We Were Meant To Live For So Much More
November 26th, 2007
things that were bad about this morning : my high school counselor stood me up for our 10am meeting, my new pair of flip-flops died, the beef ball noodle shop that i reeeeeally wanted to go to for lunch was closed, The Star’s skewed journalism regarding yesterday’s Hindraf rally, and my missing Reese Peanut Butter Cups tshirt. yes i have a Peanut Butter Cups tshirt. it’s very cute. Puppy gave it to me. and now it’s missing :(
but as is prone to happen, the morning took a turn for the better quite suddenly and unexpectedly :) i was in a cab on the way home from my meeting that didnt happen, a tad annoyed and extremely fatigued, when my cabbie’s mobile phone rang. it was his wife! and from the backseat, i could hear her screeching with mucho fervor over the phone. she was clearly very mad about something, but it was sooooo cute to watch the cabbie apologize and soothe his wife :P
his side of the conversation, which i was eavesdropping on with much glee : “aiyo.. sorry okay? don’t angry okay? wei… don’t angry lah… i know i’m wrong… yah i know i promised… yah i know promises are important… that’s why i’m sorry… please don’t be angry! you want lunch? i buy for you lunch.. okay what you want to eat? pau? porridge? noodles? what you want, i buy for you! har dont want anything? why? why you dont want to eat? you must eat! are you not eating because you’re angry at me? wei don’t like that lah… okay lah okay lah i come back and take you out for lunch okay? will that make you happy? okay okay i come back now.. bye bye. remember dont be angry ah!”
hahahahahahahhaa SO cute!
when he hung up, i asked him why his wife was so angry, and it turns out he was supposed to go back during his break at 6am to ……. take a nap. cos his wife is very concerned about his lack of sleep. isn’t that adorable! anyway he obviously didn’t go home, and i asked him why. and he sheepishly said that he went for coffee with a couple of cabbie friends. HAHAHA.
i then told him that his wife is very lucky to have a nice husband like him who’s so willing to apologize and comfort her. we girls, after all, like to be babied every now and then :) then he sighed and said, ‘what to do… i sayang her so much.’
awwwwwwwww. :))))) that just made my day. and so my morning became much, much, much better after that. even though the haze is back and i STILL haven’t found my peanut butter cups tshirt! @#$%^
haven’t been able to sleep lately. the thing is i AM SO tired, but i just cant seem to be able to sleep more than 4 hours these days. and that’s after going on without sleep for about 24 hours. if only this state of sleeplessness would increase my productivity, but no! it doesnt! in fact, i dont even feel like doing anything at all. sigh. all i want to do is eat ice cream and stare at the ceiling and try to sleep.
but i’ve been much happier these days. not jumping out of my skin kinda happy, but an almost nirvanic kinda happy. the people in my life have been going through a lot of things, and when they talk to me about it, they drop random bits of wisdom that i usually look at as cliches or easier-said-than-done.. but after some contemplation (in my sleep-deprived, sense-heightened state), i find that there is nothing truer than the most cliched of wisdoms. like, ‘all you can do is hope for the best’. ‘learn to let go’. ‘if you dont try, you’ll never know’. ‘we can’t expect everyone to be the way we want them to’. and, ‘prayer helps’.
i grew up a lot over the past weeks. i’ve learnt a lot of things - painful things that hurt me - and i’ve also learnt how to deal with them. i think my problem sometimes is that i worry too much about things, always needing to know what is going on, always needing to have my hand in the solution.. when at times the best thing to do is just STOP, and see that there is not a whole lot you can do about certain things.
so why worry? again, another cliche that i often dismiss. i used to - and to a certain extent still am - think that worrying is a good thing, because it shows that you’re thinking about your situation and trying to fix it or make sure it turns out okay, and if it things go bad, you are at least prepared for the blow and can deal with it effectively.
but that’s the problem i suppose. i try so hard to insulate and protect myself, always anticipating hurt and heartbreak, that i’ve come to see such things at every corner i turn. i flinch whenever something is handed to me because i immediately think there’s an ulterior motive, a trick up the sleeve, an illusion that i was silly enough to think was real. but that’s no way to live, is it? that’s no way to love, either. and you sure as heck dont have a lot of fun.
i’m still learning to let go. of things, and of myself.
i’m just very, very, very lucky and grateful to know that the people in my life will always be out there to catch me =) and to feed me cliched wisdoms whenever i need some.
Entry Filed under: Daily Grind, General
92 Comments Add your own
1. DLT2 | November 26th, 2007 at 7:48 pm
hahaha omg thats darn cute xD
all i’ve ever heard frm cabbies were the constant torrent of whining from their 2-way radios =.=
…as if i’m an avid cab-person.
2. michellesy | November 26th, 2007 at 7:52 pm
Aww babe, that whole cabbie-and-his-wife thing was just adorable! =)
This isn’t the first taxi driver anecdote we’ve had from you, you must take cabs pretty often AND be approachable enough that the cabbie would actually engage your in conversation. I’m kinda shy that way, so I spend most of my cab rides either smiling awkwardly at sporadic moments/ staring out the window.
I’m glad to hear that you’ve got a great support network going for you. Nothing beats that, absolutely nada.
Have a good week now OK?
*hugs*
3. jimmy | November 26th, 2007 at 8:17 pm
so, are u still eating ice-cream while staring at the ceiling, trying to sleep?
poor girl.
but i hope u will get your rest cos i think u’ve quite figured out whatever’s bothering u.
i think i can relate to some of that. me being so self-protective and judgemental as well.
kinda leaves a bad taste while pondering back on how i fake smiles and dished out preferential treatment to others.
but darn it.. it’s really hard not to be that way.
i’m already 21 and still learning.
sigh.
keep up the great posts and have a great week ahead!
4. vvens | November 26th, 2007 at 9:09 pm
about the cabbie; still got such man exist in real life one ah? i thought only in dramas. ahahaha.
5. k0k | November 26th, 2007 at 9:18 pm
I guess that’s what made them so cliched in the first place. They are like chicken soup. The difference is, I actually do enjoy chicken soup when I have a cold.
It used to annoy me greatly when people offer me platitudes such as (a house favourite is “Time heals all”) just when I needed them the most - till a friend I never knew I had came to me with the same problems I’ve had because she think I’d understand. I realised then just how futile those catchprases sounded when they came out of my mouth, and also how true they are. Time did heal me, and that’s what separating me from that friend. It’s just that it sounded so trite when I heard it right when I needed it the most because I was too arrogant to admit that my wounds would ever heal. I repeated that cliche to my friend even though I knew it wouldn’t really help then - but I did anyway because I needed to to do something - anything - to show that I care. There are care right at the centres of these dusty ol’ chestnuts.
Well, chicken soup don’t really do anything to you when you have a cold - but like my TV hero, Dr. Gregory House said, “at least there’s chicken in it”.
P.S. I miss babying a disgruntled princess. I used to hate it.
6. Jean | November 26th, 2007 at 9:23 pm
I love cliches simply for what they are. Cliches are almost always right.
