Something Islamic : Social Finance, Social Impact Investment, Social Impact Bonds

Social Impact Bonds are investment instruments that seek to produce socially favorable outcomes while providing investors a return. In doing so, they hope to attract private funds to a social sphere normally dominated by philanthropic dollars.

”Philanthropy has a paradox in that it’s the first funding source to disappear from the causes that need it most when times are tough, and the last to come back. Social impact bonds bring in investors who seek a return by tackling social issues.”

Here’s how the bonds work: First, the group that wants to issue the social impact bond identifies an issue that incurs economic cost to society. Examples range from treating Asthma to improving child adoption to decreasing homelessness. The group then develops interventions or seeks out NGOs that have proven methods of tackling the issue, and channels money from the bond investors to the programs. The government (or another body that would shoulder the cost of the particular issue, such as Health Maintenance Organizations), agrees to pay a certain amount if the intervention produces a promised level of results. Those funds provide return to the investors.

If the intervention works, everybody wins in the end: the investors turn a profit, the NGO gets more funds to do its work, the subjects benefit from the NGO’s work, and the government pays out less money than the social ill would have cost in the first place.

“For governments it’s great, because if the intervention doesn't work they don’t pay anything, and if it does, they save tremendously” 

In addition to laying out an intervention plan, definitions and metrics for tracking and quantifying every element of the intervention, from defining pre-diabetic to calculating the economic cost of the disease can be worked out. 

The treatment will put pre-diabetics through an intensive program that includes free access to a fitness center, group exercise, lifestyle counseling advice, and technology to monitor their progress. It will continue to monitor the subjects for two years after the intervention and see how many developed diabetes in comparison to a control group.

“The interesting thing about the diabetes Social Impact Bond is that the clinical evidence is exactly the same whether you’re talking about people from Finland, the Netherlands, the US, China or Japan. That means we can build a bond that is very scalable.”

Since a 2010 bond to reduce criminal reconviction rates in the UK’s Peterborough prison launched, several Social Impact Bonds have been issued around the world, gaining support from notable investors and even investment giant Goldman Sachs.

“Social Impact Investment is a response to the urgent need to achieve innovation and scale in the way we tackle social issues. It seeks to harness entrepreneurship and capital markets in doing so.”

McKinsey Education System

Did you know that Tony Fernandes has been given 20 licenses to open private schools? Tony Fernandes is also negotiating to bring Eton College (the most prestigious English boarding school)  to Malaysia. The Marlborough School is already operating here they say.

All these private schools are opening up because the education system is just breaking down. 

(Before I forget, here is my outside the box suggestion today to the Chinese schools in Malaysia. Switch NOW to your own version of PPSMI. What does that mean? Divide your subjects equally between Chinese and English language. Preferably teach Maths and Science subjects in English (yes in Chinese schools). And strengthen your Malay language. This way you can keep your Chinese schools with your 100% Chinese teachers and 100% Chinese headmasters (which is what you really want isnt it?)  Dont say that I did not "advise" you.  I think there are going to be serious changes in the education system and you are going to lose out.)  

There is an obviously elitist  system developing in our country. The children of the rich can attend private and international schools which are English based. Other bright but not so rich kids can also attend the sekolah asrama which is also English based.  

The other children of the ordinary Malaysians can attend the broken down gomen schools and become the peons, messenger boys, kerani and tukang angkat beg for those who attend the elitist private and asrama penuh schools. That is how it is working out.

The McKinsey Education Blueprint that was prepared by McKinsey for RM30.0 Million discourages private schools. The McKinsey Blueprint seeks to strengthen the gomen education system. Very good McKinsey.

However over at Idris Jala's Pemandu and their NKRA (National Key Result Areas) the same McKinsey has advised Pemandu that "private education be made a key growth area". Hence the 20 private school licenses for Tony Fernandes. 

Macam mana pula? 

McKinsey's Education Blueprint = Discourage private education. 

McKinsey's Pemandu NKRAs = Private education is a key growth area. 

Here is my second outside the box suggestion for today. Remove licensing requirements to open private schools and international schools. Let anyone open private schools - subject to compliance with ministry regulations and guidelines. Let us go on a compliance basis. Just follow the rules. License tak payah.

The gomen run sekolah kebangsaan are becoming rotten. I am afraid there is no other way to say this. The worst are the primary and secondary schools. And since everything is race, race, and race in the country it affects our people differently. It affects the Malays and Sabahans negatively more than the Chinese and Indians.  I cant say much about the Sarawakians.

