Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

The Malaysian Insider :: Food

---

Gordon Ramsay reveals more details on eatery with David Beckham Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:49 AM PST LONDON, Feb 8 — Gordon Ramsay's restaurant partnership with BFF David Beckham will turn an empty warehouse in London into a Mediterranean-inspired eatery that's slated to open in September. Gordon Ramsay. — AFP pic Those are some of the new details that have emerged out of Ramsay's camp this week, after months of speculation as to his star-powered collaboration with the soccer celebrity who recently made headlines for signing on with Parisian home team Paris Saint-Germain. Union Street Café will open in London's Southwark borough. It's the latest opening for Ramsay's burgeoning restaurant empire. In December, the celebrity chef threw open the doors to his latest Las Vegas outposts, Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill at Caesars Palace, and Gordon Ramsay BurGR at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino. Meanwhile, in other chef-celebrity collaborations, Japanese chef Nobu Matsuhisa, who is propped by actor Robert De Niro, recently opened his largest restaurant yet inside his own branded boutique hotel, Nobu Hotel Las Vegas, a tower inside Caesars Palace. The 1,187-square meter space features a trio of Teppanyaki tables and a 15-seat sushi bar. — AFP/Relaxnews

The do’s and don’ts of proper dim sum etiquette Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:27 AM PST NEW YORK, Feb 8 — While there's no art to enjoying an authentic dim sum meal, there are a few do's and don'ts that diners should be aware of before they tuck into the Chinese version of a tapas brunch. Dim sum etiquette calls for showing your appreciation with a few finger taps and pouring tea for others first. — AFP pic With the Lunar New Year rounding the corner, Chinese restaurants around the world are poised to be filled to the rafters with diners looking to celebrate with good authentic eats, including dim sum, or yum cha ("drink tea") in Chinese. To help newbies and veterans alike get their tea pot refilled without saying a word and look like a dim sum pro, here are a few tips on how to navigate the flow of carts and the cacophony of sounds that accompany any good yum cha experience. Do's When someone serves you tea, show your appreciation by tapping your index and middle finger on the table twice if you're married, and just your index finger if you're single, a gesture said to mimic the act of bowing. Turn over the lid and leave it on the teapot if you want a refill. Feel free to get a dessert dish in the middle of the meal. There are no set rules for mixing sweets with savoury items during dim sum. Leave a tip. Just because the waiters are coming by with carts doesn't mean it's no less a service. It's common for Chinese restaurants to split tips amongst the servers. Don'ts Serve yourself tea first. Always pour your companion's cup first. Otherwise you brand yourself as an uncouth Neanderthal. Flag down just any waiter when you need something. Servers are assigned to tables so make sure you take note of the person who is taking care of you. Be selfish. If there are three dumplings on a dish and there are five of you at the table, cut a dumpling in half so you don't short a diner a dumpling. Rush the cart ladies. Exercise patience and let them come to you with the goodie-laden trolleys, that's the whole point of the yum cha experience. Swarming them will only get you on their bad side. And you don't want to anger the 'dim sum' lady. — AFP/Relaxnews

You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Food To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com

Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

The Malaysian Insider :: Sports

---

Lampard targets 2014 World Cup and more time at Chelsea Posted: 08 Feb 2013 05:09 AM PST Lampard scores the winning goal past Paulinho as England beat Brazil 2-1 in their international friendly at Wembley stadium in London February 6, 2013. — Reuters pic LONDON, Feb 8 — Frank Lampard's flurry of goals for club and country since returning from injury in December have given the midfielder fresh hope of extending his Chelsea contract and prolonging his England career. "The World Cup is certainly a target for me and I will try to keep playing at a good enough level to get there," Lampard was quoted as saying in British media today. "It's a target. I won't retire from England before that, put it that way," added Lampard, who scored the winner in the 2-1 friendly international victory over Brazil on Wednesday. "If I can continue playing for Chelsea and contributing here with England, whether it's starting or not, and as a valuable squad member, and do my bit when I play, then the World Cup is getting a bit nearer." According to Lampard's agent, the 34-year-old player was told by the European champions late last year that under no circumstances would he be offered an extension on his contract at the end of the season. Lampard, who joined in 2001 and whose contract runs out in June, is the London club's second highest goal-scorer with 197 strikes and is closing on Bobby Tambling's record of 202. The midfielder, who has scored nine times for club and country in his past 14 games, also has 27 international goals in his 94 England caps. Despite his form, his future with Chelsea remains unclear and he has been linked to Major League Soccer (MLS), though England manager Roy Hodgson said after the Brazil game that the midfielder should stay in Europe for a chance at a World Cup spot. "Maybe the World Cup is within reach but I'm not getting carried away. I know how football is," said Lampard. "It can change from squad to squad and when you get to the age of 34, 35 in the summer, people do look upon things differently and fair enough. "I'm very understanding of where I am at in my career." Lampard said that, with England facing some tough qualifiers for the World Cup in Brazil next year, he hoped to keep fit and keep impressing Hodgson. "I believe he is the type of manager that if you are playing well enough — whatever your age, wherever you are — he will pick you and I hope that's the case. "I've got a sniff of the World Cup. It's only a sniff because it's a year away and England aren't even there so I shouldn't get carried away. "But I'll keep performing to my best and whatever decisions I take, I'll take with a view across the board to make myself happy, to try and play the best football I can." Lampard's Chelsea, third in the Premier League, play strugglers Wigan Athletic tomorrow while England face minnows San Marino and then Group H pacesetters Montenegro in qualifiers on March 22 and 26. — Reuters