Yup, I wrote for blue moon years too. I got all excited about it again because I stumbled upon someone’s blog which had a blurb on the book. It’s so flattering, I’m positive that it’ll make your day too if you read it! :)
7. entwined | November 26th, 2007 at 10:05 pm
the cabbie is so romantic! i mean, to say those words is already considered damn loving, but to do it in front of a stranger?!?!?!? too sweet for words!
cliches are often the only useful comforting words people can say when someone else talks to them, especially if they hadn’t gone through the same problems. sometimes though, i find strength in cliches, because cliches ARE cliches for a reason. they’ve been around for so long and repeated so often that there has gotta be some truth in them :)
8. foreverjas | November 26th, 2007 at 10:53 pm
wahhhhh. so cute. manja. i like it! lol. i finish my finals today. so relax. when u’re goin to america ?
9. nyrac | November 26th, 2007 at 11:32 pm
^^ thanks for such a cute post. reading it made my night.
i was still in a rather fuming mood just now, after the bf waited the whole day to call and ask about my foot (which i sprained in the morning and told him but he never replied any messages). but reading about the cabbie… aww, that was just so totally sweet.
and what made this post even better was that as i was reading it, a really great song was playing on the radio. “ngoi dak tai chee” by leo ku, heard of it before? i just love the lyrics. did an english translation of it once, rather crude, but still, better than nothing. here’s the link: http://jwnyrac.blogspot.com/2006/09/blog-post.html
have a great day ahead! and do get some sleep lenglui.
10. miss susan | November 27th, 2007 at 12:06 am
its hard living a life where you want to know everything. Some say ignorance is bliss.. do they refer to being ignorant about something they are aware of? Or is it in reference to being unaware of everything? Sighh, ‘the glass is half empty’ is a bad attitude towards life, but hey… like you said, at least we’re prepared for that free fall down the rocky cliff.
11. Anonymous | November 27th, 2007 at 12:40 am
hindraf can all die for all i care, bunch of racialists as bad as umno
12. Michael | November 27th, 2007 at 2:47 am
wow! get some sleep. and y did i always met greedy, disgusting cabbie who likes to overcharge =.=
13. songjun | November 27th, 2007 at 2:57 am
lol do u notice that people who feel particularly strong about something here tend to leave their comments annonymously?
pair of ball-less people i say. Regarding Hindraf, if u wanna know why the government (especially asian ones) abhor demonstrations or rallies?
because like i said, the ‘plebian’ classes are around still. Easily manipulated on sentiments. Look at Hindraf’s proposals. to ask the queen to help sue the british government for rm1million per indian on the basis they were brought here and exploited. -.-
MIC may be like MCA , toothless and pretty much useless, but for goodness sake RALLY FOR THE DAMN RIGHT REASONS -.-
mr samy vellu’s stupid (change from the inside) hogwash is hypocritical. He would just crush it the same way he crushed his (from the inside change) opponent.
mahathir : regarding you saying we should march for what we feel is right, if u remember correctly, the nazi’s marched, the communist party of china marched (resulting in persecutions and book burnings after etc), the argentinians marched (look at the crappy state they are in now.. hyper inflation) the austria-hungarians marched (manipulated masses which led (in some way) to WW1), the russians marched, the french marched and heads rolled (ok so that didnt turn out so bad other then paris’ crappy labour laws, only country in the world to penalise ppl for working hard), the filipinos did ( and now their beloved leader is embattled), east timor did, so did the palestinian intifadah. (whole lot of good that did, tho i’d say it sure got the world’s attention)
And the allies marching? They didnt do shit to expanding germany during the phoney war, and the americans regarded Hitler, Europe’s problem. They didnt march because they thought it was right, they all did out of necessity.
These were examples of rally’s gone wrong. Where majority of people are sentiment driven then logic. I have no objections against standing up for urselves, but Bersih and HINDRAF’s agendas are flawed. Our culture is still very ’sentiment’ based, and why our governments are very paranoid?
a) fear of lost of power and prestige
b) knowing that any letting of rallies will be a precedent
Why i will not vote for the opposition? Isit because i havent given them a chance? no. Get their manifestos in line, and agendas in place. PAS will not budge on many things, DAP is too numerically weak, PKR is just as useless and sentiment based. Will i vote for a coalition? Another Malay + chinese + some mix of everything-which resembles BN again? What do u think.
Democracy is about having the freedom to say what we want, do what we want with out fear of oppression or intimidation. The right to protest or rally is fine if it can be trusted the populace will not be drawn in to a spiral. Yet, the use of ‘ppl power’ to ‘threaten’ BN and such.. is an anti statement to democracy dont u think.
Bersih was carried out well, and i commend and support that. I disagree with some of the points they raised, and their obvious manipulation. Why did the crowd have to wait for Anwar to come hand in the petition? Why couldnt anyone else, or even one of the rakyat , hand it in?
Sorry about the rant, but the hindraf issue is just…. -.-.
I know, its tragic that the police brutalised things, and i guess the ‘indian’ community want to make a point. but.. haih.
14. Jeff from LA | November 27th, 2007 at 3:25 am
I loved that story about the cabbie driver! Besides the fact that it was such a cute story, I loved it because I always love to talk to all of my cab drivers. I can never understand people who get a cab ride and then sit there in silence the whole time. You never expect it but they almost always turn out to be good family people with an interesting life story (even when they don’t look like it at all).
15. songjun | November 27th, 2007 at 4:31 am
jeff: lol cab drivers have the best stories!
16. Mellissa | November 27th, 2007 at 9:13 am
The cabbie story’s hilarious! He seems like such a sweet guy, with his going to drink coffee with his friends too, hahaha!
17. Michelle | November 27th, 2007 at 9:48 am
Haha, I never overpraise you.
Just pretend to be someone else for that once. Read your blog. And then you’ll realise how good you are. =D
So, how’s Paint it Black progressing?
18. steph | November 27th, 2007 at 10:56 am
hey just wanna know where to get Reese’s peanut butter cup in malaysia..thanks.
19. Shen | November 27th, 2007 at 11:24 am
I’m longing again for Bo Pho (Beef Noodle) with Bia Hoi again. Kindly please do let me know the the beef ball noodle shop that you reeeeeally wanted to go to for lunch. I’ve searched and tried so many beef noodles back here, and nothing yet beats Hanoi’s Bo Pho *Just a personal taste*.
Cabbie experience - The littlest things in life does make a change doesn’t it? *smiles*. That reminds me of a question i occasionally share with my friends,.. Do you have a consolation haven? Now, pause, think. Back? I’m not talking about home sweet home. Nor your partners or best friends. and best of all.. it’s nothing to do with YOU. A little secret place, only in your heart where you’d know you’d feel untroubled. As if the weights in the universe *sounds far fetched* rested. Pause again, think. Back? Lol.
The littlest things does counts eh? *smiles*
20. Damp and unplanned pinkshirtz | November 27th, 2007 at 11:35 am
Hmm … true true … chicken soupz.
Like i use to say, life is all about the simple things, it makes people smile even in a sea of sadness, or how racial disturbances are overlooked by the current government, how a simple peanut butter shirt can make you happy…
All the simple moments but … is it always easy to create this kind of explicit simple moments? No it isn’t easy. (thats what i learnt this week)
Someone (like me) can live through an entire week and discover that only 1 day out of all those seven were actually truly livable. Then again, in my position, nothing happening is a good thing!
