Friday, April 29, 2011 @ 3:49 AM:
It has been a long time since someone's views can resonate so strongly in my heart, and it is someone so random, so far away; someone whom I have never spoken to directly face-to-face in my life.
I guess the crux of today's convo was regarding trust. The very sense of trust which we have so much installed in other pple, as a key element in building up friendships, and there were times when the trust was breached and probably the expectations of some people that we have met are not fulfilled. I guess I had been expecting too much from people close to me, and I had put in so much of my trust that I realised that when things are not in the right way, disappointment can set in very easily, and managing disappointment (even though it may be no fault of the other party) is not easy.
Once a friend had told me that I had expected too much out from the friendship and I had tried to lower expectations. I guess it made me less gloomy, and allowed me to look forward. But I guess putting in trust, and at the same time, not expecting anything, is too hard to fulfil. But I will never stop believing in friendships and putting in trust in people, as that is the only way relationships and friendships can be built upon. Though hurt may come, I guess the true reward in getting a real good friend is still too sweet for me to resist.
thank you for bringing me memories...
Friday, April 22, 2011 @ 10:46 AM:
for unknown reasons I just can't sleep.
I'm not sure sometimes. Like whether some of my friends know me well enough.
Some would see me as the ultimate mugger.
Some probably would know that I am very thoughtful and would look into issues of theirs with a sensitive eye.
Some would perhaps think that I am the happy man who will always crack lame jokes in a crowd and be the total extrovert who won't shy from anything u wanna me to do.
Perhaps some may stay long enough with me to realise I am a very idealistic person with a core set of values that define me.
And sometimes my way of putting things right and being a bit confrontational and judgemental (I shall say it is a characteristic of Libran) may lead to unnecessary arguments and misunderstanding.
But somehow I feel my life has lacked something for quite a long time. The sense of accomplishment at the end of the musical, the sense of gratitude and happiness that my protein crystal was being analysed at the Diamond, the sense of helping the freshers out and integrating them to the community here or the very sense of leading the people in the environmental group to do simple things like collecting pledges, or organise big events, or the really sense of happiness when I know I have made the difference in someone's life.
Meanwhile I shall be less emotional and try to get myself to sleep.
Good night.
thank you for bringing me memories...
Thursday, April 21, 2011 @ 9:29 PM: Dissecting my thoughts
The GE is knocking at the doorstep, and Singaporeans, partly, are getting excited about it.
It is probably the most exciting election that is heading to Singapore in my lifetime, not that I am previously politically apathetic (for good reasons I was born in Hougang and attended quite a few of those rallies which I do not completely understand the policies and stuff that they were campaigning about), not that it is the first time I get to vote (well to say a bit cos I know my vote might be able to save the oppo their fair share of deposit if I vote for the oppo, or be that deciding vote that tips one side over the other), but I guess it is a time when more people are aware of the issues that really concern them and are getting heightened about them.
It has been highly publicised and known that countries in this globalised world today are facing problems on their own kind... inflation in the world, housing price bubbles in US, economy collapses in Ireland and Greece... and Singapore is at the crossroads of such challenges that every country is facing. As MG(Ret) Chan of PAP mentioned in his 'gusto' hokkien soldier style speech, big countries require good leadership, small countries require exceptional leadership. It is of imperative importance that we look at each of the candidates more carefully and make our decisions based on national interests, rather than the usual 'upgrading carrots' or 'national stability' that we have to talk about.
