Deep thoughts of a Singapore Critic

Why don't you be straightforward as well Dr Vivian Balakrishnan?

2011-04-26T17:37:00.003+08:00

Mr Goh Chok Tong former PM of SG urged just recently to have a "clean fight", no personal attacks and no rude language". How short is PAP's memory? Pretty short apparently. So what's the latest distraction tactics from PAP?

Our favourite YOG MP Dr Vivan Balakrishnan, now is accusing (wait ... hinting?) SDP's Dr Wijeysingha as having a ulterior motive in his political agenda. Why i say hinting? Cos he didn't give very much specifics. He pointed to a video on youtube (which he didn't specify) as evidence for his accusation (wait hint) for a ulterior movtive which he also didn't specify.

Why didn't he just be specific? Is he afraid to utter the "G" word? And why is the gay issue even an issue in this election? Unless he thinks it can be a bad thing for the voters? Oh Dr V, can you be even more specfic? Can you stop hinting? Just be straightforward about your thoughts can you? Can you tell us why that video about Dr Wijeysingha being at a forum discussing some gay issue would be a bad thing for a voter. Please explain. Please be as straightforward as you want Dr Wijeysingha to be straightforward about his political agenda.

You flung the dung over first, so i think it is fair that you explain why you did so.

It's been so long!!!

2011-04-25T22:12:00.003+08:00

Wow ... just decided to see if I should raise my pen (or fingers on my keyboard? :) again and start blogging and just realised ... HOLY SHIT it's been 2 years since I've entered any posts!!

Oh well, but in these years, facebook seems to have erased the need for a blog anyways. You can post your thoughts, photos videos, links ... any damn thing you can think of and if it is any good, your friends will help you spread the word ... and at least it is within your circle of your friends. Though privacy really doesn't mean anything on facebook - it is practically non existent.

Well, so what brings me back? Well, really it is just cos I haven't felt so excited about my country's politics in a long time! I haven't felt such passion and excitement about SG since ... I was in secondary school and attending the national day parade at the national stadium amongst the crowd singing "Count on me Singapore!".

This upcoming election has made me feel that Singaporeans actually do care a shit about the country, and I can see why. I never felt this way about the previous elections because it always ends up just having a few GRCs being involved, and the rest of the nation can do nothing but watch by the side and feel powerless. We can't get involved even if we wanted to. My GRC always got walked over.

This time, almost all GRCs are contested. ALMOST ALL ... except one .... Tangjong Pagar. As of writing, SDA has decided to not contest that GRC. Sigh ... and there goes my hope of finally able to contribute to making my voice heard. There's still 2 days left, and I still hope I will not end up a spectator again.

But like I said before, this time is different. Almost everyone in SG will have a chance to participate in a new chapter of the country and make a difference in the history of the country.

And we wil finally know if what PAP said was right - that most people are actually happy on the ground and those online do not represent the majority. Or will it end up proving that PAP is just simply way out of touch.

Exciting times! It is times like this that I feel proud to be a Singaporean again. Thanks fellow Singaporeans for standing up for your rights! Let's stand up for Singapore!

FLY BY NIGHT Challenge is here again!!

2009-10-24T11:32:00.002+08:00

The time of the year has come for you boys and girls to go crazy over 1 weekend to let your imagination run wild!! The fly by night Video challenge is here again!!!! Closing Date is real soon! For all video enthusiasts, budding filmmakers, or people who just want to have a whale of a weekend, do not miss this! :)

Dates: 30 Oct – 1 Nov 2009
Venues: Objectifs Centre for Photography & Filmmaking & The Substation
Facebook: Fly By Night Video Challenge
Website: http://www.fly-by-night.org

REGISTRATION OPENS 1 OCTOBER 2009 & CLOSES 25 OCTOBER 2009
Enquiries? Email info@objectifs.com.sg

Expect the unexpected! Fly By Night the space for original voices in filmmaking.

A weekend of mayhem and magic! Bringing together a sizable group of filmmakers and enthusiasts, the
objective is to “make the video you have always wanted to make in one weekend”.

Fly By Night encourages creativity, absurdity, spontaneity and pure fun.

HOW IT WORKS:
Participants join in a group not more than 4 persons. A theme is given by the organisers at the common
meeting place on Friday and the race begins. Participants then spend the next 48 hours creating – shooting and editing.

Ten films selected by the judges receive $300/- each. The judges’ decision is based on the creators’ ability to make the most interesting work with limited time and money. Judges’ Choice will be announced 'live' on the Sunday night itself.

WHAT’S NEW IN 2009
We are inviting participants to Twitter and Facebook their journey!

Pre-Event Screening – 2008 Judges’ Choice Selection
Venue: Objectifs Centre for Photography and Filmmaking
Dates: 30 Oct 2009, Fri
Time: from 6pm
Admission: Free

THE CHALLENGE
DAY 1
Friday, 30 Oct 2009
Objectifs Centre for Photography & Filmmaking, 56A Arab Street, Singapore 199753. For directions,
visit www.objectifs.com.sg

7.30pm: Opening the Fly By Night Video Challenge 2009. Topic is announced. The Challenge begins.

DAY 2
Saturday, 31 Oct 2009
Participants make their video.

DAY 3
Sunday, 1 November 2001
The Substation Theatre, 45 Armenian Street, Singapore 179936. For directions, visit www.substation.org

12pm. Submission of videos

2pm: Screening of all entries

Late: Judges’ awards announced

2009-08-12T01:14:00.002+08:00

Blood Ties’s Chinese Music video is released ….

Featuring a new and very talented singer Shirlene Tia. Hopefully everyone will like it and go watch the film when it comes out in September! Tell your friends about it if you like it! The English Music Video will be released very soon! Look out for it!

音樂盒（十指相扣）－《還魂》中文主題曲 Music box剛剛放在YOUTUBE讓大家觀賞！希望大家聽了會更想去看這部電影！！如果你喜歡的話，別忘了介紹給您的朋友聽喲！謝謝支持本地新人鄭詩潁和本地創作！《還魂》的英語主題曲將會在不久後推出！

Blood Ties The movie will be released 10 September 2009!
《還魂》電影中文主題曲。〈還魂〉2009年9月10日全島上映！
http://www.bloodtiesthemovie.com

歌手：鄭詩潁
詞曲：肆巷叁弄
十指相扣

词／曲：肆巷叁弄

岁月还没来得及把墙上的照片
从彩色染成钻石的光泽
说好要到老
但水仙躲不了
被雨水泛滥的河

我们还来不及欣賞海外的月色
就泥足深陷黑色的沼泽
任命运冲洗
染白了回忆
但我知道你会记得

音乐盒清唱的歌
你向我承诺时轻轻哼着
再也没有什么
我只想铭心记住
你点头那一刻
若我深陷
我知道你会实践诺言
跟随着我
就算全世界都分隔

音乐盒清唱的歌
轻唱的早已不再是快乐
我们剩下什么
冰冷的双眼望着
彼此的瞳色
愿黑夜能
轻轻地包圍我们
再次紧握你的手
十指相扣
不放手

《還魂》預告片 - Blood Ties The Movie Trailer!

2009-06-27T23:48:00.006+08:00

Hello guys,

It's been months since I've written anything on my blog. And what really amazes me is that there are still hundreds of hits every month, which really boggles my mind.

And what have I been up to? A project that has been brewing over the past few years is about to be unleashed upon mankind! :D My feature film has finally wrapped production around end March, and my team and I have been working very hard to make sure that you all will have something to see on the big screen very soon. ... In fact, the date is finally set. 10 SEPTEMBER 2009!!! MARK YOUR CALENDARS!!!

For now, check out the official website! http://www.bloodtiesthemovie.com
The phase one launch of the site has the exclusive trailer not seen at the theaters! See if you can spot the difference between the theatrical version and this one here!

And along with the trailer launch we will be launching a blog containing ghost stories and spooky tales submitted by users. Send your tales to stories@bloodtiesthemovie.com and the top 10 stories will be given a pair of tickets to the gala premiere! At the same time, if you send in quick, we have about 100 copies of the posters around for the early birds submissions! :D Email us now!!! (See the cool poster above)

Well, a picture tells a thousand words. Here's the youtube version!

Official Website
http://www.bloodtiesthemovie.com

Join us @ our Facebook Group (With photos!!)
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=75808661233&ref=ts

Youtube Link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qb6knAxAViM

Ebay is not for Singaporeans

2008-10-15T09:52:00.004+08:00

I am a longtime ebayer .. both seller and buyer. In fact since the inception of Ebay and Paypal itself.

I haven't been selling my items to Singaporeans, because of many reasons. And low prices not being one of them. It is more the hassle. Yes .. it is more hassle to deal with Singaporean buyers than overseas ones trust me.

And the most annoying reason that makes me reluctant to sell to Singaporeas? ... drumroll please .... "Buay steady", "Not gentlemanly", "Does not keep their word"

Here are 2 cases where it is self explanatory.

Case 1:
I placed my ipod on ebay listing. The price was put there as $200. And I mentioned that I will not go below $150. Yet people are still SMSing me about prices that is below that. I choose to ignore them after a while.

And Singaporeans have the tendency to ask questions that is already clarified on the posting. Most primarily, "is there warranty" when I would have stated very clearly, "YES" or "NO".

Then this guy emailed/messaged me and enquired at length about the product. We agreed on the price, and then agreed to meet up at Orchard Road (town) to deal. He was saying he needed it urgently cos he needed to get it for his brother's birthday. So I drove to Orchard to meet him almost immediately.

Then when we met, he still said "No warranty leh. I buying present for my brother la .. can gimme $20 less somemore from the agreed price?" At that point I said "No ... sorry .. i am not selling anymore."

I walked off. And this is not the only time something like that happened.

Case 2:
I posted a LCD TV on ebay. $900 and specified please "no offers below $700". The usual offers below that ensued.

Then this SMS came: "Gd morning, is your LCD still on sale?"

I replied: "Hello. Yes it is still available"

He then text back: "Hello, can I get @400 anyway if 4 my young children"

I responded: "No."

I DON'T F #$#ING CARE IF U WANNA GET IT FOR YOUR DOGS TO WATCH. Or for your brother's birthday or funeral. Why even bring it up?!?!? Can you not read English? The reason there are hardly "30 days back guarantee" in Singapore is precisely because Singaporeans do not have integrity.

In Singapore, we describe these behaviors as "Not gentleman" or "Buay steady". And it all stems from a selffsh standpoint and an unwillingness to be considerate.

And sometimes, this is why Singaporeans complain about the bad level of service (or the lack of good service) in Singapore - they have to learn to start being reasonable customers too .... Stop using bad merchants as an excuse to not behave like a gentleman. You should behave like one regardless. No one's pointing a gun at your head to part with your cash if you do not want to.

When everyone starts being reasonable and understanding ... everything thing will work out great! We'll start seeing good customer service because merchants are more willing to give, and customers will start enjoying better service too. Vicious cycle works both ways - for good behaviors as well as bad ones.

unlocked iPhone on M1 or other networks

2008-08-26T11:01:00.003+08:00

Well just wanted to share some tips and "settings" information for M1 users who are using the iPhone (or are thinking of using the M1 SIM card in the Singtel iPhone - like me ;) )

- Make sure u have signed up a "mobile internet" sunsurf plan .. or be prepared to have your bill shoot into the stratosphere (a SunSurf 22 with 1GB data at 3.6Mbps is only $22 with $10.70 per GB. Quite reasonable. Can activate online or over phone. Almost immediate activation)
- Make sure u got a 3G SIM card. If you are already using a 3G phone, more than likely you have a 3G SIM card. Your SIM card should also have the word "3G" on it. If not sure, call M1 at 1627 to check.
- In the "Settings>General>Network>Cellular Data Network>" Enter the following:
APN: sunsurf
Username: 65
Password: user123
And voila! ... you are done.
- to check your 3G is working properly, you may turn off "Wifi" ("Settings>Wi-Fi>Off"), and see if you can access the internet via Safari or App Store. You should see a 3G logo at the top right hand corner too when 3G is in use.

So here you go. If you are a lucky chap able to get an unlocked (all Singtel and some countries like Australia) iphone, here's how you get it to run on M1.

*As for Starhub, I'm sure the tips above apply, except the data network APN, username and password would obviously be different. You can call Starhub for it. Other networks? Just make sure you get those cellular data APN,username and password right.

Singtel iPhone Pricing

2008-08-19T11:07:00.010+08:00

Got this latest price leak from the Singapore mac users forums ...
Link

Here's the new Singtel plans for the iphone coming in a few days

Three new data plans (all prices with GST)

iFlexi Value - $56 - 300 MB Data - 200 Mins Outgoing Voice - 500 SMS

iFlexi Plus - $95 - 500 MB Data - 500 Mins Outgoing Voice - 500 SMS

iFlexi Premium - $205 - 1500 MB Data - 1500 Mins Outgoing Voice - 1500 SMS

Additional data usage charged at 1cent for each 2KB extra. These plans also come with 3 value added services free (Voicemail, roaming and Caller ID)

Handset price (varies depending on the price plan)

Plan 8GB 16GB
--------------------------------------------------

iFlexi Value $348 (8GB) $508(16GB)

iFlexi Plus $49(8GB) $208(16GB)

iFlexi Premium Free(8GB) Free(16GB)

if you do not want to sign up for the above plans, and want to use your existing voice only plan and add the mobile on broadband plans, then the handset price will be more expensive and you will have to sign either a 24 month or 30 month contract

8GB - $568

16GB - $728

You cannot get the handset without any contract from singtel.

Oh and for those who are planning on taking the route of getting one and then terminating the contract, the penalty is $800!!!

---------------------------

So what are my thoughts?

If the above plans are true and they are not offering unlimited data, these are my conclusions:

- The person who set the pricing in Singtel is obviously a tech turd accountant. He/She probably doesn't even know why iphone is the big deal that it is ...

- they are insulting the intelligence of the customers here

- and those who will buy it are only justifying their cockiness and their actions

- we shld boycott Singtel's packages and make them suffer

- Thank God we have competition (M1 and Starhub should be able to offer their iPhones by Nov)

Update!! 20th-aug-2008
------------
So the Real Prices and Plans have emerged!

Here's the real deal.

SingTel iPhone Price Plans

	Free Incoming Voice Calls All Day
	iFlexi Value	iFlexi Plus	iFlexi Premium
Promotion Subscription	$56/mth	$95/mth	$205/mth
FREE Local Data	1GB^*	2GB^*	3GB^*
FREE Local Calls	200 mins anytime (outgoing)	500 mins anytime (outgoing)	1,500 mins anytime (outgoing)
FREE Local SMS	500	500	1,500
iPhone 3G 8GB	$348	$49	$0
iPhone 3G 16GB	$508	$208	$0
FREE Value-Added Services	Caller ID¹ AutoRoam¹ VoiceMail² SMS Plus¹ Overseas Missed Call Alert
FREE Wireless	Free Wireless@SG 512 kbps
Exclusive Benefits	Top up $5.35 per month for TalkMore³, SMSMore⁴ or Free Unlimited V019 calls⁵
	^*Only for customers who connect/recontract to an iFlexi plan before 5th Sep 2008.

They have other iOne, ITwo, iThree and student plans which u can also subscribe to, but the above iFlexi plans are specially designed for the iphone. What you can notice is the largest difference are the amount of Data allowable are more generous. Not unlimited, but i am not sure 1GB, 2GB or even 3GB is enough for regular email and surfing use ... dun really track ... anyways ... i think i don't see why M1 or starhub can offer unlimited mobile 1Mbps internet at less than 20 bucks and Singtel can't offer something similar. Even if slightly more expensive, the unlimited data is what I would prefer over a faster Mbps for regular internet and email services. Heck i'll take 512kpbs unlimited over a data cap plan.

What is fair regulation?

2008-08-14T09:47:00.007+08:00

Last week, I attended an UMAS (University of Michigan Alumni Singapore) annual dinner and this year's Guest of Honor was Mr Tan Kin Lian, Former CEO NTUC Income.

He is a very passionate man, who believes strongly that NTUC income has crossed the ethical line in dealing with their insurance customer and has written harshly against them before. He also runs a website called THE ONLINE CITIZEN (http://theonlinecitizen.com/)

In the speech he gave, he emphasized that all businesses, not just NTUC, has a responsibility to make profits, but not obscene profits. And if there are obscene profits, they should be responsible to share it with their shareholders/customers. The talk also veered into the concepts of free market competition, and he emphasized that the government should step in to provide certain level of regulations in the market to prevent private firms from "cheating" the customers. Here is a link to an article on his the same issue which was basically the same speech he gave that night (http://theonlinecitizen.com/2008/08/business-ethics-–-honesty-while-making-profits/)

While i appreciate what Mr Tan was driving at, I also want to draw attention to what appears to be a contradiction to what our business education typically preaches. In school, we are taught that all businesses eventually has one goal - to maximize profits. Of course it does not state anything about how and what u should or should not do to attain that goal. Many companies make a lot of profits, and some state that they should not, and many of these arguments are usually pointed towards organizations that have a somewhat "noble" or "socially conscious" purpose. And thus insurance companies are usually ones facing such criticism.

Given the fact that private or government owned companies that make money off of providing a service that is somewhat "socially responsible" in nature, proposition for organizations such as NKF and health insurance being somewhat regulated is justified. And to a certain extent, it is also somewhat the government's responsibility to ensure some form of regulation, should exist to ensure fairplay and encourage healthy competition and innovation within any markets. But they should only exist like a referee within a football match to ensure the game is played fairly. However here lies the biggest problem. What if the referee is not just an independent party but a member who could potentially benefit from either game players' outcome?

We are facing this question in Singapore. And the question here is: given the fact that our Singapore government (the referee) is also a major player in every major industry in Singapore (whether directly via NTUC or somewhat indirectly via some close minister's family ties), who is there to ensure that these companies are working for the people's interests or not? If the referee cannot conduct a game fairly, how can we be sure that the regulations that they put forth, won't be one to pursue their own interests?

While I applaud Mr Tan for his righteousness in wanting to push for ethical business runnings in NTUC, what is to ensure that eveyone in NTUC is equally ethical like him? If (and please note that this is an assumption) a minister in the ruling party has family connections involved in running companies of the likes of say ... NTUC, GIC or Temasek Holdings, would it be unreasonable to say that any government policies that is proposed by this minister could have been for personal gains?

If our country's watchdog (the ruling party) is both the referee and the soccer team, who would want to play?

From a speech by Mdm Halimah Yacob, NTUC ASG & MP for Jurong GRC at the PAP 50 Rally Held on Sunday 5 December 2004 at S’pore Indoor Stadium. With respect to why should NTUC and PAP form such a close bond and if it is good for Singapore, she said "The NTUC wants to secure a better life for workers. The PAP government wants a better life for Singaporeans. So, the NTUC maintains a symbiotic relationship with the PAP to work together for the common good of Singapore." Given the recent accusations that NTUC insurance is "cheating" the customers (Singaporean citizen) and the fact that it is supposed to serve the nation, can we say that the actions and policies of NTUC (or any government linked organizations), as well as the government themselves need to be carefully policed to ensure fairness.

Problem is as a country, we do not have a system where we allow our leaders to be scrutinized properly. Even when it comes to voting, I can only vote within my GRC (if I even get the chance to) for the MPs of the decisions they make, the arguments they put forth etc, but not for the leaders who exact the kind of policies that affect us all like say ... ERP, road tax, GST?

Update:
Correction: Mr Tan is not "running" The Online Citizen. But he is one of the senior editors. :) See the comment below

The World Is Awesome - Boom De Ya Da

2008-08-07T02:13:00.002+08:00

My absolute favorite song right now :) ... and it seems even more timely given my travel to Redang tomorrow :)

It kinda makes me wanna .. break into a song :) ... Boom De Ya Da Boom De Ya Da!

I love the mountains
I love the clear blue skies
I love big bridges
I love when great whites fly
I love the whole world
And all its sights and sounds
Boom de yada, boom de yada
Boom de yada, boom de yada

I love the oceans
I love real dirty things
I love to go fast
I love Egyptian kings
I love the whole world
And all its craziness
Boom de yada, boom de yada
Boom de yada, boom de yada

I love tornadoes
I love arachnids
I love hot magma
I love the giant squids
I love the whole world
It’s such a brilliant place…
Boom de yada, boom de yada
Boom de yada, boom de yada

http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/world-is-just-awesome/promo.html

The Dark Knight - 95%

2008-07-19T23:24:00.004+08:00

I have stopped writing reviews for a while now, but a recent article on Straits Times really prompted this. Ong Sor Fern, a movie critic on Straits Times gave the dark knight a 3.5/5 score while Hellboy 2 gets a 4.5/5. She also complains that the Dark Knight is too long a movie. Having just watched it, I have got no idea how she came to her ratings and how she actually found this film to be too long. Now, I am not saying Hellboy sucks - I actually thought it was an excellent film. But I felt the review for Dark Knight from this reviewer was doing a huge injustice to a brilliant masterpiece that is not just groundbreaking in transcending genres, but also setting a new standard by which all future superhero, action thriller and cops/baddies movies will be judged upon.

This is the one of the best movie this year, and while everyone says Heath Ledger might get nominated for an Oscar, let me make another bold prediction. This film will also be nominated for "Best Picture". Gasp may I dare say it might even win. This is not just one of the best movie this year, this is definitely one of the best mafia/detective action thriller I have ever watched. Yes you read it right, "mafia/detective action thriller" I wrote. Halfway through the film, I lost sense of this movie as a superhero comic book franchise. The Dark Knight has been elevated by Christopher Nolan to more than just a comicbook superhero. Batman is now a man who struggles to question if he's own existence is a blessing or a curse to city that he tries to save. The other 2 "partners" District Attorney Harvey Dent and Commissioner Gordon are thrown into this cat and mouse game with the Joker where the stakes are very difficult moral choices to make. These moral choices that has to be made by these 3 characters are what makes it more than just a regular action film.

This film is also a character study. Of 3 righteous men trying to deal with a maniac killer, and the difficult choices they all have to make throughout the film. It is also intellectually superior to most superhero movies out there and it creates characters that we all can actually believe to be real.

For a movie like that, I would expect people to come out talking about how cool the gadgets was, how great the special effects was, how nice the suit was etc. But the fact that we do not get distracted by these "exterior" things goes to show how well crafted the environment, and the whole world was, that they blend so nicely with the characters that we do not question for a fact that we're watching a make believe movie. The world in the Dark Knight is so real you get immersed in it, and you get engaged by the characters that actually makes you care for them.

The performances by all the actors in the film are excellent. Batman played by Christian Bale was intense and introspective; Gordon played by Gary Oldman was desperate; Harvey Dent by Aaron Eckhart was multilayered; Maggie Gyllenhaal was tender yet strong; and of course the Joker played by the late Heath Ledger was terrifying. All the actors handled they part responsibly and gave very memorable performances. This is definitely an ensemble piece where everyone shone - very brightly.

As for length of the film which was a complain of the ST reviewer, I hope anyone who comes across my review would trust me on my assurance that it does not feel at all like a long film. In fact just check the numerous reviews online at rottentomatoes.com and you'd find everyone praising the film to be extremely fast paced and intense. Ong Sor Fern must have been watching another film altogether.

The Dark Knight, is highly recommended. Please watch this film. Period.

Singaporean males are Wussies

2008-07-15T13:38:00.003+08:00

Hmmm ... it's been a while since I've updated my blog .... 3 months. I was actually contemplating on shutting it down. When I started this blog about 4 years ago it was really an avenue for me to rant about my unhappiness and a place for me to put my daily thoughts down. Kind of like a journal, a diary of sorts. The thing is more and more people got interested reading about the articles, and it is really interesting to see how people reacted (both positively and negatively) to some of my thoughts. I have to admit that the attention garnered does sometimes boost my ego somewhat, but overtime, it kinda intruded upon my own personal space. But hey, this is a public blog, not a private diary, so in a way, I should level my expectations somewhat.

So what am I gonna write about today? Hmmm .. just some random thoughts. I am currently at a Burger King spending some private moments before my next meeting. I see this chinese manager acting like a sergeant in the army ordering the rest of the crew around. Incidentally he was the only male. And this is just funny, cos I was just talking to an old friend over lunch how I felt army have had a bad influence on Singaporean males, on how they behave and exert their authority in the "real" civilian world.

Generally I feel that some males have a certain kind of pride and ego (that may be the result of the social pressure) that they feel like they have to defend and project. Also added to the ingredients in these insecure Singaporean males is the lack of self confidence, and we can start to understand how all these influence the the way they behave in the working/civilian world. "Enhanced" by the training in army about how you can push your weight (or "rank") around to get things done "earn" respect, males in Singapore sometimes behave in annoyingly insecure manner that may rub people the wrong way.

So when some females in Singapore complain why "Singaporeans males are wussies", I think I can understand ...

Well to be fair .. I'll talk about women the next round :D ... or do you readers have some thoughts? :D

It's 3am in the morning ...

2008-03-03T07:00:00.002+08:00

It's 3 am in the morning ... and I am 1/2 awake and unable to sleep. What's keeping me up at night? Is it the pale moon? It is the chilly air-conditioning? Is it some hot babe I'm chatting to on the net? Or is it written in the stars?? What the hell am I talking about? Yes .. I am not in the sanest mood right now. Scratching my arms, neck and forehead ... and there's nothing I can do about it. What's keeping me awake is a mosquito that buzzes by ear every other minute, and has been feeding off me the entire freaking night.

Wow ... man conquers all. We build machines that land on the moon. We build sky scrapers that reach the heavens. But we can't eradicate the most detested of all insects. Yes I hate mosquitoes .... almost as much as cockroaches. Ok cockroaches were scary to me, but these days they are more disgusting than annoying. Mosquitoes are annoying as hell ... and shit, it even got me dedicating an entire post to these blood suckers. Yes it will possibly cause an imbalance to the eco-system should we destroy the mosquito species, and if we are able to do so, we might one day regret it. And you know what, we mankind might actually be able to create some sort of mutant gene that can cause mosquitoes to go extinct. You know, stuff Sci-fi movies are made of.

Ok ... I am not making sense and my thoughts are all over the place. It is 3 am eternal, and KLF's gonna rock ya. I'm heading back to destroy the blood sucker .... And Where's my Zambuk and Tiger Balm? ...

I love Pore Packs

2008-02-18T13:39:00.003+08:00

The Kao Biore Pore packs ... is what I consider one of the best invention of the past 10 years .... Man there is something so bloody satisfying looking at the amount of crap that is pulled out with these pore strips. Instructions say "Do not use more than once every 3 days", but man I wish I could do this every other day. :D Seeing all those white/black heads being pulled out just makes my day ... and when there's not much, it kinda makes me disappointed somewhat :D ....

Come .. share your pore tales! :)

新謠經典－2 Xinyao greatest hits vol 2 ....

2008-01-31T10:45:00.000+08:00

So the 2nd volume is out ... and it appears that they've been listening to pple's feedback. Now they've printed the songs list on the back of the box. But obviously the ppl in the packaging design group hasn't been talking to one another very much, as u can see in the photo, the titles are still covered by this thing that goes around the box. How smart. I bet the 3rd volume they will find some way around it. In the meantime, you can still see the listing of tracks here. :D

The new box set is white in color. Wow! Nice! Lemme guess, it will be red the next round. Or maybe gray, brown, blue ... Who wants to take a bet?? :D Ok sorry, I am a packaging nut :D I dig pretty packaging.

