Lowyat.NET: Latest topics by Murrowping

Do u think KL nowadays are overcrowded and exp?

Murrowping — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 16:04:32 +0800

Nowadays, i feel KL has too many people and the things especially food prices are getting out of hand. The traffic is so jammed that i need to drive around 2 hours to reach home. People from all states come to KL to work, i even saw australian and english guy working in malaysia. Each meal also cost rm30 at least and sometimes can reach rm70-80.

Those working in KL area, how do you manage such situation?

Dine at place where food is prepared by non origin

Murrowping — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 15:50:35 +0800

Will you still dine in a restaurant or coffee shop which the cuisine itself is prepared by someone who is not originated from the birthplaces of the cuisine? For example, will you choose to eat in a ramen restaurant which the ramen is made from non-japanese or pasta/spagetti made by someone non-Italian?

I tried a nasi lemak made by non-Malaysia yesterday around KL area, and it didnt taste like nasi lemak at all. I felt disappointed.

What about u? Will you give yourself a try on dishes which is made by a foreign worker?

Do u pay for all expenses or go dutch eating out?

Murrowping — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 16:50:48 +0800

U know like during lunch or after work at a bar, when it comes to paying bill, do you split among your friends or you man up and pay for all? Especially when there are lady friends or colleagues involved, you will feel ashamed going dutch or you will become gentleman to pay for all, and then asking them to transfer money to u later?

What are usually our asian ethics? When i was a kid, I see my dad and friends always berebut to pay, and then my dad said he pay, my dad friend say he pay, and push away my dad hands. End up, the waiter simply pick anyone with the cash on his hand.

Which kind are you?

What is your plan for this long weekend?

Murrowping — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 14:02:00 +0800

This friday is labor day, a public holiday. Means 3 days straight holiday. What do you plan to do? Fly to Korea or Japan for short trip? Play games until no sleep?

For me, I will go to Langkawi and have so fun with friends there. Then back on Sunday afternoon.

Do you believe in black magic or witness before?

Murrowping — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 09:30:12 +0800

Black magic is very famous in south east asia especially in thailand, malaysia and indonesia. It is said that these black magic can cost someone their lives if not put into good use, which is very dangerous and terrifying.

My grandparents told me that these knowledge were from ancient times and some shaman actually practise these skills. I have heard terrifying stories like wife getting revenge on cheating husband, friend jealous of friend success and do something bad, all these. There are also businessman who purposely went to some thailand rural areas to pay tens of thousands for amulet so that it can protect them from getting 'cursed'

Have you ever witness any black magic incident in your life? Do you believe them?

Why cant Msia produce critically acclaimed games?

Murrowping — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 08:47:43 +0800

Look at Korea, China, Sweden or even Germany. Each produce critically acclaimed or high selling games like PUBG, Wukong, Minecraft and Crytek. While France, Japan, UK and US produced thousands of amazing titles and won awards every year.

Why cant Malaysia create a video game that is as famous or as well-rated? The best is the Upin games but not till the height of mario, gta or COD success. I believe we have the talent and budget, but why cant we just work it out to produce an amazing game that will sweep up the TGA awards?

Why japanese games are not as popular as before?

Murrowping — Tue, 28 Apr 2026 15:04:18 +0800

Dont get me wrong, japan is still producing great games like pragmata, zelda, elden ring. But it has been overshadowed by developers from korea, china, usa, sweden, uk, france.

Remember the 90s or early 2000s? Everyone went crazy when japan announced pokemon games, street fighter, gran turismo. U can see so many kids, teens and young adults queuing to buy. Some even buy ps2 just for japanese games, and gameboy just for pokemon.

Now, it's different. latest pokemon switch game doesnt live up to the hype, everyone play forza horizon instead of gran turismo. Top selling games like e33, gta series, minecraft, pubg, wukong are all non-japanese studio.

What happened to japan? Why are japanese games in decline and getting worse from day to day?

How do you manage stress in life?

Murrowping — Tue, 28 Apr 2026 13:29:16 +0800

As an adult, there are many challenges we will be facing. Work issues, wife/family problems, friends or colleagues conflicts and of course money-related things like mortgage, loan, stagnant pay so on

How do you manage all these daily stress? Some will choose smoking everytime they are stress and need to focus, some always go to drink after work or after quarrel with wife, some play video games or jogging.

What is your option to release the immense stress and pressure you have to deal every day non-stop? For me, i would invite few friends to a pub and i talk it out so that i feel better, although they cannot provide me advice.

