so many hillslope developments causing landslides everywhere? Why do you think there are so many flash flood incidences the moment there's heavy rain?

It is all in the name of development, my friend.

As for the second Penang bridge, I don't blardy care anymore if it is delayed AGAIN. Please, tell me something new.

Here are some events and activities happening in Penang

If you are into some art and looking at paintings is your thing, do check out:

Darussalam Spaces 2008 Art Exhibition

@ The Penang Art Gallery, Dewan Sri Pinang

When: now till Oct 31

What: 60 paintings by Brunei artists

Contact: 04-2613144


Reflex exhibition

@ Muzium & Galeri Tuanku Fauziah, USM

When: Oct 18 till Nov 8, 9am - 5pm.


Not your thing? What about food? Why not enjoy some by the chefs on Sunday (oct19):

5th International Chef Day

@ Penang Municipal Park

When: Sunday, Oct 19, 9am - 3pm.

Contact: 04-2268659

Here are some other activities you may be interested in:

Pesta Cahaya Deepavali

@ The Summit BM Plaza

When: Sunday (Oct 19), 5pm - 8pm



Alzheirmer Disease Caregivers Forum

@ Penang Caring Society Complex

When: Sunday (Oct 19), 3pm - 5pm

Contact: 04-6565291

A night of beer and oompah-pah, it's Octoberfest!

Wilkomen! (That's welcome in German)

It is the time of the month again for a spot of alcoholic indulgence, great German food and German music!

Yep, it is time for Octoberfest and it is happening this weekend, Saturday to be exact, and it is bound to be great fun!

Catch this band:


Over at this year's Octoberfest and enjoy some original German music!

Now, here are the details:

Where: Malaysian-German Society and here's the map to its location:



When: Oct 18, Saturday, from 6.45pm onwards

What: German food, beer, contests, dancing, music, prizes, great fun!

How: Entrance is by donation of RM10 per person (members) & RM20 p.p. (non-members) for those who pay before that day and RM15 p.p. (members) & RM25 p.p (non-members) for those who pay at the entrance on that day.

Contact: 04- 2296853 / office@mgs-penang.com / website: www.mgs-penang.com

The Asean Culture Centre at Pesta Site Sungai Nibong is a failure!

If you planned to check out the Asean Culture Centre at the Pesta Site in Sungai Nibong, let me tell you, don't waste your time because it is an absolute, total failure.

It is really, really bad.

Boring.

Less than 30 stalls open.

The worst Pesta EVER!

And I have proof too. Look:


Looks like some normal night market except that it is WORST. What Asean culture? Oh, they must have meant this stall:



There are maybe two or three Thai stalls selling stuffs that you can find in night markets.


Only thing that remained the same is the funfair. The same old rickety, don't look safe, rides and 'games' are there. Though the entrance to the Pesta is free, remember they charge you damn expensive for the rides in the lousy funfair. A ride in the kiddy train is RM3 per child! A ride in the merry-go-round costs RM2 and it does not even have any music and the horses and vehicles in it are dusty and in bad condition too. It is RM4 PER PERSON to sit in the Ferris Wheels but no thanks, it looks even more dangerous than walking into the middle of a busy highway while blindfolded. Who knows how well they maintain these things.



The one attraction in the whole so-called Asean Culture Centre is this air-inflated playground for children. Yep, only my son enjoyed going there because of this playground but then toddlers are pretty easy to please.

Entry is RM2 per child.



My verdict: It is the worst ever Pesta Pulau Pinang I have ever been to. It is even worse than a night market. Going to a night market is infinitely more interesting than going to the Pesta site for the Asean Culture Centre. It is practically like a dead town with a few stalls selling worse than night market quality stuffs.

If you think last year's Pesta Pulau Pinang is bad and looks like a night market, well, you'd think last year's event was like Disneyland compared to the travesty of this so-called Asean Culture Centre.

Seriously. The exco in charge, Danny Law, needs to buck up and DO HIS JOB. This is obviously an absolute failure.

Entrance free, so what? To walk around empty stalls? Hell, they charge you parking for RM2 per entry okay, so it is not entirely free.

Tomorrow is the Nine Emperor Gods Festival

After a whole nine days of going on full strict vegetarian, devotees will see the culmination of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival tomorrow on Tuesday.

This festival which is held from the first day of the ninth lunar month until the ninth day of the ninth lunar month annually is in honour of the Nine Brother deities.

There are different versions to the origins of this festival and one of the more popular ones is that these nine brothers were like Robin Hoods who robbed the rich to help the poor. At least, that's what I heard.

It is believed that they will only get to come back to Earth for nine days each year and being strict vegetarians, those who pray to them will need to be on full vegetarian diets for the nine days. It seemed that devotees will receive more blessings if they go on the strict vegetarian diet. The vegetarian diet is so strict that all utensils used to cook the food must not have touched meat before and no garlic and onions are allowed to be used too. Even the forks and spoons and plates must be new or have not been used to serve meat before.


Also, devotees must wear light coloured clothing when going to the temples to offer their prayers during this period. Women who are menstruating are not allowed to enter the temples.

Whatever the believes, one thing is for sure. It will usually rain a lot during this period. As can be seen, the first day itself there was a heavy downpour causing flash floods in the state.

So, as is 'tradition' it will definitely rain during the street parade of the festival tomorrow (Oct 7) evening. It won't necessarily be heavy rain but will probably be some light drizzle around 7pm or 8pm.

So, if you are interested to check out the street parade which will promise quite a good show with some people going into trance (yes, and with piercing of the cheeks, tongue, whateva), do head on over to:

Junction of Hong Kong Street and Carnavon Street from 7pm onwards

Normally, the parade is to 'send off' the brothers back at the end of the festival. So, the parade will start off at Hong Kong Street and may pass through Burmah Road and then head to Gurney Drive to send the brothers off in a boat out to sea.

