A Nation of Morons

I have a lot to say about the recent furore over the Prophet Mohammed cartoons which were published in a Danish paper and reprinted worldwide.

I have a lot MORE to say after the Sarawak Tribune, a major local newspaper had its license indefinitely suspended by the government for doing its job by reporting balanced, factual news.
I wrote an entry defending both sides, but I changed my mind and with a click of a button, deleted the said entry and banished my thoughts into the oblivion of my desktop Recycle Bin.
Yep. I decided that I’m not going to say anything about this issue at all.

See, I’ve learnt that by talking about anything remotely related to cultural and religious practices here isn’t gonna help achieve anything but bringing me threats, personal attacks and ISA detentions. And so, I censor myself and shut up. Because hey, it doesn’t matter what I think. What matters is what the big boys in Putrajaya and Bukit Aman think right?
It’s wonderful living in this country. You don’t need to have an opinion, you don’t need to think, you don’t need to speak. You just sit on your damn asses and follow the masses.
Like sheep we are.

I always find it ironic that I a lot more Malay friends and learnt so much about Islamic culture living in Australia than I ever did in my 15 years in Malaysia. I could misinterpreted Muslim customs from time and time, and they’re always nice enough to explain to me without the personal attacks.
We communicate, we compromise, we correct each other. From there, we learn.

You know what’s wrong with this country?
We’re ignorant. We don’t know each other well enough.
Some of us are NOT sensitive enough. Others are TOO sensitive to the point where even the slightest misunderstanding is an opportunity for them to cause an uproar, wreak havoc, and force the victim into career suicide.

If you say something that inadvertently offended a group of people because you’re not careful, EVEN IF THE INTENTION TO CAUSE HARM AND MALICE IS NOT THERE, you’ll be shamed, locked up in jail or violently put away.
That’s the problem with this country. We’re too sensitive, too easily offended, too vindictive. We hardly look at things in context because we’re engrossed in teaching other people a lesson. There’s NO exchange of ideas, NO chance to learn, NO opportunity for compromise. Sometimes you don’t even know what hit you.
You have a mouth, but you can’t speak. The only time you can speak, is when people want you to duck their sicks. If you want to use your mouth for purposes other than ducking sicks, shut up.

We shut up because we don’t wanna offend. We don’t talk about these issues because it’s “sensitive”. And because we don’t communicate, we don’t know. And because we don’t know, over time we become even MORE stupid. This in turn make us even MORE afraid to communicate, which makes us even MORE stupid.
It’s a vicious cycle that’s gonna continue, until the day we become a nation of morons.


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Me: Say hello to Santa for me.
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Me: Stupid God.
God: I know you are but what am I.

300 Replies to “A Nation of Morons”

  1. kalau tak cakap, hati manyak panas…kalau cakap pulak mati kena condemn…amacam lar? all gahmen say onli lar…we ‘lan lan’ follow…foohhh…makin cakap makin marah..kepala sakit..

  2. Write on blog they suspend & threaten to ISA you. Write on newspaper, they publish your face. so that when u go out u’ll kena hamtam jiat lak jiatlak. submit a sign pettition to complain dept, they kasi put in shredder. group discussion pulak they said u illegal assembly. susah lar…ape le dah jadi dengan bangsa kita..millenium baru tapi mindset lama (expired).
    macamana le mau improve?? tengok tengok, belum cakap habis sudah kena kutuk…

  3. This country is memang fucking sensitive over all types of issues. I can understand Muslims getting all touchy and insulted over the cartoons of their Nabi but I can’t stand the damn fact that we’re not even allowed to talk about it, let alone report the issue.

  4. oh well, even NY Times didnt publish the caricature because it’s unrelevant and not worth published at all. Freedom of speech must be accompanied by press responsibility, in this case, ST didnt have. Im truly sad that their license is suspended, because i grow up reading ST my whole life. But, i do think they need to be responsible for their action.

  5. Poor ol’ Sarawak Tribune. Now how am I going to get my daily news on what’s happening in Sarawak? Borneo Post is out of the question. TS and NST’s coverage of Sarawak… meh.
    You can find me crying in my room. Adios!

  6. yeah la. wad LJ… talk about democracy. hahahah bullshit la freedom of speech my ass.
    doesn’t anyone figure out why the extremists, preaching a religion of peace, react with violence?
    i mean, i’ve seen the chch’s and crucifix being defaced but… yeah wadever.
    touchy subject. cannot say in malaysia. bad bad.

  7. freedom of speech? my ass. when it comes to malay and muslim issues, its a national issue, but when it comes to chinese and indian problems, its not an issue.
    it is so hard to apply for a permit to build new churches and temples. That is why most of these churches and temples are located at shop lots.

  8. Very well said. This really is a vicios cycle that will continue for a long long time unless someone with enough guts and pwoer to make a change speaks up. If this “sensitive issues” thing remains then Malaysia will never improve as a nation.

  9. Well, its a fact known long ago!! The ISA is a golden key for those ppl to do whatever shit they want, and we, have to live within the potty… No wonder ppl r running away from this country… Any regret for choosing to stay in this country, kenny?

  10. WELL SAID. GOOD BYE ST. HELLO MORON COUNTRY WHO ISA EVERYTHING THAT IS NOT EVEN RELEVANT TO NATIONAL SECURITY. SO, BECAUSE OF THE ARTICLE AND THE CARTOON, OUR NATIONAL SECURITY IS THREATENED MEH? NEED TO SUSPEND LICENSE AND SHUT DOWN NEWSPAPER KAH? WAKE UP LA, LOOK INTO THE MIRROR, BE OPEN MINDED. IT WA SJUST AN ARTICLE ABOUT THE CAROON ISSUE. ITS NOT EVEN INSULTING THE RELIGION IN MALAYSIA. MAYBE JUST WANT TO JOIN IN THE FUN OF MAKING IT BIG LIKE IN LEBANON.

  11. How brutally honest. I agree with this post through and through.
    There are too many restrictions. If only ppl can be more open-minded, then we can learn from constructive criticisms/exchange of ideas.
    It IS insulting, those caricatures. But I’m sure when ppl read about the news, they’d WANT to know what the pictures are. Its an international news for goodness’ sakes, something which might go down in the books of history because its sparked so much trouble/riots.
    And ppl in Msia don’t get to see what the very pictures that sparked the whole furore?
    How sad.
    ‘because we don’t communicate, we don’t know. And because we don’t know, over time, we become even MORE stupid. This in turn make us even MORE afraid to communicate, which in turn makes us even MORE stupid.’
    Again, how sad.
    Reading this post just a day after I’ve had my say of the consequences of the Msian Censorship board. Haha..

  12. truly agree with what you said there.
    racial issues in this country has been going on for a long time, wayy before independence day.
    [some text removed]
    it is just a small picture. an apology is probably enough for the people. one of the editors resigned, didnt he? isn’t that enough? now one of sarawak’s best daily is closed down. who else will keep the people informed of the happenings around the world?
    it’s not a good thing for the country.

  13. well, its all depends on how u ask… i ask few muslim in fact, what they think on issues like this.. as long as i tell them “i have no intention harming anything or bring up sensitive stuff..”, ppl will understand… when comes to religion, we do not doubt what they believe, but we can ask question regarding it.. its matter how u ask.. so long u have any question, just ask, but dont judge anything… but 1 thing for sure, every centuries long religion, but different language, are telling the same thing.. its called love, honest and respect… buddha, jesus and prophet are messenger of god, they only telling story in different languages and ways.. all religion are same.. or i should put it this way: all religion answers the same good, in different ways… which religion doesnt promote love?
    so the correct question. no point arguing, it will not bring us anywhere but in deeper shit, and more fighting.. when you are fighting, u have no right saying u representing a religion… u only disgrace your religion.. so, please no fight, try to understand…

  14. Man…this is sad…
    I’ve been through some of this s***
    people were too sensitive
    and make a big fuss out of a small thing and when you sit back and look at the past, it was nothing but ignorance and stupidity.

  15. Well why don’t you take your OWN advice and publish your own views? Why don’t you break out of the moron behaviour and change the cycle? Why can’t it start with you? Lots of rhetoric but no ACTION!

  16. the most potent display of malaysian stupidity ever to grace our headlines. this is indeed very disturbing to know that you get fcuked for practicing freedom of speech. No wonder many of my friends with high flying careers decided to stay in other countries. with all the smart people gone, this country will succumb to oblivion.

  17. At some point, I think the reason they being so sensitive about it and start to take harsh action on those who voice things out is because they do not have solid facts to support them, they are speechless and they know what other ppl say make sense. So to protect them from kena flame, quarantine, kick out of country, torture in kandang to those with mouth to talk.

  18. well, i agree that malaysia has its own problem… but lets face it, who are to judge ur own country? how u judge it? compare with other countries? fact is: every country has it’s bad side… no country is perfect.. so dont compare, its useless… its our bad habit to compare and compete… just do the best u can for ur family and for your country! y talk cock?
    btw, i dont think they should react in that way (not to say they shouldnt react..), but they themselves(the angry guys and the artist) both do not know how prophet looks like! since both side do not know the ACTUAL and SOLID answer, base on what they get upset about?

  19. I should emphasise that I am not talking about what’s happening in Denmark. I’m talking about our over-reaction to “sensitive issues” in this country.

  20. says a lot on why i don’t touch the newspapers in malaysia when i go back for visits. it’s disappointing to think that information have been filtered. defeats the purpose.

  21. yeah man.. i dont waan see tomorrow’s headlines with kenny doing “nude-squat”.. it will take whole fronpage to show’s kenny’s fun stuff man..

  22. Adrian,
    You’re saying it’s a bad habit to compare and compete? Without comparing, how can a country improve? It’s the rivarly spirit that keeps a country moving forward. If say our country is THE ONLY country in this world, how do we measure ourselves? And what has this issue gotta do with competing?
    Also, Muslims are sensitive when it comes to their holy prophets being caricatured in any form, let alone when the Dennish depicted it in THAT form (bomb on head). So it doesn’t matter whether both sides knew the solid answer, just as long as someone caricatured it (in a good or bad way) they get heated up.
    Btw, Kenny, good post you have there. I agree with you that our country lacks freedom of speech. I guess Anonymous clearly did not get the WHOLE point of ur post.

  23. hmm. u r right JA.. i guess i should say “complain”.. “stop complaining what do what you should do for ur family and country..”
    and the artist has crossed the line way too far.. they should learn to be respect before even becoming artist.. but what for becoming artist u cant draw things that u like? especially they draw these just to make ppl laugh at… those artist just dont get it…

  24. Hey, Kenny, I understand wat u mean.
    I think it is no about religious, cultural and races, it is all about political.
    Do u know there are a part of extremly consevertive MPs in the Parlimen? Their power is there, even PM oso has to see their face to maintain his authority in UMNO. I think this can explain to u y the muslims can apply permit to build mosque like piece of cake. Y Malay can hv alot of benefit from gov.
    I study in Malay secondary,i hv a lot of Malay friends, i quite understanding wat malay nowadays thinking about.
    I think ST license suspended is a must action to be taken by gov to prevent kacau bilau in Parliment , prevent bising from those consevertive people(MP and rakyat) and hand -offs the issue in Malaysia.(Ask those conservertive people: puas ke tidak? )
    But something hv to be noticed by us,Malay is getting improve some of them is getting open-minded, they really can accept those sensitive issue. This is the Malay nowadays , however for those who play the conservative rule in parlimen are no the new gen malay.
    This is no the issue that we say:”Oooi … chance larrr.. cant like that ler..” Then the gov will chance.
    We hv to wait, coz we are no the majority power in parliment. Even PM oso cant chance their mins, he can scold them , he can educate them, he juz cant ignore the power. Later they will “refomasi”, then ISA comes, then people complain……
    By time to go, the conserative group will be gone.Yes we hv to wait, Kenny. Coz politic playing the rukes now.

