Just a thought to kick off 2007.
Does a real feminist need to tell the world she is one?
Recently in Interactions Category
Many people nowadays are afraid to speak their minds. Women have no place in the workplace, yet no one dares say it. Islam is a religion that promotes violence, but the official party line is Islam = peace. Every last single Jew should be burned at the stake and torn to pieces by wild horses, but the guilt of the Holocaust has made "anti-semitism" a bad word.
Chinese businessmen are shady characters who cheat, lie and sometimes sleep with their bosses' wives to get ahead, but no one dares say the truth as we gladly let our children accept their angpow every CNY. Homosexuals should be raped by dogs and fed their own bodily wastes, but no, we hug them tightly with kisses on cheeks (with the hope that none of their homo-ness wipes off on us). Indians stink of ghee, fat and lard and sweat, but we smile contently at them, straightfaced, accepting the doctrine of cultural relativism.
When did it become a crime to say what we think? Whose bright idea was it that we should all be polically correct?
Wouldn't it be outrageous good fun to have a device one day that filters out the PC bullshit and give it all to us in plain, easy to understand English? Sorta like a modern-day version of those x-ray glasses every young boy wanted.
Severely tempted to write a scathing post on the problems of Muslims who charge into people's homes in the middle of the night, i suddenly realized that there has been a lot of negativity surrounding Islam in recent times, including many things i myself have written.
For a change, i want to write about what right with Islam and Muslims.
Islam, among other things, preaches hope of all things good. Hope through prayer, hope through goodwill, hope through the messages of the Prophet and the Holy Quran, and you can see how well this affects all Muslims.
During the Hari Raya prayers i attended recently, the imam presented a very positive message during his sermon. He spoke about how Islam is a religion of peace and harmony, how living in a multi-racial country has blessed us with the variety of our non-Muslim Malaysian brothers and sisters, and how through celebration and festivals we can learn to live together and knit a stronger Malaysian community. We prayed to Allah that morning for these things to be true, and as i left the mosque, i was very happy to notice that the sheen of hope was lit on many faces and my own.
Later on in the day, visiting with my relatives, we had a short prayer as a family. Prayers were said for my grandparents, who have passed away many years ago. There was a moment of sombre apprehension as we thought of them, but as the prayer continued, i could feel spirits rising all around the room. It was a warm day that day, but as we, as a family, sat there on the floor, reading the Quran together, it felt cool and breezy. There is a certain power to prayer when it can calm the nerves and thoughts of people who have lost those that they love; perhaps it comes from the hope of their well-being and happiness and comfort in the Hereafter.
I've always believed that humans are spiritual beings. Just like our need for food and drink, there is an inner spirit that needs nourishment as well. Muslims draw on prayer for that nourishment, and it keeps us very well. I am inspired by Islam, prayer gives me hope -- perhaps that is what keeps us alive at the end of the day. Where would life be without hope?
Jeff brought this issue to my attention, and its been playing on my mind for a few hours now.
Would i write for free? I do it all the time here on the VOI, and in various other special interest blogs i maintain. Would i write for a corporate organization for free? No, i probably wouldn't. But having said that, "payment" doesn't always have to be tangible.
A very good friend of mine, a very well known published author and editor, once told me, "I get paid to write, why would i write for free (by starting a blog)?", as a response to my pestering him to start a blog of his own.
Why indeed.
Here's wishing all my friends and readers a selamat hari raya eidil-fitri(!!!). For my wrongs and sins to you this past year, please find it in your heart to forgive me.
Love you all. Peace.
Its happened much too frequently to be uncommon. I've seen it happen right in front of my eyes, its been reported recently in the newspapers, occuring in Malaysian corporate stalwarts of the tune of Takaful and Telekom.
A lot has been said about the right and wrong of a Muslim greeting non-Muslims wishing them happiness on their religious/cultural holidays, so i won't go there. Almost nothing has been said about the role of the imam/mufti/cleric in the practice of Islam by a Muslim, and that's the real issue that concerns me.
To put it bluntly, the source of the problem is the reliance of Muslims on these religious "middle-men". These "learned" fellows tell us what is right and wrong, make interpretations for us, and, largely, we bow our heads to them and follow them like sheep. A typical Malaysian Muslim's religious teaching is very similar to the rote learning our youth is subjected to: do not question. Listen and accept. As children, that is our introduction to religion and the religious authority of "learned" Muslims; as adults, very little changes.
The hallowed ranks of the imams have spent many a year studying the religion, memorizing the Quran, can speak perfect Mecca Arabic -- therefore they must be right, we are ignorant in comparison and since we all want to be good Muslims, their word is sacrosant.
In Malaysia, we have large governmental organizations like JAIS, JAKIM, etc. making macro religious decisions for us. In our local mosques (and we tend to frequent the same mosques every week for the sake of convenience), micro religious decisions are made for us in the guise of sermons, prayer groups and neighbourhood councils.
We have ranks and ranks of imams/muftis/"learned" scholars between us and Allah -- am i the only one who sees something wrong with this?
One of the reasons why Islam held its appeal to the early Muslims during the time of the Prophet was the fact that it allowed Muslims to speak directly to Allah; this appeal holds true even among new converts to the Islam in modern times. There were no priests or clerics Muslims had to pay a tithe to, or use as a medium to speak or understand God. Everything was in the Quran (written in a language every early Muslim could understand like we undertand English), and things which were not there, or perhaps unclear, Muslims were trusted on to make their own decisions. If you made a mistake, then God would punish you in the Hereafter, if you made the right decision, then you would be rewarded. On the balance of probability, a "good" Muslim with good intentions would probably do more deserving reward than punishment during his lifetime.
Very simple, straightforward rules. All of which have been blurred with the legions of "mediums" every Muslim is now faced with in modern times, most of whom are there for the holier-than-thou reason of being our "spiritual-religious guide". Muslims are no longer trusted to make our own decisions (and bear responsibility for the religious consequences) -- we are now "blessed" with individuals who know more than we do who can tell us what to do, what to think, what to say.
