Pinko Pacifist Strikes Again

As I have frequently commented in this blog, a number of Malaysian netizens apparently want to chip their opinions about Malaysian military. I don't mind critical comments, as long as they are substantiative, preferably with good references. What I am about to comment has probably been written several years ago, but resurfaced again in a local online forum. As I grew older (and hopefully wiser) I can at least listen to opposite views, but this one really cracked me up. In general, the gentleman alleged that military spending in Malaysia is dictated by 'ministers with more money than sense'. Hence (paraphrased):

"Purchase of a warship which (he) will not name. While making the purchase, a minister wanted a canon (sic) with a large caliber added to the ship. Despite advice from the manufacturer and reports by our own (military) people....because of higher cost and ship not being able to absorb the recoil, the minister went ahead. Now we have a ship that can only fire in the forward direction only. If tried broadside, the recoil would endanger the ship structurally and might cause it to capsize"

As far as I can remember, the largest gun fitted to TLDM ships was the 4.5" (114-mm) on board KD Rahmat. The rest of the fleet have guns between 40mm to 76mm and those hardly count as 'oversized' on FAC, corvettes and frigates of the TLDM. This is pure fiction by the writer. And I believe where all this mumbo-jumbo about 'structural failure' and 'capsizing when fired a broadside' came from: HMS Agincourt of World War I. Originally ex-Sultan Osman I, ex-Rio De Janeiro, the battleship was armed with fourteen 14" guns in seven turrets, at least two guns more than contemporary battleships. It was feared that the Agincourt might turn turtle if it fired the full broadside. Agincourt fought  OR during the Battle Of Jutland and did fire a full broadside without any ill effect. The ship served the Royal Navy until scrapped in 1924. Apparently, the story was given a new life 100 years later but made more ridiculous by the fact that modern warships have smaller weaponry than their World War I ancestors.

Next

"How about our MBT division? Never heard of it? Probably not. Another purchase from history (emphasis added). Malaysian bridges of the early 1990s not strong enough to support the weight of the tanks.Tanks would sink into the ground, ground too soft for heavy MBTs. Although the weight limitation was known, we still buy. Now we have impressive tanks but useless in the field"

Yes, I have never heard of it either in the 1990s, because it DID NOT EXIST! The PT-91s only entered service in 2005 and although I'm no civil engineer, I believe most bridges in Malaysia can support the weight of tanks, unless the writer talks about kampung bridges. Ground too soft? Have this guy ever heard of 'ground pressure footprint'? The Americans have also proved that tanks can operate in South East Asia.

And finally

"The submarine is also another bad move. Our waters is too shallow to adequately support submarine warfare. Subs not able to dive to safety. Not to mention two subs are not enough. You see awesome submarine, I see cheaper/faster patrol boat loaded with depth charges...submarine skipper know he and his crew are dead men because the water is too shallow and sub cannot dive to safety"

I agree that two subs are not enough. There rest are bull. The South China Sea, although relatively shallow, can still allow submarine operations, otherwise why should Vietnam, Singapore and Indonesia bothered to buy submarines? Not adequately supporting subs? Then why during WW2, Japanese submarine I-58 managed to relay contact report about Force Z without being detected?  Or that many Japanese warships and merchant ships were sunk by US submarines in the same area? Depth charges? What's the use of them against a SURFACED submarine? Besides the submarine, even on the surface can shoot at the patrol boats long before the boats can drop their depth charges.

In short, this guy has no military knowledge whatsoever, and to lend credence to his story, he mentioned that he learnt all these from 'servicemen sharing their opinions' and 'coming from a military family' and 'not wanting to reveal their identity in order not to jeopardize their careers and pensions'. Yea, right. That old FOAF story again. Come on, if you want to be a 21st century hippie, at least come out with true, rather than made-up 'facts'.

World At War...NOT!

