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Morning Spice by Ginger
Anti Murali feelingsGoaded to victory but a great victory! It was perhaps the most thrilling one day game in the history of the short game due to a host of reasons. Firstly came the Murali incident when the same umpire who no balled Murali seven times earlier decided to no ball him once more. It was obvious that it was all part of a pretty dirty cabal. The Australian media was for a long time trying to drum up anti Murali feelings all over with their campaign against him. Australia must thank providence that it has a few gentlemen commentators like Ian Chappel and Bill Lawry whose obvious disgust at it all indicated that all was not lost where Australian sportsmanship was concerned.
It was Ian Botham and Tony Grieg really who got the protest going. It embarrassed the English cricketers and even some of the Aussie spectators evidently changed. This could possibly be the reason for the standing ovation Mahela got, though he deserved one for one of the best one day centuries ever seen. How come the umpire could not see other than from one foot away from the wicket when Murali was trying to bowl round the wicket and able to see from a good six paces away when Aussies were bowling. Chasing and getting 303 runs under these conditions was quite an achievement. It was a glorious moment for Sri Lankan cricket. The tragedy was that they flopped the next day and showed their inability to cope with the rising ball. Of course they would have been very tired men after the previous day.
Outdated medical theories
At times we may be sacrificing a few good things in life due to old prejudices or outdated medical theories and needlessly doing without some forms of food and drink throughout our adult life. All this time it was felt that coffee was bad for the heart and many people just put it aside.Now medical thinking on caffeine has taken an about turn. They have enough evidence that caffeine does you no harm at all and that you can let yourself go at one of those coffee mornings with even three or four cups of coffee. Of course if the coffee is very strong it could cause slight changes in rhythm but they are absolutely harmless.
Found guilty of sodomy
Former President of Zimbabwe Canaan Banana has been found guilty of over ten counts of sodomy and homo sexual misconduct. He could now serve over twenty years in jail for his sexual offences but the problem is that they have to get him down from Botswana. Of course Banana denies all charges made against him and claims it is a political frame up.He is supposed to have had sexual acts with his body guards, his cook and also his gardener. He claims that it was all a frame up and that it was done to ruin his image as he was planning a political come back as President Mugabe was supposed to have a slew of problems himself in Zimbabwe.
I am writing this letter after hearing the Rupavahini postmortem news about the violence at Wayamba. It was reported that the President has declared her intention to take disciplinary action against any of her party whoever they may be if they have disobeyed her and indulged in acts of violence at the elections.
The Elections Commissioner has declared as null the ballot cast at about 180 polling stations out of about 1800 in the province. This outrage of the President, on the surface, appears to be a solace and a beginning of morality in politics in our country.
The question that immediately arises is this: can we believe her? On what evidence can we rest assured that she will in fact take action, say, against a minister who is proved guilty of indulging in violence no matter the consequence and political fall out? I have checked with a politician (known and regarded by all people for his integrity and unblemished political career) whether there is in this country a record of a leader ever taking the action promised by the President. Sadly, the answer is no. Is there a record in our annals of a politician resigning out of self-respect? The answer is again, no. I have heard it said at a public forum that there were even convicted criminals among politicians in India. Yet ministers have been removed and several have resigned on moral grounds or relinquished office on principle. Friends tell me that the situation here is that we have, among Sri Lankan politicians too a similar percentage of ‘criminals’ but the difference is that not all have been convicted.
Look around the region and in the UK from where we boast to model our politics. Several highly placed ministers and politicians have gone to jail, been sacked from office or have resigned. Our fellows however are like barnacles. There is no tradition of integrity in this country. It is fair for us to assume that the rage of the President will mean nothing. All we can do is to write letters like this to the press until the next election. Our politicians know it. Hence the rage of the President?
