Commentary: Chronicles of a Chronic Caribbean Chronicler: Haiti's lifelong tragedy continues to unfold

The US Department of Homeland Security has been advised to end, by January 2018, temporary protection enjoyed by over 50,000 Haitians originally allowed to seek refuge in the USA following a series of natural disasters that effectively crippled the small and impoverished Caribbean country over the past 12 years.

Haiti
Country in the Caribbean

Haiti is a Caribbean country that shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic to its east. Though it’s still recovering from a 2010 earthquake, many of Haiti's landmarks dating to the early 19th century remain intact. These include Citadelle la Ferrière, a mountaintop fortress, and the nearby ruins of Sans-Souci Palace, the baroque former royal home of King Henry I.
Capital: Port-au-Prince

President: Jovenel Moïse
Population: 10.71 million (2015) World Bank
Currency: Haitian gourde
Official languages: French, Haitian Creole French


Earl Bousquet is Editor-at-Large of The Diplomatic Courier and author of the regional newspaper column entitled Chronicles of a Chronic Caribbean Chronicler
James McCament, acting director of the US Citizenship and Immigration Service, in a letter to US Homeland Security Secretary James Kelly at the end of April 2017, concluded that conditions in Haiti have improved enough to end the “temporary protection status” specially afforded the thousands of Haitians fleeing poverty and devastation.

At the same time, also claiming the security situation has improved after a long presence in Haiti, United Nations (UN) peacekeeping troops are also being withdrawn (as of September 2017). 

The two events may seem unrelated. But, put together, they add to the grief and anxiety affecting millions in what is still the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere.

Hundreds of thousands of Haitians fear that if the UN troops actually leave without addressing their demands for justice, the world’s largest multinational organization may just walk away scot-free of responsibility for two major disasters that took too many lives to be officially excused.

The recommended deportations from the USA will also only add to the complex situation facing the Haitian government and its impoverished vast majority. 

But to fully understand the gravity of the unfolding situation, Haiti’s history must be briefly revisited.

French-speaking Haiti (27,700 square kilometers) is small country of just under ten million people that shares the island of Hispaniola with Spanish-speaking Dominican Republic (48,671 square kilometers).

However, Haiti is best known as the world’s first black republic where slaves, led by Toussint L’Ouverture, rebelled in 1791 and proudly declared their independence in 1804. 

Not even in Africa had a free nation yet been born and the humiliated slave masters enlisted the support of the French government to make the former slaves pay dearly for their freedom.

In 1825, France demanded 150 million gold francs to recognize Haiti’s independence, which sum was later reduced to 90 million -- the same amount demanded in compensation by the former slave masters.

Historians and economists agree that this high cost paid by Haiti to France over 122 years (payments continued until 1947) is largely responsible for the country having been anchored in poverty for almost all of its 213 years of nationhood.

In 2003, Haitian president Jean Bertrand Aristide called on Paris to return the 90 million gold francs, by then estimated at US$21 billion. Soon after, however, he was swiftly and secretly taken hostage by US and French forces and exiled to South Africa.

French President Francois Hollande, in May 2015, ahead of a visit to Port au Prince, said Paris would repay its debt to the island – only to later retract, saying he only meant repaying France’s “moral debt” to Haiti.

Poverty has dogged Haiti for over two centuries. But as if that wasn’t enough, the poor nation has also had its unfair share of costly natural and manmade disasters.

In 2004, Hurricane Jeanne killed 3,000 people; and in 2016 Hurricane Matthew took over 1,000 lives, destroyed 20,000 houses and displaced over 1.4 million people. But by far the worst was the January 10, 2010, earthquake (of 7.3 magnitude) that took over 220,000 lives, injured 300,000 and left 1.5 million homeless.

A health crisis of catastrophic proportions also hit Haiti in 2010, after UN peacekeepers dumped cholera-infected sewage into a river, resulting in 9,300 deaths and over 800,000 people affected.

Today, the UN stands twice accused in Haiti: facing demands for legal recourse from families of cholera victims, as well as victims of later alleged sex crimes by peacekeepers involving use of food as a weapon for sex. 

