Why I refuse to be a 'macai' when it comes to politics

Whether it's about some controversy a local artiste got himself into or a snide remark by a certain former Prime Minister, we all have something to say.

This has been made even more apparent by just how well Malaysians en masse have adopted the use of social media.

Many shamefully share unsolicited opinions (usually negative) in the comments section, then gleefully wait for chaos to ensue as streams of other like-minded individuals come rushing in with a torrent of relentless insults.

We seem to be truly adept in the art of hurling insults masked as non-constructive criticisms or to use a more popular term, we just love to troll.

But trolling aside, I think Malaysians are on the whole, just a bunch of highly-opinionated and passionate people.

They care about what happens to people in the country and they want to contribute and be a part of the nation-building process, as proven by all the snide tweets and Facebook posts addressed to this or that minister on just about any issue under the sun.

I feel so lucky to be a part of this forward-thinking society.

Alas, in order for us to move forward and not just 'think forward', We, the people, must do much more than comment from the sidelines.

There are many reasons that contribute to such behaviour but I am not going to pretend that I am an anthropologist and talk about them here.

I do have one interesting observation to share with you, though.

If there’s one common denominator in all the mud-slinging between Malaysia’s keyboard warriors (or trolls depending on how you look at it), it is their belief that one's political allegiance must be absolute and there is no space for middle ground on any issue.

All their arguments tend to conclude that one is either a government or opposition 'macai' which I can correctly interpret as a stooge.

Thankfully, there are Malaysians who do speak on issues objectively without siding with either group exclusively, and I am one of them.

I believe it is wrong to categorise anyone who is against the suspension of two English publications under the stable of The Edge Media Group, as being anti-government.

Just like how I feel it is wrong to assume anyone who supports the implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST) is blindly pro-government.