He loves me, he loves me not...

Technorati tags: Humor, Politics, Ibrahim Ali, Perkasa, P. Kamalanathan, BN

One day he’s feeling like he’s a superman, but today Ibrahim “Frog Prince” Ali must be feeling like a rejected lover, having been dumped in the worst of ways…

He loves me…

He loves me not…
(180 degree rotation, and more, in the full post)

And if that wasn’t bad enough, to add insult to injury:

Najib snubs Perkasa’s demand to punish Chinese voters
(via The Malaysian Insider)

Datuk Seri Najib Razak issued a clear warning to all quarters to never dispute Barisan Nasional’s (BN) promises to voters, snubbing the demands by Malay rights group Perkasa’s demands to punish the Chinese who voted for their foes in the Hulu Selangor by-election.

The prime minister also proved that his administration would not allow itself to be held to ransom by the group when he fulfilled one of his primary pledges to the Chinese community of Rasa by giving the promised RM3 to rebuild SRJK (Cina) Rasa at his office here this afternoon.

Granted that Najib is not Walski’s favorite person in the world, but it’s nice to see a Malaysian political leader quick to honor his word for a change. It’ll be interesting to see what the rest of UMNO has to say about this snub.

It’ll also be interesting to see what Froggy’s comeback will be.

It's been said that politics makes for strange bedfellows - Walski reckons that it makes for a lot of one-night stands, too!

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

The Sour Grapes of Wrath

Technorati tags: Hulu Selangor, P94 Result, By Election

Unless you’ve been hibernating the last 24 hours, you’ll probably know that BN’s P. Kamalanathan won the P94 Hulu Selangor parliamentary seat, with a majority of 1,725 votes, in a final tally of 24,997 votes, versus 23,272 for PR/PKR.

A win, as they say is a win, although not quite by the margin-KPI that Deputy PM Muhyiddin Yasin predicted (via The Malaysian Insider). Nowhere close, in fact, to the 6,000 vote margin promised. Take away the postal votes (unofficially reported by Malaysian Digest via Twitter as 767 for BN), we’re talking about just around a mere 1,000 vote majority on the ground.

It’s also not known what actual significance the announced KPI has, or whether Muhyiddin would face any consequence for not meeting it. Things being the way they are, however, Walski thinks that it won’t count for squat.

PM Najib stated that the results showed a “swing-back to BN” (via The Malaysian Insider). Perhaps. But with everything plus the kitchen sink thrown in during the run-up – multi-million ringgit promises of development, RM 50,000 pre-payment for each ex-FELDA settler (impeccable timing as usual), among other goodies – it would’ve been disastrous if the result had not been in favor of Barisan.

It’s no wonder, therefore, that yesterday’s exercise has been labeled by some a “buy-election”.

Which begs the question – all things considered, exactly how much was gained by BN?
(BN gains, PR losses, and more, in the full post)

One of the most succinct comments Walski came across last night, after the results were announced, came from fellow blogger-turned-Tweeter Aisehman.

And Walski would have to agree – it was a win for BN, no doubt, but by no means was it an astounding or impressive one. And while it was a loss for Pakatan Rakyat, it was a respectable loss.

As has been the case with recent by-elections, Twitter, has featured prominently as a means of disseminating up-to-the-moment information of the goings on during the Hulu Selangor by-election yesterday.

The biggest winner yesterday has to be the people of Hulu Selangor, and not any one of the competing parties. What with all the development goodies promised and all. Provided, of course, BN lives up to their promises.

Online news and analysis portal, The Nut Graph, made a list of the campaign promises made during the run up to the by-election yesterday. Bookmark the webpage for a quick future reference guide, to see exactly what gets delivered and what remain promises.

It should be noted that winning candidate P. Kamalanathan’s mission is to now, by his own admission, to ensure that whatever promises made are kept (emphasis by myAsylum).

Speaking to reporters after the result was announced, the MIC information chief also vowed not to let down the voters.

