Sayonarra Mafia Wars?

You ain't extorting my email address from me Zynga...
So I came back after a long day looking forward to attend to Facebookly matters. Then this shit pops up in Mafia Wars. At first I thought I was blind because I couldn't find the ever-friendly X icon to close the message. Apparently there isn't any.

Players of Mafia Wars are now required to give in their e-mail in order to play Zynga games. This is a broad daylight extortion. A short trip to their profile Discussions revealed the same thing happened to other Zynga games such as Farmville. Fuck this.

This is their disclaimer in the puny Zynga's Email Program:

When you share your email with Zynga's Mafia Wars you'll get regular messages about developments and promotions in Mafia Wars and other Zynga games. We'll also let you know when your friends in Zynga games leave you messages or ask for assistance. You'll be able to manage your preferences by visiting our Preference Management Center. Please read our Privacy Policy to learn more about how we treat personal information like email addresses.

Unlike most who quit all Zynga-based games as protest, I've decided to join the ultimatum until Friday evening for this ridiculous extortion to be removed. This is a clear violation of privacy policy offered by Facebook, so any of you who are in the same shoe please do not give in to their demands... you want my e-mail? Nah! mIm (-___-) mIm

Miri Mini Tornado

End of the World coming to the shores near you... or not...

Source: Unknown

Facebook and the online network of Malaysians (well Mirians mostly), were spammed by this photo of a tornado at sea. Yea sure it looks dangerous and looks like a Biblical sign of the End of Days. My first thought was "WTF is a tornado doing at sea?"

Well, bad news young Mirians. It's harmless. It's a natural (occasional) occurrence. It's so natural and quiet sometimes it happens unnoticed. And it wont shred your house to pieces because it's static and only happen at sea. Screw the celebrations because Miri schools or campuses would not close down. Oh and it's called a waterspout.

It's a not-so-common sight in coastal waters, especially when one is in Mukah. Can ask any coastal towns along Sarawak and Sabah or anywhere in Malaysia; and the fishermen, ferrymen, oil rig workers etc. would tell you "pfft! biasa jak pok..." and steer clear or just wait for it to die down. The saddest thing is I've been in a city life for too long I forgot what's the local name for it.
No need to grovel (well, this could be a good time to repent and bertaubat haha) for a nature's event that occurs naturally like the natural rain. Naturally. And it's a good time to shut down your PC and laptop or TV(?) and start living in the real world. Next thing you know kids will be screaming statuses "OMG! ITS RAINING! RAIN IS BASHING MY ROOF! IM GETTING WET! ITS THE END!"... a clear sign what Facebook has done to the young generation.



Want to know more about your friendly natural event? Click here.

Sarawak Killer Wasps

Aggressive wasps cause a string of deaths, increased temperature may be blamed

Roughly a month ago in October there were cases of kids who died after being stung by wasps. And the cases increase until yesterday, when another boy died by what seemed to be wasps in Sarawak's southern region. Condolences to all the families of the victims. Below are the chronology of the cases:

October 5:
Batu Kawah: A family was swarmed at their home. Mother, eldest child and brother in-law survived. Two other children, Sze Ying, 6, and Chun Jie, 3, died. Read here.

October 8:
Batu Kawah: The eldest child of the previous attack, Chen Sze TIng, 8 did not make it. Read here.

October 25:
Muara Tebas: Two men and three women were attacked by a swarm of wasps during a jungle trek. All 5 were hospitalized in Sarawak General Hospital. Read here.

November 3:
Kampung Bako: Sazali Sapiee, 12, succumbed to unknown insect stings after being attacked by unknown insects while playing with his friends. Read here.

I'm not sure what's pissing off these wasps but I can point out to the weird weather pattern. I mean, I myself can be cranky during a hot day and even more crankier when experiencing extreme temperature change within 12 hours (bloody cold and wet in the morning and blazing hot in the afternoon). Or another theory is they're some kind of new species of wasps accidentally introduced into the state by insect collectors, stowaways from cargo ships, or simply were blew here by the 4 typhoons raging in the neighboring Philippines.

