Be Yet Wiser …

Ex-students of Victoria Institution would recall the phrase “Be Yet Wiser”. It was the school motto. My thoughts were taken back to those words of wisdom after reading this e-mail from a friend:

“We begin this New Year with dampened enthusiasm and dented optimism. Our happiness is diluted and our peace is threatened by the financial illness that has infected our families, organizations and nations. Everyone is desperate to find a remedy that will cure their financial illness and help them recover their financial health. They expect the financial experts to provide them with remedies, forgetting the fact that it is these experts who created this financial mess.
Every new year, I adopt a couple of old maxims as my beacons to guide my future. This self-prescribed therapy has ensured that with each passing year, I grow wiser and not older. This year, I invite you to tap into the financial wisdom of our elders along with me, and become financially wiser.

* Hard work: All hard work brings a profit but mere talk leads only to poverty.

* Laziness: A sleeping lobster is carried away by the water current.

* Earnings: Never depend on a single source of income. [ At least make your Investments get you second earning ]

* Spending: If you buy things you don't need, you'll soon sell things you need.

* Savings: Don't save what is left after spending; Spend what is left after saving.

* Borrowings: The borrower becomes the lender's slave.

* Accounting: It's no use carrying an umbrella, if your shoes are leaking.

* Auditing: Beware of little expenses; A small leak can sink a large ship.

* Risk-taking: Never test the depth of the river with both feet. [Have an alternate plan ready]

* Investment: Don't put all your eggs in one basket.

I'm certain that those who have already been practicing these principles remain financially healthy. I'm equally confident that those who resolve to start practicing these principles will quickly regain their financial health.
Let us become wiser and lead a happy, healthy, prosperous and peaceful life.”

I've learned...

My friend Satya Prakash emailed me the following quotes.
They were written by Andy Rooney, a man who has the gift of saying so much with so few words.

Enjoy.......
I've learned....That the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.
I've learned....That when you're in love, it shows.
I've learned.....That just one person saying to me, 'You've made my day!' makes my day.
I've learned....That having a child fall asleep in your arms is one of the most peaceful feelings in the world.
I've learned.....That being kind is more important than being right.
I've learned.... That you should never say no to a gift from a child.
I've learned.... That I can always pray for someone when I don't have the strength to help him in some other way.
I've learned.... That no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with.
I've learned.... That sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold and a heart to understand.
I've learned.... That simple walks with my father around the block on windy nights when I was a child did wonders for me as an adult.
I've learned.... That it's those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular.
I've learned... That under everyone's hard shell is someone who wants to be appreciated and loved.
I've learned.... That to ignore the facts does not change the facts.
I've learned.... That when you plan to get even with someone, you are only letting that person continue to hurt you.
I've learned.... That love, not time, heals all wounds.
I've learned.... That the easiest way for me to grow as a person is to surround myself with people smarter than I am.
I've learned... That everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.
I've learned.... That no one is perfect until you fall in love with them.
I've learned... That life is tough, but I'm tougher.
I've learned.. That opportunities are never lost; someone will take the ones you miss.
I've learned.... That when you harbour bitterness, happiness will dock elsewhere.
I've learned.... That I wish I could have told my mother that I love her one more time before she passed away.
I've learned..... That one should keep his words both soft and tender, because tomorrow he may have to eat them.
I've learned.... That a smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.
I've learned.... That when your newly born grandchild holds your little finger in his little fist, that you're hooked for life.
I've learned.... That everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you're climbing it.

Man, doctor and bee...

A man comes running to the doctor shouting and screaming in pain.
"Please doctor, you've got to help me. I've been stung by a bee."
DOCTOR: "Don't worry; I'll put some cream on it."
MAN: "You will never find that bee. It must be miles away by now."
DOCTOR: "No, you don't understand! I'll put some cream on the place
you were stung."
MAN: "Oh! It happened in the garden where I was sitting under a tree."'
DOCTOR (in anger): "No, no, you IDIOT! I mean on which part of your
body did that bee sting."
MAN (still screaming in pain): "On my finger! The bee stung me on my
finger and it really hurts."
DOCTOR : "Ok.Which one?"
MAN (innocently): "How would I know? All bees look the same to me."