Now back to the beef. The collection this time seems to have addressed some requests from the customers. As the text in the enclosed booklet says "我們收到了許多“老新謠”的關心：為甚麼沒有姜鄠，黎沸揮，雅韻小組，黃宏墨，鄭展倫，玖建，蔡榮祖？。。。巫啟賢，黃譓禎，梁文褔，洪劭軒, 水草三重唱的歌還不夠！”. It is good to see that they've been listening. Some puzzling inclusion does bring a chuckle like 田勁. But I truly wondered if his inclusion was just to satisfy the quota that is required by the different licensees who are involved in this collection. These songs seems to be arguably non-xinyao in my opinion. Some 巫啟賢 tracks like 太傻, 紅塵來去一場夢, 愛那麼重, 傷心的人更傷心, also seems to be of the much "commercialization era" of xinyao already and didn't really feel like they belong here. "流行歌曲，我唱你來聽，。。。唱過就忘記，唱些甚麼沒人理，流行難道就是好歌曲？” The lyrics of "流行歌曲" (also in this collection) suddenly appears remarkably poignant and ironic. But they were after all written by Singaporeans, so I guess they do deserve they little place in history. (For those who are not familiar, 田勁 was a Singaporean who sang and released Thai albums and was quite a star in Thailand. In fact his 成名曲 was actually the chinese version of "Lambada" called "Send true love away". How the hell I still recall all these shit is beyond me.)

Some other notable tracks are those by 鄭展倫，黎沸揮，黃宏墨 etc. Many of these tracks were only released on cassettes and never on CD, so it is very good to see (hear) them here again. One track which is rather rarely known but is one of my all time favourite is 也許是寂寞 by 巫啟賢 - I am pleasantly surprised by the selection of this track. This was a 2nd 插曲 from the Kopi-O TV series, but the main theme song as well as 遺忘過去 became the more popular tracks instead.

Quality wise, they seemed to have taken a more stringent control and testing, and this time I didn't notice any clipping of audio tracks like I noticed in the last box set. Sound quality is on par with the previous boxset, and really, the "HDCD" remastering might really be just marketing jargon. The truth is, many of the original recordings were not very good to begin with, so not all the tracks will truly benefit from the technology. So don't expect the moon when it comes to High Fidelity.

This collection holds up pretty well, and has lots more previously unpublished songs and "rare tracks" than box set 1 - thus I think it is actually a better value than the last one. So whip out your cash, and till the next box set arrives. Can we have more 鄧妙華 and more SBC (Singapore Broadcasting Corporation) tracks? :D .... Please :D

Disc 1
不是不願意 - 姜鄠
感情好累 - 姜鄠
戀之憩 - 姜鄠
我會用真心填滿你的孤單 - 鄭展倫
如果你不小心想起我 - 鄭展倫
多情男子 - 鄭展倫
夢湖 - 巫啟賢＋黃譓禎
唇邊的笑意 - 巫啟賢
感情的水手 - 巫啟賢
讓我可以 - 地下鐵
日子 - 許南盛
夜的眩暈 - 許南盛
親親你念著誰 - 玖建
羞答答的玫瑰靜悄悄地開 - 玖建
你有珠簾一襲 - 梁文褔

Disc 2
古人的酒觴 - 地下鐵
和平的呼喚 - 雅韻小組
倦鳥不再 - 雅韻小組
風城 - 劉瑞政
悟 - 黃譓禎
鷹 - 地下鐵
時川 - 地下鐵
無言的祝福 - 水草三重唱
我們的歌在哪裡？ - 水草三重唱
17:00的心情 - 水草三重唱
門 - 許南盛
臨別衣袖 - 洪劭軒
友情故事 - 洪劭軒
莫提永遠 - 洪劭軒
彈一支涼涼的歌 - 洪劭軒

Disc 3
寫一首歌給你 - 梁文褔＋黃譓赬
追雲 - 水草三重唱
搖搖民謠 - 水草三重唱
排排坐 - 梁文褔＋黃譓赬
野人的夢 - 黃宏墨＋跳動律
笨鳥的表白 - 黃宏墨
童言故鄉 - 黃宏墨
情誼藏心底 - 巫啟賢
也許是寂寞 - 巫啟賢
千千萬萬個愛你 - 巫啟賢
讓夜輕輕落下 - 潘盈
在你眼裡看不見自己 - 潘盈
背著行囊去流浪 - 蔡榮祖
愛情電影畫面 - 蔡榮祖
久久才見到你的好 - 蔡榮祖

Disc 4
流行歌曲 - 合唱
太傻 - 巫啟賢
紅塵來去一場夢 - 巫啟賢
愛那麼重 - 巫啟賢
傷心的人更傷心 - 巫啟賢
為了你 - 巫啟賢
讓全世界起舞 - 黎沸揮
請在我心經過 - 黎沸揮
只有你能完成我的歌 - 黎沸揮
在世界放光芒 - 黎沸揮
邊緣少年 - 姜鄠
日子是一條藍色的牛仔褲 - 姜鄠
只是要愛你 - 田勁
碎花如雨隨風飛 - 田勁
最後的一首歌 - 梁素珊

My Blue Heaven 蓝蓝的天 - Reported

2008-01-29T09:07:00.001+08:00

Wow ... seems like someone else have written about my production even before I had a chance to write about it!

This was a very rushed but extremely enjoyable shoot. And I loved my crew and cast. Might be my last short film in a while before I move on to bigger things ....

Anyways, here's the blog by Jeremy Sing who writes about on-going productions in Singapore right now. Thanks for popping by Jeremy! More updates on the production later while i catch some rest 1st ...

http://www.actuallybasicallyhonestly.blogspot.com

New year ... New Soul

2008-01-22T08:54:00.000+08:00

Hello pple,

Me been out of action and out of blogging for a while cos so busy with so many things lah ... travelling mainly ... After a bout of crazy globetrotting, I think i can finally take a breather and do some work back home liao. And that means, back to bloggin'. So my blog updates will come fast and furious soon. So, thanks for waiting around ... lotsa interesting news, especially for those looking forward to my next short film. AKAN DATANG :)

Meanwhile, have a great 2008, and may your troubles last as long as your new year resolutions ... :D

And what a great song to welcome the new year :) If you got itunes, please buy it.

"New Soul" byYael Naïm

I'm a new soul I came to this strange world hoping I could learn a bit about how to give and take.
But since I came here felt the joy and the fear finding myself making every possible mistake

la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la...

I'm a young soul in this very strange world hoping I could learn a bit about what is true and fake.
But why don't please trying to communicate finding just that love is not always easy to make.

la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la...

This is a happy end cause' you don't understand everything you have done why's everything so wrong

this is a happy end come and give me your hand I'll take you far away.

[Refrain]:
I'm a new soul I came to this strange world hoping I could learn a bit about how to give and take but since I came here felt the joy and the fear finding myself making every possible mistake

la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la...

la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la....

MDA Rap - Just getting a Bad Rep I say ....

2007-11-24T10:39:00.000+08:00

This video is disturbing .... We last had MP doing hip Hop during chingay parade.

Now this .... Lim Peh Peng San *Slap hand on forehead*

What brings to mind ... is a bunch of book smart hi-scoring kids back in secondary school who are trying way too hard to fit in with the rest of the crowds and attempting stunts like these to make themselves look cool. I personally like Mr Man Shu Sum very much, but this is just too hard to watch :D ....

Are they doing these cos they feel they are too out of touch with the rest of the people out there? Upper management insecurities? Are they trying to bridge a gap they feel is too wide? Why is there such a desperation in trying to make themselves look cool? Or wait .. maybe they just have too much money and time, dunno what to do, and decided to wayang ...

Ok enough talk ... time to get it on with the heads of MDA ... shudders ...

“新”新谣精选－NEW Xinyao collection

2007-11-12T19:06:00.000+08:00

Finally ... Ocean Butterfly has released yet another Xinyao (新謠-Singapore Folk Songs) CD collection, "remastered in 24bit and in HDCD format with 88.2Khz sampling" to provide the best quality so far (at least on paper) of these songs from the past. Being an avid Xinyao fan myself, this is pretty exciting, as I had missed the boat on a previous excellent collection (6 Ocean butterflies CD set xinyao collection with 64 songs) that they released a few years back that is totally out of print. The new one promises 300 songs to be in total, with 5 collections of 4CDs each. Now read this carefully, 5 box sets, with 60 songs on 4 CDs in each box totalling 300 songs. Clear?

Ok ... Now the 1st box set is released and this is its review. Mind you the price is not cheap. $69.90 at Sembawang. Gramophone is selling it for $79.90, so becareful :). From what I can see, this set is going to eventually include the 64 songs from the previous 6 CD set, and include more from the later works of Eric Moo from Fame (since Fame is now involved in this compilation) and the 思菘偉菘 (Song brothers). Since I have been collecting Eric Moo's re-released CDs from a while back, and also some xinyao collection CDs here and there, I am able to compare the quality of this latest release to see if they are really "improved and enhanced". And guess what I found out? There are some hits and misses. Now please note I am comparing many of these tracks from different sources. For instance, Eric Moo's songs from Fame will be compared with the last released CDs collection and as for some tracks like 邂逅, I actually have 4 sources to compare to.
So let's begin with the good points.

The hits:
- The songs from the old 6 CD collection from Ocean butterfly are generally enhanced at least in the noise suppression area. I could tell very slight expansiveness in those tracks, but you wouldn't be able to tell unless you play them side by side. But they all had went through some sort of noise reduction process that's for sure. In the result, some tracks might sound like the high frequencies were clipped, but it is not too damaging in my opinion.
- The most impressive tracks are the ones by 顏黎明, I could definitely tell the tracks were remarkably improved. For instance 水的話 from this new HDCD collection is the best compared to the one from "新謠精典之冠珍藏版 - Disc One" and "Obcd-9602 - 海蝶逐日". (Obcd - Ocean Butterflies CD collection) Improved clarity, less noise, and much better mastered.
- Even 地下鐵's tracks were improved. So generally, if you want better quality versions of the 64 songs from the OBCD collection, you will find them here. Though not all the 64 songs from collection are here in this Box set 1, I expect the rest of the 4 sets will contain the rest of them all.
- Eric Moo's 姐姐走的那一個下午 is contained here, finally. This track has been kept out of even Fame's own original collection of Eric Moo's works and this is the original studio recording (not the unplugged versions from the 太傻 CD). This is probably the 1st time this version has ever been published on CD. Just for this track alone I think, is worth the ticket of admission.
- There are some tracks that are very important in the history of xinyao, and I think this time, ocean butterfly is able to join forces with a few other companies to release a definitive collection and I think this is really commendable. For instance Eric Moo's later works with Fame, Song brother's works, and some 吴佳明's works etc. are all included here.

The misses:
- Now this is a big one. The 邂逅 contained in this CD set is "faulty". What I mean by that? A 1/2 a millisecond of the track at the very beginning is "chopped" off. I was soooo bloody disappointed. This is like the song that started it all!!! This song is the 1st xinyao ever to make to the "Dragon Tiger Charts" (龍虎榜）and here, it is flawed!!! Very simtiah .. very simtiah .... And not just that, somehow, this version seems to be boosted in its volume to the extent that there are some distortion in the track. Very very odd.
- Why are there no track listing on the cover?? Given the freaking high price of the set, (and it is obvious that they know hard core people like us will snap it u) what's the deal with withholding that info? We only know there are 60 songs in the set, but how many CDs? No indication. What songs? Not indicated too. Damn it is not even on their website. I almost feel like I am being taken advantaged here (dok! 菜頭). But anyways, here I am kena doked already. And here's the list of the tracks courtesy of yours truly :)
- The version of 我的朋友我的同學我最愛的一切 here is some bastardized remixed choral+R&B Hip Hop version. What the hell isit doing here?
- Eric Moo's tracks from Fame are not improved in any manner from the previous CD collection. Not to say that they are not good. But I was expecting some HDCD treatment, but well ... better than not having any at all.
- 遺忘過去 here is the version which was from his 作品集 which is a 2nd studio version ever recorded. The 1st version was a studio version made for the TV series "咖啡烏" and it had a slightly different ending. The new one ended "泡杯咖啡請聽我告訴你" while the later version went "漫漫長夜請聽我告訴你". Personally, I preferred the later version, the arrangement was better, he sang much better (under the guidance of 劉文正), sounded much more mature and had better lyrics for the ending. Now what's odd, is that on this CD collection, the lyrics booklet printed the lyrics for the older version while the CD included the later recorded version. Very odd indeed. .... In this case, I'd say having the newer version her versus the older one is a tossup. Maybe because I managed to find a "咖啡烏" CD soundtrack and already owned the older version so I am not making a fuss. But some purist might be annoyed.
- 梁文褔 is sorely missed. What a pity ... Will he appear in the other 4 boxsets? Pleeease!!! and 姜鄠? 黄宏墨?

Ok ... so this are some things that stood out for me in reviewing this collection. I am looking forward to the rest of the sets to come out and grab them all. Knowing how rare these CDs are, I highly recommend lovers of Xinyao to quickly grab them while they last. We all know they get 絕版 pretty quickly. :D ....Usually their 頭版 is their 唯一版. :)

Funny how I noticed a trend in these old songs, how they keep talking about 忙碌的過去 and how they keep "looking back" on 那一段日子. And these songs were written when Singapore Pop culture was still very much in its infancy. I think now they look back, the songs seems more appropriate now than back then when it was written, cos they didn't have as much to look back to then. In 星空下 and 遺忘過去, they both have a line that are very very similar - 美麗的明天需要自己去努力 and 生命(生命）還要靠自己去努力. Looking at the Stephanie Sun, JJ Lin, Ah Du, Tanya Chua of today, I can't help thinking how we could have arrived here without the Xinyao of the 80s. If not for those pioneers and all that they have gone through, they wouldn't have paved the way, nor be able to groom and write songs for the successful local singers of today. 沒有這些前輩的努力來打造他們的明天，我們根本不會有這美麗的今天。And it is really all about dreams :)

In a way the film industry is what xinyao was in the 80s. And I can't wait to contribute and see where we will be in 20 years. :)

Disc 1
沙漠足跡 - 劉瑞政＋巫啓賢
邂逅 - 巫啟賢＋黃譓禎
如何對你說 - 顏黎明
水的話 - 顏黎明
東東的故事 - 水草三重唱
晨的腳踨 - 地下鐵
信的告白 - 清泉小組
思夜 - 劉瑞政
星空下 - 巫啟賢
船長 - 巫啟賢
日月落昇 - 地下鐵
初涉 - 黃譓禎
走過年少 - 巫啟賢
阿Ben阿Ben - 水草三重唱
新衣哪有舊衣好 - 梁文褔＋顏黎明

Disc 2
我們這一班 - 顏黎明
青春123 - 顏黎明
看一場週末電影 - 顏黎明
我的朋友我的同學我最愛的一切 - 吴慶康
今天我的心情還不錯 - 吴慶康
Then Hor Then Hor - 吴慶康
我們是最好的朋友 - 巫啟賢
手足情 - 巫啟賢＋巫啟雄
遺忘過去 - 巫啟賢
只有你這樣一個朋友 - 李偉菘＋李思菘
我的搖籃 - 李偉菘
家和萬事興 - 李偉菘
鄉愁 - 李偉菘
朋友你好嗎？ - 洪劭軒
歲月的另一張臉 - 洪劭軒

Disc 3
情感聯絡站（咖啡烏） - 巫啟賢
那一段日子 - 巫啟賢
何必孤獨 - 巫啟賢
姐姐走的一個下午 - 巫啟賢
畢業以後 - 顏黎明
黎明的心 - 顏黎明
小人物的心聲 - 吴佳明
我的生活在這裡 - 吴佳明
陋巷童謠 - 吴佳明
心宇寂星 - 洪劭軒
給父親的話 - 洪劭軒
賣花老婦 - 洪劭軒
啤酒周圍的故事 - 巫啟賢
太陽眼鏡 - 巫啟賢
年輕的心 - 巫啟賢＋合唱

Disc 4
你是我的唯一 - 巫啟賢
輕輕的說聲愛你 - 巫啟賢
擁抱你 - 巫啟賢
我的男人你的嘴唇他的吻 - 吴慶康
我＋你≠愛情 - 吴慶康＋馬毓芬
深愛著你 - 李偉菘
一千個傷心的理由 - 李偉菘＋李思菘
情話 - 李思菘
月色同行 - 顏黎明
你的倒影 - 洪劭軒＋顏黎明
我還在世界的背後想你 - 洪劭軒
从你回眸那天開始 - 洪劭軒
我想說的是 - 巫啟賢
可否從頭來過 - 巫啟賢
再一次戀愛 - 巫啟賢

Funny Hokkien Song!

2007-11-08T16:58:00.000+08:00

This is really just too funny ... These taiwanese just cracks me up ...
Must watch especially if you understand hokkien.
This is the funniest shit I've seen this year .... ahhahhah

Loss of wisdom

2007-11-08T09:10:00.000+08:00

This is me full of wisdom

This is my wisdom in all their "gory" ....

This is how I look 1 day after the surgery

Amazingly, there was hardly any pain. And even after the surgery, I felt totally fine and could even drive myself home if I wanted to. Went off to work right after the surgery and totally fine. I could even eat relatively normally. Even on the 2nd day, there was only slight muscle aching and no headaches or all the horror stories I heard from people. I had no GA and had 4 removed all in less than an hour. 3 of which had to be surgically removed cos they were still "buried". All these points to the fact that I had a great dental surgeon. Dr Myra Elliot, Mount Elizabeth, #04-04 Tel: 67346859. Highly recommended. And I am not paid to say this really. :)

Response to "A fiery NMP gets her baptism of fire"

2007-11-05T08:48:00.000+08:00

The below email is sent to xueying@sph.com.sg. She is the writer for the article "A fiery NMP gets her baptism of fire" featuring Dr Thio Li-ann.

------------------------------------

Dear Xueying,

This email is in response to the article "A fiery NMP gets her baptism of fire" published last Friday 2 November 2007 in Straits Times.

Yee-wei

--------------

I read with great concern regarding Dr Thio Li-ann's worldview on how her take on morality issues is decidedly and openly christian based - and the fact that she is using them as basis for an argument as an NMP to push for a law in our very own country. I would like Dr Thio to kindly leave her religion at the doorsteps of the parliament in future before stepping in. Whatever her stand may be for the S377A issue, please let it be one preached not on the basis of her own religion. While I respect her dramatic telling of how she converted to a Christian from a staunch non-believer, I think it only lends credence as a story to convert other non-believers to her faith, and adds nothing to the strength of her argument or moral standing on the issue of S377A.

Dr Thio believes that religion should have a part to play in public policymaking, and I shudder to know how many in our government share this view. This is because I do not wish my country's policy's to be swayed towards a certain religion or be determined based on a certain religion's view of what's moralistic or not. There should be a separation between religion and state politics. And if she thinks it is inevitable, then she should consider changing her job from a politician to that of a preacher. A fair politician should realise that in order to keep it fair amongst people of different race and religion, he/she has to be objective about how he/she tackles policymaking for all without discrimination and not tainted by his/her evangelical movement to save people their way. I do not want a day to come where we are arguing in parliament about what is allowable by the standards of Buddha versus that of Jesus Christ. Please keep your Gods at your own churches and temples and let your conscience, objectivity and common sense be your guide.

As she proudly wears her own religious beliefs as a badge to champion a moralistic view in parliament, has she given a thought to how people of other race/religion will swallow it? Her using of evangelical christianity as a basis for public policymaking could evoke discord amongst people of different races and religion within the country, and wouldn't that be considered an act of sedition?

Dr Thio and her religion

2007-11-05T02:00:00.000+08:00

On Friday Nov 2 2007, there was a special article on Straits Times about Dr Thio Li-ann entitled "A fiery NMP gets her baptism of fire". Let me quote a few portions of the article that I found rather disconcerting.

On why she thinks religion should have a part to play in public policymaking:
"Every public policy issue has a moral basis and religion does influence the morality of many people. People could argue atheism influences morality as well, so we're going to go back to the whole issue of which morality. I am tired of arguing "Thou shalt not legislate morality". That is a red herring. As all laws are based on morality of some sort, the question really is: What morality should we legislate?"

According to her "S377A is immoral" and "Repealing 377A is the first step of a radical, political agenda which will subvert social immorality, the common good and undermine our liberties!"

Now let's look at Section 377 Act again: Any male person who, in public or private, commits, or abets the commission of, or procures or attempts to procure the commission by any male person of, any act of gross indecency with another male person, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 2 years. Gross indecency is a broad term which, from a review of past cases in Singapore, has been applied to mutual masturbation, genital contact, or even lewd behaviour without direct physical contact.

My greatest concern here is one of the thought that we have a NMP here, who's openly supporting the integration of her religion with the country's affairs. The key operative here is "her religion". We should be aware that Dr Thio is evangelical Christian, and she's very openly so. But when she starts asserting her religious morals as basis for a country's laws, something is very wrong here. Does she remember what's in the Singapore's pledge? "We the citizen of Singapore, pledge ourselves as one united people. Regardless of race, language or religion." But here, she's making the country take a stand on what is fundamentally based on what she thinks her religion thinks is morally correct or not. She asks "what morality should we legislate?" Is she suggesting that morality based on her religion is exclusively all-encompassing for use as a standard for all other religions too? So if christian faith should be the one to determine how laws are to be made, would the day come when every household should remove their "idols" because it would be "against the morally correct laws" to do so even if you are not a christian? I think our NMP here have to realise that to incorporate religion into public law making, she cannot just use her own religion as a standard, but also that of others. By using her religion to influence policy making, would that be considered "an act which could cause discord amongst other races/religious groups" and thus be at the risk of breaking the "sedition act"? (Sedition Act - any act, speech, words, publication or other thing shall not be deemed to be seditious by reason only that it has a tendency to point out, with a view to their removal, any matters producing or having a tendency to produce feelings of ill-will and enmity between different races or classes of the population of Singapore ). I as a buddhist, is finding it an act of ill-will that a christian is using her religion to set government laws that might be deemed unconstitutional or against our national pledge. Can I sue her for sedition then?

Ok here are some more questions:
1) Dr Thio is tired of the argument of "Thou shalt not legislate morality". But christianity does not have a monopoly on what is deemed as proper morals. Abortion is not moral according to Christianity, does it mean that you are going to enacting a law against it? What if non-christian Singaporeans disagree with you?

2) Oddly, S377A is specifically targeting male homosexuals, not the females. But the biggest problem with s377A, is that it criminalizes any indecent sexual act between 2 males specifically, when the indecency act which does not specify it to be any of any gender should be sufficient to cover the grounds. The specific criminalizing of male gays in the s377A is what causes the outrage. The act in itself then appears to be discriminatory in nature. And when Dr Thio rails against the homosexuals and their immorality, wouldn't that make her behavior to be one of discriminatory nature as well?

3) Given the indecency act covers what needs to be covered morally(regardless of religion), wouldn't 377A be redundant as it seeks to re-emphasize the same point but in a discriminatory angle against a minority homosexual group whom are males?

A NMP who argues well, doesn't mean she argues right. And I can only wish that readers and the general public on the whole can see the truth from well-packaged deliveries. Here's my hope that people can learn to see things not by the cover of the book, but through the substance of the text written.

Thinking Aloud: 377A debate and the rewriting of pluralism

2007-11-05T01:57:00.000+08:00

This is written from a Straits Times journalist in response to the parliamentary debate on S377A.

------------------------------------------

27 Oct 2007
Straits Times
By Janadas Devan

I CONFESS: I found the parliamentary debate on Section 377A of the Penal Code exceedingly depressing. It is no fun at all finding oneself holding a view - I believe the provision is odious and should be scrapped - with so little support.

Of the 82 PAP MPs, only 3-1/2 expressed views that resembled mine - Mr Charles Chong, Mr Hri Kumar and Mr Baey Yam Keng. The half was Ms Indranee Rajah, who suggested 377A might be scrapped at some point, only not in this century. Her citation of how long it took to end slavery suggested we might have to wait roughly 2,500 years.

Of the nine NMPs, only one, Mr Siew Kum Hong, who presented the citizens' petition calling for the repeal of 377A, stood up for homosexuals. And among the three opposition MPs, none did.

My depression was infinitely deepened when I read NMP Thio Li-Ann's parliamentary phillipic - entitled Two Tribes Go To (Culture) War - as well as her Insight article yesterday. She was brilliant, incisive, learned, witty and civil. The 'moral conservative majority' has found a formidable warrior - notice that 'War'; and my side - the immoral liberal minority? - was left looking stupid, speechless, confused, sour-faced and uncivil.

Consider how she tore to shreds so many of our cherished beliefs. The idiots that we are, we had believed 'pluralism' meant, among other things, 'autonomy and retention of identity for individual bodies', a 'society in which the members of minority groups maintain their independent cultural traditions', 'a system that recognises more than
one ultimate principle or kind of being', as the Oxford English Dictionary puts it.

But we were wrong. 'Democratic pluralism,' Prof Thio wrote incisively yesterday, 'welcomes every view in public discussion, but does not commit the intellectual fallacy of saying every view is right. The goal is to ascertain the right view for the circumstances.' That means that under certain circumstances - to be determined by whatever passes for
the majority at any moment, I suppose - pluralism can insist on a singular 'ultimate principle or kind of being'.

We silly fellows had also misunderstood the nature of secularism. We had thought it meant separation of religion from the state, politics and public policy. We were wrong. As Prof Thio explained trenchantly in her 'culture war' speech: 'Religious views are part of our common morality. We separate 'religion' from 'politics' but not 'religion'
from 'public policy' (emphasis mine).

I never knew that! I had always assumed that it was necessary to separate religion from politics as well as public policy, for it was impossible to separate public policy from politics, and both from the state. But it turns out my assumption was baseless.

Jawaharlal Nehru, a Brahmin who insisted on untouchability being banned in the Indian Constitution despite the opposition of many caste Hindus, simply did not understand a thing about secularism. Bishop Desmond Tutu, a Methodist who insisted that discrimination against homosexuals be prohibited in the South African Constitution, was similarly clueless. And all those Enlightenment chaps in powdered wigs who insisted on the separation of church and state in the United States - in part, because there was no 'common morality' among religions - well, silly fellows, they knew nothing.

Yes, I must admit, Prof Thio demolished my side with astonishing ease. First, her big guns - pluralism is not plural; secularism can be religiously informed - left us limbless. Then, equally impressively, the cultural warrior sliced and diced us with her rapier wit and uncommon civility. We were finally left with our torsos tossed into ideological ditches and our heads stuck on cultural pikes.

'To say a law is archaic is merely chronological snobbery,' she thundered, referring to 377A. That sent me reeling. So original! So conclusive! So brilliant!

'Chronological snobbery' was first coined by Owen Barfield and C.S. Lewis, two eminent British popular theologians. It first appeared in print, I think, in Lewis' moving spiritual autobiography, Surprised By Joy. Lewis and Barfield coined it to stigmatise modern 'intellectual fashions' that they thought consigned unfairly religious faith to a seemingly unregenerate past.

