Malaysia has a very rare breed, one of a kind, first among firsts MINIster ::
The First 'U Help Me I Help U" MINIster in 1Malaysia and the PM who appointed him ::
Taken from Lone
Finally, after so, so many, many years; Malaysians is seeing the return of the 3rd vote. Even if it is just the election of a village head.
Selangor's Pulau Ketam held the election of its village head, the first local election since 1965.
The village also scored another first in Malaysian history by the use of indelible ink in the voting process to prevent election fraud.
There is hope that one day, in the not distant future, Malaysians will once again get to exercise their rights to the 3rd vote with the return of local council elections. For that to happen we need real change first.
Related article :;
Pulau Ketam scores first in using indelible ink
We already know, our beloved deputy Prime Minister is "Malay first and Malaysian second. We already know our former minister in-charge of the August house is Malaysian first and for those who are not aware, he is Minister in the PM's Dept, Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz.
The MalaysianInsider reported today ::
At the Malaysian Student Leaders Summit (MSLS) :
A student had asked Najib whether he was prepared to state that he was Malaysian first and what he thought of his deputy, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s infamous remark of being “Malay first and Malaysian next.”
Najib did not answer the question directed at him.
“I don’t want to respond in a way that will divide me from my deputy.
“1 Malaysia is our guiding philosophy. It does not matter what you say, just as long as you follow (the 1 Malaysia concept),” he said today.
What is the PM trying to say? Does he want us to follow his 1Malaysia concept while he and his deputy stick to the Malaysian 2nd concept? Is he telling that he and his deputy do not accept his 1Malaysia concept and it is just all talk, talk.
Sometime, in the distant future, he will probably say "I thought of saying "I am Malaysian first but I didn't want to hurt my Deputy". So like what he did today, when he said that he thought of offering Bersih the Stadium Shah Alam for the 9th July Rally. Stop being a Mushroom, have a spine.
Soon we will be in August, the month when Rais Yatim, the PM and others in the BN gomen would like us to show our patriotism in the usual manner ie by flying the Jalur Gemilang. This element of loyalty to the nation, we live in, is often mistakenly considered to be loyalty owed to the BN gomen.
These are some of Mark Twain's quotes regarding this element ::
"Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.”
"Patriot: the person who can holler the loudest without knowing what he is hollering about.” And some patriots even get wet.
"Patriotism is usually the refuge of the scoundrel. He is the man who talks the loudest."
A man can be a Christian or a patriot, but he can't legally be a Christian and a patriot -- except in the usual way:.......(read the rest here)
Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel :: who said this?
After reading this article by Josh Hong, here's another quote on patriotism :: "Dissent is the highest form of patriotism.
Remember all these quotes as we go into the months of August and September, while you are flying the Jalur Gemilang and wearing your yellow-clean/bersih-what-ever. Cheers.
Happy, happy, bersih/clean Merdeka and Malaysia Day.
Saga of PSM 6: A lesson in mishandling
Terence Netto | Jul 30, 11 9:36am
For three weeks now, appalled observers of the train wreck of the Bersih disaster may have assumed that at some point someone within the Najib Razak administration would have the presence of mind to pull one damsel, at least, off the track of the onrushing train.
That happened yesterday when the PSM 6, or the EO 6, were released by police after nearly a month's detention on grounds that shifted from the farcical (rebellion against the king) to the incredible (threats to national security) to the manifestly false (they were central planners of the Bersih 2.0 march).
By arresting the PSM 6 for no good reason and then continuing to hold them on successively unsustainable grounds, the government had gratuitously deepened the mess of its handling of the Bersih-organised march for electoral reform on July 9.
While it lasted, the detention of the six was an abscess on the wound of the government's mishandling of the entire Bersih issue.
The terseness of the inspector-general of police's explanation yesterday that further action on the released detainees will be determined by the AG's Chambers only served to underscore the implausibility of the case for the detention of the six.
Those familiar with the temperament of the PSM cohort know that they are just about the most pacific of activists: about the only danger the party's activists would pose to the public is that one of them might be moved, on occasion, to smack somebody with a poster of Che Guevara.
If that were to happen, the victim may well feel complimented by the evidence that someone from the party could get ruffled enough to do something as mildly aggressive as brandishing a poster.
Socialist panaceas
But don't get this minuscule bunch of mainly social workers masquerading as politicians - led by the amiable trio of PSM chairman Dr Mohd Nasir Hashim, secretary general S Arutchelvan and MP Dr Jeyakumar Devaraj - wrong.
They are only mild in temperament; in person, they are unwavering in their belief that socialism is panacea for the ills of the national and world economy.
