Forward

Why is the US the world's sole superpower? Let us examine the column by the late and magnificent Eleanor Roosevelt, dated Jan 4th 1945. (http://www.gwu.edu/~erpapers/myday/displaydoc.cfm?_y=1945&_f=md056990)

WASHINGTON, Wednesday—We had a real treat yesterday. A young man now in the army had written to me about some writing which he hoped to do in the future, and sent me copies of the camp paper he is editing. As he was home on furlough, I invited him to lunch.

In the course of conversation it turned out that he had worked with Paderewski, and so we asked if he would like to see the piano on which this great artist practiced when he stayed here. Afterward I asked our young man to play on the piano in the East Room, which is so rarely used nowadays since we no longer have musicales or evening entertainments. It was really a treat, and was much enjoyed by one of my other guests, a boy back from the Pacific who brought the President a war club which was a gift from the head of one of the villages in British Samoa.

In the evening young Colonel Hoover, who is one of our son Elliott's pilots, brought his new wife to dine with us. The colonel had not gone back with the rest of the crew because he decided to get married, but he will follow them after a brief leave. Out of the whole crew only one enlisted man and one officer went back unmarried, which shows, I think, the urge that the men who go overseas have to leave someone waiting just for them on this side of the ocean.

A group of student veterans of World War II, who are at present studying at George Washington University under the vocational rehabilitation and the G.I. Bill of Rights programs, came in at 7 o'clock to see a movie. Afterward they came up to the StateDining Room for refreshments, and we all sat around and talked for a while.

After an early lunch today, Mrs. Henry Morgenthau Jr. and I are going to New York City. Tonight we are going to the play, but I will tell you more about that tomorrow.

In the meantime I want to tell you about a very lovely Christmas card from the Rev. Frederick Brown Harris, pastor of one of our Washington churches. The first two paragraphs struck me as something we might all find comforting in these days, so I pass them along to you:

"In the year 1809, with Napoleon on the march, men's feverish thoughts were on the latest news of the war. And all the while, in their own homes, babies were being born. But who could think about babies? Everybody was thinking of battles.

"In that very year, in the birth lists, were written the names of Gladstone and Tennyson and Oliver Wendell Holmes and Darwin and Abraham Lincoln and Chopin and Mendelssohn and Samuel Morley and Elizabeth Barrett Browning. But nobody thought of babies. Everybody was thinking of battles."

E. R.

(COPYRIGHT 1945 BY UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE, INC.)

"But nobody thought of babies. Everybody thought of battles." - That's a powerful message. A message of hope, of peace, and of the appreciation of men and history; and the future. 

Malaysia Debt Crisis

On July 5th, Bank Negara Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti announced that the central bank had set a maximum period of 10 years for personal loans and 35 years for housing loans for civil servants to curb household debt. This is certainly a response to the national debt 'crisis' - it's not a crisis till it hits!.

Including contingent liabilities (guarantees), our national debt till 2012 could be up to RM1.743 trillion (Thanks to Pak Sako from Centre of Policy Initiatives). That is a TRILLION more than the current published debt. Most of our debt are internal, and approximately RM444 billion can be attributed to construction and housing (according to an official from Bank Negara). The office vacancy rate in Klang Valley is 23% for Q1 2013 according to the NAPIC (National Property Information Centre) Commercial Stock report, or could be up to 40% according to another officer. 

Why does the construction/housing/office debt matters to the average Malaysian?

Here are a few quotes from my favourite Fed Governor Dr Janet Yellen of SF in 2005 expressing concerns over the housing bubble in the US:

" ...there are downside risks to economic growth relating to the housing market. This sector has been a key source of strength in the current expansion, and the concern is that, if house prices fell, the negative impact on household wealth could lead to a pullback in consumer spending. Certainly, analyses do indicate that house prices are abnormally high—that there is a "bubble" element, even accounting for factors that would support high house prices, such as low mortgage interest rates. So a reversal is certainly a possibility. Moreover, even the portion of house prices that is explained by low mortgage rates is at risk."Read more at http://www.calculatedriskblog.com/#p3IJWqTiB9b0pE4t.99 

And in 2006, about "ghost towns" in the West

According to some of our contacts elsewhere in this Federal Reserve District, data like these are actually "behind the curve," and they're willing to bet that things will get worse before they get better. For example, a major home builder has told me that the share of unsold homes has topped 80 percent in some of the new subdivisions around Phoenix and Las Vegas, which he labeled the new "ghost towns" of the West.Read more at http://www.calculatedriskblog.com/#p3IJWqTiB9b0pE4t.99 

The scene certainly appears surreal when we drive by new housing estates around the Klang Valley, Penang, and the Iskandar region. What does this continual trajectory mean to our national economic progress? 

IMF MD Christine Lagarde had denoted the unhealthiness of over our national economy specifying 3 key concerns - FDI, high debt and inequality. She had instructed six remedies:

1) The need to attract more FDIs

2) National policies that are disrupting the free market

3) GLCs that are impeding the competitiveness of the private sector

4) Acknowledging total national debt - including all contingent liabilities

5) Regional cooperation

6) Liberalizing the economy 

APEC will be held at Bali this coming October, and the TPPA is expected to be concluded by then, in time for President Obama visit to Malaysia. Would the internal provisions cover item 2,3, and 4? The content of the negotiations are held in secret. 

My prediction is that these items will be excluded, and the TPPA agreement signed. This would not bode well for our national economy, as a further liberalization of our service sector will phase out our domestic players and increase cost to our already over-taxed consumers. I hope that our government realizes the unintended consequence of this Agreement, and will ensure that measures to protect our economic sovereignty are instilled into the agreement.

Interesting events which happened this week:

1) China had propose to back the yuan with gold.

2) Ex-President Jimmy Carter praises Edward Snowden

3) Detroit filled for bankrupcy

4) Prime Minister Yingluck rice subsidy is costing 8% of the Thai budget, with 17 million tonnes as reserve. 

Each of the above items are worthy of a post!

GEORGE ORWELL: WELLS, HITLER AND THE WORLD STATE

A fabulous essay by Orwell, thanks to Paul Krugman and Brad Delong for bringing this to my attention:

Wells, Hitler and the World State: All sensible men for decades past have been substantially in agreement with what Mr. Wells says; but the sensible men have no power and, in too many cases, no disposition to sacrifice themselves. Hitler is a criminal lunatic, and Hitler has an army of millions of men, aeroplanes in thousands, tanks in tens of thousands. For his sake a great nation has been willing to overwork itself for six years and then to fight for two years more, whereas for the common-sense, essentially hedonistic world-view which Mr. Wells puts forward, hardly a human creature is willing to shed a pint of blood.

Before you can even talk of world reconstruction, or even of peace, you have got to eliminate Hitler, which means bringing into being a dynamic not necessarily the same as that of the Nazis, but probably quite as unacceptable to ‘enlightened’ and hedonistic people. What has kept England on its feet during the past year? In part, no doubt, some vague idea about a better future, but chiefly the atavistic emotion of patriotism, the ingrained feeling of the English-speaking peoples that they are superior to foreigners. For the last twenty years the main object of English left-wing intellectuals has been to break this feeling down, and if they had succeeded, we might be watching the S.S. men patrolling the London streets at this moment.

Similarly, why are the Russians fighting like tigers against the German invasion? In part, perhaps, for some half-remembered ideal of Utopian Socialism, but chiefly in defence of Holy Russia (the ‘sacred soil of the Fatherland’, etc. etc.), which Stalin has revived in an only slightly altered from. The energy that actually shapes the world springs from emotions — racial pride, leader-worship, religious belief, love of war — which liberal intellectuals mechanically write off as anachronisms, and which they have usually destroyed so completely in themselves as to have lost all power of action….

Because he belonged to the nineteenth century and to a non-military nation and class, he could not grasp the tremendous strength of the old world which was symbolised in his mind by fox-hunting Tories. He was, and still is, quite incapable of understanding that nationalism, religious bigotry and feudal loyalty are far more powerful forces than what he himself would describe as sanity. Creatures out of the Dark Ages have come marching into the present, and if they are ghosts they are at any rate ghosts which need a strong magic to lay them. The people who have shown the best understanding of Fascism are either those who have suffered under it or those who have a Fascist streak in themselves. A crude book like The Iron Heel, written nearly thirty years ago, is a truer prophecy of the future than either Brave New World or The Shape of Things to Come.

