Selasa, 1 April 2014

The Malaysian Insider :: Food

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The Malaysian Insider :: Food


Top 10 restaurants in the world: Elite Traveler

Posted: 01 Apr 2014 08:29 PM PDT

April 02, 2014

 French chef Daniel Boulud poses at the entrance at his flagship restaurant 'Daniel' in New York. – AFP pic, April 2, 2014. French chef Daniel Boulud poses at the entrance at his flagship restaurant 'Daniel' in New York. – AFP pic, April 2, 2014.In yet another international restaurant ranking, Chicago restaurant Alinea has taken the top spot and claimed the title of world's best dining destination for the third year in a row.

According to readers of Elite Traveller magazine, which targets a jet setting, affluent crowd, chef Grant Achatz's avant-garde, triple Michelin-starred restaurant is the best in class.

Unlike Restaurant magazine's World's 50 Best Restaurants awards ranking, which is compiled by a panel of expert food critics, journalists, chefs and restaurateurs, the Elite Top 100 is pitched as a more demographic ranking, with results based on diner feedback and votes.

Here are this year's top 10 restaurants as voted by readers of Elite Traveller magazine:

1. Alinea, Chicago, US

2. DANIEL, New York, US

3. Fat Duck, Bray, UK

4. Eleven Madison, New York, US

5. Le Bernardin, New York, US

6. El Celler Can Roca, Spain

7. Azurmendi, Spain

8. La Pergola, Rome, Italy

9. The Ledbury, London, UK

10. Osteria Francescana, Italy

– AFP/Relaxnews, April 2, 2014.

Alinea named world’s best restaurant by globetrotting diners

Posted: 01 Apr 2014 07:25 PM PDT

April 02, 2014

Alinea, voted world's best restaurant by affluent diners and travellers around the world. – AFP/Relaxnews pic, April 2, 2014. Alinea, voted world's best restaurant by affluent diners and travellers around the world. – AFP/Relaxnews pic, April 2, 2014. Chicago chef Grant Achatz has claimed the title of world's best restaurant for his eatery Alinea in yet another international ranking, this time as voted by affluent diners and travellers around the world.

For the third year in a row, the ranking compiled by Elite Traveler magazine bestowed the lofty title of world's best restaurant to Achatz's triple Michelin-starred Alinea.

The list is narrated by the publication's restaurant critic Andy Hayler, an influential food journalist known for having eaten at every three-starred restaurant in the world.

"There is no menu choice, just a 25-course tasting menu offering an innovative and exceptionally precise balance of flavours," he writes.
"Sudden bursts of theatricality include a dessert 'painted' onto the tablecloth by two chefs. Although molecular gastronomy is not my preferred style of food, it is impossible not to admire the sheer talent on display here. For me, Alinea compares favorably with elBulli or The Fat Duck."

Rounding out the top five restaurants are Daniel in New York, The Fat Duck in Bray, England, Eleven Madison Park and Le Bernardin, both in New York.

France has also emerged as the world's best dining destination, claiming the most addresses on the top 100 list, with 17 restaurants.

The highest ranked French restaurant is Pierre Gagnaire (17). Eight of the 17 restaurants are in Paris.

Meanwhile, the title of chef of the year for 2014 went to The Fat Duck's Heston Blumenthal, who has remained in the media spotlight over the last few weeks for a string of developments out of his camp.
In addition to revealing more details on his new Heathrow Airport outpost, The Perfectionists' Café, this week Blumenthal also announced plans to relocate his staff to the Crown hotel in Melbourne, Australia next year for six months.

Unlike other restaurant rankings – notably the World's 50 Best Restaurants awards, organized by trade publication Restaurant magazine – the Elite 100 Restaurants 2014 are compiled using votes and feedback by diners.

The World's 50 Best Restaurants are tallied by an international panel of experts including food critics, chefs, restaurateurs, journalists and lifestyle experts.

Topping their list last year was El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Spain. Elite Traveler ranks them sixth. – AFP/Relaxnews, April 2, 2014.

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The Malaysian Insider :: Sports

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The Malaysian Insider :: Sports


PSG improved but Chelsea still favourites, says Ibra

Posted: 01 Apr 2014 07:47 AM PDT

April 01, 2014

Paris St Germain are stronger than last season and he is in the best shape of his life, yet Zlatan Ibrahimovic (pic) says experienced Chelsea are the hot favourites in the Champions League quarter-final against the French champions.