Sometimes when you chat with them, it is as if they have not heard of the world's history between the time of the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
Or rather, they subscribe to a wholly different narrative as to what really happened to the socialist theory that you can build a society on the basis that each member would contribute according to his ability and take according to his need. This is essentially the core of socialist ideology.
The contrary theory holds that human beings are essentially self-interested who can only be enticed by incentives to give according to their ability and take according to their economic worth.
Proponents of socialist ideology would criticise this theory as furnishing the basis for the exploitation of the many by the few.
No matter what you tell the PSM crowd about the history of the world since October 1917, you are not likely to dent their enthusiasm for socialist panaceas.
Fostering separatism
From 1999, they have been trying to get their party recognised as a legal body by the Registrar of Societies, resorting to the courts for remedy when the ROS spurned them.
Only in 2009 did PSM succeed in gaining ROS recognition. And that recognition, as everyone knows, owed more to the desire of the powers-that-be to cause division among the opposition.
An unrecognised PSM would tend to contest elections under the banner of PKR rather than any other opposition party.
The powers-that-be would rather foster separatism among the opposition rather than allow a situation where the use of proxies by PKR might promote eventual solidarity between it and PSM, daunting as it is to bridge the divide between the two, on economic matters at least.
Even as a separate entity, PSM are not likely to garner more than a small corner of the political market for votes.
But, from one standpoint, that small corner is worthwhile if it succeeds in creating the impression that the opposition is an ideologically disparate lot, not worth the public's attention or support.
Public sympathy
However, public perceptions have changed rather much since June 25 when a bunch of PSM activists was detained in Penang while on a campaign swing through Kedah and neighbouring states.
The police decision to hold six senior officials of the party - the PSM 6 who later became the EO 6 - on inherently incredible grounds only served to boost the public profile of this hitherto little-known party into a force that is bigger than its actual size would warrant.
The party's membership is about 500 but in recent days it has been deluged with inquiries from the public about membership.
The police action has given the party an unprecedented boost. This is not likely to increase its membership figures to rival those of its comparatively gigantic allies in Pakatan Rakyat, but it has made it that much harder to render PSM susceptible to the argument that their socio-economic agenda is attainable through the egalitarian goals of Pakatan.
In sum, by myopically, albeit briefly, incarcerating the PSM 6, the authorities have aroused public sympathy for the party and, by extension, for the opposition and its aim of supplanting Umno-BN in Putrajaya.
But it has made the larger goal of opposition solidarity on a common socio-economic agenda more difficult to achieve.
TERENCE NETTO has been a journalist for close on four decades. He likes the occupation because it puts him in contact with the eminent without being under the necessity to admire them. It is the ideal occupation for a temperament that finds power fascinating and its exercise abhorrent.
Related Articles ::
Najib’s credibility still ‘in tatters’ despite PSM6 release, says Lim
PSM6: The end of the farce — The Malaysian Insider
The gov't must now apologise to PSM 6
Jubilant supporters give hero's welcome to PSM 6
Explore Balik Pulau
Those who want to experience a “different side” of Penang, Balik Pulau might be the place for you.
The newly opened Balik Pulau Visitor Centre offers a variety of services to ensure visitors an experience they will never forget.
This includes a free guided tour with bicycle rental to the heart of Balik Pulau. Some of the places of interest in the tour are the Balik Pulau paddy fields, traditional Malay villages, fishing village, the Sungai Burong estuary (Kuala Sungai Burong) , Balik Pulau Fruit Farm and many more upon requests.
The free guided tour departs every day at 4:30pm from Balik Pulau Visitor Centre. Pre-booking is recommended to avoid disappointment. Bookings can be made through e-mail or the hotline.
Below are the details of the Explore Balik Pulau Visitor Centre:
Opening Hours: Monday – Friday: 2pm > 6.30pm
Saturday-Sunday: 12.00pm > 6.30pm
School/Public Holiday: 12.00pm > 6.30pm
Service Offered:
- Visitor Center
- Local travel information & Assistance
- Balik Pulau Tour
- Farm Walk (Seasonal)
- Bird Watching (Seasonal)
- Bicycle rental
Contact Person: Mr Eddie Chew
Hotline: +6 016 4522 100
The Malaysian Insider has just reported the passing away of Titiwangsa MP Dr Lo' Lo'.
A text message from her mobile phone number was sent to The Malaysian Insider stating that she died at 10.13pm.
PAS vice-president Salahuddin Ayub confirmed the death when contacted by The Malaysian Insider.
It is understood that the first-term MP will be buried at 8am tomorrow.
A lost to Pakatan and the constituents of Titiwangsa.
