March 2008

Faultless To A No-Fault

On Jan 17, 08, it was reported that a new strain of the "flesh-eating" MRSA bacteria is spreading among gay men in San Francisco and Boston. The online study, published in The Annals of Internal Medicine, was led by Dr. Binh Diep, a researcher at the San Francisco General Hospital Medical Center. It identifies multidrug-resistant USA300 as a virulent new strain of the bacteria that's normally been associated with hospitals and long-term care facilities. This new strain of MRSA is difficult to treat because it is resistant to methicillin and many more of the antibiotics used to treat the earlier strains.

Wow, how timely. Since AIDS doesn’t seem to scare gay men from having sex, perhaps this ‘new’ bacteria will. After all, in Singapore, it’s alright if you’re gay (the Government is gay-tolerant) but sex between men is still illegal (Section 377A of the penal code, but gay women are exempted!). So, on behalf of the Uniquely Singapore system, I’d like to welcome USA300 as a hushed deterrent to gay crime in Singapore.

One expat, based in Singapore only recently, asked: Why are there only good news about Singapore and no bad ones? (She is thinking, do we really have such a faultless government?) Uniquely Singapore, my dear – would’ve been my reply. Think of the tile of my first spoken-word CD – Me All Good No Bad. Nevertheless, Straits Times (ST) do take note to refute the faultless-ness whenever possible for a win-win argument, yah?

Ah…it’s finally admitted: “We’re losing, at the top end, about 1,000 (people) a year. If you take the top 30 per cent of the population, that is about 4 or 5 per cent,” our Minister Mentor said when interviewed by UPI’s Arnaud de Borchgrave (ST, Feb 15 08). So finally, there is some open declaration that Singapore is experiencing a continuous flow of brain drain. But no worries cos no one will bother to ask why. Even if they do, especially the national paper, it won’t be said that it’s unappealing to live in Singapore!

See, just three days later, a letter appeared in ST’s Forum “Brain drain not just a Singapore problem” (Feb 18). Oh my, of course, it’s not just a Singapore problem! Did you for a minute think it is? Though, I must add, the drop-on-floor-must-pick-up-sand perspective of the letter-writer sounds also like he’s disclaiming the MM’s concern altogether. In other words, hmmph, the ‘defence’ on the brain-drain predicament just ain’t win-win enough.

On Jan 26, 08, Reuters UK reported the following. “A choir that planned to sing a list of complaints about life in Singapore cancelled its performances after the city-state banned its foreign members from singing, organizers said on Saturday. The 60-member "complaints choir", a concept that originated from two Finnish artists, was scheduled to perform at a weekend festival but authorities granted a performance license on the condition that the foreigners would not participate.

"Our conductor is Malaysian, so how could the choir go ahead without him?" said Melissa Lim, the festival organizer. Singapore's Media Development Authority said the license was conditional because the lyrics touched on "domestic affairs" and it preferred only Singaporeans take part. Some of the complaints that would have been sung included, "when a pregnant lady gets on the train, everyone pretends to sleep" and "when I'm hungry at the food court, I see people (reserve) seats with tissue paper".

“Singapore, which faces a low birth rate and a graying population, has turned increasingly to immigrants to boost its work force. It aims to add another 2 million people to the island's 4.7 million people over the next 40 to 50 years. The city-state is frequently criticized by human rights groups for its restrictions on expression and the media.”

Allow me to tell it like the authorities would. About the human rights groups’ critique, it is not a burning issue! Did any Singaporean complain about the restriction placed on the complaints-choir? None that we know of! Did you hear much about it in the news? Not at all! Besides, somehow, some way the show did go on at The Arts House, with the rules still in place, I’m sure.

Never mind that the entire media in Singapore is governed by the Government! (How etymologically sound! After all, the Government has to govern…). At the end of the day, donch forget, in Singapore it’s all about what works! Never mind that 1,000 top Singaporean professionals leave the country every year… that is NOT a problem created by the State! Come to think of it, nothing is a problem created by the State. If there is, you can be sure – it’s an HONEST MISTAKE!

That’s how faultless Singapore is. Uniquely unique too. -- X’ Ho