Young boost for United before busy week Posted: 08 Feb 2013 04:50 AM PST Ashley Young challenges Brazil's Oscar, turning out for England in their international friendly at Wembley stadium in London, February 6, 2013. — Reuters pic MANCHESTER, England, Feb 8 — Manchester United winger Ashley Young is fit for Sunday's Premier League match at home to Everton after recovering from a knee injury, manager Alex Ferguson said today. Midfielder Michael Carrick is also available while defender Phil Jones should have shaken off a bout of shingles that also bothered Ferguson, who was annoyed that news of the illness had been made public by England under-21 coach Stuart Pearce. "We thought it was a doctor's confidence so we are disappointed in that, it's not anything serious for the boy, it's mild condition, he should be OK," Ferguson told a news conference. The return of Young, who was injured against Liverpool on January 13, is a major boost for United at the start of a busy week in which Ferguson's side travel to Real Madrid for the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday. The side then host Reading in an FA Cup fifth round match on February 18. Before those two dates there is Everton, who are flying high in fifth and whose fightback in a thrilling 4-4 draw in this fixture last season proved costly for United, who lost out on the title on goal difference to Manchester City. "(We were) 4-2 up with seven or eight minutes to go, it was unexpected and you've got to anticipate unexpected in the run-in but that was a bad blow for us," Ferguson said. "That definitely cost us the league, there is no question of that. That will never happen again." Moyes praised United have a nine-point lead over Manchester City with 62 points from 25 games although by the time they host David Moyes' side on Sunday (1600 GMT) the gap could have been narrowed as the champions play at Southampton the day before. Everton are 20 points behind Ferguson's side and involved in the tussle for a top-four finish and the lucrative business of Champions League football despite a much smaller budget than many teams around them. Ferguson was full of praise for the job fellow Scot David Moyes had done in more than a decade at Everton. "David Moyes has got a very strong unit at Everton, very experienced and their record — they've only lost three games this season," he said. Inspired by the goals of Marouane Fellaini, who headed in the winner in the 1-0 victory over United at Goodison Park on the opening weekend of the season and has netted 10 times in the league this term, Everton pose a stiff test for United. "They are a difficult opponent," Ferguson said. "They have got a genuine chance of finishing in the top four. "I think the race for the title is between ourselves and City but after that you've got Chelsea, Tottenham, Arsenal, Everton and even now Liverpool." — Reuters

You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Sports To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com

Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

The Malaysian Insider :: Features

---

Asteroid to make close pass by Earth on Feb 15 Posted: 08 Feb 2013 07:14 AM PST An object of similar size on a collision course with Earth would strike with the force of about 2.4 million tonnes of dynamite. – Reuters pic CAPE CANAVERAL, Feb 8 — A small asteroid will pass closer to Earth next week than the TV satellites that ring the planet, but there is no chance of an impact, NASA said. The celestial visitor, known as 2012 DA14, was discovered last year by a group of amateur astronomers in Spain. The asteroid is about the size of an Olympic swimming pool at 46m in diameter and is projected to come as close as 27,520km from Earth during its February 15 approach. That would make it the closest encounter since scientists began routinely monitoring asteroids about 15 years ago. Television, weather and communications satellites fly about 800km higher. The moon is 14 times farther away. Even so, "no Earth impact is possible," astronomer Donald Yeomans, with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, told reporters during a conference cal The time of the asteroid's closest approach will be 2.24pm EST, daylight in the United States, but dark in Eastern Europe, Asia and Australia where professional and amateur astronomers will be standing by with telescopes and binoculars to catch a view. DA14 will soar through the sky at about 13km per second. At that speed, an object of similar size on a collision course with Earth would strike with the force of about 2.4 million tonnes of dynamite. The last time that happened was in 1908 when an asteroid or comet exploded over Siberia, levelling 80 million trees over 2,150 sq km. "Although they wouldn't (cause) a global catastrophe if they impact the Earth, they still do a lot of regional destruction," said Lindley Johnson, who oversees the Near-Earth Object Observations Program at NASA headquarters in Washington DC. NASA has been on a mission to find and track all near-Earth objects that are 1km in diameter or larger. The effort is intended to give scientists and engineers as much time as possible to learn if an asteroid or comet is on a collision course with Earth, in hopes sending up a spacecraft or taking other measures to avert catastrophe. About 66 million years ago, a 10km diameter object smashed into what is now the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico leading to the demise of the dinosaurs as well as most plant and animal life on Earth. The planet is regularly pelted with objects from space, adding up to about 100 tonnes of material per day, Yeomans said. "Basketball-sized objects come in daily. Volkswagen-sized objects come in every couple of weeks. As you get to larger and larger sizes the number of objects out there is less and less, so the frequency of hits goes down," Yeomans said. Something the size of DA14 can be expected to strike Earth about every 1,200 years. "For objects of this size, this is the closest predicted encounter that we're aware of," Yeomans said. — Reuters

