Friday, February 27, 2009

worst newscaster ever????



Perhaps this bloke need a career change????????

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Giant stingray caught, 3,300 lbs!!!!!!



Location : Hainan China
Weight : 3,300 lbs approx
Measurement : 16 foot and half inches wide.....!!!!!
Status : Dead - after struggling with the fishermen net...

Note : A stingray caused the death of Australian famous adventurer and crocodile hunter - The Late Steven Irwin.

Under Pressure - Queen & Vanilla Ice - who copied who????

Note the similarity of the music - Vannila Ice and Queen



Vannila Ice version of Ice Ice Baby




Original version of Under Pressure by Queen - crooned by the late frontman - Freddy Mercury...

Monday, February 23, 2009

Kiroro to freshen up your day

Kiroro first debuted in 1996. This sweet dynamic duo of vocalist Chiharu Tamashiro and pianist Ayano Kinjo captivated Asia with their song - MIRAIE...

I don't understand a word in Japanese except maybe Sayonara and Tora Tora Tora but the melody is certainly made in paradise...

A good song to start your day.... Cheers...

After Earthshaker and Loudness, X-Japan conquered Japan!!!!!

X Japan is a Japanese band founded in 1982 by Toshimitsu "Toshi" Deyama and Yoshiki Hayashi. The group achieved its breakthrough success in 1989 with the release of their second album Blue Blood. They started out as a power/speed metal band and later gravitated towards a progressive sound, at all times retaining an emphasis on ballads. After three more albums, X Japan disbanded in 1997.

The group sold more than 20 million albums and is considered the best ever band group to ever come out of Japan, apart from Loudness and Earthshaker!!!!!!!!!!!

Even Junichiro Koizume loved this band when he was Prime Minister of Japan!!!!!




Earthshaker and Loudness - The pioneer and the best Heavy Metal Bands in Japan



Earthshaker performing their classic and hugely popular song - TOKYO.

This heavy metal group was formed in Tokyo in 1978.
Masafumi "Marcy" Nishida (vocals)
Shinichiro "Shara" Ishihara (electric guitar)
Takayuki Kai (bass guitar)
Yoshihiro Kudo (drums)





Loudness performs "Heavy Chain"..... a phenomenal heavy metal song...

Loudness is a Japanese heavy metal band formed in 1981 by guitarist Akira Takasaki and drummer Munetaka Higuchi (recently deceased). They were the first Japanese heavy metal act signed in the United States...!!!!! Releasing seven albums (3 in America) by the end of 1987 and reaching the Billboard top 100.

Lead Vocalist - Minoru Niihara

Specially for the Boys!!!!!

Proud Mary - Who among them perform better???


CCR - The original singer




Tina Turner - many people thought this is her original song!!!!!









This is a fast one - performed by Sabah, Malaysian local band - RIMBA at Q-Ball, Penampang....

This song will cheer up your day!!!!!!

If you are frustrated.... listen to this song....



This is among my personal favourites.....

Milli Vanilli - used to be the biggest group in the music industry.... But Sad Ending...

They won a Grammy Award for best new artist in 1990.

Their records sold millions.

They attracted zillions of fans around the world.

Their hits included "Girl I Gonna Miss You", "Blame it on the Rain", "All or Nothing", "Baby dont forget my number", and many more.

Milli Vanilli was a pop/dance music project formed by Frank Farian in Germany in 1988, fronted by Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus.

The group's debut album achieved high sales internationally and became one of the most popular pop acts in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

However, their success turned to infamy and disaster when their Grammy was revoked after it was revealed that the actual vocals on the record were not the voices of Morvan and Pilatus.

In 1998, ten years after Milli Vanilli's debut, Pilatus was found dead in a Frankfurt hotel of an apparent drug overdose.

Happy beginning but sad ending....... They rose and fall quickly....so sad Milli Vanilli....

In true Milli Vanilli words - "It's a tragedy for me to see, the dream is over...." (lyrics from the song "Girl, I'M Gonna Miss You)....

These are among the group most popular songs - all reached no 1 in the Billboard chart, US chart, UK chart and any other charts the world music can offer....

Listen and you will be captivated - But both Morvan and Pilatus only lip synched.... the real vocals were the group known as The Real Milli Vanilli - good vocals but not as good looking, marketable and photogenic as Morvan & Pilatus.


"Baby Don't Forget My Number"




"Girl You Know It's True" (Whoaaaa I Like this Song!!!!!!)




"Girl, I'M Gonna Miss You" (Boy..... this is the Milli Vanilli song i like most)
- it's a tragedy for me to see the dream is over..............




"Blame it on the Rain" - another Milli Vanilli Classic....

Adios... Thanks for listening folks....

Memorable performance at the Grammy Awards

In the 2009 edition of the 51st Grammy Awards, Jennifer Hudson gave the most memorable performance with her emotion-packed rendition of "You Pulled Me Through"...

She was very very sad of course after enduring a very tough moment.

On October 24, 2008, Hudson's 57-year-old mother, Darnell Donerson, her 29-year-old brother, Jason, and a nephew were shot to death inside Donerson's home, in Chicago, Illinois.

(Guys....sorry for the low quality audio visual)

Fine Young Cannibals - She Drives Me Crazy!!!!!

Fine Young Cannibals was formed in Birmingham, England in 1984.

