It is a multiracial country? Is it a land with many wonders and natural resources? Actually I dont know what is the answer. Somebody just prosed this question to me, and according to him "Malaysia is a multicultural country" is a wrong answer. Like there is something more to define about Malaysia.
But who has the right / correct answer? We see Malaysia as a brand "Truly Asia" in the tourism industry, does that applies to politics, history and socio-economy?
I am starting to get confuse myself, as to what Malaysia's vision is. What does Malaysian want to grow up to be? To be success in what aspect?
Malaysia do have a weird history. It is going to be so hard, if ever possible, for all Malaysians evolve into a 'Bangsa Malaysia', like it is only one race, with one synonymous culture or identity, would that mean losing our respective diverse plural cultures?
Yet, my unprocessed thought just visualize a 'dream' that Malaysia would be far better off in terms of social mentality, intellectual-inspired education system and narrowing the socio-economy gap of all people. Seems more like utopism. If only things are more simple, or if only I have more desire to gain more knowledge through reading.
Still wondering for answer.
Saturday, October 29, 2005
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Dont complain if you didn't vote
What it is with some people. Let me calm down before I start shooting and hurting people. I just blasted a friend whose simple mind agigated me. He asked why dont I post up opposition articles in the mainstream media, to advocate the people and to voice out people's concern to the government? Then I ask do you think these government controlled media will air the views of opposition?! *sigh.. I didn't really manage to talk sense into him, when he can tell me "if DAP or u dun voice out in the proper channel, everyone thinks that nothing is wrong to our society".
Why are there so many 'naive' people in my country?!?! Dont they have any sense of logic... as to WHY the country is behaving the way it is behaving? What wrong with these people!
The grandmother of all jokes is... some people would vote for BN, YET have the cheek the complain about the government. Isn't that what you ASK for? What you deserve? YOU, the people VOTED for it. Why complain?!
Exactly... this country has a majority of naive citizens who just watch TV and read the main newspaper daily, end of story. What do they really know?! Should I just shut up and mind my own business, and maintain friendships with people and not hurting people gradually.
*Breathhh....
Why are there so many 'naive' people in my country?!?! Dont they have any sense of logic... as to WHY the country is behaving the way it is behaving? What wrong with these people!
The grandmother of all jokes is... some people would vote for BN, YET have the cheek the complain about the government. Isn't that what you ASK for? What you deserve? YOU, the people VOTED for it. Why complain?!
Exactly... this country has a majority of naive citizens who just watch TV and read the main newspaper daily, end of story. What do they really know?! Should I just shut up and mind my own business, and maintain friendships with people and not hurting people gradually.
*Breathhh....
Sunday, May 01, 2005
A gift of the holy "Quran"
... speechless ... that's how I felt. I felt the sincerity KS was trying to shower me with. She's proud of her religion, she is a dutiful follower of Islam. On the last day of 2 year stint within the government department, I've grown to make friends with tudong-wearing Malays and seeing their way of life.
I accepted the 'special' token from Kak Sarah, and hopefully I'll keep it nicely. She'd specifically reminded to treasure the book with utmost respect. Do not simply place it anywhere. I guess this the same way I'd treat the Bible or the Buddhist books.
"Do unto others as you would have others do unto you." This saying I totally agree.
Utimately, as I'm not an avid reader, I know I wouldn't finish reading the Quran. Not in this buzzing life period. Maybe when I've developed 'powerful concentration technique', then I could patiently read through books, which to me is just like interpretation of an author's really long note. Yes, Quran or Bible, they're written by people, human beings.
Anyway, I'll give my thoughts about God in the future. For now, between Islam and Christianity, the basics are the same. If I have to had to choose, I'd probably relate to Islam more than Christianity. More so because of my creeps of my personal encounters with Christian people, where as I've never really been approached so aggressively by a Muslim to try to 'safe' me.
The world's interpretation of Islam is quite unlike how a sincere moderate Muslim would practise her religion. And I guess I have a problem with the higher class or better off people by and large, and in any football matches I'd probably support the underdog. That's just me.
I just felt that it's a wonderful experience knowing the people that I've been wanting to get to know all these while, through my 1st job. As I didn't have much chance in Uni days to mix with them. I'm refering to the typical Malays. Although there were some Malays back in school, but it was an urban school where everyone spoke English with each other, and the Chinese girls wore baru kurung and the Malay chicks do not wear the tudong.
I've never regretted my experience working in this mostly-Malays culture and I'm glad that I could fit in comfortably, and even improve on my verbal communication in Malay! (Ahem, I hardly spoken Malay in school you see).
Now if only I could make out what are the various Malay slangs: the Johor slang, the Kelantan slang or the 'pas-tu' Penang anak mimi slang.
I accepted the 'special' token from Kak Sarah, and hopefully I'll keep it nicely. She'd specifically reminded to treasure the book with utmost respect. Do not simply place it anywhere. I guess this the same way I'd treat the Bible or the Buddhist books.
"Do unto others as you would have others do unto you." This saying I totally agree.
Utimately, as I'm not an avid reader, I know I wouldn't finish reading the Quran. Not in this buzzing life period. Maybe when I've developed 'powerful concentration technique', then I could patiently read through books, which to me is just like interpretation of an author's really long note. Yes, Quran or Bible, they're written by people, human beings.
Anyway, I'll give my thoughts about God in the future. For now, between Islam and Christianity, the basics are the same. If I have to had to choose, I'd probably relate to Islam more than Christianity. More so because of my creeps of my personal encounters with Christian people, where as I've never really been approached so aggressively by a Muslim to try to 'safe' me.
The world's interpretation of Islam is quite unlike how a sincere moderate Muslim would practise her religion. And I guess I have a problem with the higher class or better off people by and large, and in any football matches I'd probably support the underdog. That's just me.
I just felt that it's a wonderful experience knowing the people that I've been wanting to get to know all these while, through my 1st job. As I didn't have much chance in Uni days to mix with them. I'm refering to the typical Malays. Although there were some Malays back in school, but it was an urban school where everyone spoke English with each other, and the Chinese girls wore baru kurung and the Malay chicks do not wear the tudong.
I've never regretted my experience working in this mostly-Malays culture and I'm glad that I could fit in comfortably, and even improve on my verbal communication in Malay! (Ahem, I hardly spoken Malay in school you see).
Now if only I could make out what are the various Malay slangs: the Johor slang, the Kelantan slang or the 'pas-tu' Penang anak mimi slang.
Monday, April 25, 2005
The Politics of Race
Below is the excerpt of (kononnya, more like copy & paste :P) this piece of antogonising writing that I can totally agree with. Let's hope you can relate to what's in my mind through the years. Read it with an open heart.
~~**~~**~~
As a Malaysian, there is nothing more I detest than the politics of race. I am not a member of any political party in Malaysia because each seeks in one way or the other to represent the interests of its communal constituency: for UMNO and PAS, the Malay Muslim community; for the MCA, Gerakan and the DAP the Chinese community; for the MIC, PPP and other smaller parties the Indian community. Over in Sabah and Sarawak, the politics of communal politics is also practiced in full earnest.
Ever since the late 1940s and the 1950s when UMNO, the MCA and the MIC were first formed, they found convincing support from the various races and together they achieved electoral victories that led to independence and government under the Alliance government. It seemed the concept worked, until 1959, when UMNO in rejecting the new leadership of the MCA choose to nominate the old leadership to Parliamentary seats in the general election and began a pattern of dominating the MCA and the MIC. The lie in the A-lie-ance coalition of the 60s was the impression of an equality of partnership in its origins and foundation when in reality, the grouping was completely and totally dominated by UMNO.
This domination of the Alliance by UMNO resulted in the non-Malay communities seeking protection under other parties. Although new non-communal parties were formed, they took up representation of interests of the non-Malay communities who saw the MCA and the MIC as being ineffective. This led to the polarisation of Malaysian politics which resulted in the electoral gains for the non-Malay oriented parties and losses for the UMNO-dominated Alliance in 1969. Malay political supremacy threatened; the racial riots were sparked.
