All together now

The NST and the Star sicken me.

This riles me.

This blatant obfustication of the truth sickens and riles me.

The Hindraf rally obviously wasn't about winning a single penny from the Queen of England. This was about stepping out, speaking up, making a stand. Bar Council, Berish, Hindraf - three months, three major demonstrations. Something big is happening. And that's pretty damned exciting.

In other news, I'll be gone for about a week.

Don't go off starting a revolution without me.

And now for something completely different

Malaysian Police Break Up Rally:

Malaysian police have clashed with ethnic Indian protesters in Kuala Lumpur, the country's capital.

Tear gas and water cannon were used to disperse a crowd of over 5,000 people as they rallied outside the British High Commission.

The protesters are calling for reparations from the UK for sending Indians to Malaysia as indentured labourers a century ago.

The activists also demand measures to improve the living standards of Hindus.

At least 5,000 ethnic Indian men gathered outside Kuala Lumpur's famous Petronas Towers, carrying Malaysian flags and placards.

Some demonstrators were beaten and bundled into police vans, as tear gas and water cannon were fired into the crowd, according to the Associated Press news agency.

This is still Malaysia

We got the bungalow back.

We were ready to go down with a fight, guns ablazing, making a stand for our rights. All the way to the consumer tribunal. An open letter to the Menteri Besar himself. Getting our bungalow back was, we thought, impossible. But we could raise an almighty racket in pursuit of suitable compensation. Embarrass a few VIPs. Let the people know and all that.

Then we got the bungalow back.

After several indignant phone calls to whom it may concern, it looks like the squeaky wheel really does get the grease. There you go, they said, there's your bungalow. Happy now? Yes, sure. Happy. The irony didn't escape me, of course, although it was dulled by the fact that we had our holiday back, safe and sound.

However, just because we got our holiday back doesn't make it somehow more acceptable that a lot of other people didn't.

This is Malaysia

It's one thing when whatever holiday plans you might have are screwed up because of say, a tsunami, civil war, or tragic accident. It's a completely different thing when your holiday plans are screwed up on account of a government official who just so happens to be authorized to bump off anyone in the way of his own holiday.

After at least three months of careful planning and careful anticipation, our ragtag band of 13 KL and Taiping friends were only four days away from a trip up Maxwell hill when it came to our attention that the Perak Menteri Besar was going off on holiday. What were the odds that he'd pick the same hill and at exactly the same time we were supposed to be up there? The whole hill and all the bungalows on it are to be requisitioned to house not just the Menteri Besar, but his retinue as well.

Our reservations have been canceled. Our plans, ruined.

Of course we aren't merely disappointed. This is disappointment coloured by shock and indignation. It would be childish at this point to cry not fair!, but regrettably, this really is not fair. Bumped off on short notice. During the peak period, too. Campers, families, school-free kids - their rooms booked and trips planned out months in advance - told to bugger off on the whim of a Menteri Besar.

Such unconscionable, arrogant behaviour does not do the Government well. If this country is as civilized as we claim it to be, then Menteri Besars and the like cannot carry on acting like feudal lords of old. We are not Burma, we are not Myanmar, we are not Pakistan. We are Malaysia. And we demand fair play.

The "I Have A Dream" Speech

In the words of Martin Luther King:

In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check — a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.

~

It bothers me that Malaysia lacks a Declaration of Independence, Constitution, or anything of the sort, where the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are guaranteed. And most of all, it bothers me that this creed can never be mine in my own country: we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.

I have no heritage to claim. I have no check to cash in.

Vote!

Vote Arcade Fire at the 2008 Plug Awards!

It's time to honour the year's cream of the crop in independent music. 2007 didn't disappoint. The National, Spoon, Los Campesinos!, Arcade Fire - I must be the only person in the country who gives a damn about these artists (I'm still waiting for someone to prove me wrong). Never mind if all the nominees are goobledegook to you. Every vote counts. Even shamelessly manipulated votes make a difference. Vote Arcade Fire!

Go put your strengths to work

If there was one thing the flop School for Scoundrels got right, it was the part where chief scoundrel Billy Bob Thornton asks a roomful of losers which one of them owned a self-help book. All of them did. That, he said, is your first problem. You can't help yourself because yourself sucks.

That, in a nutshell, would kind of explain my distaste for self-help books.

