Buses-A World Apart

Just look at a bus in Japan-perhaps more of the state of the art kind on the road.

The very fact that there is a laptop for every passenger speaks well for the Japanese people. I think there is a cost to pay for all this wanton luxury which is really no problem to the yen earning people.

Now contrast this with this oddity of a school-bus in Pakistan. A chicken-cooped version, I think.
So which world do you come from? The second most developed nation of the world or the other one, which continues to be under civil strife and guerrilla war?

The pictures tell.

Sovereign Rating on the slide?

Apparently it appears to be good news.

Petronas posted a higher revenue of RM264.2 billion for the year ending March 2009 due to bigger sales volumes and a stronger US dollar. In 2008, its revenue had amounted to RM223 billion.

However, lower global prices and higher operating costs has led to a 14 per cent drop in net profit to RM52.5 billion from nearly RM62 billion before.

Given that the average price of oil this year is likely to be softer than last year's average of US$88 per barrel, its oil revenue and profit in the coming year is likely to be weaker.

According to projections by Standard & Poor's equity research, prices are likely to average US$56 this year and US$63 in 2010.

Given that Malaysia has always depended on Petronas as a cash cow — its payments last year contributed a whopping 45 per cent of federal government revenue — the revenue shortfall may be painful.

In the last fiscal year, including royalties, taxes and dividends, the oil major paid a total of RM74 billion to the federal and state governments, a fifth more than the previous year's of nearly RM62 billion.

Over the years, nearly every other economist and analyst has warned about the disproportionate importance of Petronas' earnings on government revenue and the general economy. They said that inherent addiction to easy oil money is hard to shake — and doubly harder when those managing it lack the fiscal discipline to ensure the country derives maximum returns from it.

Indeed ratings agencies often cite the shrinking oil revenue but increasing Budget deficit as reasons why Malaysia's sovereign ratings do not warrant a higher grade.

With the Budget deficit ballooning to 7.6 per cent of gross domestic product this year after the government set aside an additional RM67 billion to stimulate the economy, many questions on how the deficit — expected to swell to over 8 per cent next year — is going to be pared when despite the oil boom years, pump-priming has only engendered partial success.

Last week, Petronas revealed that from 2003 to 2008, it paid a whopping RM268 billion to the national offers or 57 per cent of all it has since its founding 35 years ago. Many questions abound why the Federal government has not managed a more balanced budget, but instead needed to run successive deficits since the last Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s, is difficult to comprehend.

Because of the hefty payments to the Federal Treasury, Petronas' reinvestments have dipped over the years, and in its last fiscal year it only reinvested 21 per cent of its profits. In comparison, the oil majors managed an average 57 per cent and other national oil companies, 72 per cent.

Meanwhile content with the easy pickings, not enough emphasis has been placed on developing other areas of the economy. At the same time, much of the windfall returns from oil appears to have been channeled into the operating expenditure, which sky-rocketed from RM45.6 billion in the 1998 national Budget to RM154.2 billion in 2009.

If asked, Malaysians would be hard-pressed to say where the oil revenues have been invested since development spending that is tangible to the average person is not evident. Paradoxically, the oil producing states of Terengganu, Sabah and Sarawak remain the most lacking in infrastructure.

Take the most basic: public transport. “Inefficient public transport hits you right in the face every morning when you leave your home to go to work, when you wait to take the bus, commuter train or the light rail transit or drive your car in congested smog-filled roads and highways,” the New Straits Times wrote in its editorial yesterday, noting the mess was in part a consequence of the affirmative action being carried out by the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board without due regard to the more important issues of public transportation.

So, what steps are we going to take with regards to Petronas's falling investments as well as the over dependence of the Federal Treasury on petroringgits?

Super Pen

Designer Jinsun Park from Korea has come out with a simple tool called Color Picker.

Place the pen against an object and press the scan button, the color will be detected by the color sensor and the RGB cartridges in the pen will mixed the required inks to create the target color.

Walla!




Fantabulous!

