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Category Archives: Tun Dr. Mahathir
Xmas in New Malaysia-2018
December 28, 2018 by dinobeano
By Ambassador Dennis Ignatius
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2018/12/27/hope-hate-in-the-season-of-goodwill/
Christmas is a special time of year for many Malaysians.
For Christians, Christmas is, of course, much more than coloured lights and tinsel; it is about remembering and commemorating the birth of Jesus the Messiah, the cornerstone of faith. It is both a sacred and secular occasion. For others, it is a non-religious festive occasion, a time to enjoy the festivities, the decorations and shopping bargains.
Whatever one's take on Christmas, however, in Malaysia it is also an opportunity to celebrate our diversity and reaffirm our commitment to a nation of many peoples, cultures and religions all bound by common citizenship. It is what makes us unique.
But Christmas invariably brings out the bigots as well. In times past, they have complained that there were too many Christmas lights, too many Christmas trees, too much Christmas carolling. To them, every little coloured light is an affront to their faith, a provocation. Thankfully, there was none of that this year.
True to form, however, the PAS youth chief (and the son of the PAS president Hadi Awang) insisted that Muslims should not only refrain from participating in the Christmas festivities, they shouldn't even extend Christmas greetings to Christians. Going by his comments, Christmas itself is apparently haram.
While the son was spewing divisiveness and discord at home, the father was doing likewise in the UK. At a dialogue session in London, Hadi rallied against local council elections saying that it might result in non-Malay mayors who might "make alcohol and gambling permissible" and result in another May 13. It's nonsense, of course, but that is the kind of rabid racism we have come to expect from Hadi and his ilk.
Former political dissident Tan Wah Piow (L) and Malaysian activist Hishammuddin Rais pose for a picture with Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohammad on Aug 30, 2018.
What makes this year – the year of Malaysia Baru – special, however, was that the voices of hate were overwhelmingly drowned out by the voices of hope, tolerance and respect.
In keeping with tradition, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad wished "all Malaysians a joyous and blissful Christmas," while Deputy Prime Minister Dr Wan Azizah wished "every single one of you celebrating Christmas this year a wonderful and joyful celebration."
The Sultan of Johor, always an outlier on such matters, went a step further by issuing his own Christmas card via Facebook wishing all his subjects celebrating Christmas "love, joy & peace and a wonderful time with families and friends."
And then there were a number of state muftis and Islamic religious groups who, in effect, rubbished claims that wishing Christians was somehow haram. The Mufti of Penang even called for a fatwa to put an end to the nonsense about greeting others on their festive occasions. Even PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan ignored his youth chief's warning and wished Malaysians a Merry Christmas.
A particularly welcome development was a video of police officers at a police station in Kota Kinabalu singing Christmas carols against the backdrop of a Christmas tree. It may or may not be recent but it was widely circulated and brought much cheer to Christians. Given all the past reports of police officers demonising Christians at closed-door seminars, it was particularly heartwarming to see them honouring Christians this way. For many Christians, that one single act did more to inculcate and foster national unity than all the political speeches on the subject combined.
Simple gestures speak volumes
The Pakatan government must now build upon these expressions of hope and do more to break the cycle of mistrust and disunity that has plagued our country for so long.
Some years ago, we had national-level celebrations for all the main religious and cultural festivals. There were national-level open house events for Hari Raya, Chinese New Year, Gawai, Deepavali, and Christmas. There was even a national Christmas tree. And no less than His Majesty the Agong and the entire cabinet were present at these functions. Tens of thousands of Malaysians responded to these events.
Restoring that practice will be a major step forward. After all, in their Christmas messages, all our political leaders emphasized that coming together to celebrate each other's holiday festivals is a manifestation of mutual respect for our unique diversity. It will speak powerfully to all Malaysians to see our leaders themselves demonstrate this respect for diversity by hosting national and state-level celebrations on festive occasions and yes, by lighting a national Christmas tree in Putrajaya. It would certainly set the tone for the rest of the country and silence the voices of bigotry and divisiveness.
Restoring that practice will be a major step forward. After all, in their Christmas messages, all our political leaders emphasised that coming together to celebrate each other's holiday festivals is a manifestation of mutual respect for our unique diversity. It will speak powerfully to all Malaysians to see our leaders themselves demonstrate this respect for diversity by hosting national and state-level celebrations on festive occasions and yes, by lighting a national Christmas tree in Putrajaya. It would certainly set the tone for the rest of the country and silence the voices of bigotry and divisiveness.
In the end, it is the simple gestures of love, togetherness and mutual support shown by Malaysia's First Couple (pic above) that express respect, tolerance and inclusivity that do more to enhance national unity than anything else. Let's hope that in Malaysia Baru the voices of moderation, tolerance and respect will grow louder and louder. And that the message of Christmas – peace and goodwill to all – will become a permanent feature of our Malaysia Baru.
Let's hope that in Malaysia Baru the voices of moderation, tolerance and respect will grow louder and louder. And that the message of Christmas – peace and goodwill to all – will become a permanent feature of our Malaysia Baru.
Posted in Dr. Tun Siti Hasmah, FreeMalaysiaToday, Tun Dr. Mahathir.
What has God to do with Politics: It is a Make by Man Activity
August 10, 2016 by dinobeano
by Dr Lim Teck Ghee
"I pray each day for the Almighty's salvation for my country, Malaysia"–Rafidah Aziz
"Besides, he [Tan Sri Muhyiddin] is starting this party to take revenge against UMNO… Allah won't support this."– UMNO Permanent Chairman aka Carma Type1,Tan Sri Badruddin Amiruldin.
Reacting to the latest piece of draconian legislation, the National Security Council Act which provides wide-sweeping and arbitrary powers to the prime minister, the country's Iron Lady, former federal minister, Rafidah Aziz, has come out with a poignant and pointed critique of the state of the nation as it is conditioned by the present Prime Minister. According to her latest Facebook post:
"It shows how bad things have become…when we can no longer govern ourselves…but need all kinds of 'laws' to be enacted…and fences to corral us…like cattle."
"We now have given new and distorted meanings to the concept of things such as loyalty, support, and governance.We see the young feeling disappointed. And those of my era seeing what had been painstakingly built…being chiselled away and demolished."
According to her (and we wonder if she was not part of the problems created during the Mahathir era), what has been built by her generation of leaders has now been eroded and destroyed with the nation now entering into the global list of the bad and ugly. This whitewashing of her 'Mahathirian' past and demonizing of the Najib regime is clearly self-serving but many Malaysians appear willing to give it a pass, such is the depth of the present antipathy to the current leadership.
Rafidah's impassioned plea echoes very much what the opposition, and now, Dr Mahathir, have been saying. But she has also been careful to point out – for reasons everyone is fully aware of – that she is not involved in any plot or conspiracy to discredit or topple the Prime Minister.
Hey, Politicos: What's God got to do with it?
Rafidah must know too that she is not alone. Rival invocations for the Almighty's intervention and wrath against those opposing the Prime Minister and his leadership, and Allah's blessings for those in power are taking place regularly in the mosques as well as UMNO assemblies, and these are amplified by the Malay mass media.
When it comes to praying for change, she is outnumbered by those leading the prayers for the preservation of the status quo and decimation of the opposition.
It is futile for her and those of similar ilk to think that their prayers which place the country's fate in God's hands are in any way superior or can be more readily answered compared with those voiced by Badruddin Amiruldin, Jamil Khir, china pek Paul Low, Zakir Naik and the other assorted 'religious' devouts perched aloft the Barisan bandwagon.
Unfortunately too, history is replete with examples of dictators, tyrants and autocrats who have remained long in power, despite unending calls for divine intervention by the populace.
God (if He has any influence on political outcomes), it appears, favours the prayers of the strong and powerful rather than the meek and oppressed. Or perhaps God has a peculiar sense of humour and prefers to stand on the side line when it comes to the bad and evil found in the world of his creation. But it is best to leave God out of politics.
Change is in your own hands, Rafidah
When positive or negative change takes place in history, it is not due to the hidden hand of God working in mysterious ways but rather because of the actions of mortals, individually and collectively.
Besides praying, this is what Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz, former UMNO Wanita leader, may want to do to ensure a better future for our younger generation:
1. A personal message of appeal to UMNO wanita leaders and members reminding of the importance of woman power in societal reform and urging them to take the lead where Malay men have failed. This message should be juxtaposed with the recent revelation by Zaid Ibrahim that the real reason why Najib remains Prime Minister, despite what has happened, is his success at creating a long line of eunuchs to serve him. According to Zaid, "They will do anything and everything for him: they fear him, and feel they are nothing without his grace and blessing. Their collective defence of their "Emperor" gives them a sense of belonging—and they are well-rewarded for their zeal." See http://www.zaid.my/current/eunuchs-with-testicles/
Women do not have the femininity to lose and perhaps they may prove a more formidable agent of real change than men.
2. Organizing a joint appeal with past BN leaders calling on the Prime Minister to do the honourable thing and resign. There is always safety in numbers and the fact that she is held in high esteem by her Barisan Nasional colleagues makes her eminently qualified to lead the charge against Prime Minister Najib from within.