Their highest charting hits were "She Drives Me Crazy" and "Good Thing", from the 1989 album The Raw and the Cooked.

Both reached number one in the U.S. singles charts in 1989.

"She Drives Me Crazy" was also nominated for best pop performance by a group or duo at the 1990 Grammy Award.

Guys, anytime you have a crush on a girl, maybe you should play this song....


You don't have to be good looking to sell millions of albums

Whenever they performed this song together, sarcastic people labelled this duo as the beauty and the beast!!!!!

However, looks did not matter then for Aaron Neville.

His magical voice blended perfectly with Linda Ronstadt in the highly successful duet song - "Don't Know Much".

"Don't Know Much" won the 1990 Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

This is a "must song" to spice up your Valentine/Wedding Anniversary/special occasions...

Personally, I like the last part where Aaron Neville sang "Woouaaaahhh aaaaaaahhhhhahhh".....!!!!!!

This is a video of the famous song being performed live by Aaron Neville and Linda Ronstadt at the 1990 Grammy Award before accepting their award.

However "Don't know much" lost narrowly to "Wind Beneath My Wings"* performed by Bette Midler for the Song of the year award.....

I tell you - this is truly a magical song.....

desperate Tamil Tigers launched kamikaze attack


LTTE Supremo - Vellupillai Prabakharan


The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam or LTTE in Sri Lanka, in a desperate attempt to fight its losing battle against the Sri Lankan armed forces, launched a kamikaze attack - 9/11 style into the hearts of Colombo.

Such suicide attack freshen our memory of the 11 September 2001 event that shocked the world when 4 passenger airlines, hijacked by Al-Qaeda operatives led by Mohammad Atta, slammed into the World Trade Centre Twin Towers in New York, the Pentagon and another crashed, killing thousands of innocent people.

Yesterday, an explosive laden light plane of the LTTE Air Force Squadron - called the Air Tigers - slammed into the Sri Lankan Tax building, causing huge damage but minimal human casualties.

The pilot, who died carrying out the suicidal mission, was a Colonel in LTTE.

He truly devoted himself to the legendary supreme leader of the LTTE, Vellupillai Prabakharan.

Another LTTE Air Tigers aircraft was shot down near Colombo airport.

Prabakharan’s LTTE has been fighting Sri Lankan forces since 1983.

His aim – to establish an independent Tamil state for the minority ethnic Tamils, free from the Sinhalese majority controlled government.

However, the Sri Lankan armed forces has launched a non stop big scale operation to crush Prabakharan and his men, bombarding and attacking the LTTE positions from all directions using heavy artilleries, bombardier aircrafts, attack planes and helicopters and battle ships, gunship, rockets and any other weaponry.

The LTTE is now cornered in their stronghold, north east of Sri Lanka by more than 50,000 Sri Lankan soldiers.

Prabakharan whereabouts is still a mystery but the LTTE vowed not to surrender and continue fighting even though they suffered heavy casualties.

The LTTE has its own elite commando unit called the Black Tigers, created by Prabakharan to specially carry out suicide mission, more accurately suicide bombers.

The elite Black Tigers launched its first suicide attack against a Sri Lanka Army camp, killing 40 soldiers in 1987.

It was said to be the first ever suicide bomber attack in the world.

Hamas drew inspiration from the LTTE attack and carried out its own suicide bombing in Israel.

Todate, the LTTE have carried out more suicide bombings than Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Al-Qaeda combined.

To those who glorify criminals, this is a good read

Criminals are the villains, not cops

(source – the star online)

THERE has to be some sense of trust in the police force when it involves the arrest of criminals.

Crime has increased almost two-folds within the last four years.

About 20% of serious crimes are committed by illegal immigrants and another 80% by locals. A lax police force would thus contribute to a further increase in the crime rate and more serious crimes being committed. This would bring more fear to the society.

Crime is also draining the government resources. The engagement of extra forces to combat crime, maintaining the prisons and having long trials cost the government millions that can otherwise be used to help the needy in society.

Criminals are getting more daring as there are groups in our society who would always question the police when it involves shooting and killing while engaging the criminals. This is demoralising the police force.

No police officer in his right mind would shoot a criminal if the latter does not pose a threat to his life.

Many policemen were killed while on duty and how many people have cared to sympathise with them and their bereaved families?

The society has to be wary that many of these hard-core criminals are armed. Hardly would a criminal these days enter a house without a weapon. A slight commotion would be enough for these criminals to slash their victims to death.

These have happened all too often and the aggrieved party subsequently would have to live in pain.

In most cases, the victims are not armed to fight back and most criminals would resort to violence to rob or harm the victims.

We have read about innocent people being snatched off their handbags and dying on the road, cars being hijacked and the victims harmed, victims being slashed to death in their homes and some tortured and raped.

The criminals are just brutal and merciless and they cannot be left free to carry on with their crimes. They have to be engaged in a hard-hitting manner.

The theory that poverty and unemployment are the causes of an an increase in serious crimes may not always be true.

These hard-core criminals are a totally different breed. They choose not to earn a decent income through hard work but prefer to seek a luxurious lifestyle through robbery and killing and satisfy their sexual desire by raping. These are criminals who should be purged from society for the sake of peace loving citizens.