  25. i have to agree with your post.
    freedom of speech is very limited here. amazing how its considered a form of freedom.

  26. word.. THINK.. didnt see that coming..
    well, it is us that elected those guys.. have to go with thier dicision..
    still long way to go for this country.. cant wait to see 40 years later!! hopefuly they dont legalise guns like other country… “dont do guns, do drugs!” it will cool when u can finally smoke weed openly, expecially with your son.. “pass me the smokey, boy..”
    lets stop talk bout this man.. the damage has been done and theres nothing much we can do… lets talk bout footballs and porns!

  27. Sarawak Tribune has printing plants in Kuching, Bintulu and Sibu and it employs more than 300 people (I read from a reliable source). Because of the careless action of the publisher and the over-sensitiveness of ‘some people’, 300 innocent people have to be punished? Isn’t that unfair?
    There’s not much point arguing about fairness as long as you’re living in Malaysia. They say, we follow. We argue, they get offended, we get jailed. It’s as easy as THAT.
    I’ve also read that the GuangMing Daily is in the same trouble for publishing that caricature. What now? Another major daily newspaper waiting to be suspended indefinitely?

  28. i agree, sometimes u even upset ppl when u point out that there are over-sensitive ppl
    LoL
    which is why.. i dont think i want to live in msia…..
    too much suppression of being an individual that there is no room for ..those who dont want to be just like sheep..

  29. i think it’s right and just to suspend Sarawak Tribune. at this extent, i dont think it’s a matter of freedom of speech anymore. even nations which are claimed to be free and democratic like France had to sack the editor who published the cartoon.
    moreover, you said that we, Malaysians have a limited level of freedom when it comes to voicing our true opinions on certain matters like politics and we would end up being like morons.
    well, look at Singapore. they cant speak nuts about their Government or freely express their beliefs. but look at them, they are a developed nation.
    so, i dont think u could link the level of freedom of speech with the progress of a nation.

  30. not all muslims are radical or extremists, i find the muslims in msia very easy to get along with etc when compared to some muslims from other parts of the world.
    there are so many caricatures of other religious prophets/gods.. should ppl of other religion begin reacting in such an over the top way? lol tsk.
    when the government did that to ST, aren’t they in a way, serving the cause of raging islamists?

  31. it is a matter of freedom of speech; i think they are just overreacting
    “there are so many caricatures of other religious prophets/gods.. should ppl of other religion begin reacting in such an over the top way?”
    or what abt cartoons depicting racism? should everyone start finding fault and reacting in a violent way because they are offended? in a world where there are so many different kinds of ppl, religion, practices.. u cant be oversensitive or totally insensitive. i dont think the cartoons were insensitive as there are numerous portrayals of various gods, prophets, politicians, etc as well

  32. I feel the same way about this as you Kenny. Unfortunately, sometimes it’s more prudent to hold you tongue.
    It’s things like this that reinforce my opinion that Malaysians as a whole, are unfortunately NOT ready and mature enough for unlimited freedom of speech
    It’s not really our fault, it’s the culture of fear perpetrated by some politicians.
    That’s a very, very long story so I won’t eloborate.

  33. Meh, I don’t think anyone wants ‘unlimited’ free speech. Does it even exist anywhere in the world? A line has to be drawn when it comes to ‘free’ speech. Laws already prohibit you from saying anything defamatory. Would anyone still like to read racist articles? Am I free to swear in public? Really, I think it was stupid to publish those cartoons. What good does it serve? All it’s done is drag Denmark’s name through the mud. One would then argue that free speech is a human right. Well, human rights are meant to benefit humans. And how exactly does anyone benefit from this? Seems to me that the cartoons were published just for the heck of it; an abuse of a right.
    [KS: I’m not talking about Denmark]

  34. Christianity had this era a long time ago. Remember witches and burning stakes? Galileo? Islam is a younger religion so it is also going through it also. However, with religions in static progression since the modern age, maybe it will stay at that violent era forever.

  35. Quoting Albert Einstein which explains in part why we are and/or becoming more n more moronic …
    “Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I’m not sure about the former.”
    “Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ from the prejudices of their social environment. Most people are even incapable of forming such opinions.”

  36. If you read that a show cause letter was issued to another Chinese publication for ‘showing pictures of someone reading a newspaper with the page turned to the caricatures of the Prophet’, you’d be even more repulsed by our bigotry and loss of sense of what the big picture is.

  37. dictionary please :-
    tolerance, peace, communication, understanding,
    patience, fairness, competitiveness, merits,
    equality, …………..

  38. I think most people live with stereotypes instead of trying to find out by ACTUALLY talking to a person of the other race/culture. People THINK that they know, when really they DON’T.
    I absolutely hate it when people toss me shit like, “… but I thought you ALL are like that?” and “… oh you really SHOULD behave/think like that. Why are you so rigid?!”. People like that have absolutely no consideration of the cultural and values factor that any other individual has.
    I hope we pull through this one, because honestly, it would be a pity to see us go neck to neck in Malaysia for something that didn’t even start/really occur here in Malaysia…

  39. there so many polarities, so many sects, and every race / group have their own ” sensitivities ” , frailties , handicaps , weaknesses , and short-comings , society at large should be more equitable, has it , not just one sided .

  40. ‘Sensitive’ issues? I hate it when something is done without a reason. Every thing ought to have a reason. At least they/we/he/she did this because. Putting a stop to it just like that isnt really going to solve problems in the long run. Thats how things are in Malaysia isn’t it? Wonder if this mindset will bring further developments in the country.

  41. Well written! Kenny.
    [KS: Some text removed. Like it or not, before any change has occured you better watch what you say.]

  42. cartoons are just cartoons. It’s not meant to be taken seriously, because it is just a CARTOON. Personally i felt those over-sensitive read too much into the cartoons.

  43. Well, when you see a nail on the ground, will you purposely step on it? Joke or no joke, what ST “did” is a no no in our country. Don’t dwell into saying freedom of speech la this and that la… I do agree with Day and Luke.
    You can’t say a person is oversensitive because you’re not that person. What ST’s done is not FREEDOM OF SPEECH OR PRESS bla bla bla. It’s just an outcome of really bad filter. Well, I am just sad ST’s filters did a real boo-boo there. Shows you how well they proof-read and filter the paper with the amount of sudden truncated articles, typos and plain mistakes they have. Jgn main-main with api. Don’t trot to where you see “TRESSPASSERS WILL BE SHOT”. Want to do it, do it elsewhere where it says “TRESSPASSERS WILL BE SERVED TEA” or “A PENNY FOR YOUR OPINIONS”. If you’re well read, want your opinions to be heard, wants total freedom, you can always go PR-lah in another country. Tak suka because u cannot cincai cakap-cakap (even with a sound reason to back your opinion up), gossip kopitiam, well then that’s just too bad. It is still just YOUR opinion. Not everyone will see eye to eye with you. Don’t like the conservativeness of the country? I am sure many places in the world are very much more “open”. If you’re that smart and opinionated, I am sure you can make a living elsewhere. Deal with it, or leave. Find another place. Go find that nirvana country for yourself. There’s always a choice. Can’t leave because of obligations? Too bad. Beggers can’t be choosers then. Or maybe I am all wrong and you just like to bitch about it. Nothing wrong there. But know what response you’re gonna get, and how this entry can influence others. I AM an avid reader of your blog. I do know you have a big “fan-base”.
    You can also see here (comments la) that some will go all out to lick your coconuts and hurrah with you, or some maybe memang same opinion with, and there’s ppl like me with other opinions. We don’t see eye-to-eye on every occasion do we? I don’t think you’ll get offended with what I write here.. You’re not THAT SENSITIVE right? Well that’s just my opinion. 😀 aiyah I write so long… suak-lah.. I go sleep liaw…
    [KS: Don’t like then leave? Who do you think are? Noh Omar?]

  44. Blame? There’s no one to blame to. Blame that this is M’sia. Ruled by Malays. Those high-positioned rulers want no one to say anything about their nation. Sensitivity is the big issue and you have to adjust yrself to learn how to =X if you plan to live in M’sia. Learn how to MYOB in M’sia. This is something M’sia should learn from Ang Moh now. At least they give the damn slight opportunity for you to speak out.

  45. Well said indeed. The problem with this whole issue is the leaders of political parties are “elected” amongst a pool of worthless shit. How many leaders amongst the oh so many ministers are truly there to serve the people? Could you even tell me how many of the ministers in the cabinet now who are NOT millionaires (themselves or direct relatives) and who are not misusing their influence for personal profits?
    I can tell you the answer… NONE.
    When it comes to issue like this, leaders tend to make a big HOO HAA out of it to divert the people’s attention away from something more important; corruption, bureaucracy and their oh so wonderful and comfortable lifes in a banglo somewhere in Bukit Tunku / Damansara Heights…

  46. stupid ppl… chiak pa bo su cho… oways sue ppl… y kenot live harmonoiusly le?? tolerate mar.. multi racial marr…. nabeh! knnbccb…

  47. a white guy, visitor to Malaysia, wonders what “Ang Moh” is/means?
    find it very difficult to participate in current discussion, though did send long, and articulate, e-mail to Danish Ambassador in Canada supporting Danish govt’s position in current furor. difficulty is due to ticket being bought and paid for – would hate to travel halfway around the world and find myself ‘unwelcome’ when I get to KLIA

  48. The cartoon started last September of 2005, worldwide reaction took this long to organized? Islamic papers publish cartoons of Jesus all the time. Don’t ask for sensitivity until you can respect other people’s religion. Religion of peace … is it really? I see more violence than anything else.

  49. Kenny,
    Because you are checking these posts before they go up, I might as if you know, or have any contact with Kenny Ee, editor (I believe) of the ST, and someone I met on my first trip to Kuching.
    Thanks for your position on the issue.
    Flaneur
    [KS: I have no idea who Kenny Ee is. Sorry.]

  50. Yes, this gahmen is blardy stupid to think we are stupid. I was laughing hard (oh how insensitive of me) when I read there were people killed in other countries over this cartoon. I was even laughing harder when some proclaimed that they would die for the religion. Come on lah, come to the magnum shop on draw day and count how many of those are from these religion that ban gambling, curi curi staking their bet while wearing helmet.
    We are a hypocrite nation.

  51. I have been following your posts for the past few days and am anticipating for you to bring up the issue and you finally did!!
    This is MALAYSIA dude! Freedom of speech is basically NON-EXISTENT alright? I read about the part where a goverment official commented that the Media Industry is out of control, quoting the “nude squats” case and this one, ehem, just exactly how are you going to control them? By giving each newspaper the same script to publish? Then alright, we’ll just have one newspaper then. Personally, I don’t see what the fuss is about, but remember this is a MUSLIM country, you’ve gotta be careful when it comes to religion.
    Anyways, I don’t think ST will go down, worse comes to worse they can always register another company since the facilities are already setup.

  52. At first, I also thought…WTH those people angry with the cartoons? (I have those 12 out of 15 of the cartoons)
    Then I get to know… The cartoons was published back in september 2005. This only makes small part of the people angry in Denmark.
    Then, they (Denmark) republish it again. This is the reason the people get angry. ST “re-publish” the cartoons for Malaysians. If they dont republish, i dun think they will be suspended.
    As for ST, i think a fine is more suitable than close shop. If close shop, more people will be jobless. (similiar with proton eh?-> “close shop” “jobless”)

  53. Sad for the people working in Sarawak Tribune. I feel the closing is very unfair to them. Why do they have to go to such extend to please some people? Don’t they think they are spoiling them? Firing the the people responsible & having apologies published would hav been sufficient.

  54. actually I tot that the paper is quite brainless to reprint cos what is the purpose in doing it???
    knowing tat riots are occuring everywhere cos of the cartoons and here they are doing it…
    trying to boost their readership? try to keep the readers well informed?
    I really question their purpose…
    irresponsibility…
    [KS: Can you honestly say that you’ve read the news at some point without wondering WHAT the cartoons are all about? It’s not to boost readership, they’re doing their job.]