The above quote is by Malaysia's Political God with blind spots and blemishes
There is still time – despite our rapid slide into the ranks of failed states – to undo the mess in the country. Lost money may have gone down the drain but it is replaceable. Lost national sense of integrity, decency and self respect are much harder to replace; and God will not help regain these which are lost. It is up to our leaders to own up to their mistakes and act with some sense of urgency to rectify them. At the same time, we Malaysians can no longer be content being free riders. No what has God got to with the plight of our nation since it is man made thing by Malaysians, politicians and civil society.
Posted in 1MDB Financial Scandal, civil society issues, Corruption, Democracy, Governance, History, Human Rights, Justice, Kleptocracy, Leadership, Politics, Religion, Rule of Law, Tun Dr. Mahathir, UMNO.
UMNO in Crisis
UMNO after Muhyiddin's suspension–Leadership Crisis
Muhyiddin Blew his Chances by being Cautious–Not Prime Minister Material
COMMENT: The suspension of former Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin brings reminiscences of Musa Hitam's removal back in 1986.
Despite being an UMNO stronghold, both Johoreans suffered the same fate and lost their positions to fellow UMNO members from another state.
In an immediate response, Gerakan Ketua Cawangan Malaysia (GKCM) President Kamarulazman Habibur Rahman has warned that Prime Minister and UMNO President Najib Abdul Razak will have sleepless nights following Muhyiddin's suspension.
The rebel UMNO group has warned that it will continue to expand its influence throughout the country.
At the same time, Pagoh UMNO Deputy Chief Ismail Mohamed has lambasted former UMNO Johor leader Hishammuddin Hussein for his role in chairing the committee to expel Muhyiddin as UMNO Deputy President.
Kamarulazman is right in that the suspension of Muhyiddin will see further infighting within the party, as currently, there are rumours that Ahmad Zahid Hamidi is aiming for Najib's position.
Unless Hishammuddin's faction fights back, the more gentlemanly MP of Sembrong, who is also grandson of the founder of UMNO, Onn Jaafar, and son of former prime minister Hussein Onn, will be the next sacrificial lamb from the state of Johor.
Unlikely to remain quiet
After a brief stint of silence, Muhyiddin has turned on the heat on Najib lately. After his suspension, it is unlikely that he will remain silent.
While still holding the post as UMNO Deputy President, Muhyiddin would be careful not to cause any damage to UMNO; now that he has been suspended from UMNO, and his entire career has been ruined, Muhyiddin will be likely to fight back.
His struggle is not alone, as there are veterans such as former international trade and industry Rafidah Aziz who will continue to speak up.Other veterans may also join in the foray after seeing Muhyiddin being suspended, without even Muhyiddin being called to defend himself.
Under normal circumstances, such a suspension should have been carried out by the disciplinary board, but in this instance, its chairperson Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen Tengku Ismail has remained silent.
A fellow disciplinary board member, Megat Najmuddin Megat Khas has previously weighed in on Saifuddin Abdullah's attendance at a Pakatan Harapan event in September last year.
It is unclear whether Megat Najmuddin or Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen is the current chairperson of the board, as various news reports quoted Megat Najmuddin as the chairperson, although UMNO legal adviser Hafarizam Harun later clarified that Tengku Ahmad Rithauddeen is still the chairperson.
Mahathir's faction beefing up
Getting stronger by the day
It appears that after the expose, the 1MDB scandal has contributed to the animosity within UMNO more than before.
When former Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad also started asking critical questions, and Najib remained silent, all hell broke loose for Najib. Few may agree with Dr Mahathir, but when the octogenarian started throwing mud at Najib, the 90-year-old former UMNO President suddenly became a hero once again.
Even I am inclined to think that he is trying to dismantle the fortress that he had built over the years, which keeps Najib's position secure despite being a weak leader himself.
Dr Mahathir's camp, especially former New Straits Times group editor-in-chief Kadir Jasin, will surely not cease from harping on Najib.
One of Dr Mahathir's henchmen, Matthias Chang, has predicted that there will be a change of guard soon, when he asked, "The next Deputy Prime Minister – will he be Nazri, Hishammuddin or the outsider Tengku Adnan?"
Chang has put together several scenarios, one of which is for Zahid to "execute a coup d'etat against Najib before he is disposed because Najib realises that with each passing day, Zahid Hamidi can only get stronger and stronger and gather his palace guards for the coup d'etat."
There is more to come, but the situation can only get worse. Meanwhile, the country's economic slowdown will take the bite as investors' confidence has dropped.
Umno Team B's other alternative
Unlike the 1987 split in UMNO, where team B led by Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah later formed Semangat 46, now UMNO's team B has in place a much stronger opposition.
The question of loyalty to UMNO will once again be raised, especially since the infighting within UMNO can only mean either Tourism Minister Nazri Abdul Aziz, Hishammuddin or Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor becoming Deputy Prime Minister.
UMNO will not change very much in its culture, until it has been brought to its heel. As pointed out by former Bersih 2.0 co-chair, Ambiga Sreeneevasan, corruption at the highest level carries on regardless of the exposes.
UMNO has become indifferent to the people's suffering as highlighted by Bukit Lanjan state assemblyperson Elizabeth Wong during her recent Chinese New Year speech.
UMNO, as it is, even with a new line of leadership under Zahid, will not be able to win a two-thirds majority in Parliament.
If going by Kamarulazman's statement that the group will cooperate with anyone to achieve its mission, perhaps it is time for re-alignment of forces to start a new Malaysia, where people of all races and religions will work side by side as fellow Malaysians, and the poor will not face discriminated due to race, religion or creed.
STEPHEN NG is an ordinary citizen with an avid interest in following political developments in the country since 2008.
https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/331905#ixzz41NqhtzwZ
Posted in Corruption, Dr. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, Governance, History, Kleptocracy, Malay Fascists, Najib Razak, Politics, The Malays, Tun Dr. Mahathir, UMNO Politics.
Malaysia: The Crony Attorney-General has plenty to answer for dereliction of public duty
The controversy over the decision not to charge the Prime Minister for any wrongdoing in the RM2.6 billion donation saga continued today when a member of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's (MACC) review panel questioned why the Attorney-General (A-G), Apandi Ali, did not help investigators in the probe.
Lim Chee Wee said the A-G was legally obliged to explain why he did not facilitate MACC's request to access foreign bank statements through the Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA), to check on the money trail of the RM2.6 billion which was credited into Dato' Seri Najib Razak's personal accounts. This, he said, was to dispel any speculation of a cover-up.
Lim, the former Malaysian Bar President, said the A-G was also wrong to order the anti-graft body to close its investigations, adding that his power was only to decide whether to prosecute or not.
He said it was "arguable" that the A-G was legally obliged to provide assistance to MACC through MLA.
"The A-G is equally obliged in law to explain why he is not facilitating MACC's investigations of the money trail of RM2.6 billion as disclosed by MACC in its 31 December 2015 press statement, by providing his consent for Mutual Legal Assistance which would allow MACC access to bank statements of banks operating overseas, through which the funds moved.
"Again this would help dispel the speculation of a cover-up by A-G and that the alleged donation is allegedly KWAP money," Lim said, referring to the pension fund, in a statement today.
He added that the A-G was also under legal obligation to give detailed and satisfactory reasons to the public as to why he disagrees with the recommendation of any law enforcement agency, more so when the investigation involves a high profile suspect, for example a Prime Minister.
"For instance, A-G at his press conference held up a flowchart which showed the flow and utilisation of the funds of the alleged donation.Having done so and regardless, he should give details of the alleged donation and return of part of the donation, and alleged proper use of part of the donation, by assuring the public that he is satisfied with the existence and substantive truth of documentary proof of source, movement and return of funds, and that the funds were not used for personal benefit, for example it was not used to pay for credit card expenses, which is currently the subject of speculation," Lim added.
Lim also called on the public to assure the A-G of their support to uphold his oath of office, adding that the support of the Malaysian people was worth more than one individual.
"The A-G's decision to prosecute or not to prosecute can be challenged by any taxpayer in any courtroom, or questioned by anyone in any living room, meeting room, boardroom, or even coffee shop.In other words, A-G does not have absolute discretion in his prosecutorial powers, this is the legal position in Malaysia, Singapore and United Kingdom.
"The A-G must not be fearful of the power nor position of any individual and whilst he may suffer the same fate as his predecessor Tan Sri Abdul Gani if he were to prosecute, he has the support of the public and more importantly he will be upholding his oath of office," Lim said, referring to the earlier A-G who was removed from office at the height of the investigations into the alleged financial scandal involving the Prime Minister.
Posted in 1MDB Financial Scandal, Corruption, Finance, Justice, Kleptocracy, MACC, Malay Fascists, Najib Razak, Public Accountability, Rule of Law, Tun Dr. Mahathir.