“This victory is not mine. It belongs to Najib, (deputy prime minister) Muhyiddin Yassin, (MIC president S) Samy Vellu, MCA, Gerakan and all the friends of BN,” he said.

An elated Kamalanathan, 44, also said that he was touched that the people of Hulu Selangor had placed their faith in him.

“I would fulfill my responsibilities and all the election promises,” he added, pledging to work hard in order to serve his constituents.

Kamalanathan also said that he would make good on his promise to move to Hulu Selangor should he win.

“I would look into it as soon as I can. I would also meet all the voters whether they voted for me or not," he added.
(source: Free Malaysia Today)

One interesting comment made by Najib, as reported by The Malaysian Insider, was his take on how the Hulu Selangor constituents took to the campaign.

Najib, who is also Umno president and BN chairman, said the victory also meant that the residents of Hulu Selangor also rejected the opposition’s politicking ways.

“It means that if they (opposition) spread lies and slander, the voters know which is true and which is false.”
(source: The Malaysian Insider)

This, of course, begs another question – what if it’s lies and slander spread by BN? Are these okay, and to be believed?

Najib is either blind, or simply ignoring the fact that, apart from the pork-barreling promises, mudslinging and character assassination were the defining characteristics of BN’s campaign on the ground. And this tactic certainly worked in the FELDA areas, the voting demographic that PR could not win over.

Well, be that as it may, it’s all by now done and dusted, and Pakatan Rakyat accepts the defeat. It’s now time to prepare for the next “buy-election” by-election, this time in Sibu, Sarawak, in roughly about 3 weeks’ time.

It’s been said that it’s okay to lose, but don’t lose the lesson (supposedly a quote from the Dalai Lama). And Walski is sure that Pakatan has a lot to learn from the Hulu Selangor by-election loss.

And what of Zaid Ibrahim? It is human nature to make sour grape statements after a disappointing loss such as the one experienced by him and Pakatan yesterday, respectable a loss as it may have been. He is, after all, human.

“(Prime Minister Najib Razak) came to Hulu Selangor with RM67 million to spend,” he said, saying that BN won because they bought voters.

He added that the Election Commission was also party to this offence because it turned a blind eye to BN's 'corrupt' practices.

“Buying votes in daylight and in the dark have become accepted as halal,” he said while BN supporters celebrated by lighting fireworks outside the stadium.

Zaid also described the by-election as the “dirtiest and most corrupt” in Malaysian history.
(source: Malaysiakini, subscription required)

Sour these grapes of wrath may be, but one cannot deny the elements of truth – Hulu Selangor, as by-elections go, was a campaign hinged upon BN resorting to dredging up nastiness anyway it could.

Zaid, dejected as he may be, has indicated (in the same report), that yesterday’s loss doesn’t mean he won’t continue fighting for reforms in the country. And that is exactly the kind of spirit Pakatan needs to soldier on.

But this fighting spirit needs to be coupled with lessons thoroughly learned from the Hulu Selangor experience. The question now, though, is whether or not these lessons can be learned in time for Sibu – another fight, for another day…

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

Political Mud Pie

Technorati tags: Politics, Hulu Selangor, P94, Parliamentary By-Election

From the word “GO”, Barisan Nasional’s campaign in the Hulu Selangor P94 parliamentary by-election has been more about how much dirt they can throw at Pakatan Rakyat’s candidate Zaid Ibrahim.

BN’s campaign has not been about issues that affect the people of Hulu Selangor, per se, but personal attacks against Zaid, and the fear/hate-mongering against Pakatan Rakyat. And as is the usual standard, the promise of development money, should BN win.

There’s no doubt, however, that this by-election is extremely important to both BN and Pakatan Rakyat, evidenced by the involvement by top guns from both sides of the political equation.

There’s no doubt in Walski’s mind that this by-election is a referendum, of sorts, and the outcome of today’s polling will be an indication of what GE 13 (13th General Election) will be like.