Successive UN secretaries general have fought hard to shirk organizational responsibility and save the world body facing court claims for compensation for death and other damages caused by its troops in Haiti. 

Peacekeepers are shielded from legal claims by UN immunity from prosecution, a policy applied to Haiti under previous secretary general Ban Ki Moon and continued under his successor Antonio Gutteres. 

The UN acknowledges awareness of the problems cause by its troops in Haiti, but simply refuses to allow its staff to cooperate with investigators. Now there’s the strong possibility that victims will not have their cries for justice heard.

The $346 million UN Haiti mission (MINUSTAH) is one of the longest-running in the world, but the Security Council voted unanimously April 13 to end its 13-year stay there in just six months.

Haitians indeed feel abandoned today, with the world’s attention everywhere else.
Its cholera victims and others seeking justice, as well as those now being lined-up for deportation from the USA, continue to pray that official UN diplomatic immunity will eventually be revoked sooner than later; and that the US immigration officials will be dissuaded from deporting 50,000 Haitian refugees, returning them to the poverty and misery from which they thought they had been rescued.

Is this the end of the Fifth Republic in Venezuela?

Cartoon by Eduardo Sanabria (Edo). Used with permission

CARACAS, Venezuela -- After a month of continuous protests against President Nicolás Maduro's government, his announcement on May 1, 2017, calling for a “popular constitutional assembly” that would replace the country's current constitution -- approved in 1999 as the foundation stone of Hugo Chávez's mandate -- was not well received by diverse sectors of Venezuelan society.

Moisés González, who considers himself a Chavista, wrote for the online news site Aporrea, affirming that the call opens two roads: the elimination of the so-called “Bolivarian Constitution”, or the search of “formulas that violate the democratic principles that kept the Revolution legitimate”. González pointed out that:

“Both options put the continuity of the democratic process started by Chávez in 1999 against the wall. But options limit the possibility for the left to reorganize and purge its members for a true recovery of the Bolivarian Revolution. Both options put the country on a silver platter for reactionary politics. Both options could have been avoided with the publication of an election timetable and the acceptance of elections, and all the other democratic possibilities that the best Constitution in the continent offers.”

Country in South America
Venezuela is a country on the northern coast of South America with diverse natural attractions. Along its Caribbean coast are tropical resort islands including Isla de Margarita and the Los Roques archipelago. To the northwest are the Andes Mountains and the colonial town of Mérida, a base for visiting Sierra Nevada National Park. Caracas, the capital, is to the north.
Capital: Caracas
Capital and largest city: Caracas; 10°30′N 66°55′W / 10.500°N 66.917°W
President: Nicolás Maduro
Currency: Venezuelan bolívar

Population: 31.11 million (2015) World Bank


On the other hand, researcher Eduardo Febres backed the government's decision on his Twitter account: “I strongly mistrust Maduro's leadership. But I completely agree with the crisis exit proposal he put out today.”

The initial declarations from Maduro were not clear as to the reach and methods of the call, which resulted in several interpretations by politicians, lawyers and regular citizens. 

On the website Prodavinci, José Ignacio Hernández evaluated the measure's legal aspects in terms of their constitutional fit: “Taking into account all these, we can then evaluate the risk of this proposal: the illegitimate designation of a ‘national popular constitutional assembly’, in violation of the direct, secret and universal voting rights, that would allow disruption of all the Public Powers, now, on an even superior level.”

The measure has been qualified as arbitrary; a radical answer to the pressure that looms over Maduro after the almost daily protests that have hit the country since March 30, 2017, when the National Assembly was dissolved, and a sort of “forward runaway” that pretends to change the game rules to allow him to stay in power for longer.

If it is indeed called, the Constitutional Assembly puts a hold to all kinds of elections, and places under its orders the rest of the constitutional powers.

Eugenio Martínez, a famed journalist, asserted: “Chavismo calls for the only election it can win: an election of the ANC (National Constitutional Assembly) that manipulates the electoral bases and system.”