The National Front soon formed thereafter included the victorious opposition parties of the Gerakan, the PPP and the PMIP, now known as PAS. It seemed initially liked an across-the-board type of coalition representing all the races in the country with consensus as its philosophy and approach in response to the racial polarisation of the late 60s. The new component parties soon found out that by joining the National Front they were weakened under the domination of UMNO; PAS was forced to leave in 1977; PPP disappeared overnight as a major political force and the wings of the Gerakan were clipped, domesticating it completely. Each party that joined the National Front saw its constituency eroded as in the 1970s and in the 1980s, the interests of UMNO; the dominant party in the coalition was advanced first by the implementation of the NEP and then the NDP in the 1990s. Any party that tried to challenge it found that its position was untenable and like the PBS, had to leave and remain in the opposition.
The longer the National Front remained in power, the greater UMNO had a hold over its component parties; dispensing its token Ministerial positions, coveted seats on various statutory Boards and other vestiges of its power. In the later part of the 80s and in the 90s, the members and associates of the minor parties in the National Front were accorded preferred treatment in the allocation of contracts and sub-contracts from, projects and partnerships with the members and associates of the dominant party UMNO. ...
In the meantime, picking up the discontented and disaffected in Malaysian politics were the other opposition parties; PAS (and Semangat 46 for a time) for the Malay Muslim; DAP for the non-Malay and PBS for the Kadazan voters. So what we have in our country is the compartmentalisation of race in politics and in political representation. A leader in UMNO earns his stripes by championing Malay dominance; he graduates to national leadership and practices Malay leadership of the political dwarfs within the National Front for UMNO. When the economy is favourable (the cake is growing); he can afford to be a generous Malaysian leader and distributes his favours to all and sundry. The opposition parties loses ground because the component parties representing the non-Malays in the National Front for UMNO are seen to be doing their work.
When the economy is unfavourable (the cake is shrinking) he has to retreat to his position of Malay dominance and take care of the Malays first as is what is happening now. The opposition parties gain ground because the component parties representing the non-Malays are not performing. During this time UMNO uses whatever resources it has to keep its members and keep PAS at bay.
So the pendulum swings back and forth, back and forth within the confines of the zero-sum game of communally compartmentalised politics. More for you means less for me. Less for you means more for me. But always, because of its incumbency, UMNO wins; its gerry- mandered constituencies ensure that it has the most votes in the most (usually rural) constituencies. In borderline cases, it has the advantages of the Election Commission registration process and postal votes of police and military personnel to make the difference. This is usually enough to win a simple majority; by the way, most of the MCA and MIC seats are heavily populated by Malay voters; so it is really UMNO delivering the victories in those seats and not the MCA or the MIC. To deliver a two-thirds majority so that it can freely amend the constitution and do all other things to further its objectives, National Front for UMNO ensures that the economy is booming when it calls an election. ...
The sense of euphoria will be fueled by the national propaganda machine made up of the all-important Ministry of Information, the "independent" local media and an advertising campaign orchestrated by a particular ad man. It is crystal clear that the general elections in Malaysia are stacked heavily in favour of the incumbent National Front for UMNO. With the majority of seats in UMNO hands and in effect in Malay hands, the non-Malays play musical chairs with their representatives in Parliament; alternating between the non-Malay parties in the National Front for UMNO and the opposition parties. ...
As a Malaysian, there is nothing more I detest than the politics of race. As a non-Malay I am forced to vote for the Opposition non-Malay parties which have no chance of coming to power because the arithmetic is not on their side. More important, they are perceived to be communal by the Malays and if I support them, I am considered anti-Malay by the Malays.There is no way I could appeal to the Malays to join my cause.
As a Malay, I am forced to vote for either the incumbent party in power represented by the National Front for UMNO or the Opposition Malay parties which have no chance of coming to power because the arithmetic is also not on their side. More important, PAS and others like it is perceived to be communal by the non-Malays and if I support them, I am considered anti-non-Malay by the non-Malays. There is no way I could appeal to the non-Malays to join my cause.
As a Malaysian, I am concerned about why I am forced into this Hobson's choice of choosing the National Front for UMNO as a Government either way I vote. As a Malaysian, I am concerned about why I am forced to be either a Malay or a non-Malay when I vote; supporting the party of one race, means opposition for the party of the other race. As a Malaysian. I am concerned why our country is still in the tight grip of the racial politics, more than fifty years after it first surfaced.
...fighting for the right of individuals is currently still caught within the contradictory values of Malaysian communally compartmentalised politics which has not yet made the transition into the intellectual phase which is pre-dominated by the values of individual rights and freedoms. This is a tragedy, because the reform movement may die stillborn. Unless Malaysians themselves are ready and begin to discard the politics of race and adopt the politics of ideas.
As a Malaysian, I think that the National Front for UMNO has stayed too long and led by leaders that has become too self-serving, too ready to argue that its "ends" justify its unwholesome and unacceptable means. Yet it stays in power because we are all trapped within its politics of race. ...
Yet as a Malaysian I do not think that UMNO will so readily give up its hold on the Malay constituency and by extension its hold on power on its National Front and on the country. The last time any UMNO leader tried that was Dato Onn Jaafar in 1949, but he was branded as a "traitor to the Malays and the country" for advocating that UMNO admit non-Malays into the party first as associate members and then suggesting in 1950 that UMNO be renamed the United Malayan National Organisation. Given the ignominy that Dato Onn suffered as a consequence in spite of his Ghandian vision, no UMNO President in the forseeable future will dare propose that UMNO be renamed the United Malaysian National Organisation.
~~**~~**~~
Now did u understand that?!
~~**~~**~~
As a Malaysian, there is nothing more I detest than the politics of race. I am not a member of any political party in Malaysia because each seeks in one way or the other to represent the interests of its communal constituency: for UMNO and PAS, the Malay Muslim community; for the MCA, Gerakan and the DAP the Chinese community; for the MIC, PPP and other smaller parties the Indian community. Over in Sabah and Sarawak, the politics of communal politics is also practiced in full earnest.
Ever since the late 1940s and the 1950s when UMNO, the MCA and the MIC were first formed, they found convincing support from the various races and together they achieved electoral victories that led to independence and government under the Alliance government. It seemed the concept worked, until 1959, when UMNO in rejecting the new leadership of the MCA choose to nominate the old leadership to Parliamentary seats in the general election and began a pattern of dominating the MCA and the MIC. The lie in the A-lie-ance coalition of the 60s was the impression of an equality of partnership in its origins and foundation when in reality, the grouping was completely and totally dominated by UMNO.
This domination of the Alliance by UMNO resulted in the non-Malay communities seeking protection under other parties. Although new non-communal parties were formed, they took up representation of interests of the non-Malay communities who saw the MCA and the MIC as being ineffective. This led to the polarisation of Malaysian politics which resulted in the electoral gains for the non-Malay oriented parties and losses for the UMNO-dominated Alliance in 1969. Malay political supremacy threatened; the racial riots were sparked.
The National Front soon formed thereafter included the victorious opposition parties of the Gerakan, the PPP and the PMIP, now known as PAS. It seemed initially liked an across-the-board type of coalition representing all the races in the country with consensus as its philosophy and approach in response to the racial polarisation of the late 60s. The new component parties soon found out that by joining the National Front they were weakened under the domination of UMNO; PAS was forced to leave in 1977; PPP disappeared overnight as a major political force and the wings of the Gerakan were clipped, domesticating it completely. Each party that joined the National Front saw its constituency eroded as in the 1970s and in the 1980s, the interests of UMNO; the dominant party in the coalition was advanced first by the implementation of the NEP and then the NDP in the 1990s. Any party that tried to challenge it found that its position was untenable and like the PBS, had to leave and remain in the opposition.
The longer the National Front remained in power, the greater UMNO had a hold over its component parties; dispensing its token Ministerial positions, coveted seats on various statutory Boards and other vestiges of its power. In the later part of the 80s and in the 90s, the members and associates of the minor parties in the National Front were accorded preferred treatment in the allocation of contracts and sub-contracts from, projects and partnerships with the members and associates of the dominant party UMNO. ...
