Mandarin Demand is Discriminatory

Najib, please tell me you're joking

I read something funny in The Star today. You can check it out here. Apparently, our Deputy PM Najib thinks that it is preposterous that private companies which are hiring put fluency in Mandarin as one of their criteria. Najib likens this to discrimination, and it is a practice which must STOP FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD AND PURE!!

Ermmm...right.


What about poor lil ol' me?

I'm a Chinese, and my Mandarin vocab is limited to phrases such as 'Wo Ai Ni' (I Love You), 'Ni Ai Wo' (You Love Me), 'Che Shuo Zhai Na Li?' (Where is the loo?) and 'Wo Bu Hui Jiang Hua Yi' (I can't speak Mandarin). Sad huh, somemore I actually went for Mandarin tuition during my primary school days. 2 years of it in fact! Money down the drain me thinks...sighhh.

Anyway back to my point, I can't speak Mandarin well, and when I see such job ads stating that they are looking for a Mandarin speaking candidate, I simply just turn the page and continue with my job browsing. I don't give it a second thought. Zip, nil, nada.

Not even once did I suddenly pause to think, "Bugger, I am being discriminated against! It's racism! It's lingualism! Its...its....(insert your own victimistic statement here)"

Najib went on to imply that this was the reason why the number of our famous jobless graduates has increased rom 45,000 in 2000 to 85,000 in 2005.

If only it were that simple.


Discrimination, Shmishcrimination

What next? Would asking that a job seeker has a degree be discriminatory if Najib were to have his way? How about those job ads for the position of a cosmetics sales promoter, where it clearly states that they are only interested in female candidates? Is that considered discrimination against males?

What about companies who are looking for people to manage their operations in say, India, and are looking for a person who is fluent in hindi/tamil? Is that discrimination?

Dear readers, let me tell you what discrimination is.

Discrimination is ....

...you apply for a position in a local university, only to be told that all the available places have been allocated for bumis.

...tenders for government projects are only open to bumi companies.

...the heads of GLCs HAVE to be bumis, irregardless of the competence and skills of competing non-bumi candidates

I could go on and on. All the above scenarios can be considered discriminatory, but we non-bumis accept it with our heads held up high because we want to see Malaysia progress as a nation. Hell, somebody has got to sacrfice if Malaysia is to succeed.

Please note, I am listing down the above scenarios just as examples of what discrimination actually is. I am not bitching about it in any way.


I am not anti-Malay

Before I get postings lambasting me for being unpatriotic and a racist, let me clearly state that I am not anti-Malay in any way. You can check out my prevous posts here, here and here. I do believe that serious efforts have to be undertaken in order to reduce the income gap between the poor and the rich, the Malays and the Chinese/Indians.

What I AM against however, is stupid politicians coming up with inane statements which put the blame for their races' lack of progress on unrelated and irrelevant factors. To put it simply, I am against stupidity.

C'mon Najib, the Chinese and the Indians have long sacrificed so many things to the Malays because we too, want to see Malaysia progress and see the Bumis take their majority-given place as the engine of growth for this country. We are not out to 'sabo' the bumis. The number of jobless graduates worry us just as much as it does you. However, to blame this on the private companies just flat out infuriates me!

Seek the root cause of the problem! Use your capacity as a Deputy PM to do something about it for crying out loud. I'm getting so sick of the blame game politicians play.

Frustrations

When the oceans rise, and thunders roar

Overwhelming. That's the word that comes to mind whenever I let my mind wander to the shitload of things which are vying for my time and attention. People I have to manage, projects I have to complete, issues which need looking into, deadlines which have to be met....

Sometimes I wish I could just get away from it all, if only for a little while

I Can't Create!!

Zombie fingers

My fingers seem to be strangely detached from my brain. Interesting thoughts form in my mind, but by the time these thoughts get shuffled between the synapses in my brain, transmitted down rows and rows of neurons, travel down the length of my arm in the form of electrical pulses, which are then translated into a series of muscle twitches which result in the tappity-tap of the keyboard and words being formed on this very screen.....the result is a bunch of mediocre, uninspired sentences so far removed from my original idea that I am ashamed to call them my own.

