After giving that speech on environment last week, some of my colleagues have been talking about our ‘tah pau’ habit. You see, a few of us pack food from the hawker quite regularly and I was making fun about how we have been damaging the environment with the styro-foam containers and plastic bags. Today, we finally changed that…
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About 4 of us who packs regularly and assuming that we pack 3 days in a week, we now effectively cut down on 12 styro-foam packets and 12 plastic bags every week. That is less 48 styro-foam containers and plastic bags down the rubbish dump every month and that is 576 styro-foam containers and plastic bags in a year!
One colleague who just returned from her honeymoon missed out on this initiative and she failed today, but I am sure she will join us in this mini effort from now on. I have to say, everyone was staring at me when I walked to the stored in my plastic container. I wonder what went through their mind.
Anyway, my colleagues would like to reiterate that they are doing this NOT because they are inspired by my speech. They just choose to do it.
Done anything to change the world lately?
P/S: Early this week said no petrol increase till March 2009. Today said no petrol increase at least till end of the year. My friend still think there will be another increase in Aug. Who to believe? Who to believe?
3 days without internet connection is why I have been away in case you’re curious. Anyway, this picture is the hottest forwarded e-mail in the past few days in the wake of the recent petrol hike.
RM0.16 for a litre of petrol!!! I think all us car-whores out there will be foaming in the mouth, or have multiple orgasm each time we fill out our tank.
But seriously, have you ever wondered how things will turn out if we really have cheap petrol? Maybe not RM0.16 per litre, that is really ridiculous. Let’s say the price in our good ‘ol Malaysia is about… RM0.50 per litre. Yes… brings an instant smile to your face isn’t it?
And to top that up, what if the govt really decides to lift the tariffs on imported cars? That’s right, imagine the price of a Civic or a Altis is about RM70,000. And with just RM50,000; or lower, you get yourself a brand new Honda City or Toyota Vios. Getting a hard-on just by reading that, isn’t it?
It’s like a dream come true isn’t it? Most of us here would probably be driving at least a City or a Vios and for those who are a little more fortunate, will be behind the wheel of a Civic or Altis already. Those who are willing to squeeze the wallet a bit will probably be roaming around in Accords, Camries and not to mention the BMs and Mercz, which I am sure many will do. And I don’t need to remind you… petrol is only RM0.50 per litre.
But wait, when the price of those cars come down, it is only natural that prices of domestic products be made cheaper in line with the above prices. If the above is made possible, then I think the price of Proton cars will be in the region of RM20k – RM35k. Can you imagine how much a Perodua Kelisa or Viva will cost? Probably around RM11k – RM15k?
If… just if the above becomes a reality, what do you think will happen? Do you seriously think you will enjoying yourself on the road? With every Tom Dick Harry Mary Jean Jane and your maid’s secret bf can afford a car, how do you think the traffic jam will be like? How big do you think the population of rempits will be? Heck, do you think the rempits will roam the streets at night in bikes?
I shall leave it to your wonderful imagination on what will happen if the above is a reality. I am sure you all have an idea or two…
The sad modern slaves’ lives…
Everything is going to increase in price so it is time to show all your cards to your boss and demand a pay rise. If you work in an industry where you unscrupulous boss is going to take advantage of the hike by increasing the price of your company’s products, all the more you should get a pay rise right?
So stand up, bang the table, show your true feelings and do whatever you need… provided you have the guts. Hey, it’s not that bad. I have done it before so I know. If it doesn’t work, finish working on time as you probably need to take public transport. It will take a while before you reach home.
If you don’t dare to do anything and still want to work hard and get a peanut pay because you think you have no choice, then stop sulking and admit that you are not as rich as you think you are. Stop spending lavishly, sell your freaking car and start getting your ass on a bus or LRT.
The life and times of a driver…
Were you stuck in a traffic jam this morning? I did. Looks like business as usual for me. Petrol expensive?... “wan kok lei ge jeh”… It’s an illusion… putting your car key into your car’s keyhole is like slowly pushing your co*k into a virgin’s love-nest. Turning it to start your engine is like getting an orgasm. Once you turn on the air-cond and hit the road, it feels like heaven doesn’t it?
Hit a traffic jam? Just turn on your expensive audio system and all will be solved. Each time to step on your accelerator, it’s like multiple orgasm. As you look outside your window, you see people taking bus and you feel damn superior isn’t it?
Now, RM2.70 isn’t a problem at all, isn’t it?
The big-car hopefuls…
There is a group of individuals who are debating that with the increase in petrol price, the price of cars should come down. Deep down inside them, they harbour the hope to get themselves a nice big imported car. At the end of the day, it’s all about keeping their ass behind the wheel. So when you get yourself a brand new car, RM2.70 suddenly don’t look so expensive, is it?
A potential investment in town…
An anonymous comment in my previous entry gave me an idea. I have checked the newspaper classified... a 10 year old Proton Tiara can be bought at an average price of RM3,000 per unit. Just buy one and chuck it aside. No need to buy insurance. Road tax will be minimal.
From now on, just sit back and enjoy your RM625 rebate per annum. You will be making free money after 3 years. The cheaper the car, the faster the payback period. Happy investing.