In the meantime, picking up the discontented and disaffected in Malaysian politics were the other opposition parties; PAS (and Semangat 46 for a time) for the Malay Muslim; DAP for the non-Malay and PBS for the Kadazan voters. So what we have in our country is the compartmentalisation of race in politics and in political representation. A leader in UMNO earns his stripes by championing Malay dominance; he graduates to national leadership and practices Malay leadership of the political dwarfs within the National Front for UMNO. When the economy is favourable (the cake is growing); he can afford to be a generous Malaysian leader and distributes his favours to all and sundry. The opposition parties loses ground because the component parties representing the non-Malays in the National Front for UMNO are seen to be doing their work.
When the economy is unfavourable (the cake is shrinking) he has to retreat to his position of Malay dominance and take care of the Malays first as is what is happening now. The opposition parties gain ground because the component parties representing the non-Malays are not performing. During this time UMNO uses whatever resources it has to keep its members and keep PAS at bay.
So the pendulum swings back and forth, back and forth within the confines of the zero-sum game of communally compartmentalised politics. More for you means less for me. Less for you means more for me. But always, because of its incumbency, UMNO wins; its gerry- mandered constituencies ensure that it has the most votes in the most (usually rural) constituencies. In borderline cases, it has the advantages of the Election Commission registration process and postal votes of police and military personnel to make the difference. This is usually enough to win a simple majority; by the way, most of the MCA and MIC seats are heavily populated by Malay voters; so it is really UMNO delivering the victories in those seats and not the MCA or the MIC. To deliver a two-thirds majority so that it can freely amend the constitution and do all other things to further its objectives, National Front for UMNO ensures that the economy is booming when it calls an election. ...
The sense of euphoria will be fueled by the national propaganda machine made up of the all-important Ministry of Information, the "independent" local media and an advertising campaign orchestrated by a particular ad man. It is crystal clear that the general elections in Malaysia are stacked heavily in favour of the incumbent National Front for UMNO. With the majority of seats in UMNO hands and in effect in Malay hands, the non-Malays play musical chairs with their representatives in Parliament; alternating between the non-Malay parties in the National Front for UMNO and the opposition parties. ...
As a Malaysian, there is nothing more I detest than the politics of race. As a non-Malay I am forced to vote for the Opposition non-Malay parties which have no chance of coming to power because the arithmetic is not on their side. More important, they are perceived to be communal by the Malays and if I support them, I am considered anti-Malay by the Malays.There is no way I could appeal to the Malays to join my cause.
As a Malay, I am forced to vote for either the incumbent party in power represented by the National Front for UMNO or the Opposition Malay parties which have no chance of coming to power because the arithmetic is also not on their side. More important, PAS and others like it is perceived to be communal by the non-Malays and if I support them, I am considered anti-non-Malay by the non-Malays. There is no way I could appeal to the non-Malays to join my cause.
As a Malaysian, I am concerned about why I am forced into this Hobson's choice of choosing the National Front for UMNO as a Government either way I vote. As a Malaysian, I am concerned about why I am forced to be either a Malay or a non-Malay when I vote; supporting the party of one race, means opposition for the party of the other race. As a Malaysian. I am concerned why our country is still in the tight grip of the racial politics, more than fifty years after it first surfaced.
...fighting for the right of individuals is currently still caught within the contradictory values of Malaysian communally compartmentalised politics which has not yet made the transition into the intellectual phase which is pre-dominated by the values of individual rights and freedoms. This is a tragedy, because the reform movement may die stillborn. Unless Malaysians themselves are ready and begin to discard the politics of race and adopt the politics of ideas.
As a Malaysian, I think that the National Front for UMNO has stayed too long and led by leaders that has become too self-serving, too ready to argue that its "ends" justify its unwholesome and unacceptable means. Yet it stays in power because we are all trapped within its politics of race. ...
Yet as a Malaysian I do not think that UMNO will so readily give up its hold on the Malay constituency and by extension its hold on power on its National Front and on the country. The last time any UMNO leader tried that was Dato Onn Jaafar in 1949, but he was branded as a "traitor to the Malays and the country" for advocating that UMNO admit non-Malays into the party first as associate members and then suggesting in 1950 that UMNO be renamed the United Malayan National Organisation. Given the ignominy that Dato Onn suffered as a consequence in spite of his Ghandian vision, no UMNO President in the forseeable future will dare propose that UMNO be renamed the United Malaysian National Organisation.
~~**~~**~~
Now did u understand that?!
Monday, April 11, 2005
Thoughts that came about during Cheng Meng
What will happen tomorrow (to the Chinese culture), if the children of today are not educated nor brought up to appreciate the custom?
Then we ask - how important is upholding the tradition & custom for the family, community and the country?
To my non-Chinese educated uncle who is proud to be a Chinese, but has converted to Christianity, thought that it is not important to follow the old ways. Infact, to him, the reason for the practise of 'leaving behind bits of food' at the graveyard is because Chinese is Kiasu! They want to show that they've come and visited the ancestor's grave first.
What will happen one day, if all Chinese got converted to Christianity, and they'll think it's irrelevent to uphold any of the tradition, i.e. holding the joss stick, lighting of red candles, placing cups of tea etc. Can you imagine that happening in Malaysia?
Why am I only referring to born-again Christians? What about like minded people me! I do not agree with the idea of paper burning, its illogical, completely meaningless and is utter polluting the air.
Yet when I try to revamp our Cheng Meng style, my parents do not agree. They are more 'traditional' than 'religious' in this aspect. If we were to follow the teachings of Buddhism, we do not have to follow any rituals. But my parents are so righteous (I'm not sure if that's the right word) that they are just trying to uphold what my grandmother had always been doing in the past until she's gone.
Back to my uncle, how can he say "I feel more Chinese if I'm in Singapore" like he's deprived of his chance to be a Chinese here in Malaysia? What makes him a Chinese, (aside from his name and his roots) when he is willing to discontinue the Chinese tradition, and he couldn't speak nor write in Chinese?
How many Chinese family here still maintain a Chinese alter in their house? Who else is making offerings to the sky-god, earth-god and mother of all gods? The younger generation will never really bother why is new moon and full moon so significant. Chinese New Year is all about angpow and money. Is there other Chinese family that will take the trouble to clean up the altar in the most respectful way?
It's so 'convenient' to just convert to modernisation and clap your hand to wash away your responsibility of 'traditions' that one must follow. No need to remember when is the death anniversary, no need to remember when to clean the altar.
If nobody remembers any 'link' of our family & culture, what will the future generation be?! Westernized? Modernised? Globalised? Uncivilised?
Already, it was baffling when I once asked my little cousin "What is your race?", you know what she replied? "I'm English!".
I ask her why is she English, because she said she's speaking English! Hmm.. what have you gotta expect from a 4 year old kid? If the whole world population and every nation started to pick up English from young, then everyone would be English?
What's harder to perceive is how most non-native-mainland-China Chinese (like Malaysians themselves) would feel disgusted with the attitude of the people of China?! My parents who's travelled to China for holidays would complain about how rude the Chinese people are, and how snobbish the Chinese girls behaved. One Malaysian-Chinese friend who's studied in UK, alongside mainland-Chinese flatmates felt embarassed that the Chinese were so dirty! (i.e. rarely bath)
What is the term for people like me?! What am I wishing for, for the future of the Chinese in Malaysia? Why do I even care if I was ever a Chinese or not? But then I am still proud to be a Chinese, though I'm more patriotic towards my country Malaysia.
Just like I'd boldly tell everyone, I'm first a Malaysian, second a Chinese, third a Buddhist. Maybe all I have to do is just accept the differences in other people, and hope for others to accept me for just me. That's probably it!
Then we ask - how important is upholding the tradition & custom for the family, community and the country?
To my non-Chinese educated uncle who is proud to be a Chinese, but has converted to Christianity, thought that it is not important to follow the old ways. Infact, to him, the reason for the practise of 'leaving behind bits of food' at the graveyard is because Chinese is Kiasu! They want to show that they've come and visited the ancestor's grave first.
What will happen one day, if all Chinese got converted to Christianity, and they'll think it's irrelevent to uphold any of the tradition, i.e. holding the joss stick, lighting of red candles, placing cups of tea etc. Can you imagine that happening in Malaysia?