Sorry

Sorry for the long silence here... I've been so overwhelmed with recent events that I do not even know what I could or could not post here anymore.

At the risk of showing the idiots that I am frightened by the scare tactics, I've been careful in some of my blog postings but sometimes it is not so easy to control one's urge to just rant, rant and rant! I had a few parodies in mind but somehow didn't get around to typing it all down and it all got lost along the way....

In my quest to make money blogging and make money online, I've been experimenting with some new stuffs and reading up more things that I could do other than blogging. Much as I love to blog here and in all my other blogs, I always felt that there must be something more than this....surely, there are other ways to earn money online, right?

Yep, there are quite a lot of ways and I am slowly exploring some which I find interesting, though a bit time consuming. So, sorry first if I somehow neglect this blog and my other Penang Views and News blog a bit.

However, I am still updating my personal blog on a daily basis and my food blog every other day. So, you can also drop by there for any recent updates (not necessarily on Penang stuffs only)...

Anyway, here are some things coming up this weekend...

Help the poor unwanted doggies and kitties in SPCA by attending the

SPCA Charity Food Fair 2008

Where: Sungai Dua Silver Jubilee Hall, Jalan Sungai Dua

When: Sunday, Sept 28, 2008

Time: 10am - 3pm

What: It's a food fair so go and stuff yourself silly while doing charity!

The fair is to collect funds for SPCA to purchase a bigger piece of land so that it could really house all the animals they had saved. They need RM3mil to buy an acre or two of land and build the necessary buildings and kennels and cattery for the animals.


After that, you can also make a beeline to the monthly Little Penang Street Market which is also this Sunday. The bazaar of arts and crafts and food is open from 11am to about 7pm. It is located along the Upper Penang Road stretch.

On Monday, it is the week-long vegetarian fest!

Yep, it's the start of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival come Monday and some of the vegetarian stalls will probably start selling vegetarian food on Sunday evening. The usual spots to look for is along Lorong Madras and all the other vegetarian restaurants all over the island and mainland. If you see makeshift stalls with the yellow flag, it is most probably vegetarian fare for the festival.

The festival is from Sept 29 to Oct 7.

Support the Release the ISA detainees even on Sunday!

I am sure by now everyone knows about RPK, Tan Hoon Cheng (Sin Chew reporter) and Teresa Kok being detained under ISA on Friday night.

Suaram is holding an Anti-ISA night here in Penang. Here are the details:

Event: Anti-ISA Night

Where: Dewan Sri Pinang

When: 9pm, Sept 14, 2008, Sunday

What: Wear black to support the cause

For details, call this number: 012-8756179

Dark clouds are looming

When the sky is dark with heavy clouds looming in the horizon...

Always remember to look beyond the clouds and you will find that there is always a silver lining to it.

In life, there are good moments and there are bad moments. Thus, it is very much like a roller coaster ride. Sometimes it will be filled with excitement and laughter but sometimes, everything will appear so down and dark that it would seem that all is lost.

In the wheel of life, when things are down in the dumps as it is now in our country, it is bound to go up once it hit rock bottom. It is really up to us to see for ourselves whether the glass is really half full or half empty.

I know, optimism will not fill our pockets, fill our stomachs and keep a roof over our heads. But it will definitely spare us some heartache, stress and tension from worrying over things we have no control over.

Also, remember the silver lining. It is right there behind the dark clouds and since it is hidden, you will have to search for it and make the best out of it.

Things happen for a reason, be it good or bad. The good brings us joy and fulfillment and the bad brings us challenges that will only make us stronger and more able to rise up above it all. So, let us all face the bad times together and we shall all rise up above it all.

Soon. Very soon the wheel will turn and perhaps, we will see the good times come rolling in again.

Okay, I admit

It is a fact, really. My grandfather came from Canton, China and that is my heritage which is undeniable.

So, yeah, I fully agree that...


The rest of this post was deleted and cleared to save blogger's butt from being taken in for free lodging and curry rice.

Ahmad Ismail suspended for three years

This post is also deleted to save bloggers' butt from free lodging and curry rice.

The political turmoil of Malaysia

Is costing us the investors' confidence and pulling our economy down. But nobody notices because all the politicians are too busy with their petty petty fights and quarrels and power struggles.

But the outsiders, the investors, the foreigners are watching. They are listening. Those considering our MM2H scheme will probably drop it and go for another tropical country. In the words of one of them:

"Better we don't come here,"

Yep. Those considering choosing Malaysia as a second home are dropping their plans. The risk of being treated like mere sampah is good enough to drive them away.

And what about investors? Similarly, they look at the political situation like this:

"They are fighting for the government. Who knows if it won't end in political clashes and violence like in Thailand? Better I don't invest here or else my money will all go down the drain. China is a better bet,"

Yep, that is also from a foreign investor I know. These may be mere individuals but do remember, all businessmen think alike. They choose a stable place to invest in. Nobody throw their money into a place full of turmoil where their business and operations may be affected. It is what we call business sense.

What is driving the bearish sentiment of our local economy is the current uncertainty of the future of Malaysia. Malaysians simply are losing hope that this country will recover from its continuous slide. Then again, we cannot blame them from losing hope when many of us are actually losing sleep over our own job security amid soaring cost of living. Inflation last quarter has shot up to 8.6% which is the highest in 26 years.

- Malaysiakini

I hereby rest my case. The politicians in our country must wake up and stop all this bickering or soon, all of us will suffer the consequences of their actions.

