The Malaysian Insider

JULY 31 — Does it not strike anyone as strange that a filmmaker best known for making some of the most popular and memorable television commercials that touched on themes like love, respect and tolerance is considered controversial?

Meanwhile, those who preach racial supremacy, or wield the keris at a political assembly, or try to turn the death of a young man while under the custody of the MACC into a racial issue... they continue to hold high posts in the government or the media.

Such is the contradiction Malaysia has become. We have politicians who preach Malaysian unity across the various ethnic groups that make up this country when it makes them look good. Then, before you can say flip-flop, they are either making or condoning hateful speech when it is the politically expedient thing to do.

JULY 24 — For all the hype about the cultural and political impact of social networking technologies like Facebook and Twitter, the age-old phenomenon of death remains the most powerful, galvanising force.

After all, despite the fawning the world has recently expressed over Michael Jackson, the truth remains that he was widely derided both personally and musically until the day he died. Then quicker than one of Jackson's signature dance moves, the world went from ridicule to remembering him as the genius he once was. His death was enough to make him the first artist to sell a million digital downloads in a week and, more amazingly, got Malaysians rushing to music shops to buy original CDs.

JULY 17 — If it wasn't already obvious before, the events of the past year or so have surely made it clear to most Malaysians — elections have consequences.

Some consequences are obvious and direct. Like, say, the fact that Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is no longer Prime Minister. Others are more subtle and incidental. For instance, the current prime minister has a blog, and is on Twitter.

However, it's folly to think that elections only have consequences when there is a historical, unprecedented outcome like the one we had in March 2008.

JULY 10 — The recently deceased Robert McNamara was long despised as the architect of the Vietnam War. In his later years, however, the former US Defence Secretary slowly redeemed himself, both for his work in global poverty reduction as head of the World Bank, as well as his admission to mistakes in the handling of the war.

This isn't about Robert McNamara. Instead, it's about judgment, and the importance of humility and doubt.

JUNE 25 — There are two things that I believe define Malaysia fairly well: our food and the civil service. The former is a source of pride, unity and identity. The latter, well, is the opposite.

Malaysians, young and old, have no problems finding something to be critical of. Put a few Malaysians together, and before long the conversation inevitably leads in all sorts of directions, from corruption, crime, traffic jams, why RTM is so terrible, flash floods or religious freedom.