Books, books and more books...

Went to Popular Sunway today to try and find this book.
For some reason, even though the book was supposed to have been released 2 months ago, the bookstore didn't have it in stock. What a royal pain in the arse. So I asked the salespeople there.

"Where can I get this book ah?"
-salesperson checks computer-
"Popular Klang."

"If I order how long will it take to come?"
"Aaaa.... about 1 month."

Well, at least it wasn't as bad as Tim's predicament with Percy Jackson. They only sent me to Klang. MPH sent Tim to Cheras, and as if that wasn't far enough, Kinta Parade as well. LOL.

Oh well, till the stock arrives, I'll have to make do with my schoolbooks and Jeffrey Archer.

perpetually slacking

What do you do when the exams are only 5 days away and nothing much has been done?

Simple: do more studying. But what if there IS nothing else to study? What if there IS nothing more to do?

Even simpler: slack.

So that's what I seem to be doing now. LOLOLOLLOL.

Except that I am busy. Tomorrow I need to teach maths. The day after is majlis perpisahan at Catholic High, so I shall go to see and take part in the "merriment". Then after that I have an appointment to visit Matthew for a study trip to his house. Technically, this is NOT slacking.

But I seem to be doing nothing much at home either. Either I am DotA-ing, or else RO-ing, or else doing physics past year, or else spec maths past year, or else... nothing else.

I'm just bored. Every time a major exam draws near, I find that I get too bored too easily.




How damn sad. Someone help me from this chasm of depression please.

Can't wait for November 21st. At least it will be sweet release, pure heaven.

two things plaguing me now

#1. Music
#2. Social contract

Lets look at #1 first. Somehow, some psychologists have tied musical influence to creativity and better academic performance. I beg to differ. Does it really mean that if you learn to play the piano you will be inclined to better performance? I really have to disagree on that. Although my classmates will disagree with me, I think most of the ability comes from innate ability, then perseverance.
A second question I have is somewhat simpler. Why is the piano the favoured instrument for most music learners? Why not drums or guitar, especially when you take into account the cost of a piano compared to a guitar or drum set? It doesn't really make sense to me.

Now to the social contract. This is actually a very complicated issue, made worse by the government's various interpretation of the said contract. It is known that the initial contract said that the Chinese and Indians would be given citizenship in M'sia, but that they must respect the Malay special rights. The crux of the problem is that this is enshrined in the Constitution, and most of the younger generation live in bliss ignorance of any contract. So we wouldn't know if the government decided to amend the Constitution. Besides, the social contract should be renegotiated. Times have changed a lot since the 60's.
To those people who dislike historical facts, are we going to consider all history to be seditious? Because the fact remains that the same event will give one party happiness and another party will be unhappy. Are we going to deny our younger generation the right to know the truth? It doesn't make any sense.

Quote: The truth hurts, doesn't it?

On the M'sian education system

I was reading the morning papers when I came across this report on Moral. So, here are my views on the report.

#1. Moral is not a useless subject. Right now the debate is about Moral exams and the painfully rigid marking scheme. I, for one, suggest that the marking scheme be revised completely. Stifling creativity is one thing our education system is famous for. And secondly, the exam style HAS to be revamped. I mean, you can't ask subjective [personal view] questions in an objective [syllabus based] exam. Marks won't be awarded based on the creativity of the answer, rather marks will be awarded based on the accuracy of the answer in relation to the syllabus. Thus the familiar words come to echo and haunt us: Correct answer, but not in the syllabus.

#2. Who ever heard of memorising values to prove your moral worth to society? I agree with one of the students interviewed in the report. Quote [slightly paraphrased]: Some of my friends who are better behaved didn't do as well as me in the Moral exam. The major problem with the Moral exams is that again, subjective questions are expected to be answered with objective answers.

#3. Datuk, please be sure that your facts are accurate. It is comforting to know that students are only required to know keywords. But what happened between the top and the markers at the bottom? Has the message been altered in transmission? Because I clearly remember my Moral teacher reminding us to memorise value definitions word for word.

