Deepak Chopra Apology

Have always thought Deepak Chopra preyed on Western fixation with Oriental mysticism and esoteric spiritualism using his own interpretations to make money from the kuai lohs.

 

 The apology:

 

Learn A Word A Day..."Obfuscation"

"Obfuscation" in the context of the following article is defined as: "...to make obscure or unclear: to obfuscate a problem with extraneous information". 

In this must read blogpost from Marina Mahathir, she is referring to BN subterfuge:

My Record-Breaking Run Continues...
by MarinaM

Dear folks, this must be something of a record but I've just been told that once again, my column's been spiked. In newspaper-speak, that means it's not going to be published tomorrow. This would make it the second of my columns recently that was totally spiked, plus one more that was chopped up badly. (See previous posts)

People ask me why I keep writing at The Star if they keep doing this. Well maybe I'm just sentimental. They gave me this column to write about 23 years ago when nobody else did and for the most part they've published most of what I've written. I do know that lots of people read it and I would feel as if I'm abandoning my readers if I just stopped. I'm hoping that those who read it in the paper also read me online and will realise that perhaps my days at The Star are numbered ( or at least until the elections are over.)

My editors at The Star did politely ask me to tone down my column. They even bought me tea to tell me this. They explained the type of nasty pressures they face over many articles, pressure from people who seem to be hyper-paranoid over every little bit of news that might be construed as anti-government, anti-Islam, anti-everythingtheystandfor. I can sympathise with my editors. It can't be fun being constantly shouted at on the phone or having to attend 'briefings' where they are told exactly what they can or cannot write, no argument.

But just last week I was at a forum on media freedom, in Singapore, and I listened to two Burmese journalists talking about media freedom in their country. They talked about how for years they had to deal with the military censors who insisted on seeing their articles BEFORE and AFTER publication. They had to find ways to creatively get their message across either through writing 'between the lines', using codewords or writing about foreign news which somehow had some relevance to Burma though obliquely.

Recently however Burma has been moving towards democracy. And with it has come new media freedom and many new newspapers and magazines have proliferated. And where once Aung San Syu Kyii was never mentioned in the papers, she is now on the front pages of almost every paper "because she sells papers". They now can write about most things although some things -like corruption - are still taboo.

But one thing they said left a mark on me. Through all those years of pressure, the temptation to self-censor was always there. And while others may have succumbed, this one young man decided he would not. "My job," he said, " is to write. The censors' job is to censor. I don't censor myself because that's not my job."

That's the way I view my column too. I don't 'tone down' largely because I don't know how to. But also because it's not my job.

So, for what it's worth, here is the column that should have appeared tomorrow:

Marina Mahathir for The Star

Obfuscation is a word I love. It means to make something obscure or to confuse people. I love it because it is an apt word to describe the noisy politics we have to endure these days, the sort of noise that makes it impossible for anyone to even hear themselves speak, let alone think about what needs to be thought.

Obfuscation is an every day occurrence these days in our country. When issues should be presented clearly, they are obscured by side issues, distractions and misinformation. People who attempt to bring some clarity are shouted down, drowned by the sheer noise of the loudest though not necessarily the smartest nor the most sincere of loudhailers.

How did a campaign calling for that most innocuous of causes, clean and fair elections, come to be characterized as a clarion call for LGBT rights? Only because some people decided that the best way to distract from a popular issue is to project it as one that is ‘really’ about something else. And then the ‘something else’ was defined as an issue which most people will reflexively react against.

So the logic now sounds like this: if you call for clean and fair elections, that means you want LGBTs to take over the country. Wow!

How wonderful is this obfuscation tactic that a man who was once hailed as a great nationalist patriot for leading a demo to call for the overturning of the policy of teaching maths and science in English, is now likened to a pervert because he is calling for clean and fair elections. He literally went from hero to zero overnight.

Meanwhile, so-called amendments to various laws are touted as the long-awaited reforms by a modern and democratic government. Yet such amendments are rushed through Parliament and ‘debated’ by parliamentarians late at night when they are no doubt sleepy and fuzzy-minded. Surely such important laws deserve better? But no, the obfuscation continues. The bulldozing is touted as ‘proof’ of genuine commitment to reform. And people actually buy this?

Some students decide to stage a tent-in in a public space for a cause that may be a bit too idealistic. Certainly it doesn’t seem to have captured much public sympathy. But the obfuscation continues, confusing the students’ right to voice their unhappiness with their cause. What’s more, news reports on the students seem not to have made clear that there are in fact two groups at Dataran Merdeka, and although there are some overlaps, there are some fundamental differences between the two. Not only are their causes different, so are their ways of working. But obfuscation requires that the two are conflated and by that, the tarnishing of all young people continues.

Today it is difficult to speak publicly in any intelligent manner because it is the unintelligent and the belligerent who rule. On university grounds, grounds where the intellect should reign, a man can blithely say that if LGBTs take over this country (despite there being no evidence whatsoever of this happening), he would not hesitate to take his keris out and use it. In other countries, such a pronouncement would elicit immediate arrest. But no, in this self-proclaimed moderate country, such violent arrogance is applauded.

