Are Flyers equal to Chewing Gum ? Should it be banned ?

Flyers could be seen everywhere. You might see some people giving out flyers in town area, Mrt station and many other places. Flyers could also be seen at most bus stops or some notice board. Flyer are mostly seen to advertise a product or a company, this is because flyers could be print in large quantity at a very cheap price and also very easy to design. Hence, lots of companies choose flyers to be their choice of advertising their product/company. Flyers are easily distributed as it could be distributed at anywhere in Singapore, where there are crowds.

Despite there are lots of good points in using flyers as an advertisings tools, there are lots of people saying that flyers are the current “Bubblegum / Chewing gum “in Singapore. You can see flyers anywhere on the ground and pasted at every corner of the bus stop or even some lamp post.
It is kind of a hazard to the environment.
But my own opinion is that it should not be banned, but a fix quantity of flyers each company could give out should be set. And fine should be given to those companies that paste their flyers at prohibited places like lamp post. When fine get stricter, companies will then be more responsible in giving out their flyers. Hence Flyers are different from chewing gum, as it has its use in advertising and it should not be banned.

-Tang Ming Wei

Hot news circulating around Singapore-Singaporean woman whacks her dog!

Enraged netizens and readers wanted immediate actions to be taken. One reader wrote in'' Bring the poor dog to an animal shelter and slap a fine and jail term on that monster!''. There were other vicious and discriminating comments as well. All these reactions caused by a video. One showing a Singaporean woman hitting her dog with a broomstick and yelling at it. This video was filmed by her husband.

The objections were violent and especially infuriated animal lovers. I have mixed feelings and views on this piece of news. I was initially upset with the way a helpless animal was being cornered and beaten up. Later on, i realised that the dog had behavioural problems and had damaged much of the house furniture. Even though being repeatedly disciplined, it still continued with this behaviour. The neighbours have complained about it's uncontrollable behaviour as well.

However, I am not saying that it was right of her to discipline her dog using physical means. IT WAS DEFINITELY WRONG OF HER TO DO THAT. She could have instead send her dog to training school. If she was so troubled by her dog but really wants to keep it, she should be willing to spend money on it.

Officials have looked into the matter and probed further in. They have taken the dog away from it's owners but have not taken any actions against them as it was not as serious as seen in the video. She reported to have only used little effort and it has been proved. I think that netizens and some Singaporeans are reacting too strongly to this matter. They should let it go since the dog is in good hands now.

BY PAVITRA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Floods in Singapore.Who should bear the responsibiity?

I could not believe the footage I saw on the news.

'' Is that really Singapore?'' I asked myself. Apparently it was. Images and footages of Orchard Road and Bukit Timah filled with water was flashing on my television screen. Flood. In Singapore. That could be considered phenomenal. Almost identical to snowfall in Singapore.

The recent climate shift is to be blamed. These extreme changes, from scorching hot to wintry cold is being caused by global warming. However, there were no warnings. These flash floods were quicker than lightning flashes but the damages they left behind were massive and destructive.

No one could actually be blamed for the damages since such cataclysmic events are unpredictable. Traffic was congested, cars plunged into manholes, money was lost, work was disrupted and building facilities as well as properties were damaged. Majority of the public blame the government for these losses. However, i beg to differ as the government obviously didn't want such damages and losses to be brought upon Singapore. Afterall, it would only affect the economy and make them lose out. This is the last thing the government wants.

The government and official have taken the necessary actions. For example, they have taken measures such as placing sand sacks by the lanes of Orchard road to keep the water from coming in and modified the designs of flood-prone carparks. PM Lee also addressed this issue and asked Singaporeans to manage their expectations. The National Environment Agency(NEA) and Public Utilities Board (PUB) have made a joint effort as well and have taken preventive measures.

Hence my conclusion is that no one is to be blamed for such unpredictable circumstances. Instead of pondering on who should bear the responsibility, we should try our best to overcome such situations and try to co-operate with the government as much as plausible.
BY PAVITRA!!!!!:DDD

Do we have racial harmony in Singapore? If yes, is it based on understanding or tolerance.

'' We are different flavours melted together in a pot.''

This statement made by a Singaporean best represents what Singapore is really about. It is what makes Singapore unique, racial harmony, whereby the four races live under one roof in harmony.

Or is there?

Is the presence of various races really racial harm or racial harmony? There has been many racial and religious misunderstandings in Singapore before. In 1950, there was the Maria Hertogh riots. Recently, there was also the racial disputes by a group of young bloggers discriminating the Malays. There also has been incidents where fights broke out due to the different races shunning each other. Alot of these also has to do with the skin tone and being ostracized .

There also has been racism circulating around workplace and in school on a daily basis. If this happens on a bigger scale, the minority and the ethnic enclaves could rise up against the other races and cause an uproar. However, it is not just the majority who are behind this but rather everyone against each other due to their parochial mindset.

