Today’s post is all about this:

GARFGHEHG HAGHDXFG H GASFD *dies*

*NOTE: ACTUAL REVIEW OF THE 3DS IS ABOUT HALFWAY DOWN. TO SKIP AND FIND IT, CTRL+F ” **NINTENDO”

So yeappp I got an invite from Nintendo to go to their London pre-launch event. My slot was at 12pm today, and I woke up at 10am thinking I had plenty of time before I TFL-ed it and realized it would take me a minimum  of 45 minutes to get over there (god damn the weekend maintenance). Yeah you guys out there are probably like ughh  watever *slap on t-shirt* *walk out door* but I’m a girl, okay? I have a legitimate excuse to take hours and hours to get myself ready.

Okay, two.

So at 10am I’m awake, at 10:02 I’m in the shower, at 10:55 I get out and start panicking and throw a dress on (in this freezing blustery winter weather, yeap) and a coat and my 1-up mushroom necklace. I pop mango juice and a chocolate bar and I’m out the door with my invite, my passport and the map of the location safely tucked in my brain. I’m on the DLR when I realize that even after all that I forgot to put any makeup on (this is relevant.. for later) and I have a monster zit on my nose. I decide to make like a proper nerd-girl and screw it because a pimple’s not worth missing this event over.

That decision would later come back to haunt me.

So, thanks to my amazing time-keeping capabilities ( ) I arrive at 91 Brick Lane, the address on the invite, only to find….. this.

The Door to Gamer's Hell.

It is 11:50 and I decide that’s good enough reason to freak out and panic because I must’ve mistaken the address. I whip the invite with the address out of my bag and STARE at it, blinking like a hummingbird’s wings, reading it between the lines, trying anything that might make a different address magically appear in front of me. I’m about to gouge my eyes out with my DS stylus in hopes of appeasing whatever Game-God is out there when a huge gorilla of a man in a suit, seeing the frenzied look on my face and probably flinching at my writhing convulsions and maniacal giggling, taps me on the shoulder and says as-a-matter-of-factly, ‘Yo here fer da N’tendos thing?’

I know how I can get you in...

Catching my breath just enough to breathe a ‘yes’ into his tie, he points over my shoulder and down a dark, twisty alley with pubs.. I’m not kidding. I start down it, turning around to make sure he’s not following me with the intention of jumping me or whatever and as I reach the end and turn the corner, I see this:

Abandon Sony, all ye who enter here.

So I’d finally made it! With THREE MINUTES TO SPARE!! I happily skipped over to the nice lady and they ticked off my name and gave me a wristband. I then joined the queue for the 12pm slot of people to get in. Just as they opened the door and we started filing in, a woman with a Nintendo tag and a somewhat tired smile stepped in front of me.

“Excuse me, miss, are you here for the Nintendo event?” she starts, and before I can tell her off those nice people in the photo guarding the door close it, and my jaw drops. I thought I’d just missed my slot. I am about to tell this woman that she owes it to me to sneak me in there when she says ” Would you be interested in taking part in a unique experience with Nintendo? It’ll only take an hour or so of your time and we’ll slot you right back into the event afterward.”

We want YOU!... to take part in our marketing ploy!!

Obviously the idea of being exclusively selected at random from a crowd of people by one of the biggest gaming companies in the world bore *so* deep into my skull that I would have happily signed my life away to this lady, even if I had absolutely no clue what was going on. So she took my details and then led me around the corner (of the back of this brewery yet). It was all very VIP/CIA-style (or so I think), and she was speaking into the mike-radio on her ear saying things like “This is Becky, approaching the door now, over”… it was all really, really exciting. Then we suddenly stopped in front of what looked like a service door or a door for the trash and a man in a huge coat with a Nintendo tag hustled us in, whereupon I was promptly shown up a flight of dogdy stairs and into a makeshift trailer within the building, with another guy named Bud and told to wait until we were called.

After about 15 minutes of awkward silence and almost-conversations Bud was called down out of the trailer by a disembodied voice, and I was left alone.

ALOOOOOOOOOOOOOONEEE

A little while later a lady came in. She took a look at my flushed, smiley round face and frowned.

Apparantly we were to test the 3DS, and do a tv interview. And I’d shown up fitting the demographic they were looking for but the problem was I’d brought a friend.

A large, red and white oily friend, tagging along on my protruding nasal implement.

It was completely embarrassing. The lady radio-ed someone and in two minutes a huge woman with a makeup chest the size of my law books burst through the door. She powdered my face, did my eyes and even put chapstick on my lips. However, no matter how she tried, the best she could do for that disaster on my nose was reduce it to a slightly darkish brown bump. God bless that woman and her overstretched mascara.

I was then hurriedly ushered down and told to wait outside a clean, white door. About two minutes later I am told to enter, and I peek carefully behind the door wondering what awaits when I am greeted by a scene from out of a Nintendo advert. I am in a pristinely clean, white room with a clean white table at the end, and two clean, white chairs on either side.

And Bud is sitting on one of them, and he gestures me over to the other chair to sit down.

I sit, but now for what must be the umpteenth time, my heart races and I start to panic. My imagination began to spasm. Was Bud working for Nintendo? Had he been spying on me all this time? Were they secretly recruiting for the company? Was I being filmed? How long have they been watching me???

The kind of face I apparantly make when I am trying to smile politely but my brain says I'm gonna die.

Then Bud smiles at me and nods me in the direction of the sole object sitting on the table. As I whip my brain back into logic-control-my-body mode my eyes flutter to the table and I see…

Well, I see almost exactly this, but I swear there was this holy light in like nine spectra of colour radiating from it.

I resist the urge to drop to my knees in praise of Fusajiro Yamauchi, and slowly, delicately, tenderly, pick up the console as if it were my own child.

**NINTENDO 3DS REVIEW STARTS HERE**

I should mention now that I was NOT allowed to take any photos. But I can certainly do my best to give you as vivid an account as I can.

THE CONSOLE ITSELF

The 3DS felt new and sturdy in my hands. It was slightly heavier than the DSi, but about the same as my DS Lite (i only know cos I brought them both with me to the event haha). One thing I was immediately pleased with was the reflective surface of the 3DS that didn’t seem to smudge easily. Granted it wasn’t metallic (and that itself is a plus point) but any reflective surface that doesn’t smudge immediately gets +3 Aesthetics in my book. How they managed to come up with that I have no idea, but if they sold souls to a devil to get that to work, Apple needs to cross check Nintendo’s call history and Hell’s Yellow Pages.

Seriously. How many of you iPod/iPhone owners have never seen THIS?

Some of the more immediate notable changes to the system hardware are as follows:

1. The top screen is definately bigger and brighter than the DSi.

2. There is a little 3D-slider on the side of the top half. It’s in a spot that’s very accessible with the index finger while playing but high up enough not to accidentally nudge while gaming. More on this later.

3. There is an analog stick where the directional keys used to be… It looks like a huge round button that’s nothing like an analog except for the raised edges and the fact that it can slide. That’s gonna take some getting used to. But it feels sturdy.. much more so than the PSP2000′s analog. I also prefer the raised edge around the round analog that’s meant to prevent your thumb slipping off of the analog, rather than the ridges like the PSP console has, because in a game marathon at that final boss level when my fingers start to sweat and tension is high, my thumb still tends to slip off the PSP’s analog.. and that is EXACTLY when you DON’T want it to slip.

