Racial Harmony

"Rojak". That's the word i would best describe Singapore. Rojak is a mixture of flavours. Or in this case, Singapore is a mixture of both different races and culture. I am proud to say that Racial Harmony is implied in Singapore.

Racial Harmony is something so powerful, it can affect one's individual. In this world, being racist is like a crime. Or maybe a sin. Why pick a fight with people of different race when we can work together and live peacefully? One thing about racial harmony is that tolerance is required. Tolerance in terms of understanding one's race. It is the key in racial harmony.

Back when i studied social studies, my teacher never fails to share with the class stories based on racial related issues. It was appalling how Singapore had riots based on races. However, look at what have become of us now. We have put aside our differences and come together as one. We are no longer a bad tasting rojak, we are now a well blended rojak.

Done by:
Farah Diana 103231S

Animal Abuse

What do you normally do when you see an kitten?
a) Awwwww at it
b) Observe it
c) Pet it

I am not surprise if no option was selected. In this world, there will always be abuse, be it physical abuse or in any other form. Abusing still exist and it will never be stop unless we take action. The most saddistic abuse; animal abuse. I am willing to accept any physical abuse if it appears on the headlines as i know justice will be served. But what about animal abuse? It is definitely a big no no for me.

The thing about animal abuse is that these 'criminals' can get away easily. They can just do whatever they want with these poor animals and leave them astray. Come on, don't they have a life? Don't they know that animals are living creatures who deserve to be treated equally too?

Despite the measurements taken, animal abuse will still persist. Yes, we can play a part but this is only temporarily. These such events can prevent an area, but not the whole world. All i am left to say is that, come on people, just stop it! Put yourself in their shoes.

Done by:
Farah Diana 103231S

Flood in Singapore

It's raining, it's pouring, oh wait look, Orchard Road's flooding. Surprise surprise! I don't mean that literally though. As you can see, or heard or even read, flooding has been occurring to not just neighbourhood areas, but also in town. Yes, our most well known town areas has been flooded. I'm not that surprised. Why so?

Well, basically the Earth is not getting any younger. Singapore has been developing year after year. Developments are suppose to imporve our standard of living. However, what if these developments went overboard? Take for example the mrt tracks. Singapore has been expanding it thoroughly to make it more convenient for us. But, is it convenient for Singapore's "life"? What i'm trying to say is, in order to build more tracks, more land is needed therefore more digging is required. When more digging is done, what is Singapore left with? Us, living on land where it's beginning to sink soon.

So, who are to be blame? This is a tough call. But, i have to go with the government. Yes, fair enough that the government is trying to improve the standard of Singapore, but they shouldn't have oversee this issue. All in all, we can't stop Mother Nature's Callings.

Done by:
Farah Diana 103231S

Animal Abuse

I feel that the act of cruelty to animals is not ‘human’. Animal abuse is an act of intentionally causing the deprivation of shelter, water, food, socialization, medical care or even maiming, torturing, mutilating or killing an animal. People have deliberately abused and tortured an animal for the purpose of making the animal as an "entertainment”. Some buy pets on impulse and did not understand their ability to undertake a long term commitment of having a pet. In the end, their pet would starve to death due to their negligence. Animals are not a non-living thing or a toy, it has life and it feels the pain that one causing it. Animal cruelty is common everywhere, even in places where it’s prohibited. One way to stop animal abusing is to report as soon as it is spotted, be aware and set a good example for others. One can prevent animal cruelty and it starts within oneself. If you are a pet owner, make sure that you always show your pets the love and care that they ought to have. Always provide food, fresh water, shelter and medical treatment if your pet is sick. Have your animals spayed or neutered. Be a responsible pet owner. All in all, love animals!
Done by: Theresa Lee(103573T)

Animal Abuse - Angeline Lee [102830Y]

Animals have played a role in human society since civilization began. At first, animals were hunted for food, and their skins and bones were used for clothing, shelter and tools. Later, animals were domesticated and used as beasts of burden, for food and clothing, and eventually for many other purposes. Today most of us accept the idea that people — farmers, pet owners, animal breeders, zoo keepers and research scientists — may use animals but are obliged to treat them decently. The US even has anti-cruelty laws to ensure the humane treatment of animals.

