Have you #tanyanajib yet?

I'm back after a day (usually after a month)! Blogging more often is one of my new year resolutions, so yeah, I'm doing great thus far ;)

Anyway, not about me today, but about our dear PM.

Am sure most of us would have known about the whole #tanyanajib (ask najib) topic on Twitter. Our PM decided to hear the voices of Malaysians by allowing us to ask him questions on Twitter with the #tanyanajib hashtag, and he promised to answer all the questions.

Some took it really seriously.

And some took it as a joke.

I won't deny that I had a really good laugh at some of the tweets. They're just plain random & lame...typical Malaysians!

However, some people were obsessed with it and #tanyanajib-ed about anything under the sun every other minute, which defeated the purpose (even more) and also spoilt the fun. It became really irritating. Not funny..

While some took it to the extreme and turned out to be offensive.

It obviously made many pissed off. I have to agree, it was really unwise and inconsiderate. Some things are just not funny to joke about.

On whether or not our PM reads all the #tanyanajib questions? Apparently, yes!

I'm not sure if he meant 'seronok' when he reads the serious & angry questions, though.

My take on this whole #tanyanajib drama is this:

I'm sure he would have expected or seen the nonsensical questions coming from the citizens, especially when most of the tweeps (tweet peeps) are younger people, so all the stupid questions shouldn't come across as a surprise.

Some would say it's stupid for our PM to invite criticism, sarcasms, and whatnot, but what I really think is, I do credit our PM for actually making the effort to do something.

Though we cannot be sure if it was he himself who manages his Twitter and does all the replies, some of us doubt his sincerity and think that this is just another political gimmick, well, at least he tries to be relevant.

I mean, if I were a PM, I wouldn't even let this kinda thing happen in the first place. I'd prefer not to have my reputation tarnished further by having my own citizens throw bombs at me. How would it reflect upon me as a PM? He, too, has a reputation to keep.

So yeah, I do admire him for at least trying to be relevant and open. Thanks Mr. PM for doing that :)

What is YOUR take on this?

p/s: I can't wait to hear his replies though. Teehee.

love, careen.

More than just a game - the mixed impact of football in Honduras

Often people that do not understand the passion for football question why so many people care about 22 players running around after a ball for 90 minutes. Even some passionate fans feel that it is simply a game, and nothing more important than that. However, try telling that to football fans in Honduras. Football has caused both tragedy and healing in the Central American country over the past 40 years. Both war and peace; both preceding and preventing violence; football is more than just a game there.

In 1969, the so-called ‘Soccer War’ broke out between Honduras and El Salvador. Whilst the war was not solely as a result of the football, the match between the two nations was widely seen as the catalyst for the outbreak of violence. Honduras travelled to El Salvador in a playoff for a place in the 1970 World Cup in Mexico, but went down to a 3-0 defeat. A bad tempered game, where the Hondurans were subjected to abuse, xenophobia and outright hatred, just as the Salvadorans had been in the reverse fixture back in Honduras. Indeed, the Honduran coach, Mario Griffin, commented that “we are awfully lucky that we lost.”


Honduran fans were attacked in San Salvador, both before and after the match, the Honduran flag and national anthem were insulted, leading to relations between the two sets of fans and populations becoming extremely strained. Salvadorans residents in Honduras were killed or attacked, including several vice consuls, and thousands began fleeing the country. Less than a month after the match, the Salvadoran army and air force launched a full-scale attack on Honduras. The war lasted only four days until a cease-fire agreement was reached, but a final peace settlement would not come for over a decade. Over 3,000 people were dead – the majority being Honduran civilians – whilst thousands more were left homeless. The economic situation in Honduras was affected by the expulsion of almost 100,000 Salvadorans.

Whilst there were far more complex reasons behind the war, hinging mainly around economic disparities between the countries, the events surrounding the football match are often viewed as the catalyst for the outbreak of violence. It gives a whole new importance to football beyond merely a game for 22 people.

However, football can also act as a major healer. Fast-forward to October 2009, and once again, the Honduran national side travelled to El Salvador in the final qualifying match for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. They knew that they had to win, and needed the USA to beat Costa Rica, to ensure qualification. However, the game took place amid a situation of political turmoil in Honduras. Democratically elected President, Manuel Zelaya, had been forced into exile last July following a power struggle concerning his plans for constitutional change.


The scenes inside the stadium in San Salvador were confused for the Hondurans. They wrapped up a comfortable 1-0 victory, after top-scorer Carlos Pavon had headed the ball home just after the hour mark. However, Costa Rica had gone 2-0 up against the USA, and when the final whistle had gone in San Salvador, the Americans had pulled one goal back, but the Hondurans thought they had missed out. However, a 95th minute equaliser confirmed Honduras’ place in South Africa.

Honduran FA President and former Honduran President, Rafael Callejas, said that “if we had not qualified for the World Cup, the differences in Honduras would have become enhanced and probably we would have had high levels of violence. People were tranquilised by the game; it gave them hope and happiness.” Now, the political crisis in the country seems to have resolved itself and is nearly over. Whether this would have happened without the success of the national side is a different question.

It is not the only example of football, and sport in general, having far more extensive effects that people would expect. The qualification of the Cote d’Ivoire in 2006 helped to distract attention from the civil war raging in the country. The mix of different ethnic and religious groups in the national team helped the country to bond, and a cease-fire was declared and observed during the tournament. As one Ivorian said, “everyone is thinking about soccer and the World Cup, and we have forgotten about the war. Thanks to soccer, the country is going to reconcile its differences.”

