When we tell God to get out of our lives

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.

My confession:

I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees... I don't feel threatened.. I don't feel discriminated against.. That's what they are, Christmas trees.

It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu .. If people want a creche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.

In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her 'How could God let something like this happen?' (regarding Hurricane Katrina).. Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response.. She said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?'

In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc.. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about.. And we said okay..

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not, then just discard it... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.

Have A Blessed Christmas 2010!

May the love, peace and joy brought by the birth of Jesus Christ be upon your family this Christmas!

Isaiah 9:6-7 “For to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over His kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.”

John 1:29-34 “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the One I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because He was before me.’ I myself did not know Him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that He might be revealed to Israel.’ Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on Him. I would not have known Him, except that the One who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is He who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.”

I am a registered Malaysian voter. Are you?

For up-to-date voter registration events, please:

1) Join the FB "I am a registered Malaysian voter. Are you?" page.

2) Follow "reg2vote" on Twitter.

JOHOR
* Every Sat & Sun until 5 Dec 2010 @ Grd Flr, BP Mall, Batu Pahat, 10am-9pm

FT / SELANGOR
* 31 Oct (Sun) @ Buddhist Maha Vihara, Jalan Berhala, B'fields KL, 8am-12noon
* 30-31 Oct @ Subang Parade, near Uncle Lim's Kopitiam on Grd Flr, 10am-10pm
* 21 Nov @ Canaan Lutheran Church, Jalan Reko, Kajang, 10am-2pm

N. SEMBILAN (throughout November)
* Every Thurs @ Loop Road Pasar Malam, 6pm-9:30pm
* Every Sat @ Bahau Pasar Malam (Sat) 6pm-7:30pm
* Every Sun @ Pasar Besar Seremban, 9am-12noon

PENANG
* 31 Oct (Sun) @ Nibong Tebal Pasar Malam, 7.30-10pm
* 1 Nov (Mon) @ Kg Jawi Pasar Malam, 7.30-10pm
* 5-7 Nov @ PISA (HOMEDEC 2010 Fair), 11am-9pm
* 21 Nov @ Penang Bridge Marathon, 8-11am
* Every Wed @ Pasar Malam Farlim, 8pm-10pm
* Every first Sunday @ Gurney Plaza, 11am-9pm
* 14 Nov @ Balik Pulau Market, 8am-10am

Public Forum On International Migrants Day

Seminar on Labour Trafficking

Date: 18 December 2010

Time: 9 am to 4 pm

Venue: 12, NUBE House, 3rd Floor, Jalan Tun Sambanthan 3, Brickfields, 50470 KL.

RSVP by 10 December 2010.

Tel: 03-26913691

Launch of 8th Phase of MyConstitution Campaign

The Bar Council MyConstitution Campaign (“Campaign”) aims to instil awareness and educate therakyat on the Federal Constitution.

Why are we doing this? Our government has to run our country based on the Federal Constitution, as it is the highest law of the land. The Federal Constitution defines the framework of our country’s political, judicial and legislative systems. It also tells us what our rights are asrakyat of Malaysia. Therefore, we believe that it is important for all Malaysians to understand what the Federal Constitution means and what it is all about. See it as a manual that comes with any equipment you buy. In order to use the equipment properly, you need to read and understand the manual.

To date, we have launched seven phases successfully, each exploring a specific theme of the Federal Constitution. These seven phases have taken us on exhilarating journeys throughout the country. Since its inception, the Campaign has moved from the capital of Malaysia, up north to Alor Setar, Kedah, and down south to Johor Bahru, Johore. We have left footprints on the idyllic cities of Kuching, Sarawak, and Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, and the Orang Asal settlements in Raub, Pahang, and Tapah, Perak.

We have now arrived at the 8th Phase of the Campaign, entitled “The Rakyat & Fundamental Liberties”.

The Bar Council Constitutional Law Committee is indeed proud to work with the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia Malaysia, “SUHAKAM”) to launch Phase 8 of the Campaign. This collaboration is a testimony of how non-governmental and civil society organisations should, and can, work together towards a common cause: enlightening and empowering the rakyat with knowledge of the fundamental rights accorded to them under the Federal Constitution.

The long-awaited launch will take place at the Bar Council Auditorium at 10:00 am, on 10 Dec 2010, to coincide with International Human Rights Day. The 8th Rakyat Guide themed “TheRakyat & Fundamental Liberties” will be made public and the 8th Rakyat Service Advertisement will be officially aired.

