Dipendra A/L Harshad Rai
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Junior Forumer
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Glorifying false "heroes" and "idols" - 2008/01/16 00:06
In an age where we seem to love glorifying false "heroes" and "idols, we could do no better than to remember a man of real substance.
I read yesterday the passing of Sir Edmund Hillary. Some of us may remember him as the chap who conquered Mount Everest, just about the time when Elizabeth of the House of Windsor was crowned Regina.
Mind you, this was during a time where breathing apparatus was somewhat rudimentary and probably weighed almost as heavy as your gas tank at home. Yet, this man, and his sheer guts and willpower climbed atop Mount Everest with his trusted Nepalese sherpa.
What amazed me most as I read on was Sir Edmund's subsequent shying away from media attention. Instead, he focussed on building communities- building schools, hospitals and an airport in impoverished Nepal.
These are some of the enduring selfless qualities a man should have.
We love championing this "Towering Malaysian" - whoever or whatever he or she may be. we find ourselves embroiled over the trivial of issues and who is right and wrong. We champion empty concepts and represent all that is wrong in this world.
Thinking aloud, I wonder what has happened the spacemen, the chap who swam across the English Channel (allegedly in a protective cage) and the fellow who sailed across the world on a yacht with a broken mast? Having received their "15 minutes" of fame, titles and benefits, are they the "Towering Malaysian" we so want to subscribe too?
Should we learn to be more like this beekeeper from New Zealand who challenged death and scaled heights where no man had ever been before? or should I just accept our failings and be silent?
Very truly yours
Dipendra H Rai
ps: I dont wish to sound gender biased. All references to "man"/ "men" etc are equally applicable to the fairer sex as well.
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Jurisk Dec 08