Prof Thio, a most learned person, must have known of the origin of this phrase in theological controversy, and she brilliantly extended it to the law. And if one linked this extension to the profound truths she uncovered about public policy in a secular state, one would see how her stigmatisation of 'chronological snobbery' can be extended further
still. All those in favour of teaching 'intelligent design' alongside Darwin's theory of evolution in schools, raise your hands. Done! Education Ministry, please take note.

Then there was her wit, deployed so civilly. Anal sex is like 'shoving a straw up your nose to drink', she said. A colleague of mine googled that and discovered it was an often cited image in American anti-gay pamphlets. To top that, she said 377A must be kept on the books so we can say 'Majullah Singapura', not 'Mundur Singapura'. If you did not get the joke, here is a clue: Mundur means 'backward' in Malay, and 'backward' here alludes to that 'straw' and another orifice. See? Now, isn't that funny?

Oh, I cried when I read that. Imagine that: The moral conservative majority makes better vulgar jokes than the immoral liberal minority - and in Parliament too. If the immoral minority cannot beat the moral majority even in this department, we are really and truly kaput.

What sent me into shock was the discovery that Singapore is actually the US. I am referring to Prof Thio's sources of inspiration. Google 'culture war' and you will discover them.

The term was made famous by Mr Patrick Buchanan, a right-wing conservative (many would say zealot) who challenged former president George H.W. Bush, a moderate, for the Republican presidential nomination in 1992. At the Republican convention that year, Mr Buchanan alarmed many Americans by declaring: 'There is a religious war going on in our country for the soul of America. It is a cultural war, as critical to the kind of nation we will one day be as was the Cold War itself.'

Once one understands the milieu from which this statement issues, one would understand the origins of Prof Thio's profound understanding of pluralism and secularism. It does not derive from the Enlightenment or from contemporary Europe or Asia. It derives from the American religious right. It is they who insist pluralism cannot ultimately be plural; it is they who demand public policy be informed by religious beliefs.

And all but a few thumped their seats when Prof Thio finished her speech? They must have missed the radical - yes, radical and extreme - nature of her claims. One person who did not, I think, was Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. My colleague Chua Mui Hoong reported he did not thump his seat.

That lifted my depression somewhat. I did not like one bit the upshot of the Prime Minister's speech - that 377A will stay because the majority, especially Christians and Muslims, are opposed to its scrubbing. But I was proud of what he had to say, and how he said it.

There are 'limits', he said, for homosexuals in Singapore. But there would be limits too, in how religious beliefs are applied in the policing of homosexuals. Section 377A will not be applied 'proactively', he said - meaning, it will be inoperative.

Mr Stuart Koe, chief executive of gay Asian portal Fridae.com, was wrong to liken 377A to a gun being put to the heads of homosexuals and not pulling the trigger. There is a gun, it remains symbolically loaded, but it has been laid down.

For that - a small victory - we have to thank old-fashioned pluralism, not Prof Thio's radical rewriting of it. Some of us - our children, our friends, our siblings - have different sexual orientations, so let's give them space.

For the rest - well, we will have to wait, but hopefully, not for 2,500 years.

Two Tribes Go to (Culture) War - By Dr Thio Li-Ann NMP

2007-11-05T01:33:00.000+08:00

Here's the parliament speech presented by Dr Thio Li-ann, a Nominated MP who is speaking out against the repeal of the s377A.

The S377A states: Any male person who, in public or private, commits, or abets the commission of, or procures or attempts to procure the commission by any male person of, any act of gross indecency with another male person, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 2 years.

After reading this post, please read the following one of a rebuttal by Straits Times Journalist Janadas Devan.
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Speech, Singapore Parliamentary Debates, Penal Code Revisions, 22-23 October 2007 (Professor Dr. Thio Li-ann, Nominated Member)

Two Tribes Go to (Culture) War Two camps championing two distinct criminal law philosophies are polarised over whether to retain or repeal s377A which criminalizes public or private acts of gross indecency between two men, such as sodomy.

The ‘liberal’ camp wants 377A repealed. They offer an ‘argument from consent’ –government should not police the private sexual behaviour of consenting adults. They opine this violates their liberty or ‘privacy’. They ask, ‘Why criminalize something which does not “harm” anyone; if homosexuals are “born that way”, isn’t it unkind to ‘discriminate’ against their sexual practices?

These flawed arguments are marinated with distracting fallacies which obscure what is at stake – repealing 377A is the first step of a radical, political agenda which will subvert social morality, the common good and undermine our liberties.

The ‘communitarian’ camp argues from ‘community values’ – these social conservatives want 377A retained, to protect public health, morality, decency and order. A Keep 377A online petition attracted over 15,000 signatures after a few days.

Like many, I applaud the government’s wisdom in keeping 377A which conserves what upholds the national interest. ‘Conservative’ here is not a dirty word connoting backwardness; environmental conservation protects our habitat; the moral ecology must be conserved to protect what is precious and sustains a dynamic, free and good society.

The welfare of future generations depends on basing law on sound public philosophy. We should reject the ‘argument from consent’ as its philosophy is intellectually deficient and morally bankrupt.

Sir, the arguments to retain 377A are overwhelmingly compelling and should be fully articulated, to enable legislators to make informed decisions and not be bewitched by the empty rhetoric and emotional sloganeering employed by many radical liberals, which generate more heat than light.

The real question today is not “if” we should repeal 377A now, or wait until people are ready to move. This assumes too much, as though we need an adjustment period before the inevitable. The real question is not “if” but “should” we ever repeal 377A. It is not inevitable; it is not desirable to repeal it in any event. Not only is retaining s377A sound public policy, it is legally and constitutionally beyond reproach. Responsible legislators must grapple with the facts, figures and principles involved; they cannot discount the noxious social consequences repeal will bring.

Debate must be based on substance not sound-bites. Let me red-flag four red herrings.

First, to say a law is archaic is merely chronological snobbery.

Second, you cannot say a law is ‘regressive’ unless you first identify your ultimate goal. If we seek to copy the sexual libertine ethos of the wild wild West, then repealing s377A is progressive. But that is not our final destination. The onus is on those seeking repeal to prove this will not harm society.

Third, to say a law which criminalizes homosexual acts because many find it offensive is merely imposing a “prejudice” or “bias” assumes with justification that no reasonable contrary view exists. This evades debate. The liberal argument which says sodomy is a personal choice, private matter and ‘victimless crime’ merely asserts this. It rests precariously on an idiosyncratic notion of “harm” – but “harm” can be both physical and intangible; victims include both the immediate parties and third parties. What is done in ‘private’ can have public repercussions.

Fourth, some argue that legislators should be ‘open-minded’ and decriminalize sodomy. However, like an open mouth, an open mind must eventually close on something solid. They urge legislators to be ‘objective’ and to leave their personal subjective beliefs at home, especially if they hold religious views which consider homosexuality aberrant. This demand for objectivity is intellectually disingenuous as there is no neutral ground, no ‘Switzerland of ambivalence’ when we consider the moral issues related to 377A which require moral judgment of what is right and wrong - not to take a stand, is to take a stand! As law has a moral basis, we need to consider which morality to legislate. Neither the majority or minority is always right – but there are fundamental values beyond fashion and politics which serve the common good. Religious views are part of our common morality. We separate ‘religion’ from ‘politics,’ but not ‘religion’ from ‘public policy’. That would be undemocratic. All citizens may propose views in public debate, whether influenced by religious or secular convictions or both; only the government can impose a view by law. Incidentally, one does not have to be religious to consider homosexuality contrary to biological design and immoral; secular philosopher Immanuel Kant considered homosexuality “immoral acts against our animal nature” which did not preserve the species and dishonoured humanity.

The issues surrounding s377A are about morality, not modernity or being cosmopolitan. What will foreigners think if we retain 377A? Depends on which foreigner you ask. Many would applaud us! Such issues divide other societies as well! The debate is not closed. A group of Canadians1 were grieved enough to issue an online apology to the world “for harm done through Canada's legalization of homosexual marriage”, urging us not to repeat their mistakes.

Singapore is an independent state and we can decide the 377A issue ourselves; we have no need of foreign or neo-colonial moral imperialism in matters of fundamental morality.

There are no constitutional objections to s377A Sir, there are no constitutional objections to retaining 377A while de-criminalising heterosexual oral and anal sex. Three legal points are worth making.

First, there is no constitutional right to homosexual sodomy. It is not a facet of personal liberty under article 9. Nor is there a human right to homosexual sodomy though some like to slip this in under the umbrella of ‘privacy.’ Human rights are universal, like prohibitions against genocide. Demands for ‘homosexual rights’ are the political claims of a narrow interest group masquerading as legal entitlements. Homosexual activists often try to infiltrate and hijack human rights initiatives to serve their political agenda, discrediting an otherwise noble cause to protect the weak and poor. You cannot make a human wrong a human right.

Second, while homosexuals are a numerical minority, there is no such thing as ‘sexual minorities’ at law. Activists have coined this term to draw a beguiling but fallacious association between homosexuals and legally recognized minorities like racial groups. Race is a fixed trait. It remains controversial whether homosexual orientation is genetic or environmental, perhaps both. There are no ex-Blacks but there are ex-gays. The analogy between race and sexual orientation or preferred sexual preferences, is false. Activists repeat the slogan ‘sexual minority’ ad nausem as a deceptive political ploy to get sympathy from people who don’t think through issues carefully. Repetition does not cure fallacy

Science has become so politicized that the issue of whether gays are ‘born that way’ depends on which scientist you ask. You cannot base sound public philosophy on poor politicized pseudo ‘science’.

Homosexuality is a gender identity disorder; there are numerous examples of former homosexuals successfully dealing with this. Just this year, two high profile US activists left the homosexual lifestyle, the publisher of Venus, a lesbian magazine, and an editor of Young Gay America. Their stories are available on the net. An article by an ex- gay in the New Statesmen this July identified the roots of his emotional hurts, like a distant father, overbearing mother and sexual abuse by a family friend; after working through his pain, his unwanted same-sex attractions left. While difficult, change is possible and a compassionate society would help those wanting to fulfill their heterosexual potential. There is hope.

Singapore law only recognizes racial and religious minorities. Special protection is reserved for the poor and disadvantaged; the average homosexual person in Singapore is both well educated, with higher income – that’s why upscale condo developers target them! Homosexuals do not deserve special rights, just the rights we all have.

‘Sexual minorities’ and ‘sexual orientation’ are vague terms – covering anything from homosexuality, bestiality, incest, paedophilia – do all these minority sexual practices merit protection?

Third, 377A does not breach the article 12 guarantee of equality. While all human persons are of equal worth, not all human behaviour is equally worthy. We separate the actor from the act. In criminalizing acts, we consider the wrongfulness of the act, the harm caused and how it affects the good of society.

Parliament has the power to classify; this involves a choice, like distinguishing murder and manslaughter. Classifications which satisfy the constitutional test of validity are called “differentiation”; only invalid classifications are called “discrimination.” Criminalising same-sex sodomy but not opposite-sex sodomy is valid “differentiation.” S377A does not target any specific actor; it would cover a heterosexual male experimenting with male sodomy. Valid classifications must have a clear basis and be rationally related to a legitimate purpose. In serving public health and public morality, 377A passes constitutional muster with flying colours.

Public Health Argument Sir, public health and safety is a legitimate purpose served by the 377A ban on homosexual anal and oral sex. Both these practices are efficient methods of transmitting sexual diseases and AIDs / HIV which are public health problems. These are not victimless crimes as the whole community has to foot the costs of these diseases.

Anal-penetrative sex is inherently damaging to the body and a misuse of organs, like shoving a straw up your nose to drink. The anus is designed to expel waste; when something is forcibly inserted into it, the muscles contract and cause tearing; fecal waste, viruses carried by sperm and blood thus congregate, with adverse health implications like ‘gay bowel syndrome’, anal cancer. ‘Acts of gross indecency’ under 377A also covers unhygienic practices like “rimming” where the mouth comes into contact with the anus. Consent to harmful acts is no defence – otherwise, our strong anti-drug laws must fall as it cannot co-exist with letting in recreational drugs as a matter of personal lifestyle choice.

Opposite-sex sodomy is harmful, but medical studies indicate that same-sex sodomy carries a higher price tag for society because of higher promiscuity and frequency levels. The New York Times2 reported that even informed homosexuals return to unsafe practices like bare-backing and bug-chasing after a health crisis wanes. A British Study3 showed that the legalization of homosexual sodomy correlated with an upsurge of STDs among gays. Common sense tells us that with more acceptance, any form of consensual sexual behaviour increases. Sodomy laws have some deterrent effect.

It is rational for the state to target the most acute aspect of a problem. The legal issue is not whether the state should be concerned with heterosexual sodomy but whether it is reasonable to believe same-sex sodomy poses a distinct problem. Medical literature indicates that gays have disproportionately higher STDs rates, which puts them in a different category from the general public, warranting different treatment.

The onus rests on opponents of 377A to negate every conceivable basis for treating homosexual and heterosexual sodomy differently. They cannot, because classifications do not need to be perfect and can be under-inclusive; valid classifications only need to “go some way” to serve the legislative goal, which 377A clearly does.

Public Morality Sir, the power to legislate morality is not limited to preventing demonstrable harm. The Penal Code now criminalizes the wounding of both religious and racial feelings (s498).

S377A serves public morality; the argument from community reminds us we share a way of life which gives legal expression to the moral repugnancy of homosexuality. Heterosexual sodomy unlike homosexual sodomy does not undermine the understanding of heterosexuality as the preferred social norm. To those who say that 377A penalizes only gays not lesbians, note there have been calls to criminalize lesbianism too.

Public sexual morality must buttress strong families based on faithful union between man and wife, the best model for raising children. The state should not promote promiscuity nor condone sexual exploitation. New section 376D criminalizes the organisation of child sex tours. Bravo.

The ‘argument from consent’ says the state should keep out of the bedroom, to safeguard ‘sexual autonomy’. While we cherish racial and religious diversity, sexual diversity is a different kettle of fish. Diversity is not license for perversity. This radical liberal argument is pernicious, a leftist philosophy based on radical individualism and radical egalitarianism. It is unworkable because every viable moral theory has limits to consent.

Radical individualism would demand decriminalising consensual adult incest; but the Penal Code is not based on consent as s376F reflects. The state has always retained an interest in regulating conduct in the bedroom – the issue is which type?

Radical egalitarianism applied to sexual morality says the state should not morally distinguish between types of consensual sex. It exudes a false neutrality but actually sneaks in a substantive philosophy: Hedonism which breeds narcissism. This extols Section 20, Misc Offences Act. satisfying desire without restraint as a matter of autonomy. But some desires are undesirable, harming self and society.

The argument from consent ultimately celebrates sexual libertine values, the fruit of which is sexual licentiousness, a culture of lust, which takes, rather than love, which gives. This social decline will provoke more headlines like a 2004 Her World article called: “Gay guy confesses: I slept with 100 men…one of them could be your hubby.” What about the broken-hearts involved?

If you argue from consent, how can you condemn any form of sexual self- expression, no matter how selfish or hurtful? But, no man is an island. Ideas, embodied in laws, have consequences. Don’t send the wrong message.

The issues raised in the Petition fall apart on rigorous analysis.

Rule of Law vs. Rule of Good Law Sir, government policy is not to pro-actively enforce 377A. Some argue that just keeping this law on the books will erode the rule of law. I disagree. It is not turning a blind eye on the existence of homosexuals here; it is refusing to celebrate homosexuality while allowing gays to live quiet lives. This is prudent, as it is difficult to enforce ‘bedroom’ offences; such intrusive powers should be judiciously used anyway.

We have other hard-to-police laws which embody communal standards of public decency, such as laws against nudity visible to the public eye, even if you are at home.5 Law is a Moral teacher and makes a moral statement; 6 years ago, Singapore symbolically blocked access to 100 porn sites, as a ‘statement of our values.’ We value our values, while remaining realistic.

A non pro-active policy does not mean 377A will never be enforced – who knows what another season may require? Policies can change.

Sir, citizens are not just concerned with the rule of law but with the rule of good law. Laws which violate core moral values will alienate many and bring the system into disrepute. Indeed, many citizens see keeping 377A as evidence the government is defending the right moral values, which lends legitimacy.

Criminalising Moral Wrongs – which? Sir, it is true that not all moral wrongs, such as adultery, are criminalized; yet they retain their stigma. But adulterors know they done wrong and do not lobby for toleration of adultery as a sexual orientation right.

Homosexual Agenda and Social Consequences Conversely, homosexual activists lobby hard for a radical sexual revolution, waging a liberal fundamentalist crusade against traditional morality. They adopt a ‘step by step’ Section 27A(1) Misc Offences (Public Order and Nuisance) Act approach to hide how radical the agenda is. Liberals never ask: what happens next if you repeal 377A. Responsible legislators must see the Big Picture.

Pro-gay academics identify 5 main steps in this agenda in their study of foreign jurisdictions.

Step 1: repeal laws criminalizing homosexual sex. They consider this “pivotal” to advancing the homosexual agenda. Why? Without this, they cannot advance in the public sphere or push for government funding and support for special programmes, such as the New York Gay High School. Governments don’t promote criminal activities. You need to change the criminal law before changing civil law.

But decriminalizing sodomy is only (bing1 shan1 yi4 jiao3) the tip of the iceberg which is 1/8 of an ice mass – we must see what lies beneath the water to avoid a Titanic fate.

Step 2 is to equalize the age of consent for heterosexual and homosexual sex; in some countries, this is as low as 13. Do we want to expose Sec 1 boys to adult sexual predators? To be sexually creative?

Step 3 is to prohibit discrimination based on ‘sexual orientation’. But would this not include all sexual behaviour? “Sex before 8 or else it’s too late” is the motto of the North American Man Boy Love Association. Should we judge pedophilia or be relativist and promote “anything goes” sexual experimentation?

Sir, to protect homosexuals, some countries have criminalized not sodomy but opposition to sodomy, making it a ‘hate crime’ to criticize homosexuality. This violates freedom of speech and religion; will sacred texts that declare homosexuality morally deviant, like the Bible and Koran, be criminalized? Social unrest beckons. Such assaults on constitutional liberties cannot be tolerated.

Steps 4 and 5 relate to legalizing same-sex marriage or partnerships, child adoption rights. This subverts both marriage and family, which are institutions homosexuals seek to redefine beyond recognition. Will MOE then commission a book copying the US “Heather has 2 mummies” called “Ah Beng has 2 daddies?” What if parents disagree with their kids studying homosexual propaganda?

Is legalizing same-sex marriage progressive? It is if you want a genderless planet where “husband” and “wife” are considered discriminatory terms, to be replaced by “spouse”.

We want to be able to say, Majullah Singapura, not Mundur Singapura!

Repealing 377A will further batter the institution of ‘marriage’ which we must bolster! This is because the arguments raised to challenge a distinction between heterosexual and homosexual sodomy, equally apply to challenge legal distinctions between lawful heterosexual marriage between man and wife and unlawful homosexual unions.

To reinforce the moral foundations of a pro-family policy that permits only heterosexuals to marry, it is permissible to differentiate between heterosexual and homosexual sodomy. To say that 377A discriminates is effectively to say that marriage laws discriminate and are unconstitutional.

Legalising sodomy would set a bad example; by signaling approval, it may change both attitude and conduct; coupled with sexual hedonism, it makes a mockery of strong family values. 377A helps to protect against this harm.

Academic supporters of the homosexual agenda like my colleague Michael Hor argued online that even if 377A was not enforced, discriminatory policies against homosexuals could be built on the logic of its existence. But taking his logic, repealing 377A would mean the government would be less able to resist claims for homosexual marriage or for promoting homosexuality as a desirable lifestyle in schools, as this would be ‘discriminatory’.These foreign developments warn us that the advance of the homosexual agenda here is not remote.

To slouch back to Sodom is to return to the Bad Old Days in ancient Greece or even China where sex was utterly wild and unrestrained, and homosexuality was considered superior to man-women relations. Women’s groups should note that where homosexuality was celebrated, women were relegated to low social roles; when homosexuality was idealized in Greece, women were objects not partners, who ran homes and bore babies. Back then, whether a man had sex with another man, woman or child was a matter of indifference, like one’s eating preferences. The only relevant category was penetrator and penetrated; sex was not seen as interactive intimacy, but a doing of something to someone. How degrading.

It was only when marriage was invented by the Jewish Torah that the genie of sexual impulses was forced into the marital bottle, so that sex no longer dominated society – this discipline provided the social base for the development of western civilization. Homosexuals as fellow citizens have the right to expect decent treatment from the rest of us; but they have no right to insist we surrender our fundamental moral beliefs so they can feel comfortable about their sexual behaviour. We should not be subject to the tyranny of the undemocratic minority who want to violate our consciences, trample on our cherished moral virtues and threaten our collective welfare by imposing homosexual dogma on right-thinking people. Keep 377A.

Democracy and Debate Sir, we Singaporeans will continue to debate and disagree over controversial moral issues as they arise. We should make substantive arguments and not think with our feelings; the media should present both sides fairly, without bias. However, I have noted a disturbing phenomenon over the 377A debate– the argument by insult. Instead of reasoning, some have resorted to name-calling to intimidate and silence their opponents. People with principled moral objections to the homosexual agenda are tarred and feathered ‘homophobes’, ‘bigots’, to shut them up. This strategy is unoriginally imported from foreign gay activists, which stifles creative thinking and intellectual enquiry.

When you shout, full of sound and fury, and call your opponents nasty names, this terminates public debate. No one wants to be called a bigot. But think about it – if I oppose incest, am I an incestophobe? If I oppose alcoholism, am I a winophobe? If having an opinion means you are bigoted, then we are all bigots! What is your phobia?

Where certain liberals accuse their opponents of being intolerant, they demonstrate their own intolerance towards their opponents! They are hoist on their own petard, guilty of everything they accuse their detractors of!

One of my colleagues, a young professor, suffered these vicious tactics when the Straits Times published an article this May where Yvonne Lee argued against repealing 377A. This well-researched, cogent article so incensed homosexual activists that they flooded her with a torrent of abusive, lewd emails and wrote to her head of department calling for her to be removed from her job. This appeared to be a co-ordinated campaign.

We academics are used to disagreement, but why write to her employer and threaten her livelihood? Why vilify someone and seek to assassinate their personal and professional reputation? I hope the House joins me in deploring these malicious attacks which also assault academic freedom. She is owed an apology. I would be ashamed to belong to any academic institution that cravenly bowed down to such disgraceful bully- boy tactics.

This August, I had my own experience with this sort of hysterical attack. I received an email from someone I never met, full of vile and obscene invective which I shall not repeat, accusing me of hatemongering. It cursed me and expressed the wish to defile my grave on the day 377A was repealed.

I believe in free debate but this oversteps the line. I was distressed, disgusted, upset enough to file a police report. Does a normal person go up to a stranger to express such irrational hatred?

Smear tactics indicate the poor quality of debate and also, of character. Let us have rational debate, not diatribe, free from abusive rhetoric and tantrum-throwing. As Singapore approaches her Jubilee, My hope for the post-65 generation is that we will not become an uncivil civil society borne from an immature culture of vulgarity which celebrates the base, not the noble. I speak, at the risk of being burned at the stake by militant activists. But if we don’t stand for something, we will fall for anything. I was raised to believe in speaking out for what is right, good and true, no matter the cost. It is important in life not only to have a Brain, but a Spine.

One of my favourite speeches by PM Lee, which I force my students to read, is his Harvard Club speech 2 years ago where he urged citizens not to be “passive bystanders” in their own fate but to debate issues with reason and conviction. I took this to heart. To forge good policy, we need to do our homework and engage in honest debate on the issues. Let us also speak with civility, which cannot be legislated, but draws deep from our character and upbringing. Before government can govern man, man must be able to govern himself.

Sir, let speaking in the public square with reason, passion, honesty, civility, even grace, be the mark of a Citizen of Singapore.

Girl Singing From Earth's End

2007-11-02T01:00:00.000+08:00

Excerpt from the screenplay of "Lust, Caution" - written by Wang Hui Ling and James Schamus. Based on a Short Story by Eileen Chang.

INT. JAPANESE TAVERN - SHANGHAI - EVENING

She snuggles up to him.

WANG CHIA-CHIH
I know why you brought me here.

YEE
Why?

WANG CHIA-CHIH
You want me to be your whore.

YEE
Whore?
(laughs)
It is I who was brought here ... So you see, I know better than you how to be a whore.

WANG CHIA-CHIH
(tenderly)
Will you let me sing for you? I am a much better singer than they!

YEE
Really? Hm.

Wang lowers her lashes and smiles. She takes a sip of sake, licks her lips and stands up.

She positions herself in front her him, posing like a classical sing-song girl. At first her voice is barely a whisper, but then we can make out what she is singing "Girl Singing From Earth's End."

WANG CHIA-CHIH
(singing)

From the end of the earth
To the farthest sea
I search and search
For my heart's companion
A young girl sings
While he plays his harp
Your heart is my heart
Looking north from my mountain nest
My tears fall and fall
Missing him she will not rest
Ah! My man, even in hard times
Love prevails.
Who in this life does not prize youth as much as gold?
A young girl to her man
Is like thread to its needle.
Ah! My beautiful man,
We're like thread tied together,
Never to be unwound.

As she sings, she closes her eyes, letting the sentiment take over.
Her body moves with the tune.

Yee is at first amused, then attentive, and then he himself, as she finishes closes his eyes, unaccountably moved, tears flowing.

Silence. He puts his hands together, applauds her, slowly at first, then faster and louder. She sits back down beside him.

He takes her in his arms. They kiss.

The man I married changed ...

2007-11-02T00:39:00.000+08:00

If you saw a person that looks like me on TV this morning Channel 8, no it wasn't me. It was my evil twin. ;)
Why the hell would I be doing on a show that talks about online dating, together with 2 professionals, 1 a boss of a dating agency called Lunch Actually, and another Doctor from the states who is an expert in dating and relationships? Why would I pretend to be a single bachelor talking about my experiences and sharing my thoughts about people using online services to meet potential candidates for my life long partner? :D

Well .... cos my evil twin decided to be nice for once and help out a good business associate and close friend in need. Anyway it was nice hearing what the Dr Joshua Ting had to say from a psychological and sociological viewpoint of a professional about human relationships.

This was the last thing he said which I thought I would share with those who missed the show. "Pursuing a woman, to a male is like pursing a goal. When they get the girl, it is like mission accomplished, and they can move to more "important things" in life like the career. But when a woman dates, she is extrapolating and imagining how things would extend from the dating phase to the marriage phase. And more often than not, things don't turn out the way she expected and she would say "He's no longer the same man as I once dated".

My mom commented right after that "How true. Your father changed after he became rich. Useless man. After he got the money the whole person changed ..."

But I was thinking to myself .. "Wasn't dad rich already when my mom married him? What changed then?" Hmmm ... more food for thought.... :)

Immortal Beloved - 81%

2007-10-31T14:39:00.000+08:00

Do you like classical music? Do you like Beethoven? Do you like tragic love stories? Do you like mysteries? Well you get them all in this film Immortal Beloved. I had watched this film sometime in 1998 and it is hard to recall why I had looked up the film in the first place. I do not actively seek out love stories in particular because I always thought those stories are better watched with a date. So it might have been my obsession with the Moonlight Sonata for a while that led my research to this film. It could also been Gary Oldman himself that drawn me to this film. Whatever the reason, I remembered that when I first watched it, it left a lasting impression. I loved it. I loved the way the story was told and structured. But a few years back, after encountering another brilliant film by the name of Citizen Kane, I have to admit that Immortal Beloved was somewhat discounted due to a similar structure that was employed. It also goes to show how ahead of its time Citizen Kane was.

