My 10 Comments on Friends' Blogs

The following are the links to the 10 comments on my friends' blogs. Thank you!

1. Ming Fwu
2. Cheng Tat
3. Fu Yuan
4. Ban Siang
5. Liak Ghee
6. Wei Ren
7. Wei Kiat
8. Wen Hao
9. Shen Han
10. Samuel
    

Singapore's Presidential Elections 2011

The Singapore presidential election of 2011 will be held on August 27, 2011. Incumbent President S.R. Nathan was eligible for re-election as there are no term limits but declined to seek re-election. His term of office will expire on August 31, 2011.

2011 will go down in Singapore's political history as a year of records. For the first time since Singapore's independence, two nationwide elections are being conducted in the same year. The first election was the General Elections, which was held in May, and the upcoming Presidential Elections will be held in August. However, unlike the run-up to the May General Elections when bread-and-butter issues were the hot topics,, public discourse is now being dominated by matters that are distinctly more philosophical.
The upcoming Presidential Elections are extremely historical, as it is the first time that there are so many candidates running for presidency. I believe that these elections will also be as interesting as the General Elections which were held earlier this year in May, and I am looking forward to seeing the results of the new president. Furthermore, now that Mr. S R Nathan is not running for presidency, the election is full of suspense as it is definite that there will be a new president, and many are looking forward to the election date, which is also a public holiday.

The five candidates for the elections are:

1. Former People's Action Party MP, Dr Tan Cheng Bock, who represented the Ayer Rajah SMC from 1980 to 2006, has declared his intention to contest in the upcoming presidential election on 27 May 2011.
2. Former NTUC Income CEO and former PAP Branch Secretary for Marine Parade Tan Kin Lian  confirmed that he would be running on 7 June 2011.
3. Former Deputy Prime Minister and Executive Director of the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation Tony Tan Keng Yam officially declared his candidacy on 23 June 2011, after speculations that he would run.
4. Former civil servant and opposition SDP member Tan Jee Say announced he would be running. He collected the Certificate of Eligibility on 15 July. 

Rupert Murdoch's Phone-Hacking Scandal.

An electronic-eavesdropping scandal that started at Rupert Murdoch's Sunday tabloid News of the World is rapidly escalating into a full-fledged conflagration that threatens Murdoch, his global media empire, and the British government, and has already resulted in the arrest or resignation of several previously untouchable figures. Investigations conducted from 2005–2007 concluded that the paper's phone-hacking activities were limited to celebrities, politicians and members of the British Royal Family. However, in July 2011, it was revealed that the phones of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler, relatives of deceased British soldiers, and victims of the 7/7 London bombings were also accessed, resulting in a public outcry against News Corporation and owner Rupert Murdoch. Advertiser boycotts contributed to the closure of the News of the World on 10 July, ending 168 years of publication.
Reflections:
I understand that the phone-hacking scandal's main purposes was to reel in good information to make interesting articles that would appeal to the readers of the newspapers, however I feel that it is morally wrong for Rupert Murdoch to have allowed such an activity to have taken place. Firstly, phone-hacking intrudes into the privacy of people, and most of the time, confidential data is shown to the public. This is definitely not an acceptable act, as I am sure no one would like to have their dignity ruined due to a leak of confidential information, even if they were already dead, such as a murdered schoolgirl, Milly Dowler. Also, I believe Rupert Murdoch was not only not remorseful for allowing the scandal, he also tried to cover up for it. For instance, Mr. Murdoch told British lawmakers on thar he was not responsible for the phone-hacking scandal, which is obviously why he is dubbed as deceiving as well as untrustworthy. Another example would be the closure of The News of the World, which was definitely because Mr. Murdoch wanted the public to calm down and allow the issue about the phone-hacking to settle. However, this did not turn out as expected and Mr. Murdoch had even been brought to trial. I believe this is an extremely devious act of Mr Murdoch and I am greatly disheartened because of the incident, as Mr. Murdoch was once a highly respected and well-known man, and now he is notorious over the scandal. Ultimately, it is indubitably Mr. Murdoch's fault for this phone-hacking scandal, and I hope that justice will be brought upon and he will suffer the consequences of such uncaring acts.
Resources:
Yahoo! News

Speech Writing Assignment

Recently, I was tasked to write an persuasive speech to my fellow schoolmates as the audience, and as for the topic, it could be anything that would be reasonable to be targeted at students. After some time of brainstorming, I decided to come up with a speech to persuade my fellow schoolmates to stop eating fast food. However, even though it is my speech, it is still quite ironic, as I still indeed do eat fast food. However, I after considering what I wrote, I made it a point to cut down on fast food. Here is my speech, and please do enjoy it and feel free to leave comments!

