I'm Not Sure I Want To Be Known As A Singaporean
There are times when I truly marvel at the sheer hypocrisy of the people living on the island nation of Singapore.
True, there are many things which we ought to be proud of. Our logistics service providers rank amongst the best in the world: both SIA Cargo and PSA are world leaders in the air and sea port industries. Our national telecommunications provider, Singtel, has already ventured overseas and is now well represented in the Asia-Pacific region. Neptune-Orient Lines, with the acquisition of American President Lines, is the 6th largest shipping line in the world. We supply over 80% of the world's oil rigs, 70% of the world's bunker and we have the 5th largest national monetary reserves in the world. Yes, Singaporeans have many things to be proud of.
So, since our achievements are so many and our accolades so varied, have we started taking success for granted? Are we so jaded and expectant of success that the moment someone takes a chance to start something new or does something different, we unsheath the claws and draw the parangs? Do we have to shoot down newbies who are simply trying to differentiate themselves?
I never truly realised how critical and unforgiving we Singaporeans were until two relatively recent events brought this attitude to light. And what was the main medium for the bombing? Blogs. Yes, blogs. Unlike printed media, which have centuries of tradition and precedents to fall back on, blogs are essentially unregulated. Deregulation is GOOD. I am all in favour of it. But it is through deregulated media such as blogs that the characters and personalities of the authors are bared for all to see. And looking at all the blog responses which have been lifted out and reported in Today newspaper and The New Paper and even the Life section of The Straits Times, I feel really sad. Sad that we Singaporeans are so unforgiving, so hard to please, and so ready to bring out the rotten eggs and tomatoes. Just take a read about the two events I was referring to...
Carol Cheong, voted and selected from a field of hopefuls, recently represented Singapore in the just-concluded 2006 edition of the Miss Universe pageant. She was representing Singapore for goodness sake! Not apparent to you? How can it not be apparent when she was wearing that satin sash with the words "Singapore" printed boldly in font-size 350? And instead of rallying behind her, showing her our full support as a member of our little red dot, what did bloggers in the blogosphere do? Criticize her evening gown! Grow up people! Here is a lady, barely out of her teens, hefting the super-high expectations of the population of a tiny red dot on her slender shoulders, trying to put on her best face on one of the biggest stages on earth. And what do some of my fellow bloggers do? Call her a slut for the evening gown she wore. Well, to whoever wrote that particular blog, if you think you can do better, why don't you go join Miss Universe? Geez, you might even escape being called a slut!
Then, with our National Day around the corner, our government took the bold step of getting a relative unknown to sing our latest National Day theme song. The newbie in question is another young lady who goes by the name of Kaira Gong. Heard of her? I haven't. But this shouldn't detract from the fact that she did a decent job of singing our latest National Day theme song. And what do my fellow bloggers do? Criticise her for not being a big name. Compare her to past illuminaries such as Tanya Chua et al who have also done their part for the nation. Snub her voice by saying she sounds raw and untrained. People, listen to yourselves! She is there, doing her part for the nation! When called upon, she put on a brave face and sang her heart out for us! You think she doesn't know that she isn't a big name? You think she wasn't assailed by doubts and anxiety when a government rep told her she was going to sing in front of tens of thousands of people? Once again, I throw down the gauntlet to all those bloggers and serial forum-senders: if you think you can do a better job, then go do it! Don't be a keyboard critic! If anything, it just turns the reader's stomachs.
If I sound irritated, it's because I AM! Our football team goes through hell from the media and the populace if they lose a match. Our national representatives go through hell whenever they make a wrong step on a world stage. Our opposition gets questioned by the police for not filling up a form properly. What kind of population, what kind of people are we turning to, when we unleash fire and brimstone on people who have made minor, honest, sincere, and most importantly, non-fatal mistakes?
Let me just para-phrase an oft-quoted line from the Bible, "Stop typing about the toothpick in your neighbour's eye when you're missing the bloody log in your own!"