So why this review now? I recently gave away the regular DVD of the film and I purchased a Blu-ray High Definition version of the film to replace. So re-watching this film on High Definition this time, allow me to watch it with a new perspective and also with a more objective eye after watching many more classic films - eg Citizen Kane. And now back to the movie. It starts with the death of Beethoven, and how his long time friend and secretary Anton Schindler discovering a letter that wills all his assets to a mysterious "Immortal Beloved". This mystery part is historically true, and scholars over the years have tried to debate and speculate who this immortal beloved of his might be. But what the final revelation provided by the director/writer of the film is debatable. There are many scholars who have disputed it, and watching the film, you might find some inconsistencies with Beethoven's behavior that contradicts the conclusion. But these might be quibbles that ultimately do not detract from the great performances by Gary Oldman, Jeroen Krabbe, and the wonderful female cast members.

The film is one of a tragic love story. A friend of mine once mentioned before, why are all good ones like these? Well, because it makes for a more dramatic story. Unrequited love always tug at the heart strings, and though I prefer a happy ending for my own life, I can understand why sometimes happy endings do not necessary make good cinema. Romeo & Juliet wouldn't be as compelling if they lived happily ever after. Liang Shan Bo and Zhu Ying Tai wouldn't be the "Love Eterne" if they didn't have such a dramatic ending. It is pure cinema, and Beethoven's music, Beethoven's death, Beethoven's letter, and Beethoven's love life, is good dramatic material.

Unfortunately, this film opened to mixed reviews in 1994 and didn't do very well at the box office - less than US$10million. I suspect it to be largely due to the marketing of the film. The poster doesn't do much to tell people what kind of a movie it was. In my opinion, they should have marketed the film as a "love story" and try to capture the women's crowd. If I had looked at the poster, I wouldn't have known it to be a film about Beethoven either. So do I recommend this film. Yes I do. So go find it and buy it. It deserves a second chance on video.

Microsoft took a bite of Facebook

2007-10-25T17:20:00.000+08:00

What the F@$$#@!! Why must Microsoft dip their freaking fingers into everything cool and fresh and innovative that isn't theirs??! When I read the news that Microsoft dumped $240million into facebook, I flipped. Wasn't it just a month ago the CEO of facebook claimed that they wish to be independent for at least a few more years?? ... sigh ....

But further read into the article, it appears this 240million translate to just a 1.6% stake, and it makes MS the exclusive 3rd party advertising partner. So it doesn't seem too bad right? Actually, I think this is just a sign of things to come. I really hate facebook to be too heavily tainted with Microsoft's influences, as they usually have a knack for fucking up the market they usually come into. They are very good at copying, not innovating, and that is not a healthy business practice for any firm. See how the browser market came to a halt in development after netscape fell? See how they basically bought and copied their way into the console market? Lucky for Nintendo, the console market had a new lease of life. See how they attempted to enter the MP3 market with their oh so innovative player? How about the lame Windows CE > Pocket PC > Windows Mobile attempts to "revolutionize" the market in the years before Apple came along with their iPhone to change everything? Sigh ....

I love innovators and companies, like Apple and Nintendo and Google which always innovate their ways, break rules and create new ones to survive. And how I hate it when Microsoft comes in to basically buy their way into these new markets created by the innovators. And it is even sadder when the innovative competitors die when the big boys come and eat them up - it is like great ideas being thrown into a grave and buried.

Ok ... back to attacking Zombies and Vampires on my facebook :D

Very bad influences :D

2007-10-25T14:27:00.000+08:00

So all of a sudden, my childhood idol cancelled his show and I won't get to see his show this time round. And for what reasons??! WTF .. he's being investigated for rape??! .... this is very disturbing. I mean this is David Copperfield! .. He's the coolest 51 year old (well other than Sting) alive! And what? .. He stalks young women??

See this is like one of my influences when I was young. I started doing magic when I was in Primary school partly because of this dude. I mean c'mon when you watch his TV specials, he's the man with all the hotties!! :D Well, that's not the only motivation of course, I really like magic cos it brings laughter and joy into people's lives, and brings people together, give people hope, save the world blah blah blah ... whatever :D Well I am a huge fan. I watched him twice in Singapore, once in Detriot and another time in Pittsburgh.

But this news of FBI investigation into his possible rape of a woman in Bahamas brought out a string of accusations that includes how during his tours, he's been stalking and tracking down hot young women. Interestingly, I actually heard of such reports and rumors even before this FBI investigation started, and I thought to myself "walau ... cannot be lah. He can get anyone he wants, he even got Claudia Schiffer"! But since this FBI thingy investigation started, I am beginning to suspect that the so called rumors might actually be true.

Sigh ... and this made me look back at my early influences since I was a young kid and I realised a few of my favourites are fallen angels these days. KNN. Michael Jackson - Pedophile. George Michael - Gay caught soliciting oral sex in toilet. And now David Copperfield - Sex offender. And lemme see how they have influenced me? ... I love dancing, music, magic and ... helping out at children charities and orphanages .... shit I don't wanna know where this is going ... :D

So much for my influences .... :D How the great have fallen :D

Pikachu's Vagina Funland!!!

2007-10-25T14:15:00.000+08:00

I saw this at a gaming forum and it was hilarious! Link
You have to hand it to the Japanese. Sex Education starts young :D ...

Enter Younglings ... and have some Pika-chu chu fun! :D

Diversity in Adversity ....

2007-10-22T08:56:00.000+08:00

I was at the University of Michigan Alumni dinner last night, and the guest of honor was Dr Balaji Sadasivan, Senior Minister of State (Foreign Affairs and Information, Communications and the Arts). He addressed the crowd with a speech that covered 3 main topics - economy, Myanmar and diversity. He talked about growth, and spoke about ASEAN as well as the troubled "family member" Myanmar, and under diversity, the issue that is on everyone's lips these days, gay rights and Section 377A.

For the uninitiated, 377A is a law that was passed down from the British law system which was implemented by the Singapore government when she went independent. The Penal Code of Singapore, in Section 377a, provides for a jail sentence for up to two years should a man be found to have committed an act of "gross indecency" with another man.

With particular emphasis, he stated that the revising the Penal Code 377A and debating the issue is not going to do much to benefit the society at this juncture in time because we are not mature enough to deal with this divisive topic at this time. And until we're have reached the level maturity to deal with such divisive topic, we should not let it divide us. In his words "Unlike the US, though, where the antagonists over such issues need never meet, Singapore is small and interconnected in many ways and "should not allow divisiveness to become a feature of our society"."

So yours truly here :) asked with respect to the maturity level of our society, and given the reality that we can never change the fact that Singapore is small and interconnected in many ways, what will he see as an "indicator" that we will be a mature enough society to deal with such issues? Of course, politicians will always be politicians ... he went on reiterating what he said before and finally concluding (repeating) that our society is not ready to discuss it and it should be dealt with at a less divisive time.

So the question was siamed, and being the polite me, I didn't pursue for further answers. Right after he finished with the answer to my question, he ran off immediately after the "Today" newspaper journalist and caught her before she left the place. It was an awkward moment given the MC was just saying "let's give a warm round of applause" and while clapping halfway, he was running out of the hall chasing after the journalist. Well, he came back after saying something to the journalist and the MC thanked him again, and we clapped again :D. Well, the today newspaper reporter subsequently SMS me to thank me for asking that question becasue she was not allowed to do so. Guess what's on the front page news on Today? :D ... ahahhahah

I am still pondering over why did he siam my question when actually, it would have given him an opportunity to clarify what he meant by maturity level of our society. I did not even specifically ask him to address the issue with respect to 377A, rather phrasing my question saying "divisive issues, like for instance 377A". I gave him the chance to deal it metaphorically but he decided to treat it like a question directly about 377A. Well it could well be that he is not beating around the bush (which he still did) or he was just focused on trying to address the 377A-related issue that he failed to listen to my actual question.

I was hoping that he would address the maturity issue with more clarity. Really what would be an indicator of maturity of the nation? When will Singapore be "mature"? Who and what decide the maturity level of a society? Does it mean the government is not mature enough to discuss it too? If divisive topics should not be discussed when it is being hotly discussed, should we wait till it is a non-issue before we discuss it? Then why the hell do we even want to discuss it then?

Nonetheless, he definitely came prepared for the 377A issue to be raised, and made clear his and the party's stand - which is really not a stand at all.

Here's the article from Today copied below. (Link)

Time has not come to deal with revision to 377A, says Balaji

Tan Hui Leng
huileng@mediacorp.com.sg

diversity is a strength for any society.
Be it diversity of race, culture, skills or views, said Dr Balaji Sadasivan yesterday as he called for tolerance of such differences.
The challenge, he warned, was in preventing diversity from descending into divisiveness, as it has in the United States. Addressing a University of Michigan Alumni (Singapore) dinner last night, the Senior Minister of State (Foreign Affairs and Information, Communications and the Arts) cited how single-issue lobbies in the US try to "define society" by the single issue they promote or believe in.

"The issue could be gun control, prayer in schools, abortion ban, stem cell research ban, or gay rights.
"There is little dialogue between the proponents and opponents of these issues, only a divisive antagonism," said Dr Balaji, a University of Michigan alumnus, who also spent five years training in neurosurgery at Henry Ford Hospital in Michigan.
Unlike the US, though, where the antagonists over such issues need never meet, Singapore was small and interconnected in many ways and "should not allow divisiveness to become a feature of our society".
"We need a diversity of skills and views in our society so that we can respond to the changing environment in an effective manner," he said.
"As a society, it is better to deal with an issue when we can get enough Singaporeans to believe in tolerance and respect, by that I mean the spirit of tolerance and respect ... Then, we can have a meaningful dialogue."
In a dialogue after his speech, Dr Balaji cited Section 377A of the Penal Code — the current law on gay sex — as one such issue.
Responding to a question from a member of the audience, he observed that gay rights is one issue being lobbied intensely by groups on both sides of the divide in the US.
And while this may not have been an issue 10 or 20 years ago, globalisation has brought the debate here, he said.
Citing what other Government leaders such as the Prime Minister and Minister Mentor had said previously, Dr Balaji said that the authorities here take a practical approach to the issue and have not intruded into the bedroom for years. There is no entrapment of gays and there is no discrimination of gays in the civil service, he noted.
So, Section 377A has become a "symbolic issue" for its opponents and proponents.
Most people's views are somewhere in between. "Just as most people would object to the vast prosecution of individuals, many would also object to being bombarded by homosexual literature or posters," said Dr Balaji.
The issue could be dealt at a less divisive time, when society is better ready to discuss it. "Like the PM said, the debate would yield no benefit for Singapore now. So, in the revision of the Penal Code, we're not dealing with Section 377A."
In his speech, Dr Balaji also touched on the issue of Myanmar, which he described as a "troubled family member" of the Association of South-east Asian Nations.
While the regional bloc would do "what (it) can and what is necessary and useful", he said Asean was "realistic" that it alone "cannot make the impact" needed to shift the ruling State Peace and Development Council, referring to Myanmar's military junta.
"Prevailing on the Myanmar regime has to be an effort involving the whole international community," he said.
That includes the "critical role" of the United Nations and the "neutral interlocutor among all the parties", the
The UN Secretary-General's Special Adviser, Mr Ibrahim Gambari, who transited yesterday in Singapore en route to New Delhi from Jakarta.
Mr Gambari met officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who encouraged him to continue his consultations in the region. They assured him Singapore would support his efforts to promote national reconciliation and a political solution in Myanmar, said an MFA spokesman.
They reiterated Singapore's concerns about the situation in Myanmar and expressed hopes that the military junta would extend fullest cooperation to Mr Gambari "by agreeing to his early return … by giving him access to the highest levels of … the government, and by facilitating meetings for him with … in particular Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, members of the National League for Democracy, the monks and members of the State Constitution Drafting Commission", added the spokesman.
As Myanmar's closest friends and neighbours, Dr Balaji called on China and India to exert their influence on the junta, while Japan also plays an important role because it is a major aid donor to Myanmar. So far, China has been helpful in influencing the SPDC to make Mr Gambari's visit fruitful.
Meanwhile, as the current Asean chair, Singapore has taken the lead in issuing a strongly worded statement urging for smooth and non-violent progress toward national reconciliation.

轻轻的走了，我的知己

2007-10-18T09:27:00.000+08:00

一位非常要好的朋友在今天将踏上他生命中的另一个旅程。这几年与他再重逢是我人生最大的感激，因为知己难寻，知音难觅。我知道这几年对你来说比较崎岖，我做为一个朋友也只能在旁支持，鼓励。我也要谢谢你的友谊，和你与我分享的人生故事。希望这新的旅程能带给你一个新的启发，和希望。记得你回来时，这里还有我们这群好友等着你随时“啦咖啡“。

轻轻的走了，我的知己
带着那背负已久的行李，
带着那装满理想的行李。

不要为了过去而忧郁
不要为了前程而犹豫
你看着那未来的道路
不知还有多长的旅途
但别带着无奈的叹息
也别让那让烦恼堆积

请将希望当作推动
请将鼓励藏在心中
请将笑容挂在嘴边
请相信你在我心田

轻轻的走了，我的知己
带着那些美好的回忆，
带着那心中无奈几许。

Woman wants it from your heart! :D

2007-10-17T08:38:00.000+08:00

F = Female
M = Male

F: Where should we go tonight?

M: Anywhere lah

F: Is there a a particular thing you wanna do tonight?

M: Not really.

F: Why you sound so sian like that, you don't like to go out with me isit?

M: No no ... just tired don't really want think about it. Anywhere is fine with me.

F: What would you do if we're not going out tonight?

M: Don't know ... maybe go watch soccer with some friends and have some beer lor.

F: So that's what you really want to do isit?

M: No .. you ask me what ...

F: Then you go and hang out with your friends lah ...

M: But I promise to hang out with you tonight and I will

F: But if you don't want to you don't have to. Don't have to force yourself

M: No lah, I really want to spend time with you ok?

F: Nevermind lah. You go ahead lah. I'll meet you another time.

M: Oh .... ok. I'll make my own plans then.

F: HHMMPH!!! (Gets angry)

M: What now??

F: I ask you to go join your friends, you really go!

M: ya what! .. you told me you don't want to meet tonight what!

F: I wanted to see if you truly want to be with me mah!? I want it to come from your heart!

M: I told you I really want to spend time with you what?!?

F: But it is not from your heart!

M: What!??! It is lah ... walau! how to prove?

F: You failed my test liao. What's there to prove?

M: Test?? Narbey ...

F: Now you scold me!?!??

M: No! ... What the Fuck (to himself) ...

F: I heard that!!!

M: What!?!? I don't mean ... Argghh!! Why are you so unreasonable?

F: What you so loud? Why you so angry? So I am unreasonable now lah?!?

...

天涯歌女

2007-10-13T01:53:00.000+08:00

作曲：黎锦光作词：吴村

天涯呀海角觅呀觅知音
小妹妹唱歌郎奏琴郎呀咱们俩是一条心
嗳呀嗳呀郎呀咱们俩是一条心
家山呀北望泪呀泪沾襟
小妹妹想郎直到今郎呀患难之交恩爱深
嗳呀嗳呀郎呀患难之交恩爱深
人生呀谁不惜啊惜青春
小妹妹似线郎似针郎呀穿在一起离不分
嗳呀嗳呀郎呀穿在一起离不分

Lust, Caution! 超赞！90%

2007-10-13T01:02:00.000+08:00

The brilliance of Ang Lee shines brightly through the latest of his espionage, suspense, erotic thriller - the description of which I find somewhat misleading. I find at the heart of it all, is a heart wrenching love story. The film has garnered its load of coverage due to its explicit sex scenes and having watched the version in New York City (yes, get jealous you fellow Singaporeans), I can say it is pretty justified - there are a ton of those scenes to behold.

Why is this film brilliant? The dialogues are brilliant, the sets are gorgeous, great staging and the delivery of some of the best scenes I've seen in any movie.

One of my favourites is the opening scene in the film - it sets the mood nicely for what's to come. A majong scene where words are exchanged like firearms going off and where the words are in no connection to the game that they are playing, the words themselves appear to have hidden meanings. And the exchanges were fast and furious, adding to the intensity of the quick cuts used. Who would have thought majong could be so intense? :)

Then another brilliant scene which I loved, was when Wang Jiazhi (the character player by Tang Wei) sang a classic chinese tune to the national traitor Mr Yee (played by Tony Leung), in a Japanese drinking place. She says "I sing better than the Japanese" and here on, she used the song to move Mr Yee to tears. The staging of the scene was awesome, and it held so many layers and subtexts which made it my absolute favourite moment of the film.

Oh so what's the story about? Basically, Wang (Tang Wei) is a theater actress who is recruited by the Chinese rebels to spy on and assassinate Mr Yee, who is a Chinese traitor working for the Japanese. Using sex to seduce Mr Yee, Wong finds herself eventually falling for him as Mr Yee slowly opening up to her.

A the end of the film, I'm left with the question of whether sex without love, can eventually lead to true love? Or was the love between Mr Yee and Wang developed outside of their sexual encounters?

Great Film ... please watch it people!

Running: Lesson learned

2007-10-12T15:56:00.000+08:00

On MSN:

Friend: Just got back from running?

Me: yeah ... lesson learned

Friend: What?

Me: Don't go running when you wanna bungsai ... now it is stuck

Friend: LOL
that's cos u dun have enough water silly
just go drink lots of water... and u will be fine
LOL

Friend2: Take some fibregell

Such convincing advertising!

2007-09-15T16:25:00.000+08:00

Wow .. u gotta hand it to Sony come up with such great advertising. I wonder what drugs these guys are on. The PS3 is placed with the slot of the machine facing away them, there is no power cord attached to the PS3, and there is no power-on indicator light.

I wonder what's on the screen. 2 men watching porn? :D

My Apple Toys

2007-09-09T20:22:00.000+08:00

Just a few days back, one of my favorite fruit company, Apple Inc. just harvested a new batch of crops. And man are they droolworthy. Ipod nano is now plays video, the Ipod classic has ballooned to 160GB, and a brand new ... iPod Touch. And my long predicted and awaited and yearned and desired ultra portable Apple laptop is still yet to be found. :( Probably the biggest news from these announcements was that the iPhone's price was cut from $599 to $399. Man that really riled the early adopters but Stevie Wonder quickly issued a $100 decree to all early adopters to quell their displeasure.

Now, I am gonna talk a little about this little Apple toy of mine that I loved so much and still I could find anything to replace it with. The item is the Apple Newton 2100. For those who doesn't know what this is, the Newton is considered to be the grandaddy of all PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) .. preceding the Palm Pilot. But though it was such an "old" PDA, it does tons lots more than any other PDAs of today even do. This PDA was way way ahead of its time. Why did I like it?

1) REAL HANDWRITING RECOGNITION - not some stupid script recognizer. This is not a PocketPC "Transcriber". This was the real deal from back in 1997. And it is only the recent TabletPC that can really match it. When I saw a TabletPC's demo a while back showing how you can "scratch" your word away, I was thinking to myself "eh, I was doing this with my newton 10 years ago".

2) Great Calendaring. The calendar on the Newton was really easy to use and powerful.

3) Great Contacts Manager. Just one simple feature which so many PDAs of today still doesn't do. Enter your contact's birthday, and the Calendar will note it and remind you. No double entries required.

4) Expandability. This thing had 2 PCMCIA slots. This was back in 1997 and even today, some people are able to plug in a Wifi card and make it work. We all knew how long it took for Palm to integrate Wifi into their PDAs.

5) It does Internet. Remember, this was back in 1997. Doesn't seem long ago, but it was a huge deal then.

6) It doesn't erase it's data from its memory when battery goes flat. How many early Palm and PocketPC users had their data all erased when it runs out of battery? Remember again, this was back in 1997.

And so if such was the power of a PDA that was so ahead of its time, why did it fail? I put it down to 2 factors: 1) Size - it was too big to be placed in a pocket 2) It cost too much - easily $1800 SGD then (about $1000 USD).

And what has that got to do with the recent Apple announcements? Well, I have been trying to find a PDA replacement for years. Palm has basically given zero development time to their PalmOS and PDA in the past 2 years, and I am reluctant to buy their last PDA which was released for almost 2 years already. And being a Mac user, it kinda is tough for me to consider a PocketPC device because they aren't really supported by iSync directly. So what leaves me with waiting patiently for an Apple branded PDA. Now the closest to what a PDA Apple has done in recent years after canning the Newton, is the iPhone, and currently, it is not available for the Asian market. And since the US version is locked and not 3G, there's no way I could use it without any worries here. Thus, when iPod Touch was announced, I was seriously thinking that finally, my Palm T3/Newton replacement has arrived.

But alas! Things are not what they seem. Though iPod touch is essentially a iPhone without the telephony features, the contact and calendar features does not support input and adjustments. So basically, it can't allow me to use it like a PDA.

So my wait continues .... until the day the iPhone arrives to the Asian shores .... to clear my PDA blues ...

静下来吧，我的心

2007-08-27T09:56:00.000+08:00

静下来吧，我那沸腾的心
你是否疲倦了马不停蹄的步伐？
你是否想要改变你的想法？

停下来吧，我那息不了的心
为何还让恼人的争吵而烦
为何不让他们私下解谈？

闭上眼吧，我那倔强的心
别再去面对无法控制的局面
别再去接受那些无聊的考验

闭上耳吧，我那不听话的心
那一些纷纷扰扰的好意
是朋友无心给于的压力

静下来吧，我那疲惫的心
摊开你快乐无私的胸襟
轻轻打动她人的芳心。。。

More ERP Gantries!!! extended hours!!

2007-08-23T18:15:00.000+08:00

It is a trend ... prices are going up.... Hospital Wards, GST, MRT, Heck even my bloody country club membership monthly fee went up a whopping 20% 1 month after i acquired it ... talking about good timing .... and soon my cashcard will be sucking more cash from me too cos the bloody gantries will be extending their hours and they are adding more gantries to suck even more cash from my cashcard ...
LTA Press Release

LTA says "Traffic congestion affects the quality of life and the environment as well as the overall efficiency and productivity of the economy. ... The ERP is a key tool for managing congestion ...."

if their sole purpose is to curb congestion .. why dun they rebate and reward drivers for driving less than a certain mileage per year and use public transport? They should use a "reward" system versus a "punish" system to encourage since when you "punish" a person, that person will be unhappy since he will have to spend more money. And since people become unhappy as their money get suck out of their wallet as they rush to work, how can the quality of life improve? :D .. ehehheh

So government, why not do a rebate system to reward the drivers who drive less or better still, use the public transport since it can also help improve air quality and also help reduce carbon output, reduce global warming ... blah blah

Sexy Punggol 21+!!!

2007-08-22T09:57:00.000+08:00

After reading NMP Eunice Olsen's exciting take on PAP's "ohh so sexy new plans" for Punggol 21, I can imagine all the possibilities already!!

Imagine the HOT AND SEXY NEW NEIGHBOURHOOD!!!
- My neighour's sexy hot wife is so making me wanna procreate!!!!!!!
- That afternoon when i saw them sunbathing in their sexy bikinis at the new estate makes me so wanna bang my wall!!!!
- The sexy legs of the aunties walking to the market to buy veggies make me so bloody turned on I wanna rush to the public toilet and jerk off!!!
- My jealous friends who are living in their uninspiring, loser Ang Mo Kio "HoodDB" can only come and visit me and drool at such an inspiring neighbourhood I got here.
- Their envious eyes laying upon my neighbours' suddenly acquired SEX APPEAL after moving to this neighbourhood, makes them wanna move here with their "se kor" ("mouldy"/"Boring") wives so they can be imbued by Punggol 21+'s extraordinary re-sextification affect!!
- Women after moving to Punggol 21 will have smoother skin and bigger breasts ...
- Men who moved to Punggol 21 will increase the size of their manhood and confidence level ...
- Punggol 21 will make them increase their Pride in the community !!!
- Naughty kids who come to this neighbourhood suddenly become so disciplined and well mannered, it makes me so wanna make a few of my own!!!
- Homosexuals who come to Punggol 21 will realise in no time their sinful ways ... and suddenly turn heterosexual and quit having unnatural sex!!! They can finally properly procreate!!!
- Couples who had lousy sex lives will have them rejunvenated in the inspiring neighbourhood of Punggol 21!!
- "LOVE IS IN THE AIR!!!! .. EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK AROUND!"
- Heterosexuals kissing, fondling and making out on the streets! Cos they can't contain their love for one another!!!!
- Neighbours exchange their spouses to strengthen their neighbourhood's sense of community!!!
- WOW!! .. Thank you PAP!!!! I LOVE YOU!!!!

I really wanna Procreate!!

2007-08-20T22:27:00.000+08:00

"The Punggol 21+ plan really awed the audience. You can see community living as part of the neighbourhood. People have a sense of pride in their community. This plays an important role in the estate. I hope this encourages young people to procreate." NMP Eunice Olsen on the plan to revitalise Punggol

Dunno why ... but somehow reading this makes me feel really bizarre .... I mean having a nice neighbourhood really sounds good. But how much of a turn-on it is for me to make me wanna MAKE BABIES like bunnies? ... hmmm ... I would consult my wallet 1st :D ...

About Winning & Losing

2007-08-19T10:06:00.000+08:00

Yesterday, I had a chance to take part in the Silk Air organized Monopoly challenge. Now a thing to note is, I haven't played a game of monopoly since primary 6 .. and that is like 19 years. When I sat down at my assigned table, I had to ask the banker to explain to me the general rules of the game and then i realised that it wasn't so much a game of chance as I recalled it to be. At the table of 4 players, I realised the other 3 players had a lot more in common than I do - they are there to WIN, while i just wanna have some fun. And in a way, their attitudes and behavior in the game really put me off. I mean, you're talking about a guy who laments that "My mother doesn't allow me to play monopoly" (he's looking like 40), this auntie who is like super gancheong about the game and asking questions to clarify the special rules for the 1 hr speed round, and this other guy, who laid out his MARs bars and had a monopoly notebook whipped out to do calculations and write notes while the game is happening. These guys are out to eat me for breakfast, and going into the game, I had no idea how nasty they could be. For instance, they had this rule that if you forgot to ask someone else to pay you when they land on your property, and someone else rolls the dice, you will have to forfeit that payment. Sounds fair enough, until you realise they were rushing the game so much so as to avoid paying and when someone is trying to settle some payments, they would take that chance to get someone else to roll the dice so that if they shld land on that busy person's lot, they would avoid paying. It pissed me off quite a bit when they were rushing me so that I would not notice that some prior person had to pay and had no time to even look at the board.