I know about the Sabahans because there are now thousands of Sabahans living in the Klang Valley. And I have access (thru the Mrs who is a volunteer teacher) to knowing about Sabahan kids in school. They are also in really bad shape.

Making things worse is the deteriorating education that we have in the country.  Now to all my friends who are fighting for our education system (Sam Hamid, Datin Azimah) please also pressure the gomen to answer these questions. 

We really need to know 

1. what are the passing grades for all subjects in the PMR and the SPM.

Is it true that the passing marks for Additional Mathematics (Matematik Tambahan) in the SPM is only 14 marks? Kalau boleh, sudi tak mana-mana pejuang UMNO yang makan roti teloq pi buat Laporan Polis di mana-mana balai polis yang berdekatan berkenaan isu ini?

We really must know what are the minimum passing marks for the SPM and PMR. 

2. What are the average marks for passes and failures achieved by students from different racial groups and geographical locations? 

Why is this kept a secret?

For example how do Dusun Muslims perform in SPM in Sabah versus if they are in Kuala Lumpur? How do Kadazan Christians perform  in SPM in Sabah versus if they are in Kuala Lumpur?

How do Tamil kids in Buntong perform versus Punjabi kids in Buntong? How do Tamil kids in Penang  perform  versus Tamil kids in Kedah? 

How do Malay students perform on average versus Chinese or Tamils or Kadazans? 

We really need the racial breakdowns and the geographical locations.

Then we have to design specific remedial measures that are targeted specifically to overcome these problems that CANNOT be divorced from the racial, cultural and socio-economic backgrounds of the students.  I think if we ignore this, we are being very careless. Dan anak-anak kita akan rugi lagi. 

The textbooks and the school curriculum looks alright. Today's SPM Biology textbooks are more advanced than the "A level" books that I read 35 years ago.  It is not the books or the curriculum that is at fault but it is the teachers, the schooling system, the examinations system and everything else that needs to be revamped. 

The latest 2012 PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) for Maths, Science and Reading ratings show that we are now in the bottom 1/3 of poor performing countries in the world.

Malaysia has become worse since the last rating in 2010.

The gomen had said that our students were getting a better education than students in the United States, Britain and Germany !! I think the gomen was fooled by the con-sultans.

Singapore and even Thailand have performed better than Malaysia in the 2012 PISA ratings. 

So what does our gomen say? They say, 'Never mind lah. Cin-cai poh-cai. Insya Allah by 2021 we will be in the top 1/3 rankings.'  This is called tai chi. It is also being very irresponsible. 

Malaysia is now firmly stuck in the bottom third of the countries surveyed. And I think we are sinking lower. Not moving up at all. 

And here is more bad news.  According to the RM30.0 Million study and Education Blueprint prepared by MckInsey they say that :   “A difference of 38 points on the PISA scale is equivalent to one year of schooling."

If Malaysia scored 38 and Zimbabwe scored 76, this means that Malaysian 15 year olds have as much knowledge as a 14 year old in Zimbabwe. 

Here is Malaysia's performance since 2010 and 2012 (thanks to Uncle Lim's Blog).

Now here is the "Ranking Of Top Countries In Reading, Science, And Math"

OECD

Of course Malaysia is not in this link of the 'Top Ranking' countries. Malaysia is at the bottom one third.

In Mathematics, "top of the chart" Shanghai-China scored 613 points. Malaysia scored 421 points. This means the Malaysian 15 year olds are five years behind their counterparts in Shanghai-China. We are really going backward. Our clock is being turned backwards.

15-year-olds in Singapore, South Korea and Hong Kong are also performing as though they have had 3 or more years of schooling than 15-year-olds in Malaysia.

Now folks, this disparity in the scores between 15-year-olds in Malaysia and the 15-year-olds in Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong and Shanghai is widening. It is getting worse.

Dont worry folks. Our students maybe becoming dull and dumb in Science, Maths and Reading but Malaysia is making great progress in the TISA Rankings. 

Do you know what are the TISA Rankings? TISA stands for Talibanisation & Islami-cessation of Student Achievements. 

In gomen schools, our students are becoming world beaters in 

• baca doa panjang during school assembly
• masuk tandas kaki kiri
• keluar tandas kaki kanan
• sembelih lembu korban di padang sekolah
• bahasa Inggeris itu bahasa kafir 
• minum air jampi penerang hati untuk SPM
• makan kismis tawaf boleh jadi pandai
• qiyamul-ail boleh bawa kejayaan dalam peperiksaan

and other such world beating knowledge. 

