'On The Basis of Sex'

Extracted from ’The World is My Classroom, The Universe is My Teacher 

I watched ‘On the Basis of Sex’ over the weekend. 

Well, almost half of it. I caught it halfway when I was switching between channels to see if there was something nice to watch.

That’s when it caught my attention. It’s the story of the young Ruth Bader Ginsburg. 

I have heard that name before. I heard it being mentioned on CNN several times. She is that lady US Supreme Court Judge, right?

Technology is wonderful. I quickly googled her up on my smart phone and was up to speed about her. Whilst the movie was still playing. Yup, she is the one. The US Supreme Court judge. The one that fought discrimination against women.

Ruth Ginsburg challenged laws that on the surface appeared beneficial to women, but in fact reinforced the notion that women needed to be dependent on men. That women were somehow inferior.

The story was set when she was  a young law professor. She is in the midst of preparing a brief to appeal a decision against her client.  The Commissioner of Inland Revenue was on the other side.

Good movie. Captivating final speech in her submission before the Appellate Judges. Heavy stuff, the kind that will make you jump up and start clapping if you were in the court-room.

At the heart of the argument was whether it was unconstitutional to enact laws that treated women differently from men. 

In the pivotal courtroom scene, all the arguments about break in the fabric of society, the end of civilisation as we know it, not being the American way, will cause earth being conquered by the Andromedians and other such grave concerns were thrown at her. By the judges. 

“These laws merely recognised what is self evident,” they said. “Won’t there be anarchy if we ignore nature?” they questioned her. 

  

She daringly stood her grounds and turned the whole argument on its head. We lawyers love that stuff. To be able to sweep our opponents  (we are not allowed to call them that, by the way) and judges off their feet in one smooth motion and do the powerslam on them.

That case set the precedent for other cases. Legislation after legislation that treated women differently were subsequently challenged and nullified. Based on that one case.

The irony of it all is this. 

That case, the one that started it all, that beacon for gender equality, wasn’t about discrimination against  women. It was discrimination against men. 

In that case, a man named Moritz hired a nurse to care for his aging mother so he could continue to work. He was denied tax deduction for the nursing care because at the time the Internal Revenue Code specifically limited the deduction to "a woman, a widower or divorcée, …” The Commissioner ruled that as man who had never married, Moritz did not qualify for the deduction. 

So he challenged. On a matter of principle.

Interesting, the entire legal battle on discrimination against women was started by a case that fought discrimination against men. Well played Ruth.

We men, have been having it easy all this while that we keep forgetting this simple truth. What is good for the goose is good for the gander. 

I am lucky. I have my wife to remind me of that. All the time.

Muru

Wattapad
Medium

Hoarding

(Extracted from 'The World Is My Classroom, The Universe is My Teacher")

I have a small confession to make. I am a hoarder.

Yes, I hoard things. Not the ‘lets collect the plastic water bottles’ type - the environmentalist; or the ‘lets save the gift wrapper to be re-used’ type - the frugal; nor the ‘lets keep the movie ticket in a book’  type - the sentimentalist.

I am the worst type - the contingency planner. The ‘what if’ type. “What if I need it later?”, “What if I need it for parts?” , “What if someone needs it one day?”, “What if my 18 other survival knives don’t work?”

Bad as it sounds, I am not the top dog. That distinction goes to an old pal of mine. He is the undisputed Heavy Weight Hoarding Champion of the World. A plane crash site is more liveable than his apartment.

That was last month, before we ushered in the new year. He decided to throw away some of his stuff and tidy his place up. At least someone is keeping to his Vision 2020.

He had a bit of an early start. He started at around Christmas Holidays. Worked at it through the New Year, the Chinese New Year Holidays and every weekend. He is almost there, he tells me.  It’s February now. Give him time. His is a work in progress. 

He brought a pair binoculars for last weekend’s hike. The ones that were ubiquitous about quarter of a century ago; when the Soviet Union was falling apart and they were selling all those fake ‘Soviet Army Surplus’ stuff at night markets. 

