News Today

All's fair game in the blogosphere - or is it?
KUALA LUMPUR - WHEN a manager of an Islamic insurance company sent an e-mail asking Muslim staff not to offer Deepavali greetings to Hindus last October, it quickly became the talk in this city.The diktat, a show of religious insensitivity, resulted... [Read more]

Top MBA list: NTU up 35 spots
SIX years ago, Chinese national Peng Hong Jiang earned $46,000 annually as an assistant finance manager in a logistics firm here. Now, armed with a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Nanyang Technological University (NTU), the 38-year-old takes home nearly three... [Read more]

With organ trading, patients have a window of hope to a longer life
I have visited terminally or seriously ill friends and relatives in their homes and also at hospitals. The agony and distress the patients go through daily cannot be fully appreciated by the healthy and fit.It is in this context that I... [Read more]

Federer perfect in 10th Slam win
MELBOURNE - ROGER Federer achieved a perfect 10 at the Australian Open yesterday - and there was not a tear in sight. The champion quelled the challenge of swashbuckling Chilean Fernando Gonzalez 7-6 (7-2), 6-4, 6-4 to lift Grand Slam trophy... [Read more]

Australians need to find solutions quickly
MELBOURNE - SIX losses in seven games and a growing injury list are enough for Australia to panic.The defending Cricket World Cup champions are reeling from a 0-3 pummelling by New Zealand in the Chappell-Hadlee series.More worryingly, their opener Matthew Hayden... [Read more]

INSIDE SCOOP on gelato business
WHAT on earth does an engineer know about ice cream? Well, here's the scoop from Mr Michael Koh - it tastes good and there is a dollar or two to be made out of it. The engineer with a sweet tooth... [Read more]

Benitez irks Everton with 'small club' label
LIVERPOOL - THE Merseyside derby on Saturday may have been forgettable, but Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez still managed to inflame local passions.He compared neighbours Everton with 'the small clubs' who come to Anfield bent on damage limitation, reported the Daily Mail.... [Read more]

SME clinic
AFTER months of research, my newly formed company will produce biodiesel on a small commercial scale. We need technical and financial assistance to jump-start this venture. What assistance can we expect from Spring? You may wish to explore the following programmes.... [Read more]

Toyota begins the year in No. 2 spot for US car sales
DETROIT - TOYOTA posted a rise in last month's United States car sales on Thursday, claiming the No. 2 spot in the world's largest market for cars and trucks.It was helped by a sharp fall in sales by rival Ford Motor.Top... [Read more]

Police inquiry ordered into botched murder investigation
KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIA'S police chief has ordered an inquiry into the botched investigation of the murder of a 21-year-old which led to the case being thrown out of court earlier this week.The collapse of the Mohd Hosni Fadzil Mohd Amin... [Read more]

North Korean leader's son 'living quiet life in Macau'
HONG KONG - THE eldest son of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il has been living a low-key but well-off life in Macau for the past three years, a Hong Kong paper reported yesterday. Mr Kim Jong Nam, 35, and his... [Read more]

It's easy to be seduced by Kop's charm

IT WAS another classic Anfield European night on Tuesday.

Liverpool lost the battle, won the war and wowed their new owners. It was even more poignant watching it with Michael Thomas.

He is best known for his last-gasp, title-winning goal at Anfield for Arsenal in that amazing finale to the 1989 season.

As pundit Steve McMahon kept telling, Liverpool could afford to lose 0-1, but not 2-0.

Thomas was at the game with a host of ex-players because he considers Liverpool his footballing home.

He may have had only six seasons at Anfield but, when it comes to Masters tournaments, he joins Alan Kennedy, John Barnes and the lads, rather than Arsenal's old boys.

He is a classic case of a player who has been seduced by the singular charm of Liverpool FC.

At half- and full-time, he was joined by the likes of Barnes, Jimmy Case, Tommy Smith and Bruce Grobbelaar.

They marvelled at a match which Liverpool should have won at a canter, but became an exercise in tactical acumen and dogged defence.

In the Directors' Lounge, new Liverpool owner Tom Hicks demonstrated the same wide-eyed astonishment at a night that had begun and ended with a nerve-tingling rendition of 'You'll Never Walk Alone'.

Said the 60-year-old Texan: 'I'd heard so much about the fans here and they were spectacular, the Kop especially.

