Rudyard Kipling"
āWhen you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldierā
General Douglas MacArthur"
āWe are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.ā
āIt is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.ā āOld soldiers never die; they just fade away.
āThe soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.ā
āMay God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .ā āThe object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
āNobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
āIt is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
Possibly, a last chance for Anwar to be PM By Francis Paul Siah
Monday, May 30, 2022
Malaysiakini : COMMENT | The realities are quite
clear for Pakatan Harapan and opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim. And more
so as the days and weeks pass and inch closer to the long-awaited 15th
general election (GE15).
One, it is an uphill task for Harapan to
win the election. Two, Anwarās long-cherished dream of becoming prime
minister is as good as over. Harapan diehards and Anwaristas may
not believe it, possibly because they fear staring at defeat right in
the eye or some may just find it impossible to accept the loss of power.
I like to believe that the rest of us, the ānon-politikusā, know better. Say, give and take a 10 percent error margin. (Non-politikus, in this context, means ānon-career politicians
depending on politics for a living and the non-sycophants/freeloaders
hanging around politicians, buttering them upā)
Many have suggested that Anwar should step down and call it a day. Analysts
had pointed out as far back as two years ago that with Anwar at the
helm of Harapan, the opposition coalition will not make it, not in GE15. Even
Anwarās daughter, Nurul Izzah, was not confident of a Harapan victory,
predicting that the coalition will lose two more general elections.
