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Second straight win puts Wolves top of the table Posted: 21 Aug 2011 08:49 AM PDT LONDON, Aug 21 — Wolverhampton Wanderers moved to the top of the Premier League table, at least until later today, when they beat Fulham 2-0 at Molineux, the first time they have won their opening two games in the top flight since 1979. Wolves went ahead when Kevin Doyle finished clinically after riding two challenges after 42 minutes and they doubled their lead through Matt Jarvis just before halftime when he cracked the ball in as it came back off a post. It was Fulham's first defeat in nine matches since Martin Jol took over at Craven Cottage, following seven unbeaten games in the preliminary rounds of the Europa League and an opening 0-0 draw in the league against Aston Villa last week. Wolves have six points from their two games. Bolton Wanderers and Manchester City who both have three points from their opening games, were meeting later on Sunday (1500 GMT). In the day's other match, 10-man Norwich City were denied their first win of the season when Stoke City's Kenwyne Jones headed in a stoppage-time equaliser at Carrow Road to secure Stoke a 1-1 draw. Ritchie de Laet had scored against his old club to put the Canaries in front after 37 minutes. Stoke missed a chance to equalise when Norwich's Leon Barnett was sent off for a foul on Jon Walters who took the resulting penalty which was saved by Norwich keeper John Ruddy. — Reuters

Arsenal woes grow, Chelsea win Posted: 21 Aug 2011 03:06 AM PDT LONDON, Aug 21 — Arsenal's woes deepened with a 2-0 defeat by Liverpool in the Premier League yesterday, while substitute Florent Malouda spared Chelsea's blushes with a late winner in a 2-1 comeback win over visitors West Bromwich Albion. A 78th-minute Aaron Ramsey own goal and a late Luis Suarez strike gave Liverpool a win that piled on misery in a bad week for Arsenal, who ended with 10 men for a second league game in a row after Emmanuel Frimpong was sent off 20 minutes from time. Arsenal's Emmanuel Frimpong (bottom) is sent off after this challenge on Liverpool's Daniel Agger. — Reuters pic They had already suffered misfortune a quarter of an hour into the match, when they lost defender Laurent Koscielny to a back problem, bad news for a side already ravaged with injuries, suspensions and reeling from the departure of Cesc Fabregas. "It's very difficult to take on the chin that defeat, because with the effort we put in I don't think we deserved to lose the game," Wenger told the BBC after his team left the pitch to boos after Liverpool's first ever win at the Emirates. "We cannot say at the moment we are very lucky." Fortune was, however, with Chelsea in manager Andre Villas-Boas's first league match at Stamford Bridge. The hosts trailed from the fourth minute, when Alex lost the ball to West Brom striker Shane Long, who scampered through and wrongfooted stand-in keeper Hilario to claim his second goal in two games since joining the club this month. Chelsea pulled level when Nicolas Anelka's low shot took a deflection off defender Jonas Olsson in the 53rd minute, and Malouda completed the rescue mission when he arrived at the back post to sidefoot home a Jose Bosingwa cross on 83 minutes. They had been lucky that an organised West Brom team had squandered a golden chance to go two goals up midway through the first half. Long, whose early goal followed last week's effort against Manchester United, overhit his cross after an inch-perfect pass from Chris Brunt to let Chelsea off the hook. Mental block Villas-Boas had recognised early on that his sluggish side lacked spark, bringing on Malouda after just half an hour in place of the ineffective Salomon Kalou. "We just felt it was necessary maybe to surprise our opponent in that way," the Portuguese told ESPN of his decision to make the early change. "Most of all, our first half was a mental block rather than anything else, and the players were able to free themselves from that to perform to the best qualities and the best talent." Chelsea were a different side after the break, with West Brom keeper Ben Foster parrying an Anelka shot before defender Steven Reid blocked Malouda's follow-up. "Our focus now is to get this performance in 90 minutes," Villas Boas added after a second successive game where Chelsea only came to life in the second half following last week's 0-0 at Stoke City. Elsewhere, the first Premier League match in Wales ended 0-0, as lively Swansea City held firm in the face of a late Wigan Athletic onslaught, while Aston Villa marked manager Alex McLeish's first home game with a 3-1 win over Blackburn Rovers. Newcastle United won the northeast derby, with Ryan Taylor's 62nd-minute free kick securing a 1-0 victory over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, where the hosts finished with 10 men after Phil Bardsley was sent off. Newcomers Queens Park Rangers seemed to have learned their lessons from last week's 4-0 drubbing by Bolton Wanderers as they beat Everton 1-0 at Goodison Park, thanks to Tommy Smith's first-half winner. Chelsea's fellow title hopefuls Manchester City travel to Bolton Wanderers today and champions Manchester United entertain Tottenham Hotspur tomorrow. — Reuters