On the other hand, the role of the police is not a painless one. Not many would want to be in the police force as it is not a safe job as their life is always at risk.
We should be grateful to these people who are willing to serve the force to help maintain law and order in the country.

If there are some miscreants in the force, this does not mean that the whole force is bad.

Let us not put down their spirit by taking them to task when criminals are shot. This matter should not be politicised to gain support from people who do not appreciate the sacrifice made by the police.

No upright policeman would want to kill an armed criminal for no reason.

Dr M.A. NAIR,
Bandar Muadzam Shah.

Bollywood movie wins big at the 81st Academy Award







Before the award presentation at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood yesterday, I blogged wether Slumdog Millionaire will create history as the first ever Bollywood or Indian movie to win the coveted Best Picture Award at the Oscar presentation.



And they did. Winning 8 awards in total for Best Picture, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Editing, Music Score, Music Song and 2 more awards.

However, the question that lingers are the fate of the child actors who starred in that movie. They are real life poor children living in the slums of Mumbai. Mumbai, the largest city in India with 14 million population has the biggest slum population in the world – 60 % of the city inhabitants live in slums.

LOS ANGELES: Slumdog Millionaire took the best-picture Academy Award and seven other Oscars, including director for Danny Boyle, whose ghetto-to-glory story paralleled the film’s unlikely rise to Hollywood’s summit.

A story of hope amid squalor in Mumbai, India, Slumdog Millionaire came in with 10 nominations, its eight wins including adapted screenplay, cinematography, editing and both music Oscars (score and song).

“Just to say to Mumbai, all of you who helped us make the film and all of those of you who didn’t, thank you very much. You dwarf even this guy,” Boyle said, holding up his directing Oscar.

The filmmakers accepted the best-picture trophy surrounded by both the adult professional actors who appeared among the cast of relative unknowns and some of the children the British director cast from the slums of Mumbai.

The film follows the travails and triumphs of Jamal, an orphan who artfully dodges a criminal gang that mutilates children to make them more pitiable beggars.

Jamal witnesses his mother’s violent death, endures police torture and struggles with betrayal by his brother, while single-mindedly hoping to reunite with the lost love of his childhood.

Fate rewards Jamal, whose story unfolds through flashbacks as he recalls how he came to know the answers that made him a champion on India’s version of the TV game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?.

The other top winners: Kate Winslet, best actress for the Holocaust-themed drama The Reader; Sean Penn, best actor for the title role of Milk; Heath Ledger, supporting actor for The Dark Knight; and Penelope Cruz, supporting actress for Vicky Cristina Barcelona.

It was Winslet’s first win after five previous losses.

British Slumdog writer Simon Beaufoy, who adapted the script from Indian Vikas Swarup’s novel Q&A, said there are places he never could imagine being.
“For me, it’s the moon, the South Pole, the Miss World podium, and here,” Beaufoy said.

The epic love story The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, which led with 13 nominations, had three wins, for visual effects, art direction and makeup.

The Dark Knight had a second win, for sound editing.


This was my earlier blog post on Slumdog Millionaire…

Normally only Movie Stars and Hollywood's top actors / actress/ directors walked the red carpet at the annual Academy Award in Hollywood....

We used to see the likes of John Travolta, Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Tom Hanks, Gene Hackman, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Marlon Brando, Merryl Streep, Kate Winslet, Sean Penn, Mickey Rourke, Anne Hathaway, Jane Fonda, Audrey Hepburn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Rex Harrison, Mae West, Clint Eastwood, Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, Peter Jackson and other stars at the glamorous event.

But there is significant difference for this year 81st Oscar presentation at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood today Sunday 22 February 2009....

This time, 9 ordinary poor children from the slums of Mumbai in India will also walk the glamorous red carpet, enter the Kodak theatre, be seated and may even walk on stage to receive their Oscar.

They come to Hollywood because they are child actors who starred in India's most successful movie - "Slumdog Millionaire".

'Slumdog Millionaire" produced at a modest cost of USD15 million is nominated for 10 Oscars - including Best Picture at the most prestigious and highest honours of the global movie industry.

'Slumdog millionaire' will be battling it out with "The curious case of Benjamin Button", "The Reader", Frost/Nixon and Milk for the main award - Best Picture.

The plot of the movie tells of a Mumbai teen who grew up in the slums, becomes a contestant on the Indian version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" He is arrested under suspicion of cheating, and while being interrogated, events from his life history are shown which explain why he knows the answers and win 1 million US Dollar at the show.

Cast - Dev Patel, Anil Kapoor, Prem Kumar, Freida Pinto, Madhur Mittal, Jamal K. Malik and child actors amongst others - Rubina Ali, Mohammed Azhaudin Ismail, Ayush Mahesh Khedekar.

Directed by Danny Boyle - a British.

Since its release in the cinemas on January 9, 2009, Slumdog Millionaire has won 16 awards at the Golden Globes, BAFTA awards and Critics' Choice Awards.

Gee.... Slumdog Millionaire is better than other legendary Bollywood movies such as Bobby, Kuch Kuch Hota Hei, Naya Daur, Gumrah, Zanjeer, Roti Kapda Aur Makaan, Deewar, Sholay (highest ever grossing Bollywood movie) and Coolie.