Van Cleef & Arpels teams up with dancer Benjamin Millepied Posted: 08 Feb 2013 06:56 AM PST Benjamin Millepied, from "Black Swan" to head of the Paris Opera Ballet. — AFP pic PARIS, Jan 8 — Benjamin Millepied, the new head of the Paris Opera Ballet famed for his choreography for "Black Swan", will work with Van Cleef & Arpels on a new piece titled "Reflections". Millepied does not start as Director of Dance at the Paris Opera until autumn 2014, but he's already keeping himself busy in the French capital with a new collaboration celebrating precious stones. More than 45 years after Van Cleef & Arpels first debuted "Jewels", a ballet by George Balanchine inspired by the jewellery of the famous Parisian gem-specialist and watchmaker founded in 1896, the brand is working on a new project. Rising to international fame with his work on Darren Aronofsky's 2010 hit "Black Swan", the aptly named Millepied danced in and choreographed the movie, which also featured costumes from Rodarte's Kate and Laura Mulleavy. The dancer's romantic involvement with the lead actress, Natalie Portman, added to the buzz around the film. The music for "Reflections" has been composed by David Lang. Costume and stage design will be handled by American artist Barbara Kruger. Millepied is no stranger to luxury labels. In July 2011 he became the face of Yves Saint Laurent's "L'Homme Libre" fragrance. "Reflections" will be performed from May 23-25, 2013, at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris. — AFP/Relaxnews

You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Features To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com

Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

The Malaysian Insider :: Showbiz

---

Polish gay priest drama launches Berlin film fest race Posted: 08 Feb 2013 07:45 AM PST Director Malgoska Szumowska (2nd L), actors Maja Ostaszewska (L to R), Andrzej Chyra and Mateusz Kosciukiewicz pose during a photocall to promote the movie "In the name" at the 63rd Berlinale International Film Festival in Berlin February 8, 2013. — Reuters pic BERLIN, Feb 8 — The race for the Golden Bear top prize at the 63rd Berlin film festival began today with a Polish drama about a gay Roman Catholic priest who struggles with his secret love for a troubled youth. "In the Name of" by Malgoska Szumowska, one of three women vying for the Berlinale's Golden Bear top prize, drew warm applause for the story of Adam (Andrzej Chyra), a man of the cloth assigned to a community in rural Poland. A charismatic and handsome man, he is popular with the residents of the village where he works with delinquent teenagers, including the eccentric loner Lukasz (Mateusz Kosciukiewicz). His strong feelings for the boy force him to confront the fact that his choice of the priesthood was in fact a flight from his own homosexuality. The thrill of his infatuation with Lukasz quickly gives way to a spiritual despair and a fear for his future in the Church as the villagers turn against him. The film presents a Church incapable of dealing with its members' human frailty, as all the villagers are seen wrestling with their own demons. "My first feeling was to make a film about longing and about love," the Krakow-born director said ahead of the keenly awaited world premiere of the film, which German media highlighted as a possible front-runner for the festival's prizes to be handed out on February 16. "I think it's hard to imagine a more lonely person than a priest," due to the vow of celibacy that precludes other kinds of human intimacy, she said. Szumowska said she knew the film, which uses imagery from Christ's passion to depict Adam's inner struggle, would be controversial in her predominantly Catholic home country. "Suddenly in the Polish newspapers now the topic of our film is very hot. We have a strong discussion in Poland about homosexuality, about the Church, about priests," she said. "It's very, very important for me to give a voice to certain discussions in Poland." She said she saw many of the most recent scandals in the Church as rooted in a suppression of desire imposed by Catholic doctrine, which she called "closed and intolerant". "It doesn't fit with the modern society. It doesn't fit with contemporary times. It's absolutely a paradox. Out of this conflict very bad things happen," she said. But she said she consciously avoided a story about paedophilia in the Church despite the enormity of the issue over the last several years, saying she wanted to tell a tale of love that is seen as a sin. Szumowska presented her movie "Elles" starring French actress Juliette Binoche as a reporter investigating female student prostitution last year in the Berlinale's Panorama sidebar section. Chyra, one of Poland's leading actors who co-starred in "Elles" and in Andrzej Wajda's 2007 "Katyn Story", said Szumowska made him feel comfortable making an explicit sex scene. "After one year, we shot the love scene," he said. "Finally we matured to touch each other." The 11-day event kicked off Thursday with a gala screening of the lush martial arts epic "The Grandmaster" by Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai, who is also leading the festival jury this year. Also in competition today is US director Gus Van Sant's anti-fracking feature "Promised Land" starring Matt Damon, who co-wrote the screenplay, and controversial Austrian film-maker Ulrich Seidl's "Paradise: Hope" about a 13-year-old girl who falls for a man four decades her senior. — AFP/Relaxnews

