It's just pretty tiring to hold expectations for people. Sometimes, it's unavoidable that one has to put one's warm face into someone's cold butt. Figure of speech by the way.
And it's not possible to clarify if the other person/people have any misunderstanding of ourselves. How else do we know what's wrong? Or perhaps we should learn to stop pleasing others. But if so, it would means having to tolerate certain things for years before someone decides to make a move... out of this relationship. Be it working relationship or love, or etc.
"If there's no nerves, there's no pain"
Perhaps I should learn to be less sensitive to some things. Ignorance (not innocence) can be bliss.
But still, I wonder what could be left of my humanity after a decade or less.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Monday, November 7, 2011
Too Much Nerves?
Nerves are "cables" that transmit electrochemical impulses. Without them, one does not feel pain. Which is also why you do not feel pain when your hair got cut. It helps warn the body of any danger, and teaches us to avoid them.
But there are times where it's best not to have too much nerves, or risk being "hurt" too easily. Can it be helped? Some people are born with more nerves than others. Or should we sever our own nerves, like almost every other people anyway? It's like how circumcising is celebrated process to mark one's adulthood. Sounds crude, but that's how it is.
Anyway, what is "adulthood"? One who obeys the social norm of what an adult is, or one who questions the rational of the society's definition of adult?
Sometimes, I wonder if I'm actually being immature, given my frank nature and reluctant to "cut my nerves", like some of my peers by this age. And I ask myself, why should "mature" be defined this way? No one wants to find an answer to that. People are contend to surrender to the greater force of the society without rethinking our values.
If I had to have my own definition of "mature", it would be that of "being more responsible". But it doesn't mean one should not attempt to find a compromising ground between responsibility and personal interest. It might even be possible to have both.
Anyway, it's just a really random ranting. I should just get back to being an "adult" and stop thinking too much about what I've "no control" over.
But there are times where it's best not to have too much nerves, or risk being "hurt" too easily. Can it be helped? Some people are born with more nerves than others. Or should we sever our own nerves, like almost every other people anyway? It's like how circumcising is celebrated process to mark one's adulthood. Sounds crude, but that's how it is.
Anyway, what is "adulthood"? One who obeys the social norm of what an adult is, or one who questions the rational of the society's definition of adult?
Sometimes, I wonder if I'm actually being immature, given my frank nature and reluctant to "cut my nerves", like some of my peers by this age. And I ask myself, why should "mature" be defined this way? No one wants to find an answer to that. People are contend to surrender to the greater force of the society without rethinking our values.
If I had to have my own definition of "mature", it would be that of "being more responsible". But it doesn't mean one should not attempt to find a compromising ground between responsibility and personal interest. It might even be possible to have both.
Anyway, it's just a really random ranting. I should just get back to being an "adult" and stop thinking too much about what I've "no control" over.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Friday, July 15, 2011
Words and Meanings
There's no point in speaking my mind. Words are just mere words, only meaningful to the one who understood them from the perspective of the speaker. If the listener has a completely different background, how can I expect the same degree of understanding of the words I've speak from him/her? And how can the listener forces their opinions upon me?
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Election Results
The election results were all released by 3am in the morning. While I wouldn't be expecting that the PAP will lose, but I had better expectations, especially over some contested areas. Here are some of the disappointments:
1) Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC
Votes: Chiam See Tong's Team (43.06%) vs. Wong Kan Seng's Team (56.94%)
- I was expecting CST to win by a thin margin, considering that he managed to guard Potong Pasir for about 2 decades already, and his charisma. His biggest and only weakness is his age and poor health. WKS had to be responsible for Mas Selamat's escape by stepping down from minister position, but yet he remains intact. I REALLY wondered about what those people at Bishan-Toa Payoh were thinking... That's not to mention I've heard from my friend living there that they removed some facilities (cameras in lift) on the pretext of cost saving...
2) Marine Parade GRC
Votes: Nichole Seah's Team (43.35%) vs Goh Chok Tong & Tin Pei Ling Team (56.65%)
- Frankly speaking, the moment GCT is on any team, it's a sure win for PAP, just like LHL & LKY. Nichole Seah fought a good fight, though I feel that her party in general were a tad lacking in being more forward looking. Too much time wasted by NSP on exchanging verbal lashes and merely verbal expression of the passion to serve. However, the tighter margin could be made, due to Nichole's maturity and charisma, and TPL's lack of aforementioned. Then again, if you look at the other results of NSP (which average around 30ish percent), I guess this 10% upswing from their average is already relatively impressive.
