Beware girls................

Today, lets talk something else,other than politics. Got this piece in my mail. It looks nice and beautiful but............












These are hairbands made in China from used condoms and threads. Beware when you are travelling to China , just try to be careful when you are buying hairbands down the road who knows what it is made from?

BEIJING (AFP) - Used condoms are being recycled into hair bands in southern China , threatening to spread sexually-transmittable diseases they were originally meant to prevent, state media reported Tuesday. In the latest example of potentially harmful Chinese-made products, rubber hair bands have been found in local markets and beauty salons in Dongguan and Guangzhou cities in southern Guangdong province, China Daily newspaper said.

'These cheap and colourful rubber bands and hair ties sell well ... threatening the health of local people,' it said. Despite being recycled, the hair bands could still contain bacteria and viruses, it said.

'People could be infected with AIDS, (genital) warts or other diseases if they hold the rubber bands or strings in their mouths while waving their hair into plaits or buns,' the paper quoted a local dermatologist who gave only his surname, Dong, as saying.

A bag of ten of the recycled bands sells for just 25 fen (three cents), much cheaper than others on the market, accounting for their popularity, the paper said. A government official was quoted as saying recycling condoms was illegal.

China 's manufacturing industry has been repeatedly tarnished this year by a string of scandals involving shoddy or dangerous goods made for both domestic and foreign markets.

In response, it launched a public relations blitz this summer aimed at playing up efforts to strengthen monitoring systems.(AFP)

So if you are shopping for hair bands down Petaling Street or any pasar malam for that matter, double check first,esp. if that product is China mali punya......

cheers.

Rakyat bayar lebih untuk petrol dan letrik.........

Banyak mana anda boleh beli minyak petrol dengan berharga RM1.00 mengikut harga 1 liter petrol pada RM1.98 sen dan harga baru,RM2.70 sen boleh dilihat dalam gambar di bawah ini.

Azhan Sharom, 23, yang ditemui di Jalan Batu Buruk, Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu menunjukkan botol berisi minyak bagi setiap ringgit yang dibelanjakan. Kuantiti botol kiri berdasarkan harga lama manakala yang kanan pula jika mengikut harga baru, yang berkuat kuasa hari ini.(Half empty or half full?: Azhan Sharom showing the difference of how much petrol one can buy with RM1 on Wednesday and today at a petrol station in Kuala Terengganu.-Foto The Star)

Namun demikian,Azhan Sharom serta warga Terengganu yang lain sepatutnya berterima kasih kepada Pat Lah kerana sebahagian besar rakyat Terengganu telah memilih untuk kekal dengan gomen BN di Terengganu dalam PRU 12 bulan Mac lalu. Jangan lupa,rakyat Terengganu tertanya-tanya baki wang royalti berjumlah 3 bilion itu tersimpan di mana dan oleh siapa?

Pada 30 Mei 2008, Najib Razak menafikan khabar angin yang mengatakan harga petrol akan dinaikan. Baca di sini.

Pada 2 Jun 2008, Menteri Perdagangan Dalam Negeri dan Hal Ehwal Pengguna, Datuk Shahrir Abdul Samad menyatakan bahawa harga petrol dan diesel mungkin akan naik pada bulan Ogos selepas penstrukturan semula sistem subsidi. Baca di sini.

Tiba-tiba dengan tidak semena-mena Pat Lah mengumumkan kenaikan harga petrol sebanyak 40 % @ RM 0.78 seliter (daripada RM 1.92 kepada RM 2.70 seliter) berkuat kuasa mulai 5 Jun 2008. Bagi harga diesel pula dinaikkan sebanyak RM 1.00 (daripada RM 1.58 kepada RM 2.58 seliter. Baca di sini.

Jawapan standard gomen kenapa kenaikan harga minyak ialah kerana mengikut pasaran global dan kerajaan terpaksa mengurangkan bayaran subsidi. Dan jangan lupa gomen kata harga minyak petrol di Malaysia masih murah berbanding negara serantau terutama Thailand dan Singapura. Cuba lihat carta di bawah dan pikiaq-pikiaq mai.........

