Justice AND Mercy in MOV

1) I think there is no true justice at the end of the trial scene. I must frankly admit that I am a supporter of Shylock. The bond clearly stated that Shylock would be getting the pound of flesh from Antonio when Antonio was unable to repay Shylock the sum of money he borrowed. However the manipulative nature of Portia and her intelligence in spotting the loopholes in the bond, adding to it the biased Duke had contributed to the prevention of true justice. Firstly Portia manipulated the whole court, firstly she manipulated Shylock's feeling luring him into the trap (Shylock want to seek for true justice), and at the point of time Shylock was being lured into the trap Portia used the play of words. She said that since the bond only stated that Shylock would cut off the one pound of flesh from Antonio so there should be no drop of blood. This is JUST A PLAY OF WORDS, how can there be no blood when you cut off flesh from someone's body. In the end Shylock instead of Antonio was punished.

At this point of time, I would also want to defend Shylock for his deeds. Shylock is known as the "villain" in the text but look at how Antonio treats Shylock, don't you think that Antonio is also the "villain". When Antonio wanted to lend money from Shylock, it was him that told Shylock that think of lending money to him as ending money to an enemy not a friend. Antonio has already made it clear so can't we say that Shylock was just listening to his instructions. Although having empathy and being forgiving is a good quality, however how many of us would still be forgiving after being insulted like how Antonio insulted Shylock. How many of us would turn the other cheek to be slapped after being slapped once. We often say we must have empathy, be forgiving but how many of us really did that. Shylock is also a human, he too will feel angry and urge for revenge thus I do not think that Shylock should be considered a "villain".

2)I think there was no true mercy. "Mercy" in the trial scene is used by Portia as a tool to trap Shylock. When Shylock realized the loophole in the bond, he decided not to pursue the matter. Bassanio asked him to take the ducats and go but it was Portia, the one who talked about "mercy" who stopped him and forced him into the situation where there was no turning back. Antonio thought that he was being merciful to let Shylock convert to Christianity and sparing his life. However by taking away the means he live and his religion, was the actions of the Christian Characters true mercy?

3)I agree that Justice and Law can be manipulated by people in power. From the text the Christian Venetians are considered the powerful people and they certainly manipulated Justice and Law. Portia used the play of words and her manipulative nature and manipulated law and justice. She being under-covered as a fake scholar,using the twist of words and controlled the court and the law. There was no true justice achieved at the end! In our modern day lives, this is also the scenario. Look at the Lockerbie bombing, there was a;ready evidence to say that the mastermind behind the Lockerbie bombing was Gaddafi, however he was not being convicted for his instigating the killings.

However in Singapore, Justice and Law can hardly be manipulated by people in power. In the Michael Faye vandalizing case, the punishment for him was to receive caning and indeed he received the punishment he should get despite appeals by the President of the US, Bill Clinton. This is a example where Justice and Law cannot be manipulated by people in power.

Education in Singapore-Is it really that bad???

Greetings to all. I am Wang Ri Xin a Secondary 2 student from Hwa Chong Institution. After reading the letter by Janelle, thoughts and questions about our education system began flourishing in our mind. There are certain things she mentioned that were really true however also I do agree with some of her ideas about our education system.

Singapore has a high literacy rate and almost all of us here have at least received primary and secondary secondary education. However, Singapore's education system have always been a highly debatable issue. People always say that students in Singapore study not for knowledge but for exams. Assignments and tasks when not graded would not be done properly while those being graded and affect our academic grades, we would do them within the best of our abilities. For example, this blog post that I am currently writing, I am writing it because I want my marks.

Janelle stated that the beauty of education is to ask "why" and that "why" has became a taboo word in schools. I do agree curiosity and an inquisitive mind in important for learning to take place. However, when we are really curios with something, we will go out and venture and find out for ourselves, that's when real learning takes place. Look at Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Isaac Newton, they asked "why" for many things but the reason why they are so successful is that in order to satisfy their curiosity and desire for more knowledge, they venture out and search for the answers to their questions. If you want to ask the question "Why?", then you must also ask yourself the question of "Why?". If you expect things to be spoon-fed to you, then what is the point of writing this article in the first place? The reason why the new generation are known as the strawberry generation because when things are not being spoon-fed to them, they would start ranting and complaining, but not take action and find out for themselves.