If one had to choose among Wells's own contemporaries a writer who could stand towards him as a corrective, one might choose Kipling, who was not deaf to the evil voices of power and military ‘glory’. Kipling would have understood the appeal of Hitler, or for that matter of Stalin, whatever his attitude towards them might be. Wells is too sane to understand the modern world. The succession of lower-middle-class novels which are his greatest achievement stopped short at the other war and never really began again, and since 1920 he has squandered his talents in slaying paper dragons. But how much it is, after all, to have any talents to squander.

P.S. This was written in the summer of 1941 

Jolted - The state of political reality

Laugh, my friends, and dance and sing!
Or weep and wail with sorrow.
What California is today,
The rest will be tomorrow.
 -Maroon Bulldog

The call for unity is loud, after a tedious and competitive general election. To some leaders - Saifuddin Nasution, Mat Sabu, Ali Rustam, Kong Cho Ha, Raja Nong Chik - the results were brutal. A victorious display became naught owing to a concoction of over-confidence and arrogance. A speedy retirement for the soon to be ex-MCA sec gen, and the ex-MB of Malacca; and for Saifuddin Nasution, Mat Sabu and Raja Nong Chik, political survival will depend on the individual political fortitude. As for the winners - DSAI, Azmin Ali, Nurul Izzah, Fuziah Salleh, Rafizi Ramli of PKR; Lim Guan Eng, Liew Chin Tong, Tony Pua, Teresa Kok, Ong Kian Ming of DAP; Mustafa Ali, Nik Muhamad, Husam Musa, Nasruddin Hassan Tantawi of PAS; Liow Tiong Lai, Ong Ka Chuan, and Ong Tee Keat of MCA; and PM Najib and DPM Muyiddin, Hishammuddin, Zahid Hamidi, and Khairy Jamaluddin - the internal positioning of these leaders will be closely monitored. Already shots had been fired!

1) The fight for Selangor MB
It is outright obvious that Azmin Ali is gunning for the MB-ship before the GE. He has position his team well within the PKR hierarchy; and as candidates for the GE. His closest competitor, Saifuddin Nasution lost in his bid for the Kulim Bandar Baharu seat. The only resistance left is the present MB, TS Khalid Ibrahim, who has indicated, before the GE, that intend to stay at all course, even if PR loses the state. Hence his 'escape' to Port Klang, and even that won with a minuscule vote of barely 3000 votes.

Despite the home advantage, AA failed to acknowledge 2 issues - PKR getting less seats than its partners; and public perception. The former is known to be the most probable scenario, and the second is part of any politician inbuilt function. AA performed catastrophically in managing this aftermath. By refusing to plan for what could be the most probable and not having a well thought plan for the MB-ship, AA had certainly disappointed many operatives. The throne was his for the taking, yet he chose the worst unimaginable actions - Not showing up and "QQ"-ing for the Kelana Jaya Stadium Rally on Wednesday, where more than 120,000 supporters turned up; and the attempt by his men to 'scare' off the party by indicating that AA might quit with 15 MPs, in so handling over 2/3rd majority to BN. Rather than to quell the rumors immediately, he allowed it to fester into the minds of the public (image taken a huge hit); and to call for a PC on Friday, with unremarkable results. Intentionally or not, it was a bluff that can easily be called!

Only political novices made such mistakes. His team should be fired for such big screw ups. If any good comes out of this, is that his team is now 'visible' to both allies and adversaries. This is like the failure of the Japanese to seize Guadalcanal after a battled victory, but to retreat - won the battle but lost the war!

In contrast look at the steps taken by MB TS Khalid, (1) called for a meeting T+1 after D-day with all his allies to forge a workable solution to the premiership. (2) Go for the offense to create both internal and external pressure. (3) Take credit for the 2/3rd victory and have good public relations.

Azmin Ali has allies, and he should consult with them more often. Things would have been different if he:
1) Take credit for the victory (since he ran the grassroots and his men were all over) and declare his MB-ship immediately.
2) Be gracious and magnanimous, the rally on Wednesday was a celebration of victory. The sentiment was jubilee with supporters looking forward to the next battle. A golden opportunity lost!
3) Have between 3-5 PAS members with him, this could have easily be done as the MB controls the exco positions.
4) Have his men go on the attacks, and to declare their support! (To date only Zuraida spoke but that was too little too late)
5) Display leadership. Eunuchs cannot be emperors. Internal maneuvering is useless when you don't hold the chips. Power lies in perception and do not issue a threat in which cannot be fulfilled.

P.S. Do not attempt to appear cute after a PR fiasco. Seriously, if AA intends to helm the premiership, he needs a new team. Serious reform is needed.

2) PKR Elections
The battle lines are drawn. Saifuddin Nasution will probably be appointed as a Senator when a vacancy arises - probably around 2015. As of now, his Sec-gen position is in limbo and other party seniors are already gunning that position. Tenacity is the key.

I) Azmin Ali might make a move to the presidency, but he has to outmaneuver Kak Wan internally to retirement. A direct fight for the presidency will end in sure defeat. With TSK in a solid state, Kak Wan has the necessary cover to remain the President. Elections have consequences!

II) His best option is to retain the DP; with Saifuddin's lost, no leaders in the party can mount a credible offense. Tian Chua might advice Rafizi to strike but that would be a futile attempt with disastrous consequences. It would also be unwise for Princess Reformasi, Nurul Izzah, to contemplate such an attempt. The call to action will be loud. Hopefully political sanity remains triumph. 

III) Sec-Gen - Several elders have indicated their desire for this position.

IV) Vice-Presidents and MPPs - If there's any guarantee, is that the fight will be expensive. Hopefully the party will segment the states to lower the costs, and to have a more equitable fight.

May the odds ever be in your favor!

TBC - Next series on the internal dilemma/positioning of DAP and PAS

P121: David Slays Goliath A 2nd Time - Organizing Matters

A win is a win, regardless of 100 votes, 1000 votes, or 10,000 votes - LP Operative, 2012

It was barely 9 pm, when the internal tabulation of Borang 14 showed Nurul Izzah Anwar, Puteri Reformasi, totaled a win over FT Minister Raja Nong Chik by ~1847 votes. The team was elated, but the sentiment was held back; owing to potential last minute 'ballot swapping'. A huge crowd of supporters surrounded the station, ever ready to 'charge' if any fraud was to occur. There were some controversies. In honesty, the SPR agents and police rightly handled the situation. Around 11.30, the EC announced Puteri Reformasi as the winner - Nurul Izzah Anwar slays Goliath a 2nd time.

Strategies:
1) It was known that this battle would be formidable, as Raja Nong Chik, the Federal Territories Minister, had started his campaign in 2010. He possessed and spent almost the entire allocated budget ~RM200 mil, in Lembah Pantai itself. This is in addition to the amount UMNO allocated for the election, and ~RM50 mil of his own resources.
2) Polling agent, counting agent (PACA) operations started in 2011. Most of our PACA members attended 12 training classes. The counting agents were selected in utmost discretion; to prevent leakage and any attempts to buy them off. Only veterans were placed in key areas. The team is truly grateful to the hundreds of professionals who volunteered their time to make this campaign a success. The law behind this successful operation - "If you want to volunteer, be 100% committed; else don't bother!"
3) There were black areas, grey areas, and white areas. Any attempt to make black areas white would be a futile attempt and a waste of resources. Victory lies in Bangsar - an aim of 85% voter turnout. Actual voter turnout exceeded 85%, and victory was within grasped. Turnout in 2008 was barely 70%.
4) GOTV operations - phone banking, canvassing, public programs etc were concentrated to create this miracle.
5) Next target - Sri Sentosa. This area had been neglected by the BN government for generations. The objective was to give the voters the proper respect. The result - 70% for PKR.
6) Programs were organized to micro target potential voters in grey areas such as in Sri Pahang and Pantai Permai. An increase Malay swing back to BN was to be expected.
7) A committed team is needed to win!

Raja Nong Chik's Mistakes
1) Counting the eggs before hatching - RNC expected a victory of 4-5 k votes owing to almost 3k postal voting, and an increase Malay population. He did not envision a possibility of at least 85% Chinese turnout. In fact he was already celebrating his victory, by sending invitation cards to his neighbors for a 'victory' party at TTDI during the afternoon. Though the Malay votes did swung back to BN, it was not substantial as anticipated.
2) Subpar campaign team - Despite the immense resources available, RNC could not pull this victory. Campaign matters, and a successful campaign requires a committed and well-abled team. A team of winners is more preferable than a team of giant fighters.
3) Indian Warlords - For whatever reason, RNC took this bloc for granted. 65% of Indians voted en-bloc for Nurul. Once again over confident kills.
4) GE13 was an extremely polarized race, thus an increase in voter turnout is expected. Internal polling has shown Malay youth to vote UMNO in LP. However, the turnout for Malay youth was lower than average.
5) All in all, this is a numbers game; RNC team failed the counting.

