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Ill-fated lovers Posted: 30 Oct 2012 04:12 PM PDT Debbie Goh plays a widow who gets a second chance at love in a new TV series. EVERY woman just wants some happiness for herself. Some are willing to make sacrifices for the sake of love, while others only crave for power and money. But when one has to resort to extreme means to achieve her goals, will the happiness last? Three women find out the true measure of success in Ntv7's Mining Magnate. Set in the 1960s in Malaysia, Mining Magnate is a costume drama revolving around the turbulent times experienced by a wealthy tin mining family. Central to the story are the struggles of three strong-willed females who are compelled by circumstances to fight for everything that matters to them. Star2 recently met up with Debbie Goh, 33, and Frederick Lee, 36, who play star-crossed lovers who persevere despite the odds stacked against them. Featuring an all-Malaysian cast, the 30-episode Mandarin series also co-stars Loo Aye Keng, Chris Tong, Josh Lai and Goh Wee Ping. Debbie plays Luo Lin who was educated in Britain. She is the rich widow of a mining magnate's eldest son. She is modern in outlook yet traditional in moral values. Lee's character Su Zi Kai is an impulsive ex-convict who is loyal and who will do his best to protect those whom he loves. Impressed by his caring nature and struck by how much he resembles her late husband, Luo Lin falls for Zi Kai, who initially rejects her love due to the disparity in their social status. Su Jie Ying (Tong) and Zhu Xi Guang (Lai) are a rebellious young couple, who are compelled to pair up by the tin mining matriarch, Shu Xing Yu (Loo). Shu also introduces government officer Xi Jun (Wee Ping) as an alternative love interest for her daughter-in-law Luo Lin. "Luo Lin is a really smart woman who's educated abroad. Although she may look modern, she is actually a very traditional person. If she loves and believes in something deeply, she would pursue it wholeheartedly," shared Debbie. Cast as a couple for the fifth consecutive time, Debbie and Lee play a pair of mismatched lovers brought together by circumstances. "I'm excited to collaborate with Debbie again. In all my previous collaborations with her, it has always been a one-sided love as my character would pursue hers. This is the first time where both our characters are in love with each other," said Lee. Debbie added: "What's interesting is our previous dramas set in the 1960s and 70s all revolved around poor families living in small villages, but for Mining Magnate, we're from a rich tin mining family. So, I'm always decked out in the finest jewellery. The diamond I wear is so big it looks like a rock. I also wear pearls in my hair and I've got some of the most beautiful dresses in this drama. We also throw grand balls and drive sports cars." "All this luxury is only part of her character's background. My character, unfortunately, does not get to experience that so much. It's only in the initial episode where I play her husband, who is the tin mining magnate's eldest son. Thereafter, my character and hers are like two people from markedly different worlds," said Lee, who added that he has some action scenes in the drama that were filmed in Seremban, Negri Sembilan, and Muar in Johor. Mining Magnate premieres on Ntv7 at 9.30pm today. It airs from Mondays to Thursdays.

Quite a steal Posted: 30 Oct 2012 04:12 PM PDT Extreme Couponing shows you a way to shop without spending much. WHO doesn't like getting things for free or at a massive discount? It's a thrill to get something at a fraction of the cost or for close to nothing at all. Extreme couponers (people who use a lot of discount coupons when they go shopping) spend some 20 to 30 hours a week looking for coupons, deals and sales, and they make it a point to stay on top of the stores' coupon policies. Armed with binders or envelopes full of coupons, these savvy shoppers stack their shopping carts (yes, they usually end up with more than one cart full of stuff!) with large amounts of products – be it candy, frozen foods, cereal, sodas, condiments, detergent, make-up, over-the-counter medicine or pet treats – when they go grocery shopping. If they have a good coupon for an item, that item goes into the cart. To score the highest amount of savings, the items that they pick are the ones they have coupons for that often can be combined with store deals. When they head to the cashier counter, the real buzz kicks in for the coupon-carriers because they will see their hours of planning, clipping and calculating pay off. Sometimes, it's rather nail biting. A coupon could be scanned wrongly or the cash register gets jammed when too many items are scanned in one transaction (it happens!). But the end result is always spectacular – the savings are jaw dropping. With those little pieces of paper in their hand, they can walk away with thousands of dollars worth of groceries for next to nothing. Reality series Extreme Couponing shines the spotlight on these super savers in the United States. In one episode in the first season, one woman paid US$10 (RM30) for US$400 (RM1,200) worth of groceries. In another, one guy bought over 100 bottles of sports drink and soda using only coupons and donated them to local charities. Quite a few of the people featured on the series turned to cutting coupons to help make ends meet in tough economic times. A few enlist their children, siblings, spouses, neighbours, grandparents and/or friends in their quest to acquire the best coupons from newspapers, manufacturers and online sites. One coupon-clipper even resorts to dumpster diving for newspaper coupon supplements. Then, there are those who get items for the sake of getting them for free or at a super discount. Yes, like the shopper who doesn't eat mustard but goes ahead and buys dozens of bottles anyway. Several of these thrifty people have substantial stockpiles as well. Thousands of dollars worth of groceries sitting in their basement, garage and/or squirrelled away in whatever space available – under beds, in cupboards, shower stalls – you get the picture. One woman has 400 rolls of kitchen paper towels in her stockpile. Another has a two-year supply of laundry detergent. Yet another stores about 60 bottles of air fresheners. And everything was obtained almost for free, if not totally free. It's hard not to feel envious of their incredible floor-to-ceiling inventories. Some of them store their enormous haul so well it looks like they are keeping a private mini-mart in their home! It does make one think of another non-fiction series – Hoarders. But at least, these items do eventually end up being used, hopefully. There have been allegations that certain coupons used on the show are fakes or certain parties are using them fraudulently, but the truth of the matter is, in the wake of a less than stellar economy, surprise hit Extreme Couponing does encourage viewers to save money with coupons. And that may be the most important message from this guilty pleasure series. In Malaysia, it might be next to impossible to bring one's grocery bill down to zero like a few of the people featured on the show, but it never hurts to try. Besides, the rush of getting something for less never gets old. Extreme Couponing Season Two airs on Tuesdays at 10pm on TLC (Astro Ch 707).