I personally do not find memorizing a problem but the most important part is whether you understand what you memorized. Memorizing plainly and memorizing with with understanding are greatly different. When you memorize with understanding that is when your knowledge taken in by your brain and that you how to apply what the facts you memorized. Furthermore, when you memorize with understanding thats when memorizing becomes something much easier. I do feel that Janelle's scope of our education is rather small. For example she only managed to look at primary school and secondary school education but what about JC and University education, what about GP in the A levels.

I think her letter to the Minister of Education is quite a well-crafted letter. Her tone and attitude clearly depicts that she is genuinely a student under the local education system. I think she used quite a number of good examples however ,thereare also some examples (why carbon is not a non-metal) that she used which I think are not good enough to question the local education system. Furthermore her tone and attitude gives me a feeling that she is not questioning the local education system but instead complaining about how hard her examinations are. Thus I think these are areas that she can probably improve on.

I personally thinkthat improvements to be made to our education would be adding in more skill-based questions, one of which would be inference and analytical skills. In terms of science, I think more applicational question can be added so as totest whether the student really understood the concept or not. Lastly, nowadays we students care too much about marks. Thus I would also like the Ministry of Education to take note of this and try to emphasize the study not for exams butfor knowledge and wisdom. Lastly, I also hope that our education system can turn us into someone not only intellugent but also courteous. The government should put greater emphasis on moral education. Lastly I would like to end off this post with a quote by Helen Keller, “One can never consent to creep when one feels the compulsion to soar” .

Boxing match: Money vs Love

Money, money, money. In the highly competitive and tense society of Singapore, money can be said as one of the most important things in our lives. Indeed, without money nobody can survive. When we switch on our televisions and watches those love soap dramas, it will probably tell us about how love can win over anything but let us ponder for a while. Can true love really win over money??

In my opinion, I agree that true love is sacred and should not be polluted by the "transactional" element. However true love with zero dollars is impossible to sustain a relationship especially in the practical society of Singapore. My way of sustaining a long-lasting relationship is that one must at least have the means to provide your partner with a good, comfortable life. If a man can't even provide his other half a good, comfortable life then he is just a irresponsible man and a failure in life. Imagine your life-long partner struggling earn money, this thought really disgusts me. Thus true-love but no money, there is no relationship but just suffering. Look at those couples who are so poor that they do not have the means to lead a normal, peaceful life, worrying about when is their next meal, if you call that a successful relationship then I am quite sure that no one would want to engage in relationships anymore.

I think it is normal to have a certain amount of "transactional" element as it is reasonable for you other half to know that do you have the means and abilities to support her and give her a good life, if she was to engage in a relationship with you. In a successful and long-lasting relationship, the "transactional" element and true love each of them weighs 50%. Losing either will lead to a failure.

I think that there is indeed an upward trend of relationships and marriages valuing money over other qualities One should value money in a relationship but not too much that it pollutes true love. However nowadays , women sometimes value money so much that they are willing to sacrifice their true love which led to many outrageous examples in our real-life society. For example prominent Chinese Scientist Yang Zhen Ning married a 28 year old lady at the age of 82. I began pondering on the fact that whether the lady really loved this guy which 3 and a half times the age of her. Is it because of money and fame which ultimately led her to this decision or maybe age wasn't really a problem. But to me, I find it hard and outrageous to accept this kind of relationships.

How has war evolved from past to present?

War is a state of organized, armed and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, societal disruption, and usually high mortality. Countless wars have happened since from the pre-modern times. As time passes, war changes, it evolves at every stage of history due to the fact that at every stage of history, humans seems to be more mature in their thinking and in this blog post, I will examine the changes in wars from past to present.

Technology has certainly brought evolution to wars. Weapons certainly plays an important part in warfare. With humans venturing out to posses new scientific knowledge, weapons in warfare had certainly be improved to bring greater destruction to the opponent. In stone-age, when our ancestors fought wars with one another, they used spears and arrows made of stone and animal bones. Then followed by the bronze age, no longer stone, but bronze is used to make weapons. This shows clearly how new knowledge acquired by the humans were put to application in the creation of new weapons used in war. In the 9th century, a new chapter was marked out in human history and also warfare history when Chinese Alchemists discovered gunpowder. Gun powder was at first used for recreational uses such as fireworks. As time passed, fireworks could no longer satisfy the curiosity of mankind and gunpowder was put to experiment on weapons. For the following centuries, knives, swords, bows and arrows were no longer widely used in warfare and it was the era of modern warfare with canons, rifles, rockets, pistols. However, humans' search for new technology does not just end here. The industrial revolution was followed up by the inventions of cars, planes, steam ships, which was also added into the packing list for wars. New terms for warfare have also been coming out, such as "biology-warfare" which uses germs and harmful bacteria as weapons. Now, the moment we think about war, the first thing we have in our minds is the word "nuclear". Nuclear energy is indeed a powerful weapon that can cause mass destruction to your opponent in war, just take a look at the infamous bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Mankind's crave for technology would certainly not stop and who knows what would be the weapon list for "future" warfare.

