'He tells Malaysians to quit their jobs at McDonald’s and Starbucks If they quit their jobs, is he going to employ them at his bakery, ‘The Loaf’?

On Quit your jobs, Dr M tells McDonald's, Starbucks workers

CH Siew:

Dr M says Malaysians ‘will not die’ if we do not use American goods. Maybe he should lead the way by not using his computer with American technology (whichever operating system he uses will also be American) to write his blog .

By the way, is the blog hosting server American? I don't know as I do not like to read his blog. I only read his blog once and that was out of curiosity.

The comments left on his blog made him like a demi-god with all the adulation. Is he on any life-saving medication? Are they from American pharmaceutical companies? If yes, maybe he should change them too, or maybe stop taking them all together.

He should also tell the government hospitals to stop supplying life-saving drugs from American drug giants to Malaysians.

He is telling the Malaysians to quit their jobs at McDonald’s and Starbucks My reply to him:'Get real'. If they quit their jobs, is he going to employ all these jobless people in his bakery, ‘The Loaf’?

Before making such inane comments, maybe he should take a walk around any of the shopping centers in town and see how many of Malaysia's young people are employed in the American fast food outlets.

At least they are gainfully employed and are not loitering around town. Then maybe, he should go and tell the American companies like Intel and Motorola to move out of Malaysia, too.

On second thoughts, he should start in PJ, where there are also many big American companies operating there. From there, he can proceed to his brainchild, the MSC, and tell all of them to get out of Malaysia.

Dian Abdullah: Mahathir does not know anything about living from hand to mouth. They are many honest and hardworking people who can barely survive with today’s high cost of living left alone have any savings for a rainy day.

Like lord of the land, Mahathir can tell the people to just stop working for McDonald’s and Starbucks.

I wish to remind Mahathir that the people who hold the franchise to McDonald’s and Starbucks are his cronies.

Would it not be better if Mahathir could set a good example and sell off his ranch and properties in the US and tell his friends to close down their businesses here?

Before Mahathir opens his mouth, he should make sure he can guarantee other jobs for these people; otherwise he should simply keep quiet.

Malaysian: I am not surprised if the Malaysian Islamic Consumers Association, and the Muslim Restaurant Operators Association call for a boycott of US goods, but Mahathir Mohamad, our past prime minister who led the country for so many years? How did he manage our country?

Welcome to the real world! There is no such thing as US goods or Malaysian goods or British goods or Japanese goods. In this 21st century, almost all goods produced are either sourced from or manufactured in many different countries.

The chicken we eat in KFC are from chicken farms owned by Malaysians. The computers we buy use chips made from Japan, produced in China using operating systems from the US. I can go on and on.

Boycotting so called ‘US goods’ is like banging our heads against the wall or slapping our own faces or shooting ourselves in the foot.

If we want to hurt the US (as we cannot hurt the Israelis because we have no dealings with them) we have to be more innovative. We can stop trading with them...oops! Sorry, if we do so, our economy will be in trouble, as they are a major trading partner.

We can stop allowing Hollywood movies into the country...oops! Sorry, then where would we get our entertainment?

Looking at other options, I can sadly conclude that we can do nothing - except hold demonstrations. Luckily, these demonstrations do not require police permits.

Shanmugaraja Ramasamy: It came as a surprise to me when our former prime minister and certain groups in Malaysia urginged Malaysians to boycott US products and currency. I think our ex-prime minister and these groups are barking up the wrong tree.

The actual countries that we should be upset with are the Arab countries. The Arab world supplies more than a quarter of the world’s oil and one of the US’s main oil suppliers is the Arab world. In addition, Arab countries are one of the biggest investors in the US.

If the Arabs are sincere in their support of their suffering fellow Arabs in Palestine, then they could cease or stop oil supplies to the US whenever the Israel launches massacres of the Palestine people. This would cause a panic and the US would have no choice but to pressure Israel to stop the atrocities.

But the question is would the Arab world do it? The answer is an absolutely ‘no’ as this would offend their friend the US. Till the Arab world continues to be a puppet of the US, till then the Palestine people would suffer at the hands of the Israelis.