And thanks X)
21. NJAPF | November 27th, 2007 at 12:18 pm
That cabbie is sooooo sweeeeet! Hehe!
22. thegeekinpink | November 27th, 2007 at 1:19 pm
ah! you’ve just described what i’ve been feeling everyday since the cynical phase of my life i think age 15. haha. i couldn’t have written it so vividly like this.
oh and you should read this article by michael backman about the state of our government. a precious read.
http://michaelbackman.com/NewColumn.html
23. thegeekinpink | November 27th, 2007 at 1:20 pm
and why all the cabbies i meet so garang wan?!
24. jimmy | November 27th, 2007 at 1:39 pm
songjun: i think u should read michael backman’s articles..
i couldn’t disagree less with ur opinion regarding Hindraf.
can’t u see that they are just trying to garner attention, or more so international attention to their plight to being 2nd or 3rd class citizens in their own country.
it’s not even about getting 1mil for each indian out there gosh. who in their right mind would think they would actually get that lol.
i had a debate before with my dad regarding that because at first reading about hindraf made me felt the same way as u did.
it was kinda stupid right.
well, my opinions have changed.
indians have been very quiet and accepting the changes in the country in their stride as they couldn’t care less.
so now u see a change in their attitude.
and that is a cause for worry.
there has to be something really wrong in this country.
don’t u think so?
well this is just my opinion as a middle class citizen.
maybe most of the richer ones can’t be bothered by anything other than what would jeopardize their big fat round rice bowl.
25. jimmy | November 27th, 2007 at 1:40 pm
“disagree more” -.-
disagree less..
ops.
26. ashleighhhh | November 27th, 2007 at 2:11 pm
you have no idea
27. Jeff from LA | November 27th, 2007 at 3:15 pm
SongJun: You are absolutely right, cab drivers usually have amazing stories. I guess its because they’re one of the few people who get to deal with people from all walks of life, rich and poor, young and old.
28. Jeff from LA | November 27th, 2007 at 3:29 pm
Regarding the Hindraf rally, I’m shocked to hear that the gov’t brought up sedition charges against some of the organizers of the protest. It also seems that the police seem to enjoy using water cannons and batons on peaceful protesters given that they used them only a few weeks ago during the other peaceful rally that occurred.
I also think this quote is quite disturbing (the source is the Associate Foreign Press (AFP):
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi defended the response to the protest — a rare event in Malaysia — saying it could have turned violent if police had not intervened.
“Don’t abuse the freedom that has been given to you,” he said, adding that the rally and another mass demonstration held earlier this month calling for electoral reforms had tested the government’s patience.
Did he really just say “don’t abuse the freedom that has been given to you”……..I didn’t realize that freedom was a privilege that the government could give you whenever it felt like it and take it away whenever it didn’t. Any freedom that can be so easily taken away is no freedom at all.
Either way, I hope you guys keep up the hard work until things really change.
29. Jeff from LA | November 27th, 2007 at 3:30 pm
Just in case anyone wanted to double-check my source, here’s the link:
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hR_uhy8lmO10ii_glwABVezme8EQ
30. mizlynn | November 27th, 2007 at 3:43 pm
lol…..cute cabbie…..btw…nice blog…luv ur writting….
31. fern | November 27th, 2007 at 4:44 pm
awww! :D
i once had a malay cabbie on the eve of hari raya. i asked him why he didn’t balik kampung and he said his children and grandchildren were going to visit him on the next morning, so he was on his way home to help his wife make lemang.
then he chuckled to himself quite suddenly and said in malay
“my wife makes the best rendang in the world! tau tak?”
oh, and why don’t you eat ice cream and stare at the ceiling and try to sleep
32. sheon | November 27th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
pinkpau: that is such a nice story…… :) a cute and loving couple the taxi driver and the wife is.
songjun, I partially agree with you that the hindraf rally is flawed. i would not have joined the rally. however, i still insist that the police are just too brutal and violent.
songjun, a ONE party monopoly (barisan nasional is effectively just ONE party, not a coalition) does not amount to a democratic governing body of a country, and it should not. but the fact is, malaysia’s parliament is 92% barisan. this enormous representation in parliament makes them too proud, too arogant, too ignorant. any opposing ideas are brushed off like cookie crumbs and ignored without much thought to it…hey, technically 92% of the population of malaysia supports them what?
the opposition will not form the majority gomen. not now, not the next 10 years (my own opinion). BUT, we must put more opposition MPs in the parliament to balance out the system. it doesnt have to be the opposition, even independent candidates. with this, you kill two birds with one stone. ONE, let the barisan MPs know that the power to choose is still in the hands of the people, one wrong move too many, off they go in the next general election…keep them on their toes. SECOND, give a louder voice to the opposition to scrutinise and interrogate the cabinet.
33. Jun | November 27th, 2007 at 5:39 pm
well su ann, here’s another cliche– pain gives u the propensity to grow ;)
34. ShaolinTiger | November 27th, 2007 at 5:43 pm
Worry is something we can live without in our lives, it doesn’t mean you are thinking about something. That’s called logic and preparation, worry is irrational and often borders on paranoia.
Worry is an excuse for focusing on things that are not relevant.
I think worry is a complete waste of time and effort, if there’s a problem - fix it. If you can’t fix it, move on. Don’t worry about it.
35. alea | November 27th, 2007 at 6:43 pm
why i never occur that kind of cab drivers one! pfft. haha.
all the cab drivers i meet damn scary. T-T
36. miss susan | November 27th, 2007 at 7:29 pm
amen to that shaolintiger
37. hw | November 27th, 2007 at 8:08 pm
You should listen to Carrie Underwood’s ‘So Small’ =)
And I can’t agree with you more on how true cliches can be, despite the fact that more than oft when I am the recipient of a cliched piece of wisdom, I tend to reply with another cliche : ‘It’s easier said than done’
Letting go isn’t easy, be it a close friend, a loved one, or your mistakes. Took me more than a year to get over an embarrassing incident where a girl that I liked in high school returned the roses that I gave to her during Valentines Day, in front of the whole class. More than 4 years after that incident and just a few months ago, my then girlfriend of 3 1/2 years cheated on me. It was really painful and it felt like the world crashing down around me, but like they say what doesn’t destroy you only makes you stronger, and sure enough took me only a couple of months to get over it, albeit not totally, but enough to carry on with life.
We ARE meant to live for so much more. Count your blessings now before they’re long gone. Keep your worries aside, but don’t be naive/ignorant. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what’s going to happen next.
38. hw | November 27th, 2007 at 8:11 pm
Aside from cliched wisdom, a dose of lolcats also helps. I find it extremely therapeutic. =)
39. Christine | November 27th, 2007 at 8:19 pm
The cabbie…awwwww……he is just toooo sweet.
Even though he is trying to be manja manja but hehe, that’s just too cute of him. Imagine that even after 50 years, when both of them were old couples, the cabbie went to have coffee with his cabbie friends again, his wife called. He still talks like that..haha…
It is a honeymoon everyday, sweet as honey…
Cheer up! (regarding those !@#$% things…) I know you will find a way out soon because for everything that happens, it happens for a purpose and it is for a Good Purpose from our heavenly father, God, to us. Appreciate it and stop worrying too much about it. It’ll turn out good soon.
