Religious illiteracy

"Religious illiteracy" - a new term that I learned today in a video by Dr. Afifi Al-Akiti... It was used by him to describe Muslims who only practices the fardhu ain part of Islam without pursuing the knowledge part of Islam... 

I am not going into detail on this topic, just that this term actually stimulate me to comment on the a popular thing that is going on especially in facebook and the internet... 

Many people nowadays like to write their own short articles on Islam... This is a commendable act of da'wah only IF the articles are actually based on Islam itself... 

Sadly, quite a large number of these da'wah messages are written without being based on Islamic texts or scholars...

• Some people share with other people hadiths without knowing the status of the hadith...
• Some people post hadiths which are indeed sahih but added their own comments which are not exactly the interpretation of the hadiths but rather their own opinion...
• Some people use a particular Islamic text and from there, they make their own analogy (qiyas) of any hukum...
• Some people based their messages on their thinking and emotion instead of being based on the proper Islamic sources...

These are just few of the examples of religious illiteracy that I can think of... It is disheartening to read these misinterpretation of Islam by Muslim themselves... 

What makes it even worse is that chains of people like to share these "knowledge" with their other friends which actually disseminate these wrong information, and further worsening the religious illiteracy of our community...

I am not going to point out any specific examples on any issues, just that I hope people who want to share their knowledge should verify the knowledge first before disseminating them, just so that you will not be a part of people who convey the wrong information...

Foot note:

I know not all people actually post this kind of information, a larger number of people share good and reliable information on Islam on the net, which is a good reminder to fellow Muslims... These people convey information which they received from verified sources... For this group of people keep up the good work...

Catch a grenade

I'd catch a grenade for you,

You know I'd do anything for you,

I would go through all this pain,
But you won't do the same....

Bullet train in Malaysia

Most of my recent post on social and politics have been sort of critical to the federal government, but not today... Today I'm going to post on something that I strongly supported, which is improving public transportation...

During this past few days, there have been 3 good news regarding public transportation...

The first one, is that the work for the MRT project (for Greater KL) will start on July next year... It would take probably up to TEN years for the MRT to materialize, so I hope that the project can kick-off soon so that the public can reap the rewards sooner...

The second news is that finally, the LRT extension projects, (more specifically, the Kelana Jaya Line extension and the Ampang Line extension) are proceeding to the next step after many months of no news on the subject... The contractors have been chosen for the project today (or maybe it was yesterday, because I read it in today's newspaper)...

The third news is that Malaysia is considering to build "bullet train" for KL-Singapore route... The project, called High-speed rail (HSR) is still in planning stage... According to news, the HSR service, travelling at an average speed of 350-450km an hour, will transform travel on the KL-Singapore route by cutting travel time to 1.5 to two hours.... The government is doing a feasibility study on this project and the study is due to be completed by mid-2011...

I hope that these projects will proceed smoothly without any delay and  not be bogged down by any problems caused by the contractors etc..

Ps: An efficient public transportation system would reduce carbon emission and thus is more environmentally-friendly...

The days feel like years when I'm alone

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Part One)

I went to watch the latest Harry Potter movie today.. 

My comment? 

The movie was good, and for me much better compared to the previous ones...  It was long (2 hours plus) and the scenes were not rushed. (which is good for people like me who have not read the novel).. The storyline was superb... The action scenes were also not bad... 

That's all for my comment on the movie... Let's focus on other  perspectives...

The Harry Potter character and his 2 best friends have grown up so much since their first day at Hogwarths... Gone were the days when they were having fun learning magic in the compound of their school... 

Now it is time to practice those magic for their survival as they are being hunted by the bad guys... If they fail to practice what have been learned before, they'll die...

This kinda make me think about ourselves... 

It is just months away before we leave the comfort of IIUM to start working in hospitals, and yet I am still not confident enough that I can carry all that we have been taught during these few years and apply the right thing at the right time... (Note that I am using I just in case some of us feels that he/she is already prepared...)

If Harry Potter fails to remember the correct spell to do something at a critical time, he/ his friends might be killed, but if we fail to remember something important at a critical time, whose life are we endangering? How many will die (or badly injured) if we are incompetent in our work???

That is a hypothetical question, who knows what will happen in the future... So what I am trying to say is that we should buck up and be ready (as ready as can be)... Like it or not, we will be responsible for other people in the future... 

