Peace and Prosperity is Relative...

The 'old Penang' that i used to know is no more it has been replaced by the New a long time ago ever since the drive for so called development and the political tug - o -wars that has taken place has placed the state in a roller coaster mode. it is not a matter of good or bad for the state however the changes were made not for the right reasons and often without care for or benifit to the locals. In the guise of prospering the state and raising its standard of living the governmant of the day has set about constructing and more constructing so long as there is pieces of land available for construction, yet it never seems enough. Those who stands to gain from these constructions push for the so called development while making sure that they get their share of the pie through the construction industry. Most of the real estate are too expensive for the locals especially those who are in the low income bracket and thus these real estate are sold to outsiders and even foreigners, people who can afford second and third homes or those with money to invest for the sake of investments.
The population of this small island has been growing not because Penangites born and raised here have larger families but mostly due to migration of foreigners, those who chose to live here as a second home as well as those who came for employment. The streets are congested and often a pain to drive aound in and traffic jams are becoming a common expereince just as it is in Kuala Lumpur. This often leads to fruttrations and pressure among users especially during the peak hours. This is the new Penang, congested, polluted and often frusterated.
Peaceful? That depends on who you ask the question, the man on the street may have a whole different story to tell you than those who are lving the life of Riley. The racial tensions that existed even during my youth is now laying dormant closer to the surface than most care to admit as Chinese has become "more" Chinese in nature and Malays more Malays each going all out to promote and push their cultural as well as religious image into the public. Temples and mosques spend untold amount of money to upgrade and upgrade not only with the looks but with noise as well as smell. Each racial group outdoing the other like in a competition on whose God is appreciated better.
In the meantime the poor and displaced, the destitute and deranged roam the streets sleeping in street corners and begging during the day and their number is growing. Crime is ever on the increase and so is the rate of abuse and suicides. These are teltale signs of a decaying if not a sick society. But we can live in denial as we always do if our lives are not directly affected by these negative sights and scenes. Lest we become too complacent we have to take a closer more sober look at the state and its health not just from the tall concrete buildings and fancy hotels but from the gutters and back alleys, not at the life put on for the benifit of the tourists but at life that is slowly manfesting into an irreversible terminal cancer.