To UMNO Prime Minister–Enough of Islamic State Nonsense
To UMNO Prime Minister–Enough of Islamic State Nonsense, that's Mahathirism-Anwarism-Dollah Kok Lanasism(1986)
by Dr.Clive Kessler
http://www.themalaymailonline.com
That the doctrine of Ketuanan Melayu, of Malay ascendancy and primacy and domination, is a key principle of the Constitution, one that is deeply and pervasively embedded throughout its many clauses and pages? Simply, that this claim is a crude "try-on." An outrageous, and outrageously over-reaching, "ambit claim."A third-rate "con job."One that could persuade only the ignorant.And that is precisely to whom it is these days addressed and targeted.–Dr.Clive Kessler
Enough of this nonsense! Enough already! Malaya and then Malaysia was created as a secular nation. Denial of this basic fact has become commonplace in recent times.
Ketuanan Melayu –First Order Political Bunkum
The pioneers in promoting the revisionist myth that there was or is nothing secular in the nation's origins or about its Constitution have been the creative legal innovators and myth-makers of the PPMM: Persatuan Peguam Muslim Malaysia (Malaysian Muslim Lawyers Association) –- notably Datuk Zainul Rijal Abu Bakar — and their like-minded associates in CENTHRA, the Putrajaya-based and Saudi-friendly Centre for Human Rights and Advocacy, headed by on Azril Mohd Amin.
Their lead is followed, and their disruptive views are echoed, by a horde of Utusan Malaysia scribes and ideologues and, in their wake, a claque of well-connected writers and publicists and ambitious politicos. In the absence of any clear refutation, their increasingly unchallenged view now threatens to become "the default position", the received and undeniable truth.
But are they right? In short, no. And for three main reasons.
1. The explicit and the implicit.
A key and basic tenet of their position is that the word "secular" can nowhere be found in the Constitution. Therefore, they hold, the Constitution and nation cannot be secular. It is in no way tainted in even the slightest way by any suggestion of secularist principles or ideas.
And since it — the word — cannot be found there, and since Article 3 affirms that, in its public international personality, Islam is the emblematic religion of the state, then (so they argue) Malaysia must be, on core constitutional and historical grounds, an Islamic state — or, at the very least, one that has been authoritatively launched from birth on an irrevocable path towards becoming an Islamic state based upon Shariah law.
Malaysia-Secular and Diverse Constitutional Democracy with a Monarch for All
Some now even go further. They now argue that, since Article 3 is allegedly "the best known" article of the Constitution in public consciousness (on what grounds or empirical evidence they claim this they do not say), it follows that Article 3 is the key or central article of the Constitution as a whole and that, in resolving all contested matters, Article 3 (in their own strong, revisionist sense of its meaning) takes precedence over and must "trump" all other legal arguments and considerations and constitutional niceties.
Is this supposed primacy of Article 3 explicit? No. Just implicit, implied, inferred.These authors are in fact very familiar with the idea of the explicit and the implicit, of what is tersurat and what is also tersirat, what is in the words and what is behind them, "between the lines."
These same authors and creative doctrinal and Constitutional myth-makers are elsewhere quite happy to argue that the controversial idea of Ketuanan Melayu — which did not exist when the basis and terms of the Constitution were negotiated between 1955 and 1957, and which only achieved currency after it was coined by Tan Sri Abdullah Ahmad (aka Dollah Kok Lanas) in 1986 — is a foundational principle of the Constitution.
How do they argue this?They say that, while the term itself is not used and does not appear explicitly in the Constitution, the idea is there, implicit and immanent, in Article 153 (the "Malay special rights" provision) and in the web of meanings linking that Article to other related articles of the Constitution.
The idea, they insist, is there behind the words and between the lines.They cannot find it there explicitly. They impute its presence, and in that way "build back" this post-1986 idea into the foundational meaning and conceptual texture of the Constitution. Even though the word itself cannot be found there!
On these inferred or imputed grounds they insist that Ketuanan Melayu is a key constitutional principle, that it is, and always has been, a part of the "social contract" that enabled the Constitution to be adopted and promulgated — and that people are now obliged in perpetuity to uphold that constitutionally "retrofitted" principle or doctrine as part of the nation's founding "social contract": as a key principle of the nation's core official character and identity.
The stark contrast of approach here in these two related matters (their anti-secularist, pro-Islamic state reading of Article 3 and the imputing or inferring of Ketuanan Melayu as constitutionally based and embedded) proves one thing: that their ways of arguing are not consistent and principled but arbitrary and opportunistic.That is no basis for solemn and serious Constitutional reasoning.
2. History
Article 3 does not say that Malaysia is a secular nation, but it does say that Islam is its official emblematic religion: therefore Malaysia is in no way secular. On far stronger and clearer Constitutional grounds, it can be said to be Islamic: even an Islamic state, or one in the making.
That is the revisionist position. It is one that is ignorant of history.It is one that is even based upon a wilful refusal to acknowledge the history of the Constitution and its origins in the so-called "Merdeka Process" and "Merdeka Agreements."
To serious scholars the facts are clear and well-known.That the ideologues and revisionists do not care to accept them is another matter. But not one that adds any credence to their position or authority to their arguments.
The entire "Merdeka Process" was quite explicitly about creating Malaya as a modern, progressive, democratic and secular nation.
For a while it was thought that the word secular might be used explicitly in its Constitution. But, to allow for certain Malay sensibilities (including the fairly widespread Malay misunderstanding of the term "secular" as meaning or entailing "atheistic"), it was decided that the idea would be left unsaid — largely because it did not need to be spelled out.
But the secular idea was basic to the emerging Constitution and pervasive within it. The proposed basis of nationhood could not be seen or understood as anything but a modern secular Constitution: one that sought and was designed to create a progressive nation prospectively grounded in the popular sovereignty of its people, all of its people.
Nor, equally, in a balanced way, was there to be any formal mention of Islam as a key principle in the Constitution. This, it was felt, would add further weight to the Constitution's and the nation's secular, plural, inclusive and democratic character.
This was how things stood until the final evening of the long drafting deliberations of the Reid Commission. That was what the members of the Commonwealth-based Commission had thrashed out and agreed upon.
Suddenly, at the last moment, something happened.Some say that he had been lobbied heavily. Others say that a personally bitter argument erupted over Kashmir between the Indian member of the Commission, Judge B. Malik, and the Pakistani member, Judge Halim Abdul Hamid.
At all events, on the last evening the Pakistani member broke ranks. He would no longer be bound by the agreements already reached. The Constitution might remain implicitly secular, he conceded, but there should be some mention of Islam as the formally emblematic religion of the new state, as part of its international identity and personality in the world family of nations.
Held over a barrel, and with their bags already packed, the other members of the Commission agreed to accommodate Judge Halim Abdul Hamid's last-minute requirement — on the understanding that the added affirmation was to be purely nominal or symbolic: that it would have no flow-on effects upon any other Constitutional matters, and that it would not compromise or diminish (as had been agreed in extended discussions) the modern, democratic and secular character of the Constitution as a whole and of the nation to be founded upon it.
On that basis, and with little choice in the matter in the face of one man's sudden intractability, the other members of the Commission agreed to Judge Abdul Hamid's extraordinary last-minute requirement.
But what is significant now is not the dramatic personal ins-and-outs of the Reid Commission and its workings.It is what followed from that last minute accommodation of Judge Abdul Hamid's exercise of a shock, peremptory veto.
Many, especially the negotiators for UMNO's partner parties, were deeply disquieted by this last-minute development. So they sought and received formal assurances — which, on the grounds that they were sincerely meant and offered and so would remain binding, they accepted.
This assurance was approved and issued by Tun Abdul Razak, on behalf of UMNO and his successors who would later lead it, in the form of a document (now a key part of the official collection of British government published documents recording the decolonization process in Malaya) that was intended as a codicil, or accompanying explanatory document, to the Constitution itself — and specifying the terms of the agreement of all parties to it.
As is well-known, the Alliance Memorandum stated that "although the religion of Malaysia would be Islam, the observance of this principle shall not impose any disability on non-Muslim nationals professing and practising their own religion, and shall not imply that the State is not a secular State."
If there is any such thing as a Malayan and Malaysian "social contract" by which people remain bound, this is surely a key part of it. "Pacta servanda sunt" is a key principle of law: solemn agreements are to be solemnly observed and punctiliously upheld.
Those who these days loudly shout that "the social contract" must be respected and that it entails, and has always entailed, general acceptance by all Malaysians (and especially non-Malays), in perpetuity, of the doctrine of Ketuanan Melayu would do well to recall and abide by that obligation here in this matter.
They owe it not only to others, especially their non-Malay and non-Muslim fellow citizens.They owe it to themselves, if they are to live honourably and honestly and decently with their own recent political past — with themselves.
3. Context.
To assess accurately whether or not Malaysia is foundationally a secular or an Islamic state, it helps to consider its Constitution.Not just legally, in lawyer-like manner, clause by clause but more broadly. Historically.
In the light of comparative political and Constitutional and social and intellectual history.There is no need to try to hunt down, as the decisive and tell-tale indicator, whether the word "secular" appears in its political or conceptual lexicon.And there is no need to get too fancy or philosophical about this matter.
All one has to ask is:
What kind of a Constitution is Malaysia's?
Is it culturally and doctrinally and conceptually a Buddhist Constitution?
Is it a Hindu Constitution?
