bobjots : redux

This is the time of the year again when we commemorate our journey to nationhood with the Merdeka celebrations. Some would cynically tell me that there is nothing worthwhile left to celebrate. Others are less pessimistic.

There are those who will also tell us that we lack patriotism because we criticise the “government” too much. Personally I feel that it is because we love the nation (whether for altruistic or more selfish reasons) that we see the need to criticise where criticism is called for. As the old saying goes, we tegur kerana sayang (we chastise because we love).

I think we should expect that the journey onwards to remain a challenge and that Merdeka itself means nothing if our worldviews and expectations remain bound by ideas that have long gone past their use-by dates. Here are some more thought provoking posts that I’ve come across that I hope will make us reflect a bit more about what it means to be Malaysians on this 52/46 anniversary of Merdeka.

• Meng’s Blog
  Merdeka Gen

• Bob Teoh
  A Forgetful Nation

• Christian Federation of Malaysia
  Forging Ahead To Build A Vision of Malaysia

• Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism & Taoism
  Together We Shall Prevail and Progress

• Me! (An Old Post)
  Memperingati Janji Keramat Kemerdekaan Negara

Dengan darahMu, Kau telah menebus bangsa Malaysia. Semoga Kau terus memberkati bangsaMu dan mencucuri rahmatMu keatas negara Malaysia.