People are dying in the world, and we’re too busy fighting over political correctness and protecting our own that we either don’t see the suffering anymore, or worse, we’ve desensitized ourselves to it.
Syria, a nation reduced to rubble due to civil war. The Burmese Rohingyas being treated as less than human by their own countrymen. African children are dying of HIV from lack of education and infrastructure. The horrors faced by prisoners in North Korean concentration camps. Ethnic cleansings, denial of rights, famine, disease, civil wars. These are problems that can be fixed. But we first need to stand up and say, I see this and I do not accept it.
I'm disgusted by how Malaysia treats people. Malaysia takes in Syrian refugees, give them documentation, homes, jobs, help them rebuild. But we turn a blind eye to the Rohingya, we turn a blind eye to the thousands of refugees on our shores that do not fit our mould of what is a human. Why is a Syrian refugee worth more to us than a Rohingya? Both are suffering and both need our help. Yet we only reach out to one.
Thousands of refugees in Malaysian live in sordid conditions because they aren’t recognised by the government. They’re considered illegal, so they can’t work, or enrol into public schools, and they live in constant fear of deportation to the country they risk everything to leave. What kind of people are we that we push aside people who are reaching out to us for help?
And what about the marginalised who were already in the country? We’re constantly building houses here. There’s a ridiculous amount of empty houses in Malaysia, and a ridiculous amount of homeless people. 1 + 1 = 2. The solution seems quite simple to me. Give them homes. Channel funds into reeducation and retraining. Help them acquire the skills they need to start taking care of themselves again. Build a strong support system so that if and when they backslide (everyone backslides, it’s inevitable), we’re there to help them find their way again. Why is that so difficult?
We don’t need 5km tall buildings and floating hotels. We need love and compassion and efforts channelled towards helping humans that need genuine help. Not building bigger boats, and houses, and planes so that well off people can continue building their empires.
We need people to change policy, to change social norms. Our current system is flawed, and you cannot tell me otherwise. There are people dying. Babies are dying from curable diseases, children are dying of hunger while the rest of the world wastes tonnes of food every single day. There is an imbalance that is choking the world, and yet, we turn a blind eye.
How can we just stand by while people are being systematically murdered? This is where my understanding of the world falls apart.
How can we just stand idly by? How are we not doing anything significant enough to help those who desperately need us? Why are we so determined that our skin tone or nationality makes us better than other people? Why is killing so normal for us? Why is not helping so normal for us? Screw the argument that humans are biologically driven to ensure our own survival. That’s bullshit and you know it.
Are we so weak in our principles that we cannot bear to help someone for fear they might ‘overrun’ us? Are we so selfish that we cannot give our neighbours half of what we have so that they might have as much a chance as surviving as we do? Are we so immoral that we value our own skin more that of others? Are we so selfish that we can only help people so long as they don't become better off than us? God forbid they take what we give them and make something of themselves.
Forget borders and nationalities and ethnicity and religion. We’re a global people now. We have to accept it and move forward. The us versus them mentality is not helpful anymore. Not for us nor for them. We have to be a we.
There’s a scene in The West Wing that makes this point really well. The two people were talking about sending US troops to intervene in a civil war in an African country. The conversation goes something like this:
CJ: The guy across the street is beating up a pregnant woman. You don't go over there and try and stop it?
Toby: The guy across the street is beating up anybody, I like to think I go over and try and stop it. But we aren't talking about the President going to Asia or the President going to Rwanda or the President going to Qumar. We're talking about the President sending other people's kids to do that.
And that’s the answer many people will revert to, right?
Toby: Why are you sending your kids across the street?
CJ: Cause those are somebody's kids, too.
And that's mine.
We’re not cavemen anymore, and the survival of the human race is no longer just about our small little tribe.
I'm disgusted by how Malaysia treats people. Malaysia takes in Syrian refugees, give them documentation, homes, jobs, help them rebuild. But we turn a blind eye to the Rohingya, we turn a blind eye to the thousands of refugees on our shores that do not fit our mould of what is a human. Why is a Syrian refugee worth more to us than a Rohingya? Both are suffering and both need our help. Yet we only reach out to one.
Thousands of refugees in Malaysian live in sordid conditions because they aren’t recognised by the government. They’re considered illegal, so they can’t work, or enrol into public schools, and they live in constant fear of deportation to the country they risk everything to leave. What kind of people are we that we push aside people who are reaching out to us for help?
And what about the marginalised who were already in the country? We’re constantly building houses here. There’s a ridiculous amount of empty houses in Malaysia, and a ridiculous amount of homeless people. 1 + 1 = 2. The solution seems quite simple to me. Give them homes. Channel funds into reeducation and retraining. Help them acquire the skills they need to start taking care of themselves again. Build a strong support system so that if and when they backslide (everyone backslides, it’s inevitable), we’re there to help them find their way again. Why is that so difficult?
We don’t need 5km tall buildings and floating hotels. We need love and compassion and efforts channelled towards helping humans that need genuine help. Not building bigger boats, and houses, and planes so that well off people can continue building their empires.
We need people to change policy, to change social norms. Our current system is flawed, and you cannot tell me otherwise. There are people dying. Babies are dying from curable diseases, children are dying of hunger while the rest of the world wastes tonnes of food every single day. There is an imbalance that is choking the world, and yet, we turn a blind eye.
How can we just stand by while people are being systematically murdered? This is where my understanding of the world falls apart.
How can we just stand idly by? How are we not doing anything significant enough to help those who desperately need us? Why are we so determined that our skin tone or nationality makes us better than other people? Why is killing so normal for us? Why is not helping so normal for us? Screw the argument that humans are biologically driven to ensure our own survival. That’s bullshit and you know it.
Are we so weak in our principles that we cannot bear to help someone for fear they might ‘overrun’ us? Are we so selfish that we cannot give our neighbours half of what we have so that they might have as much a chance as surviving as we do? Are we so immoral that we value our own skin more that of others? Are we so selfish that we can only help people so long as they don't become better off than us? God forbid they take what we give them and make something of themselves.
Forget borders and nationalities and ethnicity and religion. We’re a global people now. We have to accept it and move forward. The us versus them mentality is not helpful anymore. Not for us nor for them. We have to be a we.
There’s a scene in The West Wing that makes this point really well. The two people were talking about sending US troops to intervene in a civil war in an African country. The conversation goes something like this:
CJ: The guy across the street is beating up a pregnant woman. You don't go over there and try and stop it?
Toby: The guy across the street is beating up anybody, I like to think I go over and try and stop it. But we aren't talking about the President going to Asia or the President going to Rwanda or the President going to Qumar. We're talking about the President sending other people's kids to do that.
And that’s the answer many people will revert to, right?
Toby: Why are you sending your kids across the street?
CJ: Cause those are somebody's kids, too.
And that's mine.
We’re not cavemen anymore, and the survival of the human race is no longer just about our small little tribe.
***
On a less serious note, how can we even begin to make contact and trade agreements with aliens if we can't come together as one world?