Is it an Islamic Constitution?
The answer is no, three times no.
What is it then? It is a modern, liberal-democratic Constitution.A modern Constitution, born of a modern and progressive and largely secular age, one that is couched in secular terms, and formed upon secularist assumptions.There is no other way to understand or classify or to typify it.
It was drafted and promulgated and enacted as the modern Constitution of, and for the continuing growth and development of, a modern, progressive, inclusive, pluralistic but cohesive, and secular society and nation.
A Constitution that — while it acknowledges and finds an honoured place for the ancient royal mystique and semi-sacred aura of its traditional Malay rulers, for their world-focusing daulat — was nevertheless founded upon the consent of its many and diverse subjects; meaning, on the principle of "popular sovereignty" (here the modern Malay word, often confusingly, is kedaulatan).But remember, as one always must, that daulat and kedaulatan, despite their being linguistically and etymologically cognate terms, are two entirely different things.
They are born of, stem from, and are anchored within two entirely distinct, different and mutually incommensurate universes of political meaning.The Rulers have daulat, the nation is built upon and (like all modern nations) is an expression of the sovereignty of its people.
That is where modern political legitimacy comes from.The Federal Constitution is the supreme law of the land. It is a Constitution that rests upon and which affirms the principle of popular sovereignty.That is what modern Constitutions and nations are. That is their "ontology".
And, yes, Malaysia's Federal Constitution is — or was by initial intention and design — a secular Constitution. One for a society that was, or was to become, an increasingly secular nation.
One that would not be hostile to religion but hospitable and equitably hospitable to religious and human diversity.Malaysia and its Constitution were incontrovertibly established as secular, on secular foundations and principles and assumptions.The struggle these days — and it is now no easy struggle — is to keep it that way.
4. In conclusion
So what can one say about the claim that Malaysia is not, and never was and was never intended to be, a secular state? That its Constitution is not secular and makes no provision or space for secular principles?
That Article 3 establishes Malaya and Malaysia as, at least prospectively but irrevocably, an Islamic state operating on the basis of Shariah law? That the doctrine of Ketuanan Melayu, of Malay ascendancy and primacy and domination, is a key principle of the Constitution, one that is deeply and pervasively embedded throughout its many clauses and pages?
Simply, that this claim is a crude "try-on."An outrageous, and outrageously over-reaching, "ambit claim."A third-rate "con job."One that could persuade only the ignorant.And that is precisely to whom it is these days addressed and targeted.
Dr. Clive Kessler is Emeritus Professor of Sociology and Anthropology at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Posted in civil society issues, Democracy, Governance, History, Hudud, Human Rights, Islam Malaysia, Law and Order, Malay Fascists, Malaysia, Mullaism, Najib Razak, Political Islam, Politics, Race Relations, Racial Discrimination, Racism, Rule of Law, The 1963 Malaysian Constitution, Tun Dr. Mahathir, UMNO, Uncategorized.
Thanks, Tawfik for Speaking up to Dr. Mahathir on my behalf
November 8, 2015 by dinobeano
Tawfik Tun Dr. Ismail
COMMENT: Thanks, Tawfik for speaking up to Dr. Mahathir on my behalf. It is quite well known among my generation of Malaysians that your great father and my favorite politician, Tun Dr. Ismail B. Abdul Rahman, had a hand in the sacking of the 1969 UMNO Young Turks, also known as UMNO ultras, who included Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and Tun Musa Hitam from the party. It took Tun Abdul Razak, Najib's illustrious father and our Second Prime Minister, to reinstate them in UMNO.
I also know that because of this, Dr. Mahathir never gave you the opportunity to advance your political career. As a result, UMNO lost a budding leader gifted with guts and character. While he may be a man who bear grudges on his sleeves (for example he never forgot the Singapore taxi driver who insulted him), Tun Dr. Mahathir is someone who cannot accept anyone who does not pander to his whims and fancies, and who has the courage of conviction to speak up. So I am not surprised that during the G25 meeting with him, he and you crossed swords again.
You are your father's son and I am proud that you told him what you thought with no holds barred. Tun Dr. Mahathir distorted the original intentions of the New Economic Policy, destroyed the Constitution, and created UMNO crony capitalism. He also mentored Najib Tun Razak and laid the ground work for his rise to the premiership, perhaps out of gratitude to Tun Abdul Razak who brought him back to UMNO and paved the way for his own political advancement. Today, he has a change of heart and is hell bent to make that his pupil is thrown out of office. –Din Merican
Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and Tawfik Ismail Encounter at G25 Meeting
by Anisah Shukry
Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin met the G25 Group of moderates and tried to seek help in their fight against Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, group member Tawfik Ismail has revealed.
The son of Malaysia's Second Deputy Prime Minister Tun Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman said the G25, however, took a non-partisan position and would not get involved in such a matter.
Tawfik said former Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin had summoned G25 for a meeting in September and told them of his unhappiness with Najib's leadership and how he had come to be in his current position.
"And then he asked us how we could help. We said, well, first of all, we don't think we are inclined to take sides in politics. We're non-partisan. And we told him we felt that he and Dr Mahathir were not the right people to fight Najib. He was a bit taken aback, asked me to explain. So I said, you know, for every dart that you throw at Najib, Najib throws two darts back," said Tawfik, adding that the constant barbs between both sides would just confuse the public.
He said Muhyiddin was told that the ills should be taken up by the young, who were going to inherit the country, and mentioned as examples UMNO Youth Chief Khairy Jamaluddin, PKR Youth Chief Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad and DAP leader Liew Chin Tong.
"These are the young up-and-coming leaders who have a bigger stake in what happens in the future than Dr Mahathir, Muhyiddin and Najib," said Tawfik.
G25 also told Muhyiddin that by taking sides, they would not be able to perform their role of bringing moderation back to Malaysia, as they would be alienating certain segments of society.
"That's what we told Muhyiddin. We need to have contacts with all our grassroots and we cannot do it if we are partisan.It's best for us to bring the current players back to the centre. Because if you can't get rid of them, you might as well change them," Tawfik said of the group's conversation with Muhyiddin, who was dropped as deputy prime minister in a cabinet reshuffle in late July, after openly questioning Najib over alleged financial scandals in his brainchild 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) and the RM2.6 billion deposited into his bank accounts.
The Malaysian Insider interviewed Tawfik in conjunction with the release of Drifting into Politics, a collection of writings by Dr Ismail himself and of which Tawfik is a co-editor with academic Ooi Kee Beng. It was also the 100th birth anniversary of Dr Ismail on November 4.
The G25 began as a group of 25 retired civil servants who late last year penned an open letter to the government appealing for a return to moderation and for rational dialogue on the position and application of Islam in laws and national policy.
The group has since grown in number and comments on issues involving race and religion while advocating moderation. Dr Mahathir, during the meeting with the G25 to discuss Islam and the constitution earlier this year, had tried to steer the topic to 1MDB and began attacking the government, said Tawfik.
"So I told him we're here about Islam, not talk about politics. But he kept on insisting. Then I told him, if you get rid of Najib, who are you going to replace him with? And what makes you think he would be any better?
"He said, 'well, you know, the person who succeeds him will be guided by a council of elders'," said Tawfik.
However, Tawfik said he could not accept such an argument, as it would be undemocratic to have an unelected council of elders dictating the Prime Minister.
He said Dr Mahathir had also criticised Najib over the money that the Prime Minister allegedly lost.
"So I countered back, from the time you were prime minister to the time you retired, if I took all of your losses and counted it to present day values, I'm sure it will be more than what was lost in 1MDB.And then everybody around the table was stunned because they didn't expect that confrontation," said Tawfik, adding that the meeting ended with their argument.
The former UMNO lawmaker admitted that he did not hold Dr Mahathir in high regard and blamed the former Prime Minister and his policies for the current state Malaysia was in.He said Dr Mahathir had undone the work of Dr Ismail and Malaysia's founding fathers in his desire to cling to power.
Racial issues only started when Dr Mahathir became increasingly concerned about "Malay rights" and began using the other races as a scapegoat to unite the Malays, said Tawfik.
Malaysia's increasing "Islamisation" could also be traced back to Dr Mahathir's attempts to counter the influence of PAS, he added.Ultimately, Dr Mahathir's successors were only striking out on the path that he had carved himself, said Tawfik.
"Najib may be the son of (Tun) Abdul Razak, but, politically, he is the son of (Dr) Mahathir."
Posted in civil society issues, Democracy, History, Najib Razak, Politics, Tun Dr. Mahathir, UMNO.


text:
NewsroomNewsAnnual School's Roadshow kicks off with the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy
Annual School's Roadshow kicks off with the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy
1 Mar 2019 2019-03-01T17:11:02+01:00
2019 School's Roadshow
BAE Systems, the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy have come together for the fourteenth annual Schools Roadshow, with the aim of opening the eyes of young people to the broad and diverse range of careers opportunities that can be achieved from studying STEM subjects.
This year, pupils across the UK will be treated to an interactive show covering themes that will educate them around communication technology, programming and online security.