Superior Organizing beats Superior Organization
It is no doubt that RNC had a far superior organization. The logistics team was fantastic; working in multiple teams of four, and rewarding capable teams more than others. The voters agreed RNC to be 'likeable' and 'easily accessible', but these factors weren't enough to carry him through.

As for Nurul's team, resources were scarce. Propitiously, the team was highly committed and mostly professionals. This enabled a far more detailed organizing. PACA planning was meticulous, with extraordinary results as the teams lasted till the PM called victory. Kudos!

Let this be a lesson to all political operatives that the grassroots work matters most. Failure to gasp this concept would lead to catastrophic failure. Onwards!




Interesting Facts:
(1) The ballot box found in the police car was a valid box, owing to confusion and misdirection.
(2) There were no helicopter drops!
(3) For the postal votes, Nurul Izzah won ~1%.

Forward!

D-Day went by, with passionate armies clashing with utmost fury across the Peninsula. DAP Supremo Lim Kit Siang won the day at Gelang Patah, slaying the reinvigorated MB of Johor Ghani Othman by more than 10 k votes. The Chinese onslaught came, with full force, approximating 90% of turnout and votes in every single district in the nation. The Barisan National did not expect this surge, but they weathered through this formidable assault. Restless the leaders of BN are, only allowing selective reporting to come out from its HQ at Putra World Trade Centre. Titans from both sides were slain - that was to be expected. Words on the streets indicated a total loss for MCA, the Chinese component in the Barisan National. The De-Facto Leader of the Pakatan Rakyat, Anwar Ibrahim, proclaimed victory at first side. Operatives knew that it was too early a call, as the incumbent has been in power since Independence. The people gazed at the television, for the latest results; FB and online portals were refreshed every second by the younger population; operatives and troops stood by their champions, declaring premature victories. By 10, the streets were quiet, except for the competitive areas.

The 13th General Election results are within expectations. Pakatan Rakyat had garnered 7 seats more than in 2008 to 89 out of the 222 parliamentary seats (BN retaining 133). PR won the popular vote, 50.3% to BN 48.8%, or a majority of 300 k votes. The Oracle had expected a PR gain of about 7 seats (spot on), with DAP gaining securing an estimated 39 seats (final tally at 38 with obvious foul play on the ruling coalition), PAS and PKR suffering owing to the reduce support of Malay votes (The Malay votes did indeed swung back to BN, but with PAS taking the full brunt), and the gains by PR in Sarawak to be 6 (spot on) and Sabah 2 (won 3).

The outcome for the federal seats were quite precise, but the composition went slightly awry. In the final tally, PAS won 21, PKR 30, and DAP 38. The expectations was for PAS to have about 22 seats, and PKR about 26.

As for the PR states, despite the Hu-Ras, PR should clean sweep Penang (check), holds a comfortable lead in Kelantan (check), and a comfortable lead in Perak (X), a slim lead in Selangor (Won 2/3rd in Selangor with 44/56 seats = X), and lost Kedah (check). For the competitive states of Terengganu and N9, BN should be able to hold both (check).

Battle of the Titans
The expectations live with the unexpected losses and gains. PAS, the conservative faction within the Pakatan Rakyat suffered the most with the top leadership falling to win. Deputy President Mat Sabu (Pendang), Harun Din (Arau), Husam Musa (Putrajaya), and Dr Dzul (Kuala Selangor) lost the federal battles. Salahuddin Ayub (Pulai) lead the charge for PAS in Johor, but fell short. Even President Hadi Awang, lost the state seat, and couldn't muster an overwhelming victory in his stronghold of Marang. All in all the liberal faction who lead the charge lost. PAS is at a crossroad, as its electorate are uncomfortable with the current direction. If PAS decides to go towards the right (which they will), they might alienate the Chinese votes who had unexpected propelled PAS to having more seats than PKR in the state of Selangor!

On the side note, PAS youth chief Nasrudin Hassan, whom was rumored to be sent to the gallows emerge victoriously, slaying Higher Education Minister Saifuddin Abdullah in the Temerloh constituency.

For PKR, its generals benefitted from the strong Chinese current, particularly to Puteri Reformasi, VP1, and daughter of Anwar Ibrahim, Nurul Izzah Anwar. The Battle of Lembah Pantai, a mix seat of 55% Malay, 23% Chinese, and 20% Indians, was the most anticipated with ex-Federal Territory Minister Raja Nong Chik, playing Goliath had begun his campaign since 2010. With unlimited resources (federal budget and rumored billionaire, and a superior machinery, Nong Chik played the role of Godfather - paving roads, rebuilding community parks, centres, food outlets, giving housing, attending every single invited weddings and funerals - to the poorer district of Kampung Kerinchi and Taman Seri Sentosa. This can be a case study of superior organizing triumph over superior organization. With limited resources, and the support of the Bangsar folks, Nurul Izzah pulled an upset with victory of 1847 votes over a total of 60176. Human chains were formed around the polling centre when the Election Commission was delaying the announcement of the results late last night. FRU (Riot squads) officials were on standby, and ballot boxes were escorted by unauthorized government agents to the centre. The machinery held their ground, and denying Nong Chik his needed recount to steal the election. This could potentially be a RM100 mil lost for the ex-Minister. 

Noted observations:
1: PACA agents must stand their ground, understand the rules, and backed by ground troops.
2: The strategy of siphoning the Malay votes Kerinchi votes did not produce sufficient payoff.
3: GOTV works as the Bangsar folks came out overwhelmingly (~90%) (Expected to win with a turnout of 87%) Of course it does help that the base is overwhelming upper middle class.
4. The Indian warlords (North and South) kept their word!
5. Regardless of how superior the organization, without sufficient generals to lead, its excess is amount to waste. (3 Kingdoms - Yuan Shao vs Cao Cao; Sun Tze, "In war, numbers alone confer no advantage.")
6. Nong Chik played it right by upping the ante in his stronghold of pantai permai and kerinchi, but his men were too confident to execute the required orders.
7. Awaiting the numbers, the Malay turnout should be ~70% and the Chinese close to ~90%.

Puteri Reformasi lives to carry the WarFlag "Hope".

Lawan Tetap Lawan!

The results were devastating to Sec-Gen Saifuddin Nasution, who lost the Kulim Bandar Bahru seat by 1871 votes. Saifuddin was expected to sail through but was by Dr. M. waves of recapturing Kedah. This loss will change the internal dynamics within PKR.

Other PKR titans who lost include Datuk Chua Jui Meng (Segamat) to Dr. S. Subramaniam by 1204 votes, Datuk Paduka Tan Yee Kew (Tanjong Malim) to Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan (He's expected to take over the MCA Leadership), and Dr. M. Monutty (Bagan Serai) lost by 1040 votes.

Excluding gains, PKR lost 8 seats including Balik Pulau (Which is expected - Check).

The biggest winner is DAP. However they suffered the most from the fraudulent practices of MCA/BN. It was supposed to be a wipe off for MCA but last minute recount rescued Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai (Bentong) by a mere 300+ seats,  and Chua Tee Yong (Labis) by a mere ~300+ seats.

Other MCA warlords who lost include Kong Cho Ha (Lumut), and Chor Chee Heung (Alor Setar). MCA has lost the support of the Chinese community with >90% of Chinese voters rejecting the party. It turns out that Ong Tee Keat played his cards right by letting go of Pandan. He can now mount a successful challenge for the presidency.

Forward!
Let today be the day of grief for the Pakatan supporters and troops. Tomorrow will be a better day, with more work needed to be done. Grassroots ought to be reorganized. Logistics must be made a top priority. We need a leader like Howard Dean who came out with a 50-state plan to "fight at every state, city, and county".

Azmin Ali has to be given credit for mounting a successful offense in Selangor. More of this on following posts.

Dr. M. has shown his relevancy, and his political acuteness at this election. By successfully conquering the northern block, he had disprove the concept that PKR strength lies in the North. More so, by PM Najib not able to capture Selangor, UMNO will be continuous in turmoil over the next 5 years!

"Nothing is harder to see into than people's nature.
The sage looks at subtle phenomena
and listens to small voices.
This harmonizes the outside with the inside
and the inside with the outside."
(from the Records of the Loyal Lord of Warriors)

"Detach from emotions and desires; get rid of any fixations."