What about you? Share some tricks that you actually do that can work.

India can surpass US, China as largest economy

Murrowping — Tue, 28 Apr 2026 09:55:27 +0800

If the OECD’s long term scenarios come to fruition, India could surpass the US and China to become the largest economy in the world by the end of the century. Bert Hofman, Senior Associate Fellow at MERICS and director of the East Asian Institute at the National University of Singapore (NUS), taking OECD’s projections, said that big changes are likely to occur in the second part of this century.

As per OECD’s estimates released last year in September, India is expected to overtake the US by 2060, and will almost be twice the size of China by the end of the century. The US will slip to the third place in 2040s but catch up with China again in 2070.

THE FORCES AT PLAY

OECD’s long-term estimates is essentially a study on how changed demographics change an economy. As per the UN Population Division projections that were released in 2024, China’s population declines much faster than was expected before, explained Hofman in a blog post.

Here’s what’s key: Most of China’s population decline is expected in the second half of the century.

This decline puts China’s population at some 650 million people by 2100. Even with increased labour force participation, it would be less than 300 million – barely 40 per cent of India’s, and not that much larger than the US.

India would still have the largest in the world in 2100, even with a decline starting in 2060, said Hofman. Labour force participation is also expected to rise rapidly, from 50 per cent of the working age population to 70 per cent by 2100.

It is not only the population metrics, but also scenarios. OECD uses the Cobb-Douglas function with constant returns to scale, that predicts countries’ GDP to converge but the rate of convergence depends on “effective” labour and initial capital/labour ratio, explained Hofman. Another convergence is capital stock dynamics. In both the scenarios, India seems to be gaining more ground than China.

These factors explain why China’s productivity growth is lower than India’s.

China would even stop catching up with the US by mid-century as per OECD.

CHINA’S WAY OUT

Nevertheless, China could beat the catch-up rule in labour efficiency by applying AI and robotics faster than India, and faster than the US, the frontier country. China may also grow faster if the share of labour stays below the level imposed by the model.

China’s labour share would also rise over time, as indicated by its current policy orientation to boost consumption.

NOT SET IN STONE

OECD scenarios are not destiny or set in stone, but merely scenarios. These are not predictions, and illustrate long-run challenges facing the global economy and how the landscape might evolve over time.

“Nevertheless, demographics plays a big part, and India’s projected margin over China in size of GDP by the end of the century is very large, so it seems safe to say India will be the largest economy by then,” said Hofman in the post.

NOT ONLY OECD…

It is not only OECD but also the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) that had presented in its report titled 'World Economic League Table 2024’ that India would surpass the US and China by end of the century.

It forecast a monumental shift with India’s GDP anticipated to be 90 per cent larger than China’s and 30 per cent larger than the US. It outlined a steady growth trajectory for India, averaging 6.5 per cent from 2024 to 2028.

Which country will be the next manufacturing hub?

Murrowping — Tue, 28 Apr 2026 08:54:21 +0800

In the 2000s until 2010s, it was China which was producing nearly 50% of world manufacturing output. It surpassed the EU and America as world top exporter and manufacturing king. Everywhere including Malaysia, when we buy things, we always see Made in China. Clothes, mobile phones, computers, more than half of what we have are made from china.

Now, China wages is rising and no longer have cheap labor or sweatshops. China is transitioning from upper middle income to high income country. What other country do u think will replace China?

Is it India, the world most populated country with a billion of manpower? Vietnam, Bangladesh or Mexico?

What do you think

How do you deal with racism when in overseas?

Murrowping — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 13:15:00 +0800

Racism is getting more serious especially towards us, Asian. They see us as smaller size, do not possess white skin like the westerners and come from a poorer country. How do you deal if you encounter racism towards you or your family when traveling abroad?

I had a friend who told me reporting police case is basically useless. The police will side their own people and discriminate us. The police will just ask few questions like evidence, ask for fee for reporting and shrug off saying it's just misunderstanding. I wonder how bad the situation is especially in france and italy.

What will you do or what had you done in such situation? confront them or walk away or hit them back?

Do you prefer to use rednote or tiktok?

Murrowping — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 09:37:06 +0800

Nowadays, china apps is taking over the world. iqiyi over netflix, pinduoduo over lazada and shoppee. amap over google maps.

Now, the most important is social media apps. Tiktok and rednote basically account to 80% of the new gen social media apps. No more fb, ig, twitter and youtube.

