Madoff, the Thief

The 71-year old Bernie Madoff is now serving a 150 years sentence in Butner Prison, North Carolina, USA for admitting to 11 charges of fraud, amounting to more than US$65b. He should be accorded the Title: "The Biggest Thief of the 21st Century."

His Ponzi Scheme, which he started 16 years ago, has attracted thousands of clients, ranging from the rich and famous; foundations; investment fund managers, retirees and ordinary people. Many of those who had invested in his Bernard L Madoff Investment Securities, have got nothing left after the collapse of this evil scheme, bared all by the 2008 economic recession in the USA.
Madoff was finally arrested on the 11th December 2008. He was imprisoned in June 2009.

One wonders what is Madoff thinking about all these victims including his fellow Jew, holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, who had lost everything from his Foundation and personal wealth. What about the two gentlemen, a French investor and a retired British Army Major, both 65 who committed suicide as a direct result of their losses in their investment with Madoff? No sign of remorse at all?

Madoff, prisoner # 61727-054 is scheduled to be released on the 14th November 2139. May God prolong his life until that date so that he would have sufficient time to start feeling sorry for what he had done to other people's lives.

What made Madoff tick? Did he manage to pull all these through by himself or are there hidden hands involved?

From the marketing angle, Madoff had done a brilliant job in creating a perception and a myth of exclusivity to attract his preys. He had so successfully capitalised on the greatest weakness of men - GREED!

Tired Longevity

"Forever young, I want to be forever young
Do you really want to live forever?
Forever or never...." (song by Alphaville)

Imagine if one is graced by God to live until 65, 75, 85 or 95? The average life span has gone up in many countries and it is probable that if one lives a healthy life style, one may have another 20-ddd years after retirement, to breathe the oxygen on this earth. And if one is a "tired" human being, the 20-odd years would be miserable years.... frightening is it not?

On the other hand, if one happens to be officially pronounced by the doctor of an imminent death sentence, to be executed within 1-2 years - due to some terminal illness like cancer .... what would then be the life planning process to optimise the remaining days?

Both scenarios require a different planning. Should not we have Plan A and Plan B etc?
We cannot be like the words of this Beatles' song: "He is a real nowhere man, sitting in his nowhere land, making all his nowhere plans, for nobody.."

Some of the considerations of a "Bucket list" (order of priority will depend on each individual) may include the following:

1. Sustainence of financial capabilities (without having to burden the next generations) to support a frugal yet comfortable life style.
2. Staying healthy physically and mentally, doing something enjoyable and with passion....for example, targetting for a Hole-In-One in golf and aiming for more thereafter.
3. Stop living in the past and move forward, giving yourself a chance to meet new acquaintances and new experiences each new day.
4. Not to be ashamed of your Faith and Belief. At all times, try to shine your light and live a life of testimony to others.
5. Live to love others; avoiding anger at all times.
6. Live near enough to all your loved ones ... to be a part of your granchildren's formative and growing years...but your base will depend on many factors.... one option is to remain a migratory "snowbird" (travel to the tropics during winter months in the Southern Hemisphere?).
7. Pursue a challenging goal in academia; in creative skills; in a totally new field?

The list can go on..... worth spending time putting thoughts into words; words into plans and plans into actions....

"If tomorrow never comes, will she know how much I loved her?
Did I try in every way to show her every day...." (song by Grath Brookes)

"Tired" people

They are all over the place.... they are not the working people... where do they all come from?


Look at the man at the Pub..
Staring at the crowd outside through the edge of his beer mug; each mug may last an hour
and he would wonder home alone..


Look at the man in the Park..
Watching the pigeons feeding and the birds chirpping away; wandering where their daily ration of food has come from... somehow..


Look at the man in front of the Computer screen..
Trying to communicate and stay in touch with the other "tired" people;
often resulting in being gullible for gossips and recycled jokes..


Look at the man in front of the TV set..
Being constantly fed with typical stereo type images of sufferings and bad news; making him wonder where is God and why has He ever allowed these to happen on a daily basis.


Look at the man in the Nursing home
Gazing at the other inmates with no intention of starting a conversation; listening to the radio playing "Yesterday, when I was young.."