Nonetheless, animals’ abuse is still prevalent in today’s society. One of a classic example is when pet owners failed to keep animals in a healthy condition such as tying the dogs up on a balcony surrounded by faeces or keeping them leashed in an open space expose them to environmental hazards such as sun and rain, which can lead either to heat stroke or flu.

Lack of understanding in taking pets may result in performing actions such as having their pet dog wearing a choker chain which is attached to the leash. It may cause the dog to choke himself while he is playing with the other dog, so it should never be used to tie a dog up.

From the above example, it can be known that animals abuse is mostly due to the negligence of the pet owners. Welfare of the pets is no longer their top priority in their hectic lifestyles as before as compared to when they first shop for their pets. It may also be due to the diminishing excitement and liking they have for their pet when they grow up. It is no longer the cute little puppy that they want.
Nonetheless, for non- pet owners who bully animals simply do not treat them seriously. They may have a psychological disorder feeling thrilled and superior when bullying living objects that they cannot defend for themselves.

Laws enforcement has been going on all along from fining up to $10,000 to even imprison for up to 12 months or even both when found guilty of abusing and abandonment of any animal. Nonetheless, the rate of abuse animal case is still too high. Hence, in order to reduce it, the government can organize more events in public places to raise awareness on the equally importance animal lives as compared to human beings and the various ways in which the pet owners can to take good care of the pets.

Is there racial harmony in Singapore? Angeline Lee [102830Y]

Racial Harmony does exist in Singapore. This is explicit enough from the fact that we do not have to live in fear that someone would assassinate us back at home due to the difference in skin tone color. One of the classic examples is Watts Riot of 1965, a large-scale riot which lasted 6 days in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. This riot had resulted in the loss of 34 people lives and 2032 people substantially injured and also leaving around $40 million in property damage. What triggered this riot to happen? It is the racial injustices suffered by black Americans in Los Angeles, including job and housing discrimination. Nonetheless, this riot could have been avoided with better communication going on being led by the government between the whites and the blacks.

From the example above, it has shown the effects of not maintaining racial harmony in the country. Hence, we should be grateful to the government that we get to enjoy racial harmony in Singapore.
It is the society that has shaped our perceptions towards racial harmony. In school, we celebrate racial harmony annually without fail. Speeches and various activities on promoting the understanding of different races are implemented in our school curriculum throughout the year. This has allowed us to know more about different races, their various cultures and practices. With the understanding of different races in mind, we become more sensitive in the use of words when having a conversation with a friend of different race in order to avoid tension and misunderstanding.

Hence, when we evolve as adults, it becomes easy and handy for us to be able to work well with different races of people as we clearly know that racial harmony cannot be taken for granted.

As such, racial harmony in Singapore is based more towards understanding rather than tolerance. We understand the importance of having racial harmony in the country. Tolerance only takes place when there is a lack of understanding in the different races. This may only occur to new immigrants who find it hard to adapt in a multi race country like Singapore initially but over time, with efforts garnered in knowing the various races, they would be able to integrate well in the Singapore.

Racial Harmony

I feel that racial harmony in Singapore is based on understanding and tolerance. However, there are still a small portion of people putting up a façade. I think that some people just sweep the racial issues under the “carpet” and if they were to unveil it, it might cause a major uproar in Singapore. However, I believe that racial harmony is based on understanding and tolerance. If there is no understanding, there would not be tolerance. For example, some Indians do put a certain fragrance on them which might be unbearable for some races. However, the other races tolerated it based on understanding of their religion and culture. Some discriminate other races based on their skin color, follow the norm of the society or even when one of them made a mistake like terrorism , they deemed the whole entire innocent ethnic wrong. In order to have peace in a country, one must be tolerant, understanding and see the good in people, rather than judge a person by his or her skin color.