There is no substitute for Moral as a subject, only a substitute in the teaching of the subject and the exam system for the subject.

While on the topic of education still, I think History is another subject with the same problems as Moral, namely the problem of asking subjective questions and expecting objective answers in return. For example:

Question: Imagine you are a sultan of a 18th century Malay state. Your kingdom is about to be colonised by the British. What will you do?
My answer: Let them come in and take over, then learn from them, then throw them out eventually.
Correct textbook answer: Use force of weapons to repulse the British.

So, this tells us that martyrdom is a way of life of the Malays. Referring to the textbooks again, every Malay state under British rule has had its fair share of rebels. All of them died in the end. So, martyrdom IS the way of life of the Malays. How bloody sad, that we have martyrs as our role models. No wonder most of us look to Anwar or RPK to free us, rather than stick with the ruling coalition of BN.

happy birthday to me

I must say that this year, I have had the most memorable birthday. Especially since most of my classmates in the previous years had let it go by unnoticed. Then again, my birthday always seemed to be during the exam period. So, I can't really blame them for that.
Oh well, enough reminiscence. Time to move back into the real world.
Last Saturday, some of my gamer friends came to Pyramid to celebrate early. It was enjoyable. BBQ for lunch, then off to Point Extreme for some DotA. To top it all, a nice cake and a present of books [Eragon, Eldest]. Thanks a million, guys. Won't forget this treat.
Then today I had another cake. From S4. They almost got me creamed, but somehow I managed to worm my way out of it. And so I got a second cake, and some extra for sharing around. Thanks a million as well, guys, you are super.

So, I think this year I have had a much more interesting birthday celebration. To all wishers, thanks a lot for remembering. Love you guys.

This is our next PM

This is the deal cut by Najib when he was Defence Minister. Interesting what power does to people nowadays.

http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/13721/84/

With him as our next PM, I wonder how we are going to deal with the people next. Especially if he is not put away for his involvement in the Altantuyaa business.

it's who you wanna be, not what you do

I don't know why, but lately I've taken up old games again. For example, Jedi Academy. It's a 2003 game, which makes it 5 years old this year. Yet, so far it is the best PC Jedi game I've played. I guess I like the hack and slash method of playing with an [almost] invulnerable Jedi and his lightsabre. My favourite combo? Force grip the enemy over the cliffs. Clearing out evil with Dark side powers is a different way to play the game.

Quote: It's not what powers you use, it's what you use it for.

when life hands you a lemon, make lemonade

It's interesting how we humans tend to gravitate to doing similar things. For example, the RO trend somehow got introduced into my class by Matthew. So now most of us are hooked by it. Oh well. How the heck do we play on a massively laggy connection? But never mind about that.
I like this tendency. Cause it means that we can take advantage to socialise. How interesting. That's why whoever came out with the above statement means that he/she was a good observer of human nature.

But I like lemon sherbet better.

Double tags

For some reason, most newbie bloggers love to tag others. Here are some of the bloggers tagging me:

Tag #1: Chee Meng, Evie
Instructions, Remove 1 question from below and add in a personal question, make it a total of 19 questions. Then tag 8 people in your list, list them out at the end of this post. Notify them in their chat box that he/she has been tagged.

1. What Are Your Nicknames?
Mad Scientist [I hear this rarely now]

2. What Is Your Most Favorite Thing To Do?
Paintball [when I can get it], computer games

3. What Kind Of News Do You Read?
The radical kind [think Malaysia Today]

4. Describe yourself in 10 words or less?
Underappreciated genius [I think so]

5. Is There Someone In Your Heart Right Now?
Yes

6. Do You Believe You Can Survive Without Money?
There is always a card called credit card

7. What Are You Afraid To Lose The Most?
My mind

8. What Do You Feel Like Doing Right Now?
Nothing

9. If There's Someone That You Love, Would You Confess To Him/Her?
Maybe

10. List Out 3 Good Points Of The Person Who Tagged You.
short, Pokemon freak, quite a good football defender [PJK]

11. What Are The Requirements That You Wish From Your Other Half?
Not whiny about money

12. Between family and friends, which is more important to you?
Neither, the world is waiting for me

13. If You Had To Eat One Thing For The Rest Of Your Life, What Would It Be?
Pork, can't do without this essential source of protein