Whatever the reasons for their recent agitation, let's be careful with wasps or any other insects you encounter. Below are the info on the bugs that may inflict pain (Source thestar.com.my):CENTIPEDE - The house centipede, unlike most other centipedes that normally live outdoors, can live indoors especially in damp, moist basements, cellars, bathrooms, crawlspaces or unexcavated areas under the house.


ANT - Ants sting and inject their formic acid into animals or humans that threaten them or their nests. Unlike honeybees, ant stingers do not have barbs so the ant can sting several times, and the act of stinging does not kill the ant. A bite or sting from a CENTIPEDE, ANT or BEE can easily be treated, even at home. If the reaction is localised, wash with soap and water. You could also get a steroid-based cream from the pharmacy to apply.BEE - Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination. Bees sting only when they are extremely provoked - to protect their colony or when frightened - because they will die after stinging. When a BEE stings, it leaves a sac in your skin that continues to pump venom into your flesh, so it’s best to get it out as soon as possible. Scrape the stinger off with a quick sideways movement with a fingernail.
WASP & HORNET - Unlike the bee, the wasp and hornet are more aggressive and can insert and withdraw its sting with comparative ease. Hence, a single wasp is able to deliver multiple stings with ease. When you are being attacked by HORNETS, don’t run as this will make them think that you are going to attack them. Find a place to squat down and sit still. Hornets can mobilise the entire nest to sting in defense. They will only attack when provoked, but don’t go too near the nests as our sweat will provoke them to attack. When stung, lie down and apply cold water or ice in a wet cloth on the affected area. If you experience any symptoms of allergy in the first 20 minutes after being stung, get medical aid immediately.LEECH - They hang off the leaves of bushes and will drop onto you as you brush against them. The leech’s saliva contains an anaesthetic so you do not feel its bite. LEECHES will drop off once they have drunk their fill from you. They should not be pulled off - their jaws could be left in your flesh. Remove with a dab of salt, alcohol, an ember or a flame. (Ham: Hmmm, our sweat is salty, so I have a theory that applying sweat drops on them may work).

SCORPION - The Black Scorpion is common in Asia, especially in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. It can be found in forests or sheltered scrublands. However, its venom is not considered lethal. A SCORPION’s sting might require medical attention. There might be symptoms and lots of pain. These can be treated with sedation or pills to stop vomiting.
SPIDERS - Although scientifically not an insect, it is still a creepy crawly. There are no significantly poisonous spiders in Malaysia. A bite from a tarantula is painful but not life-threatening.


CATERPILLARS - Caterpillars’ bristles may be poisonous, so they should not be touched.

ANZAC Day 2010

Remembering the Fallen. No, the holiday applies to Australia and New Zealand only, not Malaysia...

The night before was rough, with most of Unit 14 went out for the night for some Laser Tag fun at Joondalup. Sadly we lost. But hey no one slept, I think, and a few hours later we were all set up to go for the Dawn Service for ANZAC Day.

At 4:30am it was uber-freezing and the sprinklers were not helping. Thanks to Kelvin's advise I got 3-4 layers of clothing because it's going to be colder. We were met with a few other students who hopped onto the bus to King's Park, where the dawn service was held.

Held every 25th of April every year in both Australia and NZ, ANZAC (Australian New Zealand Army Corps.) Day is solemnly celebrated to remember the fallen ANZAC soldiers at Gallipoli during WWI in 25th April 1915, where the ill-fated 8th Battalion landed 1 mile off their intended beach and were met with fierce resistance from the Ottoman Turks causing more than 8,000 deaths for the ANZAC soldiers. The day is also celebrated to commemorate other ANZAC troops' sacrifice at other war theaters from there onwards.



The mood was obviously solemn for the Australians, but the noise of the DSLRs snapping and handphone cameras clicking were all from the Asians like me. I do feel outta place but I don't do anything too noisy to respect the event. After a while the breezy 15°C wind send me into the solemn mood as well, as the dawn service began with wreath laying and a speech. Despite not being an Australian I shared the feeling of loss and felt patriotic just by listening to the speech. It all ended with planes flying overhead and no applause were heard.

