JULY 9 — Is there anything left to say about a certain minister’s soup kitchen pronouncements? I would really rather talk about the reactions to his comments, specifically about the people who agree that yes, the beggars and vagrants must be kept out of sight.

They are an eyesore.

They are a nuisance.

They smell. They look funny. They might be mentally unwell. Or worse... they could be foreigners!

The truth is that the homeless, unkempt people living on the street disturb us. They are a reminder that fortune is a fickle thing. It chooses whom it will and woe to whoever it does not favour.

Yet when the rich, the titled, the famous, the beautiful come among us we bow, we simper, we scrape as though angels deigned to walk among us.

When I see that, I can totally understand why God attempted to start over by flooding the world.

Malaysians worship the rich. It does not matter how those riches were procured, the rich are admired for amassing wealth and treated as though it was some sterling achievement.

You only need to look at how Malaysians worship entrepreneurs like Tan Sri Tony Fernandez. Look, the man started an airline and got rich. But the slavish adoration, the constant glowing references of him I see on Facebook and the likes... I wonder if they had mistaken him for Gandhi.

The columnist thinks the homeless, unkempt people living on the street disturb us as they are a reminder that fortune is a fickle thing. — Picture by Choo Choy May

Malaysians find it hard to aspire to greatness because the greatness we seem to revere is one born of power and wealth. We are a slavish people, who act as though our leaders have a divine mandate when we were just stupid enough to elect them in the first place.

A nation built on stupidity, syabas Malaysia.

We were stupid to ever believe race-based politics was a good thing.

We were stupid to allow corruption to go on unchecked and accept it as “the Malaysian way.” Our easily bribable police force and judiciary, anyone?

And when people like activists or opinionated obnoxious writers like me point out the many things that need to be fixed in Bolehland, we are called traitors.

But questioning the status quo is a good thing, Malaysians. Innovations were made because someone long ago piped up and asked, “There must be a better way to lug all these things around rather than carry them on our backs.”

If Malaysia existed then, said person would probably have been stoned or exiled. Years later, a white man would arrive and Malaysians would suddenly think the wheel was an invention that made sense.

Question the way things are. Question the way people are. Question our leaders, not slavishly obey them. They’re paid enough to take all the criticism all right.

Politicians are meant to serve. But Malaysians seem to think that we are born to serve politicians.

Except for royalty, I say we just strip all the titles. No more Datuks or Tan Sris. No more ridiculous elevation for some ridiculous cheaply-earned “rank.” In England, being knighted is a rare honour. In Malaysia, you throw a stone you’ll hit a Datuk.

I’ll be honest, who doesn’t wonder when you are introduced to a stranger with a “Datuk” title, whether the title was bought or earned?

Stop with the false elevation already, Malaysians. No one is “better” than another for having more money or having a meaningless title. There is no pride in a Datukship anymore, as it is just a badge to bully other people into subservience.

But no, we will continue to have our Datuks because being a Datuk is part of the Malaysian dream. Which is to make as much money as we can, regardless of whether it screws someone else over in the process.

God has died a long time ago in Malaysia. All we worship now, really, is money and power. And that is the saddest thing about being Malaysian.

* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.