Feb 11, 2010. In certain series, we will invite individuals to share their experience - so that we get to know each other better. This is the first, where we invited Susan Kwok,to share her CNY experience :)
Sunday, February 28, 2010
The Purpose of having a God, Religion, Scripture and everything else :)
What is the purpose of life? My late father's favorite motto was " Hidup tu mesti seronok!". Now, he was not a religious man, but I think he striked it right there :-
Here is the Quran's reasons - SO THAT YOU MAY BE HAPPY
2:5 It is they who follow the guidance [which comes from their Sustainer; and it is they, they who' shall attain to a happy state!
2:189 THEY WILL ASK thee about the new moons. Say: "They indicate the periods for [various doings of] mankind, including the pilgrimage." However, piety does not consist in your entering houses from the rear, [as it were,] but truly pious is he who is conscious of God. Hence, enter houses through their doors, and remain conscious of God, so that you might attain to a happy state.
3:104 and that there might grow out of you a community [of people] who invite unto all that is good, and enjoin the doing of what is right and forbid the doing of what is wrong: and it is they, they who shall attain to a happy state!
3:130 O YOU who have attained to faith! Do not gorge yourselves on usury, doubling and re-doubling it - but remain conscious of God, so that you might attain to a happy state;
3:200 O you who have attained to faith! Be patient in adversity, and vie in patience with one another, and be ever ready [to do what is right], and remain conscious of God, so that you might attain to a happy state!
5:35 O YOU who have attained to faith! Remain conscious of God, and seek to come closer unto Him, and strive hard in His cause, so that you might attain to a happy state.
5:90 O YOU who have attained to faith! Intoxicants, and games of chance, and idolatrous practices, and the divining of the future are but a loathsome evil of Satan's doing:' shun it, then, so that you might attain to a happy state!
5:100 Say: "There is no comparison between the bad things and the good things, even though very many of the bad things may please thee greatly. Be, then, conscious of God, O you who are endowed with insight, so that you might attain to a happy state!"
6:21 And who could be more wicked than he who attributes his own lying inventions to God or gives the lie to His messages? Verily, such evildoers will never attain to a happy state:
6:135 Say: "O my [unbelieving] people! Do yet all that may be within your power, [while] I, behold, shall labour [in God's way]; and in time you will come to know to whom the future belongs. Verily, never will evildoers attain to a happy state!"
7:8 And true will be the weighing on that Day; and those whose weight [of good deeds] is heavy in the balance -it is they, they who shall attain to a happy state;
7:69 Why, do you deem it strange that a tiding from your Sustainer should have come unto you through a man from among yourselves, so that he might warn you? Do but remember how He made you heirs to Noah's people, and endowed you abundantly with power: remember, then, God's blessings, so that you might attain to a happy state!"
7:157 those who shall follow the [last] Apostle, the unlettered Prophet whom they shall find described in the Torah that is with them, and [later on] in the Gospel: [the Prophet] who will enjoin upon them the doing of what is right and forbid them the doing of what is wrong, and make lawful to them the good things of life and forbid them the bad things, and lift from them their burdens and the shackles that were upon them [aforetime]. Those, therefore, who shall believe in him, and honour him, and succour him, and follow the light that has been bestowed from on high through him-it is they that shall attain to a happy state."
8:45 [Hence,] O you who have attained to faith, when you meet a host in battle, be firm, and remember God often; so that you might attain to a happy state!
9:88 The Apostle, however, and all who share his faith strive hard [in God's cause] with, their possessions and their lives: and it is they whom the most excellent things await [in the life to come], and it is they, they who shall attain to a happy state!
10:17 And who could be more wicked than they who attribute their own lying inventions to God or give the lie to His messages? Verily, those who are lost in sin will never attain to a happy state
10:69 Say: "Verily, they who attribute their own lying inventions to God will never attain to a happy state!"
10:77 Said Moses: "Do you speak thus of the truth after it has been brought to you? Can this be sorcery? But sorcerers can never come to a happy end!"
11:84 AND UNTO [the people of] Madyan [We sent] their brother Shu'ayb. He said: "O my people! Worship God [alone]: you have no deity other than Him; and do not give short measure and weight [in any of your dealings with men]. Behold, I see you [now] in a happy state; but, verily, I dread lest suffering befall you on a Day that will encompass [you with doom]!
11:105 When that Day comes, not a soul will speak. unless it be by His leave; and of those [that are gathered together], some will be wretched and some, happy.
16:116 Hence, do not utter falsehoods by letting your tongues determine [at your own discretion], "This is lawful and that is forbidden", thus attributing your own lying inventions to God: for, behold, they who attribute their own lying inventions to God will never attain to a happy state!
20:2 We did not bestow the Qur'an on thee from on high to make thee unhappy,
20:117 and thereupon We said: "O Adam! Verily, this is a foe unto thee and thy wife: so let him not drive the two of you out of this garden and render thee unhappy.
