Public Servant – what it is and what it is not: A primer for the know-it-all middle class of Malaysia.

Public SERVICE (and SERVANT) does not mean what you think it means. Public servants serve the public (collectively). Yes, we are all MEMBERS of the PUBLIC. That does not mean that the OCPD in your area is YOUR SERVANT. That's just dumb. If you think this is in any way remotely true either linguistically or in the real world, then you are dumb. 

Public servants are very qualified persons who have gone through rigorous tests and are trusted to work for the good of the nation. That is why they are given very favourable working conditions and a pension. Their service to the nation is highly regarded. Their capabilities are highly regarded. 

They are not your "servants" in the sense of what you understand the word "servant" means. They are not there to wait on you hand and foot. If you think like this, then you are dumb.

Oh, you may say, "I pay taxes. My taxes pay their salary. So they work FOR ME." Again, you are dumb. You pay taxes because that is your DUTY as a citizen to the nation. That does not make you the boss of the public servants.

So, to summarise: "Public Servant" is a term for people in the civil service. They are not servants for individual members of the public. They are servants to the nation. And yes, they are also "the public". 

So yeah, if you think you can order or belittle or insult members of the civil service, then you are dumb. And there are laws against such behaviour. So, try to not be dumb.

On the issue of greeting "Merry/Happy Christmas" by Muslims in Malaysia - 2015

I finally got the light bulb moment on this issue. I finally know why God allows this issue to not die. It is so that I, and Christians in Malaysia, will VISCERALLY understand Islamophobia and the hurt Muslims feel whenever a sick mad person calling himself/herself a Muslim blows up/shoots at/kills civilians and the entire Muslim community is looked upon suspiciously. 

I find it annoying and hurtful that there are people who see kristianisasi (the supposedly overt and covert efforts by Christians to convert Muslims to Christianity) everywhere, some bordering on the paranoid delusions of a conspiracy theorist. 

But in that annoyance and hurt, I forget that there are also many many Muslims (usually minorities in non-Muslim countries) who live under the daily suspicious stares and accusations by their less-enlightened non-Muslim neighbours and fellow citizens just because they wear a hijab, or grow a beard, or pray in a mosque. That must hurt. That must be frustrating. And now I know how it feels. Deep in my heart, I now know how it feels. How it hurts. And an inkling of how scary it can be - I'm speaking generally and painting with a broad brush.

It's not easy being a minority. You never have as many supporters/friends as those in the majority. 

To those who wished me "Merry Christmas" or a variant of it, I thank you. You have no idea how much it means to me this year. 

To those who didn't, it's ok. No hard feelings. We are all busy people. I myself usually don't send out holiday/birthday greetings (unless I have time, or the particular mood strikes). 

But to those who actively tell Muslims to not wish Christians "Merry Christmas" or a variant of it, I say this to you: I wish that one day you will understand how hurtful you have been, and when that day comes, I hope you will believe that I have forgiven you on this day, 26th of December 2015. Because I have. 

An early "Happy New Year 2016" to all. 

Saving Malaysia from the idiots, hypocrites and cowards.

Sometimes it feels as if we're all heading for the cliff in a runaway car, and we are bickering about what we should listen to on the radio. I'm sad because I see ‎Malaysia heading that way right now.

We Malaysians have to ‎focus.

Stop letting the idiots, hypocrites and cowards set the agenda. Hold them up to a higher ‎standard .

Hold yourself up to the highest standard your better self wish for you to have.

We can still save Malaysia, one day at a time.

Let me just quote Obama on this. His words ring true for us now in 2015:-

"We’ve got some enormous challenges out there. ... But we’re not going to be able to do it if we are distracted. We’re not going to be able to do it if we spend time vilifying each other. We’re not going to be able to do it if we just make stuff up and pretend that facts are not facts. We’re not going to be able to solve our problems if we get distracted by sideshows and carnival barkers. ... We do not have time for this kind of silliness. We’ve got better stuff to do. I’ve got better stuff to do. We’ve got big problems to solve. And I’m confident we can solve them, but we’re going to have to focus on them — not on this."