Now ... I am a person who hates to lose. And if I should lose, I wanna lose fair and square. I came to this game with a "happy have some fun" attitude and it was just my luck to bump into these bunch of kiasu people. I eventually was the one who bankrupted, and ended the game. Now I was really eager to do so, and was kinda relieved that the game ended so much earlier than those guys wanted to. The guy who bankrupted me would have done better if he wasn't so greedy, but I fed his ego by saying, "hey, I don't have enough cash, why don't u bankrupt me, and I can transfer all cash and assets to you??". I think on hindsight, he would have regretted his decision and tried to just take my assets and earned more cash since we had at least 12min to go before the end of the game. And in the end, though he won the game, I doubt he made enough to get into the 2nd round when compared to the rest of the 100s of players. And the other 2 were probably unhappy that I "gave in" so quickly, because it meant they had even lesser money to even be considered into the 2nd round. Eventually, it was a waste of time for them, and a rather entertaining Saturday morning for me.

And I am just so glad I took a picture with my good friend Kuangwei with the Monopoly Guy :)

INDIAN THRILLER!!!

2007-08-17T10:13:00.000+08:00

This is the funniest shit I've watched in a long time, somemore me being a fan of Michael Jackson ... GIRLY MAN!!!! :D

Old Cars in Singapore?

2007-08-03T11:53:00.000+08:00

Was reading an article in Straits Times today about 8 out of 10 cars in Singapore are less than 10 years old. The article went on to say that despite fees to extend the lifespan of cars beyond 10 years being at an all time low, people are not doing so. He sees this as a trend that indicates the culture here being everything that is"new is good". So what is this all time low we're talking about? The 1st 6 mths of this year, the average of COE revalidations (which expires every 10 yrs) are on the average $12,565 for 1600cc cars and $14,051 for cars above 1600cc - which are 1/2 of what it was in 2004. For readers not familar with COE (certificate of entitlement), it is a piece of paper that you have to buy from the government in order to own a car and it has an expiry date of 10 years.

Now I really don't understand how he uses these numbers as indicators that Singaporeans do not like old vintage cars. I love old vintage stuff, and I collect old stuff because they are of certain historical value or if they serve as a memory to a certain time in my life. However, the issue here I figure, is more to a case of economics. I love VW Beetles, and I will want to buy an old Beetle from yester years if I could, but the fact that if I should buy one for collectible purposes, it wouldn't make much sense here in Singapore. The fact is even if I want to purchase a old antique car to place in my home just for show, I would still have to pay the government for a bloody piece of paper to own it on top of its own value. Not to mention the bloody piece of paper expires in 10 years. Now why would I want to buy the collectible car in Singapore? Maybe it will be cheaper to buy a garage in the US and buy all these old vintage cars and keep them there. It would be much cheaper in the long run.

If anyone's buying a car in Singapore, I would think most people (maybe 8 out of 10?) would make their purchases based on economic reasons. And the car ownership system in Singapore is discouraging the culture of vintage car collecting, not because people here like new things only.

Be Happy :)

2007-07-30T11:24:00.000+08:00

Since Pessimism and Optimism are both delusions, why not stick with the happier choice?

Homo Phobic Young PAP

2007-07-29T09:50:00.000+08:00

Once and again, our dear PAP will say something stupid. But unlike most of other people like us who criticise and oppose (oppositions), they won't get much shit for it. This recent post that I read on the young PAP bloggers (some blog site set up by the young PAP (MP potentials?) to represent the Government's viewpoint), just shows how plain closeminded they are and seriously homophobic.

http://youngpapblog.blogspot.com/2007/07/alternative-vision-for-singapore-and-i.html

Here they paint the horrible picture of how singapore would become if laws allow gays to behave the way they should. Woah .. you should read how scary it is.

"Imagine men walking hand in hand with other men down Orchard Road, kissing, fondling and making out.

For that matter, imagine all that taking place on the MRT.

Instead of teachers dealing with boy-girl relationships, teachers would have to deal with boy-boy relationships.

Then, you might have the homosexuals all over Asia descending upon Singapore to flaunt what they cannot in their own countries."

They talk as if all homosexuals have no sense of shame, and as if regular heterosexuals actually make out in Orchard Rd for everyone to see normally. I say if any heterosexuals kiss, fondle and make out (or just say petting lah) in MRT, people would have been shocked anyways. I recall when I was in kindergarten, they make us hold hands with our "partners" when we line up. So I bet these Young PAP MPs would have freaked out the moment they see that eh?

Gek Sim ... :P

Update:
The original poster of the entry in the young PAP blog added a comment in the comment section that further shows his view (and possibly PAP's?) on homosexuality.

"Leaving aside my religious views on this matter, I am against any change of law/policy on homosexuals because:

1. They threaten the social fabric of the nation. Their ways represent an alternative for which we should not accept as being mainstream.

2. They cannot procreate and thus cannot produce offspring for our nation.

3. They cannot serve as soldiers because instead of serving alongside our men in green, they are more keen to sodomise them.

I do not accept the notion that homosexuals are "creative" and thus we need homosexuals to make our nation more "creative". There is no evidence to suggest that homosexuals are any more or less creative than heterosexuals.

If an analysis is done, they seem to bring more problems than benefits."

My goodness. What disturb me the most is point #3. Walau!! Does he even know any homosexuals as friends at all? Does he think that homosexuals only think abt sodomizing pple everywhere they go??

And who the hell suggested to him "homosexuals are needed to make the nation creative"? Did he just make it up to justify the statement that homosexuals are not any more or less creative than heterosexual?

This guy is utterly hopeless ...

Apathy in our government.

2007-07-28T13:10:00.000+08:00

Last night, I sat around a bunch of 6-8 people who were sharing their thoughts on what they are unhappy about the PAP government. Ok ok ... it was like a complaining session. But on hindsight, thinking about what were discussed, it wasn't really about how we were all affected by their methods of governing. After all, almost everyone there are either married or partly married, have a stable job and income ... nothing really much to complain about. But what I was really glad is that, these generation of adults (er hem ... us 20-30 year olds :D) were talking about the plight of our poorer counterparts, how the lower income people are suffering, and how out of touch our current ruling party is. Basically summing up the adjectives to describe the PAP: arrogant, out of touch, apathy and unfair.

I am particularly disturbed about the obvious apathy on the side of our government. They way they were so relunctant to increase the subsistence allowance for the elders living alone from $260/mth to $290/mth, and yet proclaiming themselves to be a combination of Bill Gates+George Soros+Mother Theresa shows what kind of individuals they are. The insensitive daughter of an MP who spoke like an elitist well groomed (and supported in claims) by putting down individuals whom she deems lazy by her standards points to the kind of vicious cycle we are in. Our new PAP talents who are so well paid by our taxes and increasing GST are just a bunch of insensitive and thoughtless people who have not seen the real sufferings of the ever increasing population who receives less than $1200/mth - just like their increasingly out of touch senior mentors. Have they actually visited these 1 room flats in Ang Mo Kio, Toa Payoh, Chai Chee and many other parts of the island? Have they looked in their faces and tell them, "eh, you're not contributing to the society anymore, so sorry, only $260 for u".

The wake up call for these MPs will have to come, but I am not sure in what form it will take. A 60% win of a GRC versus a self projected 80% i suspect will only impact so much as a forgettable slap on the ego. When they haven't have to take a 1 over hour travel ride to work eveyday on their so called world class public transport system, and start complaining about why we singaporeans are not content with what we have - I think they have seriously learn the meaning of "putting themselves in others shoes". And maybe they are, but they are still thinking in terms of "Oh if I am in their shoes, I would do this and that" when they should be asking "What kind of environment and opportunities are provided to these people that cause them to be in the state they are in?"

Blood Ties :)

2007-07-25T21:40:00.001+08:00

Here here .... I've avoided discussing my film related stuff here for a while and I guess, it is about time I write a little bit about my latest "award winning" short film. 還魂Blood Ties

Synopsis:
Qing was the sole witness to her brother’s murder. But when her brother’s murderers turn up dead, things don’t appear to be as simple as it seems. Madam Lee, after having to cope with the recent death of her son, now has to deal with the possibility that her daughter is involved with the deaths of these killers.

So far, it has won at 2 competitions.

1) MDA Panasonic Digital Film Fiesta - 3rd Prize
2) Rebel Planet of Hollywood Short Film Fest - 2nd Prize (Horror Category)

And it is official selection for the upcoming Celebrate Drama 2007 Festival. Blood Ties will be screened at the Art House this weekend 28th and 29th of July at 645pm and 415pm respectively. Free Admission.

It is also official selection at a Singapore film Festival the Beijing Film Academy on 11-15 Oct 2007. So if you're in Beijing, hey watch out for it. :) It will be among 27 shorts selected which includes some from Royston Tan, Wee LiLin and other established filmmakers.

There's also a website for my film up at http://www.bloodtiesthemovie.com. Watch the trailer there!
I will be updating the website as more news of the short film comes in. Currently, a feature version is being worked on and is being prepped for release next year. :) I will be releasing more news about the feature in future too :)

In the meantime, hope to see you at the screening! :) Come and say hi to me if you like it :D

Funniest thing I heard today

2007-07-25T11:17:00.000+08:00

Went for a health screening at SGH today .... just to confirm that I am still ok to do things to endanger it :D
No lah ... but basicall y.. took my blood, pee and crap ... Yup ... Crap ... as in the waste from the hershey highway - My Stool :)

I was handed a little thingy to poke my stool with 7 times (why 7 times, I dunno, I think I did 8 but what the heck) and then place that thing into a tiny bottle.

The nurse told me step by step what to do:

1) You go and pass motion

2) Take a piece of toilet paper and place your stool on it.

3) Then take this thing and poke it 7 times at different places.

4) Bring only this thingy back to us

5) Throw away the toilet paper and your stool.

Then I went: "You mean, got people actually brought their stool back to you?"

She went," Yah lah ... some bring the whole thing back. Very disgusting"

I was laughing my head off with that auntie nurse. :) Clear and PRECISE instructions are very important.

My Fav new drink - Pi Pa Mi

2007-07-24T20:00:00.000+08:00

Wow ....

For those who grew up drinking "Chuan Bei Pi Pa Gao" as their solution to runny noses and phlegmy throats ... Check this out!!

The Pi Pa Mi

I didn't know they make this into a drink. Like drinking cough syrup .. but hey .. who cares if it tastes good :D
The design of the can is so traditional I bet it won't last very long before they realise that they wanna improve and modernize it. :D But man isit classic :D

Restless man ....

2007-07-24T17:54:00.000+08:00

Been feeling mighty restless of late ...And this only happens when I am too free.

Just a day ago, my business partner brought a "sifu" to the new location of our upcoming 2nd branch to check if there are any "bad spirits" hanging around. Man I have always been a sucker for things as such ... and of course i will go and ask her to check out my palm. And she says i am workaholic ... and I couldn't agree more.... i just couldn't sit still ... i even have plans on what I wanna do until the day I can't move around very much and up to the minute i die

People always ask "what do u want to do when you grow up?" .. yet I find myself constantly asking myself .. "what do I want to do till I die?" .. And there are so many things ... The good thing is, as I grew older, those things gets lesser as I tried them all ... and you noticing that remaining items getting more focused. The thing about as you age, the more you know what you wanna do certainly rings true. Might have arrived a little later for me, but betetr late than never. I know people at age 45 still unhappy with life, not knowing what they are doing and doing things which they hate. I am very lucky.

So i have digressed .. once again ... many a times I've got no idea what the hell I wanna write and just write .. then many of times it is just pointless ... or the point changes ....

So for readers who wanna gain some enlightnement or value from this post, I guess it would be to, hey do what you love man ... you got 1 lifetime right now ... to do what u want, and find out what makes you happy the most. Spend the time doing what you love :)

I am just restless .... hahahha

Meditation

2007-06-21T11:24:00.000+08:00

Woo ...

I've been always trying to find some ways to curb my "enthusiastic" (short tempered :D) and "passionate" (impatient) nature. Was told that yoga can calm one's nerves and regulate a person's moods. But tried it and didn't feel it helped much.

However, I've been trying out some meditation classes. Pretty useful and it is actually better for me than yoga. Yoga just didn't do for me what meditation does. Maybe I was searching for something more psychological than a physical solution.

The way I see it, meditation is really like a form of exercise for the mind. We're used to exercising our mind by doing puzzles, and playing games. The westerners do crosswords puzzles from newspaper, Japanese play nintendo and soduku, and asian play chinese chess. I think we've gotta approach meditation in a similar mindset. No use just stretching our minds in differeent directions and not letting it relax and focus. Keep an open mind and give it a try.

Here's a rather interesting recent CNN article on mediation that talks about it's popularity in the west now
http://edition.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/06/11/pl.meditation.main/index.html

Where I go for some lessons in Singapore
http://meditateinsingapore.org/

No faith in the "Gahmen" running the country

2007-06-21T10:15:00.000+08:00

Recently been so bogged down dealing with a project from a certain gahmen (government in Singapore slang) agency that is really making me lose all faith in the so called tal;ents running the country. If my tax is going to contribute to the tax raise of these nincompoops, then I think it is a terrible waste of my money.

Apparently, the behavior of the government agency I am dealing with is not an isolated case, it appears it is a common understanding that "hey if you dealing with government agency, they are like that one."

A brief description of project. Basically, I am tasked to shoot and then edit a video for this government agency. We quoted for the job and specified "2 round of changes only". Then we were given a brief, and a script. Other than that, they say, "must be flexible". So here we go, we shoot exactly what we need for the script and then some scenes for "backup" just in case ... then as per needed when we're on set and they want us to catch anything in particular, we'd do it - so we're flexible.

Then the edit comes .. and we did it to the script's specification. This lady in charge comes back and say "That's not how we want it!". So we changed it, and the repeated similar things about what we're not doing right. So fine, I asked if they have any clips that they have that would show exactly what they wanted cos they are obviously having problems telling us what we needed to know. So we received a video done by another group they hired before and we followed the "style and design". Well, to make the long story short, it went on for a at least 5 more rounds of changes ... more and more people from dunno where started commenting on the clip, undoing some of the changes that was requested by the "initial person in charge". Then they send newpaper clippings to us in batches to insert in the video and requires us to make and update different versions whenever different batches arrive. What drove me up the wall was their attitude of "we send u the changes we need on Thursday end of the day. I need it Monday morning."

And guess what, they come back saying we're dragging our feet and they are unhappy with our progress.

Well, I am extremely unhappy at their unprofessionalism and of course this comment from them. From what I understood, they expect us to be on 24hr standby for their instructions and do their work on weekends and throughout the freaking night. The insensibility of their expectations and also the unprofessional handling of a project makes me disgusted at how our government keeps saying that they are "world class". Apparently, when I started discussing this issue with my friend who has also dealt with the government agencies, they have seen the same things too.

From this experience of working with this group, I've come the following conclusions:
1) They think their money is very big
2) They think they are the government, so they are the boss
3) They forgot they are civil servants, serving the country
4) No one dares to take up responsibility, and no one dares to make decisions
5) Their bosses probably don't know how the private sector functions and runs it like the military
6) The government so called "making our government agencies behave more like private firms" are just another wayang show.
7) Everything the government do and what the people in the government agency do are just wayang only.
8) There are no true leaders in the government sector - they only listen to whoever is higher in rank. And also that means, the so called managers and leaders suck.
9) People who are hired to do their jobs do not know what they are doing.
10) Pertaining to point 9, they still try to act like they do.

So let's just put this as a lesson learnt. No more government jobs. 1st and last time. Period :)

And I can't believe they are getting a pay raise ..... #@#!#

I have zero faith in the young talents running my country. They are just spineless followers who has no leadership quality and their accolades only look good on paper.

Turn off the Volume for TV Mobile (Improving Singapore One Change At A Time)

2007-05-01T23:47:00.000+08:00

Ok ... so I am on a roll here ...Here's another suggestion :)

Turning off TV Mobile's volume on SBS Buses. I know many people might like it loud and clear. But I guess it would have to come at the expense of those who would rather have some peace at quiet on the way to/from work/home.

Now how about those who really want the entertainment? There are some solutions.

Here comes the "choices".

1)Maybe for double decked bus, the 2nd deck is reserved for those who do not want the noise pollution? Or the 1st deck .. depending on the "demand".

or

2) TV Mobile could be made to subtitle all the programs.
This way, anyone can watch it and read the subtitles and still enjoy the show. Those who don't just look elsewhere. No noise, yet still entertains.

or

3) TV Mobile can choose to "broadcast" the sound to a specified "radio frequency" and thus allowing those with a portable radio to "tune in" and enjoy the sound via their earphones without causing annoyance to others! This can be done by either braodcasting it via a Wide area radio frequency or install a small radio transmitter in each bus with the TV.

Well ... with these little steps from SBS and TV Mobile, I believe it will benefit more bus passengers and eventually cultivate a nation who are more considerate and thoughful to other people's private space and peace of mind.

Escalator Girl Guides :P (Improving Singapore One Change At A Time)

2007-05-01T23:46:00.000+08:00

Hmm. .. being always complaining about ugly Singaporeans, rude Singaporeans, unhelpful Singaporeans, inconsiderate Singaporeans .... maybe it is time to take a different approach ....

I think I'll start posting on a weekly basis ... a suggestion to help Singaporeans learn .. and maybe when adopted to help people become more considerate and change Singapore for the better ....

Ok Suggestion of the Week: Have nice pretty smiling ladies guide people to stand to the left of the escalators if they are not walking during certain busy hours of the day.

Ok ... pretty maybe no need ... but smiling and courteous definitely .... Singaporeans are a stubborn lot .... so constant reminders like these will create the awareness and improve understanding behind the gesture of keeping to the left if they are slow or not interested to walk (or lazy). People have to understand that being considerate and courteous should be a behavoir that comes 1st nature .... oddly, we Singaporeans wanting to pride ourselves as a "1st class" nation, do not offer the same level of courtesy and consideration regular folks on the street do in places like Hong Kong and Japan. Big cities, but with thoughtfulness built into the system for people with a choice. If you want to be slow, you can stick to the left, but not at the expense of other people's need to rush. Key word here is, "Consideration".

I think it would be nice if MRT or certain malls would take the initative to have a person stand at the start of the escalator at certain times of the day, and basically welcome the customers/passengers and "remind" them "Hello Welcome, Please stay to the left of the escalator if you are stationary. Thank you and enjoy your stay/day/shopping!". Ok the words might not be exactly the same, but hey .. this will up the customer experience, while at the same time educate and make everyone happy.

One small step towards consideration, One big step for the Nation.

Miss Singapore finalist say ...

2007-04-23T08:51:00.000+08:00

Last night one of the Miss Singapore finalist was asked something like "Should there be laws governing blogging?". She said "I think there shouldn't because blah blah blah .... But there are some irresponsible bloggers out there ... there should be laws against irresponsible bloggers...". Hhahahhah ... it is funny how much of an impact blogosphere has on the mindset of people these days. This kinda of "yes and no" answer gives us a glimpse into what was going through her mind as she was answering the question (in an almost quivering and unsure manner).

What i suspect is going through her mind as she is giving her answer:

"Woah lau ... ask me shitz like that"

"I don't agree lah! So many bloggers will skewer me on tomorrow.sg tomorrrow if I said yes"

" oops ... I just said but .. but i forgot .. this Singapore TV .. siao liao ... sure kena blackmark by gahmen one ..."

"Siao liao .. Singapore Gahmen so powerful sure monitor the TV one .. say yes tomorrow they sure check my anti-government rants on my personal blog ..."

"I better do some reversal ... better do some recovery ... ah yes!! .. there are irresponsible bloggers ... ehehhhe"

"Ooops ... I stuttered .. shit .. keep smiling ..... look confident!!"

"Narbey ... this is the most difficult answer I ever had to give in my life!"

"Oh no ... now I contradicted myself .. did I just say we need laws for irresponsible bloggers?"

"Alamak .... better shut up ... cut my losses... pple clap liao .... keep smiling ...."

As she's walking away back towards audience ..

"WTF WTF WTF WTF" ....

MM Lee and the rest of PAP are out of line

2007-04-10T00:21:00.000+08:00

MM Lee said before ... citizens are like children, if they are out of line, they must be put in their place. It doesn't say anything about the possibilty of adults standing out of line. And I seriously think these people running our country is not just out of line, they are also out of touch with reality. Using fuzzy logic to justify their pay rise ... and what's so absurb is that even after so much uproar, they still have the cheek to keep go ahead with their pay hike.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/269330/1/.html
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/070410/5/singapore269372.html

They just keep giving me more reasons to vote them out. Only problem is they do not allow everyone (and me including) to vote using some ridiculous system of breaking our tiny state into even tinier GRCs.

Bad economy must pay more to retain talents .. good ecomony must pay more cos our talents deserve it .. if this is not daylight robbery i dunno wat is? You know what, these talents I'd rather not have. I love Singapore, but it is the government that makes me hate it. Day by day, they are just giving me more reasons to leave this homeland where they treasure people who works for the dough and not for the love of the people. And if you ask me, no ... more money does not make one less greedy ... corruption still occurs with more pay (NKF???) and the government still using this justification for their pay hike shows how short their memory is.

PUI!!! (Spit!)

Birthday cakes at restaurant

2007-04-09T09:40:00.001+08:00

Hey guys,

Just wanna elicit some thoughts ... I have been wondering how to resolve for a while and to find the "perfect" solution for both customers and my own sanity as a restaurant owner.

Here I am, a restaurant owner who has put up a sign that says "Outside food are not allowed" .. yet customers somehow just brings their own birthday cakes as if it falls into a totally separate category of foods and asks us to keep in the fridge and then serve them when they are ready.

Now here's the beef, my staff and I have reached the point where we think it is just pure ridiculous that we are gonan provide service and plates for these customers who will stain our wares and have us clean up after their party for free ... Now I am not sure you guys noticed, the little tiny slice of cake that you stain on the plates will casuse quite a bit of a cleaning chore and how environmentally unfriendly it is. I have started a rule that provides party napkins now instead of plates and recently, this table was so displeased with that and said very loudly "woah! so dao" (as in "atas" or so "hostile").

I really wanna just walk over and take all the napkins away and say "please eat your cakes outside, cos outside foods are not allowed". I am already making exceptions for customers to bring birthday cakes though I serious think that all customers are getting a little too insensitive and taking things for granted.

So guys share your thoughts. Here I am stuck between being a nice guy to allow this and at the same time being angry that people are taking it for granted. What would u do if you're in my position? How would you educate the customer without offending them?

UPDATE: 15 Oct 2008

I feel compelled to update this post since i realize pple keep coming back to this article and never really reading my updates/responses in the comments.

Well, the stand is I am allowing customers to do whatever they want with respect to birthday cakes - they can bring their cakes in, and eat it. We provide utensils and plates and we do the clean up ... no extra charge.

But I do not feel that all restaurants should do this, and I would support/understand those who would not allow such options. The only reason I can't do that anymore is for consistency - too many of my regular customers have been enjoying this service that I can't take it away.

Many people who responded reply in a very angry manner and feels strongly they deserve to be allowed to bring their own cakes to any restaurants and eat it.

All I can say is, please be considerate and understanding to those who do not provide such service, for not every company can afford to do that. And if you do this, please order some food as well and be a good customer too.

The Government says "We need higher pay .. all the time"

2007-04-02T14:09:00.000+08:00

Mr Lim Swee Say said ".. there's no such thing as a good time, there's no such thing as a bad time, we just have to do it all the time" (Today Paper 2nd April 2007). This was in response to whether it was right to increase the minister's salaries as the income gap widen and with the GST hike impending. He responded that time is of the essence" and there's little time to lose in terms of attracting the right talents in the government. This to me just sounds like a bad way of justifying their actions of always raising their salaries and even in bad times, doesn't it? So the right talents they are attracting are those who favour higher income/salary? Then wouldn't we be having people in the government who works more for the cash and less for the love of the people, and the good of the country? So according to the government's warped sense of perception, the more salary paid a person, the more he will love the country fellowmen? The more pay he gets, the more he will be able to empathise with the lower and middle income families? Somehow with a recent MP justifying how his daughter was right in saying people who are not successful in finding a job are basically lazy people, I highly doubt this increase of pay would do anymore to reduce their elitist thoughts. Will higher pay attract people who have the right knowledge and more importantly, purpose in their hearts and minds? But hey wait a minute, PAP wants elites to be in the government! Or to be specific, well paid elites (talents) who will supposedly more than likely be able to empathise with the lower and middle income countrymen who ironically form the majority of the nation's population. I for one disagree that paying more would mean less corruption or better talents. Paying fair would be more important that paying more. Then it comes to the question of what is fair?

Not too long ago, our good friend PM Lee Junior said that we have to raise the salaries of the Ministers so as to keep up with the salaries in the private sector. Is that fair? Let me raise a few questions. Would it be fair to compare the salaries in our government body to that of the private sectors'? Isn't the private sector "profit driven" while the government should be more "people's interests driven"? Then would it be in the best interest of our people that we have people in the government who works more for the interest of a higher pay then for the interests of the people? Would raising the salaries of what is already one of the best paid government in the world help to attract "political leaders and civil servants who really care a lot about the ground, who understand their anxiety, who understand their aspirations" (Mr Lim Swee Say, Today, 2nd April 2007)?

Hmmm .. questions questions questions ....

Am I really back?

2007-04-02T14:08:00.000+08:00

Ok now it's been quite a long long while since I've updated my blog ... and I think it is about time I account for my absence.

Many many things have happened in the past 6mths and they have kept life for me extremely exciting, but also stressful at the same time. I had to set my priorities and give up some stuffs.

The major event .. my Short film Blood Ties :
1) Chosen as 1 of 12 filmmakers for Panasonic MDA film festival competition.
2) Had to write, cast, produce, shoot and direct "Blood Ties"
3) Screened Publicly at Picturehouse in January :)
4) Won 3rd Prize :D .... Yipeee!!! (www.digitalfilmfiesta.com)
5) Film is official selection for Rebel Planet of Hollywood Short Film Fest.. double Yaye!!!! (www.rebelplanet.com)
6) Film is selected by Singapore Film Commission for submission to Cannes. (Just for submission .. that's all)

Then of course, there are other things that kept me busy ...
1) Numerous Wedding Videos ... This is the biggest source of my stress and headaches.
2) HK Film Mart (http://web.mac.com/ywchai/iWeb/Site/HK%20Filmart.html) .. FUN FUN FUN
3) More Wedding Videos ...
4) and then more wedding videos ...
5) Then there are other things which i can recall right now ... but mostly headaches from some business related ventures as well.
6) Moving house .... those pple who has moved house knows the kinda work involved.
7) Then the usual women woes :D .... My unlucky streaks with Christian girls :D

Ok ok ... the thing is .. now that my wedding stuffs are almost cleared, and I am rebooting to go on to new projects that will shake the earth ... (my earth at least :D) .. I probably will be able to find sometime to update my blog now and then. :) So to all the readers who likes to read abt my rant :D .... sorry for the hiatus again :D

In Inconvenient Truth - 87%

2006-11-12T10:27:00.000+08:00

Now its been a while since I've posted anything. Reviews, commentaries, anything. Is this site winding down? I would say no, but whether I would keep posting blogs at the rate that I used to would be in question. The past few months had been so busy, I needed to fully focus on the jobs that I was working on. Specifically a short film that I am involved in. Pre-production, production and right now in post production. Drinking from the hose is the term I will use to describe the past 3 months. I have learnt so much that I wouldn't have if I didn't subject myself to the hell and fire that I've been through. I am glad to say that it is all for the better. The year is coming to an end, and the most recent project is the toughest, yet best thing to have happened to me in the past year.