I have trawled the web for book reviews of Marcus Buckingham's book and so far the most negative comment I came across was that it was not "essential reading". I haven't read the book. But I did see one of his videos for class. His main point is that we grow most in our areas of strength, not our weakness. Therefore we need to work in order to put our strengths in play and slowly reduce time spent on our weaknesses. This would seem to be the secret to a successful, happy life.

There is nothing wrong with how he defined our strengths and weaknesses. In fact, I found his method of identifying strengths and weaknesses insightful, or at least sensible. It's a useful exercise in self-discovery. However, do we really need someone else to tell us how to understand ourselves? What I discovered after trying out one of his exercises was what I already knew.

My major problem with his argument is that life is not split into our strengths and weaknesses. Life is much more complicated than that. Just as life is not only composed of black and white, but large swathes of grey, it's absurd to attempt to divide life into two. Strengths are two-edged swords. You may a be natural leader of men, but then again, so were Hitler, Saddam, and Stalin. Success is such an ambiguous term. In any case, should you take the book's contents to heart, you'd end up focusing so much on your strengths that you'd become a rather selfish person.

But what do I know? The man's making money by telling people how to succeed, just like him. His books and videos, full of motivational nonsense, are flying off the shelves. It's a scam. One big scam. He's playing on people's insecurities and fears. And people are buying it. They can't help themselves.

Remember, remember, the tenth of November

So that was what caused the traffic jam.

Did you buy the Star last Sunday? The Sunday Star carried a picture of the massive traffic jam citywide not on the front page, but on page 8. Evidently the Star thought that fuel subsidies were of greater importance than 40,000 people who took to the streets and demanded clean elections. But the front page had not a word of the Bersih rally. The news was relegated to page 8, along with that picture of the massive traffic jam, where it was reported that cops had broken up an illegal gathering. If this is to be any indicator of what the vast majority of people care about, then traffic jams beat illegal gatherings any day.

The media blackout ordered by the Government has succeeded to some degree. Rather than censoring the media themselves, the Government has generously allowed the media self-censorship. While independent websites like Malaysia Today and Malaysiakini kept blow-by-blow accounts online, the News Straits Times and the Star's websites' silence was telling. Reporters are willingly obscuring information and spinning stories in favour of those in power.

I wonder how such people can sleep at night.

But short of lying, spinning bad news is a tried and tested method of misleading the masses. Our Prime Minister dismissed the rally as a "political gimmick" by opposition parties. His attempt to sweep the significance of this march under the rug is thwarted by the fact that Bersih is a coalition of about 70 NGOs and 5 political parties. Clearly this is anything but a political gimmick. What really happened is that for one glorious day, differences were cast aside and 40,000 Malaysians made their stand on a patch of common ground. They came in peace. Yet cars were searched. Dataran Merdeka was cordoned off because that was where demonstrators had planned to gather. Tear gas and water cannons were used - there are videos and first-hand accounts everywhere of this occurring. At least seven people were reported to have been beaten and kicked by police. However, Information Minister Datuk Zainuddin Maidin denied any actual violence. There was no violence, he said, the police just dispersed the crowd with tear gas and water cannons. But no violence (This is democracy Malaysian style, an Al Jazeera reporter said to a video of police dispersing the crowd at Masjid Jamek).

It is true that the gathering was technically illegal - no permit was issued - and so far every politician available for comment has stood by that. But there was a rowdy illegal demonstration when Condoleezza Rice arrived in Malaysia some time ago. Police just sat back and watched, thus proving that illegal is an entirely subjective term.

The night before the Bersih rally, TV3 apparently reported that members of the public were banned from wearing yellow the following day. Still people came and marched. The people chanted democracy! and bersih!, the sight and sound of which will resonate for a long time to come. But of course reform is still a long way off. It's too soon for change, but it isn't too late to hope. Just seeing the pictures of the march filled me with an emotion I'd usually never associate with Malaysia - pride. I wasn't there. But I'm proud of those who were. And I'm finally proud to be Malaysian.

Reformasi

40,000 people rallied. Traffic chaos. City in gridlock. Tear gas. Water cannons. Journalists attacked by riot police. Memorandum successfully handed over to the King. Mission accomplished. (All of the above from Malaysiakini.)

The winds are changing.

I should have been there.

One observation. The people seem to be lacking a champion for social reform. The States had Martin Luther, India had Ghandi, South Africa had Mandela, Burma has Suu Kyi, and we have... Anwar Ibrahim. Does he count?