Namun demikian sebagai bonus bagi mengurangkan beban rakyat, Pat Lah kata,gomen akan memperkenalkan rebat tunai bahan api dibayar kepada pemilik kenderaan persendirian sebagai satu bentuk subsidi minyak yang akan dibayar bila rakyat memperbaharui cukai jalan nanti.Pat Lah,rakyat nak tengok pengurangan beban yang "immediate" buat apa tunggu sampai setahun suntuk? Rebat tunai ini membantu rakyat miskin kah?

Di samping itu, berkuatkuasa 1 Julai ini, pengguna yang mengguna bawah 200 kwj (kilowat-jam) setiap bulan dengan anggaran bil elektrik kurang RM43.60 akan membayar kadar seperti sekarang selagi mereka kekal jumlah penggunaan. Pengguna yang menggunakan lebih daripada 200 - 400 kwj akan membayar antara 1-11 % lebih dan seterusnya seperti jadual di atas.

Menurut Anwar, rakyat pastinya dirundung kehidupan rumit. Bermula dari harga minyak, menjalar ka bil letrik, tertekan parah dengan kos pengangkutan dan harga barang keperluan lainnya. Persoalannya keuntungan Petronas yang jenuh melimpah tertiris dan bocor kemana........

cheers.

Petrol naik, Petronas untung,rakyat gelabah........

Harga petrol naik sebanyak 78 sen - satu pertambahan besar dari RM1.92 sekarang kepada RM2.70.Harga minyak diesel pula naik kepada RM2.58 - naik RM1 berbanding harga sekarang sebanyak RM1.58 seliter.Kenaikan sebanyak 41 peratus bagi petrol dan 63.3 peratus bagi diesel akan berkuatkuasa mulai tengah malam ini.

Dengan penstrukturan baru itu,gomen dijangka membelanjakan kira-kira RM18 bilion subsidi setahun. Dalam ertikata lain gomen menjimatkan RM4 bilion di bawah penstrukturan semula skim subsidi tersebut.

Jika harga petrol dijual mengikut harga penuh pasaran, harganya adalah hampir RM4 seliter. Gomen juga mengumumkan pemberian rebet tunai sebanyak RM625 setahun bagi pemilik kenderaan persendirian, berkapasiti enjin sehingga 2000cc serta 'trak pick-up' dan jip berkapasiti enjin sehingga 2500cc. Bagi pemilik motosikal persendirian, berkapasiti enjin sehingga 250cc, akan menerima bayaran tunai RM150 setahun.

Bayaran tunai diberi apabila pemilik kenderaan dan motosikal memperbaharui lesen kenderaan bermotor mereka nanti.Bayaran ini meliputi kenderaan dengan cukai jalan yang berkuatkuasa 1 April 2008 hingga 31 Mac 2009.Bagi pemilik kenderaan persendirian petrol dan diesel berkapasiti enjin melebihi 2000cc, cukai jalan akan dikurangkan sebanyak RM200.Bagi motosikal persendirian berkapasiti enjin lebih 250cc, cukai jalan akan dikurangkan sebanyak RM50 tertakluk kepada cukai jalan minima RM2. (sumber: Malaysiakini.)

Isian penuh tangki kereta wira saya adalah lebih kurang RM70.00 mengikut harga minyak RM1.92 seliter. Sekarang dengan kenaikan sebanyak 78sen seliter,dan harga baru petrol sebanyak RM2.70 seliter,naik 41%, isian penuh tangki kereta saya kali ini melebihi RM100.00. Kalau dulu ulangalik ke KL dari Tanjung belanja minyak baru RM160.00,sekarang kena belanja RM 230.00. Wooi...Pat Lah mampuihlah macam ni..........

Saya sangka kenaikan harga petrol itu berperingkat
-peringkat bermula hari ini dan bila sampai bulan Ogos,harganya mencecah RM2.70 sen. Nampaknya gomen tipu kita lagi.......

