yeah. I. Love. Singapore.

but my main point.

i was reading an article in my GP bulletin, uncreatively named Issues and Ideas, which basically gives us Issues and well, ideas to discuss.  i'm in hwa chong man.  we don't give fancy names to unfancy shit.  it's like we won't call Organic Chemistry, uh, uh. never mind i wouldn't know what to call it.  cause i'm from Hwa Chong.

but i digress as i usually do, and probably will in this whole post thingum.

as i said, i was reading my GP bulletin. there was an article about something Dr Vivan Balakrishnan said in parliament awhile back. he was asked by his then 11-year-old son this question that probably every damn Singaporean male would ask.

Why should i die for Singapore?

i could probably imagine Dr Balakrishnan's reaction. "Son, how in bleeding hell do i know?!"  ok i'm joking, i really am. PLEASE DON'T SEND ME TO WHITLEY! frankly, i'm not really here to tell you why we should die for Singapore.  uh.  not yet at least. see what struck me was the reaction from the various MPs. one certain MP (don't know who, cause i can't be bothered to take the bulletin out) said something along the line that "if children have to ask that question, then the education system has failed".

is it just me or did he just admit that the Singaporean education system is propaganda?

i was worried really. look is the education system supposed to teach us to shed blood for our country?  i used to think our education system was to rot our brains but wait, to shed blood?  that's new. i didn't get that in primary school.  all i got in primary school was "you better bloody study or you'll go to our secondary school which is shit!".  no joking. my primary school teachers said the affiliated secondary school is shit. i won't say anything about it. i haven't even been there.

again i digressed.

well i can name a few countries who taught their kids to die.  Nazi Germany did.  they had their kids learn street fighting, indoctrinated them through some propaganda groups and all that. Maoist China did. i don't know how, cause i can't really recall. but i think they did.  in these countries the children learnt to die for their country.

but wait.  the cause is different. we are taught to die for our country to defend it.  Nazi Germany taught them to die so Hitler could have his damn thousand year reich which lasted just over 10 years.

hmm but i'll like to suggest why our education system has failed.

i don't know why i should i for my country.

i really don't. i mean, i have head knowledge of why i should. let's see.

1) Singapore is our home, we should defend it.

2) ????

yeah that's all i know. and that's all that NE got into my head.

but let me tell you something. if i'm overseas now, and i know Singapore is in trouble, i assure you this. I will be the first to pack my bags, come back to Singapore and take arms to defend Singapore.  honestly i will do that.

there is a difference between knowing in your head why you should die for your country, and knowing in your heart why you should.  and it's because of what i know in my heart, that i will die for Singapore readily.

this is what i will die for.

my family. my friends (ok not all, but most of them at least). certain friends.

and i think that's enough. honestly that is enough. Singapore has not let the children know why they should die for their country. i wasn't informed. but as i grew up, i slowly formed in my heart various things i would die for. frankly i will not die for Singapore. hear this, I WILL NOT DIE FOR SINGAPORE.  but i'll die for those i care for, and for that i know with all my heart i will take arms to defend, and die if necessary for the ones i love.

so i suggest this be the done.  let the kids find out, like i have, why they should die for Singapore. don't force feed them info as to why they should die for Singapore, because they may forget all these head knowledge, but they will never ever forget these things they have kept in their heart.