Christmas, Love, Give & Hope

Merry Christmas! 

Christmas is a season when I am reminded to love and to give, for my saviour loved and gave Himself for me. 

Joy to the world! Sharing with you this nice version by Chris Tomlin. 

My First DAP Congress

Last weekend I attended my first party congress. 

Many of my comrades and media shared a lot about the congress, from the fact that it's our biggest congress ever (more than 2000 delegates, 1000 observers and 100 media), to the touching momento in appreciation of our old-time comrades, the funny "Ubah Rocket Style" sneak preview and the much anticipated new line-up of leadership. 

So I am not going to tell you all that, I am writing this to share with you my personal experience attending the congress and how it has left a mark in my journey as a new DAP member.    

Lynas: The Myth of Converting the Radioactive Waste

It's reported in Malaysiakini today that Science Technology and Innovation Minister Maximus Johnity Ongkili said that the waste streams may be able to be converted into synthetic aggregates which emit only low-level radiation and it is an "innovative" option by the Lynas [1]. He continued to say that "Don't politicize the matter. We are smart enough, we are not stupid people lah. We run this country based on international standards.” [1].  

Let's see now if he is really smart enough and genuine to follow international standards. 

Lynas (Part II): The Go/No-Go

As of now, whether to continue or to stop the plant operation, Lynas, which is a company from a far away land, will cost Malaysians a fortune. 

Some people may say that Lynas issue is that of a political one and it's mere fear mongering by the Pakatan Rakyat. While there's some element of truth (well, when General Election is near and everything even a hair-cut is politicized, I'll be very insincere to tell you otherwise), I strongly believe the move of anti-Lynas itself is that of a rational one and it is definitely the right thing to do.

This article aims to tell the readers especially those with technical background why we, as rational as we may, should join the effort to stop Lynas. It first gives a background study on Lynas plant operation and then analyze the go and no-go situations. 

Lynas (Part I): Scientific Evidence???

I read with great amusement of Najib's response towards recent Save Malaysia Stop Lynas (SMSL) protest over the operation of Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (LAMP) in Gebeng, Kuantan. He said that the public fear over this issue is imaginary and based on scientific evidence, LAMP will not adversely impact the safety of the residents and the environment  [1]. He is not alone, our Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai has reported to say that there's no scientific evidence to prove that LAMP is unsafe [2]. Scientific evidence seems to become the 'template answer' for most if not all of the other Barisan Nasional leaders when asked about Lynas issue. 

I wonder if they really understand what it meant by scientific evidence in safety and health impact context. Let me 'curi tulang' a bit and use the definition of scientific evidence from the Wikipedia (as it is suffice to give readers a general idea): 

" Scientific evidence is evidence which serves to either support or counter a scientific theory or hypothesis. Such evidence is expected to be empirical evidence and in accordance with scientific method......the strength of scientific evidence is generally based on the results of statistical analysis and the strength of scientific controls."  [3]

In Lynas context, when we need to prove scientifically that Lynas is safe or unsafe (hypothesis), there should be a statistical analysis on the historical safety records of rare earth plants that use the same technology and raw materials, controlling/weighting the variables such as socio-political, regulatory, geological etc. 

In proving safety or health impact, scientific evidence should be based on the statistical analysis of the historical safety data and not on what the scientists or engineers say about the technology of the process involved.  

Telecommunication Towers - Health Concern

We've recently received complains from the villagers of Kampung Chempaka regarding their concerns over the health impact of mobile phone towers in the neighborhood. These mobile towers have been there for more than 10 years. Due to the increased awareness over radiation hazards recently, the villagers are worried that the presence of mobile towers in their neighborhood do affect their health.

This article is to explain how mobile towers work, what the international bodies say about the health impact of mobile towers, what standards available in the developed countries that we can use as reference, and lastly, suggestions on how to handle the issues locally at Kampung Chempaka and other residential areas in Malaysia. 

What's the Big Fuss about Women's Rights Movement?

When I was complaining about our Women's Minister's remark of "no need for women's rights movement" to my sisters and some of my lady friends, many gave me a puzzled look and asked "I thought we have equal rights already? Why do we need more women's movement?"

First of all, I am not a feminist. This article is not to promote female superiority nor is this to fight for special rights for women. Two years of working in the upstream male-dominated area of oil and gas industry, I know fully well what it means to be competing on even ground with men and that only hard-work, intelligence and good leadership can earn respect, and not special rights.

So, what is the big fuss about women's rights movement? My point can be summarized here: 

We need women's rights movement so that women can enjoy equal rights with men (not special rights) on the basis of human rights for life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. And gender equality is not only a matter of doing the right thing from the social perspective, it is necessary so that Malaysia can reach our full potential in economic growth and development. 

If you have time, read on the details below.

Huge Opinion Polarization

Thanks to the "LIKE" and "DISLIKE" feature in Youtube (Facebook only has a "LIKE" button, Twitter has none), we probably can have a very rough idea of what the netizens think about our Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak. 

Image below is a print-screen of one of the many most recent Youtube videos of our Prime Minister. As you can see from the image below, out of the 59,975 views, 13,858 users rated the video, and more than 95% are negative responses (dislike).  This is not the only Najib-friendly video that get such a big proportion of negative response. Try to search the Youtube for yourself, you'll see. For the videos that make fun of him or criticize him, most get very high positive response (like). On the contrary, for the videos that are Najib-friendly, most get very high negative response (dislike). 

Can you believe that Najib approval rating across Malaysia is actually steadying in 60-70% in the opinion polls conducted by Merdeka Center? No, Merdeka Center result is not wrong, neither is the statistics in Youtube videos.  Let me explain why.