- Transcript of Obama’s remarks on his birth certificate issue on April 27, 2011
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2011/04/27/transcript-of-obamas-remarks-on-his-birth-certificate/

Jason Kay
Melaka
(initially posted on Facebook on 05 June 2015)

#5 | Things I Learnt This Week (That I Want To Share) #5

1. SCIENCE

This piece is phenomenally good. It explains the scientific method. If you read only one thing this week, this should be it. 

Why scientific truth may hurt - Adam Rutherford

http://www.theguardian.com/science/2015/apr/05/scientific-truth-genetics-darwin-adam-rutherford

2. MALAYSIA | SOCIETY | NEP

"My mother and the women of her generation sold off their gold jewellery to raise money for the party. Now materialism and self-interest have crept in. ... The Malays were really down at that time. We were prejudiced against. There were very few Malay doctors, lawyers and bankers. ... Believe me, the NEP was really needed. Tun Razak wanted to bring up the Malays so they wouldn’t feel that they were of a lower class. His emphasis was to educate the Malays. Today, you have Malays in all sectors. Tun Razak did not foresee that the NEP would be abused. He expected those who enjoyed the privileges to share it with the community. Instead, some have used it to benefit themselves and their families."

- Tan Sri Khalid Ahmad Sulaiman 

http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2015/04/05/Dont-politicise-hudud/

3. REASON | THINKING | LOGIC

"The gullible rarely believe they are gullible and the closed-minded don’t believe they are closed-minded. ... Gullibility, carelessness and closed-mindedness are examples of what the US philosopher Linda Zagzebski, in her book Virtues of the Mind (1996), has called ‘intellectual vices’. Others include negligence, idleness, rigidity, obtuseness, prejudice, lack of thoroughness, and insensitivity to detail. Intellectual character traits are habits or styles of thinking. ... If we care about the truth then we should care about equipping people with the intellectual means to arrive at the truth and avoid falsehood. Education is the best way of doing that."

Intellectual character of conspiracy theorists – Quassim Cassam 

http://aeon.co/magazine/philosophy/intellectual-character-of-conspiracy-theorists/

Curated by,

Jason Kay

Melaka

11 April 2015

The curse of connectivity

I used to have random conversations with strangers, on buses, trains, and at bus stops. That was before the cellular phone became smart and allowed us to connect to our distant (and not so distant) and close (and never seen in real life) friends and family. 

We used to know our neighbours, and the gossip. Now we're more interested in causes half way around the world that in no way would affect our day-to-day lives. 

Yes, the internet can bring different people together if they have a common cause/interest. But it can also, and has, put up walls between those nearest to us, those at the dinner table, those whom we love and care about deeply. 

Connect and be productive. 

But don't forget to be human and say, "Good morning," to those around you. They exist too. 

Jason Kay

Melaka

06 April 2015

#4 | Things I Learnt This Week (That I Want To Share) #4

1. HEALTH | HUMAN RIGHTS

93% is a huge number.

"An unpublished study conducted in 2011 by the University of Malaya's department of preventive medicine in Malaysia found that 93 percent of Muslim women in Malaysia have undergone the procedure. ... The cutting that occurs in Malaysia ... falls under type IV of the WHO's classification system - the least invasive type, typically done without removing flesh. Malaysia's highest religious authority issued a fatwa, an Islamic legal edict, in 2009 making the cutting procedure required for all Muslim women, unless "harmful". ... The fatwa poses a dilemma for medical professionals caught between their unwillingness to violate WHO guidelines, and parents who feel pressure to have their daughters cut."

Female genital cutting in Thailand's south

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2015/03/female-genital-cutting-thailand-south-150309083458995.html

2. MALAYSIA | POLITICS | SOCIETY

Zan Azlee interviews Ibrahim Ali - March 31, 2015
http://english.astroawani.com/malaysia-news/5tahun2020-malaysia-too-young-form-bangsa-malaysia-ibrahim-ali-56782

3. SCIENCE | PERSPECTIVE

The visuals are stunning, the music apt... but it's the subtitles that brings it all together to remind us who we are, and how little we are.

