Chua, MCA selling out the rights of Chinese and others

November 30, 2011
FMT LETTER: From Jackson Ng, via e-mail

Isn’t it now crystal clear the shameless and scandal-tainted MCA president Chua Soi Lek will sell out the Chinese and his soul just to remain in a position to enjoy the crumbs thrown out by the racist Umno?

Not only Chua but the MCA itself will do the same for its survival or to remain Umno’s favourite lapdog.

The MCA challenged the DAP to name a Malay prime minister and so it did, unconditionally, that Anwar Ibrahim would be endorsed as their leader.PKR (Parti Keadilan Rakyat) Youth chief Shamsul Iskandar Akin, at the youth wing’s recently concluded annual congress, then challenged Umno to amend the federal constitution to guarantee the prime minister would always be a Malay.

This was followed up by Pakatan Rakyat (PR) boss Anwar that even if Umno dared to table such a bill in Parliament to amend the federal constitution, the PKR and the PR would not support it.

What Anwar did was to publicly state clearly that the PR (comprising PKR, DAP and PAS) respects the federal constitution and that race and religion have no place in today’s domestic politics.

Anwar’s courageous and swift stand on the issue shows his and PR’s commitment to really realise a 1Malaysia progressive nation, unlike Umno and BN. Umno and BN just don’t have the political will to change for the benefit of Malaysians and Malaysia.

Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s “I am Malay first, Malaysian second” stand is clearly racist, putting race ahead of the broader interest of a united nation.

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s refusal to tick off his deputy for failing to support his own 1Malaysia rallying call makes Najib seen as not only a political coward but also insincere in his political statements.

Now, back to MCA, and what did it do? Chua openly sold out the Chinese and all Malaysians by trying to defend Umno.

Unlike Anwar, a Malay who dared to show that he is a Malaysian with “demi negara” (for the country) in his heart, Chua, without an iota of conscience for the Chinese and others, proclaimed: “The prime minister will be a Malay.”

Of course this lapdog leader and party have to ignore the federal constitution and come out to sell out the rights of the Chinese and others for Umno.

Umno cannot possibly move such an amendment, not just yet, because the non-Umno and non-Malay coalition parties in Barisan Nasional (BN) will be digging their own graves if they support such an amendment to sell away the rights of their communities.

Not just yet because Umno is too weak and does not have the two-thirds majority to make such an amendment now.

I shudder to think what will Chua, MCA and other BN parties’ stand should such an amendment be tabled by Umno in Parliament.

PKR vice-president Tian Chua was quoted as saying: “Yes, Shamsul turned the tables on Umno. Umno is always going on and on about being the champion of the Malays. Let’s see how far they dare to push this narrow, racist strategy.

“It is good and timely for the Umno general assembly to awake to the ‘sandiwara’ of their leaders. Let’s see what excuses Najib and Muhyiddin come up with.”

For our future generations and the country, Malaysians must use their ballots wisely in the next general election to help Malaysia recover from the ills of a corrupt government, before it is too late.

ORIGINAL POST : FREE MALAYSIA TODAY

Rakyat have an issue of trust with Najib

8:07AM Nov 27, 2011   
Malaysiakini

YOURSAY 'We shall not be fooled by any concessions. We remember the concession by Najib himself in the form of an offer of the use of a stadium for Bersih and that came to zilch.'

Assembly Bill: In defence of Najib

Bender: To me, as an average Joe, this article by Eric Choo is all just lawyer talk which carries no weight whatsoever to justify the blatant lie made by PM Najib Razak.

Lawyers are good at using technicalities to obscure the obvious. We, on the other hand, look at the big picture. The big picture says Najib promised us more democratic space.

Restricting the people's freedom to voice our opinions goes against the very basic conception of that democratic space. It's as simple as that.

You may spin and twist the words of your honourable PM up to the very last full stop, yet to me, it's the intention that counts.

You judge people's intention by their gestures, not their words. Honourable men don't hide their intentions behind big and complicated words.

If the PM is serious about giving the people what they want, just go ahead and take actions that are reflective of his real intentions. Sorry Eric, your lawyer talk doesn't convince me one bit.

