Wot in Heaven's Name?!

Why the hell does Dr Victor Von Doom go iron glove-to-indestructible-shield when he could have just blasted Cap Steve Rogers America to smithereens and tiny bits and pieces with his, urm, power blasts or something.

Must be the megalomaniac tendencies at work here: the satisfaction of doing one owns handiwork, in this case to pummel, pound and bash (Bah!) puny American icon.

Whatever.

He certainly got balls, this Victor Von Doom. Probably made of iron, too.

Unlike some people we know.


Anyhow, I have never come across this Marvel titles of "Super Villain Team-Up."

Not some lame-O characters ganging up, but super duper ones like Dr Doom and the Red Skull.

Nah.. It's probably a very, very short-lived teaming up as two megalomaniacs won't make it through the courtship.

Adios, folks. Be careless with your postings, okay.


PS:












Nuff' said. Ciao.

SIGNIFICANTLY INSIGNIFICANT

It’s the same old shit la.

Scandals upon scandals, allegations after allegations, supposed proofs after supposed proofs.

And what do we have in return?

 

A BIG FAT BLEEPING NOTHING.

Seriously.

NADA. ELEK. TAKDAK APAPA LANSUNG.

What are we to make of these?

We are nothing but numbers. Insignificant until the general election.

The rest of the time: INSIGNIFICANT.

We’re better off minding our god damn business and let the country rot right down to our grandchildren’s grandchildren’s grandchildren.

How many generations is that?

The bleeping USD700m alleged slush fund could certainly fund the shopping spree of several generations of SIGNIFICANT ONES.

Us? Like I said. Insignificant. Less than a gnat.

Rant all you want. Blog. Tweet. FB posts.

The  SIGNIFICANT ONES don’t give a bleep.

How’s that for a dose of reality?

PS: 

Picture is of no bleeping significance either. Just bleeping love the bleeping image.

 

Fascist Book of Tricks

"It is an old strategy in the fascist book of tricks: to dehumanize the other, to relegate and reduce their individuality into racial labels and to render their hopes, fears and vulnerabilities invisible; in other words, to oppress. What is worse, passages from the holy Quran are evoked in the process for justification."

Ouch… Unless you have a supremely thick hide, to be called a fascist must surely hurt somewhere.

The only fascist I know in my ever so limited knowledge is Benito Mussolini (1883-1945), him who was a leader of one of the three Axis Alliance of World War II.

For an in-depth read on what exactly is fascism, look it up in Wikipedia here. One thing’s for sure, it is not pretty to be called one.

Anyway, the above is a direct copy pasting of a statement by the Islamic Renaissance Front titled: “Lessons from the demonization of DAP”.

This is in the back of two front pages by DAP’s perennial fourth estate foe, Utusan Malaysia, of so-called religious, urm, statement that it is haram (not kosher?) to vote for DAP and any other political parties who are “sekongkol”ing with them as they (DAP, that is) is a kafir harbi kind of party.

As I don’t read Utusan, I neither know head nor tale of the detail story, but even the headline is somewhat silly vis a vis the soon-but-not-that soon to be held 13^th General Election. 

Say, just say for brevity's sake that you do take the issue seriously.

Okay; noted then. No crossing the boxes of DAP candidates, even if they are Malays or Muslims.

No crossing boxes of “sekongkol”ing political parties either; so scratch PSM, PKR and PAS candidates.

Which leaves fellow non partisan Malaysian Muslims with pretty much only the independents IF they wish to NOT vote for the candidates of UMNO and “sekongkol”ing MCA-MIC and the likes.

 

You know, there is such a thing as Syubhah (looks like haram but not quite, so better to keep at arm’s length).

Then again, independents these days are either BN or PR friendly, so you’re stuck there to.

I give up: do you even get to exercise this once every five year basic right then?

Seriously, Utusan Malaysia has played the racial card and now is playing the religious card against DAP with nary a slap on the wrist.

To what ends are the editors looking at with such incendiary headlines?

Let’s face it: as it is, many have made up their made their mind whose butt they want kicked come vote counting time, and stoking such racial and religious lines just jack up the adrenaline levels of only hard core followers.

I seriously doubt it will sway the so called fence sitters with minds of their own.

Scoring Points and Keeping Tabs

Apparently the government has been keeping tabs on the things it’s done to and for the Rakyat at large.

Not just of late but as soon as the country hoisted its own Jalur Gemilang to replace the Union Jack some 55 years ago.

