Agreeing to disagree: one-way to avoid racial problems

By MT Webmaster Last updated Jul 1, 2015

The route to peaceful coexistence is to accept that the other person is stupid and accept that you will never discuss the other person’s stupidity and will allow the other person to continue being stupid without mentioning it. That is the formula for peace.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad correctly said that Malaysia cannot allow absolute freedom of speech due to its very delicate racial balance. Malaysia also cannot allow total democracy for the same reason and only guided democracy can be allowed.

In fact, Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore said precisely the same thing. So in that sense these two leaders do have a few things in common.

Dr Mahathir also explained why Malaysia needs a detention without trial law. Laws such as the Internal Security Act are preventive laws, said Dr Mahathir 14 years ago. It allows the government to detain you before you commit a crime. It is no use detaining someone after the crime has been committed and the damage has already been done.

Even as you are still thinking of committing a crime and even before the crime has been committed the government detains you, even if in the end you may not actually commit that crime. This, said Dr Mahathir, is what preventive detention is all about.

Back when Dr Mahathir was Prime Minister many hated him and resented what he had to say: such as what he said above. Now, however, they no longer hate him and actually support him because he wants to topple the Prime Minister. And that is the only thing that matters: toppling the Prime Minister.

Anyway, Dr Mahathir is right. Too much debate regarding racial issues just strains race relations and is no bloody good for the country. We need to do what Pakatan Rakyat does, agree to disagree, so that we can live peacefully with one another, like the members of Pakatan Rakyat do.

It is no use arguing about why Singapore is better due to its Chinese government and that Malaysia is teruk because of its Malay government. If you are absolutely convinced that Singapore is better due to its Chinese government and that Malaysia is teruk because of its Malay government there is nothing I can say that is going to change your mind. And by continuing to argue this issue it is just going to make the Chinese and Malays even more divided.

The Chinese are convinced that had their ancestors not come to Malaya from 1850 to 1920 then the Malays would still be living in trees and Malaysia would still be one huge jungle. You may disagree with this and you may even have historical evidence to counter this theory but you are not going to be able to change that perception.

So let us just agree to disagree and move on.

There are many other arguments that people raise to prove why Singapore is better than Malaysia or that a Chinese government is better than a Malay government.

For example, they keep comparing SIA to MAS and present that as proof to support their theory. In fact, there are many other proofs that make it impossible to dispute that Singapore is better than Malaysia or that a Chinese government is better than a Malay government.

Of course, you might disagree with this argument but just because you disagree does not mean those who argue that Singapore is better than Malaysia or that a Chinese government is better than a Malay government are going to change their minds.

Hence it is better to just agree to disagree and move on. Both sides are going to be adamant that they are right and no one is going to admit that the other side may be right. So why argue? Agree to disagree and move on.

The problem is the Chinese are convinced that Article 153 and the New Economic Policy tantamount to racial discrimination. Malays may call it an affirmative action program but Chinese call it racism. So how are you going to be able to come to an agreement? So just accept that you need to agree to disagree and move on and talk about it no longer.

Once Chinese and Malays can accept the fact that they can never agree on many things and agree that they will no longer discuss the matter and learn to live with one another based on the concept of they will agree to disagree then Malaysia will be a very peaceful nation and we shall not face any danger of racial problems.

I mean, if Jews, Christians and Muslims can adopt this same spirit and agree that each considers the other’s religion as stupid and stop arguing as to who is following the correct religion and who is following the false religion there would be no more fighting and killing in the world.

The problem starts when you cannot stand the other person’s stupidity and feel you need to point out that person’s stupidity and he or she feels exactly the same way about you. Then you start fighting. But if you smile sweetly and just say in your heart “What a fooking idiot”, but do not actually utter anything, the other chap would probably buy you a beer.

Raja Petra Kamarudin RPK