"The loss of any army is always caused by underestimating the enemy. Therefore gather information and watch the enemy carefully."

"Good generals select intelligent officers, thoughtful advisors, and brave subordinates. They oversee their troops like a fierce tiger with wings."

"You are harmed by decadence when judgment is based on private views, when forces are mobilized for personal reasons. These generals are treacherous and immoral."

Zhuge Liang Quotes, www.zhuge-liang.net

The Butterfly Effect

The ButterFly Effect is known to be events that are construe from a series of unintended consequences. The fight of Gelang Patah has set this Effect to the main political parties - DAP, MCA, PKR, and UMNO - derailing the plans of both the heroes and villain.

The first was the dethrone of PKR strongman, who whom DSAI took much effort to woo over in 2009, Datuk Chua Jui Meng. He was the appointed as the PKR Chief of Johor, and had been preparing the ground for the eventual run of Gelang Patah comes this GE. Alas, the effort came to naught when DSAI declared DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang as the candidate on March 16*.

A brief history of P162. Gelang Patah - MCA won the seat with a 8851 majority over the PKR candidate in the 2008 GE12. Though sizable, it was a reduce margins as MCA won with a majority of 31,666 votes in 2004. Today, the number of voters had swell by over 25% to 106,864 voters - 52% Chinese, 34% Malay, and 12% Indians. Hence the intense competition over this seat, as it's one of the three Chinese majority seats in Johor; the others being Bakri, and Kulai.

The consequence was an abrupt blackout from Datuk Chua. Regardless of DSAI intent of offering this Class A seat to its partner; DAP thought it had secured another round of victorious negotiation - gaining  one, losing none. Political analysts and the media already predicting a +1 victory for DAP, PR, and Lim Kit Siang, and dared MCA to field in their best candidate; preferably its Commander-in-Chief Dato Chua Soi Lek. This forced the MCA President back to the board room for a restrategizing session. The pressure was on, particularly from the UMNO warlords to have him contesting P162 - pitting the two most prominent Chinese leaders from rival factions for the Chinese voters to decide. Rumor came out that perhaps Deputy Education Minister Wee might be the scape goat to replace the President. Then something most unexpected occur! Johor MB Ghani Othman, whom was the Chief of the state since 1995, and had recently lost favor and not expected to be fielded in this GE13, suddenly found salvation to thrust his political career forward. A savvy politician who has a keen sense to opportunity; volunteered to face off with Lim Kit Siang. This outcome was a total surprise to practically the whole nation - making Gelang Patah the No 1 most anticipated battle in the nation. 

The unintended consequences to this revelation sent ripple effects to several prominent leaders. Ong Tee Keat, ex-MCA President, who still harbors to make a comeback, is expecting to be fielded in his stronghold of Pandan, Selangor by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. This is despite heavy objections by Dato Chua Soi Lek. But by trading off an MCA seat to UMNO, he got to fulfill his desire of securing his position in the party by removing OTK out from this GE!. Thus OTK becomes the 2nd victim, after Chua Jui Meng. The third victim was President Chua himself, as by backing out from the fight in Gelang Patah, has crippled himself and thus out from the current battle. It appears that Gelang Patah has finally settled the score for the old MCA rivals - 3 warlords but no victors. DAP seems to overplay their confidence and suffer a severe defeat in Johor due to the immense arrogance displayed publicly.

DAP might choose to double down on their strategy with the rumor of fielding Tony Pua to Kulai. The price of defeat may be too high for such a move as Tony has been a vivid and effective fundraiser to the party. Regardless, the biggest loser may just be the Chinese community in this nation. In this case, voting either for the incumbent or PR as akin to cutting of one leg or the other when contracting an acute infection.

This battle would bring either greater glory or an expedient retirement to the 72 year old veteran DAP Supremo Lim Kit Siang. This will be his last GE owing to this age and health. Perhaps history will remember him kindly for this heroic undertaking.

As for Datuk Chua Jui Meng, he will be facing off with Human Resource Minister S. Subramaniam of MIC in Segamat. With just 3 weeks to polling, there might not be enough time to prepare sufficient field work for a successful operation. Even with an expected loss, Datuk Chua will give S. Subramaniam a run for his money. The voter demographics of P140 consists of 46% Chinese, 44% Malay and 10% Indians. Pakatan Rakyat's groundwork is still at its infant stage in Johor, and is expected to obtain between 15-20% of the Malay electorate - only an irritable punch. A 30% Chinese support is sufficient for BN to maintain the fort, with a probable loss of Bakri and Kluang.

The next political conundrum is Ong Tee Keat. Will he contest Pandan as an independent; thus earning the wrath of his former comrades and risk being sack from the party and dashing his dreams of making a comeback to the Presidency? Or will he sit out an wait for the next opportunity; severely weaken by not being an elected representative? Alternatively, but unlikely, crossing over to PR, most likely to the DAP. This would certainly be an irrational move as it brings only short term glory but long term banishment.

The consequence of this Gelang Patah feat of winning an extra seat for DAP turns out to be a bluff at the finale.











(Will be correcting my grammer later, and with updated progress)









*the date the news was leaked

A Tribute to the Iron Lady

The Baroness Thatcher

(13 October 1925 – 8 April 2013)

It is disheartening to hear the passing of one of the titans of the 20th century, former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher of Great Britain, commonly known as the Iron Lady. A trueborn politician, the Iron Lady broke the glass ceiling by being not only the 1st female Prime Minister but also the longest serving (1979-1990). Her legacy is prolific - revamping the socio-politico structure of Great Britain, defeating the pompous Unions by calling their bluff; defending the integrity of Her Majesty through Falklands; establishing a new economy for the nation; and foreshadowing the demise of the European Union. More so, she cemented the Anglo-Saxons alliance through a unifying policy between the United States of America and Her Majesty's empire.

Critics often scorned Thatcher's union busting and privatization policies. The results had proven otherwise with the revitalization of the economy and producing a wave of middle class citizens. She understands the role of the government at that moment, and she fulfill her duty. That is most honorable and remarkable as she puts the nation above her self interests.

Her achievements did not come easy. Aspire politicians can learn much from Thatcher. She was resolute up till the end of her career; "No No No!" in the House of Commons when deciding whether Britain should join the ERM. History has already lay its judgement on this issue. Most important  was her conviction and tenacity. Those two values enabled her to overcome ferocious opposition to her policies.

                "I am not a consensus politician. I am a conviction politician."

And to further showcase her conviction and tenacity of her tactics in defeating the union bosses:-

“the rest of our programme for national recovery would be blocked. . . . Winning the next [1979] election, even by a large majority, would not be enough if the only basis for it was dissatisfaction with Labour’s performance in office since 1974. Therefore, far from avoiding the union issue – as so many of my colleagues wanted – we should seek to open up debate. Moreover, this debate was not something to fear: the unions were an increasing liability to Labour and correspondingly a political asset to us. With intelligence and courage we could turn on its head the inhibiting and often defeatist talk about ‘confrontation."


She picked her battles, and when the moment arises, decisively executed the necessary moves such as during the Winter of Discontent - a once every 16 years phenomenon; and this is when the labor unions decided to have a general strike. Thatcher approached the moment with courage and conviction, and acted to swing public opinion against the unions; delivering the first fatal blow to her political nemesis. A politician must know to act according to circumstances. The Iron Lady knew this crucial law, thus setting the stage for a Conservative victory and the Prime Ministership. I often wonder what's on her mind, when she realizes the inevitability of her premiership to Great Britain.

History has a place for great people - Margaret Thatcher included. Your actions, deeds, and values shall forever be remembered by those passionate about politics and statesmanship. May the Iron Lady rest in peace.

"Thrift was a virtue and profligacy a vice" - Margaret Thatcher 

Interesting must-read. Her legacy can be debated; but her political achievements and tactical intelligence are indisputable.
 http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2013/04/michael-hudson-thatchers-legacy-of-failed-privatizations.html#kSJe811O4l5xdod3.99 

GE13 - Heroes and Villians

The 13th General Election will be a monumental election to be recorded in the annals of Malaysia history as generals in both the Barisan National (BN) and the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) will meet head on - the price of defeat is to retire from politics. Several top leaders, albeit more to come, have announced their intention of moving out from their strongholds to fight decisive battles - Lim Kit Siang, Liew Chin Tong, Fong Po Kuan (TBC), and Kulasegaran (TBC) from the DAP; Dato Mansor Othman, Rafiza Ramli, Datuk Chua Jui Meng (TBC), and Datuk Tan Kee Kwong from PKR; Salahuddin Ayub and Datuk Seri Mohd Nizar from PAS; and from BN, MCA old- Donald Lim, Ng Yen Yen, and Ong Ka Chuan; Devamany from the MIC; Teng Chang Yeow, and Chia Kwang Chye; and as for UMNO Dato Zainal Abidin Osman*, Raja Nong Chik and many others.