What is the point of promoting any sort of science in this country when basic evidence is never respected? When anyone can come up with the most dubious statements without any facts to back it up? A full 30% of men in this country are gay, according to someone, and this is a danger to the country. What does this mean? Does that mean that out of the 28 men in our Cabinet, at least nine of them are gay? Out of the 13 Muftis making fatwas around the country, 4 of them are homosexual? If a full 30% of Malaysian men prefer their own sex, they also make a sizeable voting bloc. Why alienate them?

But there is no longer any point in talking sense or logic in this country. The less logic you speak, the more popular you are. The less facts you present, the more you are lauded. Better still, the more incorrect facts you give, invented out of thin air, the more you dazzle your followers.

Obfuscation however tends to bite back. The more you use it to blindside people, the more you make it a culture, the less people will trust you. It’s hard to continually create a fog around facts, to drown truth with noise. Sooner or later, you’re bound to trip up. That would be enough to create mistrust.

So, like the boy who cried wolf, even if you present facts now, it’ll be hard to persuade anyone.

Oops!!!

This article is in the Malaysian Insider today. It looks like there will be some red faces. For those who are not familiar or worse still, apathetic about Lynas, watch the Mat Salleh in the You Tube below and read the blog post "Kenapa Malaysia Memerlukan Kilang Memproses Nadir Bumi Lynas @NajibRazak?" in ariffshah.com which pretty much sums it up.

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Design problems, hazardous construction plague Lynas plant, reports NYT

June 30, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, June 30 — The controversial Lynas rare earths refinery in Kuantan is plagued by environmentally hazardous construction and design problems, the New York Times has reported, citing internal memos and current and former engineers on the project.

The report published today said the issues, including moisture in humid Malaysia, could potentially affect the RM700 million Lynas Corp plant being built to challenge China’s stranglehold in the key rare earths industry.

Malaysia is due to announce today the results of an independent international review of the plant that is scheduled to open this September. The listed Lynas Corp has asked for a halt in its share trading in Australia today pending the report.

Signboard showing the site of the Lynas plant under construction in Gebeng, Kuantan. — File pic

In a report headlined “The Fear of a Toxic Rerun” by Keith Bradsher, the New York Times reported that Lynas officials contend that the refinery being built here is safe and up to industry standards, and say that they are working with its contractors to resolve their concerns.

“All parties are in agreement that it is normal course of business in any construction project for technical construction queries to be raised and then resolved to relevant international standards during the course of project construction,” wrote Matthew James, an executive vice-president of Lynas, in an e-mail last night.

But the construction and design may have serious flaws, the engineers told New York Times, and provided proof through memos, e-mail messages and photos from Lynas and its contractors. The engineers said they felt a professional duty to voice their safety concerns, but insisted on anonymity to avoid the risk of becoming industry outcasts.

“The problems they detail include structural cracks, air pockets and leaks in many of the concrete shells for 70 containment tanks, some of which are larger than double-decker buses,” the paper said.

Lynas is mining rare earths ore deep in the Australian desert and shipping to Malaysia to be mixed with powerful acids to make a slightly radioactive slurry that would be pumped through the tanks, with operating temperatures of about 200 degrees Fahrenheit.

The engineers say that almost all of the steel piping ordered for the plant is made from standard steel, which they describe as not suited for the corrosive, abrasive slurry. Rare earths refineries in other countries make heavy use of costlier stainless steel or steel piping with ceramic or rubber liners, the paper said.

“The engineers also say that the concrete tanks were built using conventional concrete, not the much costlier polymer concrete mixed with plastic that is widely used in refineries in the West to reduce the chance of cracks.

“Documents show that Lynas and its construction management contractor, UGL Ltd of Australia, have argued with their contractors that the cracks and moisture in the concrete containment walls are not a critical problem,” according to the report.

Memos also show that Lynas and UGL have pressed a Malaysian contractor, Cradotex, to proceed with the installation of watertight fibreglass liners designed for the containment tanks without fixing the moisture problem and with limited fixes to the walls. But Cradotex has resisted, the paper reported.

“These issues have the potential to cause the plants critical failure in operation,” Peter Wan, the general manager of Cradotex, said in a June 20 memo obtained by New York Times.

“More critically the toxic, corrosive and radioactive nature of the materials being leached in these tanks, should they leak, will most definitely create a contamination issue.”

Wan said in a telephone interview with the New York Times on Tuesday that he believed Lynas and UGL would be able to fix the moisture problem but that he did not know what method the companies might choose to accomplish this.

The fibreglass liners are made by AkzoNobel of Amsterdam, one of the world’s largest chemical companies. AkzoNobel says it, too, worries about the rising moisture.

“We will not certify or even consider the use of our coatings if this problem can’t be fixed,” Tim van der Zanden, AkzoNobel’s top spokesman in Amsterdam, wrote on Monday night in an e-mail reply to questions.

Memos show that the refinery’s concrete foundations were built without a thin layer of plastic that might prevent the concrete pilings from drawing moisture from the reclaimed swampland underneath. The site is located just inland from a coastal mangrove forest, and several miles up a river that flows out to the sea past an impoverished fishing village.

