A Familiar Place

Our PM in January visited South Africa and its government, the African National Congress (ANC). You might not read too much into it if you don’t know South African politics (I am not well versed at all). However having read a little into South African history and current affairs, you might notice something – as if you’ve heard of it before.

Let’s go back a few years. History-wise, they are not entirely similar, because British, through the Union of South Africa Act, established a united South Africa but reserves political rights for white. Unlike in this country, we were never treated as horribly because of our color – not that we were treated wonderfully either.

In 1948, the pro-Afrikaner National Party got elected and begins instituting apartheid. I’m sure I don’t really need to explain what that is.

In 1961, a certain Nelson Mandela urges ANC to launch an armed struggle and in 1964 he and other ANC leaders got jailed. In 1990, Mandela is freed from prison and 4 years later he becomes the first democratically elected President of South Africa. In 1999 Thabo Mbeki succeeds Mandela and in 2009, Jacob Zuma replaced Mbeki. Jacob Zuma is the one our PM met.

Jacob Zuma by the way, was sacked as Vice President in 2005 by Mbeki after being charged with corruption and tried for rape (he was acquitted).Zuma then forced Mbeki out of office in 2008. You might think this is where the similarity lies as there is hint of resemblance to affairs in Malaysia – the Mahathir-Anwar 1998 debacle. But it’s actually quite different because Zuma won in the end.

Let’s get back to current affairs. South Africa’s economy is growing steadily since its apartheid days; however income inequality has also been growing to the detriment of those not well connected politically. Their situation is worst, I believe, with 8.7 million people out of its 50 million-population (mostly black) earning less than $1.25 a day.

There is now a phenomenon in the African country, known as tenderpreneur – describing those who get rich from government contracts or from dispensing them for kickbacks. Now this sounds eerily similar. The national Special Investigating Unit reckons that up to a quarter of annual state spending is wasted through overpayment and graft. The Auditor General says a third of all government departments have awarded contracts to companies owned by officials or their families – cow anyone? A bit too famooliar.

Those being investigated for suspected corruption include two ministers, the country’s top policeman and the head of ANC’s Youth League. Hmm, cow, Jakim and well, ex-top policeman. Let’s extend that to include AG and ex-ministers. But of course, all deny the charges, there and here.

Zuma however, has taken action having sacked two ministers, suspended top officials including the police chief and set up an independent inquiry into an arms deal. They have done more than our government in that sense.

Zuma himself is tainted by corruption charges – he was linked to the arms deal through one of his advisers who was jailed in 2005 for soliciting bribes on his behalf (he was Vice President then). Where have I heard that before? But wait, the adviser to the story closer to home didn’t get jailed. Moving on...

Now with such a record, why does the ANC get voted in year-in-year-out? Why do they control more than 2/3 of parliament? 

They invoke their legend. You cannot turn your back on legend and this is what the older generation of South Africans say. Admittedly, ANC has a powerful legacy. They got black South Africans out of the doldrums of apartheid. Much like how UMNO claim they fought for freedom. Of course ANC’s fight and UMNO’s fight is totally different - the way it was fought was also different.

The younger generation blames the older generation for electing ANC as government. However times have changed and ANC is no longer all-powerful throughout the nation. They’ve been losing seats. They’ve also lost three previously safe seats in local by-elections. The opposition is gaining ground, the Democratic Alliance (DA)’s support rose from 1.7% in 1996 general election to 16.7% in 2009.

Historically, demographically and geographically they are a different nation. But overall, they’re not that different from us. Weird eh?

*this was post was written and published in this here blog first http://suaraserak.blogspot.com in January, but since I'm not writing anything new so I thought I'd just post this again...also most information I got from Times magazine.

Somewhere Down The Road...

It’s been a hectic couple of months for me (changed jobs, puasa, raya). I know I said I wanted to restart the blog, I did that and I stopped. Blurrgh.

BUT I did update my photography blog when I recently went to Dhaka, Bangladesh on a mission. Can read it here: http://syazwanrahimy.wordpress.com/2012/07/13/bangladesh-the-forgotten-country/

Didn’t really want to give an in depth view of what I saw there and how it is compared to Malaysia. I actually like the country and do not want other people’s view of the country to be skewed by my point of view. Sufficed to say, the country is not progressing as fast as the rest of the world. I fear though, that if Malaysia doesn’t buck up, we might end up on the same track.

We won’t, of course, end up exactly like Bangladesh as we have progressed quite well. But I fear more for the wealth gap between the poor and the rich.

If you want to experience Dhaka, you have to go out  on the town at night. It may be dark but it would shed some light on the situation. You can see big buildings, so colourful, so bright, and so opulent but does nothing for the many that stands and even sleeps outside its gates.

