Unconventional World Records

…that Theresa Kok showed at the Parliament’s lobby.

taken using a handphone.

about 30 secs long.

as reported by yahoo.com

By Souhail Karam, Nov 28

RIYADH (Reuters) - Global cybercrime generated a higher turnover than drug trafficking in 2004 and is set to grow even further with the wider use of technology in developing countries, a top expert said on Monday.

No country is immune from cybercrime, which includes corporate espionage, child pornography, stock manipulation, extortion and piracy, said Valerie McNiven, who advises the U.S. Treasury on cybercrime.

“Last year was the first year that proceeds from cybercrime were greater than proceeds from the sale of illegal drugs, and that was, I believe, over $105 billion,” McNiven told Reuters.

“Cybercrime is moving at such a high speed that law enforcement cannot catch up with it.”

For example, Web sites used by fraudsters for “phishing” — the practice of tricking computer users into revealing their bank details and other personal data — only stayed on the Internet for a maximum of 48 hours, she said.

Asked if there was evidence of links between the funding of terrorism and cybercrime, McNiven said: “There is evidence of links between them. But what’s more important is our refusal or failure to create secure systems, we can do it but it’s an issue of costs.”

McNiven, a former e-finance and e-security specialist for the
World Bank, was speaking in Riyadh on the sidelines of a conference on information security in the banking sector.

Developing countries which lack the virtual financial systems available elsewhere are easier prey for cybercrime perpetrators, who are often idle youths looking for quick gain.

“When you have identity thefts or corruption and manipulation of information there (developing countries), it becomes almost more important because … their systems start getting compromised from the get-go,” she said.

“Another area that begins to expand is human trafficking and pornography because both of these become so much available once you have a communication ability,” McNiven said.

pic and quotes courtesy of soccernet

The greatest ever vs the “2nd greatest ever”. My comment: wot? Best even greater than Maradona, Cruyff, or even Zidane or Platini?

George Best dribbles the ball past Pele in a North American Soccer League game played in 1976. They were well past their prime, but then they never had their chance to lock horns in a top class game at the peak of their powers…

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So what did the legends of the game say?

Pele, regarded by many as the greatest player in history, said: ‘I often mentioned George Best as the best player in Europe. Unfortunately, he has passed away.

‘George Best for me was one of the biggest players in Europe. God bless him,’ he told Sky Sports News.

Argentinian hero Maradona said: ‘George inspired me when I was young. He was flamboyant and exciting and able to inspire his team-mates.

‘I actually think we were very similar players - dribblers who were able to create moments of magic.

‘And I can also relate to what George has been through because of his addiction to alcohol. I was also very sick and close to death in December last year - but I pulled out of it by a miracle,’ Maradona told The Sun.

Dutchman Cruyff, the former Holland international and one of the few players who could stand comparison with Best, described his talent as ‘unique’.

He told Radio Five Live: ‘What he had was unique, you can’t coach it.’

Asked if Best was one of the game’s greatest, Cruyff said: ‘I think if you talk about Europe, you talk about five or six and if you talk about his qualities he’d always be in there.

‘It was a short career but if you go back to the basic qualities he was exceptional.’

“Poco Poco” is a Indonesian line dance which became extremely popular throughout Indonesia in 2001, followed by Malaysia.

I’ve heard about this dance many times before but not until Saturday night (26th Nov) did I hear the song and saw the dance. The song has the same quality as the “Numa Numa Song” and any other million-dollar song - a very big hook. One listen, and you’re converted….

What is amazing about this is that fads usually last at most a few months (remember Macarena?), but “Poco Poco” has an unusual staying power. It’s been around for a few years, and yet still going strong.

Idea: Change the lyrics to Kadazan/Dusun….or Malay…or English..

It is a traditional dance from North Sulawesi of the Minahasa tribe.

The most popular accompanying song is “Poco Poco”, composed by Arie Sapulette with Yopie Latul on vocals. It is sung in Manado language.

a lo-fi mp3 is available at http://www.wilta.org/Indonesia_poco_poco.mp3.

lyrics with translation in Indonesian language and dance steps (rudy version):
orig source: http://www.curriculumsupport.nsw.edu.au/languages/index.cfm?u=2&i=18

forget sukiyaki (way overplayed, just like GNR’s “sweet child…”). or even Rimi Natsukawa’s gorgeous rendition of “shima uta”, bettering the most popular version by The Boom. No, not even the best of X-Japan or Kiroro can beat this!

lyrics in romaji and english translation at lyricsplayground.com

First heard in early 2001.