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• Millions in U.S. Northeast struggle after massive storm
• U.S. East Coast reels from massive, deadly storm
• U.S. East Coast reels from massive, deadly storm

Millions in U.S. Northeast struggle after massive storm Posted: 30 Oct 2012 09:10 PM PDT By Martinne Geller, Emily Flitter and Dhanya Skariachan NEW YORK (Reuters) - The northeastern United States battled epic flood waters and lengthy power outages on Tuesday after the massive storm Sandy pummelled the coast with a record storm surge, high winds and heavy rains that killed at least 45 people and caused billion of dollars in losses. A largely unlit downtown Manhattan stands under a night sky due to a power blackout caused by Hurricane Sandy in New York October 30, 2012. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly Millions of people in New York City and other hard-hit areas will spend days or weeks recovering from a storm already seen as far more destructive that Hurricane Irene, which slammed into the same region a year ago. One disaster modelling company said Sandy may have caused up to $15 billion (9 billion pounds) in insured losses. The storm killed 18 people in New York City, among 23 total in New York state, while six died in New Jersey. Seven other states reported fatalities. Some 8.2 million homes and businesses in several states were without electricity as trees toppled by Sandy's fierce winds took down power lines. Sandy hit the coast with a week to go to the November 6 presidential election and turned its fury inland with heavy snowfall, dampening an unprecedented drive to encourage early voting and raising questions whether some polling stations will be ready to open on Election Day. New York City will struggle without its subway system, which was inundated and will remain shut for days. Much of the Wall Street district was left underwater but officials hoped to have financial markets reopen on Wednesday. Sandy was the biggest storm to hit the country in generations when it crashed ashore with hurricane-force winds on Monday near the New Jersey gambling resort of Atlantic City, devastating the Jersey Shore tourist haven. Flood waters lifted parked cars and deposited them on an otherwise deserted highway. With the political campaign and partisanship on hold, Democratic President Barack Obama and Republican New Jersey Governor Chris Christie planned to tour New Jersey disaster areas on Wednesday. "It's total devastation down there. There are boats in the street five blocks from the ocean," said Peter Sandomeno, an owner of the Broadway Court Motel in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey. Christie, who has been a strong supporter of Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney, praised Obama and the federal response to the storm. Obama and Romney put campaigning on hold for a second day but Romney planned to hit the trail again in Florida on Wednesday and Obama seemed likely to resume campaigning on Thursday for a final five-day sprint to Election Day. Obama faces political danger if the government fails to respond well, as was the case with predecessor George W. Bush's botched handling of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Obama has a chance to show that his administration has learned the lessons of Katrina and that he can lead during a crisis. NEW YORK UNDER WATER Sandy brought a record storm surge of almost 14 feet (4.2 meters) to downtown Manhattan, well above the previous record of 10 feet (3 meters) during Hurricane Donna in 1960, the National Weather Service said. The storm forced New York City to postpone its traditional Halloween parade, which had been set for Wednesday night in Greenwich Village and threatened to disrupt Sunday's New York City marathon. The lower half of Manhattan went dark when surging seawater flooded a substation and as power utility Consolidated Edison shut down others pre-emptively. Some 250,000 customers lost power. Fire ravaged the Breezy Point neighbourhood in the borough of Queens, destroying 110 homes and damaging 20 while destroying still more in the nearby neighbourhood of Belle Harbor. Remarkably, no fatalities were reported. "To describe it as looking like pictures we've seen of the end of World War Two is not overstating it," New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said after touring the area. "The area was completely levelled. Chimneys and foundations were all that was left of many of these homes." Hospitals closed throughout the region, forcing patients to relocate and doctors to carry premature babies down more than a dozen flights of stairs at one New York City facility. While some parts of the city went unscathed, neighbourhoods along the East and Hudson rivers bordering Manhattan were underwater and expected to be without power for days, as were low-lying streets in Battery Park near Ground Zero, where the World Trade Center stood before the September 11, 2001, attacks. "I'm lucky to have gas; I can make hot water. But there is no heating and I'm all cold inside," said Thea Lucas, 87, who lives alone in Manhattan's Lower East Side. DESTRUCTION THROUGHOUT REGION Airlines cancelled more than 18,000 flights, though two of the New York City area's three major airports planned to reopen with limited service on Wednesday. Cellphone service went silent in many states and some emergency call centres were affected. Some cities like Washington, Philadelphia and Boston were mostly spared but he storm reached as far inland as Ohio and parts of West Virginia were buried under 3 feet (1 meter) of snow, a boon for ski resorts that was one of the storm's few bright spots. The western extreme of Sandy's wind field buffeted the Great Lakes region, according to Andrew Krein of the National Weather Service, generating wind gusts of up to 60 mph (96 kph) on the southern end of Lake Michigan and up to 35 mph (56 kph) Chicago. In Cleveland, buildings in the city's downtown area were evacuated due to flooding, police said. Winds gusting to 50 mph (80 kph) brought down wires and knocked out power to homes and business. City officials asked residents to stay inside and for downtown businesses to remained closed for the day. Amid the devastation there was opportunity. Snowmakers at Snowshoe Mountain in the mountains of West Virginia had their equipment running at full speed on Tuesday, taking advantage of the cold temperatures to build the 24-30 inch (61-76 cm) base they need to open for skiing by Thanksgiving. "There are snowmakers out there making snow in what was a hurricane and blizzard," said Dave Dekema, marketing director for the resort, which received a foot-and-a-half (45 cm) of snow, with another foot or two (30 to 60 cm) expected. The resort's phones, email account and Facebook pages were "going crazy," Dekema said, with avid skiers and snowboarders wondering if there was any chance of getting out on the mountain this weekend. He said that was unlikely. (Additional reporting by Scott Malone in Boston; Ilaina Jonas, Daniel Bases, Lucas Jackson, Edward Krudy and Scott DiSavino in New York; Ian Simpson in West Virginia; Diane Bartz and Andrea Shalal-Esa in Washington; Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Susan Guyett in Indianapolis; Kim Palmer in Cleveland and James B. Kelleher in Chicago. Writing by Daniel Trotta and Ros Krasny; Editing by Bill Trott) Related Stories: Outages, floods hit two N.J. refineries; others restart Some train services resume along U.S. East Coast Huge fire in Sandy's wake destroys NYC beach community Storm knocks down some web sites, but most stay online Obama, FEMA hustle federal disaster relief to Sandy's aftermath New Yorkers take Sandy travel challenges in stride NY's JFK, Newark airports to open Wednesday; LaGuardia still closed Hurricane Sandy wallops Internet commerce just as hard Copyright © 2012 Reuters