4. The direction buttons have been moved below the analog stick. This.. felt awkward, but maybe again it could take some getting used to. In the games I’d tried they didn’t seem to have so much function as a ‘direction’ button anymore though, since the analog stick is readily and comfortably available and allows for better precision movement. For instance, in Resident Evil I used it to strafe). With games like Street Fighter 3D though it’s still good to mash those keys, even if only for old times’ sake.

5. The select, start and (new) home buttons are below the bottom screen. They’re lowered a little so it looks every bit like they’re part of the screen but they have a gray matte surface and need a little pressure to push. I guess that’s to avoid you pushing down on them accidentally since they’re right next to the frickin touchscreen.

6. The A, B, X, Y, L and R buttons are in exactly the same place they were before. No biggie there.

7. there are three cameras. One facing the player, and two facing outwards. The outward one allows 3D photo-taking. And it WORKS… you have my word.

8. What I didn’t like was the location of the power button. It is EXACTLY in the same spot, and for all intents and purposes feels exactly the same.. as the location of the START button in the previous DS. In the space of one hour of testing the games and functions on the 3DS I must’ve accidentally restarted the system like at least four times. I do NOT want that to happen when I actually start playing.

"Almost.. almost killed the boss.. crap i need to poop.. I should pause... *press* NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"

Seriously, that should’ve been the home button instead, dudes. At least that puts my game on hold in the background rather than LOSING ALL MY DAMN PROGRESS.

THE 3D VISUALS – GAMES

GAME #1 – STREET FIGHTER 3D

The game itself is amazing. There was an option to play the game in Dynamic bird’s-eye view or the normal sideways version we’re all used to, but for the purposes of trying the 3D function out I chose the Dynamic mode. The demo version let me choose any and all Street FIghter characters (there seemed to be about 30-40 @@)  and granted the last Street Fighter I’d played was on the original PS, so I took Dhalsim, whom I vaguely remember to be my favourite when I was a kid.

I did NOT regret my choice. This guy’s limbs and fire were perfect for testing out the 3DS’s 3D function. I started the fight with the 3D slider on ‘Off’ and as the fight progressed I slowly slid it up. In the two seconds I slowly moved the slider up my eyes were treated to visual ecstasy and my brain OD-ed on adrenalin.

Imagine this guy's foot, like, heading straight for your face.

If you’re a skeptical person, like I am, then you will obviously be very careful if someone boasts that they’ve just invented some amazing new technology and then insist that they can’t show it to you because you can’t capture 3D images with a 2D lens. (I mean wait.. we’re 3D.. we work fine.. right?.. wait…. right?) But as Dhalsim rolled out Yoga Flame after Yoga Catastrophe and then his Ultra Combo, the cutscenes came to life in the palm of my hand. To explain the experience in lesser words would be a gross understatement.

At this point I should mention that there are TWO things about the 3D view worth noting.

1) The screen has to be a certain distance from your face and at a certain angle for the 3D vision to work properly, otherwise the images will blur and your eyes will hurt trying to adjust. So there is no way that you’re going to look over your friend’s shoulder to see how his game is doing, for instance. But the distance seems to vary for different people. I had to stretch my arms out a fair bit but Bud literally had his nose in the console.  This also means that I probably can’t really play with the 3D on while walking or in the car or train, when everything’s moving around and I can’t keep my vision steady. In relation to that…

2) the 3D slider was a smart option; without it I doubt Nintendo deserves its confidence in the success of the 3DS. The fact is, watching the 3D images zip around on the screen gets to you after a while. And with the problems mentioned above, you may just want to switch back to 2D every now and then. That’s not to say the graphics are crap… they look much more smooth and better than previous DS games. Pixels are not so obvious and ’round’ shapes definately look ’rounder’ than they would’ve in previous games for the DS consoles.

GAME #2 – NINTENDOGS AND CATS 3D

You know how on the back of the Nintendogs and Cats 3D box packaging it says that they look ‘cuter and furrier than ever’ you would just shake your head and go, ‘how much more furrier can they be?’ Well apparently thanks to the 3DS system, it really can. Every golden hair on my Retriever pup responded very well to my petting from the bottom screen, and the movement was magically natural. When you throw a ball into the room and they bring it back, or when they stand up against the screen so you can tickle them under their chin, I swear, it’s just as if they’re only on the other side of the Looking Glass. The only thing that made it all too obvious that it was a game of virtual pups and kitties was the fact that everything was soooo cleeeann. But the whole visual experience (and the pups and kits reactions to your call and touch) was meth for the eyes.

GAME #3 – ZELDA 3D

I’m not really a Zelda fangirl, but it was just sitting there so I tried it anyway. The 3D function worked absolutely swell on the attacks – the slingshot bit was fun, and Link’s fairy friend kept flitting right there on top of my screen. Oh, and I should probably take this opportunity to mention the 3DS’s ability to detect movement. Moving yourself around with the DS while in slingshot mode makes Link turn the same way you do, in HIS environment. Turning up makes him look up, turning left makes him turn left. The precision movement was beyond anything I’d ever seen.. at least, in that small a package.

GAME #4 – RESIDENT EVIL 3D

This was the last game I tried on the 3DS. Everything as mentioned above, but because it was only a demo version there were no cutscenes that really played on the 3D function. I hope they fix that =/ The shooting movement required the analog to move, directions to strafe, buttons to shoot and jump and aim and all that.. the bottom touchscreen showed weapons I could swap to and items I had picked up and could use. The sniper vision in 3D was nice, and knifing a ghoulie up close produced a really nice blood-spatter effect that worked great with the 3D function.

GAME #5 – ASPHALT

Asphalt is the first racing game for the Nintendo 3DS and I thought it would be the perfect game to test out how well the 3DS’s 3D functions and visual capabilities will hold in a fast-paced, constantly moving and changing environment. To my pleasant surprise, the answer was… quite well, actually. Granted it wasn’t perfect – the background, although much more detailed (I was very impressed by the realism of the falling snow and leaves with the 3D vision) was still pixelated at some points and there were still some ‘blocks’ of images.. – but this is all coming from someone who has spent the last couple of weeks beating up people on NFS Hot Pursuit. Also, there is some loading time, but I believe as a result the game is not choppy or laggy whatsover, as one would worry about. If you suddenly zip the 3D slider up halfway through a turbo or a corner, the game will continue as it should and only the change in 3D effect will lag, which means your race continues uninhibited. 3D effects are wow when you get into collisions ;P but more sparks would bring out the 3D effect more…

GAME #6 – AUGMENTED REALITY

The PSP was the first console to really make use of augmented reality in its game Invizimals. You place a card on a flat surface, detect it with the camera (for the PSP you had to attach a PSP-eye camera via the screws on the top, which looks and felt clumsy), and virtual images would appear on the screen with the real life backdrop in the background to give the impression that there were real, 3D things there that you couldn’t see without your camera lens (who other than me sees a fantastic oppotunity here for Nintendo to bring back the Fatal Frame series or similar horror games? ;D)… for a better explanation, search my blog’s previous posts or Youtube for an upcoming game called Ghostwire.With the 3D function the realism of augmented reality images are all the more… well, real. I shot a box, six boxes appeared, I shot a target in one of the boxes and my brain got another dose of high as the box unfolded to display a detailed, 3D popup training pit with hidden targets all over that I had to walk around the card to shoot.

Ladies and gents, Nintendo has taken augmented reality and made it not choppy, not slow, not glitchy and instead turned it into an experience that is for the first time truly believable.

