RIFLE RANGE BOY

Paradise Lost. Mahathir & The End of Hope Author: Dennis Ignatius The writings were on the wall all the while. Our past leaders, Tunku, Tun Dr Ismail and Hussein Onn, saw through it all. We were just living in a wishful dream. A leopard never changes its spots. Mahathir's ideology never ever changed from the time he penned the 'Malay Dilemma'. After reigning 22 years at the helm with an iron fist and burning a big hole in the national coffers, he left the country with a screwed up education system, a twisted judicial system and a lethargically bloated civil service. His departure from PM'ship saw a slew of candidates who never really got Mahathir's nod of approval. He ran down his own choice of candidates. Just 10 years after his tenure, the country made the headlines for all the wrong reasons. It saw its Prime Minister embroiled in the most extensive business fraud. A critique of Najib and the way UMNO was turning, Mahathir formed an unholy allegiance with his ...

Credit: newmandala.org Dr Mahathir Mohamad (b 10.7.1925) A second chance to right the wrong? It is my Prime Minister's birthday, and I have a dilemma. Just last year, he became the oldest man in the world to be elected as a country's leader at 93. One year on and he is still going on strong like an Energiser Bunny.  The million dollars is not when his run is going to halt, but instead if indeed longevity is a blessing. On the one hand, on auspicious occasions, we wish each other hoping for a long life. We cling on to our dear lives averting dangers and seeking medical advice at the first sneeze. We plan things as if we would live forever. Some would say that being born as a human is our reward for our past karmic deeds. Hence, a long life must be a bonus. They are others who would vouch that life on Earth is a testing ground. A long life span means that they are more options to collect brownie points. If one only lives for the afterlife,  then there is ample opportuni...

High Noon (1952) When John Wayne was offered the role of the protagonist, he declined on the basis that there were many political connotations in its storyline. It was at the heights of McCarthyism and witch-hunt against card-carrying members of the Red Communist Party was ongoing. The screenwriter and producer, Carl Foreman, was involved in this; he subsequently migrated the UK after the film completion. Many iconic figures, including Charlie Chaplin, were blacklisted and lost their source of income during this time. For a Malaysian who is watching this movie after GE14, it resonates at a different level. I see a lot of parallelism in the storyline with the occurrences around the country. It does not need much imagination; a retired law enforcer returning to do one last unfinished business of a duty related to his tenure before he rides into the sunset. Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly Marshall Kane marries a Quaker lady, a pacifist, just before turning in the badge to lead a civi...

Dean Johns Mar 9, 11:44am I haven't read Dr Mahathir Mohamad's brand-new autobiography, 'A doctor in the House', or,  as  it might be more appropriately titled, 'A spin-doctor in the House', and I never will. I'm not much of a fan of fiction, medical or otherwise, and in any case I've heard enough of  Mahathir's distortions, evasions and lies to last me several lifetimes. Having taken the Hippocratic oath and thus assumed the primary ethical responsibility to 'do  no harm to the patient', he went on to become the ultimate political hypocrite, and did  incalculable harm not only to Malaysia 's people but to the nation's self-identity and  international reputation. In other words, he chose to forsake the cause of healing and resorted instead to stealing. Robbing Malaysia of not just its natural resources and financial riches by prescribing a  regimen of plunder for his supporters, cronies and relatives, but also more cru...

Opinion    2010-10-20 16:36 Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad recently labeled democracy a failed ideology. He has also described China’s authoritarian government as a model that works better than a democratically elected one. Seriously. He did. Another one of his “the 11 September 2001 attacks on the World Trade Centre was staged” moments no doubt, but a shocker nonetheless. My foot massage guy from China was as surprised as I was. He asked me how many kids Mahathir had. I said seven and he wondered aloud if Mahathir knew about China’s one-child policy. Imagine that. No Mukhriz, no Mokhzani and no Mirzan. Only Marina -- by reason of a governmental policy that you do not have a say in. According to Mahathir, China’s political model shows that  “having a non-democratic country can also give a good life for the people.” What a load of nonsense. Having your internet access censored is not a good life. It is a life that builds barriers around free will. It is a...