Bila kalah, macam-macam alasan. Itu tidak betul. Ini tidak betul. Itu menipu. Ini menipu. Satu dunia menipu. Yang tidak menipu, hanya mereka dan keluarga mereka.

Bila kalah, menuding jari pada rakyat. Konon rakyat telah ditipu dan tertipu. Tak pandai membuat pilihan. Cadangan saya, beli cermin banyak-banyak. Pandang betul-betul bayang yang terpantul. Tilik diri sendiri dan sila bertanya: kenapa rakyat menolak saya?

Rakyat yang waras tidak suka politikus yang perasan maksum. Yang mulia, hanya dia. Yang suci, hanya bini dia. Yang bersih, hanya anak dia. Yang adil, hanya kerabat taulan dia. Semua dia. Orang lain tiada.

Mencanang seluruh dunia, konon kerajaan Malaysia berlangir 'politik fitnah'. Sedang senjata sendiri pun, hanya fitnah dan gosip. Semata-mata. Asyik-asyik mengata orang lain babi, sedangkan keturunan dia sendiri sudah tujuh generasi berasal dari babi. Don't take this literally. This is an analogy, ok!

When you call yourself 'an alternative', of course people would expect more from you. Kalau semua yang gomen sekarang buat, kamu pun buat juga (dengan lebih teruk!) -- what alternative you're actually offering?

Sang Bulan
(juga tahu bermimpi!)

i
Di Pulau Pinang
bulan terbit tinggi
ditongkat tiang pagoda,
pungguk nan buta
sepi di bumi.

Di Bagan Pinang
bulan terbenam jatuh
disimbah darah merah,
kambing berjanggut
terluka lagi.

ii
Gerhana bilakah
yang lebih gulita:
-- tika bulan ditodak roket?
-- atau bulan ditikam keris?


Sabandar
12 Oktober 2009

Mimpi Kami, belum mati
(dedikasi kepada mangsa gempa Padang,
dan taufan Luzon)

Pulangkan berani
yang tergantung rapuh
di dasar langit.

Kembalikan jiwa
yang terbenam penuh
di kaki laut.

Dari sukma bumi
yang luluh seluruh,
hembuskan nyawa
kepada mimpi-mimpi kami
untuk seribu tahun lagi.


Kota Kinabalu
Oktober 2009

Gambar memaparkan sebahagian panorama di Kota Kinabalu pada 28 September 2009 (Isnin), selepas berlaku hujan ribut yang deras. Malam sebelumnya. Anomali cuaca begini adalah satu ciri lazim pada musim perantaraan monsun (September-Oktober). Pertukaran tekanan udara secara mendadak di antara hemisfera utara dan selatan, mewujudkan cerun tekanan yang tinggi. Ini mengganggu kestabilan atmosfera, terutama sekali di sepanjang garis khatulistiwa (yang bertindak sebagai titik peralihan tekanan). Gangguan ini kemudian mencetuskan tabiat-tabiat cuaca yang menyimpang daripada kebiasaan.

More often than not, people (including academics) would conveniently blame climate change for such anomalous weather. Why? Because (we might think) it is the trendiest thing to do. Jumping into the global bandwagon at every opportunity is cool, no? Extreme climatic incidents are not necessarily the result of climate change. Climate and weather are just like human. Sometimes they do misbehave. Yes, they can be uncharacteristically erratic. But it doesn’t mean that the climate ‘has changed’. There is a distinctive difference between ‘climate change’ and ‘climate variability’. The former is typically forced by global warming. Whereas the latter is part of the natural fluctuation.

Climate change and climate variability are not the only aspects that commonly confuse people (i.e. including some supposedly ‘learned’ scholars). Many still find it difficult to differentiate ‘climate change’ from ‘global warming’. People would make an excuse: I am not a climatologist, so how would I know? Such excuse is valid if you don’t abuse the terms. However, if you actually do use these ‘terms’ (excessively, no less) in your work: then, you have no other option, but to really understand the issues, and their dimensions.

Yes, we need to get familiar with the fundamental science behind the atmospheric circulation, before we are able put them (i.e. climate change and global warming) into the right context. Climate change and global warming may seem inter-connected. They are, actually, two different things. In certain cases, they are not even mutually inclusive. One is the actual ‘disease’ (the underlying cause), and the other is the ‘symptom’ (the visible effect). Which one is which? That is for you to find out.

My day was totally ruined by CELCOM, yesterday. I couldn't call out, and people couldn't call in. I missed appointments. I missed meeting friends. I missed open houses. Families left in puzzled. Colleagues got upset. Friends were angry. And the worst, I got blamed for everything. While Nokia is connecting people; CELCOM on the contrary -- is disconnecting them. Shame!

And, believe it or not; no explanation and apology from CELCOM. And, to expect a rebate (like what DiGi did in a similar incident few months ago): no way. It's not going to happen with the shameless CELCOM.

Selepas Hujan

i

Barangkali, kita

telah lama lupa

pada aroma rumput

selepas hujan lebat

– nan manis menusuk?

Sepert kita lupa, pada

zaman kanak-kanak

selepas dunia dewasa

mula menghanyutkan

naïf yang tertinggal.

ii

Mungkinkah

kita tak pernah meminta

hujan datang,

sebagaimana kita tak memilih

menjadi dewasa?

Sayang sungguh

kanak-kanak, seperti juga rumput

tumbuhnya hanya sekali.

Betapa ironi,

kedewasaan yang culas

sama seperti hujan lebat

datangnya selalu berkali-kali.

3 Syawal

Sabandar