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India hungry for everyday Internet access Posted: 20 Aug 2011 06:04 PM PDT An attendee works on a computer in front of a poster of a farmer at the Bangalore IT.biz 2009 event in Bangalore. — AFP pic NEW DELHI, Aug 21 — India has built a global reputation as a major player in information technology, but lack of Internet access among its own citizens is posing a threat to long-term growth.  One typical young Indian frustrated by the country's poor Internet facilities is Srishti Sharma, 18, a student at the elite Lady Shri Ram college in the capital New Delhi.  "There are times when you desperately need to do some research using the net, and the only place you can go to is the library which is packed since there are only about ten computers there," she said.  Instead Sharma lugs her laptop out of the college grounds to Internet cafes and pays for access to a wi-fi connection.  "Almost every day I have to leave campus to do my work. It's really irritating, you end up wasting so much time going back and forth," the political science student said.  In many ways, Sharma is among the lucky ones as India's 1.2 billion people scramble to reap the benefits of the country's economic transformation.  Only three percent of all Indians living in rural areas will be active Internet users by the end of this year, according to forecasts by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI).  The low figure comes despite an expected doubling in the number of rural users, from 12.1 million in December 2010 to 24 million in December 2011.  Technology giant Cisco released data in June showing that global Internet usage will quadruple between 2010 and 2015, but that India will still trail behind emerging market rivals such as China, South Africa and Mexico in terms of per capita usage.  "The government needs to make Internet access a priority," San Francisco-based technology consultant Ulrik McKnight, who works with firms in India, Europe and the US, told AFP.  "Imagine the impact it could have on education. It's much cheaper to post course material online and give aspiring students a net connection than build colleges in every village."  He said that previous governments had faced opposition when they tried to bring new technology to India, with many saying that the authorities needed to focus on providing access to food and water, not phones and computers.  "The argument that basic needs trump other needs has been made again and again in India, against the introduction of colour television, personal computers and payphone booths," McKnight said. Unlike the mobile phone, which spread quickly among all Indians from urban executives to farm workers, the Internet has taken longer to catch on, IAMAI president Subho Ray said.  "The mobile phone was bound to succeed in India, it fulfilled a purpose since people found it difficult to get landlines set up," he said.  "But the Internet is more complex. You have to help people understand what it can do for them, they don't automatically get it."  Analysts say India's absence of infrastructure — from steady electricity to an extensive landline network — has been a big stumbling block to broadening Internet access.  India's left-leaning Congress government derives much of its support from the poor, and for years its priorities have reflected the concerns of its voter base, with a focus on rural welfare programmes over technological development.  "I am not sure the government is doing anything to promote Internet access, particularly in rural India," influential technology blogger Amit Agarwal told AFP.  "Even in villages, kids will pick up the skills fast, but someone needs to provide them with basic infrastructure to make it happen."  A much-vaunted plan to create 20 million broadband connections by 2010 fell far short of its target, despite the government pegging broadband speed at a measly 256 kilobytes per second, 1/16th of the US standard of 4.0 megabytes per second.  India has ambitious plans to raise the number of broadband connections from about 12 million today to 75 million by 2012 and 160 million by 2014.  Telecom firms have also started rolling out wireless broadband networks since last year after winning third-generation (3G) and wireless broadband spectrum in government auctions.  There were hopes that 3G mobile phone services, which include Internet access, would boost usage but the service is still too expensive for most Indians, with companies charging between 700 (RM51) and 1000 rupees a month.  Ray, the IAMAI president, said that despite India being home to software giants like Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services, the country stood to "lose its competitive edge" unless the Internet becomes part of everyday life for millions more Indians.  "If India wants to reach a stage where its companies are filing patents regularly, then it needs to step up its efforts," he said.  "It needs a technological revolution." — AFP-Relaxnews

