Sing Along wrote:Brah wrote:Fortan wrote:What national identity is that? Can you explain to me what national identity a Singaporean has - except being born in Singapore? What makes a Singaporean unique? I am just curious as I can't see the identity here. What I see is the opposite - a lack of identity.
You don't have your own language, Singlish is taken from the neighboring countries mother tongue. A Singaporean is not Malay, you are not Chinese, you are not Indian but you are a Singaporean.
With a 49 year old 'culture' that I can't see…. This is not a post to piss on Singaporeans or anything along those lines, I just don't see any culture here except for eating and talking about food - and of course shopping.
However, I might be completely missing the Singaporean identity, even in my Singaporean friends… I just can't find it.
I have to agree with everything you wrote. I've been here longer than you and I have yet to find it either, and I have looked and integrated and ended up pulling out every time.
The culture is not much more that a lot of talking about food that is mediocre at best and pales in comparison with almost any other Asian nation, and shopping malls for things that are more expensive here than anywhere (?) else. It's just all so empty - safe, pleasant, but empty.
And before the
Troll With Multiple Accounts reacts by telling people about leaving, well you have to realize that not everyone here who is not from here wants to be here or even enjoys being here.
To both,
Being a young nation, Singapore has borrowed it's culture heavily . It's true that our people all originated from other places at one time or another but over time, we have meshed these cultures into one that is our own. It may not be the most colorful or the most desired but from what I can see, we are moving in the right direction. Every country has their unique food and culture and regardless of how old or young the nation is, culture is always evolving.
If someone does not like or conform to the culture of the place, I rather they leave. Taking myself as an example, I cannot stand the culture in China, therefore I make a conscious decision not to involve myself there.
What we do not need most now is a step back, because of the failure of certain groups of people to integrate.
What I believe in and I'm sure what most people believe in, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.
Sing Along, If you haven't done any in depth research on this board, and as I suspect, dropped in via the cesspit
of Facebook, for the record, I've been here longer than most and have been an adult here on the little Red Dot
considerably longer than most of the true blues who are trying to instigate trouble for the PAP AND for their
nation as a whole. You all are hellbent on the destruction of the country due mostly to your own intractability. I
would ask how long you have been an adult here in the working population, first of all.
Secondly, the two highlighted areas, when in Rome? So we should all be rude, inconsiderate, talk louder than
two Chinese Aunties on the phone? Only those from the subcontinent can even begin to match them, PRC
cannot. Should we all acquire the Singapore Buffet Syndrome? The kiasu mentality that pervades everyday life?
No, I don't think so either. However, in order for a foreigner to integrate here, they have to be welcomed (by
human beings, not government bureaucracy. If they are disparaged before they have done anything, ignored
when shopping, given sloppy service if given service at all, aren't spoken to casually, e.g., "Have you eaten?",
then yes, like all humans, who want to assimilate, they are eventually going to give up and become like birds
(tend to flock together). Granted, today it is not nearly as hard for a foreigner to make inroads, but it is still NOT
EASY when ignored. I'm an introvert by nature from a social perspective so have a hard time "pushing myself on
a people who aren't welcoming". When I first came to Singapore it was still a number of years before the term
"Little Red Dot" had been coined by B.J.Habibie of Indonesia. I didn't live in an expat enclave but in a local setting
and it was depressing as hell to say the least. Add to that, most heartlanders back in those days DID lack
English and even Singlish and were still speaking dialect. So, I found a way to bridge the gap without bridging it.
For me it was SBC/TCS/MediaCorp & MediaWorks. I've appeared in over 100 different locally produce Mandarin
Drama Series over a period of 18 years. As a token Ang Mo in Chinese Drama (one of very few part time actors,
not extras, in those days). What this did for an introvert was pique the curiosity of those who watched those
shows and after a while it worked famously, as then they would bridge the gap if for nothing but to inquire if I
was that Ang Mo, Mr. Whoever, in a particular series. I acted with Zoe Tay in the Series when she had her 1st
leading role (we started with SBC the same year). And I've acted with most of the well know ones over the
years. But, I was lucky. I just happened to be available and was recommended by another expat to the Facility
Officer at SBC and off we went. The pittance they paid was worth far more that what they thought. Even the old
man who interviewed me for PR those 20 over years ago recognized me at the interview. I could go into any
Kopitiam in Singapore and the aunties would recognize me and so on. But not everybody can do that or is even
capable to do it.
In my country, when a new neighbour arrives, we usually show up on moving day with dishes of
food/drinks/deserts for the new families as we know the first couple of days of trying to unpack and get set up
and provisioned is a headache, so it's our way of helping them settle in. Here? When you move in and you walk
down a corridor what happens? You hear doors slam shut and windows slam shut. How to integrate when those
kinds of signals are being sent. Integration is a two way street. As the "Host" country (look up the meaning of
host). You have to start the process. When that happens you have know idea how much it means to newcomers.
I've already said my piece on the HDB policy so I wont go there, suffice it to say Singaporeans who hold out for
the highest possible prices, prevent other Singaporeans from buying. Foreign PR's have no choice if they want a
place to live and they cannot stay with their parents.
Sorry for the ramble but it needed to be said. Look inwardly first to see if the problem is there. My two children,
boy and girl, when through the local system (were both born in the old KK hospital) and are 25 & 30 now. I AM
very familiar with Singapore.