i think there is something fundamentally wrong with army. how can such a massive, essential and symbolic organization of our country drain so much morale from its people? how can every person dread (yes... feel the full emotional connotations of that word) booking in? how can each and everyone of us be wrecked with despondency for 2 whole years of our life... no. not our life. our youth. 2 years of halcyon youth wrenched away... to be replaced with melancholy, despondency, stress and apprehension.
i know i'm being particularly whiny. i know that i'm pushing the negativism to the extreme (maybe not so for some). and i know that if i tried hard enough, i could alleviate this negativism.
but therein lies the whole issue. why do i even have to try? for smth so essential to being a singaporean citizen, why must we suffer so much? i'm sure there is a huge portion of us who would rather have been born in another country then go through army. does it have to be like this? there are so many boys who have childhood dreams of being in the army, fighting with guns. there are so many of us who wouldn't mind a breakway from the monotony of urban civilization. there are so many youths who enjoy camps and and relish the opportunity to spend time with friends in a chalet or sleepovers. can't ns be like that?
i think ns is essential for singapore... that much i will concede. but the regimentation and the culture of fear... totally uncalled for. we were asked for checkin this week: what kind of commander we wanted to be?
there are qualities i'd want to have as a commander - to be respected, professionalism, efficiency and more. but i think most of all, i want to be a commander whose instructions men will follow not because of fear of punishment, not because they don't want to get screwed, but because of their devotion to me, their self-determination and their team spirit.
i want to show the commanders around me, and ultimately, craft a message levering on this experience to the entire army that regimentation and a culture of fear that is based on disincentives is not only unnecessary; it is also inefficient and debilitating. after my 2 years of service, when i'm out of the immediate reach of the chain of command's strangling grip... i will try to make a difference.
"Words offer the means to meaning and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth. And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn't there?" -V for Vendetta
and so they say... the pen is mightier than the sword. let's see how much blood this pen will draw.
Name: Foo Guo Zhong Melvyn
Age: 19+
Affiliations: MSHS (Pri), Rosyth, RI, RJC, SFX (LoG)
Bday: 14th Nov
Email: mel_protoss@hotmail.com
i think there is something fundamentally wrong with army. how can such a massive, essential and symbolic organization of our country drain so much morale from its people? how can every person dread (yes... feel the full emotional connotations of that word) booking in? how can each and everyone of us be wrecked with despondency for 2 whole years of our life... no. not our life. our youth. 2 years of halcyon youth wrenched away... to be replaced with melancholy, despondency, stress and apprehension.
i know i'm being particularly whiny. i know that i'm pushing the negativism to the extreme (maybe not so for some). and i know that if i tried hard enough, i could alleviate this negativism.
but therein lies the whole issue. why do i even have to try? for smth so essential to being a singaporean citizen, why must we suffer so much? i'm sure there is a huge portion of us who would rather have been born in another country then go through army. does it have to be like this? there are so many boys who have childhood dreams of being in the army, fighting with guns. there are so many of us who wouldn't mind a breakway from the monotony of urban civilization. there are so many youths who enjoy camps and and relish the opportunity to spend time with friends in a chalet or sleepovers. can't ns be like that?
i think ns is essential for singapore... that much i will concede. but the regimentation and the culture of fear... totally uncalled for. we were asked for checkin this week: what kind of commander we wanted to be?
there are qualities i'd want to have as a commander - to be respected, professionalism, efficiency and more. but i think most of all, i want to be a commander whose instructions men will follow not because of fear of punishment, not because they don't want to get screwed, but because of their devotion to me, their self-determination and their team spirit.
i want to show the commanders around me, and ultimately, craft a message levering on this experience to the entire army that regimentation and a culture of fear that is based on disincentives is not only unnecessary; it is also inefficient and debilitating. after my 2 years of service, when i'm out of the immediate reach of the chain of command's strangling grip... i will try to make a difference.
"Words offer the means to meaning and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth. And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn't there?" -V for Vendetta
and so they say... the pen is mightier than the sword. let's see how much blood this pen will draw.