Why am I only referring to born-again Christians? What about like minded people me! I do not agree with the idea of paper burning, its illogical, completely meaningless and is utter polluting the air.
Yet when I try to revamp our Cheng Meng style, my parents do not agree. They are more 'traditional' than 'religious' in this aspect. If we were to follow the teachings of Buddhism, we do not have to follow any rituals. But my parents are so righteous (I'm not sure if that's the right word) that they are just trying to uphold what my grandmother had always been doing in the past until she's gone.
Back to my uncle, how can he say "I feel more Chinese if I'm in Singapore" like he's deprived of his chance to be a Chinese here in Malaysia? What makes him a Chinese, (aside from his name and his roots) when he is willing to discontinue the Chinese tradition, and he couldn't speak nor write in Chinese?
How many Chinese family here still maintain a Chinese alter in their house? Who else is making offerings to the sky-god, earth-god and mother of all gods? The younger generation will never really bother why is new moon and full moon so significant. Chinese New Year is all about angpow and money. Is there other Chinese family that will take the trouble to clean up the altar in the most respectful way?
It's so 'convenient' to just convert to modernisation and clap your hand to wash away your responsibility of 'traditions' that one must follow. No need to remember when is the death anniversary, no need to remember when to clean the altar.
If nobody remembers any 'link' of our family & culture, what will the future generation be?! Westernized? Modernised? Globalised? Uncivilised?
Already, it was baffling when I once asked my little cousin "What is your race?", you know what she replied? "I'm English!".
I ask her why is she English, because she said she's speaking English! Hmm.. what have you gotta expect from a 4 year old kid? If the whole world population and every nation started to pick up English from young, then everyone would be English?
What's harder to perceive is how most non-native-mainland-China Chinese (like Malaysians themselves) would feel disgusted with the attitude of the people of China?! My parents who's travelled to China for holidays would complain about how rude the Chinese people are, and how snobbish the Chinese girls behaved. One Malaysian-Chinese friend who's studied in UK, alongside mainland-Chinese flatmates felt embarassed that the Chinese were so dirty! (i.e. rarely bath)
What is the term for people like me?! What am I wishing for, for the future of the Chinese in Malaysia? Why do I even care if I was ever a Chinese or not? But then I am still proud to be a Chinese, though I'm more patriotic towards my country Malaysia.
Just like I'd boldly tell everyone, I'm first a Malaysian, second a Chinese, third a Buddhist. Maybe all I have to do is just accept the differences in other people, and hope for others to accept me for just me. That's probably it!
Friday, April 08, 2005
Friday long lunch break
The interesting part about being in a multiracial work place is how I can gradually get to know about people from the other race. But I'm not suppose to let anyone know why F didn't went for his Friday prayer. His excuse was - no teman. Doh.. so anyway, here's what I've discovered during our long Friday lunch. The conversation goes something like this: -
me : so how many siblings you have?
F : I have one sister and one brother.
me : they're older than you right?!
.. blah blah..
F : My brother is 34 years old and not married.
me : Why not?! Isn't that too old to remain single for a Malay?
F : Well.. actually he almost got married. Remember the last election? was it 1998 or 1999?
me : 1999.
F : Yeah.. that time, got election, you know lah.. my brother and my family all Umno, but the girl is Pas!
me : So?
F : So different lah... didn't marry.
~~~
and I rolled my eyes, wondering to myself... wah so if I wanna find a man to marry must find somebody of the same political ideology?!
~~~
Lunch ended so late, because the akah who prepared my food took soooooooo long. Sigh.
me : so how many siblings you have?
F : I have one sister and one brother.
me : they're older than you right?!
.. blah blah..
F : My brother is 34 years old and not married.
me : Why not?! Isn't that too old to remain single for a Malay?
F : Well.. actually he almost got married. Remember the last election? was it 1998 or 1999?
me : 1999.
F : Yeah.. that time, got election, you know lah.. my brother and my family all Umno, but the girl is Pas!
me : So?
F : So different lah... didn't marry.
~~~
and I rolled my eyes, wondering to myself... wah so if I wanna find a man to marry must find somebody of the same political ideology?!
~~~
Lunch ended so late, because the akah who prepared my food took soooooooo long. Sigh.
Friday, March 25, 2005
How much would you give to a street guitarist?
Lately I came across with many street guitar player, strumming and singing along in restaurants and sidewalks in my neighbourhood. Last night while celebrating my friend's birthday in a typical Chinese restaurant, we unashamedly requested the guitarist to play the 'Happy Birthday' song, he sang it twice.
How much do you think we should give him? If we're Malaysians, what's average sum people would give for street musician or entertainer that stood there and sang for the crowd for the whole duration of your meal?
Will street musicians become popular in Malaysia where they'll be more appreciated by the people? :P Hmm.. just wondering.
How much do you think we should give him? If we're Malaysians, what's average sum people would give for street musician or entertainer that stood there and sang for the crowd for the whole duration of your meal?
Will street musicians become popular in Malaysia where they'll be more appreciated by the people? :P Hmm.. just wondering.
Thursday, March 24, 2005
Is it me?
Dear Salim,
So i got this letter in my mailbox last weekend from Deloitte =( that doesn't look good, u know ppl only send u reject letter thru the conventional mailbox!! aaaaarrrhh... nevermind, but it looks like I've lost all opportunity to join analyst / consulting in all the big 4.
The hot topic now is why are there so many jobless graduates around? Sometimes I seriously wonder, is it my problem? If so, what cause me to be 'unemployable'? Isit becos I have too high expectation of myself? But who was it that pushed me to have high aim and ambition since young? Is the government, industry or real-world implying that it is wrong to be picky or choosy or have high hope?
Of course, I guess the best person to win it all is one who is adaptable to changes, I wouldn't blame it all on myself, just that I felt unjustified that the real-world / government / industry are not being held at all guilty or answerable to the very least, to the problem of supply exceeding demand. Hitz.fm morning crew and all the listeners called in to add salt to the wound, nobody is really giving justifiable solution.
A caller said she's got a good job, becos she got foreign degree and can present better than local grads. Then she shudder to think about the fact that her office clerk holds a science degree and she know of many graduates doing only charity work. That is problem statement again!
After whining all that, my underlying concern is myself - where did I go wrong? I can write and speak english better than most of my local grad comrades with a recognised degree. From what I see, its really the "way" to self presentation which might hold the key to graduates failing job interviews. English is not the issue, and what is the "way"? I can never see how others presented in their interview. I will always be wondering what the hell did I do wrong, why in the world did they call me up for interview and ask so many questions and in the end turn you down?
I just could not help but wonder if it's wrong to just be myself?
Update on the UNDP job, it is just an admin post. Doing reports, letters, write up etc. So mundane, which is what I'm actually good at. Is that it? Settle for less challenging job although suitable for my competency? Whatever happen to the notion of 'challenging' oneself to reach higher?!
I think in the end of my life, I could write a book about my grueling encounters with umpteen job interviews. Enough of crapping. Industry could really make or break me. It can actually demotivate my high spirit!
So i got this letter in my mailbox last weekend from Deloitte =( that doesn't look good, u know ppl only send u reject letter thru the conventional mailbox!! aaaaarrrhh... nevermind, but it looks like I've lost all opportunity to join analyst / consulting in all the big 4.
The hot topic now is why are there so many jobless graduates around? Sometimes I seriously wonder, is it my problem? If so, what cause me to be 'unemployable'? Isit becos I have too high expectation of myself? But who was it that pushed me to have high aim and ambition since young? Is the government, industry or real-world implying that it is wrong to be picky or choosy or have high hope?
Of course, I guess the best person to win it all is one who is adaptable to changes, I wouldn't blame it all on myself, just that I felt unjustified that the real-world / government / industry are not being held at all guilty or answerable to the very least, to the problem of supply exceeding demand. Hitz.fm morning crew and all the listeners called in to add salt to the wound, nobody is really giving justifiable solution.
A caller said she's got a good job, becos she got foreign degree and can present better than local grads. Then she shudder to think about the fact that her office clerk holds a science degree and she know of many graduates doing only charity work. That is problem statement again!