U.S. East Coast reels from massive, deadly storm Posted: 30 Oct 2012 08:19 PM PDT By Martinne Geller, Emily Flitter and Dhanya Skariachan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Millions of people faced epic flooding and lengthy power outages on Tuesday after the massive storm Sandy wreaked havoc in much of the eastern United States with high winds and heavy rains. A largely unlit downtown Manhattan stands under a night sky due to a power blackout caused by Hurricane Sandy in New York October 30, 2012. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly The storm killed at least 45 people, including at least 18 in New York City, and insurance companies started to tally billions of dollars in losses. The storm hit with just a week to go to the November 6 presidential election, disrupting campaigning and early voting and raising questions about whether polling stations in some hard-hit communities would be ready to open by next Tuesday. Sandy, which crashed ashore with hurricane-force winds on Monday near the New Jersey gambling resort of Atlantic City, was the biggest storm to hit the country in generations. It swamped parts of New York's subway system and lower Manhattan's Wall Street district, closing financial markets for a second day. Businesses and homes along New Jersey's shore were wrecked and communities were submerged under floodwater across a large area. More than 8 million homes and businesses in several states were without electricity as trees toppled by Sandy's fierce winds took down power lines. Across the region, crews began the monumental task of restoring power for anxious customers and getting transportation up and running could take time after the storm caused nearly 16,000 flight cancellations. Cellphone service outages were widespread in many states and even some emergency call centres were affected. The storm reached as far inland as Ohio and parts of West Virginia were buried under 3 feet (1 meter) of snow, a boon for ski resorts that was one of the storm's few bright spots. Some cities like Washington, Philadelphia and Boston were spared the worst effects of the storm and were ready to return to normal by Wednesday. But New York City, large parts of New Jersey and some other areas will need at least several days to get back on their feet. "The devastation is unthinkable," New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said after seeing pictures of his state's shore. Seeking to show he was on top of the aftermath of the storm in the nation's most densely populated region, the White House said President Barack Obama planned to tour damaged areas of New Jersey on Wednesday accompanied by Christie. The New Jersey governor, who has been a strong supporter of Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney, praised Obama and the federal response to the storm. "New Jersey, New York in particular have been pounded by this storm. Connecticut has taken a big hit," Obama said during a visit to Red Cross headquarters in Washington. Obama issued federal emergency decrees for New York and New Jersey, declaring that "major disasters" existed in both states. AREA 'COMPLETELY LEVELED' Power outages darkened large parts of Manhattan and a fire destroyed more than 80 homes in New York City's borough of Queens, where flooding hampered firefighting efforts. "To describe it as looking like pictures we've seen of the end of World War Two is not overstating it. The area was completely levelled. Chimneys and foundations were all that was left of many of these homes," said New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg after touring the area. Neighbourhoods along the East and Hudson rivers bordering Manhattan were underwater and expected to be without power for days, as were low-lying streets in Battery Park near Ground Zero, where the World Trade Center once stood. "I'm lucky to have gas; I can make hot water. But there is no heating and I'm all cold inside," said Thea Lucas, 87, who lives alone in Manhattan's Lower East Side. Further north, though, many retail stores, restaurants and bars reopened in neighbourhoods that did not lose power. In Brooklyn's Prospect Park, runners, dog-walkers and children were out and about among fallen trees. Organizers of Sunday's New York City Marathon were left scrambling. The world's largest 26.2-mile footrace typically has over 47,000 entrants from around the world, deploys thousands of volunteers, and winds through all five boroughs. One disaster modelling company said Sandy may have caused up to $15 billion (9 billion pounds) in insured losses. That would make it the third-costliest hurricane on record, behind hurricanes Katrina, which laid waste to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in 2005, and Andrew, which devastated parts of Florida in 1992. While damage was still being assessed, federal authorities made $13 million in "quick release" emergency relief funds available to New York and Rhode Island. CAMPAIGNING ON HOLD Obama and Romney put campaigning on hold for a second day, but Romney planned to hit the trail again in Florida on Wednesday and Obama seemed likely to resume campaigning on Thursday for a final five-day sprint to Election Day. Obama faces political danger if the government fails to respond well, as was the case with predecessor George W. Bush's botched handling of Katrina. Obama has a chance to show not only that his administration has learned the lessons of Katrina, but that he can take charge and lead during a crisis. All along the East Coast, residents and business owners found scenes of destruction. "There are boats in the street five blocks from the ocean," said evacuee Peter Sandomeno, one of the owners of the Broadway Court Motel in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey. "That's the worst storm I've ever seen, and I've been there for 11 years." Sandy, which was especially imposing because of its wide-ranging winds, brought a record storm surge of almost 14 feet (4.2 meters) to downtown Manhattan, well above the previous record of 10 feet (3 meters) during Hurricane Donna in 1960, the National Weather Service said. Water poured into the subway tunnels under New York City. Bloomberg said the subway system, which normally carries over 5 million people each weekday, would likely be closed for four or five days. "Hitting at high tide, the strongest surge and the strongest winds all hit at the worst possible time," said Jeffrey Tongue, a meteorologist for the weather service in Brookhaven, New York. Hurricane-force winds as high as 90 miles per hour (145 km per hour) were recorded, he said. The community of Atlantique Beach on Fire Island, New York, took the storm's brunt and lost most of its oceanside dunes. Some homes were pushed off their foundations. The U.S. Department of Energy said more than 8 million homes and businesses in several states were without electricity due to the storm. In many communities residents anxiously awaited the arrival of utility crews. Some gas stations in Queens, New York, ran out of fuel, and shoppers found supermarkets short of fresh meat, bread and potatoes. The flooding hampered efforts to fight a massive fire that destroyed more than 80 homes in Breezy Point, a private beach community on the Rockaway barrier island in Queens. Besides the deaths in New York City, others were reported in New York state, Massachusetts, Maryland, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. Toronto police also recorded one death - a woman hit by flying debris. Sandy killed 69 people in the Caribbean last week. U.S. government offices in Washington and schools up and down the East Coast but were due to reopen on Wednesday. U.S. stock exchanges are expected to reopen on Wednesday, and the passenger rail service Amtrak will restart services on some of its busiest routes on a limited basis. (Additional reporting by Scott Malone in Boston, Ilaina Jonas, Daniel Bases, Lucas Jackson, Edward Krudy and Scott DiSavino in New York, Ian Simpson in West Virginia and Diane Bartz and Andrea Shalal-Esa in Washington. Writing by Ros Krasny; editing by Christopher Wilson) Related Stories: Outages, floods hit two N.J. refineries; others restart Some train services resume along U.S. East Coast Huge fire in Sandy's wake destroys NYC beach community Storm knocks down some web sites, but most stay online Obama, FEMA hustle federal disaster relief to Sandy's aftermath New Yorkers take Sandy travel challenges in stride NY's JFK, Newark airports to open Wednesday; LaGuardia still closed Hurricane Sandy wallops Internet commerce just as hard Copyright © 2012 Reuters