'I've seen a lot of sporting events, but nothing comes close to this. Will I always have this much fun when I come to Anfield?'

Co-owner George Gillett Jr said: 'That was awesome. It was like nothing I've seen or felt before.'

As any first-time visitor will tell you, it comes as a shock to discover this temple of football is surrounded by boarded-up, rundown houses waiting to be demolished.

Liverpool FC's ticketing office and community/PR departments are housed in two modest old houses just along the Shankly Gates. Glamorous it most certainly isn't.

Just as well then that the Americans have been careful to assure fans that the new Stanley Park Stadium will be state-of-the-art but also mindful of tradition.

It will definitely contain a 'Kop-style' stand, larger than the rest.

It takes a European night at Anfield to school newcomers in the Liverpool way.

It takes sights like that of Steve McMahon reverentially touching the 'This Is Anfield' sign in the tunnel - or Kenny Dalglish sweeping into the foyer crackling with enthusiasm for the match ahead - to fully comprehend what happens to players, fans and owners alike once they become part of Liverpool FC.

'En Rafa Confidiamos (in Rafa we trust)', read one of the banners at last Saturday's clash with Manchester United.

Provided his new paymasters hand him the cash to acquire a world-class striker, there is every reason to believe that league and European glory might soon be within the manager's reach.

Anyone who was at both games will tell you there is a buzz about the club and the city.

The only downside: Tuesday was David Moores' last game as chairman.

However, as skipper Steven Gerrard said: 'He'll still be a big part of the club.'

Just like Michael Thomas, Macca and the rest of the Liverpool Family.

stsports@sph.com.sg



John Dykes is the lead presenter of the English Premier League and the host of Football Focus on ESPN.

News Today

Lying over visit passes: ICA officer charged
AN IMMIGRATION and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officer was charged in court yesterday with two counts of helping two Filipinas get visit passes by lying that they would be staying at his home.Mohammad Radzi Mohd Kassim, 34, is accused of abetting Pauline... [Read more]

DPP's 'four heavenly kings' face graft probe
TAIPEI - FOUR leading members of Taiwan's ruling party, including Vice-President Annette Lu, will be investigated for corruption, a prosecutor's office said yesterday, a day after the head of the main opposition party was charged with graft. The prosecutor's office said... [Read more]

Forget sex, clothes come first for US women
NEW YORK - GIVEN a choice between sex and a new wardrobe, most women will go for the clothes.In a survey spanning 10 cities in the US, women on average said that they would be willing to give up sex for... [Read more]

Peace process 'won't be sabotaged'
NEW DELHI - NAMED the Samjhauta or Friendship Express, the train service has been disrupted many times in the past because of militant attacks. But this time, despite two explosions late on Sunday about 80km north of the Indian capital city,... [Read more]

All's fair game in the blogosphere - or is it?
KUALA LUMPUR - WHEN a manager of an Islamic insurance company sent an e-mail asking Muslim staff not to offer Deepavali greetings to Hindus last October, it quickly became the talk in this city.The diktat, a show of religious insensitivity, resulted... [Read more]

Bouquets
WHEELCHAIR HELP FOR WIFE AT AIRPORT MY WIFE and I had a comfortable flight on Indian Airlines from Chennai and landed at the Changi airport around 8.30pm on Jan 29. After stepping out from the plane we walked a distance in... [Read more]

West Ham heading south
LONDON - WEST Ham's battle for Premiership survival took a blow after a devastating defeat by rock-bottom Watford at Upton Park. Watford won 1-0, courtesy of Darius Henderson's first-half penalty on Saturday. West Ham could have earned a draw. But Marlon... [Read more]

Bad experience with anti-virus software
Let me relate my bad experience with Norton products.The Norton Anti-Virus program had been working fine on my notebook but not since I upgraded it to Norton Internet Security 2006.Initially, I thought it could provide greater protection to my notebook compared... [Read more]

News Headlines
Parliament ShortsINCOME CEILING: HDB TO BE FLEXIBLE INCOME ceilings are still needed for purchases of subsidised Housing Board flats, but HDB will be flexible if families are in difficulty, said Minister of State (National Development) Grace Fu yesterday.Income ceilings help ensure... [Read more]