At first dismissing it as something that happens only to third world countries, to my surprise, 3-4 weeks after my return from Bangladesh I read a feature in The Star which kind of confirms my fears. Thousands are homeless and living in KL - our proud capital city which houses the rich and the famous and yes, big, colourful, bright, opulent buildings.

Forget not being able to afford a house in PJ or not being able to drink cappuccino at Starbucks, if thousands living on the streets doesn’t speak of great income disparity, what does?

My only counsel is that we should keep the powers that be in check. No matter who is the government, there’s every chance that the administration will screw up. But even though Government have executive power the people have the power to decide. Enough pressure and they’ll turn their heads.

With election around the corner, we’ll be seeing a lot of PROMISES, ACCUSATIONS, thieves bearing GIFTS and the whole lot - words, mostly words. What we need to do is understand the facts behind those words, the reality behind the deception, the tears behind the joys and so on so forth.

Figuring all these things out once every 5 years is not exactly the hardest part, but making sure the government stands by certain principles is. In the end, you will never know if you’ve chosen the right government; but for the one you’ve chosen*, try to make them choose the right actions. That is a continuous tiring process, but someone’s gotta do it.

* Yes, I know for some of us the government we wanted is not exactly the one that is chosen, but we can still do something about that. No, not overthrow. Remind.

Divorce

Startling - back in 2011, a news report stated that Muslim couple gets divorced every 15 minutes in Malaysia. Divorce among Muslims makes up 82 percent of total divorce in Malaysia even though Muslims make up only 60 percent of the population.


It must be said, this post may be a year late to that report but it's always of concern. Lately I've been getting such grim news from some of my closest friends. 


Here I am asking how's life and the response I get is "actually,we're no longer together", "I'm divorced", "we're on a trial separation"; okay the last one was made up but essentially for a particular case that's what's happening - they just don't term it that way.


I must admit here,the main cause in all of the cases to which I have knowledge of is caused by the guy. As much as I believe that the failure of marriage is the failure of both husband and wife, but someone must have the lion share of the blame, and as far as I know from my acquaintances, the guys have that share.


My general feeling when I find out is, of course first of all surprised. Then I'll ask questions, lots and lots of questions. I just simply do not understand how things cannot work out when several months ago everything was okay - not to say all rosie after 4-5 years of marriage,but there was no indication that everything would go pear shaped.


Cases vary from having another woman in the man's life, lack of understanding, lack of faith, failure to communicate, differences in beliefs. Usually my lady friend would say they would like things to work out and is still hopeful. I don't know how much they should ride on that. Sometimes, it is better to move on.


So here's what I think, going into a marriage of course everyone is confident that they are solemnizing to the one. Yes, ideally you would like to believe that you are going to spend the rest of your life with someone whom you love (and will love you back) and that person is as close to perfect as any person you'll ever meet. That confidence is good, but don't be so naive so as to think that you'll never find a person who is more attractive, kinder, gentler, whatever, there's always someone out there who would be able to outdo your spouse in whatever category. That's just human nature, no one's perfect. Admit that and you'll rest easy knowing that you're with someone who is perfect for you and loves you.


But that doesn't solve anything. The other thing that must be strong, and this is a little bit of a cliche, is the fundamentals. To me, fundamentals are based on two basic things: communications and trust. You like someone, tell your spouse. Tell your spouse what you like about that person. In an ideal situation, your spouse would be understanding and would try to understand what you want. Face it, love is a feeling. Fondness to a person however is based on superficial factors like looks, character, attitude. None of which is ever consistent. But it does influence feelings.


You don't go into a marriage one day thinking you can stay the same forever as the day before solemnization, that's ridiculous. Living with another person is totally different. Feelings are volatile. But if you make your feelings known (communication) and you try not to judge (trust) then things can be worked out.


What can't be worked out however is beliefs. This is tricky. If you don't believe in the same thing, more than likely it will not work out. I'm not sure whether love is stronger than belief. I have no strong opinion on this.


I'm already into my 5th year of marriage and it obviously has its ups and downs. But one thing my wife and I always do is talk. 5 years isn't long, I know, there's that 7 year itch thing I've been hearing and which I'm looking forward to. Why? Because I do have confidence in my marriage and any hindrances, to me, is a lesson. If there's a breakdown somewhere it should be straightened out swiftly. I've given up trying to be perfect, What I will never give up doing is to consider the feelings of those around me and the impact it would have on everyone. I used to be very defensive, but I know it's wrong. When it's your fault, it's your fault. There's not a time when you're not at all to blame. None. Share the blame.


But divorce, it's tricky. There's no answer to a failed marriage. It just fails.

Getting rid of the rust...