Let us not underestimate the power these individuals have over our lives, because it is indeed considerable. The fact that they tell us what we can say or do with our fellow man, who happens to be celebrating an event not of the Muslim faith is truly the least of our worries. The events at Takaful and Telekom were caught and highlighted -- high-profile situations brought to the attention of the people. But how many imams saying the same thing in small local suraus and mosques across the country have gone undetected, their congregation, many of whom may lack the critical sophistication of Muslims living in the big cities, hanging on their every word?
I am a Muslim and i will lead my life the way i see fit, with God and His Holy Book and His Messenger and my own religious conscience as my guide. The interpretations of their words and their intentions will be my own. Perhaps i'll make many mistakes along the way, and do things that i shouldn't, but that's a matter between me and Him when the time comes for me to account for my deeds. I'll be damned if i let someone else get between me and my God.
In a perfect world, Islam (and Muslims) would be better served if "learned" Muslims and religious institutions helped us with the skills required to be better Muslims rather than make religious decisions for us. Facilitating easy access to authenticated materials of the hadith and the Quran, classes to teach us Arabic so that we can read the original texts and come to our own conclusions, advisors and councillors who advise and recommend rather than dictate and punish.
Postscript: Islam is the world's fastest growing religion. It has been for the last 2 decades now. But if you compare the conversion rate to Islam in Malaysia to that of developed nations such as the USA or UK, you will find a huge difference. Think for a moment and ponder why this is true. If you've read this far to read this postscript, you already know the answer.
On my recent trip to Australia for a holiday, i had the good fortune to watch a very good documentary on the trafficking of women from South East Asia to Australia. Women are regularly smuggled from Thailand, Burma and Cambodia into the heart of Sydney's metropolitan cities for the purpose of prostitution -- while its not a problem that has received as much coverage in Australia, its certainly a serious issue.
The documentary interviewed several women who had gone through the ordeal and lived to tell the tale (many don't). A common occurrence in each story was how the woman, as young as 13-14 sometimes, are "sold" by their families for a few hundred dollars to the traffickers with the promise that they would lead a good life as a nanny or maid in Australia. From northern Thailand, Burma or Cambodia, they cross the border into Malaysia, brought to safe houses in Kuala Lumpur and systematically raped and abused until their will and spirit is broken, taught the "tricks" of the trade by pimps and mama-sans. Its a despicable, horrible thing -- young girls, barely teenagers, subjected to mind-numbing, body-breaking, terror. According to the interviewees, these syndicates operate out of Malaysia, this is where they receive the first taste of the horror-life they will lead in the coming months and years; after "breaking" the girls, these syndicates then re-sell them to brothels in Australia, and smuggle them out of the country with fake passports made from "professional looking" printing presses.
What irks me so much is that these things are happening right now within our very borders, perhaps no further than a stone's throw from where i work. Its an issue of terrifying proportions yet i had to travel to a foreign country to learn and listen from a frank discussion of the problem. Why don't we hear about these things in our local news? Why isn't there a larger uproar from the NGOs, the Government, and from investigative media?
Has our society degenerated so far that the only thing we're interested in now is what the 2007 Budget means to us and what Siti Nurhaliza is doing for her honeymoon? Is that the extent of our media appetite?
Or worse, are stories like the trafficking of women via Malaysian borders, intentionally suppressed, for the sake of some notion of the "greater national good"?
The DJs over Mix FM asked the question this morning: would you rather live in a country where the sun shines most of the time, and dreary wet Mondays like today happen sometime or in a country like the UK where its dreary, depressing and wet most of the time and the sun shines sometimes.
For me that was the wrong question to ask, and its answer is absolutely misleading. If that country can offer me a 1st world lifestyle with a 1st world quality of life, with world class institutions, a free press and a transparent Parliament, where the purchasing power of the dollar earned is actually worth something, that's definitely what i would prefer even if it came with all the rain and gloom in the world.
Malaysia has a lot of offer its people, and there is still much room for improvement. But life is short and opportunities are limited. What would you do if you could do something, go somewhere where you could dramatically improve your quality of life? Would you say no for the sake of patriotism? What does that mean, really? Is the only way to be patriotic is to stay in Malaysia? Or can you live beyond our borders and still be Malaysian?
Its time to make a move, to improve my life.
Anyone who has 3 spare tickets (or even 2 will do), pls contact me. Really would love to go watch it, but the tickets were sold out before i could get any. Any help much appreciated. Thanks.
Received an email today saying that we should cut down all boxthorn trees (gharqad) because, according to a hadith (of which i do not know is authentic or not) the "Jews will use them as hiding places in the war against Muslims". It was a chain email, you know one of those, and it really inflamed me. The following was my reply:
---------------------------------------
What a load of crap. We might as well cut down all the shrubs to while we're at it, or any youngling tree that's yet to reach maturity, as long as it can hide a human body.
This is the problem with the Muslim world today -- we're too hung up over things that don't matter; COME ON -- ITS A TREE AND IT USED TO HIDE THE JEWS OMG LETS CUT THEM ALL DOWN.
The contents of emails like this are all the same, and its symptomatic of the weakness in the Muslim mind. OMG COCA COLA IS A JEWISH COMPANY. OMG MACDONALDS DONATES MONEY TO THE ZIONISTS. OMG SO-SO COMPANY'S PRODUCT HAS AN INGREDIENT IN IT THAT IS QUESTIONABLE. OMG THE WORLD IS GOING TO END BECAUSE WOMEN WEAR SHORT SKIRTS, OMG ETC ETC OMG ETC.
No one talks about the real issues afflicting Muslims, the reasons why we've seen a decline in our civilization since the Golden Age of Islam. Issues like poverty (do people even care or know what to do about the fact that the majority of ummah actually live below WTO standards of poverty?), issues like the OIC (that piece of crap organization that just showcases how divided the ummah has become), issues like a Muslim's fascination with the appearance of religiousity rather than the substance and spirit of Islam (if you don't know what i mean, that just proves that ppl are not talking about it), issues like the reconciliation between the Shiites and Sunnis, issues like the cultivation of modern Muslim financial and scientific institutions, issues like the resolution of the clash of civilizations (is there one, if yes, why does it exist, how to resolve it, if no, why was it proposed, how do we explain our position in relation to the West), issues like the sectarian violence among Muslims (we complain so much about the Jews and whine about how the West hates us but how many of us realize that the main killer of Muslims in the world today is actually Muslims).