They may not be the cleverest kids in the world but the teachers are surely convincing them that they are going to the "syurga". 

When my son used to top his class, the other kids would tease him, 'awak pandai matematik & sains tapi awak tak pandai ngaji'.  It was the normal  schoolyard jealousies.  But when I met his cikgu during 'Report Card' day I was shocked when his cikgu said the same thing to me. 'Encik Syed, prestasi anak encik bagus tapi dia masih lemah membaca Quran'. 

Here is an update : At just 23 years of age my son is now a doctor (the youngest doctor in his graduating class), he passed his Arabic language courses with flying colours and he also reads the Quran like his father.

Anyway back to our story, to make sure that they will literally go backward in time some opportunistic people have even invented a special "Islamic" watch which tells the time backward. I kid you not folks. I kid you not. Here are some pictures : 

Above : For those who want to go backwards - an anticlockwise watch.

Below : Anti clockwise clock. They call it "Islamic". Nauzubillah.

And here is the citation :   "The anti-clock wise clock :  The conference was organised to introduce Saat Makkah (the watch of Mecca). The inventor of the clock, Yasin a-Shouk, said it runs anti-clockwise in the direction of Tawaf, the rotation around Kaaba.   The makers of this watch say that since the tawaf in Mecca (circumambulating the kaaba) is done anti-clockwise, therefore Islamic watches should also be counter clockwise". 

  

I told you so. They are literally turning back the clock. 

Below here is another group of very angry parents. The gomen must understand that the people behind NGOs like these are urban Malays. Many urban Malays realise that in a modern urban environment you need skills, English language proficiency and good social interaction with your neighbours so that you may chance upon opportunities. 

If you cannot interact with people you are really, really losing out on opportunities. Especially if you interact mostly with the down and outs, the crutch dependent, the cronies and the parasites. 

Many urban Malays are beginning to understand this.  Hence they are asking for equal opportunities for our children.  Please join them folks. I will not be going because the DAP and Pakatan dunggus will be there politicising the whole event. (Organisers : it is a big mistake to get the DAP and Pakatan involved.)

I think equal opportunities means 'If Malay College Kuala Kangsar' and Maktab Rendah Sains MARA are allowed to adopt PPSMI and teach almost exclusively in English, then why cannot all other gomen schools also teach PPSMI subjects in English? 

I think this is what these parents will (or should be) asking.  So what will the gomen say? 

'Tuan-tuan & Puan-puan, anak-anak tuan-tuan di sekolah kebangsaan kebanyakannya bodoh. PPSMI hanya untuk anak-anak cerdik di MCKK, MRSM dan sekolah asrama penuh saja. Anak-anak tuan-tuan tidak layak untuk PPSMI'.

Let me make another suggestion. As a "temporary measure" let all sekolah kebangsaan in urban areas (any town or city with more than 50,000 population) adopt the PPSMI.

Schools in rural areas where English is spoken only by Mat Salleh tourists can skip the PPSMI. 

(Let the town dwellers all move on up in life first. All future peons, office boys, messengers and tukang angkat beg can come from the really rural areas. What do you think? Is that a good idea?)  

Then when the parents of kids in the rural areas realise what is going on (and they also start to complain and demonstrate at the Taman Jaya Park, then we change the entire system to PPSMI. Amacam - isnt that a great idea? I think I will go and worship myself now.)

The gomen is also committing suicide by listening to McKinsey's stupid suggestion that we do away with public examinations (PMR, SPM). They say this is following the Finland system.

The difference between Finland and Malaysia is that in Finland the teachers and the students are not malas. 

Socially and culturally the Finns have matured and they are a motivated people. They do not need exams to motivate them because their society is already fully motivated. Depa sudah jadi negara maju. And they certainly do not believe in kismis tawaf, air jampi tukar budak dunggu jadi budak pandai and other such rubbish.

But to get to where they are today, Finland also had to go through the examinations system. 

If we want to get to where Finland is today, we also have to repeat and follow all the intermediate steps that the Finns had to go through. We cannot take a 'short cut' and place our country at the same status as Finland. The Finns have earned their spot in the sun. We have not earned the place yet. 