Abasir: This is a pathetic attempt to defend the indefensible. The writer, who is an MCA member, conveniently forgets to examine the real intent of the bill - to drive home the last nail in the coffin of free assembly and free speech, and doing so in the name of the "best democracy in the world". Despicable.

Onyourtoes: This is a red herring, period. Okay, may be the prime minister did not specifically make a promise on certain issues.

But to cut the long story short, let me ask Eric Choo this question: what impression did the prime minister convey to the rakyat on Sept 15, 2011 - something more progressive and liberal or something more regressive and restrictive?

If the answer is the former, what does the Peaceful Assembly Bill convey?

Malaysiasakit: Eric Choo, don't waste your time trying to defend Najib. MCA is, and has been, a bankrupt party and is increasingly irrelevant.

Look at your past leaders - except Ong Tee Keat - the rest of your leaders are either corrupt or scandalous, for example Tan Koon Swan, Ling Liong Sik, Lee Kim Sai, Neo Yee Pan and Chua Soi Lek.

In short, the very existence of MCA is not tenable and the party will be wiped out in GE13. If I were you, I'd quit MCA and spend more time building my career.

Hang Babeuf: This article begins with a lawyer's defence plea for the PM. Then, after that, a clear admission of some of the serious defects in the proposed legislation.

So, let's not argue now about the PM. Let's all just agree that this bill is rotten. A disgrace. Beyond fixing. It must simply be opposed, rejected, withdrawn.

And while we are all busy with that, how about pushing for the setting up of a proper and permanent Law Reform Commission to consider new legislation and to canvass opinions from the public and from well-informed specialists - rather than having the job always done furtively, secretly and usually disastrously somewhere inside the murky interior of the Attorney-General's Chambers?

Mr KJ John: This is a mere post-facto attempt to rationalise Najib's U-turn on freedom of assembly.

We are concerned with the spirit of the law, not the letter of this law, which too are equally poorly conceived. It is like having a clean air bill.

Ksn: The only shortcoming in the new bill, according to the MCA president, is the lengthy notice period and his remedy is to reduce the noticed period from 30 to 10 days. Brilliant!

That shows MCA's standards on democracy and freedom of assembly. So MCA lawyer, do not waste your time as no one is buying it.


'Walk for Freedom' will proceed, declares Bar Council


Quigonbond: Given BN's abysmal track record every time they say they will reconsider an issue - be it state of emergency, ISA, PPPA, OSA, etc - we are hardly to blame for being highly skeptical.

Certainly, the march, and any other marches, should go on. Malaysians have been awakened since March 2008, and there is simply no going back to a docile, order abiding, unthinking citizenry.

The more this federal government, or for any matter any federal government, imposes restrictions, the more independent-minded people will slip through their grasp.

Loyal Malaysian: I read with pride this statement by the Bar Council. Thank you.

With the lawyers at the forefront of this battle not to allow the Umnoputras to curtail more of our civil liberties, the rakyat can heave a sigh of relief.

Yes, we must stand firm. The unholy haste of the government to push through the bill spells of bad faith, we must not allow them to take us for a ride.

Lim Chong Leong: We shall not be fooled by any concessions. We remember the concession by Najib himself in the form of an offer of the use of a stadium for Bersih and that came to zilch.

And his offer to repeal the ISA has come with a further arrest of 13. The UUCA (Universities and University Colleges Act) repeal too comes with an appeal to the Federal Court.

So we can expect his concessions to be ‘bullshit'.

ORIGINAL POST :MALAYSIAKINI

Your sperm are what you eat, study suggests

NEW YORK - When it comes to in vitro fertilization, well-fed sperm are happy sperm, according to a new study that found what men eat (and drink) is linked to the chances their partner will become pregnant during fertility treatment.

A fertility-friendly diet is one that's high in fruit and grains and low in red meat, alcohol and coffee, Brazilian researchers report in the journal Fertility and Sterility.

While previous work has linked being too heavy or too thin, as well as smoking and drinking, with reproductive problems in women, it hasn't been clear if the same applies to men during IVF treatment.

