SIR EDMUND HILLARY (1919 - 2008)

Sir Edmund Hillary, the New Zealand icon who became the first man to ascend Mount Everest, has passed away aged 88.

Announcing Sir Edmund’s death in Auckland after a brief illness, New Zealand’s prime minister described him as a “heroic figure who not only ‘knocked off’ Everest but lived a life of determination, humility and generosity”.

“The legendary mountaineer, adventurer, and philanthropist is the best-known New Zealander ever to have lived,” Ms Clark said in a statement.

“But most of all he was a quintessential Kiwi.”

“He was ours - from his craggy appearance to laconic style to his directness and honesty. All New Zealanders will deeply mourn his passing.”

Simple and humble, Sir Edmund spent most of his life in philanthropy, raising funds and building infrastructure for the people of Nepal.

In the years that followed his famous ascent, he shunned the celebrity that had become his overnight.

On the 50th anniversary of his achievement, he even turned down an invitation from the Queen, so that he could instead travel to Kathmandu to be with lifelong Sherpa friends.

Although he will always be remembered for reaching the world’s highest plateau, for the explorer himself, his greatest satisfaction came with the Nepalese people he befriended.

He said: “My most worthwhile things have been the building of schools and clinics. That has given me more satisfaction than a footprint on a mountain.”

Sir Edmund Hillary remained philosophical about living with such an early achievement. He explained: “I’ve had a full and rewarding life. Life’s a bit like mountaineering - never look down.”

Goodbye, Sir Edmund. Thank you for all you’ve done. You will be deeply missed.

NEED AN EDITOR?

 

Just posted this up on my website, so I thought I might as well put it up here as well:

Kia ora! Hello and welcome!

My name is John Ling and I am a writer based in New Zealand.

I write mysteries and thrillers, and have appeared in American, British, and Malaysian publications. My book of short stories, Fourteen Bullets, is currently available from Silver Lake Publishing. In 2005, I was nominated as Most Outstanding Youth at the AYA Dream Malaysia Awards.

Currently, I am offering my services as a proofreader and editor. I can go through your written work and polish up grammar, spelling, punctuation, flow, and clarity. If you have a short story or a novel, I can also provide full critiquing and guide you on style, plot, pace, and characterisation. My rates are negotiable and I work hard to give you a swift and efficient turnaround.

Do email me to find out more.

HOLIER THAN THOU?

In Chua Soi Lek’s own words:

Well, after I made the confession, I hoped Malaysians would be able to accept my apology. But unfortunately, based on the feedback that I have received, I observed that Malaysians were unable to do that. Some Malaysians can be said to be “holier than thou”. This means they are all ulama (religious teachers). So, I think if I continue to hold positions in the party or Government, this will be a burden to the Government and party, especially in the context of Islam Hadhari. And also in the context of what has been recommended by my president, which is healthy political culture.

However, I hope my resignation, which is based supposedly on moral issues, will be a lesson to other leaders, whether from the MCA or any other component party. I think anyone who has made a mistake or has certain weaknesses, then he has to be responsible as a leader.

And I have already stepped forward in front of not only the leaders of the country and party but the people. And it looks like it cannot be accepted. So, I think it is better for my family and I that I resign so that I will not be a burden to the country’s leadership.

Let’s switch gears for a moment.

There is a certain journalist in New Zealand who hosts politicians on her weekly radio show. She has a fiery and confrontational style, where everything is fair game, and nothing is taboo. She will probe and attack and insult. Whatever it takes to get answers.

Her reasoning?

Politicians have made a conscious choice to enter public office. And in doing so, they give up their rights as private citizens, and become public property. We own them. They are answerable to us. And if they can’t stand the heat, then they can step down from public office, and scurry back to their lives as private citizens.

But having said that, isn’t it odd for Malaysians to attack a man for sexual immorality, while ignoring the misdeeds of other politicians who have done much, much worse?

STRANGER THAN FICTION?

As we enter 2008, we get this as a sordid New Year present:

Malaysian Health Minister Chua Soi Lek has announced his resignation after admitting being filmed in a sex video.

The widely circulated recording showed the married father of three having sex with a female friend in a hotel room.

On Tuesday, amid mounting speculation, he shocked the nation by admitting to being the man featured in the DVD.

This is the latest in a series of problems for PM Abdullah Badawi, who is expected to call an election in the coming weeks.

What is remarkable about this scandal is that it actually mimics a story I wrote several months ago. I abandoned that one because I thought it was too misogynistic and far-fetched.

But now, considering the circumstances, I’m spooked.

LITERARY VERSUS GENRE FICTION

A friend sent me this controversial review.

The introduction is most interesting:

It’s tough, being a writer nowadays.

The art of letters is that of thought, and if there is a single word that describes the thinking of our age, it is “sophistication” — of breadth, at least, if not of depth. Magazines feature stories about the toothpick as a metaphor of innovation and entrepreneurial canniness, poetry regularly takes off into weird spaces, and children’s stories deal with atheism and republicanism.

The cheap paper on which genre works are printed belie their value: Walter Mosley’s hardboiled detectives are vessels for commentary on race relations; the vampires-and-spaceships vision of Peter Watts is an exercise in hard-science futurology.

The reviewer goes on to attack Silverfish’s latest release, News From Home. It is literary fiction, yet pales in comparison to the richness and maturity of genre fiction by writers such as Mosley and Watts.

The irony, of course, is that Mosley and Watts are pariahs in the eyes of the literary elite. Their works are dismissed as crude, vulgar, and unrefined. Stories for the unwashed masses.

But the common folk have always known the truth: there are no inferior genres, only inferior practitioners of genres.

Writing literary fiction only elevates a writer if he does it well.

What do you think?