my humble few cents

Interestingly, the previous blog post got an almost instantaneous reply from its author. Wow…talk about the technology nowadays.

Anyways, I see that this topic had sparked quite an opinion contribution here and when I read the comments, I thought : Just how can I be left out in this!

Ahh…just how much and how deep do I know about the politics and economy of the world (despite the fact that I do read…at times, I wasn’t even sure of what I was reading…LOL) ? I’m just a normal science stream student who doesn’t take in much fancy (or some would have it as ignorant) of the on-goings in my country during my secondary years of schooling (in which I’m rather ashamed of). Anyways…of course I have a very good reason of why is that so.

There was a time that I completely shun away newspapers (which at that time was TheStar, the one paper that my Dad always read). Why? When I open the first few pages, it was always followed by politics. The contributions made by several parties and all. Sighs. The kind of news which made you thought that, is those are all what they do??

Because, contradictorily to all the good published on the first few pages, the next few were all crime news. Rapes, murders, break-ins and the like. Worst of it is that the cases got from bad to worse each time I read them. Then, after that section, like if the world is round again and the papers move on to properties, advertorials and world news.

I stop reading the papers for a time and only after a while when I start reading again, I move on to another better news source which covers news on a slightly more neutral position.

I was just depressed reading all these news. I guess it was part of growing up that the realization comes in like a slab of concrete cement hitting on my adolescent skull. The world is like that. Take it or leave it.

I was wondering, just WHY…WHY nothing was ever being done to relieve all the social stress? WHY people, mankind; whom philosophers suggested were inherently good in nature and they are born pure. Then again, we can’t help it, can we? What can some 4% of Malaysians (PR or not) do if they can barely make ends meet? They were considered as being uneducated (unfortunately) and when times are hard, do you actually think that they will know what are the appropriate steps to be taken and to whom should they channel their thoughts as well as opinions to?

I am sorry to say that – NO, they don’t and they just thought that their voices are too tiny to be heard by the higher authorities! So what do they do to survive? They steal, rob, be part of some illegal activities and boy, you’d be more naïve than me to think that there will be some of the 4% who could change their fate and rise up to a better status. Hah…again, how many of them will? 1 or 10? Or 50?

They can’t even earn a decent living and they have so much more on their mind to worry about – so please, do you think that they still have the mood to complain about their hardship and just how much the new increased consumer prices index have affected them?

It’s again another big bold NO.

So, why the middle classes are being labeled as so-called ‘making noises’? They made up the majority for one. Second, their feedbacks are not considered as making noise but merely constructive criticism. But of course, none of it will be taken if they are then labeled as noise – which I seriously thought it would be a pity. Don’t you agree?

“Mr. A wants opinions and when given, Mr. A refused to take and appreciate the comments but in turn was saying that, those are not true. Those are not what that are really happening. Please have faith in me once again and I will prove everyone that your comments are not to be taken seriously because you lots are not the insiders”.

And with regards to the second comment posted: 26 millions are allowing the above situation to occur and we’ve got into the scenario of today is due to our own faults.

HAH. That’s laughable.

A nation cannot be mould with a few protests just as Rome can’t be built in a day.

I believe, deep down to the core, what one citizen can do is very limited due to the way Malaysia is being run. Some of them don’t even bother at all if the things are not in a critical condition. Yes. Critical (read: the current situation).

Because? Oh…Malaysians are one tolerant lot seriously. That’s both a compliment as well as a criticism. Being tolerant brought us all races live up to this date but being tolerant had landed us into this mess (why do I termed it mess – well…all Malaysian should have known why: bad city planning and *headaches* disorganized rail system. Not only that, but when I recently read this piece of news. I’m aghast. ‘Zero death’ – since when NS training is a death chamber??) In addition, what truly can the citizen do besides protesting and demonstrating? (They will just end up being counterstriked with chemicals and tear gas OR if some big shot decided to call a boycott of some sort, they will then be threatened with some certain agencies. Besides that, a petition is good as nothing because when being submitted, somehow it will end up in the trash bin).

As said, human is inherently selfish. A human has got a family to care for and a job to keep. Lower middle class workers barely have got the time to breathe, let alone join in forces to do a street protest. Ah, and one must thought, how about those in the wealthy category?

Well, to them, this is all the more none of their business unless they wealth is at risk. Even good and efficient politicians are having a hard time trying to set the mess right. If only everyone is united, then things would have been settled in a much easy manner.

I should say, everyone will only come together when there is an inevitable and irreversible damage done to the country. Uhm…something like the Sichuan earthquake or the World War…

Which, of course, is quite impossible. Ehem, anyways to take part in a demonstration is not as simple as how one puts it. It requires planning and lots of thinking (well..that is if they do not want their demonstrations to go wasted. After all Malaysians are one civilized lot!) But, nevertheless, I must express my grief to say that we have already been segregated by the authorities in many many…just too many ways. And of recent, Malaysians are afraid to even step out of their house after the dark. (Crime cases are on the rise and only God knows why).

during these days we can barely help ourselves, just how can we be a good samaritan (or Mother Theresa/P. Diana of the modern times) ?