Kadang-kadang saya tertanya-tanya betulkah gomen kita memberi subsidi untuk petrol kita. Bukankah Petronas mengekspot minyak bermutu tinggi yang harganya adalah lebih tinggi daripada harga pasaran setong minyak mentah dunia? Sebaliknya kita membeli minyak yang kita pakai dengan harga yang lebih murah dari negara-negara pengeluar minyak. Bukankah subsidi sebanyak RM56 bilion setahun yang gomen kata itu adalah dari keuntungan berlebihan yang Petronas dapat daripada jualan minyaknya? Gomen dan Petronas tak rugi apa dan yang rugi adalah pengguna seperti kita yang terpaksa bayar lebih untuk seliter petrol. Itu baru petrol belum tahu harga barang-barang lain yang melonjak naik bersama-samanya........

Berhubung dengan keuntungan Petronas, ini apa Mahathir kata dalam blognya..........

Can the Government subsidise? I am the “adviser” to Petronas but I know very little about it beyond what is published in its accounts. What I do know may not be very accurate but should be sufficient for me to draw certain conclusions.

Roughly Malaysia produces 650,000 barrels of crude per day. We consume 400,000 barrels leaving 250,000 barrels to be exported. Three years ago the selling price of crude was about USD30 per barrel. Today it is USD130 – an increase of USD100. There is hardly any increase in the production cost so that the extra USD100 can be considered as pure profit.

Our 250,000 barrels of export should earn us 250,000 x 100 x 365 x 3 = RM27,375,000,000 (twenty seven billion Ringgit).

But Petronas made a profit of well over RM70 billion, all of which belong to the Government.

By all accounts the Government is flushed with money.

Baca lanjut di sini, sini,sini,sini,dan sini.

cheers.

Barack Obama the black Democratic presidential nomination.....

Senator Barack Obama claimed the Democratic presidential nomination on Tuesday night, prevailing through an epic battle with Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton in a primary campaign that inspired millions of voters from every corner of America to demand change in Washington.

A last-minute rush of Democratic superdelegates, as well as the results from the final primaries in Montana and South Dakota, pushed Mr. Obama over the threshold of winning the 2,118 delegates needed to be nominated at the party's convention in Denver in August.

It was an improbable triumph for Mr. Obama, the son of a black Kenyan father and white Kansan mother, who served as an Illinois state senator just four years ago. In giving Mr. Obama the victory, his party broke a racial barrier.

"You chose to listen not to your doubts or your fears, but to your greatest hopes and highest aspirations," Mr. Obama said at a rally in St. Paul. "Tonight, we mark the end of one historic journey with the beginning of another - a journey that will bring a new and better day to America. Because of you, tonight, I can stand before you and say that I will be the Democratic nominee for president of the United States."

Mrs. Clinton acknowledged that her path to the nomination had closed, but she did not leave the race. "This has been a long campaign and I will be making no decisions tonight," Mrs. Clinton told supporters in New York. She said she would be speaking with party officials about her next move.

Mrs.Clinton paid homage to Mr. Obama's accomplishments, saying, "It has been an honor to contest the primaries with him, just as it has been an honor to call him my friend."

Mr. Obama returned the compliment, saying, "I am a better candidate for having had the honor to compete with Hillary Rodham Clinton."

Mr. Obama's victory moved the presidential campaign to a new phase as he tangled with Senator John McCain of Arizona in televised addresses Tuesday night over Mr. Obama's assertion that Mr. McCain would continue President Bush's policies. - Jeff Zeleny, The New York Times.

cheers.

Petrol price hike puts Pat Lah's gomen in jeopardy......

Brace yourself for petrol price hike. Whether its tomorrow or come August it doesn’t matter much and whether you like it or not petrol price is going to increase, not by 10 or 20 or 30 cents but more for now. The gomen has come out with a brilliant idea, yes, what they call “subsidy scheme restructuring”. The Minister concerned,Shahrir Samad said, the details and implementation method of the new subsidy scheme would be thrashed out by August, when the full plan is scheduled to be in place.

Shahrir said the new subsidies would be a needs-based system, rather than the current arrangement which lowers the cost of petrol for all users no matter what their income.

He told Bernama that the government was considering mechanisms including offering cash payments or setting quotas. Currently petrol sells for about RM1.92 a liter, among the cheapest in the region,says the gomen. If petrol is to be sold at full market prices, it could be as high as almost RM4 a liter - about 100 percent above current levels.