SO MANY ISSUES THAT ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN TREES, COCA COLA, OR THE LENGTH OF THE SKIRTS MUSLIM WOMEN SHOULD WEAR.
Perhaps we deserve our place in the world, as we continue to persist to be so naive and pointless.
The worst kept secret in Malaysia was finally officially announced a couple of days ago, her upcoming nuptials with the enigmatic Datuk Khalid Mohamad Jiwa. Grats to the happy couple, may the wedding and marriage be a happy one. A small article appeared in The Star, where a reporter asked the reaction of Datuk Khalid's youngest son. He was diplomatic, and answered well.
Siti and her man, Datuk Khalid
Mohd Anas Zawari, 19, Mohd Adbi 16, Mohd Azif, 8
The ol' email mill has been running overtime since, with pictures of his other sons and their father. One particular email really made me smile, one where his, presumably, eldest son has his arms around some extremely beautiful women in what seems to be a (college?) party/prom? *chuckle* Looks like father and son have similar tastes in women, one of them even looks like a younger version of Siti Nurhaliza.
To be young and happy, bliss! :)
Its a safe bet that Siti will have her hands full with her new family. Good luck, dear lady, Malaysia's truest songstress.
Italy wins the World Cup after a penalty shootout victory over the mighty France. As far as World Cup Finals go, it was a good game, played in an attacking spirit. Was a good spectable, worth the late night.
One of Malaysia's undisputed King Bs (B for Blogger) has signalled his retirement from the Malaysian blogging scene. The reasons he gave for doing it fascinate me, and has lent itself to some deep thought on my part.
Mack, like me, like Jeff, like TV Smith, and several others have been around for a long time. Either by chance or coincidence we were poised in a position that has allowed us an unrestricted view to the development of the Malaysian blogosphere. Jeff and TV with their immensely popular blogs and "little birds", Mack with his almost cult-like following, and myself presiding over what remains, Malaysia's #1 blogtal, Project Petaling Street (it smashed its own viewership records last month with more than 30,000 unique visitors a day).
(the reason why i mention their names is because i'm close to them as in i've spent time understanding their blogging motivations, and i know where they are coming from and where they want to go blog-wise; this is not to say that no one else shares our visions, ambitions or experiences, but i can only speak of what i have personally experienced)
It seems ironic to me that Mack has decided to throw in the towel on the day, by his own admission, blogs have achieved a historical milestone: the ability to overtly influence the non-blog world, if that was indeed what has happened. Or perhaps, maybe that's why he has, because the "long struggle" for the position of blogs in the Malaysian sociapathy has been peaked. Who knows, and i for one will not begrudge him his decision.
All blogs exist to serve an agenda, may it be personal or otherwise. So to speak, they are the fuel that powers the words on the screen. Some agendas change, some do not; change can lead to the withdrawal of a blog from the blogosphere, as they have with Mack's, some changes may lead to a blog taking different tacks, sometimes in directions of ever more fervour, as they have with Jeff's.
Neither means a breaking of the blogosphere, there is nothing to be depressed or sad or angry about, as some have prematurely expressed. I call it blog-volution (evolution), may Darwin be smiling in his grave.
The perfect love story, a tale to warm the heart, to bring out the best of what's good in us, and to remind us that anything good in love can happen, actually.
Named as one of Time's 100 Most Influential People for 2006, Wafa Sultan made some terrific waves in a Feb 2006 public debate on Al-Jazeera. She fought a good fight against the equally well-versed Dr Ibrahim Khouly, and some of her questions were thought provoking:
"The Jews have come from the tragedy and forced the world to respect them, with their knowledge, not with their terror; with their work, not with their crying and yelling. We have not seen a single Jew blow himself up in a German restaurant. We have not seen a single Jew destroy a church. We have not seen a single Jew protest by killing people."
True, true. It begs the question why Muslims feel they need to resort to such methods. Violence begets violence, its a vicious cycle.
The usual response from the Muslim world was to be anticipated: she's a heretic, an infidel, etc, etc, etc. The usual response from the West was to be anticipated: she's a modern woman, enlightened, etc, etc, etc. Both would be equally wrong: she's disavowed Islam, so while she is a heretic, that condemnation means very little to a woman protected by the laws of the United States -- she can say anything she wants, and if action is taken against her, it will only serve to prove her conviction and martyr her in the eyes of the West. As for her being a hero for the West? If anyone cared to read the full transcript of her debate with Dr Ibrahim, she was pretty well beaten.
Download the FULL transcript of the debate.
The rhetoric was impressive, but Dr Ibrahim easily fended her off with the often used, and very effective defense: "the actions of one Muslim should not be projected on Islam" (as the actions of one Christian (or Jew) should not be projected on Christianity). She really had no answer (though she tried) for that, and for me, that cost her the debate.
Quite a number of "SMS competitions" have come close to crossing the line before, but the latest from Astro has definitely gone into the "no-no land" of gambling.
It works like this: Astro puts an item up for "bidding", in this case, an item from Sony in "celebration" of its 10th Anniversary. Through a minimum of 2 SMS, each costing RM1, contestants answer 1 question correctly, then enter their bid. The idea is to bid a low figure for the item, if your bid happens to be the lowest, unique bid, then you win the item, presumably for free (not at the price you bid).
Seems like a RM2 one-armed bandit to me, absolutely no different from its more famous cousins in the casinos. Now, when did Astro get a license to open a gambling parlour?
My favourite, Taylor Hicks was crowned American Idol last night, over the massively gorgeous and talented Katherine McPhee. I half expected McPhee to win the day: with her stunning good looks, it would not have been surprising for the voting public to be swayed. But the right won the day, and Taylor, who by far, was the more consistent performer over the weeks, emerged a deserving winner. Outstanding!
The champ!
An outstanding runner-up
If you've ever wanted to try playing World of Warcraft, now is your chance. Blizzard has given me a couple of free 10-day passes to give out to anyone i choose (if you sign-up for a full account after the 10-day pass, then i get 30 days free play time). Send me an email at aizuddin(at)aizuddindanian.com with the subject "WOW PASS PLS".