3 minute Speech:

Good day, my fellow schoolmates. I come to you today, to persuade you to with an interesting yet disheartening speech, which is, for everyone to stop eating fast food from today onwards.

I know that all those who know me well will be shocked by this as I am a big fan of McDonald’s and KFC myself, and there is not a week which I do not enjoy tucking into savoury burgers. Yes, I understand perfectly, fast food is used as an option to save time, or satisfy our taste bud cravings, but what about problems concerning health? Yes, please do hear me out, and I will be sure you will be convinced why you should cut down or stop eating fast food when I am done. I believe many fellow Hwachongians often eat to their heart’s content in McDonald’s at the nearby King Albert Park. Now, I would like to ask, who does not love the crispy yet tender chicken burgers?

Why the sudden drastic change in me? Well, my eldest cousin had a stint at McDonald’s during the first few months this year to earn some pocket money. He saw with disgust the process of how fast food was made and took pictures to show me. Do you know the amount of oil, salt, and calories a small pack of fries contains? Each sack of pre-cut fries are emptied out into a blistering pot of oil, and then the greasy flotsam is then filtered and put into small packets.

My cousin does not dare eat them and when I ask him why, he said that he do not want to die fat and young. Studies show that the amount of oil and salt in a simple burger or fried chicken is outrageously excessive. They also contain chemicals which are growth boosters for chicken so that more meat can be produced to increase productivity of the poultry industry. And mind you, these toxins contain high amounts of synthetic estrogen, which I am sure many would not like to take in into your bodies. Furthermore, the oil that goes down your throat will clog up your arteries, and you will face heart problems if you carry on devouring this appetising yet deadly fast food. These toxins do not go off easily, but even though you will not of course, feel the effects now, trust me, you will when you are in your 20s-30s, when you start having illnesses for eating unhealthily in your youth.

To wrap things up, there is no benefit of eating fast food that can outweigh its bad effects. Save time? No, I would rather spend a few more minutes getting healthy food such as salad than constantly going to doctors due to health problems in the future and then regretting. Listen, it’s not as hard as it seems, even though many of you are so used to eating fast food and love it so much! As long as you promise yourself to eat healthy, it is achievable! Look, if I can do it, so can you! Thank you! I hope you will reconsider before making your next trip to a fast food outlet from now onwards.

The Merchant of Venice Character Review on Shylock

Character Analysis of Shylock:

In Shakespeare’s edgy and suspenseful play, The Merchant of Venice, the character of Shylock may evoke complex feelings within the reader. Shylock is clearly a villain in the sense that he takes repeatedly takes advantage of people in vulnerable economic situations and makes a handsome living in this way. He is not an inherently likeable character throughout  The Merchant of Venice; he avoids friendships, he is cranky, and he is steadfast in his beliefs to the point of being rigid.

When I read the book and focused on a basic character analysis of Shylock, I could feel a curious compassion for this character, who is so clearly disliked. Although he had imposed isolation on himself by declaring that he will not “eat with you, drink with you, nor pray with you.”, I understand why he has withdrawn from social life when he makes his moving speech in Act 3, in which it is asked by Shylock who is the victim of racism and prejudice from especially Antonio, “Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions?”

When I first read this part of the play, I first begun to understand how Shylock had never been understood because no one has ever seen him for anything other than the fact that he was a Jew, and a moneylender. This complicated my point of view with his character and the subsequent punishment he receives because although he is not likable, one cannot help but sympathize with his plight as an outcast.

