I’m alive

I’m alive. And I will update soon. I hope.

2012

It is that time of the year again. The last day of 2011 and the coming of 2012. The time where people sit back, reflect and make new year resolutions. 2011 hasn’t exactly been an eventful year for me. Highlights include ord-ing in February, working at Coca Cola from April to June and of course the start of term in August. Since then life has been pretty much hectic. Weeks fly by as I struggled through readings. Despite the struggles, it has been an interesting term. Learning many new things and looking at things differently. Took my first examination in 3 years. Wasn’t that bad. Wasn’t that good either. Need to work so much harder next semester. The biggest highlight of the year I guess was failing Frisbee trials and falling in love with climbing. Climbing has been a wonderful experience for me and I’m hoping to be able to continue climbing for a very very long time.

So here comes the time for resolutions. Hope to be able to improve my GPA so I resolve to work harder! Hope to be able to climb better so I resolve to train harder. Finally I hope to be rich. Hence I resolve to pray harder for money to fall from the sky. Happy 2012 people.

Criticism levelled against SMRT. Justified?

Recently, our train system was plunged into a mini crisis with 3 major breakdowns leaving commuters outraged. While many have criticised SMRT, others have leapt to the defence of SMRT saying that Singaporeans have taken things for granted and that we should not be complaining about such a small issue when SMRT has been providing us with reliable service and there are others worse off AKA victims of Typhoon Washi.

Before we go off making any sweeping comments criticising SMRT or its critics, perhaps we should first look at the reasons why people are pissed off regarding the breakdowns.

Firstly, what happened to SMRT’s SOP during breakdowns? During the breakdowns, commuters were simply left in the dark (pun intended) without any explanation. 2 years ago I experienced something similar. Like many other students, I relied on the public transport system to get me to school. On this particular day, I waited extra long for the train. During the wait, no announcement was made nor was any explanation given. It was only after half an hour of waiting that an announcement was made saying that there would be no train service. By then, the platform was filled with disgruntled commuters, many like me had waited long and were probably going to be late. In the end, many had to make alternative (and costlier) transport arrangements. My question back then was ‘why did SMRT keep us waiting for half an hour without any explanation or announcement?’. Fast forward to 2011, it seems that SMRT has not made any reviews or improvements. Commuters are left stranded and clueless for long periods of time during breakdowns. What happened to SMRT’s SOP? Or did they have one at all? Leaving commuters in the dark and waiting to me does not seem appropriate at all. IF they were trying to fix the problem, the least they could have done was to let the commuters know so that commuters can arrange for alternatives if requires instead of making them wait like fools.

In addition, the timing of the breakdowns were not ideal. Firstly, the breakdowns took place during the rush hour. With a large huge amount of people relying on the trains, a breakdown during the peak period would definitely lead to many irate commuters who are unable to get to work/home. Secondly, the breakdowns come after fare revisions and cab fare hikes. With SMRT posting net profits of $161.1 million in 2011, SMRT angered commuters by applying for fare hikes citing rising costs of operation. CEO of SMRT Ms Saw was paid $1.85 million in cash and shares which was an increase of 11% from the previous year. (http://theonlinecitizen.com/2011/12/restore-the-publics-trust-in-smrt/). Is this SMRT’s ‘rising cost’? With the rising cost of transportation, service is expected to improve of at least maintained. However, 3 major disruptions took place with many other minor ones after the fares were raised. The big question now is ‘how is it justifiable for SMRT to raise its fares?’

(p.s. as I’m typing this, it appears that SMRT has suffered yet another breakdown/delay/train fault)

So does this mean that the commuter’s complains are justified?