PSG, who were knocked out by Barcelona in the last four last year, have overcome weaker opponents so far this season and 2012 champions Chelsea are a big test of their European credentials.

"We are beginners in everything we do, while Chelsea have had a project for 10 years," Sweden striker Ibrahimovic, who has scored 10 goals in Europe's premier competition this season, told a news conference at the Parc des Princes.

"Chelsea are the super favourites.

"Experience is an advantage for the one who has it. Chelsea has more experience in the Champions League. We're in the position Chelsea were eight or nine years ago."

Chelsea started their transformation into continental powerhouses when Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich took over the club in 2003, a move PSG copied in 2012 when Qatar Sports Investments took charge and lured world-class players like Ibrahimovic and Brazil centre back Thiago Silva.

PSG, however, are learning fast.

"The big difference (with last year) is that it is my second year, as well as my team mates'. We know each other better," said Ibrahimovic.

"We are better today than one year ago collectively."

Coach Laurent Blanc called for patience.

"Things have been going very fast, but experience of the Champions League requires time," he said.

"Manchester City is an example, but we can see they're not in the quarter-finals. At European level, in spite of our ambitions and our means, we're one of the two clubs with the least experience," he added, referring to Atletico Madrid who face Barcelona.

Apart from Atletico and PSG, all the quarter-finalists (Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund and Manchester United) have won the Champions League.

Wednesday's first leg at the Parc des Princes will provide PSG with the opportunity to prove their worth.

"It's with the kind of games like tomorrow's that we can make a statement," said Ibrahimovic. "It's a big test for us to see where we stand."

The game will be a tactical battle between Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho and Blanc, with the Blues likely to look to hit PSG on the break.

"It's two different styles. We're going to stick to our philosophy," Blanc said.

"If we start getting scared of being hit on the break, we'll play against nature and it's not going to do us any good.

"Tomorrow, we should avoid conceding goals. We know there are going to be counter-attacks and we'll get ready for that, but we're not going to just defend."

That would be a waste of Ibrahimovic's talent.

"I feel good. It has been my best season. Mentally and physically, I feel very strong," the Swede said.  – Reuters, April 1, 2014.

No return to left-back for Bale, insists Ancelotti

Posted: 01 Apr 2014 07:34 AM PDT

April 01, 2014

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has shot down any suggestions Gareth Bale (pic) could return to play at left-back after Brazilian international Marcelo was ruled out for a couple of weeks by a hamstring injury.

Marcelo will miss both legs of Real's Champions League quarter-final against Borussia Dortmund, with the first leg taking place at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday night.

Bale began his career at left-back at Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur, before twice becoming Premier League Player of the Year from a more advanced position.

Ancelotti insisted that the Welshman would maintain his place on the right side of Real's attack.

"Bale at full-back is not an option for us," he told his pre-match press conference ahead of Dortmund's visit to the Spanish capital.

"We have a problem with Marcelo, but we can cover his absence well with (Fabio) Coentrao. He is fresh and will replace him without any problems."

Bale was on target twice in Real's 5-0 win over Rayo Vallecano on Saturday as Ancelotti's men bounced back from consecutive defeats to Barcelona and Sevilla.

That double took the former Tottenham man's tally for the season to 16, but he has been criticised for his lack of impact in Real's biggest games.

Ancelotti admitted that Bale can be inconsistent, but defended the player's attitude and claimed that was to be expected given the type of player he is and the position he plays in.

"It is true he is intermittent, but that is a characteristic of all forwards, especially very quick players.

"Players with that speed can't have a continuous influence like other players with different characteristics like Xabi Alonso.

"His inconsistency is a physical characteristic of the player, like Cristiano (Ronaldo) or (Karim) Benzema. It is not an attitude problem."

Real midfielder and Bale's former Tottenham teammate Luka Modric also believes the 24-year-old has made a fine contribution in his first season with Madrid.

"He is doing very well. He is helping the team a lot and has scored a lot of goals and given many assists.

"He is a very important player for us. I don't think he has been selfish. I think he has given more assists than anyone in La Liga, which says it all."