And by all reckoning, the outcome is predicted to be close. 
(slinging mud pies, and more, in the full post)

It’s interesting to note that the campaigning online, particularly from those blogs/websites friendly to UMNO/BN have focused on attacking Zaid Ibrahim, and other Pakatan luminaries, personally. For example, the following blogs: ParpuKari, Gerakan Anti-PKR, and The Unspinners.

Contrast this against the usually Pakatan-friendly blogs, such as Perisik Rakyat®. It has been said, however, that what these BN-friendly fellers are doing is essentially giving Pakatan a taste of their own medicine, referring to the PR-friendlies own share of mudslinging during the last General Elections.

Well, in Walski’s book, two wrongs don’t make a right (although 3 rights do make a left), and by using this kind of excuse, it doesn’t do much in the credibility department.

Polling started early today with all stations starting their ballot-casting bright and early at 8am. With about slightly less than 3 hours to go, The Malaysian Insider reports (via Twitter) that 56.82% (or 36.650 voters) have cast their ballots. So far Walski has not seen any exit polls, but a straw poll conducted by TMI indicates that Zaid Ibrahim is the favored candidate.

We’ll just have to wait a few more hours to find out for sure, when the polls close at 5pm, and counting begins an hour later at 6pm.

Walski will not make any prediction – for him it’s too close to call. But the results will tell us whether the Malaysian hinterland voters are mature enough to see through the fluff, or whether holier-than-thou rhetoric and pork-barrel promises still hold sway (via ARTiculations).

For many, the Hulu Selangor by-elections is a lot more than just P. Kamalanathan vs. Zaid Ibrahim. It has been a political mud pie fest for sure, but more than that, seen to be a proxy fight between Najib and Anwar.

And in a few hours time, we'll know for sure who gets their just desserts.

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

An Endangered Icon

Technorati tags: Tiger, Tiger Blogfest 2010, Earth Day, Malayan Tiger

As you may have noticed, for the past several weeks one of the “causes” that Walski’s listed on the sidebar has been the Tiger Blogfest 2010, an awareness campaign that this blog has committed itself to participate in.

Well, that campaign is ongoing this week, and Walski’s bad – he totally missed posting his contribution on Monday, April 19th, like he was supposed to.

But, he makes up for it today, April 22nd, Earth Day, which as it turns out, is a day designated to “inspire awareness and appreciation” for this planet’s environment. And one small part of this planet’s environment – namely our nation – is home to a very important animal – the Malayan Tiger.

Now you might be wondering – what is the big deal about this particular animal, and why we should care? 

Well, for one thing, the Malayan Tiger is an endangered species, with only about a few hundred of them believed to remain in the wild.

But for Walski there is another very important reason – the Tiger is an important part of our national heritage, without which, some things we normally take for granted wouldn’t make any sense whatsoever.
(logos, insignias, and tall tiger tales, in the full post)

First off – anyone bothered to look at Malaysia’s Coat of Arms lately? Well, if you’re like Walski, who’s been a tad busy coping with work and life in general, the answer would probably be ‘No’.

Well, no matter. The current version of the Coat of Arms is shown on the right (for older versions see this post at the __earthinc).

The tiger appears not once, but twice on our coat of arms, signifying just how important an icon the big cat is. Walski didn’t really have the time to research exactly why the tiger was used on the Malaysian CoA, but he does know that it has been a permanent feature since the days of the Federated Malay States, way back in 1895.

Obviously, back then there were a lot more of these large cats roaming around in the wild. And there was a lot more wild back then, too. But can you imagine if it were some other animal that was featured? The coat of arms would certainly not have the same oomph if, say, a buffalo were on there, would it?

Perhaps it’s the elegant fierceness of the tiger that invited itself to be immortalized as an important part of the national insignia.

And then, of course, there’s the national car company, Proton.