Tsuyoshi “Japanese Bruce Springsteen” Nagabuchi’s (or is it Itsuki Hiroshi?) 1985 (1988?) classic. He wrote and sung this song.

According to this link, Tsuyoshi Nagabuchi was born in Kagoshima on 7 September 1956. He has released a lot of CDs, Videos and books. He debuted on 5 October 1978 with the single “Junrenka”. After that he has released many CDs. Moreover, he appeared in some movies (for example, “Kazoku Game”, “Oyako Game”, etc). And he wrote several books (for example, Kimi wa Guitar no Gen wo Kitta Koto ga Aru ka, Tonbo, etc).

according to another online profile, he was arrested for possessing marijuana in 1995.

and no, not even my current western fave James Blunt’s “you’re beautiful” is more beautiful than this.

Abstract:

Adrian Wong is a medical student who created a website for PC hardware enthusiasts. Here he chronicles his experiences in scaling his eqpt to cope with user demand. From tripod.com free webspace in 1998 to a dedicated server setup (costing several hundred RM per month) 1000GB guaranteed b/w per month.

pic courtesy of bbc.co.uk

I was expecting famous Bollywood stars like Mr Bachan to be richer than the rest, but NOT this rich, considering that India’s GDP at USD3000+ is 3 times lower than that of Malaysia (USD10K+).

Min RM4.3 million for an ad slot?

RM860,000 per day for making a movie?

That still sounds like peanuts when compared to A-List Hollywood stars who can earn in excess of RM80 million PER movie, but we’re talking about a country less developed than Malaysia here.

Eat your heart out Yusof Haslam or whoever the top movie-industry figure in Malaysia is!

——————
as reported by thestar.

Bollywood star living like a maharajah

BOLLYWOOD movie idol Amitabh Bachan lives the life of a maharajah, said a report in Tamil Nesan.

He has two houses, one of which reportedly costs RM137mil, and 11 imported cars, including a bullet proof Lexus.

The building materials for the floors of the houses were imported from Italy while the toiletry fittings were from France and Germany.

His wardrobe is filled with suits made from Italian and French materials and the buttons on his coats were bought from England.

His luxurious lifestyle is attributed to the high salary he receives from acting.

For an advertising slot, he reportedly gets between Rs50mil and Rs120mil (RM4.3mil and RM10mil.)

He gets Rs100mil (RM8.6mil) for a 10-day movie shoot.

At 64, Bachan is still actively involved in modelling and acting in movies and dramas.

pic courtesy of thestar.com.my

as reported by thestar, the 21-yr-old Sabahan is Miss Malaysia Tourism 2005. Alas, I believe it’s still inferior to Miss Malaysia/Universe or Miss Malaysia/World titles.

Apparently, in 2004 she emerged runnerup in Sabah for the same title, represented the state along with champion Annie Lee, and returned home empty-handed. Obviously, this year she returned with a vengeance.

I was told they even have branches/meetings in Sabah, malaysia.

http://www.intrena.com/

I haven’t got the time to delve in the detail but usually first impressions are sufficient:
- multiple spelling mistakes : do not inspire confidence
- the purported ebooks valued at RM30 (each or not i am not sure but couldn’t care less to find out) have titles which would not look out of place in quack hell (or heaven, depending on which way you look at it)
- much more emphasis on recruiting, while the product is usually something so bad, so low-quality that you’d never even bother to look twice. In other words, the product seems merely like an afterthought. Compare with established MLM companies like Cosway, Amway and Elken - they have a proven set of products.
- vehemently denies to be a get rick quick/pyramid scheme, offering the usual excuse that they do have a product to sell [the more vehemently they protest, the more suspicious i will become]
- the meetings (”being rich will make you free”, excitedly shouting and cheering people’s monetary achievements) totally contradict with my set of values.
- remember Jaspat (late 90s, had a laughable set of “products” but everybody was blinded by the money, “office” at a shop near Donggongon), Vision2000 (early 90s, had meetings at SEDCO KK, water filters) etc? They threatened legal action to anyone who dared to question their legitimacy, even to the point of boasting about the number of lawyers at their disposal. They dropped VVIP’s names who purportedly endorsed their company and “products”. Then they disappeared without trace…

Note that I did not say that you will not make money by joining this. But I would only join if my conscience is clear and after reading [read it for the first time years ago] and rereading Dean Van Druff’s classic article “What’s wrong with MLM” and people’s comments on the article at webraw.com.

Working smart is important but so is patience and hard work.