U.S. East Coast reels from massive, deadly storm Posted: 30 Oct 2012 06:59 PM PDT By Martinne Geller and Emily Flitter and Dhanya Skariachan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Millions of people faced epic flooding and lengthy power outages on Tuesday after the massive storm Sandy wreaked havoc in much of the eastern United States with high winds and heavy rains. A largely unlit downtown Manhattan stands under a night sky due to a power blackout caused by Hurricane Sandy in New York October 30, 2012. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly The storm killed at least 45 people, including at least 18 in New York City, and insurance companies started to tally billions of dollars in losses. The storm hit with just a week to go to the November 6 presidential election, disrupting campaigning and early voting and raising questions about whether polling stations in some hard-hit communities would be ready to open by next Tuesday. Sandy, which crashed ashore with hurricane-force winds on Monday near the New Jersey gambling resort of Atlantic City, was the biggest storm to hit the country in generations. It swamped parts of New York's subway system and lower Manhattan's Wall Street district, closing financial markets for a second day. Businesses and homes along New Jersey's shore were wrecked and communities were submerged under floodwater across a large area. More than 8 million homes and businesses in several states were without electricity as trees toppled by Sandy's fierce winds took down power lines. Across the region, crews began the monumental task of restoring power for anxious customers and getting transportation up and running could take time after the storm caused nearly 16,000 flight cancellations. Cellphone service outages were widespread in many states and even some emergency call centres were affected. The storm reached as far inland as Ohio and parts of West Virginia were buried under 3 feet (1 meter) of snow, a boon for ski resorts that was one of the storm's few bright spots. Some cities like Washington, Philadelphia and Boston were spared the worst effects of the storm and were ready to return to normal by Wednesday. But New York City, large parts of New Jersey and some other areas will need at least several days to get back on their feet. "The devastation is unthinkable," New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said after seeing pictures of his state's shore. Seeking to show he was on top of the aftermath of the storm in the nation's most densely populated region, the White House said President Barack Obama planned to tour damaged areas of New Jersey on Wednesday accompanied by Christie. The New Jersey governor, who has been a strong supporter of Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney, praised Obama and the federal response to the storm. "New Jersey, New York in particular have been pounded by this storm. Connecticut has taken a big hit," Obama said during a visit to Red Cross headquarters in Washington. Obama issued federal emergency decrees for New York and New Jersey, declaring that "major disasters" existed in both states. AREA 'COMPLETELY LEVELED' Power outages darkened large parts of Manhattan and a fire destroyed more than 80 homes in New York City's borough of Queens, where flooding hampered firefighting efforts. "To describe it as looking like pictures we've seen of the end of World War Two is not overstating it. The area was completely levelled. Chimneys and foundations were all that was left of many of these homes," said New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg after touring the area. Neighbourhoods along the East and Hudson rivers bordering Manhattan were underwater and expected to be without power for days, as were low-lying streets in Battery Park near Ground Zero, where the World Trade Center once stood. "I'm lucky to have gas; I can make hot water. But there is no heating and I'm all cold inside," said Thea Lucas, 87, who lives alone in Manhattan's Lower East Side. Further north, though, many retail stores, restaurants and bars reopened in neighbourhoods that did not lose power. In Brooklyn's Prospect Park, runners, dog-walkers and children were out and about among fallen trees. Organizers of Sunday's New York City Marathon were left scrambling. The world's largest 26.2-mile footrace typically has over 47,000 entrants from around the world, deploys thousands of volunteers, and winds through all five boroughs. One disaster modelling company said Sandy may have caused up to $15 billion (9 billion pounds) in insured losses. That would make it the third-costliest hurricane on record, behind hurricanes Katrina, which laid waste to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in 2005, and Andrew, which devastated parts of Florida in 1992. While damage was still being assessed, federal authorities made $13 million in "quick release" emergency relief funds available to New York and Rhode Island. CAMPAIGNING ON HOLD Obama and Romney put campaigning on hold for a second day, but Romney planned to hit the trail again in Florida on Wednesday and Obama seemed likely to resume campaigning on Thursday for a final five-day sprint to Election Day. Obama faces political danger if the government fails to respond well, as was the case with predecessor George W. Bush's botched handling of Katrina. Obama has a chance to show not only that his administration has learned the lessons of Katrina, but that he can take charge and lead during a crisis. All along the East Coast, residents and business owners found scenes of destruction. "There are boats in the street five blocks from the ocean," said evacuee Peter Sandomeno, one of the owners of the Broadway Court Motel in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey. "That's the worst storm I've ever seen, and I've been there for 11 years." Sandy, which was especially imposing because of its wide-ranging winds, brought a record storm surge of almost 14 feet (4.2 meters) to downtown Manhattan, well above the previous record of 10 feet (3 meters) during Hurricane Donna in 1960, the National Weather Service said. Water poured into the subway tunnels under New York City. Bloomberg said the subway system, which normally carries over 5 million people each weekday, would likely be closed for four or five days. "Hitting at high tide, the strongest surge and the strongest winds all hit at the worst possible time," said Jeffrey Tongue, a meteorologist for the weather service in Brookhaven, New York. Hurricane-force winds as high as 90 miles per hour (145 km per hour) were recorded, he said. The community of Atlantique Beach on Fire Island, New York, took the storm's brunt and lost most of its oceanside dunes. Some homes were pushed off their foundations. The U.S. Department of Energy said more than 8 million homes and businesses in several states were without electricity due to the storm. [ID:nL1E8LU6BF] In many communities residents anxiously awaited the arrival of utility crews. Some gas stations in Queens, New York, ran out of fuel, and shoppers found supermarkets short of fresh meat, bread and potatoes. The flooding hampered efforts to fight a massive fire that destroyed more than 80 homes in Breezy Point, a private beach community on the Rockaway barrier island in Queens. Besides the deaths in New York City, others were reported in New York state, Massachusetts, Maryland, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. Toronto police also recorded one death - a woman hit by flying debris. Sandy killed 69 people in the Caribbean last week. U.S. government offices in Washington and schools up and down the East Coast but were due to reopen on Wednesday. U.S. stock exchanges are expected to reopen on Wednesday, and the passenger rail service Amtrak will restart services on some of its busiest routes on a limited basis. (Additional reporting by Scott Malone in Boston, Ilaina Jonas, Daniel Bases, Lucas Jackson, Edward Krudy and Scott DiSavino in New York, Ian Simpson in West Virginia and Diane Bartz and Andrea Shalal-Esa in Washington. Writing by Ros Krasny; editing by Christopher Wilson) Related Stories: Outages, floods hit two N.J. refineries; others restart Some train services resume along U.S. East Coast Huge fire in Sandy's wake destroys NYC beach community Storm knocks down some web sites, but most stay online Hurricane Sandy silences Atlantic City's casinos Travellers, cargo stranded as U.S. airports, rails assess damage Copyright © 2012 Reuters