Thought Provoking

Imagine this:

One day all the employees reached the office and they saw a big
advice on the door on which it was written:
“Yesterday the person who has been hindering your growth in this
company passed away. We invite you to join the funeral in the room
that has been prepared in the gym”.*

*In the beginning, they all got sad for the death of one of their
colleagues, but after a while they started getting curious to know
who was that man who hindered the growth of his colleagues and the
company itself.*

*The excitement in the gym was such that security agents were ordered
to control the crowd within the room.*

*The more people reached the coffin, the more the excitement heated
up.
Everyone thought: “Who is this guy who was hindering my progress?
Well, at least he died!”.*

*One by one the thrilled employees got closer to the coffin, and when
they looked inside it they suddenly became speechless. They stood
nearby the coffin, shocked and in silence, as if someone had touched
the deepest part of their soul.*

*There was a mirror inside the coffin: everyone who looked inside it
could see himself.*

*There was also a sign next to the mirror that said:
“There is only one person who is capable to set limits to your
growth: IT IS YOU.
You are the only person who can revolutionize your life. You are the
only person who can influence your happiness, your realization and
your success. You are the only person who can help yourself.*

*Your life does not change when your boss changes, when your friends
change, when your parents change, when your partner changes, when
your company changes. Your life changes when YOU change, when you go
beyond your limiting beliefs, when you realize that you are the only
one responsible for your life.*

*“The most important relationship you can have, is the one you have
with yourself”*

*Examine yourself, watch yourself. Don’t be afraid of difficulties,
impossibilities and losses: be a winner, build yourself and your
reality.*

*The world is like a mirror: it gives back to anyone the reflection
of the thoughts in which one has strongly believed.*

*The world and your reality are like mirrors laying in a coffin,
which show to any individual the death of his divine capability to
imagine and create his happiness and his success.*

*It’s the way you face Life that makes the difference!*

*- If an egg is broken from outside force .. life ends. If an egg is broken
from inside force , life begins. Great things always begin from our inside.*

How true!

Believe it or Not!

This must be the ultimate rip-off!

So the next time, you go shopping with that credit card of yours, scrutnize the bill or receipt before you leave the store. If not, the supermarket ghost of yester-month will come back and haunt you!

I attached the report (with some paraphrasing) below minusing the name of the so-called up market store that was purportedly involved.

So, happy reading.

They are an expensive retail market, and do double or at times triple their prices compared to others. However, the quality of their goods is excellent! No complaints. Nada!

And then the complainant was ripped-off complete with bad bad customer service.

Let's have the storyteller tell her story.

"XYZ, if you don't know already, is a very expensive clothing and supermarket outlet (they sell a typical R50 T-shirt for R150). My daughter and I had just finished lunch at a Woolies Cafe in Hyde Park, Johannesburg . Because both of us are such biscuit lovers, we decided to try the 'Woolies Cookie'. It was so excellent that I asked if they would give me the recipe. The waitress said with a small frown, 'I'm afraid not, but you can buy the recipe.'

I asked how much, and she responded; 'Only two fifty - it's a great deal'

I agreed to that, and told her to add it to my bill.

Thirty days later, I got my Visa statement, and the XYZ's charge was R485. I looked at it again, and I remembered I had only spent R49.95 for two sandwiches and about R120 for a scarf. At the bottom of the statement, it said, 'Cookie Recipe - R250.00'. That was outrageous!

I called XYZ's Accounting Department and told them the waitress had said it was 'two fifty', which clearly does not mean 'two hundred and fifty Rands' by any reasonable interpretation of the phrase. XYZ refused to budge. They would not refund my money because according to them; 'What the waitress told you is not our problem. You have already seen the recipe. We absolutely will not refund your money.

I explained to the Accounting Department lady the criminal statutes which govern fraud in the state of Gauteng . I threatened to report them to the Better Business Bureau and The Attorney General's office. I was basically told: Do what you want. Don't bother thinking of how you can get even, and don't bother trying to get any of your money back'

I said, OK, you've got my R250, and now I'm going to have R250 worth of fun. I told her that I was going to see to it that every cookie lover in the world with an e-mail account gets a R250 cookie recipe from Neiman-Marcus for free. She replied, 'I wish you wouldn't do that.' I said, 'Well, perhaps you should have thought of that before you RIPPED ME OFF!' and slammed down the phone.

