Sunday, April 30, 2006
May Day Thoughts
I have not been in the mood to blog these few days. First of all, I’m leaving for Penang tomorrow to attend my cousin’s wedding dinner. I’d be away till Tuesday, which is indeed a great break from the hectic office life.
The election fever has been catching up my mind, but I ever wonder if we are legally allowed to make comments or opinions about the ongoing election campaign. It is indeed a pity that the Elections Department still prohibits online campaigning through podcasts or blogs, assuming we do not register as political website. We bloggers can only hope that this privilege will be granted in future elections to come. Well, a few bloggers still choose to flout the rule, and even I myself do not know what is the best thing to write at the moment to avoid getting caught.
My constituency is being contested. I was rather taken aback that Tampines was being contested for the opposition just didn’t give advance warning that they would do so till the writ of election was issued. I grew up in Tampines and I dare say that Tampines has been living a very comfortable life under the leadership of its MPs. We seem to be the only town in Singapore where upgrading is a relative non-issue. We seem to be the only town with everything that Singaporeans yearn for. (Oh yes, the refurbished swimming pool just opened.) The SDA team dreams of making Tampines the “Second Suntec”. Honestly speaking, I wonder how feasible their plan is, despite boasting of two IT graduates in their team. I have to admit that as a Tampines resident, I do not really know that Tampines is lacking of. In other constituencies, both the PAP and the opposition seem to have something to talk about from upgrading to the providence of facilities. I may not be a legal voter, but I do not know on what grounds can a Tampines resident cast his vote for the party that he supports. I guess the Tampines voter has to look at the larger, national issues such as the necessity of an alternative government, the direction of the economy, the providence of education and so on.
Both the opposition and the PAP candidates are at top form, yet I wonder if the voters would reciprocate by giving the opposition more leeway, or allow the PAP to have a complete domination of parliament. I choose not to declare my stand in this blog lest I get accused by others of interfering into politics illegally. Rather, the only thing I can hope is that we can have the best of both worlds, where we can enjoy an open-minded, accommodating and visionary government where its MPs and ministers can fully fulfill the Singaporean Dream of being the one of the world’s most vibrant and desirable cities to live in. It’s a pity that neither the opposition nor the PAP has touched upon the issue of “Sustainable Development”, which I think is very important for an independent state of four decades, and where this election is more about deciding our future.
Well good night, and see you next week………You do have a choice, and make the right choice……
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zeligdhilee breaking the MUSIC.
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Sunday, April 23, 2006
A lesson from 大长今 for the upcoming polls.
As the election date ticks nearer and nearer, I have a spoiler warning for fans of 大长今 who are wondering what would happen in the next week (if you have been following the show every weekday at 10pm, Channel U), let me tell you this. The upcoming scandal to hit 长今 and 韩尚宫 is known as the 'Sulphur Duck incident'. Here, the Choi family capitalised on this to chase their opponents out, as I make reference to the below extract from this webpage:
Dae Jang Geum --- background information
Monarchs and Politics:
Two monarchs that reigned during this period were Yeonsang-gun (1476-1494, reign 1494-1506) and later King Jungjong (1488-1544, reign 1506-1544), who was Yeonsang-gun's half-brother.
Yeonsang-gun was overthrown in 1506 and replaced by King Jungjong. He was exiled and died a deposed king. Yeonsang-gun's rule was noted for its suppression of the Confucian intellectuals. He challenged the system and persecuted Confucians, but failed and was succeeded by King Jungjong who was put in place by Confucian supporters. Yeonsang-gun was thus seen by many as a tyrant, perhaps the worst tyrant ever in Korean history; Yeonsang-gun died on Ganghwa Island, to which he was exiled, a few months later. As you will see in the series, the yangban Confucians held considerable influence during Jungjong's reign; this was a backlash that rendered the king powerless.