Hence, this statement by Info Minister Rais Yatim: “…The government has already decided to continue using the theme 'Janji Ditepati' (Promises Fulfilled) for the 55th Merdeka celebrations despite the criticisms, because since 1957 we have fulfilled almost 95% of what we have committed to achieve for the people.”

Hear that: 95%! Definitely a high score.

And here we thought that the politicians forming the executives of this country had been slogging throughout, you know, out of pure love for the country.

Keeping count is like having a black book of tabs to call in should there be a need to do so in the future.

So much for ikhlas-ness, eh?

BUT just how in heaven’s name do you compute on fulfilling commitments for the people?

The qualitative stuff such as roadworks, rails, ports, airports, buildings etc is QED though still argumentative, but what about the more subjective ones such as wellbeing (as opposed to pure monetary computation), nation building, solidarity, (ahem) patriotism etc.

How does someone derive the “95% Janji (telah) Di Tepati” scoreline?

Is there a national accounting book lying somewhere on commitments promised and things done to achieve the said commitments and targets?

What are the KPIs ? Did KPIs and the rest of the acronyms so synonymous with the current government existed back when Malaysia was still Tanah Melayu?

Does it extend to Sabah and Sarawak (and Singapore, too, for a short while) when they joined the Peninsular to become Malaysia in 1963?

Who is the bookkeeper of this “Commitments to the Rakyat and What’s Achieved to Date” register? Is there an audit to see who and what is slacking so that knuckles can be rapped?

Perhaps the Minister did not mean to let the cat out of the bag of this so-called national count keeping thingy: maybe it is supposed to be a hush, hush, super confidential, super secretive, PM's (and close allies) eyes and ears only, item.

Something like the Book of Secrets “discovered” by Nicholas “Benjamin Gates” Cage of the National Treasure franchise.

Now, THAT would be cool.

Treasonous Ingrates

During the course of an FB chat, a friend asks for my comments on a former reporter colleague’s posting of choosing between peace and prosperity, or freedom, rights, integrity and transparency.

In the Malaysian context, this is supposedly a Hobson’s choice.

As it was close to midnight, I yammered some incomprehensible reply before logging off but an article on the massacre of 57 people, including 31 journalists, on a November morningthree years ago in Maguindanao got me thinking again on the question.

Yes, we have been blessed with relative – the main blemish being the May 13, 1969 riots - peace and prosperity throughout the 54 years of the nation’s existence.

Why couldn’t we, then, put in place principles that upholds one's freedom and rights, governing integrity and transparency – and if I may add – moral and ethics into the way we administer the country?

Can’t we have both? What is it about the latter that is so threatening to the former that co-existence is supposedly impossible?

We are not talking about unbridled freedom and rights but in the context of the proper adherence to the Rule of Law; i.e. where EVERYONE knows exactly where the boundary lies and the penalties for transgressing this line.

Realistically, it is here that we have been found wanting for quite a while now with seemingly two sets of rules being in play: one for the politically favoured and, another, for the rest of us.

That, and the seeming politically-expedient way of our execution of some laws: the most recent being the charging of a Border’s bookstore staff over the banned Irshad Manji’s book.

At least, there is a Judicial Review on the matter.

The retroactive nature of the alleged offence and the seriousness of its outcome (for the staff’s livelihood and freedom) means that there shouldn’t be any other way forward than to contest the charge brought against her under the Syariah Enactment.

So, can it be argued that the Rule of Law is alive and well as such?

Before we come to the said conclusion, do remember that Borders is owned by Berjaya Books and in Malaysia, Berjaya is a biggie.

There shouldn’t have been a charging in the first place had the Rule of Law really been adhered to.

All things said, I have to admit that the country is a relatively peaceful place to live and work in.

Not necessarily play, though, (pun intended) – what with the, ahem, increased perception of lawlessness apparent amongst some of the populace.

What is also true, however, is that some of the natives are restless; a sentiment simmering just below the all-glossy,shiny surface of the nation’s peace and prosperity facade.

Restless over perceived and actual bias in the implementation of national policies, over the seemingly accepted culture of rent seeking as a valid method of earning a living, over a more apparent division of class on top of the already well entrenched polarization of race, over the increasingly burdensome chase of economic over social well being…

Perhaps these are just the middle class / urban suburban / Gen X manic responses to the crushing economic malaise of late.

Or mere ravings of the disgruntled, treasonous ingrates as purported by some of our politicians.

Sadly, the peace we’ve held for so long did not see the putting into place a system of governance where such grievances could have been amicably tackled.