  55. this is a touchy subject.. cant say much. since im muslim, im a bit upset abt it, but i dun think tht ppl shld react violently to this. i mean, wht does tht exactly say abt us?

  56. Malaysia is better off as a nation of various races. Remember the riot in Indonesia in which the local people targeted chinese? It’s worse dude..It’s even more worse.. I don’t even remember there is a riot targeting certain race in Malaysia

  57. This is the first time I am leaving comment here although I have been reading your blog for some time now… I just want to say, I am sorry there is not much civilizations in men nowadays. Take care everyone!

  58. kenny, next entry u’ll better come up with something funny, or porno.. or else ppl will argue this all the time… no offence ppl, but this thing is getting pointless… i know u are upset, but i read kenny sia for something funny.. we all do, rite?
    [KS: Why don’t you write something funny in your own blog?]

  59. honestly, i wonder what the fuss is all about. Sure, the caricatures are marginally insensitive, but i suppose u have to take into account that they are satirical. The funny thing is, these caricatures are just reprints! Personally i feel that half the time these riots occur just because there are some hyper-sensitive individuals out there who feel slighted at any inkling of “insensitivity”. Violence doesn’t exactly help portray Islam as a religion of peace (which it is) and does Muslims all over the world no favours, only increasing tension (racial or otherwise). Noone can be politically correct all the time, in fact sometimes political correctness is just plain pretentious and tiring.

  60. A newspaper is to allow their readers with news, not help the government in their propaganda. It is impractical to block problems when you can do nothing about it.
    Has anyone even heard of Empress Dowager Cixi?
    Anyway, beautiful entry.

  61. Came here on advice of your fellow Catsville resident Yan; I am sorry you “deleted” some eralier posts — I did too at mine on one subject .. I wished I had read those deleted ones, but i can hazard a gas?
    The last time I heard “morons” being bandied about was an exchange between George Soros and former Dr Mahathir Mohamad, but that would be recounting too familair a tale and I wouldn’t want to drive away Kenny’s ‘steamed readers, would I?
    So – Now back to issue proper, just one reference to ONE of the ST’s protagonists (does he deserve the what? ‘aranic’ moniker?): pls bear with desi, longish ~~~ Came here on advice of your fellow Catsville resident Yan; I am sorry you “deleted” some eralier posts — I did too at mine on one subject .. I wished I had read those deleted ones, but i can hazard a gas?
    The last time I heard “morons” being bandied about was an exchange between George Soros and former Dr Mahathir Mohamad, but that would be recounting too familair a tale and I wouldn’t want to drive away Kenny’s ‘steamed readers, would I?
    So – Now back to issue proper, just one reference tothe ST’s protagonists (does he/they deserve the what? ‘moron’ moniker?): pls indulge desi with a longish reference, reproducing relevant parts of news report from The Star: ~~~
    Indefinite suspension 61-year-old Sarawak
    KUCHING: The 61-year-old Sarawak Tribune may not hit the streets anymore even after the suspension order has been rescinded, said the newspaper’s editorial advisor Senator Datuk Idris Buang.
    He said the daily’s board of directors had decided to self-impose an indefinite suspension on publication at their meeting in Sibu yesterday morning, before the Government issued the suspension order.
    “There may not be a Sarawak Tribune anymore,” he told a press conference at the newspaper’s office in Jalan Abell last night.
    Idris said the board fully supported the Federal Government’s stand to suspend the licence of the Sarawak Tribune.
    .
    .
    .
    “We are extremely ashamed of the damage and hurt caused to all Malaysians and the country due to the gross insensitivity and lack of responsibility on the part of whosoever involved among the staff in question, particularly the editor-on-duty.
    “We join all Malaysians in condemning this act (reproduction of the caricatures of Prophet Muhammad),” he added. (ends new report exxtract..)
    This guy is “amazing” — a newspaper’s boss “supporting” the suspension (killing off!) of his own newspaper!
    Then he added insult to injury that he spoke ion behalf of “all Malaysians …on TWO occasions.
    Hey, – I’m a blue-blooded journalist, am proud of it! – did not wish to be represented by you, Idris. Especially a politician first, not even a journalist second!
    “This guy Toman and his big boss Idris Buang were scapegoating Lester Malanyi all the way, now Toman wants to flag himself as a “honourable” hero. Yes, I heard Mark Antony say so many times too (after Julius Caesar’s murder): Brutus and all the assasins were honourable men … transfer the Roman public square to the Malaysian poliitcal (BN) stage … and Shakespeare would have quietly smiled in his grave…
    Maybe Toman will place some bouquets at the Sarawak Tribune tombstone: R.I.P. — I hope it stands for my more optimistic (when I was a child…)version: RISE IF POSSIBLE.
    With friends like Idris and Toman, the people at ST need no enemies…”
    At one time, Putrajaya kept the Morons within the peninsular perimeter. Now it’s cross-border –ah, evil if Global Villagisation?…
    The Morons have arrived in Sarawak, I “sympathise” with thee, kenny, and mGf 2, Yan…I also empathise with ST hardpressed press member& their 300? families — will continue to say some prayers for you ppl with such “noble” bosses heading the newspapers there…
    I:
    S:
    A: amen/amin.
    Yours APpreciative (mayhaps “Dishonourable”?) Reader, YL

  62. Yes Kenny, discussions are good among a group of friends where you can have a meaningful conversation.
    But an online discussion with people over the Internet, you just know that one moron somewhere is going to join in and start dissing the religion and everybody else without substance.
    Most of your readers have the intellect level of a rotten mushroom and I am sure you know it. Just scroll back up and you get what I am talking about.
    Even a simple peaceful article like mine can attract hate comments about a certain religion. That is the reason things should be censored online. Under the anonimity of the Internet, any coward can say anything they like and misinterprete your article, no matter how well it was argued.
    It is easy to call people sensitive, but if saying something or doing something causes people to burn down buildings and take to the streets, then maybe they are trully ofended. I have said it many times, it has got nothing to do with what you believe. It has ALL to do with understanding why people believe otherwise.

  63. we are furious. we are sad.
    but have we done anythin?
    can we do anythin?
    nope. we whine.
    and silent….
    can i know-why prophet’s face shouldn’t be showed?why malays have to be muslims? why they do not like dogs?-Qs i wanna know since primary..am i insensitive by askin these qs? and yes, i really do not know much bout other fellow malaysians’ culture.

  64. I have no idea what was said on the newspaper exactly, but they could have talked about the caricatures without posting the caricatures itself, right? I mean, seeing that it IS a sensitive subject and that they are in a muslim country, it IS kind of dumb to publish the caricatures, however unfair it is of the government to suspend them. Although they had no intention to hurt, whatsoever, and that the government’s just being paranoid, I guess they brought it onto theirselves. You play with fire, get burnt your fault what.
    Haha, I bet that didn’t make sense. But oh well.

  65. Quote ” can i know-why prophet’s face shouldn’t be showed?why malays have to be muslims? why they do not like dogs?-Qs i wanna know since primary..am i insensitive by askin these qs? and yes, i really do not know much bout other fellow malaysians’ culture.”
    i’ll answer ur questions day,
    the prophet’s face, or god’s face, or any prophet’s face cannot be shown to PREVENT the followers from falling into idolatry(worship of figures/pictures, etc, as to why malays must be muslim, i have no idea, (im malay and i donno also),
    as for the dogs part, it’s a common stereotype by muslims to think dogs are bad/dirty and we cant touch em and that bullshit. Well technically, there’s nothing in the holy scriptures that tell us THAT we cant touch em. in fact, the first prophet, Adam, owned a dog. The dog came to adam’s hand.
    hope that answers ur question, if u want to ask me more, you can email me jizu32@gmail.com, rather than flame kenny’s comments.
    btw kenny, malaysian government has never supported free press, what we have is an illusion of free press.

  66. one of the pictures of the newspaper article says that whoever plays up the sensitive issue of race, religion… will be given heavy punishment. isn’t this the country who’s leaders said noone should ever question the rights of malays in the country?
    what a case of double standards.

  67. I really wonder what you mean by “they are doing their job”?
    you mean by publishing the cartoons which in one way or another insults someone’s religion is doing their job???
    [KS: You have to look into the CONTEXT in which it was published. Taken out of context, yes the cartoons are VERY offensive. But in the context of reporting accurate news and supporting it with the very subject of discussion, they are not.]

  68. Kenny ….. great post.. but have anyone realise why Sarawak Tribune did it & not Borneo Post or any other Newspaper??? It’s this guy L.M. who published the caricatures and whether it’s against the Sarawak Tribune or someone really powerful. He obviously did it on purpose since the world has declare this issue as a sensitive & serious Muslim offending matter. But who bought this guy to do so is another matter… Either POLITICAL or COMPETITOR….
    Well… as long as it does nothing harmful to me except for leaving only 1 Sarawak English Newspaper to read and uncertain furture for the staff in Sarawak Tribune!

  69. Thank You Kenny. Well said and I agree. Its unfortunate that people are insular and this creation of ideological walls around ourselves only serves to make us island of humanity unbridged and disunited. Id like to read the post you didn’t put up, if i may.

  70. it was stated that the suspension of the newspaper indefinitely was agreed upon by the board of directors not the goverment
    they did so ebfore the goverment suspended them, which is what the goverment will be doing ….

  71. I am kind of late for the news and haven’t seen the real thing but very curious as to what actually stirred things up and can someone confirm if it is contained in the link below and which one it is.
    What I would really like to understand is what is in the caricature that is so offensive that it warrants torching up the street and even to the extent of killing your friendly neighbors who have the same faith and believe the same thing as you do.
    And why it took as long as it did (4momths) to have any sort of emotional response and to brew up such a storm if indeed it is such an offensive picture.
    Right now all there is out there are anger and violence which honestly hasn’t helped me and probably many others too to understand the issue. For those offended I believe your explanation would be lots more useful towards helping others to understand.
    http://www.rorylewisband.com

  72. Kenny,
    Too bad your blog has become too mainstream for you to post up the caricatures, heck or even to openly discuss the subject now. “Shh…isu sensitif has been the most convenient cover for ignorance. Most of the people blowing the ‘isu sensitif’ hot air have not even seen the cartoon, but are eager to criticize. I have a Palestinian friend who could see it in a light-hearted way, once taken into context. So why can’t they? The cartoon was not about any religion – it was about the absurdness of censorship. The irony, hey…
    If you actually google the cartoons up, you can see that one of the cartoons depict Buddha, Jesus and a Jewish God telling Mohammad not to get mad – they’ve all been subject to caricatures themselves. No offence, but I don’t see any Christians or Buddhists rampaging through towns burning embassies and the like.
    I applaud the Sarawak Tribune for staying true to their journalistic principles (at least in this case) instead of selling out like the Star, NST, etc. It is ridiculous expecting the government of Denmark and France to apologize for the sake of their media. Perhaps the idiot rioters are all from countries that don’t know the meaning of INDEPENDENT press.

  73. it was said that the directors themsleves refused to continue with sarawak tribune even if the ban is lifted…..who should we trust?
    I’m losing trust and confidence in this country…sigh

  74. Oh, come on, have all of you not read George Orwell’s 1984?
    Don’t you think there might be another reason why ST was closed down?
    Two words: diversion, monopoly.

  75. This whole fiasco is a ‘wayang kulit’. Its agenda is simple. To bring a race of people together in times when their political camp is on shaky ground.
    And who wants to bet that there will be new owners with a new permit in hand to ‘revive’ ST?
    Politics + Big Business go hand in hand. Look around in Sarawak. Who owns what where? Who runs what where?
    Enjoy the show, a script worth of a hollywood blockbuster.

  76. jeff: Malays have to be Muslim or they aren’t Malays. Simple as that. Constitutionally, a Malay is someone who regularly speaks the Malay language, practices Malay culture and most importantly (to the governing authorities anyway), is a Muslim.

