Nurul Izzah Sepatutnya Sibuk Dengan Obama-Romney, Bukan Isu Murtad!

Malam tadi jurublog ini betul-betul seronok berhujah di Astro Awani - ye lah, cerita pun tentang Pilihanraya Presiden USA, pilihan antara Obama dan Romney. Isu tersebut memberi peluang seseorang yang beraspirasi untuk menunjukkan keperihatinan tentang dunia luar sekaligus kelincahan berhujah tanpa batasan oleh kerana risiko topik hampir pasti tidak akan menjejaskan senario lokal sama-sekali, baik dari segi politik, ekonomi, sosial... agama.

Jurublog Tengah Ghairah Berhujah Di Astro Awani

Ini terlihat berbeza sungguh dengan pendekatan YB Nurul Izzah Anwar, mungkin akibat beliau merasakan dirinya tetiba lebih ahli tentang ilmu agama dari hal politik USA, kini dirinya sudah terjerumus dalam isu getir buatan sendiri. Tetapi kita mungkin sukar juga untuk menyalahkan beliau, kerana Papanya pun lebih kurang begitu! Kan DS Anwar Ibrahim di antara orang yang paling corot pengetahuan agamanya namun cukup riak sehingga naik ke mimbar untuk berkhutbah?

Dalam hal DS Anwar, mungkin beliau tidak ada pilihan. DS Anwar memang corot pengetahuan dalam pelbagai hal, sehinggakan bidangnya sendiri, Pengajian Melayu, sekalipun beliau takat boleh lepas dengan General Degree sahaja, maka beliau mungkin merasakan lebih mudah bantai cakap agama dari benda lain! Kalau YB Mat Sabu boleh buat dengan habis belajar takat SPM je, apa salahnya DS Anwar buat mungkin fikirnya?!

Tapi masalahnya, YB Nurul Izzah tak perlu buat begitu! Beliau lebih cerdik dari Ayahnya dengan kelulusan akademik yang lebih menyegankan - ye lah, benih maknya DS Wan Azizah kan seorang doktor pakar mata! Jadi apalah YB Nurul Izzah buat sampai naik pening dah sekarang, tengok gambar bawah peningnya beliau sekarang? Ni sekarang teman-teman lama Papanya Hj Ismail Mina dan YB Datuk Dr Hassan Ali pun dah steady nak bantai YB Nurul Izzah di Kelab Sultan Sulaiman pada Khamis 8 November, 8 malam!

Nurul Izzah Anwar kan dan PENING sebab tak biarkan isu Agama dijawab Tok Guru je! (NST pic)

Padahal banyak bebenor hal yang boleh diceritakan tentang Obama-Romney nih! Contohnya, bagaimana US$2.6 BILLION(!) telah dibelanjakan oleh kempen Presiden Amerika Syarikat tahun ni! Ini belum lagi termasuk wang kempen untuk Senate serta Dewan Perwakilan Kongres deme! Ah, tapi mungkinkah YB Nurul Izzah tak mahu bercerita sangat tentang Obama-Romney sebab ada sebenarnya risiko buat partinya dan Papanya? Yelah, parti pun duitnya dari Soros & Co  kan? Mungkin orang yang sama juga yang membiaya kempen Obama-Romney?!

Takpelah, yang penting, diharap semua ahli politik muda yang tak berapa berilmu agama, walau yang ingat dia ahli sebab ada kertas dari pusat kajian Islam di Oxford, sedar sikit sekarang yang tak wajar berceloteh perkara agama bila diri sendiri pun belum cukup ilmu di dada. Ini bukan zaman Papa lagi, nak muhong tentang apa-apa pun susah, apatah lagi hal agama!

Are We Over-Celebrating Obama?

There is much celebration, it seems worldwide, of Obama's victory in the US Presidential Elections. And indeed there is much to celebrate. At least Obama presents some hope for change, unlike his rival McCain, who looked like an older, less accident-prone but outwardly more conservative version of George W. Bush, who's probably internationally the most hated US President since Nixon (who's also probably more popular if you exclude American sentiments).

But whilst we celebrate the victory for change in the US, with perhaps some legitimate hope that things will be different in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine whilst diplomacy with North Korea, Iran, Russia and others, including ourselves, improves, lets not forget that Obama, self declared 'citizen of the world', will be first and foremost, President of the United States of America, and charged with defending the interests of that country with extreme prejudice.

What does this mean? It means that the priorities in his first term in office should be very US-centric; especially if he wishes to deliver the US from its present crisis thus guaranteeing his second term as President. Does this mean that he will not deliver his promises on Iraq et al? Not necessarily, but President-designate Obama would only be too aware that the last legs of his campaign focussed on the American economy, allowing him to pull away from McCain.

Americans will now see the fixing of their economy to be a key priority, well ahead of Iraq, and so will their President. If withdrawal from Iraq helps, then all the better. But as fiscal stimuli is the economic flavour of the day to tackle the present crisis, don't be too surprised to find Obama trying to balance things a little dangerously. For instance, his strategy in Iraq may be a fire-sale of US weapons left behind as troops withdraw to Iraq's pro-US government.

This article penned by Obama during his nomination campaign is controversial when put against his image as it begins with disturbingly familiar post 9/11 rhetoric. It does nevertheless evolve into a presentation of ideas that are more in line with Obama's mass-market image, where even the US Military's expansion may be geared to good works internationally. But even then, Obama emphasised that for all its foreign aspirations the US had to get its house in order first.

The above may well be a little unjust to Obama's image, but his image remains untested in the muddy waters of a global economic crisis. Previous economic crises have ended in wars as a form of resolution. We hope Obama lives up to his image and steers away from that. But for him to do so, the focus may well be for him to focus on getting the American economic ship back in order. So lets temper our euphoria a little for what Obama will do for us in the rest of the world...

For Malaysia, I see this as the perfect time for us to disengage from the US-Malaysia Free Trade (USFTA) talks... but that's another story...