Posts
To all of you who deal with restaurants and understand the need for the service to be faster, this story is a timeless lesson on how consultants can make a difference to an organisation.
Last week, we took some friends out to a new restaurant and noticed that the waiter who took our order carried a spoon in his shirt pocket. It seemed a little strange. When another waiter brought our water, I noticed he also had a spoon in his shirt pocket.
Then I looked around and saw that all the staff had spoons in their pockets.
When the waiter came back to serve our soup I asked, "Why the spoon?"
"Well", he explained, "the restaurant's owners hired Andersen Consulting to revamp all our processes. After several months of analysis, they concluded that the spoon was the most frequently dropped utensil. It represents a drop frequency of approximately 3 spoons per table per hour. If our personnel are better prepared, we can reduce the number of trips back to the kitchen and save 15 man-hours per shift."
As luck would have it, I dropped my spoon and he was able to replace it with his spare. "I'll get another spoon next time I go to the kitchen, instead of making an extra trip to get it right now."
I was impressed. I also noticed that there was a string hanging out of the
waiter's fly.
Looking around, I noticed that all the waiters had the same string hanging from their flies. So before he walked off, I asked the waiter, "Excuse me, but can you tell me why you have that string right there?"
"Oh, certainly!" Then he lowered his voice.
"Not everyone is so observant. That consulting firm I mentioned also found out that we can save time in the restroom. By tying this string to the tip of you-know-what, we can pull it out without touching it and eliminate the need to wash our hands, shortening the time spent in the restroom by 76.39%.
I asked "After you get it out, how do you put it back?"
"Well," he whispered, "I don't know about the others, but I use the spoon."
Friday, October 31, 2008
Teachers should be allowed to use the rod (Jo-Anne Lee, Today, 30/10, p24)
I refer to “Different strokes required” and “Splitting up the classes may help” (Oct 29).
I do not envy teachers these days. Not only is the nobility of their profession not respected, parents now also believe it’s the teachers’ role to nurture and groom their kids.
Ill-behaved children? Of course there are. The question is, are they just being children or being disrespectful? I teach Sunday classes. The preschool kids are lovely because they’re young, innocent and impressionable.
There is a big difference between parents being liberal and open minded with their children, and being simply over indulgent. “Over compensate” is the word Mr Ho Kong Loon used. I couldn’t agree more. Was there not a recent media report about a young woman whose parents give her money to buy designer bags?
The constraint on teachers where discipline is concerned is getting ridiculous. If the parents shirk disciplining responsibility and hand it over to the teacher, then they should let the teachers discipline their kids with the cane, rod or whatever they deem fit and not interfere.
I’ve seen too many brats who are not only spoilt in the material sense but lack social graces and graciousness. Basic courtesy and civic mindedness have gone down the drain. Mr Arthur Lim says there’s a lack of tolerance in society and children need their “space”. I agree, but how much space is enough before we realise they are getting out of control? And split up classes? Doesn’t he know that we are facing a shortage of good teachers?
---------
I do not envy teachers these days. Not only is the nobility of their profession not respected, parents now also believe it’s the teachers’ role to nurture and groom their kids.
Ill-behaved children? Of course there are. The question is, are they just being children or being disrespectful? I teach Sunday classes. The preschool kids are lovely because they’re young, innocent and impressionable.
There is a big difference between parents being liberal and open minded with their children, and being simply over indulgent. “Over compensate” is the word Mr Ho Kong Loon used. I couldn’t agree more. Was there not a recent media report about a young woman whose parents give her money to buy designer bags?
The constraint on teachers where discipline is concerned is getting ridiculous. If the parents shirk disciplining responsibility and hand it over to the teacher, then they should let the teachers discipline their kids with the cane, rod or whatever they deem fit and not interfere.
I’ve seen too many brats who are not only spoilt in the material sense but lack social graces and graciousness. Basic courtesy and civic mindedness have gone down the drain. Mr Arthur Lim says there’s a lack of tolerance in society and children need their “space”. I agree, but how much space is enough before we realise they are getting out of control? And split up classes? Doesn’t he know that we are facing a shortage of good teachers?
---------
Please don't spoil this generation. Don't ask the teachers to discipline your children - BECAUSE WE CAN'T.
Beautiful vowels
It took seven years to write Eunoia.
Eunoia is the shortest word in English containing all five vowels - and it means "beautiful thinking". It is also the title of Canadian poet Christian Bok's book of fiction in which each chapter uses only one vowel.