You'll get an email with a 10-day CD key -- get a copy of the CD installation discs from anyone (or even from your favourite Low Yat store, it doesn't have to be an original copy *wink* *wink*), install the game, use the CD key you are given, and voila, 10-days free game time for you to test the game. Its fully featured, so you'll get to experience the game 100% for 10 days.
I also have a spare 3-months game time card to sell: if you take up this offer, then i'll sell the game card to you for RM100, RM50 off the price i bought it for several months ago.
Its a fantastic time to start playing the game, as on 30 May, a batch of new Oceanic servers (servers that have their time set to +10GMT, Malaysia's is +8GMT) will be launched. This makes it easier for us in our timezone to find people to play with -- and a new server means a new, fresh start for everyone, everyone starts on an equal footing.
Its an irony that as a student i never paid heed to Teacher's Day, not even being aware of it at all each year it passed, but now as an adult, schooling days long behind me, i'm paying tribute to them as being the second most influential people in my young life next to my parents.
A salute to all my teachers past, present and future. You are the true unsung heroes of this and any society.
Road tile pebbles, rolling underfoot
Along the cobbled streets of Oxford
Gay, merry, carefree smiles
The beat of a thousand miles
With price of crude oil hitting record highs of US$72-74 per barrel these past few days, its been revealed today that the RM$4.4billion Malaysia "saved" from the last major price hike of petrol (30sen per liter), has almost completely used up -- RM$3.5billion was needed to cover the petrol subsidies against the new high prices of petrol.
While the Government should be applauded for promising to keep the subsidies in place until the end of the year, the question has to be asked: at what cost? Nuclear tensions in Iran, petrol supply shortages in the US, decreasing output in secondary oil producers (including Malaysia) -- these are hardly short-term factors, and in fact, will only get steadily worse in the coming months. By winter in US and Europe, for example, where energy consumption is traditionally at an annual peak, it wouldn't surprise me to see prices of crude oil hovering at the US$80 per barrel mark.
Without subsidies, the current price of Malaysian petrol to the consumer will be approximately RM2.95 per liter (note, this un-subsidised price is set to increase over time), ~50% up from its current price of RM1.92 per liter. It goes without saying that at an unsubsidised price, a lot of things will change, the least of which will be the prices of many essential goods. A 50% hike in petrol prices will easily mean a 15-20% rise in price for any goods and energy that rely on petrol and energy for its manufactuing and/or transportation (which is virtually everything -- from your favourite teh tarik, to the humble cabbage in the market).
There is going to be a time very soon when the Government will no longer be able to subsidise petrol for its people -- the rate and quantum of crude oil price increases make any other scenario impossible. When it happens (not if), its, going to require some massive rethinking about how we lead our lives. It makes me wonder whether we should cut our losses now and give in to the inevitable -- the Government should take the money it would have otherwise spent on unsustainable subsidies and reinvest it quickly and urgently into measures that would brace the people against the ever-increasing price of oil. Things like a re-working of the public transport system, limiting fuel subsidies to critical industries, investment into alternative energy R&D.
Millions of ringgit are being spent each day to delay the unavoidable. To me, that does seem like a waste; we should let the invisible hand have its reign.
A real paradox where the solution is also the problem.
How do you tell someone who reacts very strongly against criticism that their problem is that they can't take criticism well, even of the most constructive and polite kind?
See the issue? By telling that person he can't accept criticism, in itself will be construed as a form of criticism.
Is there a solution to the paradox?
I've always thought that gambling refers to a game of chance; such games are haram in Islam, and rightly so.
But someone today told me that he thinks playing golf for money is also "gambling" and thus haram. For example, 4 people agree to play together, and to spice things up a bit, they all agree to put RM50 into a pool, winner take all. Surely, that's not gambling, is it? Its a game of skill, the RM50 is the "entry fee" and the RM200 that goes to the winner is the prize.
Playing games for money = gambling = haram? I think not.
This picture tells a thousand words, perfectly describing how i feel about TMnet's service, Streamyx.
Whats frustrating is just that a few weeks ago, everything was working fine. Now things seem to have gone completely balls up. What happened??
Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get.
But just like a box of chocolates, life is not about the bitter bites, but about when the next sweet bite will come.
What a lovely scene this is -- on Monday, March 13, Streamyx informs us:
To ensure uninterrupted service, it is always best to pay your tmnet streamyx bill on time as failure to do so could result in the suspension of your tmnet streamyx service. We also urge you to pay your Telekom Malaysia fixed line bill (used for the tmnet streamyx connection) on time to avoid service interruptions.
via TM Net Newsroom.
Then on Wednesday, April 5, Streamyx informs us:
TM Net Sdn Bhd would like to inform its customers that it is currently performing technical trials on its network system as part of the Company's efforts to continuously upgrade its products and services. Regretfully, the trial exercise may have resulted in some customers experiencing some slowness in downloading and/or surfing the Internet. We are fully aware of this and we would like to apologize for any inconvenience caused. Rest assured we have taken all the necessary steps to expedite the completion of the trial exercise.
via TM Net Newsroom.
They want us to pay our bills on time (warning us that they will "interrupt" our service if we don't pay), but they provide sub-standard service, and release a press release about the current connectivity problems weeks after the problem started appearing. Does this strike anyone else but me as being terribly hypocritical?
Where is the justice? Why can't the consumers "interrupt" our payment to TM Net for poor service?
The clause that protects TM Net lies in the contract we all signed when we applied for the service: connectivity is based on a "best effort" basis. But there is obviously something terribly wrong with the spirit of the law in this case.
If you sign up for a service which claims "best effort" delivery, it goes to assume that you accept the "risks" of the service (such as unscheduled "technical trials"). However, given that the industry of broadband access in Malaysia is a virtual monopoly, it is very poor form on the part of TM Net to be able to provide the sort of service it provides now and claim it to be its "best effort".
