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I am a Malaysian first, second, and last

Letters
by Dr Kamal Amzan

We are a nation that defines race in our constitution. Well, there is nothing wrong with that. But we should know that we are in the league with countries like South Africa and Israel.

Other countries have their own definition of race, but very few take pride enshrining it in their constitution.

Whatever your stand on that, let us admit one thing, we are not in the best of companies.

Religion teaches us that God created us as equals, and some even say that we are all related (albeit distantly). Say what you want, twist and cite all the verses in every holy scriptures you can, but the crux of the matter is that we are all the same before Him, we are all related even.

Yes people, that makes us brothers, sisters, first cousins, second cousins and distant cousins if you must.

In my opinion, 1Malaysia was a long and overdue call. A battle cry, after years of trouble. However, being a sceptic that I am, it was a call that sounded too good to be true. Continue reading “I am a Malaysian first, second, and last”

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Ku Li delivers, what has Umno to offer?

Free Malaysia Today
05 Nov 2010

GUA MUSANG: Gua Musang MP Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah believes that loyalty has no expiry date so long as the candidate does not go back on his promises.

This was reflected in Galas when Barisan Nasional (BN) wrested the state seat from PAS by a bigger majority of 1,190 votes, nearly double the majority PAS won in the 2008 general election.

Leading the charge was Razaleigh, fondly known as Ku Li, who is no alien to the voters in Galas, which comes under his Gua Musang parliamentary seat.

He has proven to the BN, particularly Umno, that the party need not spent money to win votes, need not promise the stars and the moon to convince the people, and need not show its power by implementing projects.

Razaleigh showed that the only way to win over the hearts and minds of the voters is by being loyal and sincere to the people. Continue reading “Ku Li delivers, what has Umno to offer?”

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The Corollary to Globalization

by Bakri Musa

Chapter 5: Understanding Globalization (Cont’d)

The Corollary to Globalization

A corollary to globalization is the development of a common acceptable standard, or to use the language of computers, a common platform, or at least a compatible operating system. In the computer industry, a common platform enables my computer to link and communicate with thousands of other computers. One of the common platforms of globalization is language. There is a need for a common language to facilitate communication. By default English is now assuming that role. This is not a dictate from Britain or America but simply the result of an evolving pattern.

Another imperative would be a common currency. At present there is no single currency that has successfully assumed the role of a global currency. In pre-Breton Wood days when the dollar was tied to gold, it could probably be acceptable as a world currency. And indeed it was. Currently the dollar is like any other currency, backed only by the confidence consumers and investors have on the underlying American economy. When that confidence is high, the value of the American dollar shoots up; when America runs chronic deficits and its financial house in disarray, the dollar plummets. It has ranged from over 300 yen to under 80, all within a few decades.

It is more likely that eventually the world would settle into a few major currencies, with the others tied to one of them. Western Europe has dispensed with its multitude of currencies into the euro. The dollar is fast becoming the currency of choice in the Western hemisphere. Continue reading “The Corollary to Globalization”

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Send In the Datuks

By Kee Thuan Chye
Malaysian Digest
04 November 2010

I HAD a good cackle the other day – over a caption that appeared in an article of a mainstream newspaper. It was for photographs of four Malaysian singers who had appeared as the opening acts for George Benson when he performed in Kuala Lumpur on Oct 29.

The caption named them as “Datuk Sheila Majid, Datuk Siti Nurhaliza, Datuk David Arumugam and Datuk Khatijah Ibrahim”. Another one whose picture was not included but mentioned in the article is “Datuk Yusni Hamid”.

Five datuks performing as a prelude to Benson’s entrance. Wow! He might have been bowled over if he had known. But then again, it might not have mattered a mite to a citizen of the American republic that upholds egalitarianism.

To him, it might have seemed that datuks in Malaysia are a dime a dozen. And that only Malaysians seem to take such titles seriously. If Cliff Richard, Elton John, Paul McCartney and Mick Jagger performed on the same stage and their photographs appeared in a British newspaper the next day, the caption would not read: “Sir Cliff, Sir Elton, Sir Paul and Sir Mick.” You can bet they would be simply referred to as Richard, John, McCartney and Jagger. Or just by their first names. Continue reading “Send In the Datuks”