Gambler's fault or Casino's fault

Many people claimed that the casinos in Singapore should not be set up as compulsive gamblers might take the chance to sneak in and gamble all their money away. Although the government has tried its best to deter Singaporeans from entering the casinos such as imposing a fine on Singaporeans who enter, some still say that it is not enough. However, I personally feel that this is caused by the gambler's lack of self-control and his inability to stop his addiction.

The casinos itself, has a lot of advantages to the country. First of all, it will be attractive to tourists in other countries as Singapore explores more innovative ways to make Singapore a excellent tourist attraction. In addition, it helps to improve the economy. From the casino operators, the government is expected to collect tax revenue thus this adds more money to the government. Legalising gambling could also hamper the growth of underground activities. Impulsive gamblers might turn to illegal gambling dens to satisfy their needs.

However, gambling is a malicious habit. A person who is addicted to gambling will first be addicted to it as he gains a lot of money through it. However, as he continues to gamble, he would begin to lose again and again. However by then, the gambler cannot stop gambling, and would still continue to gamble and give reasons to assuage his conscience. Therefore it would definitely be more of the gambler's fault than the casino's fault

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Will Singapore forever escape the wrath of nature?

Recently, there has been a lot of catastrophic natural disasters happening to other countries, such as the Japan earthquake. Fortunately, Singapore has been safe from the wrath of natural disaster for such a long period of time. Will this tranquility continue to persist, or will Singapore encounter natural disasters in the upcoming future? Nobody knows. However, are we prepared to face natural disasters should the need arises? The answer is a definite no.

People in Singapore, are generally selfish and only think about themselves. Should a natural disaster strike, the people will panic and chaos will reign. They would only think about escape and are not willing to care for others, as opposed to Japan. In Japan, many people are still willing to help each other even when there is a disaster. People do not panic and run around like mice being chased by cats. They queue up orderly to receive their food and water given by other countries. There is no sign of pandemonium being shown when the disaster hit Japan. Singaporeans had proved themselves to be selfish people, for example, not giving up seats to the elderly or pregnant ladies on public transport. What would happen to Singaporeans should a disaster happens? The answer is obvious.

Hence, we should all try to curb the selfishness and "kiasu"ness in our hearts. Singapore would definitely be a better place if we all do so.

Should capital punishment be carried out in Singapore?

Capital punishment, or also known as the infamous death penalty or execution of a criminal, is a sentence of death upon a criminal. A criminal who is sentenced to death is hanged. Some might say that capital punishment is useful in deterring crime in Singapore. However, it also brought about several issues as some people do not agree to the use of capital punishment.

Some people see capital punishment as a violation of human rights. It is seen as the most degrading, cruel and ultimate sentence a criminal could have. It denies and overrules the most basic of human rights--the right to life. Life is considered as precious, yet it is denied through the capital punishment. In addition, there might be a risk of error. Innocent people had got the death penalty in the past, and as the purpose of the death penalty is to serve justice, it completely defeats the purpose of hanging.

Also, capital punishment, is in itself, murder. This is perceived by others as unacceptable even though it is passed by the state of authority as people feel that it lowers the value of life greatly. This might result in the society having a "revenge is good" attitude. By giving capital punishment on a criminal, it also has a negative traumatic effect on the his/her family members.

Therefore as people are affected and disagree to capital punishment, it might not be a useful sentence to deal with crime in Singapore.

Blog Prompt: Should students be given the autonomy to develop their own curriculum

I feel that students should be given the autonomy to develop their own curriculum. This way, students would be more interested as they tend to put more of their favorite subjects into their curriculum. However, every subject is important, hence students must still study the subjects they dislike, for at least a fixed period of time in their curriculum. The students would definitely have more enthusiasm when studying, as they could study their favorite subjects more.

Students should be given the autonomy to develop their own curriculum, as they would definitely feel that school is more enjoyable after filling their curriculum with what they themselves want to learn. Hence, they would study with more interest, and not think that daily school life is boring. The students would definitely be motivated to study hard, and will thus get better results. Hence this would definitely benefit the students as a whole. However, they must study all the subjects for at least a certain period of time in the school-curriculum, so as to make sure the students understand at least the foundations of each subject.

In addition, the teacher also could coach the students better in certain areas to excel more, and encourage them, provide opportunities for them to research more and gain more knowledge through the process. People want their children to grow up as independent learners, yet they structure their children's days to a minute and give them few opportunities to do anything but answer multiple-choice questions, follow instructions and memorize information. They could think of what they would really want to be in the future, and work hard in that area required for them to do a job.