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Making beautiful music from recycled junk Posted: 21 Aug 2011 03:33 AM PDT WASHINGTON, Aug 21 — It's all junk — until it's not. Clay flowerpots, a washtub, garbage cans, assorted kitchenware, an old futon frame, circular saw blades, cast iron skillets and more. Terry Dame at the Kennedy Centre gushes about the "junk" instruments she made herself. — Reuters pic What may look like clutter piling up on a small stage at Washington's Kennedy Centre for the Performing Arts is junk that has been given a second life as finely tuned, amplified musical instruments played by the New York-based group, Electric Junkyard Gamelan. "Believe it or not, the frying pans are all pitched," musician, composer, and instrument maker Terry Dame said, pointing to a black cast iron skillet standing upright on its handle near the front of the stage. Dame is the leader of the veteran musicians who have been performing together as the Electric Junkyard Gamelan since 2000. The band members, ranging in age from 31 to 51, include drummer Lee Free, bass player Mary Feaster and Julian Hintz, a classically trained percussionist. Dame built all of the band's unusual instruments. "I'm a fabricator . . . I just love to make things with my hands," she told Reuters as the group prepared for a recent concert on the Kennedy Centre's Millennium Stage. Most of the strange-looking contraptions taking shape on the stage bear little resemblance to musical instruments as we know them, although some of the names may sound vaguely familiar. There's the Sitello — a combination electric cello and sitar; the Terraphone — a horn made from copper pipe; the Clayrimba — a marimba made from garden-variety clay pots; a Big Barp and a Rubarp — electric harps made with rubber bands. Except for the clay pots, which Dame used to buy but now makes herself, the instruments are made with recycled objects. "That stringed instrument . . . that's wood from an old futon frame I found on the street," she said. "The hanging base instrument — that's an old folding table base. A lot of the hardware I got from tag sales and stuff like that." Everything on the band's percussion rig is "found stuff", she added, referring to an arrangement of frying pans, garbage cans, aluminium wash tub alongside an assortment of pots, pans and lids suspended from a rack. Asked whether there was a story behind an instrument made of circular saw blades, Dame said: "They just make a beautiful sound." "I don't care what it looks like; it if makes a beautiful sound, I'll figure out a way to play it," she added. Eclectic sound The band's eclectic music does not fit neatly into any category, and often sounded nothing like what audiences might expect to hear, Dame said. "Some venues are kind of scared of us because it seems like it's going to be a lot weirder than it is. In actuality, the music is pretty accessible," she said. "We always get invited back if I can get my foot in the door." Originally inspired by Indonesian music, the song list of Electric Junkyard Gamelan (EJG) includes hints of familiar styles such as jazz, funk, pop, world music, and even hip-hop. The term gamelan refers to musical ensembles from Java and Bali in which gongs and metal xylophones are the predominant instruments, explains gamelan scholar Sumarsam. "Traditionally, gamelan is an essential accompaniment to puppet shows, dances, feasts and ceremonies," he said in an email describing the music. The sound is distinctively percussive, with layers of complex rhythms and melodic tones, said Sumarsam, a music professor at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. He said he could hear the Balinese influence in EJG's music. The group's sound — as much as its unique instruments — caught the ear of the organisers of the "Music for People and Thingamajigs Festival" in Oakland, California, where EJG is booked to play in late September. Festival spokesman Edward Schocker said even in the small world of artists who used found objects of recycled materials to make instruments, Dame's group stood out. "What was really great about Terry and the Electric Junkyard Gamelan was that they found a way to make non-musicians interested in what they do," Schocker said. "She's able to take these instruments and create music with it that is open to so many different people." Dame, who composes EJG's music, was first attracted to gamelan as a graduate student at California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, California. She also built her first instrument there as part of a graduate thesis project. She has been experimenting with objects and sound since then, and says her instruments have been evolving. "Things get tweaked. Things get added occasionally. I've tried to stop adding, because you can't fit anything else in the van," she said, laughing. — Reuters

Reality star Kim Kardashian weds Kris Humphries Posted: 20 Aug 2011 07:55 PM PDT Kim Kardashian (left) and Kourtney Kardashian arrive at the Teen Choice Awards in Los Angeles. — Reuters pic LOS ANGELES, Aug 21 — Reality star Kim Kardashian married basketball player Kris Humphries today in a lavish made-for-TV wedding following a whirlwind courtship.  Kardashian, 30, one of the highest-earning reality TV stars, and New Jersey Nets player Humphries, 26, exchanged vows in a ceremony on a private estate in the Southern California hill town of Montecito, her spokeswoman told People magazine and E! television.  People magazine bought exclusive rights to the wedding, which is also being filmed as a two-part special called "Kim's Fairytale Wedding: A Kardashian Event" to be broadcast in October on E! television.  Kardashian, who stars with her three sisters and their mother in "Keeping Up with the Kardashians," began dating Humphries in late 2010 and he proposed in May with a whopping 20.5 carat diamond ring.  