The full Datuk Ahmad Ismail's speech 'explaining' his racist remarks

As promised, below are the scanned copies of the written speech by Ahmad Ismail when he finally came out to explain his racist remarks and defiantly say that he refused to apologise with the backing of all 13 Umno divisions:

Backed by all 13 Umno divisions from Penang, the embattled Bukit Bendera Umno division chief Ahmad Ismail today fervently defended his stand not to apologise for his alleged racist remarks against the Chinese community.

MCPX

- Malaysiakini

Here are the pages after pages of the speech:

Of course, if you just can't be bothered to read all those, you can always go to Malaysiakini for the brief version.

Now that PGCC project is dead, what next?

As we all know, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has announced that the Penang Global City Centre project is as good as dead since its application was rejected when the developer failed to follow the council's schedule.

So, the question now is what happens to the Penang Turf Club land? What will happen to the land which was converted by the previous government to allow the developer to build residential properties there?
The land was initially slotted for recreational use and has since been converted for residential and commercial development.

So, will the state government be able to convert the land back to open recreational land?

Don't ask me. I wouldn't know but if you want to know, Penang Heritage Trust is organising a forum to talk about the future of the Penang Turf Club land. Here are the details:

Venue: Dewan Sri Pinang

Time: 9am - noon

Date: Sept 14

Getting links and traffic from blog directories

When I first started blogging, a couple of years ago, I practically don't know anything about blogging.

I only knew how to sign up for a free blog in blogspot. And I blogged. And blogged. And blogged. However, traffic was at a bare minimal. I stalked other blogs and wondered why they are getting loads of traffic.

Then I found out about linking and getting traffic from blog directories. Although it is no substitute for original and quality posts, linking and registering with blog directories could prove a great help to give your blog some exposure.

I registered with BlogCatalog.

Then I signed up with Penang Bloggers.

Also Blog Malaysia.

Later, I found out about PPS.

I also have Entrecard, as you can see on the side here.

And recently, I discovered Blog Explosion.

Of course, there are a lot of other blog directories that you could submit to and it would probably take me several lengthy posts to list them all out.

My point here is that these blog directories / communities / whateveryoucallit are quite useful to get your blog known out there in the vast expense of the blogosphere.

It also helps to gain you some faithful following and some readers. But please, don't be like me. I joined Entrecard and seldom go around dropping...heheheh...thus the dismal traffic to my blog till now.

However, at least I am getting some traffic as opposed to almost ZERO in the past. So, yeah, it does help to be listed in those blog communities / directories/ whatever.

Get your blogs registered now and you will see what I mean!

Blogging and truth

***recently edited to save blogger's butt***

Let me get this straight.

There is this huge furore over the brainless utterings of an Umno leader.


While political leaders could get away with that, we, bloggers and website owners, are not allowed to express what we feel honestly, truthfully and with no holds barred (in the likes of RPK).

Cyberlaw expert Deepak Pillai warns: "Anything that is not allowed in the real world, in most cases, is also an offence in cyberspace."

- NST

But it is perfectly alright for that politician, whose name I refuse to write here except in the excerpts, to mouth off in front of a huge crowd at a public place.

Now, based on the cyberlaw expert who said that anything that is not allowed in the real world means it is also an offence in cyber world, so now that it is allowed to talk nonsense in public?

After all, that politician is getting off scot-free with a mere tap on the wrist, not even a firm slap. So, it surely means it is perfectly alright to say bad things. In public. In front of a huge crowd.

But then I forgot. Malaysia has two sets of laws. One for BN and one for the commoners. The BN leaders can do whatever, say whatever they want and they are never in the wrong. While us, commoners can't do whatever or say whatever we want or be brought to Kamunting for free board and sand-laced food or get threatened with the:

"Don't play with fire"

phrase.

Seriously. Things are getting really sickening. If this goes on any longer, I have no doubt that we will end up like Malaysiakini's interesting 'a look at the future' story.

Merdeka celebrations in Penang

This will be the first year that our new state government celebrates Merdeka in Penang as the state government. If you are wondering what's going on this weekend in line with our 51st Merdeka celebrations, here are the details:

Merdeka Countdown 2008

@ Komtar

On Merdeka eve (duh!)

9pm onwards

To include



@ Auto-City Juru

Time: 6pm onwards

Events to include live concerts and also fireworks


Unless you really have nothing better to do on a Saturday night, I'd advise that you try not to go in too many cars to Komtar. It's gonna be jammed worse than a can of tunas. Best to carpool or better still, stay home. Heh.

If it's fireworks, you wanna see, can go where you can see Komtar to watch it as I heard that the fireworks will be released from the top of Komtar for all to see.

Now, for Merdeka Day:


National Day Parade

@ Queensbay Mall

Time: 8am onwards

Events: Parade and cultural shows

Now, go enjoy Merdeka!

The Anwar Ibrahim Factor

When the BN kept going on and on about winning back Permatang Pauh in the recently ended by-election, they forgot about the Anwar Ibrahim factor. Or perhaps they decided to ignore it or possibly, they were blind to it.

So, what's an Anwar Ibrahim factor?

Well, it is quite easy to explain.

It is....

...the need for change

...the need to get rid of marginalisation

...the need for corruption to be reduced and eradicated if possible

...the need for the true Malaysian spirit instead of a nation divided by different ideals

...the need for true justice

...the need for real improvement to the country

...the need for a really clean, fair and wise government able to lead the country to better economic standing

...the need for freedom from various means of gagging and control and dictatorship

...the need for the people's needs to be cared for

...the need for a better governance of the country's resources


Now, I am not saying that Anwar Ibrahim can fulfill all these needs. Sure, he made a lot of promises in his campaign and prior to that too. But that's what politicians do. They make promises. They promise you the sky, the moon, the sun, everything they can think of. That does not mean they can keep these promises.