Causes and reasons to go to war have also change. In the past war happened because of disputes in basic needs like water, food, farmland. But look at modern warfare, which wars' causes is to fight for basic needed for survival? None! War now fought over the greed and desire of humans. The recent Irag war is a highly debatable topic in the world. The Americans claim that they fought the war so as to eliminate terror rule and Saddam Hussein's crimes against humanity, but who know what is the real purpose of the US fighting the war, probably the US eyeing one the oil reserves in Irag.

Of course the destruction caused by wars have also evolved through out history.The use of high-tec weapons inevitably would bring massive destruction.In the past, the effect of war on future generations is not that serious and obvious but now with the use of these destructive weapons, the effect of wars are long lasting. For example in the Vietnam war, the use of Agent Orange by the Americans caused large number of fetuses to be deformed, this explain massive the destruction, modern warfare can bring.

The evolution of war through different stages in history, from the past to the present is very obvious. However there is something that will never change, "we know more about war that we know about peace, more about killing that we know more about living".

NS is for everyone. NS is a crime??

1) Why do you think National Service is important to Singapore?

National service is important to Singapore because Singapore is a country who is small in size, have a lack of human resources. Thus maintaining a large military, which both requires large amount land and people is very hard to achieve in Singapore. Thus National Service is important so that Singapore need not maintain a large military instead, every male citizen of her is part of the army and can defend the country. NS is also very important in terms of forging friendships and closer relationships between the different races. In NS these men would have a "live together, die together" spirit, where they will view one another as one big family. This will allow racial barriers to be broken down and this is vital for racial harmony and social cohesion in Singapore.

2) In the above poem, the speaker expresses his love for his country England. Do you have the same spirit for patriotism towards Singapore? Why?

I have the patriotism towards Singapore but at this stage of my life I don't feel that strongly to Singapore as the speaker felt to England. The sense of patriotism in me towards Singapore is due the reason that Singapore is my homeland where I grew up, received my education, made friends. Thus Singapore is the motherland that raised me up and I would never forget this place. However, although I feel a sense of patriotism but I believe that is not strong enough. I have that after I am enlisted is the NS it will help me further develop my patriotism towards Singapore.

3) Do you consider yourself a patriot to your country?

I have the patriotism towards Singapore but I do not consider myself as a patriot as a patriot is someone that speaks for his actions. I believe that only after I 've done something, made sacrifices to the country then I am considered as a real patriot because the real matter is not about whether you say that you are one or not but is actually that actions that truly matters, so I think that at this stage of my life I am not a patriot.

111 Balaysaisia Lane
Avenue 110
#20-299
Singapore 760820
30 March 2011

Dear Mr Jones,

It has already been few weeks after the devastating Earthquake that happened. I am sure the disaster had been a really dreadful experience to you. Tokyo, where you were living was also affected. With the buildings swaying likehell, I think if I were you, I would have fainted right on the spot. The radiation leakge from the nuclear generators were like adding salt to the wound, aggravating the whole situation.

I know that you are a British, but you take Japan as your second home. Its really sad to see the people around you falling one by one, getting crushed by the Earthquakes, washed away by the tsunami, affected by the radiation. But these disasters were unpreventable, who knew that all these would happen at same time. Japan is known as the Earthquake nation. With so much experience in earthquakes, I think Japan would surely recover from all these setbacks.

What the people of Japan needed to do now is to have faith in themselves . You must realisde the fact that we areall standing beside you, offering our helping hand. Our school has set-up a fund and my whole class is donating their money to fund. Artistes from the States had collaborated to form a charity album. Everyone is all helping Japan so you need not feel discouraged.