Done by: Theresa Lee (103573T)

Privacy

Online social networks are websites that allow users to build connections and relationships to other Internet users. It can be used to keep in touch with friends, make new contacts and find people with similar interests and ideas. It is common for one to have a Facebook account or MSN. They would post their personal stuff and information for their “friends” to see. Some bloggers even write their personal diary post on their blog for all to see. Hence, I feel that privacy is not relevant privacy still relevant given today’s hyper-connected world of online social networking. It is not possible when everybody is sharing their personal information internationally. Even if one need access or permission to see the other information, there are hackers everywhere and whatever meant to be private will be exposed to stranger. All in all, I feel that there is no privacy in online networking.

Done by: Theresa Lee (103573T)

Flood in Singapore

For the past few months, floods have hogged the front pages of every local newspaper! All major expressways were affected by the flash floods, causing traffic to come to a standstill. Visibility on the roads too has been affected by the darkened, gloomy skies. Many shops in orchard road have to close down for the time being and houses were invaded with calf high waters. Even worst, trees start falling in the middle of the road and damage cars surrounding it. Many Singaporeans were caught unprepared by the flood and stunned by the situation. I feel that PUB (Public Utilities Board) and National Parks Board is to blame for the situation. Even though flood rarely occur, they should have made some type of precaution to prevent any accidents. Not when after the damage is done, then they act and try to salvage the situation. I feel that they did not manage to handle the incident well as they allowed another flash flood to happen. However, Singaporeans might play a part in causing the recent flooding. Singaporeans has the habit of littering, these litters might get stuck in the drain which prevented water from flowing smoothly, causing a clog. All in all, I hope that this will be the last flood incident happening in Singapore. Done by: Theresa Lee(103573T)

Floods in Singapore, Who should bear the responsibilities?

Recently, Singapore has been hit by floods on several occasions due to thunderstorms happening around Singapore. The biggest case was when Orchard road was flooded, causing the shops like Massimo Dutti, Hermes, Wendys and Starbucks to be flooded. It is said that this was the worst flood that has hit Singapore since 24 years ago.

PUB is largely responsible for all the floods in Singapore. The drainage system in Singapore should be well managed. However, the recent flooding in countless places in Singapore has brought negative comments to how the Public Utilities Board (PUB) atually manages proper drainage system. Global warming has brought harm to Earth, resulting in unpredictable weather.

As we all can feel it, certain days are extremely humid and some days are wet. Thus, I think that Singapore's National Water Agency should really look into this matter as if will affect the automobile travelling on the road. On the contrary, there isn't any definite solution to this as it is nature.

However, agencies who manages drainage system in Singapore should really take some actions to reduce the chances of flooding. There is many consequences due to a flood. Shops stationed at the ground level will be affected badly as water might just flow in and destroy their goods. Houses located at the ground level will also be affected.

Therefore, I think that PUB should be responsible for these floods that has been happening in Singapore as well as those agencies managing the drainage system here.

DONE BY MENGCHAO [104606E]

Animal Abuse

Animal abuse is the infliction of suffering or harm to animals. It is definitely inhuman to bring harm to animals. They too have feelings. They will feel the pain that is being brought upon them. In the recent news, there is another case of animal abuse by a woman. She repeatedly hit her dog using a broomstick.

This act of cruelty is definitely not something to be proud of. One should be punished heavily by the law by carrying out such acts. There are many reasons to animal abuse. If an owner cannot stand the behaviour of an animal that he own, then what is the point of getting one in the first place? There is no valid reason to harm the innocent animal. There are also some cases whereby these owners 'train' their animals in a very harsh way, in other words, abusing the pet.

Training your pet might seem as a very tough thing to do. Especially if you want to train it the way you want it to behave. However, one can use positive reinforcement which is another healthy alternative way to treat the pet better.

Therefore, people who brings harm to animals should be given a heavy sentence for their acts because I don't think they would want to be treated in such manner too.

DONE BY MENGCHAO [104606E]