3) Potong Pasir SMC
Votes: Lina Loh (49.64%) vs Sitoh Yih Pin (50.36%)
- I sure was expecting CST's wife to be able to guard this place, albeit with a very thin margin. There's alot of affection from the ground towards CST in that area. Looks like I was only half-right. The margin was thin. Difference of 114 votes, with scrapped votes of around 250. The scrapped votes could have made the difference. With this lost, the last stronghold of SPP is gone, and probably also marks the end of CST's political journey. People will commemorate his spirit in many years to come.
It's not all bad news though. Tonight, Singaporeans have made history! Starting with:
1) Aljunied GRC
Votes: Low Thia Khiang's Team (54.71%) vs George Yeo's Team (45.29%)
- An opposition succeeded in challenging for a GRC for the 1st time in Singapore's history! It comes as no surprise given Mr Low's popularity, charisma and efficiency as demonstrating in his well-running of Hougang, A-class team members, and his "slap the driver" theory. LOL! Frankly speaking, George Yeo's team ain't a pushover idea, given 3 ministers onboard and that he himself is one of the best minister. Or at the very least, he makes no major mistake thus far, and is probably one of the most internet-savvy minister. On top of his softer approach in this election, it lends him very positive sentiments on the internet. Even with him losing, supporters of the oppositions are generally in favor of him running for other important positions, and perhaps even replace TPL with him. His son is wise to advise him on how to manage Gen-Y indeed. Anyway, this should not be the end of the story for LTK's team, considering 54.71% is a relatively small margin. His team needs to work even harder to win the favor of the Aljunied residents and honoring his objective to push for a world-class parliament, or risk being put back at step one in 5 years time.
2) Hougang SMC
Votes: Desmond Choo (35.19%) vs Yaw Shin Leong (64.81%)
- This is also a battle won brilliantly by the WP, and also one that is generally expected to be won, since the hougang residents are extremely supportive of WP. It's also an interesting duel between the two, because both are young adults of my age group, and are teochews, just like myself and most of the people in Hougang. I would have trusted that LTK placed a reasonably strong reserve to guard the WP's stronghold, before deciding to venture out of it. Like George Yeo, Desmond Choo's lost was not due to his own incompetency, but due to the sentiments of the local people, similar to that CST at Potong Pasir. And I find it VERY commendable, because Desmond Choo accepted the lost gracefully, congratulated his rival and commit to continue working with his rival to take care of the local people's welfare and concerns. This is a strong contrast to Desmond Lim from SDA who blamed his critical lost (4.45% @ Punggol East) to the brand of his own party.
Conclusion: I'm not sure of what to make of the general outlook for Singapore. The PAP doesn't have a strong mandate. The oppositions as a whole made alot of sacrifices and compromises in order to avoid competition with each other. Those oppositions who did not win a single seat, at least manage to dent the statistics of historical PAP supports. This isn't something that the WP could have done by itself. So it surely rings the alarm for PAP. After all, if you can actually look at the demographic of the age group of the voters, the PAP has a bunk of diehard supporters who are from gen-X, and this number is decreasing, due to passing away, etc. Also, social media plays an importantly role is raising people's awareness of politics, giving the opposition a more balanced playing field in terms of publicity, which could explain the approx 10% swing in votes towards the oppositions. The oppositions are also specifically targeting the middle and lower class income, which statistically is more than merely the higher income people. If the oppositions were to increase its popularity, they would need very diversified plans for the country, where even the higher income group would be interested in, as well as having a positive track record, so that the middle income group are convinced that the oppositions are just as (if not more) capable than the PAP candidates. The next 5 years will be a trial for the workers' party, whether if the mandates given by the people are deserving. The PAP, on the other hand, will need to reform itself, preferably by nominating new ministers for the next 10 years, and/or changing the style of the party, from that high-handed style ("I tell you what is good for you"), to something more even-handed and receptive ("Please let me know what are your concerns, so I can help you").
This ends my analysis for GE2011. (And I don't get to vote this year... AGAIN!)
1) Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC
Votes: Chiam See Tong's Team (43.06%) vs. Wong Kan Seng's Team (56.94%)
- I was expecting CST to win by a thin margin, considering that he managed to guard Potong Pasir for about 2 decades already, and his charisma. His biggest and only weakness is his age and poor health. WKS had to be responsible for Mas Selamat's escape by stepping down from minister position, but yet he remains intact. I REALLY wondered about what those people at Bishan-Toa Payoh were thinking... That's not to mention I've heard from my friend living there that they removed some facilities (cameras in lift) on the pretext of cost saving...
