I don’t know you. But it seems you know quite a bit about me, and my family. And it seems you’re making serious threats to my family.
Now, i’ll be honest with you. I don’t who you are. I don’t know how exactly much you know. But if you get here, and you’re reading this. Then yes, this is for you.
I am warning you to stay away from my entire family. Settle. If you want, we meet, we settle it one time…If you harm anyone, i’ll tell you what’s going to happen. I’ll drop all my plans - school & work - and I will find you. And I will find everyone who’s working for you. And I will find your family. And I will taste their blood.
From what I know, you sound like an educated person. But if you cannot understand me, i’ll make it simple for you.
You don’t disturb my family, I don’t disturb yours. If you do, i’ll kill your mother, your father, your brother, your sister, your wife, your girlfriends, your children.
…I can find you.
I posted this on XSMatter as well but I think it deserves mention here too…
I chanced upon this site while blog surfing and found out that it was founded by a friend’s friend. Now, because i’ve pretty taken a higher interest in blogging these days plus, i’m a strong support of new ideas and projects( Start-ups should support each other ) I decided to put this up.
Ping.SG allows bloggers to ping the platform and the latest/hotest blog entries will be aggregated and published on the site front. Officially(Based on their FAQ), Ping.SG is
ping.sg is a meta blog for Singapore bloggers. It aims to create a comprehensive and thorough database for blog entries written by local bloggers and/or with local interest. ping.sg also aims to create online community for Singapore bloggers to interact and gives every single blogger the same chance to stand out above the rest.
The entire project is still very new but I think it’s very promising. Another point to take note is that they’re just about 2 weeks old at the point of this entry…so cut em some slack ya?
Kudos to Ping.SG
Ok…I woke up thinking, that my blog must have a real purpose of sorts - sure i can talk and comment and stuff. But I want it to do something real. I’m do-er. And yes, despite Ivan telling me to slow down(which I will eventually), I want to take this opportunity to do something real. I want to make some small cash via my blog for charity.
Immediately 2 questions pop up in my head, please help me address them if possible:-
1. What can I do? I’m thinking of holding a small chess tournament($1 to take part and overall winner gets a percentage of the total and the rest goes to a charitable organisation)
2. Which charity? I haven’t been a charity person…I hated doing flag days that were made compulsory during school because it felt so fake…so forced.
So here I am. Let’s do something, no matter how small…
I don’t want to sound like i’m managing you…But really
I want to make this one happen.
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Below is a list of possible organisations(i’ll add to it as i receive suggestions)(It should be a Singapore Based organisation):-
1. Club Rainbow
Source: BBC News
Lebanon condemns Israel ‘madness’
Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora says Israel is "opening the gates of hell and madness" on his country.
In a BBC interview, he urged Hezbollah to release two captured Israeli soldiers but blamed Israeli policies for boosting Hezbollah support.
The UN is evacuating all non-essential staff, joining tens of thousands of foreigners fleeing the crisis.
Fresh Israeli strikes have killed 11 Lebanese soldiers, while Hezbollah rockets killed an Israeli in Nahariya.
Israel launched its assault and blockade last Wednesday after Hezbollah fighters captured two of its soldiers.
About 230 Lebanese people have been killed since then - the vast majority of them civilians, but including about 30 soldiers. The number of Hezbollah fighters killed is not known.
Twenty-five Israelis have died - 13 civilians and 12 members of the military.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has reiterated his government’s demands for the captured soldiers to be freed without condition and for Hezbollah to be disarmed.
Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni held talks on Tuesday with a UN team trying to negotiate a ceasefire, but said the soldiers’ release and the deployment of the Lebanese army in the south would have to precede a ceasefire.
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UK: 22,000 (inc. 10,000 with dual nationality)
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Her comments came as tens of thousands more foreigners were set to leave Lebanon by land, sea, and air.
A British warship docked in Beirut at the start of a mission to transport up to 12,000 Britons and a further 10,000 people with dual British-Lebanese nationality to Cyprus.
The US, Canada and other governments were also organising evacuations by land, air or sea.
In other developments:
- UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said he expected European nations to contribute troops to a proposed stabilisation force to end the fighting
- The UN has warned of a humanitarian disaster as Lebanese flee their homes, with air strikes on roads and bridges hampering efforts to help them
- Lebanon’s pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud has vowed to stand by Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
- Shlomo Goldwasser, the father of one of the missing Israeli soldiers, said he hoped all means - legal or illegal - would be used to get his son Ehud back
As Israel launched fresh cross-border attacks on Tuesday, six bodies were pulled from the rubble of a home in the Lebanese border village of Aitaroun, and another family was killed in the coastal city of Tyre.