Strangely there were no 21 guns salute as expected or as blogged by others. Must be something to do with the traditions in Western Australia. It ended by 6:40am, and I skipped the parade that was held at 9am because I was dead sleepy. Hopefully these videos compensate my post on the latter events:

Remember the Disconnected Malaysians

Today we will remember the Malaysians who were intermittently disconnected from the world...
Here at K4L I would like to commemorate the Malaysians who were struck by the worst disaster in Malaysian history; the day Malaysia has no Internet. My condolences to those who lost their times to harvest their crops in Barn Buddies, gossiping in MSN/Skype/other IM, clicking refresh to see Facebook statuses, stalking people online, and occasionally looking for materials for referencing.

Read more here

When this news broke out last night, I wonder how many people in Malaysia will suffer until May 2nd (or longer since who knows *touch wood* may take longer). I hope the service improves after I get back...

Increased Rape/Molestation/Etc.

There's something called Internet, udang, 3GP, HQ, AVentertainment, free downloads...

I have been waking up and reading online Malaysian news, only to find sick and twisted sexual crimes being committed in home country. Orphans being gang-banged to pregnancy with pencil shoved up the vajayjay, 15 years-old boy raping 28-years old woman, chemical rape, and the more common guards molesting girls cases. This could be an alarming trend, and I'm wondering if this is the degrading hedonistic society that will cause the Creator to push the Doomsday button.

To all the ladies and girls out there, do be more extra careful when going out.

Natural Disasters in Oz; We're Okay in Perth

Earthquakes? Tsunami? Volcano? Hailstorm? Typhoons? No worries! We are still okay!

There has been increased rate of natural disasters worldwide, Australia not excluded. Just less than a week ago there's a 3.8 magnitude earthquake in Adelaide, and just recently there's a 5.0 in Kalgoorlie-Boulder (very close to Perth by geographical standard).



Nonetheless, those disasters would only distract my mind for a few minutes, then it's back to stressing about assignments and reports and presentations and midterms and quizzes and etc. However safety cannot be neglected. Since we Malaysians come from a country that's free from earthquake (from our memories anyways) that doesn't mean you won't experience it. Look at me now I'm in a earthquake zone and I'm Malaysian. Below are things to do in an earthquake:

If you are indoors:

• DROP to the ground; take COVER by getting under a sturdy table or other piece of furniture; and HOLD ON until the shaking stops. If there isn’t a table or desk near you, cover your face and head with your arms and crouch in an inside corner of the building.
• Stay away from glass, windows, outside doors and walls, and anything that could fall, such as lighting fixtures or furniture.
• Stay in bed if you are there when the earthquake strikes. Hold on and protect your head with a pillow, unless you are under a heavy light fixture, window or anything else that could fall. In that case, move to the nearest safe place (i.e. under a desk or in an inside corner).
• Use a doorway for shelter only if it is in close proximity to you and if you know it is a strongly supported, load-bearing doorway. Brace yourself on the side with the hinges to avoid the door swinging at you.
• Stay inside until shaking stops and it is safe to go outside. Research has shown that most injuries occur when people inside buildings attempt to move to a different location inside the building or try to leave.
• Be aware that the electricity may go out or the sprinkler systems or fire alarms may turn on.
• DO NOT use the elevators, even if they are working. There may be aftershocks.
• If you're in your hotel room, stay there. There are usually aftershocks, and sometimes they may be worse than the original earthquake. Under a sturdy desk or in an inside corner of your room is the safest place to be, even if you're on the 40th floor. If there's a heavy bookcase next to a match-stick desk, don't get under the desk.
• If you are in a restaurant, get under the table.

If you are outdoors:

• Stay there.
• Move away from buildings, streetlights, and utility wires.
• Once in the open, stay there until the shaking stops. The greatest danger exists directly outside buildings, at exits, and alongside exterior walls. Many of the 120 fatalities from the 1933 Long Beach earthquake occurred when people ran outside of buildings only to be killed by falling debris from collapsing walls. Ground movement during an earthquake is seldom the direct cause of death or injury. Most earthquake-related casualties result from collapsing walls, flying glass, and falling objects.

