BEARING ARMS - A NEED OR A RIGHT?

Source: USA Today

I have been following the debate on gun control in America even before the horrific Sandy Hook incident where 20 first graders and six teachers were gunned down by Adam Lanza, a 20-year old former student of the school. He had shot and killed his mother before he went on a shooting rampage at the elementary school.

Since the incident, the debate on gun control has intensified, with both sides of the divide coming up with arguments to support their respective stand on the issue. Some of these arguments make absolutely no sense, if I may say so. Just go to Piers Morgan at CNN to listen to some of these debates.

Malaysia is a country with strict laws on gun possession. Under the Arms Act of 1960, no person is allowed to own or manufacture a gun without first applying for a license or permit.  The maximum penalty for illicit possession of firearms is up to 7 years prison and/or a fine of up to Rm10,000. There has been no mass shooting of innocent people by civilians. Gun homicide here is less than 0.5% per 100,000 people. Let's hope it remains that way.

Japan and the US are at the opposite ends of the list . Source: Washington Post

Coming from such a background, I find the data on gun ownership in the US alarming. US gun control laws are lax. Only 40% gun owners go through background checks before buying a gun. You can buy a gun easily at the thousands of gun stores or gun fairs in the country. Walmart, the world's largest retailer, sells guns, including assault weapons.

The data below is taken from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

• The US has the highest gun ownership rate in the world - an average of 88 per 100 people. 
• There are 270 million guns in America in the hands of civilians.
• In 2010, there were 11,422 homicides and 19,392 suicides involving guns.
• In 2011, 59,208 people were wounded by guns.
• Since the Sandy Hook shooting, there has been a spike in gun sales. 250,000 guns were purchased after the shooting as people feared stricter gun control laws would soon be enforced.

Although the figures have gone done slightly for last year, mass shootings seem to have increased, with 16 last year, including the movie theatre shooting in Aurora and the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. In total, at least 88 people have died from these shootings in 2012. 

These are all scary numbers. Yet, each time the debate comes up, gun owners turn to the 2nd Amendment, citing their right to bear arms as enshrined in the constitution. They say they need guns to protect themselves and their loved ones, and for the sport of hunting. It is not surprising the National Rifle Association (NRA) boasts a membership of 4.2 million.

Why can't the NRA members see the sense
in supporting a ban on assault weapons?

What gun control advocates are asking for is not to take away the people's right to bear arms, but to ban only assault rifles such as the AR-15 which is the preferred weapon used by the perpetrators. Some of these weapons can fire 400 rounds in a minute. Why the need to own such a weapon of mass destruction? Isn't a hand gun sufficient for self-protection?

Imagine a scenario where some gun owners are so paranoid about the need to defend themselves that they carry concealed guns into cinemas, shopping malls, stadiums. At the slightest alarm or provocation, who is to say a nervous gun owner would not whip out his gun and start shooting at perceived attackers and hurt innocent bystanders? Imagine living in a society where people live in fear of being attacked or shot at, and have to carry a gun to protect themselves? When will this paranoia end?

Source: The Atlantic Wire

President Obama yesterday signed 23 executive orders to curb gun violence. You can view the full list here. New York is the first state to take legislative action to strengthen gun laws. It would be an uphill task to get support from all states, and to get the proposals (see below) passed into law by Congress.

Screen capture from CNN news on Channel 511 last night

Why should this controversy over gun control be of any interest or relevance to non-US citizens? What does it matter to them whether or not Americans have the right to own military-type assault weapons?

It matters because we are living in an inter-connected world. Some of us have children studying in the US, some have offices and businesses there, and some go there regularly for a holiday. According to the US Department of Commerce, in 2010, 60 million international visitors traveled to the U.S., generating more than $134 billion in revenue and a $32 billion trade surplus.


The US is a great country with so much to offer visitors. We want to be able to visit the US and know that we can travel freely without fear of being gunned down, whether accidentally or intentionally.