King Jungjong in history was a benevolent king. However, he was too mild-tempered and weak for his position, and was thus easily manipulated by scheming officials. As he was more inclined to be a merciful king, he could not bring about stability in the country. However, the people loved him and his policies. In Dae Jang Geum, these facts about him are apparent and are echoed throughout the series. During this period, Korea was also harrassed on two sides by the Japanese and the Jurchens, and Jungjong's weak reign was therefore marked by its instability.
During Jungjong's reign, the Confucian yangban controlled the imperial bureaucracy and manipulated politics. King Jungjong, as mentioned above, was for the most part helpless about the court intrigue, because he wouldn't have become king in the first place without their support. On the other hand, Jungjong was forced to kill his own queen by these powerful officials, and even his queen and many of his concubines were actually their political puppets. This is an important aspect in Dae Jang Geum, because if the concubines and queen happen to give birth to a child, particularly if it's a male prince, it could influence the politics greatly for all players.
Another group of Confucians, known as the Shilin faction to which Jo Gwangjo belonged, tried to get King Jungjong to deal with these yangban, but the plan was foiled and many of them were either exiled or killed. This is an important background event in the series, and is a key point behind the hot spring incident in Dae Jang Geum.
The conflict between the two parties of Confucians is very significant in Korean history, so I will explain it a bit. One party is the group that was historically responsible for King Sejong the Great's ascension to the throne, and the descendants had thus been given tremendous power based on their meritorious services to the throne; I'll call them the Meritocrats. Many of them were yangban and landlords. The Shilin faction, on the other hand, were opposed to this group. During Jungjong's reign, Jo Gwangjo dominated the Shilin faction and tried to start radical reform. He failed, resulting in the 1519 Incident, where the Shilin faction suffered a tremendous setback. Many were killed, imprisoned, or exiled, including Jo himself. In 1521, an aftershock occured again, and even more Shilin scholars were purged.
As our avid fans will soon know, both 长今 and 韩尚宫 were accused of treason. In order to put an end to the tortures meted during the trial, 韩尚宫 told a white lie to the judge that she was being instructed by Jo Gwangjo to 'contaminate' the duck with sulphur in order to 'harm' King Jungjong. Nevertheless that was enough to banish both of them to Jeju Island.
In the second part of the series (when 长今 returns back to the palace as a physician), we discover that the politics of Joseon Korea is tainted by the battle betweem the 'leftists', where 闵政浩 (长今's lover) is a member of. The 'leftists' would be in conflict with the 'rightists', where 崔判述 is a member of. We will later find Jungjong in a dilemma where the leftists would recommend that ministers contribute 10% of their produce from their land. This affected the rightists as they were controlling most of the land in Korea, and hence embark on a futile attempt eliminate 闵政浩.
From this two incidents in this drama, we can draw the following conclusion:
(1) Politics is an ugly thing, regardless of the presence of a democracy. In the final round of the culinary competition, 韩尚宫 defeated 崔尚宫 in the rice-cooking contest by making the rice taste differently in every single bowl, and hence deceived the culinary madams (who were mostly sympathetic to 崔尚宫) to think that the rice was cooked by 崔尚宫, hence voting for 韩尚宫 instead. We hence see that even a relatively honest person can be seen resorting to the art of deception even when they claim not to do so. Various parties can 'preach' and offer many 'goodies' to placate the basic human insinct of greed, and yet manouevre the situation to their advantage. Hence, the voter in the very end may complain, yet it is already too late since he has to wait another five years to be deceived once again.
(2) There is always a scapegoat in any political tussle, contest or debate. This is regardless of the nature of the state, from authoritarian to that of a absolute liberty. However, I do not refer to the simple loser of the electon. I am instead referring to the 'third party'. The third party tends to be the innocent party who bears the consequences of the conflict. In the drama 大长今, we see 韩尚宫 dying in vain in the midst of the Sulphur Duck Controversy. Several years later when the scandal is exposed, 崔今英 gets expelled from the palace for being an accomplice in an act in which she never wanted to be involved in. It is hence often observed in real politics today that often the third party tends to be either the people, or another opposition party. This opposition party (let's call it C) suffers just because it's just another opposition party (C), and it suffers just because the other opposition party (B) commits an act against the ruling party (A), or rather, because A acts aggressively towards B, causing C to bear the real brunt of the conflict. It just goes either way.
