just minishorts.

While we're getting all riled up over silly debates over what is ignorance, what is maturity and who can afford single-digit number plates, more important figures are talking about things that really pertain the nation, such as that article by a certain prominent Women's Activist (whether or not she's someone's daughter, does it matter really?), and reactions like this.

I thought it funny of course that my skewed opinion of horny bastards too had to appear on International Women's Day. But never mind that, which was, what I thought, a demonstration of responsible freedom of speech. It sounded pretty sensible to me in a nonsensical way, and of course, provocative at the same time… but really, the feedbacks that came in the lines of, 'Screw you you horny virgin you're only saying that because you don't have experience,' are pretty astounding. Considering the fact that these people will most likely blog about ugly fat women who have asses too big to fit into triple-XL sized pants.

But before you say screw you Minishorts you have no regards for beauty in its entirety everyone is beautiful and who are you to say so-and-so is ugly or not your ugly fucked up bitch, I say it back to you, 'Well you just called me ugly. So, touché.'

But see, we're talking about something important which I of course have to present in a very opinionated way and this is, by no means, not an article. (No Vince, we do not write articles.) Articles are pieces of work who have probably seen the eyes of at least ONE editor prior to publication. Such as that article by Marina Mahathir which is yet to be published.

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So I was looking at parts of the big picture and it suddenly hit me that while we're in an era where borders are almost rendered invisible, with the Internet, and that freedom of expression is celebrated so joyously, maybe we don't really want freedom at all. I mean when multiple-channeled communications so often hit points of saturation, don't you feel ever, ever, feel that the chaotic atmosphere of differing opinions make you wanna scream 'ORDER ORDER ORDER!'

Just so that you can have some peace and quiet after all.

I don't know. I know that, of course, when I decided to post about how I felt whenever I encountered a horny bastard (come on you all met that dirty old man whose eyes slanted at you shiftily before), I wasn't really thinking. I just got out of a conversation with a friend and it was mightily enjoyable so I decided to write about it. Hey, freedom of expression, practised, my way. Not very responsibly of course, but not like it was going to cause a bunch of horny bastards to scream 'Order order order!', right?

Quite unlike the times when we're talking racist opinions, where of course we have to be careful to not talk about things that lie under the calm waters. But hey, who is to say that all is silent under the deep blue sea?

You see, the problem with women talking about our rights is just this… all too often through the ages women have been subdued. I myself was brought up with the mantra, 'Little girls should be seen and not heard.' God gave women voices after all, yet sometimes, the way men react to us and tell you it's best to keep quiet because our opinions are contradicting, that can be rather paradoxical, eh?

Especially when one opinion is accused by Man of challenging a Word of God.

Oh I'm not qualified to talk about another religion, so I will not touch on that, least someone comes along and points a finger at me to talking about things that I don't know half about. Yes I don't know half about a lot of things, and among these things of course is the very fact and awareness that I am not qualified to discuss something as sensitive as comparative religion and interfaith issues. As it is, I also feel that there isn't anyone on earth who is qualified to discuss these things, examples: Specimen A, Specimen B.

But never mind that, I'll talk about Leviticus and Deuteronomy first, among some other parts of the Old Testament, which contain several rules deemed necessary by the Pharisees in order for order and peace to exist. Also please understand I'm not bashing up the Holy Bible per se, just that I'm going to use parts of it to illustrate what I'm trying to say.

Two examples first,

Leviticus 11:2-3 - '… The animals you may use for food include those that have completely divided hooves and chew the cud. You may not, however, eat the animals named here, because they either have split hooves or chew the cud, but not both…'

11:8 'And the pig may not be eaten, for though it has split hooves, it does not chew the cud. And you may not eat the meat of these animals or touch their dead bodies. They are ceremonially unclean for you.'

Leviticus 7:22-27 - Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Give the Israelites these instructions: You must never eat fat, whether from oxen or sheep or goats. The fat of an animal found dead or killed by a wild animal may never be eaten, though it may be used for any other purpose. Anyone who eats fat from an offering given to the Lord by fire must be cut off from the community. Even in your homes, you must never eat the blood of any bird or animal. Anyone who eats blood must be cut off from the community.'

