Saturday, June 13, 2009

The World in a Whirl

Saturday, June 13, 2009

So many things have happened. Suddenly it's already June. Half of 2009 has gone. It's gone. And only a few weeks more before I enter university. (laughs) Some of my friends are already 2 years into their 4-year degree program, and I haven't even begun yet. But that's life.

Speaking of life, things are pretty lively lately. With current British Prime Minister Gordon Brown facing a bleak future, US President Barack Obama on the move with his plans, southern Thailand is still in a state of violence since January 2004, North Korea pursuing their nuclear tests despite international voices calling for a halt, and the popularly known swine flu..the list just keep going on and on. Things inside the country are pretty heated up as well. Mainly, politics of course. What with all the talk about "Unity Government" between PAS and UMNO, I'd say I have more than enough heat to last me a lifetime.

There's something different when you're changing phases. What I mean is moving on from the teens to the full-of-responsibility adulthood. You just feel that you only started to realize some things that you never did when you were a cute little kid. Suddenly you become so interested in 'boring' talk shows and always waiting for that piece of news and that you can live without watching cartoons for a week. You want to know everything about everything, from politics to health, from education to government policies. At least, that's what's happening to me. I feel like my world is in a whirl.

And it doesn't help that the world around me is also in a whirl.

It seems like people are becoming smarter and more educated. People now know how much power they hold, well, if you live in a democratic country that is. Just look at us Malaysians. We know the power of votes. Last year's general election was a shock even to the..(what do you call "parti pembangkang" in english? Suddenly I'm blurred..)non-BN parties because even they didn't expect to win that much.

Just yesterday was the Iranian general election. (Is it called the general election?) The press in Iran reported that it was a record voter turnout, meaning that a lot of people came out to cast their votes, which broke the record of past elections. I think there were 4 candidates running for the post of the country's president, but the two popular ones were incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and Mir-Hossain Moussavi, a veteren politician. The interesting part is the background of these 2 candidates.

Ahmadinejad is kind of like a man who serves the people and gains the support of mostly rural folk. We all know he declared his assets, something rarely done by a leader of one big nation. One might say he is a bit traditional on the principal, and doesn't welcome the west and modernisation so much. But others perceive him as an honest and humble man who really serves the people. On the other hand Mir-Hossain Mousavi is a moderate leader and if he wins, then Iran have more chance to gain the trust of the US. In addition, Iran's economy didn't thrive much under Ahmadinejad's past leadership, so perhaps people want a change in leadership.

Anyway, all my talk doesn't matter now, because Iranians have decided that Ahmadinejad retains the country's post as president with a 65% majority. That's right, he is still the President of the islamic republic of Iran, at least until the next election.

As a muslim, I personally think Ahmadinejad is a good person. Although his speeches are a bit fiery and very direct, I still think he is the right person to lead Iran. Not that I know Iran very much, hey Ive never been to Iran. But honestyand humility are qualities that will always prevail when people want to choose a leader. Especially now, when all morals seem to be peeling off from humans like old paint peeling off of old houses, a man of such qualities will win the hearts of the people. And Ahmadinejad is one such person.



Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Posted at 9:58pm

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