Comment on Marcus Lau's blog

Dear readers, I have commented on Marcus Lau's blog (http://blanketboymarcus.blogspot.com/) on his post about the definition of success.

I dont really agree with your view of "success". The definition of success is: achiever: a person with a record of successes. To me, real success, no matter who the person is, is to be able to experience luxury. And to be able to be successful in life, is to be able to have a comfortable home to live in, to have a good reputation in the society, and to be able to provide for your family. That is true success for me.

Comment on Sze Chuan's blog

Dear blog readers, I have commented on Sze Chuan's blog ( http://causticpotashhhh.blogspot.com/ ) on his most recent post about the the boy who tailed the Olympic Flame.

Although I agree to a certain extent, I feel that he should not have followed the Olympic flame. As a primary 6 student, he would be taking his PSLE orals very very soon. However, he ran 13km IN THE RAIN. I feel that what he did was very risky and dangerous to his upcoming examinations. He might fall sick and his PSLE would be affected. In this kind of crucial timing, I feel that he should have concentrated on his studies first.

Contrary to my point, I am moved by his perseverance and he softened the hearts of many.

Swiss Vandal

Swiss national Oliver Fricker, convicted of vandalism and entering a protected place, will now have to serve a total of seven months' jail and get three strokes of the cane.

The judge said Fricker's conduct in cutting through a fence surrounding a 'protected place'' to commit vandalism, which was calculated to bring to its authors instant international notoriety, must be unequivocally deplored.

'It is conduct which is entirely unacceptable in Singapore, regardless of the artistic merit (or lack thereof) of the graffiti.''

What I feel that the vandal deserves our sympathy. As he is a swiss national, he probably does not understand the seriousness of vandalism in Singapore. Many countries feel that the Singapore's punishment to the swiss national was too harsh. The judge is probably using this case as a warning to all Singaporeans: DO NOT VANDALISE. With such a heavy sentence, I feel that many Singaporeans would not dare to vandalise anymore.

Wilfred Owen

Wilfred Edward Salter Owen MC was a British poet and soldier, and one of the leading poets of the First World War. His shocking, realistic war poetry on the horrors of trenches and gas warfare was heavily influenced by his friend Siegfried Sassoon and sat in stark contrast to both the public perception of war at the time, and to the confidently patriotic verse written earlier by war poets such as Rupert Brooke.

Some of his best-known works—most of which were published posthumously—include "Dulce et Decorum Est", "Insensibility", "Anthem for Doomed Youth", "Futility" and "Strange Meeting". His preface intended for a book of poems to be published in 1919 contains numerous well-known phrases, especially "War, and the pity of War", and "the Poetry is in the pity".

He was killed in action at the Battle of the Sambre a week before the war ended. In a moment of ghastly irony, the telegram from the War Office announcing his death was delivered to his mother's home as her town's church bells were ringing in celebration of the Armistice.

This is one of his famous masterpieces.

Anthem For Doomed Youth

What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?
Only the monstrous anger of the guns.
Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle
Can patter out their hasty orisons.
No mockeries for them; no prayers nor bells,
Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs,—
The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells;
And bugles calling for them from sad shires.
What candles may be held to speed them all?
Not in the hands of boys, but in their eyes
Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes.
The pallor of girls' brows shall be their pall;
Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds,
And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds.

The title is ironic because it has "youth" and "doomed" next to each other. Youth represents naivety, freedom and a long life ahead and doomed pretty much means the opposite. Therefore it is a contradiction. "The montrous anger of the guns" is personification (giving the guns human charateristics) and makes it sound like the guns are controlling the men when it should be the other way around. "..rifles rapid rattle" is alliteration which is for the purpose of sound imagery. "..a drawing down of blinds" gives a dull, unhappy end to the poem which emphasizes and reminds the reader of the horrors and tradgedies of the outcomes of war.

Religious Freedom

First of all, what is religious freedom? Contrary to popular belief, it is actually a principal, not a right. It supports the ability to manifest religion or belief in public or private, whether it's practice or teaching. This concept is also generally recognised as the ability to change religion or not to follow any religion at all. However, there are certain "religionists" in the world whom only believe that THEIR religion is the best, and thus dis other religions.