The tiger is now also part of the iconic emblem redesigned, if Walski’s memory serves, in 2007 as part of our 50th Merdeka celebrations.

Now, say what you like about the automobiles Proton produces, but Walski does like the new logo.

And the reason for that is undoubtedly the stylized tiger that emblazons it.

Again, it would be a totally different logo if any other animal were to be used. It just had to be the sleek and elegant tiger, no equal.

Another iconic business entity that’s truly Malaysian is, of course, Maybank. And guess what that financial house uses as its logo? Yup, you guessed it – the tiger.

The examples Walski’s mentioned here are but a few more prominent ones featuring our beloved large cat. We could also mention products like Tiger Beer and Tiger Balm (obviously), which actually have the feline’s name as part of the respective product brand names.

You might protest to say that both products actually come from Singaporean companies. And you would be absolutely right. Don’t forget, however, that once upon a time that island republic used to be part of Malaysia, and therefore has a heritage that’s shared with us Malaysians.

Be that as it may, to Walski at least, Cow Beer and Elephant Balm somehow just would not sound right at all.

The imagery that the tiger evokes can take many forms, from a symbol of stealth and strength, to elegance, and even fierceness. All these are qualities that man has found in the large feline, known scientifically as the Panthera tigris malayensis, in Malaysia, and as the Panthera tigris jacksoni elsewhere (due to a controversial name-change).

Many people, however, probably will experience fear when the tiger is mentioned. Yes, like any other predatory animal, the tiger has been known to attack humans. But these are very rare occasions, and usually due to the tiger’s territory having been encroached upon, typically because of uncontrolled jungle-clearing. Imagined if your home were one day bulldozed – you’d probably be pretty pissed off, too.

Before he ends this post, allow Walski to indulge in a little bit of story-telling.

Many years ago, Walski had a sort of close encounter with a tiger in the wild. It was during a hiking expedition at Frazier’s Hills, way back in 1979. We won’t go into the details, but suffice it to say that Walski, with his siblings and a few cousins in tow, got a little lost hiking in them hills. We had followed a trail that supposedly would lead us back to a different part of the main road we had departed from.

Well, long story short, the trail took us deeper and deeper into the jungle. Walski made the decision to turn back and retrace our steps back to where we had come from because out of nowhere, he began to smell the unmistakable scent of urine – which meant that a tiger was lurking nearby. This is one of those things that his grandfather had told him once – that if you’re in the jungle and start to smell urine, it means that there’s a tiger nearby.

Okay, granted none of us actually saw the tiger that day, but in retrospect, the tiger’s presence actually helped us – because if it were not for the urine stench, Walski would have led our little group deeper and deeper into the jungle, and risk us getting totally, and perhaps disastrously, lost. He hates to admit it, but Walski can be stubborn like that sometimes.

Thinking about it the incident, in retrospect, it is exactly because of that (fortunately) unseen tiger that Walski is able to write this post celebrating this important national heritage – the fast disappearing iconic feline we know as the tiger.

So, this one’s dedicated to you, the iconic tiger – may your stripes forever roam the jungles of Malaysia, unmolested, until the end of time…

~ ~ ~ ~ o O o ~ ~ ~ ~

Happy Earth Day, Malaysia! And, for more information on how you can help with the preservation and protection of our national heritage, the tiger, visit The Malayan Tiger, in particular, their links page, where you can contact any of the numerous organizations listed there. The tiger needs your help for its survival, and every little bit helps…

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

Coming to terms - Season 46

Technorati tags: Reflections, Birthday, Season 46, NIN

Thanks for all the birthday wishes via SMS, Twitter & Facebook – yes, yesterday was the start of season 46 of Walski’s personal reality show, so to speak.

He’ll keep this post short & sweet. In fact, Walski will let Trent Reznor do most of the talking.

For some, this song (featured in NIN’s 2005 “With Teeth”), is depressing. But for Walski, it’s about coming to terms with one’s self, and the realization that as we traverse this thing called life, our mission is to better ourselves.

