Rudyard Kipling"
“When 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 soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It 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 : COMMENT | Let's get straight to
the point. Malaysia is a paradise for cronies and crooks. The nation
suffers from politicians and leaders who are infected with a culture of
lying. Hypocrisy rules. The majority of people are apathetic. They only
moan among close friends. They tolerate most injustices because they do
not wish to offend, or refuse to be seen as controversial or different.
From the few reviews one has read, it seems that the documentary "M for Malaysia"
may as well be named "M for Mahathir". Old foes may have joined forces
to kick out a bitter rival, but do not underestimate the Malaysian
public. They may have hidden behind a veil of silence and their faces
may reveal nothing, but they can see through the mendacity. They voted
Pakatan Harapan to forge a new course for the country.
Did the rakyat
kick out disgraced Najib Abdul Razak because of their love for Dr
Mahathir Mohamad (or his former deputy, Anwar Ibrahim)? No. The
Malaysian public is quite astute and only used the tools (and
personalities) that were available to make the best of a bad job. They
are using the key people just as they were once used.
So, do I
need to watch a film which one reviewer said was a good reminder for
politicians to accept and acknowledge the facts of why the rakyat voted for them in GE14 in May 2018? No, I don't. Malaysians know why they kicked out "Umno Baru" in GE14.
A
scroll through the credits for the film is sufficient to deter some
Malaysians, especially those whose lives were severely affected by
Mahathir's earlier policies. The film is directed and produced by
Mahathir's eldest granddaughter, Ineza Roussille, and Dian Lee, the
daughter of the property tycoon Lee Kim Yew, who enjoys close ties with
Mahathir. Mahathir's daughter, Marina, is the executive producer. This
is a family affair. So, what is new?
One social pundit said, "Is this a biography of the old man disguised as a 'must-see' film about democracy in Malaysia?" Mahathir's
first tenure as the fourth prime minister was riddled with cronyism and
nepotism, the politics of fear, division and exclusivity and the use of
religion to put Malaysia on the slippery slope to perdition.
Many
Umno Baru diehards accuse Mahathir of being a dictator but throughout
the 80s and 90s they condoned his policies, they supported him and they
gave him the patronage he craved. Some were in his cabinet. They were
furious with him at GE14 and turned against him only because he wanted
to get rid of their beloved leader, Najib.
Najib
was their patron and protector, just as Mahathir had once been Umno
Baru and Najib's main benefactor. In politics, everyone, including
foreigners like Dr Zakir Naik, have their uses.
To explain the
current state of Malaysia, we must get to the heart of the matter. The
corruption catastrophes in Malaysia. The politics of fear and hate, our
silence, our hypocrisy and the lack of the rule of law, are all not an
overnight phenomenon. The methods of corruption were tuned during
Mahathir's first tenure as PM.
The Internet was not around in the
80s and 90s to enable people to be aware of the scandals. Younger
Malaysians are probably not aware of previous corruption scandals. After
all, Umno Baru has managed to alter our history and corrupt the morals
of many historians.
Overseas Malaysians also bear the mental scars
of his rule. Families were divided when their offspring were denied
opportunities, simply because they were non-Malay and not Muslim. Ask
the promising non-Malay students who were once in Universiti Malaya or
the non-Malay lecturers who taught there and at the Mara colleges.
Today,
many non-Malays, who are leaders in the fields of science and medicine
and have patented many inventions, have given their adopted countries
the publicity which Malaysia should have received. Instead, we take our
place in the league of nations known for their corruption.
During
Mahathir’s rule in the 1980s, money politics was allowed to proliferate.
The people in power did nothing to stop or minimise corruption. The
cabinet, some of whom have been re-elected as MPs, benefited from his
protection.
The institutions which could have stopped money
politics, such as the law enforcement agencies, the judiciary and the
investigative bodies, were compromised. Their ineptitude exacerbated the
problem. Their default excuse was, "I had to protect my periuk nasi" (rice pot).
Umno
Baru created many of the problems with which we are now saddled with.
Najib was a good pupil and learnt from his mentor, Mahathir, who
handpicked him to lead Malaysia.
Perhaps
it is true that there are no honest politicians. So if you doubt the
value of integrity and in being honest in our everyday lives, then
ponder the consequences of the lies of Najib and Umno Baru politicians.
Those
who forget history are doomed to repeat it. Today, Umno Baru is being
reincarnated under the Bersatu banner and the solution is simple. You
can put a stop to it.
Keep speaking up and do not falter. There is
safety in numbers. It is preferable to have Harapan and whip its
politicians into shape than to suffer the nightmare and lies of Umno
Baru/PAS.