Quick News
ROAD CLOSURES IN CHINATOWN SEVERAL roads in Chinatown will be closed to traffic from today, in the run-up to Chinese New Year.To facilitate the light-up ceremony there tonight, New Bridge Road between Upper Cross Street and Kreta Ayer Road, and Eu... [Read more]

Growing trend
AD AGENCY Y&R Singapore stepped up its PR efforts this month by hiring Mr Justin Low, 30, from Grayling Public Relations to manage its publicity affairs. Mr Charles Sng, who specialises in marketing communications at headhunting firm Aquent, says it is... [Read more]

News Today

O-level results out on Friday
THE 2006 GCE O-level examination results will be released on Friday. School candidates can collect their results from their schools at 2.30pm on that day. Private candidates will be informed of their results by post. They can also access their results... [Read more]

Cold War foes meet as defence chiefs
WHEN US Defence Secretary Robert Gates shook hands in Seville with his Russian counterpart Sergei Ivanov, it was a Cold War reunion of sorts.As a Soviet analyst, Mr Gates rose to the top of the Central Intelligence Agency during the Cold... [Read more]

Govt shows its capitalist head, socialist heart
A CAN-DO Budget with buzz. And one that positions Singapore to run the next lap of the global economy, even as it beefs up social-security spending to take care of those who can't run as fast. That's what Second Finance Minister... [Read more]

Khaw wants housewives, young on MediShield
HOUSEWIVES and the young are two groups that Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan wants to see brought under MediShield, the national insurance scheme. About 200,000 housewives and 400,000 people under the age of 20 are not covered. It is not because... [Read more]

Shanghai ex-party boss to go on trial
SHANGHAI - FORMER Shanghai leader Chen Liangyu will go on trial for his alleged role in a multi million-dollar graft scandal, a senior court official said in comments published yesterday.The deputy chief of Shanghai's Higher People's Court, Ms Liu Hua, did... [Read more]

Rocket attack on Shi'ite procession
PESHAWAR - TWO people died in a town in north-western Pakistan when a rocket attack on a Shi'ite Muslim procession sparked a burst of sectarian violence yesterday, police and officers said. The pre-dawn rocket attack was the latest in a string... [Read more]

Australians need to find solutions quickly
MELBOURNE - SIX losses in seven games and a growing injury list are enough for Australia to panic.The defending Cricket World Cup champions are reeling from a 0-3 pummelling by New Zealand in the Chappell-Hadlee series.More worryingly, their opener Matthew Hayden... [Read more]

Saddam is still a hero to some in India
NEW DELHI - WHEN violence broke out last weekend in Bangalore during a demonstration over the execution of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, many were surprised.Bangalore, India's IT hub, rarely witnesses such demonstrations.Perhaps more puzzling was the fact that the end... [Read more]

Lost Thai mother found, thanks to a simple song
DUSONGYO (THAILAND) - A THAI mother who was lost for 25 years after catching the wrong bus home has spoken of her ordeal after being reunited with her family, thanks to a simple song. The last time Ms Jaeyaena Beuraheng saw... [Read more]

Woods to face Ryder Cup mate Henry
ARIZONA - TOP-RANKED Tiger Woods got a new first-round opponent in the WGC Matchplay Championship - his Ryder Cup teammate J.J. Henry.The top 64 golfers in the world rankings qualify for the tournament, which starts tomorrow.Henry is ranked 65th, but replaces... [Read more]

'Free' Melbourne events more often than not well worth a ticket price
I refer to Ms Siti Aisha Mostafa's letter, 'Appreciation of the arts sorely missing' (Online forum, Jan 30).In it she mentioned: 'While working for the Singapore Biennale 2006, I came to realise that the majority of the crowd came only during... [Read more]

News Today

Micro-Mechanics profit soars a fifth at half-time
PRECISION tools maker Micro-Mechanics has reported a 20.9 per cent rise in half-time net profit to $4.4 million. Revenue for the six months ended Dec 31 was up 15.2 per cent at $17.7 million. To reward shareholders, the Sesdaq company is... [Read more]

Suicide bomber kills 3 in Israel
An Israeli medic wheels a stretcher holding a body bag from the scene of a suicide attack, which ripped through a bakery in the southern Israeli resort town of Eilat yesterday. Three people were killed by the Palestinian suicide bomber, in... [Read more]