Now, I am not saying that Anwar won't keep his promises but don't forget, he is human after all. He is not God. There are things that even the 'great' Anwar Ibrahim could not do. So, do please keep your feet firmly rooted to the ground and your mind thinking logically.

Sure, if Anwar Ibrahim do manage to wrest the government from BN, he may go about keeping his promises. Somehow, there may be obstacles to some of it that stop him from doing it. Or possibly, he found out that it is not possible to do so.

Just look at Penang's DAP-PKR (now PR) state government. They have been promising local council elections in their campaign but now that they are the state government, they are not able to implement it now due to legalities. Their hands are tied, at least for several years before they could change the law to make it happen.

See?

So, Anwar Ibrahim won the by-election with such a high majority due to the Anwar Ibrahim factor. It is this factor that had the people all riled up and voting against BN. Not so much of the people wanting Anwar Ibrahim to be Prime Minister (although quite a number do want it) but it is more of votes against BN due to the Anwar Ibrahim factor.

Now, we shall see if the Anwar Ibrahim factor will be fulfilled.

The much awaited debate is disappointing to say the least

It must be all the hype leading up to the debate. I was expecting real exposures and real answers on the land scams that our Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has been going on and on about but all the debate revealed was a stalemate.

Lim fired off his opening salvo by naming five cases of ‘land scandals' - which he claimed would cost losses of up to RM1.5 billion to the state - allegedly due to faults by the former Barisan Nasional administration led by Koh.

- Malaysiakini

It got off to an okay but hardly surprising start as there is really nothing new with what Lim Guan Eng said since he has been harping on the issues and repeated the details of the land scams numerous times over the last few weeks (or is it months?).

What was even more disappointing was that Koh Tsu Koon did not really provide the answers to any of the issues raised by Guan Eng. All he did was beat around the bush and skirt around the issue and give a really general answer.

Koh replied that the matter had been probed internally and by the Anti-Corruption Agency twice where no concrete evidence can be found to take action on anyone.

- Malaysiakini

So, it looks like nothing was revealed and Guan Eng did not get to the bottom of all these shady land deals. What a waste of that one hour watching these two regurgitating statements they've already made via the press over the last few weeks.

The only difference is that it is verbalised and there are panelists who did not even ask any intelligent, probing questions to make any of them sweat under the collar. If you missed the debate, go read the brief report on it here (Malaysiakini).

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng exposes another land scam even as the debate draw near

I don't know, I just feel that the current 'hero' amongst many Penangites is getting really annoying.


Yes, I am referring to the Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng. He may be preaching a lot of CAT (competency, accountability and transparency) but he should just shut up and start doing what he was elected to do.

Now that he and his predecessor have agreed to go at each other on live TV, shouldn't he just concentrate on running the state or even helping Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in his Permatang Pauh by-election instead of continuing with this childish quibble with Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon?

They will be engaging on a live debate on Wednesday which will be shown on live TV at 8pm. The title is supposed to be on the truth of land scams in Penang. So, why the heck is Guan Eng revealing yet another scam just mere days before the debate?

Here's his most recent revelation:

Former Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon should explain why when he was the Chairman of PDC, he gave special favours to a private company, Business Focus Sdn Bhd (BFSB), that resulted in PDC losing at least RM 9 million without being able to get its land back. PDC sold shares in PSC to BFSB by an agreement dated 27th April 1992 for the price of RM29 million, which included land in Pulau Jerejak.

Instead of full payment being given over a normal period, BFSB were given until 6 years till 31 May 2008 to pay the RM 29 million. Unfortunately, BFSB defaulted on the final RM 9 million payment and to date has still not paid up this sum. BFSB has since being wound up. Most disturbing is that BFSB has now being sold and the land transferred to another company.

The whole transaction reveals not only the losses to PDC of at least RM 9 million but also irregularities, failure to follow basic financial and management procedures as well as lack of compliance with legal documentation to protect the interests of PDC. The failure of Koh and the top management of PDC to follow up and protect the interests of PDC is most disturbing and a glaring failure to perform their statutory duties as Chairman and Board members in a competent and professional manner.

The public has lost at least RM 9 million over the sale of PSC and the land in Pulau Jerejak and Koh should give a full explanation in the public interests to uphold accountability and transparency. Worse a preliminary investigation revealed that BFSB enjoyed special favours not given to other companies, and Koh is responsible to explain how the public benefited and why he gave such preferential treatment.

So, my question to the honorable Chief Minister is this. Why the hurry? Why not reveal all your cards on the debate itself? If you are trying to keep KTK on his toes and able to reply to all your questions, why stop here?

Why not just give him all the whole list of land scams instead of doing it one at a time every few days? Are you merely demanding attention or really doing this for Penang?

KTK's responses to Guan Eng so far also left much to be desired. This two really brings to mind two quibbling children who are two busy calling each other names to look at the big picture.

So, do keep your Wednesday evening open and free to watch them quibble in real life. Perhaps it would be even more interesting than in words read in the news.

I just hope that they really thrash it all out and get it over and done with.

The battle has started

Or so it seemed but it is bound to be the dirtiest ever in the history of Bodohland.

Of that I am very, very sure.

It started way before the signs of the battle could be seen. That was then. And now, here we are again.

I wonder if it will ever really end. Sigh.

Enough about that. I have been neglecting this blog on updates on Penang. Well, I've been meaning to post a very nasty post on the current favourites, DAP and PKR and PR.

No, not because I am taking the BN side. Or the Gerakan side. Or any political side.

