December 2010
33 posts
8 tags
INSPIRED: UniFi
THE 2010/2011 INSPIRED/EXPIRED AWARDS Category: Least Slow High-speed Internet Service
For a country with a burgeoning online life — my friends who aren’t on Facebook I can count with my own fingers — our Internet speeds are rather leisurely. For total Internet population we are 28th in the world (with 17 million users by 2009); as for fastest Internet speeds we are 38th...
5 tags
SENTUL: The Unhelpful Food Guide
By June Low
Whenever people find out I live in Sentul, the first thing they ask is not: “So, how many experience points does it take to advance to the next level in Mooville?” It’s always something dull and predictable like: “Where got nice food ah?”
Under pressure, I never know what to recommend and always end up looking like I don’t really know my ‘hood. So, in retaliation, I’ve...
10 tags
NEWSFEED: 27 Dec 2010
Hey all:
Malaysia beat Indonesia 3-0 in last night’s Suzuki Cup finals. But Indonesia is crying foul: apparently, Malaysian fans were shining laser beams into Indonesian players’ eyes. (BBC News)
Two cops have been arrested for the horrific assault and robbery of businessman Chia Buang Hing. The impunity of the police is just ludicrous: you’d expect the fuzz to be smarter at...
11 tags
EXPIRED: Glambert Protest
THE 2010/2011 INSPIRED/EXPIRED AWARDS Category: Most Ingenious Ploy To Get Into A Concert For Free
For most of us, Adam Lambert was the steak in a mostly-sizzle American Idol 8th season. Glambert’s vocal chops aside, it was his penchant for theatrics — like his infamous onstage kiss — that really got tongues wagging. So, when news broke he was performing in Malaysia on 14...
11 tags
NEWSFEED: 24 Dec 2010
Happy Christmas Eve, folks.
The Tenang, Johor by-election is set for 30 January 2011. (The Star)
HINDRAF asks Indian Malaysians to abstain from voting in the next general election. (Free Malaysia Today)
Good to remember: the Agong lost his authority to veto Parliamentary bills during the Mahathir era — through a Constitutional amendment done behind the rulers’ backs! Wither checks...
10 tags
NEWSFEED: 23 Dec 2010
Wait. It’s not Friday yet?
The best PMR results in four years, with 30K students scoring straight As. But we all know how the exam stats are tampered with, so this sort of news means nothing … (The Malaysian Insider)
The Malaysian population now exceeds 27 million, with males outnumbering females, according to the Census 2010. (Malaysian Digest)
The Malaysian Civil Liberties...
7 tags
INSPIRED: Sex Cream & Adult Toy Banners
THE 2010/2011 INSPIRED/EXPIRED AWARDS Category: Most Overt Sign of Secret Society Conspiracy
We’ve always seen minyak lintah or pill ajaib ads around town — but these usually came in stencil or sticker form. Now they are colour-printed banners, typically hanging from road signs: advertising “ADULT TOY” or “MANN CREAM” or “UBAT KUAT LELAKI”.
Now,...
10 tags
NEWSFEED: 21 Dec 2010
Good afternoon Tuesday people!
The ex-Sime Darby manager charged with corruption of up to RM200,000 has alleged torture at the hands of MACC officials. (The Malaysian Insider)
A bus overturned on its way down Cameron Highlands, killing 27. It’s being called the worst accident in Malaysian history. (The Star)
Decades since the demise of the 1960s and 1970s Malaysian student movement, a...
6 tags
EXPIRED: UglyDoll + Knockoffs
THE 2010/2011 INSPIRED/EXPIRED AWARDS Category: Most Mediocre Cute Toy Trend
As the antithesis of model-esque, plastic-looking, blonde-haired rubber dolls, the UglyDoll had some appeal. It trended, spawning imitators and storming into Malaysian homes, cars (ugh!) and keychains. The dolls squeaked in at the tail-end of the Japanese anime plushies craze, and meeped through the year of Spike...
11 tags
NEWSFEED: 20 Dec 2010
Hey all. Noon greets us with frowns:
Malaysia plans TWO nuclear power plants. Doesn’t a combo of nukes and Malaysian-style incompetence worry you? (The Star)
Ganyang Malaysia! Anti-Malaysian hackers deface the Yayasan 1Malaysia website. (Free Malaysia Today)
Pundits: the Third Force movement may results in three-cornered fights in the looming general elections — splitting votes in...
10 tags
NEWSFEED: 17 Dec 2010
It’s nearly the weekend, meatbags! Stay off the sugar, or you might end up like:
Sulaiman Taha, the state rep for Tenang, Johor. He passed away due to “complications from diabetes” — not the only one in 14 by-elections since 2008 caused by kencing manis. (The Malaysian Insider)
The current Sejarah textbooks will not change until 2017. Good thing: no further distortions...