Here bukan saja murid malas, tapi cikgu pun ada yang malas. Very often teaching is not a career of choice. It is a career of last option. Tak boleh masuk universiti atau kolej masuk kolej guru. Tak boleh jadi pegawai kerajaan masuk jadi cikgu. 

In such an environment both teachers and students should not be given the mandate to gauge their own progress. If the schools can set their own examinations, then the passing mark for Additional Mathematics can be even lower. Or they can set it higher but the questions will be made easier.  

We must have standardised public examinations (SPM, PMR). Better still why not we just adopt the internationally accredited Cambridge University 'O' and 'A' Levels Examinations which we had in this country for about 50 years until the 1980s? Or even the 'International Baccalaureatte' exams which is available to MRSM students? 

Kasi 'equal opportunity' lah? If the gomen can spend our hard earned money so that MARA scholars can sit for the International baccalaureatte then why not all our children be given the equal opportunity? The schools are already there, the same teachers are available, the same books are available, the same students are ready and willing to absorb knowledge. They all have brains. Apa susah sangat?

Here is my suggestion folks :

i. bring back the PPSMI in gomen schools asap. Jangan buang masa. 

ii. better still teach half the subjects in English, the other half in Malay

iii. abolish licensing for private schools 

iv. abolish licensing for international schools

v. in addition all students in ALL universities MUST take English language subjects of three credits each for eight semesters (degree). Six semesters for diploma students. 

vi. Reduce cikgu ponteng class. Abolish all kursus for teachers during school days. Teachers must be in class to teach. Teachers can attend kursus during the school holidays.

vii. All schools must conduct monthly tests - ujian bulanan.

viii. Abolish religious classes in school. Parents can send their kids to religious class on their own.

ix. Remove all religious identity in schools. 

x. All schools must be Islamic. This means they must be scientific, logical and secular. 

United Muslim National Organisation - UMNO

This is from Reuters, as it appeared on Yahoo News. The whole world will read this. This is how they read the recent UMNO assembly. They are not far off at all. Actually spot on.

Malaysia ruling party tightens embrace of Islam to gain support

By Stuart Grudgings

• ruling party, stung by election setback, burnishing Islamic credentials
• aiming to gain ground among majority ethnic Malay voters 
• concern over growing religious intolerance in multi-racial country
• coalition led by UMNO suffered worst election result
• desertion of Muslim Malays traditional bedrock of support
• Najib shored up support by rolling back liberal social reforms
• stressing UMNO's role as protector of the Islamic faith
• "UMNO has been upholding Islam over tens of years"  
• "This is where the greatness of Islam is upheld"
• senior leaders called to change constitution to Sunni Islam
• growing hostility to spread of Shia Islam
• invited popular Islamic preacher to join Supreme Council - he rejected
• Religious tensions have flared since election
• UMNO support plan Islamic criminal law in Kelantan
• UMNO-controlled Johor changed its weekend to Friday and Saturday 
• leaders completely lost plot, not religious or right-wing party, said Nur Jazlan 
• strategy misguided because Malays urban, focus on governance, corruption 
• speculation it will hold talks with PAS
• Hadi Awang expressed willingness to discuss with UMNO 
• formal alliance between the two could be in the making
• deal would dramatically boost the ruling coalition's thin parliamentary majority
• claiming Islamic "high ground" help UMNO gather backing from Malays
• to make up for dramatic loss of support from ethnic Chinese
• UMNO has traditionally been a secular, business-oriented party.
• PAS pushed UMNO become more religious, aggravating ethnic divisions 

I think the most sensible statement has been made by Nur Jazlan Mohamed from Johor who has rightly pointed out that UMNO is barking up the wrong tree.

The drop in UMNO's popularity has nothing to do with religion. The drop in popularity is because of the endemic corruption and UMNO's complete blurriness about the well being of urban dwellers, especially Malay urban dwellers who now outnumber Malays in the rural areas. 

UMNO seems to have no idea what the urban Malays need to survive in the increasingly stressed urban environments.

To cover up for this blurriness the party leaders are sucking up to PAS, trying to recruit half baked religious preachers to join the Supreme Council - we thank Allah that they have turned down the offer. (Its also a slap in the face for Najib to be turned down by some ostat fellow).

UMNO thinks that by cranking up the religious loudspeakers the Malay vote will return. I dont think so. It is always the economy, economy and the economy. We need a population who have good skills, can speak English, we need good high tech industries, factroies and businesses. We need to create good jobs in the country on a massive scale. 