14. If You Had A Choice To Be Rich Or Happy, Which One Would You Pick?
Happy with myself

15. If You Have A Chance, Which Part Of Your Character You Would Like To Change?
None, I like me now

16. How Do You See Yourself In 10 Years Time?
Somewhere in a research lab trying to blow up the country

17. What Is The One Thing You Love About Yourself?
Radicalism in me

18. If You Can Bring Only One Thing Along With You To Another World, What Would It Be?
My mind intact

19. What Kind of Movie(type) You Like To Watch?
Anything interesting, no particular preference

So I shall tag these people:
Andrew, Anderson, 1G, Mayjee, Kay-Li, Hann Tat, Sher Hann, Jie Han

Tag #2: CPU
The last person to tag you is?
Chee Meng

What is your relationship with him/her?
That little friend of mine

Your 5 impression towards him/her.
a) cute
b) small
c) short
d) good at art
e) fast

The most memorable thing that he/she had done for you.
Being my friend

The most memorable thing that he/she has say to you.
[nothing]

If he/she becomes your lover, you will…
I am not Saiful

If he/she becomes your enemy, you will
Face it like a man

If he/she becomes your lover , he/she has to improve on..
[nothing]

If he/she becomes your enemy , the reason is...
There is no good reason

The most desirable things to you to do to him/her
[nothing]

The overall impression to he/her is
Little short guy with a big ego

How do you think the people around you will feel about you?
Mad, unloved [so far]

The character for you for yourself is?
No idea

On the contrary , the thing you hate about yourself is?
No/almost no social skills

The most ideal person you want to be is?
Artemis Fowl

For the person who cares and likes you, say something about them.
Grow taller please...

Ten people to tag-
1 Andrew
2 Anderson
3 1G
4 Mayjee
5 Kay-Li
6 Hann Tat
7 Sher Hann
8 Jie Han
9 Ding En
10 Charlene

Who is no.2 having relationship with?
Alfie [heheheh]

Is no.3 a female or a male?
Male

If no.7 and no.10 be together would it be a good thing?
Maybe

How about no.5 and 8?
Not for Jason, no

What is number 1 studying for?
SAM

When was the last time you have chat with them?
Almost say, 6 hours ago

Is number 4 a single?
No clue

Talk something about no.2.
Any short guy with an ego disproportionate to his size

Accuracy of Death/Crysis

I did two interesting things on Saturday. One was to play Crysis multiplayer. Another was to watch Accuracy of Death.

Ok, first let's analyse Crysis. Interesting weapons, although not as many as Call of Duty 4 multiplayer. The nice thing about the weapons is that you can choose whether to put iron sights, or laser sights, or a sniper scope, or a silencer on your weapons. Not only rifles, but also pistols can take these add-ons. Oh yes, don't forget the vehicles. COD4 doesn't let you take cars for a spin, but Crysis lets you take anything you can drive, from gunboats to Humvees. The graphics kick ass. They were much better than I expected, so it is little wonder that Crysis has massively high requirements. All the animations are more detailed than the corresponding actions in COD4. Oddly enough, the killing and fighting actions kinda remind me of Halo 3. Maybe it's because of the nanosuits, they make you look like Master Chief. So, Crysis is now on my list of games to play.

Accuracy of Death is kinda interesting, it makes you think about the morality of killing. Compared to other shinigami movies, it actually shows the human side of these deathbringers. It makes it different from other shows. If you ask me which character I like, I think Chiba is the best. Naive, but very likeable. Besides, he has a sarcastic dog. Kinda interesting.