"We talk about having a healthy lifestyle and trying to eliminate any of these things that are bad for health, but I think most of the emphasis tends to be on making sure the woman is as healthy as possible," said Dr. Lynn Westphal, a women's health and fertility specialist at Stanford University Medical Center in Palo Alto, California.

The new study "Reinforces that it's important for both the male and the female to be eliminating as many bad things in their diet or their life as possible," Westphal, who wasn't involved in the research, told Reuters Health.

The new study involved 250 men who, together with their partners, were undergoing a type of fertility treatment called intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) at one center. Researchers asked the men how often they ate a range of foods, including fruits and vegetables, beans, grains, meat and fish, as well as how much they drank and smoked.

They also got semen samples from the men to analyze how healthy and well concentrated their sperm were and kept track of how every step of the IVF process went for each couple.

Eggs were successfully fertilized in about three-quarters of the treatments, and just under four in ten women got pregnant during the study.

From the speed of their sperm to their partner's chance of pregnancy, men who imbibed and ate poorly were slowed down on the fertility front.

Being overweight and drinking alcohol were linked to lower sperm concentration and motility -- how well sperm swam. Smoking was tied only to negative effects on motility. Alcohol and coffee were both linked to a lower chance of fertilization. Embryo implantation rates, as well as pregnancy rates, were significantly lower when men ate lots of red meat.

On the other hand, eating more cereal grains (such as wheat, oats or barley) was associated with improved sperm concentration and motility, and fruit was also linked to a speed and agility boost in sperm.

"I think this is really interesting data that lifestyle factors for the men, even when you're doing ICSI, are significant," Westphal said. "This is probably more of a difference than most people would have thought."

The findings are consistent with the idea that certain vitamins, minerals and amino acids may help maintain or improve semen quality, while too much alcohol and certain hormones in processed meat could be harmful to sperm, wrote Dr. Edson Borges, Jr. from the Fertility-Assisted Fertilization Center in Sao Paulo and his colleagues.

Westphal pointed out that other behaviors in men, such as spending a lot of time in hot tubs, could hinder fertility treatment success. She added that any diet and lifestyle changes men might make to try to improve their sperm are going to take a few months to pan out -- so it's not just about eating better for a few days before IVF.

In couples undergoing fertility treatment, Borges and his colleagues concluded, both men and women should know that their diets and lifestyles may affect their chance of having a successful pregnancy.

-Reuters

Has suddenly holier-than-thou Soi Lek converted to Islam?

Malaysia Chronicle

Monday, 21 November 2011 21:18
Written by  Jackson Ng

WHAT a sick joke and a mismatch! The MCA is organising a forum themed “Hudud and Its Implications on Non-Muslims in Malaysia” on Dec 4.

And of all the people, the scandal-tainted MCA president Chua Soi Lek, will be delivering the keynote address as well as the closing remarks.

In the first place, is Chua a Muslim? Has he converted? Does he really understand Hudud? What makes him an authority of Hudud? Is the word “zina” (adultery) in his dictionary?

Of course he is going all out to oppose and insult Hudud because, if he had embraced Islam, he would have been stoned to death for cheating on his wife and family.

But where are the defenders of Islam, where is Umno and Perkasa?

The fact is Chua and non-Muslims have no standing to oppose the practice of Muslims and Islam. The Muslims also have no right to oppose the practice of other religions.

It is only the rampant exploitation of race and religion by skewed politicians, especially those from Barisan Nasional that Malaysians are kept emotionally at their edge. That is exactly what the BN wants. Instil fear in everyone to serve its long-adopted divide-and-rule political strategy.

With all the degrading and insulting remarks coming from MCA, Chua and his cronies, where are the defenders of Islam?

Where are the likes of Perkasa and Umno? Are these two self-proclaimed champions of “Malaysia is an Islamic state” suddenly endorsing MCA’s stand? If so, then the Muslims in Umno do not really believe in Islam and Hudud. As Umno cannot come out to insult Islam and Hudud, it is thus allowing MCA to do it.