Even Amitabh Bachchan, Rajesh Khanna, Raj Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor,Shashi Kapoor, Zeenat Aman, Dimple Kapadia, Perveen Babi, Vinod Khanna, Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Nargis, Dharmendra, Rekha, Hema Malini, Jaya Bhaduri and Amjad Khan were never nominated for an Oscar in their glittering careers as Bollywood top actors and actresses...!!!!!!

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Bikinis Make Men See Women as Objects, Studies revealed











Ladies and Gentlemen, this article was published in the National Geographic News and it's worth reading guys.....!!!!!!

Sexy women in bikinis really do inspire some men to see them as objects, according to a new study of male behavior.

Brain scans revealed that when men are shown pictures of scantily clad women, the region of the brain associated with tool use lights up.

Men were also more likely to associate images of sexualized women with first-person action verbs such as "I push, I grasp, I handle," said lead researcher Susan Fiske, a psychologist at Princeton University, USA.

And in a "shocking" finding, Fiske noted, some of the men studied showed no activity in the part of the brain that usually responds when a person ponders another's intentions.

This means that these men see women "as sexually inviting, but they are not thinking about their minds," Fiske said. "The lack of activation in this social cognition area is really odd, because it hardly ever happens."

Fiske and colleagues asked 21 heterosexual male volunteers to first take a test that scores people based on different types of sexist attitudes. The subjects were then shown pictures of both skimpily dressed and fully clothed men and women.

Most of the men best remembered headless photographs of women in bikinis, even if they'd only seen the image for two-tenths of a second, Fiske reported this weekend in Chicago during the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

And the men who scored higher as "hostile sexists"—those who view women as controlling and invaders of male space—didn't show brain activity that indicates they saw the women in bikinis as humans with thoughts and intentions.

Scientists have seen this absence of activation only once before, in a study where people were shown off-putting photographs of homeless people and drug addicts.

If a similar study were done with women, Fiske told National Geographic News, it would be hard to predict whether a woman shown a scantily clad male body would dehumanize him in the same way.

Evolutionary psychologists have proposed that women tend to look for mates who have wealth and power, so some of Fiske's colleagues have suggested running a similar test where women are shown pictures of men next to expensive cars or other affluent symbols.

But Fiske doesn't think such an experiment would work the same way, because women usually react to men they desire by "interpreting their minds, thinking about what they're interested in, and then trying to please them," she said.

P/S : Men cannot be prosecuted for possesing weapon to commit rape!!!!!!

Saturday, February 21, 2009

The mystery of Abraham Lincoln in Mulu, Sarawak, Malaysia....



Abraham Lincoln, (1809-1865) born in Kentucky, USA was the 16th President of the United States...

He was regarded as one of the best and most influential President of the United States in history.

And deep in the jungles of Borneo, lies the world's most extraordinary cave systems in the globally famous Gunung Mulu National Parks near Miri, Sarawak.

Gunung Mulu National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that encompasses incredible caves and karst formations in a mountainous equatorial rainforest setting.














The park is famous for its caves and multi shaped rocks formations, formed by nature and geological process about 5 million years ago..

Within Gunung Mulu National Park is the world's biggest natural enclosed space - Sarawak chamber, found in Gua Nasib Bagus.

The Sarawak chamber is 2,300 feet (700 m) long, 1,300 feet (396 m) wide and at least 230 feet (70 m) high or equivalent to 12 million cubic metre in volume.

According to reports, the super huge enclosure is big enough to fit 5 St. Peter's Basilica or 20 Boeing 747 jumbojets inside.

Other notable caves are Benarat Cavern, Deer Cave, Wind Cave, and Clearwater Cave (the 10th longest cave in the world spanning 151 km), which exposes parts of a long underground river going through the park.

However, one rock formation in Mulu is truly magical.

It has the profile side-view of Abraham Lincoln.

The profile of the 16th President of the US can be clearly seen at the entrance of the Deer cave..





How is it possible??? Only God knows...

Come, visit Mulu....

Sipadan Island, Malaysia among contenders for the new 7 wonders of the world!!!!!!!









Sipadan Island, pride of Sabah and of course Malaysia, and arguably the world’s top dive destination has been shortlisted as one of the contenders to make the New 7Wonders of Nature list, which seeks to determine the world’s top seven “clearly defined natural sites that have neither been created by nor significantly altered by humans for aesthetic reasons.”

Sipadan is Malaysia’s only oceanic island, rising 600m from the seabed. It was formed by living corals growing on top of an extinct volcanic cone. This took thousands of years to develop. Rarely seen diving sights are a common occurence in Sipadan: eg, schools of greenback turtles & big-eye trevally in tornado-like formations.

According to the organisers, the purpose of the campaign is to :

Significantly raise awareness of the incredible variety and beauty of nature around us. As our slogan says, “If we want to save anything, we first need to truly appreciate it!” This is something that is very important - more awareness and more tourism income means that these natural treasures can be better preserved for future generations.

Among the contenders for the new 7 Wonders of Nature list are :



(1) the Galapagos Islands - Ecuador - famed for their vast number of endemic species and was visited by Charles Darwin, contributing to the his theory of evolution by natural selection.




(2) Bora-Bora Island, some say this is the world’s most beautiful island - French Polynesia




(3) Rock of Gibraltar - UK (called the pillar of Hercules!!!!)