The govt talk…
Correct me if I am wrong but this is what I recall:
Monday… say the ban on foreign cars buying petrol will take effect.
Tuesday… say a new scheme will be announced and cabinet has decided to implement immediately and will be announced tomorrow (i.e. Wednesday).
[this was why I pumped full tank on that day and thus, no need to join the rush yesterday.. hehe]
Wednesday morning… say the new scheme will only be implemented in August.
Wednesday late evening… implementation of new scheme and the one in August is another new scheme.
Thursday… ban on foreign cars buying petrol is off.
I don’t know about you but this certainly beats the parliament-will-not-be-dissolved… aiks…err… parliament-is-dissolved antic. Maybe tomorrow they will say… gee, I seriously can't predict such volatile behaviour. By the way, didn’t they announced that there will be no petrol price increase earlier this year?
Ohh… If you are not a registered voter or chose not to vote even if you’re one, you have no right to be angry or frustrated. Basically, you should shut the f**k up.
The opposition reaction…
Planning a big demonstration and show the might of the people they say. Some gatherings are already in plan according to some blogs? Go ahead… create a big march or something. Stir the 
anger of the people. Then the govt will proclaim that there is public unrest and have a reason to declare emergency.
If that happen, military will come in and you who think you are smart and care for the people will lose control of your 3 months plus old power and everything might just go back to square one. Do you want that?
It was around 3pm today when a friend of mine who has close connection with Petronas told me that the price of petrol will go up to RM2.77 per litre. It took her a while to convince me but in the end, I told her that is not possible as I think the nation needs to be addressed first before any increase can be affected. 2 hours later, I was made to eat my word, though it was not RM2.77 but RM2.70.
And of course, many have begun debating how bad this is and how this is going to affect your life. But if you ask me, I think this is a damn good move and it should have happen long time ago.
Every Tom, Dick, Harry, Mary, Jean, Jane, cockroach, butterfly and grasshopper are talking about getting a car. If you can’t find a job, it’s no big deal. But you must get a car. If you want to work in KL, get a car. Then you get yourself a new car, you pay about RM700 – RM800 a month as instalment, and you complain that your salary is too low. That is IF you get job.
Freaking hell, there are just too damn many cars on the road! I know… I know, the usual… public transport not good… public transport not efficient… public transport this… public transport that. The point here is not about whether the public transport is good or otherwise. The point is that if you can't afford to drive, don’t freaking drive. If you don’t have that big a head, don’t wear so big a hat!
In my zewtpinion and you may call me selfish, driving should remain a luxury, not a necessity. Public transport was very much worse 10 years ago but I still travel from my home to Taylors’ College and then KDU for my classes and believe me, I stay very far away from those colleges. I wait for hours at the bus stop and sometimes, stood for the whole journey. Did I desire for a car? Yes, but I also know that I can't afford one.
Petrol price should just be made to reflect market price so that only those who can really afford it can be on the road and the rest, just freaking take the public transport. This will reduce traffic jam tremendously and will benefit someone which all of us care about… the environment. And thus I say… to RM2.70 and beyond!
Having said all that, I know what is in your mind. The word is inflation, isn’t it? Come tomorrow, a ‘char siew pau’ will cost more, a ‘char kuey teow’ will become more expensive, a ‘roti canai’ will have a more ridiculous price and whatever not. Yes, this is serious and it is a vicious chain effect.
Who is to blame?
If you want to blame the govt, I will say blame those who voted them-in in the past. They voted them in the name of economic stability and prosperity. Then how come we can't afford the increase in prices of goods? Where is the economic stability and prosperity which was the pillar of belief in voting for them? And if you are one who did not vote… too bad then! Suck it up!
Ahhh… nice to have that out my system…
Fact wise, some are saying that the petrol price will be revised on a monthly basis to reflect market value. Since crude oil is always on the rise, does that mean the price will also be heading the same way? Then my friend who has close connection with Petronas said there will be another major increase in August, possibly to RM4.50. Bearing in mind that she got all the info correct (including increase in TNB tariff) at 3pm, that is certainly an intriguing prophecy, isn’t it?
This is the speech I made yesterday. When I was on stage, I didn’t really follow what I have written as I need to follow the reaction of the crowd. Hence, I have edited it to fit into a blog environment:-
I don’t know about you but when guys come together, typically, we always have a particular code to refer to a particular type of girls. One code which me and my mates once used was “environmental friendly”. It basically refers to girls who dress in very little material. Ya’ know, less material, less harmful to the environment. Or so we thought.
Then there as this time we decided to disclose our ‘code’ to a girl and after telling her and laughing about it she looked at us as though we were a bunch of morons. Do you know why? She enlightened us that using more fabrics doesn’t result in more trees being chopped down or damage the environment in anyway. So for years, we have been using and laughing at something that doesn’t make sense. Quite stupid isn’t it? A girl has to correct us guys on the kind of code we used to categorise them.
I think a lot of us carry the same mentality. We may be doing something we thought will save the environment but in fact, it doesn’t. Or we do one thing that benefits the environment but behind the scene, we do a host of other things that damage the environment.
