Friday 21 November 2008
Tuesday 18 November 2008
Malaysians are now paying petrol tax
http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/malaysia/12622-malaysians-are-now-paying-petrol-tax-
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 18 — Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shahrir Samad revealed today the government has stopped subsidising petrol since Nov 1 and has been effectively collecting taxes instead on petrol consumption.
Speaking to reporters in Parliament, he explained that even after the 15-sen drop today, which saw RON97 petrol dropping to RM2 per litre, and RON92 and diesel down to RM1.90, the government was no longer subsidising petrol at the pumps.
"Even if prices return to RM1.92, we will still have a bit of surplus," he said, adding that subsidies had disappeared once the global price of oil had dipped under US$65 per barrel.
Current prices are hovering at US$55 per barrel.
As oil companies take a 19-sen cut and fuel station operators take 12 sen, it can be inferred that the cost price of RON97 petrol is currently below RM1.61 if the government can still generate income at RM1.92.
Shahrir explained that the difference between petrol pump prices and the cost plus commission for the companies and operators was being returned to the government effectively as a form of tax.
This gels with the 2009 Budget winding-up speech by Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak where he claimed a projected RM7 billion savings in fuel subsidies will be utilised to stimulate the troubled economy.
The statement was puzzling as the government had earlier said it would maintain a 30-sen fuel subsidy to keep pump prices below market prices.
Shahrir also projected that with RM21 billion budgeted for fuel subsidies in 2009 and subsidies for 2007, when prices had averaged US$65 per barrel, amounting to RM8.8 billion, savings from fuel subsidies would be far more than RM7 billion.
"If crude oil stays under US$60 per barrel, I am expecting at least RM10 billion," he said.
He also added that subsidies for diesel and natural gas are still in place.
Shahrir, however, explained that this did not mean that the people were not being helped by the government.
"We are still giving the RM625 road tax rebate for cars and RM150 for motorbikes that goes straight into your pocket," he said, referring to the rebate announced when RON97 shot up to RM2.70.
"So the rebate is for when the people suffered for about three months," he said.
The Johor Baru MP had called a press conference to announce that a total cost of RM21.4 billion had been incurred by the government up to October this year due to tax exemptions and subsidies for fuel against RM16.2 billion last year.
This, however, is without tax exemption figures for October 2008.
He also said that government would consider a floor price for fuel.
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 18 — Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Shahrir Samad revealed today the government has stopped subsidising petrol since Nov 1 and has been effectively collecting taxes instead on petrol consumption.
Speaking to reporters in Parliament, he explained that even after the 15-sen drop today, which saw RON97 petrol dropping to RM2 per litre, and RON92 and diesel down to RM1.90, the government was no longer subsidising petrol at the pumps.
"Even if prices return to RM1.92, we will still have a bit of surplus," he said, adding that subsidies had disappeared once the global price of oil had dipped under US$65 per barrel.
Current prices are hovering at US$55 per barrel.
As oil companies take a 19-sen cut and fuel station operators take 12 sen, it can be inferred that the cost price of RON97 petrol is currently below RM1.61 if the government can still generate income at RM1.92.
Shahrir explained that the difference between petrol pump prices and the cost plus commission for the companies and operators was being returned to the government effectively as a form of tax.
This gels with the 2009 Budget winding-up speech by Finance Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak where he claimed a projected RM7 billion savings in fuel subsidies will be utilised to stimulate the troubled economy.
The statement was puzzling as the government had earlier said it would maintain a 30-sen fuel subsidy to keep pump prices below market prices.
Shahrir also projected that with RM21 billion budgeted for fuel subsidies in 2009 and subsidies for 2007, when prices had averaged US$65 per barrel, amounting to RM8.8 billion, savings from fuel subsidies would be far more than RM7 billion.
"If crude oil stays under US$60 per barrel, I am expecting at least RM10 billion," he said.
He also added that subsidies for diesel and natural gas are still in place.
Shahrir, however, explained that this did not mean that the people were not being helped by the government.
"We are still giving the RM625 road tax rebate for cars and RM150 for motorbikes that goes straight into your pocket," he said, referring to the rebate announced when RON97 shot up to RM2.70.
"So the rebate is for when the people suffered for about three months," he said.
The Johor Baru MP had called a press conference to announce that a total cost of RM21.4 billion had been incurred by the government up to October this year due to tax exemptions and subsidies for fuel against RM16.2 billion last year.
This, however, is without tax exemption figures for October 2008.
He also said that government would consider a floor price for fuel.