So here it is! Please pass it on to everyone you can possibly think of. I paid R250 for this, and I don't want XYZ to EVER make another cent from this recipe!

WOOLIES COOKIES (Recipe may be halved as this makes heaps)

2 (500 ml) cups butter

680 g chocolate chips

4 (1000 ml) cups flour

2 (500 ml) cups brown sugar

2 tsp. (10 ml) Bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp. (5 ml) salt

2 (500 ml) cups sugar

500 g Grated Cadbury chocolate

5 (1250 ml) cups blended oatmeal

4 eggs

2 tsp. (10 ml) baking powder

2 tsp. (10 ml) vanilla

3 cups (375 ml) chopped nuts (optional)

Measure oatmeal, and blend in a blender to a fine powder. Cream the butter and both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla, mix together with flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder, and bicarbonate of soda. Add chocolate chips, grated Chocolate and nuts. Roll into balls, and place two inches apart on a cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes at 180 C.

The above quantities make 112 cookies. Enjoy!"

UK-Better Sentiments?

This is a Reuters report on conflicting sentiments on the growth of the British economy.

Reporting from London on June 29, Reuters reported that Britain's financial service companies are more optimistic than at any time in the last two years, although banks remain downbeat about their prospects, the Confederation of British Industry and accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers said today.

A balance of 13 per cent of all firms polled in a CBI/PwC survey said they were more optimistic about their overall business situation than they were three months ago, marking the first quarterly increase since 2007.

In the previous survey in March, a balance of 34 per cent of firms polled said they were less optimistic.

The more bullish mood was reflected in an expectation that sales would increase, with a balance of 11 per cent of firms predicting stronger business volumes over the next three months, the highest reading since March 2007.

"Having seen business volumes tumble continuously for 21 months, some parts of the financial services sector look like they may be starting to come through the worst," said CBI chief economist Ian McCafferty.

However, the overall pick-up in sentiment masked persistent gloom in some sub-sectors. In the banking industry, a balance of 32 per cent of lenders said they were less optimistic, an improvement compared with 57 per cent in March, but still "firmly negative", the CBI and PwC said.

The downbeat banking sector outlook partly reflected worries about bad debts, with 51 per cent balance of all firms polled reporting higher loan impairments in the current quarter, and a balance of 50 per cent expecting another increase in the next three months.

"The probable impact of the recession on impairment charges and the impact of new regulation will remain a significant pre-occupation for the sector for some time to come," said John Hitchins, British banking leader at PwC.

British banks have been hit by a surge in bad debts as a shrinking economy, rising unemployment, and falling asset values leave increasing numbers of borrowers unable to service their loans.

In contrast, sentiment among life insurers was at its highest in five years, with a balance of 75 per cent of firms declaring themselves more optimistic despite weaker sales and lower profits in the last three months.

The improvement was driven by hopes of a sales recovery on the back of recent stock market rises and signs of housing market stabilisation, the CBI and PwC said.

The survey also showed that more financial sector workers are set to lose their jobs, with a balance of 28 per cent of all firms saying they expected headcount to fall in the next quarter, and 33 per cent reporting job losses in the last three months.

The survey was conducted between May 20 and June 3.

Let us wait for more current data coming through for the second quarter.

Neck to Neck

Can you imagine yourself constricted at the neck by coil-rings? Uncomfortable, don't you think?

But the Padaung or Kayan Lahwi,a group of the Karenni people, a Tibeto-Burman ethnic minority of Burma wear these rings around their necks.

Womenfolks start wearing the brass neck coils at the age of five. Each coil is replaced with longer coils as the weight of the brass pushes the collar bone down and compresses the rib cage.

Contrary to popular belief, the neck is not actually lengthened; the illusion of a stretched neck is created by the deformation of the clavicle.
Many ideas regarding why the coils are worn have been suggested. One of them is the coils might be meant to protect from tiger bites.

Kayan women, when asked, acknowledge these ideas, but often say that their purpose for wearing the rings is cultural identity (one associated with beauty).

I, for one, do not see any beauty in this. It deforms the body,is an oddity and borders on the hideous, for want of a more cultured word.