An engineer involved in the project said that the blueprints called for the plastic waterproofing but that he was ordered to omit it, to save money. The plastic costs US$1.60 (RM4.80) a square foot, he said.

Lynas disputes that the design ever called for using the plastic.

Nicholas Curtis, the executive chairman of Lynas, said in a telephone interview from Sydney on Monday that the project here met local environmental standards and that he believed those were consistent with international standards.

“I have complete confidence in the Malaysian environmental standards and our ability to meet the requirements,” he told the New York Times.

Engineers at the project said that Lynas officials had whisked the international inspectors through the factory in a single morning, partly because of security concerns about protesters outside the refinery gates. The team had little chance to examine the refinery’s structure, the engineers said.

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Kenapa Malaysia Memerlukan Kilang Memproses Nadir Bumi Lynas @NajibRazak ?

by ARIFF on MAY 25, 2011 · 83 COMMENTS · in NATION

Kecoh tentang pembukaan kilang memproses nadir bumi di Gebeng, Pahang oleh syarikat Lynas Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. Aku tergerak untuk membuat sedikit kajian tentang isu ini selepas menonton video yang dirakam dalam bahasa Malaysia oleh seorang warganegara Australia sendiri berkaitan isu ini. Kalau dah sampai macam tu, nampak sangat perkara ini bukanlah perkara yang remeh.

Setelah membaca artikel berkaitan Rare Earth Elements di laman National Geographic, aku berpendapat Malaysia memerlukan kilang memproses nadir bumi ini. Kita kena ingat, ekonomi kita sangatlah bergantung kepada pengeluaran petroleum. Bila sampai masanya, pengeluaran produk hasil daripada petroleum akan berkurangan sekali gus mengurangkan pendapatan negara. Walaupun ada industri lain seperti minyak sawit, industri seperti ini tidaklah memberi impak yang besar pada ekonomi kerana permintaan dunia tidaklah tinggi.

Nadir bumi ini diperlukan untuk menghasilkan komponen peralatan elektronik. Hasil daripada penggunaan nadir bumi inilah kita dapat menikmati peralatan elektronik yang nipis, kecil dan ringan seperti iPad 2 kerana komponen yang terhasil daripada penggunaan nadir bumi ini adalah lebih baik dan efisyen berbanding komponen yang dihasilkan menggunakan bahan tiruan.

Sekarang ini, negara China membekalkan sehingga 97% permintaan dunia untuk nadir bumi yang diproses untuk kegunaan industri. Dengan kuasa yang besar seperti itu, mereka boleh mengehadkan pembekalan sekali gus menyebabkan kenaikan harga barangan elektronik seluruh dunia. China merancang untuk mengurangkan eksport nadir bumi yang telah diproses dengan alasan untuk kegunaan dalam negara mereka walaupun kita semua tahu bahawa mereka sengaja mengekspoitasi monopoli mereka dalam pasaran dunia supaya harga bahan ini meningkat.

Permintaan untuk bahan ini tak akan berkurangan kerana industri pembuatan elektronik memerlukan bahan ini. Oleh itu, pembukaan kilang pemprosesan nadir bumi di Malaysia, merupakan satu langkah yang baik untuk menambahkan pendapatan negara. Kilang yang dibuka di Gebeng, Pahang itu akan berupaya menghasilkan nilai eksport sebanyak RM8 billion setahun dan dijangkakan meningkat dari tahun ke tahun. Ini dapat memberikan pendapatan tetap yang lumayan kepada negara kita kerana kilang tak banyak negara mempunyai kilang pemprosesan nadir bumi ini.

TETAPI

Apa yang bodoh aku lihat dalam projek ini ialah:

• Keputusan yang dibuat oleh individu untuk mengeluarkan lesen pembinaan kilang tersebut pada tahun 2008 dibuat tanpa pengetahuan orang awam, termasuklah rakyat Pahang itu sendiri. Apabila negara mula melibatkan diri dalam pemprosesan bahan radioaktif, kajian menyeluruh perlu dijalankan sebelum apa-apa lesen atau arahan dikeluarkan untuk memulakan pembinaan. 
• Apabila negara memberikan lesen kepada syarikat luar untuk membuka kilang pemprosesan mereka, harapan kita adalah supaya dapat membuka peluang pekerjaan yang banyak kepada rakyat negara ini. Namun dalam hal kilang pemprosesan nadir bumi oleh Lynas Malaysia Sdn Bhd, peluang pekerjaan yang dibukan adalah sebanyak 350 sahaja. Langsung tak berbaloi dan tidak akan memberikan impak ekonomi yang diharapkan. 
• Pengecualian cukai selama 12 tahun. Ini adalah yang paling bodoh. Kita terlalu baik sampaikan industri yang menghasilkan sisa buangan radioaktif diberikan pengecualian cukai walaupun industri tersebut dianggarkan akan membuat untung berbillion ringgit pada tahun pertama pembukaannya. Bila negara tak dapat satu sen pun daripada industri yang sememangnya membahayakan rakyat ini, apa gunanya kita berikan mereka lesen untuk beroperasi di negara kita?
• Menteri Western Australia, Hon Norman Moore memaklumkan sisa buangan radioaktif itu adalah milik Malaysia dan tidak akan diterima balik oleh Australia. 
• Lokasi yang terlalu dekat dengan kawasan kediaman. Jarak 2 km dari Balok dengan kepadatan penduduk seramai 16700 orang. Jika diambil kira keluasan evakuasi di Fukushima dengan jarak 40km dari Gebeng Kuantan, kebocoran sisa radioaktif akan melibatkan keseluruhan penduduk di Kuantan, Gambang, Cherating malah Kemaman di Terengganu sekalipun. Jumlah penduduk yang mungkin terlibat boleh mencecah hampir 800 hingga 900 ribu secara keseluruhannya dengan Kuantan sahaja di sekitar 600 hingga 650 ribu orang. Syarat yang ditetapkan oleh Kerajaan Australia adalah minima 35 km dari kawasan penempatan penduduk. 
• Denda RM50 juta seperti yang termaktub di bawah Akta Perlesenan Tenaga Atom Perenggan 59 (1) untuk setiap bencana kepada Lynas dilihat cukup ringan berbanding hasil RM8 Billion setahun. Hanya satu bencana yang melibatkan sisa radioaktif memadai untuk menjadi ancaman yang serius dan kekal lama kepada semua.

Kesan terhadap penduduk di kawasan sekitar kilang tersebut (Kuantan & Kemaman khususnya):

• Nilai hartanah akan merudum kerana tiada siapa yang mahu membeli tanah atau kediaman di sekitar Kuantan dan di Kemaman. 
• Ancaman kepada syarikat berdekatan khususnya Petro-Kimia seperti Kaneka, MTBE, Petronas BASF dan BP Chemicals. Kerugian yang besar jika operasi mereka terganggu dengan insiden kebocoran sisa radioaktif yang boleh menjejaskan kesihatan pekerja mereka. 
• Pelabur baru dari luar negeri dan dari luar negara tidak akan berminat untuk melabur kerana ancaman sisa radioaktif daripada Lynas. Risiko terlalu tinggi. 
• Sektor pelancongan (Cherating) & perikanan (Kuantan) kemungkinan besar akan terjejas. 

Nadir bumi yang dilombong di Mount Weld mengandungi beberapa mineral utama dan diantaranya ialah monazite. Monazite adalah bahan radioaktif. Di dalam bahan mineral monazite ini terdapat thorium, cerium dan lanthanum. Monazite kaya dengan thorium dan thorium ini juga adalah bahan radioaktif yang tinggi dan boleh digunakan untuk menggantikan uranium dalam menghasilkan tenaga nuklear. Berikut adalah kes-kes yang berkait rapat dengan thorium:

1. Syarikat Mitsubishi Chemical yang terlibat dalam industri pemprosesan nadir bumi di Bukit Merah dikaitkan dengan 8 kes leukimia dan 7 kes kematian. Telah ditutup pada tahun 1992 dan kerja-kerja pembersihan sisa masih berjalan sehingga ke hari ini (hampir 20 tahun) dan telah menelan belanja lebih RM300 juta. 
2. Kesan toksik dan radioaktif dari industri ‘rare-earth’ di Baotou Mongolia. Setiap langkah pemprosesan nadir bumi yang bermula dari perlombongan bijih ke ‘rare earth oxide’ atau ‘rare-earth metals’ banyak menggunakan bahan asid dan kimia. Malah ketika perlombongan bijih, bahan asid akan dimasukkan ke lubang yang digali. Sisa buangan radioaktif khususnya Thorium juga dihasilkan ketika melalui semua proses itu. Kebocoran bahan asid, kimia dan sisa radioaktif ini yang banyak berlaku di Baotou terbukti telah menyebabkan kemusnahan kepada hasil pertanian dan kesihatan seperti kerosakan hasil tanaman, gigi tercabut dan rabut putih atau beruban diawal usia muda sekitar 20-an. Malah kematian disebabkan kanser juga direkodkan walaupun lokasi penempatan penduduk berada 10KM dari kawasan penyimpanan sisa buangan radioaktif itu. 
3. Kajian yang dilakukan oleh Kolej Perubatan Jiangxi di China dari sample darah dan ujian IQ pada kanak-kanak mengemukakan kesimpulan bahawa kanak-kanak di sekitar umur 7-10 tahun yang tinggal berdekatan dengan kawasan pemprosesan nadir bumi berkemungkinan mempunyai IQ atau kecerdasan akal yang lebih rendah berbanding mereka yang tinggal jauh atau yang tinggal di kawasan yang terkawal. 

Aku berpendapat, projek Lynas ini sangatlah tidak sesuai dan berisiko tinggi. Projek ini boleh dijalankan sekiranya lokasi kilang tersebut diletakkan dalam kawasan kawalan 35 km minimum seperti yang digariskan oleh kerajaan Australia dan boleh menjadi sumber pendapatan yang lumayan kepada negara sekiranya cukai dikenakan terhadap syarikat Lynas Malaysia Sdn Bhd. Kalau dua yang aku sebutkan ini tak berlaku, maka sebagai rakyat tentanglah projek ini habis-habisan. Ini adalah untuk kebaikan kita bersama.

