Camo dog

I train all my dogs from a young age on the importance of hiding. Hidding is a jugular survival skill for plantation dogs. It is of no importance to city dogs, but for plantation dogs it is a matter of life and death. This is shadow hidding in the drain.

Professional kitchen hack – brining

From my personal experience it works with only white meat – chicken is good, Turkey is even better, pork in my opinion is only so-so. As for red meat, it doesnt work at all.

I like to brine and cook like so….

I make it a point to cook this at least once a week.

There is a brinning calculator here.

http://www.genuineideas.com/ArticlesIndex/saltbrinecalculator.html

The strategy of keeping absolutely silent

This morning. During breakfast. One of the village elders asked me a very sensitive question. I did not give him an answer. Sensing that the rest were uneasy with my silence…he asked again and again I did not give him an answer.

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‘In a world where we are constantly in the echo chamber of ceaseless chatter and sound. It is conceivable that being noisy is the default human condition. Often we can conduct at test on ourselves to determine whether we are suffering from silence phobia…..suddenly silence is frigthening.

Very very frigthening.

Only people who are completely comfortable in silence can transform this void into a negotiating weapon. As they all understand only too well how the vast majority of humans live in fear of silence….and since the sound of silence is oftening deafening. Most people would do anything just to make noise…they would talk when there is a dead space in the conversation…they will feel the discomfort of having to say something even if it is meaningless and of no value.

When one is a keen observer of how the vast majority of humans are afraid of silence…suddenly everything becomes very clear.’

What ever happened to Jaswan and Shadow?

They’re coming to one year old. Shadow is to the left and Jaswan to the right from the viewer.

Shadow has a dominant Rotweiller gene. He is like all Rotweillers fiercely territorial and even slightly to aggressive to the rest of the pack. Rotweillers are not by temprament close to their masters…they dont see the need to be near them.

Jaswan on the otherhand has a dominant spitz demeanor. He is much more playful, approachable and less inclined to be assertive. He is also less confident and prefers to be close to the master.

The new puppies they like Jaswan much more.

As for Shadow he has grown up to be a beautiful dog.

Bringer of death to all dogs

There is an evil once every ten year mother of all virus that is killing dogs. They all dying like flies. Especially those with brown markings. I do not have much time. They may already be infected….early tomorrow I will trek deep into the jungle. I will find the tribesmen and I will tell them to raise them in the ancient ways……deep in the jungle my babies will be safe.

Papa loves you…love will find a way…deep deep in the jungle.

I must move fast…death is closing in furiously.

“JW Marriott, Singapore, Malaysia”

This is the reason why. When America says that Asia is very important to them….no one in Asia seems to believe them.

BBC radio play – Solaris

Sardine curry

Some times, not all the time I admit. But some times, the simplest food is the best.

Will Mahathir give the reins of power to Anwar after two years?

Q: Will Mahathir hand over power to Anwar eventually?

A: Well that at least is the game plan. But what alot of people dont seem to realise is whether this will eventuallly happen ultimately depends on whether all the problems in Malaysia can be fixed. And if you think about it, since we all know not everything can be fixed within a time span of two years. Then how can that proviso of handing power to Anwar possibly hold water. Always understand. What you have here is an exclusion or to put it bluntly an escape clause that allows Mahathir to renege on the deal – bear in mind, he has to save Malaysia first. Or that at least is the narrative. And even if there is really nothing to save, trust me, the escape clause will be incorporated somewhere down the line.

Q: The ex Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin has mooted the idea of opening up the party up to all Malaysians, saying that the heavy polls defeat should force a rethink of its raison d’être. Other heavy weights have called for Umno to do the same. Do you Malaysia transitioning from race based politics to something similar to what is going on in Singapore?

A: Race will always be an issue in politics in both Singapore and Malaysia. They might only differ in terms of degree. Less I imagine in Singapore only because the population is not parochial and insular like in the case of Malaysia where kampung folk have traditionally been regarded as the mainstay vote bank of UMNO. Whether you like it or not, the Malays will want priority over the rest of the races and one way to secure this preferential treatment is by aligning politics and power along racial lines. For me when I hear people talk about merit based politics that is free from race, religion and sectarian leanings in Malaysia…that may all sound very nice and all the set pieces are definitely in the right place, but I dont believe these people have an accurate appraisal of the situation.