A confusing measure against the clock

Lawyer and writer Gonzalo Himiob Santomé posted on his Facebook profile his interpretation of the measure's meaning:

“In my view, the Maduro's intention behind this move, undeniably unconstitutional, is to simulate he's following the democratic mechanisms and a supposed ‘respect’ to popular sovereignty so, in the first place, he can win time, and in second place, he can have a close and controlled tool that would be above all constitutional powers (Attorney's Office, National Assembly, among others) so he can govern without the discomfort and obstacles that our State model imposes on him.”

According to Maduro's own words from Monday, the formation process of the Assembly would imply the election of at least 500 representatives, half of which would be chosen by sector representation; that is, by social categories that presumably will derive from organizations like community councils, which are not provided for in the Constitution, and are the result of social and political control from the government. 

Journalist and activist Jeanfreddy Gutiérrez wrote:

“So the disguise of electing 200 or 250 constitutionalists of the 500 proposed by Nikolav [Nicolás] for the ‘popular, working and community’ Constitutional Assembly is looking to save himself from the necessary referendum needed (to ask the people whether or not they want this process at all) and don a mask of ‘popular democracy’ to a second degree election that violates the universality and eligibility of the vote: which is that anyone can vote or be elected.”

On Tuesday May 2, 2017, the professors of Constitutional Law of Venezuela's Central University pronounced themselves against the initiative, underlining that the vote should be universal, free, direct and secret; and that even if the president has the right to propose a constitutional initiative, he cannot call to a direct election without a previous referendum.

The next day, in a closed-door session, President Maduro read and signed Decree 2.830, which pretends to “activate” the call for a process named “Citizen Constitutional National Assembly”. 

As expected, the decree confirms that the members of said assembly will be elected: “… within the sector and territorial spheres, under the rule of the National Electoral Council, by universal, direct and secret vote…”

This confirms, as pointed out by José Ignacio Hernández, that the election won't be universal, but:

“…an election system by ‘sectors’, allowing each sector defined by the government (the working class, for example), to designate, within its inner circle, the representatives to the constitutional assembly. At least, as it was said on May 1, for half the electoral members, which guarantees the government control over this fraudulent constitutional national assembly.”

This article written by Marianne Diaz Hernandez and translated by Elizabeth Rivera originally appeared on Global Voices on May 7, 2017

UMNO LUST-CRAZED’ HADI & CO DETERMINED TO MARRY UMNO: EVEN LONG-TIME LOYALIST MUSTAFA ALI DROPPED FOR CAUTIONING AGAINST MERGER

Veteran PAS member Mustafa Ali chose to zip his lips following being dropped from the PAS central committee last Saturday.

PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan said any positions held by Mustafa, including that of election director, will be taken over by PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang’s political secretary Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar.

Contacted on the developments, Mustafa, who joined PAS in the 1970s, quipped: “I’m sorry, but for the mean time, I am fasting, fasting from saying anything.”

The decision to remove him from the central committee raised eyebrows considering his long service, including as secretary-general.

He was PAS Youth chief in 1975 and was also treasurer, vice-president and Terengganu PAS commissioner.

He was also part of government, appointed deputy science, technology and environment minister in the Perikatan-PAS coalition government.

Political writer Mohd Sayuti Omar said Mustafa was dropped because he disagreed with increasingly warmer ties between PAS and Umno.

Sayuti said Mustafa hinted at his dissatisfaction in his winding-up speech at the 63rd general assembly, the muktamar, in Kedah on May 1.

In his speech, Mustafa recalled how Kelantan, a PAS stronghold, fell to BN in 1978 but was wrested back in 1990.

He also reminded PAS that the Islamist party has won and lost in elections because of its decision to work with other parties.

The examples may be reminiscent to PAS’ scenario today, where it has its own splinter party Parti Amanah Negara it is working against, while at the same time faced with a decision on whether to work with Umno splinter party Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia.

‘Worked with Umno splinter party and won’

The following is an excerpt from his speech:

“I want to take some examples based on my experience. For example in Kelantan, our strongest fortress. What happened in Kelantan should teach us our strengths and weaknesses in other places. That is why experience is important when it comes to understanding which strategy will work or will not.