I asked him what was that about and he replied “Oh, I just found it when I was cleaning up and brought it to show it to you.”

“Ahh, I have pair just like that. Don’t know where it is. Must be in the house somewhere” I said.

“You know Muru, I came across some of the mails that Melanie sent me when we were in college” he said. Those were real mails, written in ink on paper, mind you.

Melanie is my friend’s ex-wife and that’s not her real name by the way.

“I read them and tears just rolled down my cheeks. So much love… Don’t know what happened to us” he said in a soft voice.

Not knowing what to say I looked down and kept quiet, for a while.

“You know, we collect stuff, always thinking there is a use for it sometime but you can never find it when you need it.” I said, going off on a tangent.

“Oh, I do find my stuff when I need it,” he said, hitting the breaks at my attempt.

“You know Muru, the thing is, we collect all that stuff, so much so that the things that really matter to us are hidden in that heap, virtually lost to us” he said.

He is right.

Nisargadatta Maharaj, a spiritual guru was once asked by a student, “Maharaj, you are so full of love and peace all the time. Why can’t I have that?”

The Guru replied “The love and peace that’s in me is in you too. It is in every living thing.”

“Why then, you feel it all time but I can’t?” asked the student.

“It is because I only have love and peace” said the Guru. 

We carry so many things in our minds. We carry a little bit of love, a little bit of envy, a little bit of kindness, a little bit of hatred, a little bit this and a little bit of that. 

We carry a little bit of everything so much so that the good we carry is lost in the pile. We allow our mind to become the passive repository of everything imagined, literally.

Time to throw some of my stuff and tidy up my place. And the mind too.

Thanks pal.

Muru

Medium

Wattapad

Keep To Your Rhythm

I was hiking this weekend. I was walking up a hill and this guy was walking down the same trail. He stopped and stood aside the narrow trail to allow me to pass. I thanked him and hurried up the trail so as not to hold him up for too long. As I passed he said “It’s ok, just keep to your rhythm”. 

Sound advice. I knew immediately he must be a seasoned hiker.

In hiking it is never about the speed. It’s about the pace. Your own pace. It’s about finding your rhythm and keeping it.

Often I have seen new ‘hikers' speed up in earnest to keep up with friends. Or  to impress. Only to be out of breath, hands on knees and almost blue in the face after some distance. 

The natural tendency is to compare ourselves with our friends and try to keep up with the pack. It never works. It seldom ends well for you. Your friend’s pace is your friend’s pace. Not yours. 

A true hiker understands his own body and appreciates the terrain. He will find a comfortable pace in a given terrain. A good pace is when you are not out of breath as you walk. Your steps are in sync with your breathing. You are in the ‘flow.’

Each one of us are differently abled; with different speed and different stamina. The terrain differs too. Just like in life. 

We compare ourselves with our friends and are in a perpetual game of catch up. There is always someone who is better; has a better job, a better car or a bigger house. We want that too, only better. And we end up stressed, frustrated and out of breath.

Our trails in life differ. Each one of us, either knowingly or unknowingly has chosen our own path. Some are short, some long, some easy and some more challenging than others. There may be places where our trails overlap; and we become friends and families, to love and cherish. We enjoy that part of the journey together, in laughter or in sadness. And part ways when the time comes. Each one of us living, ever lived or will ever live, has a trail; each different from the other.

Our gifts, our temperament and the baggage that we carry along as we travel in life also differ. Each unique in its own way. No two journeys are ever alike. In fact the very purpose of our journey are different. 

Why then is the urge to ‘catch up’? Enjoy the trail, enjoy the life. After all, what is the purpose of it all, if there is no joy in it? There is no need to rush in reaching your ‘destination’ or your ‘goal’, or whatever you may call it, unless that is your thing. 

You will get there, without being out of breath. In life, as in hiking, it is never about the speed. Just keep to your rhythm.

