10 days

I beginning lose my sanity over the staleness of things that's been going on since I came back from Glasgow. Every day I wake up at 11-12, sit in bed while reading news for a while, laze around, get some food then lurk around the internet for the rest of the afternoon. Then as evening approaches, typified by the darkening skies at 4pm, I start doing a little bit of work, on some days I'll just hop out to the shops for groceries. Then 5.30-7 will kinda be dinner time including prep.

After that I'll continue revision.. until 10 or so, I'll start nudging people in MSN. All the way till 12/1 I'll do what I did in the afternoon, lurk around the net, surfing and resurfing the same sites over and over again (wtf, no life at all). Until sometime around 1+ I'll lie in bed and read a dozen pages or so from this new book that I've got. (It's really good), then lights out.

And I'll wake up to the same thing the next day.
And this has been going on since 10 days ago.
And there's 10 more days to go till the final exam.
And I wish that my exams were more closely packed together.
And I wish that time would fly faster, just for these few days.
And I wish that someone would DotA with me.
And I wish everyone else wasn't so busy studying because it makes me look slacky.

Sigh, I realise I lack discipline =P , at times.

10 days to go!

An Open Letter

Mr Badawi,

The word 'transparency' has been at the core of your manifesto when you entered office in late 2003. I don't see that now when your minister tabled for first reading the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2007 that seeks to extend the, well you know, on November the 20th in Parliament. The motive and the timing of the proposal is questionable. Not only did you not consult the rakyat, (through publishing it in the press?) I don't even know whether you have consulted The Yang-diPertuan Agong and the Conference of Rulers on this or not.

I'm merely suggesting this, but could it be that you need him for next year's GE? Similarly the IGP's and the ACA-DG's tenureship have all been extended. You even tried to extend the tenureship of one of the key figures in the 'Lingamgate' episode, Chief Justice Tun Ahmad Fairuz. Or did you already? I apologise but my memory fails me. But anyway he's not in office so it doesn't matter now.

One explanation has popped up so far, and I believe it's the answer you'd prefer. These men have served their posts well and you'd like them to do it for another few months/a year right? Very well, but there's another explanation that I've thought of, that you'd like for them to 'help' you out through the most crucial stages of your stewardship as PM due to the strategic positions they each hold. You mean to say that the ACA Director-General, Inspector General of Police, Chief Justice and Election Commission Chairman aren't key posts to you?

I have my right and reasons to suspect and question your fuzzy motives, and so do the people.

Perhaps you'd show some accountability to the people, and at the very least, give a soundful explanation on why The Constitution has to be amended for the sake of one civil servant, at this very time on the eve of the General Election. Please, do not give some layman arrogant excuse like your subordinate in the Prime Minister's Department of having the backing of the majority to do so, because you don't have the proof, like what all you and your subordinates have demanded when grouses are filed against yourselves.

Does your subordinate in the PM's department have proof of 2 million Indians backing him in his press statement recently? No. Do we have proof of the EC's shortcomings? Not substantial, but there is some (note: some) clear evidence of the lack of accountable governance on the EC's part (See: Ipoh Barat and Ipoh Timor constituencies). Various ministers have demanded that opposition voices show clear proof of wrongdoing or shut-up-sit-down-and-don't-stir-up-trouble.

So, will you also do your part, and show us, the people, that your actions are justified, in other words, proof? Or else, please do your people and nation a favour, and leave The Constitution alone, or so to rephrase the general notion that's being brought up from time to time.

Thank you for your time. Oh and by the way, I'm assuming you, because you're the head of government.. right?

Regards,
Tee Haow Kang
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Someone who's been reading the news would know that a further 3 rallies are planned for December. One by the Bar Council to celebrate Human Rights Day and another by BERSIH.

BERSIH's question this time around is simple. Why change the constitution for one civil servant? EC Chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman turns 66 at the end of this year, and Minister in the PM's Department Nazri Aziz is spearheading the proposal to amend the constitution to allow the EC Chairman to retire at 66 instead of 65.

So the gazillion-dollar question lies here. Is it justifiable that The Constitution (note, The Constitution) be amended just because of one man? Surely the underlying reason isn't very clear.

Additional informative reads here, here, here and here. That's if you'd spare some time and think for the sake of the country =). Call me a pessimist if you will, but I'm worrying for this country's constitution at this current rate. I also personally think that royal intervention is needed for this, to put this on record.

(Witness the power of >66% majority, 377 specific amendments to 183 articles in the Federal Constitution thus far. zomg!!)

Papers Make Me Pissed

Every day I get my dose of pissage from the mainstream papers. Of recent, is the toll hikes. Yeah, hike somemore hike somemore, next time I use the highway also toll cost more than petrol wtf.

So now, toll concessionaires are better friends than the public? Don't stay in Sungai Siput sana mana ada toll? of courselah menang!, come to KL and contest against DAP's Fong Kui Lun in the Bukit Bintang constituency or any other constituencies in KL for that matter, then you'll see the capital's grouses against you.

Look at how many f**king tolls we have in our capital, and how many of them are toll-ed.

Highways with no tolls
KL-Seremban highway, Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2), Federal Highway, Puchong-Sg Besi highway, can't think of any others.