Dortmund had the upper hand over Madrid in four meetings in total in last season's Champions League, but most notably in the semi-finals as they progressed 4-3 on aggregate.

Robert Lewandowski scored all four of his side's goals in the first leg, but the Polish international will be missing at the Bernabeu due to suspension, whilst Dortmund are without five other key first-team players through injury.

The speedy Pierre-Emerick Aubemayang is expected to replace Lewandowski up front and Ancelotti is wary of Dortmund's threat on the counter-attack.

"Borussia Dortmund are very dangerous on the counter-attack and it is clear we have to play an offensive match because we need a positive result, but we need to be careful with them on the break.

"Aubemayang is a player I know well because he was in the Milan youth team when I was there. He is having a fantastic career.

"The absence of Lewandowski is important, but I think they can cover that up well with Aubemayang." – AFP, April 1, 2014.

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The Malaysian Insider :: Features

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Japanese families torn as return to Fukushima ‘hot zone’ begins

Posted: 01 Apr 2014 02:22 AM PDT

April 01, 2014

Children look through windows at their playground as the tsunami-crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant operator TEPCO volunteers remove ice and snow and levelled dirt at a Miyakoji child care centre. While outside the evacuation zone, children were limited to 30 minutes outside a day. It is still undecided how long they will be allowed outside in Miyakoji. – Reuters, April 1, 2014.Children look through windows at their playground as the tsunami-crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant operator TEPCO volunteers remove ice and snow and levelled dirt at a Miyakoji child care centre. While outside the evacuation zone, children were limited to 30 minutes outside a day. It is still undecided how long they will be allowed outside in Miyakoji. – Reuters, April 1, 2014.People in Japan on Tuesday began their homecoming after three years to a small area evacuated after the Fukushima disaster, but families are divided as worries about radiation and poor job prospects have kept many away.

The reopening of the Miyakoji area of Tamura, a city 220 km northeast of Tokyo and inland from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear station, marks a tiny step for Japan as it attempts to recover from the 2011 disasters.

But the event is a major milestone for the 357 registered residents of the district. The trickle of returnees highlights both people's desire to return to the forested hamlet and the difficulty of returning to normal.

"Many of our friends and neighbours won't come back," said Kimiko Koyama, 69, speaking on her return to the large farmhouse she had occupied for 50 years, while her husband Toshio, 72, tried to fix a television antenna on the roof.

"There are no jobs. It's inconvenient and young people are scared of radiation," she said. "My daughter won't bring our grandsons here because of the radiation."

Miyakoji, set amid rolling hills and rice paddies, has been off-limits to most residents since March 2011, when the government ordered evacuation after a devastating earthquake and tsunami triggered a triple meltdown at the power plant on the Pacific coast about 20 km away.

"The evacuation period was long, but I am happy that we can finally return home," said Tamura Mayor Yukei Tomitsuka. "For Tamura and its families, this is a fresh start."

It is the first area in the 20-km (12-mile) Fukushima exclusion zone to be reopened as decontamination was completed, paving the way for more towns to be resettled.

The government had planned to lift the Miyakoji ban in late October, but opposition by residents delayed the move.

A few cars streamed into the town, where several TV news vans were set up. Some elderly women sat by the roadside, but there were no children or families in sight outside.

Schools open later this week, but seven children came to the local pre-school and four older children were also dropped off, as volunteers from nuclear plant operator Tokyo Electric Power removed ice and snow and levelled the playground.

Children in temporary homes outside the evacuation zone got 30 minutes to play outdoors each day, but how long they will spend outdoors now they are home has yet to be decided.

"We explain to them, 'There are bad germs outside and if you stay out too long, the germs will get inside your body,'" one teacher said. "Most of them understand."

The 2011 crisis forced more than 160,000 people from towns near the Fukushima plant to evacuate. About a third still live in temporary housing across the prefecture, their lives on hold as they wait for Japan to finish decontamination.

Kitaro Saito, who is in his early 60s, will stay outside Miyakoji, despite wanting to return to his large hillside house there, because he thinks the government is using residents as guinea pigs to test if more people can return home.

"Relatives are arguing over what to do," he said, warming his hands outside his temporary home among rows of other one-room trailers. "The town will be broken up."

