WORRYING TREND3...

A piece that should have been delivered yesterday.
Not to worry, I'm still around -- though one of my ER has been sending me "mysterious" comments which I can't fathom their relationship to my Posts. And strangely, these "comments" were received as "replicates" (records) at my Email, but NOT AT MY POST COMMENT CHANNEL!
QUESTION: Any other bLogger using Blogger.Com experiencing this X-File phenomenon?
Mave SM -- help me DEsi-pher this X-Conundrum. You owe me this One!


On Worrying Trend3, I decided NOT TO PROCEED with THAT original sighting after much reflection. It's just too controversial, and yes, IT touches on Religion (a terrortry which I had indicated several times, I'm reluctasnt to tread!) And Ethnicity. Indirectly something very much on the airwaves and print mileage -- Patriotism.This last mentioned I can write at length, but it would be boring like last year's record playing as August 31 approaches. And I don't wish to add to lots of nonsense being bandied about. Year-in year-out close to Merdeka Day, so I won't dignify with any elaboration but pull out just this quote:



“Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.”
~~ Mark Twain (American Humorist, Writer and Lecturer. 1835-1910)



I spent some time to pen a substitute Worrying Trend3, but had to "delay" 24, hope you are patient; as I had preached often here, Miss Patience is Virtuous. Maybe even Virginal.

from the NST, 22 Aug 2006


Poster shameful, says Bar Council

KUALA LUMPUR: The Bar Council has condemned the circulation of a poster calling for the death of lawyer Malik Imtiaz Sarwar.

Malik had held a watching brief on behalf of the Malaysian Bar in the appeal case of Lina Joy.

Bar Council president Yeo Yang Poh said the poster was aimed at intimidating, threatening and oppressing a member of the Bar while discharging his role as a lawyer.

"Our justice system demands that parties be given the right to be heard. Hence, it is the duty of every advocate and solicitor to present and state his client’s case without fear or favour as it is under the protection of our courts that a lawyer is able to advance his client’s case, no matter how unpalatable his argument may appear to other parties."

Lina Joy or Azlina Jailani is appealing to the Federal Court to have the word "Islam" removed from her identity card as she is said to have embraced Christianity.

Describing the circulation of the poster as "shameful", Yeo said it was also an assault on the fundamentals of the nation’s justice system.

He called on the authorities to launch an immediate investigation to identify the parties responsible.

"Malaysian society must reach to show that there is no room for death threats or any similar acts of intimidation in our society."

DESIDERATA: Just one line of comment -- commending lawyer Malik Imtiaz Sarwar for his commitment to his professional duty, of course, supported by the Bar Council. Now I must cut down on my "denigrationg" jokes on members of the Bar; may switch to the other bar. Or am I barred? Nowadays, bloggers aren't too sure of their territory.
~~~~~~~~~~~



Now I bring you another item from a far neighbour, but relevant to ponder at same time, via Asia Business Consulting: (Desi took care of a few 'obvious' typos,italicised thus, okay!)~~~

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Taking the law into your own hands - cyber violence and threats

Is it because we believe that there is not enough police around to arrest a culprit? Is it that we believe we can judge someone easily on the Internet because we can hide in the anonymity of the Internet? Is it because there is a sense of lawlessness that is haunting us?

How come that Internet users believe that they can simply threaten someone who has done something wrong, according to their opinion?

A new case of cyber-hunting (word created by me) has occurred in Korea, where the number of Complaints filed with the government's Korea Internet Safety Commission more than doubled to 42,643 last year from 18,031 in 2003.

"A 30-year-old accountant named Kim Myong Jae became the No. 1 hate figure of South Korea's huge Internet community. People who believed that he had killed his girlfriend flooded his cell phone with threats and vicious messages, while a wide variety of mean-spirited rumors were posted on blogs and Web portals, where they spread quickly.

"By the time I found out the source of this outrage, it was too late. My name, address, photographs, telephone numbers were all over the Internet," Kim said. "Tens of thousands of people were busy sharing my identity and discussing how to punish me. My name was the most-searched phrase at portals," Kim stated.

This is just one of the revealed cases in Korea but it surely contradicts the common statement that one is innocent until proven guilty.

(Asia Business Consulting)
posted by JM @ 3:09 PM


And from The Star,
August 22, 2006


Better to jaw-jaw than war-war

PETALING JAYA: Learning and knowing other languages can help reduce and solve problems and conflicts in the world today as it will create better understanding between people, according to Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

The former premier said, with better communication, people could reduce conflicts that lead to wanton killings.

“The most civilised way is to learn the language of others. Imagine US President George W. Bush speaking in Arabic to Osama bin Laden (the al-Qaeda leader), explaining the problems of America, and Osama explaining the problems that he faces,” Dr Mahathir said in his speech at the International Seminar on Multimedia Adventures in Language Learning here yesterday.

“Then both would be able to perhaps settle their problems, and chat with each other.”

The two-day seminar was organised by the Institute of Modern Languages and Communication (IMLC) of the Multimedia University.

Also present was Dr Mahathir’s wife and MMU Chancellor Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali.

Dr Mahathir stressed that it was very important in today’s world to learn other languages, besides one’s mother tongue, saying it was much easier to learn new languages today with the advancement of technology.

He also said that the problems related to learning a language like English were different from one country to another.

He shared his experience while onboard a flight to Japan many years ago.

“The steward made an announcement ... 'have a good fright' (flight),” Dr Mahathir said, adding that Japanese had problems pronouncing the letter 'L'. – Bernama

DESIDERATA: Chinoserie, like their Japanese counterparts, also have difficulty in differentiatiation "r" and "l" pronunciation! Say "ellor" for 'error'. Repeat "Tellor" for 'terror' after Desi please. "The prane has landed safely, now you can bleathe. "

For once, I'm 100% with ex-PM Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad on this one.
See, we must go with the issues, THE SONG, not the personality, THE SINGER.
This last inference is directed as a soft reminder to my Esteemed brudder named Sensitrovert writHing in London, and I don't even 'no' him.

Just to soothe some nerves on WedNURSEday, a day primed for Woes, I part with a gem from my Sifu -- No, not JeffOoi, but Max Ehrmann ~~


CALM FACES

Work well doneand its just reward,
sunshine, rest and love -- these are the
desiderata of happiness. I one fashion or
another we see them somewhere afar
in our path; and the vision keeps us uin good
humour with the world and with
ourselves/ "Sometime," we say, "we shall
come to our own -- sometime." And
meanwhile life grows stiller and stiller,
rebellion settles to submission, great
ambitions turn to simple things. Though we
have been roughly awakened from
the intoxication of youth's enchanted
visions, if we have learned our lesson well,
may we still find a cheering ray of light
in the shadows of evening, and go with calm
faces among our neighbours and our friends.