Although SMRT is a profit driven organisation, we must not forget the service it provides.SMRT provides PUBLIC transport. In case one is wondering, a public service is usually provided by the government, one that is supposed to be reliable and affordable for the general public as it is the government’s responsibility to take care of its citizens. Even in certain cases, public services are provided at a loss. (Although this may not be the case in certain countries) Certain people are saying that Singaporeans are taking things for granted and that we should not be making a big ho-ha about the breakdown since SMRT has provided us with reliable service for over 20 years. It is in my opinion however that the fact that SMRT is supposed to provide public transport is enough justify people’s complains. Public services are supposed to be reliable and usually seen as the government’s responsibility. If the nation experiences blackouts, no doubt there would be complains even though the power supplier has been providing reliable service in the past. Which brings me to another point which is about past achievements. We should be looking forward, not backwards. Even if SMRT has provided 100 years of reliable services, a breakdown like that would still be gathering complains. Nobody lives on past glory alone. Getting consistent A’s in your exams and failing your finals would still guarantee that you’re pretty much screwed. A government that has been corruption free should remain corruption free. It doesn’t meant that a momentary slip up should be allowed to happen and if it happens that people aren’t allowed to complain about it.

As a paying commuter, I believe that commuters do have a right to complain about the breakdowns. When purchasing products, if it does not deliver its promise or is faulty, a customer has the right to complain. In this case, commuters are paying for a service which failed to deliver. Furthermore, it is a service that many citizens rely on to commute to work/school. It is no unexpected that the backlash would be huge.

Personally, I do believe that the commuter’s do have the right to complain and that people thinking that they are overreacting and have taken things for granted, perhaps now you see things in a new light. People are not overreacting, neither is it too big a ho-ha. People have not taken things for granted but maybe now you will see why they are so pissed.

updates and rants

Hi all, I’m finally willing to update this place. After going missing for a month, I have finally found something to talk about. Well, first of all, my life has been mundane as usual. The first semester has come and gone, my first exam in 3 years has also gone by. Time seems to fly these days. Been in the holiday mood which means I’ve been engaging myself in meaningless activities these days.

Anyway, what got me to blog today was this.

Yes. A cab got me to blog, or more specifically the fare revision that Comfort is initiating. The fare revision has led to plenty of complains from citizens. First the MRT and bus fares were raised. Then COE’s hit record high and now cab fares look set to be higher. To be fair, I find the revision of fares for cabs more justified then that of SMRT and SBS. I personally find that the fare revision does help our taxi drivers who put in long hours and bring home little. Sure some may be brutes but most I’ve met are nice people trying to make a living. Although SMRT and SBS continue to post record profits, fares are constantly revised and standards seem to be getting from bad  to worse. Crowded trains that sometimes take years to come, continuous breakdowns/track-faults and worn down buses do not seem to justify the fare hike as much as the revision in cab fares.

Although it may seem like a complain against fare increases in general, it does seem to mask many cracks underneath. Aside from exposing the flaws in our public transport system, it does also make the ruling party seemingly unconcerned about the lives of its citizens.

Fare hikes, unreliable and crowded trains aside, Singapore has not managed to efficiently deal with the need for transport. The most effective mode of transportation has to be one’s personal transport. However, owning a car is exceedingly expensive in the government’s attempt to regulate the number of cars  on the road. Taking the public transport is often seen as a hassle and the ‘not-so-efficient’ public transport system has increased the desire for one to own a car and hence elevating the price and promoting it to a status symbol instead of a mode of transportation. However, motor vehicles are not the only form of personal transport available. Bicycles too can be a form of transportation. Sadly, Singapore isn’t a very bicycle friendly country and I personally feel that it can go a long way in helping to move people. Perhaps if Singapore had developed proper facilities for bicycles, our reliance on the public transport system and cars would now be reduced.

All these complains about fare hikes seem to generate plenty of discourse about the government and whether or not they are doing their job. Prices all around seem to be rising and the government’s promises during the GE seem to be falling short at the moment. True that salaries have increased but it was seemingly insignificant. A general rise of about $200 per household only equates to about $100 per person. With inflation at almost 5%, is there really a rise in real wages? Rising cost of living seemed to be the hot topic during the May’s GE and it seems that nothing much has been done to help alleviate the problem. As I have pointed out previously, the government seems to have put up a false front during the GE as prices continue to soar. Nothing much seems to have been done regarding the crowded trains and with the new cab price revision more complains are set to come. I have been told that perhaps what can be done about the cab fare revision is that help be given directly to the taxi drivers by lowering rental etc. Indeed that might be one way to go, but it is only a short term solution. More has to be done for the long term or the government may find themselves in trouble come 2015.

