10 Perkara Yang Kita Suka Sangat Setiap Kali Hari Raya Tiba

10 Perkara Yang Kita Suka Sangat Setiap Kali Hari Raya Tiba

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Kehebatan Seorang Lelaki...

Rangka tulang disahkan milik Raja England

GAMBAR menunjukkan lubang kubur yang mengandungi rangka tulang Raja Richard III di Leicester.

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LEICESTER - Identiti satu rangka tulang yang ditemui di dalam tanah di sebuah tempat meletak kereta di sini telah disahkan para saintis sebagai Raja Richard III yang pernah memerintah England.

Para penyelidik dari Universiti Leicester mendapati keputusan ujian asid deoksiribonukleik (DNA) pada rangka tulang berusia 500 tahun itu sepadan dengan seorang keturunan adik perempuan raja tersebut.

Ujian DNA yang dibuat itu melibatkan seorang pembuat perabot yang dilahirkan di Kanada, Michael Ibsen.

Ibsen merupakan keturunan adik raja itu, Anne of York.

Kesan kecederaan yang didapati pada rangka tulang itu adalah akibat satu pertempuran.
Pengumuman itu dibuat oleh seorang pakar arkeologi, Richard Buckley pada satu sidang akhbar di universiti tersebut semalam.

Rangka tulang itu ditemui pada September 2012. 

Raja itu meninggal dunia dalam pertempuran Bosworth yang berlaku pada tahun 1485.
Mayat baginda kemudian diarak dalam keadaan bogel dan berlumuran darah dari medan pertempuran ke Leicester, tengah England sebelum dikebumikan di sebuah kubur tanpa batu nisan di Greyfriars di sini.

Menurut Buckley, rangka tulang tersebut akan dikebumikan di Gereja Leicester di sini. - Agensi

Four days to go until the Mayan Doomsday

If you’re seriously concerned about the world ending on Friday, then this could be just the ticket.

Ron Hubbard has built a luxurious underground bomb-proof shelter in Montebello, California, with a leather sofa, plasma TV and wooden flooring - just in case the Mayans’ predictions come true.

The civilisation’s Long Count calendar which began 5,125 years ago in 3113 B.C. ends on December 21, 2012 - sparking fears among a small group of people that a major catastrophe could happen.

Bomb-proof: Children test out the bunk beds in the underground survival shelter in Montebello, California

Going underground: The luxurious bomb, nuclear and chemical weapon-proof bunkers are kitted out with beds, kitchens, flushing toilets and even fireplaces - and sell for an average price of £46,000 based on fittings

Handle: A young girl stands in the bunker, which has a leather sofa, plasma TV and wooden flooring

Mr Hubbard manufactures hi-tech underground ‘recreational bomb shelters’ - and has seen his business boom from selling one a month to one a day in the past year.

THE END - OR A NEW CALENDAR?

Inscriptions in Mexico refer to Bolon Yokte - a god associated with war and the underworld - 'descending from the sky' at the end of a 13th period of 400 years on December 21 2012.

But many Mayan experts believe the ‘apocalypse’ concept is a false interpretation of their 5,125-year Long Count cycle as Friday simply marks the start of a new calendar.

The luxurious bomb, nuclear and chemical weapon-proof bunkers are kitted out with beds, kitchens, flushing toilets and even fireplaces - and sell for an average price of £46,000.

Mr Hubbard revealed that he is currently rushing the instalment of two shelters - one in New York and another in Indiana - in time for the potential Doomsday anticipated by some people this Friday.

He said: ‘I will be heading into my shelter on December 21 just because I have one and if any of the astrophysicists are right, I would feel really stupid.

Tidy: The 500 sq ft cylindrical shelters - produced in California - each measure 10ft in diameter and 50ft long

Home comforts: A bed is prepared in the shelter with the Chile flag on the pillows and duvet cover

Practical: The bunkers have escape tunnels with one sided hatches which can only open from the inside, as well as sealed contamination rooms between the entrance and living areas

‘I've sold shelters to astrophysicists who believe there is a possibility that we could be hit with a strong solar flare or large amounts of radiation. 

'I will be heading into my shelter on December 21 just because I have one and if any of the astrophysicists are right, I would feel really stupid'

Ron Hubbard, shelter manufacturer

‘I'll spend three days underground in the shelter just to be safe. If you have a shelter you might as well go in it. I don't think anything will happen but you never know.’