I’ve often asked this question: how and when did the country go off tangent in its nation-building to come to this sad state?

When did we make peace and prosperity, and governance, rights, integrity and transparency a Hobson’s Choice?

To some, this was when the Doctor was in the house.

Was it? Why did we let it be so?

Did we want our people to be forever in hand outstretched for crumbs mode?

The Tyranny of Thanos the Titan

Flying Contraptions

Can pigs fly?

Sure they can: provided they in the right kind of flying contraption, anything CAN fly, in fact.

Clive Kessler spoke of HIS dilemma over the choice between Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional to govern this lovely country of ours.

Perhaps there is.

Too quite a few – at the very least the 22,270 odd people who was at the Bersih Sit and Protest – the choice has been made.

Anyway, I have yet to make my choice since I don’t know who will be vying for the two positions over at my constituency.

I think I will make mine a personality based choice.

To know their stand on things. To make sure they are articulate enough about their position on all that is important to the country’s future.

As luck would have it, my change of address is finally effected and I no longer have to drive all the way to Pandan Indah to cast my invaluable vote.

It does feel a bit weird in that I am no longer amongst the so called ears-and-eyes-on-the-ground component of the Govt election machinery aka the MSM.

Supposedly, our news reports (for what they’re worth) provide the powers-that-be with a gauge on how things are going with the masses.

Really? Could well be a figment of my own over estimation of reporter-self worth. Funny Ha Ha. Didn’t accept my take on the Chinese massive vote swing the last time.

It was fun all the same to be right in the thick of things when it comes to the ceramahs and what not.

Parliamentary dissolution notwithstanding, we do seem to be in a perpetual pre-General Election mode these days with ceramahs galore, show-of-strength rapat umums, unabashed feel-good factor highlights, shameless "choose me" political speeches, handouts to the masses etc etc.

Even the party flags are a-fluttering. Billboards campaigning too: Janji Di Tepati; shouts one along the southern route of the North South Highway, seen during a recent balik kampong trip to Johor.

And then, there are also the many  - too many - pronouncements these days from the Barisan Nasional fellas of “trouble if Pakatan Rakyat losses in the General Election”, “Be gentleman la”, or something along the line.

My, my. Whatever do they mean? A pre-telegraphed nipping at the bud action, perhaps? A smug confidence that a win is already in hand? A Goebbels communiqué? Hmmm...

Suffice to say, the only thing missing from this whole equation is the players aka the candidates.

Who will I choose?  Who will it be?

First things first, though. PMNTR has to make the call, the trumpet for the 5-year mandate seeking exercise to begin.

So the BIG question is: When will he? 

PS: The woman pictured below will make a fine candidate in my and surely a whole lot of others, good books...

Viciousness Escalated

Bersih 3.0 came and went; and yet the slanging match continues unabated.

The event unfolded quite dramatically over the social networks last Saturday.

Quite a few of my friends who was at the Sit Down and Protest provided minute to minute or so updates through their FB account.

Unfortunately, these same postings were sometime subjected to vile replies which grew vicious.

While many from both faction exercised restrain at what proved to be a highly charged event, others where callous.


One so-called former press-compatriot “friend” posted that the police should have used LIVE BULLETS instead of rubber bullets against the protestors.

Sick.

Dude, there are friends of ours in the crowd who are only voicing out their dismay over the slacks in our electoral system.

And you want them dead? WTF?!!!

Remember those much hated Yahudis who posted downright demeaning remarks on the death of Palestinians children during a bus accident?

Not much different aren’t we?

The words babi, bodoh, yahudi etc were flying around the FB (and Twitter) postings like nobody’s business.

Agreeing to disagree is really an alien concept it seems for many on May 28.

More importantly, what now?

Brick bats, videos (edited and unedited) exchanged, threats, statements and hospital visitations notwithstanding, what about the crux of why people took to the street last Saturday: the electoral system?

In an age where data can travel across continents in less than a blink, it is downright funny ha ha that we can’t clean up our electoral roll, cannot make adjustments to our Parliamentary demarcation boundaries so that 1 vote here is approximately 1 vote everywhere, cannot make automatic voter registration when they reached voting age, cannot update people who is obviously lived beyond what is considered manically platinum age, cannot distinguish non citizens from citizens so on so forth.

Let’s see f anything changes in the next few weeks.

Won’t bet on it, though.

PS: The proliferation of videos mostly unedited via the FB gave some good overall picture of what happened so that bullshits from either side could be minimized.

God knows there’s too much being thrown about.