 

Claymore

As I was packing up my room, I came across my ‘diary’ of Claymore. Yes I wrote down my thoughts at the end of the day to help with the countdown. It’s been more then a year since I came back from Claymore. Let’s put this up electronically to make things easier. Here goes nothing.

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31 Aug 2010, Day 1: 0050 Flight but everyone is gathered at 2130 crowding the airport. Everyone is simply talking. Quite stupid to meet so early though. Not really looking forward to this trip. Plane trip was only 2 hours. Bus trip took over 4 hours. Was trying to catch some sleep. Arrived at SYC, started with breakfast and parade. Tired. Can’t wait for it all to be over. Everything is still rather messy. Prep Rig, fire drill. Food is kind of bad. Bunks are like old chalets, which is rather OK, but the toilet still has no running water. Driving tomorrow. 15 more days. Cookhouse is freaking far!!

01 Sep 2010, Day 2: Driving the whole day. Had a look at the terrain. Barely slept. Not enough sleep. The mental stress is starting. 4 days training and 4 days exercise. 14 more days. I need to sleep. I need to control my spending. 14.

02 Sep 2010, Day 3: Today was awful again. Preparation while others slept. Got a vehicle which had quite a number of problems which had to be sorted out. Not enough sleep! Still no running water which is shit. Component training soon. 4 days of training. Shag. Hope I come out alive. 13 days left.

05 Sep 2010, Day 6: Been too busy to update the past 2 days. Component training. Weather has been crazy. Sun shining followed by rain. Hot and wet. I’m now writing this on the rig while waiting to launch. No time to write liao. 2 more days of component training. I think I can finally see the end. Hopefully I get my off’s and not get sent to Bravo.

06 Sep 2010, Day 7: One more week to the end of Claymore. Time here has been shit. Especially the past few days. Training in bad weather. Hot sun, sudden rain. Late nights, greasing. Finally got a short break. Wednesday moving out for XCM. It will be over soon. Just have to hang in there. Have to thank Charis when I get back. For texting me words of encouragement. I will survive. ORD

07 Sep 2010, Day 8: Tomorrow exercise. 4 days without proper sleep. Including the driving. I’m actually rather worried. Morale isn’t exactly high now. But then again I suppose it’s normal. 4 days to the end. 1 more week before I see home. I need to block out all the negativity. Even if some other people screw my plans up. It’s just 4 days. Endure.

08, 09 Sep 2010, Day 9 & 10: XCM has finally started. Deployment is still ongoing. Lousy feeling. But it’s the last time! Barely 1 day into XCM and I’m feeling tired. Perhaps it’s due to the lack of rest for the past week. But in exactly one week, I would be home. TG8182, 2135, 15 Sep. I can’t wait for all this to be over.

10, 11, 12 Sep 2010, Day 11-13: Busy past few days. Deployment weather has been lousy. Hot. Rafting was no better. Feeling drained right now. It’s 1010, 0910. Bridge was supposed to be up at 0600 and upstake at 0800. No idea what happened. Driving has been tiring. X-country terrain is stupid. now waiting for one vehicle to be recovered. I’ve lost 2 mirrors. This is bad. How many more hours?

13 Sep 2010, Day 14: 2 more nights. Finally, Claymore is over! Bridge up. Load test. Big relief. Now packing. Can’t wait to go back. Huge relief. ORD loh. 4 more months. I can finally see the ending.

14 Sep 2010,, Day 15: Today is the 14th of Sept. 17 months after enlistment. 5 more months to go. Can’t wait to ORD. Tomorrow flying back to Singapore. Back to civilisation. Last day still full of shit. Lousy planning lousy people. Shall not talk about it. Can’t wait to get home.

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There you go. Don’t judge my inconsistencies and my lousy language. I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to be writing essays and poems.

UPDATE!

It’s been about a month since I last updated this space. As an excuse to not do my work, I have decided to finally submit an entry.