Very rusty. Very rusty indeed. Haven't been writing in this here blog for almost a year now (last post June 18 2011,post Bersih 2.0). So where do I begin? Maybe I'll just post random thoughts on anything that I can think of.


Twitter; been doing a lot of tweeting lately. I guess I still have the urge to write but haven't got the time (or just lazy). The thing about twitter is, it's 140 characters. My rantings are usually long and at times structured, therefore there's still a gaping hole where my 'satisfaction level' is concerned. Anyhoo, In twitter there are several types of people. Those who think they're kingmakers, the IT (that's 'it' not 'Information Technology', damn you acronyms of the world) crowd who thinks very highly of themselves; those who post very random stuff, usually very friendly and this is  the group I like; the emotional youngsters who I find very set to their age group stereotype; and the rest who just tweet for the love of tweeting and connecting with people. Of course this list is not exhaustive but I find these four big groups to be more apparent than others.


Politics; Not much have changed. If you don't believe me, read my last ever post on Bersih 2.0 and everything said there applies to Bersih 3.0. The difference being I was actually at the rally this time and not blocked from entering KL like the last time. Election is very near and you can already feel the heat. Election itself hasn't been called but the campaigning has started. BN (in particular UMNO) is back to its usual thuggery after a relatively brief layoff, whilst PR now have to deal with a lot of things coming its way. A lot of them are set to face court time and of course the usual UMNO-PAS muzakarah, DAP trying to takeover Malaysia,non-Malay PM,sex scandals involving opposition leaders, etc. One issue that really stands out in my eyes is the Scorpene case but a lot of people give it a miss because it's not mainstream. Just let me state here: YOUR PM IS BEING MENTIONED IN A FRENCH COURT FOR HIS INVOLVEMENT IN AN INTERNATIONAL SCANDAL...OPEN YOUR EYES AND QUESTION WHAT'S NEEDED TO BE QUESTIONED. I'm not implying anything though. *not seditious, not seditious, not seditious*


Football; Euro is about to start. I'm supporting France because I'm 1/8 French (I'm lying). With Blanc I have more confidence in the team. I seriously hated Domenech; I thought he ruined the French team when most their star players were at their peak (Henry, Zidane, Thuram) and that's a pity. On the domestic front (not that I'm staying in England) Arsenal did well last season taking into consideration all the mess they created with the Fabregas/Nasri affair and not signing players early on. I've always had faith in Wenger, never doubted him and the team once. It's good that we had a very bumpy ride, at least we know that in the end, Arsenal is a team built on a very strong foundation and that no matter who plays for us,we're still a top team.


Sigh, I'm quite disappointed with my comeback entry. But, again rusty, very rusty.

The Bersih rally, me and my noodle-brain

I seriously don’t get it. I don’t.

If Bersih 2.0 wants to rally for a free and fair election (note the word ‘rally’ as opposed to ‘protest’) why can’t the government support it?

Points have been made about how streets have been closed on certain days and weekends for events like concerts, youth rallies, bicycle races and such, why not a rally for a good cause?

Of course there’s a political agenda behind it. Of course the opposition is in support of it. However, the message that they are trying to deliver is noble enough.

Then there’s PERKASA.

They don’t like what Bersih 2.0 is doing because according to them, it would disturb the country’s peace and the people’s business. Yes, unlike the abovementioned concerts, youth rallies and bicycle races – those are good, they use public funds, they are good for business because not only is there media publicity but also people gather by the thousands.

Bersih’s rally does not use public funds, they are not good for business because only rowdy people gather by the thousands and there’s only bad media publicity.

Can we not see any positives from peaceful rally that wants to see free and fair elections? Don’t that connote a healthy democracy? A healthy democracy which would attract good publicity for the government. The west loovvvveeesss a healthy democracy. It won’t drive investors away. Seriously.

But here’s the kick. To counter the protest, PERKASA wants to stage their own protest. WHAT THE FISH? FISH THE WHAT THE?

They are careful enough not to say they are against the rally because that would mean they are against free and fair election. That much they can think of. So they went the ‘the-protest-is-nuisance’ route and their solution is to stage their own protest because that obviously wouldn’t disturb peace.

Let me try and draw this up: A planned peaceful rally can only be nullified by a protest which promises a lot of ‘action’ that would guarantee the peaceful rally would not disturb others’ peace because the counter-protest would be handled by thuggish man who based on past precedents are known to be a little bit boisterous (to put it mildly).

To summarise, they don’t want the rally to take place so they will be police for the day. Of course we know the police will see them as police-friendly and not take action against them no matter how unruly they become and would only ‘take care’ of Ambiga and her mates of disruptive activists.

Why can’t people support a call for free and fair election!! I don’t understand. My simple mind just cannot comprehend…why??? Aarrgghhh it hurts...thinking about this hurts my noodle-brain…errrkkk.

