JC student apologises to DPM Teo for offensive blog post
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Expectations differ on dialogues
Some appreciate being asked for views, others prefer to hear from VIP
By MATIHIAS CHEW
and RACHEL CHANGSTUDENTS who have taken part in dialogues with ministers say they have mixed feelings about having questions lobbed back at them.
When a minister responds to a question by asking what the student's view or solution is, reactions range from indignation to appreciation.
This practice is now being debated online and offline, after junior college student Reuben Wang, 17 wrote an angry blog post criticising Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean for asking students at a pre-university seminar what their solutions were to the questions they posed him.
Reuben apologised to Mr Teo and retracted his comments on Thursday.
Yesterday, Minister of State for Trade and Industry Teo Ser Luck said when he and his colleagues ask students for their views, it is not a bid to "pass the ball back". Rather, it is because policymakers value their input, he said, adding: "No solution is perfect. It is a learning and two-way process for both sides."
He said young people should not underestimate their own abilities to come up with solutions. Feedback from teenagers has prompted him to launch certain constituency programmes.
But some undergraduates who had their questions posed back to them at other ministerial forums said it was disconcerting.
During a dialogue last year, National University of Singapore (NUS) undergraduate Mah Yi Xin, 22, asked Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, then the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports, if a $100 levy was enough to deter Singaporeans from gambling at casinos.
She found it "frustrating" that instead of answering the question, he asked her what she thought. "When people go for these forums, they want to hear what the minister says, rather than what participants say," said Ms Mah.
Mr Muhammad Farouq Osman, 23, was stumped when Mr Lee Kuan Yew threw back a question about aid for low-and middle income families during a university forum last year.
The NUS undergraduate worries such exchanges "intimidate" other dialogue participants, who may not subsequently come forward with questions for fear of being put on the spot. He said what students want is not a "right" answer but rather a glimpse into how policymakers, who have access to a wealth of data and and support from civil servants, view urgent issues in society.
Still, others like Singapore Management University law undergraduate Lea Woon Yee believe they have gained from having questions posed back at them.
She attended a Young PAP forum last year during which Acting Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports Chan Chun Sing asked participants not to "throw stones", but to "offer better solutions".
The 22-year-old, who asked Mr Chan about youth involvement in the community, said that "he was showing us that it's not such an easy problem" to solve.
It was effective, she said, because it allowed her to appreciate the constraints ministers face in making policy.
Jurong Junior College student Douglas Ong, 17, who attended the same pre-university seminar as Reuben, said students like him did not get a chance to speak to political leaders every day.
"We want to hear his opinions, rather than having to give our own. I see the point of getting us to think about our own views, but what we really want to hear is what he's going to do," he said.
Ms Mah suggested that ministers might want to first answer the question, then seek students' views. That way, students would not be "unsettled" by the swift return and the gesture "would show that he is genuinely interested in your view".
Home, The Straits Times, Saturday, June 9 2012, Pg B16 -
Sama sama one la from the same ruling party. Their tactic is when asked a question, instead of answering ask the other party a question and ask the people to think of solutions. Such are ministers who are getting the highest paid in the world of politics, damn! Theirs is such easy job. When the people who ask them the questions expressi their dissatisfaction of the way they are treated by the ministers, they are not happy.
Damn la! You ministers want so much pay , highest pay from the nation and want to be in these high positions to "run" the country you are not interested to answer questions from the public, pui! No blame anyone for having no respect for you , ministers, because you don't deserve the respect! What is this that the lee hsien loong said you people are the servants of the people, but what happen does not seem so! Please la, live and work according to what is required as ministers.
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The forthright student then reasoned, “We are 17 years old with very little to no life experience and you want us to come up with policies for you? It is exactly because we don’t know what can be done we worry about the country. We seek your opinion. You gave us none.� He added that he avoided spoon feeding students answers because he wanted them to “think deeply about the difficult choices they had to make�. My view: Political problems should never,ever be seen in the same manner as ''enlightenment" Its based on observing the the surroundings,and looking to make proper decisions based on the realities of the situations.One does not look within to slove these problems. Our idea of creativity is simply tougher exam questions,and other soul-crushing means,to sort of force our mind to be same as ''Einstein''. Creativity can never truly be forced, it comes out of passion.Enstein acheived a lot mainly not of his to natural intelligence,cause he LOVED observing physics in the world around him.Love cannot be forced.I felt that something has been missed in our current ''first class'' education system. The dude should have been non vulgular, but his point has not been handled well.