Being non-political and mostly a politician-hater, I have always been able to look at any party objectively. No biasness, just plain observations and my own point of view.

So, sure, sometimes I may seem very pro-DAP or even pro-PKR or even pro-PR but let me reaffirm my statements in some of my posts, I hate politics and thus, I do not root for one party or another just because I think they are good. No political party is good. All are flawed. That's my opinion. Don't like it, too bad. Go rant about it in your own blog.

I will bash them if I deem it fit. I am certain I will get a lot of flack for bashing them here, now. But I feel it is time I let out some pent up feelings over the way they are doing things in recent times.

To the Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng,

I think it is time that you start remembering you ARE the state government's top leadership. So, stop the finger pointing already. It is getting darn sickening. Seriously. I mean, it is okay if you let the cat out of the bag about the land deals and all but harping on it EVERY SINGLE BLARDY time is not going to cut it.

And this childish to and fro statements between you and your predecessor. Enough already. You are the Chief Minister now. Act like one and stop acting like the blardy Opposition.

And what's with the repetition of CAT every single blardy day?

Stop preaching and start practising, okay.

To the former Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon,

Woi. You don't know how to be an Opposition leader kah? Go take some lessons lar. Don't even know how to taruh the current CM kau kau wan. Ceh. Pussy.

To the ultra lame current line up of excos and DAP-PKR assemblymen,

Woi. You are NO LONGER the opposition in Penang. Can you get that blardy idea into your thick heads already? It's coming to a freaking five month of you being in power already. Blaming the previous government is getting really, really old.

FFS. We all know that the previous administration blardy screwed up. Don't have to harp on it every single blardy time.

Why don't you use your time constructively, like GOVERNING the blardy state for once?

And what's with this 'We want the PORR, the Monorail' nonsense? Wei, go ask most of the Penangites and see if they want the PORR or not! And you said you are for the people.

And monorail, sure we need some mode of public transportation but have you conducted a thorough study on it at all? Is it even suitable for tiny Penang island? Did you noticed how narrow our streets are?

To the Umno losers,

***too darn fed up to list out grievances here***

What else can I say, like a friend always told me. Stupidity can't be cured.

Also, to the PKR fellas,

Hell, I know you are all excited that your hero is coming to town and could possibly win the seat but please, don't be such hooligans, okay?

Five to seven men surrounding a single woman with the intention to beat her up is the act of ball-less cowards.

What you did will only tarnish you hero's image. Use your brain next time, or at least go borrow some before you attend any other functions of your hero's.

Next time when you go shopping

In times of escalating prices of things due to the global hike in fuel prices, it is very important that we are very careful with how we spend our money especially on shopping excursions. Spending over our limits is really not very advisable especially when many people are relying on credit cards to sign for stuffs.

So, I decided to include here a list of ways to cut down on your spending especially when you go shopping. Hopefully, it helps!

1. Check the house before going shopping – as in check all your consumables, toiletries and groceries and take note of what you already have. No point buying more stuffs that you have plenty of stock of.

2. Prepare a detailed shopping list – this is a must so that you will know beforehand what you plan to purchase instead of going to the shopping complex / hypermarket / grocery store and blindly selecting things that you may or may not need.

3. Practice some will-power – yes, you must stick to your shopping list at all cost. Avoid grabbing a pack of junk food on a whim or other equally unimportant things that you do not need. It may only cost $2 per packet but if each time you go grocery shopping, you take a packet or two, it could amount to $20 to $30! And you can use that money for other essentials.

4. Leave your credit card at home – it is really best to pay by cash and to ensure you have a 'strong willpower' just bring enough to pay for the groceries you intend to buy, perhaps with about $10 or $20 extra for emergencies.

5. Practice comparison shopping – yes, do you homework before you blindly head to a grocery store to buy a whole load of stuff which could have been 20% cheaper at another store.

6. Go shopping only once a week – it is best to keep a list of what you need and go buy it all at once at the end of the week so that you don't have to make numerous trips to the supermarket. This way, you save time, petrol and definitely save yourself from any temptations to splurge!

Since we have to be really careful with our spending, we have been practising this way of shopping for awhile and it really do help. It has saved me hundreds on credit card bills and definitely saved me a lot from spending money on things I don't need.

Try it and enjoy the savings. I will include tips on how to reduce your credit card debts (or to avoid it) soon.

Lose weight and have great hair for better sex appeal!

People say beauty is skin deep and I absolutely agree but even so, every normal person wants to appear attractive and importantly, with a healthy glow.

A lot of people have weight issues and fighting this weighty problem could be a real challenge sometimes especially when it is difficult to find time for proper exercise and it also takes a lot of will power to stick to nutritious food with all sorts of unhealthy temptations out there.

I have always maintained that the best way to lose weight is by exercise and eating balanced, healthy meals instead of stringent fad diets. Exercise is also good for optimum health. However, for some people, it is not enough. They may exercise and control their food intake as much as they want and still, the needle on the weighing machine won't budge. So, in cases like this, especially for those who are on the obese side and their weight are posing a health hazard to them, then taking some slimming pills to aid in weight loss do help.

You don’t have to lose your hair over this (and if you are really losing hair, there’s always Propecia) whole weighty issue at all.

But if you want to lose weight because you think it affects your sex appeal. Well, you are wrong. It is all about confidence and the way you carry yourself. Charisma is more than looks and weight or even a full head of hair. It is about you and how you carry yourself.

So, go out there with your head held high and maybe, you might strike a pot of gold. With your new found health and confidence, heck, you won’t even need Cialis.

Becoming rich and famous the billionaires' way

We all have dreams of striking it rich and becoming an overnight millionaire to join the ranks of the Nouveau Riche (that's French for 'New rich') since most of us do not have the luxury of inheriting millions from our family fortune.