(4) Mount Everest - the highest mountain in the world!!!!! Nepal & Tibet - 8,848 metres (29,029 feets)




(5) Grand Canyon - Arizona, USA





(6) Ayers Rock - Australia




(7) The Amazon - South America (1.7 billion acres)!!!!!





(8) Black Forest - Germany




(9) Niagara Falls - located between Ontario, Canada & New York, USA




(10) Danube River - Europe




(11) Dead Sea Lake - Israel, West Bank Palestine & Jordan - the deepest and saltiest hypersaline lake in the world at 378 metres below ground.




(12) Great Barrier Reef - Queensland, Australia - the largest coral reef system in the world - spanning 2,600 metres in length

In the final phase of the campaign, the 21 finalised sites will again be put to popular vote. Voting will continue throughout 2010 and into 2011. During this period, the New7Wonders World Tour will visit each finalists, in order for them to present themselves to worldwide voters.

The final 7 will be announced sometime 2011.

Each human in the world is entitled to one vote in phase 1, 2 and 4.

Voting is online: www.new7.wonders.com/nature

Spread the news far and wide! To all Malaysians - vote for Sipadan Island!!!!!!

(source - www.new7.wonders.com & http://bengodomon.com)

Air Asia's another 1st is a success.......



Have you ever heard the word "web check-in"..... ?? well this is AirAsia and AirAsia X’s latest addition to self check-in facility – the web check-in that was made available from Tuesday, 17 February 2009.

With the new innovation, air travelers can now save time on pre-departure procedures by using the free web check-in facility implemented across AirAsia and AirAsia X’s entire network.

Passengers can check in from anywhere even in the offices and their homes, provided there is an internet access.

To those who are still in the dark on Air Asia, well this are some infos.

Air Asia is Asia's largest low fare, no frills airline - with the tagline - Now Everybody Can Fly!!!

A low-cost airline based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Air Asia operates scheduled domestic and international flights and pioneered low cost travelling in Asia.

It is also the first airline in the region to implement fully ticketless travel and unassigned seats.

AirAsia, the leading and largest low-cost carrier in Asia, services the most extensive network in South East Asia with over 114 routes covering more than 64 destinations.

Within the grasp of 7 years of operation, AirAsia has carried over 55 million passengers and grown its fleet from just two aircraft to 74.

The airline today is proud to be a truly ASEAN airline with established operations based in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, servicing a network stretching across all ASEAN nations and China.

This is further complemented by AirAsia X, its low cost long-haul affiliate carrier that currently flies to destinations in China and Australia. AirAsia thus is the only regional carrier with the largest destination network and highest flight frequencies.

AirAsia has been ranked Top 5 among the most recognized and admired airlines in the Asia Pacific Top 1000 Brands 2008 survey and voted as the Best Budget Airline in Asia by SmartTravelAsia.com for 3 consecutive years since 2006.

(source - air asia media release)

AirAsia guests have commended the airlines’ latest addition to its self check-in facility – the web check-in that was made available from Tuesday, 17 February 2009.

With the new innovation, air travelers can now save time on pre-departure procedures by using the free- of-charge web check-in facility implemented across AirAsia and AirAsia X’s entire network.

The web check-in facility allows AirAsia and AirAsia X guests to skip long check-in queues at the airport if they web check in at www.airasia.com from 48 to 4 hours before their scheduled flight departure. Web check in is available for all AirAsia and AirAsia X flights.

During web check-in, guests may also opt for AirAsia’s Baggage Supersize and “Pick A Seat,” new services that allow for carriage of more baggage weight and the option to choose seats, respectively. “Pick A Seat” has been smoothly implemented on all AirAsia flights beginning 17 February 2009.

AirAsia’s web check-in is complemented by the self check-in kiosks that allow self-check in from 6 to 1 hour before departure. Airports that allow kiosk check-in include those in Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru, Penang), Thailand (Chiang Mai, Hatyai, and Phuket) and Indonesia (Jakarta and Bali).

With the latest addition of web check-in facility, AirAsia now boasts of three check-in options for its guests: via web at www.airasia.com, self check-in kiosk at selected airports, and through conventional check-in counters at airports.

Can an Indian movie win Best Picture at the 81st Academy Award????







Normally only Movie Stars and Hollywood's top actors / actress/ directors walked the red carpet at the annual Academy Award in Hollywood....

We used to see the likes of John Travolta, Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Tom Hanks, Gene Hackman, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Marlon Brando, Merryl Streep, Kate Winslet, Sean Penn, Mickey Rourke, Anne Hathaway, Jane Fonda, Audrey Hepburn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Rex Harrison, Mae West, Clint Eastwood, Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, Peter Jackson and other stars at the glamorous event.

But there is significant difference for this year 81st Oscar presentation at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood today Sunday 22 February 2009....

This time, 9 ordinary poor children from the slums of Mumbai in India will also walk the glamorous red carpet, enter the Kodak theatre, be seated and may even walk on stage to receive their Oscar.

They come to Hollywood because they are child actors who starred in India's most successful movie - "Slumdog Millionaire".

'Slumdog Millionaire" produced at a modest cost of USD15 million is nominated for 10 Oscars - including Best Picture at the most prestigious and highest honours of the global movie industry.

'Slumdog millionaire' will be battling it out with "The curious case of Benjamin Button", "The Reader", Frost/Nixon and Milk for the main award - Best Picture.