There is so much more to discover about the 3DS – StreetPass, SpotPass, FaceRaiders, 3D photo-taking (which really works, I tried… although the 3D effect may be a bit off if the lighting is bad) but you can read about it all in their own news previews and prelaunch reports. The purpose of this review is to quell your fears and doubts and tell you that every word in Nintendo’s ads are REAL, and they MEAN that shit. It would not be an understatement, I think, to say that this console is a golden milestone in gaming history, and that if you can you should DEFINITELY get one for yourself. Nintendo has taken a screen and made it a bloody *window* into a different world, and it is something you have to experience if you possibly can. I would greatly recommend it. And when you DO get it, let me know, so we can walk each other’s dogs or battle it out in Street Fighter over WiFi or something ;P

All in all, a 9/10 experience,
0.5 off because of  the dizzy effect,
0.5 more for the location of that goddamn power button.

GirlGamers FTW!
ThEditor.

PS: If you see my face in Nintendo’s next ad, my 3DS just got £100 cheaper ;P

Today… I don’t know what possessedth me to log-in to my blog again =x I really thought I had no more time for this blogging thing anymore, but maybe that’s it. Maybe, just maybe, between the sheer rounds of boredom and neopet minigames and doodling in my sketchbook, I just sorta kinda miss writing.  :x oh, wait now I remember what I wanted to blog about =__=

So my baby and I have been dating a nice 15 months and 3 days now, aite? And you should’ve seen the screwups that we’ve had thanks to our efforts to see each other (well okay it’s my fault you guys probably wouldn’t know about it, cos I haven’t been blogging it =___=). Then I’d stopped and wondered if it was legal to make money off of something you’d already published for public viewing anyway :O cos if that’s the case I guess that for once I was lucky I’m so lazy? =/

So yeah, I think we’ve ‘gathered enough material’ in the last 15.1 months to get a decent start on that book of ours (yes, i said ours. THAT MEANS YOU’RE HELPING! And helping means beyond providing material   D:< ). I was just wondering if I should do it diary/blog style (but I’ve been seeing so many of those… the Adrian Mole series, the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series…) or just a plain full out comedy-romance novel, like PS I Love You (admittedly our story’s more adventure, more schadenfraude, and less tragic). Someone suggested to me that I get it done in a comic form, but I don’t really think that’s a good idea. Firstly, comics are meant to be funny, so a GOOD comic would have to be EXCEPTIONALLY funny. Secondly, my art’s only so-so. I do stills, not people. Not even disproportionate, chibi-sized people. My sister does those much better than I do. Thirdly, I actually enjoy writing, not drafting and inking and colouring. So I’ve a feeling a book would be better suited for someone like me.

In other news, I had my car broken into and I lost my wallet and a buncha other stuff ( .___.) so I’ve been shopping for  a new handbag + wallet but MY FAVOURITE BAGSTORE IN THE WHOLE OF THE UNIVERSE HAS CLOSED DOWN ALL THEIR MALAYSIAN BRANCHES ARGHGHHGHH!!!!!!!!

If anyone has seen this brand in Malaysia, please notify the relevant people. ie me.

Seriously. I spent the whole of yesterday hunting all over KL and PJ for this damn thing, but I couldn’t find it. :’( On the brighter side, though, this just gives me one more reason to visit Paris more often, hoho. Well either that or I’ve got to get a certain someone to help me do my lollipop shopping~

Another thingammy I’ve been eyeing these days is this baby here –>

I will name it Godfrey.

Aite? Aite. So the pros and cons are like this (comparing blowing about 2-ish k on the iPad, and buying a notebook with the same budget price.

…. *spends 5 minutes searching for an ‘insert table’ function*

Awww crap.

… *digs out html notes on making tables*

Screw this shit ==  Pros are in blue, cons in red.

WOOHOO I DID IT!! but that was more trouble than it was worth and I’m never doing it again. And I can’t for the life of me remember what the code is for border value = 1. (I tried that, it didn’t work).

So anyway. Yeah. The iPad. =/

Well I’m still kinda stuck. The novelty wins out for sure. And I don’t really care what new features the next gen iPad has as long as the current gen works for me (I’m still very much attached to my first-gen iPod touch, even though it’s so obsolete I had to go through Low Yat with a fine toothed comb just to find a new casing for it). My main worry I guess is that using the iPad in the classroom to take notes will make me look like some kind of wimpy rich stuck up nerd-brat that no one will want to be friends with. Seriously though, do twenty-plus-year old people actually care about that sort of thing? No really, I don’t know, and I need to know.  =x ADVICE WOULD BE APPRECIATED. D:

Nerd-brat. Should you or should you not place him in your classroom?

Yes I realize that’s Steve Jobs up there, I mean him no offence. But seriously now.

Well I’m spending the day at home so there’s not much else to yak about. Maybe I’ll get back to my sketches. Or my book. Or I’ll sleep til tomorrow comes. I’d facebook, but my internet is too gay to load any of my games right =.=

Tune in Tomorrow for… Well I’m off to Pyramid for the day. If anyone happens to be in the area, just give me a phone call =)

Daily:

• Consumableds: Home-cooked food
• Procrastinateds: sending off that form to my new school next year…
• Carrocolada: iPad (?), Lollipops, Playboy
• What’s on the cake: Harvest Moon: Magical Melody – Dota6.68 – P3P – (i wonder if I can find where my WoW cd has gone, i need to reinstall it)

Viva la Sales~
ThEditor.

I’d like to take a moment to count all the blessings I’ve had, and to give my thanks for each and every last one of them. These are not listed in any particular order… just as they come to mind.

Thank You…

… for an amazing and fantastic 19th year, and an even better start to my twentieth. I hereby swear on my faith and honour to stay eighteen at heart, always and always at least until my kids think i’m too old for mini-skirts and low cut singlets.

Thank You…

… for all the fantastic opportunities you’ve given me to better myself and to push myself harder. Thanks for the failed interviews, the failed applications, the waste-of-time internships that weren’t really a waste of time… I learn more and more every day. I am NOT being sarcastic. <3

Thank You…

… for the grace and peace and Lord-knows-what-it-was that took over me in that interview this morning. I don’t even remember what my answers to her questions were; it all came naturally. Saved me a lot of grief and heartache that did.

Thank You…

… for my VERY FIRST JOB OFFER. EVER. And EXTRA thanks for making it such a great opportunity and opening such an amazing door. The pay sounds great, the exposure sounds exciting… and she was so understanding so as to allow me to defer my job offer by up to 3/4 yrs (most people don’t even get a 1-yr deferrence). The only reason I’m not rushing is because I want to

Thank You…

… for the Transnational Legal Studies Course I’m going to take part in next year!! I’m really really excited for it and I can’t wait to start!! I really hope I’ll find my ‘passion’ there…

Thank You…

… for Zihao, who’s been totally and fantasticamally amazing with helping me with CVs and cover letters, despite him being so darn busy. I WILL BUY YOU LUNCH!!!

Thank You…

… for Isaac, who has been absolutely amazing. He frustrates me a lot but I know he means well, and I’m really grateful that he’s always there when I need to let loose a little bubble of energy DD

Thank You…

… for Chern, Yichieh, Yang, Ian, and all the other people at church who were always always always supporting my applications and my work and praying for me, even when I haven’t seen them in forever and ages

Thank You…

… for letting my parents come up safely to see me and for the time I spent with them. I’ve been really really homesick this year and that was just what I needed

Thank You…

… for that amazing performance with the choir at Cadogan Hall. I finally sang on a London stage and it was every bit as amazing as I thought it would be now to see if I can land a bigger part than choir girl in the next one…

Thank you for the strength and the courage you gave me to overcome the past mistakes I’ve made.