“We won in Kelantan in 1959 and governed for 18 years, until we were toppled in 1978 following the National Operations Council (Mageran) took over the state (following declaration of emergency).

“After we left the BN and in the midst of such chaos on the ground, there was a split within PAS and that crisis was called the Datuk Nasir crisis. It led some PAS members to leave and form Berjasa.

“And we have to look at how this splinter party of us is now working with our enemy, Umno and BN. Berjasa worked with Umno and BN. We had a deficit (of votes) and they (BN) gained (votes) and in the end, they defeated us in the 1978 general election.

“But the opposite happened in the 1990 general election. When there was fissure in Umno, a splinter party was formed and they worked with PAS.

“That was Semangat 46, which was led by Tengku Razaleigh (Hamzah), who worked with PAS. PAS’ votes went up with the support of this Umno splinter party. We had a value added to our strength.

“As a result, Umno and BN lost. We won with a landslide victory. Kelantan was one state which have zero seats to BN in 1990. The other states could not do the same.
“What this means is that we have defeated BN to the extent that they had no seats. That is one example.

“So the examples I gave underscores the importance of value added support. This is how support and strategy works together.

“In 1978, Umno strategy was to work with our splinter party (Berjasa) and it won. In 1990, we worked with an Umno splinter party and won.

“This means that crisis within a party weakens it, but this, too depends. What sort of scenario are we facing today?”

– M’kini

.

Bandar Malaysia: Projek Duit Pilihan Raya? - BN Election slush fund ???

Bandar Malaysia: Projek Duit Pilihan Raya?

A Kadir Jasin

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ

SANG Kelembai menegur lagi. Kali ini sumpahannya adalah Bandar Malaysia.

[Komen "Anonymous” tidak akan disiarkan. Tolong guna nama sebenar atau samaran.]

Sekonyong-konyong, penjualan 60 peratus saham projek raksasa itu kepada pakatan Iskandar Waterfront Holdings Sdn Bhd (IWH) dari Malaysia dan China Railway Engineering Corp (M) Sdn Bhd (CREC) dari negeri China dibatalkan.

Alasannya perjanjian dengan IWH CREC Sdn Bhd luput kerana gagal penuhi syarat pembayaran pembelian saham walaupun sudah dibagi penangguhan beberapa kali.

Bandar Malaysia di atas bekas tapak Pangkalan Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia ini adalah antara projek raksasa di bawah Pelan Transformasi Ekonomi (ETP) Perdana Menteri, (Datuk Seri I Mappadulung Daeng Mattimung Karaeng Sandrobone Sultan Abdul Jalil) Mohd Najib Abdul Razak.

Kalau kita masih ingat lagi, ia adalah salah satu daripada banyak projek “atas angin” 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

Pada 3 Mei lalu, anak syarikat Kementerian Kewangan, TRX City Sdn Bhd kata perjanjian dengan IWH CREC Sdn Bhd telah luput.

Orang yang faham dunia perniagaan tentu terkejut sebab IWH ini adalah syarikat anak emas kerana perhubungan rapat taukenya, Tan Sri Lim Kang Hoo, dengan raja sebuah negeri Melayu.

Lim (kanan) bersama Arul Kanda Kandasamy, Pengarah Eksekutif 1MDB
CREC pula adalah sebuah syarikat pembinaan antarabangsa milik Republik Rakyat China. Macam kita sedia maklum, Najib sangat rapat dengan negeri China. Banyak projek besar dia bagi kepada negeri China dan banyak hutang dia ambil dari negara komunis itu.

Pada 31 Disember 2015, TRX City Sdn Bhd telah tandatangani perjanjian dengan IWH dan CREC. Pada 21 Julai 2016, TRX City Sdn Bhd pindahkan pemilikan dan tanggungjawab 60 peratus saham Bandar Malaysia Sdn Bhd kepada IWH CREC Sdn Bhd.