The 500 sq ft cylindrical shelters - produced at Mr Hubbard’s based in California - each measure 10ft in diameter and 50ft long.

They have escape tunnels with one sided hatches which can only open from the inside, as well as sealed contamination rooms between the entrance and living areas.

But they have proved popular not just with those preparing for armageddon, but hunters too.

Installation: The chambers are mean to be installed 20 feet underground - offering comfort as the world falls apart around you

Relax in comfort: A leather sofa and basins can be found inside the Doomsday underground bunker

Space optimization: There are a range of shelters for sale- this one being cheaper than the luxury edition

Mr Hubbard said: ‘I started making them because I wanted one for myself, but didn't want to pay $1million (£600,000) to $2million (£1.2million) for them.

'I'll spend three days underground in the shelter just to be safe. If you have a shelter you might as well go in it. I don't think anything will happen but you never know'

Ron Hubbard, shelter manufacturer

‘We get a lot of people who buy the shelters as a form of insurance for the worst case scenario. Just like someone would buy fire insurance in case their home suffers a fire.

‘We have gone from selling one a month to one a day in the past year since Obama's re-election.
‘Many people are afraid of economic meltdown, others simply want to have one just in case something catastrophic does happen.

‘People love them. They make a very nice hunting cabin or weekend retreat, so they don't just have to sit there waiting for a catastrophe.’

Creature comforts: The small dining area with an ornament on the side is reminiscent of a table at a diner

Home made: There is a mini fridge and microwave in the shelter but little other space for food preparation

Tight quarters: Visitors likened the California shelter to a studio apartment when they looked around

CCTV with a view of the world upstairs: Add a few trinkets and posters and you have a home from home

Kemasyhuran keluarga Saud

KEMATIAN dua Putera Mahkota Arab Saudi dalam tempoh enam bulan tidak menggugat sistem beraja di negara yang menempatkan dua tanah haram itu - Mekah dan Madinah. Putera Nayef Abdul Aziz, 78, yang menggantikan abangnya, Putera Sultan, Oktober tahun lalu, meninggal dunia baru-baru ini.

Berikutan itu, Putera Salman, 77, dilantik menjadi Putera Mahkota yang baharu sekali gus dilihat bakal mewarisi takhta daripada abangnya, Raja Abdullah, 89.

Selepas zaman Rasulullah SAW dan para sahabat, dua tanah haram itu ditadbir oleh monarki daripada kerajaan Umayyah, Abasiyyah dan Uthmaniah.

Raja Abdullah mula memegang tampuk pemerintahan selepas kematian Raja Fahd pada 1 Ogos 2005.

Sistem beraja di Arab Saudi sememangnya unik. Di samping raja memiliki kuasa mutlak, pewaris takhta bukannya daripada bapa kepada anak sebaliknya dalam kalangan anak lelaki pengasas negara Arab Saudi moden, Raja Abdul Aziz Saud. Beliau mempunyai kira-kira 25 anak lelaki.

Raja Abdul Aziz Saud menjadi Raja Arab Saudi pada 23 September 1932 dengan meletakkan bahasa Arab sebagai bahasa rasmi manakala al-Quran sebagai sumber undang-undang negara.

Walaupun memiliki kuasa mutlak, pemerintah negara itu masih terselamat daripada gelombang kebangkitan rakyat yang telah menjatuhkan pemimpin di Tunisia, Mesir dan Libya.

RAJA ABDULLAH (kanan) bertemu Raja Bahrain, Raja Hamad Isa al-Khalifa di Jeddah. Hanya lima negara Arab yang masih mengamalkan sistem pemerintahan beraja.

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Seorang penganalisis politik, Prof. Datuk Dr. Zainal Kling, berkata Raja Abdul Aziz telah meletakkan asas yang kukuh bagi memastikan sistem pemerintahan beraja di negara itu mampu bertahan lama.

"Kebanyakan jawatan penting dipegang oleh anak dan saudara-mara Raja Abdul Aziz. Ini secara tidak langsung mengukuhkan legasi pemerintahannya. Ia terus kekal dan dominan.