Thank You…

… because this year I feel like i’ve spent more time with old friends…. JJ and Irene, mainly. I never realized how much I missed them so!!

Thank You…

… for the little messages and birthday wishes and well wishes that people paste on my fb wall… each and every last one of them makes me smile. especially the ones from far far away… Marvin and Munn, I’m thinking of you!!

And finally, dear Lord, I thank you…

… for giving me the most amazing boyfriend ever… who has been so patient with me and so forgiving and sometimes so so thick. Yes, I’m thankful that he’s sometimes thick, because it means I have an excuse to rant and let loose a little on him sometimes. But that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t like him to be a little more sensitive, aite?

I pray and pray and pray that the distance and the time will never ever matter more than it needs to to us.

I also pray that his father will find a gold mine.

Love, Hugs, Kisses,

ThEditor.

Well not really. It’s just that it recently hit me how much time FB actually takes off my hands. Most of it is spent on apps and games and random hopping from page to page. But i realized that godDAMN i MISS reading from pages and profiles and notes and posts that actually LOOK different. I read an article the other day about how facebook is to individual bloggers like tesco is to small retail markets, or like Coca Cola is to the consumer beverages (and soon to include foods) industry. I CAN’T FIND ANY INDIVIDUALITY!!! Sure the apps are fun, and some of them are seriously addictive… i mean hey, that’s what a good game is supposed to be like…

But even then I find myself playing just to get the small-term accomplishments. Tadaaa you’ve sold 200 carrots. Tadaaa you’ve sent 100 gifts. Tadaaa you’ve hit level 67!! 100350 more to lvl 68!!! and well… There’s no long term goal. There’s no super boss or final weapon or anything; fck, there’s not even an ENDING to some of these games. I thought I ought to stop completely, and provide support for other FB-independant game sites (like www.farmerama.com for my farming fetish XD)… i consider myself providing support for the mama-papa shops set up amongst the superstore giants :3

And I’ve also decided to post fewer notes on fb and more on my blog!! Don’t wanna let it gather dust

So I shall celebrate my return with a post abo–

HEADLINES ON YAHOO-UK: MAN LOSES LAMBORGHINI GALLARDO!!

click on picture to read article.

Lost: one bright yellow Lamborghini Gallardo. If found please contact The Editor. Do not call the police. Do not attempt to drive the car. The car is mine.

GODDAMMIT.

I wish I could afford to forget where I parked my Lamborghini. Heck, even if I did, I’d just post an advert saying ‘return Lamborghini for any other race car I own of your choice’. Of course that would always work for me since I’d never own any other race car.

… Hot DAMN.

Gonna take a trip out to Gillingham sometime this week.

Love,
ThEditor.

For those of you who REALLY want to know what all the chaos is about. It’s always better to be better informed. And if you can’t be bothered reading this but you still insist on points that directly contradict this excerpt, then my friend, you arguments are as useless to me as crap to a [insert ignoramus species of baboon here] . Otherwise, feel free to comment.

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KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 17 —  High Court judge Datuk Lau Bee Lan’s controversial ‘Allah’ ruling that rocked the nation over who had rights to the term cited that the Home Minister and government’s actions had been illegal, unconstitutional, irrational and had failed to satisfy that it was a threat to national security.
She also wrote about the apparent conflict in the matter between the Federal Constitution and the various state enactments apart from claims by Muslim groups that the matter cannot be taken to a civil court.
The judge released the written grounds of her Dec 31 judgment late on Friday while the increasingly acrimonious public debate over who has the right to use the word “Allah” continues to rage on.
The Malaysian Insider obtained a copy of her 57-page judgment where the judge lays out the reasons and the laws behind her oral pronouncement.
In laying out her judgment, Justice Lau ruled that the Home Minister and the Government of Malaysia, who were named as 1st and 2nd Respondents respectively, has the discretion under Section 12 of the Printing Presses and Publications Act to issue or revoke a permit to the Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur Reverend Tan Sri Murphy Pakiam (the Applicant) to publish the Church’s newspaper, Herald — The Catholic Weekly.

But, she stressed, the respondents had made decisions that were illegal, unconstitutional and irrational when they barred the Catholic newspaper from publishing the word “Allah” in its Bahasa Malaysia section.

The case was brought by the Roman Catholic Church, represented by the Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur Reverend Tan Sri Murphy Pakiam on February 16 last year when he filed for a judicial review against the Home Minister for barring it from using the word “Allah” as part of conditions for getting a publishing permit.
Pakiam is officially the Herald’s publisher.
The Home Ministry has successfully applied for a stay of execution in the ruling pending an appeal.
Below are excerpts highlighting the main disputes.

On why the Home Minister’s ban is illegal

“The Applicant submits the 1st Respondent has failed to take into account one or more of the relevant considerations…
1. The word “Allah” is the correct Bahasa Malaysia word for “God” and in the Bahasa Malaysia translation of the Bible, “God” is translated as “Allah” and “Lord” is translated as “Tuhan”;

2. For 15 centuries, Christians and Muslims in Arabic-speaking countries have been using the word “Allah” in reference to the One God. The Catholic Church in Malaysia and Indonesia and the greater majority of other Christian denominations hold that “Allah” is the legitimate word for “God” in Bahasa Malaysia;

3. The Malay language has been the lingua franca of many Catholic believers for several centuries especially those living in Melaka and Penang and their descendants in Peninsular Malaysia have practised a culture of speaking and praying in the Malay language;

4. The word “God” has been translated as “Allah” in the “Istilah Agama Kristian Bahasa Inggeris ke Bahasa Malaysia” first published by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Malaysia in 1989;

5. The Malay-Latin dictionary published in 1631 had translated “Deus” (the Latin word for God) as “Alla” as the Malay translation;

6. The Christian usage of the word “Allah” predates Islam being the name of God in the old Arabic Bible as well as in the modern Arabic Bible used by Christians in Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and other places in Asia, Africa, etc;

7. In Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesia, the word “Allah” has been used continuously in the printed edition of the Matthew’s Gospel in Malaysia in 1629, in the first complete Malay Bible in 1733 and in the second complete Malay Bible in 1879 until today in the Perjanjian Baru and the Alkitab;

8. Munshi Abdullah who is considered the father of modern Malay literature had translated the Gospels into Malay in 1852 and he translated the word “God” as “Allah”;

9. There was already a Bible translated into Bahasa Melayu in existence before 1957 which translation was carried out by the British and Foreign Bible Society where the word “Allah” was used;

10. There was also already in existence a Prayer Book published in Singapore on 3.1.1905 where the word “Allah” was used;

11. There was also a publication entitled “An Abridgment of the Christian Doctrine” published in 1895 where the word “Allah” was used.