Walk on

There will be wedding bells ringing this afternoon. A joyous occasion, I might venture to say, for the people who know the couple and/or the family of the bride/groom. Mazel tov. For the rest of the Malaysian population, absent the wedding bells, it's a calendar event.

High-powered delegation to submit Bersih memo
Nov 9, 07 5:45pm

Thousands of members and supporters of activist groups and political parties - led by their big guns - are expected to stream into the road to Istana Negara tomorrow to answer the rallying call for electoral reform.

A delegation of political and civil society leaders has been identified to submit a memorandum from Bersih, the coalition for clean and fair elections, to the King’s representative at the end of a planned two-hour rally at Dataran Merdeka in Kuala Lumpur.

There are four yellow shirts somewhere at home emblazoned with the words daulat tuanku on the front, the uniform of those who are to march. The police vowed to arrest participants. Pak Lah's bold declaration of "don't you challenge me!" is certainly all the more reason to don that yellow shirt and get some exercise. March or no march, today will be a day to be remembered. Frankly, I'd much rather do something useful instead of attend a wedding. But I guess I shouldn't have said that. It's a joyous occasion. Mazel tov.

Chariots of fire

It seems to me that everything - everything - is falling apart.

I won't qualify this statement. Too many feelings would be hurt. And I'd probably get another "keep on the bright side of life" lecture from various well-meaning people. It has nothing to do with glasses and water. If it's bad, by golly, it's bad. There's no need to spin it to make yourself feel better. Most things start with a brilliant burst of passion. The fire sputters to nothingness eventually. I have yet to see anything to the contrary. Passion dies, enthusiasm vanishes, conviction wavers. It costs nothing to start something. It costs everything to keep it going.

Likewise, it costs nothing to say something without qualification.

Love, Harmony, and National Service

A skittish production
of insensitive sensibilities
which is not to be taken seriously
by Ethan Tan

Cast

Chinese boy
- Father
- Mother

Indian boy
- Friend 1
- Friend 2

Malay girl
- Mother
- Father

Scene One - Chinese boy’s home.


CHINESE BOY – LOOKING AT NEWSPAPER

Oh my god, I’ve got NS!

FATHER

What? Really?

MOTHER

Ah, why so bad luck one?

CHINESE BOY

This can’t be happening to me! I don’t want to waste my time at NS!

FATHER

Quick, think! How can you get exemption?

MOTHER – HUGS CHINESE BOY

My baby, my baby!

Scene Two – Indian boy’s home.

INDIAN BOY – LOOKING AT NEWSPAPER

Oh my god, I’ve got NS!

FRIEND 1

It’s okay macha, I went before.

INDIAN BOY

And how was it?

FRIEND 1

Fun, fun, fun.

FRIEND 2

You can shoot a gun, you know.

INDIAN BOY - SARCASTICALLY

Yippie.

FRIEND 1

You can make friends.

INDIAN BOY

Whoo hoo.

FRIEND 2

You can make girlfriends.

INDIAN BOY – GENUINELY EXCITED

Oh, wow! That does sound fun!

FRIEND 1

Told you so.

THEY WALK AWAY

Scene Three – Malay Girl’s Home.

MALAY GIRL – LOOKING AT NEWSPAPER

Oh my god, I’ve got NS!

MOTHER

Ah, it’s about time too. All your cousins went for it already.

FATHER

Praise god!

MOTHER – HAPPY, TAKES OUT PHONE

I must tell everyone I know!

MALAY GIRL

Well, I guess it’ll be fun.

Scene Four – National Service Camp Somewhere.

MALAY GIRL, CHINESE BOY, INDIAN BOY – RUNNING

CHINESE BOY

This isn’t so bad after all.

INDIAN BOY

Oh yes.

MALAY GIRL

I’ve learned so much since I got here!

CHINESE BOY

Yeah?

MALAY GIRL

Yeah! Don’t you think so?

INDIAN BOY

I do.

CHINESE BOY

Actually, yeah.

MALAY GIRL

See, we’re all friends now.

INDIAN BOY – HOLDS HER HAND

Good friends.

CHINESE BOY

National service works!

INDIAN BOY

It’s fun!

MALAY GIRL

It’s educational!

ALL TOGETHER – HOLDING HANDS

It’s national!

THE END