  77. excellent post, very true indeed they way you describe our ‘malaysia boleh’ culture. Dont speak, dont communicate, if the issue sensitive better dont talk. We never try to learn, why it is sensitive? Or why some group of people can be insensitive? It’s the lack of communication between us. That’s what our gomen prefer I guess. Jangan cakap banyak.. ikut saja. Yang ini betul, itu tak betul, jangan tanya mengapa… We are sheep 😀 yeaH!!!!!!

  78. I really wonder what you mean by “they are doing their job”?
    you mean by publishing the cartoons which in one way or another insults someone’s religion is doing their job???
    Try to look at the big picture, understand why they publish it, the intention, is it intentional as to cause malice? They just published it together to support what they were reporting. Too bad some people are too dumb to try to READ and UNDERSTAND instead of buta buta taruk people… Haih.. Agree with Kenny, Moronic Nation.

  79. “jeff: Malays have to be Muslim or they aren’t Malays. Simple as that. Constitutionally, a Malay is someone who regularly speaks the Malay language, practices Malay culture and most importantly (to the governing authorities anyway), is a Muslim.”
    yea thnx..i forgot about the damned constitution.

  80. Kenny,
    this is one of the most meaningful blog i’ve ever read. it is sooo damn true!
    that’s the fact… living in a religious country. where’s the human rights in speaking out??? if we continue locking our mouth, then when can we learn, understand and be honest with everyone? when can we really be united in harmony?
    sad case…

  81. To all Malaysians who yearn to have a free conscience… please, come to the United States! You will be respected. You will be treated with dignity. You will make lots of money. You will have the freedom to speak your mind.
    On the other hand, if you are so sensitive that seeing a cartoon drawing of some guy that supposedly lived 2000 years ago drives you to tears or makes you go crazy, then you are not suited for life in our country. Better you stay in Malaysia where you have the government to protect your fragile ego.

  82. think this way, atleast we are not that bad..
    take Iran for example; a 17 years old girl was sentenced hung to death for defending herself being raped by 4 man. She actually accidently killed one of them with her pocket knife. well she is sentenced to death. because of that.
    On another hand, an angry mob in Iran stormed Denmark Embassy, and burnt down everything, because them stand by thier belief and religion. With this, Denmark now can rage war againts Iran, for attacking thier land in Iran.
    For me, lady is not only our friend, girlfriend wife and sisters. Thier our mother. and i respect them. my point is if people dont resect thier mother, what right do they have to stand by thier own belief? i’m glad that own country pactices the milder side of Islam teaching. And i’m glad to be in this country. and i’m sure the goverment has already try his best to protect everbody’s right.
    i dont wana live in a country where they banned drugs because the government “care about the people”, on the other hand legalise guns and firearm.

  83. i don’t know if anyone watched the news recently, but on TV3, the report shows that someone from Melaka reported about the Sarawak Tribune incident, from Ayer Keroh. someone poslaju-ed a newspaper to Melaka?

  84. Don’t just complain that you can’t say or do anything.
    When voting time comes, vote wisely.
    If you think vote Barisan Nasional for stability.
    NAH!

  85. i think it was all very stupid.
    even my dad, a press man, thinks the same.
    malaysia, although a circular country,
    is so muslim-oriented.
    nobody would give a f*ck if it was moses or some other ‘holly’ character (thats NOT muslim) was dissed. i applaud you for this post of yours.

  86. I’ve read all the comments and found some to be amateur enough.
    These whole issue has been a vicious cycle with a chain of events that lead to extreme reactions that causes casualties and loss of jobs. On my personal opinion, it should be wholly blamed on the published caricature and therefore the worldwide press. Due to 911 and other ‘catastrophe’, issues on Islam is extremely sensitive. A line should be drawn when it comes to humiliating their religion during such sensitive times,by drawing a bomb on top of Mhd’s head. NOt a very good idea indeed. And becos of how much chaos it can cause, the worldwide press came to denounce, report in details for the whole world to see. The whole world sees it and it aggravate the situation. M’sia gov probably suppress ST becos the country cannot afford to induce riots more.

  87. You totally missed the point, Kenny. Look at waddafak’s comment – this guy knows what’s going on.
    Who owns ST? Who’s the chairman of ST? Who does he report to?

  88. It’s sad what happened to Sarawak Tribune. I too grew up reading it, and I dun think it’s too much to say that’s it’s the only decent Sarawakian newspaper worth reading. On 1 hand, I’d agree that it might have been a bad idea to publish the cartoon especially in this country. But does the reaction have to be so severe as to shut down the whole newspaper when it’s only a few individuals who made the decision. Sucks. Hope Sarawak Press will reincarnate the ST in someway, maybe a new paper? It used to be called the Sarawak Times, right? Maybe that could be a way out. Pity the rest of the staff though…buta buta lose their jobs/careers… Anyway, condolences to ST, but hope to see it in another form soon….

  89. i think all the fuss made is clearly unnecessary. No doubt it might be insulting to certain muslims, but i agree with u that many cartoons are made to encourage the readers to think and question. The reaction is really way too much. Everything is based on politics now, and religion is just an excuse to argue. An apology would have been enough looking that there was no intention to hurt/anyone or religion.
    i would just like to say thanks kenny, for having the balls to put this up with so much honesty and straight-forwardness. 🙂

  90. No doubt, Malaysians who have posted inconsiderate, harsh and foolish comments like some of those above are nothing else but ignorant. And, they are not ignorant because the nation have brought them up that way.
    It’s ALL because they dont read enough and not think twice before they say something. They lambast and punish innocent people with their comments, thinking that they have EVERY right to freedom of speech. ‘Civilised’ people make use of their rights for the better of everyone, and these people abuse it by disrespecting others and our own fellow Malaysians.
    I have no idea what our nation would turn up to be like if we were given the ultimate freedom to speech with these people who would disrupt the harmony of Malaysian lives.

  91. Good riddance! Sarawak Tribune is just another medium of propoganda for the government anyway. Not directly but many of its editorials are pro-government crap. I am not saying that any Malaysian newspapers are better but at least they don’t keep publishing articles that give Barisan Nasional a pat in the back everytime. Besides ST news are for those contended with living under the coconut shell. From the first to the last page everything is about Sarawak. I exaggerate but generally that is the idea. If you want to read ST, fine. But at least get access to CNN or BBC or whatever news you can find via your parabolic dish.
    Anybody with common sense would know that it is a bad idea to publish those pictures. We already know what those pictures can lead to. We have seen European media receiving the brunt of the attack and editors issuing public apologies. And these are huge conglomerates, mind you. BBC is one of them. And now ST intends to take on the Muslim world or rather Muslim country by itself. Arrogance? I would think ignorance rather because most probably the ST editors are living under the coconut shell as well and oblivious to the world as their publication is. Wake up! You are living in an Islamic country for crying out loud.
    If you feel like crying out loud, get out of the country and spit out whatever is on your mind. If not just keep quiet and be happy that you are living in a country that is peaceful and a country that you don’t have to crack your head thinking who to vote because no matter who you vote BN is still going to be tha majority. Otherwise, if you cannot do that, you can cry in jail under ISA.

  92. how was depicting a bomb in the prophet’s turban supposed to make anyone think?!
    anyone looking at it would have the impression that the prophet encourages terrorism etc, and that was very offensive.
    if the caricatures were supposed to encourage thinking, i truly believed that it was done to mislead, and not educate 😛
    if you’re really desperate to learn, there are other ways of educating yourself on whatever issue you want to learn about by choosing anything other than the offensive approach. dont read somebody’s opinion and make it your own before learning it yourself.
    thats just being shallow.
    its shallow to assume that just because the the 911 terrorists are muslims, then all his muslim brothers and sisters are terrorists too.
    in 1997 Timothy McVeigh was sentenced to death for terrorising (bombing Oklahoma City). he was a pure white-assed american. but you all know what everyone first said? ‘oh hey investigation showed tht the bombing has got middle eastern signature written all over it’
    if muslims didnt face so much discrimination in today’s world, they probably wouldnt be so defensive.
    muslims in malaysia are lucky that we’re living peacefully instead of being bombed everyday like in Iraq. i friggin wonder where the hell is that secret weapon of mass destruction bush is talking about.
    so yeah you wana talk. the problem is your head is too small to think about big issues. just shut the fuck up.
    and if any of you in here are saying that offending somebody else’s God is nothing and should be taken lightly (just because you’re so used to cursing yours) YOU’RE SO OUT OF YOUR HEAD.
    hello? what did they teach you in school? the most basic things – be respectful, be nice, be kind etc etc.
    now i hear people giving all kinds of excuses for what tht Danish paper did. oh we have freedom of speech, oh this is to report blablabla. cut the crap. freedom of speech is there for the good, it was never meant to be used like this. heck, the editor even said that he wouldnt mind publishing offensive stuffs about the Holocousts. you dare bet that nobody would feel offended? why not publish something offensive about Jesus and have it being circulated on the net worldwide or around Europe to be ridiculed. you think that bush is going to sit around smiling his head off? encourage thinking? you know what bush will be thinking? pressing that nuclear bomb button to the danes, thts what he would wanna do.
    you fail to grasp time and time again that some measures are necessary to protect Malaysia from what has happened in the past. if it meant tht our ‘freedom of expression’ is limited to not offending anybody’s God, i dont see why it should be a problem for you in the first place. Sarawak Tribune was either too dumb or too smart for its own good when they decided to publish tht article. what a bunch of idiots.

  93. could it be the goverment trying to warm the public not to do something foolish, or else we could end up like ST? everything happends for a reason.. think twice..

  94. Bravo Kenny for publishing nonsense comments from trolls like “wtf” Others like Jeff Ooi would’ve banned him for his personal attacks.
    “so yeah you wana talk. the problem is your head is too small to think about big issues. just shut the fuck up.”
    Hmm..but obviously you can’t.
    I didn’t want to open a can-of-worms here, but since Kenny is leaving himself open to attack, maybe someone should rebut one or two thing here aight..
    “muslims in malaysia are lucky that we’re living peacefully instead of being bombed everyday like in Iraq”
    And who are the bombers in Iraq? And who are the majority of the casualties of said bombings – its not the American soldiers but innocent Iraqi muslims, courtesy of not-so-innocent Iraqi muslims with some help from the Iraninans or Syrians.
    “he was a pure white-assed american. but you all know what everyone first said? ‘oh hey investigation showed tht the bombing has got middle eastern signature written all over it’
    if muslims didnt face so much discrimination in today’s world, they probably wouldnt be so defensive.”
    Its called stereotyping. Basically you look at who the majority of the the bombers are and make a guess. Not saying it is right, but it is what most people do, including you. No prize for guessing who are the people conducting most of the bombings, by the way.
    “pressing that nuclear bomb button to the danes, thts what he would wanna do.”
    Guess somewhat forgot to take his meds, huh. Calm down, stop flaming, go sleep. Atta boy.
    “could it be the goverment trying to warm the public not to do something foolish, or else we could end up like ST? ”
    Notice that in such a society – personal accountability is dependant upon the threat of punishment by the government; we are encouraged to be a tool. Stop thinking, just do as you are told as everything is fine n’ dandy.
    Peace.

  95. you have my support, Kenny. No point of getting angry over this issue. It’s not the first time anyways. Everytime such issues crop up, drastic actions are being taken by our topguns. Thing is, these people at the top have brains the size of peanut…that’s why they are monkeys! to some extend we’ll just have to live with it for now (well, at least until someone at the top decides enough is enough or until every malaysian starts thinking) and let’s just pray that the very people we put up there in the government will do something.