22:77 O YOU who have attained to faith! Bow down and prostrate yourselves, and worship your Sustainer [alone], and do good, so that you might attain to a happy state!
23:1 TRULY, to a happy state shall attain the believers:
23:102 And they whose weight [of righteousness] is heavy in the balance - it is they, they who will have attained to a happy state;
23:117 Hence, he who invokes, side by side with God, any other deity [- a deity] for whose existence he has no evidence - shall but find his reckoning with his Sustainer: [and,] verily, such deniers of the truth will never attain to a happy state!
24:31 And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and to be mindful of their chastity, and not to display their charms [in public] beyond what may [decently] be apparent thereof;
hence, let them draw their head-coverings over their bosoms. And let them not display [more of] their charms to any but their husbands, or their fathers, or their husbands’ fathers, or their sons, or their husbands’ Sons, or their brothers, or their brothers’ sons, or their sisters’ sons, or their womenfolk, or those whom they rightfully possess, or such male attendants as are beyond all sexual desire, or children that are as yet unaware of women’s nakedness; and let them not swing their legs [in walking] so as to draw attention to their hidden charms And [always], O you believers - all of you - turn unto God in repentance, so that you might attain to a happy state!
24:51 The only response of believers, whenever they are summoned unto God and His Apostle in order that [the divine writ] might judge between them, can be no other than, “We have heard, and we pay heed!”- and it is they, they who shall attain to a happy state:
28:37And Moses replied: “My Sustainer knows best as to who comes with guidance from Him, and to whom the future belongs! Verily, never will evildoers attain to a happy state!”
28:67 But as against this - anyone who repents and attains to faith and does righteous deeds may well [hope to] find himself among those who achieve a happy state [in the life to come].
28:82 And on the morrow, those who but yesterday had longed to be in his place exclaimed: “Alas [for our not having been aware] that it is indeed God [alone] who grants abundant sustenance, or gives it in scant measure, unto whichever He wills of His creatures! Had not God been gracious to us, He might have caused [the earth] to swallow us, too! Alas [for our having forgotten] that those who deny the truth can never attain to a happy state!”
30:15 as for those who attained to faith and did righteous deeds, they shall be made happy in a garden of delight;
30:38 Hence, give his due to the near of kin, as well as to the needy and the wayfarer; this is best for all who seek God’s countenance: for it is they, they that shall attain to a happy state!
31:5 It is they who follow the guidance [that comes to them] from their Sustainer; and it is they, they who shall attain to a happy state!
58:22 Thou canst not find people who [truly] believe in God and the Last Day and [at the same time] love anyone who contends against God and His Apostle - even though they be their fathers, or their sons, or their brothers, or [others of] their kindred. [As for the true believers,] it is they in whose hearts He has inscribed faith, and whom He has strengthened with inspiration from Himself, and whom [in time] He will admit into gardens through which running waters flow, therein to abide. Well-pleased is God with them, and well-pleased are they with Him. They are God’s partisans: oh, verily, it is they, the partisans of God, who shall attain to a happy state!
59:9 And [it shall be offered, too, unto the poor from among] those who, before them, had their abode in this realm and in faith - [those] who love all that come to them in search of refuge, and who harbour in their hearts no grudge for whatever the others may have been given, but rather give them preference over themselves, even though poverty be their own lot: for, such as from their own covetousness are saved - it is they, they that shall attain to a happy state!
62:10 And when the prayer is ended, disperse freely on earth [11] and seek to obtain [something] of God's bounty; but remember God often, so that you might attain to a happy state!
64:16 (Asad) Remain, then, conscious of God as best you can, and listen [to Him], and pay heed. And spend in charity for the good of your own selves: for, such as from their own covetousness are saved – it is they, they that shall attain to a happy state!
69:21 And so he will find himself in a happy state of life,
101:7 shall find himself in a happy' state of life;
Here is the Quran's reasons - SO THAT YOU MAY BE HAPPY
2:5 It is they who follow the guidance [which comes from their Sustainer; and it is they, they who' shall attain to a happy state!
2:189 THEY WILL ASK thee about the new moons. Say: "They indicate the periods for [various doings of] mankind, including the pilgrimage." However, piety does not consist in your entering houses from the rear, [as it were,] but truly pious is he who is conscious of God. Hence, enter houses through their doors, and remain conscious of God, so that you might attain to a happy state.
3:104 and that there might grow out of you a community [of people] who invite unto all that is good, and enjoin the doing of what is right and forbid the doing of what is wrong: and it is they, they who shall attain to a happy state!
3:130 O YOU who have attained to faith! Do not gorge yourselves on usury, doubling and re-doubling it - but remain conscious of God, so that you might attain to a happy state;
3:200 O you who have attained to faith! Be patient in adversity, and vie in patience with one another, and be ever ready [to do what is right], and remain conscious of God, so that you might attain to a happy state!
5:35 O YOU who have attained to faith! Remain conscious of God, and seek to come closer unto Him, and strive hard in His cause, so that you might attain to a happy state.
