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Objectivism: A way of life

I find that the harder I work, the more luck I seem to have. – Thomas Jefferson, 3rd US President The progenitor of objectivism as a way of life is Ayn Rand, A Russian-American writer who describes it as “the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose […]

A constitution and its monarch

Malaysians are concerned and disconcerted over the unelected appointment of the ninth prime minister, the proclamation of an emergency, and the immediate remedies for jump-starting the grunts, groans and gasps of the national economy. The only comfort and solace reposes in the theatre and drama of the Federal Constitution (FC) being that it is the […]

Facing feared news and fake news

Misinformation is a virus unto itself. – Brianna Keilar, Australian-American commentator Reuters reports that a Danish national was the first to be convicted under Malaysia’s Anti-Fake News Bill of April 2018 for making a video clip that accused the police for taking 50 minutes to respond to a shooting incident. In court the police swore […]

Landmarks and landmines of the law

If we desire respect for the law, we must first make the law respectable. – Louis D Brandeis, former Justice of the United States Supreme Court The Federal Constitution (FC), the supreme law of the land, at Article 160, defines “Aborigine” but omits “Native” which can only be gleaned at Article 161A (7) for the […]

Intellectual dishonesty

If you tell the truth you don’t have to rely upon a good memory. – Mark Twain, American novelist Professionals and intellectuals supposedly steer the thinking of lesser mortals in a curious quest for self-esteem. The common man usually looks up to them as they don many hats as agents and actors in the public […]

The right to believe

Man is made by his belief. As he believes, so he is. – Goethe, German philosopher From cradle to grave we are obsessed with a diet of a vast assortment of information by family, peers, educational institutions, employers, the media, the medical profession including the pharmaceutical industry, and of course, organised government. This bombardment makes […]

Misleading, misreading and misapplying MA63

Treaties are like girls and roses; they last while they last. – Charles de Gaulle, France’s first president The international treaty Malaysia Agreement of 1963 was designed as a non-military federation between Malaya, Singapore, Brunei, British North Borneo (Sabah) and Sarawak, ostensibly, to discourage and prevent the spread of communism in the region. Imagine containing […]

Challenges to changeless codes

 The only thing permanent in life is change. – G.K. ‘Baboo’ Ganjoor, assassinated airline pilot There are many who like the status quo and thus totally shun change. There are also those who shun the status quo and clamour for change. In America, it is the battle cry for Republicans and Democrats — between conservatives […]

Canine culture

When a dog looks at you, you know he is not judging you. – Eckhart Tolle, Canadian spiritual teacher It was in the 1930s that the dog-eat-dog world surfaced in defiance of the Latin aphorism canis caninam non est (dog will not eat dog) when society started becoming ever so vicious. It gets worse every […]

Fabian friends and fiends

Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat. – Sun Tzu, Chinese strategist Usually attributed to the military, Fabian tactics have been used successfully in the early centuries of empire-sponsored maritime exploration, discovery and conquest; politics and government, and in the administration of criminal and civil […]