However, we can always take a leaf from the experiences of billionaires who have time after time add on to their fortunes faster than you could pronounce the words Nouveau Riche! There are, in fact, a lot of self-made millionaires and billionaires who came into their own wealth due to their entrepreneurship and very wise investing.

One of the world's top ranking billionaires, Tsai Wan-Lin is a really good example of the Nouveau Riche because he started life as a poor rice farmer's son in Taiwan. However, this enterprising and determined man turned his life around by selling insurance. He founded Cathay Life Insurance and has since stepped down for his son to take over. This humble man also lived simply and is very publicity shy despite his billions.

Another self-made billionaire we all know is, of course, William Gates III, or more commonly known as Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft. He is proof that you can be a Harvard dropout and still become a billionaire, as long as you persistently fight to achieve your dreams.

So, if you plan to join the list of billionaires of the world, start reaching out to your dreams now and be persistent. Just remember to also use some wisdom and learn to be humble because it is in humbleness that we learn.

Breastfeeding versus formula milk

When I was pregnant with my firstborn, I made a lot of research into breastfeeding and the benefits of breast milk. I have long made up my mind that I will give my child breast milk and nothing else until he starts on solids at six months old.

However, the journey to breastfeeding is not easy. It is filled with obstacles and a lot of negativity from people who do not understand my conviction that breast milk the best for baby. They have been bought over by all those advertisements on milk powder boasting of this nutrient or that nutrient.

What most people do not know is that breast milk is nature's complete and perfect food for baby. It is the benchmark used by milk powder companies. Why else the claims 'As good as breast milk' or 'As nutritious as breast milk' or even 'almost like breast milk'? If infant formula are really so good why does it even need to promote itself as almost on par with breast milk?

Well, August is just a few days away and the first week is World Breastfeeding Week, thus this post.

To those in Penang, especially new mothers struggling to breastfeed their babies against all negativity and lack of support, there's a Mother Support breastfeeding campaign at the City Bayview Hotel on Aug 2.

For more details of the event, call Deborah at 017-4259378 or Dr Balkees at 012-4551551.

Watch them in action LIVE

To those of you who have never even been to the Penang state assembly before, well, you don't have to go there to watch our elected leaders slinging insults..err...approving policies and acts and whateveritistheydothere live over the internet!

From this year onwards, the Penang state assembly is definitely going to be fun, fun and more fun!

Why?

Simple. It is now full of the DAP and PKR fellas instead of only the BN fellas with one DAP and one PAS fella to provide the check and balance needed to keep the state government in check.

Yep, it is now the DAP and PKR against the Umnos. Too bad, no Gerakan or MCA or MIC fellas will be in there since all of them got 'kicked' out by Penangites on March 8.

It will be a great show this Monday to see how the Umnos are at being the Opposition while at the same time, it will be 'showtime' for the DAP and PKR fellas to prove how good they are at policy making.

I remember in previous sessions, Phee Boon Poh the Sungai Puyu assemblyman was the sole DAP representative who stood up and argued with the BN fellas. It was indeed a losing battle because there is only so much that one man can do. However, credit do go to him for being darn persistent!

So, now, we will see how Azhar Ibrahim (the guy who insisted that ALL mega projects in Penang be cancelled and the guy who organised the street demonstration in Komtar) fare as the Opposition considering how brainless he and his gang of buffoons are...

Oh well, if you intend to watch it live, go here or here from 10am onwards on Monday.

Enjoy the show!

All work and no play....

One of my most favourite homeworks during my schooldays was essay writing because it does not involve any calculations and well, I can just use my imagination and write anything I want and still get marks from it.

No guesses why I am now a blogger, huh?

Of course, it was not always like that. At one point, especially in college, I find that it takes up too much time to be producing writing assignments while still enjoying some ME time...after all, college is all about finding myself, right?

I remember being made to write a summary essay on a thick boring book and I was struggling like mad over the whole thing. In the end, I did a thoroughly lousy job and got really lousy marks for it. I darn well deserved that since I was too occupied with..err..other diversions to be concentrating on a summary essay.

And then, can you just imagine the amount of time is wasted on writing assignments? Just think, there you are, with a hot date lined up and several parties to go to over the weekend and you have an essay on Shakespeare to complete. That sure does cramp your time a bit...Shakespeare is definitely not an easy subject to be writing about, I can tell you.

Luckily in this age and time, students writing essays on their own at all odd hours of the day to make the deadline is a thing of the past. There are plenty of writing services available on the internet and all you need to do is to hire someone to do the work for you in as fast as 6 hours' time!

Amazing, isn't it? For a small sum of moolah and you could go party all night through and have someone do your homework for you. And it is done professionally too. You can do a google search or even check out Custom Writing which offers rather great writing services.

Do we need so many commercial complexes?

I feel that there are just too many commercial complexes coming up all over the island recently. Okay, just look at the existing shopping and commercial complexes:

1. Island Plaza in Tanjung Tokong - it is pretty much a dying place with most of the shops closing down and moving out. Having Metrojaya there did not really help it much. It was destined to suffer this setback the moment Gurney Plaza opened years ago. Right opposite it is a huge commercial complex which is also turning out to be quite a failure. Many of the shoplots are vacant and only those on the ground floor are occupied. Even the hawker centre within it are barely surviving.

2. Gurney Plaza - it is now expanding in preparation for the fierce competition it may face from the soon-to-be-opened Penang Times Square complex. It is fortunate that it is still pretty much packed on weekends and public holidays.

3. Midlands Park, One Stop Centre - This is another dying behemoth. It is destined to be a white elephant soon because many shops have closed down and those few that are left are practically struggling to survive. The only shops with brisk business are the DVD / VCD shops on the ground level.

