Violence off the rugby field

Recently, there has been a case of rugby violence between Anglo-Chinese school (independent) and Saint Andrew's secondary school. In this incident, I feel that both parties are in the wrong. Both the aggressor and victim of this incident showed an apparent lack of sportsmanship. The aggressor showed that he could not control his emotions and allowed himself to get emotionally affected by the victim's taunts and also not being able to accept his loss graciously. The victim had also shown the lack of sportsmanship. Although he had won the match, he should not have been so arrogant and went to taunt the aggressor. Should either party had shown some restrain, the incident would not have happen. This incident has not only affected the two students, it has also tarnished their schools reputation. Schools have reputation to uphold and if any of their students act rashly and get into trouble, it would ruin the school's image. This students should really think before they act.

Besides, this incident has given out the wrong message just before the start of the Youth Olympic Games(YOG). The YOG is starting this year with Singapore as the first host of the event. The YOG like any other sports competition is meant to be a symbol of sportsmanship. Sports is not all about winning or losing. Sports is character building. Through many years, we have lost the true meaning of sports. Perhaps it is time for us to refocus on the meaning of sport.

Interpersonal: interview with my sister

1) What is your definition of prejudice and discrimination?

ANS: Prejudice and discrimination happen when we give different treatment to people with a particular characteristic which is irrelevant to the matter at hand.

2) What is your opinion of prejudice and discrimination?

ANS: I feel that it is inherent in everyone and every society. It is natural for us to be able to relate to someone who is more similar to us. But it does not mean such actions are right. Prejudice and discrimination can be seen every where, whether in developed or undeveloped societies. For example, in Australia, although there are laws that are anti-discrimination, discrimination and prejudice still exist. It simply cannot be erase.

3) Is it possible to do away with discrimination?

ANS: I do not think so. No man is equal. Be it race, gender, wealth or religion, man is divided. All of us are different and the disparities set one group apart from the other. Thus, it is impossible that there is a solution which would end discrimination.

4) What role can education play in this matter?

ANS: The only things education does is tell the children that this is wrong. Prejudice may still exist, only that the children would try to hide it. They would not dare to reveal their feelings even if they disagree that discrimination is wrong.

Intrapersonal: Dairy extract of Jeremy Finch (To Kill a Mockingbird)

Maycomb is not as it seems. I once used to think that Maycomb was probably the best place to live, everybody was friendly towards you. After today's events, my perception of Maycomb has changed. It now seems like this community a cold and heartless place. Prejudice against those who are different and racism can be seen every where.

Why should a person be punished for a crime he did not commit? Why should those who are different be excluded from society? Today, I attended Tom Robinson's trail. He was accused of raping Mayella Ewell. Although Atticus had managed to bring out many strong evidences to prove that Tom Robinson was innocent, Tom Robinson was still convicted. Why? Because he was a Negro, because he was different from them. Tom Robinson may be a Negro but does that deny him of his rights to get a fair trial. Why is racism so common in today's society? It is the ideas about the Negroes which have been passed down from generations until now. Perhaps, if we change the perception of people about the Negroes, we would be able to end this chain of discrimination. Only when all this prejudice ends then the Negroes can walk on the streets with pride without having to endure all the discriminating stares shot at them and also all the unfair treatment they receive. Why won’t anybody stand up for the Negroes? I am sure many people know that this discrimination against the Negroes is wrong. Perhaps, they fear they would be shunted by society if they do so.

How can place with nice people be blinded by their prejudice and disregard the truth? It is not right to be prejudice against people just because of their skin colour. It is just not right.

