Another Malaysia Boleh?

I do not believe Malaysians can be shocked ever.

With so many Malaysia Bolehs from outer space to dropping a Proton Saga in the Artic Circle and selling an international company for one euro, what else can shock Malaysians?

And so it came to pass. Yesterday, a Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk T. Murugiah visited the Cameron Highlands Hospital maternity ward. He, apparently, had a 'cultural shock' to find Orang Asli mothers as young as 11 and 12 years old.

However, strangely, it was not the age of the mothers that caught his attention. It was more that these mothers do not know the need for birth certificates for their young ones. Apparently, a deja vu for him since he is in the know of such happenings among the natives of Sabah and Sarawak.

So,what else is new?

Malaysia Boleh lagi!

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

'The Good, the Bad and the Ugly', that about sums up the mood of BSKL these days. Some days are good, other days are bad and lately, mostly ugly.

It's as if Murphy is in full control of everything these days. I oftentimes think that Murphy is a moniker for Satan. He is a real spoilsport,messing things up for all good people. He brings misfortune to the poor and needy and he allows the rich and nasty to get away with more riches their greedy hands can ever hold.

When you feel that an opportunity has arisen to buy into a preferred stock, the price, with Murphy's conniving, will up and you would have no choice but to take the seller's price for fear that it will spiral up further. Once you have bought in, Murphy plays puck with you and let it all down the drain. Cry for all you want, Murphy is a person of dark humour.

So these days, be extra careful. Brilliant hind-sight analysts have been painting all kinds of scenario and providing wanton recommendations. Caveat emptor! If they are that good, they will not be analysts!

It's rather sad that after two pump-priming efforts, there is yet to be that much desired trickling down effect. The laymen have yet to feel anything of the stimulus packages. Yes, the stock market went up from February onwards-albeit too fast for comfort and it is now in Neverland, up one day down three. All we see these days is dull range play.

Recently, we have all forms of liberalization to prop up the stock market, the ringgit and the property market. FDI has gone down the drain and resuscitation is badly required to get the earlier capital flight back home.

While analysts look through the ramifications of PM Najib's new investment policies, the stock market is in suspended animation.

Truly, a good, bad and ugly scenario.

No more 30% Equity for Bumiputras for Share Listing?

A very interesting development lately is the doing away of this "sacred cow" policy.

So as a layman, what can I infer from such a policy directive?

PM Najib says in real terms there is no sacrifice of this affirmative policy as now 50% of the shares allocated to the public will be apportioned to the bumiputras. Well and good.

Without the 30% equity policy bugbear, companies are now in full reign to list their companies. No longer do they need to kowtow to the determination of FIC nor MITI in the choice of a bumiputra partner.

All they need to do is get an investment bank and tell them point blank that whatever that is being issued to the public, just half that for the bumiputras. Whether it is taken up or not remains an issue to be seen and for the authorities to resolve.

I guess it's a sort of conditional liberalisation; in the right direction and better than nothing.

A feather to PM Najib for successfully negotiating a serious policy bend.

Pedestrian and Overtly Melodramatic

Revolutionary Road starring Leornado DiCapario and Kate Winslet is at its core, a self-examination of suburban life and the dullness of being trapped in its empty hollowness.

Despite top billings, it fails to passed off as a movie worthy of any positive value.It is also premised on a weak story-line.

Frank and April Wheeler, a young couple moved into Revolutionary Road in the 1950s. She is discontented being a housewife and yearn for a working life after her failure to sustain an acting career. Frank,on the other hand, feels that working in sales for a machine company is a rut he has to get out to have some meaningful life.

So the couple decided to uproot and leave for Paris. Little did they know that April would become pregnant to scuttle this plan. Frank's involvement with a lady in the typing pool and April's one-night stand with her neigbour spells doom for the Wheelers.

April dies while trying to abort the unborn child leaving Frank no choice but to go back to the city to take care of the kids.

Even though, the Wheelers were considered model residents in Revolutionary Road, opinions changed when they left. A new family was now touted to be; taking the place of the Wheelers who are now completely forgotten. However, the death episode of April Wheeler lingers....

Generally dull,boring and only God knows why it has been brought to the silver screen in the first place.

Unemployment on the Rise in the US

A Reuters report of a survey on July 2 has suggested that the US economy will likely shed a further 355,000 jobs in June as the unemployment rate hit a 26-year high. For for a nation mired in its deepest recession since at least World War Two, that may be good news.

The US Labour Department’s report due today is expected to depict an economy still wallowing in recession but confirming that the pace of job loss has slowed. This is positive news to indicate the 18-month-old recession is easing its grip.

The report is expected to show that the unemployment rate rose to 9.6 per cent — its highest since June 1983 — from 9.4 per cent in May.

It is also expected to show employers has cut apparently 355,000 non-farm jobs.

While still severe, that would be in line with the 345,000 positions already eliminated in May. This indicate a sharp slowing in job losses for an economy that shed an average of 691,000 jobs a month in the first quarter.