2) Marine Parade GRC
Votes: Nichole Seah's Team (43.35%) vs Goh Chok Tong & Tin Pei Ling Team (56.65%)
- Frankly speaking, the moment GCT is on any team, it's a sure win for PAP, just like LHL & LKY. Nichole Seah fought a good fight, though I feel that her party in general were a tad lacking in being more forward looking. Too much time wasted by NSP on exchanging verbal lashes and merely verbal expression of the passion to serve. However, the tighter margin could be made, due to Nichole's maturity and charisma, and TPL's lack of aforementioned. Then again, if you look at the other results of NSP (which average around 30ish percent), I guess this 10% upswing from their average is already relatively impressive.
3) Potong Pasir SMC
Votes: Lina Loh (49.64%) vs Sitoh Yih Pin (50.36%)
- I sure was expecting CST's wife to be able to guard this place, albeit with a very thin margin. There's alot of affection from the ground towards CST in that area. Looks like I was only half-right. The margin was thin. Difference of 114 votes, with scrapped votes of around 250. The scrapped votes could have made the difference. With this lost, the last stronghold of SPP is gone, and probably also marks the end of CST's political journey. People will commemorate his spirit in many years to come.
It's not all bad news though. Tonight, Singaporeans have made history! Starting with:
1) Aljunied GRC
Votes: Low Thia Khiang's Team (54.71%) vs George Yeo's Team (45.29%)
- An opposition succeeded in challenging for a GRC for the 1st time in Singapore's history! It comes as no surprise given Mr Low's popularity, charisma and efficiency as demonstrating in his well-running of Hougang, A-class team members, and his "slap the driver" theory. LOL! Frankly speaking, George Yeo's team ain't a pushover idea, given 3 ministers onboard and that he himself is one of the best minister. Or at the very least, he makes no major mistake thus far, and is probably one of the most internet-savvy minister. On top of his softer approach in this election, it lends him very positive sentiments on the internet. Even with him losing, supporters of the oppositions are generally in favor of him running for other important positions, and perhaps even replace TPL with him. His son is wise to advise him on how to manage Gen-Y indeed. Anyway, this should not be the end of the story for LTK's team, considering 54.71% is a relatively small margin. His team needs to work even harder to win the favor of the Aljunied residents and honoring his objective to push for a world-class parliament, or risk being put back at step one in 5 years time.
2) Hougang SMC
Votes: Desmond Choo (35.19%) vs Yaw Shin Leong (64.81%)
- This is also a battle won brilliantly by the WP, and also one that is generally expected to be won, since the hougang residents are extremely supportive of WP. It's also an interesting duel between the two, because both are young adults of my age group, and are teochews, just like myself and most of the people in Hougang. I would have trusted that LTK placed a reasonably strong reserve to guard the WP's stronghold, before deciding to venture out of it. Like George Yeo, Desmond Choo's lost was not due to his own incompetency, but due to the sentiments of the local people, similar to that CST at Potong Pasir. And I find it VERY commendable, because Desmond Choo accepted the lost gracefully, congratulated his rival and commit to continue working with his rival to take care of the local people's welfare and concerns. This is a strong contrast to Desmond Lim from SDA who blamed his critical lost (4.45% @ Punggol East) to the brand of his own party.
Conclusion: I'm not sure of what to make of the general outlook for Singapore. The PAP doesn't have a strong mandate. The oppositions as a whole made alot of sacrifices and compromises in order to avoid competition with each other. Those oppositions who did not win a single seat, at least manage to dent the statistics of historical PAP supports. This isn't something that the WP could have done by itself. So it surely rings the alarm for PAP. After all, if you can actually look at the demographic of the age group of the voters, the PAP has a bunk of diehard supporters who are from gen-X, and this number is decreasing, due to passing away, etc. Also, social media plays an importantly role is raising people's awareness of politics, giving the opposition a more balanced playing field in terms of publicity, which could explain the approx 10% swing in votes towards the oppositions. The oppositions are also specifically targeting the middle and lower class income, which statistically is more than merely the higher income people. If the oppositions were to increase its popularity, they would need very diversified plans for the country, where even the higher income group would be interested in, as well as having a positive track record, so that the middle income group are convinced that the oppositions are just as (if not more) capable than the PAP candidates. The next 5 years will be a trial for the workers' party, whether if the mandates given by the people are deserving. The PAP, on the other hand, will need to reform itself, preferably by nominating new ministers for the next 10 years, and/or changing the style of the party, from that high-handed style ("I tell you what is good for you"), to something more even-handed and receptive ("Please let me know what are your concerns, so I can help you").
