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."
Harapan should not run a negative campaign By Commander S THAYAPARAN (Retired) Royal Malaysian Navy
Monday, October 17, 2022
Malaysiakini : “The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds; and the pessimist fears this is true.”
- James Branch Cabell
COMMENT
| At this moment, everyone is talking about how the opposition should
cooperate with each other to win against Umno-BN, and all this does for
the ordinary folks who are struggling is reinforce apathy and create a
toxic environment which sustains partisans bases and does nothing to
encourage undecided voters to come out and cast their ballots.
When
Pakatan Harapan – which to me is the only opposition – finally gets its
act together, it should not run a negative campaign.
This is not a referendum on kleptocrats or whatever red meat sustains
the base. This should be about inspiring young voters and fence sitters
who want some form of economic and political stability.
This is
what Umno-BN is selling them. Stability. All these handouts that some
people mock in reality mean something for people who are struggling,
especially those who have been taught by the state to have large
families because demographics is destiny.
If the Malay uber alles
establishment has the 3Rs – race, religion and royalty – Harapan should
make this about the 2Es – the economy and the environment.
What
the recent floods and the abysmal response to them have demonstrated is
that environmental issues have an in-your-face effect on voters and it
is not some nebulous issue for future generations.
