Declaration of Independence by Tunku Abdul Rahman, 1957
Malaysia celebrated its 50th year of independence from British colonial rule today. I remembered years past when I’d excitedly wait for this public holiday because I like being reminded that I lived in a country of so many wonderful cultures and the benefits that that entails. I liked the idea of being tri-lingual in English, Malay and Mandarin. I loved watching TV and movies in English, Chinese, Malay and Hindi with or without subtitles. And I loved eating the foods and celebrating each other’s religious and cultural holidays.
Essentially, I loved being awashed in a rainbow of colours and influences.
But as a kid, I did not understand that that was merely a facade hiding decades-old policies based on race and religion. Malaysia is the only country in the world with an affirmative-action policy for the majority of the population (Malays) called the “Malaysian New Economic Policy“, implemented in 1971. Ostensibly this was to address the economic imbalance, which at the time was dominated by the ethnic Chinese, so that the racial riots of 1969 between the Chinese and the Malays would not happen again, even though special rights for Malays have existed since colonial rule.
It remains in policy today because the Malay-dominated government insists that Malays have not reach an equitable status yet. That it is still needed after 36 years of being implemented begs the question: who failed whom?
The rich Malays get richer due to their special privileges and access to government funding and projects, the rich Chinese do not care because they accept the unfair policies as a necessity to do business, while the middle-class of all races grumble in one form or another. Meanwhile, the poor remains poor no matter what race they are.
So on my wishlist of things to see happen in Malaysia …
Have an affirmative-action policy which helps the poor and disadvantaged, and the rural population of Malaysia without racial bias.
Universities with no racial quotas.
That Malaysian politics are less dominated by race-based parties like UMNO (United Malays National Organisation), MCA (Malaysian Chinese Association), and MIC (Malaysian Indian Congress).
That Malay politicians cannot get away with racist statements.
That discussion of race and religion, and of the special Malay rights can be done peacefully and openly without threats, or be threatened by the misuse of anti-sedition laws.
That people will vote for the right person for their communities, and not because they are of the same race.
Malaysians identify themselves as “Malaysian” instead of by their race.
To indeed be “Truly Asia” Malaysia needs to be an inclusive society for all races. Can it happen?
What if real-life meetings were like blogs or discussion forums and the attendants were like commenters? How would juvenile insults, flaming and spamming work? The answer is shown in this hilarious clip. Language NSFW, so turn it down.
Speaking as a dog owner who loves his pet dog very much, the whole idea of pampering dogs with items considered luxurious to humans is ridiculous. I give Snoop a warm place to sleep at night, I buy good quality pet food, and I show him a lot of attention and I play with him. As much as he is an important part of my family, he is but a dog.
Dogs have simple needs and their taste buds are not as sophisticated as ours, even if their noses are way better at smelling than ours. How else do you explain them biting and gnawing on mysterious looking stuff from the ground or garbage, or licking and smelling their own and other dogs’ vomit and faeces? Because they are dogs!
Dogs should also not be expected to behave like a human, not even a human baby. Dogs are naturally territorial and will always test their seniority with a newcomer in the family whether it be humans or another dog. If you’ve been around dogs, you know that this can manifest in pushing and pawing, and to snapping of teeth and growling. This is often harmless because dogs have tough skin and it usually sorts itself out once the dogs know which of them is the boss.
The other dog would be submissive and know its place. A baby or a small child wouldn’t - they’d push and poke at a dog, thinking it’s fun. It is not. And that is why a photo like this one from a CuteOverload post horrifies me. It isn’t cute; it is dangerous as rightly pointed out in the comments.
Even if the dog is tame and docile around humans, and isn’t aggressive normally it would get annoyed and snap at the baby to warn it. But a snap that probably wouldn’t hurt another dog can easily break the skin of the baby, or crush its bones. Small children and babies should never be left alone with dogs, no matter the size and breed.
Which is why every time I see a story like this one below, the first thing that pops into my head is: these people shouldn’t own dogs because a child is now either seriously injured or killed, and the dog has to be put down. Opinions which I had voiced previously.
Don’t let the love for your dog fool you into thinking that it’s behaviour and motivations are just like the rest of us. No matter how much a dog is loved, it remains an animal and should be treated as such.
Definition of awkward: watching a show on TV with your parentals and seeing three sex scenes with topless women and naked man bum before the first half hour was over.
This new show from Showtime stars David Duchovny as a writer from NYC, whose sole novel had been turned into a movie and he now lives in LA. In the first episode, we know that he is having a major writer’s block and he has a 12 year-old daughter whom he enjoys spending time with. And we know that even though he has lots of empty sex with women he barely knows, he yearns to get back with his ex-girlfriend, the mother of his daughter and be a family again.
