I went to watch Election Day out of curiousity and 'desakan' from my friends. After being so not 'in-the-know' about the political scene for so long (life caught up and I guess the impetus to focus my attention on things that are larger than myself was gone), I have to admit, I didn't expect much out of the night.
Little did I know that I was in for a walk down memory lane.
1998-99 was a passionate period. Everyone from executives to cab drivers had strong opinions about everything. Whole families were divided along political lines and the Internet, or more specifically, SangKancil, became a big and real part of the rural political machinery.
Watching Election Day was like watching "24". The descriptors of the day brought me back to "Better than Ezra", reformasi.com and Sabri Zain. It brought me back to restless nights in Bukit Damansara and a hot and even more restless afternoon in Dataran Merdeka - September 19th, if I'm not mistaken.
It brought back memories of paranoia, of watching men line up the perimeters of KLCC, their postures revealing their weariness as they leaned on their weapons for support.
It brought back graphic images of the time when Malaysia seemed like it was never going to be the same again - when water canons spewed unknown substances to the masses and when the world was so sure we would follow in the path of Indonesia.
It was a time when I was passionate about so many things, when I cared about things that was larger than myself. When my passion was, in hindsight, somewhat misguided, though I was told it was in a good way.
Election Day brought back many memories, which I can now remember fondly. Memories that when looked upon in the light of day, didn't look so bad at all. Memories that reminded me of who I used to be, and who I can still become.
A big thanks to Jo Kukathas and Actor's Studio. It was personally a moving performance.
Other reviews:
The Public Ineffectual: Five Arts Posturing from the Margins: A critique of Election Day by Rey Buono
It's not a political play-lah
Very true. Felt like coming home that year. Not to support anyone or party, just felt we were finally maturing as people and nation. But.... hangat hangat taik ayam sajaa.
Posted by: rhomer at 2004年02月29日 22:38Actually, I felt it was good that something like that happened when it happened. Sometimes when things seem too smooth, you get complacent and don't realise how things actually are until it's too late.
Posted by: Najah at 2004年03月01日 09:22We are soo scared of the big brother. I wonder what'll happen if they start making threats to the fellow bloggers. It's unthinkable but they've done soo many stupid things. I like Nik Nazmi's site a lot. So talented. Make me proud to be a Kelantanese.
Posted by: rhomer at 2004年03月01日 11:15I just don't understand it why people would vote for a bunch of greedy, underschooled, girl-crazied, money-pinching, foul-mouthed, propagnda-promoting, bad-policy-making, vote-riging, casino-hoping, unintelligent bunch of people called BN anymore? It just doesn't make sense to me.
Posted by: fade0 at 2004年03月02日 04:15But on the other hand it's no so bad... Have you heard of this club called Promuda. I wonder if cik Najah is a member :-).
Posted by: rhomer at 2004年03月02日 09:41