An insult for such an ignoramus to talk on such an issue

To allow a tainted-politician like Chua to even touch on Islam and Hudud is an insult to the Muslims. He has no standing and integrity to question any sacred religion and its laws. What is he going to say and how is he going to respond if the Muslims start telling the Christians and the Buddhists how they should practice their religion?

Isn’t the issue as simple as that? For those who continue to espouse the fact that Hudud will affect us, you can continue to argue the issue this way and Malaysians will never reach a consensus. Expressing fear is not a fact. The expressed fear is due to skewered implementation of the law, so don’t blame the law. Blame the enforcement and the idiots exploiting and abusing their power. Blame the government that you elected for allowing all this to happen.

OMG, MCA is anti-Islam

Malaysia is a multi-racial nation and unity hinges on religious and race tolerance. In the first place, religion and race should never have been politicised.

Politics should just be based on social and economic development for the country. It is the bad intentions of politicians who craze for power who are responsible for the country’s current shameful state of affairs – injustice, corruption and erosion of the democratic rights of Malaysians.

With Umno allowing MCA and Soi Lek to belittle the values of Hudud as an Islamic criminal law, thereby insulting Islam, are Malaysians  wrong to say that MCA is staunchly anti-Islam?

If so, what is Umno and Perkasa doing about it? Have their tongues been severed?

Jackson Ng is a retired journalist who reads Malaysia Chronicle

ORGINAL POSTING Malaysia Chronicle

Three cheers for the Hostile Games

THE STAR SAYS
Wednesday November 16, 2011

 
 

THE SEA Games are supposed to be all about regional solidarity and friendship, nurturing goodwill through sports.

But those worthy principles were for, and from, another era - an era when there was greater trust among nations and men, a greater sense of honour and integrity.

All that has changed; with progress has come distrust and deceit, hypocrisy and bigotry.

Sportsmanship and fair play have no chance when politicians, governments, sports bodies and officials speak not what they mean. Case in point: the 26th SEA Games in Indonesia.

The jingoism that has dominated the proceedings has made the event one of the most distasteful of the series, a nasty deviation from the ideals of the SEAP Games to foster closer ties and understanding among neighbours.

When Thailand hosted the first SEAP Games in December 1959, it truly was a Goodwill Games, one that saw athletes from Burma (now Myanmar), Cambodia, Laos, Malaya, Thailand and Vietnam engaging in honest competition without spite or acrimony.

The Games grew in size and stature with the addition of Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines, Brunei and later Timor Leste.

In 1977, the SEAP Games evolved into the SEA Games. The competition became more keen but remained largely true to the tenets of sports - of fair play and honesty.

But then, as these mostly newly-independent nations grew, so did their misguided sense of nationalism and pride.

These then became the overriding essence of the Games - one-upmanship, brinkmanship, bragging rights and humbling thy neighbour.

National pride began to overshadow and erode the sporting values of the Games. It is now all about who can win the most medals, never mind if it means cheating or shifting the goal post to steal an advantage.

These Games have bloated to 43 sports, most of them favouring Indonesia, offering a massive 542 gold medals. That's fine if the competition was fair and true. But what we have seen here, in Jakarta especially, is proof that the Games have grown out of control, driven by political, rather than sporting, agendas.

It's about winning at all costs so that politicians and officials can gloat and ride the popular wave of triumphalism.

It's about size and numbers, upstaging others rather than honest success.

We can understand patriotism but not insane ultranationalism and aggressive demonstration of parochialism.

How else can one explain the naked hatred Indonesian fans have for Malaysian athletes in particular? Their disregard for their foreign guests is disconcerting.

Malaysia and Indonesia have a long history of antagonism which has seen some major boil-overs, especially in Jakarta, in previous encounters like the Thomas Cup badminton finals and the Suzuki Cup football tournament.

The fans have jeered every single Malaysian athlete and the boos get louder if it's an Indonesian on the opposing end. That is to be expected, but there is a distinctly vicious edge to the jeers directed at the Malaysians.

Being patriotic is noble, but being disrespectful to other countries is simply appalling.

Little wonder that they are calling these the Hostile Games.

ORIGINAL POSTING : THE STAR