Sam Chan, who wrote, [#1] People Power: Can we pay the price? [/#] Jan 31), is either too pessimistic or naive. He claims a host of customs and lifestyles will be denied the Chinese if the opposition parties like Keadilan came into power, but negates to include any proof or current practice to support his claim. I guess he must have learnt from Dr Mahathir Mohamad who is so good at making baseless accusations and framing his political enemies.

I note, however, that although PAS fully controls Kelantan and Terengganu, the non-bumiputra residents are treated well.

I also totally disagree that "Freedom of speech means that I can say something racial to anyone and you can't do anything about it." Who says that this is allowed and being practised in the US?

I was there for two and a half years and all I saw was racial harmony and integration. The people are always sensitive about each other's feelings and will refrain from making racist remarks.

Of course, discrimination still exists in the US and so do racial extremists. But Americans are never afraid of admitting their mistakes and always try to correct them.

As for the Rodney King case, didn't the courts sentence the three white policemen to jail later? I doubt that something like that can happen here now!

The problem is not whether Mahathir is the best or whether we can achieve more than what we have now if we were to replace him with another. The problem is that he is abusing all his powers! I think everybody can easily find a few, if not many, cases of abuse of power under his rule!

My students all agreed that without corruption, we won't get rich in Malaysia. They are just around 20, yet they already have this perception. Aren't they likely to practise what they believe when they go out into the real world one day?

If Mahathir is not able or is not trying to lead the country and treat the rakyat fairly and if he is also losing his popularity, like what is happening how, then please step down. We don't mind repeating the elections until we find a suitable leader. Of course, there should be no sabotage; otherwise, people like the writer will say, "See, I told you we shouldn't have simply changed our leader for the sake of change!"