PAS for ALL except UMNO

I’m amazed by the amount of fling flangs (my own word) that has been thrown about lately concerning the PAS election. I myself am just an observer with no direct interest nor much knowledge to the proceedings.

To put it bluntly, I know the people, I don’t really know what their agendas are.

Pre-election, there were quite a bit of interest especially Utusan. Not a surprise here, they really think they are the greatest influence of Malay mindset – regardless if anyone actually reads Utusan.

Post-election, BOOM! Okay to me that’s the sound of an out-of-nowhere-eruption.

Muhyidding starts talking about it, Utusan cannot stop rambling, TV3, Awani, TV1, The Star, Nazri Aziz…whoever.

Here’s the thing. All of these media people and some politicians here are saying that PAS has abandoned their principle and that they are not focused on their Islamic roots. Nazri Aziz went as far as saying that PAS is now corrupted with power.

Great stuff sir, if only you’re not a black pot. Not saying I agree with you. Just saying that you are only reminding us of UMNO’s characteristics and you’re calling on it. As if talking to a mirror. A clear, mirror.

Most are also saying that the Erdogen clan (the progressive thinking, less Islamic group) has taken over. Correct me if I’m wrong but the likes of Mat Sabu, Mahfuz Omar, Husam Musa, Salahuddin Ayub are all PAS members since I was even born. Mat Sabu is just as Islamic as Nasharuddin. Who’s to say those who won aren’t?

I would also like to correct one thing. Even though some associate the “less Islamic” group with Erdogen because of the Turkish PM’s close affiliation with Anwar, but does anyone even realize that Recep Tayyip Erdogen actually made Turkey more Islamic than it was before? Therefore, Erdogen should be associated with the “more Islamic” group by principle, right?

Anyway, this is pretty much obvious but I would like to just say it again, the flogging (I would term it) by the media an UMNO politicians are simply because they are not happy with the election results.

Everyone knows they are hoping to unite UMNO with PAS but that plan have been thoroughly derailed by this development.

My beef with that is this, why do they really think they need to have control over all things? Their attitude borderlines lunacy if you really think about it. Utusan really thought they could influence PAS members to elect their choice of candidate – they campaigned harder than any of the nominees. Why?

Then Muhyiddin really thought he can influence the rakyat, especially the Malays, into thinking PAS has abandoned us. Really? PAS is a party of Muslims who conducts their election the same way UMNO does. What makes UMNO’s elected candidate more credible than PAS’? Because they don’t elect the one you wanted?

Nazri then thought he can influence the other PR members into thinking that PAS wants to overthrow them and at the same time influence the whole of Malaysia that PAS is now a selfish party that is crazy for power. I note however that to come to that conclusion Nazri, in his own way, kind of said that PAS is no different than UMNO (which to me refers to UMNO being power crazy/corrupt).

This people only sees one view and that’s theirs. Their mind are so narrow-minded that they really thought what they think/say is the gospel. No they are not. People have their own mind. I don’t really need anyone to think for me. Whether as a human or a Malay. I can think for myself thank you. Your unyielding need to constantly remind me how to think and what to think is getting a tad bid pathetic.

Thanks but no thanks.

I like the new line-up not because it is aligned with Anwar of because they are more progressive thinking. But because they have the same ideals as I do. I’m not too familiar with all of them but let me be pathetic this once, because you all hate that they are elected, I know they are the best candidates.

The Christian PM issue - sheer stupidity

I find myself more and more relented when it comes to the incessant fear instilling, hate mongering and controversy spewing tactics laid down by UMNO and its cohorts lately. Not only are they blatant in treating the rakyat as dimwitted buffoons, but they do it in a way which shows how much they don’t care that they themselves look like dimwitted buffoons (which by the looks of it, is not that hard).

I would have to direct this entry to the pro-UMNO bloggers rather than the politicians who right now seems like they are taking cue from the bloggers rather than the opposite.

Of course, some of these bloggers might well be on someone’s payroll but that only shows how powerful a single person can be in politics.

The issue on Christianity and Christian PM is by far the stupidest thing to come up – bypassing sodomy, sex tape and terrorist-minded journalist who must be detained under ISA for reporting truths.

The stupidity becomes evident by the lack of support the two pro-UMNO bloggers (who started it all, Big Dog and Marahku) have from their own ‘friends’. Now even Khairy is condemning Big Dog – of course some would say it has got to do more with the whole Kalimullah/ECM Libra issue more than anything.

The whole problem with this claim made by Big Dog, which has not been supported, is that it is illogical. Sodomy, sure you can pin that on anyone. Sex tape, why not. Terrorist-minded journalist, if they sympathize them enough anyone could be a terrorist.

But a Christian PM? In a Muslim majority, Christian minority (10%) democratic country?

