patsy_sg 1 Report post Posted August 18, 2008 Well govt no choice la...singaporeans are too caught up with the paper chase & trying to make a living. From young, our parents instilled in us..the importance of education. What will u do if ur young kid say dun wanna study liao..wana play table tennis full time? Im sure you'll be freaked out.. if he/she had the talent/aptitude for it and can be the next tiger woods/micheal phelps, why not? hehe Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zirhk3355 1 Report post Posted August 18, 2008 Another analogy here, Which would you respect more? 1. A new manager/director headhunted into your company because s/he was well-known for being an excellent leader in your field, or 2. A fellow employee who worked 20 years in the same company and promoted up to be the manager/director? My answer to that is I would respect both of them equally. The next question is, if the 'headhunted' manager/director led the company towards more profits and bonuses, would you say you are not happy/proud because s/he is not a 'true blue' employee of your company? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
666 0 Report post Posted August 18, 2008 if he/she had the talent/aptitude for it and can be the next tiger woods/micheal phelps, why not? hehe Ya..but how would u knoe he be the nex tiger woods if most of the time, he be busy with tuition, school and homework all the time.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
patsy_sg 1 Report post Posted August 18, 2008 Ya..but how would u knoe he be the nex tiger woods if most of the time, he be busy with tuition, school and homework all the time.. err coz i'm not the type who will send my kid to enrichment class this/tuition that... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cantona7 0 Report post Posted August 18, 2008 Hi Guys What I am referring here is Spore Olympic medal not abt our economy or workforce and even all the way to our Ah Gong... I did not have any disrespect to all my fellow foreign colleagues and I luv to welcome them here but I just dont feel proud abt our Olympic Medal. As for sport I alway think that we shld achieve it thru determination such as our Hero (Mr Tan Howe Liang). He went all the way without much monetary support just the determination to achieve a medal for Spore. But again we are now living in Developing Country so cannt expect that from our sportsman anymore everything is abt money. But somehow I believe one day there will be any Tan Howe Liang again to raise our Spore Flag in the world stage. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Assassin 0 Report post Posted August 19, 2008 (edited) Search deep inside your own heart and you will know you are having conflicting feelings about this whole thing. On one hand we are happy that Singapore won an Olympic silver, on the other hand this was achieved by FT, which does give us a bitter taste to the achievement accomplished. I think to summarise, what we want are those FT that come to Singapore not for the purpose of the money offerred, but because they want to come here themselves and are prepared to become a "real Singaporean". Comparing the 3 paddlers, 李佳薇 are the most likely to be more "accepted" by Singaporeans because she came to Singapore when she was in her teens and become citizens in the late 90s. And she felt the most when they overcome the Koreans, as seen on the tv when she was overwhelmed by emotions. Whether the emotions is more on a personal level or country level, we dont know. But I am prepared to give her the benefit of the doubt that she has indeed become "more Singaporean" coz no matter what she will definitely have some feelings towards Singapore after staying here for more than 10 years. Below is video clip of her interview and also 冯天薇 on China television. Apologises to the non-chinese as this is in mandarin. http://tieba.baidu.com/f?kz=426895254 Edited August 19, 2008 by Assassin Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zirhk3355 1 Report post Posted August 19, 2008 I really do not have conflicting feelings for this, simply because I believe it takes alot to give up one's citizenship just to get a break in our ambition. Li JW and her gang cannot say, oh we achieve my objective liao, we want to give up Singapore's citizenship and go back to China. China is not going to take them back just like that! This is citizenship we are talking about, not bank savings accounts that you can open/close at your whim and fancy. Thus by virtue of that, the trio had given tremendous commitment towards our island, and we should cut them some slack, although whether they are 'Singaporean' enough or not remains debatable. And if we are going into the issue of 'how Singaporean are you', we are spiraling into an endless black hole, debating on people from those who left Singapore at a tender age with parents but still keep the passport, to those who had to go overseas to take care of relatives, to people who are still here but hate the country, or even those who know next to nothing about Singapore because they are mentally-impaired, etc. Are we going to have a citizenship test for everyone to determine how 'Singaporean' we are, and thus defining if we deserve to compete for the country? And what will the test be, how much do you know about the history, what colours do you wear, where are our tourist spots, etc? In short, let's not make things too complicated. Singapore citizenship = Singaporeans. Just like you and me. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
yokine9a 1 Report post Posted August 19, 2008 Agree with Assassin, this is what I have in my mind. I will be happier if they have been living in sgp for several years, adapted to the env here, became a "real sgpeans", built up the feeling for sgp, wanted to represent sgp to prove to the world that sgp can make it etc etc. Especially when one of them just gotten her sgp citizenship this year. Probably not something she wanted for, just being offered with Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TYM 0 Report post Posted August 19, 2008 Aiya, everytime sea games, commonwealth games, asian games & olympic games come around, this will be discussed. I choose not to doubt their intention/motives for wearing singapore colours since I am not able to do so (me no talent mah, and choose a more practical career path). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Assassin 0 Report post Posted August 19, 2008 zirhk3355, dont get me wrong, I am not doubting their sacrifice or their commitment. I feel proud and happy for Singapore and for them too. I am sure majority of the Singaporeans feel happy and proud of this silver medal win. But some Singaporeans failed short of proclaiming this feeling coz they feel this is a hollow victory becoz of FT policy. I can feel that's the sentiments of some Singaporeans. I am sure alot of us would not want to make it complicated. But too bad its not that easy, especially when nationalism and money are involved. You think about it, why would Singapore invest so much in sports and use whatever means to achieved success? What would you or the country get in return from doing all these? And more importantly, this is not just about sports anymore. It is about our identity as a Singaporean, what it means to be a Singaporean, how we feel about being a Singaporean. