Vaucluse wrote:I doubt you and I are in any way like-minded . . . excluding locals? Jesus, Mary and Joseph! (Apologies (twice), WIMH)
Hey, I'm not the Pope, and even if I were you don't need to apologise.
Since I've been dragged into this, my personal view is that it's fine to have an exclusive gathering. I can understand maladjusted expats wanting to share experiences and vent frustrations of living in Singapore and rant about locals. The polite thing though, if you're not planning to invite someone, is to refrain from extending the invitation in their presence. I would discreetly contact only those I wanted to invite and let them know the theme so they would also know not to mention it to those not invited.
So the way I see it, the issue is not one of racism (though the post by Gilly, whoever that is, referring to 'desperate locals' does smack of that) but of manners. Diplomacy seems to be a dying art.