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty. (taken from Charter of the United Nations).

In short, if you want to change your religion, you can. Also, these are a human being's own choices, and no one is to interfere or change them without the permission of the person himself/herself. Personally, I think that everyone has their own choice to make, whether they want to be a Christian, Buddhist, Free Thinker, Non-believer, etc. These are beliefs. The definition of belief is "A vague idea in which some confidence is placed". Therefore, if someone chooses to be a Non-believer (for example), no one has the authority to stop him.

To me, that is unfair to the believers. They have chosen a path and they will stick to it until their life ends, what right do the skeptics have to change that? We are human beings, not animals or plants or anything for that matter. We have rights - the right to choose, and just because someone chooses a religion different from others doesn't make him any different.

Religious freedom is very important, hence its one of the reasons why Singapore celebrate Racial Harmony Day.

Diary entry of a victim of the Holocaust

Dear Diary,
I hate being a Jew. Looking at my hands covered with blisters and abrasions, I wondered what I did to deserve this. As I sit writing, I could hear cries of despair coming from my roommates. It’s most probably a nightmare. I’ve never had a good dream since 5 years ago. 10 of us were cramped in a room with only 4 uncomfortable beds to spare. I think I am sick. I cough uncontrollably and have large amounts of phlegm stuck in my throat. Or maybe I’m not the only one. Maybe everyone is getting unhealthier by the second. Before Hitler came to power, I was a healthy 80kg man. Now I weigh a measly 40kg. Looking outside, it seems almost time for work. Soon, a German soldier will be shouting for us to wake up. God, when will you cut the chains for me? When will you save me? Lord, I don’t think I can tolerate anymore. I’ve seen my best friend shot to death. I’ve seen the purple unhealthy blood trickling out of his head. Someday, I wonder when it will be my turn. Maybe I should just end this life. Maybe I should just punch a German then be shot. I do not understand why so many of us are afraid of death when we’re experiencing something worse than it. Death seems to be the only solution to escape. Everyday, we have two hours of sleep and worked for twenty-two hours. We were only given one slice of tapioca bread a day. As for me, I work in the railways. I’ve seen many things that would give nightmares for a lifetime. My wife was raped in front of me. And after the German soldier did it, he pulled of all her hair. Her screams echo in my head almost every second. I was helpless and I could not do anything to help her or ease her pain. Why am I such a useless husband? I am also a useless father. My son was bludgeoned to death. Why? Why? Why does this have to happen? The memory of my wife and I walking along the beach with my son collecting seashells seems to be a dream. I could still remember the fateful day I was arrested for “being a Jew”. It was in the wee hours of the morning when I heard my door slammed down. I was pulled out of my slumber and dragged away from my house. I was thrown into a van and they brought me here. I wonder why I am doing work for the dirty dogs. I should just end my life and my family could be together. Away from Germans, away from Hitler…

YOG

They said we couldn't do it and wrote us off even before we tried. Well, we have done it, the perceived as impossible, that is, hosting the Youth Olympic Games in our very own Lion City.

This is the time to see if we can host a high profile international competition. Much fanfare has been created, with the most recent being the arrival of the youth olympics flame, direct from Greece. However, many Singaporeans still do not show much enthusiasm about the fact that we are going to play host to many of the best young athletes in the whole world. The situation has not been helped by the fact that the promotional video for the YOG is rather disliked by the majority of the Singapore public, who have criticised it as cheesy.

This attitude shown is sad, as the YOG is a once-in-the-lifetime opportunity for most of us, and we are able to watch it right in our own backyard. Furthermore, being the very first YOG in history, it at least deserves some cheer and enthusiasm, no?

Exams

Exams are what Singaporean students study for, and for test marks, but should this really be the case? Should exams be abolished, or tweaked in some way?

In my opinion, exams are useless. Exams are a way for teachers to judge how much a student has learnt over the months. It is also for a student to judge for himself. That being said, students usually mug like mad before the test. Thus, even students that have not been performing well, would suddenly turn into temporary geniuses. Not only does this make exams inaccurate, this "studying method" also makes students forget the facts immediately after the tests.