We dont need ostats and lebais in UMNO. Push them over to pas pis pus.  

And stop the wastage of money and the corruption. That is what the people want to see. Apa susah sangat?  

Kiamat Makin Dekat : Auto Industry

Salam everyone. The world keeps on turning. Whatever happens in the rest of the world is going to affect us. Even the strongest three layered cocoons cannot shield us from the progress in the rest of the world. 

Sheikh Zaki Yamani the famous Saudi Arabian oil minister of the 1970s once said that the stone age came to an end not for a lack of stones but because the human race moved on. Similarly the oil industry will come to an end not for a lack of oil but because the human race would have moved on. 

About 10 days ago a tectonic movement of sorts hit the world automotive industry. This is a game changer. A paradigm shift and a bold (and very expensive) breakthrough by the Toyota Motor Company of Japan. 

They have introduced a production model car that runs on the hydrogen fuel cell. These cars will not need petrol or diesel anymore.

Before we talk more - just a little bit on the hydrogen fuel cell.

"A fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical energy from a fuel into electricity through a chemical reaction with oxygen or another oxidizing agent. Hydrogen is the most common fuel. Fuel cells are different from batteries in that they require a constant source of fuel and oxygen/air to sustain the chemical reaction; however, fuel cells can produce electricity continually for as long as these inputs are supplied"

Above : Block diagram of a simple hydrogen fuel cell.

Below : A schematic for a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle

Below : Toyota's Hydrogen Fuel Cell  Engine

The hydrogen fuel cell engine does not use fuel oil at all. It uses hydrogen and oxygen both of which can be extracted from the air or through electrolysis of water (H2O). And here is the most interesting part - the hydrogen fuel cell has zero exhaust gases. The byproduct is water (H2O).

Ok I am keeping this really short. Here is Toyota :

Toyota Unveils Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle

• reduced cost of fuel cell cars significantly 
• several advances in hydrogen fuel cells make them cheaper
• company to sell a car in 2015 — years before its competitors.
• $50,000 and $100,000 - a big improvement over million-dollar vehicles
• Toyota will display concept car this month at the Tokyo Motor Show. 
• Toyota fuel-cell system smaller and uses less platinum 
• fuel cell produces electricity, fed by a tank of hydrogen, platinum catalyst 
• water vapor comes out 
• hydrogen tank can be refilled like a conventional gas tank
• General Motors plan fuel-cell vehicles around 2020

The key number is the US$50,000 - US$100,000 price tag. This is the game changer. Prior to this, hydrogen fuel cell prototypes cost anything from US$1.0 million and more. The savings that have been achieved by Toyota now has increased the efficiency by a factor of 10 to 20 times. US$50,000 is a very affordable number (RM150,000).

• cost of making a hydrogen fuel cell-powered car has fallen dramatically 
• vehicle that cost $1 million now made for $50,000 goes on sale in U.S. in 2015
• Toyota testing 100 fuel cell vehicles based on Highlander platform
• next generation will be shaped more like the Prius and will be for actual sale

Now General Motors, Hyundai, Nissan and a host of other car makers have also announced their own hydrogen fuel cell vehicle programs. This is because if they do not innovate they will die. 

Here is some history behind Toyota's hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. 

Four years ago in 2009, Toyota came to a cross roads of sorts after they had spent billions of US Dollars trying to develop the fuel cell vehicle. It has been a long process, hard work, billions of dollars and really capable research and development efforts. By 2009 Toyota had made major breakthroughs and they decided to press on with developing the fuel cell vehicle.

Here are some of Toyota's major technology breakthroughs :

• significantly decreased amount of platinum needed in fuel cells 
• comparable to what cars have in catalytic converters
• reduced platinum by making catalyst more effective 
• developing precise equipment for applying catalyst to ensure none wasted
• requires fewer fuel cells to be stacked together 
• improving design of fuel cell. 
• engineers modified membrane to allow protons to pass more freely
• increases amount of power that each fuel cell can generate

So in 2009 Toyota shareholders made a decision to continue spending money to develop the hydrogen fuel cell car. Here is some Toyota news from 2009 :

• Toyota Still Committed to Producing a Hydrogen Vehicle - 24/06/09
• At shareholders' meeting in Japan, executives stated commitment to bringing a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle to market in the near future.  
• revised their timeline, pushing production back a year to 2015.
• awfully soon but maybe Toyota knows something we don't 

So it has taken them many years, perseverance, tons of money, great will power and technical capability to achieve this ground breaking technology. This is now history. Toyota is bringing out their hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in 2014/2015. They are quite on track.