Muru

Wattapad

Medium

Traffic Does Not Care

Extracted from "The World Is My Classroom, The Universe Is My Teacher"

“‘Traffic jam’, as far as excuses go, is not credible but believable”

Traffic Does Not Care

I was nervously looking at ‘Waze’ on my phone. It showed a delay of twenty three minutes due to traffic jam. I was going to be late, by a good five minutes.  Add another five to find parking and scramble up to the office. Ten minutes. Can’t explain away ten minutes by differences in watches. I am screwed. 

I was cursing the traffic. It is so unpredictable, even with Waze. When I started, it showed I will be there with 15 minutes to spare. Now with just two kilometres away, with a minor accident up in front, it is showing this.

’10 am’ appointments can be deceiving. It allows you to think that your appointment is after the rush hour traffic. It is, but the traffic does not drop at 9am sharp. It always lingers up to 9.30am and even then does not really subside. All the smarty pants whom wanted to avoid the jam will be jamming the road by this time.

I hate traffic jams. Everyone does. We dread it, swear at it and avoid it more than the Corona Virus. 

Sometimes, traffic jam has its uses as well. It is the ‘WD40’ of excuses for being late. Comes in handy for all occasions. ’Caught in traffic’ can be used at any time except 3am; and under any circumstances except Kuala Lumpur during Chinese New Year. 

‘Traffic jam’, as far as excuses go, is not credible but believable.

Curse it or use it as an excuse, Traffic does not care. Either way. 

Why fret then? Why send our blood pressure high and let the moron in us run loose? All those knitted eyebrows, clenched fists and pursed lips. It serves no purpose, except to harm ourselves and those around us.

You can be angry at traffic. It does not care. You can be happy. It does not care. You can be indifferent. It JUST does not care. 

Traffic does nothing to accommodate our individual moods. Changes it not one single bit.  Why then do we choose anger? Or any of the other negative reactions like frustration, tension or stress? Our reaction is our choice. Think about it. We can choose better. Each time.

My son, who is in many ways is wiser than I, always plays ‘It’s a Wonderful World’ whenever he is caught in a jam. Works for him.

Traffic, it ebbs and flows with time. It doesn’t punish nor reward. And it definitely doesn’t  pander to our individual moods. We are in it and journey through it. It is the collective us. 

It is, the way it is. It is, what it is. What we make of it, is our choice. 

Just like the Universe.

Wattapad
Medium


MURU

It Is in the Question

Extracted from "The World Is My Classroom, The Universe Is My Teacher"

It Is in the Question

We celebrated a friend’s birthday the other day. 

After the cake cutting and the dinner that followed some of us settled around the table for a chat.

The topics jumped from one to another and we finally landed on religion.

Steve, “You guys talk so much about religion. There are so many paths. Each with its own version of truth. Which path to follow? If I want to be better person, what am I do? What to follow?”

“Follow your conscience” answered Sam.

“Yes, that’s it. Just follow your conscience. It will eventually lead you to the truth” joined in John.

Pause. 

Steve  thinks deeply and shoots back, “But that can’t be true for a psychopath. Following his conscience will cause more harm.”

Awkward silence. Hmmm.

And then this answer just came out of John. 

“Well, YOU are asking this question. A psychopath will not ask that question. He will probably will be asking something like “The world is screwed up. Everyone is screwed up. How can I now get rid of some of those screwed up people?””

Ahhh…

That’s it, isn’t it. Different people ask different questions. 

We ask different questions during different phases of our lives. 

“Will dad be angry with my results?”, “Does she like me?”, “What course to take?”, “What to wear?”,  “Why am here?”,  “Do I look fat?”, “Why is my life like this?”, “What’s for dinner?”, “How to make more money?”, “Who am I?”. You get the idea.

We ask questions in search of answers. 

What we don’t realise is that our questions say more about ourselves than the answers. 

Perhaps “ask and it shall be given” has more layers than one would imagine. The very act of ‘asking’ forces one to face up to what exactly one wants.