5:90 O YOU who have attained to faith! Intoxicants, and games of chance, and idolatrous practices, and the divining of the future are but a loathsome evil of Satan's doing:' shun it, then, so that you might attain to a happy state!
5:100 Say: "There is no comparison between the bad things and the good things, even though very many of the bad things may please thee greatly. Be, then, conscious of God, O you who are endowed with insight, so that you might attain to a happy state!"
6:21 And who could be more wicked than he who attributes his own lying inventions to God or gives the lie to His messages? Verily, such evildoers will never attain to a happy state:
6:135 Say: "O my [unbelieving] people! Do yet all that may be within your power, [while] I, behold, shall labour [in God's way]; and in time you will come to know to whom the future belongs. Verily, never will evildoers attain to a happy state!"
7:8 And true will be the weighing on that Day; and those whose weight [of good deeds] is heavy in the balance -it is they, they who shall attain to a happy state;
7:69 Why, do you deem it strange that a tiding from your Sustainer should have come unto you through a man from among yourselves, so that he might warn you? Do but remember how He made you heirs to Noah's people, and endowed you abundantly with power: remember, then, God's blessings, so that you might attain to a happy state!"
7:157 those who shall follow the [last] Apostle, the unlettered Prophet whom they shall find described in the Torah that is with them, and [later on] in the Gospel: [the Prophet] who will enjoin upon them the doing of what is right and forbid them the doing of what is wrong, and make lawful to them the good things of life and forbid them the bad things, and lift from them their burdens and the shackles that were upon them [aforetime]. Those, therefore, who shall believe in him, and honour him, and succour him, and follow the light that has been bestowed from on high through him-it is they that shall attain to a happy state."
8:45 [Hence,] O you who have attained to faith, when you meet a host in battle, be firm, and remember God often; so that you might attain to a happy state!
9:88 The Apostle, however, and all who share his faith strive hard [in God's cause] with, their possessions and their lives: and it is they whom the most excellent things await [in the life to come], and it is they, they who shall attain to a happy state!
10:17 And who could be more wicked than they who attribute their own lying inventions to God or give the lie to His messages? Verily, those who are lost in sin will never attain to a happy state
10:69 Say: "Verily, they who attribute their own lying inventions to God will never attain to a happy state!"
10:77 Said Moses: "Do you speak thus of the truth after it has been brought to you? Can this be sorcery? But sorcerers can never come to a happy end!"
11:84 AND UNTO [the people of] Madyan [We sent] their brother Shu'ayb. He said: "O my people! Worship God [alone]: you have no deity other than Him; and do not give short measure and weight [in any of your dealings with men]. Behold, I see you [now] in a happy state; but, verily, I dread lest suffering befall you on a Day that will encompass [you with doom]!
11:105 When that Day comes, not a soul will speak. unless it be by His leave; and of those [that are gathered together], some will be wretched and some, happy.
16:116 Hence, do not utter falsehoods by letting your tongues determine [at your own discretion], "This is lawful and that is forbidden", thus attributing your own lying inventions to God: for, behold, they who attribute their own lying inventions to God will never attain to a happy state!
20:2 We did not bestow the Qur'an on thee from on high to make thee unhappy,
20:117 and thereupon We said: "O Adam! Verily, this is a foe unto thee and thy wife: so let him not drive the two of you out of this garden and render thee unhappy.
22:77 O YOU who have attained to faith! Bow down and prostrate yourselves, and worship your Sustainer [alone], and do good, so that you might attain to a happy state!
23:1 TRULY, to a happy state shall attain the believers:
23:102 And they whose weight [of righteousness] is heavy in the balance - it is they, they who will have attained to a happy state;
23:117 Hence, he who invokes, side by side with God, any other deity [- a deity] for whose existence he has no evidence - shall but find his reckoning with his Sustainer: [and,] verily, such deniers of the truth will never attain to a happy state!
24:31 And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and to be mindful of their chastity, and not to display their charms [in public] beyond what may [decently] be apparent thereof;
hence, let them draw their head-coverings over their bosoms. And let them not display [more of] their charms to any but their husbands, or their fathers, or their husbands’ fathers, or their sons, or their husbands’ Sons, or their brothers, or their brothers’ sons, or their sisters’ sons, or their womenfolk, or those whom they rightfully possess, or such male attendants as are beyond all sexual desire, or children that are as yet unaware of women’s nakedness; and let them not swing their legs [in walking] so as to draw attention to their hidden charms And [always], O you believers - all of you - turn unto God in repentance, so that you might attain to a happy state!
24:51 The only response of believers, whenever they are summoned unto God and His Apostle in order that [the divine writ] might judge between them, can be no other than, “We have heard, and we pay heed!”- and it is they, they who shall attain to a happy state:
28:37And Moses replied: “My Sustainer knows best as to who comes with guidance from Him, and to whom the future belongs! Verily, never will evildoers attain to a happy state!”
28:67 But as against this - anyone who repents and attains to faith and does righteous deeds may well [hope to] find himself among those who achieve a happy state [in the life to come].
