Sunday, April 29, 2007
Kiasu
There's a limit as to how ugly human nature can get. Especially, when it gets ugly for the most shallow of reasons. This reasoning that some people abide to, can never be appreciated or understood by me. I am a patient man, but I cannot, for one second, stand people of the likes of irresponsibility, ignorance and impatience, and commit actions that are totally senseless, rude and illogical. Who am I referring to actually? Read on and find out.
First off, let's start with the ignorant
kiasu kings and queens. I've been reading the newspapers on how some retailers are actually charging plastic bags at a mere five or ten cents each. All they ever asked was that you bring your own bag, or even a small trolley even if you find it more convenient, to offset the fact that we, Singapore, are one of the largest consumers of plastic bags, and by doing this, we are actually helping out in preventing more environmental strain than we have already done. It's scary to think that this small dot of a country in the world today, can outmatch or stand on even grounds with the United States of America in terms of plastic bag usage. So imagine my irritation to find Singaporeans being all kiasu about buying their own plastic bags to evade this idea of paying these extra charges for the plastic bags. Oh, bravo, you ingenious people. You have properly saved money by doing so. Touche. But have you ever thought of what all this movement is all about. Complaining about the price here and there, when it's just a measly amount to pay for the good of the world. If you don't want to pay, be just a little bit responsible and bring your own baggage to go shopping with. Hell, bring a baggage of your own reusable bags if that's not enough. I don't see how such a little inconvenience can cause such a furore among the community here. I understand that the cost of living here is definitely getting a little higher, but to hold on to the small five or ten cents, is just a little bit out of my league in things to die fighting for. Is it too much to ask? It's not like we were asked to drive our own garbage to the disposal plant. It's not like we were forbidden to stop using air-conditioners. It's just a bloody, re-usable, bag! Get over it. People say being
kiasu is just part of a Singaporean culture. I say, it's the one of the most ugliest attribute in any kind of human, Singaporean or not.
The next group features the bus and train commuters and their rushing in habit. Racing to be in front of the doors as if it was a race for survival, they cause much inconvenience to others, as well as causing a very ugly moment to observe. Let's talk about boarding the bus. These very enthusiastic people will shove and fight their way through the crowd to get to the front doors before it opens, with the mindset that by doing so, they will highly likely get a seat, or at least, be able to board the bus. Nothing else matters as long as one of these selfish objectives are achieved. It's very rare to actually see anyone give way to the elderly or those in need to board first and have priority over the seats. Even when they can obviously see that there is definitely enough space in the bus, they still do it. It's really inconsiderate. Are our lives really that low on time that we need to rush through the most trivial of things? And in trains, it's even worse. People will rush madly for the trains like how the millions of warriors from the Persian empire wanted to invade Sparta through that small valley. There will be impatient people blocking commuters who want to get out, even when there are yellow lines to define a suitable position to let them exit first. I know that trains are pretty packed at times, but please, things do not have to turn that ugly to just board it. If everyone does their part in producing a good exit and entrance flow, in addition to trying to squeeze yourself into space, it will definitely turn out pretty easy. Problem is, it's the small group of these inconsiderate commuters that will spread the bad seeds into many other people in causing bad habits. Don't be tempted and act responsibly.
The third group of people I'd like to lash out on are drivers and pedestrians. There are many rude drivers here, even though they do have good driving skills. Trying to cut the queue at an intersection at a filter lane, irresponsibly changing lanes with terrible judgement, using high beam and modified bright head lights during night time that will inconvenience drivers ahead and in opposite lanes, stubbornly and selfishly not giving way to vehicles trying to filter into the main road, driving on the shoulder road to beat the jam, all these are just a few of the annoying things Singaporean drivers do. It is so irresponsible that I can't believe that I don't see them being brought to justice yet. The police are kind enough to not always position patrol officers every single morning to control such irresponsible acts. They are not like our school disciplinary headmasters. We are all grown adults. Act like one, before you really cause some furore or accidents among each other. All we need is just a little more patience. More accidents happen because these people do not possess such quality. And to fellow pedestrians, please do not think that you own the road. You don't know how stressful it is for drivers to actually try and avoid you. I know, because I am a licensed driver. And if you are indeed someone who owns a license, all the more you should be considerate. Do not cuss or swear when you know that it's your own fault for causing it!
I shall stop here, but know that I've only touched the shallow surface of the ugly things that happen here. While this might appear to be a rant, think about what's been mentioned. While I'm talking about the minority of groups who commit these acts, don't you think that it has more or less affected the whole community here?
All these things are very trivial things that just needs small actions to make it right. Patience, logic, understanding and selflessness are my underlying points I'm trying to make. Do we need large scale disasters to occur here before we even learn our lesson? The current generation here hasn't had a taste of mass starvation, disease and mass corruption to even fathom the worst case scenarios happening in the world. Don't complain! You have no right to even mention of it when so many countries in the world are suffering from so much natural and man-made chaos and terrible living standards. Live to make a better tomorrow for yourself, the people around you, and, most importantly, the future.
10:20 PM