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huat ah !!! so many shoes and smelly feet

The military style precision car-jacking and robbery @ Johor Bahru seem to be more professional over the years!! Share 0 inShareThe New Paper Monday, May 28, 2012 It was a robbery that involved dangerous manoeuvres, a car chase,and violent men wielding parangs. It ended with the victim being slashed and the SUV turning turtle. The drama unfolded on Thursday afternoon in Johor Baru's business district. Shin Min Daily News reported that the victim, a man in his 40s, was driving the Singapore-registered SUV. There were friends on board with him. The victim, who is Malaysian Chinese, lives in Johor Baru. When he drove into a back lane behind some shop houses, he noticed a stationary brown SUV blocking his way. Then, a Proton bearing a Kuala Lumpur-licence plate swerved into the lane. The victim was sandwiched. Speaking to the media from a private hospital, the victim recalled: "Immediately after (I entered the back lane), two cars outflanked me. Men rushed out from the vehicles and smashed my car windows." Five of the eight robbers wielded parangs. Threw rolling pin A chef, who wanted to be known as Ami, was working in the kitchen of one of the shophouses and witnessed the incident. He was holding a rolling pin, which he threw at the robbers. It hit one of them. Ami, 27, said his action angered the group. One man turned round and scolded him. Ami said: "He shouted at me not to interfere." The chef heeded the warning. Though he was holding a vegetable peeling knife as well, he knew he was ill-equipped to fight against the robbers, with their parangs. Malaysian newspaper Sin Chew Daily reported that the robbers were Indonesians. They grabbed two briefcases from the victim's SUV before fleeing the scene. But the victim fought back.He gave chase in his SUV - unsuccessfully. After a 500m drive, the victim tried to overtake the robbers but collided with another car at the side of the road, causing his SUV to overturn. That was when he saw a white car, with no licence plate. The robbers abandoned their own SUV and dashed into the waiting Harrier. Still, the victim didn't give up. He grabbed a wooden club from his SUV and approached the fleeing robbers. That proved to be a painful decision. Infuriated, one of the robbers slashed the victim's right arm, tearing the ligament in his middle finger. The victim also suffered a broken bone in his ring finger. The robbers managed to escape, leaving a trail of destruction. There were pools of blood on the road and blood stains on the wooden club. Residents in the area sent the injured victim to hospital. Johor Baru south district police director Zainudin confirmed that the suitcases contained large amounts of cash from two money changers. The exact amount is unknown. It was also unclear where the cash was being sent. This article was first published in The New Paper.

Forget about erections lasting four hours or more. One California man claims he has had one that's lasted 20 months

Wow any MCF bros know this chap? Kena big time... [smash] From CNA: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/sin...1198712/1/.html Ex-car salesman jailed for misappropriating over S$240,000 By Claire Huang | Posted: 02 May 2012 1301 hrs

My email to LTA ------------------------------ After the expansion of CTE, why are the ERP rates revised? It is not reasonable that one should pay the same rates leaving the CTE to PIE (the exit now is BEFORE braddel) as traffic going to the CTE.) ERP is meant to control congestion and not as revenue for the government. There is no Jam on the CTE before braddel on weekdays and yet there are TWO ERP gentry for cars that uses the CTE to get to Upper Serangoon Road. Why are we paying so much when the Roads are smooth? Why are cars travelling to Upper Serangoon Road paying as much as those travelling to the City when they don't contribute to traffic congestion on the CTE???

SAF Chief Guards Officer quits over 'personal reasons'

A delivery driver was fined $8,000 and banned from driving for three years on Wednesday for causing the death of a motorcyclist along an expressway. Lim Teck Thim, 53, admitted to making a lane switch from the extreme left to the second left lane of Ayer Rajah Expressway on Jan 7 last year without taking reasonable care, resulting in a collision with Mr Khoo Boon Ann's motorcycle. The 25-year-old was thrown off his machine and run over by a trailer. He died on the spot. Another charge of injuring civil defence officer Chan Bo San, 27, who was also on a motorcycle, was taken into consideration. Source: http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/S...ory_790058.html

Guess some folks, civy or military, will be killed or maimed as a result of this latest incident-another bad press for the US forces. This time it is the 82d "All American" Airborne's turn... [shakehead] A shame bec the 82d like the 101st had a proud history in WWII. From CNA: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp...1196158/1/.html US troops slammed over grisly photos Posted: 19 April 2012 0652 hrs