Day-Lewis carries hopes of home crowd at top British film awards Posted: 08 Feb 2013 05:49 AM PST Daniel Day-Lewis expected to win best actor for his role in "Lincoln". — Reuters pic LONDON, Feb 8 — Home-grown talent will feel the pressure to perform at the BAFTAs on Sunday with Daniel Day-Lewis expected to win best actor for his role in "Lincoln" and British films as diverse as "Les Miserables" and "Skyfall" up for a range of trophies. But there could be stiff competition at Britain's top movie awards ceremony from "Argo", a drama directed by Ben Affleck about the rescue of American hostages from Iran in 1979, which has just beaten Lincoln to a clutch of prestigious US prizes. Argo has seven BAFTA nominations including for best film. The other contenders for the top honour are "Lincoln", "Les Miserables", "Life of Pi" and "Zero Dark Thirty". Steven Spielberg's biopic of US President Abraham Lincoln leads the field with 10 nominations but a sweep of statuettes may not be a foregone conclusion. The film had a disappointing Golden Globes, winning just one award out of seven nominations. Briton Day-Lewis, hailed last year as "the world's greatest actor" on the front page of Time magazine, appears to be a safe bet for the best actor BAFTA after winning a string of US awards for his performance as Lincoln. Day-Lewis is nominated for what would be his third best actor Oscar for the role. Betting firm William Hill confirmed Day-Lewis as the runaway favourite for best actor with odds of 1/25, but in the best film category "Argo" was ahead with odds of 1/4, ahead of "Lincoln" on 9/2. Ang Lee's visually arresting "Life of Pi", about a man and a tiger lost at sea in a small boat, has a strong chance to shine with nine BAFTA nominations including best director for the eclectic Taiwanese veteran. "Les Miserables", the film version of a global hit stage musical, also has nine BAFTA nominations including best supporting actress for Anne Hathaway, who has been widely praised for her poignant portrayal of tragic heroine Fantine. The latest James Bond movie, "Skyfall", is nominated in eight categories including best supporting actress for Judi Dench as the spymaster M and best supporting actor for Spanish actor Javier Bardem as the creepy villain Silva. Despite becoming the most successful film in British box office history and winning rave reviews for its director Sam Mendes, "Skyfall" did not make the shortlist for best film or director. That was the latest in a long string of awards disappointments for the producers behind the franchise. William Hill predicted the Bond movie would lose out to "Les Miserables" in the outstanding British film category. ALAN PARKER HONOURED Showcasing a totally different vein of British cinema, director Joe Wright's experimental "Anna Karenina", an adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's classic novel set against the backdrop of elaborate stage sets, is up for six BAFTAs. Quentin Tarantino's brutal slavery-era Western "Django Unchained" and Kathryn Bigelow's "Zero Dark Thirty", a thriller about a young CIA agent's obsessive hunt for Osama bin Laden, have five nominations apiece. Tarantino and Bigelow, both heavy hitters among US filmmakers, are both up for the best director award. One of the other contenders for that award is Austria's Michael Haneke, nominated for "Amour", the harrowing tale of an elderly couple struggling to cope with the consequences of a stroke. The French-language film has four nominations, an unusually high number for a film not in the English language. French actress Emanuelle Riva, 85, is nominated for the best actress BAFTA for her role in "Amour". Her rivals for the award are Helen Mirren in "Hitchcock", Jennifer Lawrence in "Silver Linings Playbook", Jessica Chastain in "Zero Dark Thirty" and Marion Cotillard in "Rust and Bone". The contenders for best actor are Day-Lewis, Affleck in "Argo", Bradley Cooper in "Silver Linings Playbook", Hugh Jackman in "Les Miserables" and Joaquin Phoenix in "The Master". Versatile British director Alan Parker, whose body of work ranges from child musical gangster film "Bugsy Malone" to Turkish-set prison thriller "Midnight Express" and Civil Rights drama "Mississippi Burning", will receive a BAFTA fellowship. — Reuters

You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Showbiz To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com

Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

The Malaysian Insider :: Breaking Views

---

EU leaders strike deal on long-term austerity budget Posted: 08 Feb 2013 08:27 AM PST European Council President Van Rompuy at the news conference after 24 hours of talks. — Reuters pic BRUSSELS, Feb 8 — European Union leaders today reached agreement on the first ever cut in their common budget after 24 hours of talks, seeking to placate millions at home struggling through government cutbacks and recession. The expected deal met the demands of northern European countries such as Britain and the Netherlands that wanted belt-tightening, while maintaining spending on farm subsidies and infrastructure to satisfy the likes of France and Poland. It will be the first net reduction to the EU's long-term budget in the bloc's history, representing a decrease of around 3 per cent on the last budget and shaving spending in areas from infrastructure to administration and scientific research. Last-minute haggling over precisely how to divide up the €960 billion (RM4 trillion) to be spent between 2014 and 2020 drew out the process, before Herman Van Rompuy, the president of the European Council and chairman of the summit, announced that a definitive deal had been struck among the leaders. Deal done! Worth waiting for." — Herman Van Rompuy on Twitter "Deal done!" he said in a message posted on Twitter, saying that the agreement had secured a budget until the end of the decade. "Worth waiting for," the message added. The deal must now be approved by the European Parliament, where leading legislators have already expressed opposition. Securing parliamentary approval is likely to take several months and is far from guaranteed. After negotiating through the night, leaders broke up for a rest, allowing German Chancellor Angela Merkel to swap her green jacket for a lilac one, and returned to address a list of questions, including whether to reduce the burden on the Netherlands and how to satisfy smaller countries such as Romania and Bulgaria. Mindful of their restive voters, northern European states were adamant that as they shrank spending at home and grappled with the aftermath of the global financial crisis, the European Union had to do the same. Around €12 billion was cut from the last budget proposal, made at a summit in November. While vast as a headline figure, in annual terms the budget amounts to just 1 per cent of total EU economic output. The cuts agreed today fell mainly on spending for cross-border transport, energy and telecoms projects, which were reduced by more than €11 billion. Pay and perks for EU officials — a top target for Britain — were lowered by around €1 billion, officials said. Spending on agriculture was spared further cuts, and there was an increase of about €1.5 billion on rural development over the seven years, satisfying France, Italy and Spain. Narrow gap Even with a deal, around 40 per cent of the spending will still be dedicated to farming, something that frustrates many northern European states, which want a more dynamic budget. At the same time, officials said money had been set aside for growth-stimulating measures, for research and for structural funds to flow to countries worst hit in the economic crisis, including Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Spain. There were also stipulations for green investment and €6 billion for a fund to combat youth unemployment via apprenticeships in hard-hit countries. The deal still faces further hurdles, not least at the bloc's parliament. "The European Parliament will not accept this deficit budget if it is adopted in this way. That is certain," the parliament's president Martin Schulz said. In recent weeks, Van Rompuy has been in touch with every EU leader to assess where the contours of an agreement may lie. But reaching a deal was never going to be a simple question of cutting the total, since the budget also involves delicate negotiations over rebates — amounts countries get reimbursed after they have made contributions. Denmark won a rebate of around €130 million a year, but other rebates were trimmed or modified. The Czech Republic was among a small group of countries that fought for final extra distributions, mostly for funds to build infrastructure. The EU calculates two budget numbers: a headline "commitments" figure that sets a ceiling on how much can be paid out, and a lower "payments" figure that indicates what will actually be spent. The baseline payments figure in the framework agreed today was expected to be €908 billion, a figure low enough to convince Britain, which focuses on payments rather than commitments, that it was getting a satisfactory deal. — Reuters