School has been busy for the most part and it doesn’t really help that I have a habit of procrastinating. People have been asking, now that you’re studying sociology, is it what you imagined it to be and do you like it? Well, to be honest sociology isn’t completely what I expected it to be but it’s not that far off. It has been an interesting and enriching experience and I feel like I’ve learned much more then I would have in a science or engineering course. My brain is probably more inclined toward such things. Life has been filled with readings, essays and discussions. tutorials and lectures are much more bearable then the science lessons I used to have in JC. However, my Spanish is simply down the drain. A wrong choice of elective I would think. My brain has not been able to absorb the new language as well as I would have liked to. Other lessons are going on fine except for a certain one which I shall not name. Let’s face it, to me the tutor isn’t the best, the lecturer isn’t the best and even the assignment seems horribly structured. I am seriously struggling to like this topic and I have no idea how to start on my assignment.

On the climbing scene, I would like to think I have improved albeit slightly. Went for my first event last week at ‘Climb On!’. Was a good experience and learned quite a bit from it. Next up is a possible KL trip in December which I’m quite looking forward to. Pushing myself to improve, but I’m still taking baby steps. Probably should get back to my work now. Deepavali this week. Short week. Thankfully.

Climb Climb Climb

Ok. It’s been ages since I last blogged. Today’s entry isn’t going to be some interesting read. Just a little update for me to keep track of my life.

School has been busy I guess. Filled with readings that I can never seem to finish and essays that seem to take forever to do. However, I must say that I have been enjoying the experience. Spanish lessons have been going horribly. Not exactly what I have been expecting. Time has flown by and I’m halfway through semester 1. December would mark the halfway point of my 1st year in university. It wasn’t so long ago that I just ORD-ed, got a job, left a job and started school. So much has happened since then.

Besides studies, there has been a new addition to my life. My unfit self cost me dear during frisbee trials. But because of that failure, I’ve picked up something new and interesting and I think I’m falling in love with it. Climbing is not an easy sport, it’s mentally and physically challenging but it’s fulfilling. Pushing myself to do better, both in terms of studies and climbing. Hoping for improvement for both!

“Climb because it’s difficult, Not because it’s easy.”  Climb Higher, Grow Stronger.

take the bus

When the bus comes, you look at it and you say to yourself “eeee.. so full.. cannot sit down, I’ll wait for the next one.” So you let the bus go and waited for the second bus.

Then the second bus came, you looked at it you said, “eeee.. this bus is so old.. so shabby!” So you let the bus go and again, decided to wait for the next bus.

After a while another bus came, it’s not crowded, not old but you said, “eeee.. not air conditioned.. better wait for the next one.” So again you let the bus go and decided to wait for the next bus.

Then the sky started to get dark as it was getting late. You panicked and jumped immediately inside the next bus. It is not until much later that you found out that you had boarded the wrong bus! And you wasted your time and money just to get into the wrong one! Even if an air conditioned bus comes, you can’t ensure that the air conditioned bus won’t break down or whether or not the airconditioner will be too cold for you.

Wanting to get what you want is not wrong. But it wouldn’t hurt to give other people a chance. If you find that the “bus” doesn’t suit you just press the red button and get off the bus!

Hey, who said life is fair? The best thing to do is be observant and open-minded. If it doesn’t suit you, get off. I’m sure you’ve had this experience before. You saw a bus coming (the bus you want of course). You flagged it but the driver acted as if he did not see you and zoomed pass you! It just wasn’t meant for you!

The bottom line is, being loved is like waiting for a bus you want. Getting on the bus and appreciating the bus by giving it a chance depends totally on you.

If you haven’t made any choice, WALK! Walking is like being single. The good side of it is you can still choose any bus you want.. the rest who couldn’t afford another ride would just have to be content with the bus they rode on, ugly or not.

Also, sometimes it is better to choose a bus you are already familiar with rather than to gamble with a bus that is unfamiliar to you.

But then again, life wouldn’t be complete without the risks involved. But there is one bus that I failed to tell you about.- the Bus you do not have to wait for, the Bus that will stop on its own and ask you if you wish to come inside, then take you for a joy ride for the rest of your life.