28:82 And on the morrow, those who but yesterday had longed to be in his place exclaimed: “Alas [for our not having been aware] that it is indeed God [alone] who grants abundant sustenance, or gives it in scant measure, unto whichever He wills of His creatures! Had not God been gracious to us, He might have caused [the earth] to swallow us, too! Alas [for our having forgotten] that those who deny the truth can never attain to a happy state!”
30:15 as for those who attained to faith and did righteous deeds, they shall be made happy in a garden of delight;
30:38 Hence, give his due to the near of kin, as well as to the needy and the wayfarer; this is best for all who seek God’s countenance: for it is they, they that shall attain to a happy state!
31:5 It is they who follow the guidance [that comes to them] from their Sustainer; and it is they, they who shall attain to a happy state!
58:22 Thou canst not find people who [truly] believe in God and the Last Day and [at the same time] love anyone who contends against God and His Apostle - even though they be their fathers, or their sons, or their brothers, or [others of] their kindred. [As for the true believers,] it is they in whose hearts He has inscribed faith, and whom He has strengthened with inspiration from Himself, and whom [in time] He will admit into gardens through which running waters flow, therein to abide. Well-pleased is God with them, and well-pleased are they with Him. They are God’s partisans: oh, verily, it is they, the partisans of God, who shall attain to a happy state!
59:9 And [it shall be offered, too, unto the poor from among] those who, before them, had their abode in this realm and in faith - [those] who love all that come to them in search of refuge, and who harbour in their hearts no grudge for whatever the others may have been given, but rather give them preference over themselves, even though poverty be their own lot: for, such as from their own covetousness are saved - it is they, they that shall attain to a happy state!
62:10 And when the prayer is ended, disperse freely on earth [11] and seek to obtain [something] of God's bounty; but remember God often, so that you might attain to a happy state!
64:16 (Asad) Remain, then, conscious of God as best you can, and listen [to Him], and pay heed. And spend in charity for the good of your own selves: for, such as from their own covetousness are saved – it is they, they that shall attain to a happy state!
69:21 And so he will find himself in a happy state of life,
101:7 shall find himself in a happy' state of life;
Friday, February 26, 2010
What the Quran say about celebrating Prophet's birthday?
Muslims today celebrate Prophet Muhamad's birthday, but not any other prophets'. Definitely not Christmas, which Christians suggest is the birthday of Jesus. However, the Quran says ...
Those who deny Allah and His apostles, and (those who) wish to separate Allah from His apostles, saying: “We believe in some but reject others”: And (those who) wish to take a course midway They are in truth (equally) unbelievers; and we have prepared for unbelievers a humiliating punishment, To those who believe in Allah and His apostles and make no distinction between any of the apostles, we shall soon give their (due) rewards: for Allah is Oft- forgiving, Most Merciful - (Quran 4 : 150-153)
So How? Can we make the celebration one that represents all the Prophets that were named and unnamed in the Quran? Who are those unnamed anyway?
Furthermore, the Quran ask Prophet Muhamad to declare this,
And yet, some people worship, instead of God, things that can neither benefit them nor harm them: thus, he who denies the truth does indeed turn his back on his Sustainer! - Say: “For this, no reward do I ask of you [- no reward] other than that he who so wills may unto his Sustainer find a way!” - Hence, place thy trust in the Living One who dies not, and extol His limitless glory and praise: for none is as aware as His creatures’ sins as He (Quran 25: 55-58)
So how?
Those who deny Allah and His apostles, and (those who) wish to separate Allah from His apostles, saying: “We believe in some but reject others”: And (those who) wish to take a course midway They are in truth (equally) unbelievers; and we have prepared for unbelievers a humiliating punishment, To those who believe in Allah and His apostles and make no distinction between any of the apostles, we shall soon give their (due) rewards: for Allah is Oft- forgiving, Most Merciful - (Quran 4 : 150-153)
So How? Can we make the celebration one that represents all the Prophets that were named and unnamed in the Quran? Who are those unnamed anyway?
Furthermore, the Quran ask Prophet Muhamad to declare this,
And yet, some people worship, instead of God, things that can neither benefit them nor harm them: thus, he who denies the truth does indeed turn his back on his Sustainer! - Say: “For this, no reward do I ask of you [- no reward] other than that he who so wills may unto his Sustainer find a way!” - Hence, place thy trust in the Living One who dies not, and extol His limitless glory and praise: for none is as aware as His creatures’ sins as He (Quran 25: 55-58)
So how?
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Buat Malu Islam Saja !!! No Quranic justification at all!
