Who are the Malays?

There are two theories as to their origins, one is they came from the Hoabinh area of Indochina and the other is they originated from South China.

To the general public, Syed Husin Ali is the former deputy president of PKR. To me, he will always be Prof Syed Husin Ali, the respectable bespectacled professor who I first encountered when I was an undergraduate in Universiti Malaya.

I never failed to make time to attend his public forum, seminars and talks. He was not my lecturer, but his ideas have definitely made an impact on my thought process.

Prof Syed’s book, ‘The Malays – Their Problem and Future’ was first launched in 1978. I can still remember the book which was green in colour – and I still have it with me. I found the book intriguing and very informative to understand the history of the Malays.

When they released a revision of the book in 2008, I was perhaps one of the first to go out to buy it and read it again.

It is very important that we understand the history and we agree to the historical foundation of this country. One of the most important historical foundations that we should not argue over is about who are the Malays and about this land that used to be called Tanah Melayu.

I find that there is a handful of Malaysians who seem adamant at insisting that this country was not sired from the Malay polity and that the Malays are not the legitimate natives of the land.

Mum who 'tried to sell daughter's virginity' pleads guilty

A 
US woman accused of trying to sell her 13-year-old daughter's virginity pleaded guilty on Monday to two sexual exploitation charges for having the girl model in her underwear for men.

The 33-year-old woman had also faced two first-degree felony counts of aggravated sex abuse of a child - and up to life in prison - but prosecutors agreed to drop those charges in exchange for her plea.

She now faces up to 30 years in prison at sentencing on Dec 5.

Authorities said the woman offered her daughter's virginity to a man in April in exchange for US$10,000 (RM32,000).
Initially, the girl agreed to the arrangement and modelled twice in a bra and underwear for the man. Police said the girl then changed her mind.

Who's the bigger beast?

Trophy ... Sir David Scholey poses by lion's corpse after shooting it

MILLIONAIRE banker Sir David Scholey poses by the bloody corpse of a lion after shooting it for fun on a "trophy-hunting" holiday.

Other souvenir snaps show the Tory party donor grinning as he stands in front of elephant tusks and antelope and buffalo skulls during a big game hunting trip to Zambia.

Angry animal welfare groups yesterday described Sir David's trips as "sadistic and selfish" — but he said he saw nothing wrong in paying huge sums to kill exotic beasts.

Guess who is insulting Islam? Bloggers hired by Najib and Taib!

Hateful anti-Islamic outpourings, including a crude mocking of the Prophet Mohammed, are just some of the very surprising views expressed by a member of the team of American bloggers, hired by PM Najib Razak and Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud to supposedly improve their images.

One member of the team, named Caleb Howe, has indulged in a number of rants on Twitter that are clearly designed to give extreme offence to Muslims - even though his colleagues on the blogs Red State, New Ledger, Sarawak Report(s), Malaysia Matters and others have been engaged by Najib and Taib as professional promoters.

In one outburst last year he indulged in a sustained, childish rant on his public Twitter page it went like this:

Who needs grils when you have bikes like these!

KUALA TERENGGANU - What started as a ploy to pick up girls has evolved into a passion for vintage motorcycles.

Two years ago, Muhammad Izwan Mokhtar, 18, and his older brother Fadrul Aizat, 26, flirted with the idea of modifying old motorcycles as a way to attract the fairer sex.

Death for man who kept sex slaves

One of the two teenage girls who were caged by Zeng Qiangbaohad in a dungeon as sex slaves

A man in China has been sentenced to death for keeping two girls in a dungeon as sex slaves for one year and raping nine other women.

Zeng Qiangbao, a 40-year-old worker in a steel factory in Wuhan, was convicted of rape, illegally imprisoning, robbery and forcible seizure by a court in central China’s Hubei province.

Nazri: Action to be taken against 3 MACC officers who grilled Teoh

Appropriate action will be taken against Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission officers who had breached investigation procedures when interrogating Teoh Beng Hock.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz said there were existing laws that could be used on these officers, but stressed that investigation must be carried out beforehand.

“We will not delay to act against the officers but we also cannot `hang' them straightaway. Proper procedure will have to take place and it starts with investigating the incident and collecting evidence.

“Investigation papers must be opened and be submitted to the Attorney-General's Chambers for further action.

Controversy over Two Disabled Gays Who Were Kicked Out of Pool

An employee at a public swimming pool in eastern Kentucky was suspended for a week without pay after telling two disabled gay men to leave, city of Hazard officials said Saturday.

The suspended city employee Kim Haynes told investigators that the two men were engaged in an excessive display of affection June 10, and that he would have told any other couple to leave had he seen similar behavior. Haynes, however, also acknowledged he said “We don’t tolerate that kind of activity around here” and cited the Bible in an argument with Laura Quillen, a member of the social service group Mending Hearts, which was overseeing the group.

Quillen told investigators the men did nothing inappropriate.

According to a report released by city attorney Paul R. Collins, summing up the conflicting accounts, at least one witness saw the men “standing `man to man’ or `belly to belly’ in the pool, splashing each other with water and pushing each other under the water.” The witness “also said he observed them hug each other on at least one occasion” and give each other a kiss, the report said.

Pearlman and Haynes were not at work on Saturday and could not be reached by the newspaper for comment by telephone.

Meanwhile, dozens of people rallied at the pool Saturday in support of the gay men.

“It’s time that people stood up for people. It’s just the right thing to do,” Marsha Morgan from Leslie County told WYMT-TV.

Jordan Palmer, president of the Kentucky Equality Federation, said the men were discriminated against.

“There was not kissing, and there was nothing of that sort. One of them sat on the other’s knee and that was it,” said Jordan Palmer, president of the Kentucky Equality Federation.

The manager of the Hazard Pavilion also was reprimanded for unbecoming conduct, The Courier-Journal reported. Charlotte Pearlman used inappropriate and obscene language when declining comment to a television news crew, the city said.

The city also said new anti-discrimination signs will be posted at the pool, as well as signs warning against excessive public displays of affection.

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