Mr Bok believes his book proves that each vowel has its own personality, and demonstrates the flexibility of the English language. Below are extracts from each chapter.
---------
from CHAPTER A - FOR HANS ARP
Hassan Abd al-Hassad, an Agha Khan, basks at an ashram - a Taj Mahal that has grand parks and grass lawns, all as vast as parklands at Alhambra and Valhalla. Hassan can, at a handclap, call a vassal at hand and ask that all staff plan a bacchanal - a gala ball that has what pagan charm small galas lack. Hassan claps, and (tah-dah) an Arab lass at a swank spa can draw a man's bath and wash a man's back, as Arab lads fawn and hang, athwart an altar, amaranth garlands as fragrant as attar - a balm that calms all angst. A dwarf can flap a palm branch that fans a fat maharajah. A naphtha lamp can cast a calm warmth.
---------
from CHAPTER E - FOR RENE CREVEL
Westerners revere the Greek legends. Versemen retell the represented events, the resplendent scenes, where, hellbent, the Greek freemen seek revenge whenever Helen, the new-wed empress, weeps. Restless, she deserts her fleece bed where, detested, her wedded regent sleeps. When she remembers Greece, her seceded demesne, she feels wretched, left here, bereft, her needs never met. She needs rest; nevertheless, her demented fevers render her sleepless (her sleeplessness enfeebles her). She needs help; nevertheless her stressed nerves render her cheerless (her cheerlessness enfetters her).
---------
from CHAPTER I - FOR DICK HIGGINS
Hiking in British districts, I picnic in virgin firths, grinning in mirth with misfit whims, smiling if I find birch twigs, smirking if I find mint sprigs.
Midspring brings with it singing birds, six kinds, (finch, siskin, ibis, tit, pipit, swift), whistling shrill chirps, trilling chirr chirr in high pitch. Kingbirds flit in gliding flight, skimming limpid springs, dipping wingtips in rills which brim with living things: krill, shrimp, brill - fish with gilt fins, which swim in flitting zigs. Might Virgil find bliss implicit in this primitivism? Might I mimic him in print if I find his writings inspiring?
---------
from CHAPTER O - FOR YOKO ONO
Loops on bold fonts now form lots of words for books. Books form cocoons of comfort - tombs to hold bookworms. Profs from Oxford show frosh who do post-docs how to gloss works of Wordsworth. Dons who work for proctors or provosts do not fob off school to work on crosswords, nor do dons go off to dorm rooms to loll on cots. Dons go crosstown to look for bookshops known to stock lots of top-notch goods: cookbooks, workbooks - room on room of how-to-books for jocks (how to jog, how to box), books on pro sports: golf or polo. Old colophons on schoolbooks from schoolrooms sport two sorts of logo: oblong whorls, rococo scrolls - both on worn morocco.
---------
from CHAPTER U - FOR ZHU YU
Gulls churr: ululu, ululu. Ducks cluck. Bulls plus bucks run thru buckbrush; thus dun burrs clutch fur tufts. Ursus cubs plus Lupus pups hunt skunks. Curs skulk (such mutts lurk: ruff, ruff). Gnus munch kudzu. Lush shrubs bud; thus church nuns pluck uncut mums. Bugs hum: buzz, buzz. Dull susurrus gusts murmur hushful, humdrum murmurs: hush, hush. Dusk suns blush. Surf lulls us. Such scuds hurl up cumulus suds (Sturm und Druck) - furls unfurl: rush, rush; curls uncurl: gush, gush. Such tumult upturns unsunk hulls; thus gulfs crush us, gulp, dunk us - burst lungs succumb.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Can you write using only one vowel?
I think this is gimmicky!
Katherine, Arizona, USA
A Lancs man asks "Can that mad, bad, Yank MacCain catch Barack?" Lancs Man says Yanks want Barack? Fab!
Mike W, Lancashire
Prhps hs nxt ffrt wll b nthng bt cnsnnts!!
Gordon Knight, Boldre, New Forest
Expends excess weeks, never sleeps, yet renders wretched verse. Geek!
Ian , Glasgow, Scotland
Wild high wind - vivid spirit,
Zips, licks.
I wish, wish it still
I sigh, will it lift,shift?
Wild high wind
lilts, tilts, kills.
Eileen Tiffin de Quadra, Newcastle upon Tyne
A far away star gasps gas.
BANG,Crash,...sparks..