Natural monopolies are not necessarily a bad thing; it makes sense for certain industries to be monopolies in order to ensure cost efficiencies -- TNB invests a huge amount of resources into the laying of power cables, it makes no sense for another company to lay competing cables just for the sake of competition. The same can be said about TM Net and Telekom: the high cost of laying competing copper by another company makes absolutely no business sense, considering the relatively low broadband penetration rates in Malaysia.
But the consumer should receive protection from natural monopolies, just as we receive protection against any form for monopoly. If TM Net advertises 1MB/s connectivity for RM88 a month, it shouldn't be allowed to hide behind the shield of "best effort" and provide 5kb/s connectivity for 2 weeks or more without penalty; the difference between advertised performance and actual performance is just too large. If there are going to be forseeable or even potential service interruptions, the law shouldn't let TM Net get away with informing its customers more than 2 weeks after the fact.
I just can't help but speculate what TM Net is doing during these technical trials that are affecting its network; perhaps they are laying in place "speed bumps" to discourage P2P traffic (which, if true and not publicly disclosed, is arguably a gross violation of its terms of service with its customers). Whatever TM Net is doing, the fact they are performing trials on a live network, affecting paying customers on a daily basis for at least the last 2 weeks, is a very unfortunate decision. You would have thought a truly world-class company would have the ingenuity to perform testing on a test network first, and be assured of its success before migrating such trials to their live network. At the very least, it would have made far more sense to localize their trials if indeed they did require a live network to perform their testing.
Its become a popular pastime for Streamyx users to bash the service that we use only because alternative services are just too limited or too expensive. There seemed to be some hope when the new CEO came into office and spent some time engaging local Malaysian bloggers in dialogue. But since then, and up to the current troubles now, TM Net has yet to let action speak louder than words. If they had any business honour, or if this wasn't the virtual monopoly that it is, TM Net would offer all its Streamyx customers a 15-day rebate (or however long the current issue persists); this would serve to keep everyone happy, and also indicate that they are willing to own up to the lost of service to its customers during this down period.
This blog post has been forwarded to Mr Michael Lai, CEO, TM Net, the Editor of The Star, NST and Malaysiakini.
There are a couple of broadband alternatives in the Klang Valley that you may want to explore if TMnet is down.
The old warhorse is still around, and their newly launched broadband Jaring FLITE service (wired and wireless) looks like and interesting option. RM79 for the 1MB/s wired package (basically an exact mirror of the TMnet RM88 package), and RM99 for the 1MB/s wireless package.
Upside: they picked up the phone when i called very quickly and was helpful in answering any question i had. Looks like their customer support is solid.
Downside: coverage is limited.
What's not very widely known is that Airzed has an active WiMAX package on offer for its customers. With a very long reach, its covers large patches of the Klang Valley, though it seems more concentrated on the high-density/middle class areas.
Upside: WiMax is very promixing technology, with the potential to completely webify the daily areas in which many of us lead our lives.
Downside: currently only available for Businesses at RM468 per month. When it becomes available for Home users, its slated for RM188 per month, on the high-end of the scale.
EB:
Don't know much about EB, and their website is definitely the least impressive of the 3; really looks like something a 1st year uni student threw together -- does not leave a positive image of the company. Uses wireless technology to offer access. MyConnect is for condos (limited number of condos), and MyWave is for landed properties (they will send a technician to your house to check on the service availability). MyWave is priced at RM99 for the 1MB/s upload/512kb/s download package, and MyConnect is priced at RM99 for the 1MB/s package.
Upside: not so well known player = fewer subscribers = faster speeds?
Downside: very limited coverage.
TMnet's current problems have caused a world of hurt to online gamers like myself. The following are my experiences.
I live in Taman Tun Dr Ismail, the online games i play most frequently are World of Warcraft (WoW) and Counter-Strike: Source. The latter hasn't been adversely effected by the latest problems with TMnet's QoS -- i normally connect to servers in Singapore to play and average latency is <80ms. The WoW server i connect to is located on the West Coast US, and prior to the problems starting approx. 2 weeks ago, i enjoyed playable latency rates of 300-600ms. The best latency numbers i see now are 2000ms, regularly spiking to 4000-6000ms thus making the game unplayable.
There is nothing wrong with my equipment, if there were, i would probably be suffering with my Counter-Strike:Source play too, but that's been fine. There is something very wrong with TMnet's international links (i've also noticed a general slowdown when surfing my favourite soccer websites), in my case, its links with the US.
I have no idea what TMnet is doing to resolve the issue; calls to the TMnet Call Center at 1-300-88-9515 have been met with the busy tone today. Could the problem be intentional via the alleged traffic shaping (surely, TMnet can't do this without some sort of official notification -- it makes no exception in its Terms & Conditions against P2P downloading)? Could the problem be a hardware issue, and its just a matter of waiting several more days before the technicians clear it up? Most customers are probably like myself: all we ask for is a current word on the situation and what's being done to clear it up; its all about managing the customer's expectations, and that's an area which TMnet is handling particularly poorly right now.
Its really sad that the best source of information about TMnet's current issues is a privately owned blog, with next-to-nothing being published on its own corporate website. Its a further shame that TMnet advertises its service as a means to better enjoy online gaming (which is a very healthy and inexpensive form of personal entertainment), but its current woes make it impossible.
Holy crap, the Truth has been spoken. Outstanding article, worthy of at least 2 readings.
Rubber tapper, Mohd Yunus Kassim, wants to renounce Islam.
He was born a Malay, carries a Malay name and is registered in his identity card as a Muslim. But Mohd Yunus Kassim says he stopped practising Islam nearly 50 years ago and wants this made official to avoid "unnecessary complications" when he dies. Now Mohd Yunus, 62, who is married to a Chinese and raises his children as Buddhists, is applying to the Syariah Court to declare he is not Muslim. "I do not want to share the same fate as some other cases," he said today. "When I die, I want my funeral to be peaceful. I don’t want any problems."
via NST.
Theoretically speaking, the penalty for apostasy in Islam is death. Theoretically, the Syariah Court has to declare him apostate and sentence him to death.
Interesting how a religion of "peace" has particularly violent ways of dealing with people practising their own free will. Its things like this that fuel the arguments of the Orientalists.
The Old Man Lee says it boldly in the first sentence of his article in Forbes: "Islam has not been a problem".
