Factually, this is not true. The central message of Forrest Gump (FG) is that one can succeed in life without understanding or appreciating the circumstances one is in.

Examples:
- FG (in spite of low 75 IQ) gets into university through football, and that is because he is lucky to be spotted for his running ability which in turn is because he runs from those who throw things at him, and from accidental running, he also becomes independent of his leg braces;

- He becomes war hero not because of bravery but because he is oblivious of danger and just unwilling to abandon his friend who later helps him in shrimp business;

- He succeeds in shrimp business not because he has business acumen but because his boat miraculously survives a hurricane and becomes the monopolist in harvest of shrimps;

- He becomes a champion ping-pong player simply by not taking his eye off the ball, and then as it happens PingPong US-China diplomacy sees him representing the nation in China!

The central message is that he succeeds by not taking his eye off the ball, the “ball” here meaning something he happens to be focusing on at any time without being aware of circumstances and implications. It means if you focus on “A” (which has nothing good about it by itself for you) “A” may lead to “B” and “B” may lead to “C” that makes you famous and rich! You’d never know, and this why FG’s mother tells him, son, . “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.”

To an extent, it is true you’d get never plan your life. FG’s girl friend Jenny, in contrast plans, analyses, questions, plans and experiments with fancy-free lifestyles, smokes dope, protests against war, screws and gets AIDs. FG on the other hand follows what he has been told, does not challenge authority, worships God, honors his mother, joins the army, fights the bullshit Vietnam war (ie embrace mainstream values equivalent to our Rukunegara) and succeeds because by focusing on “A” somehow he can get lucky to reap “B” that flows unplanned from “A”.

Make no mistake about it, I enjoy the film tremendously and its central character. And even if I agree with the maxim “Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get”, one cannot get by in life by just depending on what it inside the chocolate box!

The message is against analyzing and planning of one’s life, just keep focus simple, follow blindly what we have been thought about homely virtues (belief in God, honor parents, fight for country, loyalty to friends) and presto great things might happen – that’s the message!

The message is therefore subversive of the human spirit to try to manage, plan, grapple and control events and circumstances thrown at us in a wicked world. So I don’t know what “some trainers” are trying to do to use “Forrest Gump” in their motivational programmes. You motivate people to apply effort to fight against destiny; there’s nothing to motivate if like FG, one just sits back and keep things simple by keeping your eye on the ball! Trainers use FG because they keep their eye on the ball of money that they get best paid from the wide customer base of average and not particularly talented people who dream of success, who have been told that like FG, they can also can make it in a life if they focus on simple homilies – do what is immediately in front of them energetically – and the rest will take care of itself for Life is a box of chocolates, you’d never know what you’re going to get. That’s preaching like a Charlatan!

This is what Barisan National will tell you. If youi believe that, then, by the same standard, Pak Lah - with his “tak tahu” and simple homilies – may well stumble, like FG, to become the best FG PM bringing great prosperity, harmony and democracy to this country!

Thought you might wish to know, as well.

Thought you might wish to know.

But the guy was intelligent enough, despite his 74 or 75 IQ, to understand and appreciate his circumstances, tried very hard and did make some progress to improve his life despite his handicap. Give him some credit. Ligh hearted the picture may be but try to see some other (positive) perspectives.

And for good measure, see Peter Sellers in “Being There.”

Looks like she is guilty for being Filipino.