Tycoon Slim’s retailer Sanborns flops in market debut Posted: 08 Feb 2013 07:49 AM PST MEXICO CITY, Feb 8 — Shares of Carlos Slim's retailer Sanborns fell in their market debut today in a sign that the Mexican tycoon may have been too ambitious in a local market trading at record highs. Sanborns shares on the Mexican exchange were down 0.7 per cent at 27.80 pesos each in early trade after initially rising as much as 3.6 per cent from the 28 peso-per-share offer price issued late yesterday. "This is not a good omen," said Gerardo Roman, head of trading at brokerage Actinver in Mexico City. "A lot of people are already looking to sell." The price was at the lower end of expectations. The prospectus had a range of 27 to 32 pesos per share. Mexican retailers are trading at very high valuations on record inflows into local stocks. Sanborns said in a stock exchange filing late yesterday that it expected to raise up to 11.8 billion pesos (RM2.9 billion), including a greenshoe overallotment. The offering aimed to place about an 18 per cent stake of the retailer. Slim, ranked by Forbes as the world's richest man, controls a business empire that includes Latin America's biggest telecommunications company, America Movil, as well as banking, construction, real estate and mining companies. Sanborns de-listed in 2007 after being incorporated into Slim's conglomerate Grupo Carso. — Reuters

You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: ALL To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com

Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

The Malaysian Insider :: Books

---

Guinness diary raises curtain on rivalry with ‘tiresome’ Olivier Posted: 08 Feb 2013 06:46 AM PST LONDON, Feb 8 — They may have had accolades and a knighthood in common, but veteran British thespian Alec Guinness found his fellow actor and former mentor Laurence Olivier tiresome and vindictive, newly released extracts from his diary show. Writing just a day after Olivier's death, Guinness praised his contemporary as a "giant" of the theatre, but said he was unmoved by Olivier's performance in "Oedipus Rex". "His 'I defy you, stars' in Romeo was memorable. And so was his Poor naked wretches etc in Lear. But his famous howl in Oedipus I thought just tiresome," Guinness wrote in a diary entry dated July 12, 1989. "Like so many people whose ambition drive them to great eminence, he had a cruel and destructive streak. Side by side with his generosity, he could be unpleasant, possibly even vindictive," he wrote. Born seven years apart, Guinness and Olivier first met on stage in 1935 in a performance of "Romeo and Juliet". Guinness went on to win an Oscar for his performance in "The Bridge on the River Kwai" in 1957 and star as Obi-Wan Kenobi in George Lucas's "Star Wars" franchise. Guinness wrote that Olivier "knew every trick of the trade", including brightening and dimming lighting when he entered and exited the stage. "He was always very conscious of the audience — and his own powers over them. I'm not sure he was an artist but he was total actor — a giant among actors," Guinness wrote. The entries are part of a collection of 100 diary volumes and 900 letters, which will be available for research at London's British Library next year and chronicle Guinness's career from the late 1930s until his death in 2000. The library purchased the documents for 320,000 pounds (RM1.6 milllion) from the Alec Guinness Estate, which still holds the copyright. — Reuters

You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Books To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com

Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion

---

So who are the racists here? Posted: 07 Feb 2013 04:30 PM PST FEB 8 — "It was never like this back in my day." "We mixed with everyone when I was a child." "Race was never an issue. We were all Malaysians decades ago." Shut up! I'm sick and tired of listening to the older generation going on about how race relations in Malaysia was so much better 30 years ago. I'm not denying it. I'm sure it is true. Everyone from that generation says so and they all seem to agree with one another. Things have deteriorated, no doubt. But, when I think about it... has it really? People go on and on about how things are so polarised, that there is no interaction between the different races and how each race is so insecure that they look at each other in fear. But I would like to be a little micro and anecdotal here and see if it is possible to extrapolate it to tell the macro story of race relations in the country. The interactions that I have with people around me are quite multiracial. I have friends whom I spend equal amounts of time with who are Malays, Chinese and Indians (not to mention "others" too!). My relationship with them is like many close friendships and there is the normal everyday interaction with people I meet at the bank or at work, and there seems to be no distinguishing between them based on race. I would have lunch, chat and joke with Liew Seng Tat the same way I would with Devandran Apparasamy, or even with Arif Rafhan Othman. It wouldn't matter what word they use to call God (or even if they don't have a God... who cares!). But then, I live in an urban, metropolitan setting that is Kuala Lumpur, and mixing with so many different people on a daily basis is bound to happen. This would probably be different in other parts of the country such as the small villages of Terengganu or the longhouses of Sarawak. These locations might be a little bit more homogenous. But I have travelled to almost every inch of Malaysia both due to my work and also for leisure. I have met all kinds of people in all kinds of societies in the country, from the Jinjang Joes of Jinjang to the pakciks and makciks of Gua Musang. And I have to admit, some of these places are pretty isolated as far as the interaction of different races are concerned. Sometimes, locals can go their entire lives without every talking to a person of a different race. But I can safely say that these people really do not hold any animosity or hate towards people of other races. The Mandarin-speaking uncle in Kluang may not have daily interaction with a Malay Mat Rempit in Muar, but he definitely does not hate him. They still understand the natural law of respecting people, and treating other people the way they would like to be treated themselves. No one ever wishes or harbours ill feelings towards anyone. I don't know. Maybe all the people I've met are the minority or I'm just a little too naïve. But then again, I've met a lot of people throughout the years to just disregard them as the minority. So I'm actually leaning very much to the fact that, in general, Malaysians are not polarised or racists. In fact, I truly believe that the relationship between races in the country is actually not sour at all. I, for one, am going to keep the faith. Sure, we make fun of different people. Devandran Apparasamy is the butt of so many of my Indian jokes that I wonder why we still have drinks every other night! But it always really just because we understand each other very well. So really, what is the basis of people saying that Malaysia is going to the dogs when it comes to our racial harmony? Could it be, and I'm just thinking aloud here, that it is all made up? Maybe made up by only a certain group of people? Come to think of it, who would gain if the people of Malaysia were selfish, divided and paranoid of each other? Would it be the Malaysian people themselves? I highly doubt it. Come to think of it again, there is this one small but powerful group whose power actually comes from the fact that they have components that, self-proclaimed I think, represent the needs of the different races in Malaysia. Hmm…  I wonder. * This is the personal opinion of the columnist.