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The Star Online: Business

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• Boeing says 787s for United Airlines are delayed
• EU will lose Turkey if it hasn't joined by 2023
• UBS slashing jobs in restructuring of investment bank

Boeing says 787s for United Airlines are delayed Posted: 30 Oct 2012 06:26 PM PDT NEW YORK: Boeing Co said delivery of at least two 787 jets for United Airlines was taking longer than expected, a surprise hitch in delivery to its first U.S. customer that is set to disappoint some customers wanting to ride the new fuel-efficient aircraft. Boeing said it is working diligently to complete United Airlines' next 787s for delivery but that the process is "taking a few days longer than anticipated." The delay, while short, is another missed date for the 787 program which was delayed for nearly 3-1/2 years to address quality problems with the jet that uses substantial amounts of lightweight composite materials to replace aluminum in the fuselage and wings. United took delivery of its first 787 in September and is due to start carrying customers with it on November 4. The airline is scheduled to receive five of the jets this year. United said on Tuesday that Boeing told it the second plane was not ready for delivery and the airline said it believes all of the four remaining jets could be delayed. It has begun notifying customers who were scheduled to fly on the second 787 jet that they will travel on a different model of plane instead. "We're offering to refund or re-book customers who specifically intended to fly on one of the early Dreamliner flights," said Christen David, director of corporate communications for United Continental Holdings Inc. "We believe this year's subsequent 787 deliveries could be delayed as well, but we are hopeful that we will still receive four more 787s this year," said David. She declined to say what issue had delayed the plane delivery, or when it was due to be delivered now. Boeing said it was not one specific issue with the plane and declined to elaborate. It said the issues would not affect delivery of 787s to other customers. "The process for completing an airplane requires thoroughness and a disciplined adherence to process," said Tim Bader, a Boeing spokesman. "We've laid out a challenging schedule for the team. But we've also told them we cannot compromise on the rigor with which we finish our work, test our products and certify them for delivery." The 787 Dreamliner, a wide-body jet, seats 219 passengers in United's configuration, and is billed as Boeing most fuel-efficient jet. It was initially scheduled to enter service in May 2008, but delays pushed its first flight back to December 2009 and it entered service on October 26, 2011, with launch customer All Nippon Airways. - Reuters

EU will lose Turkey if it hasn't joined by 2023 Posted: 30 Oct 2012 06:24 PM PDT BERLIN: The European Union will lose Turkey if it doesn't grant it membership by 2023, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday. It was the first time Erdogan has given an indication of how long Ankara might continue down the path towards EU entry, and his comments came at a time of growing alienation between Turkey and a political entity it feels has cold-shouldered it. Turkey's bid to join the EU, officially launched in 2005, has virtually ground to a halt in recent years due to opposition from core EU members and the failure to find a solution to the dispute over the divided island of Cyprus. Asked during a panel discussion in Berlin on Tuesday night if Turkey would be an EU member by 2023, Erdogan answered, "they probably won't string us along that long. But if they do string us along until then the European Union will lose out, and at the very least they will lose Turkey." Turkey will celebrate the 100th anniversary of its foundation as a republic from the ruins of the Ottoman Empire in 2023. The predominantly Muslim but secular country of some 74 million people would strengthen the European Union, Erdogan said. Some 6 million Turks already live within the European Union, about 3 million of them in Germany, he said. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who Erdogan will meet on Wednesday, opposes full EU membership and favours a privileged partnership instead, although foreign minister Guido Westerwelle supports Ankara's bid. Speaking at the opening of Turkey's new embassy building in Berlin, Westerwelle criticised the impasse in accession talks. "It is bad for both sides and next year, we want to make a new beginning to overcome this standstill." Earlier this month Turkey's economy minister Zafer Caglayan scoffed at the EU's winning the Nobel Peace Prize and condemned the bloc as the most hypocritical organisation in the world, saying it had "kept Turkey waiting at its door for 50 years." Turkey has completed only one of 35 policy "chapters" every accession candidate must conclude. All but 13 policy chapters in Ankara's negotiations are blocked and the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, says Turkey does not yet meet required standards on human rights and freedom of speech. - Reuters

