SharmaineOng
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Changing face of Singapore's society
Friday, January 7, 2011 @ 8:10 AM

Singapore has experienced significant growth over a time spend of 45years. Looking back in time tells us that in terms of living conditions, number of population, education, job prospects and the environment it has definitely improved over a short period of time.

Singapore’s population of the initial 2million during 1965 has increases dramatically to the current number of over 5million with further potential to increase. Of course, Singapore’s growth cannot solely rely on the nation’s citizens and hence foreign talents have been invited to Singapore to work, this will benefit Singapore’s economy as foreign talents bring in essential knowledge and experiences that some Singaporeans lack. This ensures the continuation of economic growth.

Singaporeans however have grown wary of the increase of foreigners in Singapore and have the mindset that the foreigners are snatching the jobs in Singapore leaving them unemployed. That is why there are cases in Singapore whereby foreigners are being subjected to racist remarks. Singaporeans in fact should be grateful for the foreigners for the economic growth and not be petty over some minor loss of jobs. As economic growth in Singapore will lead to more jobs available in the future.

In the past, kids would just run around the playground for hours and then return home to watch the television or finish the homework from school as computer games was a luxury that a few can afford. Now, kids just stay at home playing their handheld game consoles and playing it on hours end. Handheld game consoles that cost $200 to $300 a piece and computer games that cost $60 to $70 some even worth $100 over are given to kids of ages 6 to 18. Traditional games like catching and hide and seek are dying out as time changes.

Singapore’s growth has indeed lead to many achievements that is astounding for a country with no natural resources, but one has wonder the implications of this growth both its pros and cons and try adapting to this new society that has changed so much or else we will be left out.

Recent Natural Disaster :(
@ 8:07 AM

How many human lives have been lost as a direct result of global warming over the past decade? Thousands? Tens of thousands? When extreme weather events result in natural disasters, we tend to immediately blame climate changes. We must recognize that increasing human vulnerability has played a major role in these disasters  For example, a flooding in Pakistan on 29 July 2010. The disaster was amplified by a number of human factors, including inadequate flood-control infrastructure on the heavily modified Indus river catchment, and the growing number of people living on the floodplain. As a result, climate change is not the only threatening issue facing humankind today. We also must address our increasing vulnerability to natural disasters, especially in the poorest regions of world.

Impact of pop music on teens:))
@ 7:51 AM

Music in the "Universal language". Everyone, everywhere may relate to the message of music. Music with lyrics may clearly stress its message. Popular music is a powerful tool to impact teens of all times. Music has gone a long way throughout the previous decades around the world. And music now has evolved and shape shifted its way. However there are pro's and cont's of pop music.

PRO's

The type of music a teen listens to will have an impact on the way they think and the things they do. Teens will have different tastes and not every style of music will appeal to all teens. However, some of the pop music promote violence and sexual messages. This music appeals to the flesh because teens like to hear it- they like the beat, rhythm and their loud music. Unfortunately, if they are listening to secular music, the chances are they are being fed a steady diet of sex, a diet that is effecting how to relate to the opposite sex.

CON's

Some teens will use music as a way to reduce stress and to relax and you may find it truly enriches your life. Go off to listen to music for an outlet to diffuse other things you are dealing with; music can be your escape and it can help you be successful and generally just be enjoyable!


In a nutshell, many teens enjoy pop music. This is the most popular genre among teens. However, some teens prefer rap or heavy metal. Many times, the songs will be about drugs, sex and violence. It will then be up to you how you let this type of music affect you. Ideally, you should not let these lyrics have a negative influence on who you are. Just enjoy the music.

BULLYING IN SCHOOL :((
Thursday, January 6, 2011 @ 10:42 PM

Bullying is a big problem. It can make kids feel hurt, scared, sick, lonely, embarrassed and sad. Were you a victim before? I was... It was a horrible memory that can never be erasedBeing a victim was never an easy 'job'. I was being chased around the school by a group of girls(the bullies), forced to do their homeworks and the worse case was that I'd got beaten up outside school. Since then, i had been living in fear which resulted in depression.
My school work dropped drastically and I hardly made any friends. As what Duane Alexander, M.D., director of the NICHD said, "Being bullied is not just an unpleasant rite of passage through childhood." 



EDUCATION SYSTEM :D
@ 9:30 PM

Education must keep improving: Prime Minister Lee

During the talk, Mr Lee Hsien Loong actually pointed out 2 main points why do we have to further improve our Education. Firstly, self-improving attitude is a bonus in benefiting Singapore's education. As what Mr Lee said, "Singapore education system is doing all right and on the track but it remains important for the country to continue striving for greater heights". Though Singaporeans students are ranked top 5 for reading, science, and mathematics, we shouldn't be complacent. 

Secondly, there are more competitors from other countries such as the South Korea and Hong Kong. These countries are improvving steadily or even drastically. And especially the people from China who came to Singapore for jobs, though they are paid lesser, they have skills and capability to make alot of progress. Hence, it is important for us to continue improving and make further progress with our education.

Animal Abuse!!
Thursday, December 2, 2010 @ 11:43 PM

Talking about animal abuse, we will think of a group of young teenagers throwing rubbish/stones at a cat/dog or adults starving the animals to death. People, isn't it cruel?
Cruelty to animals is the infliction of suffering or harm upon animals, other than humans, for purposes other than self-defense. More narrowly, it can be harm for specific gain, such as killing animals for food or for their fur.

Recently, there are reports showing a rise in animal abuse in Singapore. (Example, The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) said there were 17 cases of animal abuse in the first eight months of this year, almost double the nine cases reported for the whole of last year. Most of these cases involved dogs, cats and rabbits.)Therefore, it shows that animal cruelty has not gone away, in fact, animal cruelty in Singapore is no longer considered a big deal.
Offenders are usually at schools, are at college campuses, are adults, who are old enough to know better, and are children, who know enough to commit heinous acts against innocent animals. Offenders are not just always the ignorant or the poor, but they are also found among the educated and privileged. Since they are well educated, why are they doing such things? Can we blame Singapore's education system or just a person's character?

From my point of view, i think that educating about animal abuse should start from young. By giving the children the knowledge of why animal abuse is wrong and also the consequences that they will face if they abuse animals. However, not only the schools, their parents also must set example by treating the animals with care and love. As a result, their children will grow up and having the thinking that treating animals nicely is important because an animal is also a living thing, not any soft toy that they usually play with.
So, let us play our part to save and protect the animals.<3