The plot of the movie tells of a Mumbai teen who grew up in the slums, becomes a contestant on the Indian version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" He is arrested under suspicion of cheating, and while being interrogated, events from his life history are shown which explain why he knows the answers and win 1 million US Dollar at the show.

Cast - Dev Patel, Anil Kapoor, Prem Kumar, Freida Pinto, Madhur Mittal, Jamal K. Malik and child actors amongst others - Rubina Ali, Mohammed Azhaudin Ismail, Ayush Mahesh Khedekar.

Directed by Danny Boyle - a British.

Since its release in the cinemas on January 9, 2009, Slumdog Millionaire has won 16 awards at the Golden Globes, BAFTA awards and Critics' Choice Awards.



Gee.... Slumdog Millionaire is better than other legendary Bollywood movies such as Bobby, Kuch Kuch Hota Hei, Naya Daur, Gumrah, Zanjeer, Roti Kapda Aur Makaan, Deewar, Sholay (highest ever grossing Bollywood movie) and Coolie.

Even Amitabh Bachchan, Rajesh Khanna, Raj Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor,Shashi Kapoor, Zeenat Aman, Dimple Kapadia, Perveen Babi, Vinod Khanna, Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Nargis, Dharmendra, Rekha, Hema Malini, Jaya Bhaduri and Amjad Khan were never nominated for an Oscar in their glittering careers as Bollywood top actors and actresses...!!!!!!

Friday, February 20, 2009

The New York Post apologised for racial slur on Barack Obama

Barely a month after creating history as America's first non white President, Barack Obama find himself victim of racial slur by one of America's most influential newspapers....!!!!!!



At first glance, the main editorial cartoon in today's New York Post seemed like just another lurid reference to the story that the tabloid had been covering with breathless abandon for two days running - the shooting by Connecticut police on Monday of a pet chimpanzee that viciously attacked his owner's friend.

But the caption cast the cartoon in a more sinister light. "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill," it read, prompting accusations that the Post was peddling a longstanding racist slur by portraying president Barack Obama, who signed the bill into law yesterday, as an ape.


However The New York Post has apologised.....!!!!

The New York Post has apologised for a cartoon that some have interpreted as comparing Barack Obama to a violent chimpanzee gunned down by police, following two days of protest.

The drawing by the long-time Post cartoonist Sean Delonas, published on Wednesday, showed a dead chimp and two police officers, one with a smoking gun. The caption read: "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill."

The newspaper posted an editorial on its website last night saying the cartoon was meant to mock the federal economic stimulus bill, but "to those who were offended by the image, we apologise".

The piece was posted hours after 200 picketers, chanting "Boycott the Post! Shut it down!", marched in front of the paper's office, saying the cartoon echoed racist stereotypes of black people as monkeys.

hmmm....I wonder what cartoon will appear next??? will it be a man escorted by secret services agents, entering the White House, but renamed "the Black House"....??????????

Can any Asian teen sing like her?? Meet Charice Pempengco

She is only 17 but Phillipines teen singing sensation, Charice Pempengco's rendition of "I Will Always Love You" rivals Whitney Houston's performance of the same song ....!!!!!

Here Charice Pempengco performs "I Will Always Love You" live on UK TV show "The Paul O'Grady Show", aired on 8th April 2008. She was 16 then.





And this was Whitney Houston's rendition of the same song at the 36th Grammy Awards in 1994......

Elizabeth Wong need not resign over the innocent pics!!!

And My say is - Elizabeth need not resign....

To me, she was sleeping normally when those pics were snapped by her crazed boyfriend/friend/companion..

Even Prime Ministers, Dictators, Presidents and Kings all over the world, have slept stark naked before, at least once in their lifetime, maybe not every night but some nights....

And everybody takes bath either stark naked or partially clothed... not fully clothed!!!!

And only imbecile persons would want to sleep in full gears ie. in tuxedos, in lounge suit, dinner attires, in formal gowns etc...

How many of us were fully clothed when making love????

Poor Elizabeth need not resign over petty issues like that.... she can do whatever she likes in her own house.... as long as not killing people, burning the house or choke the cat to death... or do a Josep Fritzl stuff...

And if her ex boyfriend indeed took that pictures and distribute them, then he should be handed down this sentence - strip him stark naked and take 100,000 photographs of him naked and upload 100,000 times into the internet...!!!!!!! fair and square.......

2 Faces of Rihanna



Chris Brown !!! - Your day will come.... You Zombie!!!!!

The image shows Rihanna's battered face, the photo taken by police soon after the infamous brawl with Chris Brown.

The picture showed Rihanna's cut forehead above each of her eyebrows, marks on her cheek and bleeding around her lips.

Los Angeles police have now launched an investigation to find how the image was leaked to TMZ.

A spokesman from the department said: "The photograph has the appearance of one taken during an official Domestic Violence investigation.

"The Los Angeles Police Department takes seriously its duty to maintain the confidentiality of victims of domestic violence.

"The Department launched an immediate internal investigation and subsequently filed a personnel complaint.

"A violation of this type is considered serious misconduct, with penalties up to and including termination."

Brown, a multi-platinum selling singer, allegedly attacked Rihanna, 20, on February 8 in Los Angeles after a pre-Grammy's party. He was arrested shortly after.