There’s nudity, cuss words and tightly written dialogue. And remember the little girl from “The Nanny”, Madeline Zima? She’s one of the topless women mentioned and man she’s grown up very nicely. Phwoar!
Incidentally, David Duchovny was in a movie called “Kalifornia” (1993) with Brad Pitt, in which he was also shown having sex.
Contrary to what it says on the movie poster, in the real world nice guys are not as noble and would not be as happy as Ducky at the end of the movie when Andie got with Blane
I mentioned something called “The Ducky Syndrome” previously - the nice guy likes the pretty girl but the pretty girl likes the handsome/macho-er rich guy, and the nice guy is relegated to mere “friends” status. Although the character of Blane played by Andrew McCarthy is meant to be hated by the audience for ruining whatever chances that Ducky would ever have had with Andie, and for making Andie go through an emotional roller-coaster to finally be with him, he was actually a nice guy.
So there lies the rub. Being nice would help you cinch the deal if the girl is already into your looks, wealth or social status. Being nice alone is not enough.
And to make things complicated, women at different stages of their lives want different things. Younger women usually are more into the superficial and do not care if the guy will be nice to her or not. But how do you know what stage she’s at? Well you wouldn’t know until you’ve started going after her.
There are tell-tale signs that she isn’t at the stage that would make her worth your time and effort, and money to go after. One good indicator is you doing all the giving and she’s doing all the taking, even as she blatantly tells you about other guys that she prefers. When you get that, abort the chase. I repeat: ABORT.
The other problem with being stupidly nice, and letting her walk over you is that no girl would want a guy with no backbone anyway. Don’t fool yourself that you’d win her over by being nice because to her by then, you are a servant boy with no pay or benefits. Or worse, a sugar daddy with no benefits.
In a way, nice guys are just as masochistic as the girls who love the challenge of taming the bad boy. Even if the bad boy tones down his behaviour to hook the girl in at first, after he knows that she’d stick through his bullshit the bad behaviour returns.
Bad boys are bad because the girls who are into them let them get away with their bad behaviour. And it is the same with the nice guys who are forever complaining about not getting anywhere with girls. It is because the nice guys let women get away with their own bad behaviour.
During the initial proposal for a formal test to be added to the application of Australian citizenships, there were some anxieties and much discussion about what constitutes being an Australian.
More details have emerged regarding this test which will be implemented later this year.
The government today released a 40-page draft guide detailing what it regards as the 10 essential Australian values every aspiring citizen must embrace.
The pamphlet, which will be handed to all new citizenship applicants, also summarises the nation’s history, its political institutions, economic, cultural and indigenous history.
The sample questions in the article above give a good idea of what you need to know, such as how Australia’s democratic process works, the rights and responsibilities of citizens, cultural aspects and historical facts such as Australia’s foundation.
A study guide would be made available in multiple formats and the test will be in English and computer-based, with applicants needing to correctly answer 12 out of 20 multiple-choice questions randomly selected from a pool of 200. You can sit the free test as many times as needed though the application fee will be doubled from $120 to $240.
Every applicant have to take the test with exceptions only for those under the age of 18, and those over 60, and for those with mental and physical disabilities. There will be special assistance for those with low English literacy.
All this is in stark contrast to the current method of processing citizenship applications, which my mother, brother and I experienced. All we had to do was familiarise ourselves with the rights (6) and responsibilities (4) of Australian citizenship. During the interview, we were even given a cheat sheet to look at while our papers were being processed. The cheat sheet was taken away just before the immigration officer quizzed us. It is admittedly very simple.
Having said that, I don’t think the new tests would be that hard to pass if you study for it. Even better if you’ve lived here for a few years and have read and watched enough local TV and newspapers, and have interacted with the general community beyond your own ethic group.
If the test encourages potential citizens to immerse themselves in the Australian way of life, and to embrace being a part of Australian society before becoming citizens, then it can only be a good thing for the country.
At Perth International Airport, Dec 1988
The day we arrived from Malaysia to become Australian residents.
It was 6am. I look HOTT.
From left to right: Perth 1990, Sydney 1993, Canberra 1994, Perth 1991.
Those glasses were PHAT.
Lately I’ve been reminiscing a lot with 80s and early 90s music, and have been on a hunt for retro CDs. So far, I’ve got CDs of the best of Wham, Duran Duran, Transvision Vamp and Bananarama. I’m gonna add Wang Chung to that collection soon.
Why am I suddenly on this binge? I can only find them on online stores these days so they are getting quite rare. I feel that if I don’t get them now I will forever lose the opportunity to do so. Plus 80s/90s music always make me smile because I have a lot of fond memories of my teen years. As awkward as they were, I can’t remember even once being really sad and they were so carefree!
Anyways, it’s Friday so it’s time to cheer up and get in the mood for the weekend. Everybody Wang Chung Tonight!