William Shakespeare must have been on to something when he wrote “To be or not to be, that is the question….”. Hamlet’s questions reveal so much about him and what lies within that the answers to those questions become almost irrelevant. The question reveals the person.

Our mind is always crowded with questions. We are busy seeking answers and think that the solution lies in getting the ‘correct’ answer. We assume that the answer is out there and once it is given to us or obtained, everything will be fine. But that seldom is the case. Each answer given leads to many other questions.

We stand on certain believe system, certain things about ourselves and the surrounding circumstances that we have come to  accept as ‘facts’. And from there, from where we stand, we ask questions, looking for answers.

But the answer is right there staring back at us; in the question.

Our questions reveal who we are, where we are at and what we feel is lacking. And if we look within, in those questions, lie the answers. Our questions hold the answers to our turmoil, our inner conflicts and our aspirations. And once we come to see from whence the question is asked, the questions itself dissolves, revealing the answer.

The next time you have questions running in your mind, observe those questions, look within. You might be surprised at what it reveals about yourself. 

Pay attention to your questions my friend. The answer, IS in the question.

Muru

Wattapad

Medium

My Speech at 'Save Malaysia' Rally 2016

27th March, 2016
Shah Alam Convention Centre

Good afternoon.

I come here today not as the former Secretary General of MIC nor as a member of MIC.

I come here as a concerned citizen of Malaysia to say what is on my mind. Nothing more, nothing less.

Martin Luther King once said, “ultimately along the way of life, an individual must stand up and be counted and be willing to face the consequences whatever they are.”

I think the time has come for ME to stand up and be counted. And here I am.

I think the time for all Malaysians to stand up and be counted has come too.

Corruption in this country has reached the highest level and to such dizzying heights where we now look at the embezzlement of 100 million as a small amount. (I think all of you know it is small compared to what).

Yes we usually make some noise about it. Write some comments on FB or tweeter and after some time move on to other things to complain about.

We seldom do anything about it.

We always assume that somebody else will do something about it.

(Well guess what? There is nobody else but us citizens of this country. If we don’t do something about it, nobody else will.)

For the longest time Malaysians have been craving for change. But believe me, that change will not come until and unless we as citizens of this country stand up, speak up and bring about THAT change.

My fellow Malaysians, please ask yourself these questions:

Will you be living behind a better Malaysia for your children then the one that you inherited from your parents?

Is this the sort of Malaysia that you want your children and their children’s children to grow up in?

If the answer is no, then we must do something. Its our responsibility to leave behind a better Nation for our children.

Therefore, my dear fellow citizens,
If it is not us, then who?
If it is not  now, then when?

And to my friends in BN - For how long will you remain silent?

For how long are you going to defend the indefensible?

Enough is enough.

Wahai rakan-rakan sekalian, untuk berapa lamakah anda ingin menegakkan benang yang basah?

Tolonglah ingat prinsip rukun negara:

“Kesetiaan Kepada Raja dan Negara”

Ya, kesetiaan kepada Raja dan Negara, bukannya kesetiaan kepada pemimpin.

Dan pastinya bukan kesetiaan kepada pemimpin tertentu.

Kesetiaan kita kepada pemimpin adalah terhad, iaitu kita harus setia kepada pemimpin setakat mana beliau sendiri setia kepada Negara dan bertindak demi kepentingan negara.

Apabila seseorang pemimpin tidak lagi setia kepada Negara, maka kita juga tidak perlu setia kepada pemimpin tersebut.
Malah, jikalau  kita masih mendokong pemimpin tersebut tanpa menghiraukan kesannya kepada negara kerana kongkongan parti politik atau kepentingan peribadi, maka kita sendiri telah menderhaka terhadap kepada Negara kita.

My fellow Malaysians,

Malaysia was at one time poised to be one of the young tigers of Asia. Right now we are struggling not to be at the bottom of the pit.

Speakers before me have spoken extensively about the current situation in our country and I do not wish to repeat the same thing here.

