YOURSAY | ‘Chef Wan, you should not stand next to them if you don't want to get burnt.’
Don't slam me over S'wak laksa and cooking oil, says Chef Wan
Vijay47: I just cannot understand what this entire exercise was in aid of.
I don't even want to comment on celebrity chef Redzuawan Ismail, better known as Chef Wan, but I hope somebody can explain to me what was the purpose of cooking 1,500 servings of Sarawak laksa only to throw it away after the photo shoots.
Much as I have tried, I just cannot figure it out. Perhaps it was the arrogance of wealth - organise an event for fame and publicity, and then just discard the food. Let them eat cake?
Vent: I don't believe this! Perfectly good food thrown away? Then why bother with a record-breaking food feat?
Unless our food standards are so high and something went horribly wrong or because we live in the land of plenty?
But we truly deserve to be in the Guinness Book of Records - for the most amount of food wasted in one go, quite apart from the largest donation received by a sitting PM. Fame comes to us so easily.
Inworldnotof: The nakedness of the emperor and empress will rub off on you, Chef Wan. Why go near? You cannot have your cake and eat it, too. You got to make a stand.
When you chose to stand (or sit) beside them, you also have to be prepped for the flak that comes with this ferocious pack. Surely you know the kinds of international headlines that follow in their wake?
As an aside, Sarawak is truly in lala land with this telling episode. Not just here in the peninsula. The evil scent is doing its evil work still. The land is cursed as long as the lalala continues.
Anonymous_1390303981: You are a guest and you opined it as unwise. Did you register your "unwise" conclusion with the organiser and advise them what's wise to do? Please don't give unwise excuses.
Headhunter: True, why blame Chef Wan when they should be blaming the government? Don't whine if you voted BN and will do the same again in the next election.
Pity poor Malaysians who have to live with the rising cost of living. In the meantime, billions of our money are sucked up by thieving leaders and public servants.
As for the laksa incident, why are Malaysians so obsessed with and wasting their time with those silly biggest this and longest that which do not benefit anyone? Even schools are getting into the act. Don't they have better things to do?
The Analyser: The Malaysian Book of Silly Records. I mean, what sort of insecure nation are we that we need to have our own Book of Records? As if the biggest Sarawak laksa means anything to anybody.
Responsible Malaysian: The event is to prove to the rural folk that our leaders have tried very hard to put Malaysia on the world stage. We are proud that we have broken many world records even though the standard of living of rakyat is heading south swiftly.
The Analyser, most ordinary Malaysians who are rational do not do this stupid thing. It is just that some stupid and irrational leaders keep repeating these stupid acts.
Unfortunately, others are given the impression that we are stupid and irrational. Without these stupid leaders, we are easily recognised as one of the most talent and respected groups on the world stage.
Fairplayer: My dear Chef Wan and all who "believe" in healthier cooking - must the cooking oil subsidy be removed in order to teach the rakyat to cook and eat healthily?
Isn't educating people about good nutrition and healthy cooking enough to promote healthy diet? What a lame excuse.
MA: Let's contrast this sinful wastage with poor soul Mohd Sukri Saad who was demonised for selling contraband goods and took his own life. I hope these people who wasted such food have a conscience.
Old Timer: I don’t understand what Malaysians are trying to do - biggest mooncake, biggest pizza, largest bowl of Sarawak laksa, etc. Why waste money, resources, food, time and energy, which benefit no one, except to put some name in the book of records.
Spend more time and energy to make Malaysia a better place to live, a more democratic country, a peaceful nation without racial discrimination and religious intolerance, and no police reports.
Rakyat-in-Grief: It is an unpardonable crime to waste such a large quantity of food items when there are people dying of starvation in different parts of the world.
Anonymous_3f6d: Basically, Chef Wan, you should not stand next to them if you don't want to get burnt.
Redefining tourism in Malaysia
Anonymous_1390110279: This really isn't hard. Look at the most popular tourist spots in the world; there are three types of tourist locations that compete for top spots:
1) Rich art and culture (Paris, Rome).
2) Open and free lifestyles (Singapore, Tokyo, London, New York).
3) Party time (Brazil, New Orleans, Bangkok, Greece)
Great beaches, cheap beer and ‘friendly’ locals are a good draw, too - think Bali as the safe haven for all kinds of freedoms in the sand.
Note that Malaysia has none of these, and can't until we embrace a world culture rather than an isolated one that restricts people’s choices and only presents localised selections.
Go to Sydney and look around, that is what we need to do to attract tourists.
The Analyser: Writer Stephen Ng, clearly you are tailoring your ideal tourist project for those mindless travellers from a country to the north.
Those people who want everything done for them, to mindlessly do and buy the standard tourist fare and go home with a selfie taken in front of every tourists feature from A to Z.
We are living in a globalised world - one can stay in five-star hotels anywhere, one can buy Thai fisherman's trousers anywhere. You can photoshop your face onto any scene. I would suggest that what real tourists want is to see the real Malaysia.
Unfortunately, the real Malaysia is full of rude, ignorant people who think only of money and doing as much as possible to make one of the most naturally beautiful countries into close to being the ugliest in the world.
Real tourists gain more from a visit to a ‘pasar malam’ (night market) and from drinking fresh coconut water at the steps up to the temple in Batu Caves. But there is no money to be made from that sort of tourism, so back to the mindless hordes.
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