Learning from the Masters

"A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step". So said Confucius some 2400 years go.

I turn 47 in a little over 4 months from now. I left school almost 30 years ago. I remember leaving home some 24 years ago. Malaysia turns 51 come August/September, depending on which "independence" you're inclined to lean toward to. So many miles have gone by. So much water has flowed under the bridge. So many experiences tasted. So, what am I trying to get at?

Looking at myself, looking all around me, especially in the aftermath of the 8/3/08 GE, and the mammoth challenges this country is staring straight at for probably the 1st time in all of 50 years of independence, I realize that we have come a long way, both as individuals and as united a nation as we could ever be under the circumstances. That's the reality. But, there's still a long way to go yet along this journey - as a people of this country, irrespective of the time we have left yet. How we get there is even more important than what we look like when we actually "arrive". Because this has been one of the flaws in process of building the "modern Malaysia". We have been too occupied with our appearance than what we really are below the surface. We have been contented with just doing the "facials" instead of concentrating on removing the fat. We have spent too much time, energy and resources on the things that divide rather than on what can unite.

One good thing about the GE 08 was the "Makkal Sakti" - the people power phenomenon. It shows a new mentality among the people. It shows we are prepared to "pay the price" for a better future. It shows a certain maturity. It shows that we are prepared to get out of the "highway to hell" and get back on the "road to freedom".

Signposts help us find our way and keep track as we continue on our travels and journeys. That's why a blast from the past may well help us get back on track. We may do well to take a leaf (or huge sheaves of leaves as may be necessary!) from another past Master. Here are no less than 10 sobering, if not inspiring thoughts from the Mahatma himself - Gandhi:

1. Change yourself.

• “You must be the change you want to see in the world.”
• “As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world - that is the myth of the atomic age - as in being able to remake ourselves.”
  

2. You are in control.

• “Nobody can hurt me without my permission.”

3. Forgive and let it go.

• “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”
• “An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind.”
  

4. Without action you aren’t going anywhere.

• “An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching.”

5. Take care of this moment.

• “I do not want to foresee the future. I am concerned with taking care of the present. God has given me no control over the moment following.”

6. Everyone is human.

• “I claim to be a simple individual liable to err like any other fellow mortal. I own, however, that I have humility enough to confess my errors and to retrace my steps.”

• “It is unwise to be too sure of one’s own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err.”

7. Persist.

• “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”

8. See the good in people and help them.

• “I look only to the good qualities of men. Not being faultless myself, I won’t presume to probe into the faults of others.”

• “Man becomes great exactly in the degree in which he works for the welfare of his fellow-men.”

• “I suppose leadership at one time meant muscles; but today it means getting along with people.”

9. Be congruent, be authentic, be your true self.

• “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”

• “Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well.”

10. Continue to grow and evolve.

• "Constant development is the law of life, and a man who always tries to maintain his dogmas in order to appear consistent drives himself into a false position.”

Tragedy

Two terrible tragedies in the space of a little more than a week - the cyclone Nargis that hit Burma and the 7.9 earthquake that rocked Sichuan, China has shattered the lives of millions living in the two countries, causing massive damage - physical, economical, social and untold others. While one country is scrambling to save lives using every means available, the other seems determined to condemn its own people to a genocide, owing to a paranoia over its own inabilities and its suspicions to foreign aid. Two tragedies, two different reactions. Two sets of rulers, two sets of solutions.

It speaks a lot for the kind of people we elect (or are coerced, as in Burma's case) into power. Sometimes, the very act of electing the wrong person into Office is in itself a tragedy. A closer look at the Malaysian situation here will show the same result. Look at who's in power now. A soundly trashed BN coalition, with no real leader on board. Worse, with seemingly no one with the right credentials required, waiting in the wings.

And so we witness a tragicomedy being played out in the local political arena. A "wayang kulit" - shadow play, to put it bluntly. It's everybody for himself (and herself). The gravy train has derailed, taking away much of the fat that has for so long fed its patrons. For these, its now just plain rice without the "curry". Tasteless. And what do desperate people do in desperate situations? They create a diversion. Stage a "wayang kulit" - a shadow play with equally shadowy figures! - with all the props, half truths, the wannabee actors, stooges and of course, an unwitting victim or victims. And, while in the process, Use the legal system, Use the media, Use the bystander, Use anyone and anything. Use and Abuse - religion, race, royalty, commoner, political parties, national unity, the Constitution, etc. etc. The classic Machiavellian principle - in the arena of power the end justifies the means. This is the tragedy.