PM Lee worried about 2 disturbing trends in Singapore By Li Xueying PM Lee worried about 2 disturbing trends in Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Wednesday identified two societal trends that worries him: A 'self-centred' Not-In-My-Backyard syndrome that has been increasingly seen among some vocal Singaporeans, and what appears to be a growing gap between Singaporeans and new immigrants. In an interview at the end of the 20th Asean Summit in Phnom Penh, he raised his concerns about these two trends, and cited the example of angry reactions to Chinese student Sun Xu who has apologised for derogatory comments about Singaporeans. While he acknowledged that the student's remarks were uncalled for, he urged Singaporeans to maintain 'a certain balance and not get worked up every time someone misspeaks'. Said Mr Lee: 'He shouldn't have made that blog post. He did. He has been chastised, he has been disciplined, he has expressed his contrition, he's sorry about it. We should have been able to move on from that and deal with it as one person who misspoke. We should not, because of one incident, make that into an issue, (to say) all immigrants are like that.' Almost one year after the watershed general election of May 7, PM Lee said a 'certain stability' in Singaporeans' mood and expectations has been restored, following changes the government has made in both its policies and the way it engages. But, he added, it would take more time, as the country worked on achieving a balance between speaking out and working together.

Source: Batman pulled over! for Batman. The world need more 'superhero' like him, despite being rich, still find time to bring joy to the kids.

By DAN FITZPATRICK and VICTORIA MCGRANE Some very large banks are clashing with the Federal Reserve over how much detail the central bank will reveal about them when it releases the results of its latest stress test. The 19 biggest U.S. banks in January submitted reams of data in response to regulators' questions, outlining how they would perform in a severe downturn. Now, citing competitive concerns, bankers are pressing the Fed to limit its release of information

March 1, 2012, 6:20 PM SGT Debate Over Blog Limits Intensifies in Singapore - Southeast Asia Real Time - WSJ

http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/...302-331119.html yah, same old song.... Foreigner help raised Singaporean income....

From CNA: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/sin...1185944/1/.html PAP MP in sharp exchange with new NMP over Hougang by-election Posted: 29 February 2012 0700 hrs SINGAPORE: The debate over when the Prime Minister should call a by-election in the vacant ward of Hougang has sparked a sharp exchange between Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC MP Hri Kumar and new Nominated MP Eugene Tan. Over the last nine days, Mr Hri Kumar, a Senior Counsel, and Assistant Professor Tan, a law lecturer at the Singapore Management University, have written to Today trading legal arguments and personal views on the issue. The exchange was triggered by a commentary by Asst Prof Tan published in this newspaper on Feb 20. This sparked a robust response from Mr Hri Kumar, which in turn drew a reply from Asst Prof Tan. The latest salvo was another reply on Tuesday from Mr Hri Kumar. In his latest letter published in the newspaper's Voices Section on Wednesday, Mr Hri Kumar reiterated that when a General Election or a by-election is to be called is "entirely at the discretion of the Prime Minister. There is no obligation to call an immediate by-election." Mr Hri Kumar added: "Contrary to what (Asst Prof Tan) wrote, Article 49 of the Constitution does not say that an election shall be 'called' to fill a vacant seat. It simply prescribes that the vacant seat 'shall be filled by election'." Asst Prof Tan had argued in a letter published on Feb 28 that the PM's "discretionary power vis-a-vis by-elections is not an unfettered one". He wrote: "The PM should explain if he decides against or delays for an extended period of time calling a by-election. This accords with accountability and transparency. It assures Singaporeans that his decision is not based on narrow party interests." THE COMMENTARY THAT TRIGGERED THE EXCHANGE Asst Prof Tan had first called on the government to state its reasons, if it decides to delay or not to hold a by-election in Hougang, in his commentary published on Feb 20. He wrote: "While the Prime Minister has the prerogative on the timing, I would argue that this does not extend to his having an unfettered discretion to delay the calling of a by-election indefinitely. "In most instances, it has to be called within a reasonable time, or certainly without an inordinate delay. In short, the 'default' position should be that a by-election should be automatic, although there is no hard and fast rule on the timing." Asst Prof Tan's commentary invited a robust response from Mr Hri Kumar a few days later, on Feb 24. Mr Hri Kumar argued there is "a reason the Singapore Constitution does not prescribe any time limit to call a by-election". Mr Hri Kumar said: "Our parliamentary democracy is based on the principle that elections are fundamentally about voters choosing between different political parties to lead the country, rather than between individual candidates standing in a constituency. In general elections, the issue is which party should form the government." He added: "Hence, under our system, if any Member of Parliament (MP) resigns or is expelled from his party, he loses his seat because voters had elected him as a representative of his party." WP VOTED AGAINST BY-ELECTION MOTION In his latest letter, Mr Hri Kumar also pointed out that the Workers' Party had voted with the People's Action Party to defeat a motion in 2008 - proposed by two Nominated MPs - that suggested, among other things, mandated by-elections be called within three months from the date an MP vacates his seat. Mr Hri Kumar noted that the WP voted this way after its two MPs then - WP secretary-general Low Thia Khiang and party chair Sylvia Lim - had tried unsuccessfully to amend the motion to call for the Group Representation Constituency system to be abolished. The WP's stance was also discussed on Tuesday on WP MP Pritam Singh's Facebook page, with some Facebook users questioning why the Opposition party voted against the motion. Mr Singh replied that WP did so because the motion "entrenches the GRC system, something the WP is fundamentally against". Ms Lim had supported the proposal to have a three-month time-frame for by-elections, Mr Singh noted. Responding to a Facebook user, Mr Singh explained that MPs "can't agree with half a motion". - TODAY