I invite my fellow citizens to look at the long term reform needed to strengthen democracy and accountability in Malaysia.

In a democracy, leaders come and go. Sometimes the going part is a little more harder.

But the mechanism that ensures that leaders that come, adhere to democratic principles are its legal institutions.

These legal institutions are the pillars that uphold our democracy.

These institutions are the ones that stand between tyranny cloaked in democracy and the liberty of its people.

Over the years we have seen the all powerful executive branch of our government usurp and undermine these pillars of democracy.

What are some of these institutions that have come under threat and what is that we need?



We need a free and independent judiciary,
a press that dares to write the truth without fear of punitive action,
an Attorney General Chambers that is free to prosecute wrongdoers without fear or favour,
an Anti Corruption Agency that is allowed to do its job without external interference and
a Registrar of Societies that is truly unbiased,  just to name a few.

The AG Chambers which is invested with powers to prosecute wrongdoers is the latest to be undermined in our country. All of you know what happened. What is the big hurry in replacing an Attorney General with only 69 days remaining for him in office? His abrupt removal under the prevailing circumstances can only imply a more sinister plot underneath.

MACC, the body entrusted to weed out corruption has been so undermined that whenever it charges someone, it is either a small fry, an opposition leader or own party leaders that the powers that be want to get rid off. And whenever this body is seen actually doing its job, you see high ranking officers being transferred with immediate effect.
How can a supposedly independent body function under such circumstances?

We have also seen in recent times that the Registrar of Societies lording over societies and political parties. The Societies Act that was enacted to ensure more self-governance of societies and political parties has been so twisted in its interpretation that the Registrar of Societies can effectively strip the powers of an elected president and ultimately hold the power of life and death over any organization. I think most political parties had such an encounter with the ROS.

My fellow citizens, the movement that has been started now is unprecedented in our nation’s history.

Leaders and representatives of different and even opposing political parties are here, NGOs, members of civil society and people of all ages, of all walks of life, of different ethnicity and religion are here.

We are so diverse and yet are all united by a common cause – Towards a better Malaysia. And I am proud to be part of this movement.

Together I truly believe we can build a better Malaysia.

That is why I feel that this movement isn’t just about one man.

This movement is about the aspiration of every single Malaysian for a better Malaysia, free from corruption and abuse of power.

I would like to recite a phrase from Thirukural, the Tamil treasure trove of wisdom for all ages and all aspects of life as a reminder for all Malaysians.


Idipparai Illathe Yemaraa Manan

Kedupar Illa-nung Kedum

It means - A leader without men to rebuke him will perish even without enemies to destroy him.

I always believe that the role of citizens in a healthy democracy is not merely to vote once every five years but also to ensure that those elected into power are not corrupt and abide by the underlining principles of democracy throughout.

And that is why robust and independent legal institutions  are a must in a true democracy. These are the institutions that provide the check and balance in a democracy.

We should not allow any politician or political party to undermine these institutions, whoever they are.


Any other interpretation of democracy nullifies  the notion of

“Government of the people, by the people and for the people”.

Yes, please remember that - for the people - the government of the day must be for the people, not to perpetuate its own survival.




God bless Malaysia. Lets save Malaysia.

Thank you.

Waste Not

Had a very interesting conversation with a "solid waste" (meaning our everyday garbage) expert.

Did you know that:

- gasses emitted from landfills is the biggest contributor to greenhouse gasses in Malaysia?
(smoke from power stations comes next and vehicle exhaust fumes only comes in third);

- there is no such thing as 100% 'safe' incinerator in the world. Accidents and explosions occur even at sites managed by the most advanced countries such Japan, Germany and Holland. Even with the 'cleanest' incinerators, 5% of the remnant  ash is toxic and these are even harder to dispose then the actual waste.

- organic waste is more of a health hazard then non-organic waste as they emit methane gases, foul odour and poison our underground water system.

Lesson from it all?

I guess we have recycle more and waste less.

Lets do our part to help earth heal itself.