The real tragedy is that this comedy of errors is not going to end anytime soon. This is not a one night only show. This may yet turn into a soap opera. Forget the Hindi dramas on Astro. Forget the South American telenovelas on TV 3. The real action is here. There's a power vacuum out there. There's a power struggle going on within the ruling coalition. There are factions within themselves. While on the outside, there's the Anwar factor and the Pakatan Rakyat, the Sabah voices making enough noises, the Altantuya case hanging over certain heads, the misnomer that the National Service program seems to have become, the continuing ISA detention and withholding of medical treatment for detainees. These are just the tip of the iceberg that surround the players now. The wayang continues, day after day, as long as the actors are willing to play their roles. Until the director calls Cut!

The end will come as indeed any play would. The curtain will have to come down. And when it does, I'll be glad to see these "actors and actresses" not just go - but go the way of the dodo. And, the sooner the better. Good riddance to bad rubbish. This country deserves better.

Penangites for Trams Campaign!

Trams are making a comeback in other cities. Why not Georgetown, Penang? A modernised tram system would fit in perfectly with the heritage background of the city. The proposed monorail project could be integrated with a comprehensive tram network for a win-win situation. For example, the monorail could be deployed in Bayan Lepas - Bayan Baru - Gelugor - Jelutong (along the Expressway) right up till Komtar while the tramway could continue from there and ply around Georgetown proper. For more info on trams in Penang, go here:

Tram Campaign

Where To, Malaysia?

If I believe the news I'm reading on the current state of affairs in the country, I would be very worried. But then, I've stopped buying The Star since GE 08 leaving the occasional Sun or Harian Metro (!) for my daily news-fix. However, even my Online news nowadays seem to reek of "bad news" - just one look at the headlines will tell you all about the state of the nation today:

1. The Bandar Mahkota Cheras fiasco (read here)

2. The Case against RPK (read here)

3. The Continuing Denial of Medical Treatment for Uthayakumar (read here)

4. The Skyrocketing Price of Rice (read here)

5. The Blame Game on Karpal (read here)

.... and I could go on and on..... I stop and ask myself why is this happening. Is it because really, things are so-unmanageable? But then, isn't it the priority of the government of the day to get things done, fairly and with as much justice as possible? On top of that, we have the "now we will, now we won't" posturing by the Pakatan Rakyat's to take over should the BN coalition collapse? Read more on this here.

Why the seemingly "tidak apa" attitude? Why the lack of genuine governance? Why the continued silence on such crucial matters as one ISA detainee's worsening health? Are these people so indifferent to the rakyat's plight? Are they so dumb as they do not know what to do? Are they so cold-hearted to another human being's situation? Or is this all a "wayang kulit" - a masquerade to a more sinister plan? Desperate times call for desperate measures. We have seen this before. Is the Empire waiting to strike back once again?

History Distorted

I bet I'm not the first one who has concluded that something is seriously wrong with our national history. The case about Parameswara, Hang Tuah and etc. etc. I'm not a history scholar to debate this but there has been a resurgence on this topic recently in Malaysiakini. As most of us lay people would only know what was taught to us in school, maybe reading up on this would make us better aware of our beginnings, and appreciate the real history of our past.

Read here and here for 2 of the latest updates on Malaysian history!

May Day! May Day! (3)

V. David, the man who made May Day possible

Part 3 of the Workers' Day series from Raja Petra's website, Malaysia Today. An excellent piece on one of the pillars of Malaysian worker unionization. Read here.

May Day! May Day! (2)

LOCAL HERO

This is a tribute to the legendary MGG Pillai, arguably the "Father of Online Journalism in Malaysia". Read this story by his son that appeared in Malaysiakini yesterday. Local hero, definitely, in my book. Thanks MGG, for showing us why we should never give up believing, even when surrounded by terrifying darkness. Well done, ordinary Pekerja, well done extraordinary Journalist. Well done Local Hero. This nation must be eternally grateful to you and others like you. May your soul rest in peace.

May Day! May Day!

8 Days to May Day / Labour Day / Hari Pekerja

May 1st. has been for years the traditional day for commemorating the ordinary worker in most countries of the world, capitalist and communist alike, except the U.S. which celebrates it in September - those, without whose contributions, would mean zero profits for the organizations, big and small, that hire them.