Aku dah lama tak mengulas isi-isi blog dan FB yang merapu, merepek dan meraban. Tapi yang ni nak tak nak aku ulas jugak...sebab tahap merepek yang dah 'Up To 11'. Daripada 'status update' FB seseorang yang kononnya tahu segalanya pasal MH370 dan MH17 (ringkasan)

- Tengok berita di utube (sic) news (Ya, youtube)

- 4 kapal perang Rusia bawa 3,240,000 tan (3.24 juta tan) bom nuklear termasuk submerine (sic) lalu Laut Cina Selatan

- Kapal perang rusia tsar tembak peluru berpandu nuklear ke arah coral perairan Queensland Australia (asalnya Sydney)

- Media Malaysia takut lapor. media Thai dan Brunei lapor. Tujuan nak warning Australia pasal konon jadi talibarut US kes MH370 dan MH17

- Australia diambang perang. Askar Australia tak berani respon.

Bila aku terbaca cerita ni yang dikongsi rakan2 dalam Facebook, benda pertama aku buat ialah kutip IQ aku yang gugur bertaburan...dah la IQ aku banyak mana aje....Baiklah sekarang ni faktanya dulu:

- Rusia mmg ada hantar kapal-kapal tentera laut ke perairan Australia iaitu 'cruiser' Varyag, kapal-kapal pembinasa Admiral Panteleyev dan Marshal Shaposhnikov serta dua buah kapal sokongan iaitu kapal tunda Fotiy Krylov dan kapal bekalan Boris Butoma 

- Kapal-kapal berkenaan melalui Lautan Pasifik, kemudiannya Laut Karang (Coral Sea) dan kemudiannya berada di luar perairan Queensland

- Kehadiran kapal perang Rusia adalah normal, terutama jika Presiden berada di luar negara

- Presiden Putin berada di Brisbane, Australia bagi menghadiri mesyuarat negara-negara G20

- Kapal Varyag dipersenjatai 12 peluru berpandu permukaan-ke-permukaan P-500 Bazalt/SS-N-12 'Sandbox' manakala dua buah kapal pembinasa berkenaan dilengkapi dengan peluru berpandu anti-kapal/anti-kapal selam Metel@Rastrub/SS-N-14 Silex sebagai senjata-senjata utama. Semua peluru berpandu berpandu berkenaan boleh dipasang kepala peledak nuklear. 

- Kapal-kapal berkenaan dipantau tentera laut dan tentera udara Australia. Juga prosedur biasa.

Sekarang, boleh aku ulas 'kemerepekan' status update tadi?

"Kapal perang termasuk kapalselam bawa 3.24 juta tan bom nuklear"

Cuma ada 3 kapal perang dan satu kapal sokongan. OK, kapalselam mungkin tidak dapat dikesan pergerakan awalnya. Mengenai nuklear tu, memang ada kemungkinan kapal2 berkenaan bawa peledak nuklear tetapi kemungkinannya rendah, terutama bila diambilkira yang sekarang bukan zaman Perang Dingin. Jumlah yang dikatakan penulis blog adalah sangat-sangat tidak munasabah kerana berat dengan muatan penuh setiap kapal pembinasa berkenaan adalah 7,500 tan, Varyag pula 11,400 tan manakala Boris Butoma 22,000 tan. Perlu diingat yang jumlah berkenaan termasuk peluru untuk senjata lain, minyak serta bekalan-bekalan lain. Saya tak pasti mana datangnya jumlah 3.24 juta tan berkenaan. Mungkin dia menganggar kekuatan senjata-senjata nuklear yang boleh dibawa dalam TNT-equivalent? Atau rasanya lebih kepada menyedapkan cerita...ya lah, bayangkan 3.24 juta tan bahan nuklear diletupkan.

Laluan diceritakan pula tak betul. Mengapa perlu kapal-kapal berkenaan melalui Laut Cina Selatan untuk ke timur Australia?

"Kapal-kapal tsar Rusia tembak peluru berpandu berkenaan ke arah Sydney (kemudian disunting menjadi perairan Queensland)"

Dalam hubungan antarabangsa, tindakan sedemikian bukan lagi provokasi, tetapi casus belli - act of war. Dan lebih mengerikan ianya merupakan serangan nuklear pertama sejak pegemboman Hiroshima dan Nagasaki pada tahun 1945. Tiada siapa akan berdiam diri. Itu jika sebenar-benarnya berlaku. Bagaimanapun, jika Rusia hilang kewarasan dan menyerang Australia, ianya boleh dilakukan dengan ICBM-ICBM mereka yang masih aktif dan juga dengan menggunakan kapalselam peluru berpandu mereka. kapal-kapal yang berada di luar pantai Queensland berkenaan cuma dilengkapi peluru berpandu anti-kapal dan anti-kapalselam yang tidak boleh digunakan untuk menyerang sasaran di darat. Dan ini mungkin menyebabkan tuan punya FB berkenaan menyunting semula penulisannya.