The truth is that racial discrimination does exist in different permutations. It is according to the current situation in Singapore. For example, a high unemployment rate might get the minority ethnic groups to start opposing. Their train of thoughts might lead them to thinking that the Chinese are getting the job when in fact everyone is affected, However, they could be right sometimes as some companies would only accept Chinese and not other races who can speak Chinese proficiently. Certain priorities are also given to the majority and it seems like the other races are left aside. This is when racial tension increases and racial bonds weakens.

However, besides these minor matters, there has never really been major racial disputes or riots in Singapore. It is common for such misunderstanding in every country especially one like Singapore where a myriad of races live together. However, i would like to say that those relationships forged by different races are mutual and by understanding and not just mere tolerance.

DONE BY PAVITRA S

Is there anymore room for privacy given the hyper-connected world of social networking?

'' Hey did you hear that Samantha and Ian broke up?'' ''Yes'' ''How did you find out about that?'' ''Facebook''

I have heard these lines one time too many and even been part of such conversations. The exchange above shows how public your private life can be, thanks or no thanks to social networking and internet. Frequently used and popular social networks would be twitter, Facebook, Tumblr,Formspring and even blogging.

Hyperconnectivity refers to person-to-person and person-to-machine communication in networked organisations and societies. It also refers to multiple means of communication. Posting pictures and leaking out information about your private life can be easily seen by others. Even confidential information reaches people fast. The net is very unsafe to use due to hackers and spammers who pose as harmless and distribute or steal whatever activity you have done in the net to date.

Social networking and such organisations encourage the users to continue using their network. They do these enhancing their features and spur them on to go public. They make their networking sites addictive and make them stand out from other public platform sites. Hence, this encourages the people to post things and reveal more about their personal life and photos.

As for blogging, its suppose to act as online diary to release your emotions and vent out your anger. However, the world is becoming 'smaller' due to globalisation and more people having access to internet. An example of a blogger who has gone public with her private life would be xiaxue. She post pictures of her intimate and personal life online. She expresses her views,negative and positive there. Everyone knows about her personal life and relationships due to her blogging.

Another example of the internet being unsafe and having lack of privacy would be the recent leaked photo of well-known lead singer of band Paramore, Hayley Williams. She accidentally uploaded her nude picture on Twitter but quickly deleted it. A few minutes later, it was already posted on the net and distributed.

Privacy whilst using social networking can be managed as long as you limit what you post and do not reveal discreet information.

Can World Cup 2010 affect productivity?

The event that everybody is psyched about. The event that no one can avoid. The event that is recognised globally. The event that affects work productivity.

Although the football-loving world are all hyped up to catch this event, their focus on other important things is lost. It is even worse for soccer fanatics who take medical leaves and abandon their work duties just to catch the tournament. Research shows that most of those who work in offices plan to watch the match in their office computer if their medical leaves do not get accepted. Mass watching might crash the system since it is live telecast. Hence, this would be consequential especially for big companies.

A lot of workers would also opt to watch the match rather than to work on their assignments. This is reasonable because the employees would rather watch something interesting than spend their time on mundane and stressful office work.

The World Cup also comes once in every four years so avid fans would not let the opportunity of watching something as sensational as this slip by them. Hence comes the late nights which exhausts and drains them out of their energy. The next day when these people, be it students or the working population, report to their school or workplace, they do not have the energy or concentration to continue their work anymore. The lack of sleep takes it's toll on them and brings forth health problems such as chronic headaches, migraine and eye strain. The inability to cope with work then forces them to take medical leaves and be absent from school or work.

It is a chain of events that impacts the population and work productivity. Therefore, World Cup 2010 definitely affects the productivity. However, this can be improved on if those affected manage their time well and avoid late nights. They can watch pre-recorded matches instead.

DONE BY PAVITRA!!!!

26,500 new jobs in Q2 in Singapore~

The Singapore economy added 26,500 jobs in the second quarter, bringing total employment to 3,053,000, a Manpower Ministry report said on Friday (30 July 2010). That was fewer than the 36,500 jobs gained in the first quarter of 2010.

The questions asked by Singaporeans frequently are: Does it really work? How many of these people who fall in the age of 40 and above got employed and are true Singaporeans? How many are adopted Singaporeans who got employed?

The Singaporeans who have an age of 40 and above always cannot get the jobs although the government had already added many new jobs. They do not have the skills needed and unable to compete with the other graduate or young. Hence, Singapore government should help them by providing training to them, such as computer skills and some technology skills. After the training, they can really find the suitable jobs for themselves.

Foreigner workers are getting more and more in Singapore. Adding 26,500 jobs is giving benefits to Singaporeans or foreigners? Are we bringing in another 100,000 foreign workers to Singapore? These problems are worried by the Singaporeans. Hence, Manpower Ministry has to take this problem into their considerations and try to solve it to protect Singaporeans’ right.

~Pei Ling~