Tense Hariri anniversary
WHAT IT IS WITH the anniversary of former Lebanon prime minister Rafik Hariri's slaying this week, fears are increasing in downtown Beirut of a possibly explosive stand-off between government supporters called to the site of his grave and opposition protesters camped... [Read more]

Tokyo records longest snowless winter
TOKYO yesterday set a record for its longest snowless winter amid growing worldwide concern about global warming. The metropolitan area of the capital has not had snow this season, making it the longest snowless winter since statistics were first kept in... [Read more]

No headway in Iran's nuke stand-off
DEFYING innumerable United Nations Security Council resolutions, Iran let on earlier this week that it has set up more than 300 centrifuges in two uranium enrichment units at its underground Natanz complex. The country's nuclear programme is therefore set to go... [Read more]

KL ministers clueless on foreign vehicle levy
PUTRAJAYA - IT'S all systems go - apparently - to begin charging Singapore vehicles RM20 (S$9) to enter Malaysia but top officials still seem to be uncertain when or even who would be collecting the money. No one was able to... [Read more]

NUS scientists shed light on jumping spiders' sexual behaviour
HITTING the lights is usually synonymous with getting romantic - but not for jumping spiders. These leaping arachnids only get frisky with the lights on. Local scientists have found out that ultraviolet (UV) light influences their sexual behaviour, the first time... [Read more]

They lie for love of the game
THREE colleagues are so adamant on watching the Asean Football Championship second-leg final between Thailand and Singapore that they even lied to their boyfriends and fathers. Nazeera Adam, Farhana Kamsan and Noor Ellyannie, all Singapore Airlines customer service agents, told the... [Read more]

EMI receives buyout offer from Warner Music
LONDON - EMI Group said it received a takeover approach from Warner Music Group less than a year after both had abandoned efforts to buy each other. There is currently no proposal for its board to consider and no certainty that... [Read more]

Flu-hit Mahathir admitted to hospital
IN KUALA LUMPUR - FORMER Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad was admitted to the National Heart Institute yesterday for observation and tests after suffering a bout of flu at the weekend. His press aide, Mr Sufi Yusoff, said Tun Dr Mahathir,... [Read more]

Hardline Thai general to head phone corporation
BANGKOK - SAPRANG Kalyanamitr, a top general with a hardline reputation, was on Thursday given additional charge of a major public enterprise when he was appointed chairman of the board of TOT (Telephones of Thailand Plc). TOT has exclusive rights to... [Read more]

News Today

Britain to extend LSE's tax breaks to other bourses
LONDON - BRITAIN announced plans yesterday to extend tax benefits currently enjoyed by members of the London Stock Exchange (LSE) to members of other trading exchanges, including European bourses. The Treasury said the changes were part of a broader liberalisation of... [Read more]

West Ham heading south
LONDON - WEST Ham's battle for Premiership survival took a blow after a devastating defeat by rock-bottom Watford at Upton Park. Watford won 1-0, courtesy of Darius Henderson's first-half penalty on Saturday. West Ham could have earned a draw. But Marlon... [Read more]

Pilot shortage forces Jetstar to cancel over 80 flights
A PILOT scarcity and the grounding of planes for routine maintenance has forced low-cost carrier Jetstar Asia to cancel more than 80 flights in the past six weeks. Passengers hit by the cancellations - more than 15 per cent of the... [Read more]

Joint military exercise in July still on
THAILAND'S Air Chief Marshal Chalit Pukbhasuk yesterday said a joint Thai-Singapore military exercise planned for July would go ahead as scheduled. The air force chief, who is vice-chairman of the military Council for National Security, told reporters there was no truth... [Read more]

Industry snapshot
ENVIRONMENT ENGINEERING SERVICES INDUSTRYEmployment: About 43,000 people in 2003Sectors: Industry covers environmental services, process control and instrumentation, and engineering services.Value-add: This industry's value-add contribution is high at $2.5 billion. Value-add is the value created by a company through its production process... [Read more]

Gerrard knows Liverpool's job is not done yet
BARCELONA - STEVEN Gerrard will not underestimate Barcelona ahead of their Champions League second-leg match at Anfield on March 6.The Reds claimed the upper hand in the last-16 tie with a 2-1 win at the Nou Camp on Wednesday.Liverpool are in... [Read more]