He was arrested and may face charges from the district attorney.

Police have said the 19-year-old singer could face domestic violence charges if prosecutors think they are appropriate.

No public statement has been issued on behalf of Rihanna, who turns 21 on Friday, and she has not been seen in public since the attack.

Brown released a statement on Sunday, which read: "Words cannot begin to express how sorry and saddened I am over what transpired."

The statement, which did not mention Rihanna, said that Brown was consulting with loved ones, his mother and pastor.

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

The stage is set.... 2 "Bukits" byelections

The stage is set, come 7 April, it's showtime again to determine who is the champion of the world!!!!!

No, it is not Evander Holyfield vs Nikolai Valuev aka The Beast from the east, nor Mike Tyson comeback and last gasp attempt for the world heavyweight boxing crown.

But rather it is the 2 simultaneous byelections in Malaysia for the Bukit Gantang Parliament and Bukit Selambau state seats.

Currently the score is 2 - 0.

2 for Pakatan Rakyat and 0 for Barisan Nasional, BN after the 2 byelections in Permatang Pauh and Kuala Terengganu, both won by Pakatan.

After 7 April, will the score change to 4 - 0, or 3 - 1...??

However if the final score stands at 2 - 2, then the winner goes to BN.

Why? Simple.

In Perak, BN won the right to govern the state even tough the score was tied at 28 - 28.

The 3 extra YBs / assemblymen who jumped ship from Pakatan to BN are not formal members of BN yet, they were just expressing their support to BN by words of mouth and not via official documents ie formal application to join any BN components Parties during that material time...

Yet, the state government changed hand.

So we wait... red cards and yellow cards don't count here.... even the match referees / umpires themselves can be red carded!!!!

By the way, how come the 2 by-elections are named "Bukit" - Selambau and Gantang...?? and what if YB Elizabeth Wong resign as assemblywoman of "Bukit" Lanjan - another "Bukit" byelection here????

Furthermore this 3 Bukits assemblyperson represent Malaysia's 3 major race... The late MP of Bukit Gantang is a Malay while the YB of Bukit Selambau who resigned is an Indian.... and Bukit Lanjan - Elizabeth Wong is a Chinese!!!!!!!!!

Will there be another "Bukit" byelection after this????? Bukit Bendera?? Bukit Antarabangsa?? Bukit Bintang???? Bukit Bukau???? Bukit Aman???

Sex stories spice up Malaysian newspapers / TV reports

The Star reports..
A VIDEO clip showing a couple having sex in an X-ray room in a hospital in Kuala Lumpur has become a hot topic, coming on the heels of the bedroom photos of Bukit Lanjan assemblyman Elizabeth Wong.

Kosmo! in its front page reported that the video clip was recorded by the couple “as a rememberance of their passionate moments together”.

It also published a picture of them making love.

The man, believed to be a hospital employee, had sneaked his tudung-clad girlfriend into the X-ray room recently for the amorous tryst.

Their “performance” is now circulating not only in the Internet but from handphone to handphone.

According to Kosmo!, the six-minute clip shows, among other things, the woman stripping her sarong before her lover, clad in a pink shirt and black pants, performs sexual acts with her.

And here is the latest news on the circulation of nude pictures of Selangor assemblywoman, Elizabeth Wong.

SHAH ALAM: Police will record a statement on Wednesday from Bukit Lanjan assemblyman Elizabeth Wong’s former boyfriend over her nude pictures scandal, Selangor police chief Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar said.

He said police had received two nude photographs, as well as a compact disc, of the 37-year-old politician from a Malay Mail journalist, Bernama reported.

So far, police had recorded statements from two Malay Mail journalists and two other journalists from theSun in connection with the case, he told reporters at a function here.

He said police were now monitoring websites which posted the pictures.

He advised those in possession of the politician’s nude pictures to either destroy or hand them over to the police, adding that stern action would be taken against those found distributing the pictures.

On Tuesday, Wong offered to resign as an assemblyman and also Selangor executive councillor over the case but was asked to go on indefinite leave.

Then here is a comment on the same issue :

IN THE eighties, a Malaysian beauty queen had nude pictures of her taken by her boyfriend. In that instance, presumably after the relationship soured and in a fit of spite, the boyfriend sent those pictures to the newspapers.

At least one newspaper editor got rid of the pictures. But others did not. One paper even confronted the father of the girl with the pictures, illustrating the sequence of events through cartoons because actual pictures could not be used. It was ugly and distasteful.

The beauty queen had to step down from her position and the net result of that entire sad, sorry episode was that the boyfriend had his revenge. He was never brought to account for his actions.

He had got his own back on the girl, aided and abetted by the press whose motive was to get readers in. The newspaper which broke the story did not so much as name the boyfriend who caused much hurt and agony to the beauty queen by blatantly violating her personal privacy.

Selangor state executive councillor and assemblywoman Elizabeth Wong’s predicament is not much different. In this case, the pictures were believed to be taken by a former boyfriend without her consent.

Whatever the motive of the person who released the pictures to select media, he has achieved his objective. Wong has been embarrassed in public and has offered to step down from her position both as executive councillor and assemblywoman.

For the newspapers, there is a dilemma whenever things like this happen. If it is purely a personal matter with no repercussions on others, do we keep things out of the press? And even if we did, what assurance is there that it won’t appear on the Internet?