True, there are many things which we ought to be proud of. Our logistics service providers rank amongst the best in the world: both SIA Cargo and PSA are world leaders in the air and sea port industries. Our national telecommunications provider, Singtel, has already ventured overseas and is now well represented in the Asia-Pacific region. Neptune-Orient Lines, with the acquisition of American President Lines, is the 6th largest shipping line in the world. We supply over 80% of the world's oil rigs, 70% of the world's bunker and we have the 5th largest national monetary reserves in the world. Yes, Singaporeans have many things to be proud of.
So, since our achievements are so many and our accolades so varied, have we started taking success for granted? Are we so jaded and expectant of success that the moment someone takes a chance to start something new or does something different, we unsheath the claws and draw the parangs? Do we have to shoot down newbies who are simply trying to differentiate themselves?
I never truly realised how critical and unforgiving we Singaporeans were until two relatively recent events brought this attitude to light. And what was the main medium for the bombing? Blogs. Yes, blogs. Unlike printed media, which have centuries of tradition and precedents to fall back on, blogs are essentially unregulated. Deregulation is GOOD. I am all in favour of it. But it is through deregulated media such as blogs that the characters and personalities of the authors are bared for all to see. And looking at all the blog responses which have been lifted out and reported in Today newspaper and The New Paper and even the Life section of The Straits Times, I feel really sad. Sad that we Singaporeans are so unforgiving, so hard to please, and so ready to bring out the rotten eggs and tomatoes. Just take a read about the two events I was referring to...
Carol Cheong, voted and selected from a field of hopefuls, recently represented Singapore in the just-concluded 2006 edition of the Miss Universe pageant. She was representing Singapore for goodness sake! Not apparent to you? How can it not be apparent when she was wearing that satin sash with the words "Singapore" printed boldly in font-size 350? And instead of rallying behind her, showing her our full support as a member of our little red dot, what did bloggers in the blogosphere do? Criticize her evening gown! Grow up people! Here is a lady, barely out of her teens, hefting the super-high expectations of the population of a tiny red dot on her slender shoulders, trying to put on her best face on one of the biggest stages on earth. And what do some of my fellow bloggers do? Call her a slut for the evening gown she wore. Well, to whoever wrote that particular blog, if you think you can do better, why don't you go join Miss Universe? Geez, you might even escape being called a slut!
Then, with our National Day around the corner, our government took the bold step of getting a relative unknown to sing our latest National Day theme song. The newbie in question is another young lady who goes by the name of Kaira Gong. Heard of her? I haven't. But this shouldn't detract from the fact that she did a decent job of singing our latest National Day theme song. And what do my fellow bloggers do? Criticise her for not being a big name. Compare her to past illuminaries such as Tanya Chua et al who have also done their part for the nation. Snub her voice by saying she sounds raw and untrained. People, listen to yourselves! She is there, doing her part for the nation! When called upon, she put on a brave face and sang her heart out for us! You think she doesn't know that she isn't a big name? You think she wasn't assailed by doubts and anxiety when a government rep told her she was going to sing in front of tens of thousands of people? Once again, I throw down the gauntlet to all those bloggers and serial forum-senders: if you think you can do a better job, then go do it! Don't be a keyboard critic! If anything, it just turns the reader's stomachs.
If I sound irritated, it's because I AM! Our football team goes through hell from the media and the populace if they lose a match. Our national representatives go through hell whenever they make a wrong step on a world stage. Our opposition gets questioned by the police for not filling up a form properly. What kind of population, what kind of people are we turning to, when we unleash fire and brimstone on people who have made minor, honest, sincere, and most importantly, non-fatal mistakes?
Let me just para-phrase an oft-quoted line from the Bible, "Stop typing about the toothpick in your neighbour's eye when you're missing the bloody log in your own!"
posted by ekkie at 12:04 am
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home