I loathe these insipid moments where every thought and activity degenerates into a pile of mundane-ness. Not for the lack of thoughts and activities though....it's just....

....I just....

... argghhh, blame it on those fingers, sigh.

Malaysia vs Singapore - Why We Failed

Scenic Bridge? What scenic bridge?

Further proof that the Internet is full of interesting crap. Here is an interesting comparison I got from a dear colleague of mine via e-mail. Read it and weep (for us Malaysians).

Now you know why we failed in so many Malaysia-Singapore negotiations.

First up...the Singapore Cabinet


PM Lee Hsien Loong
Cambridge University - First Class Honours (1974)
Harvard University - Masters (1980)


SM Goh Chok Tong
University of Singapore - First Class Honours (1964)
Williams College, USA - Masters (1967)


MM Lee Kuan Yew
Cambridge University - First Class Honours (1949)


Minister for Law Prof. S Jayakumar
University of Singapore - Bachelor of Law Honours (1963)
Yale Univerity - Masters (1966)


Minister for Home Affairs Wong Kan Seng
University of Singapore - Bachelor of Arts & Business Admin (1977)
London Business School - Masters (1979)


Minister for Foreign Affairs BG George Yeo
Cambridge University - Double First Class Honours (1976)
Harvard Business School - MBA w/ Distinction (1985)


Minister for Trade and Industry Lim Hng Kiang
Cambridge University - First Class Honours w/ Distinction (1976)
Harvard University - Masters (1986)


Minister for Defence Teo Chee Hean
University of Manchester - First Class Honours (1976)
Imperial College, London - Masters w/ Distinction (1977)


Minister for Education Tharman Shanmugaratnam
London School of Economics - Bachelor of Arts
Cambridge University - Masters
Harvard University - Masters


Now for our Malaysian Cabinet *drumroll*


PM Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi
University of Malaya - B.A. Hons in Islamic Studies (1964)


Deputy PM Dato' Sri Najib Razak
University of Nottingham - Bachelor of Arts Honours (1974)


Minister of Foregn Affairs Syed Hamid Albar
(can someone tell me his univeristy?? )- Bachelor of Arts


Ministry of Works- Dato' Seri Samy (goodness me, is that an afro??) Vellu
(Education Unknown <--- Mou Tuk Shee)


Ministry of International Trade & Industry Rafidah binti Aziz
Universiti Malaya - Bachelor of Arts Honours


Minister of Agriculture Muhyiddin Yassin
(Education Unknown)


Ministry of Domestic Trade Shafie Apdal
(Education Unknown)


Minister of Education Hishammuddin Hussein
LLB.Hons - University of WalesAberystwyth, United Kingdom
LL.M(London) - Commercial & Corporate Law, London School Of Economics, London


Minister of Home Affairs Radzi bin Sheikh Ahmad
(Education Unknown)


Malaysia Boleh

Apparently, education takes a back seat in bolehland. Doesn't matter how much you know, or how well trained you are, all that matters are the arses you kiss on your way to the top. Oh, I am sure it also helps if you are born into the 'right' family.

After all, connections are everything right?

Sad, so sad indeed.

Karaoke Idol

Karaoke & Me

I don't know why I still continue going for karaoke. It always ends up the same. It begins with me feeling all pumped up, confidant that I will put in a stellar singing performance which will put Bo Bice to shame.

Sadly, things dont always turn out that way. Alrightttt, they NEVER turn out that way.

I admit, I'm a fan of bands such as U2, Bon Jovi and Aerosmith. In fact, I like them so much, I usually try to sing at least one of their songs in any given k-session. The operative word here is 'try', and boy do I TRY hard. What is it with all these macho men and their ball-shrinkingly, super-high singing abilities??