Sam Harris, on the other hand, says it boldly in the title of his article in the LA Times: "Religion Isn't the Solution -- It's the Problem".
Both are excellent reads and absolutely recommended as a primer to the dichotomy of perspectives that exist on the issue of religiously motivated terrorism.
I picked up Sam Harris' book, "The End of Faith", at MPH over the weekend and it asked some very direct questions.
It opens with a real-life scenario: a well-educated Muslim boy from a well-to-do middle class family, boards a bus. Sits next to a family of three, a little girl right next to him. He closes his eyes, whispers a silent prayer, and blows himself up, killing everyone on the bus and dozens more in the street. Why did he do it?
The thesis of his work is that religion is the cause of violence; everytime a Muslim commits some form of mass atrocity, someone will come on the tv and say that "Islam is a religion of peace", the actions of Muslims who commit violence in the name of Islam do so unsanctioned by the majority of Muslims. While the act of violence itself is unsanctioned by Muslims, it does not deny the possibility (i use the word "possibility", Harris uses the word "fact") that the Holy Quran allows, and even encourages violent action against non-Muslims.
"So let us now make sense of the impossible by acknowledging the obvious: there is a direct link between the doctrine of Islam and Muslim terrorism. Acknowledging this link remains especially taboo among political liberals. While liberals are leery of religious fundamentalism in general, they consistently imagine that all religions at their core teach the same thing and teach it equally well. This is one of the many delusions borne of political correctness. Rather than continue to squander precious time, energy, and good will by denying the role that Islam now plays in perpetuating Muslim violence, we should urge Muslim communities in the West to reform the ideology of their religion. This will not be easy, as the Koran and hadith offer precious little basis for a Muslim Enlightenment, but it is necessary."
via Sam Harris, Bombing Our Illusions.
Let's accept for a moment his thesis that religion validates violence, by quoting the Quran, people like Osama bin Laden are doing things "by the book", Harris has an interesting follow-up argument: moderate Muslims while not the locus of violence, assist in its perpetuation.
"Religious moderates may ignore or overlook the more barbaric passages in their religious books, but by venerating the books in general, they leave us powerless to really oppose the belief systems of fundamentalists. And because moderates tend to ignore the most lunatic parts of scripture, they lose touch with how dangerous these books are when taken literally. In fact, they have trouble believing that anyone does still take these books literally, and so they tend not to recognize the role that faith plays in inspiring human violence. Religious moderates are blinded by their own moderation."
via Sam Harris Q&A.
His writing and perspectives are incredibly inflammatory -- its interesting that the Malaysian Government take so much offence to a bunch of cartoons printed in the NST, but have absolutely no problems allowing a book like "The End of Faith" sit in the Bestsellers/Featured section of the local bookstore. That's consistency for you.
But his ideas and arguments are not empty vessels. His book is full of direct quotations from the Quran, citing verses that allow and encourage violence against non-Muslims. I've looked up those verses myself, and taken within a particular interpretation, its possible to argue these verses advocate violence:
009.123 YUSUFALI: O ye who believe! fight the unbelievers who gird you about, and let them find firmness in you: and know that Allah is with those who fear Him. PICKTHAL: O ye who believe! Fight those of the disbelievers who are near to you, and let them find harshness in you, and know that Allah is with those who keep their duty (unto Him). SHAKIR: O you who believe! fight those of the unbelievers who are near to you and let them find in you hardness; and know that Allah is with those who guard (against evil).
via USC-MSA Holy Quran Online.
The Holy Quran can be interpreted many ways -- some people who read the above will argue it validates violence against oppressive non-Muslims i.e. Israeli Jews. Others will read it and argue that the word "fight" does not necessarily refer to physical violence; jihad can take on many forms, many of them non-violent. The problem is the reader, not the Book.
While some of the findings of the recent UM survey are very surprising, some of them actually are not. Care to guess which ones they are?
A career, he said, meant a lot to women as it symbolised independence. "Among the Malays, the women chase careers to be able to help out their families. "Eighty per cent of Malay women feel an indebtedness to their parents and feel the need to be financially secure to be able to contribute to the family."
via NST.
The sampling of the survey is suspect, in my opinion: 200 women can only provide a very small demographic slice of the female population of this country. That in itself opens the survey up to a whole lot of valid criticism.
However, assuming that some of the points made by the survey report are true based on my own personal experiences, the report could provide a very general snapshot of the way the "modern" Malay women thinks and behaves.
My dad, a medical professor with some very chauvinistic, yet often practical leanings, always tells this joke to his students: why do women pay so much attention to a man's ass? Its because she wants to see the size of the bulge his wallet makes.
The purists and the romantics will scoff at this assessment, but how untrue is it really, considering the evolutionary needs of our species. In the wild, the strong males dominate, and have their pickings of the brood; its been observed that the females of the species gravitate towards the stronger males in the pack -- sometimes, two males will battle it out for the affections of the female. Are we so arrogant to assume that the evolutionary cycles of mankind are any different?
On a side note, during an interview with the NST, Datin Seri Tiara Jacquelina has this to say about her high-flying husband, Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Effendi Norwawi:
Q: How has Datuk Seri helped you in your career?A: He is patient, understanding and supportive of my career. I cannot ask for more. He plays the devil’s advocate with me and often puts things into perspective.
I believe that a career woman could never be happy or successful without her husband’s support. I wouldn’t be where I am if not for him.
via NST.
The debate has yet to abate. This is from Ozie, a long time friend of the VOI:
Come on Aiz the Danes have an anti-blasphemy law that protects the Christian faith from being ridiculed in the media. So when the Danes feel like utilizing it they do. Often times its just the Danes making fun of their own religion so the government doesn't act but there have been occassions when they have. So much for freedom of expression huh. However when it comes to Muslims, the anti blasphemy law doesn't cover it. So there is discrimination in Denmark.
...
With regards to freedom of expression there are limits. You say that limit is when a law exists to provide it. Hence if the Danes doesn't allow anti Christian sentiments to be published but do allow anti Muslim ones then this hypocrisy is ok?