Incumbents Generalissimo - Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, Nurul Izzah Anwar, Fuziah Salleh, Ong Tee Keat, Chor Chee Heung, Subramaniam, Kong Cho Ha*, Dato Seri Nazri*, and Datuk Seri Hishammudin* - these dignified individuals will be facing tempestuous battles profuse with malign sentiments.

With 79 seats out of 222 (166 in the Peninsula, 56 from Sabah and Sarawak), DS Anwar Ibrahim will need at least another 40 seats to form the next federal government. An uphill but possible task, DSAI believes that PR can win up to 12 seats in Johor, 8 in Sarawak, 12 in Sabah, while capturing another 8 more seats from PR leaning states in the North. Or in the words of Tian Chua, PKR senior VP and head of the Heavenly faction, "10 from Johor, 10 from Sabah, and 10 from Sarawak". Such is the optimism of our top leadership - endless possibilities and victory inevitable!

Arithmetic
In the 2008  elections, the PR had 30% Malay support, 75% Chinese support, and 70% Indian support. If we maintain this ratio, the results will be status quo of retaining 5 states and denying BN the 2/3rd majority - a victory for PR as it realizes a 2-party system in Malaysia. To win the federal government, PR would need a minimum of 80% Chinese support, at least 60% Indian support and 40% Malay support. Pakatan Rakyat leaders are confident to meet this desired numbers. Any deviation from this figures would bring an element of surprise and changes to the leadership structure of the Pakatan Rakyat coalition.

Thus the deviation is the most probable.

Recent survey, which I concur, has shown that Pakatan Rakyat has max the support of the Chinese community at 82%. In urban areas such as the Klang Valley, the support could surpass 90% and semi-rural areas/ old-towns the support at about 65%. As for Johor, I expect our Chinese support to be 2/3, at 67%.

As for the Indian support, it can be no doubt that PR is losing this group of electorate, possibly winning only 40% of the community - a combination of educated and urban votes with some rural votes. The loss is attributed to the lack of fieldwork - logistical as our leaders refuse to invest in the necessary infrastructure. The reasons could be owing to the lack of funding, and sufficient top Indian leaders in the coalition. Thus I expect PR to get 40% and BN 60%.

The Malay electorate will be the deciding factor into the formation of the next Federal Government. At a base line of 30% support to PR, the electorate has increase by about 2-4% national; thus being the absolute kingmakers in most seats. This is particularly significant to Selangor where an erosion of Malay support might cause PR to lose this prized state. A loss of Selangor would mean a consolidation of powers to the PM DS Najib Razak - stability to UMNO and deep vulnerability to the survival of the Pakatan Rakyat coalition.

Sadly, I'm expecting the erosion of the Malay support to between 22% - 25%. This is attributed to the 3 Rs - Race, Religion, and Royalty - a potent combination that has never fail to rally any conservative base in the world. The counter to this stratagem is superior fieldwork, but this has yet to be done by the PR leaders as like I've said before - boring and requires hardwork.

Consequences
If indeed the Pakatan Rakyat receives 82% of Chinese support, 40% of Indian support and 22-25% of Malay support, the dynamics of the PR coalition would undergo severe changes. This would be an abrogation of the PR leadership, especially to the leaders in PKR and PAS. The hold on the state of Selangor could be as low as 3-seats, an uncomfortable margin to the current 36-20. In terms of parliamentary seats, DAP would emerge as the victor with close to or about 40 seats, an increment of at least 10, while PAS and PKR will lose 3-5 seats each on aggregate.

The relationship between the parties, and the leadership structure would undergo shocking political vicissitudes. This new relationship shall be thoroughly discuss in subsequent posts as it involves leadership tussle in winning states particularly the prized Selangor.

But, PR can find comfort that BN is being denied their 2/3rd majority twice in a row and will have to get use to the new political reality. The winner will be ordinary Malaysians, and the biggest loser will be the Barisan National coalition, with its component parties pulverized!

What will happen to UMNO except for another five years of internal instability?



Next: Battle of the Titans

* indicates possibilities

Updates: It seems that PKR is not going to give the Home Minister Hishammudin a fight for his political career.

Political Organization

Day 2,3,4 and (5): Lobbying

With D-Day impending, the jostling for seats is getting very much heated, with insiders leaking information on who's at where's and what! Sandiwaras such as the 'not keen to contest', 'subject to party leadership', or 'for the greater good' have become common occurrences. It almost as if the candidates and candidates wannabes are the most altruistic and noblest individuals, devoting their family and lives to the well-being of the general populace. Politics is not a high school. Elections is not a popularity contest. Governance is not a student leadership council. Elections have consequences. Politics dictates the direction of the nation - the economy, the security, the wages! Politics is a career choice, just like a doctor, a lawyer, an entrepreneur, a business tycoon; it's repetitive, boring, and requires hard work. Most importantly, politics is no charity. The people are not selecting public servants, rather are electing a member of their community to lead and to represent them. They are selecting their 'boss', the chief executive. Politicians are not accountable to the people, only to the party bosses and constituents;  just like the management of a public listed company is not beholden to common shareholders; but only to major ones, who have a seat in the board. Thus politics is a game of perception, where the bluffs can be call, with consequences!

Last night, Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced his intention to stay in Permatang Pauh. That should be the case as now is not the time for the senior to be adventurous. PR needs him to campaign around the nation, and he would not be able to do so unless he stays in his stronghold. Though argument can be made that moving to Perak would be the wiser move, as PR needs to expand the parliamentary seat for DSAI to become the next Prime Minister. A move to Tambun would rattle the ranks of his old nemesis - Dr. M and the old UMNO machinery. The commander-in-chief of the PR would be leading the charge to recapture Perak, the morale of the troops be very much uplifted. It comes with a risk, but the risk is worth as DSAI needs only to move around Perak and Selangor. The battle down south is a battle for the Rocket to expand their base; and the East is still a PAS battleground.

Early rumors has it that DSAI would contest in either Lumut, or Padang Rengas. Lumut should have been the preferred choice as it has a 35% chinese base; and the incumbent MCA sec-gen DS Kong Cho Ha won by a mere 298 votes. This victory no doubt is won through postal voting by the army as there are several army camps in the vicinity of Lumut. This can be overcome with the support from the Malay ground to DSAI. Alas, this is now mere fantasy. An opportunity unrealized.

Political Organization    
What consists of a political organization? It's the management of five elements - general strategy, groundwork, messaging, planning, and fundraising. The key to having the most successful organization lies to its groundwork and fundraising prowess. Grassroots organization and fundraising are the most difficult tasks and therefore often neglected by almost all politicians. Most prefer to do only messaging; as the reward comes upfront, but during election itself, has very minimal impact. The political maestro, Lee Kuan Yew, had concurred with the above statement, having stating that parliamentary debates are meant for the elites - a theatre to appease the what conservaties like Rush Limbaugh loves to say "latte sipping Starbucks liberals". All politics are local! Period! It's bread and butter after all, with a touch of emotional connection.

Harry Reid, the majority leader in the US Senate, was expected to lose his reelection during the shellacking 2010 campaign, but he prevailed, to the disgust of Republicans, while throwing political analysts off guard. I've stated on record that he will prevail, because he understands politics. He understands the nature and the importance of groundwork, or fieldwork in the States. Now he's the most powerful politician in the Legislature and possibly the whole US administration. He's probably the 2nd most powerful Majority Leader in the Senate after Lyndon B. Johnson - one of my favorite politicians of all time.

This is no different in Malaysia. To win an election means having the necessary groundwork. This means having develop the logistical proficiently to deliver the votes and to ensure the votes are counted as it is.

           Stalin - "It's not the people who vote that count, it's the people who count the vote"

Or, to be more precise

"You know, comrades," says Stalin, "that I think in regard to this: I consider it completely unimportant who in the party will vote, or how; but what is extraordinarily important is this — who will count the votes, and how."

Winning an election is no different that winning a war, it's a battle of logistics and a battle of attrition. These factors shall be explain in my later post.