Alas, another election is coming our way, and I'd strongly encourage voters to compare the conflicts portrayed in 大长今 to that of the election climate today. It might be set several centuries back, but the nature of the conflicts are very much relevant to the conflicts affecting 21st century democracies. Happy watching, and make the right choice on May 6.
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zeligdhilee breaking the MUSIC.
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Sunday, April 09, 2006
Down Memory Lane (part 2)
The exchange of conversations between Qiong Hui and Yi Jian was quite a surprise for me, yet it did add a bit of life to my blog. Thanks for the inputs anyway. Speaking of the clash between the study and the practice of a subject, let's say politics, Yi Jian has this to say:
well think of it this way. Studying is a zero-sum game. You get only so many hours a day reading and studying, if you divide your time between politics and (other subject), as compared to a person who spends all his time in politics, eventually one person will become the stronger of the other in politics.
And you have to differentiate between the study of politics and the practice of politics. One is clean and one is dirty. Both are different set of skills and the philosopher-king argument is pretty much not in fashion right now so you have to be either (unless you're Lee Kwan Yew -- Asian values, ooOOOOooo)
To think about it, Lee Kuan Yew was the master of both the study and the practice of politics, even though he did not study politics back in Cambridge. (He studied Law.) The post-war nationalist sentiment helped shaped his ideology and dream of what he wanted his Singapore to be. When he returned, he had to manouevre his way through to make his stand amidst the hostile challenges from the communists and the UMNO communalists. Henceforth, the important lesson we all should learn is that politics as a profession is dirty and unfair. There is no level playing field, even in the context of a modern, liberal democracy. Only those with the toughest mind and the flexible will shall prevail. The reality show "Survivor", as well as the Korean Drama "大长今" are good examples of people using "political manouevres" to fulfil their "grand designs". 崔尚宫 and her family members is the ultimate example.
Anyway, the title suggests that on that day when I visited my alma maters, the second part begins where I continue my journey from Chung Cheng to Temasek JC. Nothing has really changed in TJC despite a new principal and the fact that I no longer know any of the students walking around the corridors. Nevertheless, I felt sad that Mr Dustin Chin and Mr Tony Tan have actually resigned from the service. I wonder where they are, and I wonder if they had fond memories of we TJCians as their students. Mr Gary Quek, my Maths tutor had been transferred to MOE HQ. The tutors in the staff room did not know what his appointment is, even though for sure he would be holding a staff officer appointment if he was an officer in MINDEF. Well, I do not know the organisational structure of the MOE HQ.... Personally I felt that he spent too little time teaching and he that he needs a few more years before moving on. Perhaps that's the shortcomings of scholars when they advance too fast that they are unable to have a firm grasp in the various appointments they hold in such a short period of time. This likewise applies to the many scholar-officers in the SAF as well.
Mardi Gras by the way is this Thursday. I am still wondering whether I should go. I met one of my Chung Cheng band juniors in TJ who then asked me to go for it. (She's two years younger than me, by the way...) However, most of my close friends are giving it a miss on the grounds that they don't know anyone back there...... I miss the vibrant arts scene in the college.
For TJ History students who wonder what would happen to Mr Thompson following the removal of European History from the new A Level History syllabus, he is teaching Knowledge and Inquiry (KI) this time. He'll also be teaching electives to the IP students and H3 (the S paper equivalent) history to the JC students. He says that he intends to stay on for another two years.