Look at the man in the Dialysis Centre
Painstakingly putting the needles in place; waiting for the long hours of cleansing the system, knowing that the end result is worth the weekly routine..

Look at the man in the Mirror
Realizing that life has passed him by over the years; and it is time to find some meaning in living the sunset years.... perhaps it is time to learn how to RETIRE instead of staying tired.

Canon is dead

Canon Ixus 750 (14/1/2006-29/8/2009)

It came with a 512MB memory card and costing RM2000 in 2006... has captured many fond memories; travelled all over the places and properly abused.

The condition on the 29th August (top picture) was that the lens could not be retracted (sort of died standing or protruding).

Took it to the Canon Service Centre in Saujana to access the cause of the jammed lens and an estimate of getting it back to working order. The girl at the Service Centre was not sympathetic, looking at the over-worked machine. Noticising that there was a small screw (one of the many holding the case together) was missing, she commented that that missing screw alone would cost RM50 .... and checking the scheduled cost of lens repair, she estimated at least RM495 excluding RM100 workmanship and there could be other parts which may require replacing....

I took a closer look at the camera and I too noticed there were at least 6 other small screws still intact and I promptly offered to sell the 6 screws to the Canon Service Centre with a 50% discount. The sweet young thing at the counter was dumbfounded .... and started to ask for my particulars, having to leave the machine for final assessement before commencement of repair. That preliminary assessment would take 5-7 working days ....

I quietly took my dead canon back home and decided to do a 'destructive art' piece... hopefully some collector out there will buy this piece of masterpiece (bottom picture).... if not for all the many many many small screws still embedded in the complicated construction (all made in China). The battery pack (NB-31) will come as a bonus.

I now have a Panosonic Lumix DMC-127 with wide angle lens and 12x zoom, and two pieces of HD memory cards of 4GB each, all in costing RM1550 on Merdeka Day, 2009.

Silent Listener?

Is my God merely a silent listener to every conversation and prayer??
Has my God been consistent in switching off or putting himself on a "mute mode" once a while, since ancient of days? Or is He simply infinitely incomprehensible by men over the thousands of years?

Men have cried out before the arrival of the Saviour....
"I cry out to you, O God but you do not answer; I stand up but you merely look at me" (Job 30:20).
"You have covered yourself with a cloud, so that no prayer can get through" (Lamentations 3:44).

Men are still crying out now...
"'Does God answer prayers?' looms larger and larger as a tormenting question. Does he know or care?" (J O Fraser)
"My prayer seems as dead a rock. The truth is I do not feel much, if anything when I pray" (Henri Noumen)
"I feel that the God I was bringing to my friends was passive and silent... and seemingly unable....
If God wants to speak to me, He knows where I am...
Is the lost sheep to go to the Shepherd or the Shepherd goes to the lost sheep? Despite the lost sheep's MANY attempts...
I do not experience the Holy spirit putting words into my mouth as the Bible claims..." (Mak Kor)

Lately, I have been praying for my brother and his family in YamBee Ipoh that peace, calm and normalcy would return and that he would quickly recover from his condition after returning to his medication.... It is a trying period for mom and all at YamBee... What else can we do except to seek His intervention?

Or do my prayers fall under one of the 15 categories of "Why prayers are not answered" by Pete Greig ("God on Mute")... viz. Stupidity, Contradictory prayers, Relationship, Free Will, Sins, Justice, Perservation, Influence, Faith, Law of Nature, Motive, Doctrine, God's best, Life is tough and Satanic opposition?

" Unanswered prayer poses an especially serious threat to the faith of trusting children" - Philip Yancey.

The country musician, Garth Brooks has a lighter version of God's unanswered prayer to his "dream girl" who eventually did not turn out to be a dream afterall..... he was glad he did not marry her..... and he concluded, "Just because He does not answer, does not mean He does not care. Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers."
I guess it is easier humanly speaking, on hindsight, to make such conclusion .... but when one is in the middle of a crisis.... anxiety and disappointment rule the day..

I can only try to emulate the man in Mark 9:24 "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"

So Happy Malaysian

"I am so happy that I am finally confirmed as a Malaysian citizen," said Leong Chwee Chun (The Sun 17/9/09).

