Eulogy: "Hi Jimi, I'm Jack - Jack Nathan"

Technorati tags: Eulogy, Jack Nathan, Malaysia, Music, 360deg Head Rotation

Tardiness lame excuse note: Walski apologizes for not publishing this earlier, as work-travel and home front commitments had to be fulfilled before sitting down and putting pixel to screen. The following eulogy was written by Rafil Elyas, 360° Head Rotation band-mate, and friend of many years, to Jack Nathan. Jack passed away one week ago, victim of a hit and run accident. He will be sorely missed by the Malaysian independent music movement, and Walski is sure, by Rafil in particular.

Jammin' with Jimi...

Kumaresvara (Jack) Nathan, 360° Head Rotation co-founder, musical collaborator, and my very dear friend of almost 15 years is dead. He was cremated with his beloved “Frankenstein” custom “Jack Series” guitar on Monday 25 September 2006 around 4pm. Tomorrow, Saturday 26 September 2006 his ashes shall be taken to his favorite spot, a friend’s farm/dusun near Rasa Town/Kuala Kubu Bahru, and released in a stream running across the property. A tribute gig shall be held once we manage to shake this fog and extreme grief that’s clouding our heads.

At sometime between 12:00-1:00 am Sunday 24 September 2006 he was riding a bicycle home to the Palm Springs Apartment complex in the Mutiara Damansara area when he was hit by a car. An eyewitness who was driving behind that vehicle clocked its speed at over 100 KPH. The eyewitness said that the driver was speeding away to avoid a police roadblock.

Upon hitting Jack, the driver sped off. I learned that the driver has since turned himself in and is out on bail.

Jack would have been 41 years old this coming October 6.

In all these years that I’d known Jack, he hardly spoke about his personal life. Most of our discussions revolved around music and musicians. Once in a while, he’d fill me in on some bits and pieces.

I know he was born in Bukit Mertajam, Penang. Youngest in a family of 4, he had 3 elder brothers, Nathan and Steve and a sister, Devi. His dad was a headmaster and his mom a housewife. All the boys played guitar well. There appeared to be a genetic disposition and almost instinctual inclination and ability when it came to that instrument. Nathan started Jack on what was to be a lifelong passion for the blues, namely Clapton’s particular brand. After he completed his SPM/O’ Levels, he traveled to Singapore and studied industrial design. Later, he found himself in KL and began his career as a professional musician. I understand he had a brief stint with the legendary pub band Streetlights. Sometime in the early nineties, he hooked up with Victor, Joyce, Roger and Bino to form the Country Hearts. They were the resident band at now defunct pub Longhorn and alternated sets with seminal KL country band Os Pombos. Over the past few years, he lived with his sister Devi and her husband Ranjit.

He lived a blues player’s, life. A roller coaster of extreme joy alternating with hitting the bleakest rock bottom.

Jack and I met sometime in 1992 through our mutual friend, Victor. Jack played lead guitar and fiddle. He fit the wild west frontier town saloon theme at Longhorn, belt buckle the size of a motorcycle hubcap, cowboy boots, jeans, checkered shirt, ten gallon hat. He sported shoulder length hair and had a sinister scar running down the left side of his face. Mean guitar and fiddle playing motherf****r. He got the scar in a bar fight when he was hit with a glass beer pitcher trying to defend one of the waitresses from some customers who were roughing her up.

They’d allow guest artists to jam on Sunday nights. I’d go there and do Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” and Jack would go totally Hendrix. We’d sometimes do a few original numbers I’d written. We came from totally different backgrounds, Jack worshipped Eric Clapton and Hendrix, I was on the Cure and Bauhaus musical universe. Nonetheless, when we jammed, there was a connection, two totally different musical directions had merged to create what could only be described as a Punk Blues Goth Rock hybrid.

We all got to know each other well. On a fishing trip, we learned that we shared the same birthday. Jack was a year older than me.

The first recording we made was sometime in 1993, it consisted of two songs I’d written, “Just One Morning” and “Sunrise”. Jack had to FEEL what he was playing, so he asked me describe each song, its meaning and imagery I hoped to evoke. I sat down and told him “Just One Morning” should conjure a the picture of Laura Ingalls in Little House on the Prairie enjoying a nasty ménage trois with farm hands in a hay cart amidst a bunch of chainsaws caught in a twister (this was in the early days of my song writing). “Sunrise” was something out of that vampire fetish every person listening to the Cure and Bauhaus seems to fall prey to.

That essentially set the way we wrote songs together. I’d paint a situation in words and a basic melody, Jack would bring it to aural life.

1994 – 2003 Jack and I hardly saw each other, I’d started my stint as an oil and gas consultant and was living out of a suitcase. Jack was working for Axis (sp?), an advertising company, he was doing production work. Occasionally, I’d go on set and watch him work, there’d almost always be a guitar nearby, he’d get possessed by Hendrix and launch into a 30 minute solo.

Sometime in 2003 we reconnected. I wandered into Paul’s Place in Damansara Utama one evening, Amir Yusoff was jamming on drums and a guy dressed neatly with a corporate haircut was playing guitar. I told Paul (or Amir), “That guy looks a lot like an old buddy of mine, Jack Nathan”. Turns out it was Jack. He’d been helping Paul build the stage and was doing some handyman work around the venue. Many beers followed that night.

Later that year Peter Hassan Brown was organizing a gig in Jam Asia. He asked if I’d be interested in performing. I told him to give me a couple of days to think of it. I immediately called Jack.
(360DHR is born, and more, in the full post)

The proposed line up of 360° Head Rotation was me, Jack, drum machine and sequencer. However, I figured since I’d been doing so much simulation and computer work for my day job, I didn’t want to twiddle knobs and write code.

The first line up was me, Jack, Edmun Anthony and Paul Millot. We practiced once. At the end of that practice, Edmun looked at me with a look I can only describe as horror and politely declined to participate in any future practices. Paul had commitments with his band Brown Sugar. Both Paul and Edmun returned to perform with us as sessionists.

Jack got headhunting duty. He had about 3 weeks to find a rhythm section. In a couple of days, he nabbed Mohd Nuhi (Monkey Boy) Selamat on drums and bassist Nazrul Ahmad. They were performing in a local Seattle Sound outfit, Hike.

360DHR @ Jam Asia - January 2004

For the next three years, we played over 20 gigs and started recording our debut album. It was fun for me, a diversion from the world of oil and gas and a chance to pander to the right side of my brain. To Jack, this was serious work. He threw himself to the task of arranging and perfecting his and all other instrumental parts for the songs. We’d spend hours getting the proper sound levels, quality in the studio and even more hours mixing and engineering the tracks with recording engineer Meng at Standing Wave Studios. Over the years, we’d developed our “sound”. Thundering drums, mephistopholean lyrics, driving bass and the signature Jack Nathan blues punk guitar. Amps up to 11. Sweat and spit on stage.