UBS slashing jobs in restructuring of investment bank Posted: 30 Oct 2012 06:19 PM PDT ZURICH: Swiss banking giant UBS intends to cut nearly 10,000 jobs worldwide in a restructuring of its hard-hit investment bank, the group said, reporting that reorganisation costs had pushed it deep into loss in the third quarter. The costs switched the Swiss bank's third-quarter results into a 2.2-billion Swiss franc net loss compared with the one billion net profit it had reported during the JulySeptember period last year. "This decision has been a difficult one, particularly in a business such as ours that is all about its people," UBS chief executive Sergio Ermotti said in a statement, referring to the job cuts. "Some reductions will result from natural attrition and we will take whatever measures we can to mitigate the overall effect," he said, vowing that "our people will be supported and treated with care." The Zurich-based bank said that cuts in its overall staff numbers to about 54,000 by 2015 was a necessary part of a restructuring of its investment bank, including shedding some of its high-risk activities and basically withdrawing from the fixed-income business which had burdened it with catastrophic losses during the 2008 "subprime" crisis. UBS, which counted nearly 64,000 employees at the end of September, said the restructuring would save 5.4 billion Swiss francs (US$5.8bil) over the next three years. UBS said in its earnings statement that it had taken a one-time charge of 3.1 billion Swiss francs linked to the restructuring and a debt-related charge of 863 million. Before taxes, UBS said it was hit by a loss of 2.5 billion Swiss francs, but that adjusted for the impairment losses and a restructuring provision, it posted a pre-tax profit of 1.4 billion. Ermotti hailed the company's earnings, stressing that all the bank's activities had "delivered improved profitability in the third quarter", and that it was rolling out its strategy "well ahead of schedule". "We are confident that the actions we are taking now will ensure the firm's long-term success in the fundamentally changed regulatory and economic environment, and will deliver sustainable returns for our shareholders going forward," he said in a joint comment with UBS chairman Axel Weber. The bank said it was withdrawing from lines of business "that do not meet their cost of capital sustainably or are in areas with high operational complexity or long tail risks likely to weigh on future returns." - AFP

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• Molina bout sees Khan at crossroads
• NYC Marathon organizers assess options
• Malaysia Got Talent too – but we must not be one-hit wonders

Molina bout sees Khan at crossroads Posted: 30 Oct 2012 06:58 PM PDT LOS ANGELES: Britain's Amir Khan says it's his head, not his heart, that will put him back on the path to boxing's summit when he takes on unbeaten American Carlos Molina in December. "We know we have to win the fight, not only win it but win it in good style," Khan said Tuesday at the Los Angeles Sports Arena, where he and Molina will face off in a light welterweight bout on December 15. "I want to be back up there. I want a good win. I aim to win this fight to be back where I want to be." Former world champion Khan is coming off two successive defeats, including a fourth-round knockout loss to light welterweight world champion Danny Garcia in July. Khan has since sacked famed trainer Freddie Roach, mentor of Filipino icon Manny Pacquiao, and says that thanks to his preparations with Virgil Hunter, fans will see "an Amir Khan who is smarter, an Amir Khan who is thinking about everything". That's the prescription from Hunter, who scoffed at the notion that Garcia's victory indicated Khan had a suspect chin. Hunter said it wasn't Khan's inability to take a punch, but his inability to stick to his strategy after a third-round knockdown, that cost him that fight. "He has to temper his approach," Hunter said. "He's a little ahead of himself, he has to learn how to harness his speed." Khan, 26-3 with 18 knockouts, admitted that the loss to Garcia - coming after he dropped a controversial split decision to American Lamont Peterson - was especially bitter. "I think I let him and his father get to me," Khan said. "I lost my cool. I could have just boxed him and I tried to get into a fight with him and I got into his game." Hunter, who trains unbeaten super-middleweight world champion Andre Ward, has counseled Khan that boxing is about business, not revenge. But Khan clearly has Garcia in the back of his mind, saying that's a rematch he'd like to make before perhaps moving up from the 140-pound division. First, however, comes the 17-0 Molina, who says he's looking forward to fighting in front of home fans in a venue that has hosted Olympic boxing as well as three Muhammad Ali fights. Khan says his preparations are progressing quietly in the peace and quiet of Hunter's Oakland gym, which has none of the hubbub of Roach's Wild Card gym in Hollywood. "We all know he's a great trainer," Khan said of Roach. "(But) I need to be with someone who can spend 100 percent of time with me." Khan also likes training outside Britain, where his private life has become tabloid fodder. "It is a distraction when you're preparing for a fight," he said. - AFP

NYC Marathon organizers assess options Posted: 30 Oct 2012 06:56 PM PDT NEW YORK: New York City Marathon organizers continued to plan for Sunday's race as the metropolis coped with the chaotic aftermath of deadly superstorm Sandy. "The marathon has always been a special day for New Yorkers as a symbol of the vitality and resiliency of this city," New York Road Runners president Mary Wittenberg said in a statement. "NYRR continues to move ahead with its planning and preparation. We will keep all options open with regard to making any accommodations and adjustments necessary to race day and race weekend events." Subway trains and buses remained suspended for a third day on Tuesday and hundreds of thousands of homes in New York faced up to a week without electricity, the power company warned. Officials expected John F. Kennedy International Airport to reopen on Wednesday, but marathon organizers still faced logistical challenges, including getting international runners into New York on time and getting almost 50,000 entrants to the starting line. Many of the city services that usually support the event are also busy elsewhere. "The city is rightfully focused on assessment, restoration and recovery," Wittenberg said, adding that organizers would announce their plans as they evolve. "This is a very challenging time for the people and city of New York." - AFP