You bring your own paper bag when you go marketing but then you buy plastic containers and styrofoam cups for your parties, maybe because they are cheaper. You put your air-cond to a timer so that it will switch off by itself after you fall asleep but then you leave your computer to download stuff. What stuff? I don’t want to know.
It’s human nature really. We are only willing to go to the extent that it will not affect our pocket, our needs, our lifestyle. When it costs money, when it creates a hassle, we most probably will not do it. And that is our very own version of ‘Inconvenient Truth’. By the way, many of you have watched the movie right?
Please bear in mind that watching the movie does not amount to any effort in being environmental friendly. Some people have this mentality… what’s your contribution to the environment? Oh… I watched the “Inconvenient Truth!”
I watched another movie called ‘The 11th hour’ before preparing this speech and there was one point in that film that hit me. There was this professor, forgotten what was his name, he said ‘global warming’ is not a problem… ‘pollution’ is not a problem… ‘climate change related disaster’ is not a problem… these are only symptoms to the real problem. And the real problem here is ‘us’. Our mentality, our attitude. That is the problem.
Have you heard of this saying… it’s very famous amongst the Chinese. It says… if a problem can be solved with money, it’s not a problem. And consciously or unconsciously, we are all adopting this motto in our daily lives, including this going green effort.
It’s very hot… I will make enough money to buy an air-cond.
The air is not fresh… I will make enough money to buy a house in nice gated community where the air is fresher.
It’s too far from my work place… I will make more money to buy a big comfortable car.
The house is flood prone… I will make money to buy a place is more secured place.
The earth has already started its journey towards a condition whereby one day, humans will not be able to survive in it. Be it too warm or the air is too toxic. Soon, there will be green spots on earth where humans can only survive in these specific areas. And these areas, will eventually only be available for the rich and powerful.
Knowing this, what am I going to do now? What are you doing to do now? What is ‘Going green’ means to us now? Are we all going to work for more money in order to be the first in the line? Or are you going to make a conscious… a continuously conscious effort to save the environment… to go green?
Besides ‘The inconvenient truth’ and ‘the 11th hour’, I have also watched quite a number of other environmental related documentaries. As you know, they always interview scientist, environmentalist, anti-pollution activist and the lot and do you notice one thing? Do you? I don’t know about you but I observed that 95% of all these people who are very passionate about saving the planet, 95% of them… they very quite old. Maybe 50s and above.
What does that tell you?
To me, it shows that the ‘older’ generation cares about us. They may or may not be around to face the full repercussions of the wrath that the environment is going to cast upon us but they still care. What about us? What are you going to do?
After all that I’ve said, what does going green means to me? It simply means that I will do it, even if it’s going to hurt my pocket, I will do it, even if it’s going to affect my lifestyle, and I will do it, even if it’s going to compromise on my other needs.
To close, I just want to quote what my pastor used to say… in fact, he quoted it from somewhere else but I couldn’t remember the name. Anyway… he said by preaching his sermon, he will not change the world, but the people who listen, will. And today, I don’t think I have done enough to change the world, but after you’ve listened to my ramblings, you will.
Thank you.
What is tension?
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Tension is when I was being ‘volunteered’ into a public speaking competition.
What is relief?
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Relief is when the theme of the competition is ‘environment’. (Should I reproduce what I wrote here 2 weeks ago?)
What is irony?
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Irony is when the big big boss is the judge.
What is happ‘y’ness?
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Happ‘y’ness is when I am now a proud owner of a Sony PSP after emerging as 1st runners up. First prize was a digital camera, I think I prefer the PSP. Do I sound like a sore loser? 
Now, I need to learn how to operate this damn thing… muahahahahahahaha!!!
It happened a few years ago, I was very angry with God. Christians are hypocrite and I just put all the blame to God. In the midst of my anger, I wrote a poem and showed it to one of my friend, who is a Christian.
To a certain extent, he ridiculed me. He said I will not regret writing that poem. On top of that, I will actually use that poem as a testimony of God’s goodness one day. I said that will not happen.
That was a few years ago. And he was talking about today.
FORGOTTEN
Life is indeed a cruel phenomenon
Where the wicked rules
Such sight is common
Though it speaks otherwise
Every Sunday’s sermon
Once you stepped out
It’s quickly forgotten… quickly forgotten
What good does it bring to be a humble servant?
Cause when you do
They’ll say you lack confident
To live by the rules
And be a better person?
Is the torture worth it?
Yet to be proven… yet to be proven
Always asked, to live by the commandments
What is the point?
I don’t know for certain
All I am aware
Things always worsen
Why try so hard?
When it’s such a burden… such a burden
Tired, rejected, lonesome and forsaken
I finally realised
It’s my heart that I should listen
Not to some hypocrites
Who think they are full of wisdom
I was lied to
But have been awaken… have been awaken
I want to be good but was treated gruesome
My heart felt such pain
The tears were abundant
So all that is of the world
I shall now sharpen
All that I have believed in
Has already been forgotten… already been forgotten
Despite I chose to forget about Him, He has not forgotten me.