Tugas aku melalui blog ini adalah untuk menyampaikan maklumat. Kepada blogger lain yang mempunyai rasa tanggungjawab, sampaikan maklumat ini melalui blog anda. Copy paste dibenarkan macam biasa. Tweetkan kepada Najib Razak. Harap usaha kecil sebegini dapat mengubah sesuatu.

Sumber:
Apa itu Lynas?
National Geographic: Rare Earth Elements

Cancer Con?

Found these two articles on the Net. Chemotherapy is just another colossal con-job! The statistics itself speak. The following are excerpts:
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Improving Health of Cancer Patients - July 16, 2010

Richard Loyd, Ph.D.

It is my opinion that in general, cancer is not a medical emergency that requires immediate invasive and toxic interventions. It is a degenerative condition that requires improving of health. There are medical emergencies that require the best medical help you can find. Car accidents with catastrophic injuries or life-threatening burns are examples. In those cases, you need the best emergency room you can find. Cancer can become a medical emergency. If the digestive tract is completely blocked by a tumor so that passage of material is impossible, emergency surgery may be needed. If breathing is becoming impossible due to a tumor blocking the respiratory tract, emergency intervention is appropriate. If a tumor in the brain has grown to the point where there is pressure that is causing damage, surgery may be advisable. It also possible that medical treatment for cancer will cause enough damage that more medical treatment will be required. But in general, cancer is not a condition that requires treatments that actually worsen health.

Many people are trying to recover from cancer with non-toxic therapies. This is an attainable goal and it is often achieved. Patients often spend a lot more money than necessary and take huge numbers of pills, many of which do not have a direct bearing on their problem and may even block progress. More may not be better!

People sometimes tell me that they were perfectly healthy until the cancer suddenly appeared. I point out that they were not really healthy. They had viral infections, toxic metals, parasites, infections in tooth sockets, radiation stress, bowel toxicity, chemical toxicity and probably mold toxicity. There may have been a metabolic imbalance. In other words, the things that cause cancer. The things that have to go away so they can get well.

Anyone with a condition that normally requires the services of a physician is urged to consult one. Ask your physician if this program can be used along side whatever medical treatment you decide on. This is not a "cure" for cancer. It is a method of becoming healthy. If you are considering chemotherapy or radiation, ask your oncologist if the suggested therapy ever cures your kind of cancer. If the answer is "no", then THINK ABOUT THIS! Of those who depend on chemotherapy for survival (in other words, the surgeon "did not get it all"), the five year survival rate is only 2.1%. For some cancers the rate is better, but for some types of cancer, it is 0%.



Does this make you feel like chemotherapy is a cruel fraud in most cases? If you do not get that impression yet, please study the chart some more!

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How Much Is Life Worth: Cetuximab, Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer, and the $440 Billion Question
By Tito Fojo, Christine Grady

Affiliations of authors: Medical Oncology Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute (TF), and Department of Bioethics, The Clinical Center (CG), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD . Correspondence to: Tito Fojo, MD, PhD, Medical Oncology Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bldg 10, Rm 12 N226, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20892 (e-mail: tfojo@helix.nih.gov ). See “Notes” following “References.” DOI: 10.1093/jnci/djp177 Published by Oxford University Press 2009.


The spiraling cost of cancer care, in particular the cost of cancer therapeutics that achieve only marginal benefits, is under increasing scrutiny. Although health-care professionals avoid putting a value on a life, our limited resources require that society address what counts as a benefit, the extent to which cost should factor in deliberations, and who should be involved in these decisions. Professional societies, such as the American Society of Clinical Oncology, government agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration, and insurance companies should be involved. However, no segment of society is better qualified to address these issues than the oncology community. Oncologists must offer clear guidance for the conduct of research, interpretation of results, and prescription of chemotherapies. We review recent drug approvals and clinical trials and comment on their relevance to the issue of the spiraling cost of oncology therapeutics. We suggest some standards that would serve as a starting point for addressing these issues.

The year 2008 was one with few major breakthroughs in cancer treatment. A highlight of the war on cancer at the annual meeting in 2008 of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) was the reporting of the results of a multi-institutional European trial in which cetuximab was added to cisplatin and vinorelbine to treat patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The overall survival (OS) advantage from adding cetuximab was 1.2 months (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.871, P = .04). This extra time was accompanied by a substantially higher rate of febrile neutropenia in those receiving cetuximab, along with higher frequencies of acne-like rash, diarrhea, and infusion-related reactions. Unfortunately, there were no systematic quality-of-life assessments reported to objectively determine the tolerability of the agent compared with conventional treatment.

