51st Merdeka - A tale of two cities societies

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" ... is the opening sentence of Charles Dickens’ book ‘A tale of two cities’.

The book is about events during the French Revolution. It describes the plight of the ordinary French people under the oppressive yokel of the French aristocracy in the years leading up to the revolution, and how the people rose up against the brutal upper class.

The book portrays the at-times criminal arrogance of the upper class, treachery, revenge, sinister plots, frame-ups and noble characters.

Sounds familiar? ;-)

Yes, when we read Malaysiakini news article Racism still haunts nation at 51st Merdeka it wouldn't be inappropriate one day to quote Dickens that in the year 2008 "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times".

But I hope Malaysians don’t adopt those violent means of the revolution depicted in 'The tale of two cities', that some people here in Malaysia seems to have a preference for. If there is to be any revolution, it must be via a democratic and civilized society's ballot box, or we could end up being Mugabe-ised - wakakaka.

Now, sweetie Helen Ang, a columnist at Malaysiakini, wrote The tale of two MPs, with her article’s title, I suspect, being a pun on Dickens’ book title.

Staring from the recent Permatang Pauh by-election, she weaved her narrative through the parlous state of racist politics in our country, with its over-emphasis on (or exploitation of) religion … and mind you, not religion per se but rather politicised religion with an eye towards ethnic control.

She also commented on Dr Mahathir successfully neutralizing Anwar Ibrahim’s Reformasi 10 years ago.

Reformasi! I have always asserted that this term bandied around since 1998 has a gross misuse of the meaning of reformasi (political reforms), brazenly posing as one of those miraculous, and thus implausible, overnight ‘Road to Damascus’ insight.

To paraphrase W Churchill’s immortal words, ‘never in the field of human political struggle, has so much ideological belakang pusing (about-turn) been embraced by one man in just one night’ ;-)

… yes, that ‘Road to Damascus’ insight which had resulted in frightening road protests, or should it be instead, frightening road protests which propagandised the ‘Road to Damascus’ insight.

Anyway, sweetie quoted what Dr M said when he reminisced about the aftermath of the so-called Reformasi movement, that “the Chinese electorate ensured that I got the 2/3 majority in 1999”.

From her writing, she seems a rather intense sweetie, and she blamed the Chinese electorate for retaining Dr M in power, and consequently (and thus, I suppose, liable too for) Anwar remaining imprisoned and in political wilderness … until his recent phoenix-like rising.

My personal take is that in 1998 Anwar Ibrahim fell on his own UMNO keris when his UMNO faction attempted to nudge Dr M out with an allegation of cronyism and nepotism but which (the occurrence of cronyism and nepotism) ricochetted back on Anwar. Hardly political reforms!

Sweetie said padan muka to Chinese Malaysians (especially if they are Christians) who complained about religious repression because they deserve the 22 ‘vintage Mahathir years’ that have ensured the prevalence of Ketuanan Melayu.

She reminded us that "Exercise of coercive power by Umno administrations (both Dr M and now his successor’s) has had the side effect of empowering the Islamist state apparat. If today, the Christian flock – particularly Chinese – were to complain of religious repression, then they are only reaping what they’ve sown."

She was most sorry for the plight of some Malay 'apostates', trapped by politically erected religious barriers from leaving Islam, and tossed in the interesting question, that if Lina Joy had been a Chinese, would she have faced such virulent vicious vehement opposition to her declaration that she has already left Islam?

Then she mentioned two things that I must comment on ;-). She wrote:

(1) I cannot think of any self-professed ‘democratic’ state, unless this country considers itself a theocracy, where there is similarly such a stringent interference in its citizen’s choice and practice of religion like here in Malaysia, with the exception of perhaps Israel.

Tell me now, which other democratic country in the world brings the full force of the law to bear upon a man for freedom of conscience? Does Ireland mandate that an Irish must be Catholic and nothing else? Does Thailand regulate Thais to observe strictly the tenets of Buddhism?

Actually, until recently Greece, even as a member State of the EU, did not permit complete freedom of worship.

I read a BBC news article Ancient Greek gods' new believers as well as a Sydney Morning Herald piece Modern pagans worship illegally in Athens last year, where a group of Greeks who wanted to worship the ancient Greek Gods (immortal studs like Zeus and sexy yummy Aphrodite) had to take their case to court to demand that they should not be prevented by State laws from doing so. Fortunately for them they won.

Mt Olympus 1 - Byzantium religions 0

Wooooot, I always have a fantasy for a sweetie like cool, cold, freezing Artemis but I read that she doesn’t like men, being a … well, you know … and she would blind them (if they happen to see her naked during her bathing - damn!), castrate them … gulp … or turn them into stags to be … gulp … hunted by her.

Maybe it's best if I restrict my fantasy to the Goddess born from sea bubbles, Aphrodite ;-), or just to older women which I mentioned in Lustful fantasies - wakakaka!

(2) The more strenuously the duplicitous ruling regime is challenged by People Power, the more desperately they sabre-rattle their Ketuanan Melayu jingoism. To his credit, Anwar has eschewed this retrogressive communitarian tack and even in Permatang Pauh where the constituency has almost 70% Malay voters. He has stood by and is still standing on his pluralistic platform.

Well, Anwar has no choice, has he? What do you think his current power base is made up from? And let the bells of the temple ring forever to remind us of this.

I believe that until Anwar gets back to UMNO, he’ll be the most multi whatever there is.

However, I am always forgiving and willing to embrace his noveau politics wakakaka, but I would insist that Anwar read at least the first part of the following line:

“It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to, than I have ever known.”

It’s the last sentence from Dickens ‘A tale of two cities.’