'Diwaniya' helps promote Malaysia among Kuwaitis...

More Kuwaitis are visiting Malaysia because of the good words from relatives who have been to the country for holidays, says Malaysian ambassador to Kuwait Ashaary Sani.
Last year, the number of Kuwaitis visiting Malaysia shot up to 17,000.
Most travelled in families with some staying up to a month, he said.

"The regular family get-together among Kuwaitis called 'diwaniya' where the men talk among themselves has helped to encourage the people here to visit Malaysia," he told Malaysian reporters who are in Kuwait City to cover the just-ended Arab Economic Summit.
The good facilities in Malaysia, the weather and the favourable currency exchange (one Kuwaiti Dinar could hit about RM13), were among the pull factors, he said.
"Although the impact has been positive, there is still room for improvement," said Ashaary.
Saying most Kuwaitis know about Kuala Lumpur and Langkawi, he suggested more tourism promotion be made to attract Kuwaitis to states like Sabah and Sarawak as well as those in the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia.
"Of course, we should continue to provide good service and hospitality," he said.
He said bilateral relations between Malaysia and Kuwait were solid with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan making an official visit here last November.
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was also in Kuwait last year as well as the Raja Muda of Perak Raja Dr Nazrin Shah who came in October last year to promote Malaysia as an International Islamic Financial Centre.
Ashaary said some 160 Malaysians are living in Kuwait, mostly professionals working in the telecommunications and financial sectors and their families.
A Malaysian heart surgeon and an anesthetist are also working in Kuwait.
On the two-day Arab Economic Summit which ended yesterday, Ashaary said it was a good effort to solidify economic cooperation and integration among the Arab countries.

Saudi Arabia donates US$1 billion for Gaza...

Saudi's King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz announced in Kuwait City today the contribution of US$1 billion for the reconstruction of Gaza, which is devastated after three weeks of Israeli relentless bombardment.

Speaking at the first-ever Arab Economic Summit, the Saudi monarch said that no matter how vital economic issues were, they could not equate life and dignity.
"In the past few days, we have witnessed images that are so repulsive, bloody and painful, massacres committed in full view of the world by criminal hoodlums whose hearts know no mercy," he said.
While granting the donation for the Gaza reconstruction fund proposed by the summit, King Abdullah said he realised that "one drop of Palestinian blood is dearer than all riches of the earth".
The Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, who chaired the two-day summit, had earlier led the barrage of condemnation by the Arab leaders against Israeli aggression on Gaza.
He said Kuwait would donate US$34 million to enable UN Relief and Works Agency's (UNRWA) honour the urgent needs of the Palestinian people, and would also contribute to international efforts of the donor countries.
He described the Israeli invasion as a "war crime and a crime against humanity".

More than 1,300 Palestinians were killed and 5,300 injured while some 4,000 residential buildings were reduced to rubble after Israel launched the attacks on Dec 27.
Israel declared a unilateral ceasefire Sunday followed later by Hamas, which gave the regime a week to pull out its troops from the impoverished strip.
The Israeli war machine had also bombarded UN facilities in the besieged Gaza Strip, derailing the work of the UN staff in the strip.
Speaking after the Kuwaiti leader, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad called on the Arab states to adopt the term "terrorism entity" to describe the Jewish state.
Al-Assad, who is the current chairman of the Arab round, said although the ceasefire had been secured, this was in no way an indication of the end of violence as the Israeli forces remained in Gaza.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said his country showed clear and strong support for the Gaza Strip since the first day of Israeli aggression on it.
He said Israel should put in mind that achieving peace in the Middle East was an urgent need and that the regime should consider the Arab peace initiative more seriously.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, meanwhile, called on Palestinian factions to overcome their differences and meet under Egyptian sponsorship.
He said the Palestinians were invited to meet in Egypt to reach an agreement after hours of discussion.
"If the bloodshed in Gaza is not enough for us to agree, then when will the time come?" asked Abbas.
He said should an agreement be reached, what was needed then was a unity government that worked to end Israeli violence, lift the siege on Gaza and open its crossings and hold elections.