Dengan pembatalan perjanjian itu, Kementerian Kewangan sekarang pegang 100 peratus Bandar Malaysia.

Putar-Belit

Lawaknya ialah projek gagal tapi TRX kata nilai tapak itu telah naik dengan banyak. Minta maaflah kalau saya kata, saya pelik macam mana nilai tapak naik bila projek terbantut.

Saya syak ini satu lagi tipu-helah untuk naikkan nilai tanah itu dan kemudian jual kepada pihak-pihak lain dengan harga yang lebih tinggi mahal. Silap-silap yang kena bayar harga lebih mahal nanti adalah syarikat tempatan. 

Inilah yang 1MDB buat bila dibagi hak istimewa untuk beli harta TUDM itu. Ia naikkan nilai (valuation) berkali-kali sejak ambil alih tahun 2014. Pada masa itu, 1MDB kata nilai wajarnya RM896.8 juta.

Tapi setelah diubah syarat penggunaan dan dirancang jadi Bandar Malaysia, nilainya naik melambung. Misalnya 60 peratus saham yang dijual kepada IWH CREC itu ditaksirkan bernilai RM7.41 bilion.

Dalam ukuran apa pun projek ini adalah sangat besar. Oleh sebab itu saya dapati pembatalan perjanjian dengan IWH CREC sangat mengejutkan dan cetus kecurigaan tentang kerapian kerajaan rancang projek itu dan tujuan sebenarnya.

Bila perjanjian dengan IWH CREC ditandatangani ia diuar-uarkan sebagai projek transformasi yang akan ubah landskap pembangunan hartanah negara dan akan jadi bandar bawah tanah terbesar di luar negeri China.



Cita-cita Besar: Najib ketika lancar Bandar Malaysia
Ia diisytiharkan sebagai mercu tanda kerjasama ekonomi dan keakraban di antara Malaysia dengan China.

Tapi dari awal lagi, banyak pihak yang tahu pertikai pemberian projek itu kepada sebuah syarikat kerajaan China dan sebuah syarikat tempatan yang tak begitu terkenal dalam sektor pembinaan dan hartanah negara.

Saya sendiri banyak kali persoalkan pemberian kontrak itu kepada syarikat kerajaan China sebab pada pandangan saya ia perkecil jasa para perajurit dan pesara Angkatan Tentera Malaysia (ATM) yang korban nyawa lawan pemberontakan bersenjata Parti Komunis Malaya yang disokong oleh Parti Komunis China.

Saya juga persoal pemberian kontrak kepada syarikat asing sebab pada hemat saya, ada banyak syarikat pembinaan dan hartanah tempatan, termasuk yang dimiliki oleh Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB), Khazanah Nasional Berhad dan Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera (LTAT), telah buktikan kemampuan mereka majukan projek hartanah bersepadu.

Soalnya pasal apa Kementerian Kewangan tergesa-gesa dan diam-diam bagi kontrak Bandar Malaysia kepada pakatan Cina Malaysia dengan syarikat kerajaan China?

Pasal apa baru sekarang cakap mengenai tawaran terbuka untuk cari pemaju utama yang baru?

Pasal apa baru sekarang Kementerian Kewangan janji akan kenakan syarat-syarat ketat macam rekod pencapaian, kepantasan siapkan projek dan kemampuan kewangan?

Ini bagi gambaran pemilihan IWH dan CREC tak ikut syarat-syarat yang ketat. IWH bukanlah syarikat hartanah yang besar dan lama. Ia baru beberapa tahun diasaskan dan kegiatannya terhad kepada Wilayah Pembangunan Iskandar di Johor.

Kementerian Kewangan kata IWK CREC Sdn Bhd gagal patuhi syarat. Tapi IWK CREC dakwa ia telah patuhi semua syarat. Siapa bohong?

Pasal apa CREC yang dimiliki oleh kerajaan China dan amat disanjung oleh kerajaan kita tiba-tiba didakwa langgar syarat pembayaran?

Apakah ini kerana kerajaan China telah ketatkan syarat bawa keluar modal untuk dilaburkan di luar negara atau ada sebab-sebab lain yang dirahsiakan?

