May 6: Aftermath

I admit, initially I was disappointed too.

I was disappointed that we didn't manage to make that leap of faith, into the unknown and a probably drastically different future. It was such a chance to change things for the better.

Now, the People's Alliance/Pakatan Rakyat not only failed to take government, they lost a state too, and did not manage to retake Perak which they did win last election (although complicated matters followed...). A bad, bad day for the opposition and its supporters, then?

No. Not really.

May 5: Approaching the Crossroads of a Nation

My name is Terence Wang, a 17 year old Malaysian.

Usually, I refuse to write political posts on this site, primarily because I wanted to avoid being affiliated with any organisation or ideology. However, recent trends mean that, for once, I must break my own rules.

Tomorrow, 13.3 million voters will set out to decide the outcome on what is arguably the most contested general election Malaysia has ever had. For the first time ever, polls and surveys conducted by various institutions have decided that the race is "too close to call". In other words, these voters will be ultimately deciding the fate of what Malaysia is to become in the near and distant future.

As the heat rises by the hour, I'm taking a look back at my own journey these past few years, growing up alongside the great journey that the nation has walked over the decade, leading up to where we are today.

Why Malaysia Should Stop Trying To Be A High-Income Nation

Just recently, at the Barisan National Open House in Penang, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak reiterated his government's stand to make Malaysia a high-income nation by 2020.

By this, I assume the government means that it intends either to push up our income levels to "rich" levels, or create a much larger class of wealthy people compared to what we have today

While it is certainly comforting to dream about our future lives of fat pockets, fast cars and large bank accounts, this mindset is, to put plainly, foolish.

Random Talk

The following is a conversation between me and a fellow friend and blogger, Amanda NYC on ASEAN, Malaysia and traditional costumes. Find her on her blog at Her Effervescence.

I recently(very!) had a considerably long chat with Amanda, also an ASEAN scholar (Junior College) heading to Singapore next year. It started out normal, but as the issues we turned to are rather relevant to many of you Malaysians out there(doesn't matter if you're not), I decided to compose it into a something...readable for both our blogs.