The 2019 Schools Roadshow kicked off at The St Marylebone CE School in London, and will visit over 400 schools throughout the country to encourage young people to be responsible and confident users of technology. Pupils will be introduced to the science behind mobile phones, Bluetooth, radar and infra-red sensing and will be given an insight into how some of these technologies are applied at home and in the workplace.
Richard Hamer, Education Director at BAE Systems, said:
"As one of Britain's leading companies, at the forefront of advanced engineering and technology, we have a long history of nurturing young talent and helping to educate young people on the value of studying Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) subjects. The flagship Schools Roadshow reaches around 100,000 primary and secondary school children and brings to life the importance of STEM, helping to inspire the next generation of scientists, technologists and engineers."
Help for schools, colleges and community groups
We offer inspiring STEM Ambassadors, a Schools Roadshow, free resources for teachers and visits to some of our cutting edge sites to see the work we do.
Annually, the company invests approximately £90m in education, skills and early careers activities in the UK. With more than 34,000 people in the UK, the Company is one of the country's largest employers of engineers – with around 2,000 apprentices currently in training across its UK businesses.
Gillian Churchill Head Office
Head of Media, UK

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produce high-quality milk. Sometimes this is because the forages do not contain all of the nutrients the animal requires. Other times, it is because the animal has difficulty digesting the forages, reducing the amount of nutrition the animal actually receives.
Supplementing an animal's diet with urea mineral molasses blocks (UMMB) can provide them with additional nutrients and help them to digest other feeds more effectively.
Molasses: gives the UMMB a sweet taste, making it appealing to animals. It also provides energy and other nutrients like sulfur. A UMMB should not contain more than 40–50% molasses or it will break too easily and take too long to dry.
Urea: improves digestibility and provides additional protein. The amount of urea should be limited to 10% to avoid poisoning.
Fibrous cereals or forages (bran, finely chopped hay): provide nutrients and help to hold the block together. Cereal bran is the most common ingredient in UMMBs, though finely chopped hay, finely ground leaves from leguminous shrubs or cotton seed cake can also be used.
Salt: supply minerals and control the rate of consumption. Salt should make up no more than 5–10% of a UMMB.
Cement: used to make the block hard. A UMMB should only contain about 5–10% cement, otherwise the block will become too hard for the animal to eat. Clay (the type used in brick making) can be mixed with the cement to improve hardness, reduce drying time and reduce the overall cost for making a block.
Carefully weigh the amount of each ingredient based on the formula you are using.
Pour the molasses into a container.
The molasses can be heated in the sun to improve handling and mixing.
Add urea to the molasses while continuously mixing.
Stir the urea into the molasses for about 20 minutes.
Add any fibrous material (cereal bran, chopped hay, leaf meal, etc.) according to the formula and mix thoroughly.
In a separate container, mix together water and cement to make a paste.
Mix the salt into the cement to accelerate hardening.
Add the cement and any remaining ingredients to the urea-molasses mixture. Mix thoroughly.
Once the ingredients are thoroughly mixed, place the mixture into a mould. You can use any local container as a mould, such as cardboard box or a bucket.
You can line the mould with a plastic sheet to make it easier to remove the finished UMMB.
The ingredients are well-distributed throughout the block (it does not have lumps of urea and lime).
The UMMB is hard enough that it does not get squashed when you squeeze it between your fingers and does not break when a person steps on it. High levels of molasses and urea tend to make UMMBs soft, so if it is not hard enough try decreasing the amount of molasses and urea or increasing the amount of cement or clay next time.
You can feel the sticky molasses when you hold the block. If the block does not feel sticky, then you need to increase the amount of molasses next time.
Feed UMMBs to ruminant animals (sheep, goats, cattle) only. UMMB is potentially toxic to other animals.
UMMBs should be fed as a lick, so that only the top surface is accessible to animals. This prevents animals from pushing the blocks around, breaking them up or consuming large chunks that could cause urea toxicity.
Introduce UMMBs to your animals slowly, after they have already consumed adequate forage. This prevents animals from consuming too much UMMB at any one time.
UMMBs should never be used as your animals' main source of feed. They are only meant to supplement a regular diet of forages.


text:
Not for distribution to U.S. news wire services or dissemination in the United States. Toronto, ON /Marketwired/ September 15, 2016/ — IBI Group Inc. (the "Company") (TSX:IBG) announced today that it has closed the previously announced offering (the "Offering") of $40,000,000 principal amount of 5.50% convertible unsecured subordinated debentures due December 31, 2021 (the "Debentures") on...
Toronto, ON /Marketwired/ September 15, 2016/ — IBI Group Inc. (the "Company") (TSX:IBG) announced today that it has closed the previously announced offering (the "Offering") of $40,000,000 principal amount of 5.50% convertible unsecured subordinated debentures due December 31, 2021 (the "Debentures") on a bought deal basis to a syndicate of underwriters (the "Underwriters") led by National Bank Financial Inc., CIBC World Markets Inc. and TD Securities Inc. In addition, the Company has granted the Underwriters an over-allotment option to purchase up to an additional $6,000,000 aggregate principal amount of Debentures, exercisable in whole or in part at any time for a period of up to 30 days following closing of the Offering, to cover over-allotments.
The maturity date of the Debentures is December 31, 2021 (the "Maturity Date"). The Debentures have a coupon of 5.50% per annum, payable semi-annually in arrears on June 30 and December 31 each year commencing June 30, 2017. The Debentures are convertible at the holder's option at any time prior to the close of business on the earlier of the Maturity Date and the business day immediately preceding the date specified by the Company for redemption of the Debentures into common shares of the Company ("Common Shares") at a conversion price of approximately $8.35 per Common Share, being a conversion rate of 119.7605 Common Shares for each $1,000 principal amount of Debentures, subject to adjustment as provided in the indenture governing the Debentures.
The net proceeds of the Offering will be used to fund the partial redemption of the Company's 6.00% convertible unsecured subordinated debentures maturing on June 30, 2018 (the "2018 Debentures"), for which the Company expects to deliver a notice of redemption as soon as practicable following closing of the Offering, with redemption to be effective 30 days following the date of the notice of redemption. Prior to redeeming the 2018 Debentures, depending on timing of the redemption, the Company may use all of the net proceeds of the Offering to repay existing indebtedness under the Company's senior credit facility, which amount will then be available to be drawn, as required, to fund the partial redemption of the 2018 Debentures.
CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION
Certain statements in this news release may constitute "forward-looking" statements which involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company and its subsidiary entities, including IBI Group or the industry in which they operate, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. When used in this news release, such statements use words such as "may", "will", "expect", "believe", "plan" and other similar terminology. These statements reflect management's current expectations regarding future events and operating performance and speak only as of the date of this news release. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties, including those related to: (i) the impact of general economic conditions; (ii) industry conditions; (iii) stock market volatility; and (iv) the failure or delay in satisfying any of the conditions to the completion of the Offering, many of which are beyond the Company's control. For an augmented discussion of the risk factors and uncertainties that affect or may affect the Company, the reader is directed to the section entitled "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2015. New risk factors may arise from time to time and it is not possible for management of the Company to predict all of those risk factors or the extent to which any factor or combination of factors may cause actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those contained in forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as at September 15, 2016.
About IBI Group Inc.
IBI Group Inc. (TSX:IBG) is a globally integrated architecture, planning, engineering, and technology firm with over 2,500 professionals around the world. For more than 40 years, its dedicated professionals have helped clients create livable, sustainable, and advanced urban environments. IBI Group believes that cities must be designed with intelligent systems, sustainable buildings, efficient infrastructure, and a human touch.
Stephen Taylor, CFO
IBI Group Inc.
55 St. Clair Avenue West
Toronto, ON M4V 2Y7
Riyaz Lalani
Bayfield Strategy, Inc.
rlalani@bayfieldstrategy.com


text:
Platforms & Instruments
About ARMOR M3V MAX MIPS MoDLS RaDAPS Surface Measurements Radiosonde Soundings
MAPNet
ARMOR Real-Time Viewer
360 Roof Camera
About SWIRLL
About Visiting Outreach
SWIRLL Facilities
Officially commissioned in March of 2015 and home to the recently developed MAPNet facilties, SWIRLL is a core research and teaching facility that houses infrastructure and UAH faculty, staff, and who are involved in many areas of atmospheric and earth science research. After the historic tornado outbreak of April 27-28, 2011that devastated North and Central Alabama, many eyes turned towards weather preparedness and research. That is why the state of Alabama received a $7 million grant dedicated to use state universities for severe weather research. Through this grant, the construction of SWIRLL began.
SWIRLL was carefully designed to foster research and innovation. From the iconic spiral staircase in the lobby, to the high functioning, working high bay garage, the SWIRLL building features many resources that allow faculty, staff, and students the opportunity for collaboration within the department and within the weather community. Our faculty have a wide variety of interest including severe weather and boundary layer studies, lightning, atmospheric chemistry, radar meteorology, climate studies, GIS/remote sensing, data assimilation/numerical modeling, and tropical cyclones. Click here to meet our faculty and staff.