So back to the review of this documentary. The truth is out there at the theaters, and I urge everyone to see it. Those of you who has heard warning and horror stories about the effects of Greenhouse and our depleting ozone layer and choose to look away, should really stop lying to yourselves and face the music. Katrina, Aceh, climate changes, hurricanes, they all may appear to have come relatively frequent these days haven't they? And it is no accidents. I strongly urge all to view this documentary to learrn about the truth and start facing the conscience. I admit to having become complacent (and being pure lazy) to issues which I always thought "someone else would do a better job at". Then it dawned upon me that it is not up to someone else to save this only planet of ours, we all are responsible for her well being.

The film is based on a slideshow that Mr Al Gore, the ex- vice-President of the US under the Clinton Administration, has been showing across the States and different countries around the world. He has show this slideshow at least a 1000 times he claims. Al Gore's own upbringing and his life experiences (son's near death accident, his professor in college etc) are inter-cut between the slide presentation, and it helps us to understand how he came to make spreading the message about our Mother Earth in jeopardy his life mission.

If there's any film that is I would consider the most important to watch this year, this would be it. Put away your prejudices you may have against this man and listen to what he has to say. You may do more research on what he says. The most important thing is to make sure you do not turn away, because the truth will never be unveiled unless you quest for it.

Why must an asshole be the reason?

2006-10-01T10:39:00.000+08:00

Sigh ... haven't been updating my blog, but who knows, it has to take an unreasonable asshole to drive me to it.

Just about 15min ago, I was driving round this carpark looking for a lot. It is a very small carpark, and it is one way, meaning you can enter the carpark through 1 entrance, and by the time you have made the round to the end of the carpark, you have to turn out of it. Since it is almost like a roundabout, many drivers just into the 1-way lane which would place them in the opp. direction of the lane. Being a small carpark, I've seen many people just do that and everyone would understand being that it doesn't cause much inconvenience to anyone having the lanes rather huge.

So what happened? I have been circling in the carpark, and so happens this guy just entered and saw one other guy leaving. Being, the 1st comes 1st rule, and the fact that the carpark is so small, I figured that this guy would let me have that lot. But when he stopped next to the car exiting I suspected that he just might be the assholic Singaporean drivers, or he sincerely had missed seeing me.

So when the other car left, he conveniently dived into that lot although my car was also just waiting by the side. Fine. So I gave him the benefit of the doubt, and walked over to his car, and told him nicely, "Hello, sorry, but I was waiting for a lot for a while already." ...

He said "but you're on the wrong direction of the road." .. So what does that mean? That means this guy knew of my presence and still didn't cared.

"So what if I was on the wrong side? I turned back to get the lot because I know if I had left the carpark, it would seem like I was giving it up."

"But you are on the wrong direction. I was looking for a lot upstairs too."

WTF is that kind of excuse??? I could have gone upstairs too, but since you left this carpark and went to the one up the freaking slope, you mean we expect to know you are waiting for a lot here??? This bugger was really getting on my nerves and he's obviously not planning to budge. We were both not giving in, and at this point, another person was driving out of a lot. So, instead of wasting my time on this asshole, ...

"I thought you could be a reasonable person, but since another lot is available now, I am not going to waste my time. And I'm sorry..." So I whipped out my camera, and took pictures of his car.

This guy was still in the car when I tried to take the picture, but my stupid camera phone was in "movie" mode, so I had to change the bloody mode while I tried taking the photos again. He definitely knows that I was trying to take picture of his car. But he didn't cared. I missed taking his face damn it, but i don't think I would want to stoop so low as to shaming him. Why why why do I have to deal with such asshole 1st thing in the morning??

So any brothers and sisters out there who sees this guy, send him my regards, and let him know that he's such a disgrace to Singapore.

Just what I heard .... abt IMF

2006-09-13T10:52:00.000+08:00

So word on the streets ....

I heard the IMF is the hottest thing happening right now and how our govt is spending big bucks to make our guests feel at home ....

I heard ... and i reiterate .. HEARD ... the following things:

- 3.5million dollars are spent on flowers that will make our green city greenier :) .... nice .. and they are engineered to last not one week, but a whopping 2-3weeks! :) .. impressive ....

- Taxi drivers are put through a course to teach them how to talk to our guests properly :) ... Etiquette class... upgrade courses for Free from the govt .. how nice :) All the things they are not supposed to say like .. ermm .. politics? :) How nice the government walking the talk .. how they encourages us to go for classes to upgrade ourselves, and now they do that for free for our very own homegrown driving talents :) I can see how they really appreciate our local bred talents. Now I wonder if the taxis themselves also feature hardware upgrades like bugging devices to ensure the guests' safety :P

- Hop on over to Cityhall area ... Thanks to our guests, we're getting free wireless internet access! ... Approved by IDA. This is so sweet. Don't you wish our foreign "kai ye" (godfathers) come by for a visit more often? :)

- Never had our government spent more efforts to improve our social etiquette since ... the courtesy campaign? Well, it is time we junk the courtesy lion and introduce a brand new campaign to welcome our rich visitors ... Smiles :) .... 4 million smiles to be exact :) :) :) and here's adding 3 more. Who doesn't when you see money? Right? :) :) :)

- Some companies even get to go home and work from home! ... How nice. A government sanctioned holiday at home! :) So instead of using the company's computers, networks and electricity, we help them save the cash and allow they to try out home office concept by having the staff share the costs of internet connection, electricty bills and of course, maybe someday, eliminate the office rental together some day ... some day :) ...

But still, there are some people I heard who are negatively impacted by the visits from the rich folks. I heard Suntec is a dead town this few days. I heard the restaurants are not doing too well. Even mine saw a drop of almost 30%-40% of sales. But really I think this is just silly thinking of how much more returns our government/society will gain from our visitors. The hotel, shopping, and foods that they are going to spend on? Plus the intangible benefits we will derive from a sudden surge of government spending on etiquette education, beautifying the surroundings with nice chrysanthemums during the chinese 7th month, and how we will become better singaporeans by surrounding ourselves with more smiles!

Be grateful folks. Let me present you with a chinese idiom that represent what I think our government want us to learn so desperately but finding hard to convey. Maybe they just need to improve our ministers' chinese language, then they can just use this 4 words in future to educate us more effectively. The idiom is "见钱眼开" (see money, eyes open). The next time IMF come around, the government should consider using these 4 words as their marketing campaign. It totally encapsulate the essence of what they are trying to achieve here but with so much more enlightening simplicity. I hope this message find them well and my suggestion will be put into thought. That's the very least I could do as a Singaporean, rather than complain all the time right?

Just keep left .. unless ..

2006-08-14T10:39:00.000+08:00

While we're at it .. here's something I've been meaning to post since last year .. and since it is still like this in some of the MRT (spotted at Cityhall, Novena ...) stations ....

Please Keep Left when using the escalators ...

As long as you are not doing the following ;p
1) Holding the hand rail
2) Holding a kid's hand
3) Have a travelling bag

My friend says ..."Get this fucker on your blog"

2006-08-14T10:30:00.000+08:00

Wow! ... It's been more than a month since I updated my site. .. Work work work ... so much things to do .. so little time ... always ..

Well well ... my friend sent this to me .. and told me to put it on my blog .. In her words:

"This is the pic of the fucker who occupies empty seats with his bag. When we asked if we can take the seats he gave us a fucker face. Can post on your blog or not?

Here's the story. 12 Aug Marina Sq Food Court. At 6. He's wif his wife. He unwillingly removed his bag when we asked for the seats"

So here is the "fucker"! :) ...

BHAVANI (and the government) should stop treating us like kids. Updated

2006-07-06T10:32:00.000+08:00

Mr Bhavani, Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, gave a "lecture" to our very own homegrown blogger Mr Brown and suggested that Mr Brown was distorting truths and being a partisan player few days back. A few things he wrote stood out. One of them is this "Instead of a diatribe mr brown should offer constructive criticism and alternatives."

This is a way of thinking which I had always thought the government should consider abandoning. They had always held the view that if anyone wants to criticize the governement or its policy, they should provide a "constructive" solution or just shut up. The fact is, this attitude basically "disallows" people from opening discussing issues, problems and does not at all promote critical thinking and developing a nation who will be able to question and tackle country's issues. Why should anyone be prevented from complaining just because they can't think of a better solution? If no one talks about any problems at all, does it mean it will become less of a problem or will it simply fade away? No! It will only allow the proponent of any bad policies to claim that it is good due to the lack of "oppositions".

The fact that the government disallows anyone from talking about any problems at all, be it in a satirical form or not, totally goes against what they are promoting about the society being an inclusive one. Here where the government in these past few years, wishes to promote people to do critical thinking, be innovative, be more involved in politics, and trying to sell an image of the government being all open and gracious, only ends up slapping themselves in the face and appearing as hypocritical, narrowminded, 2-faced and petty.

Mr Bhavani said, "mr brown is entitled to his views. But opinions which are widely circulated in a regular column in a serious newspaper should meet higher standards. Instead of a diatribe mr brown should offer constructive criticism and alternatives. And he should come out from behind his pseudonym to defend his views openly." Too bad Mr Bhavani cannot understand humor when he reads one. Is the goverment so weak that they cannot stand up to the criticism of a "comedic" writer? Those who reads Mr Brown's column and listen to to his podcast would not take his words as an official source of news and information, but just thoughts of an interesting individual who provides his own personal views on certain societal/personal issues. Is Mr Bhavani (and the government) intimidated by the popularity of a guy who writes funny? Maybe they should reconsider what they are doing wrong instead and try to understand why he is so popular to begin with. If according to Mr Bhavani, "opinions which are widely circulated in a regular column in a serious newspaper should meet higher standards. Instead of a diatribe mr brown should offer constructive criticism and alternatives", then all popular newspapers in Singapore should remove all sections/columns that are "non-serious", "non-constructive", "non-opininated" and "non-critical" because they do not offer the government/people with anything useful for their readings. But then who is to judge what is constructive solutions or not? Let's see if Mr Bhavani is able to set up a similar blog as Mr Brown and provide writings which are 1/2 as entertaining and popular as his. By "hinting" that Mr Brown's standards is not "high" enough for a "widely circulated column", it almost sounds like Mr Bhavani (or the government) is telling TODAY newspaper that they should do something about Mr Brown. And it is sad to see that 3 days after Bhavani's letter, Mr Brown's column is suspended in Today newspaper. I could call it a coincidence since I do not have evidence of Mr Bhavani (or government) directly instructing Today to do so, but anyone who doesn't share the same conclusion would be an indiot.

Here we have a David versus Goliath situation. We have Mr Brown,a light-weight champion, at one side of the ring facing the Minister, who is a heavyweight. Our minister Mr Bhavani is now telling our satirical social commentator how to run his business, and (dare I think?) suggesting that Mr Brown becomes non-satirical and enter serious political writing? Let me say that it is not the people's job to provide our government with solutions to our problems, but the governemnt's job to provide us with the solutions. And if the solutions which may come in the form of the policies are deemed ineffective, the government should be the one to acknowledge or investigate it, instead of asking people to shut up. Because how else are the government able to know if the people are happy with the way things are run of they are not allowed to speak? Are the people supposed to suffer and only when things like the economy hits then do the government do something about it? Let me tell the government here, some of the problems the government has seen of the past decades like talent leak (young singaporeans leaving) and lack of innovation is a direct result of the government's bad policies and narrowmindedness. And people like Mr Bhavani making statements like he did, will only promote the migration of talents overseas as well as stagnating innovative individuals like Mr Brown to do the things that he does best - that is commenting in the non-satirical fashion, and providing an example for kids of today, that even good writers can make a decent living by following his own heart and mind.

Stop treating us like rebellious children who step out of line. We are no longer children who can't think for ourselves.

*Update*
Bhavani is female not male.

------------------------------
Published in TODAY on June 30, 2006

S'poreans are fed, up with progress!

THINGS are certainly looking up for Singapore again. Up, up, and away.

Household incomes are up, I read. Sure, the bottom third of our country is actually seeing their incomes (or as one newspaper called it, "wages") shrink, but the rest of us purportedly are making more money.

Okay, if you say so.

As sure as Superman Returns, our cost of living is also on the up. Except we are not able to leap over high costs in a single bound.

Cost of watching World Cup is up. Price of electricity is up. Comfort's taxi fares are going up. Oh, sorry, it was called "being revised". Even the prata man at my coffeeshop just raised the price of his prata by 10 cents. He was also revising his prata prices.

So Singaporeans need to try to "up" their incomes, I am sure, in the light of our rising costs. Have you upped yours?

We are very thankful for the timing of all this good news, of course. Just after the elections, for instance. By that I mean that getting the important event out of the way means we can now concentrate on trying to pay our bills.

It would have been too taxing on the brain if those price increases were announced during the election period, thereby affecting our ability to choose wisely.

The other reason I am glad with the timing of the cost of living increases and wages going down, is that we can now deploy our Progress Package to pay for some of these bills.

Wait, what? You spent it all on that fancy pair of shoes on the day you saw your money in your account? Too bad for you then.

As I break into my Progress Package reserves to see if it is enough to pay the bills, I feel an overwhelming sense of progress. I feel like I am really staying together with my fellow Singaporeans and moving forward.

There is even talk of future roads like underground expressways being outsourced to private sector companies to build, so that they, in turn, levy a toll on those of us who use these roads.

I understand the cost of building these roads is high, and the Government is relooking the financing of these big road projects.

Silly me, I thought my road tax and COE was enough to pay for public roads.

Maybe we can start financing all kinds of expensive projects this way in future. We could build upgraded lifts for older HDB blocks, and charge tolls on a per use basis.

You walk into your new lift on the first floor, and the scanner reads the contactless cashcard chip embedded in your forehead. This chip would be part of the recently-announced Intelligent Nation 2015 plan, you know, that initiative to make us a smart nation?

So you, the smart contactless-cashcard-chip-enhanced Singaporean would go into your lift, and when you get off at your floor, the lift would deduct the toll from your chip, and you would hear a beep.

The higher you live, the more expensive the lift toll.

Now you know why I started climbing stairs for exercise, as I mentioned in my last column. I plan to prepare for that day when I have to pay to use my lift. God help you if some kid presses all the lift buttons in the lift, as kids are wont to do. You will be beeping all the way to your flat.

The same chip could be used to pay for supermarket items. You just carry your bags of rice and groceries past the cashierless cashier counter, and the total will be deducted from your contactless cashcard automatically.

You will not even know you just got poorer. And if your contactless cashcard runs out of funds (making it a contactless CASHLESS cashcard), you just cannot use paid services.

The door of the lift won't close, the bus won't stop for you, taxis will automatically display "On Call" when their chip scanners detect you're broke.

Sure, paying bills that only seem to go up is painful, but by Jove, we are going to make sure it is at least convenient.

No more opening your wallet and fiddling with dirty notes and coins. Just stand there and hear your income beeped away. No fuss, no muss! I cannot wait to be a Smart e-Singaporean.

I also found out recently that my first-born daughter's special school fees were going up. This is because of this thing called "Means Testing", where they test your means, then if you are not poor enough, you lose some or all of the subsidy you've been getting for your special child's therapy.

I think I am looking at about a $100 increase, which is a more than a 100 per cent increase, but who's counting, right? We can afford it, but we do know many families who cannot, even those that are making more money than we are, on paper.

But don't worry. Most of you don't have this problem. Your normal kids can go to regular school for very low fees, and I am sure they will not introduce means testing for your cases.

We need your gifted and talented kids to help our country do well economically, so that our kids with special needs can get a little more therapy to help them to walk and talk. And hey, maybe if the country does really well, the special-needs kids will get a little more subsidy.

Like I said, progress.

High-definition televisions, a high-speed broadband wireless network, underground expressways, and contactless cashcard system — all our signs of progress.

I am happy for progress, of course but I would be just as happy to make ends meet and to see my autistic first-born grow up able to talk and fend for herself in this society when I am gone.

That is something my wife and I will pay all we can pay to see in our lifetimes.

---------------------------------------
Printed in Today on 3 July 2006

Letter from K BHAVANI
Press Secretary to the Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts

Your mr brown column, "S'poreans are fed, up with progress!" (June 30) poured sarcasm on many issues, including the recent General Household Survey, price increases in electricity tariffs and taxi fares, our IT plans, the Progress Package and means testing for special school fees.

The results of the General Household Survey were only available after the General Election. But similar data from the Household Expenditure Survey had been published last year before the election.

There was no reason to suppress the information. It confirmed what we had told Singaporeans all along, that globalisation would stretch out incomes.

mr brown must also know that price increases in electricity tariffs and taxi fares are the inevitable result of higher oil prices.

These were precisely the reasons for the Progress Package — to help lower income Singaporeans cope with higher costs of living.

Our IT plans are critical to Singapore's competitive position and will improve the job chances of individual Singaporeans. It is wrong of mr brown to make light of them.

As for means testing for special school fees, we understand mr brown's disappointment as the father of an autistic child. However, with means testing, we can devote more resources to families who need more help.

mr brown's views on all these issues distort the truth. They are polemics dressed up as analysis, blaming the Government for all that he is unhappy with. He offers no alternatives or solutions. His piece is calculated to encourage cynicism and despondency, which can only make things worse, not better, for those he professes to sympathise with.

mr brown is entitled to his views. But opinions which are widely circulated in a regular column in a serious newspaper should meet higher standards. Instead of a diatribe mr brown should offer constructive criticism and alternatives. And he should come out from behind his pseudonym to defend his views openly.

It is not the role of journalists or newspapers in Singapore to champion issues, or campaign for or against the Government. If a columnist presents himself as a non-political observer, while exploiting his access to the mass media to undermine the Government's standing with the electorate, then he is no longer a constructive critic, but a partisan player in politics.

Superman Returns - 88%

2006-06-30T22:01:00.000+08:00

Superman .. Oh man I have been waiting for this movie for so long. Superman, the Movie and Superman II have always been 2 of my favourite movies of all time. That's because they set the standard for what a good superhero movie should be. Since the first superman, we've our share of hit and misses - Misses: Superman 3 and 4, Batman Forever, Batman and Robin - Hits: Batman Begins, The Crow, X-men and X-2, and of course the Spiderman movies. Spiderman 2 is really like the closest to being the perfect Superhero movies thus far, but Superman I and II has always held a special place in my heart. Why? Because of the meticulous handling of the myth and the respect that was given to the superhero. A marvelous cast that brought the Superman universe to life. And to top it off, an excellent score written by John Williams to honor the most powerful of all the superheroes.

And after Christopher Reeves' uncanny portrayal of the Superhero (no doubt in part due to his "Superman-ish" looks), and Richard Donner's wonderful interpretation of the character, it has become almost an impossible feat to top. And in light of all the other more "earthbound" superheroes' successes, Superman seems like a character that is "out of times" and almost too outlandish to be brought to the screen anymore. He just wasn't cool anymore.

Playing with that idea, Bryan Singer, concocted a story that saw the "Man of Steel" coming back to a world that has moved on without him. A world where our alien child, who was brought up as a human being, trying to fit in. Superman as a man, who's lover has moved on with another. That is the basis behind the new movie "Superman Returns". And on most front, the movie is a success. It pays homage to the Richard Donner versions and also makes references to the comic books.

So what's satisfying about this version of superman? For a geek like me, there's much to like. It is like a fan movie made by a fan. Bryan Singer obviously knows his history of the character and he throws tons of references to Superman I and II movies. As one who literally memorized every moment of the first 2 installments, it was great to hear all those familiar references. For instance, how Lois was asking about how many "f"s are there in "catastrophe", Clark using the word "swell" and Lex asking "What did my father say to me?". There are plenty more so I won't try to spoil it for the fans. Everytime a reference was made, it felt so much of a kick. However, the bad part of it was it made me difficult to see if all these lines actually served to make the film better or worse for a viewer who's unfamilar with aIl these dialogue and references thrown in. As I try to imagine it, it might have actually made certain scenes look really awkward if they do not know the background behind it - kind of a double edged sword.

Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor and Parker Posey as Kitty totally stole the show. In my opinion, they delivered the best lines in the film and also the best performance. Kevin's Lex was a little neurotic like Gene's but darker. Parker gave an outstanding performance with the nuances of a conflicted female sidekick.

Special effects wise, this is certainly one of the most impressive flicks to have grace the silver screen. In fact watching the "digital projection" of this film is a must if you can have access to it. The HD DVD version of this movie when it arrives later this year is sure to drive the sales of the players. The first airplane rescue scene is one of the most exhilarating action special effects sequence ever made and is designed to be watched IMAX style. It really blows the mind. And the way it kinda served as a grand entrance to Superman after such a long departure, was extremely apt. And the flying scenes? Awesomely breathtaking. The flying shots makes everything in matrix look like childs play.

Now what's not to like? Well, for one, I felt the biggest drawback of the film was the age of the main characters. Routh and Bosworth looked just too young for the roles they play. Lois was like an immature reporter, not hard nut cracking. Routh's Clark also was lacking in personality. He didn't seem to make a big distinction when playing Clark versus Superman. It makes it unbelievable that people couldn't see Superman and Clark as one. Reeve's Clark was different enough to convince audience of the possibility that everyone in the film was fooled. But not this one. I just hope that Routh would work on creating a more distinct Clark versus Superman in the next installment. As for Bosworth, I hope she'll mature a little more. The way she appeared helpless when arguing with Perry White just seemed ... wrong ...

Well, Superman Returns is a great movie to watch. More than being an action flick, this is more a romantic drama than anything else. Some guys might find it boring, or draggy, but these are probably the same guys who made the same complaints on Spiderman 2 - which was a great movie by the way. Still, Superman returns felt somewhat incomplete and I suspect it is deliberate. There are too many things to establish that will serve to make a very interesting sequel. Bring it on!

Superman .... Returns

2006-06-19T10:31:00.000+08:00

Ok guys and girls ... have a few ideas for Superman returns ...

how many of you are interested in gathering to watch Superman Returns premiere?
310pm Marina GV ... Digital Cinema .. 28th June

I am going to get tickets .. and who's interested .. drop me an email at ywchai@mac.com, and I am planning to buy the tickets real soon.

And another "Superman returns" night. Where we watch Superman 1 and 2, then we head to the theater to catch "Returns".

Propose the date and email me.

Update : Superman returns day ... Saturday 1st July
Watch Superman 1 and 2 from afternoon ... then break for dinner ... then head to watch "returns" night show.

:D ..... almost 8 hours of superman :P ....

The Omen - 84%

2006-06-12T08:18:00.000+08:00

The 666 .. number of the beast .. Satan's Day blahblahblah ... it basically translate to ... a day for a good horror movie :) So how good was it? It was pretty mighty good I might say.

So what's the story about? A high ranking official's wife, had a stillborn and the he was persuaded by a priest to swap his dead baby for someone else's. Little does he know, that this baby was the son of the devil! (Dramatic music!!!) So well, and the story chronicles the "younger years" of the Devil's son, Damien.

What really works? The casting was excellent. The story is a little absurd, by today's standards that is. I mean, c'mon, how easy is it to convince someone to pick up someone else's baby with just words from a priest you have never met before. Wouldn't you at least have gotten his contact? But the acting from the amazing cast made it all believable. And comparing the older version with the new one, I would say the new version bettered the old one by being more "believable".

However, this also works against the movie. The problem is the actor Damien, is too well cast. You know he's the freaking devil the minute he appears. I mean, c'mon, right from the start! But the nice thing about the old version, was that throughout the film, you kept wondering, how could the little boy turned into the devil it suppose to be? You actually watch the film hoping that it will turn out to be the opposite. But this new updated version, damn you just want to kill the little boy the minute he appears. So in a way, there're no twists, and it is basically the old version with an updated look and tempo.

However, even if I did not watch the original, this movie would still have worked. The story was reasonably well told. The fact that he followed the original very closely, even using the same script, made the holes in the plot somwhat forgiveable as it made me think in 1970s mode.

But for a good June scare, this one's a good one to head to. ;)

X-men: The Last Stand - 75%

2006-06-02T11:56:00.000+08:00

Is this truly the last stand as the title hints? Is this the end of the X-men franchise considering that Bryan Singer has left the project? I'd say judging from the box office performance over its 1st weekend, the dead can rise from its ashes like the pheonix did. Anything is possible with the power of money :)

So what is X-men the last stand about? It is about Phoenix coming back, while Magneto tries to rally the mutants against the Humans .. while the Humans have created an anti-mutant vaccine and finally how all these culminate into an all out battle where tons of characters get killed off. So did I give away too much? Nah ..... think of it as a mutant war brewing and the movie is about how it gets there.

And man ... this one is like a rojak (mess) of X-men all rolled into one. So many mutants out there they try to feature, yet many of them were so fleeting. But they do taste pretty sweet when the scenes are right. One conflict in the movie I really liked was how they dealt with the idea that, if you're given a chance to be less unique an individual than you are, would you? And there really was no straight answer to that question, especially if your "uniqueness" does not contribute a sense of positive reflection upon yourself. For instance, if you could throw fire, you might choose to keep it, but if you couldn't touch anyone at all or you may kill them (including the ones you love), would you give up that lethal "strength" of yours? Too bad it seemed a little underexplored, and it didn't really fully developed its idea. Maybe a part 4 would deal with it more?

Then there're the campy 1-liners .... Why do they wanna dumb down the characters with all these shitty 1-liners? Who wrote those "Batman & Robin"-ish rubbish. They really do detract from an otherwise a really seriously good movie and dragging it into mediocrity territory. Luckily the good things in the movie overwhelmed the potential pitfalls.

So have a good fun time, and enjoy this crazy romp at the theaters. And please wait till the credits finish rolling. ;)

The Da Vinci Code - 80%

2006-05-21T13:16:00.000+08:00

I am sure plenty of people are familiar with the story already. Conspiracy is out there to prevent certain truths about Jesus's bloodline and his "human-ness" that will destroy the very foundation of the church and religion. Let's face it. The very basis for the power of the church and the reason why Christianity is different from the "other" religions lies in a few beliefs: 1) Christ is not just human, he is the very embodiment of God himself 2) Christ is not human, and that's why he could be resurrected 3) Christ is the son of God.

However, this movie brings forth the possibilities, and theories that Jesus might just be a regular human being, and there is a bloodline that sees his descendants walking among us today. What's even scarier (or to the church) is that his descendants might be the ones tasked to carry on his teachings. To people who are not Christians or Catholics, really, they couldn't care less if Jesus was married or had kids. But imagine what it would mean to the gazillion Christians and Catholics out there. If suddenly, a piece of evidence came about that would proof the above, the religion would have lost its entire foundation and millions of Christians around the world would have their religion invalidated overnight. So that sets up for a very good premise for a good thriller doesn't it? So how does the movie holds up as a movie?

Now really, given the fact that I have never read the book, I found the premise for the movie really good and intriguing. At least for a person watching it as a movie for the first time, encountering the story as the first time, I was pleasantly entertained. Hey, if the background and history as it was based on was true, I would have to say the way the fictitious characters are weaved in are pretty well done. And also, c'mon, I could tell what are intended to be the "facts" behind the movie and what are not. It kind of made the hoohaa by the church that says it confuses and blurs the line between fact and fiction kind of pointless. The noise made by Christians and Catholics only seem to validate the theories brought forth by the movie.