In 2011 on my first trip to Las Vegas, one of the first things I saw at the arrival hall of McCarran airport was this giant poster of a smiling woman proudly holding a semi-automatic with the invitation to 'Try One'.

Welcome to the US - it's the wild wild west even today.

APPS FOR SENIORS TO GET CONNECTED

Some of the apps on my mobile

Seniorsaloud is mentioned in today's New Sunday Times write-up on "App-Charged Assistance", about how smart phone applications can help to connect communities and provide much-needed assistance. You can click here to read the NST article which containS excerpts from the original email interview reproduced below.

1. Can you briefly describe your role as an advocate in the senior citizens space and the administrator of the Seniors Aloud community?

I started SeniorsAloud in May 2008 as a community blog in response to what I saw as a need for senior citizens to share their views, experiences and concerns. Retirement can be filled with daunting challenges and major adjustments in lifestyle. Who can best understand seniors and help them with their problems than other seniors?

Over the years as the online community grew, there were requests for opportunities to meet up and network. So in January 2012, Seniorsaloud started organizing activities on a regular basis with the focus on lifelong learning and active living. We organized seminars and workshops to help seniors prepare for their retirement, so they can look forward to their golden years with confidence and anticipation.

Seniors love the iPad (Pic: AARP)

2. What are the main challenges and issues that you face as a senior citizen?  Are there any challenges you face in particular in being a senior citizen in Malaysia?

As a group, senior citizens are often sidelined and attention paid to us only as an afterthought. When you no longer have earning capacity, you lose not only self-esteem but also respect from society at large. Public perception of older people is mostly negative. It is a challenge we face daily – how to get society to regard us as still productive and still able to contribute in terms of sharing our wealth of experience and expertise.

We have a long list of needs that have not been adequately addressed. Lack of financial security is the biggest concern, particularly for senior citizens from the middle income group. They face age discrimination in the job market. Without a steady income, they have difficulty getting bank loans to start a business. There are also health concerns and rising medical expenses that are not covered by insurance because of their age.

Although our population is ageing, our society is still very much youth-centered. Our cities and public places are not age-friendly. Public transport must be improved to cater to the special needs of the elderly. More hospitals and assisted living facilities must be built to meet the growing number of elderly people who require nursing care.

Senior citizens also find themselves quite lost in this fast-paced world of technology. Many of them are computer illiterate and clueless about how to use electronic gadgets like smart phones. To them, a tablet is a pill that you take when you are not feeling well. They know What’s Up, but not What’s App. The only applications they are familiar with are job applications.

But who is there to teach them the basics? Certainly not their busy adult children. It’s easier to look up zumba classes for mothers-to-be than IT classes for senior citizens.

Most useful app for Singaporeans needing
eldercare services developed under
the Community Health Assist Scheme
(Pic: Straits Times)

3. Do you think mobile apps can help you resolve some of these issues?  If so, what are the sort of Malaysian mobile apps you would like to see in relation to your area of advocacy / interest i.e. better living for senior citizens.  In short, what is your Malaysian mobile apps wishlist as a senior citizen in Malaysia OR what sort of mobile apps for senior citizens in Malaysia would you like to see developed as part of this challenge? 

Definitely!

There are already plenty of health and medical apps. Here’s my wish list for other apps, in no particular order.

Apps to do the following:

• Access different genres of music from past eras e.g. 1950s to 1970s - classical, pop, instrumentals, religious, evergreens, etc
• Search for senior discounts or the lowest prices for travel, movies, meals, classes, books, fares, medicines, assistive devices, etc
• Connect with the neighborhood community e.g. Mont Kiara residents can organize car pools as many senior citizens don’t drive anymore, look for ‘kakis’ or companions to play mahjong, golf or tennis, go for a concert or join a tour. The app would also be great for posting announcements and sharing news.
• Translate languages, especially useful for retirees who are still active and love to travel. A language equivalent of a currency convertor.
• Provide first-aid tips, housekeeping guide, DIY manuals, and home safety precautions. An increasing number of older adults live alone. Many also take on the roles of caring for their aged parents and looking after their grandchildren. Such an app would serve as a useful resource in case of home emergencies.
• Provide a comprehensive listing of senior citizens’ clubs, nursing homes, welfare homes, retirement homes, daycare centers for the elderly, support groups for caregivers, dialysis centers, healthcare NGOs, hospitals, community clinics, etc. A directory with such information is urgently needed.

