YOURSAY 'When you point a finger at others, four are pointing at you. Mahathir, have you taken a look at yourself in the mirror lately? No?'

Mahathir: Gov't weak, yes, but don't please extremists

Absalom: Former PM Dr Mahathir Mohamad is absolutely right; this country is being ruined by extremists and a weak government, which does nothing about it.

There is an extremist newspaper which incites racial hatred on a daily basis, there are some who find nothing wrong in slaughtering animals openly in schools and people who for vested interests and political mileage, will do anything to drive a wedge between different races and yet others who think they own this country and anybody who disagrees with them should just work, pay their taxes and shut up or get out.

But of course, some would not see these as extremists. Their definition of extremists are people who criticise the government, point out its blunders and abuses, and those who do not 'support' (meaning vote for) the ruling party.

Ferdtan: Mahathir, you only apply the word ‘extremist' only for the opposition but what's about Umno pressure groups like Perkasa? Is it only Chinese/Indian can be extremists but not a certain race from Umno?

When you point your finger at others, four are pointing at you. Mahathir, have you taken a look at yourself in the mirror lately? No?

Quigonbond: Dr M should crawl back to his ultra conservative cave where he spawned from. Who's he calling extremist? He can't even be fair to call Perkasa, to which he is their patron, extremist, despite Perkasa's almost daily vitriol of racially and religiously divisive and inciting statements.

And who's the extremist who allowed Project IC, which has become a slippery slope - from being a election winning tool to getting an innocent bank officer killed?

And who's the extremist who said that Asia Rare Earth plant construction is up to standard only to have the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) rejecting such claims in the 80s, and resulting in many cases of birth defects and leukemia deaths ever since?

And we haven't even started about assault on judiciary or declaration that Malaysia is an Islamic nation.

Puzzling: Mahathir is up to his twisted logic again. Who are the extremists? Are they people who ask for a free and fair election and upholding basic human rights or are they people who gerrymandered to win elections unfairly?

It is beyond me that bodies like Perkasa are only reacting to extremists from the opposition when they are espousing racial and religious extremism with impunity. While I once had huge respect for him, I have now lost all respect for this old man.

Swipenter: Those fighting for universal suffrage are extremists in the eyes of Mahathir and those demanding "ketuanism" are nationalists. What warped mind he possesses.

Exploiting the urban-rural divide is the only thing left for his warped mind to exploit. Throw in race, Islam and now the Malay royalty into the equation you have a time bomb waiting to explode.

Mahathir doesn't care about that because the dangerous game he has been playing is what keeps Umno Baru in power.

If the time bomb explodes, only the rakyat and country suffer. These ultra-Malays like Mahathir have already feathered huge nests overseas through corruption and raping of the country resources and they can enjoy their ill-gotten gains overseas while the country burns.

Saintonthego: Indeed, Mahathir is the greatest and worst racial extremist himself. What he said is a reflection of what he is.

Onyourtoes: Mahathir, please get your perspective right. Demands made on the government are not necessary based on extremism. Most of the demands are based on common sense, good governance and for the long-term good of the country.

It was extremism within Umno that has labeled all others extremists. Fighting for equality is not unreasonable; those who want to be more than equal to others are extremists and supremacists.

Those who want to stifle others simply because of their jingoistic and jaundiced world views are extremists. Chinese want Chinese education for economic and pragmatic reason, Umno want to stifle Chinese education for some ill-conceived nincompoop reasons.

Ccllww: Dr M is dead wrong. While DAP has all along been critical of the BN government, it has never singled out Chinese issues or Chinese education as its main and only focus.

From the very early years of its existance in the 60s, Lim Kit Siang and his party leaders were more vocal in their fair demand of good governance and fair treatment. If racial issues were raised, they were purely incidental.

It is quite clear that the government deliberately created racial and religious incidents for political advantages, fully aware that DAP has to be forced to make a stand which the government will then exploit to deem DAP as anti-Malay or anti-Islam, where in fact it has never been such.

The poor Malays are often provoked to label DAP as everything anti-Malay and anti-Islam. The truth is from any newspaper report, I have not come across any article that DAP has attacked or criticised the Malays per se, but the government, which just happen to be very Malay unfortunately.

Son of PJ: How come everybody else seemed to acknowledge that Perkasa is an extremist group spawned by Mahathir but not he himself?

The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paying subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now.