Always. 
(at peace, and more, in the full post)

Well, simply put, Walski has come to terms with what he is, and for the first time in a very long while, at peace with himself. But he knows that he can always do better, and be a better person, and in that respect, continues trying to outdo himself.

And so starts season 46 – hopefully the best season yet. But with better ones to come beyond that…

~ ~ ~ o ( O ) o ~ ~ ~

For you kareoke-types, or for those who can’t fully make out what Trent’s singing, here are the lyrics:

Right Where It Belongs - Nine Inch Nails

See the animal in his cage that you built
Are you sure what side you're on?
Better not look him too closely in the eye
Are you sure what side of the glass you are on?
See the safety of the life you have built
Everything where it belongs
Feel the hollowness inside of your heart
And it's all...
Right where it belongs

What if everything around you
Isn't quite as it seems?
What if all the world you think you know
Is an elaborate dream?
And if you look at your reflection
Is it all you want it to be?
What if you could look right through the cracks?
Would you find yourself...
Find yourself afraid to see?

What if all the world's inside of your head
Just creations of your own?
Your devils and your gods
All the living and the dead
And you're really all alone?
You can live in this illusion
You can choose to believe
Keep on looking but you can't find the woods
While you're hiding in the trees

What if everything around you
Isn't quite as it seems?
What if all the world you used to know
Is an elaborate dream?
And if you look at your reflection
Is it all you want to be?
What if you could look right through the cracks
Would you find yourself...
Find yourself afraid to see?
(taken from www.sing365.com)

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

Rising Up to the Beat of a Younger drum

Technorati tags: Music, Activism, Youth, Bangkit

All things considered, Malaysia is a young-ish country, with about 88% of the population below the age of 55 [source: International Data Base (IDB) of the U.S. Census Bureau]. That being the case, you’d think that formulated national policies would cater for this major demographic, wouldn’t you?

Well, to be fair, that is indeed the case, to a certain extent. But do the policymakers really know what their young-ish demographics really aspire? More importantly, do the policymakers realize that the younger set actually DO care?

Waking up the young 'uns...

Hence, the creation of Bangkit – a youthful initiative for the youth’s voices to be heard. And in a way only the youthful can appreciate…
(what they’re about, their theme song, and more, in the full post)

So what’s Bangkit all about? Rather than Walski paraphrasing, he decided to use information taken from their FAQ – the 10 Must-know things about Bangkit.

It’s an initiative targeted primarily at those 30 and younger (unfortunately, Walski’s way past that age), to promote political awareness within this demographic, through the use of music. To-date there are already a couple of important initiatives in the pipeline.

The first is an effort to collect 100 DIY songs, from which 10 will ultimately be selected to be produced as the BANGKIT album CD – the first ever United Youth in Malaysian history. All one needs to do is e-mail them your music, in MP3 format, at jombangkit@gmail.com, together with an entry form that is downloadable here.

Oh, and they have a theme song, too.

Before the 100 songs get trimmed down to 10, there is a primary process of getting the best 20 songs before the final cut is made. Go to the Bangkit Song Gallery, and vote for which song you feel best expresses how you feel.

Personally, if Walski were younger than 30 he’d definitely contribute to this worthy effort. But he’s not, so he’s doing the next best thing – tell you folks about it. And you folks should tell your friends, who in turn… well, you get the drift.

So, what you waiting for? Jom Bangkit!

Walski's key-word translation footnote: ‘Bangkit’ is a Bahasa Malaysia word that means “wake up” or “rise up”. It’s use is a call to action for youth who are apathetic about what’s going on politically, because of the general feel that policy is made, and only caters to, citizens of a much older age group, to “wake up”, and to make their voices heard. They can make a big difference, and this initiative is a start. They are, after all, the future…

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

HENN: The PERKASA Mystery Clone

Technorati tags: Humor, HENN, Ibrahim Ali, Evil Twin, Clone

Does Ibrahim Ali Have an Evil Twin? 
myAsylum provides an exclusive finding pertaining to a well-known personality - reporting straight from Hell, and soon-to-be Hell-on-Earth, Malaysia. Another episode in the continuing series from the Hell-on-Earth News Network (HENN)

Recent evidence obtained from Malaysian online news site The Malaysian Insider indicates that the well-known defender of race and status quo malaise, Ibrahim Ali, just might have an evil twin.