After whining all that, my underlying concern is myself - where did I go wrong? I can write and speak english better than most of my local grad comrades with a recognised degree. From what I see, its really the "way" to self presentation which might hold the key to graduates failing job interviews. English is not the issue, and what is the "way"? I can never see how others presented in their interview. I will always be wondering what the hell did I do wrong, why in the world did they call me up for interview and ask so many questions and in the end turn you down?
I just could not help but wonder if it's wrong to just be myself?
Update on the UNDP job, it is just an admin post. Doing reports, letters, write up etc. So mundane, which is what I'm actually good at. Is that it? Settle for less challenging job although suitable for my competency? Whatever happen to the notion of 'challenging' oneself to reach higher?!
I think in the end of my life, I could write a book about my grueling encounters with umpteen job interviews. Enough of crapping. Industry could really make or break me. It can actually demotivate my high spirit!
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
What has a concert gotta do with morality?
So the Force of Nature concert was a blast! I finally got to meet the Backstreet Boys, my idol during my teenage years. When I'm in a big event like this, I like to observe the people around me. Who came, who wore what and who was caught doing what. Doesn't that makes me a 'kaypoh'?! In English that means busybody :P
I got off work from a typical government office, with all the tudong-wearing ladies and went to a stadium full with young Malay chicks clad in tight baby-Ts, mostly very pretty. And then I wonder, wahh.. so this is how many other rich Malays wear. Where do they come from? Who are their parents? Do these rich Malay youngsters think like the holier-than-thou akah from work?
How come Malaysians are so diverse socially speaking? Even within one same race, i.e. Malays, there's different types of Malays. I remember once I had an online friend, half-Malay-half-Chinese, who's born to a very rich father, who wrote superb English, and very well-verse on philosophy and social science, but clueless about the bumiputera policy that is affecting the local tertiary education. :( Surely this Malay boy belongs to the elite class, probably just like all the chicks who came for the FON concert with a VIP ticket or RM500++ worth ticket!
Did you see how groovy they danced standing (while some were still sitting around them)? See how much passion they have for music, how they jumped around ecstaticly. What overwhelmed me most is the number of people who went outside during every break of the concert and puffed away! :( Those young girls included. It was so smokey along the corridor outside, even when lining up at sales counter, you have to hold your breath as the person infront had a burning cigaratte between his fingers, hand behind his back. Many of them were probably still in their school going age, why did the government's "Tak Nak" campaign fell into deaf ears? Maybe its only me who is so naive who doesn't smoke and dont even think of trying. Now I see the relevance of needing a No-Smoking campaign targetted at youths through the media. Anyway, from that night concert, I felt that the campaign will never be effective, although for a good cause.
Can I simply judge the moral decline among youths in our society just by going for one concert? Who am I to judge another person, in the aspect of upholding morality. How important is practising morality in a society especially for the youths? How can I say that smoking equate lesser moral? That could turn me into the same category as my office holier-than-thou akah, trying to preach goodness to other people.
Why did I go to the concert in the first place?! Well it's an eye-opener of course, to see and observe the people around us. I guess I too behaved like one of the Malay chicks by screaming and yelling until I almost lost my voice that night, prancing around. Was that a problem?! Maybe its like an individual expression of some sort. Every youth now seem to has a stand, always having a a voice to say what they want. I believe in allowing every single youth freedom of expression, through using intelligence and logic to connect themselves with this world.
When relating to that, do we give total freedom for youths of today without any form of control or discipline? Where do we draw the line between enforcing abiding moral code of conducts and allowing complete freedom for individual expression? How far do we want to see the discipline and morality of youths decline (in the eyes of those holier-than-thou old fashion people) or we never give a stop to individual expression. A naughty but smart kid can earn lots more money than a boring kid. Observers may conclude that a naughty kid can be linked to creativity and think-out-of-the-box, but the average child might not think as big.
How do we see the future of Malaysia with the set of youths that we have nurtured today. Who is to judge that Malaysia is going on the right or wrong track with social etiquette, and is it even a relevent question for our country's overall progression? How important is morality for the country, and how much emphasis should be given to this matter?
If only I can change and manipulate the country into what I want, with my own hands!!
I got off work from a typical government office, with all the tudong-wearing ladies and went to a stadium full with young Malay chicks clad in tight baby-Ts, mostly very pretty. And then I wonder, wahh.. so this is how many other rich Malays wear. Where do they come from? Who are their parents? Do these rich Malay youngsters think like the holier-than-thou akah from work?
How come Malaysians are so diverse socially speaking? Even within one same race, i.e. Malays, there's different types of Malays. I remember once I had an online friend, half-Malay-half-Chinese, who's born to a very rich father, who wrote superb English, and very well-verse on philosophy and social science, but clueless about the bumiputera policy that is affecting the local tertiary education. :( Surely this Malay boy belongs to the elite class, probably just like all the chicks who came for the FON concert with a VIP ticket or RM500++ worth ticket!
Did you see how groovy they danced standing (while some were still sitting around them)? See how much passion they have for music, how they jumped around ecstaticly. What overwhelmed me most is the number of people who went outside during every break of the concert and puffed away! :( Those young girls included. It was so smokey along the corridor outside, even when lining up at sales counter, you have to hold your breath as the person infront had a burning cigaratte between his fingers, hand behind his back. Many of them were probably still in their school going age, why did the government's "Tak Nak" campaign fell into deaf ears? Maybe its only me who is so naive who doesn't smoke and dont even think of trying. Now I see the relevance of needing a No-Smoking campaign targetted at youths through the media. Anyway, from that night concert, I felt that the campaign will never be effective, although for a good cause.
Can I simply judge the moral decline among youths in our society just by going for one concert? Who am I to judge another person, in the aspect of upholding morality. How important is practising morality in a society especially for the youths? How can I say that smoking equate lesser moral? That could turn me into the same category as my office holier-than-thou akah, trying to preach goodness to other people.
Why did I go to the concert in the first place?! Well it's an eye-opener of course, to see and observe the people around us. I guess I too behaved like one of the Malay chicks by screaming and yelling until I almost lost my voice that night, prancing around. Was that a problem?! Maybe its like an individual expression of some sort. Every youth now seem to has a stand, always having a a voice to say what they want. I believe in allowing every single youth freedom of expression, through using intelligence and logic to connect themselves with this world.
When relating to that, do we give total freedom for youths of today without any form of control or discipline? Where do we draw the line between enforcing abiding moral code of conducts and allowing complete freedom for individual expression? How far do we want to see the discipline and morality of youths decline (in the eyes of those holier-than-thou old fashion people) or we never give a stop to individual expression. A naughty but smart kid can earn lots more money than a boring kid. Observers may conclude that a naughty kid can be linked to creativity and think-out-of-the-box, but the average child might not think as big.
How do we see the future of Malaysia with the set of youths that we have nurtured today. Who is to judge that Malaysia is going on the right or wrong track with social etiquette, and is it even a relevent question for our country's overall progression? How important is morality for the country, and how much emphasis should be given to this matter?
If only I can change and manipulate the country into what I want, with my own hands!!
Tuesday, March 15, 2005
To argue or not to argue with a friend
Me -> do u know who is mggpillai?
He -> duno
Me -> www.mggpillai.com i had lunch with him
Me -> political writer la damn famous in the arena.. tsk tsk tsk
He -> hai........
He -> those opposition politics again
He -> sigh......
He -> all are opposition in the name of "independent jounalism"
Me -> i think that question is reversed
Me -> any ruling party can also be 'opposition' if the other party won, that dont justify 'opposition=independent journalism'
He -> not in malaysia
Me -> but since our media is controlled by ruling party, hence only sure way to get news across is thru 'independent journalism' which is only a tool
He -> for me in malaysia, no such thing as independent
Me -> u're stating a fact that everybody know
He -> if they said it's independent, then it's opposition. simple as that
Me -> that is for the average people who do not question, who do not seek to find out the whole story.
He -> nah
Me -> and who are "they" are you implying? the less educated people who do not read, do not have access to internet? internet penetration is still low in m'sia
He -> finding a true story doesn mean we have to go to "independent"
Me -> opposition channel to speak is still minimal
He -> that;s a very naive thinking
Me -> "independent" means do not rely on one side only, here i suspect ur understanding of the term "independent" is hostile, like its a bad thing?