Kapal tsar? Seingat saya, cuma sebuah kapal sahaja, dari kelas Kirov diberi nama sempena tsar Rusa - Pyotr Velikiy. Dan Pyotr Velikiy berkhidmat dengan Northern Fleet di Lautan Atlantik. Dan kapal-kapal zaman tsar Rusia semuanya berada di dasar Selat Tsushima, Jepun, tenggelam dalam pertempuran tahun 1905. Cuma cruiser Avrora sahaja masih kekal sebagai muzium.

"Media Malaysia takut melaporkan serangan"

Media Malaysia tidak melaporkan kerana ianya TIDAK BERLAKU. Laporan yang ada pun akan cuma menyebut kehadiran kapal-kapal berkenaan. Gaya penulisan juga menunjukkan seolah-olah ada tiga negara sahaja yang ada media, dan salah-satunya tidak membuat laporan. Penulis seolah-olah melupakan media beratus negara lain, dan serangan nuklear adalah sesuatu yang amat newsworthy.

"Askar Asutralia tak berani serang"

Berkait dengan casus belli tadi, sesiapa sahaja akan menyerang balas. Tiada tindakan Australia kerana kapal-kapal tersebut berada di perairan antarabangsa (malah luar Zon Ekonomi Eksklusif Australia) dan tiada provokasi dibuat. Jadi mereka cuma diperhatikan sahaja.

Untuk menyokong ceritanya, beberapa gambar dikirim, termasuk gambar sebuah kapal melancarkan roket. Masalahnya gambar berkenaan ialah kapal perang China melancarkan roket anti-kapal selam jenis RBU, yang tidak langsung ada pilihan nuklear, disebabkan jarak yang pendek.

Jadi apa yang berlaku cumalah kehadiran kapal perang Rusia di luar perairan Australia. Keadaan mungkin sedikit tegang, tapi semuanya masih normal. Cuma apa yang menarik perhatian,  penulis cerita yang pada dasarnya bohong ini (berlaku serangan nuklear ke atas Australia) mendapat komen-komen yang menyokong. Saya ambil sebahagian:

"Risaunya, suami saya navy...tengah belayar di JOHOR'

"Ye ke...baru plan nak pergi (letak nama bandar di Australia)" (yang ni ada beberapa orang)

"tqvm sebab sentiasa update kami, dapat juga kami info yang baru dan betul" (biar betul?)

"what goes around comes around"

"baru Australia tahu langit tinggi ke rendah"

...dan banyak lagi. Yang kelakarnya, beberapa hari selepas itu, penulis mendakwa yang Vladimir Putin mengatakan kehadiran kapal perang berkenaan bukan setakat mengiringi beliau tetapi bertujuan 'backing' beliau dalam memaksa Tony Abbott mengaku penglibatan Australia 'menghilangkan' MH370 dan menembak MH17. Putin juga bawa bukti video penembakan MH17 oleh pesawat Ukraine. Dimana Putin berbuat demikian? Di Persidangan G20. Dimana persidangan dibuat? Di Brisbane, Australia. Ya Brisbane dimana peluru berpandu nuklear telah diledakkan di luar pantainya beberapa hari sebelum itu. Dan macam biasa, para pemberi komen lupa yang sebelum itu 'Australia diserang nuklear Rusia'....kalau dah diserang, bagaimana mesyuarat boleh berjalan seperti biasa. Bagaimana dengan fallout? Dan bagaimana Putin dengan selamba boleh terus sama-sama bersidang?

Yang saya hairan, macamana mereka ni terlalu mudah tertipu dengan berita palsu ni? Yang membuat saya beristighfar ialah bagaimana penulis dan ramai pemberi komen yang menggunakan nama Allah dalam cerita bohong. Membuat saya terfikir, kalau cerita yang terang-terangan bohong ini boleh guna nama Allah, bagaimana dengan berita yang sama-samar? Atau bagaimana nak hadapi fitnah Dajjal nanti?

