Thought Journal

This is the worst time to write or say anything against Netizens. Stay in line!

2020 is going to go down as the most divisive and terrifying time in modern history. As high school students 20 plus years ago, we were told that 2020 was going to be filled with economic prosperity, first-world experiences, unity and tremendous leaps and bounds in all sectors. Alas, none of that appears to be the case – and we have only hit the middle of the year.

With a pandemic that has nearly grind worldwide economy to a halt, we find ourselves with a surge of conflicting political ideologies sweeping through the nations. In the West, liberal ideologies that has gotten close to extreme socialism is winning the “hearts” of many – bringing about the policing of “external virtues”. Such radical ideas that were foreign to the common people a decade or two ago, is now forcing individuals and corporations to bend their knees (no pun intended) to their single view/ideology – humiliation, shame and bullying is meted on the non-conformers! In this nation, things are no different – there has always been sensitive issues that cannot be said openly. Some have the privilege of speaking their minds on all subjects, but these are the privileges of the few. The many have to rein in the tongue and be contented to whisper their opinions to a selected few, hoping against hope that none would betray their trust that could lead to shame, legal action and even imprisonment.

This is the time we are living in. The world is not fair, quipped my son. Yes it is not. Simple reply that truly captures the year as it has been. Plans changes. Comfort removed. Opportunities lost. Burdens increased. Welcome to 2020, we are only half way through.

As the country is fighting off the global pandemic (COVID-19), politicians have decided that one and a half months of ‘ceasefire’ is enough – the political news became active once more. There are just too many things to be said of Malaysia’s political scene. Accusations are thrown left, right and center. To top this off, just before the Movement Control Order was put into effect, mid-March, there were the infamous “Sheraton Move” where one of the parties that made up the ruling coalition decided to join forces with the old regime. This “move” sent panic among the political scene in Malaysia and the citizens who were in the know waited for each blow with bated breath.

Before long, the 7th Prime Minister officially resigned – sending the formal collapse of the now old ‘new coalition – Pakatan’ – replaced by the new ‘new coalition – Perikatan’. This was also the first time the ruling coalition is fully made up of Malay political parties. A new 8th Prime Minister was officially installed. And in the past few weeks, the fight has begun anew for the power to rule over Malaysia.

Honestly, at this point, I have to personally agree with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (translated: supreme head or King, with a capital ‘K’) who is the constitutional monarch of Malaysia: this is really not the best time for political instability. Point: a big recession is coming as a fallout of COVID-19 pandemic throughout the world. The world will change for the next 6 months to 3 years as it seeks to control the effects of this pandemic. Yes, those naysayers who live in denial of this still mysterious virus, have no idea the effects it has on people, especially those with heart problems especially the elderly. Demand for gross products and services will fall collectively – the investment plans made in the last 5 years will not bring in an expected return. Though it is natural for new businesses to pick up where new demands are identified, this will not be fast enough – more turmoil will wreck the local economy for the immediate future. For a country to be disunited (see America in 2020 for example) is to prolong the effects of the pandemic and to deepen the troughs of recession.

My prediction is that a hard line from the new government will come – to enforce political stability within the nation. It has happened before, ironically, in the administration of the 4th Prime Minister then. You cannot please everyone, but it is possible to at least please the rationale majority who wants to survive the start of recession. My pity is on the new batches of university graduates who has been conditioned to a positive and thriving economy landscape: this is going to shock many of them as they fight (yes, fight and struggle) to earn a living with those who may not even have the paper qualifications they have. In recession, sadly but true, paper qualifications matter little – employers will look at a person’s skill, experience, attitude and merit. If there is a good thing we can say in recessions, it is that: it is a great leveler of the privileged and unprivileged. The fittest and wittiest will survive.

Is there a right or wrong in the “fight” between the two men pictured above? No. I have learnt a long time ago that there are more to the story than what is given through the media. Politics is like a mud pit – it is hard to distinguish who is who because of the mud, and often, it is not personal. I believe in that in the minds of each individual politician (in Malaysia) there is the belief that they are contributing to the greater good of the nation in one way or another. Whether this belief is mixed with personal motivations that benefits them personally or benefits their ideology or anything else, it is not for us to know – as is natural. But that is the reason that we should never put our hope – even if any political party uses that word “hope” – in politicians. As the psalmist puts it so eloquently in Psalms 118:8-9: It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.

Over the years I found myself writing a lot. From a cold start – that is without any preparation at all – I can type about 75 word per minute. That is alright. But I do know that I have averaged much higher over the years especially when I get into the “zone”. Writing takes skill, however. Anyone can write, but to write with clarity and with economy of words is truly something that takes experience and also talent. In this, my wife has the better skill in writing. I have to remind myself that everyone has their own style – some are more long-winded than others, while others are more descriptive than others, and there are those who are just very academic – dry and to the point. Is one better than the other? No – it depends on the circumstances.

Unfortunately, there are some who have declared themselves “masters” of this craft and thinks too highly of themselves in this particular skill. I remember one who would declare boldly declare that this or that author has a lot of flowery words and long-winded – indirectly putting the person down in his ‘authoritative’ declaration – while elevating authors who shared the same writing style as himself. This is nonsense. But to an impressionable young person (that I was then), in my mind, written works had to be of a certain style.

The truth of the matter is: literature allows for a variety of styles. Even within the academic realm, there is room for the style of Michael Porter and for the writings of John W. Creswell and of Peter Drucker. It would be extremely foolish for one to be declared better than the other. If it is a matter of preference, that is an entirely other thing.

For myself, writing should be as close as possible to a person’s verbal style. Perhaps this is my personal preference, but I want to ‘read’ and ‘hear’ the voice of the author. I think it would be quite shocking to meet the author in person only to find that the person speaks different from the way he/she writes. That would be quite shocking (to me, at least).

That is why I find it hard to write at times – I often wait for the ‘mood’ or the ‘circumstances to align’ before typing the first word of the article or written correspondence. When everything aligns, I find that I speed as fast as I can think. Is that good? I do not know. But the downside is that the writing suffers for lack of ‘editing’.

This whole RMO (Restricted Movement Order) due to the Covid-19 pandemic, has made me appreciate verbal conversations. For me, speaking face-to-face is “easier” because words can always be accompanied with gestures and any other physical actions. Even the intonation of words can really convey things that cannot be conveyed on paper. To me, the main advantage that writing has over verbal is the need to think, re-think and re-think again before we finalise and send our message. That gives more meaningful food for thought rather than the easy misinterpretation of our modern means written communication (Whatsapp, Telegram, Wechat, and the like).

Verbal communication is hard because it can easily get side-tracked. Our emotions can affect the way we communicate – whether we realise it or not. At times, this hampers the very purpose we intended. It is rare for younger generations to understand the unwritten rules of verbal communication – we tend to be impatient to make our points and to speed the whole conversation along. Perhaps that is the reason that the new generation detest orations and speeches – but prefer the fluidity of podcast sessions where people are constantly talking and changing topics.

But when we master the art of verbal communication, we find that our ideas are nearly always communicated clearly – dispelling misunderstanding and encouraging cooperation. In fact, a sudden pause in the verbal communication speaks volumes in ways that the written medium just cannot encapsulate.

I do miss verbal communications that are honest, unfiltered and unreserved. Those are almost always with people whom we can trust (non-self-righteous and hypocritical) and with those whom we can be vulnerable to. Cultivate both skills and life will be sweetened somewhat by it.