The following is my answer:
Perhaps the law you're referring to is Section 140 and 266b of the Danish Criminal Code, where the law prohibits disturbing public order by publicly ridiculing or insulting the dogmas of worship of any lawfully existing religious community in Denmark. This law has not been enforced since 1938. Section 266b criminalises insult, threat or degradation of natural persons, by publicly and with ill intent attacking their race, color of skin, national or ethnical roots, or sexual orientation.
Concerning the application of this law against Jyllands-Posten, Muslim NGOs in Denmark lodged a police report on October 27, 2005 against the newspaper for alleged violations. The police and public prosecutor investigated the case, and on 6 January 2006, the Regional Public Prosecutor in Viborg discontinued the investigation as he found no basis for concluding that the cartoons constituted a criminal offence. He stated that, in assessing what constitutes an offence, the right to freedom of speech must be taken into consideration. That while the right to freedom of speech must be exercised with the necessary respect for other human rights, including the right to protection against discrimination, insult and degradation, no apparent violation of the law had occurred. Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Denmark.
As to your argument that the Danish government is a hypcocrite for enforcing the law on anti-Christian expression, but not anti-Muslim expression, please refer to the legal precedent: since 1938, NO ONE has been convicted under this law, regardless of faith. The application of the law has been, in the last 70 years, very consistent and thus provides protection against calls of hypocrisy on the part of the Danish law enforcement and judiciary.
If the law above is not the law you were referring to in your posting, please enlighten us with the exact anti-blasphemy law in Denmark you were speaking of, and cases of recent judicial action where persons or parties have been successfully tried and convicted under this law.
Lastly, on your remark that Denmark will suffer economic sanctions for the action of refusing to sanction Jyllands-Posten (the newspaper recently won an award for the protection of free speech), it has to be argued whether the OIC or any particular Muslim nation has the teeth to support their bark. Denmark is a member nation of the European Union, and any attempt to impose large-scale economic sanctions on it by Muslim nations will be likely to invoke a very strong response from the EU. As you can see by the mostly "we-disagree-but-won't-do'anything-about-it" stance taken by most Muslim nations so far, including our very own Malaysia, Muslim leaders tend to be very pragmatic in their approach towards international incidents of this nature, and rightly so. Small scale sanctions will still happen, but as evidenced, they are nothing but drops in the ocean and are likely to have no impact whatsoever on Denmark's economy.
If there was a movie i really wanted to see this year, it would be Yasmin Ahmad's "Gubra", the sequel to the award-winning "Sepet". Its almost a crime that a Malaysian movie premiered in Singapore just a couple of nights ago, we'll probably have to wait another month before we can see it in our local cinemas.
If you're not familiar with "Gubra", check out the review here.
Taking a break from the issue of cartoons, which one do you think looks better? White or Black?
via Apple, the iPod Nano.
UPDATE: The fellas at Ars Technica have totally destroyed their test unit -- its not surprising that they did, but what is surprising is the amount of punishment the iPod Nano could take before it quit and died. A truly hilarious (and spine-tingling) read!
Click to enlarge. Via Ars Technica.
"In a final act of desperation, we decided to expose the iPod to a catastrophic event that would certainly destroy it. Lacking a really high place to drop the nano from, we decided the throw the nano as high as we could, say 40 feet into the air, and let it land—hard—on the concrete."
via Ars Technica.
Voice had this to say:
"Only few ppl in NST and uninformed sympathisers are not [in agreement that the cartoons are offensive]. My personal friend quite senior in NST tells me it was wrong and most of his colleague do not share the boss's position. After friday's demo, I sat with NST reporters under a shade, they do not agree with the boss also."
via Answering Hansac and Voice.
The following is my answer:
Voice: Debating with you is tiresome because you've chosen to ignore so many of my core arguments, and haven't provided sufficient defense to my attacks on yours.
1. You claim to be in the "majority of a Muslim consensus" -- i challenged the sampling of your so-called "consensus". Speaking to friends and family and "reporters under the tree" does not form an adequate consensus; if more NGOs supported the outrage why didn't they all lodge police reports? (perhaps its because doing so would defeat the purpose of all their effort so far i.e. more press freedom). If you want to use that as an argument to prove your case, then i can easily claim the exact same thing: all my friends and family and people under that tree outside my house agree with me; but i won't use such arguments because i know their value is nil.
Please note that we are talking about the issue of the NST, and not the cartoon printed in Denmark. On that particular cartoon, i've already said that i disagree with what was published, but i am not willing to condemn their act of publishing.
Why won't i condemn them for publishing?
That brings me to the point i made that no one (including you and Hansac) have discussed at all:
2. If we were to condemn them for publishing those cartoons, then we are hypocrites. Muslims all over the world, even learned ones, frequently condemn others, their religion and their way of life -- they shout it from the tops of mosques, they publish it in newspapers (open the Harakah someday and you'll see many examples of such cases), they spread lies and disinformation via spam emails and SMS (e.g. McDonald's is haram), etc, etc, etc. The list is very, very long. I have no problems with Muslims saying these things either: we all have a right to our opinion -- if there are some amongst us who believe that the Jews should be eradicated from the earth by any means possible, well, you believe what you believe, i don't have to agree with you, and i won't force you to agree with me.
Why do we hold ourselves to a different standard and expect the West and non-Muslims to adhere to another?
Just because we're Muslims and they're not?
Hansac and Voice essentially made the same argument on why the NST cartoons were offensive:
"It mocked Muslims' reaction to their Prophet being mocked."
via Hansac.
"The cartoon is making fun (belittling) the furor of muslim over Danish cartoon incidence (sufficient visual and inference to describe that)."
via Voice.
My answer to both as follows:
Where?
The caption in the cartoon says that the cartoonist is "the most feared man in the world" -- that is a satirical jibe at the situation a cartoonist has caused rather than a jibe at Muslims in particular. How can a cartoonist and his cartoon be the cause of so much international uproar, angst, abuse and discussion? Its absurd! The educational value comes in making us reflect on the absurdity of the situation; a realization that may allow us to avoid the type of reactions that led to riots, violence and death-fatwas.
Click to enlarge. Via Cagle.
If you really, really want to be angry at someone for the "mocking" and "belittling" cartoon in the NST, perhaps you should blame the Malaysian education system for not teaching us the meaning of satire. No worries, just follow this link for a quick brief on the topic.