Maybe those who watch the movie after this can ponder something on this as well... Hehe

Ps: I come to think of this mainly because of the many spells used by the characters in this movie... The right spell need to be used in a specific situation... Kinda like our knowledge right?

Begitu lama kupendam

Just a song i heard last semester on Muzik-muzik (tiba-tiba je tertengok rancangan ni di tv pada suatu petang yang bosan)... Lirik lagu ni agak best...

You're my last mistake

Tak nak makan nasi la, nak diet...

gambar nasi yang cam best... huhu

When common people talked about dieting (the lay-man's term for weight management), one of the most common advise that they will give you is to avoid rice and substitute rice with other carbohydrate such as noodles or bread...  

Although many have given testimonials that this practice works, the question remains, is there any scientific evidence to back up this claim? 

During our clinical nutrition attachment to KK Beserah, this topic was raised and the answer provided by the dietitian was that there is no point in replacing rice with bread if you end up eating more bread to satisfy your hunger... 

There is some merit to this answer, this dietitian emphasize more on the portion of the food compared to the type of carbohydrates... This is because it is a well known fact that, there are many of us whose hunger cannot be satisfied with certain carbohydrates... For example, you might often hear something like "Eh, roti je ke, mana kenyang...". 

But still she did not answer the question...

I have read another article in newspaper which divides rice into white rice and brown rice... The article continue to bash white rice as the source of all evil (obesity etc) while promoting brown rice as the better alternative... In the end, it concludes that eating rice is the healthier option due to proteins present in rice etc but suggested people to take brown rice instead of white rice... From my opinion, this article do not give any credit to other carbohydrates, it only present one-sided arguments on rice only...

Then, there is a pamphlet on Glucerna SR formula which I read while doing community pharmacy attachment last semester... It compares different carbohydrates based on their glycemic index... Let me quote some info on glycemic index before I go on any further...     

     The glycemic index (GI) is a ranking of carbohydrates on a scale from 0 to 100 according to the extent to which they raise blood sugar levels after eating. 

     Foods with a high GI are those which are rapidly digested and absorbed and result in marked fluctuations in blood sugar levels. Low-GI foods, by virtue of their slow digestion and absorption, produce gradual rises in blood sugar and insulin levels, and have proven benefits for health. 

     Low GI diets have been shown to improve both glucose and lipid levels in people with diabetes (type 1 and type 2). They have benefits for weight control because they help control appetite and delay hunger. Low GI diets also reduce insulin levels and insulin resistance.

Now, back to the argument rice versus other carbohydrates...  The pamphlet showed that rice have a high glycemic index value compared to noodles, brown rice and some other carbohydrates... Thus, eating rice would cause the blood glucose to spike, make you feel hungry earlier and all the other disadvantages of eating high glycemic index food... 

People who want to lose weight should avoid high glycemic food and substitute them with lower glycemic index food...

Neway, I don't have that pamphlet with me anymore, that is why I stop short of providing any values of glycemic index in the paragraph above... Maybe I'll stop by at the pharmacy to take another pamphlet (someday in the distant future)...

There are a lot more reference on glycemic index of food in the internet but most of them usually contain western food (pasta) instead of Malaysian food (such as noodles etc), thus making comparison can be a bit difficult... 

Furthermore, glycemic index apply to all carbohydrates,  even food with simple sugar like glucose, thus it kinda make the list of glycemic index values into a very long list containing every fruits and products like honey, which actually defeats the purpose of having that index because the long complicated list makes it harder for common people to assess their food themselves...

Conclusion:
Yes, substituting white rice for other low glycemic index food such as brown rice, noodles and whole wheat bread is good for health, especially for those who are trying to lose weight... However, in addition to choosing the better source of carbohydrate, the meal portion should also be followed....  

-end of post-

Ps: I still eat rice.. and also other carbohydrates... Hehe

Teksi bermeter tapi tak guna meter, sama je lah kan

Banyak betul kenyataan yang dikeluarkan oleh pegawai-pegawai, pengarah-pengarah dan menteri yang berkaitan pengangkutan awam, tapi semua kenyataan ni menunjukkan macam mereka ni semua tak pernah naik pengangkutan awam je...

