POFMA should not stifle constructive criticism

The recent Bill called Prevention against Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act is a well intended one.

My key wishes for this bill and now enacted law is that the actions carried by the Government of the day must be fair and balanced, as must the actions, posts and comments of thousands,no millions of blogwriters, people who have FB accounts, Instagram accounts and even Whatsapp accounts to exercise due restraint when posting articles, and so called "news". 

There are so many ways to 'spin' or 'frame' the event so much so that the type of language used, the facts presented, the audience the article or post intends to reach out to, and the expected response or impression created must all be well thought through. 

The spreading or passing of so called 'news' I normally check and double check the source of the 'news' for a) history b) credibility and c) ensuring that there are numerous other news outlets reporting the same event before I consider even passing the information on. If I think there is something dubious or that the 'news' will spark some unease, I will hesitate and probably not pursue putting up that post. It is obvious the more factual and unbiased new sources would be the BBC, Agency Press France, NY Times and South China Morning post although these sources also have inherent 'biases' in their articles from time to time.

Coming to the social media. This not so new media, the open sea, where there are bad people with all kinds of dubious intentions. We need to be very mindful of what we are posting, who the target audience is and what are the ramifications if any if there is indeed bad intent. 

I for one, will not be afraid of the POFMA, as if  it is executed properly, is a good check and balance of the multitude of news and so called facts there both for and against the establishment. 

There is also some doubt that the Government of the day may themselves use this as a means to stifle constructive criticism against their policies. I hope this is not the case. 

West Bank Israel - Palestine Video

Wolves are in the Europa League for 2019 - 20 season

What a time to be a Wolves Fan 

My 'goldfish' have made it to Europe's 2nd tier competition. Wolverhampton Wanderers by virtue of finishing highest in the Premier League at 7th outside the top 6 teams and with Manchester City winning the FA Cup, this ensures their qualification.

There has been no better time than to be a Wolves fan, since I followed them in 1976, over 42 years ago !

We can only benefit and see more of the Wanderers in the coming year. 

Let their success reflect the once again renewed optimism at the town and their followers all over the world.

Time for some Silverware !!! 

Reach In Chambers from QRA International

Presenting QRS Model 4096 Reach In Chamber for samples of 1000 x 1200 x 1200 mm size

Presenting the Reach In Chamber from my company QRA International. We have for the last 15 years been involved in the distribution and service support of test equipment from Germany, Hong Kong, Korea and now China. Last year we rolled out our own brand of chamber. 

Called the QRS chamber, we have many sizes with many different features such as heater windows, stainless steel interior, Hanyoung touch screen controllers and using boiler humidifcation technology.

We build upon requirement, and our delivery times range from 2 weeks to 12 weeks depending on the complexity of the reuqirement. At the moment, we are capable of controlling 2 major test parameters.

Temperature : - 40 C to + 150 C

Humidity       : 25 - 95% rH

We offer our own Calibration Test Certificate (ISO 9001 : 2015) 

We are uncompromising in ensuring the quality and conformity to the specifications of our equipment and provide a full comprehensive parts and labour 12 month warranty worldwide from wherever they are purchased.

Currently, while we roll out the product, we offer Singapore quality, very competitive prices and a Calibration Certification from our engineers in Singapore who visit the factory (Dongguan China) to provide a FULL test audit on the system specifications and compliance to International Standards.

We are most happy to provide a prompt and detailed quotation ; please email my business email at 

mark@qra.com.sg

Quality.Resilience.Support.   

Heuristics - Subconscious Learning

Reading from this wonderful book called "The Art of Thinking Clearly" by Ralf Dobelli there are many lessons which I can vicariously learn from reading and one of these is Heuristic Learning, which is learning by life experience.

To really sequence logical decision making, he states that if we are given 2 choices to make, then logically each and every one of us will need to go through the "fork" or Pro and Con options in the mind using mathematical models, the net gain or loss from the Pros minus the Cons (of course if the Con is subrtacted from the Pros), and the final NET GAIN from either pathway is logically the Action to Take or No Action is required.