12. Anther publication entitled “Hikajat Elkaniset” published in 1874 also contains the word “Allah”

13. The Bahasa Indonesia and the Bahasa Malaysia translations of the Holy Bible, which is the Holy Scriptures of Christians, have been used by the Christian natives of Peninsular Malaysia; Sabah and Sarawak for generations;

14. The Bahasa Malaysia speaking Christian natives of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak and Sabah had always and have continuously the word “Allah” for generations and the word “Allah” is used in the Bahasa Malaysia and Bahasa Indonesian translations of the Bible used throught Malaysia;

15. At least for the last three decades the Bahasa Malaysia congregation of the Catholic Church have been freely using the Alkitab, the Bahasa Indonesia translation of the Holy Bible wherein the word “Allah appears;

16. The said publication is a Catholic weekly as stated on the cover of the weekly and is intended for the dissemination of news and information on the Catholic Church in Malaysia and elsewhere and is not for sale or distribution outside the Church;

17. The said publication is not made available to members of the public and in particular to persons professing the religion of Islam;

18. The said publication contains nothing which is likely to cause public alarm and/or which touches on the sensitivities of the religion of Islam and in the fourteen years of the said publication there has never been any untoward incident arising from the Applicant’s use of the word “Allah” in the said publication;

19. In any event the word “Allah” has been used by Christians in all countries where the Arabic language is used as well as in Indonesian/Malay language without any problems and/or breach of public order/ and/or sensitivity to persons professing the religion of Islam in these countries;

20. Islam and the control and restriction of religious doctrine or belief among Muslims professing the religion of Islam is a state matter and the Federal Government has no jurisdiction over such matters of Islam save in the federal territories

21. The subsequent exemption vide P.U.(A) 134/82 which permits the Alkitab to be used by Christians in churches ipso facto permits the use of the word “Allah” in the said publication;

22. The Bahasa Malaysia speaking congregation of the Catholic Church uses the word “Allah” for worship and instruction and that the same is permitted in the Al-Kitab.

“The Applicant further submits that none of the above-mentioned factual considerations were ever disputed or challenged by the 1st Respondent as factually incorrect. I am incline to agree with the Applicant as the response of the 1st Respondent to the factual averments is a feeble denial in paragraph 41 of the Affidavit of the 1st Respondent which reads “Keseluruhan pernyataan-pernyataan di perenggan-perenggan 50, 51 and 52(i)-(xxii) Affidavit Sokongan Pemohon adalah dinafikan…” (Emphasis added)
“Therefore I find the 1st Respondent in the exercise of his discretion to impose further conditions in the publication permit has not taken into account the relevant matters alluded to above, hence committing an error of law warranting this Court to interfere and I am of the view that the decision of the Respondents dated 7.1.2009 ought to be quashed,” she ruled.

On why the Home Minister’s ban is unconstitutional

Justice Lau also said the applicant’s grounds for the reliefs of certiorari and declaratio is premised on the unconstitutional acts and conduct being inconsistent with Articles 3(1), 10, 11 and 12 of the Federal Constitution…”

“Applying the principles enunciated in Meor Atiqulrahman Ishak (supra) to the instant case, there is no doubt that Christianity is a religion. The next question is whether the use of the word “Allah” is a practice of the religion of Christianity. In my view there is uncontroverted historical evidence allueded to in paragraph 52 (i) to (xxii) alluded to above which is indicative that use of the word “Allah” is a practice of the religion of Christianity. From the evidence, it is apparent the use of the word “Allah” is an essential part of the worship and instruction in the faith of the Malay (Bahasa Malaysia) speaking community of the Catholic Church in Malaysia and is integral to the practice and propagation of their faith.

“The next consideration is the circumstances under which the “prohibition” was made. The circumstances to my mind would be the factors which the Respondents rely on to justify the impugned decision which have been alluded to in paragraph 9(i) to (ix) above.

“As to the ground in paragraph 9(i) in my judgment, this is unmeritorious for the reason which has been dealt under the issue of whether the use of the word “Allah” endangers public order and national security. As to the ground in paragraph 9(ii), (iii), (v) and (ix), I have shown unchallenged evidence that there is a well established practice for the use of the “Allah” amongst the Malay speaking community of the Catholic faith in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak and the origin of the word and its translation…

“Considering all the factors, in my judgment, the imposition of the condition in the publication permit prohibiting the use of the word “Allah” in the said publication, “Herald – the Catholic Weekly” pursuant to the 1st Respondent’s exercise of powers under the Act contravenes the provisions of Articles 3(1), 11(1) and 11(3) of the Federal Constitution and therefore is unconstitutional,” she added.

On why the Home Minister’s ban is irrational

“The Applicant challenges the impugned decision under this head of irrationality/ Wednesbury unreasonableness which applies to “a decision which is so outrageous in its defiance of logic or of accepted moral standards that no sensible person who had applied his mind to the question to be decided could have arrived at it…”

(a) It is utterly irrational and unreasonable on the part of the Respondents on the one hand not to prohibit the congregation of the Catholic Church to use the word “Allah” for worship and instruction in their faith and in the AL-Kitab and on the other hand to state that the same word cannot be used in the said publication which serves to assist these persons in their worship and provide a medium of instruction in their faith and to disseminate news and information (see paragraph 52(xxii) of Applicant’s Affidavit).

(b) It is also utterly irrational and unreasonable on the part of the Respondents to require the Bahasa Malaysia speaking congregation of the Catholic Church to use another word to denote the Bahasa Malaysia word for “God” instead of the word “Allah” when such is and has always been the word used for the word “God” in the Catholic Church and throughout the Bahasa Malaysia speaking community of the Church in Malaysia…

“In relation to the 2 additional grounds mentioned in paragraph 17.1 above, the Respondents responded —

1. Merujuk kepada perenggan 20 Afidavit Sokongan Pemohon, Responden-Responden menegaskan bahawa Pernyataan YAB Perdana Menteri tersebut yang telah dikeluarkan melalui media cetak “The Star” pada 20/4/2005 adalah amat jelas mengarahkan agar di kulit “Bible” dalam versi Bahasa Melayu dinyatakan secara jelas bahawa ianya bukan untuk orang Islam and ianya hanya dijual doi kedai-kedai orang Kristian. Walau bagaimanapun saya sesungguhnya mempercayai dan meyatakan bahawa kenyataan media yang dirujuk itu adalah berhubung dengan Al-Kitab (Bible) sahaja dan tidak relevan kepada isu permit Herald – the Catholic Weekly yang mana syarat yang dikenakan adalah amat jelas dan perlu dipatuhi oleh Pemohon (paragraph 22 of the 1st Respondent’s Affidavit); and

2. the circulation of the Al-Kitab vide P.U.(A) 134 dated 13.5.1982 was made subject to the condition that its possession or use is only in churches by persons professing the Christian religion, throughout Malaysia.
“I find the 2 additional grounds submitted by the Applicant in paragraph 17.1 above to be of substance. It is to be noted that a common thread runs through like a tapestry in the Respondents’ treatment of restricting the use of the word “Allah” which appears in the Al-Kitab are (i) that it is not meant for Muslims; (ii) to be in the possession or use of Christians and in churches only. In fact, these restrictions are similar to that imposed as a second condition in the impugned decision save for the endorsement of the word “Terhad” on the front cover of the said publication. Relying on the chapter on maxims of interpretation at paragraph 44 p.156 of N.S Bindra’s Interpretation of the Statute, there is a maxim “Omne majus continet in se minus” which means “The greater contains the less”. One would have thought having permitted albeit with the usual restrictions the Catholic Church to use the word “Allah” for worship and in the Al-kitab, it would be logical and reasonable for the Respondents to allow the use of the word “Allah” in the said publication drawing an analogy by invoking the maxim “The greater contains the less”. Indeed I am incline to agree with the Applicant that the Respondents are acting illogically, irrationally and inconsistently and no person similarly circumstanced would have acted in a like manner…

“I find there is merit in the Applicant’s contention that when viewed on its merits, the reasons given by the Home Ministry in the various directives defies all logic and is so unreasonable,” Justice Lau wrote in her judgment.

