This blog normally does not make political comments, but recent developments have just been too juicy to resist. This is my take on living in our beloved Bolehland.:

If you are high up enough in the food chain, you can hire our Special Operations Force (Unit Tindakan Khas) to assassinate unwanted Mongolian lovers, kidnapping her, shooting her and blowing her up with C4 explosive no less.

If you are high up enough in the food chain, you can build a palatial mansion without municipal authorization, build an illegal restaurant on buffer land and get your two sons elected to the city council, while thumbing your nose at the Rakyat.

If you are high up enough in the food chain, you can bitterly criticize your former mentor by saying “forget about him, he went to the press instead of solving problems internally in UNMO” by also making statements to the press. This from the same baby elephant woman who was constantly at Tun’s side and his staunchest supporter till he blew up the AP issue.

This is the aspect of politics that I absolutely abhor – the fact that you can be in bed with a person one minute and bitter enemies the next, exposing dirty laundry for all to see.

A simple sms containing misleading info on a hundred (100) muslims converting to Christianity at the Lourdes Church in Ipoh ended up implicating yatchman Datuk Azhar Mansor, sparking an investigation by the religious department questioning his religios beiefs and culminated in the Sultan of Perak demanding an explanation from the Menteri Besar and Pak Lah jumping in hasty reponse from Pakistan.

About a thousand muslims gathered outside the church brandishing sticks to teach the kafirs a lesson. In the end logic prevailed over emotions and no one was hurt.

On another related topic, yesterday I was forced to call about twenty (20) four and five star hotels in KL to solicit some info and came away with 20 stories to tell.

Operator:GoodafternmoonHotelABCKualaLumpurSharifahspeakinghowmayIassistyou?
Me: Good Afternoon. May I please have the name of your PR Manager?
Op: What do you mean?
Me: I need the name of your PR Manager, please.
Op: What do you mean?
Me: *click*

Operator:GoodafternmoonHotelDEFKualaLumpurKumarspeakinghowmayIassistyou?
Me: Good Afternoon. May I please have the name of your PR Manager?
OP: Lee
Me: dude, there are a million Lees in KL. Full name, please.
Op: Miss Lee
Me: *click*

Operator:GoodafternmoonHotelGKualaLumpurVernspeakinghowmayIassistyou?
Me: Good Afternoon. May I please have the name of your PR Manager?
Op: doesn’t say a word, transfers line – ring ring ring ring ring ring
I call back
Op:GoodafternmoonHotelGKualaLumpurVernspeakinghowmayIassistyou?
Me: Don’t transfer the line. I need the name of your PR Manager
Op: doesn’t say a word, transfers line – ring ring ring ring ring ring
Frustrated, I call back
Op:GoodafternmoonHotelGKualaLumpurVernspeakinghowmayIassistyou?
Me: Vern, do you understand English? Don’t transfer the line. She’s not in. I need the name of your PR Manager
Op: doesn’t say a word, transfers line – ring ring ring ring ring ring

Op:GoodafternmoonHotelHKualaLumpurAlicepeakinghowmayIassistyou?
Me: Good Afternoon. May I please have the name of your PR Manager?
Op: Sure, our PR Manager is Miss La De Da
Me: Thank you. May I please have her email address?
Op: err www
Me: that’s a website, darling
Op: err wait ah…*click* beep beep beep the line goes dead

Op:GoodafternmoonHotelJKualaLumpurAlispeakinghowmayIassistyou?
Me: Good Afternoon. May I please have the name of your PR Manager?
Op: Yes Sir, our PR Manager is Miss Do Re Mi.
Me: Thank you. May I please have her email address?
Op: Sure Sir, doremi alias hoteljdotcom
Me: huh? Alias?
Op: yup, doremialiashoteljdotcom, no my
Me: uh… thank you…I think

However the most pompous and arrogant operator was from The Ascott
Op:AscottKualaLumpur
Me: Good Afternoon. May I please have the name of your PR Manager?
Op: No
Me: Huh? Whaddaya mean NO?
Op: we don’t have a PR Manager
Me: Well can I have the name of your Marketing Manager then?
Op: No
Me: Let me guess – You don’t have a Marketing Manager. Who handles the Press?
Op: Nobody
Me: *click*

These are absolutely true – I’m not making them up. Malaysia the Bolehland. I love my country you know. Holder of many records from best airport and cabin crew in the world to KLCC to the tower to the flagpole to dubious records like the longest popiah, the fattest satay and the stickiest dodol.

Malaysia the Bolehland. We are so busy overreacting and blowing up issues to bombastic levels that we can’t wrap our minds aeound the simple little concept of courtesy.