And so my weekend was spent.

maths is hell

Why must we make formula sheets for maths? Granted, it reduces our mental stress. But Spec Maths shows that even with formula sheets we manage to struggle like hell.

Conclusion: Formula sheets may not solve all our problems.

[This IS meant to be short. Why else not, when you are studying maths?]

4 days plus to trials

God save us all. We all hate massive exams, don't we? It's always a gentle reminder from our teachers that its time to kill ourselves.
No more late nights online chatting, only late nights with coffee and our notes.
No more staying back to fool around with friends, only staying back to study with friends.
No more free time, only study time.
No more slacking, only studying.
No more sleeping, only reading.

I hate exams, they totally destroy any plans you've made.

916

So far, nothing bad has happened. Darn. I long for a bit of fighting, as long as the others don't cheat and call in the army to help them. Also as long as I've got my friends supporting, then I don't mind a bit of brawling.

***

Yet another tag by a fellow blogger.

Would you rather..?

1. Would you rather be poor but happy, or rich but sad?
Neither, please thank you. I'd rather be happy in a reasonably well paid job. As long as I don't have to beg, I'm fine.

2. If you’re stranded on an island with your best friend and there’s nothing to eat, would you rather eat your best friend or let him/her eat you?
Dying is the easiest way out.

3. If you had the choice, would you rather be good-looking but stupid, or smart but ugly like hell?
Do I look like I have any choice? I like who I am.

4. If both your best friend and your boyfriend/girlfriend are drowning at the same time, and you can only save one person (and you cannot throw yourself in to drown with them), who will you save?
Neither, cause there will be a reason not to save either of them.

5. Would you rather eat 5cm3 of shit or drink 1 litre of urine?
Shut up or you'll get double of this.

6. If both your best friend and your mother are drowning at the same time, and you can only save one person (and you cannot throw yourself in to drown with them), who will you save?
Neither, cause there will be a reason not to save either of them.

7. Would you rather be gang-raped or be raped once but have cucumbers/pencils/scissors stuffed up your vagina/butthole?
Rape is overrated. Only wankers do it.

8. If you are forced to shoot either of your parents, would you rather shoot your mother or your father? (and you cannot shoot yourself)
Can kill both?

9. Would you rather get raped or have your boyfriend/girlfriend cheat on you with your best friend?
Neither. Screw you for asking this question.

10. Would you rather have a boyfriend/girlfriend with the biggest heart but no brains, or a boyfriend/girlfriend with the biggest brains but no heart?
In between please. Someone of the "the girl next door" type will be fine.

11. Would you rather marry someone 5 years younger or someone 20 years older than you?
I've got a problem with a 1 year difference already. 5 years younger is fine with me.

12. Would you rather live a short life but die very peacefully, or live a long life but die a very horrible and painful death?
Neither. I'd prefer a glorious finale.

Who's got any time [or is not studying for trials], can do this tag.

badawi of s4

What a lousy afternoon. First I prep to go back to eat, before coming back to college for another class. I mean, ESL, what the hell. So I do exactly that to go FTZ for Kane's Wrath. Guess what happens? KC decides that he won't go and play. Fine, I mean we need to eat, right? But couldn't you tell me that before I call home? Last minute you tell me that you don't want to go. Worse, not only KC won't go, Jun Jen, Matthew and Andrew won't go either. It's a bloody domino effect. Anyone who doesn't stand firm is a Badawi. Can I say KC is a Badawi? For now, yes. Because of him, I got a short lashing from Ms. Ting. Even a simple excuse of urgent business won't hold with her anymore. Ah, what the hell. To hell with such problems. Tomorrow I shall seek my revenge. So I'm off to practise Kane's Wrath. Shut the hell up.