On the seeming conflict between the Federal Constitution and the state enactments to control and restrict the propagation of religious doctrine among Muslims

She also wrote that, “Pursuant to Article 11(4) of the Federal Constitution, ten States have enacted laws to control and restrict the propagation of religious doctrine or belief among Muslims. The laws are –

(i) Control and Restriction of the Propagation of Non Islamic Religions Enactment 1980 (State of Terengganu Enactment No.1/1980)
2. Control and Restriction of the Propagation of Non Islamic Religions Enactment 1981 (Kelantan Enactment No.11/1981)
3. Control and Restriction of the Propagation of Non Islamic Religions Enactment 1988 (Malacca Enactment No.1/1988)
4. Control and Restriction of the Propagation of Non Islamic Religions Enactment 1988 (Kedah Darulaman Enactment No.11/1988)
5. The Non Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Amongst Muslims) Enactment 1988 (Selangor Enactment No.1/1988)
6. Control and Restriction of the Propagation of Non Islamic Religions Enactment 1988 (Perak Enactment No.10/1988)
7. Control and Restriction of the Propagation of Non Islamic Religions Enactment 1989 (Pahang Enactment No.5/1989)
8. Control and Restriction of the Propagation of Non Islamic Religions Enactment 1991 (Johor Enactment No.12/1991)
9. The Control and Restriction (The Propagation of Non Islamic Religions Amoing Muslims) (Negeri Sembilan) Enactment 1991 (Negeri Sembilan Enactment NO.9/1991); and
10. Control and Restriction of the Propagation of Religious Belief and Doctrine which is Contrary to the Religion of Islam Enactment 2002 (Perlis Enactment No.6 of 2002)

“It is not disputed that s. 9 of the various State Enactments provide for an offence relating to the use of certain words and expression listed in Part 1 or 11 of the Schedule or in the Schedule itself as the case maybe of the State Constitutions and which includes the word “Allah”. Further, all these State Enactments are made pursuant to Article 11(4) of the Federal Constitution which reads “State law and in respect of the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, federal law may control or restrict the propagation of any religious doctrine or belief among persons professing the religion of Islam.” (Emphasis added)…

“Mr Royan drew to the Court’s attention (i) that Article 11(4) which is the restriction does not state that State law can forbid or prohibit but “may control and restrict”; does not provide for State law or for any other law to control or restrict the propagation of any religious doctrine or belief among persons professing a religion other than Islam…
“I find there is merit in Mr Royan’s submission that unless we want to say that s.9 is invalid or unconstitutional to that extent (which I will revert to later), the correct way of approaching s.9 is it ought to be read with Article 11(4). If s.9 is so read in conjunction with Article 11(4), the result would be that a non-Muslim could be committing an offence if he uses the word “Allah” to a Muslim but there would be no offence if it was used to a non-Muslim. Indeed Article 11(1) reinforces this position as it states “Every person has the right to profess and practise his religion and, subject to Clause (4), to propagate it”. Clause 4 restricts a person’s right only to propagate his religious doctrine or belief to persons professing the religion of Islam. It is significant to note that Article 11(1) gives freedom for a person to profess and practise his religion and the restriction is on the right to propagate.

“I find Mr Royan’s argument is further augmented by the submission of Mr Benjamin Dawson, learned Counsel for the Applicant which I find to be forceful stating that this rule of construction is permissible in the light of the mischief the State Enactments seek to cure and the provision has to be interpreted to conform to the Constitution. … For completeness I shall now spell out the preamble in full “WHEREAS Article 11(4) of the Federal Constitution provides that State law may control or restrict the propagation of any religious doctrine or belief among persons professing the religion of Islam. AND WHEREAS it is not desired to make a law to control and restrict the propagation of non-Islamic religious doctrines and beliefs among persons professing the religion of Islam.” (Emphasis added) …
“Applying the said test to the factual matrix of the present case the Court has to bear in mind the constitutional and fundamental rights of persons professing the Christian faith to practise their religion and to impart their faith/religion to persons within their religious group and in this case, the Catholic Church comprises a large section of people from Sabah and Sarawak whose medium of instruction is Bahasa Malaysia and they have for years used religious material in which their God is called “Allah”; for that matter there is a large community who are Bahasa Malaysia speaking from Penang and Malacca. On the other hand the object of Article 11(4) and the State Enactments is to protect or restrict propagation to persons of the Islamic faith. Seen in this context by no stretch of the imagination can one say that s.9 of the State Enactments may well be proportionate to the object it seeks to achieve and the measure is therefore arbitrary and unconstitutional.

“As to the concern of the Respondents there is no guarantee that the magazine would be circulated only among Christians and it will not fall into the hands of Muslims, I agree with Mr Royan there is no requirement of any guarantee be given by anyone in order to profess and practise and even to propagate it.
“In my view if there are breaches of any law the relevant authorities may take the relevant enforcement measures. We are living in a world of information technology; information can be readily accessible. Are guaranteed rights to be sacrificed at the altar just because the Herald has gone online and is accessible to all? One must not forget there is the restriction in the publication permit which serves as an additional safeguard which is the word “TERHAD” is to be endorsed on the front page and the said publication is restricted to churches and to followers of Christianity only,” she added.

On the claim that the Home Minister’s ban was to safeguard public security and order

“There is merit in the Applicant’s argument that the Respondents in paragraph 45 of his Affidavit (also in paragraphs 6, 25 and 46) sought to justify imposing the condition in purported exercise of his powers under the said Act on a mere statement that the use of the word “Allah” is a security issue which is causing much confusion and which threatens and endangers public order, without any supporting evidence. A mere statement by the 1st Respondent that the exercise of power was necessary on the ground of national security without adequate supporting evidence is not sufficient in law….

“I find there is merit in Mr Dawson’s argument that the Court ought to take judicial notice that in Muslim countries even in the Middle East where the Muslim and Christian communities together use the word “Allah”, yet one hardly hear of any confusion arising (see paragraph 52(xix) of the Applicant’s Affidavit which is not rebutted). Further, I am incline to agree that the Court has to consider the question of “avoidance of confusion” as a ground very cautiously so as to obviate a situation where a mere confusion of certain persons within a religious group can strip the constitutional right of another religious group to practise and propagate their religion under Article 11(1) and to render such guaranteed right as illusory,” Justice Lau said.

On claims from the Muslim groups that “Allah” cannot be challenged in court

On this, she wrote, “I had on 31.12.2009 dismissed the applications of the Majlis Agama Islam (MAI) of Wilayah Persekutuan, Johore, Selangor, Kedah, Malacca, the MAI and Adat Melayu Terenggganu and MACMA to be heard in opposition under O.53 r.8 of the RHC (It is to be noted that the MAI and Adat Melayu Perak and MAI Pulau Pinang did not file any application under O.53 r.8). That being the case, their submission contending the issue of whether any publication in whatever form by a non-Muslim individual or body or entity that uses the scared word of “Allah” can be permitted in law is one that is within the absolute discretion of the Rulers and the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (YDPA) (in respect of Penang, Malacca, Sabah, Sarawak and the Federal Territories) as the respective Heads of Islam and is therefore non-justiciable is irrelevant at the substantive hearing of the judicial review application and need not be considered by this Court.

“I adopt the following responses of the Applicant contending the application is justiciable and I am of the view there is substance –

1. the Federal Constitution and the State Constitutions clearly provide that the Rulers and the YDPA as the Head of Islam in the States and the Federal Territories have exclusive authority only on Islamic affairs and Malay customs;

2. subject to Articles 10 and 11 of the Federal Constitution, the control and regulation of all publications and matters connected therewith are governed by federal law namely the Act and only the Minister for Home Affairs is involved in the implementation and enforcement of its provisions. Under this Act, only the Minister can decide what is permitted to be published and in this regard the Rulers and the YDPA have no role whatsoever under the scheme of this Act;

3. the present judicial review is not a judicial review of the decision of the Rulers or the YDPA as Head of Islam concerning the exercise of their duties and functions. It is only a judicial review of the 1st Respondent’s decision to impose a prohibition on the use of the word “Allah” by the Applicant in a publication. Since the Rulers or the YDPA cannot make any decision in respect of any publications and matters connected therewith, the issue of non justiciability does not arise.

