Sunday, September 18, 2005
May 13th 1969
Time is running out. We can't let history slip away
This has always been that bone in my throat. Now I'm gonna pick it.
Our understanding of the 513 incident has always been one-dimensional. One race richer than the other, tensions simmered and boiled over. My stay in the BTN(Biro TataNegara) camp for the "training" of students headed overseas even exposed me to one school of thought: Parliaments should always be dominated utterly by one party or a state would lose stability and go 513 on us. {sarcasm} It's no wonder there are great instabilty in the US, with their divided congress and no riots at all in one-party China. {/sarcasm}. BTN facilitators are enlightened. Just check out the halo.
But as we past another D-Day memorial, another Hiroshima and Nagasaki remembrance or entertain another wave of tourists visiting the Death March memorials in Sabah, there are fewer and fewer people who could provide first hand accounts of WWII and be primary sources for historical documentations. Time is running out for the Greatest Generation. 1969 was 25 years after but soon, we may run out of time as well.
So, it's about time we did something more comprehensive. Human sources are most reliable in this case as any archaeolgical evidence of an urban event such as this would be hard to come by. WWII documentaries are abundant, and books dwelling on them are deftly researched. The same standard should be applied to an event whose magnitude shooked and steered the course of a whole nation. Amongst the lovechildren of it are affirmitive action, change of foreign policy, greater suppresion of dissent and weakening of parliamentary opposition. I don't know about you, but the declaration of emergency rule for an event that only happened in the capitol and immmediate suspension of governing instruments after the largest opposition gains in Malaysia's history deserves due attention.
So here I appeal, documentary makers, novelists, historians or maybe just your average citizen, sift through what periodical materials you can lay your hands on, meet every witness of that momentous event you can lay your hands on. Then get your hands off them. Historical documentation of linguistics and tradition (or for that matter any form of history) has not been one of Malaysia's greatest points. We have an innate fear of reality as it happened, warts and all. But it's there, even if it's not in our perception, nothing can change the objectivity of an event. It's better to know truth than to create it.
Cheers.
This has always been that bone in my throat. Now I'm gonna pick it.
Our understanding of the 513 incident has always been one-dimensional. One race richer than the other, tensions simmered and boiled over. My stay in the BTN(Biro TataNegara) camp for the "training" of students headed overseas even exposed me to one school of thought: Parliaments should always be dominated utterly by one party or a state would lose stability and go 513 on us. {sarcasm} It's no wonder there are great instabilty in the US, with their divided congress and no riots at all in one-party China. {/sarcasm}. BTN facilitators are enlightened. Just check out the halo.
But as we past another D-Day memorial, another Hiroshima and Nagasaki remembrance or entertain another wave of tourists visiting the Death March memorials in Sabah, there are fewer and fewer people who could provide first hand accounts of WWII and be primary sources for historical documentations. Time is running out for the Greatest Generation. 1969 was 25 years after but soon, we may run out of time as well.
So, it's about time we did something more comprehensive. Human sources are most reliable in this case as any archaeolgical evidence of an urban event such as this would be hard to come by. WWII documentaries are abundant, and books dwelling on them are deftly researched. The same standard should be applied to an event whose magnitude shooked and steered the course of a whole nation. Amongst the lovechildren of it are affirmitive action, change of foreign policy, greater suppresion of dissent and weakening of parliamentary opposition. I don't know about you, but the declaration of emergency rule for an event that only happened in the capitol and immmediate suspension of governing instruments after the largest opposition gains in Malaysia's history deserves due attention.
So here I appeal, documentary makers, novelists, historians or maybe just your average citizen, sift through what periodical materials you can lay your hands on, meet every witness of that momentous event you can lay your hands on. Then get your hands off them. Historical documentation of linguistics and tradition (or for that matter any form of history) has not been one of Malaysia's greatest points. We have an innate fear of reality as it happened, warts and all. But it's there, even if it's not in our perception, nothing can change the objectivity of an event. It's better to know truth than to create it.
Cheers.
Obssesions With Beauty
Your normal everyday post
This is not about serial killers. Or stalkers. Cos I hate talking about myself.
It's actually about how most of the suggestions I've been getting is to beautify my patch of grass (blog). Yeah, so the layout's bland, the links are disconcerting the font sucks. I've added captions haven't I?