Did the results of this trial constitute a breakthrough? According to the researchers, “Cetuximab added to a platinum-based chemotherapy sets a new standard for the first-line treatment of patients with non–small cell lung cancer”. And the ASCO press briefing asserted, “these findings are likely to have a significant impact on the care of patients with these types of cancer”. But the only reasonable conclusion is that a magic anticancer bullet aimed at an important target missed by a wide margin. Nevertheless, the presentation raised once again an even more pressing and important set of issues: What counts as a benefit in cancer treatment? How much should cost factor into deliberations? Who should decide? As oncologists, we cannot go on without answering these questions. The moral character of our specialty depends on the answers.

Drug (brand name)	Regimen	Dose†	Amount needed†,‡	Cost per milligram or cost per tablet	Total cost‡	Increase in OS‡
Cetuximab (Erbitux)	Loading: 400 mg/m2; maintain: 250 mg/m2/wk	Loading: 600 mg; maintain: 375 mg	6975 mg	$11.52/mg	$80 352	1.2 months
Bevacizumab (Avastin)	10 mg/kg every 14 d	600 mg every 14 d	13 200 mg	$6.88/mg	$90 816	1.5 months§
Erlotinib (Tarceva)	150 mg daily	150 mg/d; 1 tablet per day	112 tablets	$140.64 per tablet	$15752	10 days
Sorafenib (Nexavar)	400 mg twice a day	800 mg/d; 4 tablets per day	692 tablets	$49.67 per tablet	$34373	2.7 months

* Costs from Red Book 2008 (Drug Topics Red Book) by Harold Cohen. PFS = progression-free survival. OS = Overall Survival
† Calculated for a 60 kg/1.5 m 2 patient.
‡ For the regimen cited, administered as in the study cited, until the time of median disease progression as reported in the published study.
§ Not statistically significant.


Read more here

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You be the judge...ask an oncologist to undergo chemo when has cancer.

The Interlok Issue: Spare 13.5 Minutes To Find Out Why

The book "Interlok" has been controversially included in the Form 5 syllabus to be read by Malaysian kids as part of the Bahasa Malaysia language subject (not Literature as a subject).

Many Malaysians (especially Indians) are against this and yet, many more like me were not bothered to know more. But that was until I heard this short interview of Dr Farish Noor on BFM 89.9 yesterday.

So now I too know...and so must you. Please take the time (only 13.50 minutes) to listen and share it with friends.

Of Sycophants And Harlots; Both Suck!

This post is about the minions in mainstream media and it is a Google Post i.e. google a topic (in this case Joseline Tan) and see what comes up most often.

Here are some of the most common tack about JT; just read the hyperlink titles and click if you want. I suppose a leech can be expected to suck her way to the top of an editorial shit pile!    

Rocky's Bru said: OH, JOCELINE TAN!

and Joceline Tan and the two SILs


Seventh Rangers (Mechanized) said:

Joceline Tan desperately spinning ...


Cuit Sikit said:

Tahniah Joceline Tan (Jose the Special One)


This by politics2politics takes a big slice of the cake:

JOCELINE TAN, THE STAR the schoolgirl behaving ...


The above are all old stuff in Google on JT but the following is a response to her article, "End of the road or a new beginning?":

Unethical journalism and a blatant lie by Joceline Tan

How can so many be wrong or perhaps this is a conspiracy by Google! Google must be running an anti-JT campaign. I wonder how she can sleep at night.

Anyway, the following blogpost by drrafick puts things succinctly:


Keadilan adil?
November 20, 2010 by drrafick

The attack on Zaid Ibrahim has not stopped. The way I see it is that Zaid case will be spun by the MSM with the aim to crack the strength of the Pakatan Rakyat coalition. One such attempt is an article published in The Star written by Jocelyn Tan under the heading “End of the road or a new beginning?

To counter what appeared in the papers, Muhammad Firdaus Christopher and Rashid Azad Khan who are known Associates of Datuk Zaid Ibrahim today sent me a letter of rebuttal on the article. I am not like most newspaper readers. Most of the time when I read a political news in the MSM, I tend to keep an open mind. At the moment my analysis shows that the MSM reporters are doing what their political masters want them to do.

My hope is that bloggers and the alternative media in Malaysia are different. Right now, I can say only some are truly different. Majority of them whom are pro Pakatan Rakyat do not take the criticism leveled against Azmin or Anwar kindly. Many can’t differentiate between the party and Anwar or Azmin.

A state Exco in her SMS exchange with me says that Azmin despite his warts won Sabah fairly because of his hard work and Zaid was a sore loser that had lost his position despite spending a lot of money there. I don’t know about the money involved but from what I gather, Zaid is popular figure in Sabah and going by the nomination he had received it is unlikely that he would be spending much money to buy votes. Chances are the underdog would likely to do so and the open and continuous campaign by Anwar on the members in Sabah does not gel for a “de facto leader”.

I have said it before that there are serious flaws in PKR election process. The election machinery is supposed to be run by the Chairman of JPP but it appears that it is run by the Sec Gen of PKR. The votes do not tally in many places and many ordinary members have challenged the validity of the election in many areas but without real and proper investigations most of these allegations were dismissed.

