RIFLE RANGE BOY: World War 4 would be fought with sticks!

Tomoyuki Yamashita @ Tiger of Malaya
1885 -1946

His name rhymed with dog, so we call him one. Maybe because he tried to live up in the shadows of his brother who was a Valedictorian and school head prefect, Anjing-san wagged his tail around the teachers in the beginning of year for him to be thrown the bone of the unenviable post of class monitor. Our last three doggone years of primary school were filled by his tyranny.

Looking like General Yamashita of World War 2 infamy with his physique and hair cut, he fitted the role of a loyal bulldog very well. With his iron-fist style of leadership, he managed to instil morbid fear in our young fragile chicken hearts.
During the brief moments that the teacher would leave the class to run errands, Anjing-san would morph to the front ready to pounce as he jotted down names of 'trouble maker' students on the class board for the teacher to peruse.

He made it appear as if he had a special one to one divine relationship with the class teacher. Any word from him would get us all in trouble and only he had the 'get-out-of-jail' free card. Life went on dutifully. Our young impressionable and gullible minds were cowed into submission.

It only took one dissident to create a melee at the end of his seemingly endless brutal tenure. One day, the class teacher sneaked in at the back of the boisterous classroom to witness first hand Anjing-San 's iron-fisted fascist administration. Anjing-san got a earful which included pull of both ear pinnae and a rant. Only then did we realise that Anjing-san was mortal like us after all. We had unnecessarily lifted him up and placed in high on a pedestal.

Funny how after four decades, there are still people who think they have direct communication lines with the Forces above, be it administrative or divine. They interpret the circulars as they like to and insist that it is meant to be the way they say it is. Shirkers and non conformists are berated. Band of yeoman are cajoled to monitor that His alleged law is carried out on Earth as He would have wanted. Interestingly He is silent and has not showed any seal of approval or otherwise. Conveniently random same events are interpreted at will by believers and naysayers in any way that suit them.

History has shown us that challenges in life come in different and newer forms. In order for the human race to survive way into the future, as they have done in the past, they have to embrace the problems with newer ideologies and strategies. Living on past laurels and utilising middle age innovations to combat space age issues is a sure way of annihilation.