Sunday, December 04, 2005

"Some people like my advice so much that they frame it upon the wall instead of using it." - Gordon R. Dickson

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There's an anti-government documentary* on Singapore on the Discovery Channel now. I'm not watching it, but when I walked past the TV there was critical coverage of the Anson by-election and what happened to JBJ (Privy Council appeal and all that jazz, and how he's reduced to hawking his books in the streets now).

"Supposing Catherine Lim was writing about me and not the prime minister...She would not dare, right? Because my posture, my response has been such that nobody doubts that if you take me on, I will put on knuckle-dusters and catch you in a cul de sac...Anybody who decides to take me on needs to put on knuckle dusters. If you think you can hurt me more than I can hurt you, try. There is no other way you can govern a Chinese society."

* - Well, not exclusively political. Earlier there was a segment on the founding of Singapore. It looks like the same one where Raffles was caught holding a bottle of Ice Mountain Mineral Water.

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My Yahoo account is mysteriously restored. I only discovered this by chance when bored and wanting to see what would happen if I tried to log in to my old account.

I'm quite happy they restored it after a probable database error (albeit one lasting many days), but the least they could've done was to acknowledge my complaint email and notify me when it was restored.

Ah, the joys of being a non-paying customer.

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Acronyms

"MAC Maybe A Computer
MAC Masquerading As a Computer
MAC Moronic Asinine Crap
MAC My Allowance Consumed
MAC Money Always Counts
MAC Mother's Artificial Charms
MAC Mickey's Alternative Computer
MAC Mindlessness Applauded & Celebrated
MAC Much Advertised Crap
MAC Masochist's Automatic Calculator
MAC Merely A Chimera
MAC Makes All Cynical"

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BuyBack Asia Temporary Positions

"1. Counter Staff (for NUS Buyback Programme located on NUS campus)
- Female aged 18 to 28
- Pleasant looking and service oriented

2. Logistics Staff (for NUS Buyback Programme located on NUS campus)
- Male aged 18 to 35
- Reasonably Fit"

Sexual discrimination! Tut tut.

I wonder if I'll manage to sell my used textbooks on my own before flying off next semester. 5% (or even 10%) commission on the sale price is alright, but BuyBack Asia is charging 15%, which is quite unreasonable, I think.

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I finally got my White Elephant T-shirt on Saturday, 2 1/2 weeks after I paid for it.

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Youths reveal racy Bible calendar - "The 12 re-enacted passages feature a bare-breasted Delilah cutting Samson's hair and a nude Eve offering an apple. The Nuremberg-based group said they wanted to represent the Bible in a way that would entice young people."

Vicar tells children Santa is dead - "Youngsters at a Christmas carol service were devastated when the Reverend Lee Rayfield told them Santa Claus was dead. Even parents at the service in Maidenhead, Berkshire, were shocked to hear Mr Rayfield say it was scientifically impossible for Father Christmas to deliver so many presents so quickly."
Rich, coming from a vicar. Everyone knows that you need faith in Santa Claus!

Putfile Says Goodbye To Singapore - "Whilst Putfile is not a human rights campaigning organization, we believe that if a country must have the death penalty, there is no need for it be barbaric... For this reason, we are at this time terminating all service to users from Singapore. We shall be happy to restore service following any positive move from the government of Singapore towards abolition of hanging as an execution method."
This must be the most ridiculous response to the hanging. At least calling for a boycott would move the economically minded government. But a cessation of service from a free online video hosting provider? The same logic is behind 'some Americans are Crusaders, therefore we are justified in beheading all Americans'.