If you are in a vehicle:

• Pull over to the side of the road and stop as quickly as safety permits and stay in the vehicle. Avoid stopping near or under buildings, trees, overpasses, and utility wires. (Guide Note: an earthquake while you're driving feels like there's something wrong with your car. Don't stop in the middle of the freeway if traffic is still moving around you. Slow down and put on your turn signal to get to the side of the road. If everyone else is doing the same thing, it was most likely an earthquake.)
• Proceed cautiously once the earthquake has stopped. Avoid roads, bridges, or ramps that might have been damaged by the earthquake.

Source: Earthquake Safety n.d.

Be careful out there no matter where you are...

Clash of the Titans Review

The closest thing you can get to a God of War movie for now

I anticipated the movie after seeing the movie poster earlier this year, because it's one of the remake of one of my favourite old school movie of the same name from 1981 (used to love those kinda movies back when I was a kid, oh how simple stop-motion was enough to captivate anyone that time before CG came in).

Comparison of the 1981 movie poster and the 2010 movie poster. They tried to be true to the original movie, although the new Kraken is awesomely more epic and GoW-ish ;p

I can barely remember the original movie's plot, but I assume it remained mostly the same. With the exception that the main hero/demigod Perseus was the very same Na'vi dude from Avatar as well as the unconventional saviour in Terminator Salvation. So seeing Sam Worthington again in this movie not long after his last two epics, it felt awkward. It felt like Perseus the demigod got immortal and survived the Greek mythology era and lived through WWI,WWII, the Cold War, the War on Terror, then became further immortal by turning into a robot in the War Against the Machines but lost his legs, then went to Pandora to become the hero of the Na'vi in the Humans-Na'vis War (and turned into a Na'vi).

The evolution of Sam Worthington throughout the history of Humanity

But enough about Sam, on to the plot. The plot is simple where the hero is required to go from Point A to Point B in order to save the Princess from the Big Boss, just like a typical Mario Bros. game. However, just like God of War, the journey requires the hero to side track to Point C, D B, back to A etc. With a bit of LotR elements where random side characters tag along the with the hero to complete his quest (and DIES in the end leaving the audience wondering "what's his name was?" at the end of the movie), CotT doesn't really expand the potential ideas apart from reusing older ideas from the original and other relevant movies.

But hey at least the CG saves the day, and the stop-motion Kraken is now a ferocious well-animated 3D beast that is set to come alive and harass you with his tentacles in 3D (yea I watched the 3D version, although most of the time I don't feel the 3Dness).

Overall I'll give positive ratings to CotR (2010). As a GoW fan I'll be a bit biased because some of the elements in the movie are GoW-ish e.g. jumping off the Pegasus midair to slaughter the Harpies(?) may sound familiar to GoW players who have played the similar scene in GoWII. So I'll give the movie:


Links: Official Website

End of Days Check List

The title says it all and the events around us that we see on the news or Internet may frighten some about the coming of J-Day, Judgment Day. Alright let's see where we are today:

