In the last two years, our nation has witnessed some of the most tumultuous events in its history. UMNO which had helmed the nation without interruption since independence fell abruptly in 2018 in large part due to the massive 1MDB corruption scandal. In the year UMNO fell, ‘Merdeka’ was celebrated with renewed national pride; it was as if we had gained our freedom all over again. Hope for a new beginning, a national reset, soared.

We congratulated ourselves that such stupendous change had occurred peacefully. Indirectly making a comparison with the Arab spring, we prided ourselves that we were somehow more mature, more politically seasoned than our counterparts in the Middle East where anarchy has been a constant companion of political change.

Perhaps our self-admiration was a little premature; to be sure, there has been none of the violence and chaos but we are now witnessing the political instability that change invariably kindles.



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The World Happiness Report 2020 for the first time ranks cities around the world by their subjective well-being and digs more deeply into how the social, urban and natural environments combine to affect our happiness. The report is released by the UN's Sustainable Development Solutions Network, using data from the Gallup World Poll.

This is the eighth World Happiness Report. Finland has been named the world’s happiest country for the third year in a row. Since its launch in 2012, just four countries have taken the top spot: Denmark in 2012, 2013 and 2016, Switzerland in 2015, Norway in 2017, and Finland in 2018, 2019 and 2020.

Finland reported a modest increase in happiness from 2015 to 2017, and has remained roughly at that higher level since then. It continues to occupy the top spot for the third year in a row, and with a score that is now significantly ahead of other countries in the top ten.

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Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to scientists who discovered CRISPR gene editing tool for 'rewriting the code of life'

(CNN)The Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer A. Doudna for the development of a method for genome editing.

They discovered one of gene technology's sharpest tools: the CRISPR/Cas9 genetic scissors. Using these, researchers can change the DNA of animals, plants and micro-organisms with extremely high precision.

Before announcing the winners on Wednesday, Göran K. Hansson, secretary-general for the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, said that this year's prize was about "rewriting the code of life."



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Trump told Americans not to let coronavirus 'dominate your life.' This is what loved ones of victims have to say.

(CNN)As President Trump marked his return to the White House on Monday after a weekend hospital stay for coronavirus treatment, he had a message for the American people: "Don't be afraid of Covid. Don't let it dominate your life."

The president's tweet left many friends and families of coronavirus victims disgusted and angered. How could they not let a virus that snatched their loved one from them dominate their lives?

Amanda Kloots, wife of Broadway star Nick Cordero, who fought the virus for 95 days and died, was among those mourning the death of a loved one who took issue with the president's comments. Cordero and Kloots have a 1-year-old son together.

"Unfortunately it did dominate our lives didn't it? It dominated Nick's family's lives and my family's lives. I guess we "let it" - like it was our choice??," she wrote on Instagram. "Unfortunately not everyone is lucky enough to spend two days in the hospital. I cried next to my husband for 95 days watching what COVID did to the person I love. It IS something to be afraid of."

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"Don't be afraid of it. You're going to beat it."

This was US President Donald Trump's advice to the public if they were worried about catching coronavirus.

He made the comments in a video message posted shortly after being discharged from hospital on Monday, having received treatment since his own diagnosis.

But, as many have pointed out, this was a man with a helicopter, a large medical team and experimental drug treatments at his disposal. How does the picture change for Americans with Covid-19 who do not reside at the White House?

It is hard to pinpoint the "average American" amid such a diverse country and such a complicated health system, but here are some of the areas where the president received special treatment and a look at how this compares to the experiences of the wider population.

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