I’ve written on this before in my previous blog - contents of which I’ve deleted (much like Marahku) - when the issue of a Chinese PM cropped up a year or two ago. Again I’m going to use the same logic and reasoning.

This is a democratic country, where the majority are Muslim Malays. In a democratic country, leaders are elected by the majority - but I don't want to get into the details of popular vote and all that. Sadly in Malaysia, it is dominated by race-based polarization. Therefore like it or not everything is determined by one’s race. Well to those ultra-Malays/Chinese/Indian who are intolerant of a cohesive Malaysia or 1Malaysia if you like, this is great.

However, this idea of fearing for the worst – in this case a Christian PM – still comes from this group of people. On one hand you enjoy the current status quo and know that this is the best approach to your narrow-minded philosophy, on the other hand you fear that this same system could be so easily manipulated by impossible means.

How stupid are you?

Sakmongkol AK47 have written on this and I'm going to repeat it with my own version of things - rather more simple-minded and less eloquent. There are three (3) things protecting you, wahai si kurang bijaksana:

- your own race, which is the majority

- the constitution and the parliament which is dominated by matters that according to you is to your best interest (I’ll explain)

- the Malay rulers

You are one of the majority. According to you and UMNO which speaks for the majority apparently (me included), the country cannot accept a non-Malay, non-Muslim ruler. What can you do about that? Stir up a stupid controversy for one. Might I suggest, and this may be too hard for you to comprehend, you go vote for what you believe in. Then, make your race the majority in Parliament. That wouldn’t be hard given that it will always be the majority because of the aforementioned racial polarization in the country. If you still fear for your future, make lots more babies.

The constitution and parliament has in place a protective shield for the Malays. It is embedded. The only way to change that is to have the Parliament vote otherwise. Of course this must be done by those elected into the Parliament. If for example by some freak of nature the majority of the Parliamentarians vote for a non-Muslim Prime Minister then…well the majority have spoken. That is no one’s fault but the majority of the population (did I mention that Malays make up the majority?).

The Malay rulers are still in existent. If for example they see it fit not to have a non-Malay as Prime Minister and not to have Christianity as the official religion then they can always speak up. The still have certain powers embedded in them to act. If people want to take away this power they have to got to go Parliament again (back to my previous point) and change them. Thanks to your beloved Dr.M this was made easier. But still, if the majority of the Parliamentarians don’t feel like it, then don’t change it.

Do you really foresee a Malay majority parliament suddenly giving a vote of confidence to a non-Malay PM and voting for Christianity to be the official religion. Really?

These bloggers are the same people who once brought up the issue of Penang DAP turning the island into a republic much like Singapore. Well of course doing that is as easy as taking one puzzle piece off the rest…eh wait, no it’s not!

Unless a referendum is called and the whole of Penang wants to be like Singapore and then going through the whole process of creating a whole new nation, I really don’t foresee it happening. If you don’t like the idea don’t vote for it!!!

The worst thing about them (the bloggers) is that they write so beautifully with so much class – making them seem intelligent and their argument seems intellectual. But if you actually read what they write, most of them are just spewing out shit.

Then Utusan picks it up as if it's real news. But Utusan, we all know, don't even write well and they are basically the mouthpiece of UMNO rather an actual newspaper. I coin them as "a well run advertisement company for UMNO".

Sigh. Seriously, you know people who surf the internet are smarter than that right? Of course there are those can’t different between peas and a little rock but most of us are not that stupid. Stop making us look stupid!

PKR's communication flaw

I see quite a big flaw in PKR's communications strategies. Being in the field of media engagement and communications, I can't help but feel that PKR needs to beef it up a little. They aren't exactly winning the battle of public perception.

Sure it all boils down to the amount of barrage given by BN and UMNO, but if they are smart enough to shield themselves, they might just be able to counter it - to good effect.

I can just refer to some of the recent happenings to justify my opinion.

In Sarawak, although PKR more than doubled their representation, but that's only because previously there was only one representative. Apart from that, I don't really see much positives in it. Compare that to DAP's success, it is pretty embarrassing.

The main reason why PKR didn't fare so well, to me, is because they were too hung up on their success in the last general election. Sure they surprised a lot of people by being a strong opposition in parliament, that doesn't mean it will be the same next time around.

The sentiment might still remain, but it could go any which way. BN believed that their 2004 results were intact in 2008, based on sentiments, they got that wrong.

PKR should've stuck to their guns and play it simple instead of over-promising and showing too much hype. People are not too sure if PKR has the ability to govern. Selangor is doing quite well even though they are subjected to massive abuse by the federal government, but people don't necessarily see that - due to the negative media coverage they get day in day out.

Therefore, banking on your ability to govern and be the government wouldn't quite work. Do it like DAP, attack on the other party's credibility and past failures.