1. Splitting of the Moon (prophet Muhammad PBUH split it as a mukjizat/miracle, it will be split again when the end comes, for source click here). ✔
2. Death of the Prophet Muhammad PBUH. ✔
3. A form of death which will kill thousands of Muslims. (understood to refer to the plague of Amwas during the caliphate of ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, Black Plague I presume.) ✔
4. A major fighting in Madinah (understood to refer to the battle of al-Harrah during the caliphate of Yazid, 63 AH). ✔
5. The Muslim conquest of Jerusalem (in modern day Palestine, until the Zionists came). ✔
6. The Muslim conquest of Constantinople (now modern day Istanbul, Turkey). ✔
7. Two large groups of Muslims will fight in war (Sunni and Shiites?). ✔
8. A war between the Muslims and a reddish people with small eyes, wearing sandals made of hair (understood to refer to the Mongol Tatar invasion of the Islamic lands.) ✔
9. A peace agreement between the Muslims and non-Muslims from the yellow race (Chinese, Mongols, etc.) ✔
10. Thirty impostors (dajjal) will appear, each thinking he is a prophet (there's been A LOT of people screaming "the end is nigh!"). ✔?
11. Naked, destitute, barefoot shepherds will compete in building tall buildings (Burj Dubai anyone?). ✔
12. The slave-woman will give birth to her master or mistress. ✔
13. A trial (fitnah) which will enter every household. ✔
14. Knowledge will be taken away (by the death of people of knowledge), and ignorance will prevail. ✔
15. Wine (intoxicants, alcohol) will be drunk in great quantities. ✔
16. Illegal sexual intercourse will become widespread (Tiger!). ✔
17. Earthquakes will increase (no need to say anymore). ✔
18. Time will pass more quickly (free week is over?!). ✔
19. Tribulations (fitan) will prevail. ✔
20. Bloodshed will increase. ✔
21. A man will pass by the grave of another and wish he was in the latter’s place (don't most of us when we are phucked and nearing a due date?). ✔
22. Trustworthiness will be lost, i.e. when authority is given to those who do not deserve it. ✔?
23. People will gather for prayer, but will be unable to find an imam to lead them (sounds familiar eh?). ✔
24. The number of men will decrease, whilst the number of women will increase, until for every man there are 50 women. ✔
25. The Euphrates will reveal a treasure of gold, and many will die fighting over it, each one hoping to be the one who gains the treasure (perhaps the oil? Seeing Iraq is messed up beyond repairs, unless there's another treasure waiting to be discovered). ✔?
26. The Romans (Europeans) will come to a place called A’maq or Wabiq, and an army of the best people will go forth from Madinah to face them. PENDING
    
27. The Muslim conquest of Rome (wow the Vatican City... that would definitely be the day). PENDING
28. The Mahdi (guided one) will appear, and be the Imam of the Muslims. PENDING
29. Jesus Christ will descend in Damascus, and pray behind the Mahdi. PENDING
30. Jesus will break the cross and kill the swine, i.e. destroy the false Christianity. PENDING
31. The Antichrist (al-masih al-dajjal, the false christ) will appear, with all his tools of deception, and be an immense trial. He will be followed by 70,000 Jews from Isfahan (present-day Iran). PENDING
32. The appearance of Ya’juj and Ma’juj (Gog and Magog), and the associated tribulations. PENDING
33. The emergence of the Beast from the Earth, carrying the Staff of Moses and the Seal of Solomon, who will speak to the people, telling them they did not believe with certainty in the Divine Signs. PENDING
34. A major war between the Muslims (including Jews and Christians who truly believe in Jesus after his return) led by the Imam Mahdi, and the Jews plus other non-Muslims led by the Antichrist (this could be Armageddon, gives me goosebumps just thinking about it). PENDING
35. Jesus will kill the Antichrist at the gate of Ludd (Lod in present-day Israel, site of an airport and a major Israeli military base). PENDING
36. A time of great peace and serenity during and after the remaining lifetime of Jesus.
37. Wealth will come so abundant that it will become difficult to find someone to accept charity. PENDING
38. Arabia will become a land of gardens and rivers. PENDING
39. Society will then decay. PENDING
40. The buttocks of the women of the tribe of Daws will again sway in circumambulation (tawaf) around the idol Dhul-Khulsah. PENDING
41. A great fire in the Hijaz, seen by the inhabitants of Busra. PENDING
42. Three major armies will sink into the earth: one in the east, one in the west, one in Arabia. PENDING
43. An Abyssinian leader with thin shins will destroy the Ka’bah. PENDING
44. The huge cloud of smoke. PENDING
45. The sun will rise from the west (the sun could be a nuclear missile). PENDING
46. A gentle wind which will take the souls of the believers. PENDING
47. There is no-one left on the earth saying, "Allah, Allah" or "There is no god except Allah." PENDING
48. Eventually the Day of Judgment is established upon the worst of the people, who copulate like donkeys in public (hmm sounds like generic porn videos). PENDING
49. The blowing in the Trumpet by the Angel Israfil, upon which everyone will faint except as Allah wills. PENDING
50. The second blowing in the Trumpet, upon which everyone will be resurrected. PENDING

25 out of 50. This isn't really specific as it does not specify minor and major signs e.g. metal will float/fly, the stars will fall, etc. But looking at the summarized checklist, we are half-way there...

Source: Dr. Suhaib Hassan, Cambridge University