4. Penang Plaza (Fima) - Now, this plaza only has Giant to keep it alive or else it would probably end up abandoned like the white elephant it is soon to become. About 70% of the shops on the upper levels are all vacant.

5. Komtar - although they are upgrading this grand old lady of Penang, it is pretty much a very dark and dinky place. Much more like a covered bazaar than anything else. I wouldn't want to walk the empty corridors even in broad daylight. There are way too many suspicious characters hanging around those dark, secluded corners. The Penang state government has plans to revive it and I am waiting to see what they could do.

6. Prangin Mall - it is like the Sungai Wang Plaza of Penang and although most of the shoplots are occupied, it is also a fire trap with most of the shops placing their wares along the corridors and walkways, obstructing the way. As for the tech section near Parkson, it is like a dead town there. Many shops have closed and only a few strong ones remained.

7. Gama - this is a very old supermarket that has been around for decades. Though old, it is still enjoying brisk business and has sales all the time to draw in shoppers.

8. Sunshine Farlim - this is a hypermarket selling mostly groceries so it does not really qualify as a shopping complex and yes, business is still quite brisk there.

9. Bukit Jambul complex - this is another soon to be white elephant. There is an ongoing legal battle or something between shop owners and management or something. And also, many shops are closing down. And it is pretty much run down.

10. Sunshine Square - it is a departmental store under the same group as Sunshine Farlim and though business is slower it is not dying yet.

11. Queensbay Mall - the newest shopping complex in town and the largest in the state for now. It is so new that many of its shoplots are still vacant. However, it is one of the latest 'in' place to be until a new mall opens up.

Commercial complexes / office lots:

12. Wisma Central along Macalister Road - it is practically a white elephant with only a few shops left open.

13. Axis Plazone in Pulau Tikus - another white elephant in the making. It currently has the Bandar Baru supermarket on the ground floor to keep it alive.

14. Bangunan KWSP - although newly built, most of its office lots are still vacant.

15. Bangunan Umno (along Macalister Road) - the shiny blue building is also soon to be another white elephant as it also has a lot of vacant lots within.

There are actually plenty more office buildings and commercial complexes all over the island and most of it are not even fully occupied. There are so many I actually lost count!

The worst of all is that residential houses are being turned into shops while there are so many of such complexes with plenty vacant lots. AND more are being built even as I type up this list.

Every single new development coming up on the island has a commercial complex or an office building or retail lots. It is all very well and good if ALL those buildings I mentioned above are filled and above their capacity.

However, that is not the case at all. There are plenty of vacant units in the older buildings and some new ones too and now, they are building even more. Shouldn't something be done about those older buildings first before the government approve more commercial complexes?

Seriously. I remember some DAP fella would point at some decrepit building or other (in the newspapers) and declare that the state government should do something about those white elephants in the past.

So, now, my question is, will the DAP-PKR state government do what they preach?

Bored with nothing to do?

Here are some events happening over the weekend for you to spend your time constructively:

For Single Mothers

What : Free handicraft / sewing lessons by the Women's Centre for Change

Where: Surau Al-Islah, near Botanic Gardens

When: Saturday, 10am - 12.30pm (also available on Aug 9 & 16)

Call: 04-2280342.

For Everyone

What : Charity Jumble Sale by Penang YMCA Deaf Club

Where: YMCA Courtyard, 211 Macalister Road

When: Sunday, 10am - 4pm.

Call: Rahela at 04-2298276 / 04-2288211

What: Bon Odori Festival

Where: Esplanade

When: Saturday, 6pm - midnight

What: USM Astronomy Convention & Expo 2008 - “Astronomy and Space - Open Your Heart”

Where: USM’s main examination hall and Padang Kawad

When: Friday to Sunday

Call: Dr Chong Hon Yew at 016-3157318


For mental patients caregivers and family

What: National Family Link education programme by D'Home Mental Health Association

Where: D'Home Premises, 11A-6-5, New Bob Place, Jalan Gottlieb

When: Saturday, 10am - 3pm

Call: 04-2291111

For the artsy people

What: A Poetry Exhibition by Marzuki Ali

Where: The Muzium & Galeri Tuanku Fauziah, USM

When: Now till Sept 15, 9am-6pm. Closed on Mondays and public holidays.

Call: 04-6533888 ext 3261

What: Budding Artists exhibition

Where: @ The Sun at Sun Yat-Sen Centre, 65, Macalister Road

When: Now till July 26

Call: 04-2265181

What: The Sketch Artist solo art exhibition by Ng Bee

Where: Galeri Seni Mutiara, 118, Armenian Street

When: Now till Sunday (July 20), 11am to 6pm.

Call: 04-2620167

Time for state government to start WORK

They are new at governing a state, that I know.

They are still grappling with the heavy responsibility of running a state. That also I know.

Most of the state executive councillors are new and one or two barely held any positions within their party, DAP and PKR. So, they are mostly inexperienced and are pretty much like lost kittens mewling and bewildered.

However, it is now July. It has been four months. True, four months is not enough time for them to be experts at running the Penang state government but it is enough time for them to know their facts, to at least have an inkling of what their responsibilities are now.

It is also enough time for them to LEAVE behind this 'BLAMING' mindset. Why do I say this? Well, they have been blaming the federal government this and that. And before this, they are blaming the previous administration for this and that.

My opinion is: GET OVER IT already.

So, the previous state government screwed up. They squandered state funds (allegedly). They drive investors away (allegedly). They sanctioned land scams (allegedly). We all heard and read about it all the time in the news. Heck, we stay in Penang, we blardy well know what the previous state government did or did not do. So, stop this finger pointing already.

