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| Of Vassalage, Fiefs And Zaid Ibrahim's New Book Posted: 25 Aug 2012 09:51 PM PDT Thanks to The Star here, I found out today that Zaid Ibrahim has done something even more interesting, he has written another book, one which I believe will be largely unread (nor understood) by its proper audience. Firstly because it is in English and secondly because reading non fiction, non cerita hantu, non cerita romantik and non religious books are an anathema to large sections of the population. I have not read it yet but it appears to be a brave book because it touches on the Malay Royals. Here is the report, which I have truncated (I believe that huge parts of the interview with Zaid have also been left out by the Editors of The Star) :
"vassalage, also fief. Also called: feudal system the legal and social system that evolved in W Europe in the 8th and 9th centuries, in which vassals were protected and maintained by their lords, usually through the granting of fiefs, and were required to serve under them in war." Well I dont think this system developed in Europe alone or only in the 8th century. Its been around for a long time. The much earlier Chinese concept of 'son of heaven' emperors, later copied by the Japanese emperors is preceded by the "sons of god" kings of Sumeria, Pharaonic Egypt and a dozen other civilisations - which were all feudal societies. Later this "son of god" idea took on an even larger and dramatic role. A necessary part of feudalism is of course the "aura" of the kings and emperors. When a king was born the birds would sing, the hippos would stop for a minute, the sun would shine on Mount Sorak, the rivers would flow backwards, three wise men with high IQs would turn up for the birthday and stuff like that. That was the "aura". No "aura" no king. Later in the evolving Middle Ages and especially after the Renaissance, feudalism in Europe changed to become less "aura based" and more "economy" based. Here is another dictionary definition of feudalism. Well its the same as the other definition but more concise. The advent of gunpowder and musketry put an end to the age of the European knights in shining armour - who were mostly gangsters hired to enforce the kings "aura". Gunpowder forced feudalism to evolve. The gangster knights in shining armour were retired. Soon, the king could command the loyalty of his subjects only if he could dish out the economic goodies, the "royal largesse". The age of the "kings aura" died a natural death. And then in 1649 Oliver Cromwell chopped off the head of King Charles in England. 140 years later in 1789 the French chopped off the heads of not just their king but a sizeable number of their "aristocrats" (The 'sacres aristos' of The Scarlet Pimpernel). Ever since then the European monarchs lost not only their "auras" but also the power for granting "royal largesse". They became "constitutional monarchs". There were some die hard 'I wont let go' types in Russia. They finally bit the dust in 1917. The Russian people then ate their cake. For a time after that the European royals were at a loss about what to do, until the invention of the pocket camera and package tours.  Now they also make intermittent appearances on the front pages but not always for the best of reasons (click here and here). As Zaid has pointed out, Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy. The Royals have little or no means to grant 'royal largesse' anymore. And even in the past, the "aura" of a royal held more sway upon subjects of the State or within State boundaries. OK folks, from The Star report, I like this line best : "Zaid's.. latest literary contribution to society may open up the path for a mature discussion by all those upon whom Malaysia's future is invested." I hope so too. There are still so many immature people around. This is indeed a delicate topic. I will not entertain any rude or sarcastic comments. And absolutely no lese majeste. It is a requirement of the Law. Akhir kalam : The ebb and flow of politics aside, Zaid Ibrahim has a reasonable head on his shoulders. I hope Zaid will be "rehabilitated" in the nearest future. Dr Mahathir said that he admires people who write books. Of course he meant good books.   |
| Posted: 25 Aug 2012 07:17 PM PDT  CINCINNATI (AP) — Neil Armstrong was a quiet self-described nerdy engineer who became a global hero when as a steely-nerved pilot he made "one giant leap for mankind" with a small step on to the moon. The modest man who had people on Earth entranced and awed from almost a quarter million miles away has died. He was 82. Armstrong commanded the Apollo 11 spacecraft that landed on the moon July 20, 1969. "That's one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind," Armstrong said. Armstrong was born Aug. 5, 1930, on a farm near Wapakoneta in western Ohio. He took his first airplane ride at age 6 and developed a fascination with aviation that prompted him to build model airplanes and conduct experiments in a homemade wind tunnel. He was licensed to fly at 16, before he got his driver's license. Armstrong enrolled in Purdue University to study aeronautical engineering. From 1982 to 1992, Armstrong was chairman of Charlottesville, Va.-based Computing Technologies for Aviation Inc., a company that supplies computer information management systems for business aircraft.   |
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