We are all growing up. Let’s grow happy together. :D
40. Christine | November 27th, 2007 at 8:22 pm
Oh ya…let me recommend a motivating song too.
Did you watch “meet the robinsons”? There is a song at the end named “Little Wonders” by Rob Thomas. Try to understand its lyrics. It helped me a lot, hope it works for you too!!!
41. Dan-yel | November 27th, 2007 at 9:26 pm
(Disclaimer: Do not take me seriously, whoever you, bloggers, blog-hoppers, blog stars, babes, and who’s not)
AIYO CABBIE! WHERE ARE YOUR BALLS? I’M SO DISAPPOINTED
42. Angeline | November 27th, 2007 at 9:53 pm
love jars of clay too =)
recommend chris rice to u too =)
if u have not already listen to his songs
xoxo
43. Angeline | November 27th, 2007 at 9:54 pm
now you have many many songs to listen to
44. LiYing | November 27th, 2007 at 10:21 pm
hey su ann!
it’s such a rarity to come across cab drivers like that, really it is! =D
The thing about cliches… i think there’s definitely a reason for those words to become cliches–maybe it’s their inexorable healing powers? they just seem to have a way in making one feel better after all, even though personally i feel that it is just a futile attempt to try to console with such words. i know how painfully useless it can seem at difficult times.
oh and i have read paint it black–really sad story isnt it? but so enlightening in every other way. =)
45. spot | November 27th, 2007 at 10:26 pm
we were meant to live for so much more, switchfoot right? they’re awesome :)
46. chm | November 27th, 2007 at 10:42 pm
lol … y so much talk bout hindraf here edi.. somehow i agree with the indians on the particular matter though they are diggin up really old stories.. n thx 2 dem we get 2 c samy veluu n mic youth making jokes out of themselves in their interviews regarding the rally
47. songjun | November 28th, 2007 at 12:50 am
jimmy : i know, it is quite sad to see them chanting “we are malaysians too” on the videos…
but i found it quite odd also that in the video, the ambient background noises included sounds such as “woo hoo!! ” and ” jangan! hahahha jangan!!” it was quite party like in some cases.
As for excessive force, i cant say whether they did or not because i wasn’t there. Though it definitely seems like it, but a picture or video can always be shown out of context. It has been said that a picture showing prisoners digging a hole was used for propaganda by
a) the russians to show that nazi germany is forcing ppl to labour
b) nazi germany to show what the russians are doing
and news sources are always tainted with bias. Wether opposition (which some people assume to be always true and propaganda free) or mainstream (which most ppl assume to always be full of propaganda)
anyway in my opinion, that rm1 million was just to intice rural indians out. But their move to rally right after bersih was stupid because it just reinforces the governments point of allowing rallies in the first place. That if one is allowed, it will act as a precedent and then give continuous disruption. World view wise, it was stupid of them to react so violently. But internally, to allow it to happen without some show of force would give a go ahead signal to every tom dick and harry with an opinion. So the gov is stuck in a connundrum. There are already enough reason for the city center to be jammed up, excluding public holidays. I dont want it being choked up even more because some person wants to make a come back into politics or politicians wanting to stir up the hornet’s nest. They all know we vote on semantics, as shown with the rise of opposition controlled areas post anwar sacking. Once the brouhaha died down, BN was back.
One might probably realise ppl who attended Bersih would be rural/lower income folk or middle class ‘intellectuals’. Why do the upper echelons/other middle class folks of society not go? Not because they are ignorant? Because they are comfortable with the lives they live. Comfortable with what the government has done. So it is wrong to presume that ppl who complain that the rally disrupted their daily lives to be ignorant idiots and arm chair preachers, mostly its because they are sufficiently pleasant (prob not estatic..) with where they are.
sheon : i agree that our parliament is a gross sham of a debative environment, and the use of the ‘party whip’ is as stupid as the concept of veto in the UN. However, although i respect ur opinion to vote for the cause of diluting power, it would be in my opinion not a very smart thing to do.
One should vote on the premise you support the ideals and policies of the person or party u vote for because of how it will affect u or ur country or the world. Voting just for the sake of incresing opposition power is logical but what if suddenly 3/4 of malaysia decides.. “ok im fed up with BN monopoly, and i think we should increase opposition but just enough to show them who’s boss” and then suddenly the opposition becomes the ruling group of the country.
then u are stuck with a party that doesnt conform to ur ideals or philosophies of how u want ur country to be run, and the opposition will be stuck with.. “oh shit.. we run the country now, what do we do?” then what do we do? rally again?
anyway, brutal or not, thats how riot police are trained to act. U think saying.. “abang, tolong jangan mari sini dan bising bising ok? ” will disperse people? True, i think there were subversive elements there to stir up trouble (as i would expect of our special branch) and that it was smart of bersih to have their own counter intelligence operators to weed out trouble makers.
If the police had made sufficient warnings to disperse before letting the riot police in, there would be sufficient mandate for them to act by tear gas and water guns. Dont know if the police proceeded to beat the crap out of ppl with their sticks (unprovoked) but non lethal action doesnt constitute as truly brutal. Rolling out tanks like in Tianenmen square is.
and on voting for one party that is BN, i believe that is quite a misconception. When someone votes for BN, he/she votes for the component party that represents them, because the mp in that area goes under the ’sub flag’ of MIC/MCA/UMNO anyway. BN is just a brand or marketting image.
48. songjun | November 28th, 2007 at 12:58 am
oh and ive just read backman’s article.
He’s just reiterating what i’ve mentioned. Bersih should rally for accountability and give the ACA independance and more teeth. Recruit highly idealisitc young ones and enact a whistle blowing culture. Heck, give them a damn nuke. Once you’ve done that, corruption becomes a non-issue and thence, most of our core problems will right itself. They should also fix the judicial board’s slow case turnover.
Then what would be left is national intergration, which is a very contencious issue.
49. Hannah | November 28th, 2007 at 2:08 am
Oh, believe me, worrying is good. It’s always good. It’s something Pandora gave us when that stupid bitch opened the box. Primal, instinctive. We worry because we prepare ourselves for the impending nonsense that’s bound to occur. It’s an act of self-defense, a worst-case, I mean, many worst case scenarios plotted out in your head. We worry so much-so much that it makes us sick and sucks the fun out of even things like Choco-Pie in front of the TV, and yet we continue to do it. We worry because we realize that there’s probably nothing we can do, but hey, at least we could TRY. We could like, think about it nonstop and maybe somehow it would lessen the guilt and pain when we get to the problem. Either way, worrying is good. It always wll be.
It’s a great way to convince yourself that nothing, nothing was ever your fault because hey, we worried, didn’t we? No can do. God I love nonsense like this, my wonky little bubble.
Cheers. (:
50. jimmy | November 28th, 2007 at 2:25 am
*looks at songjun and gawks*
please tell me you are wayyy older than 20.
