HAREBRAINED or HAIR-BRAINED.. WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

After a couple months of writing (on & off), I realised it's not really a bad hobby after-all. It helps me enhance my command of English as I need to make regular references on the word(s) and it's suitability in a sentence or phrase. Earlier today, I came across the word harebrained which simply means foolish.

It was written (in the net) that people have started spelling it as hair-brained when it should be harebrained. Nevertheless, it's meaning doesn't vary much. Hair-brained could also be defined as person(s) having 'hair-thin' brain.

Anyway, it's not about harebrained or hair-brained that I wish to write today. It's more about the Umno general assembly which I felt compelled to write.

It is interesting that Pime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has used Umno assembly as a platform to explain several issues as if only the Umno delegates deserved his explanation.

Rosmah Mansor's (PM's wife) Qatar trip.

PM Najib revealed that there are 2 good deeds (act of grace) by Rosmah for the people of Malaysia that he (PM Najib) has not told anybody.

1- That Rosmah made a phone call to the wife of Egypt's ex-president Susanne Mubarak for the release of a Malaysian student accused of spying activity. PM Najib said it was during a pyramid operation that the student was accused and sent to prison. He asked his wife (Rosmah) to call the president's wife Suzanne appealing for the release and in 2 hours, the student was released.

2- During the operation, his wife have asked the good offices of the Saudi Arabian govt with 'connection' to the royal family to allow Malaysian students to do a stop-over in Jeddah without having to use visa. It was all Rosmah's efforts and as a matter of fact, 2 jumbo jets were made available free of charge to fly home our students. Najib further said he has never reveal this to anybody, but that were Rosmah's contributions for the people of Malaysia, reported Malaysiakini.

It looks to me that PM Najib made the revelations in his bid to justify his wife's use of public property and taxpayers' money.

I am of the opinion that the govt is duty bound to protect the safety of our students abroad. When 2 jumbo jets of our students' safety are in danger abroad, 2 ministries came to my mind other than the office of the Prime Minister itself to address the situation. The foreign ministry and the education ministry (as it involved our students) or both.

Taking into account the magnitude of the situation, I'm puzzled of how Rosmah, who is not an elected member of the govt and certainly with no executive power or authority could have carried the task as indicated by Najib?

What would happen then, should Rosmah's attempt(s) does/do not work out? That would unnecessarily delayed action(s) by the govt to bring the students to safety.

We (Umno) are never racist.
PM Najib said Umno is never racist and in fact, has been fair to all races in uplifting/creating a balance as well as in wealth sharing.

I can understand if Umno is not racist but what I don't understand is the fact that many of it's leaders were reported to have acted or uttered racist remarks esp so after the 13th general election (GE13). Provocations that many regarded it as racist.

I wish to draw readers' attention to a speech by a Penang delegate Musa Sheikh Fadzir who is also the Penang Umno state liaison secretary. He proposed that 1Malaysia be changed to 1Melayu (Malay). He further said, what is the need to help them (non-Malays), We (Umno) helped them, but they stabbed us in the back. Is this not racist? In democracy, voters have the legitimate right to use their vote in choosing the govt they preferred.

If voters are restricted from voting anything other than Umno/BN, what is the purpose of an election? Perhaps, Musa himself do not know the purpose of election.

Based on Musa's argument, the 1Malaysia slogan is not suitable or appropriate to use as other races have failed to help Penang's Umno in GE13.If that is not racist then what is it?

I opined when one race ill-teats or act violent to the other because of their difference in race, that's already racist.

Now, it was at the Umno assembly itself where numerous speeches could be construed unhealthy to race relations and in sharp contrast to arguments made by Prime Minister Najib

Poor quality debate?.
Issues debated by delegates in this round of Umno assembly do not reflect much on reality to current state of affairs. A delegate from Umno Selangor Mohd Hanif Koslan stressed that Malay millionaires are vital as they are Muslims. When they are rich, Islam (the religion) is defended/protected, while another delegate from Penang Shahbudin Yahaya proposed that the govt amend the Federal Constitution to curb the spread teachings of Shiite.

I have written earlier an apple polishing speech by a delegate from Federal Territories Affandi Zahari just to record the standard of some Umno leaders. Affandi is Umno/BN's parliamentary candidate who lost to People's Pact candidate in GE13.

There are also speeches by other Umno delegates that's noy worth commenting. Debates or what I would say a sheer utterance such as "who cares if people were to assume we (Umno) are racist", is just a waste of breath to even mention.

When issues such as GST (Goods Service Tax), high and rising cost of living, education (Malaysia's slide in rankings) and unity (reconciliation) should have been given priority by delegates, still - racial politics and religous conservatism and of course Anwar Ibrahim (opposition leader) took the stage.

Even MCA president Chua Soi Lek ticks off Umno for it's racist remarks. Now that Umno's own partner in BN's coalition calling them racist, where is the truth to Prime Minister Najib's arguments?