For the more genteel crowd, Jack and I developed some acoustic arrangements and deployed them in venues like La Bodega and No Black Tie II. They were interesting but nothing like our full electric sets.

Over the years, Jack was recognized as one of the most innovative guitarists and was held in high esteem in the pub musician and independent music communities. Jack loved all aspects of music, the playing, the lights, the glamour photo shots (don’t ask). He was one of the most gregarious and
amiable people I know, always making new friends. We made up bunch of business cards with snarky titles for the band. Jack was the “Sex Symbol & Lead Guitarist”.

I am neither spiritual nor religious. I don’t subscribe to afterlife models proscribed by scripture or divinely inspired text. However, I now see the benefit of having that sort of faith.

Because I could then comfort myself with an image of Jack passing through that tunnel and walking toward the bright white light.

Holding his Frankenstein guitar.

Approaching the light, he sees a wild haired man wearing an old military jacket.

Smiles, extends his hand and says,

“Hi Jimi, I’m Jack.”

“Lemme show you how we play blues guitar.”

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Earth-Sun-Moon: Have Muslim gotten it ALL WRONG?

Technorati tags: Malaysia, Islam, Ramadhan, Calendar, Earth, Sun, Moon, Love and Rockets, Bauhaus

Of late, Walski has been pondering about the Islamic (or Hijrah) Calendar quite a bit. Why? For one thing, it's been the indignation that some people express when marketing friendly terms are conjured up to describe Hari Raya and other festivals (cultural or religious) that happen to coincide, or fall close enough to each other.

The offense du jour is, of course, DeepaRaya.

And if anything is to blame it is the Islamic calender, because being a purely lunar calendar, it prances around the solar cycle, each lunar year lagging by 11 days, on average. This causes Hari Raya (and other Islamic observances) to inadvertently clash with other festivals, which are typically based on luni-solar years (generally lunar-based years, but corrected every few years to sync with the solar cycle).

Now the Islamic calendar, apart from its use to predict when religious observances, such as performing the Hajj, or when the month of Ramadhan should be, is absolutely worthless for other day to day practical purposes.

Earth-Sun-Moon

Like it or not, the seasonal changes are due not to the lunar cycles, but to how the Earth orbits around the Sun, plus the Earth's orientation during this orbit. That's just how God designed nature to behave.

Try planning your agricultural activities purely on the Islamic calendar, and eventually widespread famine would probably overcome the Earth. It simply is not practical to use.

Now historically, the Islamic calendar was established by the Caliph Umar, around 638 CE, some years after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. The decision on when to begin the Islamic era was eventually reached, through consensus, by basing it on the migration of the prophet from Mecca to Medina, a pivotal point in Islamic history. You can read the historical background at this link.

(Prior to the establishment of the Islamic lunar calendar, the Muslims of the time used a luni-solar calendar, with a month added (in no particular predictable way) in some years to get the calendar back in sync with the Earth's orbit around the Sun. The practice of adding a month, however, was traditionally considered to be prohibited via Surah 9 (Bara'ah) verse 37.)

But because the actual migration did not occur on a new moon, 1st Muharram 1 AH (Anno Hegira) was backdated to the next earliest new moon, some two weeks prior.

In other words, the choice for when to start the Islamic calendar was purely arbitrary. Granted, the migration was an important event, and Walski is not refuting that at all. The actual start date picked was arbitrary, based on an important event.
(more terra-solar-lunar thoughts in the full post)

And because the start date was arbitrary, and the calendar does not follow the nature of the seasons, are we observing the important religious dates equally as arbitrarily, and not when they were actually meant to be observed?

While mucking around the Internet looking for reading materials on this, Walski came across two articles at the Free-Minds website (read both articles here and here). Both articles have made separate the analyses of how the Islamic calender should be based on the verses of the Quran.

It is not the intention to repeat what has been stated by both articles here, but a few things are quite interesting to note.

Primarily is that the year, as ordained in the Quran, is luni-solar, and not purely lunar. Evidence for this can be found in two verses:

Surah 10 (Yunos) verse 5

[Yusuf Ali traslation] It is He Who made the sun to be a shining glory and the moon to be a light (of beauty), and measured out stages for her; that ye might know the number of years and the count (of time). Nowise did Allah create this but in truth and righteousness. (Thus) doth He explain His Signs in detail, for those who understand.

and

Surah 17 (Bani Israel) verse 12

[Yusuf Ali traslation] We have made the Night and the Day as two (of Our) Signs: the Sign of the Night have We obscured, while the Sign of the Day We have made to enlighten you; that ye may seek bounty from your Lord, and that ye may know the number and count of the years: all things have We explained in detail.

In other words, based on the first verse, calculation of the length of a year is influenced by both the Sun and the Moon, and not on the lunar cycles alone. This is further reiterated by the second verse. On planet Earth, the passage of day into night is influenced by the Sun, and not the Moon.

If you find all this intriguing, as Walski does, you really should read both the articles mentioned above. In the articles, there are other verse references that tell when a month should start (and it's not when you think it is), when the actual first day of the year should be, and other surprising information.

And all this leads to one question that Walski now has in his mind; a very important question:

Have Muslims, for more than a millenium, been observing days of religious significance at totally arbitrary times?

And all because of an arbitrary decision made a long, long time ago...

Walski's musically inspired post-title note of little or no real relevance: Part of the post title is based on the third studio album of Love and Rockets, Earth-Sun-Moon, released in 1987. Love and Rockets was formed from the ashes of the legendary post-punk goth band, Bauhaus, and consists of Daniel Ash (guitar, sax and vocals), David J. (bass and vocals), and Kevin Haskins (drums and synthesizers). After Bauhaus broke up in the early 80's, the trio formed an interim troupe, called Tones on Tail. Bauhaus had a fourth member, Peter Murphy, who didn't want Bauhaus reformed, at the time, and thus broke away to start a solo career.Incidentally, Peter Murphy embraced Islam in the 90's and eventually moved to Turkey. Strong influences of eastern music and Sufi mysticism can be found in his later works. Bauhaus got back together in 1998, for the Resurrection tour, and still continues to perform live on rare occassions - this, despite Peter Murphy's refusal to perform some songs from the Bauhaus repertoire, which he deems has strong religious overtones (such as Stigmata Martyr) - (all information presented here comes from Wikipedia).

Click here for the full post......

Kongsi-Deepa-Aidil-Vali-Raya...

Technorati tags: Malaysia, Festivals, Deepavali, Hari Raya, DeepaRaya

Related posts:
► Putting the Conservative Muslims' fear into perspective
► The Mystery of Kongsi-Raya Remains a Mystery
► De-Kongsi-fication of Malaysian Celebrations

Well guess what, sports fans? It's that time of year again for some Muslims to complain about using certain terms that combine Eid celebrations with another community's religious or cultural festival, which happens to coincide with (or is close enough to) Eid-ul Fitr - commonly known as Hari Raya Aidil Fitri in the Malay language.