Malaysia Got Talent too – but we must not be one-hit wonders Posted: 30 Oct 2012 05:02 PM PDT Britain has its Britain Got Talent show. The Americans have their own America Got Talent programme. Now, Malaysia Got Talent too! Don't believe me? Then check out Monday's StarSport. Badminton and squash have always delivered the goods – the only problem was it has always been Lee Chong Wei and Nicol David who stood tall on the podium with a trophy in their arms. So, it was a delight – and sheer relief as well – when the two sports produced two different winners for a change in Liew Daren and Low Wee Wern. I am sure many Malaysians, as much as we adore and respect Chong Wei and Nicol for all their achievements and efforts in putting the country on the world map, are thrilled to know that Malaysia's got other talented players in the two sports as well. How we have been pining for new faces to take over the mantle of Chong Wei and Nicol, who have both done more than their fair share to raise the profile of badminton and squash – and sports in general. Many, including the local sportswriters, had written off Daren's chances of actually winning something worthwhile. And why not? Here's a player who joined the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) fold nine years ago. His only claim to fame during those nine years was being the sparring partner of Chong Wei. Yes, he sparred with Chong Wei before and during the London Olympics. And it looks like those sparring sessions must have paid off. He must have picked up a tip or two from the world No. 1 because how else could he pulled off a stunning win in the French Open. But is it really that surprising that he won in Paris? Actually, if you look at his record this year, he has made the last eight in four tournaments – All-England, Swiss Open, Singapore Open and Denmark Open. There has been progress in his game. It's true that the big guns were not in Paris, where he triumphed. Still, the 25-year-old had to overcome a horde of talented and hungry shuttlers en route to victory. And they – Sho Sasaki of Japan, Hu Yun of Hong Kong, Jan O Jorgensen and Viktor Axelsen – were all ranked higher than him. So, kudos to Daren. And what about Wee Wern? Her exploits in the China Open may have come in the absence of the most dominant player the world of squash has known – Nicol. But take nothing away from Wee Wern's achievement. The 22-year-old still had to get past four tricky and dangerous opponents – Australia's Rachael Grinham, Egypt's Omneya Abdel Kawy, another Australian Kasey Brown and finally New Zealand's Joelle King – before she could get her hands on the trophy. And the best part of it all is that she did it without the benefit of a foreign coach or overseas training (although she had a stint with Nicol's coach Liz Irving in Amsterdam last year). Whether Daren could have won if Chong Wei or any of China's big names were there is open to debate. The same with Wee Wern. But let's give them credit for what they have done. They took care of business professionally and disposed of whoever stood in front of them. So, now our prayers have been answered. Or have they? Could this be just a mirage? Could Daren and Wee Wern be one-hit wonders? I don't mean to be a spoilsport or a party-pooper. But let's not get too carried away. Daren and Wee Wern must now prove that they can do the business week in and week out – just like Chong Wei and Nicol. Be consistent winners or at least be genuine title challengers. That's the hallmark of champions. Now if only more youngsters can raise their level in their respective sports – like Pandelela Rinong (diving), Azizulhasni Awang (cycling), Zulfahmi Khairuddin and Nabil Jeffri (motor racing) have done – then we can proudly say that Malaysia Got Talent indeed!

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• Four lawyers to represent two Malaysians to be charged in Beirut on Wednesday
• Welding inspector gets 20 years' jail for killing man during gang fight
• DPM: Cabinet awaiting report on KK airport shutdown

Four lawyers to represent two Malaysians to be charged in Beirut on Wednesday Posted: 30 Oct 2012 07:13 AM PDT KUALA LUMPUR: The two Malaysians who were detained in Lebanon for alleged links to an Al-Qaeda militant group will be represented by four lawyers at the Military Tribunal in Beirut on Wednesday. Malaysian Ambassador to Lebanon, Ilango Karuppannan, said the families of Razif Mohd Ariffin, 30, and Muhamad Razin Sharhan Mustafa Kamal, 21, had been informed of the matter. "The families have agreed to pay for the legal fees. We have recommended the best legal representation for them," he said when contacted in Beirut Tuesday. Razif and Mohamad Razin Shahar, who were detained in a Beirut hotel by Lebanese authorities last week, were brought before the military tribunal Monday. However, the judge ordered them to engage counsel before they faced the respective charges. He said the embassy had not been informed in detail about the charge to be brought against Razif and Mohamad Razin Shahar. - Bernama Related Stories: Malaysian duo produced in court Lebanon arrests two Malaysian suspected suicide bombers Home Ministry probing background of two M'sian terror suspects nabbed in Beirut

Welding inspector gets 20 years' jail for killing man during gang fight Posted: 30 Oct 2012 06:56 AM PDT JOHOR BARU: A welding inspector was sentenced to 20 years' jail by a High Court here Tuesday after he was found guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder. S. Deepanraj, 25, was initially charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murdering A. Kavimathan, 27, around 1am in front of the emergency ward building at Hospital Sultanah Aminah here on August 22, 2010. He claimed trial to the charge. The court later offered him an amended charge under Section 304 of the code for culpable homicide not amounting to murder but he also pleaded not guilty to the charge. Deepanraj's lawyer G.K. Sritharan argued that the act was accidental, as Deepanraj had stabbed Kavimathan in a gang fight. Deputy public prosecutor Muhamad Iskandar Ahmad argued that the offence was serious and that a life was lost. High Court judge Datuk Abdul Halim Aman said the court could not accept the argument of the defence as regardless of whether the act was pre-planned or not, a life had been lost. "The court has analysed both arguments from the prosecution and the defence and taken into consideration statements by all the witnesses brought forward. "After careful consideration, the court finds Deepanraj guilty of the offence," he said. Before meting out his decision, the court also heard a victim impact statement from Kavimathan's father K. Ananthasegaran, 50, who told the court that Deepanraj should be given the maximum sentence of 30 years' jail. "My son was the sole breadwinner for our family as I had stopped working due to a heart condition," he said. Abdul Halim later sentenced Deepanraj to 20 years' jail from the date of arrest, Aug 22, 2010.

DPM: Cabinet awaiting report on KK airport shutdown Posted: 30 Oct 2012 06:47 AM PDT LABUAN: The Cabinet is waiting for a report from the Transport Ministry on the shutdown of runway lights at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) last week. He added that the Cabinet would also look into the delays into the completion of KKIA expansion works that were two years overdue. Muhyiddin also issued an apology to the affected passengers. "We want to get to the root of the problem and find out who is responsible," he said during a visit to the international offshore financial centre (IOFC) after opening an oil and gas seminar here Tuesday. He said the Government would not tolerate a repeat of the situation that caused chaos at Malaysia's second busiest airport. Flight operations at KKIA were halted on Thursday night after the runway lights blacked out and it was only after 10pm on Friday that the problem was rectified.

