Abolish ISA …

During times like this, we are tempted to use many words to present our feelings, arguments and suggestions.  There was much already said and repeated with much vigor and clarity which does not need repeating.  Media Rakyat’s post Forum: Abolish ISA has three clips.

Standing Ovation for RPK and Marina Lee from Second Thoughts on Vimeo.

For me, one moment stood our during the Abolish ISA Forum on 23 September 2008 .  I struggled to hold back my tears when everyone in the hall gave a standing ovation when Raja Petra’s wife Marina Lee stepped on to the stage. 

Heart to Heart from Marina Lee from Second Thoughts on Vimeo.

Later as she shared heart to heart with the attentive audience what is on her mind, it was hard to remain numb and unmoved. The call to re-look at our humanity first, rather than the rhetoric of national security, shouts right in front of us through the feeble and yet firm voice of those who are left behind.  The reaction from the crowd was loud and clear.

I received an email last night reminding me of the words of the courageous Lutheran Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984) who is attributed for penning the poem "First they came…".  As we consider the various actions each of us may choose to take and converge for truth, justice, peace and healing in days to come, Pastor Martin’s words strongly impress upon us apathy can no longer be an option.

They came first for the Communists,
and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Catholics,
and I didn’t speak up because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me,
and by that time no one was left to speak up.
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Oh My God

I think I’ve put this song up before. But in the light of what I’m hearing around me, whether personally or in the public, maybe the lyrics might help some of us process the mess all round us and inside of us. Especially, when the frustrations and feelings of powerlessness builds up, and we seem to have lost our center.

We will always have people talking like Job’s three friends with high flung analysis or low blow negativity. It maybe too clouded for any of us to really have a firm grasp of the issues before us.

So perhaps the lyrics from this song may do a better job .. a reflection BEHIND THE SONG WITH KEVIN DAVIS can complement too with some background. But, a song can have a life of it’s own with unique applications which go beyond where it came from. Enough of talking right now, listen to the song and let it do it’s work.

Lyrics to “Oh My God”:
Oh my God, look around this place,
Your fingers reach around the bone,
you set the break and set the tone
For flights of grace, and future falls
In present pain all fools say, "Oh my God."

Oh my God, why are we so afraid?
we make it worse when we don’t bleed,
there is no cure for our disease.
Turn a phrase and rise again,
or fake your death and only tell your closest friends,
Oh My God.

Oh my God, can I complain?
You take away my firm belief and graft my soul upon your grief.
Weddings, boats, and alibis,
All drift away, and a mother cries…

Liars and fools, sons and failures, thieves will always say..
Lost and found, ailing wanderers, healers always say..
Whores and angels, men with problems, leavers always say..
Broken hearted, separated, orphans always say..
War creators, racial haters, preachers always say..
Distant fathers, fallen warriors, givers always say..
Pilgrim saints, lonely widows, users always say..
Fearful mothers, watchful doubters, Saviors always say..

Sometimes I can not forgive
and these days mercy cuts so deep,
If the world was how it should be, maybe I could get some sleep.
While I lay, I’d dream we’re better, scales were gone and faces lighter,
When we wake we hate our brother, we still move to hurt each other,
Sometimes I can close my eyes and all the fear the keeps me silent,
Falls below my heavy breathing, what makes me so badly bent?
We all have a chance to murder, we all have the need for wonder.
We still want to be reminded that the pain is worth the plunder.

Sometimes when I lose my grip, I wonder what to make of heaven,
All the times I thought to reach up, all the times I had to give up.
Babies underneath their beds, in hospitals that cannot treat them.
All the wounds that money causes, all the comforts of cathedrals,
All the cries of thirsty children, this is our inheritance,
All the rage of watching mothers, this is our greatest offense
Oh my God, Oh my God, Oh my God.

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