Fellow citizens, mark your diaries and help us to spread the word now! We look forward to seeing you at our Campaign launch on 10 December!

For more information about this Campaign and to learn more about other phases of this Campaign, visit our official website at www.perlembagaanku.com.

Follow our everyday updates leading towards the launch at www.twitter.com/MyConsti.

RSVP by Monday, 6 Dec 2010, 5:00 pm, by completing the registration form and submitting it by email it to kaea@malaysianbar.org.my or by fax to 03-2026 1313. For more information, contact Lim Ka Ea by telephone at 03-2031 7103.

Don't work. Avoid telling the truth. Be hated. Love someone.

Written by Adrian Tan, author of The Teenage Textbook (1988), was the guest-of-honour at a recent NTU convocation ceremony. This was his speech to the graduating class of 2008.

I must say thank you to the faculty and staff of the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information for inviting me to give your convocation address. It’s a wonderful honour and a privilege for me to speak here for ten minutes without fear of contradiction, defamation or retaliation. I say this as a Singaporean and more so as a husband.

My wife is a wonderful person and perfect in every way except one. She is the editor of a magazine. She corrects people for a living. She has honed her expert skills over a quarter of a century, mostly by practising at home during conversations between her and me.

On the other hand, I am a litigator. Essentially, I spend my day telling people how wrong they are. I make my living being disagreeable.

Nevertheless, there is perfect harmony in our matrimonial home. That is because when an editor and a litigator have an argument, the one who triumphs is always the wife.

And so I want to start by giving one piece of advice to the men: when you’ve already won her heart, you don’t need to win every argument.

Marriage is considered one milestone of life. Some of you may already be married. Some of you may never be married. Some of you will be married. Some of you will enjoy the experience so much, you will be married many, many times. Good for you.

The next big milestone in your life is today: your graduation. The end of education. You’re done learning.

You’ve probably been told the big lie that “Learning is a lifelong process” and that therefore you will continue studying and taking masters’ degrees and doctorates and professorships and so on. You know the sort of people who tell you that? Teachers. Don’t you think there is some measure of conflict of interest? They are in the business of learning, after all. Where would they be without you? They need you to be repeat customers.

The good news is that they’re wrong.

The bad news is that you don’t need further education because your entire life is over. It is gone. That may come as a shock to some of you. You’re in your teens or early twenties. People may tell you that you will live to be 70, 80, 90 years old. That is your life expectancy.

I love that term: life expectancy. We all understand the term to mean the average life span of a group of people. But I’m here to talk about a bigger idea, which is what you expect from your life.

You may be very happy to know that Singapore is currently ranked as the country with the third highest life expectancy. We are behind Andorra and Japan, and tied with San Marino. It seems quite clear why people in those countries, and ours, live so long. We share one thing in common: our football teams are all hopeless. There’s very little danger of any of our citizens having their pulses raised by watching us play in the World Cup. Spectators are more likely to be lulled into a gentle and restful nap.

Singaporeans have a life expectancy of 81.8 years. Singapore men live to an average of 79.21 years, while Singapore women live more than five years longer, probably to take into account the additional time they need to spend in the bathroom.

So here you are, in your twenties, thinking that you’ll have another 40 years to go. Four decades in which to live long and prosper.

Bad news. Read the papers. There are people dropping dead when they’re 50, 40, 30 years old. Or quite possibly just after finishing their convocation. They would be very disappointed that they didn’t meet their life expectancy.

I’m here to tell you this. Forget about your life expectancy.

After all, it’s calculated based on an average. And you never, ever want to expect being average.

Revisit those expectations. You might be looking forward to working, falling in love, marrying, raising a family. You are told that, as graduates, you should expect to find a job paying so much, where your hours are so much, where your responsibilities are so much.

That is what is expected of you. And if you live up to it, it will be an awful waste.

If you expect that, you will be limiting yourself. You will be living your life according to boundaries set by average people. I have nothing against average people. But no one should aspire to be them. And you don’t need years of education by the best minds in Singapore to prepare you to be average.

What you should prepare for is mess. Life’s a mess. You are not entitled to expect anything from it. Life is not fair. Everything does not balance out in the end. Life happens, and you have no control over it. Good and bad things happen to you day by day, hour by hour, moment by moment. Your degree is a poor armour against fate.