Baru-baru ini kerajaan China telah ketatkan kawalan ke atas pengaliran keluar modal dalam usahanya sekat kejatuhan nilai mata wang yuan.

Kita semua tahu banyak urus niaga yang libatkan syarikat China sejak setahun dua ini ada kaitan dengan usaha bayar balik RM50 bilion hutang 1MDB bagi elak diisytiharkan muflis.

Kroni Mana?

Kita nak tengok siapa akan dilantik jadi pemaju utama (master developer) Bandar Malaysia bagi ganti IWH CREC Sdn Bhd.

Saya tak terkejut kalau China dapat balik projek ini tapi dengan rakan kongsi baru dari Malaysia atau dibagi projek lain yang sama besar sebagai ganti. China kawan istimewa Najib.

Sekitar tahun 2010, syarikat yang disebut-sebut sebagai bakal dipilih memajukan Bandar Malaysia adalah Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera (LTAT) dan Malton Berhad. Saya telah menulis mengenai.

Malah ada laporan kata secara dasar Kabinet telah amanahkan pembangunan semula lapangan TUDM kepada 1MDB, LTAT dan Malton tapi tiba-tiba pada 2015 dibagi kepada IWK dan CREC.


Bandar Malaysia asalnya dibagi kepada LTAT?

Kalau LTAT kita tidak ada masalah. Elok sangatlah tabung yang jaga kebajikan anggota dan pesara ATM dibagi peluang majukan tapak TUDM.

Tapi kita kena hati-hati sikit berkenaan Malton. Ikut cakap-cakap pasaram, Tauke Malton (Tan Sri) Desmond Lim Siew Choo sangat rapat dengan orang atasan tertentu dalam kerajaan Malaysia atau isteri orang itu.
Desmond Lim Tauke Pavilion

Desmond Lim inilah yang dapat penswastaan tapak Sekolah Menengah Perempuan Bukit Bintang yang dimajukan jadi kompleks beli-belah eksklusif Pavilion.


Kalau pisang berbuah dua kali tak apalah – banyak hasil. Tapi yang kita takut ialah pemilihan pemaju baru ini pun walhasil balik asal juga; keluar mulut harimau masuk mulut buaya.

Saya tak hairan kalau semua ini adalah mainan pilihan raya umum (PRU) untuk cari duit dan pancing undi macam Najib buat dengan FGV pada tahun 2012. Bagi Najib, duit tunai adalah raja. Dia tak peduli kalau dalam merajakan duit, beban dan bala ditanggung oleh rakyat jelata bergenerasi lamanya.

Wallahuaklam.

A KADIR JASIN 

An interesting talk by the MD of Daimler Benz a bit mind blowing really

He did not mention anything about us Architects.... but we could be affected in the future. 

An interesting concept of what could lay ahead. .

In a recent interview the MD of Daimler Benz (Mercedes Benz) said their competitors are no longer other car companies but Tesla (obvious), Google, Apple, Amazon 'et al' are…… There have always been the 3 constants ... Death, Taxes and CHANGE!

Software will disrupt most traditional industries in the next 5-10 years. 

Uber is just a software tool, they don't own any cars, and are now the biggest taxi company in the world

Airbnb is now the biggest hotel company in the world, although they don't own any properties. 

Artificial Intelligence: Computers become exponentially better in understanding the world. This year, a computer beat the best Go player in the world, 10 years earlier than expected. 

In the US, young lawyers already don't get jobs. Because of IBM Watson, you can get legal advice (so far for more or less basic stuff) within seconds, with 90% accuracy compared with 70% accuracy when done by humans. 

So if you study law, stop immediately. There will be 90% less lawyers in the future, only specialists will remain. 

Watson already helps nurses diagnosing cancer, 4 times more accurate than human nurses. Facebook now has a pattern recognition software that can recognize faces better than humans. In 2030, computers will become more intelligent than humans. 

