Local - Economy in Current Situation

Boycotting US goods akin to shooting one's own foot - The Sun, January 12,2009

Local economist have described calls to boycott US products to pressure an end to the Gaza conflict as similar to shooting one's own foot. MIER Executive Director, Prof Emeritus Datuk Dr Mohamed Ariff Abdul Kareem did not mince his word when he said the idea was 'stupid' and that politicians and those promoting it are 'just playing to the gallery'
"It (boycott) is a double-edged sword..there is bound to be chain reactions and ramifications. The timing is also awkward due to the current economic slowdown. It will also hurt many potential investor."

[setuju in those red color. The reason, aku sendiri keje ngan US based company! I'm not gonna tender my resignation if I don't have any better offer! Nak makan ape kalau berenti keje sekarang?]

** MIER : Malaysian Institute of Economic Research



Not by rhetoric alone - Citizen Nades - By R. Nadeswaran ( Every Monday & Wednesday ) - The Sun 12 January 2009
[aku cukup suka penulisan uncle sorang nieh! ni aku copy paste je from: www.sun2surf.com]

Almost every local politician worth his salt has given his views on what’s happening in the Middle East and his solution which inevitably centres on one magic word which all of them think is the only way to stop the carnage which is going on. That magic word – boycott – has unfortunately been abused and misused in the name of justice and I will put up my hands and "plead guilty" to such a charge.

About 15 years ago when the price of dressed chicken spiralled upwards, I spearheaded a "No Chicken Day" campaign in a column in another newspaper. I reasoned that if every Malaysian did not touch chicken for a day, we would be able to bring the breeders, the wholesalers, the middlemen and the retailers to their knees. They would be saddled with hundreds of thousands of chicken and they would have to bring the prices down. To cut a long story short, it did not happen. While a group of hardcore supporters went vegetarian or opted for fish, I think 99.999% of Malaysians couldn’t resist the ayam madu in Bangsar; the chicken perattal in Jalan Gasing, the ayam goreng in Kampung Baru or the kai fan in Birch Road.

From that one and only "boycott" campaign, there were several lessons to be learnt. Firstly, if there is nothing beneficial for them, generally Malaysians do not want to walk the extra mile. Secondly, the feeling of "can one man make a change" syndrome is still in place in the hearts and minds of people. Thirdly, and more importantly, the attitude of "why should I give up something I like" is prevalent in our society.

[SETUJU!!! Tu sebab aku suka penulisan uncle ni. Very straight forward (kekadang aku pun terasa! hahahaha)]

The boycotts won’t work; the demonstrations won’t help; the rhetoric will fall on deaf ears and Israel has taken a "shout till your hearts’ content and we don’t care" attitude. So, what will work?

If anything is needed, it is affirmative action by our leaders a’la our first prime minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra who spearheaded the international campaign against apartheid policies by getting South Africa expelled from the Commonwealth in 1962.

In confidential papers kept by the Canadian government on the Tunku’s official visit in 1962 (which have since been declassified) they say the following:

"The Tunku has been anxious to demonstrate by concrete action the opposition felt in Malaya to the racial policies of the South African Government. In a speech to the Malayan House of Representatives on June 20, the Tunku disregarded precedent and quoted excerpts from the confidential record of the 1960 Prime Ministers’ Conference in order to show that he had made every effort to force a discussion of South Africa’s racial policies. He then announced that he was writing to the prime ministers of all democratic countries asking for their views on positive action to be taken against apartheid. He also suggested informally that limited representation for Africans should be introduced in the South African parliament — possibly 10 members on a limited franchise. This representation could later be gradually enlarged.

"Subsequently in a letter, the Tunku reiterated his concern about apartheid and announced his country’s prohibition of the import of South African goods. He suggested that other nations might wish to consider taking positive individual action as well, or alternatively they might prefer a conference to discuss at greater length what action should be taken. Malaya was prepared to act as host to such a conference if it were generally felt it would be useful."

In this instance, rhetoric will not work. The answer lies in a global stance against not only Israel but any nation or group which indulges in violence against its own people. Are we ready to spearhead a United Nations resolution to expel nations which carry out crimes against humanity? If the Commonwealth joined hands to keep Pakistan out and later expelled Zimbabwe, the question is: Why can’t Malaysia seek support to pressure the Commonwealth nations to move such a UN resolution?

[see.. he's not only critics, but he also provide the suggestions]

Okay... Cukup dah dengan 2 kenyataan akhbar. Aku pun nak jugak buat kenyataan.

Here is what I think:
* boycott: ON
* Reason:
- aku tak nak terlibat dgn sindrom 'one man can make a change'. Even ape yang aku buat tidak mendatangkan hasil or any impact, but I still proud with myself. I don't have much money to contribute to Palestanian (sorry my brothers and sisters), but this is the least thing that I can do to show my support to Palestanian.
- I shall keep on support local industry than support the USA. We should develop our own industries, untuk mengurangkan penggantungan ekonomi dengan negara luar.
[so, aku boleh berenti keje ngan company sekarang, dan bekerja dengan local company. hehehe]
- boycott barangan-barangan Israel and US takkan mendatangkan kerugian kepada aku, malah mendatangkan kebaikan. Contoh: if aku spend about RM15 untuk segelas coffee kat Starbucks, baik aku beli kopi cap kapal api (kurang RM 5 sekampit tak silap aku), then aku dapat banyak gelas coffee! Walaupun tak sesedap mana, tapi jimat. Dan dapat jugak minum kopi kan?

[so..dipendekkan citer, if aku boycott barangan-barangan tu, I can spare some money. Hmm.. things that I've never done before. Sbb dulu-dulu, kalau pi KLCC, sure gatal masuk Mark & Spencer just untuk beli Digestive Cookies tu! hehehe!! Sedap tu sedap.. but I always have other choice right? Tak makan benda tu pun tak mati]

It's always a first step before the second....