In their report appearing earlier today, The Malaysian Insider published the following image to accompany their story about Perkasa making another insistence, this time pertaining to the proposed Inter-Faith Panel.

Image sourced from The Malaysian Insider

To the untrained eye, no anomaly would likely be noticed in the picture above – except, perhaps, for Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, who seemed to be enjoying the keris-waving activity a tad too much. Or, was he thinking that it was all a big joke? But that’s another mystery for another day.

But myAsylum’s intrepid squad of Cybernetic Remote Autonomous Para-roaches (CRAP), via their hyper-trained image processing and imagineering pixel espionage division, found something more sinister.

Could it be true that Ibrahim Ali has a clone? Or worse, an Evil Twin?
(the pixelated evidence, expervert commentary,  and more, in the full post)

Consider the following evidence, which is a blown-up portion of the same image shown above.

The resemblance is truly uncanny – is this Ibrahim Ali’s secret evil twin? And who’s more evil – him or his evil twin? And if Ibrahim is more evil, what exactly does that make him?

Another, even scarier, possibility was suggested to HENN – could Perkasa have secretly perfected human cloning?

This possibility, however, was dismissed by political industry analyst Sayfool ‘not THAT fool’ Bookhurry.

“We think the more plausible explanation is that all PERKASA members aspire to be just like Ibrahim Ali, including looking like him, if possible. He is after all their idol and icon. Plus, he’s the only guy allowed to wield a lethal weapon at the assembly – who wouldn’t want that?”

And why would members of PERKASA want to emulate the physicality of Ibrahim Ali?

“Most members see him as an intelligent, well-rounded, activist who’s committed to the cause of championing the rights of his race”, added Sayfool. “And so, the ideal in the membership’s mind is to not only emulate Ibrahim Ali in his unrelenting fervor, but also in how he looks. They sincerely believe that it is only in this way that they, too, may one day be able to wave kerises around”.

HENN could not obtain independent confirmation of this claim, but did get general consensus about Ibrahim Ali being “well-rounded”.

“Looking alike is an effective way to ensure that they are consistent”, Sayfool added further.

In researching this story, HENN also attempted to contact PERKASA to confirm whether or not any of these theories held water. However, all our efforts came to naught, as no one was willing to deny, or confirm, any of the possibilities.

The closest we got was a “No Comment” from one of the lower under-bellied secretaries, in the form of “I, I, I, I don’t think so”.

As with all the other incredible stories we’ve reported previously, HENN will be on top of this startling discovery, and will keep the general public updated.
(© 2010 - Hell-on-Earth News Network)

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

Poll Position: Bi-Polar Snapshot of Malaysia Today

Technorati tags: Opinion Poll, 1Malaysia, Poll Position, Poll Analysis

Departing from the usual commentary of myAsylum polls, this time we look at not one, but two poll results.

The first poll was announced on this blog earlier, and asked your view about what you thought the biggest challenge to achieving 1Malaysia would be.

The second one was more spur of the moment, via Twtpoll. And it was spur of the moment because it was triggered by a statement from our Deputy PM (via The Malaysian Insider).

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin (picture) said today that he considered himself a “Malay first,” and then only a Malaysian, in response to a challenge issued by DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang.

