Racial Harmony (part two)

Living in a multiracial country is considered a privilege to some, as it enables us to get an insight to other people’s cultures and beliefs to admire and watch how they’re uniquely different from all the other cultures that are found in this country. Festive occasions are the best ways to watch and learn how different cultures have different methods of paying their respects to their elders and even their Gods.

Racial harmony is crucial for a country such as Malaysia because majority of the international tourists who visit our country are here mainly to see and learn more about the different races and religions for themselves instead of constantly relying on the mass media such as the TV and the internet to provide them with the information they are looking for.

If there is racial instability in our country such as the infamous May 13 incident where a hundred odd people were killed, the odds of tourists being reluctant to visit our nation would be very high as they fear for their own safety and in turn would drastically affect our country’s income which is relying heavily on the tourism sector. Besides that, major international companies would have second thoughts if and when they decide on venturing their businesses in our country due to the instability and will lead to a high unemployment rate during a worst case scenario.

Racial harmony also helps ensure the safety inside our country itself as people are instilled to look out for one another without being judged by their religion or race. This also ensures that during the general elections, people do not vote for their party of their choice solely on the fact that the party members consist of a specific race and religion.

Of course, all this is easier said than done when there are all sorts of “fire starters” that would do anything in their might to cause chaos in this country besides demanding that their race be deemed superior to others. If the citizens of our country can manage to ignore that small flaw that we are constantly facing, there is no doubt that Malaysia would still be as harmonious as it was back then in its glorious days.

Racial Harmony (part one)

Racial harmony is considered a very hot topic especially when you come from a multiracial country such as Malaysia. There is no doubt that there are many of us that try our best to avoid speaking and discussing about this topic because it might be considered offensive to some.

But of course, it all comes down on which point of view you are looking at it from. There are two ways of looking at this issue; first of all there are people who would look at it from a pessimist’s point of view and then there are those who look at it from an optimist’s point of view. From the looks of the recent incidents that involved religious places being torched and vandalized, even the blind can say that our country is in need of dire help if our country’s “1 Malaysia” vision is planning to be achieved in the near future.

No, I’m not pointing fingers on who is at the wrong here, but just because the accused (if ever caught) belongs to a certain religion and race, that doesn’t mean we should be stereotyping and assume that the whole religion and race of the accused is as much of an extremist as he or she is. We should not be judging the actions of a whole religion that consists of a million or more believers based on one or a handful of troublemakers.

There are people who come from all different sorts of races and cultures who attend lecture classes alongside me and I can safely say that no matter what race you belong to or what beliefs you have, everyone in the class are able to get along very well because we all have the same purpose, and that is to excel in life and of course to get to know and befriend one another, and NOT compare each other’s beliefs and cultures to see which is more superior.

That is exactly what is happening to our country at the moment, the comparing of religion and cultures. That is why our country made international headlines no thanks to the torching and vandalism of religious places. If everyone in this country of ours can accept the fact that every single culture is unique in its own way, we should be proud of living in a country that consists of so many different races and religions; as they say, variety is the spice of life. To put it simply, ethnocentrism is something that we should strongly disbelieve in if we want our country to continue to be recognized around the world for its variety of cultures that are constantly living in peace and harmony.

Picture courtesy of: http://kinseyconfidential.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/Hands.jpg

College life!

After a long month of doing completely nothing besides literally decomposing at home and getting addicted to the latest TV series that has been going on during the Christmas season, it’s time to get back in action and turn it up a notch because I’m no longer in secondary school (because that’s so 2009) I have progressed into something more advanced, more sophisticated and more zippy. And those words could only mean one thing; college.

"IT room"

It has been two weeks since I started college and I would be lying to you if I told you that everything was revolving around butterflies and rainbows. Because first of all, there's the massive pile of assignments that somehow would not stop flowing in (including this rather peculiar one) and then there's the ever so dreaded thoughts on the many many assignments that would not stop plaguing my mind. Yes I've been told literally a million times that working life would be a hundred times harder than this so spare me.

"In the library"

But when you come to think of it, it’s only the assignments that are persistently tugging on that fine line that separates my mind from sanity and a permanent state of dementia. What about exams you ask? They aren't that bad really. You see to me personally, it's not about what the assignments and exams are about because as long as you get your facts right, everything would be smooth sailing.

"Daniel, Louis, and yours truly"

But instead, it’s the blasted deadlines of the assignments that are always latched and eating into my mind. Having needed to remember 10 different deadlines on 10 different dates can really get to your nerves. And that is why in college; even thinking of procrastinating to complete your assignments is akin to digging your own grave, a really expensive one too so to speak.

"Rockers!"

But all doom and gloom aside; college can be a really fun place to be in. It gives you the opportunity to open yourself up to the world, and if you have been living with your parents under the same old roof for the past 17 years, one word says it all; freedom. Apart from meeting new faces and even places, your mind would no longer be confined to that small little box that you used to have back in the secondary school days. You have to learn be independent as importantly as being able to adapt to all sorts of (sticky) situations that might get you feeling down and blue. Hence the quote: “When life gives you lemons, use it to make lemonade!” That simply means that you have to manipulate the bad and use it to your advantage to get something good out of it. If you can manage to apply those crucial tips in your college life, you would never have your ever so enthusiastic spirit torn apart. And as we all know, college not only revolves around your academics, but also your equally important social life. You will most definitely meet new faces here just like I did and I feel really grateful for having the opportunity to foster a strong bond with them as without them, I’d think my life would be extremely dull as they are the one who have the capability of really spicing it up a notch.

"The weird people"

So If that’s college life in a short period of two weeks, I say bring on the remaining two and a half years as I believe that it’s going to be a blast!