As a thriller though, I found it a bit lacking. The pace was a little off. It really wasn't that suspenseful. But that is assuming that this film is intended to be a thriller to begin with. Otherwise, it really well as in it does serve to tell its story in an unconfusing manner.

The gripes I have are some of the loopholes in the plot and how some of the escapes that are depicted in the story looked positively lame. The bullet at the door and the car escape. Rather unconvincingly executed. And my beautiful Audrey Tatou, turned up a rather stiff performance. I guess maybe she was trying hard to play someone much older and matured than herself that made her, too restrained.

Ok, after letting it sink in and thinking clearly about the movie after letting the hype of all the bad reviews settle, I think I am not going to go with the crowd and actually declare this film rather good - on the basis of its plot. It is basically a good movie, told rather well. And the bad weren't all that bad really. Do I really want to nitpick?

Mission Impossible - 79%

2006-05-19T10:13:00.000+08:00

The mission is back for the 3rd round and man was it a ride. Looking back at all the 3 mission impossible flicks, they all have very different looks, feel and style. And it is definitely very much due to the decision to use 3 different directors for all 3 movies. And thus, we have mission impossible that kinda appeal to different people on different levels. The first one appealed to me as an amazing thriller where it is a battle of wits of sorts. The second MI was decidedly a style over substance flick, which in its own way held its own appeal. The 3rd one this time round, feels very much like a battle of emotions. Ethan Hunt this time, is the most battered emotionally and physically. We have him giving into his emotions and acting outside his usually cool and very focused actions. And this is what I like over the last 2 missions. However, looking at how he changes his girlfriends in the MI series like how he changes directors, I am not so sure how he's going to wriggle himself out of a marriage for a 4th outing.

But well, the story, though secondary to much of the action in the flick, goes like this. Mr Hunt is getting married, and he is being recalled back for one more last mission. Then things go wrong, and as he tries to fix the wrong, his fiancee gets abducted. Messy ..... And hey, what better way to pull at the heart strings then to see a man desperate to save his loving, beautiful and sexy nursey wife?

So how're the actions this round? MI series (or at least 1 and 2) always feature some stunts which edge on the impossible - we've had the 2 inches above the floor stunt, the blade edge 1/4 inch from the eye stunt, the hanging by the cliff mountain climbing stunt etc. This time though, it seems like the director wanted to make it more plausible by making the stunts and Ethan perform a little less "impossible". So we actually get more "big stunts" and none of those little "impossible" ones. Honestly speaking, I prefer the little impossible ones, cos they are what make Mission Impossible special. This time, it just feels like a regular thriller.

But that said, it is a good emotionally driven thriller. I just wished there was more of Philip Seymour Hoffman. There were like only ... 2 scenes of him talking? C'mon, he deserves more screentime! Even as a villain. And further on that point, many of the other characters were really not that developed too. The rest of the team members, like the computer guy and Maggie Q. And even Ethan's boss who wasn't really explored though he was integral to the plot of the story.And one last question: What was Maggie Q there in the movie for? To blow up the car?

Ok next up, Da vinci Code. Quite excited ... no not cos I have read the book ... not becos of the controversy ... but I am just a HUGE HUGE fan of Tom Hanks and Audrey Tatou.

Yes Mr Lee, I am a living proof of a Singaporean that I fear PAP

2006-05-09T09:36:00.000+08:00

Yesterday on Channelnewsasia, it was reported that James Gomez of the Worker's Party was being detained for questioning and recording of statements for the eleccion papers issue. On the videoclip online, there was MM Lee saying "When I call a person openly you're a liar, you're dishonest and he does not dare to sue me, there's something basically wrong" ....

This statement basically sums up the kind of mentality and methodology that PAP represents when dealing with people that are against them. This statement also summarizes the kind of fear that I have for this government. From this statement, you can tell that they use tactics like these to "test" their accusations againts people (whether true or not), and if their opponents do not sue back, they will push and assume that what they claimed is true.

Dear Mr Lee, the only thing that is wrong in the whole situation, is the fact that you could make accuasations like these just to "test the waters". And in case you didn't realize, when people do not sue you back, it does not necessarily mean they are guilty of your charges, it could simply mean:
1) They are too busy to bother with matters of the court
2) They do not want to undergo the stress of being in court
3) They do not have the financial ability to sue you back
4) Since they can't afford an attorney, they figured that they probably can't "out-argue" you in courts

What is wrong here is your arrogance and how you are using such underhanded methods to test your accusations. Do you recall on Channel News Asia when you ask one of the journalist to name anyone who is afraid of the PAP? I will here raise my hand and say, "Sir, I am his proof of a Singaporean individual, who is afraid of the PAP" and your statement is one example of why I have such fear for your government.

I have always respected Mr Lee for what he has done for the country, but it is statements like these that makes me wonder if these are the kind of people I want to be running the country that I love.

Almost Election ... almost ...

2006-05-04T23:18:00.000+08:00

Just listened to the TV/Radio broadcasts of the representatives from the various parties .. PAP, SDA, SDP ... and also some other highlights from the rallies ....

Some things that caught my attention:

1) PAP Wong Kan Seng said "We will be all inclusive .... We will not leave anyone behind"
Didn't we hear this from another president on the other side of the world .... erhm ... Mr Bush from USA? ... And man, did he leave anyone behind? :P .....

2) WP - I think it was Low Thia Khiang or James Gomez himself .. who called the PAP "Flip flops" ....
Now .. didn't we hear this from somewhere else before too? ... The recent US election when Mr Bush was accusing his opponent Mr Kerry of being a flip flop??

Are the singaporean politicians taking their cues from the US politics? .... talk about "be hip, original, be creative" .... :P
And if our politicians are heading in any of the direction of the Bush Administration .... man i can't imagine ...

3) What the fuck ... none of the party reps and leaders from ANY parties can SPEAK GOOD MANDARIN. Screw the Speak Good English Campaign, work on the SPEAK GOOOD MANDARIN campaign. What "Chinese Cool!" shit ??? They better think of better ways to entice people to improve their Mandarin. And hello Mr PM Lee?? What was the "best is yet to come??" ... I have yet to see anything coming but bad Mandarin on our Mandarin only Television .... They may as well be speaking in Hokkien if it helps them to speak more smoothly, quickly and just bloody slap some subtitles on it ....

Everyone goes to vote!!

2006-04-29T13:06:00.000+08:00

So the election is upon us ... and we're off to vote for who should be in our government, and who's not. Oh but then, not everyone gets to vote, only those who's GRCs are being contested. So I guess only those who happens to be in a GRC where PAP has to put up a fight, do they get a chance to voice your opinion.

So how's the rules for this election? Fair? No way, cos even PAP said so, that there are no level playing field, in politics. MM Lee said that there are no ruling party in the world that would actually try to provide advantages for their opponents. I do agree with MM Lee for this statement. Take for example in a football match (the Real football, or soccer for u americans), the richer teams can afford to "buy" better players, and afford better coaches etc. It doesn't make sense to say, hey, let's give some of our opponents a better chance by giving them a portion of our earnings.

However, I find it a little odd when the rules for the game are being set by the ruling party to begin with. You don't see the umpire or referees of any games being owned by the teams? You don't see the match's rules being decided by the reigning champions. So who makes the rules for how the election is being held in Singapore? PAP? But I would dare say, not entirely. I would say it is history that makes them make decisions/rules the way they are today. You see MM Lee and many of the MPs using history as the reasons why certain rules must be kept the way they are.

Well, they are not wrong in the way they came to that decision. Though do I agree? I don't. Can I say anything about it? The PAP's method of shutting people up would be, "do you have a better idea?". So if I don't have a good idea, I should shut my mouth up. If I think I do, what are the ways I could voice it? Let me look at my options:
1) Write to the ST forums, and pray that they do not censor you?
2) Put up a blog. Only if you register with the government and get it approved?
3) Raise it at those MP Feedback meetings?
4) Join the opposition party?

The methods above are highly regulated and watched and thus I dare say the barrier to entry to voicing an opinion on how our country is run is high. Regular people like those in kopitiam, who wants to voice a opinion can only keep it within the kopitiam. However, the governent would be happy to have it kept within kopitiams. But would they be able to hear it? Nope .... Younger people, do not hang out in kopitiams like the previous generations. The younger generations of Singaporeans communicates and hang out with their friends through this medium called the internet these days. And chatting programs, online forums and blogs are arguably the electronic kopitiams of the younger generation. However, even that is being regulated by our government.

It almost seem like the government is making it very very hard for anyone to openly talk about any opinions about the government without "getting their permission". This is very very unhealthy for the society.

Not too long ago, MM Lee held an "open discussion" with a bunch of 30 year olds (media people, journalists) on TV and after watching it, I feel it was quite an useless exercise for both parties. As a "young" Singaporean, I didn't walk away convinced by PAP's "best" representative. Not to say I was impressed by my peers who were represented on the show as well. But the fact was that, it clearly marked the "generation gap" between the ruling party and young voters. It seemed that PAP didn't end up convincing the young people on the show that they are the best thing for our country today, and the young ones didn't put up too strong a fight either.

But at the end of it all .... after all the campaigning and the selling of their "go yo" (chinese medicine), we voters will get the chance to voice ours choice. For young people like me, the blog would be the best place to share my thoughts about who I think should win or not. But I can't since they would lock me if I did so without registering. But then again, is this posting even political? What would consitute a political blog?

So ... I guess the only way to voice it, is through my/your votes. So I am here to urge everyone, regardless of what you think who will win, let this be your chance to voice your opinions. Please not just think of what "go yo" the party that's fighting in your GRC is promising you. Please think in terms of the nation's well being too. Though the GRC system has forced people to think in terms of the tangibles for their GRC, and not in terms of the welfare of the entire naton itself, I hope everyone would think in a broader manner. This is your only chance to make your voices be heard. If you do not make any action, it would be 0% votes. But remember, at a 5%, 10%, 25% or 49%, though it is a minority, would still constitute a signal - all it takes, is your vote to make that signal be represented.

But alas, I can't vote even if I wanted to ... cos my GRC is not being contested. So much for the "General Election". Guess my vote can't count even if I wanted it too. ;P

Eight Below - 65%

2006-04-17T09:52:00.000+08:00

Ok ... movie about dogs. My friend came back from Hong Kong for the weekend and gave me a call Friday afternoon. I was like "hey dude, let's hang out! Before u go back!" He said, "Yeah! ssure. We're planning to watch a show with the gang. Eight Below! I'll buy the tickets first." Then I wondered, "huh?? you're back for the weekend and u wanna catch Eight below? This better be good." And I tried to recall what was the last animal film I've watched (Neomo doesn't count), and it was "Beethoven". And it was a rental. I got a bad feeling this one's better as a rental ... and it turned out .. yeah ... go rent it instead.

There are those kind of movies that you watch, and you really don't quite like it, but you feel bad giving it a low score because of how "nice natured" it is. This usually happens to children's movies and this one, I don't really know how to place it. It seems like it is trying too hard to please different types of audience, that ... it kinda lost its identity. I don't know whether to say "hey for a children's movie, it is good!" or "This is a crappy movie for adults!". Cos I really don't know who they are trying to target. Maybe the movie was made just to sell huskies? Or to entice people to go to Antartica before global warming destroys it all?

Anyways, I think they meant to add drama to an animal documentary, and end up not serving each of the ends well. The special effects were shoddy. And I think the biggest problem I had was with the dogs, or should I say, the way the dogs were directed. Man they are dogs! Stop making them seem like they can communicate and behave like humans. They tried to put in human politics into the dogs ... and it makes them looks stupid instead of smart. And half the time, I can imagine the trainer off screen giving the dogs instructions on "ok doggies, come here now", "ok dogggies, eat (lick on?) the stuffed birds now".

Ok ... so how's the movie? ... It is a rental, for when you are in the mood for a silly drama that looks like it is sponsored by the animal planet.

Bird's Nest ....

2006-04-15T11:13:00.000+08:00

It was a busy busy day ..

Whole day shoot. My new short film called Bird's Nest (working title) is almost done ... well .. 90%
First foray into High Definition production. And my 4+ year old Quicksilver is really showing its age .... no more RT effects :( ....

Man, directing kids is very very strenous .... this is a 7min short film .. and We took like .... 7 hours? ... Wow .... was dead beat by 4pm ...

There'll be another shoot on another day. Will be a short one. Anyways .. can't wait to show itto you guys ;)

Here are some of the production shots ...

1. My DP, Steven Liew and his son, Darren.
2. My Lead :) John Tay
3. Yours Truly ;)
4. Mr Alan Wong, the coolest grandpa I know ;)

Talking about water ... and what they expect to be free.

2006-04-11T09:06:00.000+08:00

Good to see a discussion on free water (or the lack of) issue at restaurants being brought up in Straitstimes. Well I didn't quite read the article since I didn't subscribe to it, but someone told me about it and I was glad to hear about it. As some readers might know, I run a restaurant, and I do give free water. However, I wanna stress that if I am given a chance to open another restaurant, water will not be free.

And really why was water free in the beginning in my joint? Because of 1 factor, the Japanese curry which is my restaurant's mainstay, is deem to make pple "thirsty" and I was told by my Japanese Chef that Japanese would expect the water to be free at a Japanese restaurant. And since day one, we have pampered our customers with free water, or should I say, I've been paying for my customers to not purchase my other drinks. Ironically, it turns out many Japanese did end up ordering other drinks more often than not, usually beer. And Singaporeans, typicallly would be sitting there and looking annoyed if we did not serve them water while waiting for their friends. We typically even asked them "would you like a drink while waiting?" 8/10 times the answer would be "Can I just have ice water please?" Or "Warm water, not too hot". I refer to these customers as the "aquamen".

I do want to point out to customers in Singapore, who expects so many things to be free, that we are not running a charity. And they should see these "free" things not as a requirement but as an act of good will. Let us see what are the things that I provide for free in my restaurant and the hidden costs to me:

1) Free Water - Cold and warm.
Firstly we do have to pay for it. The fact that some huge restaurant have to hire staff specifically to handle these water issues, should serve as a wake up call that hey, we are already doing way beyond what we should. And secondly, again to point out, the cold water is cold because we have to pay for an ice maker and the electricity to run it. The same goes for warm/hot water. Water needs to be boiled, contained, and kept hot/warmed - and they all cost money.

2) "Service for extra 10-15 plates for my gang to celebrate birthday with a cake that I purchased elsewhere."
Guys, we lose sales for your "outside food". We're literally paying for you to buy your cake elsewhere and providing you with all the utencils and then also having to hire a staff to clean up your mess, and wash your plates after that. By the way, using a plate once for a stupid slice of cake and expecting us to clean it is a surefire way to make you look like an asshole. Sometimes this is a courtesy that we extend to customers who often overlook the kindness and see it as a requirement. Reminder, we are doing you a favor here, and you're not paying for it. We could jolly well charge you a "corkage" fee for your cake from outside instead of buying ours, but we had spoiled our own market.

3) "Extra seat - to put my precious bags cos they can't touch the floor." There are many, and I re-stress, many many customers who come into a restaurant and expecing to sit at a table for 4 when then there's only 2 of them. the reasons include 1) I want to put my bag on the chair 2) I want a bigger area to feel more comfortable 3) The restaurant is still empty what! You can afford to gimme that luxury! 4) I am a customer and I want to sit where I please!
Let me remind customers that, hey, when you are going to a restaurant, and especially those small family run types, they often don't have that many tables to provide you with such luxury. And a square or rectangular table can only provide combinations of table for 2 or 4, not 3. When you request to sit at a table for 4 when there's only 2 of you, you are effectively 1/2-ing the restaurant's capacity - as well as takings. If you call the restaurant petty for this, we call the customers unthoughful and selfish for this. And please don't make things worse by taking up a table for 4 and having 2 person sharing 1 dish. Final point, your freaking bag can be placed on the freaking floor.

Those who claim that "hey, I pay service charge, so water should be free". Sorry, if 10% of the service is to purely pay for the water or the drinks that you are buying, then I'd have to make the entire restaurant self service. Either that, I'll raise the service charge. For those who looks at the food and calculate how much margin we're making, please also put into perspective all the hidden costs that you can't see. If you think the 10% service charge that you pay can cover all of the above losses and expenses and opportunity costs, then you are seriously not being realistic. And truth be told, even if I provide you with free water and not charge you service charge, would you be kind enough to leave a 10-15% tip? Nope. Singaporeans are used to having things served on a silver platter to them and they think they deserve the best service in the world for every cent that they pay. But they also don't realize that, you shouldn't be expecting be served like a king, if you are not at a castle and if you are not paying like a king. We treat you like a customer and service you like a guest, not to be your slave. Expectations level have to be re-adjusted on both sides.

And if you realize, the above behaviors all point to being a rude and thoughtless person in general, not just a bad customer. And eventually, it is not just about being a a better or nicer customer, it is about being a nicer person. And any good restaurant love good customers - just as mine. ;) Actually just ask anyone who has run a restaurant, or worked as a waitress before, they will tell you that "angmohs" are better customers than Singaporean ones. And no, it is not because they spend more, but it because they are nicer people in general.

董沁, 野百合·春天- Chinese Jazz Recommendation

2006-04-09T11:51:00.000+08:00

Was in Sembawang music, just randoming shopping for CDs while waiting for a friend. I picked out a CD from the rack which interests me, some Chinese Jazz CD, titled 野百合·春天 (which was actually a old chinese tune which I haven't heard in a long time). The singer was 董沁 (pronounced "qin4"). Ok, the cover wasn't exactly the nicest, and it really look like some Cheap Cover artist thing.

This guy came up to me and asked me if I wanna test it. Think they are learning a thing or 2 from That CD shop.... Anyways, I was a little relunctant since I wasn't really planning on getting anything. He keep reassuring me "hey it is ok... really ok no problem, can test one" and as he said those words, his hands were busy ripping the shrinkwrap and taking out the CD. Win already lor. I see him wasting the shrinkwrapper, I also paiseh not to buy liao.

But hey, upon taking a listening, oh damn this is a hidden gem. The songs were remakes of old chinese classics in a jazz style. Chinese Shanghai-nese artistes seems to be re-igniting a Jazz renaissance and this is one of the best recordings I have heard. There are 2 Teresa Teng's songs in there, and Dong Qin's rendition is so very sincere and it did in someway reminded me of Teresa herself, but with a modern twist. Crisp vocals and excellent pronounciation. And the price is very reasonable too. Highly recommended. Couldn't find it at many places. Try Sembawang Music.

Highlighted Tracks:
《野百合也有春天》、《今宵多珍重》、《月满西楼》、《亲密爱人》、《泪的小雨》、《如果没有你》
http://www.cdhome.com.cn/shopinfo.asp?ID=9562

Media firms need to progress

2006-04-09T11:35:00.000+08:00

Recently was just shopping at Sembawang randomly checking out some CDs. Was just looking at some China imported CDs and thinking to myself, damn, these guys are cheap. Well of course not as cheap as the real pirated stuffs, these are more like parellel imported CDs that are not "legal" by the distributors definition. Sigh ... after so long, these media companies still think that we're living in the 60s. The world is getting smaller and the rules of how the market used to work needs to be revised. It still saddens me to see those stupid region codes on DVDs creating so much problems for customers these days who are so much more "international" than before. Don't they realize that in the process of planning so many versions of their discs to "maximize profits" in the different regions, those profits are being eroded by the ease of customers these days have access to products from different parts of the world now. And not to mention the kind of money that they have to pay for research and development for things like DRM, DeCSS and the lawyer fees from tracking and suing people around that world for cracking the codes.

Note to media companies: Move on with the times.

Apple Sets Up a Bootcamp!!!

2006-04-06T21:42:00.000+08:00

Oh this is big news .... So bloody big. Apple now officially supports dual booting feature on their intel macs onto windows!!! Of course, they claim that they do not support windows of course. But really, aren't the rest of the PC makers out there the same - they will help u with the drivers on their machines, but if u have problems with windows, they'll ask u to call Microsoft anyways. ;)

I spoke to some PeeCee users about this, and one of them had this to say, "ah Apple finally had to give in to Windows. They have to acknowledge the fact that they can't survive without Windows." Man this person is so not getting it. And I afraid lotsa PeeCee heads are thinking the same. Apple do not need Windows to survive. They are now using Windows as a trojan horse to lure PeeCee users over to the mac. Hey if you wanna get a mac machine just to run crappy windows, Apple don't care - since you'll be paying them the cash, and you'd need MacOS to be installed to enable the dual boot anyways. ;)

Also, we get some people discussing how MacOS will now be as vunerable to viruses now that it "supports windows". Shit are people so stupid?? Almost all viruses are not "cross platform", and that's why they will not affect the MacOS! And some pple are also discussing "luckily the file system is different, so the viruses will not cross over so easily yet". WTF??? Do they even know what the hell are they talking about?? Unless a virus is cross platform, it will not affect the mac side! Why?? It is the same reason why a PC game will not work on the Mac unless it is compiled for it!! It is not because of the bloody filesystem! And the same people who thinks MacOS running on an Intel chip will make the MAcOS susceptible to virus attacks, needs to go for some computer classes before they write for any tech magazine or newspaper.

In the end, this is a great great move for Apple - and MS too. Afterall, MS makes money on every copy of Windows installed on a Mac, and Apple will also make money for every Mac sold. Many people are seeing this as Windows infiltrating Apple, but what they do not see, is that Apple is now the only Windows PC supplier in the world, that sells machines that can run the coolest OS in the world - The Mac OS.

The Hills Have Eyes - 72%

2006-04-06T21:12:00.000+08:00

Hey hey ... a remake of a classic horror movie from 1977. Being the horror movie fan that I am, this I so gotta check. I have not watched the original, so I will not be making comparison. I'll just be judging this version on its on. So how did it entertain? Well, being a slasher film, I really didn't have much expectations from its storyline, and if you have the same kind of attitude to it, it is pretty well done. In fact, what I liked about it was how the characters who survived had in some ways, had to change their ways of thinking to survive. The city dweller, gun-hating democrat ended up behaving in a way that he wouldn't imagine that he would. The boy who was so gung-ho about using guns to solve his problems, had to start using his brains to think and strategize his next moves.

But hey .. this is afterall just a slasher movie. The typical rules that a typical slasher movie abide by are still there - the most obvious ones who will die, will really die; the road that looked like it shouldn't be taken, was still taken; the gas station in the middle of nowhere must still be run by a stereotypical weird freakish character that shouldn't be trusted; and of course those who seemed like they shouldn't be trusted, was still trusted. ;) So, in a way, everything still turned out pretty predictable. But hey, if these ideas were featured in the 70s, they could have been rather fresh wouldn't it? Or would it still seemed like the logic of those people seemed pretty whacked?

But I guess if you wanna judge this film on the logic of the story, you probably would rate it like a piece of crap. However I chose to view it like a ride into a bloody wonderland, and man it was quite a wild ride. ;) But be warned, this is one of the most gory and violent films made. Damn, they keep outdoing themselves do they?

Happy 30th Anniversary Apple Computer! - 1 April 1976-2006

2006-03-31T23:44:00.000+08:00

Now from a mac head (literally), here's me thinking of a way to pay tribute to my favorite fruit company, Apple Computer. ;)
Since the day I bought a Powermac 6500 back in college in 1997, (with the main purpose of forcing myself to start studying more and play lesser games on PC), my life had changed forever. No longer am I a blind and mindless lemming that used to be lost in the world of DLL, DMA, IRQs and blue screen of deaths. No longer am I trying to fix and reinstall my OS for maintenance purposes. I am now thrust into the world where I can actually concentrate on completing my work on the computer, and actually enjoying the process.

Since being introduced to the Mac, I have changed my way of thinking and living. No longer do I accept traditions and follow the trends - now I question and ask what can I do to make things better?

In the past 9 years, I have owned a Powermac 6500, Pismo, Tibook, Sawtooth, Quicksilver, Newton 2000, Quicktake 200, Tangerine ibook, G4 ibook, Sage iMac DV, Mac Classic II, Mac mini, and of course, 2 ipods. Though most of them are already sold, but they all had held a very special place in my heart.

Here I am paying tribute to the greatest computer company in the world - Apple Computer. Here's to the insanely great 30 years that has come and gone, and to many many more to come.

Before

After (note: the 3 stripes on the right side of my head represent the 3 great decades - incidentally, I am also gonna be 30 this year ;)

Additional Info: The hair was done at "Hairfolio" by Dave. You can find them at Stamford House #01-11 (at 39 Stamford Rd, Ground Floor. Near Cityhall MRT). 6338 2636. Make appointment!

V for Vendetta - 83%

2006-03-19T08:20:00.000+08:00

"In exchange for peace and prosperity, we demand your absolute obedience and silence"

A very disturbing yet familiar statement mentioned in the movie. This story stars Natalie Portman as Evey, a timid young reporter who was one day rescued by a V, a terrorist who blows up buildings to make his point heard, and then she was trained to become a voice, a face of V's cause. V aims to overthrow the ideas and the government which behaves like a big brother, who commands nothing less than obedience by using fear and media manipulation to control the people. Sounds a lot like Singapore if you ask me. :) The society is not necessarily poor or the people impoverished, it is just way too controlled. The difference between Singapore and the London depicted in the story, is that the people are not stupid, the British can tell that the goverment is feeding them horseshit - Singaporeans don't know and couldn't care less to be bothered.

I usually judge how good (or bad) a film is by observing how much discussion or questions are raised after I watched the movie. This movie raised many "what ifs" and I think that is a good thing - it sets you thinking. It will surely raise many arguments as to whether this movie was made to make comparison between the current state of affairs in the US, given its underlying terrorism theme. It also makes people wonder, if the people should not simply brand the Middle Eastern terrorists as killers and people who do not agree with the ideas of Freedom - whether we should look deeper and understand them as human beings and what are the ideals that they are standing for. I mean let's face it, even in a so-called democracy in Singapore, are there really freedom? So maybe instead of waging wars against the insurgents, maybe a self reflection should be done to question not them, but ourselves, if we are still standing for what we preach?

I also can't help thinking that V is like a alternate version of the Phantom while Evey his Christine. The Phantom has a face to hide, and so does V, and he trains Evey to be the voice and face of his ideas, just as the Phantom did the same for Christine. Was Phantom of the Opera an inspiration for V? I don't know but there sure are plenty of references.

Natalie Portman gave a good performance, but not great. There were a few instances of over-acting which I was surprised to see but it could due to directions. And her accent didn't seem so convincing either. Hugo Weaving's face was never seen, but gave a great voice performance for V. A thought provoking movie that raises more questions than ask them.

Brokeback Mountain 95%

2006-03-16T22:19:00.000+08:00

"I wish I knew how to quit you!"

"Well why don't you just let me be.
I am nothing, I am nowhere
All because of you ...."

These are the lines from one of the most powerful scene in the movie Brokeback mountain. This is a heartwrenching love story between 2 males, who stumbled upon the idea of a "same-sex relationship" and didn't know what to do about it. Why? It was set in the early 60s, when homosexuality was probably a very very alien notion. No one knows what it was, and no one practised it openly, because they might get killed for being an anomaly. And people did get killed for being a queer in those times.