Clearly Loud

Electoral Fairness and Impartiality.

One Person One Vote.

Or is a proportional system the answer?

Any which, surely they can hear the LOUD voice for changes.

But listening?

Gleeful Convictions

Its midday and at lunch, someone stifled a chuckle
Trembling bright pink lips which end forms a crinkle
Staring at her Tablet whilst waiting for her burger with pickles
Reading something with a rumbumptious sparkle

A stranger curious sneaked a peek at what she’s read
Must have spied something as forehead he slapped
Off he sidled joining his friends, his chaps
Questioning looks, worrying of inanity relapse

From the corner a guffaw boomed
Next to the door that leads to the restroom
A young couple waiting to be bride and groom
In a world increasingly growing in gloom and doom

Table after table the laughter spreads
A news flash seriously solemnly read
Some straining so hard their faces turned red
Tickled silly everyone looking like boneheads

It’s not only here the laughing rang loud
Everywhere it seems, wherever there is a crowd
Watching, listening or something thereabouts
Whatever joke played, it was a total knockout

Heard the word revolutionary, freedom and assembly
A jumble of phrases spoken with great conviction and dignity
Oxymoron stuff so funny so jokey and gaiety aplenty
Alas the man is serious and not talking cockamamie

He is serious and not talking cockamamie
And once the laughter dies, thus we’ll see
Whatever reform has been decreed
Strings all attached, nothing’s free

Nothing comes free…

Walking the Talk aka For the love of an Ice Blended Mocha

Marina Mahathir walked the BERSIH walk. Imagine that.

While I was following the whole rally via Twitter and Facebook in the comforts of my home, the daughter of Dr Mahathir is with the very people her father – and a host of like-minded others - so deeply detests.

She started her post with a simple sentence: So I went.

Marina, you have both my envy and admiration.

Having read Marina’s BERSIH 2.0 experience, I am ashamed on at least two counts: one, for not being there despite my belief in the thrust of the rally’s objective, and two, for having doubts as to whether the BERSIH was worth it.

The latter came after witnessing the torrent of propaganda masquerading as “news report” churned out by TV3 and RTM1 news much, much later in the evening.

A TV3 reporter, supposedly reporting at the scene complete with the irony of an empty street for a backdrop, even quoted “unnamed sources” – aren’t they always - warning of God-knows-what unknown threats of unspecified nature but connected with all probability with the Haram Demonstrators still lurking around somewhere.

Pure bollocks and baloney. Nothing’s changed, I thought.

On top of these were particularly venomous postings and comments from the FB circle of friends.

What the freezing hell was that all about? Why the hatred for people who were basically walking to highlight their constitutional grouse for fair elections.

I was thinking, thus, of posting something along the lines of “So, have BERSIH actually achieved anything despite the euphoria of its supposed success…” and, in my mind, its mostly in the negative.

That was before I read Marina’s post. I’ve realized thus that in many counts, BERSIH has achieved something after all.

BERSIH has shown that it is possible to rally to a Rights centric cause in a non -partisan way. The rally last Saturday is ironically a showcase of the much spoken 1Malaysia concept with its diverse composition of walkers.

I particularly liked her comments of “reformasi” chants being drowned by a bigger chant of BERSIH. Rightly so, this is one movement that no one can hijack as it belongs to the Rakyat.

Sure, as one FB friends puts its “… so what if you have 100,000..”

Numbers are just statistics. God knows the current Governments churns them out on a regular basis with the consistency of a well blended iced tall Mocha Latte with whipped cream.

Notwithstanding the almost haphazardly organized look of the rally, this was a group that truly believed in their ideals and keeping to it.

Imagine that by 5pm, everything was back to the way it was and my so many FB Friends who lamented being burdened with not being able to lepak around KL can do so with complete abandonment.

Some roads will still be jammed through, BERSIH or no BERSIH.

But, who cares, right?

Hoodie Doodie, the Yeller Submarinee

Green is a mixture of blue and yellow
Like a mango, at first green before going ripe and yellow
Or the Durian, so smackingly great, its flesh a goo-ish yellow
Never take a pineapple, unless its skins has turned plane, turned yellow

The Beatles once had a yellow submarine
They were cautioned – a yellow card, no less - for posing on the street
While the cars zoom pass, a yellow VW Beetle in the lead
Lo, the traffic lights turned yellow, it was first in line

Passing time, “That Yellow Bastard” artwork glanced
Brought as a TPB secondhand, pages yellow with time
Outside, the snow was falling, Yellowhammers chirping
Atop a man’s head-topping hat; standing silent, could he be a mime?