"Due to overwhelming pressure from the general public, the Dang Wangi police district headquarters revealed yesterday that charges against two Al-Islam journalists, who entered a Catholic church in Kuala Lumpur, have been dropped" - TMI
O YOU who have attained to faith! Be ever steadfast in your devotion to God, bearing witness to the truth in all equity; and never let hatred of any-one lead you into the sin of deviating from justice. Be just: this is closest to being God-conscious. And remain conscious of God: verily, God is aware of all that you do. (Quran 5-8)
BEHOLD, God bids you to deliver all that you have been entrusted with unto those who are entitled thereto, and whenever you judge between people, to judge with justice. Verily, most excellent is what God exhorts you to do: verily, God is all-hearing, all-seeing! (Quran 4:58)
And We said:] “O David! Behold, We have made thee a [prophet and, thus, Our] vicegerent on earth: judge, then, between men with justice, and do not follow vain desire, lest it lead thee astray from the path of God: verily, for those who go astray from the path of God there is suffering severe in store for having forgotten the Day of Reckoning!” (Quran 38:26)
O YOU who have attained to faith! Be ever steadfast in upholding equity, bearing witness to the truth for the sake of God, even though it be against your own selves or your parents and kinsfolk. Whether the person concerned be rich or poor, God's claim takes precedence over [the claims of] either of them. Do not, then, follow your own desires, lest you swerve from justice: for if you distort [the truth], behold, God is indeed aware of all that you do! (Quran 4:135)
'WOE UNTO THOSE who give short measure: those who, when they are to receive their due from [other] people, demand that it be given in full, but when they have to measure or weigh whatever they owe to others, give less than what is due! Do they not know that they are bound to be raised from the dead? [and called to account] on an awesome Day (Quran 83: 1-5)
Also read my blogbrother Art Harun’s comments here
O YOU who have attained to faith! Be ever steadfast in your devotion to God, bearing witness to the truth in all equity; and never let hatred of any-one lead you into the sin of deviating from justice. Be just: this is closest to being God-conscious. And remain conscious of God: verily, God is aware of all that you do. (Quran 5-8)
BEHOLD, God bids you to deliver all that you have been entrusted with unto those who are entitled thereto, and whenever you judge between people, to judge with justice. Verily, most excellent is what God exhorts you to do: verily, God is all-hearing, all-seeing! (Quran 4:58)
And We said:] “O David! Behold, We have made thee a [prophet and, thus, Our] vicegerent on earth: judge, then, between men with justice, and do not follow vain desire, lest it lead thee astray from the path of God: verily, for those who go astray from the path of God there is suffering severe in store for having forgotten the Day of Reckoning!” (Quran 38:26)
O YOU who have attained to faith! Be ever steadfast in upholding equity, bearing witness to the truth for the sake of God, even though it be against your own selves or your parents and kinsfolk. Whether the person concerned be rich or poor, God's claim takes precedence over [the claims of] either of them. Do not, then, follow your own desires, lest you swerve from justice: for if you distort [the truth], behold, God is indeed aware of all that you do! (Quran 4:135)
'WOE UNTO THOSE who give short measure: those who, when they are to receive their due from [other] people, demand that it be given in full, but when they have to measure or weigh whatever they owe to others, give less than what is due! Do they not know that they are bound to be raised from the dead? [and called to account] on an awesome Day (Quran 83: 1-5)
Also read my blogbrother Art Harun’s comments here
Monday, February 22, 2010
BFM interview - What to focus in 2010?
Oops, a little late but realized I did not blog this yet. Basically, its a businessman's point of view on what to pay attention to this year. It was aired on Dec 14th, 2009.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
I support with all my heart ...
... that BN and PR if they initiate a direct membership to the umbrella party without having to go through UMNO, MCA, MIC, PKR, PAS, DAP etc. This is a right step towards diluting the effect of racial based politics in the country.
One of the platform is to get the youth movements within the parties to become one, and vote their leaders respectively. This will be good training for the next generation.
Read here announcement by Hisham
One of the platform is to get the youth movements within the parties to become one, and vote their leaders respectively. This will be good training for the next generation.
Read here announcement by Hisham
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Work for all races - PM Najib ; I agree!!!
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 20 — Umno president Datuk Seri Najib Razak today called on his party to adopt a paradigm shift in order to win over the non-Malays, by solving the problems of all Malaysians regardless of race.
“Why are they not looking for Umno to solve their problems? Why are they going to the opposition?” Najib asked when opening the Wanita Umno Convention at the Putra World Trade Centre, here this afternoon.
to read more click here
“Why are they not looking for Umno to solve their problems? Why are they going to the opposition?” Najib asked when opening the Wanita Umno Convention at the Putra World Trade Centre, here this afternoon.
to read more click here
Yee Sang at Zubedy
We had a mini CNY and yee sang celebration at zubedy yesterday. Alicia brought the yee sang and sharon lunch :)
Friday, February 19, 2010
LIAR! LIAR! Pants on fire!!!
I wrote two short articles on climate change here and here . I smelled a dead rat somewhere so i wrote the first article. And this one is from Bjorn Lomborg taken from The Star daily yesterday. The previous blogpost was a video clip that is worth watching too.