Jom Kita Berteori Konspirasi!

Khabarnya :

"Amerika telah keluar daripada Afghanistan, salah satu sistem kawal dan perintah (command and control system - CNC) mereka (yang digunakan untuk mengawal Drone tanpa pemandu) telah dirampas oleh Taliban ketika konvoi pengangkutan Amerika sedang bergerak ke bawah dari salah satu pangkalan di atas bukit. Taliban menyerang hendap konvoi tersebut dan membunuh 2 kakitangan Navy Seal Amerika, merampas peralatan/senjata, termasuk CNC yang beratnya 20 tan dan dimasukkan ke dalam enam peti. Peristiwa ini berlaku lebih kurang sebulan yang lalu pada Februari 2014. Tiada liputan dalam peristiwa ini. "

Pandangan aku : Setakat aku tahu, modul kawalan UAV ditempatkan di lokasi yang selamat, contohnya pangkalan tentera US sendiri, bukan hantar atas bukit atau mana-mana di luar kawasan yang secure. Kalau betul Taliban serang konvoi berkenaan, mana pergi anggota lain dalam KONVOI tu? Takkan cuma dua orang aje SEAL yang jaga konvoi? Ini masalah pertama dalam senario ni. Masalah kedua ialah, kalau betul peralatan sebegitu dirampas, pastinya US tak teragak-agak mengambil tindakan segera! Masalah ketiga, konsol kawalan bukan besar mana, aku rasa keseluruhan sistem mungkin tak lebih 5 tan malah mungkin jauh lebih ringan....takkan zaman elektronik, komputer tinggal saiz lebar sikit dari tapak tangan tapi suistem kawalan makan sampai 20 TAN?

"Mereka mahu menjual sistem CNC tersebut kepada Rusia atau China. Rusia terlalu sibuk dengan urusan di Ukraine. China pula amat dahagakan teknologi sistem ini. Bayangkan jika China dapat menguasai teknologi di belakang sistem CNC ini, semua Drone Amerika akan tidak berguna lagi. Oleh itu China telah menghantar lapan saintis pakar pertahanan mereka untuk memeriksa sistem yang dirampas tersebut dan bersetuju untuk membayar jutaan dollar untuk itu. "

Pandangan aku : Jika ya pun Rusia 'sibuk' kat Ukraine, seolah-olah semua anggota tentera dan perisikan Rusia tak boleh buat kerja lain....masa mereka serang Afghanistan, Perang Dingin berada di kemuncaknya...boleh pulak diaorang serang Afghanistan, back-up negara-negara Arab dan lain-lain negara sosialis dan komunis dalam masa yang sama ek? Dan PRC hantar LAPAN pakar? Macam mana mereka masuk Afghanistan yang dikawal AS? Kalaupun ikut laluan tikus, tahap mana Pakar-Pakar tu?

"Sekitar awal Mac 2014, lapan saintis China tersebut bersama 6 peti melakukan perjalanan mereka ke Malaysia, dengan berpendapat laluan ini adalah yang terbaik untuk mengelakkan dari dikesan. Kargo ini kemudian disimpan dalam Kedutaan China di bawah perlindungan diplomatik. Sementara itu, Amerika dengan bantuan perisikan Israel, bersama-sama merangka pelan untuk memintas dan menawan semula kargo tersebut. "

Pandangan aku : Macam mana enam orang yang sah-sah bersaiz Asia, usung 20 TAN kelengkapan, dalam enam peti (aku tak tau la besar mana peti yang dimaksudkan) melalui gunung-ganang? Dan macam mana dia bawak masuk peralatan berkenaan ke Kedutaan, ingat, 20 tan tu, tanpa mendatangkan syak wasangka....ini bukan diplomatic pouch OK?

"China berfikiran adalah lebih selamat untuk mengangkut kargo tersebut menggunakan pesawat awam untuk mengelakkan syak wasangka. Lagipun penerbangan terus dari KL ke Beijing mengambil masa hanya 4 jam setengah, dan Amerika dipercayai tidak akan merampas atau memudaratkan pesawat awam itu. Jadi MH370 adalah pilihan yang terbaik."

