CLUB DE SEXYMIND: Datuk Huan Cheng Guan says for Ramkarpal a ‘rebirth’ from fo Gay to real men and he took it in jest' the power of sexual rituals in politics

The Bukit Gelugor by-election has taken a queer turn with an opponent casting aspersion on DAP candidate Ramkarpal Singh's sexual preference.
When he came , it caused headlines. When he talked about his life as a gay man, it sparked national debate. coming out may not amount to much to a casual observer from afar it was a pivotal event. In fact, it was scandalous.Ramkarpas revelation flew in the face of several widely held misconceptions about being gay in Malaysia, where homosexuality is persistently tied to class and economic status. Being gay is often considered a perversion prevalent in slums. DAP gay candidate is more than just an anomaly. For many, it is categorically unthinkable. In contemporary Malaysia, his revelation shattered another illusion as well. Homosexuality is cast as a Western import, something "other" than Malaysia

Parti Cinta Malaysia's Datuk Huan Cheng Guan says for Ramkarpal a ‘rebirth’ from fo Gay, real men and he took it in jest' the power of sexual rituals in politics

Here, DAP candidate Ramkarpal Singh's sexual preference talks about what it was like to speak the unspeakable -- and about everything that has followed: the wrath of the people who loved him, their eventual acceptance

The family that has dominated DAP politics will be snubbed by voters in like never before in Bukit Gelugor parliamentary by-election in part by seizing on the perception that was little more than a crown prince awaiting his prize. Voters were furious over ’ inability to address corruption, unemployment and the sputtering economy.The Penang Pakatan Rakyat (PR) state government will not allow hudud to be implemented in the state, said Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.He also reiterated his stand as the DAP secretary-general that the party does not agree to the implementation of the Islamic penal law.

“I am saying this not only as a DAP leader but also as the Penang chief minister and our stand is firm, we will not allow hudud to be implemented here,”READMORE DAP candidate Ramkarpal Singh's

the tragic way in which we have destroyed the fragile relationship between the sexes, the fun, frolic and foreplay.

Mars versus Venus was once just another gender joke about the inherent incompatibility between the opposite sexes. Today it sounds astonishingly off colour as the planets spin on their own, lonely orbits. Mars is Mars and Venus is Venus and the way we are going about it, the magic and mystery that once brought them together in mystic confluence may soon disappear, leaving behind a world where all sexual intent will be looked upon with misgiving, doubt or worse.

What’s the real problem? The romance has gone out of our life and with it, the trust that made it so winsome. It’s a bit late, I guess, to join the blame game. History, culture, religion, gender domination, everything has had a role to play in the changing equation of the sexes. The interplay between innocence, delight and dependence that brought two people together for a shared bedroom (and a shared destiny) is no longer what it once was. Popular culture, music and nostalgia still try to sustain it. After all, there are big bucks riding on it. But fear, suspicion, mistrust have taken too large a toll, bringing in its wake an inexplicable violence. Big bucks are riding on that as well.

For every dollar invested in the decadent, old fashioned industries of romance, there are ten invested in the business of fear. Wherever you look, the politics of fear is playing out far more tantalisingly than the playbook of love. Martial art classes for women. Sales of pepper spray cans. Scary laws intended to prevent scarier crimes. On the flip side, you have bestsellers like 50 Shades of Gray that celebrate the deepest sexual fantasies of domination and sexual slavery. The zipless fuck Erica Jong fantasized about in Fear of Flying (brilliantly captured by Bertolucci in Last Tango in Paris) has now been replaced by the crude gang rape.

Solitude is no longer sexy. It’s scary. The stolen kiss is no more a promise of something exciting about to happen. It’s predatory. Pursuing a woman in the hope she will turn around and change the entire course of your life sounds awfully stupid in a world where stalking is now a dodgy crime. And much as our films may still romanticize the sexual hunt, most women don’t see it that way anymore. Not outside the movie theatres. Frolic is at a high risk of extinction. Devdas’ stinging slap, once considered his ultimate gift of love to Paro, could get him 7 years RI today.

The language of love has changed. The grand gesture, the flamboyant flourish, the quick grab, the dangerous flirtation, the violent passion, the desperate love, ablaze with welcoming lights that Nabokov wrote of so eloquently, a mere touch that could ignite an unspoken, unspeakable desire: these have vanished into the dusty archives of history. What we now have are more businesslike, better managed, transactional relationships where people live together in amiable, structured deals, often contractually put together. You read of pre-nups in the West. Here the contract has taken an even more mundane turn. In Mumbai, youngsters contemplate marriage just to get a roof over their heads. Or a Royal Enfield in the parking lot.

Popular culture still tries hard, very hard to keep old fashioned, larger than life romance alive. Rajjo begs Chulbul Pandey to be rough handled when she says (rather endearingly) that she fears his love more than his slap. But for most couples today, a hand raised in love is as bad as a hand raised in mock rage. The matrix of the new age relationship has no space for adventure. The entire lexicon of sex can now be posted on the back of a postage stamp.

Only an ass will risk challenging today’s fragile balance of power. Simple things, very simple things that were once looked upon as charming, the stuff of legend and lore, are now seen as acts of gender hostility. Wooing someone over a glass of bubbly is fraught with risks. Girls are more likely to check for DRDs in their champagne than solitaires. Striking up a conversation with a tall, dark stranger in the bar is perilous. So is hitching a ride. Dirty dancing can earn you your night in a police station. Anything to do with sex, particularly pleasurable sex with an unknown person is risky, very risky today.

The art of flirting is on a ventilator and will not revive till faith returns to resuscitate the magic of our relationships. War games are fine. But the appeal of any extreme sport tires after a while. So do dotty Facebook romances with emoticons thrown in.

So it’s such a refreshing change to see Singh at openly flaunt his love for a much younger woman on twitter. Not too many men wear their heart on their sleeve any more. Their sleeves are usually rolled up for work or battle.