Instant citizenship and a maturing democracy Posted: 07 Feb 2013 04:16 PM PST FEB 8 — Does it mean anything to be a Malaysian? Is anybody entitled to call herself such if she so desires and can arrive here? The recent Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on the problem of illegal immigration into Sabah and the response by the then prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, has raised some fundamental issues regarding the notion of a national identity. Migration in search of opportunity is a fact of life around the world. People are willing to leave family, culture, ethnicity and familiarity in order to better their lives and those of their children. Equally, destination countries impose controls over their arrival to avoid being overwhelmed by the less fortunate and to protect the interests of their own citizenry. Immigration policy is a tool employed by governments to help further national goals by allowing migrants that can add value to their countries, whether economic or cultural.  Citizenship is generally far harder to obtain, the applicant in addition to demonstrating their contributions to the host nation having to prove their commitment to the shared values, culture, languages, history and aspirations of the country over an extended period of time. To be accepted as a naturalised citizen, it is imperative to demonstrate that old loyalties have been discarded and those of the host country adequately assimilated. Is it enough to be a Muslim and speak Malay to qualify? Then why have 6P amnesty programmes to catalogue and return illegals to Indonesia? How many is too many? What are their contributions? Is the process transparent and fair? To equate the granting of citizenship at the time of independence to those who helped build the country and gain freedom for Malaysia with the surreptitious mass granting of citizenship for electoral gain in contravention of all laws governing the same is specious at best.  Are these instant citizens genuinely committed to Malaysia? If there is a conflict with the country they come from, on whose side will they stand? When times get tough, will they stay or leave? Who are the real "pendatang", the ones who have given their all to the country through generations, or those with no loyalty except for their personal economic upliftment? The deeper issue is not just why it was allowed to happen, but why it was so easy to execute and hide for such a long time.  The answer may lie in the nature of political power and the freedom of information. When an individual or political party has absolute control over the executive, the legislature and the judiciary in addition to the media, it begins to look like more of a dictatorship than a democracy.  When a culture of fear is pervasive and imprisonment without trial a fact of life, people outdo each other in their haste to be yes men. The Sabah issue may just turn out to be that, the act of a few overzealous civil servants doing what they thought was expected of them with no explicit instructions, or it may be something else. But it could not have been kept a secret in an open democracy with a free press for any length of time. Ironically it was Mahathir's stewardship of Malaysia to a middle-income economy that sowed the seeds of the growth of alternative media. Unlike China, Malaysia's democratic façade and developmental ambitions ensured the encouragement of the Internet in its infancy.  Once the genie was out of the bottle, it was impossible to control it without inviting comparisons to North Korea or Myanmar. One might argue that it was the weak mandate given to Barisan Nasional in 2008 that forced the government to make concessions such as the amendments made to various repressive pieces of legislation, setting up RCIs and allowing street assemblies, but the fact remains that it was the access to information not propaganda that allowed Malaysians to see the whole truth of the administration's performance and not just its achievements.  That led to demands from the rakyat for change to a more accountable, transparent and just system of governance that are impacting the actions of both political coalitions today. In many ways, Malaysia today is on the path to becoming a true democracy, messy, confrontational and imperfect, but providing a voice to all competing ideas of what it means to be Malaysian. Whatever the outcome, the next elections will only build on that. * This is the personal opinion of the columnist.