Japan's US$30 billion (RM97.8 billion) cleanup of radioactive fallout around Fukushima is behind schedule and not expected to achieve the long-term radiation reduction goal – 1 millisievert per year - set by the previous administration.

Across Fukushima prefecture, hundreds of workers are still scraping top soil, cutting leaves and branches off trees and hosing down houses to lower radiation levels.

Radiation levels in Miyakoji ranged from 0.11 microsieverts to 0.48 microsieverts per hour, February readings show.

That was higher than the average 0.034 microsieverts per hour measured in central Tokyo on Monday, but comparable to background radiation of about 0.2 microsieverts per hour in Denver. A commercial flight between Tokyo and New York exposes passengers to about 10 microsieverts per hour.

People exposed to radiation typically have a higher chance of getting cancer if doses exceed 100 millisieverts (100,000 microsieverts), the World Health Organisation says.

Tuesday's homecoming is particularly difficult, as many residents worked at the Fukushima plant before the disaster and depended on Tepco for stable jobs.

"It was the only job out here and we were grateful," said Kimiko Koyama. "We worked hard to feed our three daughters. We worked and we built our life here."

The Koyamas, who helped to build the very nuclear reactors that have displaced them from their homes, are letting the city keep radioactive debris in an empty lot on their land in a bid to hasten the cleanup. – Reuters, April 1, 2014.

Did microbes cause mass extinction?

Posted: 31 Mar 2014 09:43 PM PDT

April 01, 2014

Volcanoes and asteroids are sometimes blamed for wiping out nearly all life on Earth 252 million years ago, but US research suggested a more small-time criminal – microbes.

These microbes, known as Methanosarcina, bloomed in the ocean on a massive and sudden scale, spewing methane into the atmosphere and causing dramatic changes in the chemistry of the oceans and the Earth's climate, according to the new theory put forth by scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and colleagues in China.

Scientists studied sediments in rock formations in south China, seeking to explain why the end Permian extinction happened and what caused the largest of five major death events in Earth's history to reap so much destruction over tens of thousands of years.

Volcanic eruptions on their own could not explain why the die-off happened so fast, but they may have released extra nickel into the environment, which fed the microbes, said MIT researcher Gregory Fournier.

"A rapid initial injection of carbon dioxide from a volcano would be followed by a gradual decrease," said Fournier.

"Instead, we see the opposite, a rapid, continuing increase," he added.

"That suggests a microbial expansion."

Microbes can increase carbon production exponentially, which might explain the speed and potency of the mass extinction, he said.

The research, funded by the US space agency NASA, the National Science Foundation, the Natural Science Foundation of China and the National Basic Research Program of China, appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a peer reviewed US journal. – AFP, April 1, 2014.

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The Malaysian Insider :: Bahasa

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Spekulasi tidak akan jadikan penerbangan lebih selamat, kata IATA

Posted: 01 Apr 2014 03:16 AM PDT

April 01, 2014

Tiada siapa pun harus membuat kesimpulan tentang sebab-sebab bagi kehilangan pesawat malang MH370 milik Malaysia Airlines pada 8 Mac lalu, sebelum penyiasatan selesai, kata Ketua Pengarah merangkap Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif Persatuan Pengangkutan Udara (IATA), Tony Tyler (gambar).

"Spekulasi tidak akan menjadikan penerbangan lebih selamat. Bagaimanapun, ada dua perkara – pengesanan pesawat dan data penumpang – yang jelas merupakan cabaran yang perlu diatasi," kata Tyler pada Persidangan OPS IATA yang berlangsung di Kuala Lumpur hari ini.

Beliau berkata peristiwa MH370 itu telah menyerlahkan betapa perlunya ditambah baik pengesanan pesawat dalam penerbangan.

"Dalam dunia yang setiap pergerakan kita boleh dikesan, memang sukar untuk dipercayai bahawa sebuah pesawat boleh terus hilang, manakala data-data penerbangan dan perakam suara kokpit pula begitu sukar ditemui," kata Tyler.

Pesawat MH370, yang membawa 227 penumpang dan 12 anak kapal, berlepas dari Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa KL pada pukul 12.41 pagi 8 Mac dan hilang daripada skrin radar kira-kira sejam kemudian ketika berada di ruang udara Laut China Selatan.

