Hartal? Gapo tu - by Din Kobau = Hartal? What;s that by Din Buffalo

Hartal? another word for strike only that its sounds exotic to the ears then plain ol "strike". What ever the sobriquet given, the call for hartal now reaching a crescendo in certain blogs, reflect a detached and naive understanding of ground realities. Purveyors of such scams, coming on the heels of the failed petition, illogical boycott of MSM ( if you are not with me, my money will walk mentality), upside down flags and the puerile attempts at rabble rousing through incendiary blog posts, should be mindful of the effects of an hartal on the common man. It is a fact that most us pleibians are at the mercy of the capitalist bourgeois and the hoi polloi for our daily wages. While as a farmer, i am not directly affected dependent as myself on the vagaries of the weather as ordained by Allah azza wa jalla, I empathise with the service station workers, shop assistants, office employees etcetera who will be the victims of any hartal declared at the whim and fancy of opportunists bent on effecting a so-called "democratic" coup d'etat.

Imagine the loss of Rm20- 30 daily wage for a family of five teetering as they are on the brink of poverty. Multiply that sum over 4 random days and times that by the thousands of receipients and you get a colossal loss of spending power and also wages. Why penalise the common man for your diabolical plan? Is the lure of power too irresistable that it had overshadowed any sense of reason and compassion? Are you lot so drunk on the arrack of self-righteousness that you failed to visualise the impact of your actions on the very people you claim to represent? Is this a move, a signal that the proponents of this call will resort to any measure whatsover to achieve one man's aim?

Pray, why the unholy haste to effect change? As democrats, aren't you duty bound to adhere to the principles of fair play that you claim democracy promotes?Have you thought about the negative implications such actions will resonate in the common man? Are you willing to hock any nugget of goodwill you currently enjoy at the pawnshop of expediency? Are you sure that you will be able to redeem that jewel at the anointed time of decision in front of the ballot box? Doesn't all your machinations prove that you are nothing more than opportunists hiding behind the cloak of justice, equality and free play. Or is it a technicolor coat that will make many a chameleon blush contemplatively on his branch in the wild?

I do not condone nor support the excesses of the present regime. Yes.. they are corrupt, biased and racist to the core but what about your side. I see the same elements there too. This brings me to my assertion that the internal contradictions in the ruling party will eventually lead to its eventual demise? So why not wait till circa 2013 or maybe earlier? What is to be gained by pushing the envelope now unless the opposition is also haunted by the same phantom- the inherent fear that the fragile rainbow coalition clobbered together is nothing more than a contraption of convenience that will bus you to Putrajaya. A rickety contraption that will disintegrate once the rainbow it bears gradually wanes as the rain of despair currently enveloping the land will give way to the sunshine of joy.

A depressing thought for citizens who still put faith in democracy and something so eloquently put by that economic liberal, JK Galbraith:

"Politics is not the art of the possible. It consists of choosing between the disastrous and the unpalatable."

which brings me to what my friend"Revert" always intones : democracy is actually a mis-spelling..it should be "democrazy" loosely translated as "mereka(demo : kelantanese for they) gila (crazy).

Revert : Kan kawe lalu royak, Din, demo tu gila. Kan kita dipesan Rasul: Jange minto jadi pemimpin. Jadi kalau ada oghe wat gitu, kena wa-wa lah niat dia