You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com

Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

The Malaysian Insider :: Bahasa

---

Penjawat awam sudah meninggal setahun antara dinaikkan pangkat di Acheh Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:21 AM PST JAKARTA, 8 Feb — Seorang lelaki yang sudah meninggal dunia setahun adalah antara 422 pegawai perkhidmatan awam dinaikkan pangkat oleh Kerajaan Petadbiran Aceh baru-baru ini, mengundang kritikan daripada pelbagai pihak. Kesilapan itu hanya disedari setelah surat keputusan kenaikan pangkat para pegawai berkenaan  yang dikeluarkan itu, didapati mengandungi nama Rahmad Hidayat, yang sudah meninggal dunia. "Kami terperanjat ada nama Rahmad Hidayat dalam pelantikan itu, padahal dia sudah meninggal  dunia pada Januari 2012. Kami tidak tahu penyakitnya, tetapi Allahyarham pernah mengalami pendarahan otak," kata seorang rakannya yang enggan menyebut nama, lapor akhbar harian  Kompas, Jumaat. Ketua Badan Perjawatan Pendidikan dan Latihan (BKPP) Aceh, Nasrullah yang mengesahkan  kesilapan itu, percaya ia berlaku kerana pihak yang mencadangkan kenaikan pangkat pegawai  itu tidak mengetahui bahawa beliau sudah meninggal dunia. Ketua Badan Perundangan Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat (DPR) Aceh, Abdullah Saleh berkata kesilapan  yang berlaku itu mencerminkan buruknya sistem pentadbiran pegawai dan makanisme BKPP Aceh dan perkara itu mengecewakan orang ramai dan DPR Aceh. — Bernama

Dolomite gesa kerajaan Selangor pertimbang projek kondo Batu Caves Posted: 08 Feb 2013 01:17 AM PST KUALA LUMPUR, 8 Feb — Dolomite Corp Bhd, pemaju projek kontroversi Batu Caves Dolomite Park Avenue Condominium, menggesa kerajaan negeri Selangor supaya mengkaji semula keputusan untuk membatalkan projek itu. Syarikat itu menjelaskan bahawa setakat ini, tiada notis pembatalan diserahkan kepada pemaju. Pengarah Urusan Lew Choong Keong berkata syarikat kecewa dengan kerajaan negeri kerana membatalkan kelulusan pembangunan untuk projek itu tanpa sebarang notis atau rundingan dengan pemaju.    "Kami kecewa dengan keputusan Menteri Besar membatalkan projek berdasarkan sebab-sebab keselamatan dan perlindungan alam sekitar. "Sejak pengumuman oleh Menteri Besar Selangor berhubung pembatalan kelulusan pembangunan yang diberikan untuk projek ini, yang kami hanya mendapat tahu melalui laporan media, Majlis Perbandaran Selayang masih belum mengeluarkan perintah pembatalan bertulis kepada pemaju yang menyebabkan kami dalam keadaan terawang-awang. "Malangnya, dua usaha kami untuk bertemu dengan Menteri Besar untuk membentangkan penyelidikan mendalam dan penemuan kami, sebelum pengumuman keputusan itu, telah tidak dilayan," katanya pada sidang akhbar di sini hari ini. Projek kondominium mewah 29 tingkat, Dolomite Park Avenue itu menimbulkan kontroversi memandangkan kedudukannya yang berdekatan dengan kuil Batu Caves, tempat tumpuan penganut agama Hindu. Projek tersebut, dengan nilai pembangunan kasar sebanyak RM248 juta, juga menarik kritikan daripada banyak pihak mengenai kesan negatif pembangunan terhadap kuil Batu Caves itu dan patung Dewa Murugan, tertinggi di dunia, yang terletak di kaki bukit berkenaan. Lew berkata disebabkan kelewatan dan pembatalan perintah pembangunan baru-baru ini, kira-kira 100 pembeli membatalkan pembelian mereka, daripada jualan awal sebanyak 293 unit, dalam bulan pertama pelancaran projek itu. Beliau berkata kira-kira 100 pembeli, sementara itu, telah menandatangani perjanjian jual beli (SPA), dengan harapan isu ini akan diselesaikan. Pada taklimat berkenaan, syarikat perunding kejuruteraan bebas, G&P Geotechnics Sdn Bhd, mengklasifikasikan kes itu sebagai satu projek yang 'tidak membahayakan'. Pengarah Urusannya, Dr Gue See Sew, berkata kerja-kerja pembinaan bawah tanah dan cerucuk bagi projek itu akan mempunyai kesan yang sedikit sahaja, di mana tiada langkah pencegahan spesifik diperlukan. "Pemaju juga sedar mengenai isu-isu ini dan mereka hanya menggunakan mesin yang tidak bergetar untuk kerja-kerja seperti penggerudian dan sebagainya. "Ini tidak akan merosakkan patung Dewa Murugan yang kedudukannya 138 meter dari sempadan projek dan kepada kuil Batu Caves, yang terletak 170 meter darinya," katanya. — Bernama

You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Bahasa To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com

Klik GAMBAR Dibawah Untuk Lebih Info

Sumber Asal Berita :-

The Malaysian Insider :: Food

---

Aussie McDonald’s offers table service and plates for Big Macs Posted: 07 Feb 2013 08:01 PM PST Select locations in the UK offered 'McWaiters' who provided table service for customers last year. SYDNEY, Feb 8 — After allowing select restaurants in the land down under to change their signage and go by their Australian nickname Macca's, another Aussie restaurant is blazing its own trail by trialling table service and proper dishware. According to Good Food, a franchisee in the suburb of Warilla outside Sydney has been given the green light by the fast food giant to offer plates, cutlery and table service for its dine-in customers. The idea took hold from a simple gesture and a bit of special treatment from franchisees Glenn and Katia Dwarte, who began to serve their parents with proper dishware — an uncommon sight that drew the attention of other customers, reports Good Food. In addition to getting corporate approval from the bigwigs in Chicago, the fast food giant has also designed and produced a flyer to promote the service. For the next five weeks, between 5pm and 8pm EDT Mondays and Tuesdays, customers at the Warilla outlet who order a Grand Angus, Big Mac or Chicken Deluxe meal will have the option of restaurant-style service, their meal served on proper plates and accompanying cutlery — no trays needed. It's not the first time McDonald's has played with the idea of full-service fast food. As part of their efforts to create family-friendly restaurants last year, select locations in the UK offered 'McWaiters' who provided table service for customers. Meanwhile, restaurant-style, fast food service is just one of the innovations being piloted at a fast food chain in a bid to attract customer loyalty. Burger King, for instance, has embarked on an ever expanding delivery service in the US that brings their signature Whopper sandwiches to customers' doorsteps. — AFP/Relaxnews