Q: How would you rate the performance of Pakatan Harapan from what you have seen so far?

A: So far they seem to be hitting all the right points. If you speak to most Malaysians. You will register a great sense of relief. And one reason for that was because there was so much politics of intimidation and fear that followed the last regime. Activist, bloggers, cartoonist, journalist etc etc were thrown in jail using draconian laws such as the sedition act and sosma. If you didnt cooperate with the government of the day, the organs of the state which were supposed to be impartial would harrass and intimidate so generally there was alot of fear. And fear breeds anger. Anger can only lead to vengefulness. So that is the mini skirt executive summary of why I believe BN lost the 14th GE. Many Malaysians wanted to punish BN for creating a gangster nation based on fear and intimidation.

So the new government is doing the right thing by restoring the rule of law. They have also proceeded to dismantle the apparatus or machinery of fear. As a consequence archaic and draconian laws such as the sedition and fake news laws are now been reviewed and will eventually be repealed and dumped into the garbage heap of history.

Q: Am I right to say that you consider PH to be a competent government since you believe they seem to be doing all the right things?

A: No. In politics doing the right things is very different from being competent and efficient. Besides I dont believe anyone in Malaysia expects PH to find their footing so fast. That is not a realistic nor reasonable expectation. You must understand the current outfit in power has been in opposition with the exception of bersatu pribumi for so very long. Nearly forty years! That even today when they are in power, they think, act and even talk as if they are still the opposition and not the ruling party. And let me tell you something even stranger, everyone in BN is in a similar parallel universe of contradiction. Even the BN are clueless on how to proceed as the opposition. Even today they talk and behave as if they firmly in charge of the reins of power. My point is this timeline in Malaysian history is unprecedented and in my opinion more time is needed before we can predict clearly what will and will not happen. As it is during this period of settling, it is very hard to say.

Q: Do you feel that Anwar is positioning himself in the best way now to win despite the uncertainty concerning whether Mahathir will hand him the reins of power in two years?

A: In my studied opinion. Anwar Ibrahim has painted himself into one miserable corner. And it is all due to bad strategy or game plan. He was offered a cabinet position and he had the whole orchard to choose. But he turned that opportunity down and instead opted to be a house husband. In my opinion he should have grabbed the finance position. It would have allowed him to consolidate his competence quotient and build his reputation as a steady fellow. But instead for reasons only know to himself and his inner circle Anwar seems interested in not taking up any official position. That is fine providing he plays the low key role and keeps quiet. But the problem with Anwar is from time to time he likes to stick his nose into this and that and as a result many people are beginning to see him as some glorified arm chair pontificator or honorary five foot way commentator. For some bizzare reason. Anwar much prefers this light weight role than something more substantial and meaningful. But what he doesnt seem to realize is a time will come when the public will begin to question not only his competence but also his apparently meagre contributions to the nation building process. And the reason is very simple, the entry cost for being a pontificator or armchair philosopher is very low. Anyone can do it. In my opinion Anwar has very very bad strategist, they should have asked him to take a major equity in the new government perhaps if not finance, defense and if not that the home minister.

As it is the Anwar today is the husband of the deputy pm who is incidentally his wife and even she has only a lightweight role in cabinet.

We live it seems in very interesting times.

Q: Do you think UMNO will be able to reinvent itself and come back like a phoenix rising from the ashes?

A: I believe they are poised to do so simply because as time goes by the new government cannot pin all their problems in Malaysia on Najib. At some point they (PH) have to take ownership and run Malaysia competently without using Najib as a whipping boy. And that will not be easy. I want to be clear. As I spent alot of time studying and research this. Because Malaysia is truly lost. Economically at least. Policy wise I mean. You see. While Singapore has craved a niche in commercial banking and service industry. Thailand is poised to be the detroit of Asia. The Philippines remaking itself as the logistical center of Asia. Malaysia does not have anything resembling either a coherent economical strategy or even a national blueprint.

The biscuit tin is empty. Now its easy, they can keep on uncovering scandals and corruption galore cases, but at some point the electorate will expect PH to conceptualize their make Malaysia great again blueprint and if they cannot deliver. They will be booted out simply because now that Malaysians have crossed that mental line in their head where they realize it is possible for the sun to rise in the east after kicking out UMNO and chickens will still bear eggs. They will continue to play the I kick you out game.

