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Eldora’s comment on “Cleanliness on the decline” by Blandina


I strongly agree with your comment. There in an increasing number of Singaporeans paying less attention to our country’s cleanliness and more are showing the “it’s the cleaner’s job” kind-of-attitude towards litter on the ground or even, in our hands. The most concrete and upsetting evidence of such littering habits would be the scene after the National Day Parade. There will be lots of litter lying everywhere such as on the seats, on the ground, on stage and even in the toilets. People would just leave hurriedly to catch their last means of transport back home and would not bother about what they left behind. I feel that it is disgraceful that Singaporeans gave our nation this kind of “presents”.
Are we going to start another similar courtesy campaign named “litter-free”? I hope not. There are so many rubbish bins around Singapore so why do we not throw our litters properly? Japan has lesser rubbish bins, much bigger land and in fact also cleaner than Singapore. I think we no longer deserve to be called a clean and green country. To earn back our rightful title, I think that rubbish bins could be designed more attractively to get attention from passer-bys and also more litter. We could also have more comic posters such as those for toilets to be placed at appropriate places. Have more promotions of interesting litter-free advertisements and educate Singaporeans starting from the younger generation. Hopefully we can salvage our reputation and remind Singaporeans the responsibility to keep our country clean.  
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“Are Singaporean youths politically apathetic?” by Eldora


GE2011 was not very significant to me as I am not eligible to vote. However, this year, I paid more attention to GE as it is one of the hot topics in Singapore and many people of different ages have discussions through various types of social media. In short, during that period, GE was in the air so I eventually took note of it.
I think GE does slightly affect those who are under the voting age. I feel that generally, those who are not eligible would not bother as much about GE because they won’t have to make important decisions on who to vote for. Thus they will not take the effort to find out more about the parties that were involved in the elections or even weigh the content of the speeches made by the parties. But, I am sure that the voting age does not affect the majority of people, whether they fulfil the eligibility or not, to stay awake and wait patiently for the release of GE2011 results as it is the climax of the election. As a Singaporean or resident living in Singapore, this election gives us the chance to voice our opinion in political issues and hope for better life in the future. Therefore regardless of our age, all of us would still want to know the outcome of this election. Even if the changes of seats in the government are small, at least we know what the majority of Singaporeans’ choices are.
I don’t think that the voting age should be lowered as adults still make better decisions then young adults. Young adults are too self-centred in decisions and easily influenced by peers, while adults usually make more critical thinking and are firm with their choice. I feel that the voting age should remain the same so that young adults can have more exposure to the society first before making any voting decisions.
The GE does not really have any impact on me but this year I gain more knowledge about the elections from discussions with my family and friends.
I think raising political awareness of young people is still a challenge even though I agree with Mr Teo Ser Luck that youths here are not politically apathetic. Perhaps there could be compulsory political talks for youths in schools especially for secondary, junior college and polytechnics. Or have famous bloggers blog about politics so that people who read will pass the message around by reblogging or other means of social media.
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Blandina's comment on "maid jumps one storey down to flee bosses" By Joanna

There is an increase in the cases of maids being ill-treated. I agree with you that the government should set a rule to specify the maximum hours that a maid can work each day. Employees should not ill-treat their maid by asking them to work for long hours. This will deprive them from having sufficient amount of rest and they would not be able to work efficiently the next day. To prevent such cases from happening again, employees should treat their maid well so that they will enjoy working here in Singapore. Although they are paid very little, maids are human beings as well. They should be treated fairly and equally. Treat them like a family member and they will be more willing to serve you.
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“Obama says gay couples deserve same rights as all” by Eldora


The article is about how Mr Obama addresses his views on the issue of gay marriage on several events. Mr Obama is seen to be very precautious about his views as his answers are very indirect and somewhat neutral.  
As stated in the article about the evolvement of Mr Obama’s views, I think it is true as he did not support gay marriage in the ’08 campaign. But now, he openly expressed his belief that gay couples deserve the same legal rights as every other couple. I think Mr Obama is also trying to delay legalising gay marriage as he kept asking the parties for patience and states that the progress will be slower than some people want. If he have already approved of gay marriage, he should have his ways of legalising it, instead of making them wait for the approval.  
Personally, I would discourage gay marriage and feel that it should not be legalised. I feel that gay marriage is against the nature. The person who created humans must have reasons for creating distinct difference between men and women right? It would be wrong and against human nature and rights to allow two parties of the same sex to be entitled marriage.
Shouldn’t everyone take a step back? Mr Obama didn’t say “No” to gay couples, so why are they asking for more? They should be contented with what they already have. There was even an Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) proposed in the United States Congress that would prohibit discrimination against employees on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity by civilian, nonreligious employer with at least 15 employees. Gay couples should compromise by now.
Even if gay marriage was legalised, would that lead to a better future for them or more problematic disasters? Will the gay couples be able to accept the society’s view on them? Or will they break down few years later after their marriage and lead to a higher divorce rate in the states? Also, if they want to adopt children, is it healthy for that child to have parents of the same sex? When people get together, all sorts of promises are made, but thereafter, everything is at stake. There are so many researches that need to be done to support so many unsure questions. I believe that Mr Obama would suggest a satisfying conclusion for all someday.  


http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/World/Story/STIStory_683432.html
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Blandina's comment on "Sloppy In Singapore" By Amanda

I agree with some of the things that you have said. It is true that most people will take some time to doll up during special occasions. However, I have seen people wearing singlet and shorts to attend concerts. This was what I had encountered on several occasions. It is the mindset of people nowadays that they do not care about how others would judge them as long as they themselves feel that is it right and comfortable wearing it. This shows that our society has a change in our values. You mentioned that it is normal to see many people wearing slippers and Bermudas at Orchard road. I think that this is a trend that many Singaporeans follow. Many cannot be bothered to dress properly and they use the hot weather as an excuse.

I also agree that not everyone can afford to spend so much on dressing up. I feel that people do not have to buy an expensive item to look good. One will look great if they dress appropriately at all times.
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Nur Hazimah's Comment on "Sloppy in Singapore by Aina"

I strongly agree with your opinion that a person’s dressing reflects a person’s mood and character and that others will judge you based on how you look. One who makes an effort to look good and presentable shows that he or she has a high confidence and self-esteem. Whereas a person who dress sloppily shows that they are lazy and has a low self-esteem. This is because others always judge you based on first impression.

I also think that looking presentable does not necessarily mean dressing up from head to toe. As long as our outfit is appropriate and neat, it would be fine. It also depends on the occasion that we are attending in order to show respect to our hosts.
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Amad's comment on "Should Maids Get A Day Off Every Week?" by Nur Hazimah

I absolutely agree with your opinion. I notice that domestic workers are working too hard. They are meant to help with housework but they certainly are not slaves. Every working person deserves a rest.

You have a good point in saying that it would be risky to give them a day off since they might encounter mishaps when they wander around. Outings with the employers’ family would be a better option instead of giving them a day off.

Because these domestic workers have to work almost all the time for their employers, they usually resort to sneaking out of the house just to ‘unwind’. We can't blame them entirely for doing so as they are always busy that they don’t even have leisure time. I feel it is good that the MOM brought this matter up.
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