The 11 Lebanese soldiers were killed at a barracks east of Beirut.
The Lebanese army has been ordered not to respond to the Israeli attacks. But Lebanese soldiers have now died in several strikes, including one on the port of Abdeh on Monday in which nine died.
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Hezbollah, Syria and Iran are using our country as a battleground against Israel
Nayef, Beirut
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In Tuesday’s attacks by Hezbollah, rockets hit the northern city of Haifa, as well as Safed, Acre, Kiryat Shemona, and Gush Halav region near Safed, Israeli officials told AP news agency.
"I was near the bomb shelter, there was a humongous boom, and I saw it was two meters (yards) next to my house, really two meters," Eli Dayari, a resident in Nahariya, told Israel’s Channel 10 television.
"People are panicking and the house was on fire, really big flames, the fire fighters are here."
Israeli military officials say more than 700 Hezbollah rockets have landed in Israel since the crisis began.
I think this is really senseless…Being senseless is one thing…it borders on stupidity. Doesn’t anyone there see what’s happening? 2 Soldiers have been captured - yes. But invading Lebanon and killing civilian merely gives more support to the Hezbollah. By doing that, all the more you’re flaming the ground sentiment. Now, forget about politics. The layman doesn’t care. Their concerns are simple - "you fired rockets or artillery shells into my home and you killed my father. Or son. Or Mother. Or Sister. Or someone I loved. Perhaps you even killed all my loved ones. I don’t care if my government is holding two of your soldiers. I don’t care if my government refuses to back down. You killed my father and he’s a teacher. He goes to work at 8 in the morning trying to earn a decent living for us. You killed him. You killed everyone else. I have no one. Now, I will kill you."
As I see it, the invasion was only justified if you could confirm that the captured soldiers were executed. or on the verge of being executed.
But a mistake is a mistake. Someone has to back down.
There is alot of blood on the hands of a lot of proud people. They’re the ones who should be bleeding right now…
But please, I agree that the 2 soldiers shouldn’t be captured in the first place. But what’s done is done. Right now, the focus should be on the best solution with the least bloodshed. Neither side is winning. Have you watched Saving Private Ryan? Did you know a section worth of soldiers died just to save 1 private. Is it fair? I don’t want to put a value to life…but if we had to make a choice, shouldnt we be trying the path with the least blood before we start considering the option of sending in human sacrifice?…which only serves to strengthen the enemy’s sentiment against you?
This is so stupid. Both sides are losing. And they can’t see it.
Countdown in Cuba
July 17 2006
Prepared by: Robert McMahon
Source: Council on Foreign Relations
Cuban leader Fidel Castro is nearing his eightieth birthday and talk of succession is in the air. His younger brother, defense minister, and heir apparent, Raul, is enjoying a surge in media attention (Miami Herald), suggesting to Cuba watchers that a power transition is underway. Raul has stressed in recent media appearances that the communist party will remain the anchor of the Cuban ship of state. U.S. officials have something different in mind. Vexed by Castro’s regime for forty-seven years, the White House earlier this month reaffirmed a plan to support independent civil society and break the information blockade in Cuba, aiming for a transition to "genuine democracy." The Bush administration endorsed a call by a government agency, the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba, to spend about $80 million to promote democratic succession.
But Cuban officials have signaled they will play hardball against this soft diplomacy, saying it amounts to active U.S. support for regime change. The president of the Cuban National Assembly, Ricardo Alarcon, said the U.S. efforts are doomed to fail but would "cause harm and deprivation and suffering of individuals." Cuba’s dissident community is still struggling to recover from a 2003 crackdown on citizens ranging from medical doctors to librarians. An AP analysis says Cuba notably lacks the kind of opposition figures and institutions that helped communist states in Eastern Europe make a relatively smooth transition to capitalism. The Lexington Institute says in a recent Cuba policy report that despite the Bush administration’s tough words, its policies in Cuba "seem to have no prospect of being politically decisive." This new CFR backgrounder looks at the issues that continue to dog the U.S.-Cuban relationship.
Other than some enhanced funding, there does not appear to be much new in the U.S. approach. The Congressional Research Service says the U.S. government has been planning for years how to handle political transition in Cuba, noting a 1997 report by the Clinton Administration that outlined ways in which U.S. and international actors could assist in the democratic development of Cuba. The size and focus of the fund announced on July 10 appeared to be similar to the new Bush administration initiative to spur democratic change in Iran. In both cases, local civil society activists raised concern that receiving U.S. monies could damage their efforts. In neither case is it specified how such funds would be channeled to democracy groups.