Don’t expect anything. Erase all life expectancies. Just live. Your life is over as of today. At this point in time, you have grown as tall as you will ever be, you are physically the fittest you will ever be in your entire life and you are probably looking the best that you will ever look. This is as good as it gets. It is all downhill from here. Or up. No one knows.

What does this mean for you? It is good that your life is over.

Since your life is over, you are free. Let me tell you the many wonderful things that you can do when you are free.

The most important is this: do not work.

Work is anything that you are compelled to do. By its very nature, it is undesirable.

Work kills. The Japanese have a term “Karoshi”, which means death from overwork. That’s the most dramatic form of how work can kill. But it can also kill you in more subtle ways. If you work, then day by day, bit by bit, your soul is chipped away, disintegrating until there’s nothing left. A rock has been ground into sand and dust.

There’s a common misconception that work is necessary. You will meet people working at miserable jobs. They tell you they are “making a living”. No, they’re not. They’re dying, frittering away their fast-extinguishing lives doing things which are, at best, meaningless and, at worst, harmful.

People will tell you that work ennobles you, that work lends you a certain dignity. Work makes you free. The slogan “Arbeit macht frei” was placed at the entrances to a number of Nazi concentration camps. Utter nonsense.

Do not waste the vast majority of your life doing something you hate so that you can spend the small remainder sliver of your life in modest comfort. You may never reach that end anyway.

Resist the temptation to get a job. Instead, play. Find something you enjoy doing. Do it. Over and over again. You will become good at it for two reasons: you like it, and you do it often. Soon, that will have value in itself.

I like arguing, and I love language. So, I became a litigator. I enjoy it and I would do it for free. If I didn’t do that, I would’ve been in some other type of work that still involved writing fiction – probably a sports journalist.

So what should you do? You will find your own niche. I don’t imagine you will need to look very hard. By this time in your life, you will have a very good idea of what you will want to do. In fact, I’ll go further and say the ideal situation would be that you will not be able to stop yourself pursuing your passions. By this time you should know what your obsessions are. If you enjoy showing off your knowledge and feeling superior, you might become a teacher.

Find that pursuit that will energise you, consume you, become an obsession. Each day, you must rise with a restless enthusiasm. If you don’t, you are working.

Most of you will end up in activities which involve communication. To those of you I have a second message: be wary of the truth. I’m not asking you to speak it, or write it, for there are times when it is dangerous or impossible to do those things. The truth has a great capacity to offend and injure, and you will find that the closer you are to someone, the more care you must take to disguise or even conceal the truth. Often, there is great virtue in being evasive, or equivocating. There is also great skill. Any child can blurt out the truth, without thought to the consequences. It takes great maturity to appreciate the value of silence.

In order to be wary of the truth, you must first know it. That requires great frankness to yourself. Never fool the person in the mirror.

I have told you that your life is over, that you should not work, and that you should avoid telling the truth. I now say this to you: be hated.

It’s not as easy as it sounds. Do you know anyone who hates you? Yet every great figure who has contributed to the human race has been hated, not just by one person, but often by a great many. That hatred is so strong it has caused those great figures to be shunned, abused, murdered and in one famous instance, nailed to a cross.

One does not have to be evil to be hated. In fact, it’s often the case that one is hated precisely because one is trying to do right by one’s own convictions. It is far too easy to be liked, one merely has to be accommodating and hold no strong convictions. Then one will gravitate towards the centre and settle into the average. That cannot be your role. There are a great many bad people in the world, and if you are not offending them, you must be bad yourself. Popularity is a sure sign that you are doing something wrong.

The other side of the coin is this: fall in love.

I didn’t say “be loved”. That requires too much compromise. If one changes one’s looks, personality and values, one can be loved by anyone.

Rather, I exhort you to love another human being. It may seem odd for me to tell you this. You may expect it to happen naturally, without deliberation. That is false. Modern society is anti-love. We’ve taken a microscope to everyone to bring out their flaws and shortcomings. It far easier to find a reason not to love someone, than otherwise. Rejection requires only one reason. Love requires complete acceptance. It is hard work – the only kind of work that I find palatable.

Loving someone has great benefits. There is admiration, learning, attraction and something which, for the want of a better word, we call happiness. In loving someone, we become inspired to better ourselves in every way. We learn the truth worthlessness of material things. We celebrate being human. Loving is good for the soul.