Field Campaign Participation
During the previous 20 years, the UAH SWIRLL profiling facilities have been used in the following field campaigns with both boundary layer and precipitation emphases: CAMEX (2001, NASA supported), IHOP (2002, NSF supported), BAMEX (2003, NSF supported), MIRAGE (2006, NSF supported), Profiling Of Winter Storms (PlOWS, 2009-2010; NSF supported), Ontario Winter Lake Effect Systems (OWLES, 2013-2014; NSF supported), the Atmospheric Boundary Identification and Delineation Experiment over northern Alabama (ABIDE, 2011-2014; NSF supported), Plains Elevated Convection At Night (PECAN, 2015; NSF supported), and VORTEX-SE (2016-current; NOAA supported). In addition, the MIPS and/or MAX have been deployed about one dozen times over the past 22 years for landfalling tropical cyclones (Hurricanes At Landfall, HAL) utilizing NASA and internal funds.
SWIRLL offers several labs that are dedicated to development and maintenance of weather instrumentation and computers, as well as storing, prepping, and launching of radiosonde soundings used for atmospheric studies. There are three main labs inside SWIRLL. The electronics and radar lab is used for the storage, fabrication, and maintenance of electrical components, instruments, and computers. This lab features a soldering station, a radio frequency (RF) testing station, and also serves as a storage area for various electrical equipment used.
The lightning lab holds several computers, a soldering station, and an electrical and RF testing station. Inside the lightning lab, instruments are designed and built to study all aspects of lightning. Many of the lightning sensors used to measure lightning characteristic during the RELAMPAGO field campaign in Argentina were built right within this lab and deployed by UAH staff and students.
The Sounding lab, or Sounding Prep Room, is used to store and prep radiosonde soundings launched by the departmental club, UPSTORM, and faculty and staff. This space allows students to be trained to launch radiosondes in support of the many research operations that go on at SWIRLL. With the use of this lab, students who are interested in working at The National Weather Service (NWS) gain early experience launching radiosondes as many of the NWS offices launch upper air soundings twice a day for observation of the upper atmosphere. A station on the other side of the room is used by the Atmospheric Chemistry group to prep and launch Ozone soundings. These soundings are funded by NOAA and launched with an instrument pack designed to study the ozone in the Stratosphere. When it is not being used as a space for soundings to be prepped, this lab is used as an additional workspace for students to collaborate and conduct research projects.
The SWIRLL Sounding Prep Room
The SWIRLL Lightning Lab
The SWIRLL Radar & Electronics Lab
Located on the second floor of SWIRLL, the research operations center, or ROC, provides a large conference room-style space for multi-purpose use. The main purpose of this room is to serve as a command center for in-field operations that take place out of SWIRLL. In the Southwest corner of the ROC, there are two walls of hurricane windows suited for winds up to 250 MPH that allow for a panoramic view of the Southwest sky, including a glimpse of the iconic Apollo rocket located at the U.S Space and Rocket Center. Within this room, there are 4 Windows, 2 Linux, and 2 MacOS machines all connected to a 9-panel TV wall centered in the front of the room. These screens can be used to display each of these computers for in-field situational awareness or can be used as one large display. There also features a communications radio that can be used to communicate to teams when in the field. When it is not being used to monitor teams deployed in the field, the ROC serves not only as a large conference room for the research groups at SWIRLL, but also as a space for students to conduct various research projects and activities.
With access to most of these computers, students get experience and exposure to several operating systems that can be used for research. On the Windows computers, students can use GR2Level Analysist for radar analysis and access to ArcMap and ArcGIS. On the Linux machines, students have access to many of the Linux-based servers that house our data, as well as provides them with access to Solo3 and RaDX tools for radar editing and manipulation. Two Baron Radar Service Windows computers are also in this room that are loaded up with their Lynx weather graphics center that can be used to make weather graphics for live TV. With the Lynx system, students are able to gain hands-on experience with creating graphics for TV and social media. One of these computers is also linked to our ARMOR Radar located at the Huntsville International Airport for real-time radar control from SWIRLL.
A packed house during a VORTEX-SE IOP.
SWIRLL ROC serving as a student research center during the summer.
The view to the SW (including the Apollo rocket) out of the ROC windows.
High Bay Garage
The SWIRL high bay garage is a large, 5-bay garage that provides space to store and conduct maintenance on the many SWIRLL research platforms. Centered over two of the bays, a 5-ton crane can be used to install or remove instruments and equipment on or off of the platforms. Located on the South end of the garage, space is available for balloons to be prepped and inflated for upper air soundings. A tall bay door on the South wall can be raised to launch these balloons. At the back of the garage, a storage room is used to store a variety of tools and equipment that is used to work on the platforms and instruments. A balcony overlooks the high bay that is used to quickly oversee work being done or for the many tours hosted at SWIRLL.
Staff and students working hard to get the RaDAPS platform operational.
The SWIRLL platforms in the high bay for maintenance and storage.
The new MIPS 915 MHz wind profiler being installed.
SWIRLL Roof Platforms
On top floor of SWIRLL, the wall is lined with countertops designed to hold computers or to be used as workspace. Hurricane windows able to withstand up to 250 MPH winds are above these counters and provide a panoramic view of the Southwest sky. This floor also provides access to the roof. On the roof, four large platforms are mounted that can be used for instrument testing and calibration. There is also access to the second level and highest point of the roof that has antennas mounted for communication with radiosondes and the communications radio located in the ROC. A small crane is mounted here for heavier instruments to be lifted to this level of the roof. Our 360 deg panoramic camera is also located on this platform.
Roof platforms with lightning sensors mounted to them.
500 lb crane designed to lift light-load instruments to the roof. Mounted on top of this crane is the 360 degree panoramic camera.
One of the SWIRLL radiometers preforming a liquid nitrogen calibration on the roof.
Conference Room, Classroom, & Offices
A 20-student classroom is located on the first floor of SWIRLL that is used for several classes offered in the department. Linux machines connected to our data servers are accessible from each desk that gives students the ability to learn and gain hands-on experience with data in the classroom setting. A conference room is available on the second floor of SWIRLL for various meetings.
There are 7 faculty/staff offices located inside SWIRLL. Along the hallway of the second floor, there are 6 office spaces that are filled with graduate students conducting research around SWIRLL. These shared spaces allow for better student and faculty collaboration. Most graduate students working within these offices are provided a computer loaded with an operating system of their choice and multiple computer monitors. When running at full capacity, SWIRLL holds 12 graduate students and 7 faculty/staff members in these offices.
The SWIRLL classroom
A view inside student offices.
The SWIRLL Conference Room
The SWIRLL Conference Room.


text:
1st July 2009 10th November 2011
UNITED SIGN VALENCIA
by Felipe
Manchester United have made their first signing since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo by landing the services of Wigan's Antonio Valencia.
The 23 year old Ecuador international has signed a four year deal for an undisclosed fee, though reports suggest that United have paid around £16 million.
United' have maintained regular contact with their fellow Lancashire club for a couple of months over a possible deal and United manager Sir Alex Ferguson was delighted to get his man saying:
Antonio is a player we have admired for some time now, having spent the last two years in the Premier League with Wigan.
I am sure his pace and ability will make a significant contribution to the team.
Ferguson is also thought to be on the look out for other players including Sergio Aguero of Atletico Madrid as well Luis Fabiano, the Brazilian international currently with Sevilla, but their hopes of landing Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema appear to be receding, with the former increasingly likely only to leave Bayern Munich for Madrid and the latter intent on staying in France for another season.
As for Valencia, he was happy to have made the move to Old Trafford and said:
I have enjoyed my time at Wigan, but I am thrilled to have the chance to challenge for the biggest honours in club football here.
Playing in front of 76,000 fans alongside players like Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand and Ryan Giggs will be an amazing experience. I can't wait to get started.
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2nd July 2009 at 6:08 am
could valencia be the new ronaldo??


OTSEGO - On Tuesday, March 9, fifth- and sixth-grade classroom winners from Otsego County took part in the 16th annual Natural Resources Speech Contest. The contest was held at the Gaylord Intermediate School and was sponsored by the Otsego Conservation District, Otsego County 4-H, Weyerhaeuser, and Quicksilver Resources.
The theme chosen for this year was "The Living Soil." The students gave speeches on various aspects of this theme with an emphasis on Otsego County and Michigan. The goal of the contest is to increase young people's awareness and appreciation of natural resources, particularly as they affect northern Michigan, according to contest coordinator, Patricia Osburn.
The contest judges expressed their admiration for the quality, creativity and information presented by the speakers.
Contestants competed for first and second place overall. Participating fifth-grade students were Tiffany Creager, Danielle Hardy, Robert Payne and Trevor Smith from Johannesburg. Sixth-grade students were Kristy Cleveland, Megan Esson, Aaron Midcalf, Rachael Osantowski, and Aurora Walchak-Arndt from Gaylord Intermediate School and C.H.E.E.R. student Alyssa J. Oram.
First- and second-place trophies were presented to the winners in each grade level. Fifth-grade winners were: first place, Tiffany Creager; and second place, Danielle Hardy. Sixth-grade winners were: first place, Alyssa J. Oram; and Rachael Osantowski, second place.
