 Click here (jumps to picasa) Anwar: We're ready to form new gov't Sep 15, 08 10:32pm Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim told a 20,000-strong rally tonight that he had the numbers to form a new government tomorrow and wants to meet with Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to discuss a handover. "Tonight on the eve of Malaysia Day, we are ready to form the government tomorrow," he said to loud cheers from the jubilant crowd. "We have the numbers to defeat BN," he said. "Tomorrow is D-day, we are ready to form the government." According to him, Pakatan Rakyat has submitted a letter to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today seeking a meeting for a smooth transition of power. "Tomorrow, we are ready. But the best time, I tell you, is when we have met the prime minister. A peaceful transition is paramount," he added, indicating that there will be no change of government tomorrow as he had promised earlier. The opposition leader also did not provide more information on how many MPs Pakatan has in the bag and the number of government defectors. Anwar will need at least 31 defectors from BN and perhaps over 40 for a stable Pakatan government. "I believe that the government will fall in the next few weeks," he told journalists after the rally. The massive crowd had earlier gathered at the Kelana Jaya stadium in Petaling Jaya to celebrate Pakatan's 'Hari Malaysia' celebration. More herehere & here
  All photos and words/captions copyright © Kenneth Hiew 2008.
The Malaysian General Elections 2008: PJ
Click on the link to go to Picasa ---> PICTURES from a photo story I shot last night.
I'd been following Tony Pua on his website for a long time, ever since his "Education in Malaysia" website days, in tandem with Jeff Ooi, blogger and now MP for Jelutong, (yay!), since 2001+. I am in the educational/academic line, and found we stood on common ground on a lot of of issues. Bumping into him one day at the Starbucks in Bangsar, we got to talking about the Internet media for politics/elections, and all the inherent issues. He was telling me then of his just-made decision to be the Economic Advisor to the DAP Secretary General.
I liked him, and all he stood for.
A Malaysian former CEO and founder of a public listed IT company, and a Keble, Oxford graduate, he had sold his company and joined the Democratic Action Party (DAP).
The rest of the story, does not really need to be said in so many of my words. Just look in Youtube and online.
Syabas Tony, Kit Siang, Guan Eng, Teresa, Jeff, all DAP, staff, volunteers, bloggers, and ALL the Barisan Rakyat! It was an electrifying night!
The image which sticks in my mind are the ones of the heartfelt hugs and handshakes from Average-Joe Rakyat-Malaysia of all races and many ages, of such humble surroundings, of people serving with humilty, big smiles, of nervousness with the news of rumours of FRU and other things, of the chocolate cake, of the looks of fear, worry, expectation, then hope and happiness on the faces of the people there, and of the tiny wallpaper of his daughter on his handphone. The left over mee-hoon was nice, too. :)
It was a David vs. Goliath contest, indeed. There was a stark contrast to the mega budgets and slick party machinery of BN. The ruling party also had control of the traditional media of newspapers and television. Somebody had happened to show me pictures of one of their action rooms nearby, and I'm not denying it looked slick, well funded and neat, but, how should I put this.. empty. But then again, I'm also not painting them all with the same brush. Like anything else in life, there are good parts and there are bad parts. But as I looked around me, the camraderie, the tired workers, the people - their faces were lit up with.. something, and the humble surroundings, I thought, this is where I am and want to be.
Rock the vote. Do your part. Do it right.
What a night that was.
Pictures HERE. Also see previous entry of pictures of the finale rallies ↓
    Update: 4:19am Sunday March 9th, 2008-- Pictures of finale rallies at Lembah Pantai for PKR and Penang for DAP. All pictures originally from websites below, and remain the copyright of the website owner/photographer.?3000 people in Taman Tun Doktor Ismail stood in the heavy downpour, refusing to go back, to continue listening to an opposition ceramah. In Ipoh, people stood in the rain as well. Jeff Ooi, hoarse after 10 days of non stop talking and campaigning, took out his guitar and belted out some songs on the last day. Karpal Singh, in a wheel chair but still going strong. DAP-ELECTIONS.COM
 Besides these, look at malaysiakini.com news is now free, till the elections are over. During election night, the page was stripped down to accomodate the high traffic flow, and 6 mirrors were put up. See link. jeffooi.commalaysiavotes.comteresakok.comwww.limkitsiang.comtonypua.comanwaribrahimblog.comsuarakeadilan.comharapanmalaysia.comtianchua.netelizabethwong.wordpress.comthemalaysianinsider.comwww.mycen.com.myCentral resource page on Election: http://www.mycen.com.my/malaysia/election2008.htmlReuters picked up on the huge rally in Penang M'sia opposition draws huge crowds ahead of poll. See after pictures for linkhttp://www.malaysia-today.net/2008/content/view/3949/84/All pictures originally from those websites, and remain the copyright of the website owner/photographer. ROCK THE VOTE -- as at 4.19am PM: ‘We’ve lost, we’ve lost’ - 4.12amThese were the only words which Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi could muster when quizzed on the ruling coalition’s shocking defeat in five states.