Same goes to the pornographic video of, supposedly, Anwar Ibrahim. Forget answering Eskay and the 'Dato T' geng, because they are rogues and in need of attention.

They should not be drawn to answer every detail of the dirty political assassination attempt. The more they come up with 'the video is doctored', 'the person in the video has bigger belly', 'the hair of the person is different', the more credibility you're giving to them.

How so? Because you look panicky and uncertain of your defense.

To me it is enough that Dr Wan Azizah answers the more personal questions. After all, she is the only who knows - really. Anyone saying they know, forget it.

On the giving oath issue. Sure, it is not right for them to give oath. First of, the person giving oath needs to be adil or upright. Clearly claiming to be the person in the video and clearly being a person who endorses the act in the first place, Eskay is not upright. Therefore there is no credibility at all.

Which brings me to my next opinion. Instead of playing their game, attack their credibility - forget attack, give them an onslaught. Who is Eskay? Who is Rahim Tamby Chik? Who is Shuib? Why Datuk T in the first place? Why now? Why are they so concerned? I'm sure some PKR sympathizers would say they have done that, but to me it's not enough. Every time you talk to the media you attack them.

That video may or may not be true, but given the similarity people would struggle not to believe. I for one don't believe, but I know why some would. You point people to a cloud and say it looks like a duck, eventually people would see the same thing. You point to the same cloud and say it resembles a dog, now it's a dog. It's easy to create a perception.

Therefore, PKR really need to think hard how they answer questions, how they counter certain claims and how they communicate with the people. At the moment it looks to be all over the place. It's sluggish.

T for Three...Oooo

I was a big wrestling fan during my high school days. In wrestling, you are either a group or an individual. Then you are either a heel (bad) or a face (good). Some wrestlers are an enigma but it’s simple enough, the moment you are cheered on by the fans, even if you are a heel, they will turn you into a face.

Which brings me to the Datuk T err, Trio. Datuk T is obviously a group. Whether a heel or face, it’s still being debated. Well not too hotly debated, it seems like the pro-T supporters are a lot more dumbfounded than the anti-T supporters (especially since the revelation of the people behind the group). Why so quiet?

At the moment though they are more like a bunch of clown wrestlers who only enters the ring to make sure things are 'lively'.

The problem with this whole story is there are too many gaping holes at first but then too much revelation. All in a span of 2 days! We were not given much room to have fun with the available facts first (and speculate) - which really doesn’t work when you are trying to blackmail someone.

One day it is, mystery Datuk have a sex video of a senior opposition politician. Then 2 hours later, the senior

politician is the opposition leader - senior opposition leader denies! Not a day has passed when an opposition member nonchalantly reveals that the person behind Datuk T is so and so. Without giving much room for us to either believe or ignore this revelation, the Trio came out.

Damn. Give us room to breathe please.

I’m not done complaining about Nazri’s comment that showing porn to a group of people is not an offense (which by the way kind of give Mamak stalls a whole host of entertainment options to show their patrons).

I also wrote an entry yesterday which I had to scrap because it was essentially to condemn Datuk T as a coward and a dumbass and grumble on everything that is wrong with the media. I don’t think both points are exciting now – because when I wrote, it was based on pure speculative thoughts, now it is realized (no fun writing something which is just plain for everyone to see).

Well UMNO tried to distant themselves from the Trio just yesterday. Today UMNO can only cry at the corner, cry in the shame that the Trio has everything to do with them.

Now their best bet is to make sure nothing happens between today and the Sarawak state election.

As for the Trio. First of all, bravo. You three lot are the worst conspirators ever in the history of Malaysian politics.

Shazryl said he panicked when a group of 20 journalists clamoured to view the video. I guess all 3 panicked the moment Datuk Johari opened his mouth. They should really have ensured they got to the man first before deciding to be “mysterious”. Bunch of panics cannot be blackmailers.

Also, if you’ve revealed your identity to people from the other side, just abandon your strategy to be ‘mysterious’. It’s just plain dumb to think that you can survive a week in a shroud of mystery with someone opposing you knowing who you are.

If someone else is behind this, please and I sincerely plead that next time, pick someone who is not already in the same boat as the person whom these jokers claim to be ‘immoral’.

Now don’t be down yet because your claim may still be proven. But for the moment, prepare to be ridiculed because you are THE joke of the year.

PERKASA...Woodstock...7 Million unwanted youths?? Where is this heading?!?

I like how The Malaysian Insider twist things a bit with pictures. They usually do it with words and exaggerate matters a bit. Trust me when I say this happens as I have also been at the receiving end of it (not me personally, of course).