Multiple Intelligence Test

Multiple intelligence is indeed an interesting topic. Just finding out one's intelligence quotient is insufficient to find out more about a person. One's abilities are more then just intelligence alone. Although a person's intelligence quotient may not be very high, but the person may have other astonishing abilities which this multiple intelligence test would be able to show.
This multiple intelligence test may have been an interesting and fun test to complete but I feel that this test may not be very accurate. Apart from the answers which are not very detailed which many of my other classmates have mentioned, I also feel that the test might not be very accurate because you are the one who actually answers the questions. The answers you give would only be based on what you think about yourself, which may not always be accurate. A more accurate test would be a test in which other people related to you are also surveyed to find you what people think about your abilities. This would make the results of the test more accurate.

Fake IDs used by students

Recently, a newspaper article was published in The Straits Times. It was about the students buying fake identification cards and using them for illegal things like buying cigarettes underage and also buying alcohol. According to the article, The Straits Times had surveyed 80 youths and about half of them admitted to owning fake ID cards. This result is indeed unexpected. The students are actually willing to pay for fake ID cards even though they know that it is illegal. I feel that the youths these days no longer care about the law. As long as they are able to get what they want, they would do it through any means.
These youths are using their illegally obtained fake ID cards also to go to clubs. This is an illegal act and these clubs should do more then confiscate their identification cards and let them off with just a stern warning. I feel that they should hand these youngsters to the police.
I think that the parents are responsible for such incidents. Nowadays, both parents go out for work and no longer have the time to constantly supervise their children. Thus, without supervision or proper guidance, these youths fall prey to such vices like drinking and smoking.
The government should step in and take harsher actions on these shops which actually create fake IDs and sell them to the youngsters. With such an easy mean to obtain fake IDS, I am sure that this would lead more youths to get their hands on one. Shouldn't the government try to stop this trend rather then waiting for police reports from either stalls or pubs?

Don't eat if the toilet is dirty

I refer to an article in the Today newspaper "Check out the toilets before you choose place to have a meal". According to the article, we should check to cleanliness of the toilets in the hawker center before deciding what to eat. Some toilets in Singapore do not even have basic necessities like toilet paper or hand-washing soap. This raises the question about how the hawkers maintain their cleanliness even after using the toilet. Without hand-washing soap, how do they make sure that their hands are clean while preparing the food?

This is indeed frightening to think of; a hawker not washing his hand properly after using the toilet and then handling your food. I feel that the food would definitely be dirty being handled this way. Not long ago, there were customers who had actually eaten food which was tainted with faeces and other bacteria. Would the issue of cleanliness of the hawker center toilets turn out to be another case of food poisoning soon if nobody steps in? I should think yes. With the food handled with dirty hands, I am sure bacteria would be passed to the food, causing bad cases of food poisoning to the customers.

Just by checking if the toilets are clean before deciding whether or not to patronize the hawker center is insufficient to ensure that this problem is solved. As a customer, he should report this case to the relevant authorities to ensure that action is taken to solve the problem. The hawkers should also be one of the people who have the responsibility to inform the authorities of the problem at hand. They should care the hygiene of the food they sell and also of the health of their customers. Perhaps the government should step in too, checking hawker centers regularly to ensure the hygiene of the toilets and also the stalls.

Influx, what is happening?

I refer to the article on the Today newspaper "If citizenship is valued ... ". Over the last few years, the inflow of foreigners have been very rapid. As the population of our small country increase, the number of foreign workers increase. Many feel that the influx should be curbed. They feel that public transports and the streets of Singapore have became too crowded and that they are given not enough privileges above the permanent residents. Thus, the government has responded by enforcing some privileges that only Singaporeans can enjoy.

In my opinion, the influx has its pros and cons like many other things. This increase in foreign workers would definitely boost the economy. Like the article mentioned, "A large part of our economy is driven by foreigners". Singapore is such a small country with a rapidly growing economy. Without these foreigners to help us, the growth of our economy would slow down and we might not be leading this rather well off life.

Then again, maybe the government are really biting off more then they can chew. Although the economy is indeed improving due to the help of the foreign workers, there are social problems which encourages the idea of decreasing the flow of foreigners. With the influx of people from all over the world, there are bound to be clashes between the people due to racial differences.