Star falls
Alas warmth past
Alarm
Man gasps
Gags
Man falls
"Mam Dad Why??"
Phil Harris, London England
Every sheep relent ! Seven enter where'er three entrench. Ten express envy. Better repent eh ? Very deep....
James Upton, London
Why eke verse when these verses deserve temper? He needs help even when he's clever. He renders me bereft, needy. He spends me pretty well. Bye bye energy. Better flee, perplexed!
Sebastian Hickey, Dublin, Ireland
Dull. Dull, ugly, uck:
Tumult upturns, hurls, bursts,
Curbs plush hush,
Dull murmur gusts -
Humdrum duck clucks thus.
Laura Redfern, Conwy, Wales
Owls howl from lofty woods. No moon shows. Crows look coldly. No worms, no food, only gloom.
Ed, UK
...his gift is instilling illicit instincts in I!!
Jayne, Prestatyn, Wales
Efrem revered the verse
He cleverly kept jests
Eschew
Expelled
Petty pretences he etched
Rhyme heckles the style
Wretched
Tethered
Bereft; regrets refresh excite
Eden thy sleep swells decry
GH, Carrickfergus
I think this is slightly silly!
Michael Phillips, Southsea, England
Brand - What a scandal! A daft prat! Sad, mad Brand. Sack!
Ross - No good! Fool. Clot. Stop Ross's work. Show Ross door. Bog off, Ross!
Susan Harvey, London
To 'show off'; wordworm snoot who jots down words of Wordsworth or Byron by lots of solo o's on show.
Martin Boronte, London, UK
Yes! Here we see English text expressed ever freer. Letters re-dressed, remember French seer?
Marko B, Leeds, Yorkshire
Yes, very clever: yet empty. He expended energy yet he vexes deeply. Berk!
John Dudley, London
Pop, pop, chop, chop, strop. Go on to work off lots of knots. Do not stop. Do not!
Marie, Eastbourne, East Sussex
Happy happy day...that day, my man had a way, had a play, had a stay....ah, that day!
Laura, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Fiddly, I find. Still, I didn't shirk. I didn't quit. This fits - it's right. I think it did it.
Jon Wallis, Bristol, UK
An arrant grab-bag; a bland, flat mass. Appals as far as charms. Alas, Art! That many days a man can scratch hard, and halt at that tat. That man wants a slap.
CRC, "Cantab"
John won't borrow Bok's book - too bloody wordy! Only O's? Noooooo!
John W, Sheffield
No con do !!
Roy McCallum, Whitley Bay
Eunoia is the shortest word in English containing all five vowels - and it means "beautiful thinking". It is also the title of Canadian poet Christian Bok's book of fiction in which each chapter uses only one vowel.
Mr Bok believes his book proves that each vowel has its own personality, and demonstrates the flexibility of the English language. Below are extracts from each chapter.
---------
from CHAPTER A - FOR HANS ARP
Hassan Abd al-Hassad, an Agha Khan, basks at an ashram - a Taj Mahal that has grand parks and grass lawns, all as vast as parklands at Alhambra and Valhalla. Hassan can, at a handclap, call a vassal at hand and ask that all staff plan a bacchanal - a gala ball that has what pagan charm small galas lack. Hassan claps, and (tah-dah) an Arab lass at a swank spa can draw a man's bath and wash a man's back, as Arab lads fawn and hang, athwart an altar, amaranth garlands as fragrant as attar - a balm that calms all angst. A dwarf can flap a palm branch that fans a fat maharajah. A naphtha lamp can cast a calm warmth.
---------
from CHAPTER E - FOR RENE CREVEL
Westerners revere the Greek legends. Versemen retell the represented events, the resplendent scenes, where, hellbent, the Greek freemen seek revenge whenever Helen, the new-wed empress, weeps. Restless, she deserts her fleece bed where, detested, her wedded regent sleeps. When she remembers Greece, her seceded demesne, she feels wretched, left here, bereft, her needs never met. She needs rest; nevertheless, her demented fevers render her sleepless (her sleeplessness enfeebles her). She needs help; nevertheless her stressed nerves render her cheerless (her cheerlessness enfetters her).
---------
from CHAPTER I - FOR DICK HIGGINS
Hiking in British districts, I picnic in virgin firths, grinning in mirth with misfit whims, smiling if I find birch twigs, smirking if I find mint sprigs.