This ends my analysis for GE2011. (And I don't get to vote this year... AGAIN!)
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Unfair Opportunities?
I refer to an article on FTs being invited to SG to study:
http://www.mycarforum.com/index.php?showtopic=2663008&st=0
Similarly, I've heard alot of stories about FTs being heavily subsidized for education and training in SG, as well as the relative ease of getting a PR identity immediately after graduating.
The irony is that Singaporeans are not given this privilege, other than the few who qualify for presidential scholarship. As for me, I couldn't get into the local uni and had to depend on my poor parents to loan me the money for my tution fees to get into a private uni.
I'm not agree with the FTs or blame them if they don't feel anything about this country. To begin with, they just only came over cos' there's a good deal. Education is almost free for them. Besides, it's not their country in the 1st place. Just reap the benefits and move back home afterwards. At most, only stuck in SG for a few years as part of the bond. But as for the rest of the Singaporeans, we are paying for their higher education, but struggling to pay for our own.
What I'm rather upset with, is what was PAP's idea in doing so? Last official statistics reveal that 40% of SG populations are not even native Singaporeans, but a combination of PRs and FTs. Getting FTs to improve our economy is only a mere smokescreen. Either that, or a VERY careless handling of the inflow of FTs...
Should we vote for the oppositions? It's not a clear answer. At the end of the day, one cannot assume there's any saint in politics, and voting is only to choose the lesser evil.
Recently saw the comment of a friend on FB, which I thought it's rather upsetting. He appears more ready to trust the PAP, just because they started apologising. There comes a time that one may choose to forgive a person, because he appears to be sincere. But this is not the time, because people will still continue to be harmed while the wrongdoers are forgiven. Just as the million dollars ministers' salary. By continuing to vote for these people, you are saying that it is ok that there are people at the lowest level who are still starving while the ministers, despite the issues already raised in parliament, choose to do nothing about it, because they already given them 2 meals a day. It is easy to vote in terms of self-interests, rather than the bigger perspective, because other problems are "none of your business". Similarly, I was also reminded of yet another well-to-do friend who's disinterested in politics because people are just over-exaggerating their grievance towards the ruling party, and that he has the opportunity to live in the US anyway. The death of osama seemed like a more salient issue to him than this coming GE where there's finally a gleams of opportunity for Singaporeans. Well, it's none of his business if the govt tax is 100% in SG, if he never comes back to SG anyway.
http://www.mycarforum.com/index.php?showtopic=2663008&st=0
Similarly, I've heard alot of stories about FTs being heavily subsidized for education and training in SG, as well as the relative ease of getting a PR identity immediately after graduating.
The irony is that Singaporeans are not given this privilege, other than the few who qualify for presidential scholarship. As for me, I couldn't get into the local uni and had to depend on my poor parents to loan me the money for my tution fees to get into a private uni.
I'm not agree with the FTs or blame them if they don't feel anything about this country. To begin with, they just only came over cos' there's a good deal. Education is almost free for them. Besides, it's not their country in the 1st place. Just reap the benefits and move back home afterwards. At most, only stuck in SG for a few years as part of the bond. But as for the rest of the Singaporeans, we are paying for their higher education, but struggling to pay for our own.
What I'm rather upset with, is what was PAP's idea in doing so? Last official statistics reveal that 40% of SG populations are not even native Singaporeans, but a combination of PRs and FTs. Getting FTs to improve our economy is only a mere smokescreen. Either that, or a VERY careless handling of the inflow of FTs...
Should we vote for the oppositions? It's not a clear answer. At the end of the day, one cannot assume there's any saint in politics, and voting is only to choose the lesser evil.
Recently saw the comment of a friend on FB, which I thought it's rather upsetting. He appears more ready to trust the PAP, just because they started apologising. There comes a time that one may choose to forgive a person, because he appears to be sincere. But this is not the time, because people will still continue to be harmed while the wrongdoers are forgiven. Just as the million dollars ministers' salary. By continuing to vote for these people, you are saying that it is ok that there are people at the lowest level who are still starving while the ministers, despite the issues already raised in parliament, choose to do nothing about it, because they already given them 2 meals a day. It is easy to vote in terms of self-interests, rather than the bigger perspective, because other problems are "none of your business". Similarly, I was also reminded of yet another well-to-do friend who's disinterested in politics because people are just over-exaggerating their grievance towards the ruling party, and that he has the opportunity to live in the US anyway. The death of osama seemed like a more salient issue to him than this coming GE where there's finally a gleams of opportunity for Singaporeans. Well, it's none of his business if the govt tax is 100% in SG, if he never comes back to SG anyway.
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