Just imagine if the price of petrol is RM 4.00 a liter, the domino effect it will create on the prices of the public transportation, prices of essential goods,groceries, meals,etc,etc will be humungous.

Imagine how much you are going to pay for a cup of the tarik and roti canai from your favourite mamak shop? From the current RM 2.10 to RM 4.10? I would rather boycott the mamak shop and prepare my own teh tarik from now.

Hoarding will be prevalent and it will encourage more price increases. Our lifestyles are likely to change. In other words fuel has a direct, and indirect effect with the everyday activities of people. While the culture of fear that has been indoctrinated into our mindset might make us to over-react by panic buying and that will worsen the situation more than expected.

How is the gomen going to cope with this is anyone guess,when their encounter with the price increase of rice that shot up by over 100% for certain grades went haywire,while Bernas is laughing its way to the bank.

Will this phenomenon lead to Pat Lah’s ultimate downfall? It is left to be seen, as the rakyat will wait and see whether Anwar can offer better alternatives that will eventually pressure BN MPs to lend their support for the Pakatan Rakyat to take over the gomen.

Lets hear what Pat Lah is going say today.......

cheers.

Anwar Ibrahim on Bloomberg..........

Enjoy the interview...........

cheers.

This is how Mahathir plans to oust Pat Lah.........

Mahathir reveals his plot on how to overthrow Pat Lah and stop Anwar from becoming PM, by suggesting that UMNO MPs form an independent group instead of crossing over to the Opposition if they are dissatisfied with the present leadership.

Mahathir said crossing over to the Opposition was wrong, as they would be subjected to opposition policies and would not be able to determine anything.

“You will be an ordinary member, but by forming a separate group, say at least 35 of them, this will cause the Government to collapse and the current PM will have to resign.

“Then if PKR adviser Anwar Ibrahim tries to become the PM and if the votes go to him and then if Deputy PM Najib Tun Razak have the guts to step in, the 35 MPs can give their votes to him.

“When he (Najib) becomes the PM, BN remains in power, and it will be no lost to anyone except to Pat Lah,” he told a press conference after delivering his speech during a forum “Suntikan Semangat Satria” at a hotel Saturday.

The event was organised by three non-governmental organisations known as Minda Melayu Kreatif, Kelab Cinta Amanah Melayu and Arena PJS14. He was commenting on Anwar’s claims that certain MPs from Sabah were expected to “jump ship” by Sept 16.

On another note,Mahathir suspects Ezam Md.Noor intention of joining UMNO recently. Mahathir said,“In politics, anything is possible. It may be that (Ezam is a Trojan Horse). What I do know is that Anwar is quietly anxious to be supported by Umno. “He may want to join Umno at some stage, if he (believes that he) can become PM through that (channel),”

In his usual sarcastic tone, Mahathir said the Umno leadership was “desperate” for signs of support and therefore accepted Ezam. “They are desperate to see support for themselves. Let them accept him. This is a sign of great support for Umno. In fact, they should accept Karpal Singh, the menteri besar of Perak, and also Param Cumaraswamy and Anwar".

Whether this plan can really work,is left to be seen. However,Pat Lah seems to be still in a comfort zone and ignore calls asking him to step down.....

cheers.

Will Anwar Ibrahim be PM........

PKR - Anwar Ibrahim will not be PM

Posted by mindspring on May 30, 2008

Despite all the speculation and the on going turmoil in UMNO, the road to the PM’s office still ha a number of obstacles for Mr Anwar Ibrahim. The biggest obstacle is that public perception of him is quite divided.

There are those who say Anwar is no different and will be no different from the UMNO boys of today - after all he was a master at the game as he rose up the ranks in UMNO.

Then there are those who say Prison does change a man and they quote Ghandi and Mandela as examples… Unfortunately in the case of GHANDI and Mandela, prison did not change them but further strengthened their resolve to see independence, liberation and for Mandela the abolishment of apartheid.

In my view, prison has only strengthened Anwar Ibrahim’s resolve. Resolve about what? Resolve to proof that Tun Mahathir was a despot perpetrating cronyism and nepotism. Whilst I think Anwar has got good leadership qualities, I don’t think he will use those qualities for the benefit of the nation but for the benefit of installing his view or concept of how UMNO and BN should be run.