Loving someone is therefore very important, and it is also important to choose the right person. Despite popular culture, love doesn’t happen by chance, at first sight, across a crowded dance floor. It grows slowly, sinking roots first before branching and blossoming. It is not a silly weed, but a mighty tree that weathers every storm.

You will find, that when you have someone to love, that the face is less important than the brain, and the body is less important than the heart.

You will also find that it is no great tragedy if your love is not reciprocated. You are not doing it to be loved back. Its value is to inspire you.

Finally, you will find that there is no half-measure when it comes to loving someone. You either don’t, or you do with every cell in your body, completely and utterly, without reservation or apology. It consumes you, and you are reborn, all the better for it.

Don’t work. Avoid telling the truth. Be hated. Love someone.

Common Sense Is Dead!

An obituary printed in the London Times (author unknown).

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long lost in bureaucratic red tape.

He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:
- Knowing when to come in out of the rain,

- Why the early bird gets the worm,

- Life isn't always fair,

- and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate, teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch, and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children.

It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an aspirin to a student, but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the churches became businesses and criminals received better treatment than their victims.

Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust, by his wife, Discretion, by his daughter, Responsibility, and by his son, Reason.

He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers:

- I Know My Rights,

- I Want It Now,

- Someone Else Is To Blame, and

- I'm A Victim.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

INVITATION TO THE LAUNCH OF BERSIH 2.0

We, the BERSIH 2.0 steering committee, invite your organisation to join and unite with us to advance clean and fair elections in Malaysia. Much still needs to be done and Bersih 2.0 needs your support and help to make the mission come true for a democratic Malaysia.

BERSIH 2.0 believes that it is only when elections are clean and fair, can citizens determine their own destiny and expect holders of public office to act accountably and effectively. The road to electoral reform is part and parcel of the democratic process to put into place the rule of law, human rights protection, good governance and sustainable development in Malaysia. As citizens we can make this our reality.

The key issues of electoral reform include
1. A complete revision of the electoral roll to ensure that the existing irregularities are removed and a roll with full integrity is in place.
2. The use of indelible ink (as is done in Indonesia and India) to prevent multiple voting.
3. The reform of postal voting to abolish the existing separate electoral roll for postal voters and to make it flexible for all voters, at home or abroad, with valid reasons to opt for postal voting.
4. Free and fair media access for all contesting parties, which should include: (a) free access to state-owned media especially television and radio; (b) fair paid access (political advertisement) to private media; and (c) provision of the right of reply for all contesting parties and personalities who are covered negatively in news reports.
5. A meaningful minimum campaign period of 21 days.
6. Fair and professional practices in constituency redelineation exercises to minimise malapportionment, gerrymandering and consequent disproportionality in seats and votes.
7. Automatic registration of all eligible voters.
8. Reduction of the voting eligibility age from 21 to 18 years old.9. Reform in electoral financing to ensure transparency and limit the influence of money politics.
10. Administrative neutrality of all levels of governments before, during and after general and by-elections for the federal and state legislatures.
11. Affirming the right of all students of 18 years and above, to participate in politics inside and outside campus.
Bersih 2.0, whilst acknowledging the importance of the reform agenda of Bersih, is now relaunched as a fully non-partisan coalition of civil society groups. It is a movement of ordinary citizens asserting the right of all, to clean and fair elections as guaranteed by law. We must ensure our votes and voices count.
We, therefore, warmly invite you and your organisations to join us and extend your full support to ensure that the next election and future ones will be clean, fair and democratic.

The details of the launch are as follows:

Date: 10 November 2010 (Wednesday)
Time: 8.30 p.m. – 10.30 p.m.
Venue: PJ Civic Hall, Jalan Yong Shook Lin, Petaling Jaya.

Please bring your members and friends to the launch. You can contact Nurul at 03-77844977 for more information. I

Yours sincerely,
Dato’ Ambiga Sreenevasan
Chairperson

The Steering Committee of BERSIH 2.0 comprises:

Dato’ Ambiga Sreenevasan, (Chairperson), Andrew Khoo, Arumugam K., Dr Farouk Musa, Haris Ibrahim, Liau Koh Fah, Maria Chin Abdullah, Richard Y W Yeoh, Dr Toh Kin Woon, Dr Wong Chin Huat, Yeoh Yang Poh and Zaid Kamaruddin.