• List companies and businesses that offer home services e.g. catering, housekeeping, healthcare and physiotherapy, delivery of groceries, pet grooming, haircuts, manicures and pedicures, gardening, etc. Many of the elderly in their 70s and 80s are either housebound or wheelchair-bound. They need all the outside help they can get to assist them with their daily living activities.
• Find out fares, routes and schedules for buses and trains. Also maps and directions. Senior citizens depend a lot on public transport.
• Plan their budget, shopping, keep track of expenses, utilities, bills to be paid, etc.
• Remind / Alert seniors about important birthdays, deadlines, expiry dates, medication times, appointments, health screenings, etc.
• Help locate personal items. Elderly folks often forget where they left their spectacles, book, keys, wallet, etc, even where they parked the car!

(Apps developer who would like to work with Seniorsaloud on any of the above apps, please get in touch with Seniorsaloud at seniorsaloud@gmail.com

HOW MUCH IS A VOTE WORTH?

These days it's with some trepidation that I read the morning papers. Why so? I dread reading yet again about another round of goodies given out by our government.

I have nothing against the government playing philanthropist when it comes to helping the poor, the needy and the less fortunate. Indeed these groups should be helped. But when rebates and handouts are being dished out so freely to folks who don't really need them, especially when they didn't even ask for the goodies in the first place, we can't help but view this generosity as an attempt at vote-buying.

Most youths already have mobile phones, and many have smart phones. What is the rationale behind giving this RM200 rebate? It would make more sense if the rebate was for youths who do not yet own a mobile phone. 

The Straits Times of Singapore in an article today put the government's total handouts to be distributed from January to March this year at nearly RM4 billion! That's not counting the billions already given out last year in 2012. And not discounting more handouts in the weeks leading up to the General Elections due to be held anytime from now till June.

Here's the breakdown (from ST):

Rebates, vouchers and handouts for ALL ages

JANUARY: 

RM300 million Youth Communication Package for 1.5 million young people aged 21 to 30 to get a RM200 rebate each on smartphones sold by selected service providers. 

FEBRUARY: 

RM3 billion 1Malaysia People's Assistance Fund 2.0 (BR1M 2.0) to benefit 4.3 million households and 2.7 million singles. Households earning RM3,000 monthly or less get RM500 each, while singles aged 21 or more and earning less than RM2,000 will get RM250.

MARCH: 

• RM325 million 1Malaysia Book Vouchers for 1.3 million public and private higher education students at RM250 per person.
• RM224 million 1Malaysia Contribution for Veterans Without Pension for 224,000 military veterans at RM1,000 each to be distributed

Source: Malaysiakini

According to the 2011 Auditor-General’s report, our national debt stands at a whopping RM456.12 billion! At the rate the government is splurging on handouts, vouchers and bonuses, our country will soon go the way of Greece, and will require a massive bailout to staunch the fiscal haemorrhage. 

There are stories going around about where the government is dipping its hands into for funds. Whether the stories are mere rumours or not, retirees like me do not want to wake up one day to learn that our retirement savings have been siphoned off without our permission to boost the public image of the government.

Public-listed companies have CFOs and COOs to caution their CEOs to be prudent about spending. CEOs are answerable to the Board of Directors and to the shareholders. Who will take the PM aside and remind him of his real responsibilities to the people? 

