To Rally or Not to Rally. That is the question.

Personally, I hate crowds, so don't count on me to attend rallies and stuff like that. Saw what happened on Saturday on TV and wondered where I stood on the issue. Seriously, I haven't been paying attention, so I don't understand why there are 2 groups for and against ISA planning to rally. The "for" group nak apa? ISA kan dah ada?

Anyway, being the perverse being I am whenever it comes to my sis, the moment she said the rally organisers are stupid, I immediately defended them. Ye la. We're supposed to be a democratic country. How come we're not allowed to have any kind of protests? Takkan la semua protest dikira threat to community? Kalau kita asyik accept aje benda yang salah pun kita diamkan aje, passive, banyak le benda yang jadi bernanah dalam our society. Kalau nak kira permit, any permit applied by opposition semua ditolak. So nak buat apa harapkan permit yang dah for sure tak dapat? Belasah ajelah!

Next issue, ISA itself. Is it really necessary? What happens without it? What are the repercussions? I think these are the issues that need to be figured out logically, not by political parties for and against it to protect their own interests. Rakyat punya interest nak letak mana, bang?

Moving on, the rally itself. Was it really unpeaceful? Were there property damaged before the FRU came along and threw tear gas and water cannons? I heard people were chanting 'Allahu Akbar". Why? Apa kait mengaitnya dengan ISA? Tolong terangkan sikit. Yang pasti, chanting loudly can create fear among bystanders and overexcitement among ralliers. It's a natural phenomenon, like mass hysteria. Kalau sorang start destroying property, yang lain sure ikut punya. That would be so unnecessary. Personally, kalau orang kata peaceful rally, I'd visualise a quiet sit in, maybe a candlelight vigil. No chanting. That would be peaceful. Kalau dok terjerit2, mana peacefulness nya? Nak hantar surat kat Agong, pegi la hantar. Was it necessary to berarak ramai2?

So... salah ke orang yang organise rally tu? Salah ke orang yang turut serta? Salah siapa semua orang bertempiaran lari, orang awam yang takde kena mengena pun terlibat sama? Kenapa permohonan permit ditolak? Why can't people in power accept that sometimes there are differing opinions which should be considered, maybe accepted. There must be a reason people membantah. Perhaps we need to follow better guidelines, we don't need to tear the whole system down. Starting from scratch is not easy. There must have been some valid reason ISA was created. What are the risks we face without it?

What we need is accountable people on all sides, not idiots who jump to conclusions and force their will upon others even though they know that it is wrong. The problem of our country is that too many people are trampling over each other to get higher up. Cina kata Melayu malas, Melayu kata Cina penipu, India kaki kelentong, pengabisnya, siapa yang untung? Semua rugi!

Buat sekolah kebangsaan, kata terlampau Islamik, terlampau Melayu. Orang lain rasa tersisih. Dekat sekolah Cina, dia ajar budak2 Melayu bodoh. Sekolah Tamil I tak tau. How are we supposed to be unified? Kenapa tak boleh dalam satu sekolah bahasa Mandarin & Tamil dibuat matapelajaran elektif? kenapa mesti ada sekolah lain?

Jawapannya - because we don't trust each other. Do we? Be honest with yourself. We are all racist. So? How are we going to fix this problem?

Accepting the problem is a problem may be a good place to start.