Rudyard Kipling"
“When 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 soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It 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."
What makes people of poorest state, Kelantan, so happy - James Chai
Monday, July 25, 2022
"But we must not confuse this happiness with an improvement in well-being.
A person who has been deprived for decades may now “lack the courage to desire much” because hope has disappointed them many times before" - James Chai
Malaysiakini : COMMENT | To understand why Kelantan, Malaysia’s poorest state in terms of income per capita, ranked so high (fifth) on the Malaysia Happiness Index, we need to first look at a strange statistic.
In
1991, an average man in Malaysia lived for 69 years. In the next 25
years, the country’s social and economic progress created more
opportunities for healthcare, education, and jobs, pushing the national
life expectancy to 72.7 years.
Kelantan’s male populous, however, continued to live only for 69.2 years, throwing it a generation’s progress behind the rest.
For years, nobody understood why Kelantanese men died so young.
Journalist Aidila Razak made an investigation. Was it because the Kelantanese eat more sugar? They are, after all, the only people in Malaysia who add sugar to their roti canai.
But the numbers didn’t add up. Kelantan is only ranked eighth when it comes to diabetes.
Was
it because they have the lowest income? Maybe. At RM3,079, the
Kelantanese has the lowest median household income in Malaysia.But if we plot a graph of household income and life expectancy, it is not clear that low household income was the main cause.