CLIMATE SCIENCE OR CLIMATE EVENGELISM
AS George W. Bush and Tony Blair learned the hard way, the public does not take kindly to being misledabout the nature of potentialthreats.The after-the-fact revelation thatthe reasons for invading Iraq werevastly exaggerated – and in somecases completely fabricated – producedan angry backlash thathelped toss the Republicans out ofpower in the United States in 2008and may do the same to Britain’sLabour Party later this year.A similar shift in global publicopinion is occurring with respect toclimate change. The process pickedup momentum late last year, afterhackers leaked thousands of emailsfrom a top British researchfacility showing that some of theworld’s most influential climatologistshad been trying to disguiseflaws in their work, blocking scrutiny,and plotting together toenforce what amounts to a partyline on climate change.More recently, the UnitedNations’ respected advisory group,the Intergovernmental Panel onClimate Change (IPCC), has beendeeply embarrassed by the revelationthat some alarming predictionscontained in an influential reportthat it released in 2007 have littleor no scientific basis.Although none of these lapsesprovides any reason to doubt thatglobal warming is real, is man-made,and will create problems for us,these challenges to the IPCC are takingtheir toll. Indeed, recent surveysshow that the public is growingsteadily less trusting of the scientificconsensus on global warming.The biggest headlines about IPCCerrors concern a claim about meltingHimalayan glaciers that it madein its 2007 report on the likelyimpacts of climate change.“Glaciers in the Himalaya arereceding faster than in any otherpart of the world,” the report noted,adding that “if the present rate continues,the likelihood of them disappearingby the year 2035 andperhaps sooner is very high.”As it happens, this prediction wasnot based on any peer-reviewedscientific research but was liftedfrom a report by the World WildlifeFund, which was repeating anunproven speculation by a singleresearcher.This lack of scientific basis didnot stop countless global-warmingactivists from citing the glacier predictionat every opportunity. Whenthe Indian government suggestedlast year that the Himalayan glacierswere in better shape than theIPCC claimed, the I PCC chairman,Rajendra Pachauri, dismissed India’sobjections as being based on “voodooscience.”Earlier this month, the Indiangovernment reacted to the revelationsabout the baseless nature ofthe glacier claim by announcingplans to establish what amounts toits own “Indian IPCC” to assess theimpact of global warming. India’senvironment minister, JairamRamesh, declared: “There is a fineline between climate science andclimate evangelism. I am for climatescience.”Climate evangelism is an aptdescription of what the IPCC hasbeen up to, for it has exaggeratedsome of the ramifications of climatechange in order to make politicianstake note.Murari Lal, the coordinating leadauthor of the section of the IPCCreport that contained the Himalayanerror, admitted that he and his colleaguesknew that the dramaticglacier prediction was not based onany peer-reviewed science.Nonetheless, he explained, “wethought that if we can highlight it,it will impact policymakers andpoliticians and encourage them totake some concrete action.”The concrete action that they hadin mind was getting governmentsto mandate drastic cuts in carbondioxideemissions. Activists havebeen pursuing this approach totackling global warming withoutsuccess for nearly 20 years, mostrecently at last December’s failedclimate summit in Copenhagen.The problem is that it is tooexpensive a solution for politiciansand the public to swallow easily –which is why many well-meaningclimate scientists have apparentlyconcluded that instead of relyingon reasoned discussion, they mightas well try to scare us witless.Consider what the IPCC had tosay about extreme weather eventssuch as intense hurricanes. The costof such events in terms of destroyedproperty and economic disruptionhas been rising steadily. Every peerreviewedstudy has shown that thisis not because of rising temperatures,but because more people livein harm’s way.Nonetheless, in the IPCC’s influential2007 assessment of climatechange, the panel’s Working GroupII (charged with assessing the potentialimpact of global warming) choseto cite one, then-unpublished studythat supposedly found that globalwarming had doubled damage costsover the past 35 years.In fact, when this study wasfinally published, it stated categoricallythat there was “insufficientevidence” to link the increasedlosses to global warming. In otherwords, what Working Group IIreported was plain wrong.Elsewhere in the 2007 assessment,Working Group II claimedthat “up to 40% of the Amazonianforests” were at imminent risk ofbeing destroyed by global warming.The basis for this claim was asingle report from the WorldWildlife Fund that itself cited onlyone study, which didn’t even lookat climate change, but rather at theimpact of human activities like loggingand burning.In similar fashion, WorkingGroup II claimed that “by 2020, insome (African) countries, yieldsfrom rain-fed agriculture could bereduced by up to 50%.” Much quotedsince, this alarming statisticturns out to have been based on asingle, unreferenced bullet-pointfrom a report by an environmentalthink tank.There are numerous other examplesof similar shenanigans byWorking Group II. Yet, aside from agrudging admission that its predictionsabout Himalayan glaciers were“poorly substantiated,” the IPCC hasyet to acknowledge – much lessapologise for – any of the lapses.If the IPCC is to do to its job properly,it must own up to all of its misstepsand clean house. Nobodyexpects it to be infallible. But neithershould we tolerate its attempts toscare policymakers rather thaninform them. — © Project Syndicatel Bjorn Lomborg is director of theCopenhagen Consensus Centre atCopenhagen Business School and theauthor of Cool It: The SkepticalEnvironmentalist’s Guide to GlobalWarming.
