I never thought someone would try such a thing, but someone did. Can’t say I like the idea cos it makes me feel “lonely” to be left out of such a prestigious in-group. =P
A couple of reasons really.
Firstly, the creation of any association, club for any industry, field or sport, is a political process and it becomes a political entity in that particular field. The creation of such an entity such as the ABS, creates a segregation of “in” and “out” groups, even if it was not their intention to do so. Perhaps arguably in such an entity, their intention was to create an “in-group” of Singaporean bloggers. A legitimate argument that the association has claimed itself was that they wanted to “unite” Singaporean bloggers.
If so, the quesiton is this. Was the committee of the ABS then voted in by “Singaporean” bloggers or did they self-declare themselves to represent Singaporean bloggers? I certainly wasn’t informed of such a committee election.
Secondly, I disagree with the idea of a blogging association to engage the government(PAP) in policy making. Reason being that it impedes democratic political development in Singapore. This was a suggestion mentioned by the President of the association in her own blog pertaining her goals and ideas for the association.
“A chance to engage the Government in discussions on its policies and help shape Singapore, making it a better place to live and work.Singapore is our country and we have the duty as citizens to see that our brothers and sisters are taken care of and protected.
The association will not be a tool of politics but members should be able to speak up and stand up for justice.”
-President of ABS
The concern in this case is similar to those brought up by the oppositions when the government introduced the NCMP and NMPs. People who could “say” alot in policy making but could not vote on the affairs. At the end of the day, parliamentary votes count, not talk. Singaporeans, and Singaporean bloggers have to understand that such “engagement” through an association can only be a cheap and ineffective replacement to the parliamentary process where you must be able to talk AND vote. If anyone wants to affect the policy making process, please take up politics actively and get yourself elected in as an MP.
As Minister Mentor Lee has pointed out, we need the next generation of leaders and politicians to come out and lead Singapore. Its great that people can comment and criticise political issues on their blogs, but they need to step out and get involved as well.
Finally, I really do like the diverse, bitchy, and scandalous blog scene we have. I don’t really quite know what kinda unity this group is trying to promote, or what kinda “professional” standards of blogging they are trying to cultivate. To be honest, a blog is simply where I can gather my thoughts, say what is in my head, however I wish. Its a web journal, that is a little more public than diary, but I’m pretty sure there isn’t a need to conform to any “standards.” Maybe they should rename themselves to Association of Professional Bloggers Singapore. Then they can justify their agenda of “cultivating” standards among professional bloggers. For now, I like my bo-standard blog.
I guess I don’t really care. 1/2 blog entries are personal anyway, and 1/4 are on archery. Stuff that people hardly would give a shit about.
Oops I used a bad word.
South Korea isn’t the only one that can produce dramas. The DPRK seems to have produced one to inaugurate its new leader, Kim Jong Un, that has caught the world’s attention!
The news was out yesterday night, but I guess its more or less confirmed today. There was in fact some form political leadership transfer going on in DPRK.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8081500.stm
Kim Jong Un is so far a bogeyman, and about just 1 year younger than I am. No one has seen him other than the childhood photo shown in the BBC page. Chang is likely to act as regent but since he’s had some kinda of falling out with Kim Jong Il before, he could be at the centre of some kind of power grab in this transition.
It is likely this series of events could have been intentionally engineered to create some form of “solidarity” in the Armed Forces to realign their loyalty to the young Kim by generating some form of external crisis. If so, there are two options, “Play along”, or “Don’t play along”.
If we play along, we may contribute to the drama and allow the Kim Family to maintain their political hold over DPRK, avoiding a nightmare regime collapse both the US-ROK and China fears. A regime collapse could result in feudal wars breaking out over the north, and push millions of refugees towards the South, and North, across the Yalu in China. Downside to playing along is that it contributes to the tense situation, and perhaps even a possibility of some skirmishes, leading to casualties. Violence could spiral out of restraint resulting in a greater conflict. All that could be risky; a risky drama that is only “concluded” by an ambiguous “wink-wink” by the American and North Korean leadership/directorship.
In my opinion, whether to play along or not, the next rational move is to contain the situation and ensure that the decision making process is handled by as few parties as possible; eliminating any accidental South Korean or Japanese “misfires.” The US and China have to act in concert to make decisions whether to play along or not, and when to quit in this “drama” started by North Korea.
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Posted in Political, Military, Commentary | Tags: DPRK, Drama, Jong, Kim, Korea, Missile, North, Nuclear, Un, War