Sunbathers burden on society, official cause of death, tools have morals
Mainly from BBC today, and some bleedingly obvious comments.
- Singapore Bans Gay Rights Forum. Aiyah. Singapore, why do you embarrass us expats so? How can we explain to others why Singapore is so uptight we can’t even talk about OTHER countries’ stance on homosexuality?
- Hardcore sunbathers ‘know risks’. I take it sunbathers who deliberately get burned for a tan and know it increases their risk of skin cancer will be using private healthcare when they are diagnosed, and won’t be expecting the NHS (and the taxpayer) to pick up the tab? Ha! As fucking if.
- Post-mortem on airport attack man. Will they be calling witnesses who will confirm the man set himself on fire, and shock horror, burned? He then went to hospital with 90% burns and subsequently died. It’s not exactly a covert Russian-style poisoning. So he’s an idiot, but how he died isn’t exactly news.
- Firms withdraw BNP Facebook ads. I’m not really interested in the Facebook news (although Facebook should surely be able to control what ads go where), but it brought up a discussion over how sites like YouTube should censor content, while I would argue that these sites are simply tools (discussed previously), and while they should be attentive to what gets posted — especially if there is a criminality issue involved — it is not their responsibility. The responsibility lies with the parents (if the posters are children) and those who upload the content. The more consequences for bad behaviour are divorced from the occurrence of that behaviour (i.e. someone else being forced to take the blame), the worse the problem will be.
No sense of irony there whatsoever
Ah, Singapore. You make me giggle so. Hip youth club on the way:
This is its first concerted effort to engage youths in a big way, said NTUC Club’s corporate communications manager, Mr Stanley Wong. “We are not sparing any effort on the teaser campaign two weeks before the launch to make it the talk of the town among youths.”
…
Although it has yet to coin a brand name for the initiative, Mr Wong said it will have a jingle “from a song written by a famous local band” as part of its hip and trendy identity.
I mean, you can’t really get more cutting edge and fashionable and appeal to teenagers’ emo-ness than a membership club organised and run by a long-standing, establishment-supporting trades union. Why didn’t anyone think of this before? A youth NTUC club is exactly what our apathetic angsty teenagers are looking for because all they want, deep inside, is to be what adults what them to become.
Apparently only homos spread HIV
This is why Singapore has a long, LONG way to go:
Just like homosexual sex advances the spread of the Human Immuno-deficiency Virus which robs the body of its natural defences against bacterial attack.
And unprotected heterosexual sex has an anti-HIV straight person magic condom applied automatically?
The commenter goes on to say that the resultant AIDS epidemic as a result of legalising consensual homosexual intercourse will wipe out the population. Eh, if they’re gay, there won’t BE any AIDS babies.
We are not against the people who practice homosexuality but it’s the root cause that needs to be dealt with.
…
Deal with the root and not legalize the growth.
So people who are born homosexual need to be dealt with.
On the other hand, gays are inherently all promiscuous.
Oh, this one is precious. Hear that, gays (I believe all these commenters are referring to gay men, not women)? You throw it about, every single one of you. None of you could have a normal, monogamous relationship because you are ABNORMAL.
You cannot go against the order of nature and not get noticed. Even animals get themselves partnered up with members of the opposite sex.
Please do some, I dunno, reading. Animals practice homosexuality and bisexuality.
I love how these people (on the first page) are calling for an objective and clear-headed discussion on repealing the law against homosexuality when they casually fling about very insulting and inaccurate stereotypes.
This is one of the reasons why people laugh at Singapore. We. Are. Children.
(Won’t even bother with the Slippery Slope fallacy from the original article that sparked the discussion.)
Via Tomorrow.
Singapore is a ‘uniquely vulnerable state’
(Hey, something else we’re UNIQUE for — vulnerability. Wahey! Bring on the tourists!)
WTF?: “Part of having a stronger government is that you give greater freedom to manoeuvre to the government, essentially, you will also have less right to know on the part of the people. Singapore actually has real secrets to worry about.” — Professor Kishore Mahbubani, Diminishing returns if political reform lags
Waitaminnit. So what he’s saying is, Singapore is actually a weak state that has only survived due to a strong government, and the government can only continue to be strong and protect our frail little nation-state if it keeps secrets. From its own people and external financial institutions.
It’s quite telling that he says Singapore has ‘real secrets’ to ‘worry about’. It gives me the impression that what is being kept from the royal us is actually extremely negative, whether it be about financial performance of the GIC or the true strength of the government, or anything else that supposedly attacks confidence in the PAP government.
(Don’t sue me, ah. I’m not saying those things are the secrets.)