"Selain itu, undang-undang diwujudkan untuk menghalang sebarang anasir yang sengaja diwujudkan oleh pihak tertentu bagi menggugat sistem pemerintahan monarki ini," terang Zainal kepada Jurnal.

Kerabat

Ditanya sama ada Arab Saudi bakal menerima tempias daripada Revolusi Arab yang melanda beberapa negara Asia Barat mutakhir ini, beliau berpendapat perkara itu tidak akan berlaku di negara itu.

"Semua jawatan penting termasuk ketenteraan diterajui oleh anak atau saudara-mara. Di negara yang mengalami Revolusi Arab, tidak semua jawatan penting dipegang oleh mereka yang mempunyai pertalian keluarga.

"Lagipun kebangkitan rakyat negara lain itu disebabkan tekanan ekonomi selain mendapat sokongan daripada pihak Barat dan Amerika Syarikat.

"Dasar keterbukaan Raja Abdullah sekarang menyebabkan rakyat terus menyokong beliau," ujarnya.

Zainal memberitahu, kemudahan pendidikan dan perubatan secara percuma selain kemajuan ekonomi turut menjadi faktor kestabilan politik di Arab Saudi.

"Kebiasaannya rakyat akan bangkit menentang pemerintah jika mereka terpaksa melalui hidup yang sukar sementara pemerintah mengamalkan gaya hidup mewah.

"Walaupun ramai kerabat diraja Arab itu yang kaya-raya, asalkan rakyat berpuas hati dengan taraf hidup mereka, raja akan selamat," kata beliau.

Menurut seorang bekas pensyarah, Ahmad Mustafa, 72, yang telah menetap di Mekah selama 47 tahun, peranan Raja Abdullah sekarang dalam menjaga dua kota suci Mekah dan Madinah itu cukup signifikan.

Bekas pensyarah geografi Universiti Ummul Qura, Mekah ini memberitahu, dahulu perjalanan dari Jeddah ke Mekah dan Madinah sahaja memakan masa berhari-hari selain kuota haji yang terhad.

"Kini, sistem pengangkutan semakin canggih selain kemudahan menunaikan haji yang selesa," katanya.

SIAPA pun yang menjadi raja, kesucian kota Madinah dan Mekah pasti terpelihara.

Cerita Ahmad, semasa beliau menjejakkan kaki di bumi Mekah pada usia empat tahun, pemandangan di sekitar Mekah dan Madinah hanyalah padang pasir dan bukit-bukit batu. Namun, sekarang kedua-duanya memiliki prasarana bertaraf dunia, sesuai dengan fungsinya sebagai kota suci umat Islam.

"Apa yang penting, suasana aman dan politik yang stabil mampu menjamin keselamatan jemaah haji dan umrah, begitu juga rakyat negara itu secara keseluruhan.

"Tiada gunanya teknologi canggih tetapi dibayangi kekacauan dan pertumpahan darah," tutur Ahmad.

Dilahirkan di Riyadh pada tahun 1924, Raja Abdullah dihormati rakyat kerana mengamalkan corak pemerintahan seperti bapanya yang mengangkat agama, sejarah dan kebudayaan Arab.

Kuasa mutlak

Semasa memegang jawatan Putera Mahkota, Raja Abdullah menjadi arkitek utama yang membangunkan negara itu dengan kemudahan infrastruktur yang canggih dan moden.

Beliau mengubah landskap Arab Saudi yang dipenuhi padang pasir menjadi bandar moden.

Raja Abdullah juga menjadi penggerak utama usaha perdamaian dunia Arab termasuk lantang membantah pendudukan Israel di bumi Palestin.

Beliau tidak sesekali melupakan kepentingan ilmu apabila merintis penubuhan dua buah universiti iaitu Universiti Sains dan Teknologi Raja Abdullah serta Universiti Permaisuri Nourah Abdul Rahman yang khusus untuk golongan wanita, kedua-duanya terletak di Mekah.

ARAB Saudi antara negara yang mengamalkan sistem beraja mutlak.

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Raja yang gemar membaca ini turut menubuhkan dua buah perpustakaan iaitu Perpustakaan Raja Abdul Aziz di Riyadh dan Casablanca, Maghribi.

Di sebalik ketegasannya, Raja Abdullah ialah seorang pencinta padang pasir dan sukan berkuda dengan menubuhkan kelab ekuestrian di Riyadh.