8 Iranians nabbed in Gaza as Hamas-Fatah truce collapses
GAZA - EIGHT Iranian citizens were arrested and a Palestinian intelligence chief loyal to Fatah killed, after a shaky truce in the territory broke down on Thursday. At least 10 people have been killed and at least 100 wounded in fighting... [Read more]

Beijing manners improve, but not enough for Olympics
BEIJING - A CAMPAIGN to improve the manners of Beijing's queue-jumping residents ahead of the Olympics is showing results, although a gold-medal standard is still a long way off, state press reported yesterday.Incidents of littering, spitting, flouting of traffic rules and... [Read more]

Dressing-down for scantily clad actress
A STUDENT-ACTRESS has caused a stir in Thailand and made university officials see red after she wore a slinky black gown to the country's top film awards ceremony.Chotiros 'Amy' Suriyawong, a third-year liberal arts student at leading Thammasat University, set tongues... [Read more]

Lawmakers want Jakarta to get tough with S'pore
JAKARTA - SOME Indonesian lawmakers want Jakarta to put more pressure on Singapore to sign an extradition treaty, saying the ban on sand exports was not enough.'We need to take much tougher measures against them. I don't know, but the government... [Read more]

Rival offers BA passengers free train rides
LONDON - SIR Richard Branson's Virgin Trains has added to the embarrassment of British Airways (BA) by offering free first-class train seats to customers affected by BA's cabin crew strike, which was later called off.The airline said yesterday it would reinstate... [Read more]

News Today

Trans fat labelling: A mathematical poser
Here is another question to add to the list provided by Mr Yeo Chow Khoon in his letter, 'Some questions remain on trans fat labelling' (ST, Feb 13).My question is this: How much is 0.4 x 5? Is it 2, as... [Read more]

Awarding points to students for community work defeats purpose of education
I agree with Mr Kenneth Cheng's sentiments in his letter, 'Community involvement in schools should go beyond fund-raising and litter picking' (ST, Jan 24).I feel that the idea of awarding 'points' to students for contributing to the community or helping the... [Read more]

The forthright and often sceptical Pig
Denise PhuaBorn on Dec 9, 1959NEVER mind what the school textbooks say.People's Action Party MP Denise Phua believes that the communists jailed by the PAP government in the 1960s were not necessarily dangerous villains.'From what I read, it would appear that... [Read more]

Bond in China at last
Three women in Shanghai strike the same pose as James Bond in Casino Royale, which made its debut in cinemas around China yesterday. Casino Royale is the first of the 21 Bond films to earn approval from censors in China, and... [Read more]

Bouquets
FREE TICKETS TO A GREAT MATCHMY BOYFRIEND and I would like to thank a middle-aged couple who offered us their extra set of grandstand tickets to the Singapore-Malaysia football match at the National Stadium on Saturday.The kind couple gave us the... [Read more]

Citigroup CEO faces the law of large numbers
NEW YORK - CITIGROUP's problems may be intractable.Mr Charles Prince, chief executive (CEO) of the biggest United States bank since 2003, has been shuffling top management and attacking expenses in an effort to match the profit gains of his rivals.Mr Prince,... [Read more]

Child car seats in cabs
COULD cab companies consider providing child car seats in taxis? They could do so for a small fee or better still as a complimentary service. This would benefit parents without a car and tourists with children.As there are different types of... [Read more]

Ex-immigration officer jailed for taking bribes
A FORMER Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officer who took bribes from two men for wrongfully granting 14-day social visit passes to foreign women was yesterday sentenced to two years in jail.Siti Sarina Mohamed Kassim, now unemployed, was also ordered to... [Read more]

Qantas suitor rules out higher offer
SYDNEY - A PRIVATE equity consortium bidding for Australia's iconic airline Qantas Airways yesterday rejected speculation that it would increase its A$11 billion (S$13 billion) takeover bid. In lodging its offer with Qantas shareholders, Airline Partners Australia (APA) confirmed that the... [Read more]

Tang yuan twist wins food design prize
A TWIST to the recipe for conventional glutinous rice balls has won four boys the top prize of $500 in a food design competition. Known to the Chinese as tang yuan, these appear no different from the original version at first... [Read more]

Cargo carrier ties up with Japanese shipping giant
SINGAPORE'S first privately-owned cargo carrier has entered into a joint venture with a Japanese shipping company and aims to take to the skies by May.It will start flying with one Boeing 747-200 freighter with four more all-cargo planes to join the... [Read more]