Time once again for some to verbalize how offended they feel...
(original image from What have I gotta say)

What seems to be the root of the offense is the use of marketing gimmicky terms such as DeepaRaya, which will undoubtedly be used again this year, and all the associated cross-marketing, posters, TV/Radio ads, etc., that have come with dual-celebrations, of late (and not just limited to the Raya / Deepavali conjunction). Hari Raya is expected to fall on October 24, while Deepavali (or Diwali) falls a few days earlier on October 21.

DeepaRaya is probably a more catchy sounding term, as opposed to other possible combinations, such as Hari Vali, or Deepa Fitri, or Aidil Deepa, or any other possible linguistic combi. It just has a certain festive ring to it.

And really, the word Raya itself doesn't have any religious meaning, if you think about it. If that is the case, why isn't any offens taken with terms like:
- pasaRAYA (supermarket), or
- lebuhRAYA (highway), or
- balai RAYA (community hall), or even
- bandaRAYA (city)?

Or did Walski miss something, and these Muslims actually want to ban the usage of these words as well?
(more kongi-fied DeepaRaya thoughts in the full post)

And perhaps "festive" may be one area where the real problem lies - to some, celebrations like Eid-ul Fitr should be religious obseravtions, and nothing else apart from that. Traditionally though, here in Malaysia at least, Eid-ul Fitri is more than just a religious observation to celebrate the end of Ramadhan (although an important part of it), it has become an important celebration of a cultural nature.

Some might even say that it is a manifestation of selfishness on the part of some of these Muslims, making anything remotely Islam-related to be exclusive to Muslims only.

In the minds of some, though, even associating these two celebrations becomes sacriligious. So, what would be a solution? Cancel Deepavali? Well, most likely Hindus won't take very kindly to that. And definitely foregoing Eid-ul Fitr would be out of the question as well.

However, if one looks beyond the obvious, that Diwali is a Hindu (and therefore to them, pagan) celebration, and look at what the celebration represents, a slightly different dimension comes to light.

To the best of Walski's knowledge (and with the aid of online 'Net resources), from a Hindu point of view, Diwali represents a celebration of Light over Darkness (nevermind which deities are involved, because that's beside the point).

Triumph of Light over Darkness, juxtaposed onto other conceptual constructs, (apart from the obvious Good over Evil) could also mean:
- Enlightenment over Confusion
- Knowledge over Ignorance
- Peace over Hostility (granted, this one's a bit of a stretch)

Looking at it from this angle, doesn't Islam, in some respects, call for the very same thing from it's followers?

Think about it...

In the end, however, whether calling them by their individual names, or in a combined marketing-friendly way, there is one certainty that remains. The celebrations of Deepavali and Hari Raya Aidil Fitri, beyond the religious significance of each, are both about the shared Malaysian experience of celebrating as one nation.

Isn't it more fun to share, rather than to selfishly hawk over each individual piece, exclusive from the rest of fellow Malaysians? Or are fun and sharing to be made taboo, too, in times to come?

Click here for the full post......

Away for a bit...

Technorati tags: General, Announcement, Miscellaneous

There won't be any new posts for the next 24 - 36 hours. For one thing, Jack's sudden and shocking demise has put Walski off kilter a little... gets one really thinking about life, and makes you thankful for the little things you have, and makes all those other grander things you wished you had a little superfluous - to some extent, anyway.

The other reason is that Walski's out of town again, and with nothing but dial-up to play with for a bit. And speaking of being thankful, the so-called Broadband we have (not-so-speedy as it is) is still a world of difference compared to the 31.25 kbps Walski's using to post this.

Compared to dial-up, even Streamyx feels broad...

So, take good care of yourselves, and until the next real post... be safe, m'kay?

Click here for the full post......

In Memoriam: Jack Nathan (1965 - 2006)

Technorati tags: In Memoriam, Obituary, Jack Nathan, 360deg Head Rotation, Malaysia, Music

Only the good die young...

It's always a bad feeling to go through when someone you know dies, even if you didn't know the person all that well.

Late this afternoon, Walski received a text message from his good friend, Rafil of 360deg Head Rotation, that Jack Nathan, their lead guitarist, was killed yesterday in a hit-and-run accident.

Walski will always remember Jack as a great musician and key ingredient in what made 360DHR a unique outfit.

He would have been celebrating his 41st birthday this coming October 6. Walski has no details on the actual accident, nor could he find any news pertaining to it in any of the online papers.

Update: (from {W a s t e d t a l e n t}) I spoke to Deepak, Jack’s close friend. Apparently Jack’s car broke down as he was heading back home from somewhere and he called his housemate to help. The line was bad, all I could understand was that Jack ended up cycling back home and that’s when he got hit. The line cut off at that point and I haven’t been able to reach Deepak since, probably busy at the wake.

Jack was a very kind soul, and Walski remembers the many times he offered to add a certain edge and fullness to the sparseness of Walski of Sound, a musical project that kind of fizzled in and out of existence. Although Walski did not know him very well, his generousity as a musician and producer was very evident.

Walski laments that the collaboration will never be.

Deepest condolences go out to Jack's family and to anyone and everyone who knew him. The funeral will be held tomorrow, September 25 2006 at the Kampung Tunku Crematorium.

Goodbye Jack - R.I.P. dude - keep on rocking wherever you may go...

Other obits & tributes: retrospek - ricecooker - troubadours - {W a s t e d t a l e n t}

Click here for the full post......

Unconfirmed reports of Osama bin Laden's death

Technorati tags: Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda, News, Terrorism

Update (Sept 24, 2006 1744hrs Malaysia Time): Several news reports indicate that there is no evidence to support allegations that Osama bin Laden has dies. Saudi Arabia has made a statement (reported by AFP) stating that they have "has no evidence to support recent media reports that Osama bin Laden is dead". For further background reading, this article from Time magazine may be of interest.

Unconfirmed reports have been making the rounds in the international media about the possible demise of Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

The heads-up Walski got was from Bernama, reporting an AFP source, that "World leaders reacted cautiously to a French newspaper report that Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has died, while the French government probed the leak of an intelligence brief cited by the daily".

Reuters, meanwhle, has a similar report - and as with the AFP report, world leaders are keeping a cautious approach to the news, able to neither confirm nor deny the report. As U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told reporters in New York: "No comment, no knowledge," when asked to comment about the French news report.

Al-Jazeera has also reported that "The French defence ministry is investigating the leak of a secret intelligence document that raised the possibility that Osama bin Laden may have died of typhoid." The secret document indicates that bin Laden died in August this year.

