In the latest session of the House of Commons in the UK, the marathon meeting yielded 121 Labour votes against Tony Blair's haste in going to war against Iraq. The session was telecast live and the debate was candid and not vindictive.

I cannot help, but compare that to our very own parliamentary sessions, based o­n what little 'analysis' we get in the press and watching the nightly parliamentary reports o­n the day's proceedings o­n TV.

I also recall the suspension of two MCA state assembly representatives, who was dealt such for merely abstained from voting in the Penang Outer Ring Road (Porr).

Porr was not a 'life and death' issue, and they were expressing the sentiments of their constituents - and look what happened to them!

Since we oppose the war against Iraq, I wonder what our politicians will say about the Labour MPs who voted with their conscience and represented the feelings of people who had voted them in the first place. Are these 121 British MPs stupid or should they be lauded for their actions? To me, the British MPs showed the world what democracy really means.

The US Senators cannot do better, as the shackles of the Jewish lobby effectively wipes out any US politician who votes against the interests of Israel. That US foreign policy is devised and approved in Tel Aviv is common knowledge, and many an independent minded politician have learnt to their detriment that you don't mess around with the lobby, and expect contributions to their next political campaign.

The Jewish lobby is very weak in the UK, and thus the voting pattern. I guess the real reason for this is that there is a difference in priorities, if I may say so, between the British MPs and American Senators.

Looking at their backgrounds o­ne cannot but conclude, that the influence of the private sector is very evident in American politics. Just look at Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld and President George W Bush himself. They all had high-paying jobs in the private sector, and not too straight at that either, as all of them have been accused of improprieties. Therefore, the will of big multinationals plays a large part in shaping policies and the behaviour of American politicians.

I remember John Major going to watch a cricket match immediately after his party lost the elections. This is what British MPs are made of. The majority of them, whilst fiercely loyal to their party, are not beholden to any lobby groups and therefore are more likely to speak their minds.

Coming back to the local scene, will there come a day when our MPs show that they are as intelligent as they say they are, and can therefore give convincing speeches in Parliament, rather than always "playing to the gallery" in order to catch the attention of the top leaders, and be handed cushy posts in the government or government-controlled companies?