A report had quoted Rafidah Aziz as saying that she was unperturbed by an article by Australian journalist Michael Backman in which he had called Malaysia 'bodoh' for its idiosyncratic and profligate policies.

The Wanita Umno chief was further reported to have said that the Australian writer had apparently not followed the recent Umno general assembly proceedings closely. According to Rafidah, "If he did, he would have seen things differently."

Excuse me?

Michael Backman most certainly would not have seen things differently. He would have been even more convinced that Malaysia is firmly on the road to perdition if he had seen the antics of the keris-waving buffoons threatening to run amok and bathe the country in blood.

It is said that patriotism is the last resort of scoundrels. What we saw at the Umno general assembly was a spectacle of racism and jingoism enacted by a worse-than-scoundrels set that rivalled the Hitlerite conventions of the 30s for their venom and infamy.