Dulu saya pernah komen pasal ulat tiket di Terminal Bas Sementara Bukit Jalil kan... Sampai sekarang masih lagi berleluasa masalah ni, dan penyelesaiannya, JPJ nak suruh pengguna sendiri berhenti membeli tiket daripada ulat tiket ni... 

Daripada pemerhatian saya, kalau inilah cadangan penyelsaiannya, masalah ni takkan selesai sebab walaupun ramai orang yang dah tak beli tiket daripada ulat-ulat tiket ni, tapi masih ada segelintir orang yang terperdaya dan beli daripada diaorang... 

Rata-rata orang yang menjadi mangsa adalah pelancong-pelancong asing dan orang-orang yang tak pernah sampai terminal bas tu (especially warga emas) dan yang terkial-kial mencari arah... 

Daripada turun LRT Bukit Jalil, berduyun-duyun ulat tiket datang menyerbu, kalau hujan siap payungkan lagi kut... Pastu offer nak jual tiket terus ke destinasi tanpa perlu beratur di kaunter tiket... Kalau orang yang tak pernah sampai dan tak tahu bas apa yang ada untuk ke destinasi diaorang, memang akan pilih beli daripada ulat tiket je...

Mungkin semua pihak atasan ni pakar ekonomi kut, dia cuba menggunakan teori "supply and demand" untuk menyelesaikan masalah ni, mengikut teori ni, kalau tiada permintaan, ulat tiket tu akan pupus dengan sendirinya... Cuma teori ni tak applicable in reality... Sebab permintaan akan sentiasa ada daripada golongan yang disebutkan di atas nih...

Sekarang cerita pasal teksi plak...

Ada kenyataan media yang saya baca beberapa bulan lepas yang berbunyi hampir semua teksi di Malaysia dah menggunakan meter... Fakta yang menyokong kenyataan tu, kebanyakan teksi sudah dipasang dengan meter dan menjalani pemeriksaan meter secara berkala...

Dalam realiti, rasanya di KL je teksi bermeter menggunakan meter, kat bandar-bandar lain setakat ni, semua menggunakan sistem letak harga sendiri (harga yang sangat mahal pulak tu), walaupun teksi tu ada meter... 

Sebenarnya, teksi yang tak kira menggunakan meter tu sedang melanggar undang-undang dan boleh dilapor kepada pihak berkuasa... Cuma kebanyakan penumpang pengangkutan awam, termasuk saya, takde inisiatif untuk melaporkan benda-benda macam ni, lebih-lebih lagi bila semua teksi di bandar-bandar selain KL memang tak pernah nak gunakan meter... Especially bila naik teksi pun jarang-jarang (2-3 bulan sekali)...

Amat mengecewakan bila baca kenyataan daripada pihak berkuasa yang macam tak pernah naik teksi (dan pengangkutan awam lain)... 

Jadi kesimpulannya, masalah-masalah ni takkan selesai kalau JPJ dan pihak berkuasa lain biarkan pengguna untuk self-regulate masalah ni... 

Kalau nak selesaikan masalah-masalah ni mestilah kena memahami sendiri masalah-masalah berkaitan pengangkutan awam dulu kan... Bukanlah kita harap menteri-menteri semua untuk pergi kerja naik bas, tapi cukuplah sekadar menggunakan sendiri public transport di Malaysia ni, bukan dengan membuat rombongan besar beramai-ramai sekali-sekala ke terminal bas...  Naik bas sorang-sorang or dengan family ke...

Mungkin lepas tu baru pihak berkuasa akan berhenti daripada mengeluarkan kenyataan-kenyataan yang "tak kena" dengan realiti on the ground... Lebih baik lagi kalau lepas tu ada tindakan yang tersusun dan berterusan untuk menyelesaikan apa-apa masalah berkaitan pengangkutan awam ni... 

-end of post-

Nota kaki: setakat ni berdasarkan pemerhatian saya, semua bandar (kecuali KL dan beberapa bahagian di Lembah Klang) memang teksi bermeternya tak guna meter... tapi kalau ada orang yang nak betulkan fakta ni dan nak cakap teksi kat tempat korang gunakan meter, boleh komen kat bawah ni, nanti saya edit ckit post ni... tq

Dear Future Aizuddin

Pernah tak korang berfikir untuk hantar surat kepada diri kita pada masa depan? Bukan time-travelling r, tapi tulis surat dan simpan untuk dibaca pada masa depan... Macam pelik je kan? Tapi banyak je orang buat, contohnya tanam kapsul masa yang ada surat dan gali balik beberapa puluh tahun lepas tuh...