Lausanne Global Conversation 30th October 2010

The Third Lausanne Congress will be held from 16 – 25 Oct at Cape Town, South Africa. It will bring together 4,000 leaders from more than 200 countries to confront the critical issues of our time – other world faiths, poverty, HIV/AIDS, persecution, among others – as they relate to the future of the Church and world evangelisation.

What is our role in this endeavour? How should we respond to these critical issues? What part can we play to see the world reached with the gospel?

Come and join us in this global conversation. Faculty from the School of Divinity (English) will be facilitating the discussion.

Venue: TCA College, 249 Paya Lebar Road, #03-11 Trinity@Paya Lebar, Singapore 409046

Date: 30 Oct 2010 (Saturday)

Time: 1pm – 4pm

Admission is free. To register, please email your full name to admin@tca.edu.sg by 27 Oct 2010.

Saturday rally as outrage grows over police revenge on witness

The continuing descent of the Malaysian police force into lawlessness has been graphically demonstrated by the October 25th abduction and beating of K.Selvachandran by police personnel. Selvachandran was a key witness who testified against the police in the recently concluded R.Gunasegaran inquest. On the very day the verdict was delivered in the inquest, police moved against Selvachandran.

When Selva's children asked police why their father was being dragged away, the police answered by beating Selva in front of his own children. The trauma caused to the children is unimaginable and in gross violation of international norms on the protection of children. In a twisted perversion of conjugal love, police personnel tried to make Selva's wife S.Saraswathy kiss him before beating him up in front of her.

Selva, who did his duty as a citizen by telling the truth at the Gunasegaran inquest, is now being held at a unknown location with no access to his family or lawyers. It is believed that he is being detained without trial under the Emergency Ordinance.

The outrage done against Selva and his family is only the latest in a long series of police brutality cases going back into and beyond the Mahathir despotism.

WE FREE CITIZENS OF THIS NATION MUST MAKE A STAND AGAINST THE PREVAILING POLICE AND STATE VIOLENCE ! JOIN US FOR THE HANDING OVER OF A PROTEST MEMORANDUM TO THE IGP THIS:

Date: SATURDAY (30.10.2010)
Time: 10.00am
Venue: BUKIT AMAN FEDERAL POLICE HQ (LAKE GARDEN ENTRANCE).


Issued by,
SUARAM
LAWYERS FOR LIBERTY (LFL)

ASIA ADVOCATES CONFERENCE 2010

Once again, Advocates Asia is proud to inform you that the ASIA ADVOCATES CONFERENCE 2010 will be held on the 1st and 2nd October 2010 at The Cititel Hotel Mid Valley, Mid Valley City, Lingkaran Syed Putra, 59200 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

For those interested in attending, kindly proceed to Registration here: http://advasia.org/?page_id=31

For those looking for Accommodations during the Conference, kindly proceed here.

Jesus said, "Come to Me"

A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed. As the barber began to work, they began to have a good conversation. They talked about so many things and various subjects. When they eventually touched on the subject of God the barber said, "I don't believe that God exists." "Why do you say that?" asked the customer. "Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist. Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If God existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain. I can't imagine a loving God who would allow all of these things." The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument. The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop.

Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed beard. He looked dirty and unkempt. The customer turned back and entered the barber shop again and he said to the barber, "You know what? Barbers do not exist." "How can you say that?" asked the surprised barber. "I am here and I am a barber. And I just worked on you!" The customer exclaimed, "No! Barbers don't exist because if they did, there would be no people with dirty long hair and untrimmed beards like that man outside."

"Ah, but barbers exist! That's what happens when people do not come to me." "Exactly!" affirmed the customer. "That's the point! God exists! That's what happens when people don't go and look to Him for help. That's why there's so much pain and suffering in the world."

Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30

MyConstitution Campaign Launch of Phase 6: Judiciary

Venue: Cava Restaurant, Jalan Bangkung, Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur.

Date: Malaysia Day on Thusday, 16th September 2010.

Time: 3.00 to 9.00 pm.

There’ll be a carnival and lots of exciting performances.

Above all, it’s also the launch of phase 6 – Judiciary!

A discussion entitled "Independence of the Judiciary: Bridging Idealism and Reality" will be held at the launch where Dato' KC Vohrah, retired Court of Appeal Judge, will be speaking. The 6th Rakyat Guide and Rakyat Service Advertisement on the Judiciary will be launched for the first time.