While the world will definitely be monitoring this piece of news closely, the death of bin Laden will probably not have much of an effect on the overall Al-Qaeda organization, known to be very resiliant, and adapting to current situations very quickly.

Walski will keep a close eye on this, and post any updates as and when there are any to report.

Click here for the full post......

Storm CLOUD in a teacup

Technorati tags: Humor, Technology, NST, New Straits Times, Tag Cloud, Technorati, Siti Norhaliza, Mahathir, Rape

or How Ghosts in the Machine Provide Comic Relief.

It's odd how technology can provide unintended humor sometimes. The latest incident has to do with how a tag cloud (or more precisely, a search criteria cloud) displayed on New Straits Times (NST) online alluded to a not-so-complementary statement about Tun Dr. Mahathir.

Attack of the Ghost in the Machine
(taken from Rocky's Bru screen-capture yesterday)

Walski first noticed this yesterday afternoon, and the same phenomenon was highlighted by Rocky's Bru later the same day. Rocky seems to think that Kali, Brendan and the crew was up to more mischief again.

Tag clouds, by the way, are a nice way to present a weighted list, such as how Technorati tags are displayed, in a visual way to represent which tag is used more, or the frequency searches for these tags are requested.

But nice technology can sometimes produce unintended results, as this stormy cloud has shown. And the unintended result, of course, is further mistrust of a media house already synonymous with bending the truth, and adding bias to how news gets reported. But Walski had a good laugh over it, nevertheless.

The same stormy cloud observation was made on the Malaysian Bloggerhood Penghulu's site (at this post). Penghulu Jeff also posted an update, giving another perspective.

Ironically, it's been the NST group that's been very vocally against the Tun, particularly with respect to the on-going war of tongues between TDM and Pak Lah, over certain questions raised by the Tun. Not surprising, though, being the Government's mouthpiece and all that.

Walski's take on this? Ghosts in the Machine playing a mischevious prank on us all...
(more ghostly pondering in the full post)

Incidentally, NST has modified the way the search criteria cloud is displayed, as of this morning. But what they have done is merely make it less obtrusive to the eye, displaying a significantly smaller cloud box.

Screen-shot of NST taken earlier this morning

Despite this, zooming in shows that there is still the possiblity of inadvertently sending out unintended insinuations.

"Datuk-Mahathir-Police-who-Rape"?

Walski suggests that NST changes their algorithm to instead display the number of searches for each search term, rather than displaying those terms in a cloud configuration. Clouds are neat, no doubt, but not all technology can be blindly applied in all instances. NST has shown us why.

And the whole NST cloud thing has become the catalyst for another wave of NST-bashing (see comments related to the Rocky's Bru post, as well as the two Screenshots posts, here and here). As much as Walski thinks that the New Straits Times group of newspapers aren't worth the newsprint they're printed on, the whole uproar is pretty much a storm in a teacup. At worst, it's simply a case of careless technology misapplication, and we shouldn't get too excitable over small things like this.

Having said that, one commenter at Rocky's Bru did make a valid point, that NST should be a lot more careful with these snafus.

Or maybe the Ghosts in the Machine are teaching NST a bitter lesson of karmic justice? You know - what goes around, comes around? Truth, they say, is many times, stranger than fiction - NST's version of the truth, stranger still...

Walski's (somewhat) totally unrelated music trivia tidbit: "Ghost in the Machine" is the title of The Police's 4th studio album, released in 1981. The title was inspired by Arthur Koestler's essay, "The Ghost in the Machine". Sting, in his younger days was an avid reader of Koestler's work, which also became the inspiration for a later album, Synchronicity. Ghost in the Machine features some of the more memorable songs by The Police, including "Spirits in a material world", "One World (not three)", "Invisible Sun", and 8 other classics. (Information presented here was excerpted from Wikipedia)

Click here for the full post......

Flogging a dead horse

Technorati tags: Politics, Religion, Pope, Apology, Islam, Christianity

Related post:
► PAS: Political mileage on re-threads....
► Losing context in a troubled world
► For some, enough is never Enough

Dead horse to most, important issue worth flogging to some

Yesterday, Walski was reading about the Youth Wing of PAS (or Baby PAS as blogger Alphabet Soup calls 'em) organizing a Dead Horse Flogging Rally this afternoon (Friday, September 22), announced on several inter-related blogs. You can read all about it here.

The plan is to flog the dead horse, hard and plenty of times enough, to actually resurrect it. Once resurrected, the horse will be despatched to Pope Benedict XVI (either via FedEx or DHL, we're not sure).

The resurrected equine will then insist that the Pope retract portions of his talk, delivered at Regensburg University about a week or so ago, the portion that has caused so much furor within the Muslim world. The Pope, of course, wouldn't be able to refuse, since he heard it from the horse's mouth.

Presumably, the resurrected horse will also carry with it instructions on how to build a time machine, which the Pope will use to travel back in time to 15th century Byzantium, where he would need to track down Emperor Manual II Palaiologos and promptly b*tch-slap the Emperor, "persuading" him to retract what he said about the Prophet Muhammad.

Or, prevent him from making the offensive remark, if the Emperor hadn't already uttered those dastardly words.

It depends. Time travel can be a little confusing that way.

So, NO offensive words from Byzantium Emperor - fast forward to the present, NO offending reference made by Pope Benedict, Muslims the world over are happy campers once again. Case closed.

Now, if all that seem a little far-fetched, wait till you read about the real reason for the rally.
(more dead horse flogging in the full post)

The rally will convene at 2pm (after Friday prayers) to protest the remarks by the Pope, and to insist that the Pope retract his remarks, deemed to have insulted Islam.

And where will the rally be held? At the Jamek Mosque, Kampung Baru, KL. But, of course! Where else would it be held - St. John's Cathederal?

Unless Walski has missed some critical logical linkage somewhere along the line - what on earth is the rally hoping to achieve? Walski has no problem with them holding a peaceful rally - that's their democratic right - but to what end?

Walski will bet his bottom dollar ringgit that Pope Benedict will not be there. Neither will any representatives from the Vatican, to the best of our knowledge. The hot air that will be vented (and knowing PAS there will be a lot of it) may contribute to global warming, but it probably won't persuade the pontiff one iota.

It's a little difficult to get someone to comply with your demands, when they don't actually know about those demands or can't hear them.

So the rally, therefore (unless Baby PAS are really, really naive), must have another achievable purpose. And in Walski's opinion, it is nothing more than getting a little political mileage out of this whole Pope controversy. Elementary, my dear Watson.

With the price of petrol still at RM 1.92 per liter, it's not really known just how much mileage Baby PAS can get. Flogging a dead horse may keep the issue alive, or invite the wrath of the RSPCA, but to expect anything else out of it would be a little silly.