Thursday 6 November 2008
Speed Secret (Windows XP)
http://www.technologystory.net/category/windows-secret/
XP Speed Secret #1: Disable Extra Startup Programs http://www.technologystory.net/2008/10/21/xp-speed-secret/
XP Speed Secret #2: Optimize Display Settings
http://www.technologystory.net/2008/10/23/xp-speed-secret2/
XP Speed Secret #3: Speed-Up File Browsing
http://www.technologystory.net/2008/11/04/xp-speedsecret3/
XP Speed Secret #1: Disable Extra Startup Programs http://www.technologystory.net/2008/10/21/xp-speed-secret/
XP Speed Secret #2: Optimize Display Settings
http://www.technologystory.net/2008/10/23/xp-speed-secret2/
XP Speed Secret #3: Speed-Up File Browsing
http://www.technologystory.net/2008/11/04/xp-speedsecret3/
Tuesday 4 November 2008
Obama sweeps to victory as first black president - Yahoo! News
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/election_rdp
Change Has Come!!!
WASHINGTON – Barack Obama swept to victory as the nation's first black president Tuesday night in an electoral college landslide that overcame racial barriers as old as America itself. "Change has come," he declared to a huge throng of cheering supporters.
The son of a black father from Kenya and a white mother from Kansas, the Democratic senator from Illinois sealed his historic triumph by defeating Republican Sen. John McCain in a string of wins in hard-fought battleground states — Ohio, Florida, Virginia, Iowa and more.
On a night for Democrats to savor, they not only elected Obama the nation's 44th president but padded their majorities in the House and Senate, and come January will control both the White House and Congress for the first time since 1994.
Obama's election capped a meteoric rise — from mere state senator to president-elect in four years.
In his first speech as victor, Obama catalogued the challenges ahead. "The greatest of a lifetime," he said, "two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century."
He added, "There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as president, and we know that government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face."
McCain called his former rival to concede defeat — and the end of his own 10-year quest for the White House. "The American people have spoken, and spoken clearly," McCain told disappointed supporters in Arizona.
President Bush added his congratulations from the White House.
In his speech, Obama invoked the words of Lincoln and echoed John F. Kennedy.
"So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder," he said.
He and his running mate, Sen. Joseph Biden of Delaware, will take their oaths of office as president and vice president on Jan. 20, 2009.
Obama will move into the Oval Office as leader of a country that is almost certainly in recession, and fighting two long wars, one in Iraq, the other in Afghanistan.
The popular vote was close — 51.3 percent to 47.5 percent with 73 percent of all U.S. precincts counted — but not the count in the Electoral College, where it mattered most.
There, Obama's audacious decision to contest McCain in states that hadn't gone Democratic in years paid rich dividends.
Obama has said his first order of presidential business will be to tackle the economy. He has also pledged to withdraw most U.S. combat troops from Iraq within 16 months.
Change Has Come!!!
WASHINGTON – Barack Obama swept to victory as the nation's first black president Tuesday night in an electoral college landslide that overcame racial barriers as old as America itself. "Change has come," he declared to a huge throng of cheering supporters.
The son of a black father from Kenya and a white mother from Kansas, the Democratic senator from Illinois sealed his historic triumph by defeating Republican Sen. John McCain in a string of wins in hard-fought battleground states — Ohio, Florida, Virginia, Iowa and more.
On a night for Democrats to savor, they not only elected Obama the nation's 44th president but padded their majorities in the House and Senate, and come January will control both the White House and Congress for the first time since 1994.
Obama's election capped a meteoric rise — from mere state senator to president-elect in four years.
In his first speech as victor, Obama catalogued the challenges ahead. "The greatest of a lifetime," he said, "two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century."
He added, "There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as president, and we know that government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face."
McCain called his former rival to concede defeat — and the end of his own 10-year quest for the White House. "The American people have spoken, and spoken clearly," McCain told disappointed supporters in Arizona.
President Bush added his congratulations from the White House.
In his speech, Obama invoked the words of Lincoln and echoed John F. Kennedy.
"So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder," he said.
He and his running mate, Sen. Joseph Biden of Delaware, will take their oaths of office as president and vice president on Jan. 20, 2009.
Obama will move into the Oval Office as leader of a country that is almost certainly in recession, and fighting two long wars, one in Iraq, the other in Afghanistan.
The popular vote was close — 51.3 percent to 47.5 percent with 73 percent of all U.S. precincts counted — but not the count in the Electoral College, where it mattered most.
There, Obama's audacious decision to contest McCain in states that hadn't gone Democratic in years paid rich dividends.
Obama has said his first order of presidential business will be to tackle the economy. He has also pledged to withdraw most U.S. combat troops from Iraq within 16 months.
Monday 3 November 2008
Sunday 2 November 2008
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