Midspring brings with it singing birds, six kinds, (finch, siskin, ibis, tit, pipit, swift), whistling shrill chirps, trilling chirr chirr in high pitch. Kingbirds flit in gliding flight, skimming limpid springs, dipping wingtips in rills which brim with living things: krill, shrimp, brill - fish with gilt fins, which swim in flitting zigs. Might Virgil find bliss implicit in this primitivism? Might I mimic him in print if I find his writings inspiring?
---------
from CHAPTER O - FOR YOKO ONO
Loops on bold fonts now form lots of words for books. Books form cocoons of comfort - tombs to hold bookworms. Profs from Oxford show frosh who do post-docs how to gloss works of Wordsworth. Dons who work for proctors or provosts do not fob off school to work on crosswords, nor do dons go off to dorm rooms to loll on cots. Dons go crosstown to look for bookshops known to stock lots of top-notch goods: cookbooks, workbooks - room on room of how-to-books for jocks (how to jog, how to box), books on pro sports: golf or polo. Old colophons on schoolbooks from schoolrooms sport two sorts of logo: oblong whorls, rococo scrolls - both on worn morocco.
---------
from CHAPTER U - FOR ZHU YU
Gulls churr: ululu, ululu. Ducks cluck. Bulls plus bucks run thru buckbrush; thus dun burrs clutch fur tufts. Ursus cubs plus Lupus pups hunt skunks. Curs skulk (such mutts lurk: ruff, ruff). Gnus munch kudzu. Lush shrubs bud; thus church nuns pluck uncut mums. Bugs hum: buzz, buzz. Dull susurrus gusts murmur hushful, humdrum murmurs: hush, hush. Dusk suns blush. Surf lulls us. Such scuds hurl up cumulus suds (Sturm und Druck) - furls unfurl: rush, rush; curls uncurl: gush, gush. Such tumult upturns unsunk hulls; thus gulfs crush us, gulp, dunk us - burst lungs succumb.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Can you write using only one vowel?
I think this is gimmicky!
Katherine, Arizona, USA
A Lancs man asks "Can that mad, bad, Yank MacCain catch Barack?" Lancs Man says Yanks want Barack? Fab!
Mike W, Lancashire
Prhps hs nxt ffrt wll b nthng bt cnsnnts!!
Gordon Knight, Boldre, New Forest
Expends excess weeks, never sleeps, yet renders wretched verse. Geek!
Ian , Glasgow, Scotland
Wild high wind - vivid spirit,
Zips, licks.
I wish, wish it still
I sigh, will it lift,shift?
Wild high wind
lilts, tilts, kills.
Eileen Tiffin de Quadra, Newcastle upon Tyne
A far away star gasps gas.
BANG,Crash,...sparks..
Star falls
Alas warmth past
Alarm
Man gasps
Gags
Man falls
"Mam Dad Why??"
Phil Harris, London England
Every sheep relent ! Seven enter where'er three entrench. Ten express envy. Better repent eh ? Very deep....
James Upton, London
Why eke verse when these verses deserve temper? He needs help even when he's clever. He renders me bereft, needy. He spends me pretty well. Bye bye energy. Better flee, perplexed!
Sebastian Hickey, Dublin, Ireland
Dull. Dull, ugly, uck:
Tumult upturns, hurls, bursts,
Curbs plush hush,
Dull murmur gusts -
Humdrum duck clucks thus.
Laura Redfern, Conwy, Wales
Owls howl from lofty woods. No moon shows. Crows look coldly. No worms, no food, only gloom.
Ed, UK
...his gift is instilling illicit instincts in I!!
Jayne, Prestatyn, Wales
Efrem revered the verse
He cleverly kept jests
Eschew
Expelled
Petty pretences he etched
Rhyme heckles the style
Wretched
Tethered
Bereft; regrets refresh excite
Eden thy sleep swells decry
GH, Carrickfergus
I think this is slightly silly!
Michael Phillips, Southsea, England
Brand - What a scandal! A daft prat! Sad, mad Brand. Sack!
Ross - No good! Fool. Clot. Stop Ross's work. Show Ross door. Bog off, Ross!
Susan Harvey, London
To 'show off'; wordworm snoot who jots down words of Wordsworth or Byron by lots of solo o's on show.
Martin Boronte, London, UK
Yes! Here we see English text expressed ever freer. Letters re-dressed, remember French seer?
Marko B, Leeds, Yorkshire
Yes, very clever: yet empty. He expended energy yet he vexes deeply. Berk!
John Dudley, London
Pop, pop, chop, chop, strop. Go on to work off lots of knots. Do not stop. Do not!