stupid ahmad ismail part II

The saga continues. Idiot Ahmad Ismail is being a pain, so are his supporters. What do they do on national TV? Tear up the former Penang CM's picture. How childish of them. So. Sedition Act doesn't work on them. Bodowi can't do anything, cause he accepted the Racist One's explanation. Bodowi is too soft, he's better as a good father. But he fails as a leader of a country.
All we need is for MCA and Gerakan to pull out of BN and join Pakatan. Not because of spite, but rather to stand up for their principles. Are we going to lie down because of "quotes out of context" and "historical facts"? No. We will not bow down to idiots like him. Many of us already hate the BN government because of the miserable handling of the country.
Crossover Day is next week. Hopefully if Anwar's new government works, then our lives will be improved greatly. Hopefully.

immigrants

Ahmad "Immigrant Chinese!" Said is on the news again. Not to apologise or what, but to reiterate the rubbish he has in his mind.
"I am not going to apologise."
What a bloody Malay he is. Let's us look at a historical parallel, since he likes his history so much:

America: White immigrants came and took the land from the Indians.
Malaysia: Indonesian immigrants came and took the land away from the orang asli.

America: White immigrants call themselves Americans, after the country they took over.
Malaysia: Original Indonesian immigrants [circa 1400] call themselves Malays after taking over most of the country.

America: The Indians are a suppressed minority in their country, but are given some rights.
Malaysia: The orang asli are a minority in their country, but enjoy bumi status.

America: Other immigrants are assimilated into the country.
Malaysia: Other immigrants are assimilated into the country, but reluctantly.

Do you see where I'm going with this? If not, then I'll put it clearly. The Malays are a mixed lot, with Indonesian blood, Javanese blood, Bugis blood, even Arab blood, Indian blood and Chinese blood. There is no such race as the Malay race, because there is no Malay blood. If there is a Malay race, then the current Indonesians will also be considered as Malays.
Don't call me intolerant or insensitive. Don't ask for me to be charged under the Sedition Act either. The politicians say this sort of stuff "in a personal capacity", but at a public gathering. So, this is a public blog, but I will also say this in a personal capacity. And if you want to bandy historical facts, I have my Sejarah Tingkatan 1-5 textbooks to use as reference to clearly point out my points to you.
I'd rather wish that all of us could set aside our differences and try to help the country, but the fact is that the politicians aren't helping much. Dammit.

late Merdeka post

Independence should be for the people and the nation, not for the nation only. Right now, only the country has achieved independence. The people of the country have been cast aside in the progress of the country. So, this is one man's dream or Merdeka wishes:

1. Reduce corruption in the country, no matter whether it involves small fry or big sharks. So far, the ACA has done a reasonably "good" job. To the ACA: Keep it up! Make sure you get the big sharks or face the people's displeasure...

2. Make the MCMC follow its own rules to the letter. It says that any ISP providing <70% of advertised speeds can be shut down. So, TM, do something! Or face closure.

3. To Mr. PM: Be consistent. We the people hate leaders who chop and change things every 2 days.

4. To BN: Stop playing the race card, it won't help you get more votes in the next general election. The younger generation has grown up harmoniously with friends of different races, but as we get ready to vote, we tend to ignore leaders preaching about race.

5. To Pakatan Rakyat: You've been a good opposition so far, keep it up. Just beware of PAS a bit, in case they turn into the next UMNO. Don't let the PAS leaders become fanatics, that's what we don't want.

Merdeka

1 more day to Merdeka [as of time of writing]. The problem with Merdeka is the fact that the leaders keep repeating certain facts, such as national integration, unity, Malay supremacy, etc. etc. etc. even after Merdeka, after the citizens are supposed to have united and integrated. Can the BN keep their coalition together? MCA is against certain UMNO ministers who have made stupid insensitive comments. Gerakan may leave BN, same with SAPP, or so the talk goes.
But is the Pakatan Rakyat a better substitute? I don't know for sure at the moment. Anwar is charismatic, everyone seems to like him as the new PM. Even then, I hope PAS will not be the next UMNO, where its leaders make insensitive statements for the fun of it. That is, if the PR is going to be taking over as the next government. It is entirely possible, as only 30 BN ministers are required to cross over in order for the PR to form the next government.
Sabah is a hotbed for crossing over, due to the friction between the state and the federal government. If Anwar can really get the support of 30 ministers, then it will be the PR's turn to be the government. Interesting times ahead, watch out for the 16th of September.
That's all the ranting for now. To all Malaysians, abroad or local, happy celebrating the nation's 51st birthday!