GOTV - Got Out the Votes
I was actually very surprise to see this word in our briefing. Of course it has been translated as "Getting out the voters" (As I had stated in my previous post, very different strategies involve). Regardless, GOTV is the core principal to groundwork - grassroots building, and fieldwork.

The party expects to implement GOTV within 3 weeks to polling. This is a really big misconception to a well thought political strategy. A well run GOTV can produce miracles, such as the Howard Dean 50-states strategy that lay the path to subsequent Democrats and Obama victories in the Red states, and Obama triumphs over Hillary during the hotly contested 2008 primary. The lesson in this is that GOTV takes time. It requires real work - planning, fundraising - and lots of effort and hard work. More so, it needs at least 15 months to lay an effective GOTV. There is no shortcut to GOTV.

The concept of GOTV is to churn out supporters, particularly in unfamiliar or opposing territories. Thus  a successful GOTV will allow the candidate/party to find friends in the 'black' areas. This is to dispel the myth that GOTV will turn 'black' areas 'white'.  Likewise, you don't educate the voters, you appeal to the emotional attachment of the voters to make them feel familiar/intimate.

According to PKR Deputy President Azmin Ali, the list of candidates for all seats should be finalize by Sunday. This is a matter of urgency as candidates wil not move if uncertain of its status - a problem face by politicians from both side of the aisle. Already, the jockeying has reach fantastical new heights with magniloquent obituaries delivered to political rivals. Keep it coming.

May the odds be ever in your favor!



Further discussion of political strategies will follow, as well as its relevance to our GE13 and how it would impact the results.

Disclaimer: These views are honest and private to 'me'. For reading purposes only, no reposting allow. Please respect my privacy of thoughts and emotions. Allow me to be objective and most importantly truthful.

My Story So Far - Malaysia and the 13th General Election

Banners and flags of political parties can be seen fluttering; palpitating the hearts and minds of most Malaysians like the flapping of butterflies. This occurrence has already been the norm as this nation, known as bolehland been put on election mode since the late 2011. In February, postals and stickers of elected representatives, or the Yang Berhormats (YBs) and YB-wannabes can be seen beaming with the widest and most alluring smiles, in major highways, cities, and towns inclusive both urban and rural alike. This will be the most divisive election. The electorate has already made up their minds. The people is ready to vote. But the Prime Minister is not..... till today!

At precisely 11.30 am today, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato Seri Najib Tun Razak, had dissolved the Parliament, paving the way for the 13th General Election. Finally D-day has arrived.

The Beginning
It started in 2008, with the ruling Barisan National (BN) expecting an overwhelming victory - a norm for the past 50 years, was astonished with the loss of 5 out of 13 states, losing 82 out of 222 seats, and foregoing the 2/3rd majority in Parliament for the first time since Independence. The opposition - Pakatan Rakyat (PR) - captured the prized state of Selangor, as well as Penang, Perak, Kedah, and the usual Kelantan. 46.75% of the populace voted for PR. Though in 2009 Perak fell back to BN through a sordid and unscrupulous political coup  (though PR leaders had been warned but failed to take appropriate measures), and several YBs had shifted to pro-BN independent MPs; the Pakatan Rakyat alliance remained intact - remarkable to the eyes of political operatives in the ruling coalition. Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), led by ex-DPM Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim and the noble Datin Seri Wan Azizah (Kak Wan); the Democratic Action Party (DAP) led by supremo Lim Kik Siang, and his son, the chivalrous Lim Guan Eng; and PAS led by Tok Guru Nik Aziz and President Hadi Awang, are solidly united to ONE common purpose - toppling the ruling Barisan National. Already component parties in the ruling government - MCA, MIC, and Gerakan, have been severely wounded, losing the majority of the seats; and in the eyes of the draconian UMNO - the three partners had become liabilities. Unknown to UMNO was that the loss of the coalition partners is due to UMNO, over-indulging and treating the partners as derelicts. With inflation sky-rocketing, while the princelings and the politically connected gnawing bigger slices of the economic pie; the silent majority in the urban states shocked the ruling coalition by voting across racial lines for the opposition - collectively.

The gerrymandering by the puppeteer, marginalizing the minority races through various means - having an extremely large constituency or splitting the minority races to only roughly 20+ to 40+ percentage of the electorate in the constituency; - backfired! (through a minor split among the majority and a united minority to produce a small but decisive victory in the first-past-the-post electoral system)

Where 'I' come in
Having return from the states; fulfilling my childhood dreams of working for the Clintons ^^! (land of opportunities where dreams do come true); I started as a political aide for the young, and charismatic Nurul Izzah Anwar - daughter of the opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim. It was another dream came true as I was thrusted into the halls of power, always on the push! Being one of the four Praetorian guards (a term we call ourselves), it was success after success, out-maneuvering  and abashing political adversaries - externally and internally. It was most awesome when my prepared speech on democracy successfully baited Dato Seri Nazri, the Minister of Law into agreeing with our point of view,stating on captured TV "You are correct!"; and being the man in charge, and winning the most votes as vice-president in the party internal and first direct open elections despite all the negativity and chicanery that was threw upon us  (Might I add that I maybe one of the few who had the experience in a primary process). It was captivating.

All good things must come to an end. The markings were on the wall. I could feel it, yet powerless to change fate. Being ardent, yet naive; I entangled into a young man's folly - slightly arrogant, thought invincible to negative attacks by trusted comrades - fell out of grace and decided to take a break. That had consequence with all the Praetorian being out of favor (and only one left today). It was dark, it was stormy, and in the words of Churchill, "...I have worked very hard all my life and I have achieved a great deal, in the end to achieve nothing'.

Fate would have it that I remain in this field. Being involve in local rather than national politics, and having the time to improve, and to catch up on the readings - Churchill, Roosevelt, Eisenshower, to the leaders of the 21st century etc.

Today 3/4 - Day 1 of Dissolution
I remember telling the team, on record, that we'll have an election in April 2011, and it was the dissolvement of the Sarawak State Assembly; and we would have another till the end. I have to admit that i'm off by a week, predicting the dissolution to be on the 9th of April rather than the 3rd. Only the Prime Minister knows and he had chose today as D-day. Nominations should be within the next 10 days and the polling expected to be on the 27th/28th of April.

Over the next 3 weeks, I shall discussed strategies and fore-castings. Unlike many junkies/pundits, I usually make it clear what i think the results will be; with basis, because I too want to continuous improve by learning from what is right and what is wrong. It could the over/under estimation of the electoral mood; a data error (lacking of updated data owing to too much noise); pure bias owing to emotional attachment, or just plain wrong. Because politics is living, just like the law is living.

 I attended a late night meeting today - surprised at the presentation with newly updated terms such as GOTV (Get out the vote rather than Getting out the voters; very different as it involve different stratagems), elaborate organizational structures, and so on. Obviously Team Obama is doing well, providing political consultations to political parties all over the world. (**More like 101 reports but sold at exorbitant rates) Needless, these are interesting times.


Disclaimer: These views are honest and private to 'me'. For reading purposes only, no reposting allow. Please respect my privacy of thoughts and emotions. Allow me to be objective and most importantly truthful.

A multitude of thoughts

Rather than writing about a specific issue, i figured out it would be best to just give my take on several issues. The first is this post which i came across in http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2009/05/not-winnie-the-pooh/, where i find the pic to be one of the most humorous.

I remembered some time ago when the western nations critized china and other asian countries on their handling of flu viruses such as SARS and other bird flus. The issue was the Asian countries playing down the numbers of the people that were infected and thus downplaying the risks of the flu.

However we could now see how the western countries handle the pandemic. Rather than containing the virus, Mexico was hoping for the virus to 'go away' and thus infecting tourists. This in turn enabled the tourists to spread the virus all over the world. Even till now there are denials about the origins of the virus and the seriusnous of this swine flu. The irony is that the wealthier schools and such are the ones getting infected. Apparently the flu spread in New York City owing to 3 students catching the flu during their spring break at Cancun. Even an Obama official working at the energy department contracted the flu. Luckily he was not on board Air Force One. Mexico had the guts to say that border control shouldn't be the solution to this problem because it would make the problems in Mexico worst. Since this flu will spread around the globe anyway, we should tackle the problem as it is. Pork suppliers think that this virus is unfair to them. Rather, swine flu should be called 'hybrid' flue because human can spread to other human beings. A researcher in Ohio had stated that the swine flu is very similar to those that infected the pig farms in Ohio a year ago. Apparently sometime last year, some pig farms in Ohio was tainted with a severe case of flu. He's practically hinting that since the U.S. is the largest pork exporter, the virus could have been exported to Mexico, and the virus mutated there. He specifically said he's not saying the above statement is true but rather a possibility.