Stop for a while; says the police donning a yellow jacket
A limo’s passing through a yellow crest entourage blanketed
A right royally someone, yell ow loud a bloke behind
Hiding in the crowd, eh, not daring, a bloody coward*

Elsewhere, will there be a sea of yellow
All races, religions, gender, all fellows
Wanting to carry a prayer for a better tomorrow
In the face of bullies, ever wanting to come to blows

Lemons, then
Lemonade, thus
Drink it, in thirst
While the rest of us, wait, anxious…

* eponymous, I'd say

Looking Out for the Ordinary Folks aka Here's Looking At You, Kid..

It’s a great day for democracy when the judiciary is finally looking out for the ordinary folks aka the PUBLIC.

What else can you surmise from the Appelate Court's decision to grant a stay of execution order against a High Court ruling, which compelled the EC to hold a by-election for the Kota Siputeh state seat in Kedah.

Court of Appeal judges Datuk Sulong Mat Jeraie, Datuk Kang Hwee Gee and Datuk Abdul Aziz Rahim yesterday reversed the decision by High Court judge Datuk Alizatul Khair Osman Khairuddin on the same matter.

"We can prevent an unnecessary by-election and save PUBLIC FUNDS (emphasis' mine)," said Sulong, "The correctness of the High Court ruling has not been tested in the higher courts."

Nothing was said of the legal reasoning for granting the stay, though.

Justice Alizatul had ruled that it was the constitutional duty of the EC to hold a by-election and that there was an absence of the special circumstances needed for the court to grant a stay.

There was also apparently a persuasive case law.

The combined wisdom of three judges who heard the Appeal, however, have put things back into (Ahem!) the right perspective.

What if the Higher Courts ( I assume that this case would go right up to the Highest court for deliberations) were to say that the Kota Siputeh seat is not vacant, they asked?

Wouldn’t that then lead to a waste of PUBLIC FUNDS?

Such profound wisdom.

Counsel for Election Commission cited RM200,000 as a possible starting figure to be wasted.

Wow.

Now, THAT is A LOT in public funds to go down the drain.

Much like the RM2.4 million wasted in purchasing 48,000 unutilized indelible inks from the last General Election.

Conducting elections is very wasteful, it seems.

Perhaps we should just do away with by-elections especially since the vacancies would have to be refilled come the General Elections anyway.

So whether the seats are made vacant due to death or some other factors – like going AWOL for consecutive State Assembly Meetings etc – let the seats remain vacant for a while.

The other State Assemblymen can surely chip in their time to look after the other constituency, right?

After all, this is a PUBLIC SERVICE they are providing the ordinary folks, and just like PUBLIC FUNDS, "Waste Not Want Not" should be the motto adhered to.

Let’s go for just the big one every five years.

Perhaps the Election Commission can seek such a Judicial Declaration from the Judiciary.

Here's looking at you, Rakyats.

Dense Macabre (With apologies to Stephen King)

“I know the blogs have been quite confused about it. My response is that I am the CEO of Pemandu and report in the capacity as CEO to the minister Tan Sri Koh Tsu Koon (Pemandu Chairman),” he clarified.

Jala added that as CEO of Pemandu, his first task was to find out what has been done by the organisation to date and would be working closely with Koh and the Pemandu board to chart out the way forward.

Is it only me, but did anyone else reading the above arrived (pun intended) with a smile?

That’s sure a whole lot of “pemandu”s.

Idris Jala seems stuck in his CEO mode to not realize that he is now a Minister instead.

There will be less of a chance for anyone driving anything anywhere when they become Ministers, especially one without any portfolio.

But never mind Mr Jala.

For such a serious news organization, the above paragraph came out very much tongue in cheek.

Not sure if it’s deliberate, though, but if it was, I hope the author had as much fun typing them out as I did reading them.

We sure need all the humorous distractions to dilute the bitter taste from the utterly moronic antics of those in the “cow-head” incident.

I mean, what gives Dudes?

Surely there are some even more creatively ironic ways you can push your cause than to stomp peoples’ toes (and much worse) isn’t there?

There was evidently a good measure of rabble-rousing hatred within the group for the poor dead animal’s head to end up a sick object of derision.

The question must thus be: hatred against who, or what?

The PR state government? The Hindu temple that is yet to be built? Khalid Samad? Khir Toyo?

Wonder who thought up the sick idea. Took some preparation for it to be a-spur-of-the-moment kinda thing.