51. pinkpau | November 28th, 2007 at 3:04 am
dlt2 : oh i get those sometimes too :P ask them to turn it off and talk to u! they’re usually more than happy to comply
michellesy : ya i think without cabs, my life would end :P no lah i dont get to talk to cabbies all the time, especially when they use all this chun cantonese i dont understand. but still try to hobble along lah hahaha rojak english and canto sometimes. yes am very thankful for the support i have :)) which includes u cos ur comments always perk me up. u have a good week too!
jimmy : yes! ive figured it out :) and feeling very sprightlyyyyyyy. 21 and still learning eh.. :) i’ll remember that when i get to that age and feel stressed. u take care now!
vvens : thats why i was so touched :D sigh i hope that when i’m old and 60 my husband will still be like that!
kok : yes! time heals all. or give it time and you’ll feel better. hahaha i used to have the exact same opinion as u did. but i’ve LEARNT THE ERROR OF MY WAYS :D eh u seriously miss babying disgruntled princesses?? really?? that is SO sweet of u! dont ever regret saying that ok :P
jean : ooh i would love to see this blurb! mind giving me the link?
entwined : ya exactly. i used to always think people say them cos they’re just easy to say.. but now i do see that it’s easy to say because they are truths that just come naturally
foreverjas : next august. hopefully :P
nyrac : why is your boyfriend like that :( make him reply you! and i read your lyrics translation.. thanks :D touching stuff. i feel old and panicky just reading it.. now i wanna go out and do something with my life!
miss susan : thats what i think.. you cant let pain near you if you already expect it and make all the necessary preparations… but it’s no way at all to live. and pain will always be painful no matter how we try to ignore it, yes?
anonymous : they have a plight, you know… desperate people do desperate things.
michael : TRUST ME i meet such cabbies too. that day i saw with my own eyes the meter jump by RM 1.50 (10 cents 10 cents very quickly for a few seconds) right before i reached my house. cabbie thought i wasnt looking at the meter but i was. CIS. first time actually catching them redhanded. usually cannot prove that their meter is rigged.
songjun : okay lah u fight. wait for my post on hindraf :P
jeff : aww some people are just lazy to talk :P you cant possibly be chatty ALL the time, right! hey are cabs in LA expensive
mellissa : haha yalar it’s like our boyfriends who wanna hang out with their friends and we get pissed cos they should be spending time with us :P
michelle : aw shucks :)) i actually finished paint it black a long time ago? my honest opinion is that i LOVE the way janet fitch writes, (insert opinion about ending that i realized i have to remove cos u havent finished reading it :P)
steph : KLIA !
shen : SIGH i dream about pho bo sometimes too. this place that i frequent is in pandan indah. there’s another good place at changkat bukit bintang. another on peel road. another at san peng :) and yes the littlest things are always the big things in disguise :)
damn and unplanned pinkshirtz : oh i was SO happy when i recieved that tshirt in the mail :D and you cant create these moments.. the best ones that make you happiest always happen unexpectedly, no? :) hey im sorry to hear abt your 1/7 day thing. that’s not good :( one thing i’ve learnt is to let go of your expectations and things always seem better. yalar yalar cliched and all… but like i said, a lot of truth in them things!
njapf : yes he is! :D cute and round too
thegeekinpink : since 15 ! hahaha me too !!! we are such kindred spirits. and yes i follow michael backman :) i like his stuff and they always have me nodding until my neck gets sore
ashleighh : about what?
mizlynn : haha cute eh. he was very cute and round and had cheeks you wanted to PIIIIIIINCH
fern : omg that is such a nice thing to say :D sigh i want to marry a husband like that next time. and thts what i do! eat ice cream stare at ceiling etc. but cannot sleep wan :(
sheon : yup just had to share it. haha u see this songjun! going against the world again :P
jun : TOTALLY CONCUR! :)
shaolintiger : thank u ST :) i think i really needed to hear those words.
alea : dont let them push you around! scold them back if they rip you off ! but be careful of their parang in the trunk :P
hw : ouch i’m so sorry to hear about your gf and the vday roses :( must have been really painful. yea counting our blessings is a good way to live; thank you for reminding me cos i forgot to do that this week :) HAHA lolcats is damn funny
christine : it’s so nice to get a comment from a christian :) i think a lot of the time i forget to surrender things to God. im always such a control freak and have to control everything.. but sometimes the best thing for myself is just to leave things to God. thank u christine :)
danyel : daniel go away!!!! dont spoil our AWWW moment :(
angeline : oh actually this was switchfoot! i didnt know JoC did the same song :) ooh chris rice no ive not heard of him.. will do the illegal thing and download now!
liying : when you find yourself on the dispensing end of cliches, you kinda flashback to all the times you said the same thing to your friends and you realize how true the cliches are :) yes paint it black is a sad perspective into loss. i loved the book :)
spot : yes! :D
chm : i think they should have every right to voice out their plight without the BN folks trying to cover everything up. MIC sold out, didnt they :(
hannah : that is exactly what i used to think :) yes, it’s a good self defense mechanism, but i’ve found that often times we’re defending ourselves from something that’s prolly not going to happen and is just a figment of our own fear and insecurities. i’m learning to let go of excessive worry; and i’m learning to not impose expectations on anything :) and i find now that i’m much happier. and i wish the same for u :)
52. Jeff from LA | November 28th, 2007 at 4:31 am
Interestingly enough, I actually don’t know if cabs in LA are expensive. I’ve ridden in cabs everywhere else, out of the country, other parts of the US but never in LA. When I’m in LA, I always drive my own car or else call a friend to pick me up.
I suspect that they might be expensive just because everything in LA is really far away, i.e. its usually a long drive.
If you plan on visiting LA, I would actually recommend that you try to get a friend to pick you up if you have any people that you know well in LA. Plus you shouldn’t feel bad about asking a friend in LA to pick you up since everyone in LA does it. My friends ask me to pick them up all the time.
If you feel guilty about having them pick you up you should tell them that you’ll pay for gas/take them out to dinner in exchange. It’ll probably be cheaper than hiring a cab.
53. pau | November 28th, 2007 at 4:35 am
cabbie story continues to play out in my mind after he drops you off. picking his wife up and then jokingly asking her to pay fare, and shes not in mood for jokes - lol. i wonder what his wife is like in person
sucks that all my cab experiences are bad so far sighsigh :
54. Jeff from LA | November 28th, 2007 at 4:36 am
Oh and if you ever decide to visit LA, you might want to ask me first whether a certain location is in a good/bad area because LA, like any major metropolitan area, has some very safe and some very unsafe areas, so you have to decide carefully where you are going to stay.
55. Michelle | November 28th, 2007 at 7:49 am
You need to update your “Distractions” corner then!
I have 80 pages more to go!!! So, we’ll be talking about it in no time… =D
56. foreverjas | November 28th, 2007 at 9:07 am
next august? whats with the “hopefully” ? @.@
57. sheon | November 28th, 2007 at 9:17 am
songjun has his right to express his views. i respect him and his views. however, i am very upset that there are still some irresponsible ppl hiding behind a shroud and make childlish and cowardly personal attacks.
58. songjun | November 28th, 2007 at 9:31 am
jimmy : haha why, cant i not be 12 :P im 23.
pau : haha but im not going against the world, im just going against the world of this world! Irony is, im conforming to probably a majority but not within this realm. On the internet, the world is more indie then it is conformity yet at the same time there’s a discourse of non conformity to this conformity. Have to be reflexive ok!
sorry all this critical postmodernism, positivism and KANTism has been messing with my head lol
sheon : haha cheers! its just that i find really stupid is that some people are so opiniated about certain things, but at the same time want to remain ‘anonymous’. They must be scared of their freedom of speech ;)
59. pinkshirtz | November 28th, 2007 at 9:50 am
Sigh .. just got results … expectations crushed to the bottom pit. Got another stinkin B+ … the longest streak of B+ ever.
