I learnt a new word today.

 

There is a group of Singaporeans/ Malaysians, who are organizing a 'party' at a clubhouse here.

 

One woman friend, who grew up in Sgp and married to a non-white American, commented that is an 'Ang Moh' group. I believe she meant that this group belongs to a different social class; makes up of many white-asian couples, speaks limited mandrain or Hokkien, or are overly 'white' in thinking or mannerism.

 

A business acquintance of my father assumed I was married to an American white, when he told her I had moved to US. She was like, "why she married ah moh?"

 

I also know that many people have negative perceptions of the 'sarong party girls' who loved to go pubbing, and seemed to 'prey' or liked to be "preyed upon" by foreigners, particularly the white ones.

 

In addition, one can see how the Sgp government seems to treat foreign talent more lucratively, at the expense of the local populace. I recently read Sgp news reporting taxi drivers treated the 'Ang Moh tourists" differently too: they preferred to pick them up and charge them a huge sum.

 

One Singaporean relative set up a blog site, but listed her location as 'United Kingdom' instead of good old 'Singapore'. I wonder if it is a shame to tell the world one is living in city-state Sgp.

 

I think all these stem from the fact that Singapore used to be a British colony. Our forefathers started their immigrant life with low-end jobs. Eventually, Britain failed to defend Sgp during the Japanese occupation. Nevertheless, widespread perception that 'Ang Moh' are more superior than Asians grew and traveled from generations to generations. In addition, Western culture is prevalent worldwide and permeates almost every household- in the form of Hollywood movies, music, fashion (including bridal fashion), religion, and 'Uncle Sam'.

 

Human by nature is not contented...they get jealous sometimes. Some get more jealous than others. This may snowball, leading to the Pinkerton Syndrome. The Ang Moh are perceived to be more superior. That makes the Asians more inferior, thereby causing a vicious cycle of cultural tension.

 

The Pinkerton Syndrome is a derogatory Singaporean term describing the tendency of some local Asians who tend to consider Caucasians superior, usually having a bias towards favouring Caucasians over locals. Even when some of such Asians moved to a Western country and married locals there, the 'racial' issue still stands up like a sore thumb. Married to a white American, or moving to a predominantly white neighborhood is deemed a higher class- that seems to elevate one's social status. When one is excluded from such 'privilege', he or she may feel a certain sense of alienation and discrimination.

 

I am not saying that an 'Ang Moh group' suffers from Pinkerton Syndrome. I am saying the social connotations attached to such a group may stem from the Pinkerton Syndrome.

 

Isn't sociology interesting?

 

I was reading the most recent Times article. According to a set of newly published letters, Mother Theresa, protraying a public image of cheer and God-loving, was in fact questioning the presence of God.

 

"Jesus has a very special love for you. As for me, the silence and the emptiness is so great that I look and do not see, listen and do not hear," the missionary wrote to one confidant, Reverend Michael Van Der Peet, in 1979.

 

In more than 40 letters spreading over 66 years, the nun who devoted her life to working with the poor in the slums of India, writes of the "darkness," "loneliness" and "torture" she is undergoing.

 

"Where is my Faith -- even deep down right in there is nothing, but emptiness and darkness -- My God -- how painful is this unknown pain -- I have no Faith," she wrote in an undated letter addressed to Jesus.

 

Mother Theresa wondered whether she was engaged in verbal deception. She spoke in public as if she was very much in love with God, but her inner state spoke of another. What hypocrisy, she said to an adviser.

 

I guess, if she had left the faith openly because of her personal doubts in God, it will deliver a catastrophic blow to the religion.

 

The bible has so many translations, versions, branches and revisions. I personally feel one bible is akin to a book of fairy tales. I quote Mother Thersea's words," I look but do not see."

 

Seeing so much suffering among the people she served, one doubts the presence of 'God'-  which, some believe privately and secretly, was possibly created by mankind in the desperate need of hope that makes living through extreme suffering easier.

 

That's why this is all called faith. If one believes and derives hope wholly from the bible, one will find more credibility, solace and less anger in oneself. Perhaps, that's why Mother Theresa put up a God-loving public image as she did not want to jeopardize the whole institution, divide the people and take hope, the very essence of life, away from the believers.

 

 

Some extractions from:

 

 

We often have reasons not to offer ourselves as the Indian Chief meddling the socio-politics in Singapore. There are the fears of repercussion, pressures of daily life, and repression of creativity, that render the inevitable lack of charisma, foresight, and ability to analyze and articulate well in words to a wide audience.

 

With every single day we are outside Singapore, the distance grows between us, in the West, and the Singapore heartlanders. No matter how much (or little) longing we have left for our birth country, or how hard we try to grasp the current affairs, news are filtered through different channels with varied time lag. There is so much I can talk about Singapore sociopolitics. Heartlanders, who are affected most in the society don't even care much of a hoot. Sometimes, you see a flame erupting and burning for less than a month, but it quickly dies into ashes. 

 

Confucians said on political meddling, "Tyranny is fiercer than a tiger" and that government should act as parents to the people and rule with ethics. However, political party that remains in power too long tend to get corrupted. There is no external audit for most Singapore government agencies. We only depend on the government's claims that corruption can be prevented if we pay the leaders well enough.

 

There is also a Chinese saying that a good judge with a clear head will not conduct a trial on "domestic affairs."  Based on foundations of such a paternalistic society, most followers would just sit back, allow one of the highest paid government in the world breastfeed them, or wait for the ridiculed opposing tigers fight it out and destroy themselves.

 

People ultimately don’t care- it shows in the vote time and again. We discuss whatever we want in blogs- but there is a lack of unity. We talk; then carry on with our life, as if nothing has happened. We don't dare to be activists, because that could lead to 'illegal gatherings' prosecutable by Singapore law.  

 

We know, for we have been taught well that -the one who speaks and acts differently could be flushed out by acidic hatred and punitive action.

 

I personally find it embarrassing that we don't discuss this freely in Singapore's public arena, but the Taiwanese media gets to do it. For us to discuss freely and deivate from the mainstream only brands us as traitors/quitters of Singapore.
Having no balls to discuss our domestic affairs with an open and critical mind merely eradicates the grounds for building moral courage and vision. 

 

1) Taiwanese talkshow on Singapore politics (Youtube)
http://mrbrown.com/ 

 

I quote from the Jap Anime 'Full Metal Alechemist'-- "You can't gain something without sacrificing something else of the equal value. This is the principle of the equivalent trade."

 

 

Life upgrade

If PAP loses in my GRC Will I still get them?

From my previous posting dated Jan 26, 2006:

The well-planned and allocated contingencies, weak opposition parties and fear of repercussions, as well as the goodies tactics are so beautifully choreographed that they are already winners.

 

From a relevant news article dated Feb 10, 2006:

http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,101763,00.html?

"4) What if the PAP loses that GRC to an opposition team?

Answer: Expect most makeover plans to be shelved."