The most recent occurrence that I am happy to spot is the recent article entitled "Perkasa turns to ‘flower power’ for makeover"

First of all, bravo TMI for highlighting 'flower power' in the headline. People who have lived in the 70's (not me) or is fond of anything ranging from the Vietnam war to Jimmy Hendrix to President Nixon would note that 'flower power' refers to the hippie days.

You see, hippie is famously known for the youth movement in America back in the back-end of the 60's and early 70's as a counter resurgence to everything that is the US Government (at least that's my definition of it).

One of the most popular event that personifies this movement was Woodstock.

Now, here's what Perkasa's suggesting at the end of this year: "This year-end we are going to organize something like Woodstock for youths that are still undecided...". At least that's how they are quoted in TMI.

Now TMI probably didn't do much to their report in terms of actual reporting, but the headline and the picture...well, simply brilliant.

Perkasa has been known to be ultra-Malays and aren't too endearing to the more so-called "liberal thinking" youths of Malaysia (that's how they themselves would coin it). Pitting Woodstock and Perkasa is like pitting Caviar and Marshmallow. They just don't jive.

Now Perkasa might have a more simpler idea of Woodstock, i.e. youths grouping at one time and you know, getting to know Perkasa and listen to Faizal Tahir for 4 hours (or something). But TMI make it seem like it's actually Woodstock especially with the picture of "revelers kissing in the mud at Woodstock 2009".

But the idea of Perkasa organizing a Woodstock-like event is just too awry. It's just not Perkasa. In fact this idea is too liberal and just simply put, an idea Zaid Ibrahim would be proud of (given that they label him a liberal-Malay).

You know it's just an idea of indifferent consequences given that they target 7 million youths gathering for a 24-hours, music ladened event.

Hence the picture in TMI. Gives you a certain misconception of all that there is to know about Perkasa. But hey, they asked for it.

But get a kick out of this. They say they are targetting 7 million youths, the rempits, pregnant teens, extreme sport athletes, rockers and hip hoppers who are not wanted by either BN nor PR.

They actually generalized the whole youth community into this 6 category of people! Put the extreme sport athletes, rockers and hip hoppers into the same bracket as rempits (extreme sports?) and pregnant teens and!! basically say that 7 million youths are basically made of all these people!!!

Genius. Totally genius. Less said about it the better.

Whopper and Malaysia's Lack of Confidence

Malaysians lack confidence. This is not based on any formal observation, psychological or scientific research or coffee shop talk between friends. It is based on the goings-on around me that I come to this conclusion – which I will explain in a short while.

Is that our fault? Yes.

I came to this informal observation after helping myself to a Whopper burger yesterday (RM1, queued for an hour, worth it). I remember eating whopper burger in Saudi Arab a few years back, and it was enormous – managed to finish 1 burger and helping myself to leftovers of my mum’s and aunt’s. Yesterday, when I ate the burger at my office pantry, I received the common remark of “wow that’s a huge burger”. It was huge, but not as huge as the one I had in Saudi.

Why is it that our Whoppers aren’t as huge? Is it because we Malaysians don’t eat much? Is the Burger King franchise belittling our appetite? Maybe. Every time I watch the food channel or travel and living, I see Americans, Arabs and Europeans eating huge portions of food, unhealthy food, but food nonetheless.

This is very Malaysia (that everything is of little portion) because in Malaysia, no one thinks we can handle bigger plates.

This is not just the perception restaurants give us (Pizza, mcD, TGI-Chillis) but in most of everything around us as well. Government gives us countless amounts of subsidies – like Petrol (of course this is leveraged by the ridiculous duties on cars)

Malay also has the NEP which is by far the biggest stick anyone could give the helpless Malays to walk in this country of ours. Regardless of what you say, it is a lack of confidence that we’re given NEP.

Then there’s a whole load of needless regulations and laws. The lack of confidence by the government in the people’s ability to control themselves (after the racial riot 40 years ago when arguably the nation was in its infancy, and it seems we are still in that stage) results in the over-regulation on the press, free speech (even though enshrined in our constitution), writings (Hassan Sekodeng’s case is testament to this) and ceramahs as well as forums.

Proton needs the government to impose ridiculous tax on imported cars for it to survive. Why is that so? It is mainly because Proton themselves have no confidence in their car-making ability and feel they can’t compete with imported cars. I mean we buy more expensive Protons in Malaysia then let’s say those in UK or Dubai do. Why? If Proton can actually produce good quality cars, then the excessive tax is not needed and Malaysians can confidently drive Proton cars.

The confidence in talents within this country is also in tatters with the government’s dedicated efforts to bring Malaysian professionals abroad to do the job here. I don’t mind really if they can contribute, it is welcomed. But what about the millions that are already here? Can’t we contribute as much? Well I’ve raised that in my previous entry; need not dive into it any further.