The family and US celebrity media have since talked and tweeted about little else than preparations for the wedding. The 440 guests today included "Desperate Housewives" actress Eva Longoria and Lindsay Lohan, People said.  Kardashian wore an ivory, lace-trimmed gown designed by Vera Wang, People said. She is widely reported to have wanted her cake in the same style as Britain's Prince William and Kate Middleton, who married in April.  Kardashian is thought to be the highest-paid reality star on US television with 2010 earnings estimated at US$6 million (RM22.10 million) from the show and its two spinoffs, her clothing line, perfume, jewelry, tanning cream and other product endorsements and paid appearances.  Today's wedding was the first for Humphries and the second for Kardashian, whose 2000 marriage to music producer Damon Thomas ended in divorce in 2004 — three years before "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" started its TV run.  Kim Kardashian is the daughter of the late attorney Robert Kardashian, a member of the legal defence team for football player O.J. Simpson during his trial and sensational acquittal on murder charges in 1995. — Reuters

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Money woes could shutter Edgar Allan Poe house Posted: 20 Aug 2011 05:54 PM PDT The Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum on August 11, 2011, located in the famous US writer's former home in Baltimore, Maryland. — AFP pic BALTIMORE, Aug 21 — The house where American writer and poet Edgar Allan Poe lived in poverty for several years in the 1800s, and which now serves as a museum, could soon be forced to close its doors for evermore.  For the second year running, the house, situated off the beaten path in a poor part of Baltimore, in the eastern US state of Maryland, has received no funding from the city, which has its own financial woes.  Baltimore's deficit snowballed to US$120 million (RM408 million) for the 2011 fiscal year, leading the city to tighten its belt and decide to fund only essential services.  "Unfortunately, the Poe house was not considered to fit the core services criteria," Baltimore director of planning Tom Stosur told AFP.  To the small brick house that Poe lived in from 1832-1835 with his aunt, grandmother and cousins Henry and Virginia — who later became his wife, when she was 13 and he 27 — the funding cuts represented a loss of US$85,000 annually, or almost all of the museum's operating funds.  The museum has remained open to the public thanks to fundraising events and donations from Poe fans, and there is enough in the kitty to keep it up and running until the end of June next year, said curator Jeff Jerome.  Among the modest exhibits in the museum are crockery and glassware from the home of the Allans, the wealthy Virginia couple who took Poe in after his mother and father died; the notice of Poe's death in 1849, at the age of 40; a portable writing desk, and several paintings and prints.  One blurry photo on the wall shows a mystery man who for 60 years on Poe's birthday — until 2009 — left three roses and a bottle of cognac on the writer's grave, situated around a mile from the house on North Amity Street.  "We don't have a big collection," said Jerome.  "You get a sense of the poverty Poe was suffering through, and people appreciate that. You can see the walls that Poe looked at; you walk on the floor Poe walked on; you can go into the room Poe slept in — that's the experience we want people to have." — 'Terrible and irreversible mistake' — Poe wrote several short stories while he lived in the brick house in Baltimore, including one that won him US$50 in a contest, a sizeable sum at the time.  One of the small museum's downfalls is the fact that it sits off the tourist trail in Baltimore, in an underprivileged neighbourhood in a city hard-hit by the financial crisis.  A petition to keep the museum open has gathered 5,900 signatures from around the world — more than the 5,000 people who every year visit the house where the author of The Fall of the House of Usher, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Pit and the Pendulum and the narrative poem, The Raven, spent part of his short life.  "It would be a terrible and irreversible mistake to close the house," commented Ricardo from Brazil on the petition.  "This simple house is no less than an American cultural treasure, which must be maintained, wrote Michael from the US state of Georgia.  A limited edition print of a raven by a local artist is being sold to raise money for the house, a local restaurant has launched a fundraising operation called Pennies for Poe; and the city of Baltimore has hired a consultancy to come up with a business plan to make the museum financially viable.  And Poe fans are optimistic that a soon-to-be-released film called "The Raven," inspired by Poe's poem and starring actor John Cusack as the mustachioed 19th-century author, will help to save his little brick museum in Baltimore.  "It's going to be great publicity for Poe," said Jerome.  "This will encourage people to come to Baltimore to visit the museum, and Cusack is a big Poe fan. We're trying to get him to visit the Poe house in Baltimore to give his support," he said. — AFP-Relaxnews