On what the Court really ordered

She also listed out the orders from the court in the landmark case, “ In conclusion in the circumstances the Court grants the Applicant the following order:

1. an Order of Certiorari to quash the decision of the Respondents dated 7.1.2009 that the Applicant’s Publication Permit for the period 1.1.2009 until 31.12.2009 is subject to the condition that the Applicant is prohibited from using the word “Allah” in “Herald – the Catholic Weekly” pending the Court’s determination of the matter;

2. Jointly the following declarations:

(i) that the decision of the Respondents dated 7.1.2009 that the Applicant’s Publication Permit for the period 1.1.2009 until 31.12.2009 is subject to the condition that the Applicant is prohibited from using the word “Allah” in “Herald – the Catholic Weekly” pending the Court’s determination of the matter is null and void;

(ii) that pursuant to Article 3(1) of the Federal Constitution the Applicant has the constitutional right to use the word “Allah” in “Herald — the Catholic Weekly” in the exercise of the Applicant’s right that religions other than Islam may be practised in peace and harmony in any part of the Federation;

(iii) that Article 3(1) of the Federal Constitution which states that Islam is the religion of the Federation does not empower and/or authorize the Respondents to prohibit the Applicant from using the word “Allah” in “Herald — the Catholic Weekly”;

(iv) that pursuant to Article 10 of the Federal Constitution the Applicant has the constitutional right to use the word “Allah” in “Herald – the Catholic Weekly” in the exercise of the applicant’s right to freedom of speech and expression;

(v) that pursuant to Article 11 of the Federal Constitution the Applicant has the constitutional right to use the word “Allah” in “Herald — the Catholic Weekly” in the exercise of the Applicant’s freedom of religion which includes the right manage its own religious affairs;

(vi) that pursuant to Article 11 and 12 of the Federal Constitution the Applicant has the constitutional right to use the word “Allah” in “Herald — the Catholic Weekly” in the exercise of the Applicant’s right in respect of instruction and education of the Catholic congregation in the Christian religion.

Ends/-

Long live the Law, and may Justice and Common Sense prevail.
ThEditor.

I’ve just about had enough of this Allah issue. No one I’ve approached has been able to give me an even REASONABLY satisfying answer to the question: Why is it against the religion of Islam that non-Muslims should be able to use the word Allah to refer to the one and only God and creator?

You can best imagine my frustration (under layers of pride and amusement) after having watched this video:

Q: Why is Malaysia different?

A: Because Malaysia is a unique country!!

…epic FAIL.

Why is Malaysia a unique country?

Because Malaysia is different!!

By the way, so is Singapore, Egypt, Iran, US, England, etcetcetc… but there are SOME things that should be just plain universal, and you would expect a religion (LORD Almighty help us =.=) to be one of those things.

What also annoys me is how people start off talking about Muslims and criticizing them without knowing the full story, and then moving on to criticizing Malays, the NEP, etcetcetc….

When we can’t seperate one of these issues from the other, you can tell we’re headed for some serious dipshit.

And BY THE WAY. NO ONE HAS BEEN ABLE TO TELL ME WHO BOMBED THE CHURCHES.

Everyone just assumes it’s the Malays, the Muslims, the Malays. When asked why the answer is often “It’s so obvious, what with the recent Allah issue blablabla”. But I have read no official statements regarding who committed such a horrible crime. Even in my previous post I mentioned – indeed, I STRESSED on this point. I hate people who jump to conclusions so adamantly in pursuit of a scapegoat, or a poor unfortunate soul to pin the blame on.

Well now, to all of you who actively pointed fingers… what do you make of this?

http://malaysiakini.com/news/122463

In case you can’t open it, the headline says

” TWO SURAU IN MUAR FIREBOMBED”.

I wonder what you think about it now?

Christians in forums all over the net have been saying “it’s a despicable thing for the Muslims/Malays to do” and “nevermind, they hit one cheek and Jesus tells us to offer the other“.

Well, now what?

I don’t know what to say and I don’t know what to think. I thought Malaysians were better than this.

But I refuse to stoop to that level.

Will the attackers of the churches and the mosques please go simmer your head in the sewers of the Klang Valley and die.

ThEditor.

I haven’t blogged in forever, because to be frank, over the last year I’ve lost interest in the world apart from me. I’ve been too busy trying to sort myself out to talk about how I’m sorting myself out, much less to see what the world’s been on about lately.

I’m a 19-yr old Malaysian student who’s been studying in the UK for awhile. I’m doing a degree in Law. I don’t know if I plan to go home to work. I don’t know if I can find a job when I’m done. I come from a well-to-do family. I don’t have to worry about money or a job if I didn’t want to. I’m privileged. I’m a little pampered. My stresses in life include where I’m going to stay next year, where I’m going to be this summer, how I’m going to score my grades. My interest in writing and reading over the last year have dimmed far more than is comfortable for me. But every now and then I come across something that lights a fire in my heart and makes my fingers itch to let the voice be heard the best way I know how.

Today, this is what lit that fire.

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/malaysia/48874-kl-church-torched-

Following which my natural reaction was to go to google and facebook to find out more.

I have been sitting at the walls of the two Facebook groups dedicated for and against the ruling, watching the posts come in, for the last hour. I have been googling and visiting blogs of politicians, students and news groups for the last TWO hours.

The results of my search? as follows:

The Facts

3 churches were attacked overnight and a 4th attempt was made. This was supposedly brought about because of the recent court ruling that the word Allah can be used in a Christian publishing called The Herald in its national language section to refer to the Lord God Almighty.However, there is doubt (!!) as to whether the people who committed this terrible crime were actually Muslims themselves or whether this was politically motivated.

and from Wikipedia:

Allah

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article contains Arabic text, written from right to left in a cursive style with some letters joined. Without proper rendering support, you may see unjoined Arabic letters written left-to-right instead of right-to-left or other symbols instead of Arabic script.

Name of Allāh written in Arabic calligraphy by 17th century Ottoman artist Hâfız Osman

Allah (Arabic: الله‎, Allāh, Turkish: Allah, IPA: [ʔalˤːɑːh] ( listen)) is the standard Arabic word for God.^[1] While the term is best known in the West for its use by Muslims as a reference to God, it is used by Arabic-speakers of all Abrahamic faiths, including Christians and Jews, in reference to “God”.^[1][2][3] The term was also used by pagan Meccans as a reference to the creator-god, possibly the supreme deity in pre-Islamic Arabia.^[4]

What the people FOR this ruling say:

1. “We’ve been okay with the non-Muslims using this word all this while… why do we only start bothering about its use now?”
2. “People in other countries can use the word Allah to refer to the Lord God… it’s only Malaysia that is different, why is this supposedly blasphemous to the Muslim community in Malaysia? The word Allah is a Malay-translation of the ACTUAL, ORIGINAL Aramaic word that Lord Jesus said on the cross.. the English translation being “Oh Lord (Allah) why hast thou forsaken me?”, so if it is in every Bible and every Quran why is it that the only class of people not allowed to use the word Allah are the non-Muslim MALAYSIANS?
3. “The Bible says, thou shalt not use God’s name in vain…” but when people (including Christians and Muslims and all others alike) say Oh My God, Jesus Christ, Holy ____,  etc, we don’t commit holy war because of it… why is there such a strong reaction?”