Secondly, students in Singapore are expected to deliver good results. Parents often stress their children out, with test papers and lots of revision. This can affect results negatively, and also affect the children psychologically. Though parents will not want to stress their children out, the way society works force them to buy lots of revision practice for their children, rather put their children's future at stake.

Lastly, there are many illegal hawkers who photocopy exam papers from top schools, and illegally distributing them. This brings out the ugly side of humanity, greed, where we are willing to do wrong things for personal gain. Parents anxious for their children to do well will buy these exam papers, further feeding this endless cycle.

Thus, I feel that exams are not needed, and should be abolished. Also, another alternative is to have monthly surprise tests, so the children are really tested, and have the tests conducted online, so papers cannot be photocopied, and sold in the streets illegally for personal gain, without crediting the setter.

Justice

What does justice mean?

Justice means the quality of being just or fair. Justice can also mean uncorrupted. This is probably the reason why police call themselves "justic". To give justice is to punish or reward one in accordance to equity. This is the reason for laws and the judicial system; to deter crimes, maintain peace, and uphold what is morally right. But the controversy surrounding us is that, does the judicial system really bring out true justice, or is it too unforgiving?

I think that the law and judicial system does serve true justice in a form of punishment, which includes, caning, jailing, fining, and even death. Judicial punishment is used to inflict pain, such as caning, to give a lasting reminder to the offender not to repeat the same mistake. Judicial execution will also serve as a strong reminder to others to think of the consequences before acting. However, I feel that some of these methods are overused and unnecessary.

One such example would be the vandalism case on the MRT train. The swedish vandal apparently sneaked into the sprawling depot at Changi, despite an array of barriers, including fences topped with barbed wire. Once inside, he spray-painted elaborate graffiti on one side of a train, across one carriage. The Straits Times understands that the vandal, a 33-year-old Swiss national, cut through the fence of the depot along Xilin Avenue, in what is believed to be the first such case of vandalism here. (The Straits Times) Many swedish were shocked by the punishment, which is caning.

In Singapore, caning is a punishment often used for both minor and serious crimes, from murder and rape, to theft and vandalism. This has proven effective in many cases and Singapore's second-time offenders is significantly lower than some other countries. I feel that such punishments should be dealt to those who commit violent crimes without remorse or regret. Since they show no mercy, I think we should give them a taste of their own medicine. However, this might be unnecessary to smaller crimes such as vandalism.

Still, justice isn't only about the law. Justice can be in a form of retribution, giving those what they should deserve. Justice can also be used to balance harmony in a nation, where equilibrium balances peace. However, when there is justice, there is hard to have mercy. With mercy, one doesn't get his just deserts, creating an unbalanced scale and may cause unfairness. Thus, I feel that a peaceful society should have justice to keep the country stable, but also mercy to make it seem more humane.

Task 2 E-learning

Point of view
It is written is a view of a person who has witnessed war. It is also very pessimistic about war.

Evidence
Words such as "darkness" and "shines no light" are used. These words bring about pessimism as they are usually used in sad stories.

Elaboration
Light usually means a good thing, however in the context, it says no light, thus showing that there is no hope. Darkness is also usually associated with death thus adding to the gloomy mood.

Situation & setting
The setting is during a war time where even children with no education were sent out to war.

Evidence
This can be seen from "Who someone will teach to fight" and "chalk and blackboard will not be" as children should be schooling, but not at war

Elaboration
These two phrases show that children, even orphans were sent to war. And there will not be anymore education as all there is left for the children, is death.

Languaga & Diction
The writer is succesful in telling us the disadvantages of war by creating a sombre and gloomy mood.

Evidence
He uses strong words such as "darkness" and "no light" that can invoke the reader's emotions. These words instill a gloomy mood in readers.

Elaboration
Darkness and no light shows that there is no hope that the soldiers will come out alive even after the war has ended. Thus making us feel sombre and sad for the soldiers, in this case,children.