And then,

Leviticus 15:19-23 - Whenever a woman has her menstrual period, she will be cermonially unclean for seven days. If you touch her during that time, you will be defiled until evening. Anything on which she lies or sits during that time will be defiled. If you touch her bed, you must wash your clothes and bathe in water, and you will remain defiled until evening. The same applied if you touch an object on which she sits, whether it is her bedding or any piece of furniture.

Try more,

Deutoronomy 23:1-2, on Regulations concerning Worship - 'If a man's testicles are crushed or his penis us cut off, he may not be included in the assembly of the Lord. Those of illegitimate birth and their descendants for ten generations may not be included in the assembly of the Lord.'

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I don't know about you, but if we really wanted to ahhere so strictly to the entire bible, we'd be in a fix all the time. It is pretty much impossible to adhere to such a law that even on print, looks rather, to put it crudely, discriminating, to animals, women and men alike. And yet, it appears that Christians are disobeying these laws all the time. We eat pork, we go to church even on days when we're having our period, and I personally think its terrible to deny an illegitimate child, of God. After all, he didn't choose to be born to this earth, why should his generations be accursed for something he didn't do? (Don't quote original sin to me if you're a Fundamentalist).

Now that is not to say I appraise people who burn bibles and holy books. In Acts 15, there is this letter to the Gentile Believers, that clears the confusion regarding the laws in the Old Testament,

We understand that some men from here have troubled you and upset you with their teaching, but they have no such instructions from us… For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay no greater burden on you than these requirements: You must abstain from eating food offered to idols, from consuming blood or eating the meat of strangled animals, and from sexual immorality. If you do this, you will do well.'

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Then again, I did read in this site and sites of other Fundamentalists who doubt the divinity of the Bible that Paul was a drunkard and skewed God's Word to his advantage. Et cetera, et cetera, blasphemous, no less, but so far no huge protests just yet.

I think it's because amidst all this fervour to turn to God and religion as a fundamental pillar of trust and support, the majority of us still realize that Earth is not Heaven and we still have to exist with our different opinions in the most peaceful manner possible, whether we like it or not. At least, we keep reminding ourselves that because only the most qualified people are allowed to go to Heaven, and we're going to Heaven anyway and all these idiots will burn in Hell, we busy ourselves with our everyday lives and choose to shake our heads in horror and turn the other cheek.

Usually.

Except in recent months, while we're all celebrating freedom of expression and the pike of civilisation in a time when humans beings finally seem to be able to grasp that concept of respecting another person's differences, EVERY TIME someone actually demonstrates true freedom of expression, he gets virtually cruxified for his opinions because they're so bloody radical and irresponsible.

So comes the rhetorical question: what is responsible, what is irresponsible?

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I'm just thinking on Marina's article right now, and of course, me being a woman, I think it's a sensible article with some valid points. So I'm not Muslim, does it matter? And don't come to me with, 'You're not a Muslim it's none of your business'. The last time some people drew cartoons in another country no one said, 'You're not Danish it's none of your business' either.

Let me put it this way, I'm human, I'm Malaysian, and I have an opinion that begs to be heard and this is only the blog of someone quite stupid, some say. *Disclaimer* So please, by all means, disregard me after reading this.

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I just feel that if you strip away all the religious curtains and veils, it boils down to this, 'Some men just do not like it very much when a woman is vocal enough to say what she thinks.'

And then to shield this very selfish demeanour they cover themselves with armours of religious scripture, quoting line after line and praising God at the same time. Yet don't you think it is pretty unholy of them to call Sisters in Islam 'a sisterhood of Muslim liberals who are the culprits of selling out this blessed faith for cheap publicity and God knows what else?'

Just strip religion away from the standing issue please, don't pollute God in your fervour to be heard. We will hear you anyway, whether or not we agree with you is up to us. Besides, there is nothing more cowardly than a man who hides behind his God in order to subdue a so-called lesser gender.

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Bible quotations taken from the New Living Translation.