Hope you get to ride on that bus! (=

- taken somewhere online

alive

yes school has started. yes i’m still alive. lots of readings. can’t seem to ever finish them all.

Singaporean and Proud?

It’s been awhile since I’ve done this so please forgive me.

Like every Singaporean male, I spent 2 years in the army serving the nation. During that period, I was pretty sure what I was protecting. The people and the place that I call home. It was the period of time when one was proud to be Singaporean, no matter how little the pride is.

5 months after re-joining society, many things have changed. Certain events have led me to question. What is it that I’m protecting? Who is it that I spent my 2 years for? Is this place what I used to call home? Am I proud to be Singaporean?

Perhaps the most important thing that happened this year was the May General Elections. Electoral boundaries we redrawn and suddenly, the area I lived in had 3 GRC’s/SMC’s separated by 2 streets. Promises were made and growth packages were given out. People once again voted for the party that has been in power since the beginning of time.

Concerns like public housing, foreign talents, public transport and cost of living in general took centre stage in this year’s GE. 2 months after the elections and here is where we stand. Electricity charges have gone up, the revised distance based fares appeared to be nothing more than a general fare hike across the board and yet transport fares are facing the highest far hike. COE prices are at the highest in 14 years, even kindergarten fees are set to increase. Latest BTO flats were at 880k. COE prices are around 56k. It makes me wonder, what is the government doing?  Is this the government taking back the “Grow and Share” Package? With the recent inflation revised to 5%, it looks to be a very grim and bleak future for Singaporeans.

Granted, the 880k flats “are not under HDB”. With a second-hand 5-room flat going at almost half a million, it still does not look very affordable to me. Having to slog for over 20 years to pay off the loan for a flat doesn’t seem like a very attractive lifestyle to me. We can’t even call the roof over our heads home until it becomes almost 20 years old. How are Singaporeans supposed to have a sense of ownership and belonging when all we essentially own are the clothes on our back?

Last year, the revision of transport fares to the new system of distance based fares seemed to be a general fare hike in disguise. It was impossible to save money unless you made like 3 transfers or travelled from Boon Lay to Pasir Ris. This year, transport operators are seeking a 2.8% fare hike which would mark the highest fare hike in years if it is approved. Promises of increased frequencies and a more efficient transport system seem to have gone down the drain as commuters continue to wait half and hour for buses that don’t come or change frequencies every now and then. With the growing unhappiness among commuters regarding the standards, the fare hike would surely cause a big uproar.

Unfortunately, if you don’t approve of the fare hikes, it would appear that you have little choice but to accept it. COE prices are at a 14 year high and it seems extremely unlikely that commuters would be able to switch from the public transport to owning a car. Owning a car in Singapore seems to be a luxury. For the price of one car in Singapore, you can probably get at least 2 elsewhere. Once again, what sense of belonging and ownership are we supposed to build? With the public transport facing a fare hike, is it really necessary to have COE prices at a 14 year high? Or is it supposed to force us to accept the fare hike?

Electricity prices were raised after the elections, kindergarten fees are increasing, inflation rate revised to 5%. It would seem rather harsh for Singaporeans. But at least our ministers are with us. Or are they? Talk of a paycut for ministers seem to have died down as price increase everywhere have overshadowed the topic. It remains to be seen if this topic would be swept under the carpet or will they really take action.

With all this talk, it would seem like I’m attacking the government. Perhaps I am. You may accuse me of being narrow-minded and that I’m only looking at the small picture. But I am looking at it from a Singaporean point of view. These are issues that directly impact me. After all, the government is given power by its citizens to look out for the citizens themselves. This doesn’t mean that I do not appreciate all that the government has done for the country over the last 40 odd years. But it’s time we stopped living on past glories and look forward. It’s not what the government has done for you but what the government can do for you in the future. Nobody is going to hire you because you scored straight A’s for PSLE.

Until we manage to sort out these issues, many Singaporeans would be just like the funpack song. No originality, no sense of ownership and belonging and no pride.

Once again, this is just my humble opinion. I have lived a mere 21 years and still have lots to learn and understand. Take no offence to this post as I continue on my lifelong journey to learn and pay off my debts.