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Everybody now focusing on the 4 letter word instead of the massive problems plaguing the country.
Haiz.
Times are bad.
What do you think?
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I focus on money, money no enough. No enough money to feed the govt, haizzz!
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I think all the talents should be giving their talk to Kindergarden and Primary School kids since they cannot handle open questions and confrontation.
Now, they are attacking the boy for being rude.
Please lah, he is just a kid and he is just sharing his comments.
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Originally posted by Medicated Oil:
He is appointed to "follow" orders like an soldier and the same apply for the rest of the ex-general.
This is the biggest issues that he is handling now.
What are the bigger issues that he is supposed to handle ?
"What do you think ?"
All of you should think of your own solution since you created the question.
You know the question and problem better than him.
He is only there to echoing your questions and make you think deeply about the answer.
"There is no free answers."
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Originally posted by Medicated Oil:
I think all the talents should be giving their talk to Kindergarden and Primary School kids since they cannot handle open questions and confrontation.
Now, they are attacking the boy for being rude.
Please lah, he is just a kid and he is just sharing his comments.
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Halfway through the kindergarten forum, some of the kids start asking where are the powerpuff girls?
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The teacher will request the kid with lots of questions to take MC on the day of visit.
The rest will be the obedient 60.1%.
Now, they will ensure all questions and answers are prepared and rehearsed beforehand.
NO MORE surprises and open-ended questions will be answered.
The school will issue vocal advice to the student not to twit, FB or blog about the seminar or face early retirement from the school.
The student will need to cry loudly in appreciation of being answered by our great leader.
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Actually well done by our 150 media. When a FT university student call the Lesser Mortals as dogs, our media tell us to be forgiving and understanding as he is just a student (even when he is 20 plus already). When a Lesser Mortal JC boy insult the beloved elite, our media launch an all out attack on him when he is only 17 plus. From what I recall, a 20+ is suppose to be a man and if committed a crime suppose to be trial as adult whereas a 17 is consider a boy. Guess the different is between, elite, FT and Lesser Mortal. And our media keep telling the Lesser Mortals that they are fair in their view.
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I think PAP votes will drop to 54% and below in 2016 GE. Their votes will continue to drop. It won't increase.
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Certainly you are right- for local votes.
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Originally posted by Dalforce 1941:
I think PAP votes will drop to 54% and below in 2016 GE. Their votes will continue to drop. It won't increase.
It will be the greatest joy and happiness to vote the Lee Hsien Loong out in 2016. A hopeless selfish it to bring in foreigners for selfish gain at our expense. It needs to be out of Singapore politics completely.
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Reuben is 17 this year. Will he be 21 before GE2016?
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Originally posted by Honeybunz:
Reuben is 17 this year. Will he be 21 before GE2016?
He will turn 21 in 2016.
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Maybe his GRC got walkover.
Maybe.
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Originally posted by charlize:
Maybe his GRC got walkover.
Maybe.
May be or may be not.
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Originally posted by Clivebenss:
May be or may be not.
You are either in Sgforums or not in Sgforums.
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Originally posted by charlize:
You are either in Sgforums or not in Sgforums.
You are on the internet
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Secret diary of a teenager? Not in cyberspace
Matthias Chew
When I was assigned to track down the student blogger who directed the F-word at a minister earlier this month, I was reminded of my own experience in secondary school.
Back then, I kept a blog and, like many my age, vented with impunity on everyone and everything, including on politics. One post contained unsavoury observations about my principal.
It all stopped when said principal, who had apparently been googling his own name, called me up to his office for a telling-off. I decided then to keep in mind that whatever I wrote online could be read even by those for whom it was not intended. I promptly took my blog offline.
Reuben Wang - who has since apologised to Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean - learnt that same lesson last week. But he was far more unfortunate in that he had to face the music in public, after his post went viral.
But another reason why I stayed under the radar was that I was also writing in an earlier Internet age - before the advent of Web 2.0, with its social networking sites and aggregators.