I believe that what affects Japan the most now is the radiation leak. The power of radiation is really so great that it can change human DNA. But, I think the Japanese have displayed really great spirit. Strength, bond among all Japanese. The workers of the plant were willing to sacrifice their lives for the survival of the nation. I can say this spirits cannot be seen in any country when they faced mega-disasters. Japan can survive!
日本が生き残ることができる！

Sincerely,
Wang RiXin

Fiiiiinal DRAFT

The moment Tom got off the plane, everything changed. It was so different from London. Eight years ago, when he was only four, he had left for London together with his parents and now he was back. His memories of Singapore faded as time passed and the only thing that he could recall was the face of his grandparent.

Outside the airport, the tropical heat was scorching him. Tom was already begginning to dislike Singapore. The streets were chaotic and disorganized, run down shop-houses could also be seen along the streets. A disgusted look appeared on Tom’s face.

Tom complained to his mother, “Mummy, this place is not suitable for us to stay. Its so hot and dirty!” Mrs Tan widened her eyes and gave an angry stare at her son. Tom knew what was going to happen if he complained more, thus for the rest of the journey, he did not speak a single word. The taxi stopped in front of a shophouse. Tom did not expect the place that he was going supposed to stay in for the next two weeks was a dilapidated shophouse. He cursed silently as he followed his parents into it.

An old woman was seating on a little wooden stool in the corridor. She looked really skinny, just like a match stick. Her skin was so dry to the extent that her veins could be seen from far. Holding a fan, she seemed to be waiting for someone. When she saw Tom and his parent, she exclaimed in a weird language that Tom had never heard before. His parents broke into tears and rushed up to the old woman. It was then Tom realised that the old woman was his grandmother, his only surviving grandparent. Amazingly, Tom did not feel anything.

“ Tom, come and hug your Ah-Ma ( grandmother in Hokkien).” Tom could not help but to go foward and give a hug. The old lady gave a pat on his head and said, “ Guai, Guai (good boy, good boy)!” Tom was showed around the shophouse. It was much smaller than the apartment he lived in London. He kept speculating as to when the ordeal would be over and when he could go back to England.

The few days of the stay at his grandmother’s house really seemed like years to him. Finally one week had passed and Tom was left with only another week. All day long, Tom felt bored and his grandmother was always seating in the corridor chatting with the other elderly residents, boasting about how clever and handsome her grandson was. The tropical heat dissappeared and it started raining and Tom wanted to have some fun. That was when he thought of playing in the rain. He dashed out of the shophouse, past his grandmother. It took a few seconds for the old lady to realise what Tom was doing. Tom shut his ears and did not bother what she said. Tom felt great when the rain drops hit on his back. It was the first time since he returned to Singapore he felt happy and refreshed. He did not notice that there was a pebble beside him and he tripped and fell. Blood dripped from the the wound. He groaned in pain, lying on the hard ground. It was then he saw a hand. It was the hand from her grandmother. The old lady had followed his grandson all the way. Her whole body was drenched by the heavy downpour. It was the first time Tom felt his grandmother’s love.

For the rest of the week, Tom’s grandmother took care of him. She told him about Singapore and the stories about her younger days. The old lady told her grandson about the Japanese Occupation, the riots, the racial tensions, the independence.

“During the Japanese Occupation, life was really tough. Your Ah Kong and I were anti-Japanese. We participated in a few dangerous sabotage missions. However, in one of the missions, your Ah-Kong was betrayed by a traitors and was recognised and killed by the Japanese, it was really a devastating blow to me. It was also then I know that I was pregnant with your mother. 1945, the war was finally over and your Ma was born. It was new start for me. There were riots and strike everywhere as people were unhappy with the government. The people wanted their freedom. I still remembered participating in a workers’ strike. Finally, it was the end of colonialism and Singapore was to join Malaya. At that time I could often see my Malay neighbours quarrelling with my Chinese neigbours, sometimes they would even have fights with each other. In the end Singapore was on its own.” From her eyes, Tom could see a sense of belonging towards the country. Being influenced by his grandmother, Tom felt the same way.

Tom looked around himself, the people, the food, it looked so familliar to him. He started thinking about where his true home was. Is it London, where he spent almost more than half of his life in or Singapore? However, good days would surely end, Tom needed to return to London. The old lady was really dissappointed as she hoped that her grandson could stay beside her for the last few years of her life. Tom went back to London with this question in his mind.

Three years later, Tom stood by the side of her grandma’s grave. He said solemnly, “I love you Ah-Ma and I also love your Singapore.”