CLIMATE SCIENCE OR CLIMATE EVENGELISM
AS George W. Bush and Tony Blair learned the hard way, the public does not take kindly to being misledabout the nature of potentialthreats.The after-the-fact revelation thatthe reasons for invading Iraq werevastly exaggerated – and in somecases completely fabricated – producedan angry backlash thathelped toss the Republicans out ofpower in the United States in 2008and may do the same to Britain’sLabour Party later this year.A similar shift in global publicopinion is occurring with respect toclimate change. The process pickedup momentum late last year, afterhackers leaked thousands of emailsfrom a top British researchfacility showing that some of theworld’s most influential climatologistshad been trying to disguiseflaws in their work, blocking scrutiny,and plotting together toenforce what amounts to a partyline on climate change.More recently, the UnitedNations’ respected advisory group,the Intergovernmental Panel onClimate Change (IPCC), has beendeeply embarrassed by the revelationthat some alarming predictionscontained in an influential reportthat it released in 2007 have littleor no scientific basis.Although none of these lapsesprovides any reason to doubt thatglobal warming is real, is man-made,and will create problems for us,these challenges to the IPCC are takingtheir toll. Indeed, recent surveysshow that the public is growingsteadily less trusting of the scientificconsensus on global warming.The biggest headlines about IPCCerrors concern a claim about meltingHimalayan glaciers that it madein its 2007 report on the likelyimpacts of climate change.“Glaciers in the Himalaya arereceding faster than in any otherpart of the world,” the report noted,adding that “if the present rate continues,the likelihood of them disappearingby the year 2035 andperhaps sooner is very high.”As it happens, this prediction wasnot based on any peer-reviewedscientific research but was liftedfrom a report by the World WildlifeFund, which was repeating anunproven speculation by a singleresearcher.This lack of scientific basis didnot stop countless global-warmingactivists from citing the glacier predictionat every opportunity. Whenthe Indian government suggestedlast year that the Himalayan glacierswere in better shape than theIPCC claimed, the I PCC chairman,Rajendra Pachauri, dismissed India’sobjections as being based on “voodooscience.”Earlier this month, the Indiangovernment reacted to the revelationsabout the baseless nature ofthe glacier claim by announcingplans to establish what amounts toits own “Indian IPCC” to assess theimpact of global warming. India’senvironment minister, JairamRamesh, declared: “There is a fineline between climate science andclimate evangelism. I am for climatescience.”Climate evangelism is an aptdescription of what the IPCC hasbeen up to, for it has exaggeratedsome of the ramifications of climatechange in order to make politicianstake note.Murari Lal, the coordinating leadauthor of the section of the IPCCreport that contained the Himalayanerror, admitted that he and his colleaguesknew that the dramaticglacier prediction was not based onany peer-reviewed science.Nonetheless, he explained, “wethought that if we can highlight it,it will impact policymakers andpoliticians and encourage them totake some concrete action.”The concrete action that they hadin mind was getting governmentsto mandate drastic cuts in carbondioxideemissions. Activists havebeen pursuing this approach totackling global warming withoutsuccess for nearly 20 years, mostrecently at last December’s failedclimate summit in Copenhagen.The problem is that it is tooexpensive a solution for politiciansand the public to swallow easily –which is why many well-meaningclimate scientists have apparentlyconcluded that instead of relyingon reasoned discussion, they mightas well try to scare us witless.Consider what the IPCC had tosay about extreme weather eventssuch as intense hurricanes. The costof such events in terms of destroyedproperty and economic disruptionhas been rising steadily. Every peerreviewedstudy has shown that thisis not because of rising temperatures,but because more people livein harm’s way.Nonetheless, in the IPCC’s influential2007 assessment of climatechange, the panel’s Working GroupII (charged with assessing the potentialimpact of global warming) choseto cite one, then-unpublished studythat supposedly found that globalwarming had doubled damage costsover the past 35 years.In fact, when this study wasfinally published, it stated categoricallythat there was “insufficientevidence” to link the increasedlosses to global warming. In otherwords, what Working Group IIreported was plain wrong.Elsewhere in the 2007 assessment,Working Group II claimedthat “up to 40% of the Amazonianforests” were at imminent risk ofbeing destroyed by global warming.The basis for this claim was asingle report from the WorldWildlife Fund that itself cited onlyone study, which didn’t even lookat climate change, but rather at theimpact of human activities like loggingand burning.In similar fashion, WorkingGroup II claimed that “by 2020, insome (African) countries, yieldsfrom rain-fed agriculture could bereduced by up to 50%.” Much quotedsince, this alarming statisticturns out to have been based on asingle, unreferenced bullet-pointfrom a report by an environmentalthink tank.There are numerous other examplesof similar shenanigans byWorking Group II. Yet, aside from agrudging admission that its predictionsabout Himalayan glaciers were“poorly substantiated,” the IPCC hasyet to acknowledge – much lessapologise for – any of the lapses.If the IPCC is to do to its job properly,it must own up to all of its misstepsand clean house. Nobodyexpects it to be infallible. But neithershould we tolerate its attempts toscare policymakers rather thaninform them. — © Project Syndicatel Bjorn Lomborg is director of theCopenhagen Consensus Centre atCopenhagen Business School and theauthor of Cool It: The SkepticalEnvironmentalist’s Guide to GlobalWarming.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Summary of Perak politics - have a few good laughs :)
I blogged this last february, since the Perak saga seems over, here's what actually happened in simple 30 second commercials.
click here
click here
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Kong Xi ! Kong Xi ! Happy Chinese New Year to ALL!!!