However for BN to come back again like you mentioned they need to be able to undertake a paradigm shift and reinvent themselves, not only ideologically, but also how they their might perpetuate themselves thru their moribund class politics. Putting an end to the infamous Umno politics of patronage etc etc. Above all many of them have to get used to jail. Just like the current opposition, many of them were once jailed, not once but many times and trust me Malaysian jails are no joke. Over there the rats are bigger than cats.

Personally I dont believe change will come readily. That is because UMNO as a political hegemony is riven with so many problems and some of them go right down to the marrow of the bones.

Q: Do you see Mahathir regressing into a more repressive and authoritarian mode like how many people say he was as the past PM of Malaysia?

A: Unlikely. In the past he was in the comfort zone of UMNO and BN. So he had the confidence to push his luck. But this time round, its a coalition where the bed fellows are all eyeballing each other with hachets. I want to speak plainly. Because that is how it is. And why is this important. Because Mahathir has to share power this time round. There are some crazy people saying he is the most powerful PM ever in Malaysia. But that cannot be true. Because firstly, in the new Malaysia. You and I can criticise the government of the day. We wouldnt be hauled up by income tax. Our right to travel will not be curbed and the organs of the state will not ass fuck us. Those are the new realities that Mahathir & Co and even UMNO and BN has to live with. The old of politicking where politicians can throw dissidents in jail. Grill them for six hours. Demand like a petulant child yes and no answers only. Those days are gone.

Even what Shanmugum and Edwin Tong once did would not be possible in the new Malaysia. Because two minutes down their interrogation. Someone would probably shout out. Hello this one your grandfather parliament is it? Want to form a mutual appreciation club for LKY go and rent a space in long john silver, please dont waste tax payers monies by doing it during Parliament time. You idiots are not paid by the hour.

This is the new reality of the new Malaysia. Now that fear has put on gym shoes and scooted off. The masses will think and speak. As for governments, they have no more power to stop the masses.

When everyone expects you to say something…

But you hold your tongue and keep quiet like a graveyard and show the least interest to offer any comments…..then your silence can only speak volumes.

Jho low will rather run any day than face the music

He has had it easy peasy all his life….its unlikely that he can bear mentally, spiritually and physically what will have to come.

He will definitely run. Or at least die trying to…..run.

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‘There is great beauty in the man who bears many scars.’

Nom Nom Nom….

Dobermans may look cute and cuddly. But if you understand a thing for what it is and not what others tell you it is….you understand that these r not just casual pets. They are very serious killing machines.

From a very age they have to be trained and disciplined in the art of war…and what is the innards of warcraft?

It is only this discipline…disciplien and more discipline.

On media literacy

Today someone asked me what I thought about media literacy. I told this person that on the surface it seems good intentioned…benign and even correct in every sense of the word. However the question is WHO gets to determine what is right and wrong, true and false etc etc.

You see that is really the make or break….WHO gets to decide?

The person spoke for a while, but sensing that I was fast losing interest in what he had to say….he asked, what do you have against the idea of people making better informed decisions.

I said absolutely nothing. I went on to stress, infact I am all for the idea. My only resistance is i dont believe it is constructive for governments to get involve in teaching the masses how to winnow truth from lies….besides having a horrible record…its plain simple Simon conflict of interest. As it benefits governments directly to engineer consent to keep them in power… neither do i believe just because an institution holds itself out as promoting media literacy, it is actually doing that….not when it hides behind a neutral term while its mission remains opaque and sinister and more importantly there is no independent watch dog to audit its workings.

The best that government can do to promote media literacy is to allow people to think freely. The answer does not lie in putting a policeman into the mind of every person.

Long live the truth…even if its running wild naked!

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‘Let me tell it the way I see it. As this is first hand insight from someone autistic. Whenever I tell people never ever to believe government. Many stupid people in the internet accuse me of being subversive and harboring sinister intentions. But this attitude is actually the best way to make sure that you will always be able to make the best informed decision!

Because you are always suspicious about what they say, you double, triple check.