"Air France 447 mengalami isu yang serupa beberapa tahun lalu dan beberapa kemajuan telah dicapai. Tetapi ini mesti dipercepatkan. Kita tidak boleh biarkan satu lagi pesawat ghaib begitu sahaja," katanya.

Tyler berkata IATA akan menubuhkan sebuah pasukan petugas yang akan melibatkan penyertaan Pertubuhan Penerbangan Awam Antarabangsa untuk memastikan usaha yang dilakukan diselaraskan dengan baik.

Kumpulan ini akan mengkaji semua pilihan yang ada bagi pengesanan pesawat komersial berdasarkan ukuran pelaksanaan, pelaburan, masa dan tahap kesukaran untuk mencapai hasil yang dikehendaki.

"Kumpulan ini akan melaporkan kesimpulannya menjelang Disember 2014, dan ini mencerminkan perlunya tindakan segera dan analisis yang teliti.

Sementara itu, semasa sidang akhbar itu, Tyler berkata pakar-pakar akan juga mengkaji keperluan mengadakan penstriman data-data secara langsung dari pesawat dalam penerbangan.

"Kini sudah ada teknologi untuk melakukannya, tetapi belum jelas sejauh mana ia praktikal," katanya.

Mengenai data penumpang, Tyler berkata industri ini telah melakukan usaha dan mengeluarkan perbelanjaan, yang besar untuk memberikan maklumat yang boleh dipercayai tentang penumpang kepada kerajaan sebelum sesebuah pesawat berlepas.

"Kerajaan harus menggunakannya bagi kawalan sempadan. Kami bukan pegawal sempadan atau anggota polis. Kerajaan perlu mengkaji proses masing-masing untuk mengesahkan dan menggunakan data-data ini, seperti pangkalan data pasport dicuri atau hilang Interpol," katanya. – Bernama, 1 April, 2014.

Enakmen anti-Syiah dikemas kini, kata mufti Kedah

Posted: 01 Apr 2014 02:52 AM PDT

April 01, 2014

Enakmen anti-Syiah yang diluluskan oleh kerajaan negeri Kedah sebelum ini akan dikemas kini bagi membolehkan tindakan undang-undang diambil terhadap pengikut dan penyebar fahaman Syiah.

Mufti Kedah Datuk Syeikh Muhamad Baderudin Ahmad (gambar) berkata enakmen sedia ada terlalu umum sehingga menyebabkan penguat kuasa Majlis Agama Islam Kedah (Maik) gagal melaksanakan penguatkuasaan terhadap pengikut fahaman itu.

"Enakmen yang sedia ada longgar dan menyebabkan pengikut dan penyebar fahaman Syiah boleh terlepas daripada tindakan undang-undang," katanya hari ini.

Beliau berkata penasihat undang-undang Syariah negeri dan Maik turut mendapatkan pandangan daripada negeri Selangor, Perak dan Pulau Pinang sebagai rujukan bagi memperkemaskan lagi enakmen itu.

Syeikh Baderudin juga berkata pengikut Syiah akan berkumpul di lapan tempat yang dikenali sebagai Hauzah (sekolah) termasuk di Sungai Petani, Alor Setar, Jitra dan Pendang.

Sementara itu di majlis yang sama Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Pendidikan, Pengangkutan dan Kerja Raya, Datuk Tajul Urus Mat Zain berkata bahaya fahaman Syiah perlu didedahkan kepada pelajar sejak di bangku sekolah.

Katanya, terdapat laporan bahawa segelintir guru sekolah menyebarkan fahaman itu menerusi pembelajaran tanpa disedari oleh orang lain dan menjadi ikutan pelajar.

"Saya terima maklumat ada guru tabika yang sebarkan fahaman Syiah kepada pelajarnya dan ini amat membimbangkan," katanya.

Tajul Urus berkata bagi membendung masalah itu, Kolej Universiti Insaniah telah mengambil inisiatif dengan mengedarkan 2,000 buku kepada pelajar sekolah serta masjid dan berharap mereka memperoleh maklumat yang tepat mengenai Syiah. – Bernama, 1 April, 2014.

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The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion

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Horror on the pitch, from knocks to crocks

Posted: 31 Mar 2014 05:16 PM PDT

April 01, 2014

As a player, Shebby Singh won everything there was to win in Malaysia football, and represented the country on the international stage.