Christmas is over. There's no need to play Santa Claus anymore. Please.

IF YOU VALUE YOUR HEALTH, GO SEE THIS MOVIE

If you could see only one movie in 2013, you have to make it 'Forks Over Knives'. It could change your life forever. It could even save your life!

As the title implies, the documentary's central theme focuses on why we should choose a diet of plant-based foods over meat and dairy products.
It offers convincing data to back this up, including the landmark The China Study, a 20-year collaboration between Cornell University, Oxford University and the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine. It is the largest study ever done to examine the correlation between health and diet. The findings showed that people who followed a diet rich in animal-based foods were at risk of more chronic diseases, while those on a mostly plant-based diet were the healthiest.

The film also traces the personal journeys of Professor T.Colin Campbell, 78, (above left) a renowned nutritional scientist from Cornell University, and Dr Caldwell Esselstyn, 79, a former top surgeon at Cleveland Clinic, Ohio. These doctors are a picture of robust health and boundless energy!

No longer McDonald's top poster boy!

If you are currently on an animal-based diet, consider seriously making a switch to a plant-based diet. Bill Clinton did and look at the results. After undergoing two heart procedures, he switched from a fast food, meat-rich diet to a vegan diet. Not only is he looking fitter and healthier, he looks much younger and more handsome! (Click here to read the New York Times interview with Clinton.)

Note how doctors would always advise their patients who are obese, diabetic or have heart problems, to cut down on meat, diary products, and processed foods. They should increase their intake of whole foods and commit to a regime of daily exercise.

I am a pescatarian - as far as possible I avoid eating meat except for seafood. I haven't had a steak, chicken chop or pork cutlet since 2008. I don't get tempted when I see my friends tuck into stick after stick of satay, although I must confess I still like to dip my ketupat rice into the peanut sauce.

I also avoid milk whenever I can. In July 2009 I wrote an article "Is Drinking Milk Udder Nonsense?" I had just attended an Anthony Robbins seminar. He was advocating that we stopped drinking milk for health reasons. That was contradictory to what I had been taught all my life, that milk is good for us, and especially good for children.

I decided to check out the validity of his statement. The more I read, the more sense it made to me that mother's breast milk is best for babies, and cow's milk best for calves, not human babies.

Just think about all the hormones that are injected into the cows. No wonder breast cancer is more prevalent in the west than in Asia. Unfortunately, with the fast food industry making giant inroads into China and Japan in the past decade, meat-based diets are gaining popularity among Asians, and the result of that is reflected in higher incidence of heart disease and cancer in these countries now.

The documentary also dispels fears that people who follow a plant-based, diary-free diet are weak, small in stature, and prone to fractures. We need protein to grow and build muscles, and calcium to build strong bones. Well, the documentary provides compelling evidence to prove that these 'beliefs' are myths. Eating more meat, drinking more milk and consuming more fast food puts your health at risk. Sure, it contributes billions to the meat-based food industries and businesses. It is in the interest of these companies to perpetuate the myths, and for people to buy into these myths.

(Above) Famous celebrity vegans. (Below from left) Anthony Robbins, Hugh Jackman, Carl Lewis

Here's the official trailer for 'Forks Over Knives'. Hope it motivates you to check out the film, as it did for me.



Go see the film before it ends its run here in Kuala Lumpur. It's currently being screened at Golden Screen Cinemas (GSC) in Pavilion, 1-Utama and Mid-Valley. Check the papers or the website for screening times. I was the only patron in the cinema when I saw the film at Pavilion. What a shame! This documentary is an eye-opener and life-saver. It deserves to be viewed by everyone and should be screened in schools, public libraries and community centres. The message it carries is too important to just keep to yourself.

So spread the word, and live the message.

After you have viewed the documentary, you can better follow this post-screening panel discussion below.

WE DIDN'T HAVE THE GREEN THING BACK THEN

No plastic bags. Bring your own bag. Go Green. (The Star)

This little story has been making the rounds on the internet. If it hasn't reached you yet, here it is, with images added. Enjoy!