It is Shylock himself who teaches readers and his own peers the most about Christian love and mercy in  The Merchant of Venice. As he continues his Act 3 speech, he muses about the similarities between Jews and Christians  in one of the meaningful quotes, saying, “Fed… the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means… as a Christian is....,” and then confronts his Christian accusers and judges with three profound questions that invoke these themes in the Merchant of Venice: “If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die?” . The cycle of strange violence that Shylock has set into motion will not end once his punishment has been meted out to him, as he goes on to warn in the remainder of the speech. Rather than learn this lesson, namely, that revenge in the guise of justice will never result in anything other than more revenge, Shylock receives his punishment. I believe we can see the same kinds of issues played out in society, proving that we have learned little about what Shakespeare hoped to teach us through Shylock.

Resources:
Wise Geek

Fake 'Apple' store found in China

Chinese counterfeiters have had a field day pumping out knockoffs of Apple Inc's best-selling iPhones and iPads, but one appears to have gone a step further - a near flawless fake Apple Store that even employees believe is the real deal. The store in Kunming was stumbled upon by a 27-year-old American blogger living in the city, the capital of China's mountainous southwestern Yunnan province.

Complete with the white Apple logo, wooden tables and cheery staff claiming they work for the iPhone maker, the store looks every bit like Apple Stores found all over the world, according to the blogger, who goes by the name "BirdAbroad". But Apple has no stores in Kunming and only 13 authorized resellers in the city, who are not allowed to call themselves Apple Stores or claim to work for Apple.

It was unclear whether the store was selling fake or genuine Apple products. Countless unauthorized resellers of Apple and other brands' electronic products throughout China sell the real thing but buy their goods overseas and smuggle them into the country to skip taxes.
I feel that China is definitely living up to its reputation of being the 'Land of Fakes'. From food, to luxury brands, fake branded bags to watches and phones, they are really good at making counterfeit products, and now even of the famous 'Apple' company. It's amazing how detailed they are. Even the store layout looks very much like what a real Apple store would look like. They even made the same shirts for the staff working at the store, which made it hard to tell that the store was a fake. From the pictures above, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't even have known I was in a fake Apple store if I went there. Apparently, the differences are very subtle so most people probably wouldn't realise it's a fake store.

Resources:

Yahoo News

Racial Harmony Day

Racial Harmony Day is celebrated annually on 21 July in Singapore. The event is to commemorate the 1964 Race Riots, which took place on 21 July 1964. Racial Harmony Day also represents a day for schools to reflect on, and celebrate Singapore's success as a racially harmonious nation and society built on a rich diversity of culture and heritage. In schools all across the nation on that day, students are encouraged to be dressed in their traditional costumes such as the Cheong Sam and the Baju Kurung. Traditional delicacies are also featured in the celebrations. Traditional games such as Kutih-kutih and zero point are played in schools, where inter-class competitions are sometimes organised.
Today, Racial Harmony Day was celebrated all around Singapore, and in Hwa Chong Institution, a bazaar was held in which students could eat food and play games of other ethnic cultures as part of the celebration. Firstly, each different had to wear a different couloured shirt to school. For the Secondary 2s, we had to wear yellow, which I was a littlereluctant to, because we would look like also had supporters of the Malaysian Bersih group. :D
We also had a Community Involvement Programme (CIP) in which we went to an elderly care centre to bring them over to our school so that they could enjoy our celebration as well. The bazaar that was held was very crowded, with students trying out new types of ethnic foods and paying with their coupons. For my class, 2i3, we put up a stall with the 'Chinese' theme for the goods we sold. For my class' stall, we sold traditional Muah Chee, a tangy, sticky and sweet dough like delicacy, as well as Chin Chow, otherwise known as Grass Jelly. Chin Chow is a traditional Chinese jelly, as is usually consumed as a drink. It is black in colour, and is sweet and cooling, which was why many students had patronised our stall to get a savoury treat. We also had a cultural performance in the auditorium in which we had our elderly guests to join us. The performance was extremely exciting and fun-packed, which was why mostly everyone loved it. The performers were students of exchange programmes, from our own school, Hwa Chong, and also from other schools such as Bukit Panjang Government High, Chestnut Drive Secondary, and Assumption English School. They were all dressed in ethnic costumes and also, some of them performed with traditional Malay instruments. After the performance, we then went back to the bazaar, which was located in the Oei Tiong Ham hall. We then could return home once the bazaar had ended and helped to pack the tables back to their respective classes. It was an extremely exciting and eventful day, and I am looking forwards to next year's Racial Harmony Day celebrations.