Clowns

Malaysia has again been embarrassed by the country's volunteer corps (RELA) after two officers arrested and wrongly detained an Indian national film director whom they mistook to be an illegal immigrant.

The director, Mr Sanjiv Mishra, was in Malaysia filming a tourism documentary titled Dream Hotels in Asia for a German production company when two Rela officers arrested him on Monday.

Mr Mishra was only released when his colleagues brought his passport to the station as proof that he entered the country legally.

Rela has attracted a barrage of criticism for abuses of power, including from the US-based Human Rights Watch, which earlier this month called for it to be immediately disbanded.

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Comment:
What can I say, it's cowboy country in there! Too little things to do for too many people so they find it necessary to find little things for their people to do in order to achieve an illusion of doing something important.

The buck stops here

By Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's own admission, this is not the best of times for the Government to be grappling with an issue as sensitive as a pay hike for ministers and civil servants.

Certainly not when the income gap in Singapore is seen to be widening, and not everyone is enjoying the benefits of the returning good times.

So, when Mr Lee took the floor yesterday to wrap up the debate... he said he would freeze his pre-increment salary of $2.5 million for the next five years, promising to donate any increase in pay to charity.

Ok. Nice gallant move and all but why didn't he just donate whatever amount of money he intended to give to the people at the public sector to charitable causes in the first place?

Oh I forgot. Our opinions don't matter.

B-word causes airport scene

A CASUAL mention of the word "bomb", and apparent over-zealousness of the part of airport security officers, grounded a family of four's holiday plans earlier this month.

On March 9, after checking in their luggage at about 7.15pm, Mdm Tan and her daughter proceeded to the security gantry to have their hand luggage and bodies scanned.

Then her 13-year-old daughter asked casually: "Mummy, why do you have to remove your shoes?"

Mdm Tan, 33, told her it was because the officers were "afraid that we might keep bombs in our shoes".

Overhearing this, a male security officer asked Mdm Tan to repeat what she had said, which she did. According to Mdm Tan, he then told her that she would be reported as she had said the word "bomb" twice.

Full story here

We actually have brainless, inflexible staff working at the airport who are not capable of critical thinking?

Much ado about nothing. Unbelievable.

Soon, plastic for the people

Banking Act changes give lower-income access to unregulated, limited credit.

There may not be a name for it yet, but cards granting up to $500 in credit could soon line the pockets of Singaporeans who do not qualify for existing credit cards.

The way was paved for this new kind of credit product when Parliament approved changes to the Banking Act yesterday.

First the "Intergrated Resorts" and now this!?

I detest the government more and more each day. What are they doing now? They're supposed to protect the people!

So, damn...

Egypt on Saturday said it "regretted" the execution of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein which took place on the Muslim feast of sacrifice, the foreign ministry said.

Saudi Arabia said on Saturday that the hanging of Saddam Hussein on the first day of the Muslim Eid al-Adha festival caused "surprise and dismay", the official Saudi Press Agency reported.

Saddam Hussein was buried early Sunday in his home village of Awjah in northern Iraq.

Saddam might indeed have done all that, even to fellow Muslims, but they were very rude to have done the deed on a religious day of importance such as that.

This, I believe have forced open the lid to Pandora's box even more.

Sickened

I've been around. Just that I don't know what else to comment about when I see the news. It's the same old thing recycled over and over again. Same old crap.

The Singapore government can't get its priorities right.

The US government under Bush can't stop the fires they started.

And every damn news resource seem to want people to believe that Muslims are the enemy. Efforts by Muslims worldwide to maintain peace on both micro and macro levels do not count for one bit.

Just replace 'Muslims' with Buddhists or Catholics and I'd still be as incensed. I just don't like the whole idea of sweeping everything with one broom.

It's sickening. So until I get over it, I won't be posting anything on here. Ta.

Iraq civilian death toll hits new high

The death toll of civilians killed in Iraq reached a new high of 3,709 in October, a United Nations report said Wednesday.

Quebec is a 'nation'

Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in Parliament Wednesday he would recognize the country's francophone Quebec province as a nation within Canada.

Interesting. Like Malta and San Marino within Italy, Andorra sandwiched between France and Spain as well as Monaco in France.

Now there's a win-win situation.