Apa pun, sistem raja berkuasa mutlak sudah berlangsung selama lebih 80 tahun di Arab Saudi. Negara lain yang mengamalkan sistem sebegini ialah Brunei, Oman, Qatar dan Swaziland.

Sultan Brunei, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah adalah satu-satunya raja Melayu yang memerintah sebuah negara yang berdaulat secara sendirian.

Meet the couple who live with a pair of pet buffalo

Sofa so good ... RC and Sherron say their pets are perfectly safe

HERD the one about the couple who live with a pair of BUFFALO?

RC Bridges, who is nicknamed The Buffalo Whisperer, and his wife Sherron share their home with Wildthing and his new pal Bullet.

The beasts, who weigh 2,400lb and 900lb respectively, relax in the living room and around the house and even take a ride in the family car.

Buffaloes can be very dangerous animals, with curved sharp horns which grow up to two feet long, and they are able to run as fast as 40mph.

But RC says: “I knew they were crazy animals but it actually turned out way better than I thought it would be.

Someone you nose? ... pet sniffs buffalo head mounted on wall

“I always dreamed of training a buffalo, but I never thought about training two.

“They’re like my buddies. Bullet likes to be with me at all times, she’ll even give up food to be close to me.”

RC, who is a cowboy and horse trainer, has worked with buffaloes most of his life.

After losing an eye in 2004 he had to sell his herd, except for one young male who he decided to keep as a pet.

Cattle drive ... buffalo stands on RC's truck

Wildthing, who is now seven, even acted as best man when his owners renewed their wedding vows in 2006, after five years of marriage.

RC, 63, said: “He carried the rings on his horns and threw them off one at a time for us to catch.”

Bullet, a female who is three-and-a-half, joined the family after her previous owner found her too hard to control.

RC said: “Her owner told me if I could catch her, I could have her. She kept getting out of the pen and the sheriff’s department was mad about it.

Under one hoof ... Wildthing and Bullet in the Bridges' living room

“Well, I just caught her, put her in a trailer and brought her home.”

RC's photographer wife Sherron, 39, who is part Native American, makes traditional-style clothes and headdresses using the animals’ hair.

She said: “We love our buffaloes. I think if either one of them died, RC would probably go along with them."

And RC insists his friends and relatives still visit the families home in Texas, where they also keep a pet wolf called Jewell Spirit.

He said: “They’re not afraid to come over because I keep everything safe. But most of them think I’m going to get hurt or killed.

Big pals ... RC hugs one of his pets

“I don’t think you can ever take all of the wildness out of the buffaloes, though. I’ve been hurt a lot, so I guess its just part of the game.”

Nevertheless, the couple’s two grown-up children, son Will and daughter Taylor, are proud of the family pets and have even broken world records with them.

RC said: “My son was the first person to ever ski behind a buffalo, on water skies and on sand.

“And my daughter was the first person to ever snow sled behind a buffalo.”

Dracula fish, bald bird among 145 new Mekong finds: WWF

BANGKOK — Wildlife researchers said Wednesday they had discovered 145 new species in the Greater Mekong region last year, including a fish with fangs and a seven-metre (23 feet) tall carnivorous plant.

The "bald" Bulbul bird discovered in Laos' Savannakhet province

Other new finds include a frog that sounds like a cricket, Asia's only known bald songbird, and a "sucker fish", which uses its body to stick to rocks in fast flowing waters to move upstream, according to conservation group WWF.

Local fishermen in Chiang Khong, northern Thailand show off a giant Mekong catfish

With fangs at the front of each jaw, the "dracula minnow" is one of the more bizarre new species found in 2009 in the Mekong River region, which comprises Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and China's Yunnan Province.

Discovered in a small stream in Myanmar, it is largely translucent and measures up to 1.7 centimetres long.

It is not yet known whether the species is endemic to a single ecosystem within Myanmar, or spread throughout the region as a whole.

Other bizarre discoveries include the Bare-Faced Bulbul bird, which is bereft of feathers on the face and side of the head and has pale blue skin on the rear of the head and around the eyes. It lives in sparse forest on limestone karsts in central Laos.