Shall I have a snack now (its 11.00 am)  ?  I had a nice Oden dinner at 7.45 pm just now.

YES
Pros 
------ 
    Outcome  (short and long term)                               Percentage        Weightage    

1. Filled tummy and satisfying feeling                            0. 3          X            5        + 1.5

Cons
-------
2. Filled tummy but tomorrow weight gain  (-)                0.3          X             7         + 2.1     
                               
    NET GAIN / (LOSS)        : - 0.6

NO 
----

1. Hungry and some discomfort, no weight gain            0.4          X           10         + 4.0

   NET GAIN / LOSS             :  + 4.0         

So Mathematically speaking and Left Brain saying : Dont Snack !     

99.999% of the people out there will never use this model, in real life, we use a lot os experiential learning to apply to our choices, hence when we make mistakes or poor choices,hopefully we learn and make better choices in the future. Hence Heuristic learning comes into play and the more we interact with people who have 'been there done that' the better our chances of taking the right decisions in every phase in our lives.

That is why there are so many Life Coaches and Gurus offering everything and anything from losing weight, improving your life, your career, your financial situation, your looks and what not.

In addition, for people who have little life experiences, then there are the myriad of Self Help books out there to follow and adapt ; but be warned, each and every person's life experiences CANNOT BE USED 100% as a guide for the person reading it.



   

There's so much Zing in this Video ; One of my all time favourite Duos, Hall and Oates !

Lam Charoen Seafood - Siam Paragon Bangkok 15 May 2019 Review

Deep Fried Seabass with Special Fish Sauce - Laem Charoen Seafood 

During this last trip to Bangkok, my associate and I made a visit to the Lam Charoen Seafood restaurant located on the 4th floor of Siam Paragon, Bangkok. Fresh from an upcountry visit, I was famished and we ordered their signature deep fried seabass (THB 900 for 2), the Steamed Cockles, Morning Glory, Tom Yum Prawn soup (spicy) and 2 bottles of Singha beer.

Fortunately, the dishes arrived very quickly, and the signature seabass was really crispy and tasty, perhaps too much for 2 persons, but for 2 starving men it was just right. The meat was crispy outside, and the skin as well as most of the bones are edible and cruchy which makes the dish all the more appealing.

The balance of the ice cold Singha beer reduced the heatiness of the fried fish. I would recommend drinking something cooling with beer with these dishes in all honesty.

Steamed cockles 

I am not a cockle fan, but my business associate was a bit wary of eating too much, and he felt it was rather stale as compared to the very fresh ones. I on the other hand, took a couple with the sweet Thai chili sauce and it was acceptable. 

Tom Yum Soup, with lots of chilli and spice. 

Another winner for me was the Tom Yum Soup and we both had at least 2 - 3 bowls each. The prawns were fresh and very 'al dente' to the bite. There are actually 2 types of Tom Yum Soup, the clear type which can be very deadly as the 'kick' of the chilli padi inside the tom yum can cause a lot of distress to stomachs untrained to the spicy Thai dishes.

This Tom Yum was a lot like a spicy curry sauce but without the coconut flavour. The tanginess or 'asam' flavour is apparent and it was great to pour it over rice and eat it. Yum ! 

The Morning Glory 

This vegetable is native only to Thailand for some reason, but it tastes like our Kang Kong (a variation of spinach) but more crunch at first bite. It tasted very fresh and stir frying this with their ubiquitous fish sauce with some garlic thrown in and you have this dish.

My ratings (No compromises) :

Food  Quality and Taste :  4 / 5     
Very Good, with the Cockles being the only let down if that 
                                              

Service                           : 4.5 / 5   
Very Prompt and Attentive ; Fast on the serving side.

Ambience                       : 3    / 5   
Situated in a Busy Walkway on the 4th Floor, not the best for small talk.
                                                      

Price                             :  3.5 / 5
THB 1,650 or S$ 71  (US$ 53) for 2 persons is very reasonable for this food quality 

Overall        :   3. 85    
Above Average Food

Address      :  991 Rama 1 Rd, (next to Siam BTS Station)
                      4th Floor Siam Paragon Shopping Centre