by Sheela R.
As a young girl, growing up in multi-cultural Malaysia, I have had my fair share of challenges. Raised as a vegetarian long before it was recognised and accepted as a healthy lifestyle, I have had to constantly explain my dietary habits to people who are unaquainted with vegetarianism.
As a student at the primary and secondary levels, I had to frequently put up with comments such as,
“Oh! You don’t know what you are missing!”
“If you eat only vegetables you are going to grow up looking green!”
“If you don’t eat meat you won’t be strong!”
“Ikan tak boleh, ayam tak boleh, semua tak boleh, kesian!”
“A vegetarian? What’s that? Are you some sort of vegetable?”
Naturally, such comments riled me, but over the years, I grew to understand that they stemmed from silliness or ignorance rather than wilful malice. I learned not to react to such distasteful comments but to respond with dignity. I eventually found ways to explain to others, the socio-cultural reasons for my diet. Invariably, once they understood my reasons for abstaining from meat, they became highly respectful and sensitive towards my dietary requirements.
In retrospect, imagine if I had responded in kind,
“You flesh eaters are all going to end up as Dracula!”
or
“You are insulting my race and religion!”
I would have stooped to their level and it would have been impossible to foster any kind of understanding, let alone respect.
There will always be persons lacking in judgement or cultural sensitivity. Take the case of our famous or rather infamous couple, Alvivi. Their antics are undoubtedly stupid and deserve censure. However, throwing tantrums and “baying” for their blood for misdemeanours such as this won’t help, but a dignified response would go a long way.
Unfortunately the BTN toxin will not allow a dignified response!
The law is majestic in its equality. In the wrong hands, it’s a catastrophe!
Imagine if he does succeed in becoming a lawyer. You think he would handle what sort of cases ?
A dignified response ?
I am expecting the following statement by a Minister, the judge or the IGP very, very soon:
‘AVIVI were detained in prison for the own safety. There are many bad people out there who might want to harm them so we put them under our custody. We are actually doing them a favour by protecting them. Free of charge.’
Something along these lines.
Now, which Minister or public servant will be delegated to say it ?
Wasn’t that said already but in a different way ?
He could have been in the same jail as Chua Sok Lei
One is a pro. One is a novice.
Both of them would be classified as ‘no further action needed,’ if they join Barisan Nasional
A dignified response only come from intelligent and cultured people !
A culture of very open minded people.
It has nothing to do with what’s the best response (dignified or overboard) when at the individual level one perceives his religious dietary observations have been mocked as the writer espouses. It is just a pretext to make a political point. It does not help the cause of national reconciliation proposed by the PM for the deliberate and heavy handed punishment of Alvivi duo using them as symbolic stand-in of the community which should, in certain right winger’s perspectives, be “taught” a lesson to abjure Ketuanan by challenging (electorally) its champion UMNO’s hegemony in last GE. Then again what the heck of this call for reconciliation when it is irreconcilable with ethnocentric supremacist precepts which certain people want to ratchet up to remind the communities that don’t accept them the Alvivi fate that awaits if they continue challenging and not surrendering to these precepts. The young sex bloggers are inexperienced in relation the pitfalls of extremists everywhere who will with alacrity pounce on their lack of discretion and mis-steps to bay for their blood, use them as public example and deterrence, in order to make their political capital and point.
The trouble is those monkeys in umno do not even know when to stop. So lets not talk to them about behaving with dignity.
What wrong have alvivi committed? Sedition? Come on. Hardly. But by charging them and letting idiots like zul nordin, ibrahim perkasa and monsterO’mamak (creator of the monster brand bumi baking machine) free despite having done something which are clearly much more serious is only going to sink umno sooner.
BTW speaking of monkeys, let it be known that monkeys (the real ones – hairy ones and with long arms) are evolving fast. Soon they will in suits and ties; and i would venture to predict that umno would still be talking about malays’ (read umnoputras’) ketuanan rights.
chk out this youtube clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=ZUIc_-7Yf9U
Brown eyes and blue eyes Racism experiment on children.
This is proof that discrimination is taught, do you think that a newborn infant is naturally racist against another race of people unless he or she lives under discriminative conditions and racist experiences from their authorities and families.
http://youtu.be/VeK759FF84s
Don’t expect many Malay or Muslim to come to their defence…even though they know in their hearts it is wrong to do this to the two young individual.
They FEAR of being called a traitor to their race and religion and the implication of their stand for justice and fairness.
What does mainstream UMNO want ? It’s quite simple: they don’t want to pander to the 35 pct minority (the bulk of whom voted against BN) and they want to be seen to take care of the 65 pct majority. Fortunes will be made or lost during the coming UMNO general assembly, and they will be damned if they don’t take action against the two idiotic youths.
So you minority folks can say what you want, but you didn’t support BN, so don’t complaint if they trample on your rights.
In Chinese vegetarian restaurant one can order Char Siu, or Ham yi. There are not made of meat or fish, and so is cent percent Halal. Bak Kut Teh can be halal too, whether using meat or non-meat material. The judge will have now to determine whether the content of the Bak-Kut-Teh the infamous duo had in the face-book relates to halal food as stated, or not. If it was, there is no case since he did not lie. If it was not, how can the judge declare that there is no doubt as to the halal-ness of the content of the picture posted?
There are tons of corruption cases waiting for prosecution and yet the police chooses to take on matters which is not important at all. Besides if one does not look into the Facebook of the infamous duo, the material just stay there to rot. It is the police who is calling attention to this insignificant matter, and the judge found it proper to create history refusing bail for non-life offence when the accused clearly have no power to influence witnesses.
Institutional brainwashing ?
The true ignorance and stupidity behind racism.See how easy it is to brainwash children? It’s not much harder to brainwash adults too..
http://dumdumtrivia.blogspot.com/2013/07/brown-eyes-and-blue-eyes-racism.html
The bigger picture that has emerged in recent months is that the country is in turmoil and the people in Putrajaya just haven’t a clue as to what to do. Our PM is dead-lost so he either goes overseas, pretend he is not aware or just don’t want to know. Gawd. What a mess we are in on so many fronts.
They certainly have been waiting for the opportunity to bay for the Chinese’s blood after the GE and this idiot’s silly antics just presented them with the golden opportunity in which to act. Didn’t the retired judge warn the Chinese to be prepared for a backlash? How to get the message across to the Chinese if they had responded in a dignified way?
The truth is the couple did it because narcissisism but they also did it because they KNEW they could get the kind of respond they are getting. Those who bay for their blood don’t want to believe that their easy solution is ineffective against the couple who on the other hand think that the only way against them is the hard way.
That really is the crux of the difference between the couple and those that want their blood and the reality is they are two sides of the same kind – OVER-ENTITLEMENT. – one that they are entitled easy baiting others into protecting their comfort and the other entitled to respond the easy way..
The reason the state should have done what they did is because BOTH of the sides in this debate deserve each other and HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THE REST OF US..Let them deal with each other and the rest of us stay out of it.. NOT take sides – the state took side – that is wrong.