He -> being an opposition should have xpect minimal channe; to speak
He -> u get me wrong
He -> "independent" in malaysia is bullshit............it means opposition
He -> searching for a true story....... have to check and balance
He -> that's pro and anti govt
He -> that;s all
Me -> i sense u're coming from a different mindset in totality, having predefined judgement on "how" x-y-z is "supposed" to be.. when x-y-z is only a substance that needed to be discovered
Me -> by all means
Me -> u are quite a pro government guy, who probably will not vote for opposition at the end of the day, hence u may not understand what opposition wants.
Me -> and u think opposition is a bad thing. although opposition fights for "check and balance".
He -> as much as i dun fancy those editors in The Star, i am not not fancy about the writers in malaysiakini or Harakah
Me -> if u fancy "neither" side it means u're neutral and sitting on the fence
Me -> and u probably cannot decide what to vote for, not having a stand for urself.
He -> im not sitting on the fence
He -> im sitting on the wall
He -> opposition's main fighting propaganda is of course "for check and balance"
Me -> people who are sitting on the fence, need to "pour away" ur teacup, if its full before you start discovering news from both sides.
He -> without this, they won even have a single support if not because of "balance" etc
Me -> agree.
Me -> this is the whole idea of opposition in malaysia
Me -> as ruling party won >90% resulted in check and balance imposible
He -> i dun agree
Me -> <10% how to balance?
He -> there;s no such thing as ruling party cannot have a check and balance on their part
He -> the problem is, in malaysia, that is not happening
Me -> (ur statement do not have a sound justification)
He -> thats why some ppl are still in opposition
Me -> can u speak in malaysian context only, since u are in malaysia
Me -> what will happen if the whole country supports one ruling party?
He -> nope
He -> im not a politician
He -> it won be a good thing if whole country support 1 party
Me -> by the look of it, the trend of malaysia has always been that..
He -> no govt in the world is perfect
Me -> 90% is a big big majority, compare to the rest of the world... it is quite unbelievable
He -> if we could improve it, yes
He -> but by all means, we should not sacrifice a lot by just achieving it
Me -> there must be "reason" for why u think there will ever be "sacrify" for achieving something.
He -> we have to scarifice something to achieve something else
Me -> the only scarify i see is poor opposition leaders struggling their way out, scarifying their own time / youth to fight for something good.
He -> i would have xpect u to understand that from the lessons of life
He -> well.........i do agree with u on that
Me -> u cannot judge people / party / concept without seeing from every angle
He -> neither do u
He -> the problem is, how do u know u have seen all angle?
Me -> have I made any judgment in this conversation so far?
He -> of course
Me -> atleast i feel that i cud see more angle than u, as i read all of local newspaper AND online news
He -> no judgment = no point = no debate = no conversation at all
He -> there u go again........another judgment
Me -> that is not 'judgement' that is 'opinion'
He -> of course, u can say it's an "opinion"
He -> just like opposition that says "we are for check and balance"
Me -> "opinion" - i think durian taste bad.
Me -> "judgement" - durian IS very bad!
He -> "we are for justice" etc
He -> u judge by your opinion
He -> no matter which one u still feel durian is bad
Me -> do u think opposition people are fighting for fun, for glamour, for money, for fame?
He -> judgement is based on how u deliever it...........by thinking or saying it out
He -> u still judge it in either way
He -> nope.......i dun think so
He -> but just that i dun think so, doesn mean they are fighting for the people
Me -> then what is opposition fighting for?
He -> themselves
Me -> say, I wonder, Lim Guan Eng go to jail 2 years, lose his practise license, for himself?
He -> that is because he has gone to the limits
He -> i think he;s stupid
Me -> the point - did he fight for himself?!
Me -> or he wanted to fight for the girl?
Me -> i think from ur statement, u will be thinking i am stupid and all opposition supporters are stupid.
He -> watever or whoever he fight for, the rule of law prevails
Me -> i think talking to u makes me sound stupid
He -> u cannot just murder someone because he has a knife pointing at u
Me -> when u know law can be bribed
He -> nah.........dun wori
Me -> dun tell me u never cheated in exam
He -> it's just a clash of "opinions"
Me -> and dun tell me UPM is fair
He -> i would have xpect u to be happy coz someone wana to debate tis with u
He -> wat's the relevancy of yer questions anyway?
Me -> its not just "clash of opinion" its a sad case scenario, where I've never met a malaysian like u, who thinks like u, whom nobody can ever understand.
He -> haha
Me -> i wud be happier if I know i cud convince u to see things from a bigger angle
He -> believe me, there are many out there like me
Me -> do u know i "feel" strongly about it when i debate abt my opinion
He -> i duno
Me -> i serious do not think I'm stupid
He -> im not so easily to be convinced
He -> i said lim guan eng stupid
Me -> I know, but i seriously in my heart think u're sad case
He -> i dun say u stupid........
He -> dun relate everything
Me -> when u say lim guan eng stupid - i feel so sad.
Me -> when u say "opposition fights for themselves" I feel like crying and cutting my heart out for u.
Me -> when im willing to fight for anything.. to make this country a better place, and u just lepak ur kaki (shake ur legs) there thinking opposition fighters are stupid.
He -> then it's up to u
Me -> i feel this battle is too sad to battle for.
He -> coz i could not agree with yer statements. perhaps u should start to accept what other ppls think
He -> u could easily label me as sad case
He -> it's ok 1. u can fight for wat u think is right
Me -> i know its ok, becos u will let me say anything i want, and i shud be able to let u speak ur mind. and its a total complete utter distinct opinion
Me -> that can really turn u off
Me -> i respect freedom speech
He -> debating is ok
Me -> but i have to "let go my heart" when i start debate with people or else i'll go nuts
He -> but not up to the extend on saying "i think u r idiot"
He -> the most we could say is "i think u r wrong"
Me -> i've been called stupid and "naive"
Me -> what more shud I expect?
Me -> idiot is almost same like stupid + naive
He -> then do u have any problem in that, when ppl called u idiot etc?
Me -> at the end of the day, i feel that opposition leaders have SOOO much to lose for, in the name of a better Malaysia.
He -> do u seriously get offended wit that?
Me -> BUT the ruling party are sitting nicely in their grand office, with nice suit and bank account, and having everything, but you didn't think it's stupid - ofcos they're so smart, they gain votes, they gain money, they gain fame. that's what you think it's smart. (probably)
Me -> (i dun have a problem with name calling, if ONLY opponent can take MY name calling)
He -> i dun think those in the office are smart
Me -> but they gain ur support - the ruling leaders who didn't have to lose anything, fight for nothing, but gain ur vote.
Me -> the opposition ppl who lose so much, esp the "mental energy" to keep on changing for improvement for Malaysia - gets misunderstood by people like u.
He -> did i say i voted for them?
He -> and even if i do, what if i say i voted for a better malaysia?
Me -> and they are sooo many ppl like u will "potentially" vote for ruling party, whom I dont see fights for anything real.
Me -> ur idea of better M'sia is being painted by the idea of the ruling party.
Me -> what if a better M'sia can be really cool, of better standard, with no poverty in the rural area, everyone can speak english, and all races are happy?!
He -> we got to be practical. no single country can achieve that
He -> trust me, we are far off better
Me -> what if a better M'sia can take in all the students regardless of Matriculation or not? what if M'sia can give every SAME scholarship regardless of race?
Me -> we can be better.
Me -> what is ur benchmark?
Me -> i suspect my benchmark of "better malaysia" is very high compared to urs
He -> wat if all those happens, but ppl are fighting ?
He -> our kids,,,,,,,,although they have fair chance of going to Univ, but the country is in civil war
Me -> wat if i call u "naive" to think that THAT would happen?!
He -> it's ok
He -> i think it;s h ghly posible to happen
Me -> i can never imagine Malays fighting Chinese, if NOT because of constant "reminder" of the ruling party
Me -> IF you let society be..
Me -> let society grow..
He -> maybe not in the future, but definitely will if it happens today
Me -> society WILL grow peacefully, effectively, esp with the asian roots, where Malays are humble, and Chinese are apathetic.
