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| Eugenics: his social philosophy |
On the plus side, the victims of Operation Cold Store and Spectrum gets to be consoled that their wretched tormentor was suffering miserably during his last five years as dictator. We now know he developed Parkinson's disease 3 years ago, which limited his mobility, but not accessibility to his full MP allowance. Too proud to be sighted in a wheelchair, he misused his security officers (SOs, pronounced ass-holes) as human walking sticks. Perennially plagued by bouts of hiccups, he could swallow solids and liquids only with great difficulty. Rest of us had to swallow his insults and castigations for decades.
The once vaunted thinking prowess must have been adversely affected too. His internet research led to use of rabbit skin and chicken feathers to induce sneezing, surely an unorthodox therapy for curing hiccups. He entertained other weird theories too, like excessive food intake precipitates an involuntary spasm of the diaphragm and respiratory organs. And you thought stop-at-two was bad enough.
And we get to know the daughter was also technically challenged - papa once revealed that he doesn't do SMS because he "can't find the keys". To remove a SIM card from her BlackBerry, she had to call in the services of the expensive SOs, with the rank and pay scale of ASPs. And if she had problems sleeping, they get to keep her company too. Makes you wonder what else is in their job description.
The most awful revelation has to be this:
"Also, you have inherited my traits, but in such an exaggerated way that they are a disadvantage to you."
Suddenly it makes sense why the sissified image - some likened it to a caricature of Kuan Yin, the Godess of Compassion - captured by Mahathir's son-in-law, photographer Tara Sosrowardoyo, was so surreal. The same Mahathir who is calling Our Dear Leader kiasu (“Kuan Yew resigned but he was still there as senior minister and minister mentor..."), forever postponing the day of reckoning when hard truths will finally be unveiled. Doubtless, some will be calling it Mahathir's revenge.