How can you not have expectations when you just worked ur ass for a whole month .. non stop … eating crappy food … shying away from sleep … and all that i just want is to have a darn A … sigh …
ok .. no more complains.
about the Hindraf: i fail to see why malaysian protestors have to find fault with other countries just to get our OWN government to notice us … what more with todays ISA reports of detaining the public protest. Heck … this is getting out of hand. What a joke … the international student are all laughing at this issue.
How can a nation possibly be democratic when the members of the high court are not elected by the people, or when the government slaps us with ISA threats, and medias being forced into seclusion while magazines and papers abroad are writing the events on their expense.
With the general election coming up … all the politicians are looking for their shining moment to gather more votes. This is definitely not right!
X( pink pau .. how much is it per piece anyway?
60. maysnow | November 28th, 2007 at 11:26 am
Awww the cabbie is soo cute ^-^ Just makes my heart go all warm n fuzzy inside..and with a smile creeping uninvited unto my lips hehe..bet cha tried hard not to smile and looked amused back there in the cab..or did you? hehe
wish my bf would baby me sometimes too..all i get when i call him at 8pm in the office to remind him to have something for his rumbling tummy..is a irritated “mMM” -_-
61. sheon | November 28th, 2007 at 12:07 pm
songjun: cheers. now…back to our debate.
“One should vote on the premise you support the ideals and policies of the person or party u vote for because of how it will affect u or ur country or the world.”
you say that you’d vote for bn. right?
the NEP policy. how could a learned person agree to such a policy that is soooo plagued with loopholes and abuses??
education: i dont have to elaborate more on this.
power sharing: power sharing my ass.
employment (gomen) : my dad was a civil servant. merit based promotion? dream on. performance based promotion? you hope. it’s all skin color.
gomen contracts/projects: only bumi companies can tender. and outta them, only those who got kam-cheng with whos-who can get awarded with a job.
AP license: what the f is wrong in the head of this person who thought of this gimmick?
highway concession: tell me which country, which business in this world…..that has the local gomen GUARANTEE them profit, otherwise they will be compensated?
MP represeting the rakyat: just happened yesterday. one indian MP (forgot the name liao) mentioned about HINDRAF in parliament, and suggested maybe something is wrong with the gomen that might be the reason behind the Hindraf rally. Nazri shot him down and chief-whip Razak summoned him to his office. subsequently Nazri expressed his disappointment thru the media, accusing the indian MP of breaking ranks. NOW, what happened to “use the proper channel”-lah….. what happened to “voice out your problems to your MP, so your MP can bring it up to the parliament”-lah…….. I REITERATE.. OUR MPs DO NOT REPRESENT THE PEOPLE IN PARLIAMENT, THEY ONLY REPRESENT THEIR PARTIES TO THE PEOPLE
judiciary: how could an independent branch of the government be ‘controlled’ by the pm be independent?
mass media: when news perverted against the minority are sold as headlines, and skeletons brought up by whistleblowers against the gomen are suppressed…… talk about propaganda
62. chm | November 28th, 2007 at 1:37 pm
just bombarded the star sms posts yesterday nite…. da 1st time i sent sms dey edited it until it actually looks like im supportin government >.
63. anonymouscleaner | November 28th, 2007 at 5:22 pm
thats all part of growing up no? :)
64. emo « Kariette̵&hellip | November 28th, 2007 at 5:43 pm
[...] Hmm… have been just mindlessly scouring the internet for interesting reads, and came across this blog post, “We Were Meant to Live for So Much More“ [...]
65. pinkpau | November 28th, 2007 at 7:52 pm
jeff : okay will do :) hey im not applying to USC anymore :( the 10 dec deadline for fin aid is too tight
pau : hahahaha asking her to pay fare!! i just hope she has a sense of humour then :P
michelle : haha yalar i’ve been forgetting to update it. wow you’re quite quick! paint it black took me a really long time finish
foreverjas : hopefully cos the schools may not want me :(
sheon : there will always be people like that :)
songjun : kantism hahahaha songjun shaddup
pinkshirtz : aww the plight of a malaysian studying abroad! where do you study btw? and the price varies.. about rm90 - rm120 per piece
maysnow : i could barely refrain myself from giggling! a few times i LOLed at the back of the car, like when he said ‘pau? porridge? noodles?’ hehe your bf is such a typical MAN!
chm : what??? you mean they edit the smses????
anonymouscleaner : yes!! :)
66. chm | November 28th, 2007 at 8:15 pm
pinkpau:yea i mean dey edit the smses.. bastards.. star is controlled by mca… so is my college wakaka
67. Angeline | November 28th, 2007 at 8:17 pm
oh ya oh ya switchfoot
O.o
have we lost ourselves…
68. Angeline | November 28th, 2007 at 8:18 pm
how’s chris rice for you dear
69. chm | November 28th, 2007 at 8:39 pm
good god… saw my earlier message… part of it missin … my coll comp lab so slow till cnt even post a full comment…. >.
70. foreverjas | November 28th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
all the best yah!!! u can do it! sure want u lah!!! hehe
71. songjun | November 29th, 2007 at 2:15 am
pinkpau : :O u communist! are u curtailing my right to free speech? Im gonna hold a demonstration at ur house now. I wont need a police permit because im only 1 person out of 5 permitted under the illegal gathering act HAHA
sheon : hmm
NEP : i have mentioned before i am pro NEP, just have to augment it to disregard race and allow it to be based more on poverty. In any case, i honestly think that without some form of this NEP earlier, our friends the malay would be very much left behind without the emergent middle class we have now
education : surprisingly, i find out education sufficient enough. I dont think there’s anything wrong with it, what we have a lack of is quality teachers/teaching. And maybe our history structure could have a bit of updating but other then that, it is sufficient to compare with lots of other countries.
power sharing : as far as i am concerned, no other alternative party has at least a power sharing centered policy(or the inkling of it) (maybe PKR has but i really think PKR is useless). I think DAP has lots of potential,, but sadly, it is seen as a ‘chinese’ party predominantly.
employment and civil service sector : ALL civil service are not merit based but how-long-u-spend-in-this-hole-we-call-work based. Even governments overseas, with exception of Singapore. But majority of governments do not operate like a private company and promote and hire according to talent/skill. IMO, singapore is run like a corporate company, and thats what we should do for most developing countries till we all get out act together and our mindset has developed to western ‘maturity’
AP : AP was conceived a long time ago to allow people to import cars they had bought whilst they were overseas and is by nature supposed to be a one off goodwill thing. However, certain quarters have abused it, as with all goodwill charters. Anyway, whats wrong with AP? it just reduces the price of the car to pretax levels what. Every person is entitled to one AP. I’d be happy to be able to bring in my personal property for minimal tax.
highway concession: i dont like mr sammy velu cos he usurps all our money in having stupid things like that. However, as im not familiar with highway construction policies overseas, i cant say if its a norm or not. Nominally, i’d guess its to protect the bumi company from going bust accidentally haha
MP issue : as i said, i hate the party whip policy. as good as having the veto in the UN. I remember a major issue regarding the whip earlier 3 years ago i think. When my dad explained to me why the mp couldnt break ranks, i was furious. Especially if it was for a good intent. And as to whether our MPs represent us, barring that electoral influence is minimal, they are there because they were voted there. Grass root MPs actually do represent the majority of their constituents. Its just the slight margin ones who dont. I have no hard facts on how many of the mps won on marginal wins, so cant say more. But i agree the whip is idiotic. Bersih should have marched for that too, but they wont because its not something the opposition wants changed, they want to take over.
judiciary : its not in bn’s agenda to control the judiciary what, im sure if PAS took over they’d want to control.. well not control, but have STRONG INFLUENCE in it. DAP and PKR are probably best fixing that up
mass media : aiyah all media is biassed la. Look at Fox network, CNN, russian media. All owned by various governmental positions.
i didnt say BN is perfect, but overall, they’re the lesser of two. Again, i see a lot of potential within DAP, but the problem is with their branding. People still view it as the alternative MCA.