Ok. I’m a supporter of Democracy. But i’ve come to realise one thing. Democracy is not something you can force on people. People like freedom, yes. But people are not necessarily ready for that. It’s a simple concept really. Society is like a huge blow up of a family. When you’ve got the typical parents above 40, 1 kid that’s in his 20s and another that’s in his teenage years there’s a certain way of governing the family. It would be great if you could give everyone freedom of course, but no, you simply have to control what the teen does and doesnt and slowly introduce the concept of freedom and responsibility. To introduce complete freedom the next morning will simply cause the teen to go crazy.
A mature nation like the US is likened to a family with grandparents in their 60s, parents and children who are in their 20s. They know their roles, and thus should be given freedom.
So what am i trying to say? Look at the nations where democracy has been introduced by an external nation…how many of them are in chaos right now? How many of them have more blood being shed now than when their so called autocratic leaders were in power? My bet is this…when the people are ready for democracy, they’ll fight for it. And that’s the best time for the champions of democracy to step in…
I’ve managed to get the online chess system up…it’s accessible at http://www.xsmatter.com/webchess
Please feel free to use the platform. Amongst the cool features of it is that it allows you to play with another player while out of realtime. So you could make your move and if your opponent sets his email notification ‘on’, he’ll be notified after your move. Now, this is playing chess for the fun of it…no pressure =)
My nick is EagleOne on the platform so anyone who wants to play with me…=)
On another note, Jennifer told me last night that both the Constructive Deconstruction and XSMatter sites don’t appear properly because it’s configured to look fine on MY screen…which just so happens to be a wide-screen. So…Please give me some time to make the right screen alterations ya?
Cheers!
I’m back home. The trip was…interesting although I don’t really know what’s so interesting about it. I liked the hotel because it had a kickass airconditioner (the one at home is spoilt you see…)
Well, just wanted to let you guys know i’m back. The newspapers are really thick these days…
Wouldn’t it be good if the world stopped work on weekends? Like wars and invasions and all that…cool thought…
I’m going out of the country for the weekend….so yeah…just so you know. I should be back on Sunday night…
Have a great weekend!
How fast can you type? Well, go try this out if you’re bored…
http://labs.jphantom.com/wpm/
I just read the article on The Straits Times: "Distorted views in mainstream media must be rebutted: Minister"
True enough Dr Lee was mentioning how the government has to exercise it "right of reply" because Mr. Brown’s views were aired in the mainstream media and that if it was aired on his blog, it would be treated as "internet chatter". Considering factors like having to maintain control of the citizens, be in the best position to rally the people, I agree with Dr. Lee about exercising that right.(Although I ‘ll suggest that sentiments on the ground should be more clearly understood…I’m sure many who read his column are people of a certain intellect.)
I guess it’s fine if MICA simply replied. Sure, people would still bitch about on blogs and all. But it was the suspension that made everyone angry.(I’m not sure how far that was influenced by the authorities…was TODAY suddenly simply trying to exercise self-censorship?)
Oh well…Tomorrow’s Friday. Smile.
Launch of XS Matter PixAd
I’m proud to announce that together with my team over at XSMatter we’re trying out something we hope will be fun and at the same time allow us to make some pocket money to fund our allowance for school. If you didn’t already know, we’re students from Nanyang Technological University(Singapore) and Imperial College(London)
So what’s pix ad? Well, simple. It’s one big advertising space and we’re selling you the space for your ads by the pixel! Prices are set to USD$0.015 per pixel and you’ve got to buy in blocks of at least 10×10px. Check it out to find out more! How long will your ads be left there you’re asking? Well, at present all I can say is that we’ll leave it up for 6months. Sounds good doesn’t it? One time payment for half a years worth of adspace.
You must be asking…so how is anyone going to know about that page. Well, simply said, we’ll be advertising that via our blogs as well as search engines. Every entry will have a link to the Pix Ads page and we’ll also update you guys on whatever new ads are posted so that the concerns of viewers and advertisers are met!
So what are you waiting for? Check out XSMatter PixAds today! Oh, payments are via paypal and egold.
Oh, you’re not really used to the idea? Fret not…if you head on over there now, there’s a section that’s jutting out of the main adspace…and there, you can get 30×30px space for free! It’ll stay there for up to 30days after which you can renew it manually! Just head on over and click "Get Pixels" This is perfect if you’re trying to promote your blog or something small…=)
P.S. Being the entrepreneurial young people that we are, if you think you want to negotiate for a different price or different deal, feel free to drop me an email at ridz84@gmail.com