The desire for change (UPDATED with Chinese Translation)

Hence, for Barisan Nasional, trying to fight against the desire for change by using logical arguments is futile. Once people want to change there is nothing that can stop that desire for change. It is not that my old car sucks but I just want the new model that just came out (or the new iPhone or iPad).

THE CORRIDORS OF POWER

Raja Petra Kamarudin

I have owned so many cars since I first started driving 45 years ago that I just can’t remember all of them. I remember my first car though (everyone remembers their first car), a Holden Torana GTR. Then I owned a Mitsubishi Colt Galant, Fiat 132, Mercedes Benz 240D, Porsche 911, Mercedes Benz 200, BMW 7 Series, Mercedes Benz 280SE, Mercedes Benz 380SE, Mercedes Benz 190E, Mitsubishi Pajero (twice), Honda Civic (twice), Mini Cooper, BMW 3 Series, and probably 10 or so other cars alongside that (sometimes two to three cars at one time).

I also owned a Yamaha 90, Yamaha 100 Twin, Vespa, Suzuki 250, Honda 350, Honda 450, Yamaha 650, Kawasaki 900, Kawasaki 1000, Yamaha 650 Turbo, and a Yamaha Virago. (Was also riding around on my friend’s Harley for a while).

Now, why so many cars and bikes and what were wrong with them that I needed to change them ever so often? There was nothing wrong with them. It is just that I enjoyed change so I changed them whenever something new came out. In short, I changed just for the heck of change. It is normal human instinct.

If you were to do a survey of what Malaysians are currently thinking and what they will do come 5th May 2013, and if they are honest with their responses, you will find that a large segment of the voting population want change. And why do they want change? Well, they will give you all sorts of reasons as to why they want change — corruption being at the top of that list.

Assuming there is no corruption. Assuming the present government is well and fine. Would they still want change on 5th May 2013?

Yes, they would still want change. And if they can’t use corruption as the reason for this change they will find some other reason to justify this change (and there will always be some other reason they can dig up).

So both Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat better take note of this point. The people are gatal (itchy) for change. And many of those people were born after 31st August 1957. So they do not have any emotional or sentimental attachment to Umno or Merdeka or whatever.

Why do you think iPhone and iPad keep coming out with new models? What is wrong with the old models? And why should the young people who already own a serviceable iPhone or iPad want to waste their money by changing to the new model when there is absolutely nothing wrong with the present one they are using?

Oh, you may say, you cannot compare iPhones and iPads, or cars, with governments. Maybe not! Maybe they are different animals totally. But the desire for change is still the same. And the young people want change, they want a new government, even if there is nothing wrong with the old government — and even more so if there is something wrong with the old government.

Those currently in power may not understand this. They think that people want change merely because we have a defective government. Hence if we address these defects or promise that we shall repair these defects then there is no longer any need for change.

Wrong! Even if there are no defects the people still want change because they feel it is time for change and they are ready to embrace these changes.

Pakatan Rakyat has to also take note. Some people want change because they hate Barisan Nasional. But not all want change because they hate Barisan Nasional. And not all want change because they love Pakatan Rakyat. The argument is: if we want change, then what other choice do we have other than change to Pakatan Rakyat? That is the only available option. Either keep Barisan Nasional or change to Pakatan Rakyat. There is no third choice.

Hence, for Barisan Nasional, trying to fight against the desire for change by using logical arguments is futile. Once people want to change there is nothing that can stop that desire for change. It is not that my old car sucks but I just want the new model that just came out (or the new iPhone or iPad).

And Pakatan Rakyat, too, needs to be very careful. If I can change to iPad 2 just for the sake of changing when there is nothing wrong with my iPad, then I can just as easily change to iPad 3 when that too comes out even if I have owned my Ipad 2 for hardly a year.

For 56 years Malaysians never thought that change was possible. Today they do. And once Malaysians have developed a taste for change there is no way you can take away that taste.

That is the danger with the culture of change. It is a knife that cuts both ways. And many governments all over the world have learned this lesson the hard way. They came into power on the platform of change that took decades to happen. Then they get swept away in no time at all on that same platform of change.

Hence let both Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat beware.

