'Shane' analogy

I am responding to Sumarsono Sastrowardoyo's letter 'Shane' on Sept. 23.

The movie Shane analogy used by Pak Sumarsono answers his question. True heroes are just like the character shown in the movie. He comes to a troubled place, fixes it and goes, leaving nothing but his good deed. True heroes of the Chinese people and pribumi (indigenous people) alike are like this movie character, and most probably their remains will only be found in unknown heroes cemeteries. Therefore Pak Sumarsono and those who share his ideology should not worry that their spots at the Dreded Bogor Heroes Cemetery will be used to bury dead Chinese heroes. So Pak Sumarsono please feel at ease about your spot there. Should you use it correctly, the Chinese people will throw in your head stone for a very generous discounted price (after all nothing is ever free, is it?). The flowers will be free of charge as a bonus.

I would suggest that Pak Sumarsono should join in the many TV talk shows to facilitate the starvation of polemics and his instinct to incite ethnic sentiments and rivalry. I think you will be an overnight superstar -- and perhaps Pauline Hanson from Australia will join you, too. In this slow business season, I'm sure your talk show will attract a lot of advertisements, and therefore you'll be of some help to the advertising business.

I warn this nation not to be entrapped by this cunning ideology of Pak Sumarsono (perhaps he wants to create another political party). Don't be fooled by his tricks to bring us all to a war over nothing.

Pak Sumarsono, why are Bung Karno and Bung Hatta and many other true heroes not buried in any Heroes' Cemetery? Perhaps they all ran away during the war with the colonialists?

NING M. WIDJAJA

Bogor, West Java