Abdullah was posed with the question during a press conference at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur. He was accompanied by his wife Jeanne, deputy Najib Abdul Razak and other BN leaders.
The prime minister added that he will make a media statement after analysing the results in detail. Anwar ushers in ‘a new dawn for Malaysia’ - 4.08amA triumphant PKR leader Anwar Ibrahim described the victory of the opposition parties in five states and its breach of Barisan Nasional’s two-third majority in Parliament as “a defining moment” in the history of the nation and the opening of “a new chapter.”
“The people have voted decisively for a new era where the government must be truly inclusive and recognises that all Malaysians, regardless of race, culture or race are a nation of one,” he told a packed press conference at his residence in Segambut, Kuala Lumpur.
“The people have expressed in no uncertain terms that they want accountability, transparency, and the rule of law.”
 A Malaysian Muslim finds respite from the afternoon sun on the marble floors of the Sultan Salahuddin mosque in Shah Alam during the holy fasting month of Ramadhan. September 19th, 2007.
 I met Bazuki Muhammad on the 10th ~ he came to give a talk at my university. It was great! I admire his work. He had many stories to tell, fascinating to hear. Here's one: - Of 5 Reuters PJs in Afghanistan, he was the only one who did not get any pictures during conflict/shooting battles. This was because he runs whenever he hears bullets whistling by. Being a Malaysian, and unfamiliar with guns and bullets, I think any one of us would do the same, even with bullet proof vests. OH, and by the way of the 5, he was the only one to come out alive. He shot images from the tsunami and aftermath which are riveting. An amazing talent, but a humble, grounded guy. I was very privileged to meet him. Click on his name to visit his website
         So the C was back from Beijing for a week.. renewing passpowerports and all.. and she very much wanted to eat a lot of hawker food, we went to SS2 and ordered too much. Nice to have her around for company. Speaking of which, we also visited the Registrar of Businesses/Companies twice to - what else - register company. Lastly, Eddie , she and me went to look at the Mitsuoka super car, the Mistuoka Orochi . Very organic design, like some Japanese manga car perhaps others might like it, but not to my taste. C's comment.. not very positive, to put it mildly :P . Plus it has a big gap between the wheel well and the tyre.. not nice at all. Bon voyage C and I hope your dog is not cooked yet, and you've arrived safe. Well actually I know that you have, from the phone call but well ~ hope your dog is still not cooked yet ! Pic 1: At first smiling in the car, but a bit later..... Pic 1: Front view - a bit wierd, u think? Pic 2: Rear view Pic 3: Side view Pic 4: .... Not very impressed hehe Pic 5: But the Caterham look-alike roadster is nice! Pic 6: At the Suruhanjaya Daftar Company Pic 7: Kopitiam with Uncle Ed :) Pic 8: Makan lok lok SS2 - she takes pic of food to send to "jealous" people in BJ
One of the people I admire most in the film making world happened to be at LKW University recently. Coincidentaly, the previous night, when asked at cell group what my favorite movie was, I said Braveheart and did the "You can take our lives but you'll never take out freedom" line from the movie :D The next day, I woke up and checked my email, to my surprise I saw an email from my colleague say ing Mel would be at LKW for an unannounced (press free) visit. Mel would be there with his producer, Mr. Bruce Davey, both of them Oscar winners for Braveheart. They recently made Apocalypto and a movie I really like very much, the Passion of Christ. I'd always wanted to meet him, and here was my chance. Fortunately, I managed to get into the main hall to listen to his talk an d also to witness the event organizers getting some girls to do belly dances for him *ahem*. Yes my camera was with me. It was chaos, there were so many people screaming, and I got fed up with the paparazzi-celebrity fever, all the photographers pushing and jostling, so I stepped away a while. In the hall, I managed to go to the side and stand quite close to the stage, about 12 feet away. It was a great talk, and Mel was his usual mischevious, funny, irreverant self. The last things he said: you only get somewhere by purposely trying and failing many times, and everything should be done out of love. Demetri Boon has some nice close ups: Pic 1: Students getting up close Pic 2: Mel wearing Crocs and Bruce Pic 3: How often do you see our flag in his background?   