Because you never ever take the truth for granted. You even go thru the trouble to collaborate information with an independent source and most important because you have zero trust for them. You’re always interrogating, always suspicious, always on your guard like a radar sweeping 24/7.

The way i see it…governments should give me a pension for educating the masses on what media literacy should be.’

A professional kitchen hack – how to zing up yr chili powder

Chefs have known this for yonks. Planters probably longer. As they know first hand how food is processed. Cut to the chase. If you’re wondering why your curries doesn’t seem to have that three dimensional layered taste and they’re always either on or off spicy or flat….the culprit probably has to do with the chili powder.

These days due to the unrelenting rising cost of produce….chilis are relatively expensive. So manufacturers just grind the seeds give it a fiery red color and pass it off as chili powder.

To fill in the blanks. What i do is mix equal parts of paprika and chili powder. Paprika doesnt deliver the heat, but what it does is impart the warmth and flavor of the flesh of chilis and peppers and this is really how chili powder used to be made.

Try it! And enjoy.

The economy rice scandal

I like to lunch in this place where the lady proprietor. A forty something MILF charges me only RM$1 for whatever I choose to eat…..she also makes it a point to serve me personally and I am always offered the choicest cuts…but alas…it is always like that with me…due to a tsunami of public complaints.

I would probably have to stop going there…that is sad, because I really like the food and free soup there.

Doggy bag

The good thing about being autistic is one doesnt have any hang ups abt doing the unconventional. The way i see it, i need to take care of the pups. As their mummy literally has zero maternal instincy. Fuck you bitch!

So it is very simple for me….I do not care what others may think….what is important is the mission….these pups have grow up…and they will because they will be nourished by my love.

All other things are not important.

Baby Dobermans

One is supposed to crop the tail of dobermans when they are puppies….but its more for fashion. I find the dogs to be more expressive when they have tails. So I have decided to leave them.

Doberman puppies eat five million times a day. So i have to feed them constantly. Pls grow up fast, my hand is hurting from handling dog food.

God father

This afternoon. An old farmer came before me and addressed me as the taipan. I told this man emphatically, I am not the taipan…the old man looked confused momentarily…soon he feigned a smile and asked….if you are not the clan leader then who is….afterall did you not eliminate all your enemies taipan?

The horror….the horror.

The greatest hope and tragedy that is the new Malaysia

If. And it is a very big IF…..if the new government can get their act together and lay the foundations of a new Malaysia where ordinary folk need no longer live in perpetual fear, insecurity and the constancy of hopelessness…then what will happen is the great Malaysian diaspora will begin to reverse and many will return home.

These people will come back!

Many of these returnees will bring with them valuable experiential knowledge gleaned from having worked overseas……these people by virtue of their diverse work and life experience will have the capacity to remake Malaysia into the greatest country in ASEAN within the shortest possible time.

But if the new government fail to get their act together due to partisanship, historicism, race, power or for any other known reason and all they seem to do is try to out flank their opponents to score cheap political points with the public…then nothing will really improve. The same conditions for the awful rot that erodes public confidence and trust in the judiciary, police, civil service and everything officialdom will persist and even get worse. As time goes by the public will fall into a sort of enui….one that closely resembles the disease of hopelessness and apathy. When and if that happens. Everyone will only wish for the return of the old Malaysia….it will make a greek tragedy look like a happy ending for Malaysia and Malaysians.

The die is cast….let the games begin.

The mystery of Agarwood

The people who really know agarwood for what it is are all shadowy in their own way. Its as if they’re touched by the sanctity of arcanum. So much so, they much prefer to exist only in the preamble that space where they can see what is happening while others remain oblivious to their presence…..its an invisble world of insiderism…even the speech associated with the trade is old. The lingua franca is not standard french. Rather it is a sort of pidgin that combines elements of afrique and arabica…it is often called le orientalise or Zamzibar francaise. As its origins go all the way back to the Atlantic slave trade…this was just the period when the incense trade began…shortly after what the sailors in the coite de noire refer to as the black ships. Price is never ever discussed. It is taboo and even rude to ask the origin of wood….besides an expert need not do so. Lao wood burns fast and its aroma is heavy civet in the front, mellowed deep ancient wood in the middle and at the tail, there are always hints of cinnamon and clove. Cambodian is aromatically sweet front, middle right to the very back.