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改變的欲望

所以，對囯陣來説，以邏輯思考方式來與改變的欲望抗爭是枉然的。一旦人們決定了沒有東西是能夠左右他們要改變的欲望的。並不是我的舊車出了毛病，而是我就是想要新的型號（對新iPhone iPad來講也都是一樣的）。

原文：Raja Petra Kamarudin

譯文：方宙

自我第一次駕駛以來，在這45年内我擁有過無數的車輛，我想記也記不起了。我記得我的第一輛車子（所有人都會記得他們的第一輛車子），那是Holden Torana GTR。爾後，我駕過三菱Colt Galant, Fiat 132, 馬賽地240D, 保時捷911, 馬賽地200, 寳馬7系列, 馬賽地280SE, 馬賽地380SE, 馬賽地190E, 三菱Pajero (兩次), 本田思域(兩次), 迷你, 寳馬3系列,還有其他的十來輛吧(有時我會同時擁有兩三輛車)。

我也曾經駕過本田90, 本田100 Twin, Vespa, 鈴木250, 本田350, 本田450, 野馬哈650, 川崎  900, 川崎 1000, 野馬哈650 Turbo, 和野馬哈Virago。(有一段時間我跟朋友借了他的哈雷來騎)

這麽多的汽車和機車，它們都出了什麽問題嗎？爲什麽我要換得這麽頻繁呢？不，它們一點問題也沒有，只是因爲我喜歡改變，所以儅有新東西出現時我就換了舊的。簡單一點，我換就只是因爲我想換，這是人類的本性。

如果你為馬來西亞人作個統計，問看他們到底在想什麽和5月5他們會怎樣做，而如果他們很誠實地回答你的話，你將會發現大多數人要的就是改變。爲什麽他們要改變呢？他們會給你很多不同的原因，貪污為其中一個最重要的。

就讓我們儅現任政府不貪污好了，那他們是否還會想要改變呢？

他們還是會堅持要改變。如果他們不能用貪污為理由的話，他們還是會用其他理由來合理化他們要改變的決心的（他們永遠都找得到其他不同的理由）。

所以民聯和囯陣最好能看清這一點：人民都是‘發癢gatal’的，他們會想要改變。而當中很多人都是在1957年8月31號后才出生的，他們根本就對巫統和獨立沒有太大的情感。

你想爲什麽iPhone iPad會不斷地推出新型號呢？舊型號有什麽不好嗎？爲什麽年輕人會浪費錢來換上新型號，然他們現在還擁有著還能用呢？

噢，你可能會說‘我們不能把政府和iPhone車子做比較’。可能吧！他們確實是兩种不同的東西，但背後那個要改變的欲望是一樣的。年輕人要改變，他們要新的政府，即使是舊政府沒有問題—-若是舊政府本來就有問題的話，那就更甭講了。

那些現任的權力人士可能看不清這一點。他們在想人們要改變因爲我們現在的政府很爛，所以只要他們承認這些爛提的存在進而做出改正的承諾，那人們就不會想要改變了。

錯了！即時是現在沒有問題的話，人們還是要改變，因爲他們覺得現在是時候改變了，而且他們已做好了準備。

民聯也必須注意：有些人要改變是因爲他們討厭囯陣。但不是所有要改變的都是討厭囯陣的，那些要改變的也不全都是喜歡民聯的。論點是：我們現在想要改變，那除了民聯以外我們還有其他選擇嗎？現在我們只有兩個選擇，囯陣或民聯，我們並沒有第三選擇。

所以，對囯陣來説，以邏輯思考方式來與改變的欲望抗爭是枉然的。一旦人們決定了沒有東西能夠左右他們要改變的欲望。並不是我的舊車出了毛病，而是我就是想要新的型號（對新iPhone iPad來講也都是一樣的）。

民聯也要特別小心；如果我在我的iPad沒有任何問題的情況下還是照樣換了iPad2，難保我不會在iPad3在推出時我會第一時間摒棄我的iPad2，即使我才用了它不夠1年的時間。

56年以來馬來西亞人沒有想到改變是有可能的，但今天他們知道了。一旦他們嘗到改變的滋味，你很難要他們忘掉那個滋味的。

改變這個文化是很危險的，它就像一柄雙刃劍。全世界很多政府都付出了慘痛的代價來弄清楚這一點。他們在苦等了幾十年后才以改變這個擡頭上位，但他們還沒坐暖位子就被改變這個名義拉下馬了。

所以，囯陣和民聯，請看清這一點吧。