Autonomous cars: In 2018 the first self driving cars will appear for the public. Around 2020, the complete industry will start to be disrupted. You don't want to own a car anymore. You will call a car with your phone, it will show up at your location and drive you to your destination. You will not need to park it, you only pay for the driven distance and can be productive while driving. Our kids will never get a driver's licence and will never own a car. 

It will change the cities, because we will need 90-95% less cars for that. We can transform former parking spaces into parks. 1.2 million people die each year in car accidents worldwide. We now have one accident every 60,000 miles (100,000 km), with autonomous driving that will drop to one accident in 6 million miles (10 million km). That will save a million lives each year. 

Most car companies will probably become bankrupt. Traditional car companies try the evolutionary approach and just build a better car, while tech companies (Tesla, Apple, Google) will do the revolutionary approach and build a computer on wheels. 

Many engineers from Volkswagen and Audi; are completely terrified of Tesla. 

Insurance companies will have massive trouble because without accidents, the insurance will become 100x cheaper. Their car insurance business model will disappear. 

Real estate will change. Because if you can work while you commute, people will move further away to live in a more beautiful neighborhood.

Electric cars will become mainstream about 2020. Cities will be less noisy because all new cars will run on electricity. Electricity will become incredibly cheap and clean: Solar production has been on an exponential curve for 30 years, but you can now see the burgeoning impact. 

Last year, more solar energy was installed worldwide than fossil. Energy companies are desperately trying to limit access to the grid to prevent competition from home solar installations, but that can't last. Technology will take care of that strategy. 

With cheap electricity comes cheap and abundant water. Desalination of salt water now only needs 2kWh per cubic meter (@ 0.25 cents). We don't have scarce water in most places, we only have scarce drinking water. Imagine what will be possible if anyone can have as much clean water as he wants, for nearly no cost. 

Health: The Tricorder X price will be announced this year. There are companies who will build a medical device (called the "Tricorder" from Star Trek) that works with your phone, which takes your retina scan, your blood sample and you breath into it.

It then analyses 54 biomarkers that will identify nearly any disease. It will be cheap, so in a few years everyone on this planet will have access to world class medical analysis, nearly for free. Goodbye, medical establishment. 

3D printing: The price of the cheapest 3D printer came down from $18,000 to $400 within 10 years. In the same time, it became 100 times faster. All major shoe companies have already started 3D printing shoes.

Some spare airplane parts are already 3D printed in remote airports. The space station now has a printer that eliminates the need for the large amount of spare parts they used to have in the past. 

At the end of this year, new smart phones will have 3D scanning possibilities. You can then 3D scan your feet and print your perfect shoe at home. 

In China, they already 3D printed and built a complete 6-storey office building. By 2027, 10% of everything that's being produced will be 3D printed. 

Business opportunities: If you think of a niche you want to go in, ask yourself: "in the future, do you think we will have that?" and if the answer is yes, how can you make that happen sooner?

If it doesn't work with your phone, forget the idea. And any idea designed for success in the 20th century is doomed to failure in the 21st century. 

Work: 70-80% of jobs will disappear in the next 20 years. There will be a lot of new jobs, but it is not clear if there will be enough new jobs in such a small time. 

Agriculture: There will be a $100 agricultural robot in the future. Farmers in 3rd world countries can then become managers of their field instead of working all day on their fields. 

Aeroponics will need much less water. The first Petri dish produced veal, is now available and will be cheaper than cow produced veal in 2018. Right now, 30% of all agricultural surfaces is used for cows. Imagine if we don't need that space anymore. There are several startups who will bring insect protein to the market shortly. It contains more protein than meat. It will be labelled as "alternative protein source" (because most people still reject the idea of eating insects). 

There is an app called "moodies" which can already tell in which mood you're in. By 2020 there will be apps that can tell by your facial expressions, if you are lying. Imagine a political debate where it's being displayed when they're telling the truth and when they're not. 

Bitcoin may even become the default reserve currency ... Of the world! 

Longevity: Right now, the average life span increases by 3 months per year. Four years ago, the life span used to be 79 years, now it's 80 years. The increase itself is increasing and by 2036, there will be more than one year increase per year. So we all might live for a long long time, probably way more than 100.