Then of course, we’re not confident of our judiciary, police, graft-busters, taxi drivers, corporate leaders, media, city councils, maids and I could go on for days with this.

Hence, does Malaysians lack confidence? I’d say yes. But the reasons being we contribute as much to our lack of confidence by our lack of trust in ourselves. Therefore, we need to be a bit more liberated by trusting ourselves more.

Give us enormous Whopper burgers!

Why Woo When You Can Wow Me (on retaining talents)

PM is working hard to woo Malaysians back from across the horizon. Of course to do this, as with any other initiatives by the Malaysian government, there is a need to actually set up a whole corporation/body/task force/working committee/agency/club/coffee shop/mobile clinic/booth etc.

In this case it’s the Talent Corporation set to be up and running by next year. Their main objective is basically to woo professionals from abroad. The corporation would engage these lucky chaps who managed to secure a career (I’m guessing prosperous careers) in a foreign land, seeking them out and addressing their concerns. We will be begging them to return to this beloved country, that’s the gist of it.

All is well and good there. However, apart from sentimental values and nasi lemak, what other reasons could there be for them to consider returning here permanently?

I’m happy to be in Malaysia, to work in Malaysia and be a part of Malaysia. I see this country as having a lot of potential and I feel no real burden living in this country. Sure cars are ridiculously expensive and I’m stuck with a run-down Waja that has “v-tech” sticker which is impossible to peel out because the guy who owned it before was probably trying to convince himself that it is as good as driving a Camry, house prices makes me noxious and I can only dream of owning a house in the next 7 years (I’m playing Lego a lot more now), the public transport system is the government’s way of promoting fitness and health as opposed to travel convenience and salary prices have been rising dramatically slow for decades despite our rush to be a developed nation by 2020 - developed nation under-developed people.

Not to mention all the racism (a rising concern), politicking, red tape, corruption, half-open market, leadership crisis, the lack of good Nasi Lemak stalls (unlike 10 years ago) and the Ramadhan Bazaar losing its appeal after the 12^th day of fasting month. Also, the illogical and yet accepted pricing of Nasi Goreng (fried rice), Mee Goreng (fired noodle) and other Goreng-Goreng (fried-fried) food from breakfast to lunch/dinner - how can Nasi Goreng be worth RM1.50 during breakfast (pre-prepared) and RM3.50 after breakfast (add fried onion to the mix) and no one questioning the rationality?

In any case, I think the government is aiming wrongly in this case. Sure we want talents to come back to Malaysia especially if there are talents out there who might go on to be Jimmy Choo or that Saw movie creator guy who might do some good to our lackluster movie industry. But they have gone on to another country, they are getting higher salaries, they are living the dream perhaps even. Judging from comments in blogs, newspapers, online portals and forums, most of these leavers seem to be happy and not too many regret their decision.

If indeed we are able to woo them back, how many would want to come back? My next question is, what can these woo'ed boys do that those who are already here can’t potentially do? Why not aim to retain those who are still here, those in the university, those young entrepreneurs, engineers, doctors, academicians, etc.

Instead of promising high salaries for these woo'ed boys to come back, giving them benefits and discounts on stuff, give that to us. I’ve never considered moving abroad to work but I do realize that I’m not earning much here - considering my talent for looking busy whilst “at work”. I can’t afford a lot of things, definitely cannot live a life of luxury with my family, can only dream of traveling at the moment, but I’m happily working in Malaysia still.

I say, reward me, reward us.

I can understand those wanting to work abroad and become a resident of other countries. Look at our salary scale and compare them to our neighbor. In 2007, the average household income was only RM3,500 monthly (USD 965, i.e. USD 11,500 yearly) whilst in Singapore, the median household income in 2005 was USD30,000 yearly. I’m not really sure about the difference between “average” and “median” in economic-lingo, but since the numbers are hugely different (considering the year as well) it is disturbing anyway. (Median is the middle right and average is like the middle as well? If I’m wrong correct me please)

Then consider the fact that 45% of expats living in Singapore earns more than S$ 250,000 you would be blind to not see the gold that is raining on our neighbor.

In any case, many those who have left would probably not come back. But there are a lot more talents in this country that may or may not be considering other opportunities abroad. Fix the problems that are here (some already listed above), retain the talents you already have by giving them added benefits, the promise of brilliant career progression, fair and equal treatment and not screw up too much. Now that would be a better initiative.

Again my point is, reward me, reward us.

On that note, why must the government set up a whole corporation just so there could be professionals whose job is to beg other people to come home?

I say, you would be wasting your time. Leave that job to capable NGOs. There are plenty of NGOs who would be willing to do the job if you fund them the right amount. Then you can focus on other more pertinent issues like healthcare, education or Pak Ali’s English.