There are huge history lessons here waiting to be learnt - the struggles of the unions, those idealistic, pioneering women and men who suffered much, were abused, and died for the cause. The day effectively belongs to such unsung heroes.

However, in Malaysia, at least for me, May Day or Hari Pekerja, has been hijacked by those merely pretending to speak up, and yes even worse, speak for - the humble Pekerja. Some examples:

How many "konsert-syioks" by Siti Nurahaliza, Mawi and Co., put on by the nation's mighty pro-worker RTM stations will it take to make sense to the Pekerja of his/her right to free unionization? Ask the MNC's which suppress all forms of unionization with the exception of the Management-endorsed in-house "yes-men".

How many "honourable" ministers giving the same runaround about minimum wages will it take the worker to finally get what is rightly due to him/her? Ask your friendly neighbourhood Human Resource Minister. There was one chap who actually prided himself in proclaiming that rubber tappers now had a monthly wage - the whole whopping RM325 of it!

How many "promises" of affordable housing for ex-plantation workers, and all those that cannot afford the market prices will it take before he/her, rightly defined as the most important asset in any particular organization, will have a decent roof over his/her head, without having to pack his/her family of 5 into pigeon-holes of 550 sq. feet? Ask the relevant C.E.O. or choose from any one of these fellows: the HR Minister, the CM or MB of any state.

How many "blood donation" campaigns on May Day will it take to know that it's the blood of the ordinary worker that is being sucked dry by those that have authority (whether rightly or wrongly) over him/her? Ask the nice Union leader who organized meaningful things like this on the only day set aside in the year to celebrate the worker whom he represents.

Enough is enough la....I think the time's ripe for change.

It's time Workers' Day, or Labour Day or Hari Pekerja celebrations in Malaysia casts off its superficial, artificial, ampu the boss, bodek the minister, sing the same out of tune song courtesy of these shadowy figures, from the menu forever.

Maybe, it's time we, the Pekerja, should take a cue from our recent past, the GE 08!

Maybe it's time for a "Pekerja-Sakti" now,eh?

And for starters, come May 1st, instead of spending the day in front of RTM 1 or 2 or whatever station (they all sound remarkably the same!), let's all try and do something different. Like this one from JERIT! (now, that's a nice sounding name for an NGO!)

Perarakan Pekerja di Dataran Merdeka
anjuran Parti Sosialis Malaysia
Tarikh: 1/5/08
Tema: Pekerja Kuasa Perubahan, Laksanakan Janji Pilihanraya

Sounds so much better than the usual patriotic bull, right? Come on people! Get Up! Stand Up! Stand up for your rights!

The Sultans: Between the Rock and a Hard Place

In the wake of the recent tussles between some Sultans and the PM, Huzir Sulaiman looks back to the beginnings of this power struggle and the challenges faced by the Sultans in a two part series first published in the Star on 6 April and the second installment on 20th. April. It is a good insight and also throws up some interesting stuff on the ex-PM, Mahathir himself and his role in silencing the sultanate when he effectively, ruled the state. Read the articles here:

1. Ruling The Rulers

2. The Mahathir Years

Back...after a long break...

It's been exactly 1 month to the day of my last post here. It had been a hectic period for a some months prior with all the excitement of the General Elections and all. So, I thought a couple of weeks off should be enough to let go of all excess baggage, get some rest and come back with a fresh perspective.

The break gave me the opportunity to explore other some other much neglected things. One of which is Internet Marketing - a subject I would like to explore further in another blog sometime in the near future. I signed up for a 3 day I.M. Bootcamp late last month and came back with some ideas and some key information on how to go about getting an online business going. It cost me an arm and a leg but I think it was well worth it. But more of that later and in another place.

Well, the two weeks turned into 4! and still couldn't find a good enough reason to get back to blogging. Let's face it. I doubt if anyone with the exception of one or two faithful companions would have really missed my Pulitzer prize winning posts!

So why am I back? Well, I miss blogging! That's it. No earth shaking revelations here. Just me and my blog. And what have I learnt during my time away? That I am not the centre of the universe. That my blog is not the most important thing in my life. That the world still spins with or without me. That the people in power are still going to make either people friendly decisions or the exact opposite regardless of which faction is in control. That there are still starving people everywhere despite the richness of this world. That somewhere someone is sitting lonely. That while on this earth, we still have time to make it a better place.

Which brings me back to my theme for this blog: "Be The Change That You Want To See In The World" - the words of the Mahatma Gandhi. May this blog try to be just that too.