Back then, the vast majority of teen bloggers went unnoticed because it was much harder to project obscure links to a broader audience. You would have had to be particularly funny, engaging, good- looking or shameless to get noticed - and most teens are not.
Neither do most expect widespread attention. Reuben's blog, much like mine, was more personal diary than public pulpit.
But today, it takes only one tap on a mobile phone to tweet an angsty teenage rant or to share it with one's Facebook friends. On top of that, there are many more sites that collate local user-generated online content for Singaporean audiences.
Reuben said before he deleted his blog that he had not expected it to go viral. With more Singaporeans online - 77 per cent today versus 40 per cent in 2000 - going viral means reaching an ever larger public. And that public will hold varying views of what is offensive.
The Reuben incident highlights a dilemma facing social media users today: How do you convey a message meant for one audience, knowing that anyone and everyone can read it, and appropriate it for their own ends?
This is a similar situation to what some political leaders face. Every time a Japanese leader visits a controversial war shrine, every time a Malaysian leader waves the kris, they have to contend with the backlash from segments of the public for whom those gestures were not intended. The difference is that politicians expect to take the heat, and have an army of spin doctors on hand to deal with the damage. For ordinary citizens who simply want to vent behind a screen, the consequences may not have crossed their mind. Never mind a self-confessed 'rash' 17-year-old.
In the context of the Singapore blogosphere, it also means that any view expressed about politics or a politician has the potential to be appropriated by hacks of all stripes looking to advance their agenda.
Reuben was a teenager who made ill-judged comments about a minister, but he suddenly found himself celebrated by those seeking to paint the ruling party as disengaged with young people.
These sites do not appear to care whether the examples they use are representative, nor do they act in the interests of the very people they happily make martyrs of.
Internet users who put content on seemingly private Facebook accounts, or in locked blogs, have to bear in mind that 'friends' with access can circumvent the privacy wall by sharing that post.
When I think about what I wrote in my blog back then, I feel lucky I avoided being crucified for my immature political observations. But today, young netizens like Reuben have to deal with the possibility of having their views taken out of the social context in which they were made, and being judged for holding those views, even if they were never intended for general consumption.
Reuben is certainly not alone. Recently, indiscreet comments about Singaporeans made by individual Filipino Facebook users residing here have gone viral. Made in the heat of flame wars with individual Singaporean users, they were used by a news aggregator site to support its anti-foreigner campaign. The very same site had used Reuben to grind its axe against the Government.
Responding in part to this case, media academic Cherian George has called for an Internet code of conduct for users. He appealed to Internet users and the media to not get into a tizzy 'over inconsequential Internet indiscretions of insignificant individuals almost every week'.
He also urged the mainstream media not to pander to the 'kaypoh-ish petty-mindedness' of Singaporeans by carrying such stories.
It is a noble appeal, and in an ideal world, netizens should grow up and develop a sense of perspective.
But the reality is that people have always had a raging appetite for the unusual, the profane and the salacious. And they will continue to seek such content, regardless of the medium.
Shakespeare sprinkled dirty jokes in his plays to capture contemporary audiences. And even before the early modern era, readers took great delight in devouring sixth-century Byzantine writer Procopius' Secret History, an expose of the sexual exploits of Theodora, an erotic dancer and wife of the Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian.
Even in seemingly intelligent and cosmopolitan communities like that of Cambridge University, the most talked-about student publication is the Tab, a racy tabloid whose most famous feature is the 'Rear of the Year' - a search for the student with the sexiest bum.
The Internet makes it easier than ever to spread the dirt.
Fortunately, there is a silver lining for the likes of Reuben. The Internet also has a short attention span, insofar as what Dr George calls 'insignificant individuals' are involved.
In a matter of months, not many will remember Reuben, or particularly care about what he said. Don't believe me? Ask yourself if you remember Lai Shimun.
think, The Sunday Times, June 17 2012, Pg 42
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"What do you think?" is the new normal.
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Originally posted by Summer hill:
You are on the internet
huh?
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Originally posted by charlize:
"What do you think?" is the new normal.
Not normal.
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Originally posted by Clivebenss:
Not normal.
No, everybody is normal except us.