There is just too much “sandiwara” or posturing going on to make the him a trustable and believable candidate, not withstanding that he is an astute and respected politicians. I think Anwar’s prime and only concern is about himself becoming PM and he will use what ever means it takes to achieve that objective, but it does mean that to achieve that he will have to be the president of UMNO. Just like Mahathir, for Anwar the ends do truly justify the means.

The political and ideological concessions that DAP and PAS will have to make in order to fit into a unified PKR platform are simply too big. The fact that we are not seeing any public discussion of how this loose “PKR coalition” is going to come together under a single party symbol is telling enough. Right now the binding factor between PKR, DAP, and PAS is the common goal of weakening Barisan’s hold - which they have done very well.

But the party lines are still drawn with strong racial undertones… and if PKR’s promise is for a unified Bangsa Malaysia - the the three parties really need to be talking about it now, in public. What does Bangsa Malaysia mean in terms of a national agenda and what is the policy framework for it. It is easy for Anwar to criticise about what is currently wrong with the government and it is easy for him to paint a picture of what an ideal future can look like, but the challenge will be in the details and for that - we have heard nothing.

At the state level, PAS with Kelantan and Kedah under its belt will seek to consolidate its position, likewise DAP with Penang and Perak while PKR really only has Selangor and the most Parliament seats held by the opposition.

So with this level of wins - the “opposition” is far better off collaborating with each other rather than fighting as they all have a common enemy - namely BN.

Should this balance of power change in that either DAP or PAS becomes significantly strong relative to the other at the next elections, think we will see a lot more flexing of muscles and thats where the real ideological conflicts will arise.

Right now, I give high marks to the respective MB’s for demonstrating that the “opposition” controlled states can function and are functioning better that when they were under BN. And if the “opposition” is serious about working under a single flag then they are going to have to demonstrate it in the states first. Right now the mood is toleration, simply because it is needed to show solidarity. However, to step the relation up a few more notches will require compromises and this will be hard to do.

For PKR to really unify - Anwar will have to step down - together with Lim Kit Siang, Karpal Singh, and Nik Aziz and allow the next generation to take over and push the agenda. For now the old guards have done enought to get us to where we need to be. Unlike UMNO, the PKR coalition, in order to succeed, must show an ability for the old to give way to the young in order for constant renewal to take place.

So, Anwar, thank you for getting us this far. You may not become PM but the outcome of this election is more than what any PM has done for the country.. but now its time for you to find a new face to lead the PKR coalition….
(http://mindacergas.wordpress.com/2008/05/30/pkr-anwar-ibrahim-will-not-be-pm/)

Is Anwar still the same Anwar who was the DPM so many years ago,nobody knows, only he can tell so. The imprisonment may have changed him and his perspectives, but what about his will and determination? Must we argue on that too? Give him a chance to proof who he says he is and we will judge him after he has done his job.

Its normal for people to be vary of Anwar because he was part of the system; the number two man in UMNO, the party that the rakyat despise most.

While Umno and BN supporters are slinging mud at him saying his is corrupted, racist and also anti Malay,PKR supporters and sympathisers literally worship the ground he walks on. Thousands were drawn to his campaigns at the height of the 12th general election last March 2008. Isnt that enough proof that the rakyat supports him?

If it wasnt for Anwar's bargaining skills Pakatan Rakyat wouldnt have denied BN 2/3 majority and caputured 5 states. Anwar was the man of the hour who managed to unify the opposition parties and fought on a single manifesto,"Harapan Baru Untuk Malaysia" and the "Agenda Ekonomi Malaysia"

At 61 Anwar is still considered young to step down. Lets give Anwar and the Pakatan leaders a chance and thats the only way we will know for sure to see if Anwar really do take over the helm and judge his performance then. Till,then lets pray that he has the numbers as he wants us to believe, enough to form the Pakatan Rakyat gomen soon but why wait till September?

We do not need another flip-flop corrupted PM.... over to you Anwar Ibrahim..........

cheers.