Obligatory cheeky post about Singapore’s education system
O-level exams to start one week earlier from 2007:
The Board said bringing the exams forward would allow results to be released earlier, enabling students to be admitted into junior colleges or the centralised institution at the same time in late January, instead of the current double-intake.
Jialat. Kids will now have to start studying for their O-levels while they’re in Primary 6, compared to the good ol’ days of studying for the O-levels from Secondary 1.
(I was one of those expected to start studying for my O-levels before I’d learned anything to revise — that came from my father who, as far as I’m aware, tanked in most of his exams.)
Classic Talking Cock
There was a Singapore Day in New York? Did my sister go?
I love the reasons why Singaporeans won’t be protesting in NY even though the Americans love a good protest. My favourite?
Skarly MM see me protesting ministers’ salary, and I have to become a maid here – then how?
Heehee.
A run down on the holiday where I got loads done in only six days
Yes. It’s been pretty quiet round these parts, hasn’t it?
If I’ve been on holiday and haven’t bothered to update, it means I HAVE HAD A GREAT TIME.
Food
Prawn noodles from Adam Road Food Centre were ordered the night I arrived as the BBQ seafood stall wasn’t open. Mum had also bought loads of chwee kueh (steamed rice cakes with preserved turnip garnish) for breakfast, and myself and the cats enjoyed the ba kwa (barbecued pork slices) very much. My aunt was cool and cooked kiam chye ar (duck and salted vegetable soup) for the annual Reunion Dinner (also starring were fried Hokkien noodles, fish my aunt and uncle had caught off Bedok jetty the night before, rojak, and the inevitable raw fish salad).
I got another of my food requests at my grandfather’s house during Chinese New Year — steamed pomfret, Teochew-style. There was something I didn’t ‘order’ as I’d completely forgotten about it, but the ba kueh (stubby rice noodle cakes) was fan-fucking-tastic.
Then, of course, there’s the food I like and Neil loves and I ate and took pictures to piss him off. Barbecue stingray with sambal, plus baby kai lan with garlic at Newton. We even got some fried rice to go with it.
On my last day, we grabbed breakfast at Farrer Court hawker centre, Neil’s favourite place for roti prata. I got two plain pratas and the requisite vegetable curry.
I ate loads of other stuff, but these were the highlights.
Sights
On Chinese New Year’s Eve, I reverted to my childhood behaviour (i.e. going to my mother every five minutes with proclamations of extreme boredom) and persuaded my mum to take me to the River Hongbao, as nothing else was open. Chinese New Year is probably the only time you’ll see Chinese Singaporeans THROWING MONEY AT A TREE.
I also finally watched I Not Stupid (not bad) and I Not Stupid 2 (bad). Mum had wanted to watch Just Follow Law, Jack Neo’s satire on the Singaporean civil service. It wasn’t a satire at all, it kinda sucked. It was like a weak channel 8 sitcom that’s been stretched to feature-length. The acting wasn’t bad, but the story was shite.
We did also see Miss Potter (and I could hear my aunt whispering to my mum regarding its historical accuracy — we checked Wikipedia afterward), a light and pleasing flick. And my aunt was not at all keen on Notes on a Scandal (although she used my grandfather as an excuse — not his type of film at all, apparently). ‘Twas good.
I managed to run so many errands, because being a grown-up means you get up early, go out and do stuff in the morning, inhale lunch, take a NAP in the arvo, then head out for a feast at dinnertime. Bussorah Street was visited TWICE, and I got most of my pressies there. Brian has already used the slingshot I bought him and I hereby apologise to his neighbours for his behaviour on Saturday night / Sunday morning, although I wasn’t there.
Finally, here’s a picture of Doug and Ruthven.
Ruthven’s a present for Baby G. If Doug had fingers, you would see that he’s doing the bunny ears thing behind Ruthven’s head.
On vacation
Because I booked my ticket before I got my visa, and my budget dictated I got a ticket that would rather crash the plane (haha, don’t arrest me in a dawn raid Home Office man) than let me change my flights.
So it’s short vacation time for me. I’M NOT BRINGING MY LAPTOP (how will I survive), but I will have access to one — it remains to be seen if I will write any posts while eating (top of the list, as always), sleeping, and seeing family and friends. And eating some more. And snacking on Chinese New Year junk food. And the ice cream my aunt always buys for Chinese New Year visitors. And the ba kwa (barbecued pork slices) Mum has ordered.
And cuddling and scaring the shit out of the cats! I miss the kitties. Not the kitties that piss and poop on the beds, the other ones.
I’ve said this before: knowing my luck, it’ll snow like mad and much childlike snow day activities will ensue while I’m away, and it’ll go back to rainy and dull when I get back. And I’ll get heatstroke back home.