Happy Birthday Malaysia!

Happy 52nd Birthday!

I wish you a prosperous year, and hope that everything will be better this coming year.

However, sadly, even on the eve of possibly the most important day of the year, there were many things that were happening. First there is the cow-head incident. Some idiot think that trampling over a cow head is fun, apparently. I think the one thing Malaysians should have learnt over the years, is to engage in peaceful interfaith dialogues. Freedom of religion, and interfaith tolerance is still a big issue. That aside, where do atheists stand? Can I spread Pastafarianism back home? Will it become a real religion? Where do we draw the line between what's acceptable and what's not? Can I poke fun at other's religion, asking reasonable questions without insulting them? We can call ourselves a multicultural society (masyarakat majmuk) as much as we want but we all know it's not true, unless we can embrace the freedom of religion with open arms. Reform the Judiciary system. Abolish the Syariah courts. That should be the first step.

And then there's the ban on black eyed peas concert for Muslims and anyone under the age of 18. Don't get me wrong, I think they make horrible music, but that doesn't mean you could just ban them. Their new songs "Boom Boom Pow" has no melody to it and you could hardly call it a real song. The lyrics to "I got a feeling" has the vocabulary of a 6-year-old. Why are they banning it? Because it is sponsored by Guinness. How much more hilarious can this be? If you put a age limit on a concert, it has better be a good reason for it.

Those are social stand point on what has to change. There are a lot of other things that we should be looking out for either. Healthcare, Education. We have a lot of things that are lacking, but who are we to ask questions? In their eyes these are simple things that does not matter. For many years the only movements in terms of education is moving Math and Science subject from being taught in Malay -> English+Malay -> Malay. The last time I checked, this means there has been not much of an improvement.

Then, there was Proton, and its botched attempt 20 years in the making, to enter the Auto market. Is Proton too big to fail now? We've been giving them bailouts, tax protection (on competitors), subsidies, and still no cheese? While protecting an infant industry is a common thing in terms of economics, where do we draw the line? Do every single hard-working Malaysian out there who wants a car has to keep paying for this? Perhaps we got our pride in the way one too many times when VW came knocking?

Politically, this year, there's been a change in management. If you haven't heard, we had a new boss in the form of PM since March. Well, there are a lot of allegations of him being connected to a certain high profile murder of a certain model from a certain north asian country. And also allegations to corruption during his term as defense minister. I don't know which is worse. Nevertheless, he promised to change things around, maintaining "principles of intransparency and accountability". Lets see.

Anyway other tidbit.
1) Malaysia Truly Asia?
2) 1 Music in Malaysia - Yes to sugar, no to Petrol. We had enough, and as Najib said, cheaper petrol isn't the right solution. We should put a different mindset to this.

I try to not read all those "Proud to be Malaysian" fluff. "oh how we've came such a long ways since 1957 ... bla bla bla". I think of them as trying to rub the ego the right way, while ignoring all the wrongs that is happening. Perhaps, a little too idealistic, a little too perfect? One day, maybe, I can read it and feel the same. Not today, not now, reading them is akin to listening to a self-aggrandizing megalomaniac, and I feel sorry.

Anyway, Let us all strive for a better Malaysia tomorrow, and Selamat Hari Merdeka.