Geeez, thought only car owners kena this type of situation Typical scenario: You just found out that your 5 yo ride's a/c seemed to go have gone AWOL and after asking around you decided to go to a "recommended" ws since the AD's warranty was up. First the "experienced" mechanic claimed there was insufficient refrigerant so he topped up the gas but still the car interior felt warmed. Then he said oh the piping hardened liao & got cracks so needed a new one so he changed it but still the oven feeling was felt. So he proposed next to flush the entire a/c system but you swear there was still no improvement at all after that. He then scratched his head & suggested the compressor might be faulty so you reluctantly agreed to a re-con one. But the re-con compressor quit on you on day two so you drove back to the ws to seek redress and the fella now tells you look I think its better you buy a new one... From ST Forum: http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/Online...ory_769539.html Agony over efforts to plug a leak Published on Feb 23, 2012

really pity these workers..... what if the workers are in 500 or 1000, Will they turn into violent protest with burning and fighting?

Hi all, May I checked with those who have experienced this before? When my car go over a hump, there is a "clog" sound coming from the front. The car is about 3 yr old and only started this a few months back. I checked the suspension by pressing it down and let go, it is not bouncing.

Let me see: 20 issued offences over 3 months will be 20/3x30 = 0.22 per day. So on average HDB or the outsourced traffic warden issued 1 parking offence every 5 days. Geee...kinda low leh. Either this Jeremy Cheong is over-reacting or the so-called "regular enforcement action" need to be more regular hor? [rolleyes] From ST Forum: http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/Online...ory_764464.html 20 parking offence notices issued Published on Feb 9, 2012

With many drivers like to "keep close keep tight" on the road, this fellow is d**n lucky to be alive..

Why can't we be more responsible for our mistakes, like Japan? TOKYO: The president and five other top executives of Japan's biggest mobile phone operator will take pay cuts to apologise for a series of network troubles, NTT DoCoMo said on Friday. The firm admitted that it has struggled to deal with growing data traffic as smartphones boom in popularity, and pledged fresh investment to tackle the issue. President Ryuji Yamada will have his remuneration reduced by 20 percent for three months while the other executives will take a 10 percent cut over the same period. "I deeply apologise to our customers for the huge trouble," Yamada told a news conference. The cuts were "a clear means of taking responsibility for causing the series of network malfunctions, and leakage of personal information," NTT DoCoMo said in a statement. The company's most recent network problem came on Wednesday after the company renewed equipment to boost data processing capability, leaving 2.52 million subscribers offline for several hours. In December, it suffered disruptions to its smartphone e-mail service, leading to a system glitch in which e-mail senders' addresses were replaced by those of other users. The firm plans to invest 164 billion yen ($2.1 billion) by March 2015 to beef up its network and try to stabilise operations "in line with the rapid increase in the number of smartphone users," it said. NTT DoCoMo is trying to grab a bigger slice of Japan's expanding smartphone market, but faces stiff competition from rivals Softbank and KDDI, both of which offer Apple's hugely popular iPhone, which it does not. The firm, which is part of the Nippon Telegraph and Telephone group, separately said its net profit for the nine months to December fell 11.1 percent from a year earlier to 394.6 billion yen. Operating profit dropped 1.9 percent to 743.8 billion yen for the period on revenue of 3.17 trillion yen, down 1.1 percent. NTT DoCoMo slightly downgraded its full-year net profit forecast from 514 billion yen to 474 billion yen due to corporate taxation changes.