72. songjun | November 29th, 2007 at 2:27 am
eh sorry, my history on ap is wrong. It was supposed to be for bumi entrepneurs to get into the car sales business.
anyway, it was NEP related but abused and misused. Have to understand the context it was in.
73. Jeff from LA | November 29th, 2007 at 3:22 am
Ok, cool. Don’t worry about not applying to USC, you sounded stressed enough with all the deadlines. I hope you still go to school in CA though. Those people that end up going to school in the Midwest or the South always amaze me because I was born in the US and I could still never live in those places.
74. so-so/ok-ok pinkshirtz | November 29th, 2007 at 9:01 am
Not studying abroad .. not yet… in IMU … crazy ass kiasu people here (including me)!
Woo hoo … glad to know that (price)! Might even end up popping two on credit c. X)
is it just me or is there a smily face at the bottom most of your blog?
75. TheRealAnonymous | November 29th, 2007 at 11:12 am
Cuteee… almost reminds me of what used to be, and what could’ve been… =(
76. sheon | November 29th, 2007 at 5:40 pm
its just branding, c’mon, they never had the kind of financial support bn has enjoyed over the years to build their ‘brand’. but their policies on governing are better than bn, isnt it? then why dont we all give DAP a chance to represent US in parliament?
(lets not forget that pm took rm600m from national coffers to give rm3m to each umno constituency earlier this year for “development” konon. Taxpayers’ money for party spending, now how much more easier does money go their way?)
well, i must admit bn’s policies are good also on paper at least, but there are just too many holes in their implementation and execution! excellent policies not carried out properly still amounts to nothing.
dap, keadilan, pas, etc etc have all voiced out their displeasure in the parliament. bn rebuked by saying the opposition was not supported by the rakyat. ok, fine. then the gomen got from bad to worse, and recently, it got completely out of hand! blatant corruption in every single gomen offices and department. skeletons and dirty laundry revealed to the public by whistleblowers. evidences and proofs thrown on the table. public outcries for thorough investigations were responded with sweet promises of complete transparency and high profile arrests. But in the end, the whistleblowers got crucified instead, and the accused got acquited. and the issues quietly swept under the carpet of oblivion.
Eventually, thousands and thousands of lawyers marched demanding reforms; tens of thousands (if not hundred of thousands) of professionals, business ppl, labourers, executives, students took to the streets supporting BERSIH and HINDRAF….all asking for reforms and improvements.
but it seems that bn just doesnt care anymore….they got too comfortable with basking in the glory of the last election they had forgotten their duties to the rakyat. they are f@cking taking us for granted!
BN was exactly what our nation needed in the earlier post-merdeka days. However, it is apparent that Malaysia, badly needs a revamp to its internal policies. BN policies are PROVEN failures. Not DAP’s. so why dun we give DAP a chance to prove you skeptics wrong?
77. Michelle | November 29th, 2007 at 7:51 pm
I devote like 3 hours to read it everyday. And SPM is already over, so I’m happy about it.
Hey, pinkpau, I’ve got a question: Do you use a macbook? Or do you know anyone who uses a macbook? I need some help about the internet connection and the airport extreme thingmajiggy.
78. chm | November 29th, 2007 at 8:54 pm
gr8… sent 12 smses 2 thee star n none came out. guess y? :P
79. Jeff from LA | November 30th, 2007 at 3:23 am
Pinkpau, I knew you attended Taylor’s College so I randomly decided to read the Wikipedia entry on Taylor’s and I noticed this hilarious line (I copied and pasted it exactly as it is in the entry):
In the South Australian Matriculation (SAM) programme 30% of Taylor’s students score in the top 10% of the total SAM population in the entire world and 60% scores the top 20% but it’s due to the aisan kia-su attitude not the teaching quality.
I think its awesome that the Wikipedia entry refers to the “aisan kia-su attitude.” I don’t see that phrase in Wikipedia too often. It makes it even better that whoever wrote it even spelled Asian wrong.
80. Jeff from LA | November 30th, 2007 at 3:24 am
Please note that I’m only making fun of the person that wrote that entry, not your school. Your school sounds incredibly prestigious from the Wikipedia entry.
81. pinkpau | November 30th, 2007 at 5:52 am
hahahahahhaha jeff oh my god what a find
HAHAHAHHAA
82. songjun | November 30th, 2007 at 10:10 am
sheon : i lost a whole load of comments and i cant be bothered to repost haha got coursework to do. anyway, to sum it up,
It is too early for malaysia to be without some form of autocracy. Like Lenin did to Russia, he implemented Karl Marx’s ideas too early. And he used it to his own political whims anyway. To understand why I dont think full fledge democracy is going to work right now in our country, read this. And why i think Bersih’s manipulation is a tragedy.
http://www.fims.uwo.ca/people/faculty/dyerwitheford/Chapter7.pdf
It is a lengthy heavy read, but will give u an insight to why ‘eastern’ countries cannot afford to have full fledged freedom yet. There are still too many idiots around to leave the decision of millions into the hands of a majority collective of idiots. BN is doing rather well, giving a sense of democracy yet at the same time shaping direction. I didnt say i wont give a chance to DAP to lead, but as far as im concerned, BN’s getting it right somewhat. And I will continue to be pro bn until they get totally out of hand.
I am a cnyist realist. I do not believe in true freedom. According to democratic freedom , and post modern “political correctness” it is quite a hypocrisy to have such things as ‘the rule of law’ then. It is also hypocritical to believe in ethics and morality also. Because , ethics, morality and law are arbitary motions of thought. The cannibal enacts a law that NOT eating human flesh is wrong. The civilised person enacts laws against eating human flesh because he/she views it as dehumanising. Deconstructing both views shows us a dichotomy of ‘law,ethics and morality’. True ‘democracy’ would then be being able to do whatever i feel is what i want done. To say what ever i want, to insult your mom without you beating the hell out of me for doing so.
Can u foresee our country with total freedom? Printing ‘alternative’ press that contain racist connotations is deemed ‘freedom of speech’. One thing leads to another and yoohoo what do we have? :)
Once we develop into maybe Singapore like status, then can we afford true emancipation. Believe me. Karl Marx has it right in most things.