He -> not at this lifetime
Me -> i will think that u have a pessimistic opinion, to think that potentially fighting will happen if everything is fair.
Me -> becos u have to read what malays themselves wrote..
He -> no
Me -> i've read many malays blog, that support abolishment of bumi policy..
He -> i think it;s practical , not pessimistic
Me -> becos they know it's not doing them any good.
Me -> What do u think of Malays like that?!
He -> that still doesn justify we are ready for it
Me -> u're limiting malaysia the chance to grow.. its like u have 2 children, and u prevent fighting, u give 1 go oversea, 1 go local uni, and justify that by saying it's for their own good, (although 1 is so unhappy) but no choice must give in.
Me -> "when" is malaysia ready for it? when u're 50, 70? 100?
He -> there are limits to everything
Me -> is there limit to growth?
He -> i duno when we will be ready............i only feel we are still not ready
Me -> can u stop a smart boy from being too smart?
Me -> u cannot stop energy
He -> bear in mind that malaysia is still young by default
Me -> i have a good example.
Me -> do u "want" to see malaysia grow in the future?
He -> in wat sense
Me -> if now is not the time, how abt in the future? wud that be possible?
He -> of course everything is possible
Me ->grow in terms of equal rights, no disparity of wealth,
Me ->good.. wud that posibility become so diffucult, if u do not start to change them now? if u do not start to change them now - there wont be any change now - and if there's no changes now - tomorrow will always BE THE SAME.
Me ->journey of the 1000 miles begin with the 1st step.
He ->just that we dun start now doesn mean we won start forever
Me ->to go to Harvard uni, u gotta start from somewhere, and "when" do u start to study hard for it?!
Me ->tomorrow?
He ->but if we begin the 1st step at the wrong time, we may not go any further
Me ->have u got any proof on that statement, research done, experience felt before?
Me ->that it "may" go wrong?
He ->13 /5/1969
Me ->who is to justify that time-x is wrong time?
Me ->that was a wrong time? go and read the actual truth of what May 13th means..
Me ->u lack alot of info due to the fact u've not done research enuf
He ->again
Me ->i asked u before alot of history facts u dun now.
He ->u have yer own judgements
He ->i have mine
Me ->but i wish that u cud read MORE before making ur judgement
Me ->always remember a coin has 2 side.
He ->nah
Me ->to stop urself from reading more, is to limit ur viewpoint
He ->u can choose not to argue with me if u think im not so knowledgable
Me ->there is a reason behind everything. i do not think this is an argument..
Me ->my ultimate game plan is to MAKE U MORE knowlegable than u already are.
He -> more knowledable will make me wiser?
Me ->yes!
Me ->wisdom come with knowledge / experience / what u've learnt
Me ->how do u think an old man is wiser?
He ->wat if sometime we become stupid because we are too wise?
He ->an old terrorist man isn't that wise, is he?
Me ->wise is wise, if u become stupid, means u've NOT reach wisdom yet.
Me ->wisdom is within u
Me ->u will know / sense / feel if somebody is "high wisdom" or "high intelligence"
He ->i dun
Me ->some people are only "high intelligence" not "high wisdom"
He ->at the end, it's up to one;s opinion
Me ->u need people to "test" u to tell u if u're wise enough?
He ->no need
He ->i dun appreciate this thing
Me ->an opinion will be useless if opinion cannot make a difference in other ppl's life.
He ->that;s what u think
Me ->I have inkling to want to make a difference while Im alive, if i have the capacity to.
Me ->"thinking with opinion" is not good enough for me, to be as a human.
Me -> im saving this chat. need further analysis.
He -> duno
Me -> www.mggpillai.com i had lunch with him
Me -> political writer la damn famous in the arena.. tsk tsk tsk
He -> hai........
He -> those opposition politics again
He -> sigh......
He -> all are opposition in the name of "independent jounalism"
Me -> i think that question is reversed
Me -> any ruling party can also be 'opposition' if the other party won, that dont justify 'opposition=independent journalism'
He -> not in malaysia
Me -> but since our media is controlled by ruling party, hence only sure way to get news across is thru 'independent journalism' which is only a tool
He -> for me in malaysia, no such thing as independent
Me -> u're stating a fact that everybody know
He -> if they said it's independent, then it's opposition. simple as that
Me -> that is for the average people who do not question, who do not seek to find out the whole story.
He -> nah
Me -> and who are "they" are you implying? the less educated people who do not read, do not have access to internet? internet penetration is still low in m'sia
He -> finding a true story doesn mean we have to go to "independent"
Me -> opposition channel to speak is still minimal
He -> that;s a very naive thinking
Me -> "independent" means do not rely on one side only, here i suspect ur understanding of the term "independent" is hostile, like its a bad thing?
He -> being an opposition should have xpect minimal channe; to speak
He -> u get me wrong
He -> "independent" in malaysia is bullshit............it means opposition
He -> searching for a true story....... have to check and balance
He -> that's pro and anti govt
He -> that;s all
Me -> i sense u're coming from a different mindset in totality, having predefined judgement on "how" x-y-z is "supposed" to be.. when x-y-z is only a substance that needed to be discovered
Me -> by all means
Me -> u are quite a pro government guy, who probably will not vote for opposition at the end of the day, hence u may not understand what opposition wants.
Me -> and u think opposition is a bad thing. although opposition fights for "check and balance".
He -> as much as i dun fancy those editors in The Star, i am not not fancy about the writers in malaysiakini or Harakah
Me -> if u fancy "neither" side it means u're neutral and sitting on the fence
Me -> and u probably cannot decide what to vote for, not having a stand for urself.
He -> im not sitting on the fence
He -> im sitting on the wall
He -> opposition's main fighting propaganda is of course "for check and balance"
Me -> people who are sitting on the fence, need to "pour away" ur teacup, if its full before you start discovering news from both sides.
He -> without this, they won even have a single support if not because of "balance" etc
Me -> agree.
Me -> this is the whole idea of opposition in malaysia
Me -> as ruling party won >90% resulted in check and balance imposible
He -> i dun agree
Me -> <10% how to balance?
He -> there;s no such thing as ruling party cannot have a check and balance on their part
He -> the problem is, in malaysia, that is not happening
Me -> (ur statement do not have a sound justification)
He -> thats why some ppl are still in opposition
Me -> can u speak in malaysian context only, since u are in malaysia
Me -> what will happen if the whole country supports one ruling party?
He -> nope
He -> im not a politician
He -> it won be a good thing if whole country support 1 party
Me -> by the look of it, the trend of malaysia has always been that..
He -> no govt in the world is perfect
Me -> 90% is a big big majority, compare to the rest of the world... it is quite unbelievable
He -> if we could improve it, yes
He -> but by all means, we should not sacrifice a lot by just achieving it
Me -> there must be "reason" for why u think there will ever be "sacrify" for achieving something.
He -> we have to scarifice something to achieve something else
Me -> the only scarify i see is poor opposition leaders struggling their way out, scarifying their own time / youth to fight for something good.
He -> i would have xpect u to understand that from the lessons of life
He -> well.........i do agree with u on that
Me -> u cannot judge people / party / concept without seeing from every angle
He -> neither do u
He -> the problem is, how do u know u have seen all angle?
Me -> have I made any judgment in this conversation so far?
He -> of course
Me -> atleast i feel that i cud see more angle than u, as i read all of local newspaper AND online news
He -> no judgment = no point = no debate = no conversation at all
He -> there u go again........another judgment
Me -> that is not 'judgement' that is 'opinion'
He -> of course, u can say it's an "opinion"
He -> just like opposition that says "we are for check and balance"
Me -> "opinion" - i think durian taste bad.
Me -> "judgement" - durian IS very bad!
He -> "we are for justice" etc
He -> u judge by your opinion
He -> no matter which one u still feel durian is bad
Me -> do u think opposition people are fighting for fun, for glamour, for money, for fame?
He -> judgement is based on how u deliever it...........by thinking or saying it out
He -> u still judge it in either way
He -> nope.......i dun think so
He -> but just that i dun think so, doesn mean they are fighting for the people
Me -> then what is opposition fighting for?
He -> themselves
Me -> say, I wonder, Lim Guan Eng go to jail 2 years, lose his practise license, for himself?