The next item is this, http://thinkprogress.org/2009/05/01/hannity-chicken/#, where Hannity had said that water boarding is not torture and he agreed to be waterboarded for charity. Keith Olbermann had promised to donate $1000 for every second Hannity is being waterboarded. However, Hannity is currently evading this promise. I do hope that he will show how manly he is by keeping his words for a good cause. Kudos to Olbermann for repeatedly reminding Hannity of his promise.

I'm a huge fan of Lord of the Rings Triology. In fact, fantasy books are one of my favourite type of fiction. It's amazing to me that children's books in the 60s till the 80s are dark and filled with death. It's so different than now where children's books are so happy such as Harry Potter. I was hoping that J.R. Rowling would make the 7th series to be dark and filled with adventure. So, i was extremely dissappointed. Anyway, a fan made a new trailer for LOTR and it's really well done. Here is the link for it. It's called The Hunt for Gollum.

Finally i would say that the Boston Celtics vs. Chicago Bulls game was one of the best ever. I can't believe that they got till game 7. I was rooting for the Bulls to win. Celtics won at the end with a 10 point lead. The game was becoming really close at last quarter when the Bulls became organized once more, and was 6 points behind the Celtics but alas that was not enough. It's been a long time since i saw such a good game. Looks like after almost a decade, Chicago Bulls might be coming back with a bang without Michael Jordon.

Mark Penn- Taking the fall for Hillary

There was a lot of opposition against Mark Penn- Hillary's campaign manager during the primaries where he was solely blamed for the failed campaign. I was a young staff for Hillary throughout her whole primary campaign and this is my take on the issue. Since the primaries had been over for almost a year and Obama is already our 44th President, political junkies like me can analyze and produce clear thoughts without worrying about being flamed by either sides. I was writing this in response to the blog post on mydd.com, http://www.mydd.com/story/2009/5/3/214538/1770#commenttop.

1. Mark Penn - If you actually take the time to read the leak notes from Hillary's campaign, you should realized that Hillary did not take much of Mark Penn's advice especially concerning negative advertisements. Even the 3 am ad was authorized by Bill and not Hillary. Long before the Iowa caucus, Penn actually prepared a series of strategies to deal with Obama and Edwards but they were not realized due to Hillary's objections. Finally it was expected that Obama would win the Iowa caucus as shown in his polling. Actually, since Hillary only started organizing in Iowa in mid 07, due to natural restraint- she can't announce for her bid before that date as she ran for reelection in 06, in contrast to Edwards who basically 'live' in Iowa since 04 and Obama since 06. One of Penn's failure was to count on the AA votes. That's the Indiana and N.C. strategy and a failed one. Finally Mark Penn is famous for 2 things - negative campaigning and polling- none of which Hillary took full opportunity.

2. Delegates - Another strategic error committed by Hillary's campaign is by not focusing on district's which would produce the most delegates. Hillary had the most talented people in this field but yet she decided to pursue a general election strategy and this, to me, is the biggest blunder. However, since polling has shown her to have the biggest support pre-vote, she cannot really be faulted for that mistake. No one in the right mind would actually be concern about the primaries. When Bill ran for president, he too forgo the caucus strategy and won. Though times have changed during Bill Clinton's Presidency where the AA community were more empowered in the delegate count. All in all, the math is against Hillary when the whole AA community decided to back Obama.

3) Pattis Solis Doyle - She was the campaign chair in Iowa, got fired, and then worked for the Obama's campaign. She was also Hillary's best friend and advisor, and was one of the top latino woman who held immense influence and contacts. I blamed her for the huge loss in Iowa and the sole reason why Hillary lost. These are the errors that she had 'purposely' committed.
I) Internal polling showed Hillary to be running 3rd in Iowa and yet she convinced Hillary to go all out in that state. She was the campaign manager but yet the organization in Iowa was the most disorganized ever. This is evident during a press conference where Hillary and Bill overheard the press speaking among themselves highlighting the efficiently of the Edwards/Obama campaign and the messiness of Hillary's. When Hillary heard about this she screamed at her strategists but yet Pattis could not come up with a plan.
II) When Hillary decided to go all out in Iowa, the plan was to spent about $60 million and have at least $20 million as reserved for the later stages. Pattis oversaw this funds and when Iowa ended, she had spent the $20 million in reserved, leaving Hillary with no money. This got her fired and she left bitterly because Mark Penn wasn't fired alongside with her. It's obvious as she was the one committing those mistakes. This mistake is crucial because not only does Hillary not have enough money to Super Tuesday, but totally no money after that.
III) She decided then to help Obama as she was from Chicago and was an old friend of Axerod. The thing which she could offer is contacts and the Obama campaign benefited hugely from those contacts.

4) Obama's efficiently - I have to say the Obama's campaign is the most disciplined ever with practically ZERO leaks. Even Reagan had that flaw. Credit should really be given to Obama. It went worst for Hillary when Obama was bringing in more cash and had more young volunteers than Hillary. With tens of thousands of new young caucus goers, the old ones would not be able to compete and thus enabled Obama to dominate the caucuses. There is nothing that Hillary can do in the caucus states after Iowa. That is the depth of Sollis error.

5) The AA strategy - Due to Hillary's decision of not playing hardball and thus gave Obama a free pass on the AA votes. AA voted for Obama ranging from 90-10 to 97-3. In Indiana and North Carolina it's at least 93-7. All Hillary needed was 20% of the AA vote but yet she couldn't even break 10%. She ran a very positive message in Indiana and NC specifically targeting the AA women but that failed miserably. She did not take any advantage of the 'God damn America' crisis. While all these are going, black churches were preaching for its members to vote for Obama; the AA that did not comply with that would be considered a traitor to his race and family. You can add that up to various intimidation tactics (racism is very ironic and works both ways) that scared the load out of poor old voters and the like. This was dominant especially in the south and midwest.

6) John Edward's campaign - John Edward made the biggest flaw when he decided to team up with Obama to blast Hillary. With this going on, the buzz was not with Edwards but rather a black candidate against a Clinton. The media love conflict thus that was the perfect set up. Edward's once asked Joe Trippe, his campaign manager, whether he had to burn his HQ to create some buzz. This showed how much the media has been ignoring him. If he had acknowledged from the start the the media had room for only 2 person rather than 3, he could have try to bring Obama out so that he could be the 2nd person to challenge the Clinton. This actually helped Obama solidified his position and message and the ultimate loser was Edwards.

7)The Media - Nothing much to say about this other than the obvious where the media was with Obama and against Hillary. Their greatest spin were to take Bill's 'fairy-tale' and Hillary's 'LBJ' speeches out of context and twisted them into anti-AA propaganda.

8) Luck- The Iraq War was the primary issue during the first half of the year. Mitt Romney's 'two Guantanamo Bay' is the proved of that. Only when the economy deteriorate in mid-August- September where the economy became the top issue. Notice how the Iraq War was a no issue during the general election. Hillary would have won flat out and her general election strategy would have been perfect if Lehman were to go down in late 07 rather than late 08. This is truly divine intervention.

For statistics purposes, before March 08, Obama made twice as many appearances than Clinton. After that, the Clintons made 4 times more appearances than Obama. This itself says a lot about the momentums of the campaigns. As for me, i think caucuses are anti-democratic for Presidential primaries. Hillary had almost a million more votes than Obama in the end, though she surrenders elegantly. Florida and Michigan was indeed a mess due to them being Hillary's states. Finally Universal Healthcare practically became a non-issue for liberals during the primaries. I haven't seen that much opposition to Universal Coverage ever and was totally a surprised to me. For proof, just browse google. No wonder our population is against socialize medicine. Machiavelli said it best with the following quote:

"One can make this generalization about men: they are ungrateful, fickle, liars, and deceivers...friendship which is bought with money and not with greatness and nobility of mind is paid for, but it does not last and it yields nothing."

CDC - Nightlife and Parties

This year's convention is more unique than the past as there are a lot more young democrats - high schoolers and college kids. I believe there should be around 800 first timers who registered with the California Young Democrats who came. With this, we see some of the caucuses being dominated by younglings and they voted as a bloc to overthrow the incumbents. At times i do pity the incumbents as some of them really did work hard. However, it is a fresh start for many of the caucuses with new leadership that inspires young people to be involve in politics.

