Daily macro and micro conflicts deluge us on social media.
I can’t cover them all, but I can address some of them.
China versus the US – with India, the EU and Russia included. For us, this tussle should never be about supporting one side over the other. Instead, let’s be aware that powerful media, business conglomerates and social media influencers, supported by their respective nations, are manufacturing a conflict with deception.
A mature and impartial perspective or reading is important to balance what we hear and see, beyond the slick and suave propaganda.
In the end, it is all about Greed. Do they care about ordinary folk? How much do you and I matter in the equation? The ideals and dreams of a beautiful world of equality are all but dead.
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Think introspectively:
· Do the leaders of the nations you support know you personally?
· Do they care about you?
· Do they put food on your table?
· Did they raise the quality of your life?
· Were you educated by them?
· Were they there at the moment of your birth and will they be there upon your demise?
The fact is, we only have our family, friends and those who care about us. Period!
Nations are not to be trusted. We must audit nations and hold them accountable. The questionable has to be questioned, and the objectionable objected to, conscientiously.
From the clutter of rhetoric, separate the kernel of truth from the false fruit of brinkmanship. Let us cleave some of the contentious controversies and contradictions that divide us in these conflicts.
US leaders, as physical evidence displays, have been warmongers, fighting wars for no rhyme or reason except theirs. Almost every stinking bloody major war in modern times has the odious smell of the US.
US businesses have invested in other countries not out of goodwill but to profit from cheap labour and usually to their advantage.
We can concede the US has enshrined the pillars of freedom, which includes religious and other freedoms, in its Bill of Rights. What’s more, anyone can take the president or anyone else to court, or satirise even the president; chances are, many will applaud and not incarcerate you.
But just don’t have the name Julian Assange in the US! The hypocrites there will crucify you. The US demonisation of China is not surprising. The tale and trail of deaths and destruction in the Middle East ought to open our eyes too.
As for the People’s Republic of China, its leaders and the Communist Party-led government are not saints. They are not flawless or faultless. Their acceptance of corruption, as in Malaysia’s case and the case of other countries, is a chain of bondage.
The sheer scale of abuse and contradictory double standards are an inescapable reality. In China, a bullet in the brain for corruption is a certainty. However, in its business dealings with other countries, it seems to be acceptable.
So the Chinese leaders’ intentions appear cloudy and suspicious. Critics claim they are clamping down on certain religious groups or persecuting them on the basis of faith. The treatment of the Uyghurs and Falun Gong remains controversial.
China’s border disputes and its flexing of muscles with its neighbour India are ominous signs. It has annexed regions and even staked a claim on the seas of its neighbours with gunboat diplomacy and financial muscle. Chinese fishing vessels have encroached on Malaysian waters, while Chinese aircraft have been accused of intruding into Malaysian airspace.
The renowned debt trap is something to worry about.
One can’t sue the Chinese president or the Communist Party or joke about them. The authorities may jail people for such ‘criminality’! Personal liberties are not their strength.
Does China allow internal criticism? Don’t count on it. I am sure, if we are among the outspoken inside China, we would be in some prison re-education reform camp, confessing our transgressions far more than we would in a Catholic confessional!
India, Russia and the EU all have their faults to varying degrees. The Russian-Ukraine conflict has its detractors and supporters. The treatment of Muslims and other minorities in some parts of India has raised concern. The EU is perceived to be part of the “decadent West” by some in Malaysia.
The promotional campaign will be slick and suave from the Chinese. One must concede they are exceptionally good at the “I-am-the-‘victim’-here” game.
The US under whoever will obviously be the clumsy sabre-rattling chumps and clods.
The question is not who is the greatest warrior, but rather who is the skunk of a global pimp or hustler of their respective products and policies.
We are nothing but little insignificant tarts and inconsequential street walkers in the bigger scheme of their so called ‘trade war’ over phones or anything else. Under whose economic sphere of influence we fall is not an appetising choice for those of us in the rest of the world.
Meanwhile, toxic, venomous exchanges litter social media platforms, affecting and infecting us. Let us hope they cancel each other out, so that other nations that are minnows will be able to rise and stand as equals.
We must remain the ordinary kampong boys and girls from the backwaters and backyards of whichever little hamlet or kampong we come from. Go back to our roots, be the ordinary simple ‘country bumpkin’ lad or lass who once took the mickey out of each other and teased one another with innocent joy. Reclaim that authentic local spirit.
Don’t let some political thug or religious hoodlum rob us of our souls. We must be sentinels and guardians, watching over the lives and welfare of our neighbours. Nations come and go – but friendships and family at the local level remain. Who are we if not micro ‘nations’ at the local level.
AGENDA RAKYAT - Lima perkara utama
- Tegakkan maruah serta kualiti kehidupan rakyat
- Galakkan pembangunan saksama, lestari serta tangani krisis alam sekitar
- Raikan kerencaman dan keterangkuman
- Selamatkan demokrasi dan angkatkan keluhuran undang-undang
- Lawan rasuah dan kronisme