A hydrogen fuel cell vehicle will be more fuel efficient than a petrol driven car. A "litre" of hydrogen (or natural gas) should be a lot less cheaper than a litre of petrol. Plus it has 100% non exhaust gases (other than water). Since 40% of the world's oil consumption goes into transportation (cars, ships, trains, planes) this hydrogen fuel cell technology will have a significant effect on oil consumption and automotive technology. 

The stone age is coming to an end again - in the rest of the world. 

However the stone age is not over yet in Malaysia. Here is a take on Malaysia's National Automotive Policy.

NAP: KEY FOCUS ON EEV, AUTO TRADE 

• revised NAP, announced mid-January next year
• focus on competitiveness & EEVs
• Malaysia has ecosystem will venture into EEV 
• NAP is in the final stage 
• submitted to various ministries for comments 
• presented to the Cabinet 
• RM900 million exports of vehicles 
• RM4.3 billion exports of auto parts and components 
• RM13.5 billion imports of vehicles 
• RM7.6 billion imports of auto parts and components. 

This is so tiring. Revised NAP lah, submitted to various Ministries lah, EEVs lah (electric vehicles), presented to Cabinet lah. Folks, do you think the Cabinet of Malaysia will know jack sh*t about the auto industry? I dont think so. 

Here is a very recent picture of the Cabinet pondering the National Automotive Policy :

Lets not waste time. It takes a 100 years of expertise, billions of US Dollars in R&D money, huge markets, skilled engineers, proprietary technology (sendiri punya teknoloji) and other such requirements before world giants like Toyota, GM, Hyundai, Nissan and others can bring any new auto technology to market. 

We cannot hope for our Proton to keep up or compete with this type of market reality.  

May I strongly suggest that we wind down the Proton image and immediately seek a JV with Toyota, Nissan or someone so that we too may manufacture these hydrogen fuel cell cars. 

Imagine the rest of the world has stopped using petrol and diesel for cars and we still rely on 15 year old Japanese auto engine technology, rebadge it as Inspira, Perspira, Preve etc and use the tariff and non tariff barriers, APs and Customs Duties to force the Malaysian consumer to buy these stone age cars. 

Please look at Malaysia's auto industry export figures again. 

• RM900 million exports of vehicles 
• RM4.3 billion exports of auto parts and components 

Car exports were RM900 million only. In stark contrast exports of auto parts and components exports was RM4.3 billion.

Our auto parts and components industry is RM4.3B / RM900M x 100% = 4.80 times or 480%  more competitive globally than Proton cars.  

So Malaysia can make and export RM4.3 Billion worth of auto parts. This is where the future of our national auto industry lies. It is so obvious.  Malaysia Boleh. We can do it.

Scrap the 'national car' identity. Instead lets create a real 'national auto industry'.  Just copy Thailand. They started much later than Malaysia. If we start making components for hydrogen fuel cells now (for Toyota, Nissan, GM etc) we can overtake Thailand, Indonesia, Taiwan and maybe even Korea. 

If we insist on manufacturing Proton, then we are going to be like this :

By the way if hydrogen fuel cells take off (and they will) here is what is going to happen in the Middle East :

"There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children." - Madiba

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela 

18 July 1918 - 5th December 2013

"I was not a messiah, but an ordinary man who had become a leader because of extraordinary circumstances."

"For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others."

"If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner."

“As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.”

"I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear."

“Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.”

"It always seems impossible until its done."

“Lead from the back — and let others believe they are in front.”

"There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children."