Being Green

Checking out at the store, the young cashier suggested to the older woman, that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment.

The woman apologized and explained, "We didn't have this green thing back in my earlier days."

The young clerk responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations."

She was right -- our generation didn't have the green thing in its day.

Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were truly recycled.

But we didn't have the green thing back in our day.

Grocery stores bagged our groceries in brown paper bags, that we reused for numerous things, most memorable besides household garbage bags, was the use of brown paper bags as book covers for our schoolbooks. This was to ensure that public property, (the books provided for our use by the school) was not defaced by our scribblings. Then we were able to personalize our books on the brown paper bags.

But too bad we didn't do the green thing back then.

Cloth diapers hanging out to dry

We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks.

But she was right. We didn't have the green thing in our day.

Back then, we washed the baby's diapers because we didn't have the throwaway kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy-gobbling machine burning up 220 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry our clothes back in our early days. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.

But that young lady is right; we didn't have the green thing back in our day.

Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana. In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us.

When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.

Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.

But she's right; we didn't have the green thing back then.

We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.

But we didn't have the green thing back then.

I used to go to school in a trishaw much
like this one till I learnt to cycle in 1960.

Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 23,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest burger joint.

But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn't have the green thing back then?

MALAYSIA - A RETIREMENT HAVEN?

Hiroko, 64, and her husband Hiroyuki, 67,
find Malaysia an ideal place for a second home.
Pic: The Star

My retired friends, kindly take note. Some of you may find it hard to believe this, but Malaysia has consistently been voted among the top places in the world to retire in. I know the grass is always greener on the other side, but if you look at Malaysia through the eyes of a retiree from a country where the winters are long and cold, where the cost of living is high and where natural disasters are common, it is easy to understand why Malaysia My Second Home Programme has been quite successful. It has attracted over 18,000 foreigners to settle in Malaysia as of March 2012.

Of all the best places to live in Malaysia, Penang captures the top spot hands down. It's not only the hawker food, the sunny weather and the friendly people, but also the relatively low cost of living. It is among the cheapest places to set up home. That's according to Living International Magazine which recently voted Malaysia 3rd on the list of the world's top Retirement Havens 2013. I share this write-up by Keith Hockton.

For a complete list, you can read the full article here.

3. Malaysia: Asia’s Most Desirable Destination

By Keith Hockton

“Go back to New York to live? Never!” says 65-year-old Lorna Taylor. “We moved to Malaysia because of the weather, the golf and the low prices; our costs are now a third to a quarter of what they were in the U.S. We even have a maid come in and clean four times a week. We couldn’t do that in New York. No, we’ll never leave Penang.”

I’m 30 years younger than Lorna and her husband John, and yet they still manage to beat my wife Lisa and me convincingly at tennis. They have a coach who comes twice a week, and for $10 a lesson I can see his efforts are clearly paying off.

I also completely understand and agree with their view about Malaysia. It has everything. Its weather is a tropical 82 F all year round and its beaches, islands and jungles are pristine. It has some of the region’s best street food, great restaurants, bars, shopping malls and movie theaters—and it’s all affordable.

Lisa and I rent a sea-view apartment for $1,000 a month—it comes with a shared pool and gym. We eat out five nights a week, keep a small sailboat, and our total budget is $1,719 a month. Two people can have a three-course meal here for $10.

A bagful of fresh fruit costs around $4. We also have a maid that comes once a week for four hours at a cost of $12.

Malaysia’s an easy place to make friends and integrate as English is the unofficial first language. Lots of expats live in Kuala Lumpur and Penang and numerous organizations here can help you get settled and integrated. For example, the International Women’s Association (formally The American Woman’s Association) has just over 500 members who organize activities on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. On Mondays there are jungle walks, Tuesdays mah-jong (a type of card game), Wednesdays sewing. They sponsor trivia night once a week at a local pub and put on a ball once a year. 