The other thing that many of us have forgotten, is when things blow out of proportion like this, its never the fault of one person.
Sure, as Aisehman rightly pointed out, the cartoonist really should have shown a bit more "politeness". But the Muslim world has also gone to extreme lengths to react: breaking off diplomatic relations, rioting, violence, etc. Yes, more "politeness" from both sides, perhaps more thoughfulness as well, would have avoided this whole mess.
EVEN IF, both your arguments are valid (and i'm not accepting that they are) -- this proves something i said in my earlier post: Muslims have a huge chip on their shoulder. To take offense over a cartoon making fun of us? Come on -- have you even been to a Friday sermon lately? Where the imam talks about the "lecherous" ways of non-Muslims and how if we follow their path we're all going to Hell (directly implying that all our non-Muslim friends and relatives are going to Hell, no questions asked)? And that's your typical Friday sermon in Malaysia; i've heard Friday sermons from religious imams from the Middle East, and even in the USA and UK -- the vitrolic they spew out makes these cartoons look like a drawing of Mary Poppins.
Click to enlarge. Via Cagle.
We take offense (and react so wildly) when what we do is 10x worse? That's rich. Islam prohibits hypocriticism -- we're making a fuss over cartoons? If so, what a bunch of hypocrites we are.
Aisehman, a well-respected opinion-blogger, had this to ask of me:
"Aiz, let me start by enquiring on the standards you employ for determining whether something is offensive to your religion."
via The interesting thing about cartoons
The following is my answer:
I understand that everyone will have an opinion about religion, whether it be their own religion, the religion of the next person, or whether or not they should have a religion or be religious at all, and how to act henceforth.
Given these variables, there are many potential combinations of possibilities. You may be very religious, and feel that your religion is right and everyone else who doesn't subscribe to your faith is a sinner. You may be very religious, and care less about what everyone else believes. You may be completely irreligious (though not without a religious faith you subscribe to), and care very much about what the next person believes. Combinations ad infinitum, ad nauseum of everything in between.
Of these many types, i'm of the belief that religion is a personal matter of choice. I am free to practice the religion of my choosing, and so are you. I don't expect everyone to be like me, and i accept diversity of beliefs.
On the issue of the religion of my choosing, I imagine many people may have very erroneous perceptions about what Islam is. Whenever i can, i try to correct those perceptions. And if i can't, i don't take offence at it, "God bless you, go in peace." Say what you will, believe what you want about Islam -- if i can't convince you otherwise, i will not interfere with your right to express your beliefs; after all, you believe in my rights to express mine.
Just like everyone else, i have a line that can't be crossed before i take severe offense and that line is when you try to stop me from practising my religion. When that line is crossed, then i'll do everything i can to put things back in order, but i will never resort to violence or the bearance of arms eventhough the religion allows me to, and in some instances, insists that i do. If Allah in His wisdom sees fit to throw me into Hell because i won't kill in His name, then so be it. I believe in the forbearance of the human race to negotiate and compromise; if there is no winning solution, i trust in the Compassion of Allah to accept i have tried my best.
Furthermore, i'm of the opinion that just because Islam doesn't like it, that doesn't mean that non-Muslims shouldn't do it, especially if their laws allow for it. Laws in democracies are decided upon by the people, if those laws do not take into account religious sensitivities, then who am i to insist that they do? How would i feel if they insisted that the laws that govern me are tailored to suit them?
Taken on face value, this probably means that while i disapprove and am quite upset by the Danish cartoons of Muhammad suggesting he is the source of Muslim violence, i take a step back in my analysis of the situation and ask myself "Why?" someone felt the need to draw such things.
Click to enlarge. Via Cagle.
Could it be because of the way terrorists invoked the name of "Allah" and "Muhammad" before they rammed jet planes into the World Trade Center? Could it be because of the way you can find literally hundreds of websites run by Muslims on the internet asking for things like the "cleansing" of Palestine i.e. extermination of the Jews in the name of Islam? Could it be because of the videos of Muslim mujahideen slitting the throats of journalists?
Perhaps.
As far as the cartoonist was concerned, is he expected to understand the difference between the actions of a person who calls himself a Muslim and Islam?
As far as we are concerned, are we expected to understand the difference between the drawings of a cartoonist and the whole Western civilization?
FFS! Mack has hit the jackpot!
So many people writing in to Jeff's blog, leaving comments. So many people saying they support action against the NST, not a SINGLE ONE, JEFF OOI INCLUDED has been able to convincingly say WHY. The normal buzzwords are all there: "outrage", "insensitive", "Islam", "caricature", "Prophet Muhammad", "cartoons" -- for some reason people seem to think that if you put these words together in several sentences, that's enough reason to condemn a newspaper, its Editors and the Press in general. Gosh, when was i transported to Planet Paranoia?
I'm going to go against the grain, i'm going to publish MORE CARTOONS about this issue, then i'm going to give you LINKS to where you can find EVEN MORE CARTOONS. (no pics of the Prophet on my blog, i promise, i'm a Muslim)
What you'll find is that a great majority of these cartoons make satirical comments about Muslims, rather than Islam. While all Muslims (myself included) have a duty till death to defend Islam, there is no such promise to defend other Muslims, especially when there is something wrong with us that needs changing. If you view these cartoons from that perspective, the only reason why you may think they are offensive is because the cartoon is talking about YOU.
Click to enlarge. Via Cagle.
Click to enlarge. Via Cagle.
Click to enlarge. Via Cagle.
Click to enlarge. Via Cagle.
What i want people to understand is that its only a closed mind that shrugs off legitimate questions that if, asked and answered, can help us improve and grow as a people, society, religion and nation. While it seems almost absurd that cartoons can help us achieve that goal, its the total absurdity of cartoons that is often required to make us open our eyes, take a moment to chuckle, reflect, understand, and apply.
UPDATE: How much do we even know about the cartoonist, Wiley Miller? Multi-award winning cartoonist. Interesting. A cartoonist receives awards not because he can draw, but because he offers perspectives.
The interesting thing about cartoons is that the very best of