  96. I am not very sure if they shld ve done it at all.
    All the violence going on, what they ve done has caused great damage and caused the deaths of many…
    Sigh…
    If only these would stop soon…

  97. Ouch, Kenny. I sure hope you didn’t shoot down everything I said just because it contained the word ‘Denmark’ in it. What I said about Denmark is applicable to the Sarawak Tribune. That is, WHAT GOOD does it serve? In Denmark’s case, it was primarily to test the limits of free speech. Well, in ST’s case, that was obviously, intentionally or not, a similar attempt. Sure, Kenny, you assert that the purpose of publishing thoes cartoons is to facilitate BALANCED and FACTUAL reporting.
    Well, Huda in an earlier post hit the nail on the head. Was it completely necessary to have those caricatures there? How about a lengthy wordy article with no pictures? Would that someone detract from its credibility? If anyone is INTERESTED in seeing those pictures, they could always go onto the internet. What, you guys still like reading picture books?
    (I’m not a Muslim, so if anyone could shed some light or even rebuke me for the following:)
    And Kenny, I don’t think you should have shot ‘Wei De’ down as well. For everyone here (including Kenny), as far as I know, IN THE ISLAMIC FAITH IT IS WRONG TO REPRESENT THE PROPHET IN ART IN ANY SHAPE OR FORM AND YES, EVEN WITH THE UTMOST OF GOOD INTENTIONS. Even the Muslims themselves who love and respect him to no end perhaps might even love to have a picture of him hanging on the wall ARE FORBIDDEN TO. In other words, NO CONTEXT JUSTIFIES portrayal of the prophet. So Kenny, the moment ST did what they did, NO MATTER WHAT THEY WERE GONNA SAY, they’ve offended Muslims.
    ‘Fruitopia’, in light of what I said above, that does not necessarily make him ‘mainstream’. His blog has identified enough of him to allow him to face severe backlash and repercussions if he did publish the caricatures.
    Any what’s more, have any of the press from Canada, the US, Australia and the UK published those pictures? Don’t they have an independent press too? Perhaps the media in those countries don’t suffer any insecurities with regards to free speech AND/OR THEY KNOW BETTER.
    Hey bongkersz, if any portrayal of the prophet is against Islamic teachings for any reason at all, would your views change? Cuz, any publication of such is a display of insensitivity.
    ‘Wtf’ thanks for your post. Though some things you said made me cringe a little, I appreciate your similar perspective.
    Kenny, we need not look far to find evidence of the press providing a balanced and factual view, or at least of controversial and touchy issues. Remember the ‘strip-search’ incident? Or the mountaineer’s widow caught in a legal loophole between the civil and Islamic courts? Or how about the guys at the top lamenting the Malay’s culture of receiving handouts from the government? Really Kenny, I just don’t see how you can justify your entire entry above. Our media may seem to have the impression of self-censorship but perhaps it’s because it’s erring on the side on safety – better to be sensitive than insensitive. If those issues recently PUBLISHED above in the media are so remote from anything cultural or religious or political that it allows them to be published, I dunno what would please you.

  98. i do think it’s inappropriate to publish the cartoon..i mean look at other countries who had published the cartoons. this will sure triggered furore among muslims in this country..

  99. From Lynn Johnston:
    “On behalf of conscientious humorists and illustrators worldwide, I want to say to the nation of people who have been understandably offended – an apology is due. This is not comedy. If a cartoon or a statement causes such pain, it enters the category of hate literature and should be treated as such.
    Laughter is a language we can all understand. For the sake of decency and good taste – stop reprinting this inflammatory image and allow a people already in crisis to heal.
    “I believe these cartoons have a right to exist. But the media does not have the right to use them callously in the name of freedom. Freedom for whom? If one innocent person dies because of this capricious incident, publishers must accept the blame.”

  100. you draw or write something about Christianity, the Vatican may go after you…..
    you draw or write something about Muslim,the whole Muslim nation may go violent!
    Maybe our government is playing safe…..

  101. Yes, we all gotta to resurrect the Sarawak Tribune..come on..suspend indefinitely over a cartoon?!! Muslim are taught to forgive and forget as do most major mainstream religion.
    Come and get me if u can,,ISA folks,,give u a hint,,i am in canada.
    dont forget the handcuffs! Oh my wrist are small,,bring the XXS size.
    Oh one more reminder for those officers that are assigned to tangkap me,,bring some pocket money and see Canada before catching me. U got this one chance to travel half the world and geta tour here.
    Do what u can,,but please please let my dear Tribune go. That was my first newspaper when i learned to read english in primary 3.
    i even end up being the loan officer to lease hi-tech equpments to Sarawak Press when it’s press room transform from old’cut and paste” to hi-tech computer and networks.
    i even caught a glimpse of who the real indirect owners of Tribune is. All i can say is he’s got a lot of white hair,,,hahahaha
    My late grandpa too gota lots of white hair and when he walks around the wet market in Gambir Rd, they call used to call him, “pek-mo”.
    LONG LIVE THE TRIBUNE!!!

  102. this is a good topic to distract everyone from AP, NAP, NEP, Proton, Kentut and Fang Pi (ketuk ketampi), rapes, snatch thieves, and other previously highlighted issues…

  103. i’m glad you had deleted those things you’re wrote. cos i knew it is not going to be safe for you.
    we can’t afford to loose a blog which would allow us to express our views.
    i do love my country, but so many things that happened had really made me reconsidering whether i should return to my country of birth.

  104. great post kenny – I have a solution for you all – VOTE opposition for once and have a new govt that is not only interested in sucking taxpayer $$$ and putting into their own pockets – oh forgot – they keep redrawing the constituency boundaries to prevent that.

  105. Absolutely true.
    Muslims are kind of violent when it comes to these things, but extremists only though.
    Why must they burn down buildings and kill? Why want to wage war against others? It’s world peace that we want, and they keep spoiling it. They study the Quran everyday, and pray 5 times a day, but the abhorrent fact is that they are not changing for the better.
    Yeah, and I agree that the government is a “follower.” They feel that they should be angry as those extremists are. They can’t stand by themselves. They need someone or something to lean on.

  106. i was going to say alot of things but after going thru all the comments, i dont see the point of saying anything anymore.
    but one thing for sure, all religions preech love and peace. if anyone is so defensive/protective abt their religion that means they should preech love and peace too. but why aren’t they? hmmm…

  107. it isn’t so much that the less we know the more morons we produce… but i think the less we are allowed to question and make mistakes to learn… the less we will understand each other… and the less united we shall become…
    how then are we to remain a nation united?
    how will we fare in the world tomorrow where terror seeks to divide us into infighting factions?
    i have to say that i love my country very much… but there’s very little of it that i am proud of… that’s kinda sad…

  108. i just don’t how the cartoons look like. my government just simply banned it. what’s the point huh? you don’t let the your people know why muslims are angry over it, yet you let them outrage in the country causing trepidations among your people. Sarawak Tribune did the right thing, it let its readers know the fact.
    just wanna say bullshit to the one who decided on banning ST.

  109. haha, I think Islam is being over-generalised everywhere. Not All muslims wanna go kill people. Not All muslims are terrorists.
    My point is that extremists are what they are. They’re overly extreme and do stuff without thinking. Islam’s suppsoed to be a religion of peace. Not all this bullcrap.
    Even so, there’s no point re-producing all the stuff that offend muslims, extremists or not, right?
    I dunno. Just my thoughts.

  110. haihz…let us all keep swak tribune in our hearts…well kenny, this entry of urs is [sadly] true…freedom of speech my ass…democracy my ass…hopefully sumone sumhow can change this weakness in our country in the future~…RIP swak tribune…all of swak will miss u dearly~

  111. we all know ST didnt do anything wrong.. but they are stupid in someway… ST have been here for 60 years, way older than Malaysia, and for sure they know whats should be touch and what should not.. not that they dont know lots of ppl lost the job because of that.. why ST, WHY?!

  112. I’d like to talk more bout this, but this kenny’s blog, so i sum up everything in my blog.. if u care, please read, if you dont care, never mind, i understand…
    averageass.blogspot.com

  113. just did a post on that too. i’m so fucking pissed. how can they suspend it indefinitely and expect sarawak press to print another paper with another name?
    fucking stupid. am so pissed.
    screw the malaysian government the way eric cartman would!!!

  114. just did a post on that too. i’m so fucking pissed. how can they suspend it indefinitely and expect sarawak press to print another paper with another name?
    fucking stupid. am so pissed.
    screw the malaysian government the way eric cartman would!!!

  115. I wanna put in my 2 cents!!! can ar?? hahahaah…
    What i figure from this whole debacle is that, Danish Newspapers and supporters of western ideologies use this so called ‘FREEDOM OF SPEECH’
    bullshit to excuse the obvious riducle of another religion. Yes, freedom of speech is important, but don’t you think that pouring salt into an already open wound in the Muslim community is only asking for trouble??? stupid hicks….
    I think If muslims in europe are already feeling like outcasts and unaccepted by the majority, and the MAJORITY made fun PUBLICLY and INTERNATIONALLY of their prophet, it would only make the chasm widen.
    So Freedom of SPEECH!!! but with a little sensitivity……. 😛
    my two cents…

  116. What’s the point of complaining that no one is discussing it and then you dont discuss it? If everyone speaks up then they cant shut us all up right.

  117. I was waiting for you to post sumthin abt this issue…and I’m glad u had the sense NOT to republish the caricatures…THAT would have been suicide!
    Sarawak Tribune…RIP…Rise If Possible (Yeah…ylchong)…
    Let’s stop fighting about cartoons…as if the world didn’t have enough things to fight about…

  118. Well, I am totally agree to some of the comments about this stupid country people especially on the “u know who” race… Even a small little issue on their race, they make it big like ass… Other races, I dun care attitude.. Do they ever think of fairness in this country.. I guess not.. U know y? Because their head and ass have swap places.. their brain is in their ass, sitting on it all the time, of course cannot think… More over they are claiming that this country is theirs and other people are all immigrants… I said this is BullShit!! Without other races will this country’s economy grow?
    Who are the people helping the economy grow by mining the gold and tin mines? Is it them? I guess not.. Well, no point comment too much as you know you can’t talk to a no-brainer who can’t even think straight.. More over no point in teaching them on ‘How to improve your cleverness’ theory… Waste of time..

  119. so those employees of ST have to loose their jobs just becoz of our government?
    The Government is killing ST off completely, even after ST appologised earlier.
    heh

  120. Kenny… yea right. i agree abt the “in context” thing… really… i dun understand why it’s gotta close down for some caricature crap….
    Art is art… it doesn’t make the prophet less holy…

  121. I believe on that some level even the Malaysian government doesn’t have much of a choice but to respond in such a manner. The system is not secular and there will always be religious factions that the government will have to pander to, especially since the locus of authority for these factions lie outside their jurisdiction. What I feel they haven’t grasped is that you can’t have it both ways. You cannot woo back the Chinese intellectuals that have left Malaysia seeking a place where affirmative action is not practised, without having to distance yourself from your religious sentiments. It can’t be good for business ultimately because there is a time to censor, but there’s also a time to be magnanimous and present a different side of Islam.

  122. my own verdict:
    should not = publish the cartoon
    = suspend ST (think about poor jobless
    ST-ians). mindless decision .
    should = description in writing is just suffice
    = suspend editor .