You know it is an absolute horror of a weekend when you have a goalkeeper with a broken leg. It gets worse when another goalkeeper takes a bang on the head and has to be substituted.

The troubles are compounded further when your star-studded home state team struggle at home and drop two valuable points.

The icing on the cake?

When your favourite English team has players who are amateurish to a degree which would make even the most seasoned Sunday League footballer blush.

Hazards of the Super League

Sasikumar, who has been absolutely brilliant in goal for Johor Darul Takzim 2 in the Premier League, had to be stretchered off after 15 minutes away in Sabah.

Sasi has been enjoying a new lease of life since Rajko Magic took over the reins and turned around the team's fortunes. His absence leaves a big hole in defence which Rajko would need to address urgently.

On Saturday, Izham Tarmizi of Johor Darul Takzim 1 took another knock on his head and he, too, was stretchered off.

Izham had been on the receiving end of a completely stupid and brainless challenge in the previous clash against Kelantan, and the Sarawak forward Rashid Aya compounded matters at Larkin Stadium.

JDT 1 struggled for long periods after the visiting Crocs had taken the lead. Playing on the counterattack, Robert Albert's boys looked in control until Luciano Figueroa slotted in the equaliser.

All square at halftime, the match fizzled out until Pablo Aimar came on as a substitute and injected guile and life into a fast fading JDT 1.

Alas, it was to no avail as the players clearly looked disinterested while Jumping Jack Jimenez bounced up and down on the sidelines.

Golden rule for managers – do not coach during a game! Clear instructions are passed on in training, not in the middle of an intense match of football with the noise propagated by thousands of fans screaming themselves hoarse.

All the tactical work should be done in preparation of a fixture, bar special circumstances, that is, a sending off.

It is no surprise to see Pahang sitting pretty on top of the Super League table. They look far stronger than any other team in Malaysia.

Their strike force of Matias Conti and the ever powerful Dickson Nwakaeme bring different skill sets. The positional play of Conti and the bludgeoning strength of Nwakaeme make them the most dangerous strike force in the country.

The local striker to impress this season is Safee Sali. He does not start too many games but looks sharp and precise coming on as a sub. Maybe there is a way of starting with both Safee and Figueroa for JDT 1?

Burning down the house

Over in England, David Moyes and Tim Sherwood share similar fortunes in terms of current league standings.

However, they have arrived at this point through vastly different means.

There is a similarity in that both Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur have been poor this season.

While Moyes has managed to reduce the defending Premier League champions to being consistently average, however, the same cannot be said of Tim Sherwood at Spurs.

The man in charge is responsible. Full stop. But to be fair to Sherwood, it is more of trying to make sense of the players signed by the previous manager in charge (for hefty sums, I might add).

While the Manchester United defenders perform below themselves every week, the Spurs defenders have become the oppositions' best players.

Exhibit A: the poor defending of Jan Vertonghen. Although Christian Eriksen is getting slaughtered in the British press for "not tracking back", it is the responsibility of the central defender to provide cover whenever the ball breaks past the fullbacks.

Then the lumbering Michael Dawson stops thinking with his horrendous pass to Younes Kaboul. Game over!

Can anyone blame Sherwood for blowing his top when witnessing schoolboy errors?

There are certain standards set and demanded of professional footballers on the pitch, but individual errors cost too much.

Spurs are doomed because they have compiled too many sub-standard footballers at crazy prices. Yes, they were suckered by Andre Villas Boas.

It also must be said that by no means is Christian Eriksen a wide player! This is squarely on Sherwood's shoulders.

Unstoppable Suarez

Credit to Liverpool as they march on to quite possibly their first ever English Premier League title. They look fresh as a daisy every time they play, thanks to no European football.

And the best striker in the world is finding it too easy in the "toughest" league in the world, allegedly.

Luis Suarez has bamboozled defenders this season and could well have been playing on one leg. That is how good he has been and even then that handicap might not be enough for the opposition.

One game at a time now for Brendan Rodgers, as Manchester City's visit to Anfield in mid-April is shaping up to be a title decider. Definitely a match not to miss.

Here's to a better week. – April 1, 2014.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.