Pandangan aku : Masalahnya sekarang, macam mana diaorang bawak 20 TAN tu dari Afghanistan/Pakistan ke Malaysia? Guna pesawat awam elak syak wasangka? Bagi aku baik guna terus pesawat kargo PLAAF, pasal kalau Amerika tembak, atau paksa untuk mendarat, itu dah jadi Sebab untuk Berperang atau casus belli. KL-Beijing 4.5 jam? Amacam kalau aku kata, lagi mudah penerbangan dari Pakistan ke Beijing, guna pesawat kargo catar awam - sekejap aje seberang wilayah Pakistan dan India, dah boleh mendarat di Tibet, banding nak angkut ke Malaysia yg kena lalu India, Lautan Hindi, Malaysia, Laut China Selatan dan Vietnam sebelum sampai? 

"Terdapat 5 agen Amerika dan Israel, yang sudah biasa dengan operasi Boeing 777 di dalam pesawat ini. 2 warga "Iran" dengan pasport curi kemungkinan diantaranya."

Pandangan aku : Kita tak tau pun samada ada agen atau tidak...ni macam mana diaorang tahu ada LIMA? Dan bukan ke lagi mudah buat paspot palsu daripada guna paspot curi?

"Sebaik sahaja MH370 meninggalkan ruang udara Malaysia dan melapor diri kepada kawalan udara Vietnam, satu pesawat AWACS Amerika telah menyekat isyarat komunikasi mereka (jammed the signal), mematikan sistem kawalan juruterbang dan menukar kawalan kepada mod kawalan jauh (remote control). Pada ketika itu pesawat hilang ketinggian secara tiba-tiba untuk seketika. Bagaimana AWACS boleh melakukannya? Ingat peristiwa 911? Selepas peristiwa itu, semua pesawat Boeing (Airbus dan mungkin semua) dipasang dengan sistem kawalan jauh untuk menentang rampasan pesawat oleh pengganas. Sejak itu semua Boeing boleh terbang dengan kawalan jauh oleh menara kawalan di daratan. Sistem kawalan jauh yang sama digunakan untuk mengawal pesawat pengintip tanpa pemandu dan Drone. "

Pandangan aku : pasal override kawalan pesawat secara kawalan jauh tu...entah aku sendiri tak pasti tapi kenapa pula nak kena pakai pesawat AWACS? Dan di mana pesawat AWACS berkenaan 'on station'? Dan berbalik pada perjalanan UAV control system tadi, kalau di bawa dari Afghanistan ke Malaysia melalui udara, kan ke elok di 'rampas' masa tu...Diego Garcia pun lebih dekat....

"Seterusnya, 5 agen Amerika dan Israel mengambil alih kawalan pesawat, mematikan transponder dan sistem komunikasi yang lain, mengubah laluan dan terbang ke arah barat. Mereka tidak terbang timur, ke Filipina atau Guam kerana Laut China Selatan dan keseluruhan ruang udaranya diawasi sepenuhnya oleh radar dan satelit pengawasan China. Radar tentera Malaysia, Thailand dan India sebenarnya telah mengesan pesawat yang tidak dikenali itu tetapi seperti dijangka mereka bertindak balas secara tidak profesional. "

Pandangan aku : Pesawat moden hanya perlu dua sahaja krew untuk memandu dan mengawal seluruh sistem pesawat...jadi spy-spy yang kononnya biasa dengan B777 ni sembang lebih la kan pasal sampai 5 orang nak kena kawal....Kalau ke Guam pulak...Filipina kan sekutu kuat Amerika...boleh aje lalu terutama ikut kawasan selatan. Radar China bukannya sampai situ pun (dan kemudiannya semua akan kata Guam lokasi 'pengkalan rahsia' Amerika pulak)

"Pesawat itu kemudian terbang ke atas Sumatra Utara, Anambas, India Selatan dan kemudian mendarat di Maldives (beberapa penduduk kampung menyaksikan pendaratan pesawat), mengisi minyak dan meneruskan penerbangannya ke Deigo Garcia, Pangkalan Udara Amerika di tengah-tengah Lautan Hindi. Sebaik mendarat, kargo dikeluarkan dan kotak hitam ditanggalkan. Penumpang disenyapkan (dibunuh) melalui kaedah secara semula jadi, iaitu kekurangan oksigen. Mereka percaya hanya orang mati sahaja yang tidak akan membocorkan rahsia. Pesawat MH370 dengan penumpang yang sudah mati sekali lagi berlepas dan diterbangkan dengan kawalan jauh menuju selatan Lautan Hindi, untuk menjadikan orang percaya bahawa pesawat kehabisan minyak dan akhirnya terhempas ke lautan, dengan menyalahkan kapten dan pembantu juruterbang yang degil."