Dr. Kingsley Heendeniya
Nugegoda
Wayamba election campaign —Lessons to learn
The recently concluded Wayamba election campaign by the main political parties was a clear indication to the whole nation of what the future of all elections would be in our country. It is quite clear that the voters right to vote democratically is in jeopardy. The voter is under stress with innumerable threats and abuses. He is no more free to decide for whom he should vote. He is really confused as he cannot find a candidate or a party of his choice devoid of violence.
According to all that happened during the campaigning almost all the candidates of each and every political party were up in arms against each other not just to win but determine only to defeat and destroy the opponents. Maybe that they felt that it was the only way to emerge victorious. On the contrary what really happens in this type of a revengeful strategy is that one makes more and more enemies and thereby the fight continues. Thus they are no more victorious, but become enemies. They are only trying to cater to a selected crowd of supporters while rejecting the rest. The most unfortunate situation in the scenario is the manner in which the so called party leaders are giving the leadership to this revengeful strategy of defeating the opponents.
Today our nation is bleeding due to this disastrous revengeful attitude of our leaders who claim to be the redeemers of our nation. This is the greatest calamity that has befallen on us. The majority Sinhalese community is divided and are fighting each other to defeat the opponent at a time a war is raging in the north. I wonder whether things are turning from bad to worse.
We must put an end to this immediately. What is important and crucial in this national crisis is not to defeat but to win over people by winning their trust and confidence. It is only through this change of attitude that we could emerge victorious. Let us strive to strengthen this nation of ours and not try to weaken it any more. Let us at least now respond to the beautiful message of tolerance by the small children, which is now being broadcast over the radio and television.
Today the opportunist leaders are thriving on the ‘Divide and rule’ concept created through their destructive strategies. They know that it is the only way to reach personal glory and prestige no matter what happens to the nation.
So let us think wisely and act wisely. We are now at the doorstep of the next millennium. We must enter the 21st century in a changed attitude of working together by winning the hearts of the others. May our leaders take this to heart and give up their attitude of revenge and defeat. Let them give us the leadership by trying to win over their opponents other than destroying and defeating them. If this happens only the wisest leaders would succeed. As long as this wrongful attitude prevails we would never be victorious nor would we achieve peace.
Let us all arise then as Sri Lankans to tell our leaders that their present attitude is wrong. If they do continue in this manner they are not patriotic leaders. They are only opportunists who do not care to build up this nation. Let us then look for good and honest leaders who could lead us to he next millennium with this new vision of winning the hearts of all, rather than trying to defeat and become victorious.
R. V. A. Navaratne
Matale
A short trilogy
Joy every day of the weekThanks to the generosity of the C.E.B. we are enjoying a welcome surprise every day: the return of the current. It is technically not possible that someone returns without having left before, thus we have to accept this phenomenon also with the electricity. The return is as more enjoyable as longer the absence has lasted, like with a person.
There are various reasons for the absence: Too many crows were sitting on the powerline, thus it broke; the crows were flying away and did not care. Or a man was leaning against a pole and it also broke. Or the generator was running in the wrong direction, and so on. The variety of the interruptions is remarkable. There can be full darkness, half darkness, one phase out or the other, short returns for a few minutes (too short to celebrate), flickering and others. There must be people holding a master’s degree in changing the methods for more entertainment of the customers.
Anyway, when we can see the light and feel the fan again, we are full of joy and welcome the event. Not so much, of course, as the people in northern countries are greeting the sun on winter solstice, when its light returns, but this is for half a year, while the return of our current is only for a few hours. This is the reason for the differing intensities of the celebrations. It is clear that we are most thankful to the C.E.B. for the daily return of the current.
