This is how it works

Now, if you want to whack Islam I have no problem with that. Just send me an e-mail with your details and I will register you to comment in Malaysia Today.Once you are registered your comment will automatically get published without needing to wait for the moderator to approve it. If you refuse to register then what more can I say? That would be your fault, would it not?

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

A number of readers have posted comments accusing me of being a hypocrite for not practicing what I preach. They allege that while I propagate freedom of expression, I do not walk the talk, I block or delete their comments. They further allege that I am denying them their right to post comments in Malaysia Todayand hence am not respecting their freedom of expression. This, therefore, makes me a hypocrite.

A couple of readers also posted comments wanting to know why I blocked or deleted their comments whenever they bash Islam. If some readers can bash Christianity, they say, why can’t they also post comments bashing Islam?

First of all, those whose comments get posted without ‘censorship’ are those readers who have registered to comment. So, whenever they post a comment, their comment automatically gets published, even if it is seditious, inflammatory, malicious, racist, etc. Those who are not registered will have to wait for the moderator to view that comment before it gets published. In such a situation the comment may or may not get published.

So this is a problem normally faced by those not registered to comment. Those registered to comment would seldom face a problem of blocked or deleted comments unless under very ‘severe’ situations.

Another point to note would be when so many readers repeat the comments of others. For example, one reader (or two or three readers) already posted a racist comment about Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s Mamak or Indian birth and this comment (or two or three comments) gets published. Then another ten or 20 readers post similar comments whacking Dr Mahathir’s Indian or Mamak birth.

Do we need 20 comments all similarly referring to Dr Mahathir’s Mamak or Indian birth? I think the first (or two or three) readers have already made his/her point -- and that point is Dr Mahathir is evil because his father was Indian. If his father had been Chinese or Malay then he would not be so evil. Hence anyone who has an Indian father is an evil person.

However, two or three comments regarding Dr Mahathir’s Indian father should be enough, don’t you think so? Why do we need to read comments from 20 people saying the same thing?

I think most, if not all Malaysians already know the story of Dr Mahathir’s father, grandfather, great-grandfather, etc. It is already common knowledge. But not many know the story of Dr Mahathir’s mother. Now, if someone wants to post a comment regarding Dr Mahathir’s mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, etc., that would probably be something interesting since no one talks about that.

Hence if you have something new to say by all means post your comment. But if you just want to repeat what 500 people before you have already said then maybe we need not publish your comment. It would be most boring to read 500 comments regarding something we all already know -- Dr Mahathir’s father’s race.

Hence, also, if your comment does not get published it could be because your comment is so boring. I mean, you might not find it boring even though 500 other people have already said what you are saying before you said it. You may even get an orgasm with your comment. But then this could just be because you are a boring person.

Boring people normally regard what they say as extremely exciting although others may find them boring. Malays call this ‘shiok sendiri’. It is like mental masturbation. They get turned on by the sound of their own voice and they think that others also get a hard on just because they do. Hence they get very upset when we find their comment too low standard and not worthy of publishing. They cannot accept the fact that their comment is not good enough for publishing. But I suppose that is the problem with shiok sendiri readers.

Now, if you want to whack Islam I have no problem with that. Just send me an e-mail with your details and I will register you to comment in Malaysia Today. Once you are registered your comment will automatically get published without needing to wait for the moderator to approve it. If you refuse to register then what more can I say? That would be your fault, would it not?

I can’t understand why these people who want to whack Islam refuse to register to comment. It is not like they have to pay anything to register. Registration is free. Just e-mail me your details and you will get registered with no hassle whatsoever. It is so simple to do and yet they do not do it. It is really mind-boggling.

So, for those readers who complain that they want to whack Islam and their comments do not get published, send me an e-mail with your details now and I promise you I will immediately register you. I will also not block or delete your comments -- they will automatically get published. Can you do that?

Another point I want to discuss is regarding rights and privileges. Many readers confuse privileges with rights. They think that they have rights in Malaysia Today.

Actually you do not have any rights in Malaysia Today. You see Malaysia Today is not a democracy. No one appointed me or elected me to head Malaysia Today. I set up Malaysia Today and appointed myself. So I call the shots, not you. Hence I decide what happens in Malaysia Today and I can even make up the rules and change them as we go along.

Of course, you do not have to like this or agree to this. And if you don’t like it you can set up your own Blog with your own rules. Then you decide what happens since it is your own Blog and set up with your own effort and money.

This works just like your passport. A passport is not a right. It is a privilege. The passport does not belong to you. It belongs to the government and the government can take it away if you abuse the privilege. Your passport does not determine your citizenship. You can be a citizen of the country without owning a passport.

Hence don’t start screaming about your right to post comments in Malaysia Today. You have no rights whatsoever. You are merely a guest and as a guest I will allow you certain privileges. And I can also take away these privileges or deny you any privileges. And I do not need any reason to do that. Maybe I don’t like your smell or your hairstyle or I think your skin is too dark or your eyes too shifty or whatever. I need no reason and I need not tell you my reason. That is how it works.

I trust you now understand how it works. In short, you have privileges while I have rights. You have the privilege to post comments in Malaysia Today and I have the right to decide whether your comment gets published or not. You have the privilege to register to comment in Malaysia Today and I have the right to refuse your registration or delete your registration later if I don’t like what you say.

Is that now clear? And if it is not, then get a friend to help translate this into Bahasa Malaysia, Tamil or Mandarin.