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Dua tiga kucing berlari,
Mana nak sama si harimau belang,
Bila pilh pemimpin nanti,
Jangan pilih yang suka temberang!!!
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Good to read : Centrist Politics
Thursday February 11, 2010 THE STAR
The true colour of politics is grey
Along The Watchtower by M VEERA PANDIYAN
Malaysians must learn to notice the difference between political posturing and real championing of the people’s interests.
A LEARNED and articulate friend who’s a veteran in the legal fraternity did not contain his disgust towards the mainstream media during our last lunch meet.
Clearly distracted from the sumptuous spread on his banana leaf, he let it all fly, accusing newspapers of breaching new levels of banality and unfairness.
To read more clich here
The true colour of politics is grey
Along The Watchtower by M VEERA PANDIYAN
Malaysians must learn to notice the difference between political posturing and real championing of the people’s interests.
A LEARNED and articulate friend who’s a veteran in the legal fraternity did not contain his disgust towards the mainstream media during our last lunch meet.
Clearly distracted from the sumptuous spread on his banana leaf, he let it all fly, accusing newspapers of breaching new levels of banality and unfairness.
To read more clich here
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Have A Meaningful Chinese New Year ( In The Star Tomorrow)
Have A Meaningful
Chinese New Year
"An exemplary , respectable, constructive, honorable and principled Mr.Opposition"
- Tan Sri Dr. Tan Chee Khoon (1919- 1996) to read more about him click here
Chinese New Year
"An exemplary , respectable, constructive, honorable and principled Mr.Opposition"- Tan Sri Dr. Tan Chee Khoon (1919- 1996) to read more about him click here
What is to be done :
It is OK to be racial, not OK to be racist...
... but better to be Malaysian!
In Malaysia each of her ethnic groups are allowed to bloom for the most part unhindered; Chinese speak Chinese, eat with chopsticks, have Chinese names; Indians have Indian names and speak their own dialects; Malays follow their traditions which are the core culture of this nation. The Iban, Kadazandusun, Bidayuh, Melanau, Bajau, Murut and the other races are able to thrive culturally considering the pressures of economic modernization.
It is OK to be racial, to follow what your tradition dictates for your behavior, beliefs and customs; it enriches and grounds us, makes us feel safe and secure with who we are in relation to everyone around us. It is not OK to be racist; to think that your race is somehow superior to others and to dislike someone or some group of people because of their ethnic background; that is plain ignorance and arrogance; we are all God’s children on this planet, as human beings we are all the same.
Specifically we are God’s children called Malaysians though we seem to be able to see ourselves as Malaysians only when we are out of Malaysia. We are first and foremost Malaysians, so why not strengthen our convictions to be who we are. At the very least realize and accept that it is a functional, cognizant goal, and strive to inculcate our children with the goal of being Malaysian: speak, read and write our language Bahasa Malaysia, with ease.
Banish the divisive aspects of race; decisions involving the people must be made based on needs not on race, after all we are one race: Malaysian. The Malaysian with the greatest need, gets. Share resources including knowledge and technology.
Give and take, Compromise! Compromise! Compromise!
Be racial if you must to reinforce your personal core, but better to be Malaysian. Tell children good things about fellow Malaysians, encourage them to get to know and to make friends with children from different ethnic backgrounds. Tell them that the others are their brothers and sisters, and in a family, we must all work together for the greater good.
At zubedy our programs draw strength from shared values and traditions. We believe at the heart all Malaysians want good things for themselves and for their brother and sister Malaysians simply because our nation cannot prosper as a whole if some of us are left behind. There’s nothing more Malaysian than progress and give-and-take.
Let us add value,
Have A Meaningful Chinese New Year
Sunday, February 7, 2010
"Boom and Bust" - Economics 101 in hip hop must watch
Should we spend or should we save ...? Wonderful way to explain boom and bust and Hayek's critic on John Maynard Keynes. Those who read economics in form 6 or the varsity should know who was keynes but most may have missed Hayek ( and no, he is not Selma Hayek's father or grandpa) to listen to the music video click here To know a little more on Hayek click here
I just came back from a nice and quiet holiday in Penang... will try to blog some pictures soon :)
I just came back from a nice and quiet holiday in Penang... will try to blog some pictures soon :)