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Being honest about crime Posted: 20 Aug 2011 05:34 PM PDT AUG 21 — There are always victims in an economic recession. It can push individuals into desperation and force them potentially to do something that they would not otherwise do. It can turn the man on the street into a criminal.  There is a relationship between economic recessions and unemployment rates and there is a relationship between unemployment and crime rates. An empty stomach has a way of convincing that the wrongness of stealing is only a secondary worry to the concern of the stomach. Rule of law can be meaningless in times of desperation.  The hungrier one gets because of external circumstances, the greater the erosion on one's belief in the rule of law. The reward of specific types of crime becomes enticing.  Although there are risks involved in committing the crime, its relative immediate reward has the potential of immediately relieving hunger. A little chance of not going hungry is better than no chance at all.  Before these sentences are misconstrued as a justification or even an encouragement for criminal activities, let it be known the difference between describing and prescribing. One describes without making value judgment. One prescribes with value judgment. This is an effort at the former.  The relationship between economic recession (or perhaps the term economic downturn is a better phrase to escape the banality of technicalities) and unemployment rate is well-established. This requires no further exposition. The relationship between unemployment and crime rates is also well-explored.  What makes exposition important for the latter is that in Malaysia, there is an increasing tendency to ignore it. In its place, there is a belief that an alphabet soup causes the decline in reported crime rate.  That narrative needs to be assessed and then made blunt in the interest of sincerity. Partisan political discussions sometimes can push honesty aside for political convenience. It is all about brownie points. The utility of free speech is essential in putting less-than-honest in perspective.  There are many documentations proving how unemployment contributes to crime rate. Karin Edmark in 2005 showed how "unemployment had a positive and significant effect on some property crimes in Sweden."  Property crimes can be associated with theft, which can be associated to what can be called as crime of the stomach. In 2002, Eric Gould, Bruce Weinberg and David Mustard found a similar result for general crime rate for young, unskilled labour in the United States, between 1979 and 1997.  Steven Raphael and Rudolf Winter-Ebmer in 2001 found the same relationship in the United States in the 1990s. They wrote "…a substantial portion of the decline in property crime rates during the 1990s is attributable to the decline in the unemployment rate."  There is little reason why it should be different for other parts of the world, including Malaysia.  It is highly instructive to learn that if indeed actual crime rate had decreased in Malaysia, it happened only while the economy was recovering, thus creating the jobs needed to reduce unemployment.  It is equally instructive that crime rate was on the rise around the same time the Great Recession was at its peak, adversely affecting external demand for Malaysian goods and through that, jobs in Malaysia.  In February 2009, the unemployment rate was 4.1 per cent. In the same month in 2010, the rate was 3.6 per cent. Out of the 12 months, the 11 months of 2009 had higher unemployment rate than the same month a year later. If anybody requires any reminder, it was 2010 when the domestic economy was recovering at a worthwhile rate. The year 2009 was just horrible.  The severity of that number can be put in better context. The annual rate for 2006, 2007 and 2008 was around 3.3 per cent. In 2009, it is estimated to be 3.7 per cent. The estimate for 2010 is already lower than the year before, at 3.5 per cent.  As for the 2010 crime rate, the crime index fell by about 15 per cent compared to the previous year, according to a Bernama report. It also stated that the "achievement was a result of the Royal Malaysia Police's (PDRM) 12 initiatives to battle crime nationwide," those initiatives being the Government Transformation Programme. The arrogance and the dishonesty are truly remarkable.  The narrative of the results from the government's effort at combating crime must compete with the mainstream uncontroversial economic one. This is not to say government effort is worthless, but for it and its supporters to claim too much credit, or in this case all the credit for the alleged drop in crime rate without even blinking amid the well-established and stronger case between unemployment and crime rate is too much to take. That is undue credit.  It must compete, just like how the government and its supporters claimed the undue credit for the Malaysian economic recovery when in fact, it was mostly the then rising tide of global economy that lifted the Malaysian boat.  Little things do matter. Actual effort at combating crime by the government and the wider public do matter and they are most appreciated. Nevertheless, do not be dishonest about it. Such dishonesty will discredit all the good real things done. * The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by Used Car Search.