Six days entertainment per week
Six times every week I am finding a small creature in my mail. It is a louse, the well-known personal insect. After observing its actions for a short while and wondering how many things it can do with plenty of fantasy. I am going to kill it. Thus, when six days are over. I have killed 6 daily lice altogether. They will reliably appear again in the following week.Two pleasures in 366 days
Thanks to some professors we are expecting two new millenniums within a little more than one year. The first one arrives when December 31 of 1999 ends and January 1 of 2000 starts, the second one when December 31 of the year 2000 is over and January 1 of 2001 begins. The first variety of the new millennium mainly serves people with a certain weakness in arithmetic and more important, the computers which cannot write two in the beginning of the four-digit number of a year. It is understandable, as computers are shortlived creatures and many, born in the eighties, did not expect to live longer than up to 1999. As computers do not care for their afterlife, why should they learn to write that number two?The second new millennium is serving the more sophisticated people, who are not illiterate and thus able to count. In case the two groups are deciding to join, we can expect year-long celebrations, as we have them with the electricity.
Hans Koeper
New Kendalanda Estate
Veyangoda
Pannipitiya post office is having very large area to deliver letters and recently the government provided with a new building to enable them to carry out this business in an efficient way. But they are unable to deal with their official work without sufficient staff. I think almost all the postmen are casual people and sometimes they do not come to office as they can earn more money doing another casual job outside. Actually this affects the day-to-day official work. In that case best solution is making them permanent.
I hope this will catch the eye of authorities concerned very early to enable them to take suitable action.
M. G. Asoka Karunaratne
Pannipitiya
I have to thank Chairman SPC, Prof. Colvin Gunaratna for his reply to my letter received a day or two after the letter to the press was posted, and the quick response of DGM (Marketing). The latter’s response is all the more welcome because it is very rarely that a govt. institution bothers about complaints in the opinion column.
According to the telephone directory there are only seven Rajya Osu Sala (ROS) outlets in outstations and if some of the SPC drugs, as in the case of enalapril, are made available only through ROS outlets the cheap drugs are not at all likely to reach a large section of the population. Hence, the SPC should make available these cheap drugs through private pharmacies as well so that all people will be benefited. The SPC has, of course, to ensure that no unscrupulous pharmacists sell the cheap drugs at high prices. This is possible especially in rural areas.
S. Abeywickrama
Nugegoda.
People who crave for publicity are prepared to perform the most senseless and outrageous acts regardless of the long- term adverse effects on themselves or the innocent.
Whilst fully aware of the fact that the controlling body for international cricket had ruled that Muralitheran’s bowling action was perfectly legitimate, Umpire Ross Emerson decided to defy this ruling on that fateful day in Adelaide knowing that it would stir a hornet’s nest.
It remains to be seen who would be hurt most by the hornet’s sting in the long-term. A few moments of glory or gory - for whom to savour? The Media?
Whenever an Umpire feels he has the right to be wrong, then even Captain Cool is entitled to lose his cool.
Errol Crutchley
Dehiwela
Compensation to victims of violence
It is said that compensation to the victims of the violence during the period 1977 to 1994 is to be paid at last. But it seems, according to the notice published in the press regarding this matter, it is not clear whether the victims of the violence of 1977 during the period of 13.8.77 to 15.9.77 in respect of which a Presidential Commission of Inquiry had recommended payment of compensation to the victims and the victims of the 1983 violence of July would also be paid this compensation.
It is understood that some queries made by some affected persons from the office that had published the press notice are remaining unanswered.
Will the government or the office that published the press notice clarify the position whether these victims will also be paid the compensation or not, instead of keeping the affected victims in the dark and later refusing to pay them.
I do not think there should be any difficulty in notifying the actual position.
Arul
Colombo 13
Telephone bills of Dehiwela / Mt Lavinia
In spite of the fact that I pay my telephone bills every other month or so the Telecommunication office of Dehiwela /Mt. Lavinia keeps sending me threatening notes of disconnection.
The balance due is shown to be large not because of my failure to pay the bills but because their computers are not fed with latest information. In fact they did disconnect my line twice on this basis. Because I had no time to waste at their office I paid the reconnection charges twice, which in spite of reminders had not been refunded to me.