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The Star Online: Lifestyle: Bookshelf

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• Man Asian Literary Prize in search of sponsor
• Big bucks for authors of erotic books
• Read without prejudice

Man Asian Literary Prize in search of sponsor Posted: 30 Oct 2012 07:36 AM PDT THE organisers of Asia's most prestigious prize for literature recently said that they are looking for a new sponsor after the Man Group announced it was ending its funding for the prize after six years. The Man Asian Literary Prize began in 2007 with the aim to raise appreciation of Asian literature and is given to the best novel by an Asian writer, either written in English or translated into English. The prize committee said the Man Group, a London-based investment firm, would end its six-year run as sponsor after this year's prize, which will be handed out in March 2013. "We look forward to the future with a new partner, confident that Asian fiction is now beginning to win the global readership and recognition it deserves," the prize's executive director, David Parker, said in a statement. A spokesman for the Man Group said that the firm would instead concentrate on the Man Booker Prize, one of the top awards in English-language literature, which on Oct 16 was awarded to British novelist Hilary Mantel. The 2011 Man Asian Literary Prize was awarded to South Korean author Kyung-sook Shin for her novel Please Look After Mom, a story about a family's guilty soul-searching after the disappearance of their elderly mother. – AFP

Big bucks for authors of erotic books Posted: 30 Oct 2012 07:35 AM PDT MAYA Banks (pic), already an established author of the KGI and Sweet erotic fiction series, has her Breathless trilogy, which is sure to interest readers of E.L. James' Fifty Shades, due in 2013. Penguin imprint Berkley Books snapped up the three novels for an undisclosed seven-figure sum, with the first book, Rush, due February 2013. Each follows one of three men, all of whom are billionaires, best friends, and like to "dominate in both the boardroom and the bedroom". The publishing house is evidently anticipating high demand for the Breathless trio, with Fever scheduled for April and Burn coming in August. The new books mean that two other Banks titles are being pushed back, with Theirs To Keep and Colters' Gift given the nudge. – AFP Relaxnews

Read without prejudice Posted: 30 Oct 2012 04:02 AM PDT Censorship is not the answer even when the written word can cause hurt and anger, says this bookworm and cultural commentator. READING between the lines is hard when a book pokes at soft spots in one's identity. According to recent news reports, Sikh elders in India are mulling over whether to ban J.K. Rowling's latest novel, her first for adults, The Casual Vacancy, because it has racial slurs within. The objectionable lines are uttered in the context of a bully tormenting his victim: A teenage character nicknamed Fats taunts classmate Sukhvinder Kaur by calling her "mustachioed, yet large-mammaried" or "a hairy man-woman", driving her to self-harm. When I read the book, it was clear to me that the author did not endorse the bully's views and was instead making a point about the real-life racism that minority groups in Britain endure. However, it appears that several complaints have been made about the "provocative language" to India's Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee, which manages Sikh places of worship. A spokesman added that religious elders are now reading the book. If it is deemed derogatory to the Sikh faith, they will demand that the book be banned in India and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who is a Sikh, "would be urged to take up the matter with the UK government to initiate action against the author". Coincidentally, the day this news story appeared in newspapers over here was the day I began reading Joseph Anton, British-Indian writer Salman Rushdie's recently released memoir. Rushdie is a celebrated fantasist, whose whimsical speculative fiction book Midnight's Children won the Booker Prize for Fiction in 1981. However, he is better known for the controversial 1988 novel, The Satanic Verses, which the then spiritual leader of Iran called "blasphemous". The late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini offered a bounty for the writer's death and Rushdie had to spend 10 years of his life in hiding. The fatwa, or edict, calling for his death has yet to be cancelled. I have never read The Satanic Verses, given the ban on its import in India and Singapore, so my only understanding of its content comes from the periphery and now from Rushdie's writing in Joseph Anton. The author, avowedly atheist although he grew up in a Muslim household, thought of The Satanic Verses as the "least political" of his books. He writes that it was a book that allowed him to address questions about his own existence and non-faith in a deity. So perhaps readers got him wrong? Perhaps they did not? Who can decide without reading the book and then engaging in rational discussion? In 2004, a group of right-wing Hindus attacked the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute in my hometown Pune in India because of the support it gave American scholar James Laine. Laine wrote a book, Shivaji, about the 17th-century Maratha warrior and king Shivaji and how this Hindu hero's legacy is perceived today. The book reported jokes hinting that Shivaji's mother might have had an affair, resulting in such an outcry that his book was banned in India until two years ago. Even today, discussion of the book tends to spark angry reactions. Books are banned because the authorities fear extreme reactions from those who would be angered by the text and because they fear how the text may be misused. Looking at the cases above, perhaps there are some books and ideas too sensitive to access and discuss today. But then let us also make the case for banning Lolita (1955), in which writer Vladimir Nabokov makes a paedophile memorable, or banning Beatrice And Virgil (2010), in which Yann Martel features a Nazi torturer in a somewhat sympathetic light, in spite of all his crimes. Shall we cut off access to any book that makes readers uncomfortable? Even if it is a book that depicts the world fearlessly? Even if the author's intent is to mirror real-life issues for readers to address, not to admire? How far then will censure or censorship go for those books that appear to be in complete opposition to our viewpoints, that deliberately set out to shake the foundations of those tenets we consider fundamental to our identities? We exist in an ever-shrinking world, and we come from so many different – even opposing – beliefs and faiths that we are bound to rub one another in the wrong way at some point. Rather than limiting access to controversial ideas, a task impossible in this Internet age, we need to create a safe place where we can talk about the things that bother us and listen without lashing out in anger, whether or not such a reaction is deserved. Recently, a Sikh girl in Britain who has been subjected to similar taunts as Rowling's character spoke in favour of the book. Aspiring medical student Balpreet Kaur wrote in The Guardian newspaper: "Rowling's character sheds light on a reality that the Sikh nation is still struggling to fully understand, acknowledge and accept: a reality of bullying, and superficial impressions." Like Rowling's character, Balpreet had her photograph posted online on a social-media site with taunting comments about her gender and facial hair. In an act of incredible compassion and intelligence, she reacted not with complaints to the authorities or mobilising an army of vengeful vandals but by responding directly to the bully on social news website Reddit. She explained her religious beliefs and said she accepted her body as it is. Here is where the story enters the realm of the miraculous: her tormentor apologised. "It was an incredibly rude, judgemental, and ignorant thing to post," he wrote in the comment thread. Conflict, engagement, explanation and finally, acceptance. This is the sort of narrative thread I love. This is the sort of narrative I hope we can keep reading and writing in real life, rather than simply closing the book. – The Straits Times, Singapore/Asia News Network > Literary journalist Akshita Nanda writes the Culture Vulture column in the Singapore Straits Times.

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