Pandangan aku: Anambas? Anambas kat selatan Laut China Selatan..camne lepas ke situ? Dan pasal oksigen tu...kunci dia ialah kekurangan oksigen, bukan ketiadaan oksigen...orang cuma pengsan, bukan mati....  

"Jangan percaya cerita? Saya tidak mengharapkan anda untuk mempercayai tetapi mari kita tunggu dan lihat bagaimana episod ini mendedahkan diri akhirnya nanti. Atau mungkin ia tidak akan berlaku sehingga kemunculan Snowden (Edward Snowden – pakar komputer US, bekas kakitangan CIA yang berpaling tadah dan mendedahkan pelbagai program dan dokumen rahsia US)."

Pandangan aku : Memang aku payah nak percaya pun...dan pasal Edward Snowden tu, ginilah, dia dah lari seawal Ogos 2013. Ikut pencerita pulak, Taliban dapat rampas peralatan UAV pada Februari 2014...macamana dia boleh nak dedahkan benda yang dia sendiri tak dapat nak analisa sebab dia dah tak kerja lagi dengan CIA?

Dan kepada yang mengkritik TUDM pasal tak berbuat apa-apa malam tu...ginilah. Katakan sebuah Su-30MKM berlepas malam tu bila 9M-MRO buat air turn back dan bergerak ke Lautan Hindi. Su-30MKM berkenaan berjaya memintas dan menghubungi pesawat berkenaan. Sekarang masalahnya tiada komunikasi langsung dengan 9M-MRO. Katakan sesiapa yang memandu pesawat pada waktu itu tidak menghiraukan arahan Su-30MKM berkenaan untuk berpatah balik ke lapangan terbang terdekat. Apa yang kru Su-30MKM tadi boleh buat selain MENEMBAK jatuh 9M-MRO? Apa korang nak jadi kes KAL 007 (1983), KAL 902 (1978), El Al Flight 402 (1955) atau Iran Air Flight 655 (1988)?

Pesawat MAS Hilang, IQ Pun Hilang

Kali ni kena tulis balik dalam BM....

Siapa yang tak rasa gelisah bila dapat tahu penerbangan MH370 dari KL ke Beijing dilaporkan hilang dalam penerbangan? Dan macam biasa, media sosial penuh dengan spekulasi dan ulasan mengenai insiden ini. Ramai yang mengharapkan semuanya berakhir dengan selamat. Tapi ramai juga yang kerjanya tak ada lain selain mengutuk, memerli dan mengeji. Setakat masa aku menulis ni, bukan sahaja pesawat masih hilang, tapi aku tengok IQ ada beberapa orang rakyat kita pun turut  'hilang'. Mana taknya kalau keluar komen2 macam ni:

"Vietnam dan China dah gerakkan rescue mereka, kita masih terkebil-kebil" [post FB, dibuat jam 8.00 malam 8/3/14 sedangkan masa tu pesawat2 TUDM dan APMM dah lama berada di udara]

"Singapore dah hantar kapal selam, mana pergi kapal selam kita?' [Singapore hantar kapal selam penyelamat aka rescue submarine aka Deep Submergence Rescue Vessel BUKAN kapal selam tempur...kalau RSN hantar kapal selam kelas Archer atau Challenger diaorang, baru la boleh nak persoal.....kasi paham dan bezakan dulu jenis kapal selam ya?

