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."
Youth voters grill Anwar at lecture hosted by student unions By Kow Gah Chie
Thursday, November 10, 2022
Malaysiakini : GE15 | Some 200 people, most of
them first-time voters, showed up at a dialogue session with Anwar
Ibrahim on what he has to offer if he is made prime minister should
Pakatan Harapan win the 15th general election (GE15).
The event, dubbed “Ada apa dengan korupsi”,
jointly organised by the International Islamic University of Malaysia
(IIUM) Student Union and Universiti Malaya (UM) Student Union, was held
in Nexus Bangsar South.
IIUM Student Union president Aliff Naif
said the event was meant for university students to engage in a dialogue
with the prime ministerial candidate.
“I am satisfied with the
engagement session today. This event was held to allow the students to
pose their questions directly to Anwar, regardless of how critical it
is.
Proarte : The worrying part of the dialogue was the question which was asked which Anwar did not answer apparently because he had to rush off elsewhere.
Malaysiakini: "Anwar was also asked how he would ensure the Malay voters that their rights would not be eroded for the non-Malays."
The shocking reality is that racism and entitlement is embedded in the mindset of Malays. The fact that the question was posed nonchalantly without any sense of shame is proof of this.
I think Anwar had to conveniently leave because he could not answer the question because with his "All things to all men " political modus operandi, answering the question truthfully and rationally would be "spooking the Malays".
An intelligent Malay student in touch with the modern world and with a sense of equality and justice which Islam supposedly advocates, should be embarrassed with the question.
The question itself shows what is seriously wrong with Malaysia and is a major cause of the problems we are facing such as corruption, racial division and religious intolerance.
What is "Reformasi" all about if the Malays are not told that the rights of other citizens of Malaysia are equal to their rights and that expecting more rights than other races is immoral. Anwar should tell the students that Islamophobia becomes a reality when Malay Muslims expect more rights than other races and religions.
Anwar should inform the students that the "New Malaysia" he is trying the build will not deliberately disadvantage any Non-Malay because as citizens they will be accorded equal rights as enshrined in the Constitution.
The Constitutional "special privileges" for the Malays was not meant to derogate the rights of non-Malays but to redress a perceived imbalance at the time of Independence in 1957.
The Reid Commision who were tasked to formulate a draft Constitution had recommended that the 'privileges' for Malays should have a limited time frame of 15 years and then be reviewed. The aim was to do away with the notion of permanent 'privileges' which the Reid Commission felt uncomfortable with.
After more than 60 years of its application, the Malay "Privileges" wrongly termed "Rights", has been a signal failure, being breeding ground for massive corruption, creating a sense of entitlement leading to underachievement, a cause social division and brain drain of the best and brightest from Malaysia.
The "New Malaysia" to be in line with "Reformasi" will address the problem of income inequality and will be based on need.
The B40 of all races, the majority of whom are Malay will benefit from financial, educational and housing assistance if they qualify. The notion of "Privileges for Malays Only" will be relegated to history because it has been counterproductive as evidenced by any index of social advancement when compared to our neighbours like Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
The "New Malaysia" will regard all citizens who are born in Malaysia as "Bumiputera", to give the term its natural meaning of being "a son of the soil". The term Bumiputera applying to Malays and the natives of East Malaysia has served no purpose other than to divide the citizens of Malaysia and cause a sense of alienation and discrimination.
Indonesia, with the world's largest Muslim population has banned the term Pribumi and non-Pribumi introducing a new term Asli to apply to all natural born citizens regardless of race and religion..
Well, I hope Anwar was going to say the above to the student who touched on the question of "Malay Rights" before he got a chance to answer. Wishful thinking on my part?