Iran’s qualification for the 1998 World Cup led to massive celebrations, alcohol-fuelled parties and women throwing off their veils. Some thought that the qualification that may have been the spark that overthrew the government. It was not to be, but the impact that football can have on the population of a country is clear.


Other sports can have a similar effect as well. The Filipino boxer, Manny Pacquiao, is a true hero back in the Philippines. Virtually the entire country stops during his fights, and crime rates fall to zero during the period of the bout.

Football has often been described as an international language. The influence of football in Honduras over the years has shown that anyone that views football solely as a game severely underestimates the impact that the sport can have on emotions in a country, and even the political future of the nation.

Happy Trails, Holly Trolly

In what appears to be punishment for her embarrassing guilty verdict for stealing from poor children, the Baltimore Housing Department, <-insert sarcasm-> which has absolutely no influence from the mayor <-end sarcasm-> decided to end the program. Officially, however, the decision to cancel the program was not at all influenced by the criminal-minded embezzling mayor.

In an official statement, Andrew B. Frank, the First Deputy Mayor, not to be confused with the Second or Third Deputy Mayor, stated that the program no longer fits the goals of the city's Community Action Centers. Unofficially those goals of the centers include providing a conduit for the mayor to embezzle money, so when that conduit is cut off, the program no longer serves its purpose.

Now City Hall has to deal with the back-lash and public relations disaster that is Sheila Dixon. Do not be surprised if a "new" program is unveiled next year that will "more effectively meet the needs of the city and its residents as they continue moving forward to do the business of the city".

The new program will include lots of shovels and boots.

Someone tell me again why Keiffer Mitchell wasn't elected? Oh, yes, his campaign's self-implosion. Hey Baltimore - are you happy now?

Richard Pryor Live at the U.N.

While at the gym I was watching the news and being that it's usually too loud to hear it I end up just watching the pictures and reading any captions at the bottom. To my surprise, Richard Pryor was doing stand-up at the United Nations on Wednesday. I thought Mr. Pryor died years ago.

Upon further review, the comedian was not Richard Pryor, but the comical leader of Libya, Muammar Gaddafi, the King of Comical Kings of the Arabic world.

Gaddafi didn't fail. He had his audience in the half-empty chamber rolling on the floor with such lines as the swine flu virus was created by the American military, the U.N. Security Council should be called the Terror Council, Obama should refuse to step down as President of the United States and become its indefinite leader, and he blamed the Jews for the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. and John K. Kennedy.

His mindless rambling exceeded his allotted 15 minutes by an hour and 15 minutes. At one point the English interpreter had to be relieved as he collapsed from exhaustion.

Many critics were disappointed that in his finger-pointing, hate-filled diatribe didn't answer such simple questions 'how many licks does it take to get the center of a Tootsie Roll Pop?', 'Where does the pollen go?", and "Where's the beef?" I'm hoping he will follow up his most recent speech at the U.N. as a special guest of radical leftist David Letterman on the Late Show. Perhaps Letterman will allow Gadaffi to deliver the Top 10 Reasons Why Letterman and Gadaffi are Radical Lunatics.

Later that evening Gadaffi was seen raising the roof at Poly Esther's on Manhattan's West Side, delivering an impromptu karaoke version of Macho Man by the Village People. Gadaffi - Libya's greatest comedian.

And the One in the Middle Was on the Right

Those are lyrics to the famous Johnny Cash song, "The One On The Right Is On The Left" about 4 musicians in a band who let their politics get the best of them. We often find ourselves in this position and that's why we are always told not to discuss politics and religion with family, and often times with friends. I find this on Facebook when I post something right-leaning and my hard-left liberal nut case friends go off on me for being one of those radical right-wing crazies who likes freedom, less government intervention into the private lives of citizens and stuff like that. I know - what a lunatic I am!

As I've mentioned in posts before, there is no party that represents the center-thinking portion of our society, to which I believe to be the majority of our society. Most politicians are either hard-left or hard-right in their political beliefs. A moderate rarely gets through the party's primarily election. So in essence, the majority of Americans are silenced by the fringes of our political system.

I read an article today by John Feehery on CNN.com and even though I have no idea who he is, it is nice to find someone that agrees with me and speaks openly about it. You should read his article because it is right-on.

Janeane Garofalo - Open-Minded Bigot

Everyone knows that Keith Olbermann is a fascist left-wing lunatic that takes great pride in free speech, but only when it's applied to other liberal left-wing lunatics. And it only seems fitting that he has guests on his show who are also fascist left-wing extremists that agree with everything he says. Hence, Janeane Garofalo.

If you have not heard, the festively plump Miss Garofalo went off on Conservatives and Republicans and Libertarians alike as being a bunch of black-hating racists. In her bigoted eyes, there is nothing else that can explain the stupid tea parties that were held across the country recently. No - you were not really protesting the government's billion dollar bailouts of the car companies and banks. You, in fact, hate black people.

Apparently, according to obnoxious name-calling Garofalo, if you haven't protested against the Bush Administration (and it seems implied that NO ONE spoke out against the Bush Administration), then you are a racist and your free speech and rights to assemble have been revoked.

If if weren't for the fact that this tattoo-besmirched atheist has a pedestal to stand behind because of her "celebrity" status, we would all ignore her and her liberal propaganda and she would eventually go away, just like Cindy Sheehan and Jerry Falwell. But instead, I get to call her names like poop-head, because, as far as I know, I still have my first amendment rights. Oh, and I'm not a racist, despite what Janeane thinks. And I feel no need to prove it.