Indonesia Sambut Mesra Menteri Israel

Israeli Economy & Trade Minister Naftali Bennett in Indonesia

Israeli Economy and Trade Minister Naftali Bennett 

at a World Trade Organization conference in Indonesia

• Israel is redirecting funds from trade missions in western Europe in favor of opening new vistas in the east, Economics Minister Naftali Bennett said from Indonesia, where he is participating in a World Trade Organization conference.
• Bennett first Israeli minister in 13 years to visit Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country. 
• Shimon Peres visited there briefly in 2000 as minister of regional cooperation.
• Addressing the conference in Bali, Bennett said that “economic ties can create bridges for peace” 
• As Israel’s minister of economy, “I anxiously await the day I can sit down and sign free trade agreements with all of Israel’s neighbors as well as other Arab and Muslim states in the wider region.”
• A number of Arab and Muslim delegates were in the plenum when Bennett spoke, and no one demonstratively walked out.
• Bennett said that in his view “diplomacy can follow economy,” and that greater Israeli economic activity around the  world would serve to “de-emphasize” the importance many countries place on the Palestinian issue.
• “Our biggest mistake is not that we don’t make our case,” he said, “but that we are overly focused on it, instead of on our strong points,” such as innovation and technology.
• “I call this the lighthouse in the storm,” he said.
• “Our region is going to be screwed up for the next 100 years. Our diplomacy needs to be based on economy.”
• Bennett, who held talks in Bali with counterparts said “everyone is coming over to me here, saying we need your innovation, how do you inject that innovation into your economy? My point of view is that this is our core competency.”

Please note the following:

•  first Israeli minister in 13 years to visit Indonesia
• Shimon Peres visited there briefly in 2000
• region (Middle East) going to be screwed up for the next 100 years 
• diplomacy needs to be based on economy
• sign free trade agreements with Arab and Muslim states
• economic ties can create bridges for peace
• core competency
• diplomacy can follow economy
• Arab and Muslim delegates - no one demonstratively walked out

There appears to be a change in the way some Islamic countries are looking at Israel and the Middle East. This includes the Arab countries themselves. 

1. Turkey has long had diplomatic relations with Israel.
2. Saudi Arabia is now establishing quiet contacts with Israel to check their common enemy Shiah Iran.
3. The Jordanians have long had special relations with Israel. 
4. Egypt has had diplomatic relations with Israel for 35 years. (Yup the Mossad agents have completely photographed and mapped the Pyramids by now).
5. This visit by the Israeli Economics Minister to Indonesia (under the auspices of the WTO meeting in Bali) does signal a different attitude in Indonesia towards Israel. 

With the collapse of Arab societies and Arab economies ("region going to be screwed up for the next 100 years") the Arab countries will not have the luxury of "jaga tepi kain orang lain" as much as they did before.  

They are going to be too busy fighting for their own survival over the next 100 years. Cari makan is going to become more important than cari gaduh.

With the collapse of the Arab countries, the Palestinians are no more the only victims or the only refugees. Arabs all over the Middle East are now in worse shape than the Palestinians. Egyptians are worse off now than many Palestinians. So are Tunisians, Yemenis, Libyans, Syrians and others.  They are all in deep trouble.

The Arabs will not have the luxury to "debate, debate and debate" the Palestinian issue. They are now debating their own fates.

What the Arabs do not have is modernisation inside their thinking. This is going to be very difficult. Hence the 100 year incubation period. It takes a long time to reinvent society. 

The Arabs also need technology and technology products. This is where the Israelis are seeking to fill the gap. They have the capacity.

Imagine the Middle East making a separate peace with Israel. The Israelis will become an even greater economic powerhouse. 

What should Malaysia do? We have to read the tea leaves very carefully. 

Jangan terikut-ikut apa orang lain cakap. We have to be more sensible about things. That maybe a very difficult thing to do for people who are just not used to thinking differently. 

Anyway here are two news stories. Please note the dates carefully :

1. Tuesday December 3, 2013  (this is just two days ago).

• Hamas seeks Umno’s help to reconcile with Fatah
• Hamas requested Umno to help in its reconciliation with rival Fatah
• Zahid Hamidi said Hamas felt Umno was close to both Palestinian groups
• request by Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, attending Umno assembly 

I think Khaled Meshaal said that to UMNO to make himself look like a peacemaker. So that senang sikit nak "minta tolong". Takkan kita nak tolong orang yang suka gaduh. Khaled Meshaal did not fly all the way out here just to attend the UMNO Assembly for nothing. Here is another news item from January 2013

2.  Tuesday January 22, 2013 (that was 11 months ago).

• PM offers to help unite Fatah and Hamas
• GAZA CITY: Malaysia has offered to help unite Fatah and Hamas
• “A unity government is within reach,” Najib said 

"A unity government is within reach" ? Najib really said that in Gaza in January 2013? Then what happened? Obviously it was grandstanding for the TV cameras pointing at him. He could not have meant it seriously. Those were all just sound bytes for the benefit of the TV.

Now another year has gone by and the Hamas and Fatah are still not united.  