Penang and Kuala Lumpur are also medical centers of excellence and every day two planeloads of medical tourists arrive in Malaysia for various treatments. Not only is the health care amazing but it’s among the world’s cheapest. And prescriptions here cost a fifth of what you pay at home.

The last time I was at the dentist I got a filling and a cleaning, which cost $22.50. In the U.S. this would set me back around $180. We can also buy property, land, and houses and condominiums freehold—something you can’t do elsewhere in Asia.

The streets of old Penang. Trishaws are still a common sight.

And here is a typical monthly budget for a couple living in Penang, taken from International Living magazine. (Currency: USD)

Rent: $500
Electricity: $100
Water: $10
Cell phone: $10
Gas: $4
Internet: $30
TV: $40
Maid (four hours a week): $15
Transportation: $34 for gas
Health insurance: $33
Dining out/Entertainment: $300 (and that’s eating out five nights a week, alcohol not included)
Monthly total: $1,076

Hard to beat such prices

An entire bagful of fresh fruit, including mangoes, bananas, apples, oranges, and pineapples costs just $4. High-speed Internet is reliable and costs $30 a month, and a premier cable TV package for $40 includes favorites like HBO, CNN, and the BBC. And a couple can eat out well for less than $10. Go to night bazaars, and you can dine for much less than that: Chicken-and-rice meals are often only $1.

Expats from rich developed countries can easily retire to a life of comfort and luxury for $2000 a month. No wonder our close cousins from neighbouring Singapore have been snapping up property in Johor.

For more about why these expats have chosen Malaysia as the ideal place to retire in, click here.

Now aren't we blessed to call Malaysia our home?

A NEW YEAR, A NEW ME?

It's the first day of a brand new year. That means time to start working on your resolutions for 2013 if you haven't done so yet. For many of us this has become an annual ritual of reflecting on how successful or not we have been with the previous year's resolutions. The more cynical among us will say why bother? I say why not? We need goals to aim for, to challenge us so that we can do better.

Looking back on the 365 days that have passed, most of us can give thanks for all the good things that have happened to us, and for the lessons we have learned from the not-so-good experiences. One thing we can all be grateful for is the world didn't end on 21 December 2012, not that we believe in Doomsday.

This can easily be me or you, if we don't watch
what we eat, and don't exercise enough.

I have made only one personal resolution for 2013, and that is to take better care of my health. My top priority is to lose some weight. The mere thought of tipping the scales at 60kg (132 pounds) horrifies me. No, I am not obese or even fat. I would love to say I am far from it, but why wait till I am on the threshold of obesity? More pounds means more effort needed to get back in shape.

Being obese regardless of our age puts us at risk of multiple health problems as the diagram below shows.

Some may find this image offensive, but when it's a matter of life or death, it's better to be shocked into action than lulled into complacency.

We are all aware of the health risks when we allow ourselves to accumulate fat. Being aware is one thing, understanding the message is another. But as long as we don't lift a finger or a muscle to do anything about it, we will continue to remain as we are - overweight. Chubby is not cuddly, unless you are a baby. Neither is plump cute, unless you are a rubber doll.

And while we are on the subject of health, it's time for that annual blood test, and other medical check ups that are recommended for older adults. I recently had my blood tested, went for a gastroscopy and colonoscopy, CT-scan, ultra-sound, ECG, mammogram and a dental check-up.

I still need to go for a pap smear. I have been given a clean bill of health by the doctors. That's reassuring news. But that doesn't mean I can take it easy. Having been under the knife twice, I need to be vigilant about my health. So should everyone. We owe it to our children and grandchildren to live long and in good health.

Source: WebMD. Click on the link to calculate your BMI

A one-stop website for health and wellness that I would recommend is Dr Oz's 10-step Ultimate Health Checklist. Check it out. :-)