Marie, Eastbourne, East Sussex
Happy happy day...that day, my man had a way, had a play, had a stay....ah, that day!
Laura, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Fiddly, I find. Still, I didn't shirk. I didn't quit. This fits - it's right. I think it did it.
Jon Wallis, Bristol, UK
An arrant grab-bag; a bland, flat mass. Appals as far as charms. Alas, Art! That many days a man can scratch hard, and halt at that tat. That man wants a slap.
CRC, "Cantab"
John won't borrow Bok's book - too bloody wordy! Only O's? Noooooo!
John W, Sheffield
No con do !!
Roy McCallum, Whitley Bay
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Traditional ways of disciplining kids are now deemed harsh and stifling (Ho Kong Loon, Today Voices, 29/10, p30)
I REFER to “Ill-behaved pupils on excursion” (Oct 29).
I share Mr Lionel de Souza’s unhappiness and concern about how the school children had misbehaved, and the apparent lack of supervision on the teachers’ part.
This phenomenon is not an isolated one. As a retired teacher, I have personally witnessed the proliferation of errant kids. The “I, me, my, mine, myself” genre has become the rule rather than the exception.
A better educated and liberal generation of parents has revolutionised the manner and approach to parenting. The traditional way we disciplined our kids is now deemed harsh, cruel, inhibitive and stifling. Kids today enjoy unbridled freedom, independence and rights.
I do not doubt the sincerity and good intentions of those who advocate a more liberal, lighter touch in raising and disciplining children.
But for many young parents, it is the inability to see the trees from the forest that trip them.
Mired in a relentless pursuit for a better life, the dues many working parents pay are usually less time with their kids, slavish dependence on domestic help, elderly parents or child-care centres, over indulgence and over compensation.
Teachers have their work well cut out for them when it involves managing kids who are restless, hyperactive, disobedient, aggressive, vocal or disruptive. In short, their hands are tightly bound, metaphorically speaking.
Educators today are well aware the parameters they operate within are distinctly marked out: No scolding, no corporal punishment, no writing of lines, no detention class, no deprivation of recess, no negative remarks, no threats ... the list is endless.
I taught the less-academically-inclined kids for 40 years. A glare from me was all it took to still a restless kid or alert an inattentive one.
Very few kids dared defy their teachers then because they knew they had no recourse to parental protection or interference. The discipline master or the school head dealt with cases of indiscipline firmly and effectively.
Can we as adults do much to remedy the present malaise and deteriorating state of discipline?
There are Singaporeans who will argue comprehensively, articulately and passionately that Mr Lionel, my peers and I are dinosaurs, time frozen by our mindset.
Are we?
I share Mr Lionel de Souza’s unhappiness and concern about how the school children had misbehaved, and the apparent lack of supervision on the teachers’ part.
This phenomenon is not an isolated one. As a retired teacher, I have personally witnessed the proliferation of errant kids. The “I, me, my, mine, myself” genre has become the rule rather than the exception.
A better educated and liberal generation of parents has revolutionised the manner and approach to parenting. The traditional way we disciplined our kids is now deemed harsh, cruel, inhibitive and stifling. Kids today enjoy unbridled freedom, independence and rights.
I do not doubt the sincerity and good intentions of those who advocate a more liberal, lighter touch in raising and disciplining children.
But for many young parents, it is the inability to see the trees from the forest that trip them.
Mired in a relentless pursuit for a better life, the dues many working parents pay are usually less time with their kids, slavish dependence on domestic help, elderly parents or child-care centres, over indulgence and over compensation.
Teachers have their work well cut out for them when it involves managing kids who are restless, hyperactive, disobedient, aggressive, vocal or disruptive. In short, their hands are tightly bound, metaphorically speaking.
Educators today are well aware the parameters they operate within are distinctly marked out: No scolding, no corporal punishment, no writing of lines, no detention class, no deprivation of recess, no negative remarks, no threats ... the list is endless.
I taught the less-academically-inclined kids for 40 years. A glare from me was all it took to still a restless kid or alert an inattentive one.
Very few kids dared defy their teachers then because they knew they had no recourse to parental protection or interference. The discipline master or the school head dealt with cases of indiscipline firmly and effectively.
Can we as adults do much to remedy the present malaise and deteriorating state of discipline?
There are Singaporeans who will argue comprehensively, articulately and passionately that Mr Lionel, my peers and I are dinosaurs, time frozen by our mindset.
Are we?
