A belief flashed by me on the journey home; reflections of this earth I am living in did not belong to me. My existence here is on borrowed time and borrowed land from my children. Time to come, I will dedicate my part in preserving this earth and restoring it to them unsurpassable.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
'Blacked Out'?
A belief flashed by me on the journey home; reflections of this earth I am living in did not belong to me. My existence here is on borrowed time and borrowed land from my children. Time to come, I will dedicate my part in preserving this earth and restoring it to them unsurpassable.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Fast and Furious Force
Today the Royal Malaysian Police celebrated Police Day, the day the force was formed 202 years ago. It is, indeed, a mature and tested police force that is best remembered, together with other branches of the armed forces, for its contributions and sacrifices in the long battle against the Malayan Communist Party during the first and the second Emergencies (1948-1960 and 1967 to 1989).These days the men in blue face other hazards, which are no less challenging, of modern-day policing. In spite of various constraints, they have toiled tirelessly to maintain law and order. Their dedication to duty has been reflected in their recent successes in combating crime, curbing drug syndicates and the elimination of notorious armed gangs.It is the hope of every Malaysian that the police force will continue to enforce the law without fear or favour. And while they go about their duties, the police should remember that to be a really effective force, it cannot stand alone. It needs all the support it can muster from the public through activities such as community policing so that the police force becomes the people's force.
What interest me in the news is that the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) has acquired 25 units of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X (10 - with manual transmission) which will be used alongside the Proton Wajas as patrolcars. High-performance models are nothing new to the force and even as far back as the 1970s, they had a fleet of 2-litre Alfa Romeo Alfettas, the first police force outside Italy to use the Italian cars. Marketed by City Motors at that time, they were assembled at the Swedish Motor Assemblies plant in Shah Alam, Selangor. Later on, during the 1980s, the force also purchased a small fleet of Ford TX3s which were used for undercover operations. The cars were unmarked and little was known about them other than that they existed. Around that time, other government agencies like the Customs also used models like the Citroen BX and BMW 318i in order to pursue criminals who had fast machines. In the 1990s, the Highway Patrol got the powerful Volvo 850 T5 stationwagons which were ideal for use on the North-South Highway. The stationwagons served for some time but today, the Highway Patrol uses Mitsubishi Pajeros, Nissan X-Trails and some Proton Satria GTIs. The force will be sending its Evo drivers for special training courses so that they will be able to make full use of the car’s performance so illegal racers had better think twice before trying to accelerate away when they see flashing blue lights behind them. The police also say that the cars may have other roles that require high-speed escorts. As these are government vehicles, the cost would be about half the showroom price of RM324,000 since they are purchased tax-free. Also, the Evo's 295 bhp engine is a thirsty powerplant but since the police also get tax-free petrol, that should not be a worry either!Now, when we see these beasts roaring behind us in our mirrors, pull over - the chase is not worth it. Recline your windows down, smile and don't rehearse the ever popular, "Boleh settle ka?"
Monday, March 23, 2009
Let The Show Begin
Through some friends,I had a chance to meet Jessie Phua, a Member of Parliament from Singapore last Saturday. We were discussing about lifestyles and this led to the topic of recession. My last trip to Singapore was a few months back. I was window shopping and I noticed droves of people trying to enter into designer outlets. Yes, they literally needed to queue and I wondered to myself where was the recession? I shared this with Jessie and she jokingly said that these were not Singaporeans but Mainland Chinese, when I said that they were mostly dressed in shorts. The point I am driving here is, our friends from Kiasuland acknowledges that the recession has hit their shores and they have been taking measures to overcome.
Recessions always result in compressing the marketplace; that Sheraton and Hilton, full service hotels down the street will now be after my business. As the business pie shrinks, the number of hotels in my competition set will increase; everyone wants to propagate their slice of the pie. Hotels which present the best value to consumers will succeed, not hotels with the lowest rates. I had a meeting with my hotel EXCO members recently and I suggested not to press the panic button yet and they agreed. Resist the overwhelming urge to just reduce rates; that has never worked and usually starts the dreaded downward spiral.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Good Luck, Bad Luck, Who Knows?
I once came across this ancient Chinese fable.
There is an ancient Chinese story of a farmer who owned an old horse that till his fields. One day, the horse escaped into the hills and when the farmer's neighbours sympathized with the old man over his bad luck, the farmer replied, “Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?”A week later, the horse returned with a herd of horses from the hills and this time the neighbours congratulated the farmer on his good luck. His reply was, “Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?” Then, when the farmer's son was attempting to tame one of the wild horses, he fell off its back and broke his leg. Everyone thought this was bad luck. Not the farmer, whose only reaction was, “Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?”Some weeks later, the army marched into the village and conscripted every able-bodied youth they found there. When they saw the farmer's son with his broken leg, they let him off. Once again, the farmer's only reaction was, “Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?
Friends, every single thing in this world is neutral unless we put a value to it. We can choose to make things better or make them worse. Wake up and remember who we were once upon a time.