Among newly recorded plants, the Nepenthes bokorensis plant, found in southern Cambodia, has a climbing length of up to seven metres, with pitchers that trap ants and other insects for food.

"The rate of discovery in the Mekong is almost without equal globally," WWF regional conservation director Stuart Chapman told AFP.

"That's attributed to the enormous geographical and climatic range within the region, going from high altitude to dense tropical forests through to some of the richest freshwater in the world," he said.

"Undoubtedly this region is one of the richest in terms of its biodiversity, but it's also one of the most threatened."

The Greater Mekong region is home to some of the planet's most endangered wild species including tiger, Asian elephant, Mekong dolphin and Mekong giant catfish, said the World Wide Fund For Nature.

WWF has warned the Mekong giant catfish -- one of the world's biggest freshwater fish -- could be driven to extinction if plans to build hydropower dams on Southeast Asia's longest river go ahead, blocking spawning grounds.

"We need to keep one of the treasure troves of the world properly conserved," said Chapman.

Sumber - AFP

Menantu Luarbiasa

Mamat ni amat lah tergila-gilakan Minah anak Pak Haji Dollah. Minah nie boleh lah tahan cun nya. Mamat ni pun tak kalah lah kacaknya. Ngurat-punya-ngurat tersangkutlah dua hati ini. Pak Haji Dollah bukanlah jenis yang memilih sangat orangnya, tambahan pulak si Mamat ini pandai berlakon, depan Pak Haji Dollah dia bukan main warak lagi, berkopiah dikepala. Selepas ditetapkan hari kahwinnya, maka lancar je jawab nikahnya si Mamat tadi. Biasalah malamnya agak lewat sikit keluarga Haji Dollah masuk tidurnya pasal dok berkemas rumah lepas kenduri siangnya. Pasangan Mamat dan Minah pun lewat jugak lah masuk tidurnya.

Selepas semuanya selesai dan semuanya nyenyak tidurnya, pagi besoknya Pak Haji Dollah pun mengejutkan semua isi rumah untuk solat subuh. Semua isi rumah pun bangun dan si Mamat dan Minah pun bangun mandi dan bersiap untuk mendirikan solat subuh. Tapi dek kerana lewat bangun, Si Mamat tak sempat bersolat jemaah dengan Pak Haji Dollah. Walaupun telah dikejutkan awal oleh isterinya Minah.

Maka, Pak Haji Dollah pun suruhlah menantunya tu solat sendirian ketika ahli keluarga lainnya sedang berwirid. Si Mamat pun qamat dan dirikanlah solat subuhnya. Selepas selesai solatnya dan memberi salam. Pak Haji Dollah pun menegur menantunya Si Mamat tadi, "Hai Mat kenapa solat subuh tiga rakaat?" lantas Si Mamat Jawab "eh.. ia ke? tiga rakaat? rasa-rasanya dah cukup empat rakaat tadi..."

Masya Allah.. mengucap panjang Pak Haji Dollah. Si Minah tersenyum sipu malu dengan gelagat suaminya. Sahla si Mamat ni tak pernah sembahyang subuh! Kantoi..kantoi...

http://gelihati.blogspot.com/

Menantu Hantu

Ada satu famili. Satu hari sedang menantu lelaki tengok TV, bapa mertua lalu di depan. Tiba-tiba bapa mertua rebah sambil memegang dada. Apa lagi, kelam-kabutlah si menantu. Isterinya dan emak mertuanya pun menerkam ke arah bapa mertua sambil pegang-pegang dada bapa mertua.

Bapa mertua tak bergerak, senyap saja. Bertambahlah gabra semua yang melihatnya. Emak mertua menyuruh menantu mengajar bapa mertua, yang di atas ribanya itu mengucap. Dia gabra, sampai isterinya pun tolak-tolak bahunya suruh cepat lakukan. Emak mertuanya ulangi lagi suruh dia ajar mengucap.

Dalam gabra itu, si menantu pun dekatkan mulutnya ke telinga bapa mertua sambil berkata: "Ma Rabbuka! (Siapa Tuhan kamu!).." Kuat juga dia sebut, hingga terkejut emak mertua bila mendengarnya.

Tiba-tiba bapa mertua tersedar dan terus berkata: "Bila masa kau jadi malaikat ni? Aku belum mati lagi la..".