Personal response
I feel that war is horrifying as it brings grief, death and casualties. The poem also shows that people who went to war were forced to. This can be seen from the children who were sent to war. They did not even have a primary education but were taught to fight. Thus showing that war is inglorious and people who go to war were unwilling.

Analysis of Poem - Children in Darkness( Task 1 for Home Learning )

Henry M Bechtold, the persona, was in Vietnam during 1967 - 1968. During that period of time, there was a war raging and he witnessed what was happening. The persona rarely talked about it, but he never forgot about it. Thus, he always visits Vietnam every now and then. He wrote this poem during one of his visits in 2009. He was in his hotel room in Saigon watching the news channel on the television. At the same time, he was finding inspiration to write another poem on sexism when a picture of a young boy with a helmet and an automatic rifle in hand flashed on the news channel. This reminded him of the Vietnam war that happened during the late 1960s and immediately, began to pen down his feelings of the war and it resulted in this poem.

The poem talks about children who die during war at a young age and also children who does not even have a primary education, going to war.

Home Learning 2/3/2010 Linguistic: An interview with Jean Louise Finch

Q: Scout, how do you feel about the jury's verdict?

A: I was stunned that they chose to convict Tom, when all the evidence pointed to the fact that he was innocent.

Q: Why do you think the jury would convict Tom in spite of overwhelming evidence that he didn't do it?

A: It was because of discrimination of whites and blacks.

Q: Has this event changed your perception of the law in any way?

A: Of course it has! I now know that when it comes to black vs white in terms of law, the whites will always triumph.

Q: Do you think that verdicts should still be decided by juries?

A: I think that we ought to do away with juries. Only the judge should be able to decide the verdict of the accused.

Q: Why do you feel that way?

A: Well, the jury was supposed to be impartial, but they sentenced Tom just because he was a negro. Throughout the trial, I got the feeling that Judge Taylor wasn't really prejudiced against Tom. In fact, I got the feeling that he disliked the Ewells more. So, if Judge Taylor had the final say, I am sure that Tom would be a free man right now.

Home Learning 1/3/2010 Interpersonal tasks

Intrapersonal [pick one]:
a. Who would you want to be friends with in the novel? Explain.
b. Which character would you like to play in the movie version of the novel? Explain.
c. Write a diary entry for a major character of the novel.

Answer ( Question A) :
If I was given a choice to be friends with someone in the novel, I would choose to be friends with Boo Radley. This is because he is shields his friends from harm. This can be seen from how he helped Jem and Scout from Bob Ewell's assault. Thus, being his friend, you would be very protected. He isn't corrupted as well, unlike the other whites in TKAM. The whites in TKAM are always shown discriminating against the blacks. Boo Radley stayed in his house for years and did not need to face the outside world. Boo Radley would help me to be calm and peaceful as I do not need to think about the outside world when I am with him. He would be a friend which would help me when I am in need, he would be a friend that will pull me up when i am down. Though he may not want to socialize that much, or go out and have fun like normal friends would do, I know he is always watching my back, preventing me from any danger.

Home Learning 1/3/2010 Multiple Intelligence test

Hey guys, we're told to do a personality test for home learning. So please enter d2h884221 into the code box. Visit http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks3/ict/multiple_int/results/results.cfm.

I feel that personality tests are not accurate, as we tend to lie to ourselves as we do not know ourselves well. Due to peer influence, our answeres may differ from what we really am. We can take as many personality tests as we want, but it would be fruitless. It would fail to show us our true personality. We should not depend solely on personality tests to determine our personality but we should develop it naturally as we grow.

My legendary class

Hi guys, today I'm going to talk about my class in HCI. Due to 1A4 last year, I was able to enjoy my life in school. Currently, I'm also enjoying my life there, although tests are looming. 1A4 was full of fun. But "fun" wasn't the only thing there. There was unity, shown almost everyday. People from other classes quarrel with each other and bear grudges. We never do that. Sometimes, there would be an occasional fray happening in class. However we would make up. There are also some people in class who are talked about across the level. Most probably, its due to notoriousness. Our form teacher received many complains about this class, and she is/was(not very sure) disappointed my class. We know our limits! Anyway, people keep saying how "screwed up" 1A4/2A4 is. Is it because of our poor academic grades? Are academic grades the only thing you look for? At least we put in effort to score. We may not do well, but we tried. Well, this class is notorious throughout the level. People who are new to this class say "it sucks". Try to adapt. And cherish the class you currently have.