I am also aware of those who have not paid bills up to Rs. 80,000 but were never disconnected whereas my bills hardly exceed RS. 3000 per month.
Do the consumers have to suffer for the incompetency of those in the office?
Irritated subcriber
Down to Earth
Diamonds are a girl’s best friend
by Derrick SchokmanCome Valentine’s Day on February 14 and sweethearts will be looking for gifts from their lovers.
What more appropriate than a diamond to symbolise a lifetime of love and commitment.
"Diamonds are a girl’s best friend" is a well known saying. The South-African De Beers diamond conglomerate has cashed in on this popular saying to build a US$ 21 billion colossus that extends from the diamond mines of Australia through South Africa to frozen Siberia.
Slogan
De Beers advertising slogan, "Diamonds are Forever", does not derive from the fact that diamond is the hardest of precious stones.Rather from its ability to captivate. As long as man is willing and able to indulge the vanity of women, the diamond industry with be secure.
"Nobody needs them," say cynical dealers, "but everybody wants them".
Colour
Ever since diamonds were first turned into baubles, the best stones have always been considered to be clear and white.Those tinged with colour were relegated to the inferior jewellery market or used as drill bits.
But not any more! The Argyle Mine in Australia is producing plenty of pink diamonds for the market, which are selling at several hundred dollars a carat.
Brown and yellow stones are also produced in these mines and marketed as "cognac" and "champagne" diamonds.
These previously unwanted coloured stones now earn over US$ 200 million in the USA alone. And they are making rapid inroads into eastern markets too.
Several top dealers, unhappy with De Beers’ dominated white diamond business, have rushed into the free market in coloured stones.
One such dealer in Antwerp the world’s diamond dealing capital, is reported to have said that he was so disgusted that he locked his white goods in the safe and threw away the key.
That is how he expressed his entry into the exciting new world of coloured diamonds.
Threats
The coloured diamond market has come to stay, posing a serious threat to De Beers white diamond business.There are other threats too. Cash-starved Russians and other people in the old USSR, are secretly "leaking" millions of gem-quality diamonds to the open market in violation of agreements with De Beers.
Australian mines, which account for the world’s highest output of diamonds in terms of number of carats, are flooding the market.
And rich new discoveries of gem-quality stones have been found in Canada’s northern territories.
All these threats could lead to a glut that will undermine diamond prices in the future, robbing it of some of one luminous sparkle it now enjoys in the fashion world.
Alternative
If this should happen, will the diamond, so long known for its permanence and respectability, have to give way to another precious stone of land or earthy origin, or pearls of oceanic origin?Not the Japanese AKOYA pearl oyster, which currently produces most of the pearls in the world.
But more likely the pearls of French Polynesia, which are rarer, thicker and bigger.
Especially the black pearls which currently have an export value of US $150 million.
Not forgetting the coloured pearls which are available in silver grey, obsidian, sometimes even white, and "peacock" green.
Ombudsman
The latest from the Electricity CompanyI am a resident of Nawala and I suffer at least 6-7 blackouts per week which affect my TV set, refrigerator and whatever electrical gadget purchased with hard earned money.
But it is when I cannot use the fan when I need it most that I want to flee to the Colombo city, where I suffered only one blackout during my 20 years stay in Colombo 1. We have been grudgingly suffering these shortcomings in the last five years since we shifted to Nawala and it does not appear to improve either.
The Electricity Company now says that hereafter, all electricity bills must be settled each month within TWO WEEKS on receipt of the monthly bill. If you delay to settle the bill by ONE MONTH you will be served with the RED NOTICE. And if this is not settled by two weeks, it will result in the disconnection of the electricity supply. The consumer will then have to visit the Electricity Company (wherever it is) and pay up all dues with SURCHARGE and the PROCESSING FEE for the reconnection.
Is the Company insisting on prompt payment due to the marvellous services being rendered to the consumer?
A Nawala resident
