For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
October 7, 2008
Greetings to one and all. How have you been for the past 1 week or so? I hope everyone is doing fine and for my Muslim friends and fans, continue to enjoy your Hari Raya. As you all know, I was absent for the past one week or so because I was busy celebrating Hari Raya but Im back now and it is good to be back. Hari Raya for me so far have been fun, but I think its about time that I forget about it and get back to something more serious.
I have been away for only a week and so much things has happened. Although I have been enjoying myself this Hari Raya, it doesnt mean that I have stop taking notice of what is happening around the world. I guess that is the great thing about news. You will have something new to talk about everyday which makes your life much more interesting. A lot of things has happened over the past week, but there is currently only one thing that I have been following more closely than any other news and that is the current financial crisis in America and around the world as well. I had hope to tell you something good when Im back, but that is not the case unfortunately. Just last week, the U.S. Congress has finally approved the $700 billion bail-out plan on the second time asking. I think getting the deal approved was an easier task than getting it to work. You would expect things would change for the better after that decision, but unfortunately, things have only took a turn for the worst.
The rescue plan, aimed at rebuilding economic confidence, instead on Monday, triggered a fearful international sell-off. The Dow industrials meanwhile plunged below the 10,000 level for the first time in four years, and at one point were down as much as 800 points before recovering to close with a loss of 370. Now that is a worrying statistics. Some people say the U.S. are in a recession already, while others are saying we are heading to another worldwide recession. There are others though who still have an optimistic view. I just read today that former IMF chief Michel Camdessus is saying that a global recession can be avoided with a coordinated plan to restore market confidence. As much as I would love to believe him, it is very difficult given the current circumstances. But having said all that, it has only been a few days that the rescue plan has been put into effect. The early signs are not good at all, but I think we should give it a longer time to see whether it had any impact, if any on the U.S. economy and if it can turn things around.
On a personal note, I just want to tell you that I find it weird that a lot of people are being very generous when giving out green packet this year. I dont know about you, but that is my experience. I dont know if they have any idea what is happening in the global economy or whether they are just being generous, but whatever it is, I am happy that I am getting more money than I had expected this year. Anyway back to my blog, I am back now so I will resume normal blogging from tomorrow onwards hopefully where I will continue to bring you all the news that you might be interested in and I will of course continue to share my views irregardless of whether you read it or not. Till then, thanks for waiting and take care.
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