If I turn down the key a few notches, the chorus of U2's 'With or Without You' becomes manageable, BUT the verses end up sounding like Darth Vader on valium. Argghhh.. there is NO middle ground! It's either super high, or super low! Curse those rockers with their pitch perfect voices and broad vocal range!! @$#%@!!

Faced with such difficult songs, I'll usually end up croaking into the mic, sounding like an Avian-flue riddled duck. So disheartening man.

However, you have to hand it to the indomitable human spirit. No matter how many times a person gets 'beaten' down, quitting is never an option..hahah.

This is what brings me back constantly for more. Oh, and also due to the fact that it's a heck of a lot of fun. Really.

I'm a vocal masochist at heart.

Totally Retro

Selling T-shirts to the masses

As you all may remember, me and my friends had this blinding flash of inspiration one day while sitting around talking about money and how to get our grubby hands on more of it. Our moment of Eureka went something like this...

"Let's sell something..."

"Sounds good, but what to sell?"

"Let's sell T-shirts!"

"Ermm...okay"

Sure, it might sound very tak-semangat when you read it, but trust me...it was truly a very beautiful, tear inducing moment *sniff sniff*.

Anyway, from that initial moment of brilliance, we began brainstorming hard. You could almost hear the creaky gears in our heads going into overtime. What kind of t-shirts to tell? What would our niche be? Where would be the best location? Should we hire half-naked chicks to stand around our shop in the hopes that it will result in more t-shirt sales? Oh the multitude of questions that cropped up in our minds.

After several months of planning, it's finally all coming together. Our business plan is pretty much complete together with the financial projections. Why, we even managed to come up with a mock-up of what our booth will look like (the shopping mall's management asked for it ler). See? the concept was created in 3D!...*gasps of amazement*.









Ok lah, truth be told, we used Google's sketchup program, recommended by Nimal D. Which by the way is such an easy program to use that even a blind, one handed baboon could have created a model of the Eifel tower in the time it takes for you to read that sentence.

We were also cracking our heads on where our booth should be located. Places that piqued our interest were 1 Utama and Mid Valley, but hey, we aren't choosy. If the rental at dodgy places such as Ampang Point are low enough, who knows, it might be feasible to open a booth there...ahahah







Oh well, we'll submit our proposal to all of them anyhow. Pray it goes well!

Winds of Change

Not Wesak day yet

Thanks to my friend's muddled knowledge of the yearly calender, I was led to believe that Wesak day falls on today. Imagine the jubilation I felt last Friday when I thought that a 3 day weekend was in store. Oh well, at least I have this Friday to look forward to. Me and my sis will be dropping by Low Yatt Plaza for a morning of Laptop shopping.

Ooohh, buying tech gadgets always gives me goosebumps :) (warning, geek alert!)


Goodbye Kuala Lumpur

Today is also the day where I will be tendering my resignation with my current company. Yup, I got a new job! Praise the Lord! God is really amazing man. I didn't think that I would get such a good offer so soon. I mean, I only began sending out my applications 2 weeks ago. True, the job market now is really hot....but when I look at all the circumstances leading up to this job, it has to be God :)

So come 30 days from now, I will no longer have to work in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. Woo hoo! Goodbye crappy old, perpetually clogged Jalan Yap Kwan Seng and Jalan Ampang. Hello to the idyllic bliss (well, relatively lah) of Mont Kiara.





Having said that, I am gonna miss my current company. My colleagues are really great, and the company has so far been really good to me. Promotions seem to come readily, along with pretty decent yearly bonuses. Working in KL also has its benefits ler, in spite of all the times I've bitched about it.

I mean, in KL, really really good food is usually only a few minutes drive away. Who can forget the great 'lat jiu pan mee', or the fantastic char siu at Jalan Alor. Mmmmm...I'll definitely miss that. I hope Mont Kiara has good food, really. The thought of eating McDonalds day after day is enough to make me hurl and go into sporadic foaming fits.