Lim had earlier this morning challenged Muhyiddin to state that he was Malaysian first, and Malay second to prove that he did indeed believe in the concept of 1 Malaysia which had been Barisan Nasional’s “unifying” slogan under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
(source: The Malaysian Insider)

Granted, this was later “clarified” by saying that he was a Malaysian at heart – yada, yada, yada… Which Walski can accept, but sometimes Freudian slips can be telling as well – what blurts out of your mouth first, no matter how unintentional, usually reflects more truth than more circumspect speech. Especially if you’re a politician.

In any case, on to the results.

The first poll had to do with the 1Malaysia concept – more specifically, what you thought would be the most likely factor that could derail it. 
(the results, the other poll, and more, in the full post)

Walski found the results interesting, although not entirely surprising.

Most people thought that Najib’s own party, UMNO, would be the most likely culprit to derail the 1Malaysia concept. This, perhaps, is based on the recent race-first rhetoric to come from key individuals within the party, like with Muhyiddin, among others.

But for Walski, personally, he thinks that the most likely folks potentially disastrous to 1Malaysia are the pressure groups, particularly Perkasa and the multitude of race/religion champion NGOs.

In fact, Walski would go as far to say that the real obstacle is both these two factors – UMNO and the pressure groups. The general perception is that UMNO – hence, BN, and thus the Government – panders just a tad too much to these pressure groups.

There were two respondents who provided their own factors, too. And in a way, the two responses kind of tie in with Walski’s supposition above, about UMNO and the pressure groups being the possible key factors:

• Islam as a religion of the Country
• all of the above

18% of the respondents thought that the attitude of ordinary Malaysians would play a part in derailing 1Malaysia, due to our obsession with race. Not surprising – asking what “race” someone is, is probably one of the first things many Malaysians ask someone they meet for the first time, especially if that someone can’t easily be compartmentalized visually.

One of the goals of 1Malaysia, similar to Mahathir’s Vision 2020, is Establishing a united Malaysian nation made up of one Bangsa Malaysia (via Wikipedia). To Walski, this means, more than anything else, to identify ourselves as Malaysians first, before our individual cultural identity or religion.

Which leads us to the results of the second survey, done via Twtpoll.

It’s heartening to note the results. Granted, as one of Walski’s Twitter friends commented, the results are likely skewed to reflect the opinion of those leaning more to the liberal side of things (Walski being what Walski is and all).

So, what do the results of these two polls really tell us?

Deep down, Walski personally thinks that there is a desire in each and every one of us to have a sense of real belonging to our nation, Malaysia.

That said, there are many challenges ahead of us before we can collectively stand up and be counted as Malaysians first and foremost. In a nutshell, these challenges emanate from the sociopolitical path that our nation has chosen to tread.

There are still too many self-interested parties out there whose aim in life is to be more exclusive than the rest, be it in terms of race/culture or religion, at the expense of excluding everyone else outside of their circle of self-interest.

Among those included in this category would be UMNO and the pressure groups to whom the party apparently panders to. Granted, there are numerous voices of reason within the party’s fold, but these voices tend to only be heard in private – with few notable exceptions, like Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, the veteran UMNO politician whose recent public opinions are somewhat surprising, but welcome.

In the public domain, the rhetoric of most UMNO politicians tend to not mirror what they really think – at least from Walski’s perspective – but what they think the grassroots expect, and keeping well within the expectational boundaries of party-stand.

On the other side of the fence, the recent Pakatan-led linkage of 1Malaysia to the APCO-Israeli-conspiracy is, in Walski’s opinion, unnecessary and quite frankly, stupid. The end-game is a political one for sure, but the method is more detrimental to a united Malaysia, rather than bringing about a greater good. It just goes to show that when it comes to politics, no level is low enough to stoop to, never mind which side of the political equation one belongs to.

Walski likes it not at all.

On a personal level, Walski always thinks himself as human first, then as Malaysian, and only then as other things (and there are many). It’s idealistic for sure, but that’s just the kind of person Walski is.

And 1Malaysia, despite its flaws and ambiguity, is a positive path towards national unity. Provided politics and self-interest don’t get in the way.

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