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."
P Ramasamy said Ahmad Marzuk's party
PAS was relying on creating an artificial ‘siege mentality’ for its
political purposes despite the fact that Islam is the official religion
of the country and protected by the Federal Constitution.
"There are enough laws that prohibit the propagation of religions other than Islam to Muslims in the country. "I
don’t know why the government needs further restrictions on the spread
of religions other than Islam,” he said in a statement today.
Ramasamy
said ethnic and religious extremism for political survival has been the
main reason why politicians in ethnic and religious parties have always
sought to portray the image that Islam was under threat. "Apart from the perception fuelled by religious extremism, I don’t think that Islam is really under threat from secular forces.
"PAS, the so-called firebrand Islamic party, is one political party that has used Islam for its political survival. "Take away the religious factor and the party will collapse," said Ramasamy. Ahmad Marzuk had stated earlier this week that the government plans to draft four new syariah laws, including the Control and Restriction on the Propagation of Non-Muslim Religions Bill.
The others are the Wakaf Bill, Mufti Bill and Syariah Court Bill. He
said several other legislations such as the Syariah Courts (Criminal
Jurisdiction) Act 1965 (Act 355) will be amended under a five-year plan
(2020-2025). The proposed Control and Restriction on the
Propagation of Non-Muslim Religions Bill was raised after the High Court
in Kuala Lumpur ruled that non-Muslims can use the word "Allah".
The deputy minister had in fact first announced
these changes in March. He retained his position after Ismail Sabri
Yaakob took over as prime minister, and PAS stranglehold on Religious
Affairs has deepened with the appointment of his party colleague Idris
Samad as minister. Ramasamy said the highest law of the
land, the Federal Constitution, gives cognisance to the multi-racial and
multi-ethnic character of the country.
"After more than 64 years
of independence, there is no threat to Islam, although religions other
than Islam have been subject to restrictions in many areas. “I
think that the recent High Court decision that permits non-Muslims to
use the word ‘Allah’ which means God in Arabic could be the reason why
the religious affairs department has come up with the idea of new
legislation. "This is merely a political act on the part of PAS
leaders to show to the Muslims in the country that they are very much
involved in protecting Muslims from the divisive secular forces.
"PAS thrives by creating antagonism between Muslims and those who do not profess this faith," he added.