And yes, the federal government is holding out. They have stopped the mega projects. Boo-hoo. Bawl all you want but the federal government is not going to pander to your every whim and fancy. So, blardy hell stop wasting so much time bawling and blaming and demanding for just treatment when you blardy well know it is not forthcoming.

Why don't you start acting on your own? Why not make your own decisions now? There are still things that you could control and have jurisdiction over. Like what Phua Chu Kang always likes to say,

"Use your brain!"

Is that so hard? So, no monorail project. Can't you find other alternatives? Why not get corporates to propose other ideas with corporate sponsorship thrown in? Better still, why not just do away with the monorail and concentrate on providing a complete network of public bus covering every possible area and then supplement that with taxis by getting the taxi drivers' cooperation.

Also, what the heck is the state government doing about those rogue taxi drivers who insist of cutting the throat of passengers? They still do not use the meter. And what is the state government doing about it? Yes, I know, you are putting the onus on CVLB again to take action.

So, are you saying there is nothing the state government could do about it?

Seriously. Stop pushing the buck around. Stop finger pointing. And most importantly, STOP going down the same path as the previous state government of pushing things around and not getting anything done.

Time to act. So, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, my call to you is to get your excos to start solving problems and change this 'Opposition' mentality of blaming everything on Barisan Nasional. DAP and PKR was not voted into power in Penang merely to blame others but to turn the state around.

So, please, just fulfill your promises and forget about finger pointing. Really.

Penang Bon Odori Festival

The annual Japanese festival featuring Japanese music and dances, Japanese food and fireworks will be held on July 19.

From my previous years' experience, it was really fun and a really great place to spend a Saturday evening. It is free to enjoy the performances on stage and although the food being sold are quite expensive, there are a lot of varieties and if you love Japanese food, all the more better!

Also, do remember to bring an umbrella and raincoat because it is bound to rain as it did EVERY year. Trust me. And don't wear high heels, unless you want to sink into muddy grounds. Wear something that you can tramp over muddy wet grounds easily.

Here are the details:

What: Bon Odori Festival

Where: Esplanade

When: July 19, Saturday, 6pm - midnight

Fireworks is set to be lighting up the skies at 8pm so go early.

So, enjoy!

Penang Hill funicular train service temporarily stopped

(Picture borrowed from Keny Neo Penang Travel Page)

If you plan to go up to Penang Hill for some cool respite, think again because the funicular train service has stopped taking tourists up in the past few weeks.

There was some problems or faults with the cables and despite numerous repair works over the past months, similar problems kept cropping up, thus causing frequent service interruptions. So, in the most recent problem, they decided to just shut the whole thing and stop taking tourists up that way rather than leaving tourists stranded for hours.

However, residents still get to take the train up midway if they do not stay higher up. Those living further up would need to take a jeep up all the way. It seems that the state government is really at a loss over what to do to solve this problem.

The federal government had promised RM40mil to upgrade the whole funicular train service and guess what? Yep, the project has been 'deferred'. Apparently, this project is also not people-centric enough.

I guess cutting off tourists from one the major tourist sites in Penang will not affect Penangites that much. I mean, after all, Penang Hill is only one of Penang's major landmark. It is nothing. Tourists do not need to go up. And the funicular trains. Those are also another of Penang's landmark. Nothing great. Not important at all. Tourists do not even bother going there anymore. (sarcasm, people, sarcasm...)

Is it me or do I feel that the federal government has already started 'marginalising' Penang just because it is now under an Opposition government?

First they 'postponed' the Penang Outer Ring Road and Monorail projects and then this upgrading project too. Okay, so, I fully agree that PORR should be scrapped. But we do need an integrated public transportation system that THEY, BARISAN NASIONAL, HAD BLARDY PROMISED before the general elections.

This goes to show that the BN government NEVER EVER keep their promises, huh?

Anyway, blame and finger pointing aside, what is the state government doing about this? Well, it seems that they are still stuck in their Opposition party mindset. They are pointing fingers at the federal government for canceling, errr postponing, the projects.

Yeah, sure. We ALL know what the federal government did but what ARE you going to do? What is the DAP-PKR state government going to do about it?

I mean other than pointing fingers and blaming the federal government and urging the federal government to fulfill their promises. Heck, we ALL know the federal government couldn't care less about what the Opposition state government has to say or urge, right?

I think it is REALLY time that the DAP-PKR state government start thinking about solutions and solving problems like putting in place an integrated public transportation system and a way to replace the cables or upgrade the funicular train service FAST.

After all, George Town is now one of Unesco's World Heritage Sites. Soon, we will be having droves of tourists and it won't do that they find that they could not go up to one of the main landmarks in Penang that is, Penang Hill. Also, how are they going to get around the heritage city of George Town if the public transportation system is in a shamble?

It is just so wrong. So, to Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, I think it is time that you stop pointing fingers and start working on solutions. Preferably NOW. And please, DON'T place any bets on help from the federal government because NONE is forthcoming.

Penang Matta Fair this weekend

If you are looking for special travel deals and 'cheap' travel packages, the Penang Matta fair is here this weekend. The details:

What: Penang Matta Travel Fair

Where: Pisa

When: July 4, 5 & 6

Time: July 4 (5pm - 8pm), July 5 & 6 (10am - 8pm)

A note of warning, not all the deals are really great bargains because I have booked a few packages before and later realised that the rates aren't all that cheap compared to other times. AND they offer really crappy deals too. AND they tend to change the dates of travel or even cancel it if they don't get enough people to go on a certain trip.

Better to go to different tour agencies to check their special promotional rates on times when they are having 'sale' or discounts.