Coming back to our boycott of US products, would this stop the Israelis? Or would this stop the US from supporting Israel? It would only backfire as it would affect local employment. What about the MNCs like Intel, Motorola, Seagate etc. that have big factories in Malaysia? Are we going to ask them to close their factories and lay off thousands of Malaysians?

How about the thousands of Malaysian students sponsored by the government studying in the US? Are we going ask them to come back? How about the millions of Malaysian computers that run on Microsoft software? Are we going to throw them away?

Scott South: We'll never hear the end of Mahathir's ranting, will we? He and the Umno-types have managed to be simultaneously shrewd, and either ignorant or hypocritical in their boycott of American soft drinks, fashions and perfumes.

Shrewd, in that they seem to be telling anyone who will listen that Coca-Cola and facial products are the only products America can produce. Ignorant or hypocritical in that they are wrong, and they wish to continue using those products that are useful to them.

If Malaysians wish to boycott US products, they should stop using the Internet, an American technology, both hardware and software. What do they need with freedom of expression anyway?

Furthermore, stay away even from computers designed by Asian companies, since most computers of all makes carry Intel microprocessors, the heart and brains of the machine. If 56-plus-inch HDTVs with digital light processing technology are available in Malaysia, boycott them as DLP is a Texas Instruments technology.

Indeed, all digital HDTV technology was developed in the US while the Japanese spent 20 years working on an analog version that became obsolete before it was marketed.

I think all products invented in the US should also be fair game. Start with the light bulb. Meanwhile, exhort the Middle East countries to start producing something other than homemade bombs and oil that has to be extracted by foreign expertise.

Hamisu: Let's look into more detail of Mahathir's request. Why stop at McDonald's, Starbucks, and Coca-Cola? I am sure I can name more for you. Try Seagate, Western Digital, Intel, Agilent, Altera, Flextronics, Citibank, AIG, First Solar, Nike, etc. This is going to be a very long list.

Those are only on jobs. Now let us move on to products. There's Microsoft Windows, Apple iPods, Intel and AMD's microprocessors, Cisco Switches and routers, Kraft foods, Motorola phones, Pepsi, etc. Well, you get the point.

I wonder who will employ us after we quit working for US companies. I wonder also who will be paying our bills and mortgages/loans, and feeding our families. I also wonder if the Malaysian government should stop taxing US company employees.

Here's another thought: if we were to stop using US products, guess what? Nobody would care. The world will just move on without us. Malaysia will forever rot in economic terms. Is this the ‘small price’ we have to pay, Mahathir?

Mahathir seems non-committal when asked what the full effect would be on Malaysians. Politicians will always be politicians - they tell their truth which are blatant lies.

Raj: I have no doubt most Malaysians are agonised by Israel's oppression against Palestinians but to expect our people to quit jobs with McDonald’s and Starbucks just don’t make sense. What surprises me is when such calls are made by leaders like Mahathir.

Does Mahathir think first before resorting to such harsh calls? Does he think the US is going be affected just because we quit from the jobs? How come he fails to realise the franchisees of these companies are Malaysians?

In our present difficult times simply quitting jobs would only create more problems for ordinary Malaysians unless Mahathir and his family are willing to distribute their wealth to those Malaysians who heed his call.

Furthermore, can Dr M refrain from using US products, seriously speaking? To Dr M and those who are serious about rejecting US goods, please prove to me you can.

How about not using your computer as your computer as well as others are using Microsoft and other software which are products of US.

Alex C: Dr M, have you ever heard of the saying 'never bite the hand that feeds you'? I am sure you understand who is Malaysia's largest trading partner, which is the US themselves.

Our exports to US alone amounts to more than RM30 billion a year. Can you see the effect on your nation if US were to react in kind? Or is it fine to reject Coca-Cola and Starbucks because you can find alternatives?

Ever thought of the repercussions to the Penang Free Trade Zone, Kulim Hi-Tech Park and Cyberjaya? Loss of revenue translated into loss of jobs for the good citizens in Malaysia?

The government does not even have a plan to protect retrenched employee to date and you are barking out such remarks?

It would have worked 10 years ago when you first mentioned it...oh...wait a minute, shouldn't you have pegged the ringgit to the Euro or Yen back then in 1997 instead of the greenback to reflect your rhetoric?