German bin-divers get connected to wage war on food waste Posted: 07 Feb 2013 05:20 PM PST A supporter of the foodsharing movement searches food in a dumpster behind a supermarket in Berlin. — Reuters pic BERLIN, Feb 8 — Just past midnight behind a Berlin supermarket, two youngsters with torches strapped to their woollen hats sift through rubbish bins forfood that is still edible, load their bikes with bread, vegetables and chocolate Santas and cycle off into the darkness. It is not poverty that inspires a growing number of young Germans like 21-year-old student Benjamin Schmitt to forage for food in the garbage, but anger at loss and waste which the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates at one-third of allfood produced worldwide, every year, valued at about US$1 trillion (RM3 trillion). In environmentally aware, cost-conscious Germany, "foodsharing" is the latest fad, using the Internet to share food recovered from supermarket bins while it is still in good condition. "Dumpster-diving" for society's cast-offs is a fast-growing phenomenon among sub-cultures in Europe and the United States and "freegans" — vegans who do not believe in paying for food — have long been sifting through supermarket wheelie bins. But the "foodsharing" movement that has sprung up in cities like Cologne and Berlin brings efficiency and technical skills to the table in ways that make it uniquely German. More than 8,200 people across Germany have registered to share food on the www.foodsharing.de website in just seven weeks of existence, said Berlin organiser Raphael Fellmer. The website — which has an appropriately recycled-paper look — advises people where there are "baskets" and what is in them: organic sausages in Cologne or spaghetti and Darjeeling tea in Chemnitz. Members can log in or use a Smartphone app to see the address of nearby baskets or a pick-up time and place. They can then rate the transaction like ordinary online retailers. Vegetables pulled out from waste bins of an organic supermarket. — Reuters pic For people who cannot afford the Internet, Fellmer has set up the first of what he hopes will be many "hot spots" where food can be picked up anonymously: a fridge at a covered market in Berlin's Kreuzberg, where anyone can help themselves tofood. "I've come for some bread rolls, just a couple," said Frank, an unemployed 47-year-old, who was alerted to the location of a hoard of fresh bread on the website and called at Fellmer's house. Opening his rucksack, he helped himself from a bag of rolls that had been on sale at a nearby bakery till 7pm the previous evening. Taste the waste Throwing away food is a rich country phenomenon but a poor country's problem. Camelia Bucatariu, a policy expert on food waste at the FAO in Rome, said North American and European consumers waste 95-115kg of food per capita a year, compared to just 6-11kg in sub-Saharan Africa and southeast Asia. As economies develop, the level of food waste grows, said Bucatariu, who is Romanian. The foodsharers' argument that the tonnes of food wasted in Germany could feed people in poor countries is not as simplistic as it sounds: less waste means less drain on resources in the producer countries and less upward pressure on prices, she said. Raphael Fellmer, a supporter of the foodsharing movement has lunch with his daughter Alma Lucia and his partner Nieves Palmer Muntaner, with food cooked from vegetables collected from waste of an organic supermarket. — Reuters pic "It is not only wasting an apple, but wasting the resources embedded in that apple which may be produced outside of Europe," Bucatariu told Reuters. As well as economic damage there is the cost to the environment of using energy to grow food that ends up in a landfill site, emitting greenhouse gases like methane. The FAO is studying how to change such behaviour and whether changes are needed to legislation on the retailers' "date marks" differentiating "Best By" from "Use By" — the latter being the date when food may start to become a biological hazard. Fellmer is on a three-year-old "money strike": he does not earn or spend a euro and he, his wife and child eat only food that has been rescued from the bins. A rangy 29-year-old in a baggy blue jumper with spiky blond hair and a pointed beard, he is already something of a German media phenomenon. On a recent visit, a TV documentary crew and a reporter from a local daily were crowded into his one-room flat. He plonks on the table a packet of ginger biscuits for Christmas — from a batch of hundreds fished out of bins nearby — bearing a "use by" date which is still a month away. They taste fine, as do some red and gold-wrapped chocolate Santas. The "use by" dates infuriate the foodsharers, many of whom were first inspired by the 2011 film "Taste the Waste" by their guru Valentin Thurm. A supporter of the foodsharing movement holds a paprika found in a dumpster. — Reuters pic It documents waste ranging from farmers discarding tomatoes that are not red enough to bakeries burning the excess bread they made to keep the shelves looking full until closing time. Fellmer's friend Schmitt was brought up in a "very food-conscious vegetarian household". His mother is a food chemist who advises him on hygienic ways to eat and share food from plastic sacks that he admits are sometimes "mushy" under your fingers in the dark. Like Fellmer, he lives not in east Berlin, with its history of squats and communes, but in the leafy western suburb of Dahlem where he bin-dives under the noses of the German capital's most affluent residents. Foodsharing appeals to the "hipster" culture of Berlin with its tradition of anti-establishment protest, Schmitt said. The German crowdsourcing techniques could turn out to be "best practice" for reducing waste in other countries too, said the FAO's Bucatariu. "Solutions may vary according to the culture, the context and to what access to foodthere is," she said. "But each and every one of us can do something." — Reuters

You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Food To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com