Tapi lets get serious. Kita tak boleh main-main dengan nyawa manusia atau dengan nasib orang.  Peoples' lives, futures and their fates are at stake. 

You are not going to be able to unite the Hamas and the Fatah today, tomorrow or for the next 100 years. We really do not know head or tail about these folks. Janganlah kita jaga tepi kain orang.

Trade is better than talk. R&D is far better than religion. Science or knowledge or 'ilm is Islam.  We should not waste time.

Russ

Khazanah, Pak Arab Exempted From 30% RPGT Pula.

Here is a disclaimer. I do not create all this news out of thin air. Neither am I responsible for all these stupidities that are happening in the country. Every day, without end, we see more and more absurdities being reported in our Press. 

I only try to explain what is really going on in the background because few people really understand what is going on. The Prime Minister and his cohort are fast asleep. They are really without a clue. Even if they read this, his advisors will not understand what I am trying to say. 

Alternatively they may understand exactly what I am saying. However they can see that the cookie jar is still half full. And left open for them to stick their fingers in.  

The latest news is that our "gaji dua juta Ringgit" corporate nincompoops at Khazanah have been exempted from the RPGT for their Medini project pula. Read this from The Star :

• M'sia grants tax break for Medini, a showcase zone near S'pore
• substantial tax break to showpiece investment project 
• 60% owned by Iskandar Investment, a corporation controlled by Khazanah  
• Mitsui & Dubai's United World Infrastructure each own 20%
• Medini to get exemption from 30% RPGT
• 30% RPGT  announced in October to cool soaring property prices
• Iskandar has seen property prices climb due to speculators

Cool soaring property prices my @$$. If Iskandar has also seen property prices climb then why grant this special exemption to Medini? Here is the reason :  

• provide crucial support to $800 million IPO next year 
• tax break helping prospects for its IPO 
• (the exemption) certainly gives it an edge over others in Iskandar 
• Bank America, Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs & Maybank to manage listing

This is the real reason lah kekawan. So that the Khazanah nincompoops and their Arab investors can make a killing in the IPO next year. Plus their underwriters (Bank America Yahudi, Merrill Lynch Yahudi, Goldman Sachs Yahudi, Maybank) can all make a killing from the underwriting of their IPO shares. Itu saja. Nothing more complicated than that. So easy and predictable. 

• Medini declined to comment about tax exemption 

(mestilah declined to comment, tak ada business skill)

• other Iskandar developers like Iskandar Waterfront and UEM Sunrise, Malaysia's biggest real estate company, bracing for a chill next year.  
• Both declined to comment when asked about the tax exemption for Medini 
• Iskandar Waterfront has delayed a $300 million IPO to gauge impact of property cooling measures. 

So other Iskandar developers DO NOT GET this special exemption from the 30% RPGT. Iskandar Waterfront and UEM Sunrise are not exempted from the RPGT although both also operate in Iskandar. Why not? Iskandar Waterfront even has to delay their own RM300 Million IPO because of the RPGT.

If the idea behind the 30% RPGT is to "cool soaring property prices" then how come only Medini is exempted?  Takkan property prices are soaring on one side of Iskandar only? 

I am not suggesting by any means that Iskandar Waterfront and UEM should also be exempted from the RPGT - like the braindead suggestion that the Civil Servants salaries should also be raised to match the con-sultans salaries. It should be the other way lah. If the con-sultans are no better than the Civil Servants, then the con-sultans salaries should be lowered to match the Civil Servants.

But where is the logic when Khazanah, some Arabs from Dubai and Japanese are exempted from the RPGT while you and me are not exempted? Even other property developers in Iskandar are not exempted.

This also means that we the taxpayer are subsidising excess super profits for Khazanah, the Arabs, the Japanese, Goldman Yahudi, Merrill Lynch Yahudi and Bank America Yahudi.  They are going to make super profits at our expense.   The gomen is going to collect less taxes from them. Kita pula akan kena the full RPGT at 30%. 

Ambil makanan untuk anak sendiri dan diberi kepada beruk di hutan. Ya Allah, why are these people so stupid?

Folks this is the famous "nenek tua business model" again which has been perfected by Khazanah. They bend the rules to make easy money for themselves and their cronies. They cannot compete and will be permanently stuck on their crutches.

This type of behaviour can prevail because of one reason only - you are all fast asleep. Yes it is your fault.  Akhir sekali bangsa sendiri yang jual bangsanya. Bukan orang lain.