     Pic 1: My favorite chopper from American chopper: The I-robot bike Pic 2: The Teutuls Pic 3: Malaysian chopper Pic 4: At the office
The show
I'm a huge fan of the Discovery Channel Show American reality show American Chopper. Formerly under Discovery's TLC, with its tag-line: Life Unscripted, it is now one of the premiere shows, and runs in Discovery's prime time slot. Detractors have called it a low-brow show in a supposedly intellectual channel, but I like how they talk about the design, building and the business of running a motorcycle enterprise. They have a lot of things going for it, which make it appealing, but it's mixed with some entertainment elements (read: stupid pointless fun), so don't take it as an encyclopedic, well researched academic paper-ish documentary on motorcycle design and business management. I think it was made to go with Discovery's edutainment direction - make learning fun, but not too hard on the learning, particularly for this show :). TrendsI've always liked Choppers. I remember when I was in college, CL lent me a magazine on these Harley Davidson custom bikes. The design of the bikes has progressed far far beyond that now, because of the popularity of the bikes publicized through this how. The custom bike industry in the US and around the world is growing fast. I guess many people like the sense of freedom, beauty which is ride-able, the loud noise it makes, along with some of the bad-ass attitude :P which goes along with it, which undeservedly comes from the Hell's Angel bad biker gangs from times yonder. At the same time, we are also seeing "pretender" city-slicker boys trying to look tough by buying leather jackets and Harleys :P ala Wild Hogs. There are many other bike customisers in the US, and some of them have shows of some sort on Discovery, but they're not as big as Orange County Choppers on American Chopper. Wikipedia reports that there are a few features which make this show appealing: 1. The verbal battles and personality quirks of the main guys, Paul Teutul Sr., Paul Teutul Jr., Michael Teutul, Vinne etc. Senior's the father. They get into some pretty heated, long arguments. Some are entertaining. Some are horrifying :P. Some make you go, err... should the cameraman be there? There are some heated moments, which have happened (but rarely), where the cameraman may turn away or it is cut.
2. Random destruction: they destroy a lot of things: cars, trucks, shops to work off stress, steam and probably testosterone, I guess. What! Got a problem with that!??
3. Outside of work: The cast members often participate in leisure activities together — as a group, the crew have hunted pheasant, gone skeet shooting, snowmobiled, fished for striped bass on the Hudson River and, in one of the earliest episodes, closed the shop for a few hours to go bowling. It's also nice to see their family stuff like birthdays, shovelling snow off Grandma's car, paying a visit to a children's or old folks home, how they spend Christmas, training their dogs.
4. Small business success: Although OCC itself started as a small business and was built and expanded by Paul Sr., it was not his first foray into this segment of the private sector. A few years before he started OCC he'd built a successful iron-working shop making wrought-iron fencing and other products. This business is now run by another of Sr.'s sons, Daniel. However, OCC is considered by many to be Sr.'s greater success because of the uniqueness of the cycles they build, his son's talent for original design ideas, the crew they've assembled and, of course, the television series.
I'll add a fifth and sixth one:
5. A peaceful, simple small town lifestyle which has all the hallmarks of a good quality life away from rat races, never ending pressures, stress, and hustle and bustle (although we'll have to see what happens now they are so big and successful, as a company :D).
6. Charity work: They are very big on charity work, having done work for various charitable organisations in the US, building bikes for them, having kids visit the workshop, building bikes to give away to fans, etc.Website here. Me and the chopper at the officeI was fortunate enough to be in the US in 2004 when they screening re-runs of the 1st season, while showing the 2nd season, on US TV. I bought 2 their bike models, and have all of their show episodes. So I was *pretty chuffed* when I saw my colleague bringing his friend's bike to the office, and I grabbed my chance to sit on it. It is long, low, and very hard to steer, due to the extreme rake on the fork. It was built in Malaysia at a custom shop here, from a Yamaha Virago. However, it is not strictly road legal as the JPJ cannot certify it. :( *Ahem* *Booooo* The best part: Custom choppers in the US can cost upwards of USD100,000. This bike costs less than RM25,000.