These are the best roads to use. But lots of idiots hang around these roads especially on the MRR2. To those stewpid people, if you wanna cruise at 60km/h on the fast lane don't be blind to the queue of cars behind you. Sure kena assfuked tiu wan if you provoke people like that. Just because I've got a P sticker on my windscreen doesn't mean I have to follow behind you nias*ng.

KESAS - rm2.20, (tiuuuuu this is the most painintheass one)
LDP - rm1.60, (everytime i use this road sure stress, after tollplaza sure jam)
Sg Besi expressway /BESRAYA - rm1.30/1.50, (because of this stupid toll, terpaksa use detour through kampung)
SPRINT - Kerinchi link - rm1.50, (use only once, and that was by accident)
SPRINT - Penchala link - rm2.00, (kena tipu also)
SPRINT - Damansara link - didn't use before so i dunno,
Ampang-KL Elevated Expressway - rm1.60
SILK - rm1.00
ELITE - (rarely used so I don't remember)
NPE - rm1.60
Salak Expressway - rm0.50
Grand Saga Expressway - rm1 (those ulu ulu places =P)
NKVE - always end up by mistake on this highway from ELITE on the way back from KLIA.

These are just the few that I've remembered, still got the ones in Subang and westward. One new one which I think will be particularly handy is the KL-Putrajaya Expressway, starting from Kg Pandan passing through Kuchai Lama, then one interchange at Bukit Jalil, but the interchange only links to KESAS so it'll be another painintheass exiting the highway but not entering it.

This has got to be one of the most confusing interchanges.

It's easy to enter from the west to KL but not to Putrajaya.
It's easy to exit from KL to the east but not the west.
It's easy to enter from the east to both KL and Putrajaya.
It's easy to exit from Putrajaya to the east but not to the west.

I might have made it even more confusing =P Oh well.

But the main point remains, it sucks to drive in KL because of all these tolls! Coupled with parking charges and whatnot, a day out in the city or elsewhere will result in either getting caught in a jam or parting with at least rm5-10. That's a lot okay! Think of the bowl of extra large hor fun or chicken rice that I'm missing out on.

So, conclusively.. you better get out of office, because all you're doing is burdening the people with unnecessary toll increases. Sigh, and I'm done with my quota of rants for the day.

P.S: Is the KL-Putrajaya highway open yet? I haven't been catching up with that.

It's Over.. Not?

The previous few days were sh*t. 'cept for Monday night because it's student night at The Crags. A quid a pint! Since when was booze so cheap, hahaha.

Other than that, it's been revision all day long. The point is.. that it's not revision that's making me go insane, it's going through this clockwork lifestyle day in and day out. It's finally placed the straw that broke the camel's back (brilliant use of idioms). Plus the Internet Gods aren't treating me well, a connection slower than 56K?! Come on!

Times like these make me wanna just do the things I miss most. Driving. Sigh.. the feeling of the steering wheel, the gearstick, the sensation when I step on the pedal.. the times I used to swear at fools on the road.. cursing whenever some bi*ch lady driver who's running the orange light suddenly decides to jam her brakes, and the deep roars and humms that the engine makes. Aaah..

Frankly speaking, driving a car on the road is like sex to me (no I haven't had sex yet, what a guy can't assume the pleasures/agonies of sex?), however disgusting and perverted that sounds. Hmm.. maybe I've put it wrongly, have it this way, for some guys, satisfaction and dependency comes from girls. For some guys, satisfaction comes from driving or having cars. For some guys, satisfaction comes with having 'brothers', some.. 'sisters' or both. Mine, comes from driving, and having 'brothers'. Sounds a lot less perverse right?

Sigh, it'll all be over after two boring exams. Patience. Ma! The car is mine when I get back!! *grins gleefully* The petrol might be a bother though..

Repressed Media

M Bakri Musa's article today led me to reflect on the corroded amount of trust that I have at this point in mainstream newspapers. 5 years ago, when I first started subscribing to The Star in Form 2, everyone was fighting over the different sections of the newspaper, "Give me the sports section!" "Section Two (what it was called in the old days) is mine okay!" "I want to read the comics!" and on some days I'll end up with a few missing sheets at the end of the day, reading on my way back home from school.

Now? I don't even bother reading the hardcopy anymore. Back in those days, the paper was just 60sen (student rate) and later just RM1, so you could say it's good value for money. Now it's not just bad value for money, it's only useful to use to bungkus my char kuay teow, and my morning meehoon.

It's been made worse by my reading of the local papers here which at least has an editorial section where the editors and columnists dare to voice out their own words. I used to take the opinions of The Star's few columnists (and editor) like Wong Chun Wai, and Wong Sai Wan seriously, it's been reduced to coffeeshop chitchat now.

Waning public confidence in the mainstream media has meant lower circulation numbers, soon companies probably won't bother funding the papers through adverts. To me, it spells doom and condemnation. That's what you get for being used as tools of propaganda by political parties.

At least I still depend on their online portals to check on petty news. Sigh, I miss the old days. Having a newspaper in my hand was a thing to be proud of. Hahahaha, childish thoughts.