I can appreciate and relate to Zahid frustration on the whole thing that led to his announcement to leave the party. I am not a politician and would unlikely to be one in the near future but I have been through similar predicaments before. Party is an association. It has rules. Members need to follow these rules. It is simple as that. Unfortunately man made rules are manipulated by the experts and party leader. Many members who don’t know the rules tend to accept whatever is told by their leaders as gospel truth without even a blink. Many don’t know the constitution.

Keadilan is no longer about Anwar. In fact I would say that Keadilan should not be about Anwar. It should be about the country. I would like every Malaysian to ask themselves whether they want change because they hate BN or because they think Keadilan can really make a difference in governing the country. If one cannot run the party in a fair (ADIL) manner than can we expect them to run the country in the way that we want.

What Are They Up To?

It was a quiet Sunday today. After sending JJ to Sentral this morning because he was supposed to witness an ad shoot or something, I was home the whole day. By the way, JJ is still out there somewhere but it's OK because he is getting relevant exposure in his chosen line of work.

Sometime in the late afternoon, someone rang the doorbell and looking out the window I saw four young-looking people. At first impression, I thought they were students doing some part-time survey or promo thingy. There was a guy and three girls. They told me they had something to share (regarding Christianity of course) and asked for a few minutes of my time. On closer scrutiny, none of them looked anything above 23 (Krystyn's age) and curiosity got the better of me so I invited them in.

The group said they had just graduated. My initial evaluation after a brief introduction was through visual impression. The guy (from Sarawak) who looked typically nerdy said he graduated overseas (did not say what discipline).

The three girls had distinctly different looks from each other. A prettier one with bright eyes who had graduated from Universiti Malaya in accounting (looked to, and did have a better command of English); a born Christian. Another who looked definitely ordinary had a degree in marketing from UPM or UKM; she looked the type who would feel at home in a Christian fellowship. The third (also from Sarawak) was a graduate in finance and economics I think. She was definitely in need of professional skin care. The second and the third girls appeared more enthusiastic and they revealed later that they were not born into Christian families but had recently converted to the faith.

The guy was the leader and I prompted him to begin his "sharing". They must have been taught by their church elders some form of canned presentation; everytime he mention a seemingly "salient" point the second and third girl would chorus his words in tandem as if cued. Anyway, they were trying to sell me Jesus...

Guy: "Uncle, all you have to do is to embrace the Spirit" (followed by girls' chorus on cue).
Me: "How do I do that?"
Guy: "Just say three simple words" (followed by girls' chorus on cue).
Me: "Wah! So easy wan ah. Say what ah?"
Guy: "The Lord Jesus"
Me: "You sure or not? So simple only ah. Just say the words and I can go to Heaven ah?"
Guy: "No lah, you have to accept Jesus in your mind (he did say "mind") by saying the three words then the Spirit will grow in you and you are on your way".

They were obviously all reasonably intelligent kids but I suppose still very naive and vulnerable to persuasive church elders. I was of course amused by the whole thing but felt I should stop wasting their time because they were certainly wasting mine. Moreover, I was already laughing in my mind because they reminded me of Boney M singing "The Rivers of Babylon":




What concerned me was that these 4 Chinese youth who admitted to not having had any life-shaking upheavals in life yet, are so besotted and obsessed with their religion which they obviously had not sufficiently studied in depth. There they were trying to teach me about my afterlife when they had not really begun to live their own real-life!

I was thinking they should be channeling their energy and devotion towards joining hands with other youths of Malaysia in demanding a better future for themselves in THIS promised land called Malaysia.

The session ended with me advising them to study Christianity in greater width and depth, and more importantly, also study the religions of others. But most important of all; find out in wider perspective what the increasing numbers of "Non-believers" believe. Gain more knowledge before deciding to put on the blinkers!

The guy was of course not very pleased that he was made to look rather unconvincing in front of his "flock". Hope they learnt something.

Hmmm... JJ is still out in KL somewhere. I know he has the same degree of dedication as the 4 youths but his is to learn as much, in the shortest possible time by creating opportunities and at the same time, not wasting opportunities that come his way.

Watch the following video too and see what many other Malaysian youth are doing:



...and this was a prequel:

Professor Dr Azmi Sharom Being Crystal Clear

BFM 89.9: Dr Azmi Sharom, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law, University Malaya, talks about the social contract, the concept of Ketuanan Melayu and the need for more freedom of speech in public universities. He is also the President of the UM Academic Staff Union.


http://bfm.my/assets/files/MarketWatch/2010-09-14_CA_AzmiSharom.mp3

I Love This. From My Favorite Running Dog

This is self-explanatory. I can already imagine some of my Malay friends shaking their heads in disgust.

Utusan columnist tells critics to ‘go home’
By Asrul Hadi Abdullah Sani

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 15 — Controversial Mingguan Malaysia columnist Dr Mohd Ridhuan Tee Abdullah continued his weekly diatribe against non-Malays, saying today that minorities who cannot respect the special position of Islam and the Malays should return to their homeland.

The Muslim convert also sneered that Malaysia should be renamed “Cinasia” or “Indiasia” if every demand by non-Muslims was accommodated when commenting on Centre for Policy Initiatives (CPI) columnist Helen Ang’s recent piece “Enforcing NEP on minority religions.”