Back to the topic on challenges that Singapore is facing these days. I'm sure pretty many of our citizens are facing challenges in the following areas: Housing, living costs, costs to bring up children, retirement age, living space, job opportunities, etc. To allow and spur Singapore growth, Singapore has been known to spearhead the foreign 'talent' import scheme (from merely talents, which all singaporeans accept, to low-end and middle-class employees which affect a lot of livelihoods in singapore and suppress wages). It was a rushed decision without any consultation from the ground; discussions are at best talked down to public with little feedback being implemented in subsequent policies. As a result, living space is compromised, the Singaporean identity is diulted and housing prices are escalated to new heights with new measures coming in too late and too ineffectual to arrest the rise. Even though on the merits side, Singapore is able to keep wages low and keep big corporations in Singapore surviving with low human costs, this may not be the best solution in the long run as eventually we can't compete with large countries with lots of human labour willing to take in the jobs more cheaply and thus is simply not sustainable. Another scheme that Singapore brought in - casinos - allowed Singapore to grow, but at what costs? and is it going to sustain us in the future?
Not just addressing the economy issues, socially, it has been getting more and more unaffordable for young couples to own their own, not even say raise up kids and allow the fertility rate to be at a replacement level of 2.1. It is a tad ridiculous when the previous generation with 2/5 of the income of the typical singaporean couple needs 1/3 of the housing loan period to own a typical HDB flat (based on some examples I have seen in my friends and some pple). What about education costs? Food prices? Oil prices? They can only go up (to reflect rising oil prices which increase at a much lower pace)... and Singapore will eventually be a good and safe place for rich pple to live in, but a growing class of poor who may find themselves highly educated but struggling to meet the ends.
I guess these are the main issues and challenges that each political party should look at and address the populace, rather than critisizing and doubting each's ability to perform. Policies are needed to bring the country forward, and not dirty politiking. But if the PAP would say their last 5 years has been a stellar report card, that's where I really really could not fathom and get my blood pressure rising.
I am a very values person, someone who is principled on certain ideals. And I am super anti-hypocrisy for all those who know me. When some things are wrong, admit them, do a post-mortem with everyone, learn from the mistakes and move on. No point deceiving yourselves that you are doing a good job, award yourselves, and slam others for no track record. I guess no track record is better than lousy track record in some cases, esp if they reflect yourselves to be insensitive, hypocritic and complacent in the eyes of many. I guess that is the quality that many should look for, and prefer, in their candidates. Whether they are sincere in benefiting the nation, whether they have the vigour to serve the nation's (and not party's) interests and whether they are modest enough to know that they are the true servants of the public and view them with respect and not as dumb citizens.
The above pts I do mention also point highly as to how I lead my life. Be modest, listen to others' opinions, sincere and forthcoming!
thank you for bringing me memories...
Thursday, April 07, 2011 @ 1:54 AM: Politics Part 2
Here's a further blog entry to note of my increasing attention and interest about politics (towards Singapore of course) relative to studying over the Easter break.
Recently, there was this forum that took place and a student asked the Prime Minister regarding why Hougang residents do not have upgrading. And well the PM was candid enough to admit that wards that vote for the PAP would enjoy their privileges, and well, too bad that every ward still has to pay taxes and do National Service.
Comments on forums and blogs weren't kind, probably the mainstream media mentioned just briefly about it, with some commentators on the govt-controlled media especially kind to point out that such stuff are necessary and normal. Probably very sweetened comments as though nothing is happening on the ground.
Probably not many will be aware of how PM has been very candid, that how he needs to screw the oppo if more are elected into office and therefore he can't concentrate on doing his work (which from another point of view, you have to say as a politician you always have to fight for your long-term existence, so not exactly wrong but to say it in a rally it is really NOT politically correct), or that how American presidents earn much more outside their systems of paying (which well in singapore's case was 10 times more and was funded by taxpayers money and not via consumerism).
Is Singapore heading towards a democracy? No.
Is what a one-party governance will ensure long-term survival of Singapore? I doubt. Then again, there are always those oppo parties, but realistically how many seats will they win?
Again, a worrisome sight for Singaporeans, especially for the younger generation.
Recently, I was in a bridge match and chatting with a few old guys from the other team. They asked me, "Is Singapore a democracy?" after they enquired Singapore about being a nice, green and clean city-state with good economic progress. I replied "socialist democracy" with one dominant party, and the guys said after a few more exchanges... "wow, I think it is more like a cooperate world with a few rich men and a lot of poor men. Young man, you are indeed a lucky man to make it here."