Education: The cheapest smart phones are already at $10 in Africa and Asia. By 2020, 70% of all humans will own a smart phone. That means, everyone has the same access to world class education. 

Every child can use Khan academy for everything a child needs to learn at school in First World countries. There have already been releases of software in Indonesia and soon there will be releases in Arabic, Suaheli and Chinese this summer. I can see enormous potential if we give the English app for free, so that children in Africa and everywhere else can become fluent in English and that could happen within half a year. 

Controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik might embolden local Muslim clerics to follow his "intolerant" style.

Video of G25 - Kumpulan Islam Liberal G25 

 Read More here on G25


Controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik might embolden local Muslim clerics to follow his "intolerant" style.

This is the concern of prominent Malay-Muslims of G25, who said they are increasingly concerned about the tolerance shown by Malaysian authorities towards Zakir's extreme statements.

"We believe in free speech, but when it is allowed in favour of a certain person and denied to others who have different views; that is not a healthy kind of freedom for our multicultural society

Shedding light on tahfiz schools
"We are also concerned that Zakir's negative remarks on other religions are emboldening our Malaysian clerics to follow his intolerant style..


Mission of G25


G25 is committed to pursue a just, democratic, peaceful, tolerant, harmonious, moderate and progressive multi-racial, multi cultural, multi religious Malaysia through Islamic principles of Wassatiyah (moderation) and Maqasid Syariah (well-being of the people) that affirms justice, compassion, mercy, equity.

Malaysia is to be led by rule of law, good governance, respect for human rights and upholding the institution of the country.

We aim to ensure, raise awareness, promote that Syariah laws and civil laws should work in harmony and that the Syariah laws are used within its legal jurisdiction and limits as provided for by the federal and state division of powers.

There should be rational dialogues to inform people on how Islam is used for public law and policy that effects the multi ethnic and multi religious Malaysia and within the confines of the Federal Constitution, the supreme law of the nation.

We work in a consultative committee of experts to advise the government and facilitate amendments to the state Syariah laws, to align to the Federal Constitution and the spirit of Rukun Negara.

It is imperative to achieve a politically stable, economically progressive Malaysia and to be able to enjoy the harmony, tolerance, understanding and cooperation in this multi diverse country.

Study Finds Link Between Brain Damage and Religious Fundamentalism

SCIENTIFIC STUDY FINDS LINK BETWEEN BRAIN DAMAGE AND RELIGIOUS FUNDAMENTALISM ! !

First listen to this video. The guy is a first class retard.
Then here is some news about some scientific study. I dont know if this is a hoax or not. Sounds serious enough. If it is a hoax, then I fully associate myself with it, ha ha ha !

http://bigthink.com/paul-ratner/study-finds-link-between-brain-damage-and-religious-fundamentalism?utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#link_time=1494147249

Scientists found that damage in a certain part of the brain is linked to an increase in religious fundamentalism.

lesions in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex reduced cognitive flexibility – the ability to challenge our beliefs based on new evidence.

How free these areas are from disease, in particular the part known as the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, may determine a person’s mental openness

CREDIT: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH

Biologist Religious Fundamentalism Could Be Mental Illness

The scientists specify that they are not stating religious people overall are mentally inflexible or that belief is caused by brain damage.

in some people, the system of “belief revision” may become suppressed due to brain damage.

People in fundamentalist groups tend to value strong commitment to their community, rejection of other beliefs, often combined with science denial and violence. Deliberation becomes victim to conviction.

Neuroscientist, Says Religious Fundamentalism Could Be Treated As A Mental Illness

You can read the study “Biological and cognitive underpinnings of religious fundamentalism” here in the journal Neuropsychologia.Read Now

My comments : I knew it ! I just knew it. I must have been a brain surgeon in a previous life. I dont need this study to tell me that the retards walk among us. The ostard wal retards. Its true.

Worship hours are from 4pm-6pm. I accept cash only.

– http://syedsoutsidethebox.blogspot.my