“Populism and nationalism are spreading worldwide as the masses awaken to the lies of the lying legacy media and its promotion of globalism,” wrote one popular social media personality in 2024, “The reality is that globalism really, really sucks.”
Cheong can be understood from his Malaysian origins. His schtick is in large part a complaint about Malaysia displaced to the USA. That's because he can't complain about Malaysia due to restrictions on speech regarding "The Three Rs" - race, religion, and royalty, and speech on other aspects of Malaysian reality. While Malaysia is a pretty free country in some ways, public speech and commentary dance around these subjects and there is always some prosecution for offending speech going on. I recommend the websites of the Malaysian newspapers The Star, The New Straits Times, and the Malay Mail if you want to dive into that.
Cheong is ethnic Chinese. Chinese comprise about 23% of the population of Malaysia. Indians, mostly Tamils, are about 9%. The rest are ethnic Malays, considered the indigenous population. They are almost unanimously Muslim and subject to a parallel system of Sharia law, including a prohibition on alcohol.
Malaysia has an ethnic spoils system, as the Malay majority asserts that it was historically disadvantaged by British colonialism and Chinese-run commerce. The Malays claim a number of legal privileges for themselves which go far beyond US Affirmative Action. "Bumiputera" (people of the land) have set-aside government jobs and residential property. The National University is reserved for them, leaving the Chinese and Indians to go to private universities or abroad for study. Seats for the parliament are not equally apportioned by population, favoring the votes of Malay towns and rural constituencies over the Chinese and Indian urban populations. It is not a "one man, one vote" system.
Lee Kwan Yew's refusal to accept this system led to the division of Singapore from Malaysia in 1965.
Nevertheless, the Chinese dominate commerce. Like with Jews, and Indians in East Africa, this excites resentment and there have been pogroms on Chinese communities by Malay mobs.
Cheong had to grow up with this system, which must be a psychic burden for Chinese and Indians in Malaysia. Unable to talk about what really bothered him, he chose to comment on analogous subjects in other places, mostly the USA.
Between Saad and Cheong is this part of some sort of masochistic series?
I’m so bad at marketing that this hadn't even occurred to me
Good piece. More writers should have the courage to ask: am I adjacent to Ian Miles Cheong?
"The author of these words is a Malaysian man, who seems to be living in Dubai, who comments obsessively on American politics."
To my experience, 99% of self declared "anti-globalists" are all terminally online chuds with a corporate job abroad. A kind of Limousine Liberal, but on the right. I call them reactionary globalists, or if you prefer "anywhere rightoids": https://scriptamanent.substack.com/p/why-tucker-carlson-and-nick-fuentes?r=33qtk5&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Cheong can be understood from his Malaysian origins. His schtick is in large part a complaint about Malaysia displaced to the USA. That's because he can't complain about Malaysia due to restrictions on speech regarding "The Three Rs" - race, religion, and royalty, and speech on other aspects of Malaysian reality. While Malaysia is a pretty free country in some ways, public speech and commentary dance around these subjects and there is always some prosecution for offending speech going on. I recommend the websites of the Malaysian newspapers The Star, The New Straits Times, and the Malay Mail if you want to dive into that.
Cheong is ethnic Chinese. Chinese comprise about 23% of the population of Malaysia. Indians, mostly Tamils, are about 9%. The rest are ethnic Malays, considered the indigenous population. They are almost unanimously Muslim and subject to a parallel system of Sharia law, including a prohibition on alcohol.
Malaysia has an ethnic spoils system, as the Malay majority asserts that it was historically disadvantaged by British colonialism and Chinese-run commerce. The Malays claim a number of legal privileges for themselves which go far beyond US Affirmative Action. "Bumiputera" (people of the land) have set-aside government jobs and residential property. The National University is reserved for them, leaving the Chinese and Indians to go to private universities or abroad for study. Seats for the parliament are not equally apportioned by population, favoring the votes of Malay towns and rural constituencies over the Chinese and Indian urban populations. It is not a "one man, one vote" system.
Lee Kwan Yew's refusal to accept this system led to the division of Singapore from Malaysia in 1965.
Nevertheless, the Chinese dominate commerce. Like with Jews, and Indians in East Africa, this excites resentment and there have been pogroms on Chinese communities by Malay mobs.
Cheong had to grow up with this system, which must be a psychic burden for Chinese and Indians in Malaysia. Unable to talk about what really bothered him, he chose to comment on analogous subjects in other places, mostly the USA.
Whomst among us has never sprawled fleshily on a sofa?
An informative, calm, and and fact-based comment. Kudos!
Who follows and engages with Ian Miles Cheong?
Yes, I totally agree that the globalization of everything leads to a Dubai shopping mall of the soul .