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Friday, October 24, 2008
Botak Jones
Ha! Finally went with Jasmine, Shannon & Ailsa. Was told to lower my expectations and it seriously wasn't too bad at all, and the price was quite reasonable. Service was excellent for a kopitiam, so no complaints there. They've a few branches islandwide so will try again sometime this year.
Estadio Municipal de Braga
This is one weird stadium, where the area behind the goals are an open space and a rock face!
The Ant & The Grasshopper - A Malaysian Parable
The Version You Know
The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer, building its house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The Grasshopper thinks the Ant is a fool, and laughs & dances & plays the summer away.
Come winter, the Ant is warm and well fed.
The Grasshopper has no food or shelter so he dies out in the cold.
------------
The Malaysian Version
The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer, building its house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The Grasshopper thinks the Ant's a fool, and laughs & dances & plays the summer away.
Come winter, the shivering Grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the Ant should be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving.
TV1, TV2 & TV3 show up to provide pictures of the shivering Grasshopper next to a video of the Ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.
The majority of the Malaysian Parliament are stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this poor Grasshopper be allowed to suffer?
Khairy stages a demonstration in front of the Ant's house.
Nazri goes on a fast along with other Grasshoppers demanding that Grasshoppers be relocated to warmer climates during winter.
The Malaysia Government immediately passes a law preventing Ants from working hard in the summer so as to bring about equality of poverty among Ants and Grasshoppers.
Hishammudin makes 'More Special Reservation' for Grasshoppers in Educational Institutions & in Government Services.
The Ant is fined for failing to share 30% of his food with the Grasshopper.
Prime Minister announces that this is part of the NEP. Every ant must not question it.
Many years later...
The Ant has migrated to the US and set up a multi-billion dollar company there.
100s of Grasshoppers still die of starvation despite the 'Special Reservation'.
Losing lots of hard working Ants and feeding the Grasshoppers, Malaysia is still a developing country.
All because the ANTS are just doing their work.
----------
Received by email
The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer, building its house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The Grasshopper thinks the Ant is a fool, and laughs & dances & plays the summer away.
Come winter, the Ant is warm and well fed.
The Grasshopper has no food or shelter so he dies out in the cold.
------------
The Malaysian Version
The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer, building its house and laying up supplies for the winter.
The Grasshopper thinks the Ant's a fool, and laughs & dances & plays the summer away.
Come winter, the shivering Grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the Ant should be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving.
TV1, TV2 & TV3 show up to provide pictures of the shivering Grasshopper next to a video of the Ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.
The majority of the Malaysian Parliament are stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this poor Grasshopper be allowed to suffer?
Khairy stages a demonstration in front of the Ant's house.
Nazri goes on a fast along with other Grasshoppers demanding that Grasshoppers be relocated to warmer climates during winter.
The Malaysia Government immediately passes a law preventing Ants from working hard in the summer so as to bring about equality of poverty among Ants and Grasshoppers.
Hishammudin makes 'More Special Reservation' for Grasshoppers in Educational Institutions & in Government Services.
The Ant is fined for failing to share 30% of his food with the Grasshopper.
Prime Minister announces that this is part of the NEP. Every ant must not question it.
Many years later...
The Ant has migrated to the US and set up a multi-billion dollar company there.
100s of Grasshoppers still die of starvation despite the 'Special Reservation'.
Losing lots of hard working Ants and feeding the Grasshoppers, Malaysia is still a developing country.
All because the ANTS are just doing their work.
----------
Received by email
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Corrinne May
I've jumped on the Corrinne May bandwagon. Love her 2nd album Safe in a Crazy World especially. Apparently she knows Wen and she's sorta a senior.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Alicia Keys & Jack White - Another Way to Die
Over-enthusiastic syncopation, over-use of triplets - this has OTT written all over it. Apart from learning that Jack White can play almost any instrument (which I already knew), not much can be learnt from this directionless mess.
Roman Pavlyuchenko - Member of Parliament
While Spurs (still) lay claim to having the same number of points as a toothpick (two), at least they have someone no other club has - a Member of Parliament.
Roman Pavlyuchenko has been elected MP in Stavropol Krai, southwest Russia. Maybe he can lobby Valdimir Putin for extra funds to buy a striker Roman CAN play with.
Roman Pavlyuchenko has been elected MP in Stavropol Krai, southwest Russia. Maybe he can lobby Valdimir Putin for extra funds to buy a striker Roman CAN play with.
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