10 tags
INSPIRED: Green SURF
THE 2010/2011 INSPIRED/EXPIRED AWARDS Category: Best Excuse to Spam Najib’s Mailbox
The Green SURF (Sabah Unite to Re-Power the Future) movement was founded to by five non-governmental organisations based in Sabah. Its mission: to oppose dirty energy such as coal-fired power plants, and to present positive solutions to the current energy situation in Sabah.
Green SURF’s active use of...
9 tags
EXPIRED: Tea Parties With Politicians
THE 2010/2011 INSPIRED/EXPIRED AWARDS Category: Most Disingenuous Reason To Eat Cake
Unlike the hoi-polloi’s informal limteh sessions, politician-hosted tea parties are highly orchestrated: screened by public relations consultants, with all interactions carried out according to itinerary. (CUE: sycophants clap politely.) The benefits of such social events are as opaque as glass of limau ais,...
8 tags
Pengangkutan Awam: Apa Kata Mereka?
Oleh Rusnizam Mahat
Kelemahan sistem pengangkutan awam yang disediakan RapidKL mungkin jelas dilihat, dan kita sering mendengar desas-desus rungutan mengenainya. Tetapi sukar untuk diketahui apakah sebenarnya jangkaan orang ramai terhadap sistem pengangkutan awam Kuala Lumpur.
Saya cuba mendekati dua golongan pengguna pengangkutan awam utama di ibu kota — iaitu penumpang bas, dan...
11 tags
NEWSFEED: 16 Dec 2010
Some excitement today!
Anwar Ibrahim was suspended from Parliament today, without debate. There was shouting from both sides, and the opposition walked out en masse. (Malaysiakini)
With four PR MPs facing suspensions, does BN regain a two-thirds majority in the Dewan Rakyat? Will they be able to brute-force laws through the House? Conspiracy theory or real threat? (Malaysiakini)
So-called...
9 tags
INSPIRED: OmNomCast
THE 2010/2011 INSPIRED/EXPIRED AWARDS Category: Most Saliva-Heavy Radio Show
In the stale crust of food-centric news and blogs on the Internet, OmNomCast is an unexpectedly fresh raisin. It’s a weekly podcast discussing Malaysian food and culture that doesn’t force-feed readers high-resolution photos or gushing text; instead, it infuses listeners with the stomach-growling enthusiasm...
8 tags
EXPIRED: Warisan Merdeka
THE 2010/2011 INSPIRED/EXPIRED AWARDS: Category: Largest Overcompensation For Private Inadequacy
We still don’t know what the Warisan Merdeka mega tower will look like (I got the above image from the UMNO website). But it can’t be a 100-storey building without being some sort of, well, erection — a massive erection sticking out of the Stadium Merdeka hill, like the bulge in...
8 tags
NEWSFEED: 15 Dec 2010
HUMP DAY, gentlepeople!
The Speaker throws PKR MP R Sivarasa out of the Dewan Rakyat for wanting to discuss the WikiLeaks imbroglio. The leaks question the competence of the entire Parliament; why can’t they talk about it, at least? (Malaysiakini)
Zaid Ibrahim has joined the Kelantan-based Angkatan Keadilan Insan Malaysia (AKIM). They immediately made him president, and changed the...
7 tags
The 2010/2011 Inspired/Expired Awards!!!
Apa khabar, kekawan! We’re exactly halfway through the last month of 2010; year-end lists should be popping up like FRU trucks at a street rally. So, if you feel the need to be water-cannon-ed by insight, why not turn your attention to Poskod’s very own attempt at simultaneous retrospection and foresight: the 2010/2011 Inspired/Expired Awards!
(Insert bell-ringing, helicopter...
12 tags
NEWSFEED: 14 Dec 2010
Hey all. Da news:
Sabah will get a new Yang Di-Pertua Negeri on New Year’s. Will he be able to do anything about the coal plant? Probably not. (The Star)
How did the mainstream media cover the WikiLeaks reveal of Singaporean opinions about Malaysia? Find out which paper left out what detail! Not surprisingly, most of them harped on about the Anwar angle, but ignored the bits about Najib....
11 tags
NEWSFEED: 13 Dec 2010
New week, new worries.
WikiLeaks has exposed communiques from Singapore that claim Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy case was a trap set by his enemies — and that he “walked into it anyway”. PKR retorts, saying that it’s a conspiracy to further discredit the opposition leader. (Malaysiakini)
The Defence Ministry: not only wasteful, but outright dangerous for ordinary...
11 tags
NEWSFEED: 11 Dec 2010
Weekend full of stuff:
Can “ketuanan Melayu” and “1Malaysia” co-exist? Some relevant questions about Najib’s ideals vis-a-vis BN, a coalition made of race-based parties. (Malaysiakini)
Sarawak government official says it’s unfair to stop Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud from accumulating mega-bucks in office. The level to which corruption has become...