MH370: Penantian suatu siksaan

Posted: 31 Mar 2014 04:51 PM PDT

April 01, 2014

Shukur mempunyai lebih 30 tahun pengalaman sebagai wartawan dan bekerja dengan pelbagai media. Beliau kini pencen tetapi menjadi pemerhati politik yang tegar.

Kini masuk minggu ketiga kehilangan pesawat MH370, yang membawa 227 penumpang termasuk 152 warga China dan 12 kru. Ia hilang pada pagi 8 Mac kira-kira sejam setelah berlepas dari Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Kuala Lumpur pada pukul 12.41 tengah malam.

Pesawat itu sepatutnya mendarat di Beijing pada 6.30 pagi hari yang sama. Perdana Menteri, Datuk Najib Razak kemudian mengumumkan pada 24 Mac, 17 hari selepas pesawat itu hilang, bahawa penerbangan MH370 "berakhir di selatan Lautan Hindi".

Maka sejak kehilangan pesawat itu, ramalan demi ramalan, teori demi teori, agakan, jangkaan diperkatakan diseluruh dunia, malah Raja Bomoh dan pasukannya turut muncul di KLIA untuk meneropong "di mana kapal terbang itu".

Adalah ia berada di tujuh petala langit, atau tujuh petala bumi. Pesawat itu tidak juga dilihat baik di alam ghaib, mahupun di alam nyata. Jadi kemanakah gerangan hilangnya.

Kini 24 negara dengan segala peralatan dan ilmu teknologi modenya sedang mencari pesawat di Lautan Hindi, namun belum juga berjumpa.

Kehilangan pesawat itu memang sungguh menggemparkan dan menambah gempar lagi dengan kehadiran bomoh tersebut, sehingga dua isu serentak diperkatakan di seluruh dunia – MH370 yang hilang dan bomoh yang meneropongnya. Ini suatu kegemparan luar biasa.

Andai kata, melalui teropong bomoh tadi ditakdirkan dapat dilihat di mana pesawat MAS itu berada, gambarkanlah bagaimanakah gamatnya dunia. Maknanya bukan saja pesawat MH370 itu menarik perhatian dunia, bahkan juga "keajaiban" teropong bomoh itu menjadi perhatian. Ini adalah episod yang sangat lucu dan menggemparkan.

Tetapi ada episod lain yang sangat sedih dan mengecewakan dalam pencarian pesawat tersebut, apabila fitnah besar perlaku pula, iaitu mengenai laporan Akhbar Daily Mail di London kononnya juruterbang MH370 mengalami gangguan fikiran beberapa minggu sebelum pesawat itu hilang pada 8 Mac.

Ahli keluarga dan sahabat handai juruterbang itu, Kapten Zaharie Ahmad Shah sangat kesal dan marah atas laporan palsu tersebut.

Akhbar tabloid Britain itu sebelum ini melaporkan Kapten Zaharie yang bekerja dengan Malaysia Airlines (MAS) selama 33 tahun dan pernah menerbangkan pesawat selama lebih 18,000 jam mempunyai masalah peribadi dan kononnya adalah penyokong fanatik Ketua Pembangkang, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Juruterbang MAS itu disiasat oleh pihak berkuasa Malaysia selepas pesawat membawa 239 penumpang hilang tetapi Biro Siasatan Persekutuan (FBI) Amerika Syarikat mendapati Kapten Zaharie tidak boleh dikaitkan dengan kehilangan pesawat itu selepas tidak menemui apa-apa yang pelik terhadap simulator penerbangan Boeing 777 itu.

Anak juruterbang itu, Aishah Zaharie di akaun Facebooknya kelmarin menyatakan dengan marah: "Wahai Daily Mail hentikanlah membuat drama walaupun anda sangat pandai membuat cerita dan skrip yang tidak benar. Saya tidak akan maafkan anda," tulis anak juruterbang itu, Aishah Zaharie di akaun Facebooknya malam tadi.

Sudah lebih tiga minggu sejak pesawat MH370 hilang dengan 239 penumpang termasuk 12 anak kapal, dan penyiasat di Malaysia mengesyaki pesawat mungkin melencong daripada laluan asalnya.

Satu emel yang dihantar kepada The Malaysian Insider menafikan ahli keluarga juruterbang itu bercakap kepada Daily Mail. Selain daripada anak lelaki Kapten Zaharie, tiada sesiapa daripada keluarganya yang pernah bercakap kepada media.