83. songjun | November 30th, 2007 at 10:20 am
and cmon.
if u talk about money? London just broke news on Gordon Brown’s labour party receiving illegal money. America’s lobbyist tendencies is just making legal what we deem illegal here. Even in america, the whistleblowers were put down. It is not until certain reputed journalistic people decided to blow it out.
The very point that we can and do hear about all these scandals is that our government isn’t as autocratic and controlling as we ( or oppositionists) say that it is. If they wanted to, all media could have been controlled. 0 bad news, and concentrate on stuff like rape and george soros ‘at it again’. 2000 doesnt constitute thousands and thousands, and i hardly doubt that BERSIH was attended by more then 20% proffesionals. i expect 50% at least to not even come from the immediate surrounding areas of KL/selangor. and i believe again you are exaggerating the claim of hundreds of thousands marching.
84. songjun | November 30th, 2007 at 11:30 am
songjun, you sure you’re in your early twenties? :P
about the size of the BERSIH rally, some put the figure at 130,000+ ppl; the photos clearly shows a sea of no less than 40,000 participants! IF the intimidation tactics were not carried out by the police, i am very sure that the crowd would touch close to 200,000!! so many of my frens and colleagues who were very keen to join the rally, held back becoz they didnt want to be on the receiving end of police brutality!
irregardless of what the real figure stands at, the truth is that many citizens are really upset of the gomen. and they braved all intimidations and threats to tell the agong this. and the gomen is refuting this simple fact and going for technicality…..the rally was unlawful lar…..it is politicized lar……got hidden agenda lar……
malaysians are still not politically matured enough for a total democracy. well, in fact, i think i can live with agreeing with this statement. however, if our politicians are doing this for the good of the nation,…then yes….you have my support. but, NO, our politicians are abusing this ……idea, to make themself wealthy and whatnot.
songjun, you/we understand your/our options. and you/we are free to make your choice of who to support. but, how many folks out there are without the resources (internet, free alternative media) that we enjoy? and made their decisions based on biased and controlled information?
true democracy risks having you curse my mother without having me beating the lights outta you? thats why we need an independent and equally powerful court that i can go to charge you for defamation or whatnot..and then have another independent branch called the police&aca to catch crooks like you who abuses the system.
85. sheon | November 30th, 2007 at 11:32 am
hey…sorry….i dunno how my name got replaced with “songjun”.. maybe its my fault…….
THE ABOVE COMMENT IS MINE —- “sheon”…..my apologies to songjun
86. songjun | November 30th, 2007 at 6:48 pm
no la u dont get my point.
true democracy , ie freedom or ‘right’ to what ever i want to do and say , means there shouldnt be such things as law, justice etc. because all these are arbitary. What makes wrong wrong?
Wrong is only what we deem it to be. Can you tell me exactly what makes me insulting your mom ‘wrong’? Its my right as a human being to have free speech what.You saying that u will charge me in court for saying what i want to say is already an infringement of my basic ‘human rights’ and therefore undemocratic already. The very threat of not being able to say what i want defies the very statement of democracy itself.
87. Jeff from LA | December 1st, 2007 at 2:43 am
songjun, I’m the biggest believer in free speech, but I have to say that allowing unlimited free speech impinges on the freedoms and rights of others.
For example, allowing someone to scream “fire” in a crowded theater could cause great injury to others if people panic and everyone pushes, shoves and tramples one another. Another example is hate speech. If the leader of a hate group rallies a group together and announces to all of them - now go find a Christian or a Muslim and beat them to death, and they go to do that, that injures others’ rights and freedoms.
I think the proper goal of democracy is to allow unlimited freedom as possible where those freedoms do not injure the freedoms or rights of another. Where those freedoms do injure the rights of another, we have to analyze what is more important to the overall society, the individual’s freedom or the freedom of others not to be injured by that individual’s decision.
88. songjun | December 1st, 2007 at 10:12 am
jeff : yes, but who sets those ‘decisions’? Those decisions are as arbitary as the person who sets them themselves.
IE my example regarding cannibalism.
If the cannibal sets a law saying u have to eat human flesh when u attain adolescence, well… u have to. And the cannibalist society does not view that as ‘wrong’
Yet in a ‘civilised’ society, cannibalism is wrong. But, why is it wrong? Where is the limit?
89. Jeff from LA | December 1st, 2007 at 10:32 am
That’s why we have democracies, so that everyone has an equal opportunity to opine on what infringes on their rights.
No cannibalistic society has ever been a true democracy. They have all been theocracies ruled by crazy power-mad priests or tyrannical governments run by a tribal chief or a tribal council. There never has been a cannibalistic society where every member of the society has an equal vote. Why? Because given the choice, no member of the tribe would like to put themselves at risk of being eaten.
Moreover, no democracy has ever decided to become a cannibalistic society. That seems to provide evidence for the contention that when you get enough people together and give them an equal voice, there are certain freedoms and beliefs that they agree that everyone ought to have, and one of those beliefs is that eating one another is wrong. To say that a democracy could theoretically/abstractly lead to such extremes as cannibalism is to deny the evidence we have seen in history.
90. songjun | December 2nd, 2007 at 4:28 am
jeff : -.- no u dont get my point. Im talking about the theory of democracy. Of course i dont mean literally about that cannibal thing. Im talking about the tenets of ‘free speech’ lots of people tend to overuse.
Barring the example of the cannibal, lets say, i will use your example of ‘limit to unlimited free speech’.
“If the leader of a hate group rallies a group together and announces to all of them - now go find a Christian or a Muslim and beat them to death, and they go to do that, that injures others’ rights and freedoms.”
It is their right to voice their disdain for a race / religion is it not? if i can raise my voice against government, why cant i not rally against my neighbour who happens to be of a different creed? What is to stop me from saying ” oh i hate christians because they have such a holier than thou attitude and the bible is wrong”. Although lets say the rallier keeps saying stuff like that and provoking without actually saying ‘lets go hunt them down’, someone somewhere is going to break and then things will start to happen.
So who sets the arbitary limit to that limitation? What right has anyone to set a limit? As i said before, ethics, law and morality is subjective and arbitary. To a conservative religionist, my right to bomb an abortion clinic is a right given by God and supercedes any ‘right’ by humans.
anyway, democracy led to the rise of hitler note in case :) And america has toppled/supported the toppling of many democratically elected leaders before and continue to support dictator/autocratic countries.
We talk about freedom of speech and freedom of this and that, without realising how hypocritical it is sometimes it is to yap about it yet when i say NIGGER, everyone goes.. no no you shouldnt say that.
91. songjun | December 2nd, 2007 at 4:35 am
sheon : you’re basing figures on pictures whose timing and location was not corelated. Also, one did not take into account the inflow and outflow of people and the ‘flow rate’ of people. a picture might snap the number at that point in time but without those considerations, u cant say u can tell its about 200k. even the organisers say its about 40 - 50k , max 100k and gov figs are about 10k max, so u can estimate based on biasness , about 40 - 50 to be about right. And well, that makes them arm chair supporters :) want to talk about change and complain but dont want to risk a little brutality?whats that all about.
92. lovie | December 5th, 2007 at 9:45 pm
The cab driver is so nice, sayang his wife so much. How I wish I can have a husband like that in the future. Who doesn’t like to be pampered and all? =)
Cheer up girl. *hugs*
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