Dear all, Currently driving a 2007 WRX, front suspension giving way. got knocking sound and increased body roll. My friend 2007 Swift Sport also similar, so both of us are looking at changing to a coil over system. Can anyone recommend any suitable coil-over system and the associated workshops to get it done. Will appreciate if you able to give the specific model or series. Criteria will be: Cornering stability and durability. Both of us do not track. looking for something a tad stiffer and harder than our stock suspension but not to extend that will puke. Budget is around $2k for front and back coil over. hope this is a realistic budget. Tried reading up but seems like there are too many variant and different car model owner got different opinion. So i am zooming it in for WRX and Swift sport. do let us know which will be a good system for our cars.

Woman sues over fall at Changi Airport By Amanda Yong, The New Paper | Fri, Jan 20 2012 She was walking towards the airport departure gate to board a flight to Hong Kong when she said she stepped on a loose carpet slab and fell. Ms Stephanie Costonis, an American citizen, suffered injuries to her neck, right wrist, right knee and ankle. Since the incident at Changi Airport Terminal 3 three years ago, she spent more than $125,000 on medical treatment - including knee surgery - alone, she claimed in documents filed with the High Court. Ms Costonis, the vice-president of DHL Express (Singapore), is now suing the Changi Airport Group (CAG) for negligence. Through her lawyer S. Palaniappan, she is seeking compensation of $128,000 for medical expenses, physiotherapy treatment and transport expenses incurred as a result of her injuries. She is also asking for damages for future medical expenses estimated at $141,000, loss of future earnings, loss of earning capacity, and future transport expenses. Apart from these, Ms Costonis is claiming provisional damages till the year 2026 in the event that her knee condition deteriorates and requires additional operations. Link: http://www.relax.com.sg/relax/news/907956/...gi_Airport.html What's next? Sue the car-maker cos they didn't make a car that could avoid an accident?

The U.S. sanctioned three companies Thursday for doing business with Iran

A Chinese national father-and-son duo caused a commotion at Geylang last night when they attacked a restaurant manager with a chopper and even assaulted policemen. The incident happened at about 11.30pm last night at Geylang Lorong 19. Wu Xu Cai (44, renovation worker), together with his wife Dai Gui Zhen (age 40) and his son Wu Qi Qi (18, student) were having dinner at "Su Zhou Restaurant" with three other friends before the commotion began. Wu's friends had wanted to treat the family to a meal to welcome Wu's wife and son, whom had specially come from China to visit him. During the meal, the group downed 24 cans of beer before Wu's friends footed the bill with $130. After paying, Wu's son decided to order two more bottles of beer. Just as the group was leaving, the restaurant staff came up to them to say that they had not paid for the meal. This sparked off a quarrel between the group and the restaurant staff. The manager of the restaurant, Mr Li, tried to intervene and calm everyone down but the quarrel soon turned physical. After a brief tussle, Wu agreed to returned to the restaurant and he went on to pay $217 more. But Wu did not stop his verbal abuse on the restaurant manager. He continued to hurl vulgarities at Mr Li, declaring that he earns $4,000 a month and there is no reason that he cannot pay for his meal. The agitated Wu then dashed into the kitchen, picked up a chopper and threatened the manager with the words, "You think I don't dare to hurt you?" Wu then smashed a beer bottle and swung it at Mr Li's head. Fortunately, Li managed to dodge the swing. During the fight, both father and son had reportedly dashed outside the restaurant and pushed over many chairs. About five other diners were shoved by Wu in the process and they too joined in the fight. One of the men picked up a beer bottle as a weapon and chased Wu's son for about 300 metres to Lorong 23. Wu's son sustained injuries to his head after he was hit by a beer bottle in the attack. He left a large pool of blood at the scene. When the police arrived, Wu attempted to escape but was subdued outside the restaurant. Witnesses say both father and son resisted arrest and even assaulted the policemen. It took four policemen to subdue the duo. When reporters arrived, the father-and-son duo were still highly agitated and continued to struggle to free themselves of the police. Wu was still hurling vulgarities at the policemen as he was put into an ambulance. According to Wu's wife, Dai, the restaurant manager had attacked her husband first. The restaurant manager Mr Li, a Chinese national, said the father-and-son pair took turns to punch him in his face. The massive commotion also drew a large crowd of spectators.

Saturday January 7, 2012 PAP mood turns sour over pay cuts INSIGHT DOWN SOUTH BY SEAH CHIANG NEE PAP mood turns sour over pay cuts Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong intends to accept a government committee recommendation that his annual pay be cut by 36% to RM5.3mil. IN 1976, when I first visited China, its 86-year-old leader Mao Zedong was near death, and I ended a series of articles for Singaporeans by asking: Would Maoism survive Mao? If not what