Sadly, it could have easily be done in a cheeky way that would have made much “healthier” headlines.

As it is, Islam is again dragged into the limelight for all the wrong reasons.

Nicely done, Dumb Asses.

Driving Miss Daisy (1989)

Farcical Assemblage

MALU BESAR.

It’s really hard not to LOL over the goings on in Perak, were it not a tragedy and a kick to the groin (balls?) that is democracy.

Wanting to push through a new state government of which its foundation lie in so-called technicalities (et tu, Mukhriz?) of having the most number of State Assembly support while disregarding the earlier votes of the Perakians brought Malaysians the farce being played out this morning in Ipoh.

The so-called “state government of the day” in Dr Zambry’s team should proceed to dissolve to State Assembly to break this impasse.

So what if there is the spectre of defeat to the Pakatan Rakyat hanging?

You never know unless you "cuba try test tengok " and it would be a great time to spell out your policies which would stand you out from the old state government.

If the people of Perak wants the BN’s (allegedly the “I rub you, you rub me back?”) style, fine. So be it.

What matters is that the choice should be put to the Rakyat.

Dr Zambry’s legitimacy lie with the Rakyat Perak and it is really they who should decide.

Ini tak: Tak dan apa – apa dah auction off the newly bought and hardly used Toyota Camry just because it was by the previous state government.

Tak dan apa – apa dah sack appointees sana – sini because they were made under the previous state government.

Tak dan apa – apa dah nak tutup jalan sana – sini, tutup acess itu ini.

Would such a state government really get the Rakyat’s confidence even if they manage to proceed with an Assembly today?

Don’t tell me Dr Zambry didn’t foresee the farce that is the 7th May Perak State Assembly based on all that has gone down before?

Technicality bullshits of having the majority support notwithstanding, stalemated legitimacy does not inspire confidence where the Rakyat is concerned.

Win the battle, lose the war?

Or it could well be winning the battle and winning the war.

Unless he enters the fray by calling for dissolution of the State Assembly, Dr Zambry will never know if Perakians are actually behind him.

Alas, he has crossed the Rubicon by continuing with the façade of having full confidence of the Rakyat.

It's a most unfortunate legacy that will be forever attached to his name.

(PS: Pix below (Bill Sienkiwicz's Elektra(Marvel Comics) is of no relation to the above article.)

Economic Apartheid

One of my favorite Bruce Lee film is the “Fist of Fury” aka “Chinese Connection” aka “Jing Wu Men”.

There were far too many memorable scenes in the film to really highlight, but one that would really stand out in an age of being politically-correct and what not must be the famous “No Dogs and Chinese Allowed” (highly offensive!) signage scene.


On reflection, the scene was quite contrived as there was no real flow in its inclusion with the movie except to amplify the socio-situation during the era the movie was supposed to portray.

For those who has never seen the film, the scene sees the late Bruce Lee (taking on the role of hothead Kung Fu exponent Chen Zhen of Chin Woo) being denied entry into a park with the said sign only for a turban wearing Sikh guard allowing access to a foreigner with a dog.

A man (presumably Japanese) approached Chen Zhen and made a disparaging remark that he would take Chen Zhen in provided he (CZ) pretends to be a dog.

The guy gets what due with kicks and punches and the infuriated Chen Zen then shatters the offending sign with a jumping kick.

(Note: A more politically correct and, some say, with a more balanced view of the era is the more recent "Fist of Legend" , but the latter - true to its title - cops out on the core "fury" portion of Bruce's version. Both are still highly enjoyable.)

The offending signage scene gets an impromptu replay in my thoughts when I came across this Reuters article on the Emporio Mall in New Delhi and so soon after I read the International Herald Tribune's article on Hinduism versus Christianity .

Both articles – which tell of a deepening socio-economic crisis in one of Asia’s rising economic giants - disturbed me as it portays something out of a bygone age and complety at odds with the progress the world had supposedly made.

The first writer spoke of economic apartheid, of the “haves” and the “have nots”.

For a country that prides itself of one of the premier democracy Asian country, the much lauded system had unfortunately failed its masses.

Perhaps the faults lie with the populace who did not take the opportunities presented, perhaps its India’s long standing caste system that perpetrates this vast chasm of the wealthy and the poor, the strong and the meek, the pariah and the brahmins.

I neither know nor wished to speculate on the possible reasons.

My prayer is that we do not go the same way as did India.

God knows there are warning signs of similar inclinations here.

Democracy means a number of things and it must surely include economic consideration where the majority – never the minority - benefits, in one way or another.