A forum entitled "47 Years of Independence: Are We a Nation or a Collection of Peoples?" featuring power speakers such as Haji Sulaiman Abdullah, Azhar Harun and Nathaniel Tan will be held at 4:00pm

Abandon My Baby? No Way, Says Unwed Mum

Published by Free Malaysia Today, 20 August 2010. By Stephanie Sta Maria.

PETALING JAYA: September is set to be a bittersweet month for Dina*. The shy 20-year-old will be delivering her firstborn -- and then handing him over to his adoptive parents.

Dina's eyes turned misty as she contemplated this not-so-distant future. She is already besotted with her unborn son but raising him is out of the question for she is an unwed mother.

“I was raped by a family friend old enough to be my father,” she said softly. “When I found out I was pregnant, it was too late for an abortion. My father cried when I told him and it was a long time before my mother could look me in the eye.”

Despite offering emotional support, her parents struggled to conceal their pain and Dina eventually moved out. Her anxious search for refuge led her to OrphanCARE, a non-profit organisation that finds homes for orphans and abandoned babies.

The organisation works closely with the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development and the Welfare Department and has found homes for 14 babies since its launch last April. Dina, however, is its first live-in unwed mother.

“Housing unwed mothers is not one of our services because of space and financial constraints,” explained its deputy president, Noraini Hashim (picture). “But we couldn't turn Dina away. Not when she wanted to take care of a baby that she could have easily abandoned.”

Noraini's words ring truer today than ever before.

Baby dumping, which has long been among the social ills in Malaysia, is finally having its turn in the spotlight and is dubbed the latest “phenomenon” to arrest the attention of politicians, social workers and the media.

Deep compassion

According to the Federal CID director commissioner Mohd Bakri Zinin, the number of cases has risen to 472 since 2005, which makes the probability of Dina's son being another statistic frighteningly high. Until you consider that Dina herself isn't interested in being a statistic.

“I used to curse my baby for ruining my life,” she admitted, placing a gentle hand on her rounded belly. “But abandoning him never crossed my mind. How can I when a part of me lives in him? I've grown to love him and I would keep him if I could give him the life that he deserves.”

But Dina is far from taking a holier-than-thou stance. She's fully aware that her situation would be very different had she been rejected by her family and OrphanCARE. And this has left her with a deep compassion for unwed mothers who abandoned their babies.

“They must have faced terrible circumstances to be driven to do that,” she emphatised. “No mother would carry her child for nine months and then willingly abandon it. These mothers would have had no other choice.”

Noraini agreed. In many situations, she said, that choice fell into the hands of the father or a male family member and was made easier when the new mothers were too exhausted or terrified to fight for their baby's life.

“In one case, the father snatched up the newborn, stuffed it in a plastic bag and threw it into a river,” she recalled. “It is the fastest route to getting rid of the stigma and responsibility. Having said that, we've also met many young fathers who accompany the mothers to hand their baby over to us. These are the people who give us hope.”

Baby hatch still unused

OrphanCARE also introduced the country's first baby hatch in May this year in a move to reduce the number of abandoned babies. The office is a house tucked in the corner of a quiet street in a residential area that shield unwed mothers and couples from curious eyes.

The hatch is a vault-like structure built into the house exterior. Inside is a makeshift cot, a night light, an air-conditioning unit and a CCTV which is trained only on the baby. When a baby is placed into the hatch and the door is shut, an alarm is triggered in the caretaker's room.

After checking the CCTV to ensure that it isn't a prank, the caretaker allows the parents time to leave the premises before collecting the baby from the hatch. The baby is then matched with one of the 300 couples who have registered with OrphanCARE to be adoptive parents.

The attraction of a baby hatch is the anonymity it guarantees but to Noraini's surprise, the babies continue to be brought in by their parents.

“Like Dina said, given a choice, these mothers don't want to abandon their babies,” Noraini said. “But they don't want to face being judged any further either. So we're glad that they view us as a neutral party to which they can entrust their baby's welfare.”

Dina can vouch for that. She has found a safe haven in OrphanCARE and implicitly trusts that it will fulfil her hopes for her son. When asked what hopes she harbours for herself, she hesitated and then replied that she simply wanted to move on.

“I will never forget my baby but he will belong to someone else. So I have to continue with life. I don't know if I will ever marry because I'm afraid of men now.”

“But if I do meet someone, I won't tell him about my past. Regardless of the circumstances, being an unwed mother is a stigma that can never be erased. The only solace I cling to is that I did the right thing for my son.”

*Name has been changed to protect identity.