Tiktok u can watch news, influencer videos like travelog, makan vlog, and shop at tiktok shop. Same goes for xhs.

Which one do you prefer more and what is the reason?

Do you believe in life after death?

Murrowping — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 08:26:38 +0800

There are many sayings about life after death. One may think there is heaven and hell, where one is judged based on the sins he committed. Another saying is reincarnation, where u reincarnate to become a human, animal or trees.

However, scientifically, there is no evidence of hell, heaven, reincarnation process that scientist can find until now 2026. That's why i believe the third saying, that there is nothing left after we died. We decompose and that's all. Nothing left. No soul, no heaven, no next life. To think of that, that is actually scary and disappointing.

What do you believe in?

How do you deal with frens who work overseas?

Murrowping — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 15:47:02 +0800

How do you deal with friends or relatives who work overseas, and when they come back they brag and act highly in front of u? Those especially from sg, AU and UK always like to show off and say how cheap malaysia is and said the price will be double or triple in sydney or london when they come back hometown to meet up with you.

They purposely put you down and make you seem of a lower class compare to them who live in a 'high class' white society.

How do you deal with such situation?

Do you know any rich pipu who starts from scratch?

Murrowping — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 08:39:59 +0800

They always say those rich people are either rich cause their parents or grandparents are rich, or themselves have strong networking with some insiders and influential people.

Is it true? Have u ever met someone who got rich because he work super diligent and more than others, but not dependent on any politician or influential people or his or her parents background?

Honest speaking, i have never. It's either his parents are super rich already or he is good at jilat. None i see got rich not because of any of these two reasons. What about u?

Woman missing for 28year found buried in mall bed

Murrowping — Wed, 22 Apr 2026 14:44:18 +0800

China woman missing for 28 years found buried in shopping mall flower bed, pair confesses to murder over S$7,500 debt

During renovations of a shopping mall in Sichuan, China, a decomposed body was found buried in a flower bed on the roof of the building.

The flower bed had been abandoned for close to 30 years by the time of the discovery in September 2025, Newtalk reported.

The police later identified the body to be Wu Yan Ping, a clothing retailer who had been missing for 28 years.

The last time her family saw her was in February 1997, when she stepped out of her shop after a meal and told her family she would be back soon. They lost contact with her after that.

Following investigations, the police arrested two suspects in relation to the case, one of whom confessed to murdering Wu and burying her in the flower bed that night.

What the investigations revealed
When Wu first went missing in 1997, the police made little progress in searching for her.

After her body was found, the police reviewed the old case files and interviewed former business owners at the shopping mall, and managed to obtain important clues.

The day she went missing, Wu was meeting a woman who used to run a business in the same building, who asked Wu out purportedly to pay back a debt she owed Wu.

This woman, Chen Yi Fen, became a suspect because Wu's belongings had also gone missing, leading the police to believe there were financial motives behind the murder.

But Chen was difficult to locate. The police found out that she had left the city shortly after Wu went missing, and later changed her name and did plastic surgery on her face.

It was only after cross-checking old case documents, household registration, and immigration records that the police finally tracked her down in Shanghai.

Confession
Besides Chen, the police also arrested her ex-husband, Yang Fu Gen, and it was he who eventually confessed to the crime.

According to Newtalk, he said that he and Chen owed Wu roughly RMB 40,000 (S$7,500) at the time, and decided to lure Wu out to a warehouse in the shopping mall that night in 1997.

They strangled her, then moved her body to the rooftop flower bed, where they buried her. They also took some of her valuables, including gold.

Chen, who initially insisted on her innocence, later confessed as well.

The pair will next stand trial at court.

Wu's body has been retrieved by her family for a proper burial.

Her son, who had persisted in searching for his mother over the 28 years, said he hopes the court will bring justice to his mother.

Will you help your siblings if he/she asks to?

Murrowping — Wed, 22 Apr 2026 13:34:00 +0800

Will you help your siblings if he or she needs help and ask you to? Let's say u have a brother, he lost rm100k in his business and investment. He needs help financially if not he cannot survive. Will you help him? Will you lend money to him, and said, you are my bro, just take the money first. Family ties is more important than money. Will you do so considering you two were so close since young time?

Or the other way round, you will just help few hundreds for 'action' and then evade from meeting him every family reunion?

What will you do?