Ceasefire boost for Arab Economic Summit...

As Kuwait prepares to host a first-ever regional economic summit, Israel's decision to cease its offensive on Gaza may provide a boost for the meeting to seriously focus on economic and social development issues besetting the Arab world.
Described as the first-of-a-kind, the Arab Economic, Social and Development Summit which opens Monday is seen as a platform to pave the way for future and growing cooperation between governments and the private sector.
The two-day summit, called by Kuwait two years ago, had garnered the involvement of experts from various economic sectors.
It is taking place at a time when the Arab world is reported to have suffered some USD2.5 trillion within four months due to the global financial meltdown.
Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and acting Oil Minister Sheikh Dr. Mohammad Al-Sabah said the summit would address daily concerns of Arab citizens like poverty, hunger, health, education, railway network and electricity linkage.
At a forum held yesterday as a prelude to the summit, Arab government and business leaders agreed that economic and social development could be achieved with greater cooperation between governments and civilian sectors.
They stressed the importance of the involvement of the people in the Arab world's development, not only as a tool for success, but also as steps towards a stronger democracy.
The summit is expected to produce key resolutions dealing with the development of education, improving health care, fighting unemployment and poverty.
It was also expected to establish the custom union and linking the Arab countries' networks of roads and railways, as well as food and water security.
The Israeli aggression on Gaza which had drawn international concern would still be high on the agenda.
The leaders will address the situation in Gaza, which has seen a slight progress with Israel embarking on a unilateral ceasefire after declaring victory in its three-week offensive that has cost 1,200 Palestinian lives.
But despite the ceasefire, Israeli troops would remain in Gaza for the time being with orders to return fire if attacked.
Officials said the Arab leaders will be discussing two draft resolutions which include showing support for the Palestinian people through establishing a fund for the rebuilding of Gaza, opening of border crossings, lifting the siege, urging the UN Security Council to ask Israel to stop its aggression and backing the Egyptian ceasefire initiative.
All 22 Arab League countries are expected to attend the summit.
United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon, who is on a tour of the region to deal with the Israeli offensive on Gaza, is also scheduled to attend the summit.

Spotlight on Arab Summit to halth Israeli onslaught...

With no end in sight of Israeli's onslaught on Gaza, the Arab world is banking on their leaders' summit in Kuwait City on Monday to act decisively to stop the aggression.
Arab foreign ministers who met here yesterday approved a draft resolution calling for an immediate halt to the Israeli aggression which has killed more than a thousand Palestinians in Gaza.
The ministers approved a proposal calling on Arab countries to "pledge financial aid for Gaza reconstruction estimated to cost US$2 billion" and another US$500 million of extra aid to the Palestinian Authority.

The draft will be tabled to the Arab Economic, Social and Development Summit to be held in Kuwait City on Monday and Tuesday.
United Nations and Gaza health officials have estimated that some 1,100 Palestinians have been killed since the Israeli began its merciless attacks on Dec 27.
Apart from underlining the urgency of stopping the Israeli aggression on Gaza, the draft calls for the reopening of all Gaza's border crossings.
It holds Israel responsible for all the atrocities in Gaza and the violations of the international humanitarian laws.
It urges the UN human rights agencies to probe into serious crimes against humanity committed by the Israeli army against the Palestinian people during the brutal aggression on Gaza and bring to justice those who are responsible for such crimes.
While thanking the countries which have been sending humanitarian aids to Gaza, the draft renewed condemnation of "the brutal aggression on the defenceless Palestinian people in Gaza Strip."
It said the Israeli army had used all kinds of lethal weapons including internationally-banned ones since the start of the aggression.