Going back to baby school Posted: 20 Aug 2011 05:30 PM PDT AUG 21 — I've gone back to school for a subject I thought I was already familiar with. I've been learning about becoming a mother all over again because it seems as if my mind has wiped out memories of being pregnant, which was a distant four years ago.   I have also been feeling more cautious this time round because I am now classified "advanced maternal age" (35 years and above), so thought it best to have a refresher course to learn of complications that might affect my aging body.  My husband and I were encouraged to attend antenatal seminars as it is also our first time giving birth in a Hong Kong public hospital.  Not all of the participants at the seminars were first-timers; indeed some were going for a hattrick. Yet these classes are taken seriously, possibly because it is the first time for all of us giving birth in this country.  I think the nurse's name was Julia. It may be Julie. It was amusing and wonderful to watch high-powered expatriate couples (I had signed up for the English language antenatal class) paying full attention to the tiny figure in front, cradling the microphone in her delicate hands.  Even the expectant fathers, some who had rugby-player proportions, looked vulnerable in that room in the fading daylight. Julia/ Julie had us eating out of her hands.  I'd asked myself why these well-off people would choose a public hospital. Turns out they a) did not see the point in spending in the region of HK$100,000 (RM38,000) in a private hospital (for a natural birth; Caesarian section would cost more) or b) theirs was a complicated pregnancy (twins, low-lying placenta) and in the event of further complications during the birth process they may be transferred to a public hospital anyway.  The well-presented seminars helped paint a clearer picture of the procedures in Hong Kong public hospitals. My initial apprehension at the basic conditions ("we only supply you with a bed and gown") has since been eased with the knowledge that husbands are allowed in the labour ward round the clock and that back massage is provided to relax the expectant mother.  We are encouraged to come up with a birth plan stating preferences during the delivery including pharmalogical options. We can even bring in our choice of soothing music to be played during labour.  So no strapping down onto the bed. Phew. In fact, a birth ball is provided ("Don't worry, we wipe it down after each use."), as is the TENS machine and we are allowed to choose a comfortable position to give birth in, provided we have understood fully how to go about doing so (i.e. giving birth in a standing position doesn't mean simply standing upright and waiting for a miracle to happen).  I mentioned earlier the sky-high prices for giving birth in a private hospital. The cost is only $350 (RM133) in a public hospital but one needs to put up with terrible visiting hours (12pm-1pm and 6pm-8pm; no children; only two visitors per session), open wards (claustrophobic once the curtains are drawn around the narrow bed) and shared bathrooms. But when put into perspective, these inconveniences last only three days out of a lifetime.  Then at the end of six hours of class came the white-knuckle moment: watching the birth video.  I can say that I've been there and done that. The fact is I didn't SEE any it. I decided early on in my first pregnancy that I did not want to see any image of a baby crowning. This time I could not tear my eyes off the screen. The first distraction was the dated hairdo and clothing tell-tale of the 1980s.  Watching the cervix dilate to allow the baby's head to emerge was an O.M.G. moment. I bet every husband in the room had the same thought going through his mind.  At this point, the midwife announced that giving birth is the most painful experience a woman will ever, EVER go through. She quickly added that the pain will go away once we see the baby, which was true for me.  