Cuba kita berhenti kejap dan fikir, kalau kita nak beritahu apa-apa kepada diri kita pada masa depan, apa yang akan kita tulis? 

Salah satu benda yang ramai orang akan tulis mungkin berkisar tentang matlamat mereka untuk masa depan macam mana... 

Mungkin ada yang akan tulis, "aku harap 10 tahun lagi aku dah berkahwin dan dah ada 3 orang anak"... atau "aku harap aku dah jadi pengarah apa-apa syarikat dan dapat gaji sampai 5-6 angka"... atau "aku harap 5 tahun lagi aku tengah pakai kereta Vios TRD" (ada sape-sape terasa dengan ayat last ni tak??? huhu)...

Ataupun, mungkin kita boleh tulis pasal diri kita pada masa tu, cerita lah panjang lebar, apa yang kita suka makan ke, kawan-kawan kita ke... Mesti menarik kalau kita baca balik pasal diri kita pada masa dulu... Mungkin banyak perkara kita dah terlupa pasal diri kita dalam kesibukan mengejar masa depan dan kerjaya...

Dari perspektif lain plak, macam mana kalau kita dapat surat daripada diri kita pada masa lepas... Adakah kita akan menyesal? contohnya "10 tahun lepas, ak bercita-cita nak gi belajar sampai phD" tapi tup tup akhirnya belajar setakat degree je... (boleh fikir contoh sendiri)

Atau kita akan gelak je baca harapan-harapan kita dulu seperti kita harap nak kahwin dengan jutawan ke... (x dapat pikir contoh yg x mengarut, sori... huhu)...

Kadang-kadang bila saya terjumpa karangan-karangan yang saya tulis masa sekolah dulu, macam x percaya je saya yang tulis benda tu dulu... Kagum jugak dan lawak jugak kadang-kadang dengan diri saya dulu-dulu... hehe

Neway, actually leceh gak nak tulis surat dan simpan kan... Kalau nak senang, cuba je flashback diri sendiri, fikirkan apa yg korang plan dulu-dulu dan apa yang korang dah capai sekarang... 

Tapi x best sangat r buat camni, kalau mereka-mereka yang sabar dan mantap, apa kata cuba jugak tulis surat dan simpan untuk masa akan datang... You'll be surprised... hehe

Ps: The plans stated as examples in this post are not my life plans... As for my future plans, I am not going to disclose it here... But rest assured that I have a plan, but I dunno what my future self would say about my current plans... :)

Nota Kaki:

Idea ni saya dapat awal semester ni semasa sedang mengambil motor yang dipos ke Kuantan... Yang pos motor ni di Melaka juga saya, yang ambil kat Kuantan pun saya (beberapa hari selepas tu)... Ya, dan saya dah simpan post ni selama satu sem sebelum publish... hehe

Dalam satu sem ni jugak banyak tengok scene-scene begini dalam How I Met Your Mother etc... I wrote this before I watch those scene OK...

-End of Post-

Courage

Then there is a still higher type of courage - the courage to brave pain, to live with it, to never let others know of it and to still find joy in life; to wake up in the morning with an enthusiasm for the day ahead... (Howard Cosell)

 

Warisan Merdeka Revisited

Setelah membaca beberapa artikel dalam Utusan dan Berita Harian yang menyokong pembinaan Warisan Merdeka dengan sokongan hujah-hujah yang kurang bernas, rasa tension dan rasa nak jawab plak hujah-hujah tu kat sini…

Ada orang argue cakap dulu time Tun Dr. M nak buat KLIA, PLUS highway n Jambatan Pulau Pinang pun ramai orang komplen, tapi lepas siap orang-orang yang komplen ni guna jugak…

Jawapan saya: x bijak sangat sebenarnya membandingkan Warisan Merdeka dengan tiga projek mega kat atas nih, sebab, projek-projek mega kat atas ni walaupun memakan banyak belanja, tapi impak multiplier-nya juga berganda-ganda… Contohnya PLUS, memendekkan masa perjalanan dan menyebabkan barang boleh dihantar dengan cepat ke destinasi, meningkatkan produktiviti etc… boleh pikir sendiri kut…