"Kapal selam Malaysia guna diesel...takleh selam lama-lama. Singapore beli harga sama tapi guna enjin nuklear, sekali isi tunggu 10 tahun baru isi baru, lepas dalam air sampai 3 bulan..." [Hamba Allah ni, gaya dia cakap, dia tahu konsep nuclear fuel untuk kapal tapi takat tu aje la...SSK Singapore tetap berenjin diesel, yang bezanya diaorang ada AIPS, jadi boleh submerged lebih lama...tu pun dalam 2 minggu je)

Tu contoh aje tu, banyak lagi!

Keyboard Warrior Blues

Well, it has been nearly four years after KD Tunku Abdul Rahman was inducted into the Royal Malaysian Navy and received bad press for it's perceived 'inability' to dive. Blown out of all proportion by certain individuals, the problem had been solved,  and even certain members of the Parliament had taken a ride in the submerged boat during LIMA 2011. However, many still believe that KD TAR remain 'unsubmergeable' and was actually a hands-me-down boat (how come a new-build boat can be considered a second-hand item?). I found them in Facebook (where else?) commenting on the photo of the ex-Ouessant of the French Navy, now at Klebang, Melaka:

Okay, first of all, the Facebook page is called 'Only In Malaysia' - possibly implying ridiculous things that only happen in Malaysia and nowhere else. Underneath the photo, the administrator wrote: " Cool submarine...Take a look, for the first time ever in musuem (sic) now :D " Hello, there were six submarine museums in the US, two in the UK and a number of others in India, Germany, Australia and a few other countries...so how it could be 'only in Malaysia'? And as for the rest of the comments, here's the crown jewels:

"Submarine that cant go into water, only in malaysia indeed." (Commented above)

"mmng bleh dive...tp kang takut x timbul2....." (there is no news about sub disaster till today)

" OIC.....so buy 2 get 1 free lah! I wonder is our country really have a great history in Maritime??" (Yes we did, all the way from the days of the Malaccan Sultanate, go read your history books)

 

"BRAVO! CHEERS! More taxpayers' money used to buy a very expensive piece of historical monument. I'm pretty sure the museum is overcrowded with people wanting to see the submarine that never worked..." (That submarine served the French Navy from 1978 to 2001. From 2005 to 2009 it was used to train Malaysian submariners, so it did work!)

"Right. Explains why I keep seeing our Royal Navy training very hard with that submarine. I'm pretty sure our seas are MUCH safer." (Right, belittling our navy men huh? The two comments above were made by the same person. At least he has the balls to apologize)

"this is our money in the form of unsinkable submarine. put some sails on it and wallah! a yatch."  (Another soul who get their Scorpenes and Agostas mixed up)

 "Beli 2 besi buruk, free 1 sampah karat". (There were photos of the Scorpene's hull halves being mated together, so how come it's scrap metal?)

But I guess this one takes the cake:

"Training should be done using simulation, so u can cut cost, upgrade newer version software without spending so much money on the older stuff.... To our previous government please not all Malaysian are stupid. Don't cook up some bullshit story. I am not buying it" (emphasis added)

Kid, (I don't know if a bearded man can still be called a kid) being in the military is not like playing Command and Conquer. And seeing that you're an employee of TNB made my palm and face sore from being facepalmed again and again. I don't how TNB do their job but I guess computer simulations were followed by actual tests right, that is, if you're one of the engineers / tech guys and not some admin type. Heck even pilots who started with simulations have to pilot the real aircraft eventually. As for submarine training, sure, simulations are useful that CANNOT take place of being inside a real submarine, hundreds of feet below crushing water, hearing the hull creak from differing pressure when they change depth. and since the first time we ever operate a submarine, we sure need a real sub to train the initial batch of submariners. Of course not all Malaysians are stupid, unfortunately, you're not one of them....sorry!!

The rest of the comments mainly reflected the public's confusion between Ouessant and Scorpene. To be fair though, it is quite clear why. Politicians and their supporters harp upon the Scorpene's (solved) problem, then came photos of Ouessant with its dirty, unkempt-looking hull. Certain people simply tie the two together, not noting the difference and came up with the comments such as quoted above. The organisation that decided to turn Ouessant into a museum should at least repaint the boat before hauling it onto Klebang. Just look at other museum subs and ships elsewhere....like HMS Belfast at London, or even the 200-year old HMS Victory. Let's hope they get their act together and make the ex-Ouessant a really worthwhile museum to visit.