By the way, I had an unexpected dinner gathering with a few friends from 24/03 (during my first three months I was in 21/03 with them) yesterday. Actually, I should not have been walking around with them but it was just a pure coincidence. I hardly get to speak to the "other" group of TJCians with whom I have some significant links with (apart from 33/03) for a long time. Loud chatterings amidst the swift BBQ-ing of food, jokes and inquiries into each others' lives dominated the evening. For the first time I didn't know that Ziyou love poking jokes at Kai Hung's girlfriend. Well, time flies very fast and I sort of felt lucky yesterday to meet the group of friends whom I hardly spend time with when my JC days was dominated by the influence of my Arts-inclined peers in 33.... In addition, it was heartening to know that Ziyou has sort of made a decision over his future education path, which in turn has encouraged me to face my interests with more will no matter how challenging the path would be... Both Ziyou and I were one of the most daring cross-faculty students in the college who chose a path that most JC students would shy away from. And we left the college with the results that would made ourselves proud....
Down the memory lane indeed, and given yesterday's unexpected gathering, I indeed trod upon an old road that I tend to overlook... This old road indeed will allow me to face the future more confidently.....
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zeligdhilee breaking the MUSIC.
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Saturday, April 01, 2006
Down Memory Lane (part 1)
I didn't know that my latest post actually prompted Yi Jian to persuade me to join NUS's Arts Faculty. Well, may I then add that one does not need to join NUS's FASS or to study politics to have some intellectual insight into politics. You just need to have an inquiring and passionate mind. After all, if you look at the educational profiles of our politicians, 99% of them did not study politics yet they have a high level of political maturity and passion just like any other students of politics would be. Anyway, for pragmatic reasons I've decided to switch over to NUS Science Faculty, keeping my links with the humanities alive via USP. Fellow TJ Science wannabes, beware.
By the way, I took the Wednesday off the draining life in Hendon to visit the two places that defined my teenage years. Actually, I went back just to certify my academic transcripts for I was setting my eyes on Australian and Canadian universities. This is because these two countries are more actively involved in environmental-related studies. In addition, these two countries are able to maintain a relative 'cleaner' environment for their citizens in comparison to Britain and America despite being heavily developed and urbanized like any G8 countries. Anyway, some pictures taken, as usual.....
I first visited my secondary school, Chung Cheng. At that time when I visited almost all of my teachers were busy with their lessons so I was unable to speak to anyone for a good period of time. I did catch up with Mrs Ho, my Geography teacher, who basically provided me the parade state of my teachers before rushing off.
Still around: Mdm Tan EC, Mr Yazeed, Mrs Ho SC, Mrs Tan-Ong LP
Retired: Mrs Choo YE
Exiled: Mdm Teo SK (unable to transfer back despite Mr Yue's departure in 2004)
Transferred: Mr Han EK (NYGH), Mr Aziz (MOE HQ)
And some notable changes in the school:
Walking along the alleys, mesmerized by the serenity and grandeur of the houses...
Turning back the clock....
They actually painted the Old Admin Block to be the same colour as the other blocks! Now you can't see anything 'old' in the school anymore from the outside, which is all left in the archives.
New principal, new ideology (as in the banner). I forgot what is has said. However during anniversaries, the traditional banner is always hung there which says "大哉中正 悠久无疆" It is the last verse in our school song. This building is called "竹林楼" (as inscripted in the centre), is named after our school's first principal, Dr Chuang Chu Lin (荘竹林), an infamous pro-communist.
Latest additions to the Foyer. Do not ask me to decipher and comment on the side couplets. Nevertheless I do agree entirely with the message forced upon by the top couplet.(学海津梁) Hopefully I can know even more when I enter university for the benefit of my mind and that of others' mind.
After certifying my academic transcripts at the general office, I took a turn towards the new admin block. The centre signboard is another couplet, as usual for a SAP school. (爱我中正)
New additions to the Concourse.
"Generation Gap"
I believe Mr Yue would not have allowed this. Chung Cheng students seem to have more ways to express their mood in the school....
This is what makes Chung Cheng unique. And this is the greatest memory I'll take out of my alma mater.
To be continued.....
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zeligdhilee breaking the MUSIC.
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