I smiled, but beneath the smile, it was this worry that long-term leadership was left yearning for.
thank you for bringing me memories...
Friday, April 01, 2011 @ 7:14 PM: on politics
As I got bored on chemistry (specifically atmospheric chemistry due to its laborious equations involved), I have stumbled upon Straits Times and started to look at the new PAP candidates who were touted to be the '4th generation leaders'. Naturally, as someone who is inherently interested in geopolitics (I do read widely in terms of different political situations and systems), I started to take a short study break (or I had intended to) and look at what the candidates had to offer ad whether our country would be in the right hands. After all, it is an unspoken truth that quite a substantial number of PAP leaders usually get in via the GRC 'backdoor' given the lack of opposition members to run for the GRCs and would especially avoid some GRCs that they knew chances of winning are slim.
First up on the list, as recorded that day, was Tin Pei Ling. 27 years old (wow only 3 years older than me!), NUS graduate and working in some accountancy firm. Looks like a typical Singaporean girl who went through the system and getting a job, so what's so special abt her? There, I started to read that she was involved in grassroots activities ever since a coffeeshop session at her dad's kopitiam, and there was no turning back. Seriously 7 years and fast-tracked to politics so fast? Really impressive, and I decided to, okay, look for alternative sources of information since in Social Studies, it was always taught that we had to have a balanced point of view. And those things really don't impress me (well politics are meant to be a way of life where your personal life is gonna be scrutinised), and addressed some of my initial suspicions. Especially reading her entry on Globalisation and Poverty, about how income gaps are not govt's fault, and her steps are that govt shld help the poorest (with those existing schemes somemore)... lots of fluff and lack of depth (especially talking abt the biggest regret = cannot bring mum to universal studios)... I wonder what's gonna come from her mouth next. But still she's most likely to go into the Parliament given that she's gonna be in Marine Parade, and I see no chance of DPP winning there (perhaps her presence will help DPP save on the deposit)
Other candidates weren't impressive either. Especially looking at Dr. Janil's reply today made me boil. When 'blasted' by the 'anti-establishment' netizens about him not doing national service and him commenting that he has done 10 years of national service as a doctor and would highly demand others take pride in the real NS, he really missed the point. Well, I'm not gonna elaborate about how NS is a big sacrifice for a lot, hated by a lot, though I would say it has been a fruitful personal experience for me. But still memories of how my two comrades got killed in NS had definitely stayed in my mind, along my friends in the unit, and how could you cheapen NS to this extent. Seriously not in touch with half of the local population?
Realistically analysing the current trends, it would really be a big surprise that the non-ruling parties could stand to win a significantly larger number of seats. Wasn't impressed by who SDP and SF are introducing, and the stronger parties who would have a chance at the seats would only be WP, prob SPP and RP combined. And well, let's put our fingers crossed that the 'promising and high-calibre' 4th generation leaders would learn more and be more sensitive on the ground.
Oh yes... I kept seeing the terms about youth's political apathy. At this point, I just couldn't help laugh at how Ms Tin related 'Japanese earthquake as my friends were acutely aware of global issues'. It took quite a bit of courage for me to type this (after all I am not impressed with someone introduced by the party who is partially related to my future job), and I'm pretty sure that on the ground, everyone is watching and we are having meaningful conversations about them. I guess for all, sometimes it is just safe not to err on the side of caution or that taking any action wouldn't help the cause anyway. And for truly passionate people who would really want to fight for their fellow citizens, their appetites had been much reduced at how much they could do to help and thus would not want to step out. But seriously looking at the new candidates make me worry, and as a civic-conscious citizen of Singapore, I worry. To those candidates, I hope you guys can prove me wrong.
thank you for bringing me memories...