Ada pulak orang yang membandingkan Warisan merdeka dengan KLCC or Putrajaya yang juga mendapat bantahan semasa pembinaannya, lepas tu orang guna jugak bila siap…

Jawapan saya: orang dah bina, kita guna lah kan (analogi yg ringkas, kita dah ada 2 kereta yang bagus untuk 2 orang guna, lepas tuh pasangan kita beli satu lagi kereta, xkan nak biar tersadai je kat rumah sebab boikot plak kan, sape yang rugi kalau boikot x nak guna)…

Ada plak orang lain argue cakap menara ni PNB yang nak bina, dan PNB ni syarikat swasta… Jadi PNB tak guna duit pembayar cukai dan boleh buat sesuka hati diaorang…

Jawapan saya: sebenarnya menara ni x sepatutnya masuk dalam bajet Negara pun, coz syarikat swasta punya projek kan… Tapi bagus jugak dpt masuk sebab rakyat sedar n boleh bantah… PNB bukanlah syarikat swasta yg biasa-biasa je, sebab dia memegang dan melabur duit rakyat Malaysia (bukan duit diaorang, tapi duit rakyat), dan pengerusinya dan timbalan pengerusi PNB plak adalah PM dan TPM sendiri… Jadi secara logiknya, akauntabiliti PNB mestilah kepada pemegang sahamnya (rakyat Malaysia) kan, bukan boleh ambil duit yang kita labur dan buat menara sesuka-hati diaorang 

Ada satu lagi artikel Utusan (biasanya x baca dah benda nih) cakap pembinaan Warisan Merdeka akan menguntungkan ramai orang (orang-orang yang melabur dalam ASB, ASN etc je lah).

Jawapan saya: sebenarnya kalau nak difikirkan takdelah untung sangat pun, kalau jurutera-jurutera diimport dari luar negara, dan buruh-buruh diimport dari Indonesia, maka rakyat Malaysia untung apa je, mungkin ada syarikat dapat jadi supplier bahan-bahan pembinaan dapat untung... Pelabur-pelabur PNB mungkin untung, tapi apa kesannya jangka panjang kepada negara, bertambah kesesakan lalu lintas di kawasan yang memang dah sesak, ruang-ruang pejabat sekarang pun dah berlebih berbanding permintaan, pembaziran etc... banyak sangat point yang korang boleh tambah sendiri kemudian...

Kesimpulannya, harap artikel-artikel dalam akhbar kalau nak sokong apa-apa isu pun, gunakanlah hujah yang sesuai... Jangan sokong atau bangkang blindly je...

Link menarik untuk dibaca berkaitan analisis pembinaan Warisan Merdeka di merdekareview.com : (Bahagian satu) (Bahagian dua)

Kelahiran anak pertama

Kalau dengar lagu nih, mesti ramai yg berfikir pasal cinta lah, kahwin lah, tapi kali ni saya nak cuba bagi korang tgk lagu ni daripada perspective lain ok....

Situasi: Seorang ibu baru je melahirkan anak pertama di hospital... Sedang memeluk erat anaknya... Lagu ni sebagai lagu latar... (Cuba bayangkan korang sbg ibu yg baru bersalin tuh, atau anak yg baru dilahirkan tuh, atau bapa bayi tu yang sedang mengambil video anak pertamanya)... Dan hayati lirik lagu ni...

Amacam? Ada rasa tersentuh tak?

Ps: Post ini dibuat memandangkan saya seorang yg (perasan) berbakat menjadi pengarah klip video tapi xde bakat nak buat video untuk tunjuk kat korang, so korang kena imagine sendiri lah yerk...  Hehe

Kementerian Kesihatan dalam Bajet 2011

Perbahasan Bajet 2011 oleh MP Pas Pendang (Dr. Hj. Mohd Hayati Hj Othman)... Hujah-hujah menarik berkaitan Kementerian Kesihatan (x berkaitan politik sangat)...

Isu tabung darah hospital,
isu pelajar medik IPTS kurang kompeten,
isu tabung membantu orang miskin buat pembedahan,
dan isu impak FTA dengan US kepada ubat generik di Malaysia dll...

Bila la nak ada pharmacist masuk Parlimen nih... Boleh suarakan isu kita juga...