  123. Enough with unfair stereotype. excuse me, jackson, but i don’t think those extremists represent the real name of Islam. Islam stands for peace and harmony, it says so in our Holy Book (Al Quran)
    Plus, many Muslims have contributed to more peaceful living in society. Without the rules upholding peace and harmony, the world would be thrown into even more chaos without Islam. (my apologies if this has caused offense on anyone’s part)

  124. nice, clear and consice post. I agree. May I linked your blog to mine, Kenny? For Jackson, yes I think you’re too exaggerated and for Izzati, I know what you mean but IMHO Islam also need to communicate its peacefull mission more intensely. We need to communicate and respect our boundaries to each other, elimanite more misunderstanding. peace! 🙂

  125. When I heard what happened to ST, I couldn’t say I was surprised. CP was already targetted when they showed the video clip of the infamous nude squats. So did other papers, like UM, which, IMHO, is a racist paper. Anything happen to them? Nope. As for showing the caricatures, I believe it was shown on TV3 as well. Anything happen to them? Nope.
    Yes, it’s insulting to hv images of the Prophet. But hell, I don’t see them making a hullabaloo when insulting caricatures of Jesus (also a prophet) are made and published.
    My question is this, why target certain medias, and not others? Why the double standard? That would mean that the “Bangsa Malaysia” is utter BS. There will never be a true bangsa malaysia. Never. Period. And that’s a crying shame. Some of you will tell me to cry on, I don’t like it, I can leave. Well, no thank you, c u next tuesday.
    Just as a side note, there have been images of the prophet drawn waaaay before most of us were ever born. You can view it here:
    http://www.zombietime.com/mohammed_image_archive/
    It shows you images with and without his face. And it appeared in old books. Just FYI.

  126. If they (the militants) are religious Muslims and claimed they are peaceful beings, why threaten others with death and shout “Allah is Great”? Shut the fuck up and do not bring Allah’s name into their unjustifiable actions.

  127. This is just an easy way out for ST. Apparently they are in deep financial shit and what easier way to get out of it? Publish that cartoon and get suspended.
    There’s more to it than what the public see.

  128. wanna know why this is happening?
    because we let them do it.
    how can people make such a fuss and silence us so unreasonably?
    because we let them do it.
    how can UIA force chinese girls to don a tudung?
    because we let them do it.
    how can they push their discriminatory policies?
    because we let them do it.
    how can they force their values on us and islamize us?
    because we let them do it.
    and why do we let them do it?
    because we don’t want trouble.
    because no one has the balls to stand and fight.
    because no one has the balls to speak up.
    because no one thinks it’s worth the trouble to speak up.
    because no one wants to support the guy who has the balls to speak up.
    because no one appreciates the dude who has the fuckin bollocks to rock the boat.
    because everyone thinks of their own comfort and life only and don’t give a flying fuck about greater ideals like justice and freedom.
    i learned this the hard way. i was the guy with the balls to stand up and be counted. i was the guy who dared to make a difference and be different. i was the guy who spoke my mind and believed that it was worth the trouble if justice prevailed.
    i was the guy who ended up hurt and alone because when the crunch came, all the other losers only thought of their own asses.
    now i ask, “if they don’t give a fuck about their own rights, why should i bother about theirs?”
    “why should i stick my neck out for these spineless eunuchs?”
    fuck them all. fuck this whole nation of morons.
    I’m migrating.

  129. what do you mean until we “become” a nation of morons? how can there be an “until”? we have long past that point buddy…(like some 40 years or so) and that is *without* really trying hard.

  130. Honestly, what is wrong with the world today is that many people are insensitive towards the issue of religion. What they did, printing the cartoons, TOTALLY DIRECT RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION. They have no hearts towards the sentiments of Muslims who give their souls up for the sake of religion.
    “Freedom of speech”? Would they say the same thing if other religions were discriminated against that way? What would they answer to that, then?
    Astaghfirullah.

  131. “”they (the militants) are religious Muslims and claimed they are peaceful beings, why threaten others with death and shout “Allah is Great”? Shut the fuck up and do not bring Allah’s name into their unjustifiable actions.””
    Posted by Angry
    ——————————————
    my comment : of course, extremists are not real muslims, they just think they are but they are pulling down the meaning of truth and peace in Islam. Still, the actions of terrorism by certain sects do not qualify the other quarter of the world to ignorantly and directly bash that religion as a whole. We should take real, appropriate actions against terrorists, not contributing to more chaos.

  132. There should be even much more effort being put into to promote world peace. Hey, are “Muslims” the only terrorists in the world?
    Keep in mind, extremists and terrorists are not qualified as real Muslim jihadists.. real Muslims are those who promote truth and harmony.. sorry for leaving many comments here, but yeah I cannot shut up about it.

  133. Oi Putrajaya! Give us our Tribune Back! Suspend tribune equals suspend Sarawak! if things like this happen all the time, maybe sarwak should secede!!!!! Yeah! Secede! mwahahahahaha!!! If Singapore can, why can’t we?
    Aiyo…latter ISA people chase me…. Lord Jesus, save me…. I’ll hide at St Thomas’ Cathedral… Mwahahahaha….

  134. OMG.Did i just posted that? hahahaha…. I love Sarawak, I love kuching. I love Tribune. Long LIve us all. AMEN.
    Our Father that art in Heaven,
    Hallowed be Thy name.
    Thy Kingdom come,
    Thy will be done,
    On earth as it is in Heaven above.
    Give us today our daily bread (and our Tribune)..
    Forgive our tresspasses,
    as we forgive those who tresspassed us.
    Lead us not into temptations,
    but deliver us from evil (the ISA ppl and the morons of Malaya)….
    For Thine is the kIngdom, Power and Glory
    Forever.
    AMEN….
    We sarawakian should not remain silent anymore. We know more about tolerancy and harmony than the semenanjung ppl. Long live sarawak. God bless us. Allah bless us. Buddha bless us.

  135. have you seen the caricatures published at the Danish newspaper? I’m not muslim but I do feel the insult to the religion. What if other draw the same caricature about Moses or Jesus?? Can I do that?
    All this things is about RESPECT. Those 12 caricatures are not about any ordinary muslim but is insulting Islamic Prophet. He is the messenger of Allah. What did he did wrong? Did he trained the people to be Jihad?? No he never but he brings the human values from wrong to right.
    Just imagine if someone draw that same caricature about your father, how you feel? Please take note, all among the muslim the Prophet is more respectful than their father.
    Yes Kenny I agree what you say as Malaysian need to explore more in order to get develope but Malaysian must also not to for get to know how to respect others, other wise the history tought us nothing and all the efford from the past and the harmonies from 3 major races will have major conflicts.
    Do you wish to be like that?

  136. Remember the year Talibans destroyed 2 buddha statues in Afgan? Who did anything bout it? Compare this to the 2 cartoon, imagine if it were ‘terbalik’. WW3!
    Regarding the Sarawak Post,
    1: they did apologize (aint muslims all about forgiveness?)
    2: they did not post this cartoons as a comic. They post it as a news, which should not be a problem. I am quite sure 75% and above from Peninsular never saw the cartoons before. How can they judge before not seeing it?

  137. Yes of course, as a muslim we should forgive each other. Not just in Islam, but also in all other religion taught us about this matter.
    But this is not the case. Don’t measure this issue base on religion background. I think if a muslim make a caricature of Jesus Christ they will be more angry. But what’s the point? Let’s not discuss into that.
    In my humble opinion, There must be a political reason behind it. They wanted to test muslim, so to make almost every muslim angry. Then, they wanted to show all people around the world, that this is Islam. So right now, try to switch on TV and see the news. Every other religion will teach their son and daughter, that is islam and they practise terrorism. So, get rid of them and ignore them and perhaps kill them all!
    My point is, every religion has extremist, so this should not be pointed at any religion. This is about individual perspective. If we love our religion, we will do whatever right to protect it.
    For this case, before republishing any issues that has been approved to be an ‘illegal act’ is definately not right. So now, you get what you pay for, isn’t it? Don’t be simply ignorant, be sensitive about certain matter that relates to human right in this country.
    The government did the right thing and it’s truely a bless to protect our prophet. Enough said.

  138. Good point PKT, I almost forget about the buddha statues. If it were some muslim artifacts being destroyed by Buddhist, surely it will be different.
    Btw, Faiz, I heard middle east countries are planning on making comics about the Nazi massacre. I think it’s more serious then making a caricature of Jesus Christ.
    And about the Sarawak Tribun, I may not be clear about laws, but I agree with PKT that posting the drawings as news and not as comic should not be wrong.

  139. Dear commenter Fong, well said:
    “”have you seen the caricatures published at the Danish newspaper? I’m not muslim but I do feel the insult to the religion. What if other draw the same caricature about Moses or Jesus?? Can I do that?
    All this things is about RESPECT. Those 12 caricatures are not about any ordinary muslim but is insulting Islamic Prophet. He is the messenger of Allah. What did he did wrong? Did he trained the people to be Jihad?? No he never but he brings the human values from wrong to right.
    Just imagine if someone draw that same caricature about your father, how you feel? Please take note, all among the muslim the Prophet is more respectful than their father.
    Yes Kenny I agree what you say as Malaysian need to explore more in order to get develope but Malaysian must also not to for get to know how to respect others, other wise the history tought us nothing and all the efford from the past and the harmonies from 3 major races will have major conflicts.
    Do you wish to be like that? “”
    Thanks for your compassion and understanding. To us, Prophet Muhammad is our prophet, our friend who guides us from darkness to light of moralities. Prophet Muhammad never encouraged unjustified violence– he has only taught Muslims to defend the name of Islam if any force threatens to break it down.
    As a Prophet, he was a humble man. He was kind to everyone, animals and humans and even his enemies. If he was alive now, God, he would even treat those who made him in public ridicule as kindly as though they were humans above him! He has taught us many things, and made many Muslims the kind, humble, giving people they are today. (Well, extremists are not real Muslims –real Muslims are those who do anything to PROTECT their religion not violate the truth)
    How would they feel I wonder if their own religions were publicly ridiculed that way? Of course it would cause a worldly outrage and almost no country would be left in peace. Please, a religion is a very sensitive issue, i think any religion is too sacred for the followers to be made public ridicule, such direct and clear religious discrimination in the public for the WORLD is to see is far more than just moralistically wrong. It is like you are contributing to poison everywhere.
    Peace all. I’m a Muslim and it would be inappropriate for me to just shut up.

  140. Izzati…
    Do remember bout the Buddha statues..
    They are historical relics~
    Did the Buddhists take the opportunity to cause havoc? No!
    Do you think it was not an issue at all?
    Or do you not know that Buddha is considered God to them?
    Or are you going to blame the “few” extremists of Talibans? Using few “extremists” as an excuse you can destroy one’s statue. BUT y cant u use the same excuse/reason on this issue?
    Berat sebelah?
    hmmm…. maybe u r using kelapa instead of kepala

  141. Um.. when i talked about discrimination.. I did not mean –Islam only.. I said ANY RELIGION
    and for the final time, EXTREMISTS ARE NOT REAL MUSLIMS
    sure go ahead call me berat kepala but don’t insult my prophet. I WOULD DIE FOR HIM.

  142. “”How would they feel I wonder if their own religions were publicly ridiculed that way? Of course it would cause a worldly outrage and almost no country would be left in peace. “”
    That’s what i wrote. I am saying that no religion, not even buddha, should be regarded in such a way.

  143. it IS about our STATE. malaya always treat sarawak bad. wei izatti, this is not forum on whether islam is innocent or watever, or how much you love your prophet. this is forum on sarawak tribune. baka. yea yea we know not all muslims are terrorist. so wat. shut up. we’re fighting for sarawak tribune here. not for islam. wakakakaka.

  144. nah, i dont need your thanks. remember that islam is not the religion of majority here in sarawak. this is a christian state. and malaya dont like it that way. and they suspend our ‘english-christian’ newspaper… it’s the truth…
    i love my multi racial state, and i hope we are equal in all ways no matter what religion or race we are… but that’s not how some ppl up there wants… they want ketuanan melayu. hello, wake up, we dont want tuans here… we are all equal. no tuan no hamba. we are sarawakians.
    give us back our tribune… please…

  145. this is not about sarawak tribune anymore the moment someone started to insult islam. but we muslims just cannot sit back and accept all the bricks thrown at us.
    yes we muslims also condone the destroying of the buddha statues as that signifies the denial of rights of other people to practise other beliefs. when taliban decided to take down those statues, they only consulted among themselves. they even totally ignore other muslim leaders’ proposition to discuss. but this is taliban, where people are being oppressed, women are denied of educational rights, people are being controlled 100% by the taliban, etc etc. taliban is not the true face of islam.
    i guess some people just don’t bother to look for the truth of islam when they are more interested in bashing up people other than them.
    and people, freedom of speech ends where sensitivities begin.

