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I have been following the debate reacting to the issue of violence against women, but RR's letter stopped me in my tracks.

RR's letter is a personal attack on Alina Rastam, plain and simple. He saw it fit to use terms such as 'lamentable rock throwing drivel' to describe her views; and accused her of 'intellectual bullying and guerrilla persuasion'. He also made unfair charges against her.

For instance, he accuses her of using shock tactics just because she mentions in her letter that religious leaders expect women to be subservient to men. What is so shocking about this? Hel-lo! This goes on all the time!

And what does RR mean by 'gender bashing' (which he accuses Alina of)? Give me a break! I have heard of 'male bashing' or 'female bashing' but 'gender bashing' is tantamount to picking on the whole human race, since all of us have a gender! Surely accusing Alina of picking on the whole human race is going too far.

Instead of just venting his frustration and playing the poor misunderstood male, RR should have addressed the points raised by Alina. For instance, she mentioned that most men are not involved in fighting violence against women. Would RR have us believe that this is all due to views of people like Alina?

Is RR in any way involved in fighting violence against women? If not, why not? Is he more taken up with writing angry letters or does he actually do anything concrete about improving conditions for women?

Whatever one may think about Alina's argument (and I for one found it persuasive), at least her letter is lucid, articulate and to the point.

RR's letter on the other hand lurches from one tangent to another and touches on everything under the sun, from religious zealots and shock tactics to women being groped on the bus to RR's encounters with people who tell him that as a man he can never understand the female point of view. What on earth is the man saying?

RR tries to justify his 'strong words' by saying he is hurt. But being hurt or angry is no excuse for going on a hysterical rampage, which is precisely what men like to accuse women of all the time.

The bottom line is, if you have something to say worth saying, say it clearly and concisely. Otherwise, you just end up confusing people.

Finally, malaysiakini should be more selective with the letters it publishes. While it is important to present all sides of an argument, I think that letters such as RR's are vitriolic and unfair because they are personal attacks and unconstructive. They bog us down instead of advancing the debate or giving us new ideas.

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