Madam Leong Chwee Chun, aged 64, from Kuala Pilah, was one of the 92 recipients of the Malaysian citizenship in a ceremony held at Putra Jaya yesterday. Madam Leong, still single, first applied for her citizenship when she was 28 years old or about 32 years ago! Her father had lost all the relevent documents during World War II. The Home Minister, who was hugged by her, was beaming from ear to ear, apparently very proud of this presentation ceremony and as if he has made a great achievement or a great favour to all those who had waited between 15-32 years for their citizenship..... there is still a backlog of some 10,000 cases still pending approval by the National Registration Department.

Looking at Madam Leong, I cannot help but offer some reasons why she is "so happy":

1. She is impressed with the National Registration Department for being so thorough and detailed in processing her application which has taken over 32 years.
2. She can now plan to get married and have children of her own who would be happy Malaysian citizens too.
3. She can now begin to contribute to the EPF (Employee Provident Fund).
4. She can now officially join a political party like MCA, so that her vote will count... hopefully .. to keep the Barisan Government in power.
5. She can now invest in the government-sponsored Amanah Saham 1Malaysia.
6. She can now apply for a Malaysian International Passport, to travel overseas and to see the world outside that she has missed the last 64 years...
7. She can now officially apply for emigration to Australia or New Zealand (like so many have done so..)

Why so many of you who have got citizenship since birth do not seem to be so happy? Be thankful lah ok?

Young talented writer

Joshua Meads lives in Auckland, New Zealand. He is 8 years old and attends Summerland Primary School in Henderson.
In a class assignment on Explanation Writing, his article on "Tsunami" was selected for publication in the 28th August 09 edition of the School's Newsletter and earned him a "star" at the Principal's office.

I proudly reproduce his writing..

Tsunami

A tsunami is a massive wave that races from the middle of the ocean to the nearest patch of land. They are so big, they can destroy whole cities. The word 'tsunami' is Japanese.

A tsunami can happen for 3 reasons:
1. A huge hurrican out at seas or in the ocean
2. an underwater earthquake
3. An underwater volcano erupts

The biggest tsunami normally happen when there is an underwater volcanic eruption and an underwater earthquake. When an underwater volcano erupts, the ground underneath it starts to shake. That's when the earthquake starts. The earthquake is so fierce that the sea bed gets a short crack in it. All the water then rushes to fill the gap.

Meanwhile, the volcano starts to shake even harder, then, BANG! it erupts! The force is so hard that it can make a huge wave (A tsunami).

As the water is still filling the gap, at the surface a huge wave is formed. Then, at that very moment, another wave is formed as well and zooms toward the first one, this wave was created by the volcano. Now the wave is about 30 meter tall! It now reces towards the nearest patch of land. When it reaches land, amsller wave hits the beach first. Then, a few minutes later, the tsunami hits, destroying the city and killing thousands of people and livestock.

If you know a tsunami is coming, get to high ground quickly. But remember: nature is peace and disaster.

Joshua calls me "Y Kung". He makes me proud.

Damansara

I first came to know this word DAMANSARA in 1977 when I joined ICI (Imperial Chemicals Industries) headquartered on the 10th and 11th floors of Wisma Damansara. This 12 storey office building, built in 1970 was the first of its kind to be built in the prestigeous real estate location in KL named Damansara Heights.
The British High Commision occupied the top floor which can only be reached by special dedicated lift from the basement. Today this building is due to be torn down to be incorporated into the proposed modern Damansara City Complex.
Damansara is one of the 36 subdivisions of Petaling Municipality in Selangor. It is named after the Damansara River which runs from Sungai Buluh to Shah Alam. Over the years, Damansara Heights has gained a very strong market branding and perceived high market value, there are so many places now tag on this name to enhance their status and prestige.
Let me try to list them (not in any particular order):
Damansara Utama; Damansara Jaya; Damansara Perdana; Damansara Uptown; Damansara Damai; Damansara Impian; Damansara Idaman; Damansara Legenda; Damansara Kim; Damansara Indah; Damansara Intan; Bandar Sri Damansara; Ara Damansara; Kota Damansara; Mutiara Damansara; Bukit Damansara; Jalan Damansara; Flora Damansara; Taman Bukit Damansara; Villa Damansara; Sunway Damansara; Pelangi Damansara; Lebuh Raya Damansara....
There is however two such places which have disappeared to make way for one of the existing Damansara..... they were the Damansara Village and the Damansara Estate (of rubber and oil palm).
The other name that is catching on is Saujana...
Someone somewhere will come up with the ultimate enhancement by naming something Damansara Saujana or Saujana Damansara!!
What is in a name you say?