Handphone shopping ..."Which is the cheapest ar?"

I decided to get myself a new phone along with a new line for my new job. Experience has taught me this, always keep your working phone separate from your personal phone. The last thing you want is annoying clients calling you up at 1 in the morning because they found out that you mispelled in the prospectus, the university they attended way back in 1979. Yeesh.

Anyway, I went to the handphone shop in Taipan and spotted a pretty nifty looking Samsung unit. Alright, truth be told, it was the price tag of RM499 which caught my attention. Since this phone will be used strictly for work, fancy-schmancy features such as a camera will not be required (unless you have a fetish for taking pics of your clients...ugghhh). Oh btw, did I mention that I am a huge fan of Samsung? Well, now you know.



Seeing your dad everyday will make you gay

On a less serious note (were the previous paragraphs all that serious to begin with?...hmmm), I read something in The Star today which caused me to burst out laughing while drinking a cup of milo, which resulted in me spewing out a geyser of milo through my nostrils.

This one chap called CTH (which I assume stands for Certified Transvestitie Hottie) wrote in to The Star saying this....

"Just when people think that husbands being homemakers is such a new and great idea, please spare some thought or the children. What kind of a role model would the house-husband make for a growing boy? He will probably grow up to be a feminine male and gay before long"

Ermmmm....so if a husband stays home to take care of his kids because he loves them and wants the best for them, he is inadvertantly telling them that "Hey, look at me, I am a sissy dad! You will now grow up to be a batty boy!".




Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but the logic behind such conclusions continue to elude me. How in the WORLD do you draw the connection between a stay-home dad and rampant homosexual kids? So if the inverse were true, that means that kids with shitty dads who don't come home at all will grow up adjusted and straight?

My dad was never around when I grew up. So I guess that makes me the most macho, manly, testosterone packed male around lah. Sayyy, that doesn't sound too bad. Maybe this CTH is on to something...heh heh.

Labour Day and Bachelors

Laborers in the Fields and Offices

After a 3-day weekend, I know that I should be heading to the office this morning feeling fresh and rejuvenated. Raring to take on another week of challenges and opportunities. By right that's how I should feel right?

Far from it.

I'm feeling pretty knackered right now. The flu which has been bugging me for the past 2 weeks doesn't seem to have subsided. My nose is still a leaky faucet of all things gooey and slimy. I also felt that I should have done more during the weekend. I mean, it's not like a 3-day weekend comes around very often ya know. I should have squeezed it for all it's worth, hedonistically draining every single minute and every second!

Instead, I spent the most part of the weekend sleeping. Argghhh!!!

During the few odd hours which I was awake, I did find some time to bonds with my colleagues, and also support my 3 CLEO Bachelor friends as they took to the stage at Zouk.


The BBQ that could have been

We had such grand plans. Everything from the menu to the size of the BBQ grilled had been planned to a T. Why, one of the managers even bought a brand spanking new BBQ grill for the occassion. All this was done to celebrate my boss's birthday, and also to commemorate the opening of their new pool.



This was last Friday night.

As you all may recall, it rained last friday night. And like rain water getting flushed down the drainage systems of Bangsar, so too did our BBQ plans. In the end, we spent the night sitting indoors munching on BBQ flavored chips from Lay's. Bummer.






CLEO Bachelor's Night at Zouk

Well whaddaya know, 3 of my friends have been chosen to be CLEO's top 50 most eligible bachelors for the year 2006. Amazing! I never knew I had such 'sexy' (well, according to CLEO at least...ahahah) friends. They are none other than Liang, Aloysius Wee and Calvin Jacob.

Being the good friend that I am, I dropped by Zouk to watch them embarass themselves. Dang, did that come out loud? I mean't 'to give them my support' or course. Hyuk hyuk.





In the end, none of my friends won the title of 'Best Bachelor'. Oh well, too bad. I thought that having a 'celebrity Bachelor' as a friend would have done wonders for my social status...muahahahah.