Jill Miner, Deb Linden, and Mary Tithof volunteered to judge the speech contest.


text:
To immunize priests against clericalism, start with seminaries
by Ken Briggs
vestments crop.jpg
(CNS/Tyler Orsburn)
How do you learn "clericalism"? As the Broadway show "South Pacific" said about human prejudice, "you've got to be carefully taught."
It's an attitude inculcated mostly in subtle ways, in little gestures and tainted language. It's absorbed in behavior and habits considered normal rather than aberrant, accepted as a natural way of life.
The upheaval sparked by priests' sex abuse and bishops' cover-up has pointed to clericalism as a major factor. The phenomenon has long plagued Catholicism as a contrived power grab based on arrogance and superiority. Its audacious presumption was that ordination was God's method of conveying higher status and authority on certain individuals, conferring rights to rule the church without the consent or advice of the laity. They alone were entitled to espouse what the church officially taught and exact sanctions for disobedience.
Clericalism as much as any other factor triggered attacks against the church for many centuries, the most explosive being the French Revolution. In the post-Reformation era, rising temporal powers with vain ambitions of their own found an equivalent in clerical efforts to preserve their accumulated privileges. The tensions have remained as the ordained class has struggled to hold on to its relative monopoly in the face of growing opposition from, among other things, the flowering of democratic spirit.
Pope Francis has voiced his disdain for clericalism front and center. He has bewailed tendencies by hierarchy to adopt the trappings of royalty and scorned exclusivity and smugness among clergy of every stripe.
It seems beyond doubt that this attitude of exceptionalism and impunity, however disguised it might be, has contributed greatly to abuse of many kinds, most grievously sexual exploitation in our time.
In the most twisted way, clericalism has been consciously or unconsciously used to justify the abuse as necessary to the fulfillment of the abuser's vocation. Years ago, I heard this first in the voices of women who had wanted to break off sexual relations with priests but were deterred by the priest's argument that she was enabling him to sustain his God-given ministry.
The presumption that clergy are set apart and above the laity is rarely a blatant act of egotism or power-seeking, but a process of osmosis through a thousand suggestions and hints. But stopping it seems to me the major objective if abuse is to end. The deeply embedded notion of entitlement must be reversed.
Perhaps steps are being taken to do that. If so, they are welcome, perhaps far-reaching. My focus is on how remedies might affect what seems the heart of the matter, seminary preparation. It is there I suspect the code language has been imparted and the rationalizations passed along, however covertly. Typically, those four years of shaping mind and spirit center on character and the priest's theological and pastoral relationship to the rest of humanity. Where specialness is injected at least subliminally in courses on moral doctrine and canon law. It is a profound formation conducted within a closed circle in relative isolation.
Perhaps it's time to let more fresh air into those rooms, to paraphrase Pope John XXIII's metaphor to introduce the Second Vatican Council. Open up seminary education to mainstream participation for a wide variety of Catholics who would offer insight, challenge and a different prism through which to appreciate the greater sources of wisdom and understanding of the Gospel. Emphasize collaborative learning. Abandon titles and special prerogatives.
This shift could begin to reorient would-be leaders away from the two-tiered hazards of clericalism and dreadful, isolated apartness. Priests immunized against clericalism likely become bishops free of that malady. It could be achieved under a variety of educational conditions.
The aim would be to crack open the casing that has too often served as an incubator for the attitude that has been devastating, a frame of mind that has torn asunder the very conviction of Oneness that gave rise to Christianity.
[Ken Briggs reported on religion for Newsday and The New York Times, has contributed articles to many publications, written four books and is an instructor at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania.]
Get Ken Briggs' columns delivered to your inbox.
Accountability | To immunize priests against clericalism, start with seminaries
Is Francis actually backsliding on punishing abuse?
Church's ongoing clergy abuse scandals recounted in new podcast
A modest proposal: Spread the priesthood by eliminating clergy
Hierarchy and the need for a 'culture of vulnerability'
Vatican magazine: Pope touched 'sore point' on women's leadership in new book


If you have received a moving violation, it is likely you have to decide between paying the fine and going to court. Paying a fine without disputing the ticket might be construed as an admission of guilt. This will add points to your driving record. In turn, this will increase your insurance premiums. These points can linger on your driving record and your insurance premiums will substantially increase if there is a future moving violation. The fines that come with moving violations can become burdensome in both the payment and time out of your day to in order to attend the court hearing.
Some understand that fighting a ticket in court could lead to a more reasonable result, which is a much better alternative to paying the ticket in full and still getting points on your license. However, this leads to possibly spending a whole day in court, obtaining an uncertain result, when the time could have been better spent working, or with family, or doing what you want to do with your day.
It is simple to see why drivers who represent themselves end up spending more money and time fighting their own cases: the first trip to court typically requires waiting in a long line just to see a judge and plead to the charges. Many drivers do not know that a nolo contendere plea has the same effect as a guilty plea. Too many clients, who tried to handle their own tickets in the past, plead nolo because the bailiff told them it meant, "Guilty with an excuse". In reality, it is essentially a guilty plea regardless of the circumstances surrounding the violation. After missing a day of work to wait in line just to make a plea, another court date will be required if you fail to pay your fine in a timely manner.
In court, many drivers choose to defend themselves, erroneously believing they have a legitimate excuse. Unfortunately, the court looks upon these drivers as a nuisance: people without a general understanding of the legal system who annoy judges with their incessant arguing and lack of understanding of court procedure. These people end up wasting the court's time as the inproper driver cannot effectively cross-examine witnesses, or the citing police offers who attend dozens of cases a year. By the time the verdict comes back as guilty, the unrepresented driver spent countless hours and/or days to prepare their case for the same inevitable result, when their time could have been better spent elsewhere.
Although it is your right to represent yourself in court, it is not recommended for anyone without legal experience, or the time to adequately read up on the law which applies to your fact pattern. If you hire the right traffic ticket lawyer, the lawyer can reduce the charges or even get them dismissed. Attorneys can obtain better results by negotiating moving violations into non-moving violations, which typically cost only a fine (such as illegal parking); a simple fine, no traffic school, and most importantly, no points on your driving record.
Most of us would rather pay a slightly higher illegal parking fee rather than pay for a speeding ticket with points on our license along with increased insurance premiums. Furthermore, many drivers would rather spend their time doing what they WANT to do instead of wasting the day away in court lines and to deal with the wrath of an impatient judge, and an uncertain result.
If you have been ticketed for a moving violation, and pondering your options, do not waste any more time and call at (702) 302-2277 for a free consultation. We will review all legal options for you and provide you with possible scenarios specific to your situation.
Drivers that decide to hire our office also benefit from almost never having to go to court. We will handle this for you, so you do not miss work. Then we provide you with the outcome and instructions on how to completely resolve any outstanding issues, including payment of any possible fines. When you retain us to handle your citation(s), you are getting an experienced attorney working for you.
Muslusky Law can handle traffic tickets in other counties in the State of Nevada. Call (702) 302-2277 now for the representation you need.


If you are thinking about building a pole barn on your own then good planning goes a long way toward saving time and money. I have compiled a comprehensive "As-Built" materials list in Excel and PDF formats. The list not only includes the exact amount of lumber used in the project (down to the board), it also includes everything from string, nails, screws, bracing, stakes, adhesive, concrete, and batter boards!
I have also created an "As-Built" three dimensional model of the barn in all the ridiculous detail my YouTube viewers have come to expect of me. I used Google's modeling software called Sketchup. It's free and it's pretty awesome for a free 3D modeling software. You can download the free version by clicking here.
Finally, I created an annotated model where I labeled each board in the building that cross-references to the materials list. Using that information, you can tell exactly where each board in the materials list is used! It's as close to instructions as you can get.


As mentioned in the previous blog post, we've installed new boards in Hendrix Hall (D/L/028).
Responding to the frequent requests from academics who use the space - the boards are now counter-weighted and can be moved by hand, rather than the former motorised boards.
Here's to seeing them full of academic content soon (but of course cleaned after each session).


text:
Anger, fear at Berkeley High in wake of sexual assault accusations
Campus culture and safety issues have bubbled to the surface at Berkeley High School this week, with students publicly accusing their classmates of sexual assault and their administration of failing to prevent it.
by Natalie Orenstein Feb. 06, 2020, 4:20 p.m. October 4, 2022
Berkeley High. Photo: Natalie Orenstein
"It was a long day at Berkeley High," said Principal Erin Schweng, making a rare public comment at Wednesday's School Board meeting.
Earlier, graffiti had appeared on a school bathroom stall door listing names of "boys to watch out 4" and labeling some as "rapists." A few days prior, an anonymous student sued BUSD and individual staffers for allegedly failing to report or adequately address an attempted rape reported on the Berkeley High campus.
Students have described a palpable climate of fear and anger on campus this week. Some are planning to walk out of class in the coming days to protest how the administration handled events.
"Students have seen the system fail us over and over again, within the Berkeley High community and beyond," said a BHS senior, speaking during the School Board meeting. "We have brought reports to admin and to the police. Because no one knows what to do, students have resorted to becoming our own informants."