Royal Kampung

This 99 years old Club, situated at Bukit Rotan, Kuala Selangor, is a legacy of the colonial masters who ruled the planting industry in Malaysia, up to the 1960s. Since the late 1980s these British and Scotish planters have either fully retired or have retrieved to Indonesia. Today there is practically none of them left in the Oil-palm dominated plantations in the Peninsula.
The logo of the Club carries the images of the three major economic activities of those glorious days - rubber, tin and oil palm.

Malaysia has now lost her world's Number One position in rubber and tin production and although she is still the world leading oil palm producer (with 3m ha plantings) this position will soon be taken over by Indonesia (with 6m ha of plantings, maturing).

Royal Kampung Kuantan Golf Club is unique in itself to be the only 9-hole plantation golf course which is accorded the royal status. Those who know the background to this royal charter would tell you that the close public relations with the Selangor Palace were the determinant factor, much to the dismay of the then District Officer who wanted to rule over the Club's future developments.

The Club house of 2009 has not been tranformed too much from those 1970s days when I first stepped into this Club during my business interactions with the planting communities. It is functional with a meeting/dance hall; a bar with two billiard tables; a Club office; a small pro shop and basic changing rooms for men and ladies.

This grand old tree must be as old as the Club. You can't miss it as you approach the Club entrance or when you are about to tee off as it is standing right at Tee Box 1/10. Many golfing enthusiasts and beginners have started their first golfing experience in this course, where the fairways are relatively flat and lined by matured trees. Unfortunately, many old trees are getting cut down or dying due to old age or disease. No apparent plans to replant new ones?

This golf course management has always been reflection of the high standards of estate management around the vicinity as most planters are members of the club. A poorly maintained and managed Royal golf course will a mirror image of the present day estate management mentality and standards. Lest we lose out to our neigbouring country, the young crops of planters should buck up, and soon.

The first/tenth fairway OB line stretches all the way from the tee box to the Par 4 green. Of course in almost every fairway, there is a lateral drain running across. All greens are elevated and hard. It is therefore a good practice ground for your chipping skills.

Hole no 4/13 Par 3 (199 meter from the blue tee) to me, is the signature hole of Royal Kampung Kuantan Club. On the right is a straight OB line (beyond which you would hit the Oil palms and squirrels) and just left of the green is a pond awaiting you, about 60 metres after the tree on the left. It is a hole which decide if you triumph or you break in any tournament here.

My sincere wish is that the Management will maintain the course for at least another 99 years, both for the golfers and club members but also for the tourists who would pass it when they come visit the "Fireflies" sanctuary at Pekan Kg Kuantan, about 3 km down the road.

For those who must have a good breakfast before teeing off at Royal Kg Kuantan, the attraction is at Ijok village where you can get Curry Tu Kah (weekends only).

Apa ini?

"The Home Minister today defended and justified last Friday's cow-head demonstration after meeting with the Malay-Muslim representatives of Shah Alam's Section 23 residents at his office" (MYSinchew.com 2/9/09).

The Home Minister has turned Defence Minister for Shah Alam Section 23!!!

One dialogue with the residents, the Minister has more or less made a ruling on behalf of the Attorney-General and the Police who are still investigating the more than 50 reports received from the Public about the incident. He was also quoted saying that "the police allowed the demonstration to proceed because the numbers of protesters were small.." I remember reading somewhere that any meeting of more that 3 persons without a police permit is illegal ? And this was allowed to proceed in public, accompanied by a severed cow head too!!

The Opposition of today should thank the Home Minister for this defence, which would be the perfect material for a power-point presentation at the next General Elections rallies. And if and when you then become the Government (in 2013 or earlier), please don't repeat such double standards in your administration and in words/actions.