Although employers will have shed workers for 18 straight months, the trend has been moderating since job losses totalled 741,000 in January.

IHS Global Insight is of the view that the improvement should all come in the private sector. Meanwhile, they expect to see government jobs declining, as temporary jobs related to the preparations for the 2010 Census begin to disappear.

The pace of job cuts in the hard-hit manufacturing sector likely slowed to 148,000 in June from a 156,000 loss the previous month, the Reuters poll found.

“Auto layoffs should slow from May, which was exaggerated by Chrysler shutting down production, while job losses elsewhere should resume a trend for improvement,” 4CAST wrote in its preview of the data.

If it comes in close to the median forecast, or if job losses are even smaller, the report will likely be viewed as the latest sign the recession, the longest since the Great Depression, was winding down.

Heartened by a spate of relatively upbeat reports, economists have become increasingly convinced the recession will lift in the second half of the year.

Last week, reports covering the month of May showed a stronger-than-expected rise in orders for US-made durable goods, an increase in consumer spending and the second straight monthly rise in existing home sales.

However, individual job-loss forecasts among the economists surveyed varied widely. Some expected as many as 500,000 jobs were cut in June, while others thought as few as 200,000 positions would be lost.

Even if the economy is close to a turn, the unemployment rate is expected to continue to march higher, with many economists expecting it to peak around 10 per cent.

“I think it’s pretty clear now that unemployment will end up going over 10 per cent,” President Barack Obama told reporters last week.

Since the start of the recession in December 2007, the economy had lost 6 million jobs through May and the jobless rate had increased by 4.5 percentage points.

The New Economy of the 21st Century

This is the scenario.

It is a slow day in the east Texas town of Longview. It is raining, and
the little town looks totally deserted.

Times are tough, everybody is in debt and everybody lives on credit.

On this particular day, a rich tourist from the East is driving through
town.

He enters the only hotel in the sleepy town and lays a hundred dollar
bill on the desk stating he wants to inspect the rooms upstairs in order
to pick one to spend the night.

As soon as the man walks up the stairs, the hotel proprietor takes the
hundred dollar bill and runs next door to pay his debt to the butcher.

The butcher takes the $100 and runs down the street to pay his debt to
the pig farmer.

The pig farmer then takes the $100 and heads off to pay his debt to the
supplier of feed and fuel.

The guy at the farmer's co-op takes the $100 and runs to pay his debt to
the local prostitute, who has also been facing hard times and has lately
had to offer her "services" on credit.

The hooker runs to the hotel and pays off her debt with the $100 to the
hotel proprietor, paying for the rooms that she had rented when she
brought clients to that establishment. The hotel proprietor then lays
the $100 bill back on the counter so the rich traveler will not suspect
anything.

At that moment, the traveler from the East walks back down the stairs
after inspecting the rooms.

He picks up the $100 bill and states that the rooms are not
satisfactory, pockets the money and walks out the door and leaves town.

No one earned anything. However the whole town is now out of debt and
looks to the future with a lot of optimism.

That, my readers, is how the United States Government is
conducting business today.

Malaysia is no longer an FDI destination

Trade Minister Mustapa Mohamed said today that foreign investment in Malaysia has plummeted.

He told reporters that foreign direct investment for 2008 was RM46 billion but for the months of January to May this year, Malaysia has only been able to attract RM4.2 billion. With seven more months to go, it will certainly be an exhausting uphill effort to even get half of the FDI of 2008.

Will all the liberalisation moves announced recently by PM Najib really work?.

So far,laymen have not been able to reap any of the tangible benefits.

The cancellation of the second portion of the Malaysian bond for pensioners was the unkindest cut of all. What a shame!

Are all the measures announced thus far going to be another of those 'too little too late' cases?

Buggered by Bugs

A revisit to one of the ore successful film of yesteryear- Starship Troopers.

As usual, expect the unusual from the great producer, Paul Verhoeven. Remember the classics from Verhoeven such as Basic Instinct, Showgirls,Hollowman, Robocop and Total Recall? This is another of them. They stand out, even if some failed at the box-office.


Plot-wise, nothing unusual except the star troopers fought with the bugs-mostly terrifying land crawlers with pincers and deadly flying bugs.

The Research Unit of the Global Federation finally won the battle by capturing a brainy bug which was behind all the smart defence and aggressive offence.

The film as usual concentrated a large portion to the training period for the star-troopers,quandrangular love affairs and valour in the battlefield.

This movie has a slew of great stars from Michael Ironside, Casper Van Diem, Neil Patrick Henry,Dina Meyer to Denise Richards.


My sixth sense tells me that Paul actually intended the movie to showcase the verve, youthfulness and beauty of Denise Richards. It undoubtedly, launched her film career after her center-fold spread in Playboy and got her into some movies such as Wild Things,Valentine and The World is Not Enough where she became a Bond girl. Except for the James Bond movie, her other movies were not well received at the box-office.

Great afternoon matinee for me,though.