The lists of names "aren't simply call-out culture, gossip or bathroom graffiti," she continued. "They are a warning, a cry for help." (The list was rewritten on two additional stalls after the school removed the original, students said.)
In emails to the student body and BHS families Wednesday and Thursday, Schweng said staff has been meeting with students who feel "impacted" by the bathroom graffiti. The principal described additional steps the administration plans to take to improve safety and comfort on campus.
"The admin team and I care very much about how these experiences affect students," Schweng wrote to students Wednesday evening. "Each of you should be able to come to school, feel safe, learn, and enjoy your experience."
Berkeley High Principal Erin Schweng tells the School Board that BHS needs more support to carry out student safety and education plans. Photo: Natalie Orenstein
She told students the administration is "working to bring in some folks with expertise running restorative justice circles to address sexual harm incidents, so that students can express their thoughts and feelings as well as have an opportunity to move toward justice and healing." Schweng also said the school is looking into ramping up education about "affirmative consent" across all grade levels at Berkeley High. To parents, she said the school already works with the Berkeley Police Department when a student reports a crime, and makes counseling services available to students.
At the School Board meeting, the principal made an unusual public plea to district officials for more resources to carry out those plans.
In her letter to students, Schweng also said that, while the administration cares about all experiences students have with sexual harm, students can only be suspended or expelled if the incident happens on campus. Those legal limits on what adults can do can lead to a perception among students that the school doesn't care about or isn't addressing serious issues, she said.
However, the lawsuit filed last week calls into question whether staff is following mandatory reporting laws and district policies for incidents that do occur on campus.
In conversations and on social media, students have said the latest events are symptoms of a "systemic rape culture" the school has failed to address for years. Students formed a group called BHS Stop Harassing in 2014 after male students created "slut accounts" on Instagram featuring photographs of female students. The organization is still active, trying to raise awareness of harassment at Berkeley High and hold the administration accountable.
In the wake of this week's incidents, at least one recent Berkeley High graduate has contacted the principal to express despair that assault and harassment issues are "still occurring unresolved and unacknowledged." She said a group of alumni wants to offer support to current students.
One current senior, Abby Sanchez, 17, told Berkeleyside it's infuriating to learn that these issues have plagued Berkeley High for years. She said her generation of students must be the one that finally changes the culture.
"This has to stop, and some class has to take a stand," she said. "We feel hurt and damaged and we need to translate that to action."
On Thursday, Sanchez was part of a group of students that wrote up a list of 10 demands for the administration, including schedule changes for alleged aggressors, guaranteed suspension or expulsion for students who are found guilty, a week of excused absences for assault survivors, and an apology from staff.
Meanwhile, BUSD's new Title IX coordinator, the district-level administrator who handles complaints about assault and harassment, has recently resigned from her post, effective at the end of February. She was the third person in as many years to hold the job.
On a recent agenda of the district's Sexual Harassment Advisory Committee, outgoing coordinator Mardi Walters recommended numerous steps the district could take to restructure and expand the Title IX position to be more responsive and effective.
At Wednesday's board meeting, one student said there's more to the story of sexual harm than simply a neglectful administration and preventable incidents.
Speaking at Wednesday's meeting, Estella Hemp, the School Board's student member, said there are intertwining, nuanced issues for which everyone holds some level of responsibility.
"Our culture isn't something that's just taught in schools, but built off-campus, at parties, community events and especially social media. This isn't necessarily under the control of just the board, of just admin, or just the students, but everyone," she said.
But, Hemp said, "students need to know that if they commit something so horrific and life-altering to someone else, that there will be consequences."
BHS staff failed student who was sexually assaulted on campus, lawsuit says
State says Berkeley Unified mishandled sexual harassment case
'Our Monologues' show replaces 'outdated' 'Vagina' tradition at Berkeley High
Tagged: Berkeley High School, Berkeley School Board, Berkeley Unified School District, BHS Stop Harassing, School safety, Sexual harassment
Natalie Orenstein
natalie@oaklandside.org
Natalie Orenstein reports on housing and homelessness for The Oaklandside. Natalie was a Berkeleyside staff reporter from early 2017 to May 2020. She had previously contributed to the site since 2012,... More by Natalie Orenstein


The event was presided over by Mr. Vong Sokhal, Chief Planning Officer, Mr. Ky Roetha, Head of Marketing Department of Sathapana Bank Plc. and Mr. Pen Sovibol, the Fourth Vice-Director of Planning and Research at Vanda Institute.
The workshop was organized by Sathapana Bank Plc. with the collaboration with Vanda Institute to provide 235 students with the practical skills – concerning the theories taught in school to the tangible implementation at Sathapana Bank Plc. The workshop, furthermore, aimed at equipping students with the practical knowledge and core competency so that participants would be qualified enough for the vacancy opportunities in financial institutions or banking sector in Cambodia after graduation.
This was the 5th seminar of this year with the total participants of 1405 students.


Added by Andreas Kohlbecker about 2 years ago. Updated almost 2 years ago.
Reuse the "Custom WMS base Layer" fieldset.
".... are already predefined and must not be added here again ..."
released and tested - works as expected.


text:
Cuba Business News
Cuban sugar plantations turn to food as Cuba talks of buying U.S. sugar
Posted November 08, 2003 by publisher in Cuba-US Trade
Email this article | Print this article | Search Havana Journal Tweet
By JOHN RICE, , Associated Press Writer
HAVANA, Cuba (AP) - Cuba, once one of the world's largest sugar exporters, is transforming old sugar plantations into farmland at the same time it is negotiating a possible purchase of sugar from the United States.
The Communist Party daily Granma reported Friday that Sugar Minister Ulises Rosales del Toro said that 2.47 million acres of sugar cane land are being turned over to production of food or to forestry.
The report comes at the same time that Cuba's state import company, Alimport, said it is considering an offer by PS International, an agricultural trading company based in Chapel Hill, N.C., to sell U.S. sugar.
"If U.S. producers want to sell us sugar and the price is right, why can't we buy it?" Alimport director Pedro Alvarez said this week.
He confirmed Friday that talks were still underway.
Wayne Carrick, an international trader for PS International who was attending the Havana International Trade Fair here, said Friday that negotiations were still going on for the possible sale of 5,000 to 15,000 tons of sugar. He said a deal might be reached within a few weeks.
He indicated that part of the issue may be price: U.S. sugar prices are above the world price at which Cuba normally buys sugar.
Alimport, meanwhile, announced several new deals on Friday to purchase U.S. soybeans, wheat and other goods, as well as contracts with a contract with a U.S. shipper to bring the material to Cuba.
Sugar was long a dominant force in the Cuban economy and an obsession among Cuban officials both before and after the 1959 revolution led by Fidel Castro.
In the 1960s and 1970s, officials sent hundreds of thousands of urban workers into the fields each year to help bring in the harvests.
One of the first punitive measures imposed by the United States after the revolution was to cut the quota of sugar purchased from Cuba, which began trading the product to the Soviet bloc at prices above world market levels.
Production of 6 million to 7 million tons a year was common. An unsuccessful attempt to produce 10 million tons in 1970 was a major national crusade.
But harvests have been declining over the past decade and the collapse of the Soviet Union took away the most lucrative market.
In 2002, Cuba closed 70 mills in a drive for greater efficiency. Harvests slipped to 3.6 million tons in 2002. No figure has been given for this year, but most experts say it was less than 2 million.
Tourism has replaced sugar as Cuba's main source of foreign income.
Archibald Ritter, a specialist on the Cuban economy at Carleton University in Canada said an artificially imposed exchange rate of 1 Cuban peso per dollar has made the Cuban sugar industry seem less productive than it really is.
The free market rate of the peso is about 26 to the dollar. So when the Cuban government sells sugar abroad but gives the industry only one peso per dollar, "they are always going to be extremely unprofitable."
"It has been starved of new investment for so long, so it's not surprising that it appears to be inefficient," Ritter said.
Follow up post #1 added on December 08, 2003 by INCHEITRUST with 2 total posts
With the decrease in the sugar crops, it is increasing the agricultural sector and forests.
There is no doubt that the Agricultural Party of Cuba understands that there will be loss of profit with the illimination of sugar crops.
Tourism does play an enormous role in the economy, however it is not the main source of foreign income. Tobacco plays this role. After all, Cuban Cigars are of the highest quality and have gained international praise.
The Cubans know all too well how inefficient it is to be rid of their sugar crops. But they recognise the absolute necessity of their destruction in order to pave way for agriculture and forests.
Feeding the people, and allowing nature to thrive are of utmost importance - not profits.
Follow up post #2 added on December 09, 2003 by I-boulware with 6 total posts
A good read for a young aspiring anarchist is "FidelCastro" by Robert Quark. It tells how he came to power, but more to your point, discusses the politics of sugar vis a vis the US government.
If you are going to be a communist, you should at least do yourself the courtesy of reading up on its effects on people. Notably, eliminating the middle class, heavy bureacracy that grinds any industry into the ground, and most insiduously, tries to destroy any personal innititive in the people.
B..
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