Knowing PAS (daddy, mommy and baby included), though, any dead horse worth flogging will be flogged, so as long as there's some political payback. They are, after all, a political party. Of course, they have to be seen as defenders of the faith - nevermind that their actions won't amount to much - action is more important than results.

Which is probably why, in their announcing the horse-flogging protest rally, they have invited all editors and reporters of the mass media. What a bunch of media sluts (no offence intended to the real mediaslut).

But media-whoring works - it gets your agenda out - any photo or press opportunity will be fully taken advantage of. That's what underdog political organizations tend to do. So Walski wishes them all the best in getting whatever mileage they can out of this, while they can.

The Pope has apologized, and the issue, as stated by many Muslim leaders the world over, is now moot. So, time, therefore, is of the essense. There are only so many times that a dead horse can be flogged, before it falls apart and decomposes; disappearing into the mist of distant political memory.

Walski's RSPCA appeasement notice: No actual horses - alive, dead or resurrected - were harmed in the making of this post. In fact no horses were used at all. Any resemblace to actual alive/dead/resurrected horses is purely coincidental.

Click here for the full post......

Is the Rafa Revolution getting back on track?

Technorati tags: Football, English Premier League, EPL, Liverpool

It's been quite a while since Walski's written a football-related post, or about his team of choice, Liverpool. Not since the FA Community Shield vicory over Chelsea back in mid-August. 5 weeks into the season, and Walski's still not sure about their chances this season.

And can you really blame him?

A pretty shaky start to the season (then again, what's new?), seeing the Reds draw 1 - 1 with newly promoted Sheffield United in the opener, winning over West Ham not very convincingly at Anfield (2 - 1), getting the crap beat out of them (0 - 3) by cross-town rivals Everton, and stuttering to a 0 - 1 loss to Chelsea.

Mrs. Walski (a bigger Reds fan than yours truly) thinks Didier Drogba is the ugliest footballer in the EPL, but what a freaky goal that was, huh?

Unfortunately, Walski could not witness the 2 - 0 win over Newcastle United in the wee ungodly hours of this morning, but reading the reports seems to allude that the Reds are beginning to warm up to the season... late, but better than not at all.

Better still, this morning saw Dirk Kuyt opening his Liverpool scoring account, via a Steve Finnan cross in the 29th minute. The boy's lively, he's fast, but so far his overall finishing has been pretty sloppy. Still, the new upfront pace of Kuyt, with an equally fast Craig Bellamy and Jermaine Pennant, Liverpool in theory should be doing much better than their current 9th placing, with 7 points.

Their finishing, unfortunately, has left a lot to be desired.

But it's early days yet, as the pundits would say, with lotsa football left in the 2006/2007 season. Add to that the Champions League, the FA and Carling Cups, the road ahead for the Reds looks daunting, but promising, based on what Walski's seen so far.

If their form this morning is an indication of their waking up to the season (finally), then Liverpool fans should be in for a fantastic season. The dream of topping the EPL could finally come true this season around.

Maybe.
(more Red tidings in the full post)

But if the second goal from this morning, a stupendous long range shot from Xabi Alonso from the Reds' own half in the 79th minute, is any indication, the tide may just be turning for the Merseysiders.

Still, Walski won't hold his breath - the boys have an uncanny way of letting you down when you least expect them to. And so, we'll just have to wait and see. Just like the last few seasons. Even the Rafa Revolution gets minor derailments every now and again.

Being a Liverpool fan is tough on the nerves.. heh-heh.. the trials, the tribulations.... Now if Walski can only figure out what harebrained strategy Rafa Benitez will think of trying next... Guess it's a good time to get that Valium prescription refilled...

Click here for the full post......

Exorcising Ghosts...

Technorati tags: Malaysia, Judiciary, 1988 Crisis, Politics

The Sun today carries the following must-read front page news item.

On today's front page of The Sun

The "Azmi" referred to is retired High Court Judge Tan Sri Azmi Kamaruddin, one of the five Supreme Court Judges suspended in July 1988, "after they unanimously issued an order to stop the proceedings of a tribunal to try then Lord President Tun Salleh Abas, pending his suit at the High Court against the constitutionality of the tribunal."

In addition to the front-page article, there is a more in-depth report, based on an interview with Tan Sri Azmi, as part of the Thursday Extra! section.

Entitled "Azmi: Review will reveal the truth" the report has the former judge elaborate why, contrary to the assertion made by De Facto Law Minister, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, that there is no need to review the 1988 decision, there is indeed a need for such a review.

"Let justice be done to our senior and respected judges. The main question for the enquiry or review commission is to consider whether the real reasons for the suspension and removal of senior judges in 1988 were justified or was the reason political in nature, namely, to ensure Mahathir's victory against Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah in the then pending litigation before the Supreme Court on the issue of presidency of Umno?

Secondly, were all the five gentlemen appointed in Salleh's tribunal legally qualified under the provisions of the Federal Constitution and under the rules of natural justice? (This is somewhat similar to the recent case before Datuk Hishamudin Yunus in the High Court relating to the Ayer Molek case).

Thirdly, did the second tribunal against five Supreme Court judges (of whom I was one) err in law in granting exparte leave to Salleh's application through his counsel (Raja Aziz Addruse, a former chairman of the Bar Council) to challenge in court the constitutionality and legality of Salleh's tribunal?"
(more of the article and Walski's thoughts in the full post)

Further, Tan Sri Azmi asserts that a review will allow the restoration of the separation of powers (between the executive, judiciary and legislative branches of government) as stipulated in the 1957 Merdeka Constitution. He also indicates that whatever amendments made to give more powers to the Executive branch of government need to be anulled, and that the original 1957 constitution be restored.

The Extra! pull-out also carries an editorial piece by Jacqueline Ann Surin on the disappointment of Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz's adamant refusal to review the 1988 judicial dismissals.

"I do not think a lapse of 18 years should be considered as too late to bring the whole matter in the open."

But perhaps the most compelling statement made by the former judge is the second part to the quote associated with the picture above: "It is never too late to discover the truth because without truth there can be no justice".

And as the de facto Minister of Law, Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz should ponder these words from the former judge, rather than brazenly dismissing any call for a review, as he has been doing. There is definitely no expiry date for uncovering the truth. And in the end, the truth may not be something pretty, but we the nation, and those involved with the 1988 need to know.

It is something owed to us, you might say.

Closure, as some would call it. Without that closure, the ghosts surrounding the 1988 Judicial Crisis will forever linger in our nation's political closet, playmate to the many skeletons already frolicking in the abyss of Malaysia's young history.

Walski's totally unrelated music trivia bit for the day: The title of this post, "Exorcising Ghosts", was taken from the title of the 2002 'best of' compilation from a group called Japan, a glam-turned-avant-garde British rock group from the late-70s / early-80s. Japan, in terms of music genres, is considered part of the so-called "New Romantics" movement, and comprised of David Sylvian, Mick Karn, Steve Jansen, Richard Barbieri and Rob Dean.