He -> that is because he has gone to the limits
He -> i think he;s stupid
Me -> the point - did he fight for himself?!
Me -> or he wanted to fight for the girl?
Me -> i think from ur statement, u will be thinking i am stupid and all opposition supporters are stupid.
He -> watever or whoever he fight for, the rule of law prevails
Me -> i think talking to u makes me sound stupid
He -> u cannot just murder someone because he has a knife pointing at u
Me -> when u know law can be bribed
He -> nah.........dun wori
Me -> dun tell me u never cheated in exam
He -> it's just a clash of "opinions"
Me -> and dun tell me UPM is fair
He -> i would have xpect u to be happy coz someone wana to debate tis with u
He -> wat's the relevancy of yer questions anyway?
Me -> its not just "clash of opinion" its a sad case scenario, where I've never met a malaysian like u, who thinks like u, whom nobody can ever understand.
He -> haha
Me -> i wud be happier if I know i cud convince u to see things from a bigger angle
He -> believe me, there are many out there like me
Me -> do u know i "feel" strongly about it when i debate abt my opinion
He -> i duno
Me -> i serious do not think I'm stupid
He -> im not so easily to be convinced
He -> i said lim guan eng stupid
Me -> I know, but i seriously in my heart think u're sad case
He -> i dun say u stupid........
He -> dun relate everything
Me -> when u say lim guan eng stupid - i feel so sad.
Me -> when u say "opposition fights for themselves" I feel like crying and cutting my heart out for u.
Me -> when im willing to fight for anything.. to make this country a better place, and u just lepak ur kaki (shake ur legs) there thinking opposition fighters are stupid.
He -> then it's up to u
Me -> i feel this battle is too sad to battle for.
He -> coz i could not agree with yer statements. perhaps u should start to accept what other ppls think
He -> u could easily label me as sad case
He -> it's ok 1. u can fight for wat u think is right
Me -> i know its ok, becos u will let me say anything i want, and i shud be able to let u speak ur mind. and its a total complete utter distinct opinion
Me -> that can really turn u off
Me -> i respect freedom speech
He -> debating is ok
Me -> but i have to "let go my heart" when i start debate with people or else i'll go nuts
He -> but not up to the extend on saying "i think u r idiot"
He -> the most we could say is "i think u r wrong"
Me -> i've been called stupid and "naive"
Me -> what more shud I expect?
Me -> idiot is almost same like stupid + naive
He -> then do u have any problem in that, when ppl called u idiot etc?
Me -> at the end of the day, i feel that opposition leaders have SOOO much to lose for, in the name of a better Malaysia.
He -> do u seriously get offended wit that?
Me -> BUT the ruling party are sitting nicely in their grand office, with nice suit and bank account, and having everything, but you didn't think it's stupid - ofcos they're so smart, they gain votes, they gain money, they gain fame. that's what you think it's smart. (probably)
Me -> (i dun have a problem with name calling, if ONLY opponent can take MY name calling)
He -> i dun think those in the office are smart
Me -> but they gain ur support - the ruling leaders who didn't have to lose anything, fight for nothing, but gain ur vote.
Me -> the opposition ppl who lose so much, esp the "mental energy" to keep on changing for improvement for Malaysia - gets misunderstood by people like u.
He -> did i say i voted for them?
He -> and even if i do, what if i say i voted for a better malaysia?
Me -> and they are sooo many ppl like u will "potentially" vote for ruling party, whom I dont see fights for anything real.
Me -> ur idea of better M'sia is being painted by the idea of the ruling party.
Me -> what if a better M'sia can be really cool, of better standard, with no poverty in the rural area, everyone can speak english, and all races are happy?!
He -> we got to be practical. no single country can achieve that
He -> trust me, we are far off better
Me -> what if a better M'sia can take in all the students regardless of Matriculation or not? what if M'sia can give every SAME scholarship regardless of race?
Me -> we can be better.
Me -> what is ur benchmark?
Me -> i suspect my benchmark of "better malaysia" is very high compared to urs
He -> wat if all those happens, but ppl are fighting ?
He -> our kids,,,,,,,,although they have fair chance of going to Univ, but the country is in civil war
Me -> wat if i call u "naive" to think that THAT would happen?!
He -> it's ok
He -> i think it;s h ghly posible to happen
Me -> i can never imagine Malays fighting Chinese, if NOT because of constant "reminder" of the ruling party
Me -> IF you let society be..
Me -> let society grow..
He -> maybe not in the future, but definitely will if it happens today
Me -> society WILL grow peacefully, effectively, esp with the asian roots, where Malays are humble, and Chinese are apathetic.
He -> not at this lifetime
Me -> i will think that u have a pessimistic opinion, to think that potentially fighting will happen if everything is fair.
Me -> becos u have to read what malays themselves wrote..
He -> no
Me -> i've read many malays blog, that support abolishment of bumi policy..
He -> i think it;s practical , not pessimistic
Me -> becos they know it's not doing them any good.
Me -> What do u think of Malays like that?!
He -> that still doesn justify we are ready for it
Me -> u're limiting malaysia the chance to grow.. its like u have 2 children, and u prevent fighting, u give 1 go oversea, 1 go local uni, and justify that by saying it's for their own good, (although 1 is so unhappy) but no choice must give in.
Me -> "when" is malaysia ready for it? when u're 50, 70? 100?
He -> there are limits to everything
Me -> is there limit to growth?
He -> i duno when we will be ready............i only feel we are still not ready
Me -> can u stop a smart boy from being too smart?
Me -> u cannot stop energy
He -> bear in mind that malaysia is still young by default
Me -> i have a good example.
Me -> do u "want" to see malaysia grow in the future?
He -> in wat sense
Me -> if now is not the time, how abt in the future? wud that be possible?
He -> of course everything is possible
Me ->grow in terms of equal rights, no disparity of wealth,
Me ->good.. wud that posibility become so diffucult, if u do not start to change them now? if u do not start to change them now - there wont be any change now - and if there's no changes now - tomorrow will always BE THE SAME.
Me ->journey of the 1000 miles begin with the 1st step.
He ->just that we dun start now doesn mean we won start forever
Me ->to go to Harvard uni, u gotta start from somewhere, and "when" do u start to study hard for it?!
Me ->tomorrow?
He ->but if we begin the 1st step at the wrong time, we may not go any further
Me ->have u got any proof on that statement, research done, experience felt before?
Me ->that it "may" go wrong?
He ->13 /5/1969
Me ->who is to justify that time-x is wrong time?
Me ->that was a wrong time? go and read the actual truth of what May 13th means..
Me ->u lack alot of info due to the fact u've not done research enuf
He ->again
Me ->i asked u before alot of history facts u dun now.
He ->u have yer own judgements
He ->i have mine
Me ->but i wish that u cud read MORE before making ur judgement
Me ->always remember a coin has 2 side.
He ->nah
Me ->to stop urself from reading more, is to limit ur viewpoint
He ->u can choose not to argue with me if u think im not so knowledgable
Me ->there is a reason behind everything. i do not think this is an argument..
Me ->my ultimate game plan is to MAKE U MORE knowlegable than u already are.
He -> more knowledable will make me wiser?
Me ->yes!
Me ->wisdom come with knowledge / experience / what u've learnt
Me ->how do u think an old man is wiser?
He ->wat if sometime we become stupid because we are too wise?
He ->an old terrorist man isn't that wise, is he?
Me ->wise is wise, if u become stupid, means u've NOT reach wisdom yet.
Me ->wisdom is within u
Me ->u will know / sense / feel if somebody is "high wisdom" or "high intelligence"
He ->i dun
Me ->some people are only "high intelligence" not "high wisdom"
He ->at the end, it's up to one;s opinion
Me ->u need people to "test" u to tell u if u're wise enough?
He ->no need
He ->i dun appreciate this thing
Me ->an opinion will be useless if opinion cannot make a difference in other ppl's life.
He ->that;s what u think
Me ->I have inkling to want to make a difference while Im alive, if i have the capacity to.
Me ->"thinking with opinion" is not good enough for me, to be as a human.
Me -> im saving this chat. need further analysis.
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