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zirhk3355 1 Report post Posted August 19, 2008 (edited) Yeah I understand what you meant and how you felt. Perhaps if our govt had taken the effort to 'import' the players earlier (like Li JW), instead of blatantly proclaiming someone as a citizen and send her off to the Olympics within months, there won't be so much dissent. However I was just puzzled and amused as to how dare we even proclaim someone to be 'more Singaporean' and 'less Singaporean', when we ourselves are not even hanging up the national flag for NDP. Thus if we want to get complicated, its really endless. There are just so much involved, and without knowing exactly what is the mindset of the trio, we cannot discuss further than our personal assumptions. Also if you are going into 'value-for-money' issues like what do we get monetarily from investing so much to bring in foreign sportspeople, then its really hitting rock bottom. Given our money-minded govt, I am quite confident that they won't do anything that is of no value. A win in the Olympics really goes a long way, be it won by so-called 'Singaporeans' or 'Singapore citizens'. This event is yet another bid to put our little island on the world map again, letting others take notice of us, which is definitely beneficial in the long-run. Remember we have no natural resources, only human capital, which we must consistently increase. Like food, I always told my wife, if you cannot cook, then go buy outside food lor. Of course homecooked food is better, but if really cannot cook then how, don't eat meh? Also if you think 'buying' sportspeople is so easy, I would like to refer you to think about the soccer 'industry'. How many players that were bought over, end up underperforming and cause the club to lose money? There is no guarantee to a winning player. So even if we are guilty of using money to 'buy' the Olympics medal, we still deserved to be praised for making the right choice and having the right judgement/foresight, isn't it? Edited August 19, 2008 by zirhk3355 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dracula 0 Report post Posted August 19, 2008 Frankly in my opinion i think its about "China-Chinese" rather then "FT". We have other many FT in different sports and games hidden amongst us but none are mentioned and rather about the famous trio. If for example the Susilio had won the medal instead, will it be such a hooha whether he is from here or some other alien planets. Getting the Silver medal or any other medals is just an "advertising" step for Singapore to be known to those who still dunno about the little island hardly seen on the world map. Same goes for those F1 night race, Singapore Flyer, Casino, etc... Well, it all boils down to why Singapore brought in FT in the first place? Maybe we should start to see why are there so many "cheaper" FT's in Singapore? Nobody wants to get their hands dirty and nobody wants to have a stained career, not because they purposely want them to come over but its rather we Singaporeans do not want to get involved in these "other" career paths. These can go on and on..... some born in Singapore are not proud to be Singaporeans, gave up citizenship and travels to some other alien planets... Afterall we are just 1 race.... Humans (Wait till the Artificial Intelligence arrive, more will be said) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zirhk3355 1 Report post Posted August 19, 2008 Hehe, thanks Dracula...came at right time when I was feeling abit lonely and skeptical of my own beliefs being different from so many people. Those 'undesirable' careers you mentioned, it seems to be an 'Uniquely Singapore' phenomeon. I remembered my first trip to Australia, I was so amazed to see well-endowed 'white people' doing jobs like bus drivers, cleaners, construction workers, etc. They also do not seem lowly educated at all; a chat with some of them will reveal that they are as well-informed and intelligent as other citizens of Oz. So why are they doing such jobs?? Later then I realised its Singaporeans that are the odd one out; we shunned such jobs and felt that it got no prospects, so much so that the job became very undesirable, spinning off to lousy social acceptance and in the end, lowly-paid. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fifi 0 Report post Posted August 19, 2008 just a conversation i heard while at a confectionary shop manned by 2 china ladies... they were talking about the olympics and how singapore got into the table tennis finals. one of the ladies made a comment (something in this context, i cant rem the exact conversation) "well, still the players representing singapore are from china... they get the money once they win the medal. go back to china and can live a good life of comfort." this might be their own opinions but it is really not so pleasant to hear something like this.... similarly, my views are the same as some of the forummers. if the players are being breed and trained in singapore, the meaning will be different i used to be in the sports field during my teens. i have seen friends getting into the national teams and thereafter, quitting it to pursue a different careers. one of them even quitted coz she injured herself and can no longer play (dat was what i heard)... the emphasis wasnt on sports previously and i do agree that most parents will freak out if their children had told them they wanted to pursue their career in sports field. cant imagine how my parents will react if i told them that... luckily for them, i dun have that calibre but i think for the generation now, this will not be that unacceptable Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dracula 0 Report post Posted August 20, 2008 Maybe you have heard of the story of a Primary 4 Vietnam-born athlete which came to Singapore when he was 2 years old with a Singaporean Father recently in the news in July 2008 that was boo and hurled with insults of cheating? So how do we as Singaporeans explain that kind of actions? Recommended or total disgrace to the human race? How can one excel in sports or any other stuffs when Singaporeans for one are exceptionally "Uniquely Singapore"? When you are good in somethings for example sports, we as Singaporeans start to doubt if he has the ability. We are too engrossed with paper chasing and career climbing till blinded by our own actions and beliefs. When one excels in studies, ppl will clap and cheer. When one excels in sports, parents will boo and insult the child. What has this little island turn into? There is an old saying, "Try throwing a stone in the public and you will sure hit a Degree paper holder". Jobs being shunned away, taken up by our cheaper FT's. Sports being the last choice for Singaporeans, taken by our FT's too. Maybe we should start to look at ourselves before judging "the others". Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
