Setting it Straight

Ugh I found out that the site I get my articles from clear the archives... I've changed the URL for this one, I hope the others won't expire any times soon. Anyways, here's the review:

Category: Societal Issues

Source: Former Methodist bishop calls for greater respect for homosexuals in Singapore

May 11, 2007, The Straits Times

The film Brokeback Mountain that projects the complex emotional, sexual, and romantic relationship between two men, won several Academy-Awards and was a box office success. Does this show anything about the society’s attitude towards homosexuals in this new age? There has been a question recently raised by MM Lee about the ban on gay sex, which has awoken the majority of Singaporeans that have kept mum about this issue.

In our multiracial and cultural society, I do not feel that Singapore, being a highly conservative society, is ready to accept such openness, evident from the aversion of this issue of gay rights that was present before the question was raised by MM. However, due to the increasingly thriving gay scene in Singapore, this problem can no longer be disregarded.

The question at hand is perhaps not the decriminalizing of gays, but the proliferation of the gay agenda in our society if homosexuality becomes accepted as it is observed in America and many European countries. The reality is, no one knows what people do sexually behind closed doors and the majority of the population can accept homosexuals as friends and colleagues. The problem is whether we can allow this to become part of our culture, and allow our next generation to think that it does not matter whether one is heterosexual or not.

There is no country or religion in the entire history that has advocated or encouraged homosexuality in any form, whether as a lifestyle or it being nature. While giving greater respect to gays as human beings is reasonable, accommodating gays in our conservative society will mean compromising the healthy social values and norms, or at least those that government has tried to sustain. This is a critical impediment that authorities will take into account, as it undermines the canons of the society and religions.

Personally, although I feel that homosexuality is not a natural course of things, homosexuals should still be given their basic human rights, assuming that it is not a matter of choice or inclination on their part, but that they are genetically orientated. People may not be willing to accept their behaviour or orientation, but they are part of the society after all, and I do not think that being born in this way makes them criminals, and we should not ostracise for being the way they are. However, condoning this sort of behaviour does not equate to advocating this kind of lifestyle, but instead it means that we should try and discourage and suppress homosexuality as a lifestyle, while keeping discrimination of gays at bay.

Ulitimately, I, or in fact we are not in a position to judge, as all of us might probably hold some prejudice against gays. Not having known any gays, I should not determine how they live life based on my generalized image of them, and place a final judgement of them, on whether they should be accepted as part of society, or whether they ought to be condemned.

(499 words)

Quantity or Quality?

Category: Educational issues

Source: Bilingual policy spawns many fluent in neither
From The Straits Times, Apr 30, 2007

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“Language is not only the vehicle of thought, it is a great and efficient instrument in thinking.” Language, indubitably, is the most powerful means of communication, and Singaporeans, with our culture of bilingualism, seem fortunate to have the advantage of at least two languages in our arsenal. Yet looking back at the past decade or so, despite the government’s efforts to promote language, the bilingual policy has seemingly backfired, and yielded many students incompetent in both languages.

In this fast paced world, Singapore has to stay relevant to ensure survival. Bilingualism will definitely give us an edge over others as we are able to connect to both eastern and western cultures, but that said, we can only do so effectively if we have a good grasp of both languages.

The article speaks of “sacrificing the sacred cow of bilingualism, in order to produce citizens who are actually competent in at least one language.” In my opinion, we should not sacrifice bilingualism to make ourselves better at one of the two. One reason is that given the current education system, we already have people who have become very proficient in English and Mandarin based on whichever they choose to focus on. The system itself should always allow people to choose what they prefer to excel in, and provide the resources for them to do so, rather than lay down a single track for all to follow. Such a choice, in turn, will depend on individuals’ cultural leanings and plans for the future. If one wished to work in fast-expanding China, then, we would only deny him opportunities to improve his Mandarin if we decided to pit everyone towards the sole pursuit of mastery in English.

Besides, not all schools are similar. Some schools such as Chinese High and Dunman High place a heavy emphasis on learning Mandarin, and produce many excellent Mandarin speakers. Some of the more English-oriented schools, on the other hand, produce top debaters who excel internationally. There is no one-size-fits-all solution that the educational system can implement across the board. Each school excels in its own way, and such variety should be encouraged. Ultimately, the most important factor in the learning of a language is perhaps the language they speak at home. The educational system cannot do that much in that respect; it is a matter of family choice and the culture which one belongs to.

Being the future leaders in a global environment, we students have to play our part by consciously working to improve our English and Mandarin. No matter how much resources the Government puts in to help students, they will go to waste if we do not make an effort to change – it takes two hands to clap. Living in a Mandarin-speaking family, I personally do not wish to see bilingualism end in Singapore. If we can master both languages, we will hold the keys to both the Eastern and Western worlds, and our lives will be richer and fuller than if we forsook the other.

(502 words)