Okay then I'll start writing with bullet points, bolded letters, post pictures as well.
Maybe I'll post about serial killers. That'll shut you up. Especially if I'm talkin' bout myself bwahahaha!!!!
This is not about serial killers. Or stalkers. Cos I hate talking about myself.
It's actually about how most of the suggestions I've been getting is to beautify my patch of grass (blog). Yeah, so the layout's bland, the links are disconcerting the font sucks. I've added captions haven't I?
Okay then I'll start writing with bullet points, bolded letters, post pictures as well.
Maybe I'll post about serial killers. That'll shut you up. Especially if I'm talkin' bout myself bwahahaha!!!!
Saturday, September 17, 2005
The Null Federation of Malaysia
federalism is important to keep the "federation" together and end blatant disparities of east and west Malaysia
This is not meant to incite hate. All in good faith k?
As said, federalism in Malaysia is moot. If only we had (like US states) power over state level national guards. It's symptomatic. Just as city folks have no power over municipal leaders. Centralisation is too strong here. Had we the authority and the budget, illegal logging prevention would be the realm of the army under state supervision. The extra cost is well worth it, and it'll be much better than an idle army, with the added benefit of jungle exposure.
Now you may say that we should try to strive for integration instead of more state autonomy. Truth is that is a harder route to take. Even Germany with its hodgepodge of Germanic tribes descendants is a hard nation to keep together, despite the very close cultural affinity (Much closer that that of indigenious peoples of Sarawak, Sabah, the West Coast and the East Coast). Even Japan, an icon of cultural homogenity, grants huge powers to their prefectures. Integration is hard when there are 25++ ethnic groups (more, if you want to count the groups that seek to differentiate themselves officially) all wanting to be recognised as individual group. Assimilation is near impossible.
Anyway opposition parties should have made unilateral action in taking over state coffers when they had the chance, enact a mini state constitution and declare more independence from the feds. Altough illegal in the sense that it violates the federal constitution, it's morally correct as it is a decision of the direct representative of the residents.
Anyway I'll just dream. To semenanjung people, one method of NOT antagonising the easterners is to NOT ask this question on your first meeting with an easterner:
"korang datang sini naik flight?"
We hate that
This is not meant to incite hate. All in good faith k?
As said, federalism in Malaysia is moot. If only we had (like US states) power over state level national guards. It's symptomatic. Just as city folks have no power over municipal leaders. Centralisation is too strong here. Had we the authority and the budget, illegal logging prevention would be the realm of the army under state supervision. The extra cost is well worth it, and it'll be much better than an idle army, with the added benefit of jungle exposure.
Now you may say that we should try to strive for integration instead of more state autonomy. Truth is that is a harder route to take. Even Germany with its hodgepodge of Germanic tribes descendants is a hard nation to keep together, despite the very close cultural affinity (Much closer that that of indigenious peoples of Sarawak, Sabah, the West Coast and the East Coast). Even Japan, an icon of cultural homogenity, grants huge powers to their prefectures. Integration is hard when there are 25++ ethnic groups (more, if you want to count the groups that seek to differentiate themselves officially) all wanting to be recognised as individual group. Assimilation is near impossible.
Anyway opposition parties should have made unilateral action in taking over state coffers when they had the chance, enact a mini state constitution and declare more independence from the feds. Altough illegal in the sense that it violates the federal constitution, it's morally correct as it is a decision of the direct representative of the residents.
Anyway I'll just dream. To semenanjung people, one method of NOT antagonising the easterners is to NOT ask this question on your first meeting with an easterner:
"korang datang sini naik flight?"
We hate that
Friday, September 16, 2005
Malaysia Day or Federation Day
...or get this: TYT's Birthday LOL! :P
Today is Malaysia Day and September 16th is the only date in the Malaysia calendar that can rightfully use the word "Malaysia". We all should (which does not mean do) know that the 31st of August 1957 was a day in which "Malaysia" was not even an entity. It wasn't even yet a concept. It wasn't even on the drawing boards. It was moot.
But come September 16th 1963, The Federation of Malaysia was born. What you see, hear, feel, smell and taste as distinctively Malaysian, was created on that day, for if alternate realitise had taken over, all that would be Malayan, Sarawakian or a distinct touch of North Borneo.