Low Cost Deployment

Okay, I may be quite late in publishing this post but I can't help getting amused by the hoo-haah caused by the deployment additional troops to face the situation in Lahad datu, Sabah. The Ministry of Defence decided to transport our troops from Peninsular bases to the current hot spot using Airbus A320s of Air Asia, instead of the regular military transport planes.Appararently, this caused the better-informed among Malaysians to understand the reasons, whilst the less-informed wondered what went wrong with TUDM's C-130 force, whilst the idiots badly informed merely said that that was just another method of wasting taxpayers' money and another example of government wastage.

According to media reports, at least 700 troops were sent to Sabah. The C-130 can only carry 92 passengers whilst an Airbus A320 can carry some 180 with their kit and other equipment stowed in the cargo bay and at higher speeds (828km/h to Hercules' 540km/h). So it can be said that it was more efficient to use the civil aircraft. Furthermore, the C-130 is designed as a tactical airlifter, with less consideration toward creature comforts. With the (then) situation getting more critical, it is imperative that the troops be sent to area quickly and in the required number. Besides, it was quite norm, even for the vaunted US armed forces, which use chartered civilian airliners for large scale overseas deployment despite numbers of C-130s, C-17s and US's largest airlifter, the C-5 Galaxy - from Vietnam to Iraq. Furthermore, the C-130 were needed to transport other military equipment/

The badly-informed however use photos of US troops disembarking from a C-17 Globemaster III and Chinese troops getting into a Shaanxi Y-8 to show how bad is our military but, I can say that the photo of the US troops were probably somewhere in Iraq or Afghanistan or as the US slang said - 'in-country deployment' - where tactical airlifter is needed. The Chinese photo quite clearly shows that the troops are actually PARATROOPERS - of course they need to board a Y-8!

Apparently people make fun of the notion that our troops were using Air Asia is because of the latter's status as a low-cost airliner - I wonder if people make fun out of the military's usage of Malaysia Airlines' planes?

A Javanese Soul Food

Nasi ambeng is a traditional Javanese rice dish. I consider it as my soul food, as I am being mainly of Javanese blood. I loved it when my late father came back from a kenduri with a pack of nasi ambeng in his hand and I made it a point to buy it at the local pasar malam whenever I go balik kampung.

So what is nasi ambeng consists of? Nowadays commercially-available nasi ambeng has a number of side dishes (lauk) to choose from, somehow spoiling its authenticity, but I consider the 'true' nasi ambeng consiting of these:

- steamed rice

- fried noodle or fried vermicelli

- ayam masak kicap (chicken in soy sauce)

- sambal goreng* (most of the time replaced with stir fried green beans, suhun, tempeh and tofu)

- salted fish (any dried fish will do but usually 'ikan bulu ayam' (as it resembles chicken feathers)

- serunding kelapa

- fried tempeh (usually none as tempeh is already a key ingredient in sambal goreng and/or fried green beans)

*mixture of beef liver (which I gladly put aside), prawns (also set aside), glass vermicelli (suhun), tofu, tempeh, coconut milk and spices (sometimes with potato added)

Looks just like your slightly above-average nasi campur right? The final stuff to make it great is banana leaf. As many have known, banana leaves impart subtle flavor to dishes. In this case, the whole shebang is served on a banana leaf.....hmm yummy!

As mentioned before nasi ambeng is now commercially available but back in the 80s (and even earlier) it was the staple of Javanese households holding a kenduri. However the rice is not served in plates but in large, round trays which served 4 per tray. Traditionally, the guests however just ate a bit, and after dividing the rice and its dishes into 4 equal parts, proceeded to pack them inside the banana leaves, to be brought home so that the guests' families can also have a taste. But more usually, at least in my neighbourhood, separately packed nasi ambeng were given to the guests, known as nasi berkat @ bontrot. This Javanese tradition (adapted by the rest of the Malay community) helps foster closer ties in the neighbourhood - whilst the head of the household is invited to a kenduri, the rest of the family is not forgotten. 

There is another, not really noticeable function of the said practice, which is now probably negated by the commercialisation of nasi ambeng. By bringing back berkat@bontrot, the wives of the guests can be certain their husbands really went to a kenduri instead of using the kenduri as the cover for their extra-marital activities!