Saturday 22 September 2018

"If you cut us, do we not bleed? If you praise us, do we not go crazy?"

From TODAY:

Is this for real? Readers get ‘political’ over Nas Daily’s videos on Singapore

21 September, 2018




National pride. Anti-government sentiments. A population who loves to complain and is ungrateful and negative. Credibility of online content. Freedom of speech. No, it is not Our Singapore Conversation in session, though it might as well be with the range of topics that surfaced after travel vlogger Nuseir Yassin, founder of Nas Daily, hit back sharply at those who questioned why he was "so effusive in his praise" of Singapore in various videos, challenging him to take up citizenship to see what it is like to live here. Mr Yassin labelled his critics "crybabies", sparking a social media storm.

So after spending about 2 weeks in Singapore, Nas Daily made more than 10 videos on Singapore, most if not all being very positive about how Singapore has met the many challenges and overcome and even succeeded where others have failed.

Naturally, Singaporeans rejected the praise of this outsider and called his videos superficial, gullible, and fluff. And casts doubts on his credibility, his objectivity, his integrity and whether he was paid to make the videos. (The videos are not sponsored.)

Well, SOME Singaporeans.

Being Singaporean, I understand this "natural" reaction. As LKY said, Singaporeans are "champion grumblers".

Maybe it's our Asian Value of humility.

Check that.

Maybe it's our expectation that we should always exhibit Asians' False Modesty, or False Humility.
"True humility does not consist of a strong man thinking himself weak, or a wise man thinking himself a fool, but in the ability to build a great cathedral and think no more or less of it, then the next man." (paraphrased).
Also: 
“Be careful not to mistake insecurity and inadequacy for humility! Humility has nothing to do with the insecure and inadequate! Just like arrogance has nothing to do with greatness!”

And:
 
"The greatest conceit lies in seeing things for what you wish them to be, rather than what they actually are."

Nas has provided Singapore and Singaporeans with a service, or at the very least, an opinion. You are free to disagree with him. You are even free to question his motives. And of course you are free to dismiss his opinions.
I mean, that's not TOO close-minded right? That's not TOO defensive right? That's not TOO arrogant and insecure right?
Similarly, you are free to consider his views, opinions, assessment and conclusion and decide if he is indeed F.O.S. or if he does have a valid perspective. That's not TOO gracious right? Or being TOO gullible right?

There is some truth that Singaporeans are "champion grumblers" and we don't take compliments well, or graciously. Perhaps this is part of our cultural DNA, why we are the "almost perfect country" - because we strive for perfection. And because we do, we do not rest on our laurels, nor see what we have done well, but focus only on what we have done badly.
 
So tell me, are you one of those people who want a less stressful Singapore, less pressure-cooker education system, and less of a rat-race in Singapore?
But you can't step away from our cultural DNA?

You want the government to ease up a little, appreciate life a little more, but you cannot stop being a champion grumbler?
There is no "us" vs "them". There is just "us".
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The other reason I suspect is that Singaporeans need to feel that they are the underdogs, that they are oppressed, suppressed and thus justified in being depressed. 

"Misery loves company. The sad needs others to be as sad as them to validate their sadness, so they can feel that being sad and discontented is "objective"."
[FaceBook Comment]

Citizens of the "Almost Perfect Country" fall into two groups. Those who agree with Nas's conclusion about Singapore, and those who are threatened by his conclusion.

Those who are threatened by the conclusion need people to validate their discontent, their dissatisfaction, their unhappiness, their... failure? After all, if they are unhappy and they are living in an almost perfect country, then it would suggest that it is THEIR OWN DAMN FAULT THAT THEY ARE UNHAPPY! 
"Everything you need to be content, you already have. You just have to be content with what you have."
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So I am on Nas's side. 

He is from an imperfect, fractious, unstable part of the world. Life there is incredibly difficult. Survival there is almost a miracle. 

And yet he strives to be content, he strives to be positive, and he strives to affirm life.

Meanwhile some citizens of the 2nd safest city in the world, and the almost perfect country, need to explain why they are unhappy, and why it is not their fault, and why Singapore is NOT "almost perfect". 

I think we can see who is being self-serving.


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