The Known Universe by AMNH
http://youtu.be/17jymDn0W6U

Curated by,
Jason Kay
Melaka
05 April 2015

Things I Learnt This Week (That I Want To Share) #1

Oversharing has become a curse with social media available 24/7. This realisation hit me hard over the CNY 2015 break. Our minds are stretched and moulded by reacting, rather than contemplating; by sound bytes instead of reflecting in context. 

So I embark on this project: One post, at the end of each week, of the things that caught my eye, and engaged my mind, curated, for your consideration because I think they are worth your time. 

It is not altruism. It's me disciplining myself to look for the wheat and let go the chaff. Since I'm already benefitting from it, there is no harm sharing my discoveries with you. And so I do. Do drop by once a week, and hopefully, you won't be disappointed. 

=============

Things I Learnt This Week (That I Want To Share) #1

#tiltwtiwts

1. SCIENCE

"experiments show that when people’s beliefs are threatened, they often take flight to a land where facts do not matter. In scientific terms, their beliefs become less “falsifiable” because they can no longer be tested scientifically for verification or refutation.

...

With the disease of bias, then, societal immunity is better achieved when we encourage people to accept ambiguity, engage in critical thinking, and reject strict ideology."

Why People "Fly from Facts"

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-people-fly-from-facts/

2. LAW

I've always been fascinated with Qisas (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qisas) and Diyya (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diyya) in the death penalty discussion. I am generally anti death penalty, but I still don't have the answer to this excellent pro death penalty point: "If you oppose the death penalty, you are really just saying that no matter what horrible things a man does to another/other human beings, you guarantee him the most precious thing he has, his life." [If you can identity the source of this point, please let me know so I can credit it accordingly.]

Even the late Karpal Singh, a staunch anti death penalty lawyer, did have a different view in cases of child rape - http://www.thesundaily.my/node/140082

We may not have the stomach for an eye for an eye taken literally - http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/05/eye-for-an-eye-iran-blinds-man-who-carried-out-acid-attack

But the slap on the wrist sentence given to Anders Breivik http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anders_Behring_Breivik offends me greatly. 

3. FUNNY | SOCIETY | LAW

Jim Jefferies - gun control

http://youtu.be/fP3HJVp3n9c

Curated by,

Jason Kay

Melaka

06 March 2015

NUCC, Najib Razak, and Ibrahim Ali - an honest comment

Najib Razak should invite Ibrahim Ali to be part of the National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC), as co-head if possible. Because I've seen the partial list of members of the NUCC, and I can pretty much guess what their report would be like in 2 years' time. I doubt Ibrahim Ali would like their report. 

To me, if Ibrahim Ali does not like (or is opposed to in a big way) that intended report, the NUCC would just be wasting time coming up with it. Because if Ibrahim Ali opposes the NUCC report, then that is a VERY IMPORTANT ELEMENT.

Ibrahim Ali leads PERKASA, which is 420,000 member-strong. That is a whole lot of people that could be opposed to whatever the NUCC may report in 2 years' time (I'm just assuming, but it's an educated assumption of what the NUCC will say).

So, why not just SAVE the TIME and EFFORT, and PUT IBRAHIM ALI AS A MEMBER OF THE NUCC NOW, and let him and the other current members trash out the issues with each other NOW. THEN, in 2 years, we will have a report that will probably be more GROUNDED IN REALITY, and not merely a statement of hope and wish and Pollyanna-ish dreams.

Because Najib Razak had given us 1Malaysia some time back. And I don't hear much about it now. 

[I just don't like wastage of time and effort (and paper) for the intended report.]

Jason Kay

20 February 2014

"I have established the National Unity Consultative Council, which will report to the Cabinet with recommendations on what we can do to bring Malaysians closer together."

- Najib Razak on 31 December 2013

http://www.pmo.gov.my/?menu=news&page=1729&news_id=12368&news_cat=4

The exchange of thoughts via media between Ibrahim Ali and NUCC in February 2014 - http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/unity-council-chief-rebukes-perkasa-says-aim-to-restore-racial-religious-ha

PERKASA membership - http://www.thestar.com.my/Opinion/Columnists/Analysis/Profile/Articles/2014/01/05/Perkasa-poised-for-a-new-role/