So today we as a State have existed for 42 years. What do we do? Well most western Malaysians go to work, people in Kelantan, Kedah and Terengganu enjoy their weekend off while Sabahans and Sarawakians are forced to remember this day as the "birthday" of a non-represantional, non-empowered, artificially installed head of state whom more than half the states' population for the life of them cannot remember.
Indeed, history is in the hands of those who wield the pens. Or if everyone has one, those who hold bigger, gold-lined pens. The Ministry of Education has seen fit to sweep September 16th under the rug, as it wasn't a shining example of the hyper-efficient UMNO. With Neighbour opposition and tensions with Indonesia rising, the Federation was formed in a very messy manner. Which meant UMNO didn't get to shout "MERDEKA!!!" or for that matter, look good.
We went ahead anyway, as equal partners, except for the part where Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore (who's enjoying life out of the federation) were expected to assimilate and accept August 31st as their independence day. Memory and History be damned. The people there after all, didn't hold the pens of history. Apparently, the image of "The Party" (UMNO, if you don't geddit) is held above all. False Metaphysical Subjectivity over Metaphysical Objectivity. In the 30s they called it Fascism (a little tru), now they call it remembering our freedom fighters (who, like the moniker crime fighters, fight freedom)
Anyway Happy Malaysia Day, to those who would bother. Who knows how long we must go on together eh?
Today is Malaysia Day and September 16th is the only date in the Malaysia calendar that can rightfully use the word "Malaysia". We all should (which does not mean do) know that the 31st of August 1957 was a day in which "Malaysia" was not even an entity. It wasn't even yet a concept. It wasn't even on the drawing boards. It was moot.
But come September 16th 1963, The Federation of Malaysia was born. What you see, hear, feel, smell and taste as distinctively Malaysian, was created on that day, for if alternate realitise had taken over, all that would be Malayan, Sarawakian or a distinct touch of North Borneo.
So today we as a State have existed for 42 years. What do we do? Well most western Malaysians go to work, people in Kelantan, Kedah and Terengganu enjoy their weekend off while Sabahans and Sarawakians are forced to remember this day as the "birthday" of a non-represantional, non-empowered, artificially installed head of state whom more than half the states' population for the life of them cannot remember.
Indeed, history is in the hands of those who wield the pens. Or if everyone has one, those who hold bigger, gold-lined pens. The Ministry of Education has seen fit to sweep September 16th under the rug, as it wasn't a shining example of the hyper-efficient UMNO. With Neighbour opposition and tensions with Indonesia rising, the Federation was formed in a very messy manner. Which meant UMNO didn't get to shout "MERDEKA!!!" or for that matter, look good.
We went ahead anyway, as equal partners, except for the part where Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore (who's enjoying life out of the federation) were expected to assimilate and accept August 31st as their independence day. Memory and History be damned. The people there after all, didn't hold the pens of history. Apparently, the image of "The Party" (UMNO, if you don't geddit) is held above all. False Metaphysical Subjectivity over Metaphysical Objectivity. In the 30s they called it Fascism (a little tru), now they call it remembering our freedom fighters (who, like the moniker crime fighters, fight freedom)
Anyway Happy Malaysia Day, to those who would bother. Who knows how long we must go on together eh?
Monday, September 12, 2005
I Disagree
Yeah, got a copy of Disagree's CD today.
Honestly man, Fat Boys Records is a talent factory. Lo and Disagree are just the most innovative musicians to have come out from Malaysia. And yes I know this isn't new. I'm piss poor. I sold sperms to buy this.
So if the same crap that they keep playin' on radio is killing you (I can't differentiate one song from the other), here's a change.
Honestly man, Fat Boys Records is a talent factory. Lo and Disagree are just the most innovative musicians to have come out from Malaysia. And yes I know this isn't new. I'm piss poor. I sold sperms to buy this.
So if the same crap that they keep playin' on radio is killing you (I can't differentiate one song from the other), here's a change.
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Lim Chee Ping RIP dude....:_(
Okay bad me. I've lost contact with the old La Sallian mates so I just got the news of my old friend's Lim Chee Ping's passing..... He was a slapstick comedian and real down to earth. We did so many stuff as a gang, karate, Leo club (he's the one who pulled me in) and hanged out at his place. An all round nice guy.
He'll be missed.
He'll be missed.
