Oriental Hearts & Mind Study Institute

This morning I attended the Inaugural Dialogue conducted by Oriental Hearts & Mind Study Institute ("OHMSI") held at PJ Gospel Hall, Jalan Gasing, Petaling Jaya.

Rev Dr Hwa Yung, Bishop from the Methodist Church of Malaysia was the moderator for the dialogue and both main speakers, Dr Lim Kar Yong, a lecturer in New Testament Studies with Seminari Theoloji Malaysia and Dr K. J. John, Executive Director of OHMSI gave us an interesting insight on the topic of "Was Jesus Political?"

Thereafter, five commentators gave their viewpoints on the topic:-
* Rev Dr Hermen Shastri, General Secretary, Council of Churches of Malaysia and Christian Federation of Malaysia
* Dr Beth Baikan, Catholic Scholar from Stella Maris Parish, Sabah
* Brother Goh Keat Peng, Executive Secretary, Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism
* Brother Steven CM Wong, Chairman, NECF Research Commission
* Sister Tricia Yeoh, Senior Policy Analyst, Centre for Public Policy Studies

It was well attended with more than 300 people and two Members of Parliament were there to lend their support for this event, YB Lee Hwa Beng and YB Theresa Kok. Ivy Josiah from Women's Aid Organisation was there too. Glad to see brothers and sisters from various denominations namely, Methodist, Brethren, Lutheran, Anglican, Baptist, Presbyterian, Catholic, Evangelical Free Church and Assemblies of God.

At this dialogue, I was able to meet up with a number of bloggers:-
* David Chang
* Steven Sim
* Tricia Yeoh
* Lim Kar Yong

OHMSI - was set up in 2004 with the goal to create frameworks for dialogue and engagement where followers of Jesus Christ and members of society become relevant and significant in the public spaces of national life. But, is the Bride of Christ in Malaysia ready for this task of public space engagement? Can Christians be political without getting involved in party politics? What is the role of Christians on public issues and the related public policy dialogue? Are we an Islamic State? Can we evolve a Bangsa Malaysia? Who will fight corruption and for integrity? Whose responsibility is it to ensure the application of universal valuesIn the light of many challenges facing Malaysia, what is our role as Christians in Malaysia to continue to be the salt and light of the Gospel on these issues and concerns?
Tags: Oriental Hearts & Mind Study Institute, OHMSI, Anglican, Baptist, Presbyterian, Catholic, Evangelical Free Church, Assemblies of God, Lee Hwa Beng, Theresa Kok, PJ Gospel Hall, Dr Hwa Yung, Lim Kar Yong, New Testament Studies, Seminari Theoloji Malaysia, KJ John, Dr Hermen Shastri, Council of Churches of Malaysia, Christian Federation of Malaysia, Dr Beth Baikan, Stella Maris Parish, Goh Keat Peng, Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism, Steven CM Wong, National Evangelical Christian Fellowship, NECF, Tricia Yeoh, Centre for Public Policy Studies

Krabi in Thailand

I have been to Thailand before visiting places like Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket and Hat Yai. People at these places were generally very friendly and I had no problem moving about going to shopping areas and enjoying some local delicacies.

There is this enticing place called Krabi now which I can see on AirAsia's advertisement at my blog (the advertisement will end today).

With their 2 world class beaches, Ao Nang and Hat Rai Le and some beautiful islands nearby, it won't be boring for me but I know of some girlfriends that dislike beaches as their holiday destination, worried about getting too tanned....tsk tsk, don't know how to enjoy life and God's creation. As I'm a qualified PADI open water diver, places like this do captivate my heart.

A website known as Krabi.com do have lots of info which will ease your travel in and around Krabi. Travelling to such place is nice of course, need some cash too.....hehe

Want to thank AirAsia for advertising in blog for the last 1 week.
Tags: Krabi, Thailand, Tourism, Travel

Police's Salary

Ever wondered why Malaysian police had always been implicated with corruption here and there day in day out. As for me, twice.... twice, police did try to frighten me so that I would offer money to them to let me go. But of course, they actually have nothing to book me and have to let me go. My impression with our Royal Malaysian Police had never been good.