There was no free spread of mouthwatering food at this ceramah. No flashy VIPs. The nurse may have been soft-spoken but our ears were pricked as if waiting for gold nuggets to fall from her mouth. And tumble out they did:  Did you know that the areola darkens as the pregnancy progresses to enable the newborn to identify its source of food (in the first month, newborns only see black and white)? Babies should be placed at the bottom of the cot with their feet almost touching the bars. This is to prevent the blanket from covering their face as the wriggle downwards (which may happen when the baby is placed in the middle of the cot). Taking rectal temperature is more accurate compared to ear and armpit temperature-taking. Rectal represents core temperature or how warm the body is whereas forehead and armpit only represent skin temperature. Never place a thermometer inside a new baby's mouth – it will instinctively suckle.  So was it worth attending this ceramah? Definitely. It helped to be in the same room with other expectant parents who had similar "silly" questions. It helped to have experienced midwives answer our queries and put fears to rest. Most of all, there were no empty promises and reassurances to quieten us. Just facts and possible outcomes.  I now have some peace of mind about this birth. I am impressed with the local support system which provides free antenatal talks, breastfeeding classes, antenatal exercises (nominal fee) and a hospital tour to prepare parents for the experience ahead.  Now only if there was a drug-free way to a less painful delivery... * The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by Used Car Search.

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Zaid: Kita letak calon Selangor, Kelantan Posted: 21 Aug 2011 02:41 AM PDT KOTA BARU, 21 Ogos — Parti Kesejahteraan Insan Tanah Air (Kita) bercadang meletakkan calon di Selangor dan Kelantan pada pilihan raya umum akan datang, kata Presidennya Datuk Zaid Ibrahim (gambar). Bagaimanapun, bekas menteri ini berkata beliau tidak dapat menentukan jumlah calon dan kerusi yang akan ditandingi di kedua-dua negeri itu. "Setakat ini, kita hanya mengenal pasti dua negeri iaitu Selangor dan Kelantan untuk diletakkan calon Kita dalam pilihan raya kali ini," katanya kepada pemberita selepas menyampaikan bantuan hari raya kepada orang kurang upaya di sini, hari ini. Dipetik Bernama Online, bekas Ahli Parlimen Kota Baru itu berkata beliau sendiri belum dapat menentukan sama ada akan bertanding di kawasan Parlimen itu atau di luar Kelantan. Menyentuh cadangan penubuhan jawatankuasa pilihan khas Parlimen untuk menambah baik sistem pilihan raya di negara ini, Zaid berkata semua pihak harus memanfaatkan penubuhan badan itu dan tidak mengambil kesempatan untuk kepentingan mana-mana pihak. Pembangkang juga tidak harus membuat tuntutan tidak munasabah dalam mengutarakan perasaan tidak puas hati dengan perjalanan proses pilihan raya di negara ini, sehingga tidak ada jalan penyelesaian, katanya lagi. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by Used Car Search.

Cincin AS$24 juta: Najib nafi, akhbar Kompas minta maaf Posted: 21 Aug 2011 01:30 AM PDT JAKARTA, 21 Ogos — Akhbar Indonesia Kompas hari ini memohon maaf kepada Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak dan keluarganya atas satu laporan — berkaitan cincin berlian — yang disiarkan pada 4 Ogos lalu yang berunsur fitnah. Permohonan maaf itu adalah berkaitan dengan tulisan yang mengaitkan isteri Perdana Menteri Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor dengan sebuah syarikat perniagaan, yang telah dinafikan kebenarannya dan juga cincin berlian berharga AS$24 juta, yang sebenarnya tidak pernah dipesan oleh Rosmah. Pertengahan bulan lalu Rosmah berkata laporan beberapa blog mengenai cincin itu satu fitnah. Permohonan maaf itu juga merujuk kepada laporan tentang bakal besan Perdana Menteri yang