  146. thanks zaini. im glad someone actually saw the importance.
    my apologies for what is happening in your state, i agree it is not really my position to comment on sarawak tribune but as the last commentator said: “moment someone started to insult islam. but we muslims just cannot sit back and accept all the bricks thrown at us.””
    I wouldn’t condone or approve of discrimination of christian or buddhism either.

  147. maybe izzati can open up her own blog and write what she wants to say there. we sarawakians would like to say many things but we have to throw it into the recycle bin like kenny cuz the law does not side with us…sigh… ISA bla bla bla…
    pity kenny. we sure have lotsa things to say, but we’re not muslim. we’re not malay. it’s not easy for us. not like izzati, can say all she want to say.
    sarawak election is coming soon.. i’m voting for the opposition.

  148. let me show how powerful muslims are here. if they can do the same thing to sarawaqk tribune, they can do the same thing to kennysia.com or me aka KERABAU. haha.
    hmmm, lets see.. izzati got pissed with our comments, she reports to police, police catch us, police interrogate us, ask us to kentut fang pi, and jail us for not keeping our mouth shut.
    sigh… my days are numbered….
    wakakakakakaka….
    izzati sayang jangan marah k…. kalau marah, cepat tua.

  149. izzati dont get so serious la. you got what you want oredi. out tribune oredi suspended. enuf said. and what’s with with making fun of ppl’s name. what if he call you lizardti. tsk tsk tsk. why fight fight. we all come to kennysia to have fun.

  150. ? what does me being from either brunei, singapore or malaysia have anything to do with it??????? what is this??? why r we bringing countries.. i just discussed religion..
    haiiz whatever lah. *dismissive* this is my last comment. bye!

  151. btw, kerabau u ro so funny. reali u r. and fyi: i have my own blog thank you.
    im jz expressing my views does not mean i hate kenny. i like him as a blogger just fine, i just expressed my views here.
    last bye!

  152. Oi kakerebleu (sorry i resorted to calling u kerrabau)
    When I expressed my views my intention in the first place was never to seek a fight with you or attack kenny for him having views about sarawak tribune in the first place.
    I just wanted to discuss sensitivity of religion esp. when it’s mine–Islam
    I just wanted to discuss how sensitive the global issue is.
    You know?
    Christians have the right to express their views
    Same for Buddhists and Hinduism.
    Free-thinkers.
    But you?
    You are beyond reason.
    You just want to seek more fights and conflict, as if there’s none already in this world.
    YOU ARE SO CHILDISH
    Well, this is my last, last, last, last comment on this post. No use trying to reason with unreasonable ppl. bye!

  153. Wait. I meant free thinkers have the right to express their views too.
    But you choose to attack me for what? expressing importance of an issue…
    Btw, sorry kenny

  154. Izati pakai tudung tak.. jangan tak pakai nanti baper helai rambut tulah brapa tahun kena bakar supaya bersih dari segala kelumumur muahhahahaha sori gurau jer… gf I pun tak pakai tudung… camana ni nak defend agama tapi tatabahasa and tatabudibicara sungguh kureng nih… I suka apa yang arafat cakap dulu.. semua kelaie sebab nak defend imaginary friend.. I suka sangatlah tu.. sungguh bernas… betul tak kanak kanak ribena?

  155. sad but true it’s a nation of fucking morons!! NST did not get suspended while the Sarawakians get the smack! Double the standard…huh??!! Absofuckinglutely pissing me off!!!

  156. very true indeed, we are a very ignorant lot…when can we ever learn to talk things out…if everything is treated as sensitive issues, no one will ever learn. it’s gonna be really tough….like almost every sarawakian, i grew up with sarawak tribune…and it really saddens me that we’ll not be seeing or hearing the name anymore…i doubt we’ll see the government lift the suspension…..what about NST? a letter of apology is more than enough to save them…why is this not the case for sarawak tribune?when all they wanted to do was to report factual happenings? do we want to live like idiots not having access to the latest issue? what is with those putrajaya servants? i thought of writing this with peace in mind, but i end up getting mad now…before i forget, Guang Ming Daily’s evening news was also suspended for a week or two for publishing a photo of someone reading a newspaper with the controversial caricature. once again, what about NST??? i seriously believe there’s no justice

  157. very true indeed, we are a very ignorant lot…when can we ever learn to talk things out…if everything is treated as sensitive issues, no one will ever learn. it’s gonna be really tough….like almost every sarawakian, i grew up with sarawak tribune…and it really saddens me that we’ll not be seeing or hearing the name anymore…i doubt we’ll see the government lift the suspension…..what about NST? a letter of apology is more than enough to save them…why is this not the case for sarawak tribune?when all they wanted to do was to report factual happenings? do we want to live like idiots not having access to the latest issue? what is with those putrajaya servants? i thought of writing this with peace in mind, but i end up getting mad now…before i forget, Guang Ming Daily’s evening news was also suspended for a week or two for publishing a photo of someone reading a newspaper with the controversial caricature. once again, what about NST??? i seriously believe there’s no justice

  158. they are misusing political power… on ISA and all..ISA was suppose to be for the communist era, where is free speech? i doubt there will ever be any. human rights people! to bad this place is almost a conspiracy.

  159. political always be the issues of all these happened, have ever ppl in parlimen values all the positives n negetives of closing down ST??? ST have it’s value for long time… it’s been a medium for all sarawakian to know wat’s is happening and it even helping gov to “promote” values of life in m’sian.. but just too bad, they NEVER values all the efforts of ST and just CLOSE IT DOWN!! CLosing down ST just for that particular issue means MALAYSIAN have no rights to speak out their minds not even to express their feeling, which is a totally against human’s right to have freedom to speak n express!!!!

  160. I totally agree with a nation of morons. We have been trained from small to be stupid. How are we supposed to improve if we don’t state the obvious mistakes and correct them? How are we going to be a developed country with all our people keeping their thoughts to ourselves and no communicating it so that they can be fixed? Its the mentality of Malaysians that have to be changed! Keep it up Kenny.

  161. Nation of morons! well said! totaly agree! malaysians should learn to communicate and learn to be not so sensitive! the ”pihak berkuasa” shud think logicaly too!

  162. “u think msia is bad in these respects. well u havent seen brunei. :P” – quoted by one of ur commentator.
    kenny ,honestly, i hate racial slurs like these. Malaysia is good, Brunei is good.
    Brunei is a peaceful country.
    we don’t encourage freepress because we tighten on cultural values.
    Personally, I as an individual think that freedom of speech is acceptable, but it has limits especially when religion is concerned.
    But we are neither made up of irrational attackers nor do we promote direct religious discrimination with our press.
    I am not saying anything against any country. All countries are good.
    I hate you racist commentators with no moralities. Ask your parents for guidance lah.

  163. we are furious. we are sad.
    quote by day“but have we done anythin?
    can we do anythin?
    nope. we whine.
    and silent….
    can i know-why prophet’s face shouldn’t be showed?why malays have to be muslims? why they do not like dogs?-Qs i wanna know since primary..am i insensitive by askin these qs? and yes, i really do not know much bout other fellow malaysians’ culture”

    MUSLIMS DO NOT NECESSARILY HAVE TO BE MALAY The religion of Islam is open to whichever race. Btw, I do NOT think MALAYS are the only ones who are Muslims. There are Chinese Muslims as well, there are Eurasian Muslims, as well, etc. Please separate the race from religion. And furthermore: NOT EVERY MALAY IS A MUSLIM.
    iSLam is a good religion. we do not promote terrorism, so those who go against the basic value of peace in our religion— is the one who’s gonna suffer. Islam is open to every single living being on earth, regardless of race or country or culture.
    However, there is no compulsion in our religion. We are NEVER taught to force others to convert to religion out of their will. We are always taught that if we want to help converters, they must do it on their own choices and beliefs. get it?
    the Prophet’s face should not be shown. he should be respected. he is our prophet, he is a great example of how we should lead our lives–nobility, peace, humbility, with much acceptance and tolerance of everyone.
    🙂

  164. kakerubleu,
    i’m ashame to have u as malaysian. we malaysian promote mutli-culture and what you said to izazzati is just rude!! i’m too sad for that fact that your paper are ban and that doesn’t mean you can insult other people and other people believe in!!! you’re beyond unreasonable!! shame on you! i’m chinese and if you’re chinese too i’m ashame to have you racist chinese in malaysia!!

  165. Hi everyone,
    read with great interest comments. don’t you all find it interesting how whe story basically was abt press freedom & social attitudes, how things turned so quickly to race & religion & becoming personal?
    don’t think can blame 100% on ignorance. we’re complacent. we allow a bunch of pro-pols lesen buka to do what they want every 5 years in return for goodies. can only blame ourselves.
    the real issue isn’t abt race or religion. the real issue is about POLITICISING race & religion. that’s a very dangerous thing to do because it’s the easiest thing to whip people up. agn, just read through the comments here for proof. it’s the ultimate wayang kulit tactic which can be used to achieve and justify anything- even how we view & treat the opposite sex.
    this is the price we pay today- all m’sians having a go at each other when talking about issues that really have nothing to do with anyone else- our personal religious beliefs & cultural identities. bangsa malaysia existed long ago, but it’s dying a slow and painful death now.
    we’ve handed this country over to pro-pols (of EVERY RACE & RELIGION- THEY’RE KNOWN AS THE ELITE & LIVE IN P’JAYA). they understand that to do what they want when they want, better to keep us ALL from getting to close.
    i hope you’ll all forgive me if i’ve insulted anyone. no malice intended. only ask that we all bear in mind if we’re gonna talk abt sensitive issues, we shouldn’t enter the fray with a chip on our shoulders- otherwise, what’s the point? playing right into hands of those on top.
    keep talking people. keepup the good work kenny.

  166. Ladies and Gentlemen..THIS!!!is a perfect example of a moron..
    mati ko sumer org putih yg mempermainkan Nabi.
    Posted by: kampungboy at 11 February 2006 9:40 AM
    ..WHO will get sponsored to study..who will soon spread the wealth to his family members..who will soon be elected to lead us..to as kennysia once said..’mindfuck’ us..
    im am truly mortified..to actually be part..of this country..
    these people make up the mass of this moronic country..they get angry and protest on the Lina Joy case..this case..and countless other cases regarding religion and race..without even knowing why they do so..they bitch about..laadeedaa..but do they know what theyre defending??i swear!!if we could just talk with theyre riot leader on why?..haha..it wont last more than a minute..haha..u can imagine the outcome..
    this is a real story i swear
    X : what do you know about the NEP?
    Group of Kampung Boys : not sure..
    X : what would you do if it were to be threatened?
    GOKB : we would DEFEND it to the DEATH!!
    i fucking swear..this is true..
    the magnitude of stupidity of the ‘tunggak negara’ of today..is beyond my comprehension and the english language was not built to sustain such idiocy..
    gosh..i have so much to say..i havent even started on the muthafuckingly annoying 5-times a day Karaoke session BLARING from cheap speakers EVERY FUCKIN DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!mai cheebye..
    oh..and to ‘a person’ a few comments up..get your facts right..every Malay IS a muslim..haha..i just happen to know an individual..who was a muslim and converted..and the shit he has gone through..oh dear..what the ISA has done to him..is brutal..
    and you dont promote terrorism?again..get your facts right!!all the fucking terrorists are acting as one BASED ON ONE FUCKING PRINCIPLE..the Jihad..oh..and i have read that verse on jihad..i have..haha..and i pity u..
    and you say the prophets face should not be shown?what of the other *slam*c papers that HAVE shown Jesus??eat that fucker..get your mindfucked facts right
    I think..that this country will never succeed..in achieving the Vision 2020..because right now..we’re prolly reaching back to..1949?instead of 2006?
    this whole sensitive issue shit is just a pussy excuse for those who enforce it because they are scared!!!scared!!!deathly scared for we MAY!!!..BE!!! just right??that then they cant just let the malays depend on the gov for fucks?
    we will never progress

  167. Somebody needs to start a private army and throw a coup and re-write the constitution like in Thailand….
    Or go overseas and expose all this to UN or somebody who cares and will fix things up
    Or do like V for Vendetta.

