Rants & Ravings

Law of Mechanical Repair - After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch and you'll have to pee.

Law of Gravity - Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner.

Law of Probability -The probability of being watched is directly proportional to the stupidity of your act.

Law of Random Numbers - If you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy signal and someone always answers.

Law of the Alibi - If you tell the boss you were late for work because you had a flat tire, the very next morning you will have a flat tire..

Variation Law - If you change lines (or traffic lanes), the one you were in will always move faster than the one you are in now (works every time).

Law of the Bath - When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone rings.

Law of Close Encounters -The probability of meeting someone you know increases dramatically when you are with someone you don't want to be seen with.

Law of the Result - When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work, it will.

Law of Biomechanics - The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.Law of the Theater - At any event, the people whose seats are furthest from the aisle arrive last.

The Starbucks Law- As soon as you sit down to a cup of hot coffee, your boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.

Murphy's Law of Lockers - If there are only two people in a locker room, they will have adjacent lockers.

Law of Physical Surfaces - The chances of an open-faced jelly sandwich landing face down on a floor covering are directly correlated to the newness and cost of the carpet/rug.

Law of Logical Argument - Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.

Brown's Law of Physical Appearance - If the clothes fit, they're ugly.

Oliver's Law of Public Speaking - A closed mouth gathers no feet.

Wilson's Law of Commercial Marketing Strategy - As soon as you find a product that you really like, they will stop making it.

Doctors' Law - If you don't feel well, make an appointment to go to the doctor, by the time you get there you'll feel better. Don't make an appointment and you'll stay sick.

Labels: humour

MUMBAI - PRE and post-operative transsexuals in the southern Indian city of Chennai are to get their own public toilets in an effort to boost recognition of the community, a report said on Monday.
Three toilets are to be built to cater for the sizeable transgender population as part of a pilot project that will begin after the upcoming general elections, the English-language Indian Express newspaper said.
Municipal commissioner Rajesh Lakhoni was quoted as saying that the scheme was aimed at 'extending recognition to the community and mainstreaming them' and more facilities could be built if the public responded well to the idea.
But it has drawn a mixed response from the transgender community itself.
'I don't agree with this. We want to mingle with the mainstream. We don't want to be separated like this,' said Aasha Bharati, president of the Aravanigal Association in Tamil Nadu state.
'Using separate toilets will open the way for discrimination. We want to be considered as females. In our hearts, we are women.'
India's first transgender television host, Rose Venkatesan, was more positive. She said: 'It is a big problem, because not everyone has undergone a sex change.
'This is a good idea but in the long run, I see a society where there is no difference and all use the same toilets.'
There are about 30,000 transgendered people in Tamil Nadu state and there are thought to be about 500,000 across India. They are among the most marginalised and discriminated against in India's hierarchical, conservative society. -- AFP

http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Asia/Story/STIStory_347855.html

I wonder what the symbol for the 3rd toilet will look like..

Labels: current affairs

TAIPEI - TAIWAN will phase out its decades-old military conscription policy over the next five years, the defence minister said on Monday, amid warming ties with China.
Currently all men aged over 20 are required to do one year's military service.
But Defence Minister Chen Chao-min told reporters that the structure of Taiwan's military manpower will undergo a dramatic change over the next few years.
'From 2011, the number of conscripts will be reduced by at least 10 percent each year, to be replaced by professional soldiers,' Mr Chen said.
'That is to say, eventually, conscript measures will come to an end by 2014.' Critics have argued that the island's armed forces have struggled to enhance their defence capabilities because conscripts are unable to become proficient in high-tech weaponry in their short military service.
However, the new proposals sparked concerns over whether the defence ministry would be able to recruit sufficiently qualified professional soldiers at a monthly salary of NT$35,000 (S$1,550).
The plan to phase out conscription was a campaign pledge of President Ma Ying-jeou during the 2008 election.
The number of service personnel in Taiwan stands at around 275,000, down from a peak of 600,000 during the Cold War.
Taiwan's relatively large army is a legacy of decades of tensions with China, which has regarded the island as part of its territory awaiting reunification since the two sides split at the end of a civil war in 1949.
However, ties between Taiwan and China have improved dramatically since Mr Ma's Kuomintang party took office last May promising to boost cross-strait trade and tourism. -- AFP
http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Asia/Story/STIStory_347888.html

That must be nice. Taiwan has China, who has openly threatened to invade her and referred to her as being part of China, is going to end conscription soon. Now compare to Singapore, whose neighbours have.. hmm.. almost never done that? We still have conscription. And a longer service term too. I still say the reason for SAF is to provide cheap labour and have an excuse to pay people a lot of money to do stuff that is otherwise worthless in the real world.

Labels: Politics, SAF