dikatakan kononnya mempunyai hubungan dengan mafia Rusia. "Atas berita tersebut, Pemimpin Redaksi Kompas Rikard Bagun, Sabtu (20 Ogos) di Jakarta, secara khusus menyatakan permintaan maafnya kepada ketua kerajaan dan keluarga," kata Rikard dalam Kompas Minggu, hari ini dipetik oleh Bernama Online. Permohonan maaf itu terkandung di perenggan 10, muka surat 10 akhbar tersebut dalam satu laporan bertajuk "PM Najib Razak: Demokrasi Juga Terjadi di Malaysia", tulisan wartawan kanan Kompas Jimmy S. Harianto. Harianto yang dihubungi Bernama pada Jumaat lalu berkata beliau sendiri telah menyampaikan permohonan maaf secara lisan kepada Najib apabila beliau bertemu dengan Perdana Menteri di Kementerian Kewangan, Putrajaya, pada Khamis. Semasa pertemuan itu Najib telah menyatakan rasa terperanjat dengan laporan Kompas pada 4 Ogos itu. "Saya terperanjat dengan laporan tersebut. Sebab faktanya, saya tahu itu tidak benar sama sekali," Najib (gambar) dipetik akhbar itu dalam tulisan Harianto hari ini. "Apa lagi hal ini berkaitan nama Ketua Kerajaan negara jiran, yang mana hubungan kita amat penting sekali," kata Najib. Pada pertemuan dengan Najib itu, Harianto turut mengadakan wawancara khas dengan Perdana Menteri berkaitan hubungan dua hala Malaysia-Indonesia. Najib yang ditanya mengenai harapan Malaysia kepada Indonesia sebagai negara jiran dan Pengerusi Asean kali ini, berkata beliau mengharapkan hubungan dua hala yang sangat akrab, ibarat hubungan dua negara jiran yang mempunyai warisan yang sama dan erat daripada segi sejarah. "Hubungan budaya, agama, dan hubungan kekeluargaan (Najib keturunan ke-11 daripada Kerajaan Gowa, Sulawesi Selatan). "Sudah tentu hubungan Malaysia dan Indonesia ini diasaskan atas faktor yang lebih istimewa dan lebih unik, dan kita harus menterjemahkan apa yang kita warisi ini sebagai legasi dalam bentuk hubungan pada konteks masa kini. Saling memberi manfaat kepada kedua-dua bangsa," Najib dipetik sebagai berkata. Perdana Menteri juga percaya isu pertikaian sempadan maritim kedua-dua negara akan dapat diselesaikan namun kedua-dua pihak harus ada kompromi jika mahu mencari penyelesaian politik berhubung isu itu. Mengenai demokrasi, Najib menjelaskan bahawa demokrasi yang diamalkan di Malaysia merupakan sistem yang telah melalui proses evolusi namun prinsipnya jelas sekali bahawa tidak ada sebarang kekebalan, walaupun kepada parti pemerintah. "Bila ada pilihan raya, parti pemerintah senasib dengan parti pembangkang. Nasib di tangan rakyat, tak berlaku sebarang manipulasi untuk menentukan kesahihan dari perolehan suara. Undi ditentukan oleh rakyat," kata Najib. Yang selalu menjadi polemik ialah definisi keterbukaan kerana kerajaan mempunyai pendapatnya sendiri tentang perkara itu dan parti pembangkang ada pendapatnya juga, namun prinsip utamanya ialah hak rakyat untuk memilih kerajaan secara adil dan bebas. "Demokrasi berlaku di Malaysia. Parti pemerintah pernah kalah di peringkat negeri dan memang belum pernah di peringkat pusat," kata Najib. Mengenai peluang Barisan Nasional (BN) pada pilihan raya umum akan datang, Perdana Menteri berkata rakyat kini semakin yakin dengan BN berdasarkan keputusan beberapa pilihan raya kecil sebelum ini, namun parti itu tidak menjadikan keputusan-keputusan itu sebagai ukuran mutlak. Oleh itu BN terus berusaha dengan segala upaya membentangkan agenda dan program yang dapat memberi kepuasan dan keyakinan kepada rakyat. "Bukan sahaja dengan (membentangkan) program kerajaan, program ekonomi, tetapi juga program yang menyentuh rakyat. Program yang memberi kelegaan dan kepuasan kepada rakyak, terutama dalam konteks fenomena inflasi global - hubungan dengan kenaikan harga makanan dunia. "Ini semua adalah isu-isu yang perlu kita tangani. Dan yang tak kurang penting ialah menjaga komunikasi dengan rakyat," kata Najib. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by Used Car Search.

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