Results of by-election

Anwar won Permatang Pauh with a 16k majority. This in spite of the fact that BN was gunning for a comeback after losing Permatang Pauh to both Anwar and his wife, Wan Azizah.
So. Parliament will be much more lively than before with Anwar in there. Personally, I think that BN may lose the next general elections if they don't show any sign of trying to improve our standards of living. Hopefully with Anwar back in the Dewan, the BN government will try to help us positively. Otherwise, they are preparing to be kicked out of the ruling seat.
It is a known fact that when the government needs to save its own arse, they will do things to help the rakyat. Oh well. Either some good will come of the by-election results, or else nothing much will result from it.

Thoughts on Melaka and everything else

It is supposed to be the historical city of M'sia. Yes, it does look historic. It looks like Taiping. In other words, it looks kinda abandoned.
On Saturday night I went to Dataran Pahlawan for dinner. It looks modern, like Summit USJ. What surprised me is the youth. I mean, Melakan youths are just the same as Subang youth. All I saw last night were couples out for dinner, gangs of friends [not my friends] out for nothing and the usual load of white tourists buying stuff and enjoying the nightlife of Melaka town [if there is any nightlife].
So, what can I really say about Melaka? It's a semi modern town like any other semi modern town. Boring to locals, fascinating to tourists. It's all the Portuguese's fault. Why did they have to come to Melaka to kacau?
On a related note, I must say that most 5 star hotels are bloodsuckers. Simple stuff like internet access is restricted to paying house guests only. Imagine that. Although I suppose this is the norm in western countries. I did hear that Aussie Starbucks charges for wifi access. So I guess that this is called normal. Anyway, I think that development doesn't suit Melaka. It's destroying the coastline. Historic as this place is, there isn't a part of it I haven't seen on my first trip [this is my third trip]. Soon, the historical sections will be edited out to allow development. How sad, after all, this is M'sia.

***

Enough about Melaka, now about Pak Lah aka Dollah aka Bodohwi. God save him, I suppose at home he's the same as he is in public.
Look at all these contradictions:

Before: I will not dissolve Parliament.
After: Parliament is dissolved.

Before: Fuel price will not be increased.
After: Fuel price goes up.

Before: Fuel price decrease will only be implemented only after 1st September.
After: Fuel price decreases on midnight, 23 August.

So, can the PM make up his mind? God no, I don't think so. I wonder whether he does the same thing at home.
Jeanne: Tonight again?
Badawi: Ok.
[An hour later]
Badawi: No cannot, suddenly my dick hurts.
Badawi ends up on the sofa for the night.

It's a joke, but if the PM continues this indecision, then sooner or later BN is gonna lose. Then Pakatan takes over, with Anwar as the new PM [or so they say].

***

The same indecision goes to the Avril concert organisers and the officials in charge of the whole event. First PAS youth complains. So the officials decide to cancel the concert. Then the rest of the people complain. So the officials decide to allow the concert to go ahead.
All this rubbish of yes no yes no is driving us nuts, and also destroying the country's image.

***

Swearing on the Quran is the latest trend in M'sia to prove somebody's innocence. First Saiful swears that he was sodomised by Anwar. Now Najib also swears that he has never known Altantuya.
Soon, all the prisoners in the prisons up and down the country will be rushing for the surau qurans to swear that they are also innocent of the crimes they were charged with. God help us then.
We'll either have a lot of convicts on the loose, or a lot of peace and quiet.