Rudyard Kipling"
āWhen 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 soldierā
General Douglas MacArthur"
āWe are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.ā
āIt is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.ā āOld soldiers never die; they just fade away.
āThe soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.ā
āMay God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .ā āThe object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
āNobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
āIt 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."
Malaysiakini : āPay no attention to the man behind the curtain!ā? - L Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
COMMENT | I
really did not want to write another article relating to that Indian
import Zakir Naik, but the attacks by the far right elements from the
Malay establishment against Penang Deputy Chief Minister P Ramasamy are
just another example of why this idea of a ānew Malaysiaā is a farce. I have no idea why Ramasamy would agree
to meet Perlis mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin to sort out their
disagreements over that alleged criminal seeking safety on our shores.
As usual what the Malay/Muslim far right have done is make the issue
about the āotherā instead of the alleged criminality of their brethren.
The issue has become about Ramasamy and his alleged links with a
āterroristā organisation instead of about a wanted man and why this
country grants him not only asylum but also the respect normally
accorded to a world-renowned religious scholar.
A meeting with this dubious preacher who has displayed the usual
religious and racist bigotry when it comes to non-Muslims in this
country legitimises the lies spewed by the corrupt religious
establishment in this country against Ramasamy. I was never on the bandwagon when this Perlis mufti was the darling
of the then opposition. Asri has the ability to say one thing to appear
āmoderateā and another to satisfy his religious base. As far as Iām
concerned, his performance at the Suhakam inquiry and his feeble response
to Siti Kassimās onslaught on his appreciation of such a terrorist as
Abu Bakar Al-Baghdadi is demonstrates the kind of person that Asri is.
To recap:
āThis really meant that he was not in a position publicly to exalt (for
religious reasons, you understand) the disappearance of a person he had
deemed a threat to national security for his supposed religious beliefs
that went against the state-sanctioned Islam of this country. And at
one time, this was the poster boy for religious moderation amongst
opposition supporters.ā
So yeah, why would Ramasamy (photo) agree to meet a Zakir supporter like the mufti of Perlis? More importantly the duelling
supporters who attempted to shout each other down at Komtar recently
makes it appear as if this is a Hindu/Muslim clash when the reality is
that this is merely the case of an alleged criminal wanted by the Indian
government and the people who are against the granting of his asylum in
this country. What I want to know is why hasnāt there been a sustained interfaith
condemnation against Zakir Naik and unconditional support for Ramasamy?
Do you really think that the other non-Muslim faiths are not in the
cross-hairs of Zakir Naik and his supporters? Do you really think that
this is solely an Indian/Hindu issue?
Hate to break it to those non-Muslims who do not want to rock the
boat but the reality is that coddling political operatives who just want
to curry favour with the Pakatan Harapan Grand Poobah and demonstrate
that they are not the power behind the throne is exactly how the MCA got
its ārunning dogā credentials.
Which brings me to those big fat cowards, the DAP. The DAP wants an
explanation from Ramasamy about his alleged links with the LTTE? Really?
The snivelling remarks by Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow that he
has full confidence that Ramasamy can explain himself is the height of
political expediency. To the mandarins of the DAP, Ramasamy has already
explained himself. What is needed is the DAP have the backbone to
support a political operative of theirs instead of this weaselling
stance which appears as support but sounds more like disavowment.
Dodgy legal arguments
How many times has Professor Ramasamy defended the actions and
rhetoric of the DAP? How many times have statements been made about the
DAP or their political operatives and Ramasamy has, on cue, responded in
the press? How many times has Ramasamy come to the aid of the members
of the DAP so much so that he gained a reputation of being a āDAP Indian
apologistā by the Umno crowd and those who support the DAP but not
specific stands taken by the party?
And this is his reward after his long history of being an able
defender of the party? He gets to explain himself on charges which have
no bearing on the issues at hand but are red herrings by the deep
Islamic state to protect a possible asset.
Instead of Zakir Naik (photo), the issue now has become
whether the LTTE is a terrorist organisation or whether what it
struggles for is similar to the Palestinian cause. What horse manure.
This is exactly how religious extremists hijack the conversation because
the side they are up against are pushovers who would rather waffle than
take a stand. I have said this before and I will say this again - I get the dodgy
legal arguments put forward by the Harapan Malay/Muslim establishment as
to why they think that Zakir Naik should not be extradited. I get the
argument that he may not get a fair trial, even though I do not
subscribe to it. But the most important question people like Mujahid
Yusuf Rawa has not answered is what is the official Harapan stand on
what Zakir Naik preaches about?
Does the Islam he preaches reflect the stand of the Harapan
Malay/Muslim establishment? Does what he preach contribute to their own
narratives of an inclusive and harmonious vision of Islam? Would they
want him to be a de-radicalisation expert like that Zamihan fellow?
Instead, a DAP stalwart has to defend himself on charges that he
supports a terrorist group and he gets no real support from the party
that was part of creating this new Malaysia. The reality is that the
mainstream Malay/ Muslim power structures support Islamic groups that
are deemed terrorist organisations by many governments in the world
including certain Middle Eastern governments. Want an example?
Read this:
"PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang may be quivering with rage over the
announcement that certain Gulf states including the once cherished
kingdom have placed the organisation he is vice-president of - the
International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS) - on a terror list, but
the reality is that Islamists all over the world who once looked to the
kingdom as that bright shining exemplar of Islamic supremacy, have been
caught with their pants down by the moves of the young prince." So maybe, Ramasamy should debate Zakir on who is a terrorist. But then again there is no debating these people.