Perhaps not known to most Malaysians, Japan was a seminal influence to a number of later groups, and has actually been regarded by many a music critic as the basis for the initial sound of another New Romantics group, Duran Duran (although never quite admitted by them).

Click here for the full post......

The skinny on the fashionista frenzy...

Technorati tags: Humor, Fashion, Models, Skinny, Fashionistas

The picture you see on the right is from the cover of the print edition of The Sun, which Walski picked up this morning on the way to work. The online edition (free registration required), of course, was something totally different. Our skinny model, it seems, was deposed - kinda like how Thanksin was. Actually, it was because of Thaksin getting the boot.

In any case, to put the pix into perspective, earlier this week, Madrid (the city, not the football club) imposed a ban on skinny models participating in Spain's top fashion show (as reported by Reuters). And there is a great possibility that Milan and London may soon follow suit in imposing similar bans.

The picture is from a report in The Sun stating that India has "joined in the chorus" of denying their ultra-svelte models from sashaying down the runways - Walski couldn't find the article from The Sun anywhere online, but instead found a very similar article, as reported in The Dominican Today (as in the country, not the Catholic order) .

Already, the fashionistas in Milan are trembling in fear (and not from low blood sugar) that this ban, already called for by the city's mayor, may soon be imposed.

What's the big fuss, you ask?

Well, for a number of years now, several health and feminist organizations have raised concerns about the growing trend of these ultra-skinny models being role-models for young girls, who are willing to starve themselves to attain the similar svelte, skinny look, often found in fashion and teen magazines worldwide.

Probably a good move by the fashion world, from the perspective of health, at least. But Walski cringes to think of the extreme alternative to these super-svelte beauties.
(terrifying alternatives, and more, in the full post)

Not the model alternative Walski has in mind...
(and not meant to offend fat people either)

The other extreme of the weighscale argument is, of course, obesity, which is a growing problem worldwide, Malaysia included. Walski doesn't know about you, but have you noticed that there are a lot, lot more obese Malaysian kids these days? Well, these cute over-sized cherubs will probably just grow up to be over-sized, obese adults. Complete with all the accompanying health risks, at no extra charge.

Walski's rude aside: And by the way, for you perverts out there, there are very, very few things that are more disgusting (not to mention degrading) than obese porn... yecchh!! Don't click the link if you're squeemish, or just had a meal. Don't say you haven't been warned...

Now, of course, the fashion world won't start going the other extreme. Or at least Walski hopes not. But there is a lot of truth to the fact that the ultra-skinny, waif-like, and frankly, not very healthy looking models, aren't the what the young lasses should emulate. Walski found an interesting blog post that talks about the relationship between young female self-image, dieting and the influence of skinny supermodels. While this problem is not that prevalent (yet) here in Malaysia, it certainly is a concern elsewhere in the world.

And what the fashion and media worlds is being called upon to promote, instead, is the naturally lean and healthy-looking sort of beauty - a look which doesn't need anorexia, bulemia or any other eating disorders to achieve.

Parents, however, bear much of the responsibility for how their kids feel about themselves. Some parents tend to go overboard when criticizing their children, particularly the girls, about how they're not as good looking as so-and-so's daughter, or not as slim, or not as smart... sound familiar?

And then there's the other extreme - parents who love their children by feeding them to death - literally. Unconditional love is one thing, force-feeding is another kettle of deep-fried fish altogether. If your kid says he or she is full, he or she probably is.

Of course, there's also the exhorbitant amount of sugar in our typical Malaysian diet (with the Malays in particular). That, and the increasingly prevalent culture of processed food over-dependence, is driving our population to the heavier side of life. Walski just hopes that come 2020, his vision won't be obscured by all the fat people we're probably gonna have if were not conscious enough of how we feed our faces...

In any case, the main reason the fashionistas are throwing frantic hissy-fits is because this latest move by the fashion capitals is going to really screw up their plans for the coming months.

But between appeasing the fashionistas, or towards a healthier self-image, Walski figures the choice is probably a no-brainer... (sly, subtle and mean pun intended).

Click here for the full post......

Coup d'etat a la Thai

Technorati tags: Politics, Coup d'Etat, Thailand, Music, Level 42

Walski apologizes for being a little tardy with the posts these past few days, but other pressing matters have forced myAsylum to take a back seat...

The incredibly wonderful thing about music is that there will always be something appropriate for any occassion.

Coup d'Etat by Level 42

Click ► to play
(For your listening pleasure
while reading this post)

Several international news agencies have confirmed that Prime Miniter Thaksin Shinawatra has been deposed in a quick, quiet and militarily non-violent coup last night, and this has also been diligently reported by many in the Malaysian bloggerhood.

The exact whereabouts of Thaksin is not known, but it has been reported that he did cut short his appearance at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City this week. According to Al-Jazeera, Thaksin plans to visit his family, currently in London, and indicated that he is not abdicating his post as Prime Minister.

Earlier, it was reported that all international news channels had temporarily been taken off the air during the coup. The leadership of the armed forces instead broadcast that it had taken control of Bangkok and declared marshall law. In addition, the armed forces also mentioned that (emphasis by myAsylum):

"We ask for the co-operation of the public and ask your pardon for the inconvenience"

which, to Walski, was a very nice touch, so politely and uniquely Thai!

Meanwhile, BBC's latest report (at 4:43pm Malaysia Time today) indicated that Gen Sonthi Boonyaratglin, leader of the miltary coup that deposed Thaksin, has announced that the military has no intention to hold on to power and has indicated a period of two weeks.

In a press conference today, the general said that an interim prime minister would be named in 2 weeks, and that new elections would be called in a year's time, once a new and permenant constituion was put in place. The general said that the coup was carried in line with the Thai people's wishes and blamed "government mismanagement", forcing the military-led action.

The general indicated that the coup leaders were considering a suitable candidate for the post of interim Prime Minister. A new national assembly would also be appointed, with the prime responsibility being to draft the new constitution.
(Walki's thoughts on this in the full post)

Military coups in Thailand are, of course, nothing new. However, this is the first time in about 15 years that the military has stepped in. Thailand is unique in that the people rally around the King, more than around the government itself. Even the military had to get the King's blessings before going ahead with the coup.

Regionally, markets were a little shaken by the developments in Thailand, but the jitters have since subsided since the coup was carried out without firing a single shot. Walski admires the restraint that the military exercised in carrying out the take-over, and hopes that the transition back to democratic rule will be as smooth.

Walski sees the action as a case where the Thai people could no longer take the Thaksin government's BS. Of the other regional governments, it appears that Indonesia is the one that's looking at the developments very closely.

Like Thailand, Indonesia too has a very vocal and powerful military, and have, in the past, been active in that nations' political landscape.

