- They still serve alcohol on the national airline (for international flights longer than three hours).
- To this day, there is no fatwa against tapai.
- “Tapai pulut has an alcohol content of around 1.6–5.2%, which means it can have as much alcohol as beer.”
- And the man spraying alcohol at that event down south was clearly representing both the government and the country.
- Even in Kelantan, you can still buy empat ekor and Sports Toto.
So yes, there’s a fair bit of hypocrisy in making a scene because a non-Muslim attended a dinner where alcohol was served.
But I think the hysteria runs deeper than hypocrisy. It’s the same mindset that allows that eccentric professor to claim her people can fly through the air, or that they’re descended from Abraham. These same folks can display public hysteria — yet seem to enjoy or at least tolerate absurdity when it comes from within their own folks.
Why? Why is it that when it involves their own race or religion, there’s endless tolerance, but when it involves others, there’s outrage?
I think it stems from low self-esteem — a deep insecurity amplified by an inability to compete. When people fail to achieve or underperform compared to their neighbors, the frustration needs an outlet. This is where Dr. M bears much of the blame. He broke the system over 24 years. He kept his own people non-competitive.
The only exceptions are race, language, and especially religion. Religion, above all, offers a sense of superiority — “this is mine, you have no part in it.” More bluntly: “You’re going to hell, I’m going to heaven.” And of course when you have morally bankrupt politicians stirring the pot, they can really fly off the handle.
Religion becomes something to defend fiercely, because it gives the non-achieving a rare sense of achievement. “At least here, I can be proud. I’m going to heaven.” That single belief helps mask the otherwise dismal record of underachievement.
It’s like the vain woman who boarded a city bus showing off her new ring. As she got off, she waved her ring finger in the driver’s face while asking for directions. Not to be outdone, the bus driver, wearing a new pair of brown shoes, lifted his leg and pointed her the way.
When people don’t have much else, they show off what they do have — whether it’s a ring, a pair of shoes, or religion.