But once the news is out, really, there is not much point blaming the newspapers for continuing to use it. When the public’s prurient interest in such matters is raised to fever pitch, newspapers which ignore the interest do so at their own peril in terms of losing out to other newspapers.

It is news and there is an obligation to report what transpires after that and how a public figure responds to an unfolding event of great stress to her and the reactions of those around her.

Despite everything we say about the right to privacy and our public position that Wong did no wrong, it will be hypocritical if those concerned still insist that she pay the price with her resignation.

Let’s admit and acknowledge that for a wide section of the public — the vast majority of us normal human beings — there are boyfriends and girlfriends and intimate moments of great privacy.

If a partner violates that privacy for any reason, the other party is not to blame — the blame lies with the person who broke that trust, not the person who gave it.

If that is what we believe as a society, then Wong’s offer to resign should be rejected. If we believe that and still accept her resignation, then we are hypocrites for we are holding her responsible for merely, like the rest of us, being human.

Whichever way this whole sad, sorry episode turns out, the unquestioned criminal in this case is the person who took and distributed the pictures, and it must be pretty clear and obvious to any competent investigator who that is by now.

In the eighties, the beauty queen’s boyfriend got off scot-free for perpetrating what was essentially a sordid crime. Let’s hope that at least in this aspect history will not repeat itself.

Monday, February 16, 2009

Japanese Finance Minister denies being drunk at the G7 summit

Japan's finance minister is facing calls for him to resign amid claims he was drunk at a recent G7 meeting.

Shoichi Nakagawa has apologised for his behaviour but blamed cold remedies for a slurred performance at a news conference in Rome at the weekend.

He said he had not drunk more than a sip of alcohol before facing the media.

Despite opposition calls for him to quit, Mr Nakagawa said Prime Minister Taro Aso had asked him to stay on in his job and be careful of his health.

The news conference followed a meeting of finance ministers focussing on the current world economic crisis.

Footage showed Mr Nakagawa slurring his speech and closing his eyes repeatedly as if he was dozing off.

At one point, he mistook a question aimed at the governor of the Bank of Japan as one intended for him.

"It's embarrassing," said Democratic Party Secretary General Yukio Hatoyama. "This has sent a message to the whole world. He's damaged the national interest."

But Mr Nakagawa said it would not affect Japan's standing or its relations with other G7 members.

(morale of the story - drink at will AFTER the Press Conference, not BEFORE)!!!!!

Footage of Mount Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia in RAMBO 4???









Live for nothing or Die for something - that is the tagline of the movie - RAMBO 4 - starring Slyvester Stallone and directed by him as well.

Almost 100 % of the 4th edition of the diehard full blooded Vietnam war veteran combatant called John Rambo, was filmed in Thailand, only the last part was filmed in USA.

Almost 90 % of the crew were Thai.

In RAMBO 4, there is a split second scene showing a tall mountain, but i doubt the mountain is in Thailand, but rather in Sabah, Malaysia.

The highest peak in Thailand is Mount Inthanon or Doi Inthanon in Chiang Mai at a height of 2,565metres (8,415 feet).. and known as the roof of Thailand.

While the highest peak in Malaysia is Mount Kinabalu in Sabah at 4,095 metres (13,435feet).

Even though the mountain was only displayed for 1 second in Rambo 4, I am 100% sure the mountain is infact Mount Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia and not a mountain in Thailand.

Because as a Sabahan and a Malaysian, i see the mountain everyday and i know it very well.

Futhermore, Mount Inthanon peak is covered by thick forest canopy, while it is totally the opposite at the summit of Mount Kinabalu - all solid rocks and granites.

Stallone claimed 99 % of the movie was filmed in Thailand, only the last part - where Rambo finally went home to his house in USA was filmed in the US.

Maybe Slyvester Stallone needs to give some explanation here?????

Or maybe it was not infact Mount Kinabalu, but other mountain, similar in shape?

These are pictures of Mount Kinabalu, taken from various angles.













This is part of the movie RAMBO 4 on youtube - watch carefully and pause at 4.53... and you will see this mountain very similar to mount Kinabalu...


The following still of the mountain in Rambo 4.


Close Up view of that Mountain in Rambo 4.


Now compare that mountain in Rambo 4 to this picture of Mount Kinabalu taken by Sabah world renowed and award winning photographer Louis Pang from the waters off Pulau Mantanani, Kota Belud.

Well, i am not an expert here.... but YOU JUDGE....

Questions - Does Mr Slyvester Stallone need to apologize here for not crediting Sabah/Malaysia and for not even informing or seek permission from Sabah for that matter...

Furthermore, Sabah's Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment Datuk Masidi Manjun said on 12 March 2009, that as far as he knew there was no such permission being given to the producer of Rambo 4 to use and feature that Mount Kinabalu image in Rambo 4.

And there was no formal application by Stallone for permission to use that mountain footage in his movie.

For the record, Rambo 4 earned 154 million US Dollars in revenue, against 50 million US Dollars in the total cost of making and producing this movie.

Come on Stallone, admit it or else we will loose faith in Rambo, Rocky Balboa, Tango & Cash, Terminator, Predator, Aliens, Men in Black, Jurassic Park, King Kong and anything Made in Hollywood.........
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