What the people AGAINST this ruling say:

1. kita kena halang orang kapir laknat ni…jgn bg dia owg ni, hina2 agama kita… (We’ve got to stop these _____ people, don’t let them insult our religion..)
2. Dulu mereka tuntut nak guna bahasa Melayu untuk Bible mereka. Kemudianmereka tuntut nak guna perkataan ALLAH untuk penerbitan Kristian. Hariini mereka tuntut nak guna perkataan ALLAH tanpa sekatan. Lepas ini dia akan tuntut hak untuk mengkristiankan orang Melayu tanpa sekatan. Akhirnya nanti entah apa lagi yang mereka akan tuntut!? (First they want to translate their Bible into Malay. Then, they want to use the word Allah for Christian publishing, without restraint/boundaries (?). After this they will ask for the right to convert Muslims to Christians without restraint. How many more rights will they ask for in future?!)
3. If we let them use the word Allah to refer to their God (in Christianity, I personally assume..) then the Muslims will be easily confused, hence we should not allow them to do so.

To be FAIR, i will leave it at 3 points per side… there are many more but these arguments were the most prominent I’ve seen.

Before I post MY view I want to make a point.

I believe in a God. I believe that the God of the Bible and the God of the Quran are one and the same. I do not tell people what my religion is. I never answer the question, Are you Christian/Buddhist/Muslim with yes or no NOT because I am afraid or ashamed. I do this because I don’t want a label to define who I am. The Lord God knows what I believe in, and what I don’t, and at the end of the day it is what He knows that matters. The thoughts, perceptions and assumptions of men when it comes to ‘religion’ mean nothing to me.

And now, here’s what *I* think. Those of you who are feeling threatened or disturbed so far can stop reading NOW.. or you can take a chance at trying to find out what others think of you.

My opinion is.

You are worried that the use of the term Allah to refer to the God of the Bible in Malay language will confuse your Muslim brothers and sisters. Isn’t the God in the Bible and the God of the Quran the same God? Don’t they both speak of Adam and Eve? Don’t they both speak of the lord Jesus Christ?

The Fors seek to reassure the Againsts.. The Againsts seek to be understood.

Here on neutral ground I feel safe somewhat, that no one can tell me, go and submit to Jesus or go and wear a tudung (to cover my head) before I speak my opinion so it can be heard.

But i think the same stands for all of us, which is why there are Muslims who support the ruling, and also why there are Christians who don’t.

“You think you are the minority but the majority are like you.”

“You think you are the majority but the minority are part of you.”

Do not plant words in the mouth of others. There is no secret plan to overthrow the government and take away the rights of the Malays/Muslims in Malaysia. Our constitution says we have the right and free will to choose our own religion. Shouldn’t that include Malays/Muslims as well? Should we not be bothered that we are the ONLY country in the world that has any sort of restraint on what religion you chose?

Worship of Allah or the Lord God is pointless if you love the name and not the being or the presence. Love of your Creator is nothing if you say you love him because you were born into a family that says you MUST love him. If someone tells me I must love salmon spaghetti with chili and durians or I will never see another sunrise, then my submission is not love, it is empty fear.

Having said all that.

... I think we still have a chance at being 1Malaysia.

From what I can see, there is one similarity between the two sides.

On both sides, there is NO ONE who condones the attacks on the churches. Okay, there are some on the For side who say the Christians deserved it, and some on the Against side who say it was a terrible thing for anyone, Muslim or non-Muslim to do.

That points to me that religion doesn’t matter in our own personal opinion.

It AFFECTS who we are, but it doesn’t DEFINE us or what we should believe in.

It’s a small, simple truth, and a small simple honesty, and a small, simple hope, but I would like to believe it.

THAT, is who I am. I am Malaysian. I want to be proud. I don’t want to be the majority or the minority, I want to be Malaysian. I don’t want to be racist, I want to be tolerant. I don’t want to be religious, I want to have faith.

I want to have a home I will be proud to come home to. Maybe  that’s my weakness, because I will look for ANY sign or hint that my home will be the home I hold so dear in my heart.

But I refuse to let something like this make me say, I hate the Muslims, I hate the Christians… because I don’t. I hate the people who attacked the church, POINT. Just as much as I would hate anyone who had attacked a mosque or a temple.

I am HUMAN, and I am MALAYSIAN. And For the Love of a Word, I want to be PROUD.

The Malaysian Editor.

www.myspace.com/KurtHugo
www.myspace.com/SamTsui

I facking want this game.

This is where I so do not regret buying my DSi.

I’m prepared to die of a heart attack playing this sh*t…

WoooOOooOOOooo~
ThEditor

but I still bother because

I'm in love with every precious moment since that day because of you.

<3,
ThEditor.

Yeah
Seven years old, you heard me cry
I don’t wanna say goodbye
To the only man that I love
My daddy and everything he was
I don’t think I can live without you
Dad, I know your breaking in two
With tears running down his face, he says we’re gonna make it
We’re gonna make it

[CHORUS]
When you feel like you are all alone
Just like your best friend up and gone
Don’t worry now
Don’t worry now
I’ve been there yeah, I know how it feels
To wonder if love is even real
Don’t worry now
Don’t worry now
It’s gonna be ok

I’ve been trying to find a way to understand
When I can’t see the picture of God’s plan
Why would He let us hurt so bad?
Could anything good come of these feelings that I have?
He loved me more than the sand on beaches
He loved me more than the grass is green
And even though he had to go I always knew his love was part of me

When you feel like you are all alone
Just like your best friend up and gone
Don’t worry now
Don’t worry now
I’ve been there yeah, I know how it feels
To wonder if love is even real
Don’t worry now
Don’t worry now

It’s taken so long to let this go
It’s taken so long to feel that
Your right here next to me
And I can finally breathe
It’s taken so long but now I know
I had to find out on my own
When nothing could convince me
Your love it convinced me
That it’s gonna be ok

When you feel like you are all alone
Just like your best friend up and gone
Don’t worry now
Don’t worry now
I’ve been there yeah, I know how it feels
To wonder if love is even real
Don’t worry now
Don’t worry now
It’s gonna be
It’s gonna be ok…

ThEditor.

Obama is a genius for pulling the Britons into the fray. Planned or not, he’s now somehow managed to unite Gordon Brown and David Cameron, at least on their stand on the NHS, and now he’s got about 60million Brits fighting the US health care reform battle for him.

On the other hand, we have a crook running in by-elections. -.-

I wish I’d never have to grow up.

Oh yeah.. and i may be on holiday the day my boy goes back to france!!!

….

Give me back my world..
ThEditor

This is for those of you who have nothing special on this Sunday =P

Enjoy~!

…Guy Catches Laptop With Butt.

…Your Mother…

…Minesweeper: The Movie

…Why Girls Don’t Fart (18PG)

…The Queen’s an AntiChrist, Sir

ft. Rowan Atkinson and James Dreyfus – from The Thin Blue Line

…The Long Lost Nintendo Sex Ed Tape

If this was legit, (and i think it is) it’s SO FUNNY. IMAGE ENHANCEMENT LMAO!!!!

…Mario and The Princess: Sxx Tape (18SX)

WARNING!! REALLY 18SX!!! DO NOT WATCH WITH MINORS IN THE ROOM!!!!!

And watch to the very end XD

…

Hope I brought smiles to your faces on this lovely lovely day~~

GiddyWithGlee
ThEditor
my heart flutters like a little bird when you call me baby <3