And if the dissatisfaction with our own government grows - what then?

In Walski's view, the situation here in Malaysia is quite different, and as much as there is dissatisfaction with the incumbent government, our democratic process is still in relative working order. Sure, there are kinks in the machinery of democracy, but for the most part, that machinery still works. And let's hope that it continues to work, for many, many years to come.

We, as citizens, should never take for granted the parliamentary democracy that Malaysia practices, and must reject any moves to make Malaysia any less democratic than it currently is. What we have today may not be a perfect democracy, but it sure as hell is better than not having a democracy at all..

Click here for the full post......

PAS: Political mileage on re-threads...

Technorati tags: Politics, Religion, Pope, Apology, Islam, Christianity

Related posts:
► For some, enough is never Enough
► Losing context in a troubled world

Inadvertently, PAS (Parti Islam Semalaysia, or the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party) provides us with entertainment in ways they didn't intend to. In a statement that Walski can only describe as unnecessary and almost comical, Harakah, PAS' mouthpiece came out with this entertaining headliner:

Pope didesak tarik balik ucapan, letak jawatan
Insist that the Pope must retract his speech, or resign

Walski doesn't have time this morning to translate the piece, but the gist is that PAS does not accept the Pope's apology (of course, speaking in a voice for all Muslims), and that the Pope must withdraw the entire speech, or resign!

But from reading the news article, two things become obvious. First, nobody in the PAS supreme council has read the speech in its entirety. Secondly, this statement was issued for no other reason than political mileage.

Another article from the same newspaper, this time with the PAS head-honcho claiming that the Pope has a hidden agenda (article is in Bahasa Malaysia). More broken-record same 'ol, same 'ol...

It just makes Walski wonder, with this sort of knee-jerk, third-world stupidity, who in their right mind would even consider these buffoons to lead the country? Sadly, their target demographic are so clueless to the world outside their own, that many will buy into this political rhetoric, and actually uphold these jokers as defenders of the faith.

And you wonder why the Islamic world is in the state it is today...

Click here for the full post......

Losing context in a troubled world

Technorati tags: Religion, Islam, Context, Meaning, Commentary

The world over, violence or threats of violence, seems to be the path of choice some Muslims have taken to express themselves.

Walski wants to make this very clear - Islam is not about violence. Nor does Islam advocate aggression. It is a religion of peace. Unfortunately, it is beautiful religion that has been made very ugly by those "Muslims" who are bent on doing attrocious things in God's name.

There are enemies of Islam, that much is true. There are those who would misinterpret portions of the Quran to illustrate how Islam promotes violence. Walski doesn't deny the existence of such people. But looking at the world around him, Walski sometimes believes that some Muslims themselves have become Islams worst enemy - the way they behave, and the way violence is nonchalantly used to express themselves. The value of life, it seems, becomes secondary to fervor.

It is always easier to blame others, rather than to be introspective and analyze one's shortcomings. That, after all, is part human nature. An ugly part, but a part of what makes us humans, nevertheless.

In some cases, Muslims are even willing to kill each other in pursuit of laying claim that one group is more "Islamic" than the other. This news report just came in this evening (via Al-Jazeerah):

Yet more mayhem in an Islamic land

Somalia, of course, has been a civil-war wonderland since around 1969, and at present doesn't really have a government to speak of (Wikipedia has a rather good low-down on the country). And the power struggle continues until this day. The country is predominantly Muslim, by the way.

The alleged perpretrators of the bomb blast, according to the news report, are fighters loyal to the Islamic Court Union (ICU), whom have recently taken over the capital Mogadishu, and is reported to be gaining support. The current interim President, the target of the attack, has no power to speak of. The blast is reported to have killed several people (6 according to Reuters, 8 by CNN's count), but the President and some members of his government within the motorcade, have been reported to survive the incident unscathed.

Somalia is also where an Italian nun was gunned down a few days ago, suspected to be as a result of Pope Benedict's remarks which sparked a worldwide furor.

Meanwhile in London, a lawyer and known vocal extremist, has called for the execution of the Pope. Anjem Choudary was quoted to have said "The Muslims take their religion very seriously and non-Muslims must appreciate that and that must also understand that there may be serious consequences if you insult Islam and the prophet." This is the same person supposedly involved with inciting violence during the Danish cartoons protests some months back.

Two examples, just within the span of 24 hours. Walski could probably quote numerous other examples, but it would be pointless, really. The fact is that many Muslims believe the way they carry themselves, in the name of Islam, is beyond reproach. And whatever is done in the name of Islam, no matter how heinous, cannot be challenged.

It is this sort of mindset that is the bane of Islam today. The press and media, of course, laps it all up because sensationalism sells.
(more criticism and thoughts in the full post)

One might argue that this negative portrayal is a concerted effort by the West and West-controlled media to paint a negative picture of Islam. Perhaps there is some truth to this. But don't forget that the news media of today thrives on sensationalism and controversy. Minus the death threats, Choudary would be nothing more than just an irate Muslim, not quite worth reporting.

The old adage applies, however: there never is smoke without fire.

And those Muslims who choose to act violently or threaten and incite violence, in the name of Islam, aren't doing Islam any favors by acting in the manner they do either. All they're achieving is giving credence to the accusations that Islam is a violent religion.

Walski believes that there are many factors contributing to this sort of bad behavior. For one thing, the opinion that a more hardline Islam is the "true" Islam seems to have currency within some quarters. Like any other scripture, certain verses in the Quran could be interpreted in various ways, some even interpreted as inciting violence, if taken out of context.

But like any book, these excerpts must be taken within the context of the underlying and over-riding themes - peace, justice and peity to God alone.

The Quran is not unique in this respect - any scripture taken out of context of the underlying message can be distorted to ends suited to a cause du jour. Those who prescribe portions of scripture to fit a certain cause, often tend to deviate from the true teachings of that scripture and religion.

Many attrocities in the history of man have been justified on the basis of religion. Both Christianity and Islam, for example, have been guilty, at some points in time, for using their respective religions as the basis of persecution and morally wrong acts of man.

And in today's age of rationality, it is the concept of context that appears to be missing from the mindset of those who choose religion as a means to rally their brethren into a frenzy of hate. This visible phenomenon that beseiges Islam today, is not unique to Islam, although it is visibly prevalent in current times within the Islamic community.

One area that has become totally beyond reproach, concerns the prophet Muhammad.

No one will deny that Muhammad was a great man, chosen by God to deliver HIS final revelation to mankind. But even the Quran itself will atest, that in the final analysis, Muhammad was just a mere mortal, like you and I - flesh and blood. Muslims, in fact, should revere all of God's prophets, and the Quran tells us specifically that there is no distinction in rank between them (surah 2 verse 136, and surah 3 verse 84).