On Mahathir: Boycott US products and their currency

Narendran Narasiah: I remember some time ago when Nik Aziz suggested the same thing and now Mahathir is riding in the same boat.

The world has evolved into an intertwined community where every single product of a nation has been integrated into our daily lives and there is absolutely no way to cut away from each other..

If we are to boycott American products, wh have to consider the following:

1. We have to stop buying products from Intel and that means no more computers, same goes for Dell. So all the computers in the government service can be thrown out because even Windows is American. This, in itself, is enough to wipe out a nation.

2. Destroy all your Boeing planes, so there goes all the travel and those going on pilgrimage, cargo services and so on ( even if we used only air busses)

3. DRB Hicom should stop selling Chevrolet cars and so on.

4. What about the American education that our students are obtaining? They bring it back to our Malaysian shores.

6. How about closing down Motorola? There goes a bulk of the cell phone industry

7. What about American cigarettes?

Mahathir has been very opposed to American policies for many years so why this suggestion now and why just only Coca-Cola and so forth? If you want to boycott a country's products, you have to boycott all of them and this is absoltely impossible.

I think it is wise to focus on how people can be educated not only academically but also morally and spiritually. There is no use making suggestions that do not bear any results. We have to seek out the root cause.

On Your Say: 'What if your own home was invaded?'

P Sritharan: Israel's has been bombarding the Palestinian territories, Gaza Strip and West Bank, over the past few years. However, the recent Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip is very destructive and has resulted in high casualties.

What is sickening is that Israel claims that the target of their mission is to destroy Palestinian artillery and the hideouts of Hamas activists. According to them, the Hamas, the ruling party of Palestine, has been firing rockets into Israeli settlement on random basis.

They further state that quite a number of Israelis were either killed or injured and many Israelis are frightened to come out of their houses especially during night.

Now, if at all the Israeli's claim is true, then they should target only the Hamas activists and the weapons kept in the various suspected locations. On the contrary, Israel pounded its missiles into the Mosques and Palestinian settlement areas.

The US, which self-proclaims that it is the Policeman of the Globe, Champion of World Order and Protector of the Innocent, is keeping a low profile. This should be taken to mean that the US endorses the latest carnage by the Israelis onto the Palestinians.

Only on Jan 8 did the UN come up with a call for a stop to Israel's attack on the Gaza Strip. This is only two weeks after the initial attacks. The intended damage has already been done. Why such a delay in the call for a truce by the UN?

The very obvious reason is the existence of five permanent Security Council members. Even if one of them use their veto privilege, then a resolution cannot be enforced even if 99% of the countries in the world support the resolution concerned. Very unfair and unacceptable.

What is going to happen in Gaza after the UN truce order is enforced is yet to be seen. However, one thing is for sure. It will take quite a long time for peace to settle in that part of the Middle East.

Jasper Chong: I find it extremely troubling that the government is exploiting schoolchildren in getting them to participate in demonstrations supporting the Palestinians. Do the children even know why they are protesting?

Do they know the reason and history of the Isreal-Palestine conflict? Are they trying to instill hatred in our children? Are they trying to shape a new generation of extremists?

I remember the police arrested participates for the Jerit ‘Ride for Change' campaign and accused the organizer of exploiting children.

Why do the police not arrest our education minister Hishammuddin Hussein for exploiting our an entire generation of schoolchildren for political mileage?

Manjit: I agree with the writer that when someone invades your house, we must act to save our house. In the recent Mumbai terrorist attack, 200 civilian died and now Palestinian civilians are dying.

I will blame all terrorist attacks as the cause for all the trouble in this world at the moment. I will solely blame Hamas because if they do really want to fight, they should be at the front line protecting their civilians and not hiding behind women and children.

Raj Kumar: I'm amazed. I mean truly amazed at some of the ‘insightful' comments made by your readers with regards to the Gaza conflict involving the Palestinians and Israelis.

Now let me show you a little magic trick. Just substitute the word ‘Gaza' with Sabah or Sarawak and the word ‘Palestinians' with Dusuns, Penans, Kadzans and the indigenous tribes who have been there since God knows when.

Now substitute the word Israel for ‘Malaysian government'. We have injustice towards our own Malaysian people in very own backyard and all of a sudden we are politically aware of a conflict that's half-a-world away.