“Will the practice of prayer (doa) cause the heart of the non-Muslims to melt and embrace Islam? She really (Helen Ang) hates Islam. Prayer (doa) is part of the Malay Muslim culture.
“Why would we want to delete all of our identity for merely wanting to accommodate others. If that’s the case, just change the name of Malaysia to Cinasia or Indiasia. How strange it is this species, never cease trying to challenge the position of Islam and Malays,” he wrote in his Sunday column headlined “Jangan terlalu berani mencabar” (Don’t be so brave to challenge).

In her piece, Ang questioned why non-Muslim religious societies were banned in national schools.

Ang added that the restriction on non-Muslim fellowship in schools has stopped many Chinese parents from sending their children to national schools.

“If I were a mother, I would never wish to subject my vulnerable child to a bellicose environment where my race, and the traditions and faith beliefs I’ve imparted to my son or daughter are disparaged,” she said.

In response, Tee said that the country does not want Ang’s children, whether legal or illegitimate, a favourite line he continually implies about the Chinese.

“She does not need to send her ‘children’ (if any were legitimate) to national school, if she is not confident with the national school or she is scared that her ‘children’ will become Malays. Her ‘children’ are not needed here.

“Just send her ‘children’ to schools in her homeland or overseas. The presence of ‘children’ are not needed here,” he said in a personal attack on Ang, who has also had two police reports lodged against her over her article.

Tee also said that Ang should migrate to the West if she is obsessed with their culture.

“I suggest that she migrate to another country, if this country does not provide her with any freedom. She should go to her country of origin or to the West because there is more ‘freedom’ there to build the biggest church and the highest statue in the world and have vernacular schools as well as having free sex.

“I do not think that she is proud of her ancestors because she prefers to use a white man’s name even though her eyes are sepet,” he said.

Tee stressed that non-Muslims should be grateful because the Malays have been very tolerant.

“Let us compare how the situation of Muslims living in countries where non-Muslims are the majority. Tolerance is very high. Muslims do not pose a problem for non-Muslims, except when their rights taken and exploited like in southern Thailand, Philippines and Palestine. Malay Muslims in Singapore do not make any noise when their land was stolen. They just sat quietly even though their Islamic and Malay rights are slowly taken away by the Chinese community.

“See our tolerance here. For me because the Malays embraced Islam 600 years ago, non-Muslims can live comfortably in this blessed land. The Islamic values have taught the Malays to protect the rights of non-Muslims and to not oppress them,” he added.

On Monday, Malay right-wing group Perkasa today lodged a police report against Ang for allegedly questioning the rights of the Malays and the position of Islam in the country.


COMMENTS
Comments (9) at at 1.30 pm 15th August 2010

btg kali · 58 minutes ago

Doesn't mean you are a convert you can treat others like dirt. You are a traitor to your race and now your words run foul of every human tribe in the word! Ridhuan Tee Abdullah!

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Dan · 53 minutes ago

You had pushed us into a corner. You had threatened us, ISAed us, sent us live bullets, even pushed us down to death. This piece of yours is nothing compare what we had gone through like 513. We are also prepared that you will not give up power even you lose GE13. Keep barking and hope elder Tee hears it. You are getting too personal meaning you are losing!

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GenuineMalaysian · 53 minutes ago

Ok, try to do an experiment. Ask all the chinese and indians to leave the country. I can guarantee in 3 months time, the country's economy will be in a meltdown and will be bankrupt.

See you guys dare or now?

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Old Malaysian · 52 minutes ago

Wow! How much more right does he have to remain in Malaysia then the other non-Malay? This is the kind of running-dog that most people execute during the wars.
This guy is shameless!

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seberang · 48 minutes ago

We are going home or to places we are welcome. We do send our kids to independent schools so that our kids will be able to go overseas for future studies and hopefully stay at places that appreciate them,. Brain drain will worsened but that is not my problem because we are going home. Our tax money is just a rental payment to feed the natives.

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old malaysian · 48 minutes ago

Lets hope he is not representative of the muslims in this country? If so, don't blame Islam for getting a bad name. He has failed Islam as well as his race...... or is he what Islam is really all about?.

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Eric · 42 minutes ago

This is the reason why Malaysia still remains as it is today. It is not about the religion but the people's mindset that will shape our country today and here we have people barking up the wrong tree. Grow up and learn english before you even try to understand implication if any.

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TheOrion · 40 minutes ago

Is this the way to understanding, transparency and meritocracy? Is this the proper way of dialogue? No substance at all, useless piece of dead wood!

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cleeman · 39 minutes ago

Coming from him? What else to say!

We are talking about Malaysia as one progressive country where all races are respected and he is taking on narrow racial politics which I believe he is trying very hard to emploit for his selfish personal gain.

I don't think any real Muslim will even consider him as a brother with all his radical and unjust views. Converting to one is easy, practise as one, not him! One thing for sure, he should try getting rid of the Tee in his name, if he ever could, before he talks anything along racial line and put on a racial skin.

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