  The whole cell group gang celebrated Shawn and Michelle's birthday here, in this Italian themed restaurant. Shawn had just been baptised, and Angie, Ling Yew, Nataly and Daphne had just become new member at DUMC church, so we had a big lunch to celebrate. Pic 1: Patrick, Shawn, Jac, Nat, Ling Yew, Angie, ?, Larry, Noree, Matt, Daph, Mich, Elly Pic 2: Shawn & Michelle
     Highly recommended: Rublee's oops sorry Riblee's at Desa Sri Hartamas. They used to be at PJ, and one of our regular hangout places every Thursday. They specialise in ribs (baby back, wild boar, etc.) Try the Oreo's ice cream, Mud pie, Angel hair pasta. In fact you can try almost anything on their menu. I almost have. :) Kenny and John, the owners, and their wives, are very friendly :). Nice ambience and a good view. Sunday night is not so crowded, there might even be a cool breeze on the balcony if you sit outside. The chairs outside on the balcony are very interesting ~ they're sort of deck chairs, which can seat you very comfortably, and have a purple mesh fabric which you sit on, and are made of aluminum and are very light!. The only place I could think of, where I saw a chair like that was at Ace Hardware ~ made in Belgium. The wooden platters on which some of the food is served are kinda cool ~ they have knife cut marks on them. My special, a roast pork belly came on one of those gourmet-ish curved square plates (you'll know what I mean when you see one). Most of the food helpings are big, and although they may not look like much when they come, because they have that French gourmet "looks nice and tastes nice" feel, they will really make you very full. I'm not sure if they have a cheese platter, I'd want to try that the next time I go, maybe with a glass of wine. The angel hair pasta is very good, with bits of roast bacon in it, and very spicy. The ribs and meat are the "dry" kind, so they will be crispy outside, and soft inside. Lovers of pork who like their meat drenched in gravy will find this different. The thing is,.. if you talk to Kenny more, and slide into his "zone" :) he'll ask you if you want to try one of his specials, not on the menu ~ and so I tried a roast pork belly. It was supremely delicious - very crispy skin, very soft and tender and juicy meat, with some layers of fat which melt in your mouth. They are a rib and pork specialist, so.... no arguments there. B & J were there for the first time, and really liked it too.
Pic 1: Sign
Pic 2: Pasta
Pic 3: Baby back ribs
Pic 4: Joey
Pic 5: & Ben
RIBLEE’S 41-1, Wisma CKL Jalan 23/70A Desa Sri Hartamas
 Pic 1: Loading the wood onto the car at Klang Timber
I've been engaged in building an installation art piece for an upcoming art exhibition for the past two weeks. Now that the launch is over, I've been able to take a breather and sit down to blog about some of the things I went through in the process of doing this piece. In the beginning, I needed to get some huge pieces of plywood cut, and so had to find a lumber yard that could get the stuff cut for me. Looking around, and getting some info from friends (thanks Cristine, Angie), I saw that 4" and 8" rotary saws were going from RM200-300, and I judged that it was just not worth it yet to get one. With Ben's help, I went to a lumber yard in Klang called Klang Timber to pick up the wood. The problem was how do you carry big 8' x 4' sheets of plywood and 12' long beams in a car? The delivery truck was delayed, and I needed the wood fast, so I constructed a wooden rack which was 12' long x 4' wide and lashed it to the top of my roof rack. Checking with the manufacturer's specs, the manual said the load bearing capacity of the rack was up to about 70-80kg on the roof. So it all went perfectly ~ I just had to make sure the wood was tied down properly (all the past scouting knot tying know-how really helped here). It was hot, sweaty and really dusty. The rack served me well for the next 2 weeks, as I used it to buy more wood over that time. The funniest thing about it was the reactions of the other people on the road when they see this big silver car barreling down the road with a whole bunch of wood on its roof :) In the end though, as it turned out, the first batch of wood was badly cut ~ they probably pushed the wood through the rotary blade too fast, or used a saw blade with too few teeth or was blunt as the edges were quite splintered, but unfortunately, I only had a chance to take a closer look when I got home. It was very frustrating as some pieces had to be discarded and the rest sanded. Later on, I actually found out that Dad could actually cut much straighter and better than the job they did at the lumber yard, and he did it with only a manual handsaw and 2 tables as jigs! He could even saw the big 8' pieces of plywood really straight, a real handyman & I give thanks to God for all the help :)
    Pic 1: The starter. Main course is not much bigger :P Pic 2: PT, Denz, Ed Pic 3: Rach, Van It was a nice gathering, organised by Pei Tze (thank you!). We were at KLue magazine's RSVP dinner thingy. KLue is a city metronews magazine. The RSVP event is partly a promo event, a dinner where you get together and pay less to dine. Check out klue's website. Isthmus (the restaurant) is at Northpoint, Midvalley Megamall (the condo beside). Don't park at Midvalley. Circle it and look for the sign "Northpoint" overhead. They have an interesting pool overlooking the KL skyline. The condos cost 400K+ for 1200 sq feet. :( And then Eddie and me got Ben and went to Ah Wa Fukien Chao at 222 to eat again. "D And I'm rushing this entry to go out for lunch now :D B-G-3, ground floor, Northpoint, Mid Valley City No 1 Medan Syed Putra Utara 59200 KL 22828112 www.isthmuskl.com
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