We want to b fair, SWAK to push morefrom Putrajaya

Murrowping — Wed, 22 Apr 2026 08:22:43 +0800

Cries of “Sarawak First” rang out at the Borneo Convention Centre on April 19 as Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), the state’s ruling coalition, held its first convention since its formation in 2018.

Rousing some 4,000 delegates, convention chairman Douglas Uggah Embas declared that GPS is “without equal in Malaysia”, drawing chants of “Sarawak First”.

The convention came as Sarawak’s ruling coalition positions itself for upcoming state and national polls, due by April 2027 and February 2028 respectively.

While political parties and coalitions in Malaysia remain in flux, GPS, which is made up of four component parties, has stayed cohesive, positioning itself as a decisive kingmaker in federal politics. Any coalition seeking to form a government is unlikely to succeed without its backing.

At the one-day event, leaders from all four parties of GPS pledged to push for further concessions from Putrajaya, including resolving the dispute over oil and gas rights with national oil firm Petronas.

In his speech at the convention, GPS chairman and Sarawak Premier Abang Johari Tun Openg noted that 62 per cent of Malaysia’s natural gas reserves lie within Sarawak, arguing that the state is entitled to a greater share.

The state currently receives royalty of some 5 per cent of the oil and gas extracted from it.

Since the early 2020s, state-owned oil and gas company Petros has expanded its role as an aggregator for its resources, a role played by Malaysia’s national oil and gas company Petronas. This has allowed Sarawak to control sales and pricing while capturing a far larger share of the revenue instead of relying on a fixed payout.

The oil and gas sector accounts for up to 20 per cent of federal revenue, with Petronas paying between RM20 billion (S$6.4 billion) and RM32 billion annually in dividends to Putrajaya.

Mr Johari dismissed past remarks by former Malaysian premier Muhyiddin Yassin, who had warned that Sarawak risked “killing the goose that lays the golden eggs”, as Petronas’ earnings were threatened.

Saying that the state was only seeking what it is due, Mr Johari said: “We are not greedy, we just want to be fair. We have a formula that does not kill Petronas and is fair to Sarawak.”

Petronas has taken Sarawak to court over who has the right to control and sell the state’s natural gas.

Leveraging its kingmaker role
In GPS’ home state, the bloc’s dominance is near total. It holds 79 of 82 seats in the state assembly, while its 23 MPs in Malaysia’s 222-seat Parliament give it outsized influence in federal politics.

This leverage proved decisive after the hung 2022 general election, when GPS backed Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, enabling him to form a government ahead of rival Muhyiddin.

At the convention, state leaders insisted that the push for the state’s interests is driven by necessity.

Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP) president Sim Kui Hian said the state still lags behind industrial powerhouses such as Penang and Selangor.

“Why do we need so much money? Because we have so much to catch up,” he said.

Almost similar in land size as the entire Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak contributes only 9 per cent to the country’s gross domestic product, while Selangor and Kuala Lumpur collectively make up almost half, at 42 per cent.

GPS comprises SUPP, Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB), Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) and Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS).

These four parties were once pillars of Barisan Nasional (BN), long delivering a dependable vote bank even as the coalition’s grip weakened in Peninsular Malaysia.

But BN’s defeat in 2018 upended that arrangement, prompting Sarawak’s parties to break away and form GPS with a singular focus on state interests rather than national alignment.

Since then, GPS has played the role of kingmaker; it was previously part of the Muhyiddin and Ismail Sabri Yaakob governments.

This leverage has since been deployed by GPS to press longstanding grievances with Putrajaya, centred on the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), which underpins the federation.

Why cant HK produce anymore good films?

Murrowping — Tue, 21 Apr 2026 10:20:20 +0800

Remember the 80s, 90s till early 2000s. HK has so many great films from HK and so many great stars like Jackie Chan, Chow Yun Fatt, Jet Li, Sammo Hung, Michelle Yeoh went to hollywood. 7 out of 10 vcds or dvds are hk films.

What happened to HK films now? It's basically stale and lack of creativity and humor. Even taiwan produces better films now. Will HK ever back to its prime?

Is VPN subscription worth it in 2026?

Murrowping — Mon, 20 Apr 2026 14:32:36 +0800

Those who are subscribing to VPN, what are u using for? Does vpn really helps to protect us and make web browsing more secure? Will VPN helps to prevent lag and reduce latency when online gaming?

What about netflix? changing to uSA or japan geolocation can watch more movies?

Is VPN really as advertised, meaning they protect your privacy and prevent online theft? What do you think?