Although some might say that the students would only focus on their favourite subjects but not the others. That is why, although students are allowed to study more on their favorite subjects, they still have to study at least all the subjects for a period of time in the curriculum. I feel that my reasons are justified and feel that each student should be allowed to develop on his potential by being given a chance to develop his or her own curriculum.

Blog Prompt: What do I look in a future leader of the nation?

I feel that a good future leader of our nation should have great foresight and is able to predict what would happen. Through that, he can plan carefully with meticulous care, and would not make any mistakes which might result in dire consequences. In addition, when implementing and carry out laws, the leader also can predict the responses of the public, hence he would try his best to impose a law that would cater to the needs of the citizens. He also could motivate citizens to strive hard to improve the economy of the country, thus improving the welfare of the country which would be beneficial in the upcoming future. Furthermore, I feel that a leader of the nation must be upright, and must not commit any illegal offences. How can a leader set a good example to the citizens of the nation if he acts only to satisfy to greed and only think for himself but not the welfare of others? Then his nation would be corrupted, full of people who infringe the law all the time. A leader who is upright would definitely be thinking about how to benefit his country, and not for earning money or solely for his own. People would definitely prefer a leader who is upright. He must does what he knows is right, instead of commiting wrongdoings. A leader of the nation also must be committed to leading Singapore to its success. If he is not committed, he would definitely be selfish and only carry out actions for his own selfish gains. Therefore, everything he does would definitely be for the country if the leader is committed in what he is doing. He will do it for the benefit of the country.

What if there was not enough time? What if I could not get out in time? Those were the questions that ran through my head umpteenth times as I laid the dirty little devils on the floor. Ten seconds is all you have. Only ten seconds. As I set the things going, I bolted out of the house. Ten...my shoelace fell off...nine...I dropped my pistol.....eight....picking it up....seven,,,tripped and fell....six....FASTER...five...four...NO THERE'S A LOOSE FLOORBOARD....three....yes got my leg out.....almost there....two...almost there.....one...YES I AM OUT ALIVE.... The explosion was colossal, the house vanishing in to a massive fireball that sent up a fist of smoke that punched a heavy fist into the overcast sky. The roof of the house disintegrated, a spray of terracotta skyrocketing in the air. One moment the house was standing erect there, the next moment it collapsed as a blinding white light seemed to streak across the sky, as if it never seemed to exist once before. Broken cement, bricks and shattered glass shards flew in the air in all directions, with such a velocity that they turned into vicious shrapnel and missiles, slicing through a nearby passer-by and killing him instantly. I ducked behind a sturdy wall to avoid the dangerous missiles that spun in all direction. Now the whole place was a disastrous mess of rubble and strewn materials. As I signalled, the soldiers marched in to search for dead bodies on the floor. A heavy weight of exhaustion sank on me. Why am I doing this every day? Why am I sent to blow up people's houses all day long? Is it necessary, after even the opposing country had surrendered, to cause their citizens so much harm, so much despair? I hoped the war would end. Not because I might be blown up due to the fact that i might set off a dynamite by accident, but it was the despair on the peoples face as they saw their broken house. Nothing. There's nothing they can do. Nothing. It just a sense of hopelessness and despair. But it hurts my heart all the time.

Blog Prompt 24/3: Should we take note of other things happening around the world????

I do tend to pay attention to what is happening in other parts of the world, as it is of vital importance to understand what is happening around us as they may have some impact on Singapore. Also, when a country is facing a major crisis, our country could lend out a helping hand if possible. It could also raise our awareness to current affairs, and we could also reflect on it after know about it, making us be critical thinkers. We would also not lose out to the society if we keep abreast of whatever things are happening in the world. The world is steadily progressing forward, and as it changes; human should change positively as well.

For example, look at the crisis in Japan. We lent Japan a helping hand as it struggled to overcome this major crisis. In addition, we know now that the sea near the disaster area is contaminated, hence the AVA would definitely take note of the seafood being imported to Japan and give them a thorough check; therefore this shows that the crisis is indeed having an impact not only to Singapore, bu to the world as a whole. One should not be ignorant to whatever is happening around the world as whatever happening around the world, be it turmoil or conflict or crisis, would definitely in turn affect the welfare of Singapore. The Japan crisis, for instance, would definitely cause food prices to rise, making it harder for people with a meagre income gain. Therefore, it is definitely important to take note of any specific major events happening around the world.