  168. I couldn’t agree more. Our country is heading for disaster at the rate it is going. To think we will have 50 years of independence next year is incomprehensible. The government has the mind set of a bratty 5 year old child.

  169. I served some 35 years ago as a volunteer in Sarawak, and there were indications even then that such a thing as this could happen. It’s sad. We have people here in the US who look for reasons to be offended, and dealing with them is no more fun than dealing with what you are faced with. There needs to be some sort of understanding on the part of the East as to how the West works. They base too many of their ideas about us on movies. Of course that idiot in the White House has done NOTHING to help them understand us. It was indicative of their lack of understanding that, in a number of places, NORWEGIAN flags were burned and NORWEGIAN and Swedish embassies were attacked. In my eyes, that’s as silly as attacking a Canadian or Aussie Embassy for something the US did. It underscores the lack of understanding in the East about the West. Malaysians always used to be tolerant and respectful of each other’s religions and views. From what I hear, and from seeing this, I can only wonder what happened to that tolerance and acceptance, and that desire to understand the West without necessarily BECOMING the West.

  170. so true la your post.malaysians should open up.the last hoo-haa was bout the sex issue printed by the weekend mail.they just wanted to educated the young society bout sex and the SMART ministers doesnt support that instead banned weekend mail for a while until recently printed yet again.the year 2020 etc etc thing is just a joke to be honest.we,the people of the country should give their own personal opinions.if there is only 1 opinion den everyone wouldnt be diff.not listening to others is the main reason why there are so many problems.nice post kenny

  171. Regardless of Religion,Intollerance by those in Govt is a classic example of the greatest Human flaw,Ego;the need to exercise POWER to for Self-Importance.Any doctrine which cannot withstand scrutiny HAS to be highly questionable.Until Muslims re-act to indiscretions and violence by their own towards others with similar condemnation,penalties inflicted on others are nothing more than zealous victimisation.”Be wary lest you become like those you claim would hurt you the most”.
    It is with regret that I feel obligated to remind Malaysian Govt that their new found Wealth is due primarily to acquiring the New Frontier of Sarawak,”Sold Out” by UK.Marginalisation of Indigenous Dayaks,Ibans etc has been so complete that they are not even in the conciousness of other subscribers.SHAME.In mid 1960s Malays in Borneo numbered a few hundred.
    The so called Cartoon was in very POOR taste and would have died a deservedly swift death had it not been for the furor.
    From my Religious point of view: “A sin committed is a purchase of Righteousness for the Victim by the perpetrator”.Consider the value of Righteousness before rushing to squander it on Your own victim.

  172. malays are bad news as they r simply an evil race.
    that’s all i have to say.
    they r evil.
    Posted by: I’m A Chicken With No Name. BWAK BWAK BWAKKKKK! at 11 January 2007 6:20 AM | Link to comment
    ————————————————
    Kenny,
    How can we live together in harmony when we have someone saying things like this? How can you even allow racial slurs in your blog? In the name of freedom of speech i suppose?
    As you can see, some limit is needed at some point.
    Chicken With No Name, you are a racist moron. People like you make things worse.

  173. I think there’s a lot lacking in our community. We just refuse to bond together with people of other races and religion. The goverment has organised many activities which involve various races but I dont see any improvement. We have to change the mindset of everyone. We call ourselved a democratic country….we’re no where close to that. This racial crisis will do no good to the country. Can the country run with only 1 race or religion……i dont think so. The country sought its independence with with the help of all races. We are all human beings…..for god’s sake!!! Why is there a need for us to fight wth each other???? Can we not prove to other countries Malaysians of different races and religions can live together happily. I have many of my frens of varios religions who have migrated to other countries fearing for their fate in Malaysia 5 years down the road.
    Malays, Indians, Chinese…..come on guys lets work together and make Malaysia a better place to live in ok !!!!

  174. It’s like Proton cars or some of TV1 programmes actually..after 50 yrs of freedom, we are still stuck in the old age..something is very wrong I tell u..
    I wonder if it’s the nation’s prob or it’s the politician’s selection prob..I’ll bet on the latter.
    Life suck, let’s migrate! whoohooo!!!!

  175. The government juz has to be equal to everyone regardless of our race, religion or skin color. If u say that we are all the same, then wats da benefits of housing and other loans still doin around ? Arent we all da same. Arent we all working towards da same mission……..PEACE. All ive got to say to the government is that…..DO WAT U PROFESS AND TREAT EVERYONE THE EQUALLY !!! OR NOT, UR GONNA BE SORRY !!!

  176. More Seductive than SEX,Intoxicating than ALCOHOL,Addictive than Drugs,Corrupting than Organised Crime,is the Hunger for POWER.Elites believe Power belong to them and will do Any & Everything to hold on to Power,especially playing different Races against each other,often under the pretex of Religion.
    Was the SARAWAK Tribune a Threat to Islam or a thorn in the backsides of MALAYSIA’s Repressive Political System?? Scholars who study these things regularly opine that Malaysia is one of the most Oppressive countries where personal Freedoms and Rights critical of Govt are concerned.
    Fact is SARAWAK is a Christian country taken over by ex-patriot Malays,and is held up as prime example by Christian morons who look to keep Muslims down. Big difference is: Christianity is based on RIGHT & WRONG even against moronic Christians,while other Religions protect each other even in Wrong.Which gives unscrupulous Mullahs ENORMOUS Power as instruments of Politicians.
    When ISRAEL bombed LEBANON who doesn’t even own a Bomber,a Texas Pastor and his congregation of over six hundred “CHEERED”,and received a Thank You for their support from Pres Bush.
    My point: Real God faring Christians are trying very hard to make this world Peacefull & Equal for ALL,vindictive silliness like what’s happened to Sarawak Tribune only serve as another excuse for morons to keep cheering.
    Sincerely: While ALL Religions have some looneybirds,Islam seem to have more than it’s fair share of nut-bars,and I guess it is because there seem to be Multiple Translations or Interpretations of the Holy Quoran depending of whom is translating and What they need at that time.It is no secret that Moderate Muslims,and there are many,are AFRAID of their own radicals.
    Christianity is based on ONE set of Commandments and Precepts handed down by GOD,and I feel free to ask any Priest for Clarification if I believe he is misquoting,and respectfully Challenge his misrepresentation without Fear of reprisal from the Law.It is why SEPERATION of Church and State is vital to REAL Democracy.
    If I could find an ACCURATE translation of the Holy Quoran in modern English I would read it.
    Took me years to find a Certified Accurate Translation(non-Denominational)of the Holy Scriptures in plain English. A REAL EYE-OPENER, and very Interesting reading. Muslims I know say they are not supposed to read other than the Holy Quoran. What’s to fear? Knowledge is Power!
    Truth is Islam more closely resemble Israelites’ customs that any other,and Christianity was Born of Jesus who was an Israelite. Islam being the youngest.
    Abraham fathered Ishmael by 2nd wife Hagar (Egyptian),then Isaac by Sarah 1st wife. Ishmael fathered TWELVE Princes. Isaac fathered Twins Essau and Jacob, Essau fathered Edomites (red hair),Jacob fathered TWELVE Patriarchs to Twelve Tribes of Israel.And I’ll bet the Prophet Mohamed and Jesus are related.
    I know a family where Father is Hindu,Mother is Muslim,son is Hindu and daughters are Christian, live in Harmony without squabbles because of RESPECT and Interpreting their Religions by RIGHT & WRONG.
    Having Blessed Humans with the highest form of Intelligence,it must be a grave insult to the Highest Creator for us to abandon the power to Reason and revert to being just another Beast looking for someone to attack.
    It is up to Muslims to let others know that Islam consists of much more than violent Jihad,Fatwahs, and promises of seventy virgins.Why would any man crave seventy virgins when most cannot keep one woman happy?
    We will ALL be judged according to OUR Deeds,not words “DEEDS”. Then we will be Redeemed after Retribution is served. Otherwise,WHAT would be the point of being GOOD?? Humans are born DECENT, and some Choose indecent lifestyles. Think about it. Simple Logic for Intelligent Minds.

  177. Despite claims to the otherwise, Shutting down the SARAWAK TRIBUNE for simply bringing local attn to what was initiated elsewhere. Reporting NEWS! Was beyond an act of Third World Religious Zealotry influencing Govt.
    Both EU and USA have applied the term “RACISM” to MALAYSIAN Govt Policies. Apparently MALAYSIAN Govt insisted that preference be given to Malay owned companies to fill overseas contracts which fosters Capitalists’ worst nightmares “INCOMPETENCE”.
    Now that the govt has initiated NEGATIVE International Attn it’s just a matter of time before real in depth scrutiny begins.

  178. what the hell were those people thinking about??the fact that they said it looked like a bomb was due to perception.its in their own fucking moronic brains that they think the whole world is against them.so what man.does it look like a bomb to you???to you maybe it looks like and onion head.and maybe to others it looks like giant fugly potato!??!
    its all in their stupid brains!!1maybe its already been input into their system since young.cus of the constant blowing up of things,all they know is
    : BIG + ROUND + BALL = BOMB
    fucking hypocrites!!they should go blow up their own place.no bloody cock sense.

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  181. Dari kecik sampai sekarang apa yang saya tahu semua Nabi/Rasul (prophets) dari Adam – Muhammad (termasuk Musa/Moses, Isa/Jesus, Daud/David). Mereka semua dianggap sebagai Nabi/Rasul (prophet). Sebagai orang kami Islam kami SEPATUTNYA hormat semua mereka. Dan dalam Islam juga semua “prophets” tidak boleh dilukis dari hujung rambut hingga ke hujung kaki sebagai menuruti larangan – larangan agama Islam.
    p/s: Saya TIDAK bersetuju dengan tindakan ganas kerana saya percaya bahawa ada cara yang lebih baik untuk menangani masalah ini dan menerangkan KENAPA lukisan mana-mana Nabi/Rasul (Prophets) adalah dilarang.

  182. Sarawak Tribune lesen kena tahan. Tak patut. Jadi jangan lah pegi undi UMNO, MCA, MIC dan seangkatan dengannya.
    UMNO selalu cakap pasal hak melayu
    MCA pulak selalu cakap pasal hak cina
    MIC selalu cakap pasal hak india
    cakap cakap cakap
    Saya masih ingat, TV3 dulu ada siar tentang seorang perempuan Cina beragama Islam (Balu ada anak-anak)kat Johor. Selepas kejadian banjir besar, dia dalam kesusahan, pegi mintak tolong UM-NO, diaorang Cakap dia cina pegi lah kat MCA. Pegi kat MCA, dia kata siapa suruh masuk Islam, sekarang susah.
    People with power WILL always use any issue particularly Racial/Religion issues to be popular, to be the so-called Hero of his/her races/religions. And we’re the one (the rakyat) have to suffer all the consequences of their gamez.
    If you watch Trinity Blood the anime, they are always people that I see have the similar characteristics such as the members of the Rozenkruz Order.
    Please don’t let them succeed in bringing us (Cina, India, Melayu, Iban, Bidayuh, Anak-anak kacukan dan yang lain-lain) to fight/kill each other. Fight against them.
    Sarawak Tribune apologized. Apologize accepted.
    “Remember-remember the 5th of November”
    “The government should be afraid of the people, not the other way around”
    -Vendetta (Film)-

  183. Сегодня, в эпоху, когда люди живут как белки в колесе и мечтают только о покое и мягком диване, им не до гостей
    ВДНХ

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