Joel

2 Singaporeans died in Aussie crash

Singaporean tourists who believe they can fit in a long trip taking in the Great Ocean Road in a day are putting themselves at risk, according to tourism authorities. A girl lost her 34-year-old aunt and her 62-year-old grandfather in the accident. Both died at the scene. The accident happened at about 10.30am local time (8.55am Singapore time). There were two survivors in the crash. They were discharged on Friday afternoon. The five-year-old girl and her 43-year-old father had obtained cuts when their van went off the road and overturned on Thursday morning in the state of Victoria. They were part of a family of six Singaporeans on their way to a mountain range west of Melbourne, the state capital, when tragedy struck. Their identities remain unknown.The van, which was travelling on a country road, is believed to have drifted onto gravel before veering to the other side of the road, rolling several times and landing on its roof.

I feel sympathatic for the girl who lost her aunt and her grandfather. This accident was believed to be caused by the inexperience of the driver driving on the gravel. Australians were also stunned by this incident. Aussies believe that the route that the Singaporeans take was somewhat unusual.


Brisbane Times

Bed bugs on the rise

Hello fellow bloggers! Today I'll be blogging about bed bugs today. The article is featured in the Strait Times, 27 January 2010.

You may not realize right away that bed bugs are the source of the annoying sores on your legs when you wake up in the mornings. Bed bugs are attracted by both warmth and the presence of carbon dioxide, which is what we exhale in breathing. The bugs climb up onto your skin and pierce you with two hollow tubes, one of which injects anti-coagulants and anesthetics. The other tube is used to withdraw your blood, feeding for about five minutes before returning to their hiding places.

According to local pest control firm PestBusters there were close to 250 cases of bed bug infestations treated in 2009. This is becoming a major problem. PestBusters' assistant supervisor, Mohamed Amir Bin Yahya said, 'Nowadays, because of cheaper travel bed bugs are easily transported in. We've even had cases in 5 star hotels and big mansions.'

Now here is the video for you all to enjoy.

Situation in Haiti

Hello. Today I'll be blogging about the situation in Haiti. As you all know, Haiti has just met with a disaster: a magnitude 7.0 earthquake. It is claimed that thousands of people have died from this catastrophe. The earthquake hit the south of Haiti's capital, Port-Au-Prince. The Red Cross says up to three million people have been affected. Due to the earthquake, phne lines to the country failed. So this is the summarised version of what happened to Haiti.

What I really reflected was that though not many people know about this country Haiti, yet many countries still offer assistance to this country. This shows that compassion lives in many. However, people still need assistance. PEOPLE STILL NEED HELP! There's no point joining facebook groups saying, "Every person who joins, we will donate $1 to Haiti". Most likely, that would not happen.

Haiti is definitely in a state of confusion. Sporadic violence, looting and gang-related gunfire broke out under sweltering Caribbean skies even as thousands of US forces awaited deployment from a newly-arrived aircraft carrier sitting in the waters off the city. A teenage boy working for the charity foundation of Wyclef Jean, the Haitian-born hip-hop superstar, was shot dead as he drove a truck-turned-hearse away from a cemetery. "Somebody wanted to carjack him," said Mr Jean, who arrived in the city on Thursday and put his staff to work clearing bodies. "Two shots."

In conclusion, I would like to share with you all a video.

I'm back!

Hey guys, I'm back from a hiatus! I will start blogging more often now. As you can see, I've decided to make some changes to my new blog. I decided to remove the music as many people find music distracting and unappreciated(results from internet polls). I've also decided to add pictures to my regular post to enrich your reading. I would probably be blogging about Current Affairs so please enjoy yourself. Remember, before you leave, don't forget to follow this blog. Thanks!

Joel