So what's to do when they discover that they felt very strongly for each other? They kept things under wraps, while pretending to move on living like regular people. And thus, all their life, they are living a lie. This is a tragic love story that will not work out, at least in those times. And the story succeed in showing how much they cared for each other and tried so hard to make time to spend with each other secretly. Ennis (Played by Heath Ledger) and Jack (played by Jake Gyllenhaal) had to live a double life, and couldn't let anyone know about their true inclination of his sexual preference. I figure it would be akin to forcing a girl to act and talk like a man, just to hide her true gender - in other words, life would be a living hell. The 2 characters are going through living hell. Ennis obviously wrecked his life because of he didn't know how to deal with his situation, and chooses to hide and run. While Jack, got so tired of running and hiding, eventually had to suffer the consequences of his incapability to hide the truth.

This is a tragic love story of 2 person who couldn't openly be together. It is akin to any other heterosexual unrequitted love story. Only difference is this is based on 2 males. I urge those who are "homo-phobic" to give this film a chance.

The film is beautifully filmed, and exceptionally powerful. The writing was great and the screenplay was a masterpiece. Heath Ledger put up an outstanding performance that was both heartwrenching and touching. This is truly Ang Lee's most powerful work so far. Bravo!

Oscar thoughts

2006-03-06T12:38:00.000+08:00

Well well ... the night was like "hey we had so many good ones .. how do we choose? ... What the heck .. let's honor them all" ...
And yeah .... everyone film got some big one .. but no one got everyone ...

Highlights
Best Picture - Crash
Best Director - Brokeback Mountain
Best Adapted Screenplay - Brokeback Mountain
Best Original Screenplay - Crash
Best Actress - Walk the Line
Best Actor - Capote
Best Cinematography - Memoirs of a Geisha
Best Editing - Crash
Best Original Score - Brokeback Mountain

i think it was like .. eh .. "we think crash and brokback are great, but how do we make them share awards?"
so they settled with "best director for broekback" and "best picture for crash"

This year is like a year that can't wait to celebrate good films .. that are not necessarily big money makers. Where what matters are the story and the script ... and of course all that's involved in telling the story ...
and not just ... flashy special effects :)

That's all folks!

Munich - 88%

2006-03-06T08:46:00.000+08:00

Munich is a story about the 1972 terrorist attack on the Olympics soil (at Munich of course), targetting the Israelist Athletes. All of them were killed, but not all of the killers were brought to justice. Israel responded, illegally and covertly, by hiring a group of assassins to hunt down the 11 people who had a part in planning the attack. Story focuses on the leader of the group of 5 assassins, Avner, played by Eric Bana. And as the mission progresses, you observe how they start to question the legality of their actions and whether this act of revenge, was actually beneficial to them and the country that they love.

The Palestinians were depicted as they were, people who wanted a place of their own, and they will do anything for their faith. Ironically, with the Israelists counter actions, they are relegated to the same level as the terrorists they are fighting against. There's really no right or wrong answered here. There was only a question of whether violence is an effective way to get people's attention, or to end violence itself.

Avner was finally just a family man, and it was the only reason that saved him from being killed multiple times in the show. I will not give away too much, but this film contained one of the saddest love making scene ever shot - and that is not an easy achievement.

Bana is an excellent actor, and this film is a great showcase of his acting prowess. He is very well suited to act as characters with a heavy heart and a deep soul, just as he breathed life into the Hulk and made it a complex and dark character. He is a star to watch.

Oscar Day & Night!

2006-03-06T08:43:00.000+08:00

Hey hey hey!

In case you did't know .. the Academy Awards is happening right now .... almost ... 15min from this writing.

I am stuck to the TV .. Do you have a TV? If you're working .. probably not? :P ,... Well .. I''ll be updating here live as it progresses. So .. reload and reload often :)

Lights!!! ...Action!

9am (GMT +800) ...
Voila! .. The show begins ... Our good host this year ... Mr Jon Stewart .. :)

Thsi year ... The bald golden boy is 78 years old. ...

905am
There was a nice Video intro .. where all the previous hosts were featured to say "No .. not this year" .... too bad those reading it ... can't watch it :P

909
Jon Stewart introducing the key nominees not in the previous "singing Style" of Billy Crystal and Steve Martin. ... but given the "Daily show" treatment ... nice :) Too bad u guys are just reading about it.

916am
Best Supporting Actor ..... goes to .... George Clooney - Syriana

Commercial time... time to order MacDonalds ..... :P

Can't f#$# believe this ... Mac Donald's got overwhelming orders .. please call back later .. cos we can't deliver for you ...
Grrr. ...

926 .. Ben Stiller giving away the Best Visual Effects in a green suit... that's a funny one .... says no one will see him.
King Kong ... Best Visual Effects ...

931 .. Next up .. Best Animated Feature ... damn good nominees .. Howl's moving castle, Corpse's Bride, Wallace&Gromit ...
Oscar goes to .. Wallace & Gromit!

Halleluhah! Dolly Parton Singing ....

943am
Best Live Action Short Film .... goes to Six Shooter .... Guess we won't get to watch it here in SG... Will we?

946am
Best Animated Short - The Moon and the Sun: An imagined Conversation.

949am
Best Costume Design goes to .... Memoirs of a Geisha ... might be the only award it will get tonight ...

957
Best Makeup .. Chronicles of Narnia

1000am
Jon stewart ... "imagine how difficult it is to make Russell Crowe look like he got into a fight (in Cinderella Man)" ... man he's asking for trouble ...

1003
Morgan Freeman giving away .... Best Supporting Actress .. and i am rooting for Rachel Weisz here ...
Best Supporting Actress is .... Rachel Weisz!!!!!!! Yaye!! :P For Constant Gardener

1011 ..
Still no mac donalds .... and i am hungry as hell ...think KFC is the way to go ....
So far .... The oscar is looking like it is gonna be a "everyone goes home happy night"

1019
Best Documentary Short Subject - A Note of Truimph: The Golden Age of Norman Corvin

1022
Best Documentary - March of the Penguins ... :) Ah .. nice

1023
Jennifer Lopez?? .... she looks more Black than Hispanic .... did she go for some tanning?

1031
Yaye!! .. Macs is delivering finally ... ETA ... 1145 ...

1033
Best Art Direction goes to ....Memoirs of a Geisha ..
wow .. the biggest winner tonight so far :P .. 2 awards! :)

1048
Now ... The beautiful Salma Hayek presenting Best Original Score ...
The Winner is .... Brokeback Mountain :) .... the first .. of many?

1056
Jake Gyllenhaal talking about epics ... i loved him as mr donnie darko :) .. watch that too guys

1059
Eric Bana and Jessica Alba giving away best sound ... I say they should have been giving away best Visual Effects :)
So best Sound Mixing goes to?? .... King Kong .... 2 ups for Kong! ;)

1105
Lily Tomlin and Meryl Streep .. the funniest (are they drunk?) presenters so far :)
Honorary Oscar goes to .... Robert Altman ...
He deserves this .. just for Nashville and Gosford Park .... and many more :)

1115
Man do I have to wait another 30min for my food? ....

1117
Ok .. just finished 1/2 a box of Merci Chocolates .... i can't imagine how my stomach looks on the inside .... later with more junk from macs .... man ....

1122
Best Original Song ... It's hard out there for a Pimp .. From Hustle and Flow .. 3 6 Mafia ... Man are they excited!

1125
Jon Stewart .. "How come they are the most excited people here tonight? .. Man this is the oscars!"

1127 .. Jennifer Gartner ... almost slipped .. and fell .... Alllmost ....

1128
Best Sound Editing goes to .. King Kong .... 3 thumbs up!!! :)

1137 ..
Food is here :) ..
and best foreign language film?
Tsotsi ... South Africa ..... i am so glad The promise was not nominated :)

Jon : Martin Scorsese 0 oscars .... 3 three six mafia .. 1 ;)

1141
Zhang Ziyi ... in english? .... well ...
Best Editing .... Crash .. nice ...

1145
Now the big one ...

Best Actor ......

Drumroll .....

Philip Seymour Hoffman ... Capote ... Well done :) .. and well deserved ...

1155
DP ... Cinematography ....
Best ....Memoirs ... can't deny them that one

1157 ...
Now another big one ....
Best Actress .. in a Leading role ....

Drumroll ...

Reese Witherspoon .... wow ... this girl has come a long way :)

Oh it is for "Walk the Line"

1203
And Reese is still talking .....

1207
Dustin Hoffman ... man where have u been? ... Love that guy
Presenting .. best Adapted Screenplay

Broke Back Mountain ... the 2nd win :)

1213
Now for best original screenplay .. i am rooting for crash here

Crash!!!! wins!!!

1219
Best Directing ......
Ang Lee .. for Brokeback Mountain :)

Now .... just one more ...... Should be Brokeback now ....

1222
Jack Nicholson! :) .. presenting best Picture :)
Man this guy has got .. presence :)

1223
Crash!!!!??!?

Yes .... Crash is the Best Picture of the Year. ...

WTF ... why did they cut off the thank you speech ?? .. this is the last one c'mon ....

1228
And they are playing that Oscars logo screen .. for so long? .... that was not very nice

The Constant Gardener - 87%

2006-02-20T21:36:00.000+08:00

Rachel Weisz and Ralph Fiennes stars in this psuedo fiction thriller based on a novel of the same name. Story begins with the death of the wife (Tessa, played by Weisz) of a British Diplomat (Qualye, played by Fiennes), murdered on a trip to a lake while travelling with his African friend. What goes on is a tale of intrigue, suspense, detective work and unravelling of a conspiracy between the British government and a drug company's immoral dealings in Africa.

The story unfolds very nicely along with the flashbacks that unveils more of the characters' history as Qualye goes on his search for the truth behind the murder of his wife. The love and struggles between the main characters Qualye and Tessa, builds up as the flashback counts nearer towards the time of murder - just as the Qualye was getting closer and closer to the truth himself. Nice structure of story-telling allows the emotions to build up nicely as the film climaxes towards the end.

Rachel Weisz gave her most powerful perfomance on screen so far and her nomination in the Oscars is well deserved. She acted in the film pregnant as a pregnant Tessa, and that dedication to the art is well applauded. This is one of the best film of the year (2005). Do not miss it.

Daremo Shiranai - Nobody Knows - 90%

2006-02-13T10:50:00.000+08:00

As I had mentioned in the previous post, I watched this movie on the same day watched I Not Stupid 2. It was pure coincidence and not in anyway planned. But it was amazing to see the contrast between these 2 films. While I Not Stupid 2 was a dramatic drama movie that uses cliches and tears to create emotions, Daremo Shiranai (Nobody Knows) is undramatic in its story telling, and does not use any tears to force any emotion. Both films were emotionally driven, but they were done in such different manner. While "Stupid 2" was forced and stereotypical, "Nobody" was natural and unmanipulated.

The story tells of a mother who leaves her 4 children (2 boys and 2 girls) at home to fend for themselves. The eldest brother had to find means to feed, wash and take care of the siblings and you are constantly looking forward to see how he's going to solve their daily problems. I shall not give away the plot too much, but it does have a very surprising ending. But that's not to say that the film is dramatic in its delivery. In fact, the story avoids many of the paths that you'd expect, and that's what makes it so interesting. For instance, you'd imagine the mother to be behaving in a very disgusting and selfish manner given the expectations of what she will do (dump the kids), but she behaves totally unlike what you'd expect. And this is just one very superficial example, just watch the movie and you'll understand.

The code 3 DVD is going for only $12.90 at Laserflair. Goes to show how popular good films can get in Singapore eh? Ironic isn't it when I Not Stupid 2 is raking in the cash at the theaters in Singapore. Well, the budget of "Nobody" is probably lower, the distribution certainly much wider (thanks to the universally acclaimed story) and its accolades definitely much higher (2004 Cannes Best Actor). So how much it makes in comparison to "Stupid 2", really it is hard to say. ;)

I Not Stupid 2 - 68%

2006-02-13T10:09:00.000+08:00

What is a Jack Neo's movie? One with very expectable results, plot, cliches, beginning and ending. Watching a JAck Neo's movie is akin to listening to your mother or father or Auntie that you've met during Chinese New Year, talk about their lives, and little bitsy ongoing in their lives and views about the world (or Singapore for that matter). Just like relatives whom you meet once a year or so at major family gatherings, it is all joyous and good, but it can get a little annoying if you have too much of the same thing. We've seen a few Jack Neo-ish productions (I Do I Do, 3 Good men etc) and they all smell the same. This one is no different. One thing I have realised about Jack Neo's movie, they all are written like all the parts are the same person. Like Jonathan Lee's songs which are sung by other singers, you can still imagine the song being sung by Jonathan Lee. But unlike song's which can be interpreted by different singers in different manner, Jack Neo's movie walks, talks and sounds the same from one movie to another and even the character talks the same. You can imagine Jack Neo talking through every characters' lips, and once you noticed that, it can get a little annoying.

The first Jack Neo's movie "Money not enough" was the first of its kind. In its own way, it broke the mould and created a movie that was one of its kind then. Though production value was not high, it still charmed alot of people. Why? Because it was one of a kind. There was never anything like that, and the story was original. His following works improved on production quality, but storylines only took marginal improvements, or none at all (Liang Po Po?). So it all goes back to the basics of filmmaking - everything must start with a good and strong story. No amount of technical expertise or special effects can make a bad story good.

I watched I Not Stupid 2 on the same day I watched another movie that was so contrasty with this one - Daremo Shiranai (Nobody Knows). I Not Stupid 2 has much higher production quality, some special effects, good sound engineering, proper lighting, and a formulaic storyline. Daremo Shiranai had mediocre production quality, marginal sound, no special effects and uses lots of natural lighting. But "Nobody Knows" has a great story.

I Not Stupid 2 is not a continuation of the part 1, and it focuses on teenage school children issues and the communication problems between 2 generations. Everything is dumbed down, simplified and direct in your face. Watching the movie is akin to having Jack Neo in front of you spewing out the same issues in his exact words rather than using a story to carry the message. The dialogue is the message and they are so in your face, you'd wonder why he even created a story around it to be delivered. And there are so many things in the film that was delivered but not resolved, and it makes you wonder was it placed in there just for laughs? Or instance, the subplot about the youngest son thinking that kissing would lead to pregnancy does nothing to move the story, nor improve your understanding of the character, it makes you wonder if it was placed there because it was relevant, or just because they thought this was a nice premise to place in the film and just forced it in there. It felt as if they stole a good idea like that and just plugged it in, and without knowing what to do with it, and left it unresolved.

The movie is good if you like Jack Neo's style of movie and want more of the same. If you've never seen a Jack Neo's movie, watch "I Not Stupid" (Part 1) and leave it as that. If you've seen most of his movies, and wonder if you should rent this or pay the ticket to watch it, I'd sugggest doing none of the above and wait for some sucker to buy/rent the VCD or DVD and then borrow it from them. At least you have the option to turn it off halfway, or feel good that at least it was a good rental at best.

霍元甲 Fearless - 90% 贊！！

2006-01-26T19:54:00.000+08:00

Ok, I am not exactly a Jet Li fan. In fact I didn't watch a single of his American made movies. I have been burnt too often by those crappy American made Jackie Chan movies (Tuxedo anybody?) that when I heard that Jet Li is coming out with a Chinese produced martial arts movie, I was keeping my fingers crossed. Especially after the horrors that were "The Promise" and "The Myth", I have become pretty wary of these recent Chinese production out to "please the global audience". Today, my prayers have been answered, and my expectations totally met above and beyond. The answer I found in "Fearless". In fact, I haven't been so excited about a Chinese movie since the first "Infernal Affairs" and "Hero".

The story is very straightforward - loosely based on the life of Huo Yuan Jia, a true historical figure in Chinese Martial Arts history to have started a martial arts school that now has more than 50 branches around the world. This is a tale of a man whose arrogance has caused the death of his loved ones, and how through losing everything, does he realize what are the things that really matter in life, other than power and fame. But what I am most impressed with this movie was the structure of the way the story is told. As opposed to telling the story in chronological manner, the director moved the last scene of the movie to the front, thus establishing the great figure that is Huo Yuanjia. Many films have done this before, but this one is done so that it enhances the tale, and not just for "coolness" sake. In what way does it enhance the story? If the story starts out with Huo Yuanjia as an arrogant young man, it will reduce the impact by which the audience will feel when he goes through the changes that he did. But the fact that he was first established as a Chinese Hero, then revealed that he was an arrogant young lad, it makes the hero's journey even more compelling for the audience to follow. Also, if Huo Yuanjia was first show to be an arrogant lad that changes into a hero, it will make the character too one-sided or less compelling as we do not feel how great he truly is. By starting and ending the movie with him as an hero, will make us understand that we should not just focus on a person's bad past to judge his acheivements.

Many films has dabbled with the era when China was overrun with the caucasians and Japanese trying to snatch a piece of the land. This one though, does it nicely with minimum stereotyping of the foreigners and is the least cheesy in handling those characters. I personally think this will be one of the key success of this film when it is shown overseas.

Ok, other than the excellent structure for this film, the acting were great. And the cinematography and editing were very impressive too. If this truly is Jet Li's last film, I would say that he has exited with a BANG! This movie will go down in history as one of the classics of Chinese kungfu movies, just like Hero, Police Story, Shaolin Temple, Drunken Master, Fist of Fury etc. It is that good. Heck, I'll placed it as one of the best and possibly one of the most influential Chinese movie ever made along side the likes of Infernal Affairs and ChungKing Express.

And how could I not talk about the fighting in this great kungfu flick? There are some very impressively choreographed fighting sequences by Yuen Wo Ping. Damn it is hard to say which is the best. I'd say everything here were done with minimum wire works and their goal is to achieve a realistic look. Very well done.

So I guess I have said enough good things about this film. I am planning to watch it again. :) As for the Jay chou's music for this film, let's just say that it was good that it wasn't used in any part of the film with the exception of the closing credits. That pop song just doesn't do justice to this great movie.

*update
Apparently this will not be his last movie - but his last "martial arts" movie. Thanks for the tip from a reader.

observations at dinner ....

2006-01-24T09:30:00.000+08:00

The camera in the cellphone is a great invention. And me being in a quirky mood last night decided to take some pictures of some people at chomp chomp cos they stand out .. and deserve some special mentions :)

Ok the first beautiful peoples to be featured .... drumroll please ... Tada ... 4 huge assed personnels who decided that a 8 seater would be best for their special needs. Good job. I bet those standing around looking for seats must be really glad to see at least some big assed idiots get to have excess space around them. Whatever ...Let's move on ...

Ok now the next one. I have the grand fortune to be seating next to them! Here I see a table of 4 seating down with their nice bags taking up 1/3 of the table next to theirs. Ok then I tried and see if they can take a hint. "Excuse me, is this table taken?" They looked around in bewilderment for a few sec and then say "nope!". I said "Thanks!" .... and sat down with my friend. and we waited ... and waited ... until our foods satrted arriving and yet their precious plastic bags full of goldbars are still taking 1/3 of our table.

Here's another shot of our table - 1/3 with their precious bags ... and with our Stingray .... :)

And finally ... who will take home the coveted award of "Excellence in Crappy Behavior at Chomp Chomp"?? Drumroll please .... and more drama!!! ..... Swirling music!!!

And yes .... if you're wondering how come there are only seats on one side of the 2 tables? Well simply cos these 2 tables are for the disabled. These 2 couples did a great job at pretending that no one are looking. Well, the couple further away from my camera is an angmoh and his pregnant asian wife. Maybe that count as 1/2-abled ... which may be a tad forgiveable lah .. let's not be so mean. ;)

And finally the big ass mug of sugar cane drink that made the night. :)

Memoirs of a Geisha - 72%

2006-01-20T10:22:00.000+08:00

Even as a Chinese, I do find the thought of having 3 Chinese actresses playing Japanese in this film rather odd. Not that it has never been done before (Initial D and countless chinese films) , but the fact that this time, an American directed the film (though produced by a Japanese company), and it is shot in English. And I suppose American films are always more scrutinized because 1) they have a wider reach of the market worldwide 2) They have a bad record of trying to represent and interpret what they call asians or asian values (Mulan, Chinese Stereotypes in American Movies etc). So this time they want to shoot an Asian movie, with asian values, through the lenses of an American filmmaker. With the decision to use 3 major Chinese actresses to star as 3 Japanese characters - is a potential setup for trouble.

Well, now that it is out, how does it fair? I have to admit I am not too keen with the casting decisions made. There are tons of great Japanese actresses suitable for the roles I believe, but hey, we all know the motivation behind the casting decision - MONEY. So I have to be try to be as objective as possible, and gauge the film with no tainted prejudice - purely from a filmmaker's perspective.

Story is very simple - 2 young girls are sold by their poor fishmen parents - one (Satsu) to prostitution and another (Chiyo) to a become a geisha (eventually). The story mainly revolves around Chiyo (adult played by Zhang Ziyi), and her ascension to being the top Geisha in Japan. And the motivation of her every step, is somehow driven by a man that she met when she was in her teens. How her entire life, she's working to be (the image of) a woman next to the man that she loves.

So it is mainly a love story, and honestly, a rather thin one. And the story unfolds more like an adventure story tracking her life for the few decades that shaped her training and motivations. What really captivates me in this film are 2 things 1) The great acting from all the major actors (especially Ziyi, Gongli and Michelle) 2) The beautiful cinematography.

1) The 3 main characters Chiyo (played by Ziyi), Hastumomo (Gongli) and Mameha (Michelle Yeoh) were gorgeously played by the 3 actresses. Japanese or not, they played their characters very well. Granted from the way they pronounced some English words, you will know they are not Japanese, and for people who are familiar with such nuances, you can be rather put off. But nitpicking aside, these are some great acting skills at display here. Then there is Ken Watanabe who plays the "Chairman" and Koji Yakusho who plays "Nobu" - they are great actors too. I especially like the character played by Nobu and the scene when he confronts Chiyo about a possibility that she has sold her body to the American. Well .. the main characters performed admirably. So well done.

2) Beautifully shot. Every scene is like a painting, and I applaud the cinematographer for a job well done. This is one of the most beautifully shot film in a while.

So what's not to like. Like I said before, for people who are familar with the nuances of the Japanese language/culture, you might find some things to nitpick - and I am one of them. The pronounciation of certain words can damage the "realism" (or illusion?), of a film and reduce its ability to "make-believe" (remember Crouching Tiger? Why didn;t they just dub Chow's and Yeoh's lines?) Movie is all about make-believe, and since this film is shot like a serious fictional drama (and i mean not a comedy or scifi or something), the Chinese actresses do dampen the illusion a bit. But this could still be my nitpicking. American viewers, Indian viewers etc. are probably not gonna care. However, this film is really not too bad and it looks great - it just lacks a little "omph" ....

Curry favor's been browned! :)

2006-01-17T11:41:00.000+08:00

Hey hey ... Curry Favor's been browned ... :)
Now how cool is that. ;)
man that totally made my day :)

Link

Talk about inflexibility!!!

2006-01-12T09:15:00.000+08:00

This polio guy got a ticket for parking at a disabled lot. He refused to pay and was summoned to court. Judge says, I can see you're disabled, but hey, you're not certified. Get a sticker, then I believe u! And to add insult to injury, the $50 fine was increased to $400 as he could not argue well enough in the name of court I suppose.

Now when I threw in the argument that Singapore was inflexible, people will throw in counter arguments saying but "law is law", "we have to draw the line somewhere" and BS like that. But this one takes the cake. I can't freaking believe that this case would even happen, even at court. The arrogance of the court, inflexibilty of the system totally disgusts the shit out of me.

When Mr Lee Kwan Yew said that he would not have gone after the guy who did the documentary "singapore rebel", but he said that because the law is fixed, the police would have acted anyways unless the law is changed. I think he is insinuating that there's deeper problem here at hand - here is a government and society that has moulded a country with citizens who are too inflexible with the system and dare not take charge and make appropriate changes for fear of the "big brother". Yes we now have a bunch of sheeps called Singaporeans, but the problem is, the shepherd is getting old, and these sheeps are in no shape to lead the pack.

Link to Channel News Asia Article

The Heirloom - 40%

2006-01-11T22:43:00.000+08:00

Ok .. I must be professional about this. No matter how much I dislike a film, I must still show it some respect by at least including a graphic of the movie - be it a poster or the logo. No matter how bad I feel a movie is, I must still refrain from using vulgarities. No matter how much I hate a movie, I must still back up my claims. And here goes - the following are the reasons why this film is the worst rated film this on my blog so far ..

1) Let's begin with the story (without giving away the "twist) - it is about a young man inheriting an old mansion. He decides to live in it and persuades (didn't do much really) his girlfriend who was initially extremely commitment-phobic (but suddenly switched mode u-turned 180 degrees in the first 10min of the film) to live together in this old mansion. Well, you guessed it, this house is haunted. But what's even more amazing (ahem ... ridiculous) is its amazing ability to teleport anyone who has spent a night there, from whereever he/she is if they leave the house. Yes you read it right .. teleportation. So what's wromg with the story? It is incoherent, it is ridiculous, it tries to hide its secrets by messing up the screen and passing them off as "special effects". And by making scenes blur and eventually making them clearer towards the end to "reveal" its secrets is a cheap way of saying "I have no idea how to make clever hints, misdirections and clever twists, so I'll just hide the secret by making sure u can't see it properly". Weak weak weak!!! Was the story about the house or the rearing of baby spirits?? Make up your mind!! It felt like the baby spirit portion was so forcefully pushed into the story and it didn't feel natural at all. Why would the baby spirit make the house so special?? Or why would the house be even necessary?? Argh .. Why is this movie even necessary??

2) Terrible terrible lines!!! Oh my this film has some terribly written lines. I wondered if I was watching a movie written by a cry-o-rama TV drama screenwriter?!! Tip to the script writer - stick to TV drama.

3) Terrible soundtrack. F@#@king annoying!!! The organ music reminds me the 70s horror movie Amityville. And the worst part, it is pervasive throughout the entire freaking film!! I don't recall much moments in the film where there's no music in the background - and worst still, it is freaking distracting!! Imagine "Shot of scary mansion" Background music "Ta Dummmm....!!" Puleeeeze!!! Help me!!

4) The actors - I could tell they are serious about the roles - dead serious .... But the overacting is freaking killing me ....

5) Technically - bad .... How many tracking shots of the house are gonna use (no .. re-use) in the film? Some of the shots are so poorly framed I seriously wonder if it is the DP's fault or the director's fault. Who stoyrboarded this??? Some angles of the film are so badly chosen I wonder if the director had gone to film school?? And some out of focus shot - one of them was so blatant I suspect they had no choice but to keep it in there as they didn't have time to go back to shoot it. That shot was of the police inspector looking at the 1st dead body - you could tell the inspector was out of focus and the police in the background was the guy in focus. Was auto-focusing on?? :P

6) Horror movie?? Yeah .. horrible movie ...

So, I know, I have lost it. I actually used a bad word at point number 3. Sorry but I really felt like asking the director to return me the $10 I paid for the movie. Boys and girls, please give it a pass. ...

Pac man ... Waka waka waka ....

2006-01-05T09:41:00.000+08:00

This is a really funny clip of some guys dressed up as our familar game characters running through areas which resembles their own "arena" ... Well watch it to feel some of the fun :)

And if you are from Univeristy of Michan, Ann Arbor (I was!!) ... you MUST download this clip. Brings back some crazy memories doesn't it? :)

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~austincb/pacman/pacamajig.mov