An Indian Joke

Be Positive just like this boy.

A Lady Teacher was having trouble with one of her students in 1st Grade class. Madam asked,'Boy. What is your problem?'

Boy answered, 'I'm too smart for the first-grade. My sister is in the third-grade and I'm smarter than she is! I think I should be in the 4th Grade!'

Madam took the Boy to the principal's office. While the Boy waited in the outer office, Madam explained to the principal what the situation was. The principal told Madam he would give the boy a test and if he failed to answer any of his
Questions he had to go back to the first-grade. Madam agreed.

The Boy was brought in and the conditions were explained to him and he agreed to take the test.

Principal: 'What is 3 x 3?'
Boy.: '9'.

Principal: 'What is 6 x 6?'
Boy.: '36'.

And so it went with every question the principal thought a 4th grade should know. The principal looks at Madam and tells her, 'I think Boy can go to the 4th grade.'

Madam says to the principal, 'I have some of my own questions'.

'Can I ask him ?' The principal and the boy both agreed.

Madam asks, 'What does a cow have four of that I have only two of'?

Boy, after a moment 'Legs.'

Madam: 'What is in your pants that you have but I do not have?'

Boy.: 'Pockets.'

Madam: What starts with a C and ends with a T, is hairy, oval,
delicious and contains thin whitish liquid?

Boy.: Coconut

Madam: What goes in hard and pink then comes out soft and sticky?

The principal's eyes open really wide and before he could stop the answer, the boy was taking charge.

Boy.: Bubblegum

Madam: What does a man do standing up, a woman does sitting down and a dog does on three legs?

The principal's eyes open really wide and before he could stop the answer.

Boy.: Shake hands

Madam: You stick your poles inside me. You tie me down to get me up. I get wet before you do.

Boy.: Tent

Madam: A finger goes in me. You fiddle with me when you're bored. The best man always has me first.

The Principal was looking restless, a bit tense and took one large peg of Captain Morgan rum.

Boy.: Wedding Ring

Madam: I come in many sizes. When I'm not well, I drip. When you blow me, you feel good.

Boy.: Nose

Madam: I have a stiff shaft. My tip penetrates. I come with a quiver.

Boy.: Arrow

Madam: What word starts with a 'F' and ends in 'K' that means lot of heat and excitement?

Boy.: Fire truck

Madam: What word starts with a 'F' and ends in 'K' & if u don't get it, u have to use your hand.

Boy.: Fork

Madam: What is it that all men have one of it's longer on some men than on others, the pope doesn't use his and a man gives it to his wife after they're married?

Boy.: SURNAME.

Madam: What part of the man has no bone but has muscles, has lots of veins, like pumping, & is responsible for making love ?

Boy.: HEART.

The principal breathed a sigh of relief and said to the teacher,

'Send this Boy to IIM AHMEDABAD (Indian Institute Of Management)

I got the last ten questions wrong myself!'

The Watchseller

Not that he is old. Perhaps he is in his mid 40s.

I have seen him here for the last 20 years or so. He plies his trade at the Taman Paramount Night Market on Sundays. At other times, he can be seen hawking his wares without a licence at the SS2 morning market.

He told us a couple of times he was caught by the enforcement officers form MBPJ.

I guess his is not an easy business. He has to get up early and drive his van to his "spot" at the designated market. Then he and his wife will have to put up the tables and display all the watches, wall clocks and alarm clocks. If it rains, then business will not be good.

We go to him if we need our straps changed or to buy new batteries for our watches.

He is a very pleasant man.

Feng-shui

Mumbo jumbo? Or is it plain logic?

Yes, listen to these feng-shui masters. They have an explanation for everything. House too close to a T-junction?. Do not fret. A pakua will do the trick.

You want children? You want money to flow in? They will prescribe.

Feng-shui masters are a breed of the own. They exists just on the periphery of normal logic, clothing their explanations according to signs and symbols.

It is a classic case of either you believe him or not. If you do, you tend to follow his every word as if he is a demi-god. If not, you dispense with his advice and go on following the faculty of your logic.

To each his own, so they say.