Now, let's compare something here. The New South Wales Police Force in Australia has a starting pay of A$48,000 (approx. RM142,080) just for a probationary officer. Do we still need to take a look at the higher ranking officer's salary then?

We will now peek at Malaysia's so-called long time foe in many aspects of life, Singapore (such scenarios are always played up by politicians).

If you were to look at the position of Inspector at the Singapore Police Force, you'll find that the minimum pay is S$2,570 (pass degree category) (approx. RM5,962).

It's actually not surprising that we could bump into a Singapore Police who happens to be a Malaysian (quite a number of them).

Now, we have come to Malaysia. Our Royal Malaysian Police could only offer a paltry sum of RM1,095 as a starting pay for the lowest grade of the Inspectorate ranking to a maximum of RM2,854.

I'm not saying that a low salary personnel will always tend to be a corrupted cop as at times, highly paid senior management personnel in public listed companies do commit such sin too.

It's just a comparison to see where we are. Surprised to see the former Inspector General of Police (no. 1 man), Tun Hanif Omar, making such a statement: "police corruption was so extensive that a very senior Anti-Corruption Agency officer had confided in me and another top retired police officer that 40% of the senior officers could be arrested without further investigations – strictly on the basis of their lifestyles"

Malaysia Boleh???
Tags: Malaysia, Police Corruption, Police Force, New South Wales Police Force, Australia, Singapore Police Force, Royal Malaysian Police, Police Inspector, Probationary Officer, Tun Hanif Omar

Fly A380 with Singapore Airlines

In 41 days, the world's first A380 commercial flight under Singapore Airlines will depart from Singapore for Sydney. All the seats in this first flight will be auctioned off for charity purpose, conducted by the famous online auction company, eBay.

Prior to this launch, an Airbus A380 flight was opened for scrutiny to the press and potential corporate clients and Airbus received thumbs up from their feedback.

How much does it cost? Well, it's according to what you estimate in comparison with existing rates plus some premium for the A380 airplane's experience. From the chart (click for larger picture), you could respective bidding prices for different class of travel.

If you think it's expensive, another person may think otherwise with his pet A380 corporate jet.

How are much are you willing to pay for that maiden flight? There are 3 different travelling class, click each picture to find out more.

As claimed, this is a class beyond First. Have a peek here of what you can expect from a suite seating.



The most spacious the world has ever seen.



More comfort than ever.



All proceeds from this flight will benefit 4 charity organisations:-
* One-third to Singapore's Community Chest;
* One-third split between the Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick and The Children's Hospital at Westmead, both in Sydney; and
* One-third to Médecins Sans Frontières, also known as Doctors Without Borders.

And it's nice of ExxonMobil Aviation who will be sponsoring the jet fuel for this charity flight.
Tags: Singapore Airlines, Airbus, Airbus A380, Charity Auciton, eBay, Singapore's Community Chest, Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick, The Children's Hospital, Westmead, Sydney, Médecins Sans Frontières, Doctors Without Borders, Singapore Airlines Suites, ExxonMobil Aviation

Aftershocks from Indonesian Earthquakes

Looks like the aftershocks are quite frequent from the earthquake readings in Indonesia with the latest touching the Richter Scale of 6.9 at 2.01pm (Malaysian time). I was away at lunch so I wouldn't have noticed any swaying up in my office tower.Tags: Earthquake, Richter Scale, Indonesia

Lamborghini's Latest Model

Lamborghini has manufactured one of its latest model, Reventon. It came with a price tag of US$1.4 million. Selling the car would not be a problem, says Lamborghini's representative as this car is revered by movie stars, sports stars and businessmen. Solid car........ how I wish just to test drive it only. Just found out that Lamborghini is being managed by Audi division which in turn is owned by Volkswagen, who is now aiming for a 20% interest in Proton, Malaysia's national car project.
Tags: Lamborghini, Reventon, Car, Audi, Volkswagen, Proton

Ramadan Month

To my fellow Malaysians and those who are observing the Ramadan month (where the muslims fast from dawn to the evening daily for the next 29 days), Selamat Berpuasa!
Tags: Ramadan, Puasa, Selamat Berpuasa