6 tags
SPOTTED: New Survey Strategies
Found at the Bangsar LRT station, at the bus stop on the road heading towards Mid Valley. Are you happy with your bus service?
(Hm, wonder who’s behind this? Strokes imaginary Fu Manchu beard.)
12 tags
NEWSFEED: 10 Dec 2010
Happy International Human Rights Day! Let’s start with some irony:
Dr M called human rights group SUARAM “lackeys of foreign countries”. And Dr M is such a CHAMPION of human rights, right? Come on. (Bernama)
Students protesting the price hikes in Putrajaya have been arrested. Hey G-man, why you so afraid of Student Power, huh? (Malaysiakini)
A poll has found that most...
7 tags
Teater Bagi Menyelamatkan Nyawa
Oleh Faisal Mustaffa
Selepas berjaya mementaskan Banduan Akhir di Sel Akhir — suatu teater mengisahkan Yong Vui Kong — Oktober lalu di KL, Rumah Anak Teater melebarkan sayapnya dengan mementaskan teater tersebut di Pulau Pinang pada 12 Disember 2010 ini.
Usahasama dengan Amnesty International (AI) Malaysia, Banduan Akhir di Sel Akhir — yang dipentaskan bersempena Hari Hak...
10 tags
NEWSFEED: 9 Dec 2010
Hi orang-orang!
HINDRAF leaders M Manoharan and P Uthayakumar are suing the government for unlawful arrest and detention under the ISA. They are asking for RM200mil in damages. Fight da power! (The Star)
Defence Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said that he didn’t mean to hurt the feelings of non-Bumi Malaysians — but didn’t actually apologise. Tough saying sorry, eh?...
7 tags
Gerai-gerai Brickfields: dirobohkan?
Oleh Rusnizam Mahat
Peniaga gerai makan di Jalan Padang Belia, Brickfields bimbang sekiranya gerai-gerai mereka — yang menjual makanan goreng, tom yam, dan lain-lain pada harga berpatutan — akan dirobohkan DBKL.
Khabar angin berlegar di kalangan mereka sejak kebelakangan ini bahawa gerai mereka — yang sudah mencecah usia hampir 30 tahun — akan dipindahkan ke satu lokasi...
15 tags
NEWSFEED: 8 Dec 2010
Now that Tumblr is back, we can start tracking the news again!
The cops claim they used “minimum action” to disperse last Sunday’s protest march. Water-cannoning protesters who want cheaper water for Selangor? If that is not excessive (not to mention, blind to irony), I don’t know what is. (The Malaysian Insider)
BTW, performer Ayam Fared did a sun salutation in front...
10 tags
NEWSFEED: 4 Dec 2010
Hello dear weekend citizens! Here’s the news:
If we are gearing up for a general election next year, why is the BN raising fuel and sugar prices? Weird! (The Malaysian Insider)
The New Economic Model (NEM) 2 report spoke out against cronyism and race-based privileges - but it’ll only mean anything if Najib’s administration acts on these things. (The Malaysian Insider)
Are...
11 tags
NEWSFEED: 3 Dec 2010
Once again, we are on the cusp of the weekend. Here’s the news:
Open space in Brickfields rezoned for buildings; Bangsar rezoned as a commercial area; no mention of Warisan Merdeka. Reactions to the Kuala Lumpur Local Plan 2020 have been mixed, to put it mildly. (The Star)
SUARAM’s Dr Kua Kia Soong has published Questioning Arms Spending in Malaysia, a book about what happens to...
10 tags
Why Can’t Kids Play in Dataran Merdeka? (UPDATED)
By Zedeck Siew
In an interview with The Star on 2 Dec 2010, KL Mayor Ahmad Fuad Ismail talked about the importance of parks, and stressed the growing need for communal space. “People are living in condos and high-rise buildings,” Fuad said. “They have no space to breathe so they look to DBKL to provide them with a place where they can hang out, interact and relax.”
Contrast that cool-sounding...
14 tags
NEWSFEED: 2 Dec 2010
Hey all:
“It pays not to pay.” Motorists who paid their traffic fines on time are now fuming over the government’s 50% discount for outstanding summonses. (The Star)
KL Mayor Ahmad Fuad Ismail talks about the importance of parks. Nice. Why not turn some of those dangerous hillside condo developments into parks, then, Mr. Mayor? (The Star)
Demonstrations are important in a...
November 2010
39 posts
11 tags
NEWSFEED: 1 Dec 2010
Hello, December!
After Lawyers for Liberty reported that fatal cop shootings rose 17-fold since 2001, Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein says the issue has been “sensationalised”. Says he: “I would be asked this question every day when there are other serious matters to attend to.” So cops shooting citizens dead is not a serious matter, eh? (Malaysiakini)
Crime, at...