Lebih malang lagi ada pula pihak tertentu mengeksploitasi cerita fitnah ini dengan bumbu elemen politik jahat. Maka dalam suasana yang sangat sedih dan cemas ini, ada pula pihak yang mengambil kesempatan mengalihkan perhatian kepada politik jahat dan ini sebuah kejahatan yang tiada taranya.

Kini 26 negara dengan segala peralatan teknologi canggihnya sedang mencari dan mencari pesawat tersebut di Lautan Hindi, di hujung kira-kira 2,000 kilometer dari Perth, Australia – sebuah kawasan terpencil.

Tetapi hingga kini pesawat itu, atau serpihannya yang sebenar belum juga dijumpai.

Komitmen 26 negara itu memang sangat disanjung. Bayangkan, khabarnya kini berada di kawasan tempat pencarian pesawat itu, iaitu lautan bergelora dengan gelombang demikian besar dan ribut taufan.

Namun mereka meneruskan juga pencarian, setelah menghentikannya beberapa hari kerana lautan yang bergelora itu. Mereka nampaknya tidak berputus asa.

Peristiwa ini kelihatan menyatukan warga dunia, merentasi benua, kaum, agama dan sebagainya. Kesedihan menyatukan hati-hati manusia, mereka berkongsi bersama atas kesedihan ini dan ini adalah manifestasi ekuasaan dan kasih sayang Allah.

Tetapi suatu hal yang sangat mendukacitakan, bahawa dari 26 buah negara yang menghantar kapalnya dengan peralatan yang amat canggih untuk mencari pesawat itu, sangat kecil jumlah kapal pencari dari negara OIC, kecuali dari negara Arab Saudi, Indonesia dan Brunei. Adakah mereka tidak mempunyai kemampuan ini?

Sedangkan seperti diketahui negara Arab telah membelanjakan ratusan bilion USD untuk kelelngkapan pertahanannya dengan pelbagai senjata cangggih, tetapi tidak ada satupun jet atau kapal laut mereka yang menyertai misi pencarian MH370 itu.

Rupanya belanja pertahanan yang sangat besar itu lebih banyak digunakan oleh kerajaan Arab bagi melengkapkan senjata moden mereka untuk membunuh rakyat mereka sendiri, seperti yang berlaku di Mesir, Libya, Syria, Iraq dan negara Arab yang lain.

Inilah kelemahan yang tiada taranya dan memalukan bagi dunia Islam yang sepatutnya menginsafkan mereka. Walaupun berlaku Arab Spring di negara Arab setahun yang lalu, tetapi perubahan belum juga kelihatan.

Sementara itu, keluarga dan sanak saudara penumpang dan anak kapal MH370 itu terus berdoa dan mengharap semoga penumpang dan anak kapal masih dalam keadaan selamat.

Baru-baru ini saya menghadiri majlis bacaan Yasin, doa selamat dan solat hajat di sebuah surau berdekatan rumah saya di Subang Jaya, jamaah mendoakan semoga penumpang pesawat itu semuanya masih selamat.

Ayah salah seorang pramugara pesawat yang hilang itu, Mohd Hasnan, jiran saya, kelihatan tenang walaupun saya tahu hatinya diselubungi duka mengenangkan nasib anaknya, pramugara Hazrin. Anaknya itu menyertai MAS sejak 12 tahun lalu dan tinggal di Shah Alam.

Isteri Hazrin kelihatan tenang dan saya menyatakan rasa simpati kepadanya dan mengharapkannya kepadanya supaya terus berdoa dan bersabar. Tetapi lebih menyayat hati lagi, anak perempuannya yang berumur lima tahun, sentiasa menyebut nama ayahnya.

Kini umat Islam mengadakan bacaan Yassin, solat hajat dan mendoakan penumpang dan anak kapal tersebut semoga selamat. Penganut agama lain juga terus berdoa.

Penantian memang suatu siksaan, namun dengan segala kesabaran dan doa, maka penantian itu bukan lagi suatu seksaan, tetapi suatu ujian daripada Allah Maha Pengasih dan Penyayang. – 1 April, 2014.

* Ini adalah pendapat peribadi penulis dan tidak semestinya mewakili pandangan The Malaysian Insider.

Kredit: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com
 

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