As usual after 10pm, various politicians will hold separate parties at the convention. Last year the CYD had a miniscule room to hold the party and we ran out of alcohol in less than an hour. This year is totally different. I guess it's because everyone wants to be at his good side. I do hope that he can bring progressive reform to our party. He might be 77, but he's still strong and had a commanding aura around him.

Next is the apple pie and ice cream party. I love the atmosphere in that room. There is a band playing jazz music, with a cozy environment. There is no alcohol, only tea and coffee. The crust of the apple pie is superb. It's definitely one of the best apple pie i've tasted. I went for 3 full servings and this is after i had my humongous plate of baby back ribs.

The CTA's party had a familiar feel to it. It's no different than the year before - the room is 'sunny' and bright- and cookies and chocolates everywhere. Somehow by representing the CFA, the CTA has a dislike for people like me. I think this is due to the Prop 1A where the CTA was for it while most of the grassroots were against it. I think many felt betrayed that the CTA chose to endorse Prop 1A. There were a few good souls out there who actually researched AB656 and then came back to me and signed the petition. I would like to thank them for that. All in all, Gov. Arnold's divide and conquer seems to be working with Prop 1A.

As for Sat night's party, Majority leader Toricco had a salsa/karaoke party. There's also a rootbear float party and several others. I managed to get a pass on the 'block' party hosted by the high school democrats and Mayor Gavin Newsom. With that i did not attend any of the parties at the convention center and chose to go to the 'Block' party as well as one hosted by the LGBT group in a posh restaurant nearby. This party was very elegant. There were 3 types of sushis, satays, other good food as well as the fancy hard liquors. This is in contrast to only beers and wines at the convention.

In conclusion, i told many of the younglings that by having the trips fully paid while attending the various interest group sponsored parties, they are all now part of the system in which they voted to change. Furthermore, everyone did indeed has a fantastic time. Maybe it's more fun being the campaign manager than a politician as you can be the ones enjoying the parties rather than being the host.

The California Democratic Convention - AB656

I was at the California Democratic Convention at Sacramento during the past weekend. My trip was fully sponsored by the California Faculty Association. Needless to say, i had a really good time there. Part of my responsibility at the convention is to raise awareness on AB656. A colleague helped me to remember the number of the bill by keeping in my mind this concept of subtracting 10 from 666.

AB656 is sponsored by Majority Leader Toricco. The bill would tax oil extraction and the proceeds would go to higher education - UC, CSU, and Community Colleges. California is the only state in the Union that does not have an oil severance tax. The higher education system in Texas is fully paid by this tax alone and for more than a century. For the first time since the creation of our higher education system, 10,000 eligible students are being turned away from the CSU system owing to lack of fundings. It is rumured that those with financial needs are hit the hardest. Since 2003, higher education funds has been cut by almost a billion annually. This Bill would bring in about $1.5bil to the system per year. Our objective is to bring awareness of the bill to the delegates and the activisists so that the Bill would be adopted as a platform at this year's convention. The party will only accept 10 resolutions to debate and adopt. Our bill was no.10. We were prepared to collect 300 additional signatures from the delegates in order to force a vote if this Bill did not pass the resolution committee. Luckily, that was not needed. All in all, approximately 450 signatures were collected and I, myself, collected 91. I was rewarded with a huge and delicious plate of baby back ribs.

I tried to get Lt. Gov. John Garamendi to sign the petition but he informed me that he hasn't signed one in about 33 years. I even tried to get Mark Leno to sign but i've forgotten what his replied was. Looks like the only star which signed my peition was Alissa Ko, the CYD chair. Evan Low, the vice-mayor of Campbell, also signed the petition, though it was not mine. I can conclude that the young aspiring politicians have more guts than the established 'old' ones. Maybe the next generation of politicians will actually be less political calculative and have the determination to do the right thing. However, this could just be a recurring pattern but i have faith in my generation.

P.S. Due to my CPU being kaput, i'll post pictures of the convention later.

Amazon and friends

My favourite online retailer, amazon.com, has decided to play homophobic on easter weekend. It is reported in theconsumerist.com, that amazon removed many gay and lesbian books from the site-wide rankings and search results. The only books left are those about 'curing gays' and so on. I'm deeply surprised and offended that Amazon would even consider going down this censorship path and waging war against the gays. I bought all my textbooks, games and many other gadgets from amazon. I even have a Amazon prime account and just bought 2 books last week. I do hope that this problem will be ractify as soon as possible with sincere apology and maybe a generous donation or somesort to equility organizations.  Else, i just have to start advocating my friends to stop shopping on Amazon. Also, i would need to find alternative sites to shop for books.

This brings me to my next point - censorship. In the past, corporations and the government could unload the bad news on Friday afternoons to avoid scrutinies from the press. This practice then expanded to experimental corporate actions, negative attacks, and many other abnormalties. With the Internet, these actions are no more effective. People has made it a habit to read their favourite blog or news daily. Information now is not solely reliant on the media anymore as there are just too many people with freetime doing their own investigative journalism. Any attempt of censorship will not get a freepass as the people will be aware. For this reason, Hillary Clinton could not get away with setting up a proxy individual to ask her questions during her campaign trail. China also did not get away with the little girl's voice being dubbed during the opening ceremony of the Olympics. In the past, these actions are acceptable but we are living in the 21st century. Times have changed and corporations and the government should take note of this.  

This is Amazon's response to the censorship:

"In consideration of our entire customer base, we exclude "adult" material from appearing in some searches and best seller lists. Since these lists are generated using sales ranks, adult materials must also be excluded from that feature."

Looks like it's no system or software failure but rather intentional on Amazon's part. Those responsible for implementing this change should clearly be fired. I hope Amazon will give an adequate response on Monday. 

Arabian Nights

One of my interests is modern architecture and this is perhaps one of the main reasons why i love living in the cities. Therefore i've always wanted to visit Dubai as i've heard news and stories about how marvelous that city is and that it is any architect's dream to visit Dubai. More importantly, Dubai is a symbol to the Islamic world as it shows that there can be modernization within the religion and that people of all backgrounds, sexual orientation and so forth can express themselves openly and live harmonous without fear of being harassed by authorities. The citizens are given free education and healthcare by the Government. This free education program extends all the way to getting PHDs, and that students are being sponsored to study abroad to U.S. and Europe. I've always believe that education is the key to sustain democracy. For this reason itself, our goal in spreading democracy to the Middle East failed as the majority of the population in Afghanistan and Iraq are uneducated. Dubai gives these people hope and aspiration as Muslim youths know that they can have a better life in Dubai. This symbolic gesture will also give the Muslim population dreams and ambitions rather than despair and violence.

I came across this article,http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/johann-hari/the-dark-side-of-dubai-1664368.html , which tells a dark tale about the current situation in Dubai. Just like the rest of the world, Dubai is no doubt hit hard by the global financial crisis. Constructions have stopped as they are not enough investors to finance the boom. Besides that, the UAE had just approved a loan to bailout Dubai. The sewage system has exceeded its capacity and the palm islands are sinking slowly. With ample bad news, the Government has chosen to censor the press. Bloggers and foreign correspondents are not allowed to write any negatitive news about Dubai with the threat of imprisonment or deportation.

Then there is the issue of slave labor. It's obvious that many of the labourers come from India and Bangladesh and the maids from the Phillipines. Maids from the Phillipines are known to be better trained and more responsible than those from other 3rd world countries. Bangladeshi workers are also known to be more hardworking and ethically responsible in contrast to the poorer 3rd world nations. They have obviously been abuse and mistreated but that is common everywhere in the world. The thing that surprises me is that their embassies are not willing to help them out. These workers are not getting proper food and sanitation and this is obviously cruel. I would have thought that their own countries will be ensuring that their workers are getting the deserving salaries and working conditions. It's in their interest to do so as these workers will be sending home money and this labor export is good business. The biggest income for Mexico is the dollars flowing in from the U.S. by their people. 

Finally, there is no bankrupy law in Dubai. This is definitely a surprise to me. I would expect that a city which prizes itself as the new global financial capitol of the world will have proper bankrupcy laws. If you ended up owing money and unable to pay, you go to jail. That's a draconian law as i'm certain that only workers will be affected by this and not corporations. Free healthcare is only provided for its citizens and not the foreign workers that comprises 90% of the population.  This makes opening up a small business in Dubai will be of high risk as failure means going to jail. This too explains why there are a big influx of foreigners who would drive their cars to the airport and fly home. With prices of houses and apartments going down, i hope that i would be able to afford a holiday villa at Dubai sometime in the future.  Hopefully by then, the laws will be properly set up to accommodate the modern world.