But the kind of reverence that most Muslims give Muhammad today, in certain instances, goes beyond that which is due to another great mortal. It has almost become borderline deification, where Muhammad has become a person who was, in his lifetime, totally infallible and sinless.

The Quran, in fact relates an instance where Muhammad is admonished by God, for concealing a particular revelation, in fear of offending his people:

Surah Al-Ahzab (surah 33), verse 37

(Yusof Ali translation) Behold! Thou didst say to one who had received the grace of Allah and thy favour: "Retain thou (in wedlock) thy wife, and fear Allah." But thou didst hide in thy heart that which Allah was about to make manifest: thou didst fear the people, but it is more fitting that thou shouldst fear Allah. Then when Zaid had dissolved (his marriage) with her, with the necessary (formality), We joined her in marriage to thee: in order that (in future) there may be no difficulty to the Believers in (the matter of) marriage with the wives of their adopted sons, when the latter have dissolved with the necessary (formality) (their marriage) with them. And Allah's command must be fulfilled.

In other words, Muhammad made a boo-boo. But these days, to even suggest that Muhammad was not infallible will probably attract the ire of many Muslims, despite what the Quran has to say.

And perhaps it is within this context that it can be understood why any mention of Muhammad in a way even the slightest bit uncomplementary, evokes such wrath from (most) Muslims the world over.

For those Muslims who choose violence as a means towards an end, though, perhaps it is time to reassess the true context of Islam and what it means to be a Muslim.

Because when context is lost, meaning tends to get obscured....

Click here for the full post......

For some, enough is never Enough

Technorati tags: Politics, Religion, Pope, Apology, Islam, Christianity

There comes a point when enough is enough. An lapse of discretion has been acknowledged and an apology has been offered - twice.

The following article is from The Star today: apparently the apologies made by Pope Benedict XVI, the first via a press statement, and the second, a personal apology during his public appearance after returning to Italy, are still not enough.

Is this an attempt to get more political mileage to the gallon?

It takes a certain amount of humility and courage to publicly apologize. The pontiff, being in a position such as he is, as head of the Catholic Church, has shown that he has both attributes, which is a lot more than most Malaysian politicians can claim to have.

Some Muslim leaders, it appears, want more. Some want a retraction, and some even more than that. How do you retract something originally said by a medieval Byzantine emperor, but was merely repeated and used (albeit carelessly) to make a point, whose context has now been totally lost in the hysteria that has since enveloped the Islamic world?

Already, much violence has been committed because of these remarks, with churches being firebombed in the Palestinian territories, killing a nun in Somalia, a fatwa calling for the death of Pope Benedict (issued by a Somali cleric), vows of suicide attacks on the Pope...

Are these so-called Muslims trying to prove the Pope's original assertion right?

Part of the bigger picture the Pope the pope was trying to convey was the rejection of violence in the name of religion - not Islam specifically - but any religion. In the ensuing hysteria, the context of the speech, it seems, has been lost.

Some people, it seems, prefer to not see the forest for the trees. And for what? Political mileage, it would appear, more than their love for Islam, a religion that preaches peace and calls for humans to reason, not act without thinking.

Apologies have been offered. Let's move on with life, people.

Click here for the full post......

The virtues of labels and labelling

Technorati tags: Humor, Rebuttal, Labels, Religion, Hamburgers

Labels and labelling are generally good things. And we all indulge in labelling, from time to time.

Labels help differentiate, for instance, a bottle of white vinegar and a bottle of kerosene, failing which you might read a newspaper headline like "Sweet and Sour Chicken Dish Spontaneously Combusts". Or something awesomely fiery like that.

For the colorblind, labelling helps a person choose between crossing an intersection safely and getting mowed down by oncoming traffic, by observing the WALK and DON'T WALK labels, rather than relying on the lights alone. This, of course, assumes that the crosswalk is not somewhere in Malaysia.

Labels are also frequently used to characterize people, by their perceived behavior or personality. You may label somebody stupid, for instance, because that someone got mowed down by oncoming traffic despite knowing that the light displayed DON'T WALK. But this sort of labelling, of course, requires a certain amount of conjecture, because the someone could have been colorblind and illiterate, and you simply assumed he or she was stupid.

And so when Walski gets labelled as heretic, lunatic or infidel, as some self-righteous folk do from time-to-time, it doesn't bother him much, because after they are just labels, and the person(s) who labelled Walski as such, don't know Walski, and are therefore just acting in a manner, best described as dumb. The person(s) may, or may not, actually be dumb, it's merely that they behave that way. Besides, Walski doesn't know these idiots personally, so who cares, really.
(more manic labelling in the full post)

Labels, in addition, are relative. For instance, an idiot with the IQ of 69 may consider someone the IQ of 75 a genius, whereas the standard IQ chart would label both of these individuals as "a few fries short of a Happy Meal" (okay, the actual terminologies are Defective and Borderline, respectively, on the Wechsler scale) .

In fact, the way we perceive the world around us is relative. Like the way we perceive good or evil. Mawi, to some, maybe the best thing to hit the Malaysian entertainment scene since karaoke. To Walski, Mawi is evil - albeit from a music perspective. Evil in the true sense would be Barney; Mawi is simply irritating.

What's also irritating is how certain people choose to label those that don't agree with their views as evil, or hypocritical, or deviant. Just because they think their views are the only valid ones. This happens a lot when it comes to religion.

As an example, take the case of a certain individual named Abdullah from Penang, replying to an earlier post on this blog. To Abdullah, the conservative Islamic view is the only valid view. Anyone with differing viewpoints, to Abdullah, would be considered anti-Islam, a heretic, a hypocrite, etc. - to enter into a discourse with these sorts of infidels would just be too much a stretch of his logical capacity, and therefore not worth the effort.

This would be analogous to saying any hamburger, other than from McDonalds, is an abomination and an insult to hamburger eaters everywhere. Walski prefers the ones from Burger King, by the way. That must make Walski the worst burger heretic on planet earth, using Abdullah from Penang's logic.

And what's most irritating about this is that while Burger King makes excellent burgers, their french fries are pretty raunchy. The ones from McDonalds are a lot better. Which only goes to prove that both hamburger joints complement each other, and both have a right to exist. And add to the problem of junk food prevalence - but that's an entirely different story.

But back to Abdullah from Penang. To him, labels are important because otherwise he might just accidentally douse his salad with kerosene. And labels also help him identify with those who think like he does, and those that don't. The last thing Abdullah would want, probably, is to accidentally engage himself in a discourse with a burger heretic.

Labels and labelling have been with mankind, in some shape or form, since even before the invention of canned foods, and Walski expects that their use will continue for many, many years to come. Without labels, life would simply be too mundane.

So, feel free to label Walski however you see fit - you're entitled to make your life as exciting as you want it to be. And labels help.

Click here for the full post......