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."
Harapan-led unity govt needs more propaganda - Commander S THAYAPARAN (Retired) Royal Malaysian Navy
Thursday, January 05, 2023
Malaysiakini : Why? Because they understand that the propaganda works for them. What
they do not want is propaganda that does not work for them. If more
people believe that a unity government is more stable than a theocracy,
perception becomes reality and this is what PN fears.
Indeed, what
PN does not want people who voted for them to understand, is that this
unity government was sanctioned by the establishment because they
understood that the racial and religious agenda of PN was not only
detrimental to the country but also to institutions that for so long,
Umno propagandists pummeled into the heads of the majority polity,
needed to be defended at all costs.
Think of this unity government
asā defending at all costsā, the tethering democracy of this country
not to mention scared institutions who are now discovering what decades
of racial and religious malfeasances have wrought.
Indeed, there
is not only not enough propaganda but also so far (and remember time is
not on Harapanās side) Harapan has not leveraged its official channels
to demonstrate how they will benefit the disenfranchised of the majority
polity in this country, who are suffering because they continue to vote
for incompetent leaders who narcotise them with race and religion.
In a recent piece demanding equal allocation
for opposition MPs, G Vinod argued: āDenying any MP or assemblyperson
equal allocation just because they come from the other side is
undemocratic and, in my opinion, illegal as well. In a democracy, like
it or not, we must respect the decision made by the electorate. We must
put our prejudices and personal bias aside and do whatās right for
voters.ā
Ok,
here is the problem. We have one side (Harapan) which is a ākinda sort
ofā democratic alliance and the other side (PN) which is a fascist
theocratic alliance.
Indeed voters who voted for PN are more than
happy that the religious and fascist agenda of PN be applied to all and
would most probably think that it is haram to provide equal allocation
for infidelic opposition leaders if their leaders were in the
government.
Donāt give the fascists money
And
here is what former Umno MP Nazri Abdul Aziz said. By the way, Nazri is
that politician who makes it very difficult to gauge which side his
bread is buttered on, but he did say something which could be used by
Harapan.
He said:
āIf the government gives RM1 million, they will still get RM1 million,
but we must ensure how they spend it would not give them any political
advantage, to the extent that we do not know where the money allocated
goes. Because we have to be careful, they might use the money for
political purposes.ā
Now, this is a good strategy. Donāt give the
fascists money but rather see that it goes to projects and people in
opposition states that need it and then use official channels to
propagandise the fact that the federal government is responding to their
needs.
This way the fascists cannot take advantage of the democratic idealism of Harapan and use taxpayers' ringgit to their advantage.
Keep in mind that this is the same Nazri who said this two years ago:
āWe should not discriminate between government MPs or opposition MPs
because it (the allocation) will all go to the rakyat. This aid must be
given to the rakyat who have not committed any wrongdoings in choosing
their representatives because we practice democracy.ā
Former Umno MP Nazri Abdul Aziz
So
yes, this is all Alice in Wonderland politics but this is what happens
when you do not nurture democracy in this country and are left with a
compromised electoral map, which could destroy the democracy in this
country.
And if we want to keep practicing democracy, we must
ensure that the fascists who are already profiting from electoral
legerdemain and institutions within the state who are sympathetic to
their aims are deprived of resources that would further their agendas
which are anathema to democracy.
Indeed I would use official
channels to launch attacks against the lifestyles of the purveyors of
religious values and demonstrate how their inflated salaries and other
revenue streams are in stark contrast to what they preach and how the
people who voted for them live.
Keep in mind that Harapan is not
better than PN. It is just that the choice is between religious fascism
and a compromised democratic alliance, and I know which side I would
choose.
Furthermore, each state is different. The propaganda
should be tailored to reflect local sensibilities. All politics is local
and is a truism for a reason.
As long as Umno is playing well with others, the accusation of hypocrisy is water off a duck's back for me.
My
agenda is to forestall a theocratic takeover of this country and people
who do not want this are hampered by electoral legerdemain and an
already compromised democratic alliance. So really, we have very little
to work with.
This does not mean that I think that Harapan should not be held accountable.
This
does not mean that I think honest citizens should not voice out their
concerns when it comes to a whole range of issues, which Harapan should
address.
I also do not want people to believe that Harapan has a
blank cheque to do whatever they want because the base will not hold
them accountable.
Iām just arguing that democratic values and principles are not a suicide pact.
When
it comes to issues like propaganda and allocation of funds, strategic
decisions which can be used against the theocrats, I am not going to
play boy scouts and argue to give the fascists ammunition.
This is
a dirty political brawl and if Harapan loses, it would be cold comfort
to argue that they played by the Marquess of Queensberry rules.
