Filial Piety Revisited

[sundaymorningstaple]

One can only blame the system we live in

This is always the case. ALWAYS. You can blame somebody else for any mischief or crime as we are to large extent made not self-created. Parents, society, evolution you name it. So where should we place the borderline?
Same goes for the information people use to judge. You never absolutely know is it truthful or not. Does not need to be a newspaper. Keeping silent just not to hurt someone in the rare case of being misinformed typically does much more harm than rising your voice.

Which is virtually identical to what I've been saying on this forum for years with regard to another part of society. Local rudeness. If you see it and say nothing, you are as guilty as the person committing the act in the first place. You are telling that person, by your silence, that you are in tacit agreement with the person. That reinforces the believe that their actions are okay. If you aren't part of the solution, you might be part of the problem.

[Mary Hatch Bailey]

^^ Exactly, 100% correct. ^^

Trouble is, in this day of political correctness and nonjudgemental attitudes, personal integrity and a willingness to stand up and be counted for one's beliefs has gone by the wayside in favor of lassitude and false spirituality.

[sundaymorningstaple]

^^ Exactly, 100% correct. ^^

As well. Unfortunately.

[Brah]

I occasionaly wander back to this thread suprised it still has steam, and refrained from further comment for obvious reasons.

The last 6 posts say more and say it more intelligently than all the pages that preceded them.

So does that mean that this dead horse has been sufficiently flogged?

[sundaymorningstaple]

Sorry JayCee, but that was exactly what I was talking about.

moderator

[sundaymorningstaple]

Let's see if we can all start learning a little bit to play the ball instead of always playing the player.

moderator

[JayCee]

What I wrote was true though you have to admit

[Addadude]

As well as The Alan Parsons Project, I thought Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds was pretty good too.

Oh - have we moved on from discussing our early musical influences now?

[Wind In My Hair]

This is always the case. ALWAYS. You can blame somebody else for any mischief or crime as we are to large extent made not self-created. Parents, society, evolution you name it. So where should we place the borderline?
Same goes for the information people use to judge. You never absolutely know is it truthful or not. Does not need to be a newspaper. Keeping silent just not to hurt someone in the rare case of being misinformed typically does much more harm than rising your voice.

Which is virtually identical to what I've been saying on this forum for years with regard to another part of society. Local rudeness. If you see it and say nothing, you are as guilty as the person committing the act in the first place. You are telling that person, by your silence, that you are in tacit agreement with the person. That reinforces the believe that their actions are okay. If you aren't part of the solution, you might be part of the problem.

I have the greatest respect for both of you, and take your point.

At the same time, I would have thought that the whole point of speaking up was to be heard and thus make a difference. And people are more willing to listen when they feel understood rather than accused. Personally, I generally listen better to those I consider friends than I do to self-righteous strangers who think it their duty to improve me. I'd wager that this is true for the Chinese people as a whole. It's easy enough to preach to the choir, but more challenging and meaningful to attract a non-believer to your cause. For me, what's important is what you achieve rather than how loud you shout.

[sundaymorningstaple]

This is true.

I've been watching the Government try it that way for 32 years now with little success. Sometimes a lone voice in the wilderness is lost in the howling of the winds. However, if enough voices are raised, then those within hearing distance realize that the tide may be turning against them. It's much easier to swim with the current than against it. The Japanese learned that in WWII. Their forces terrorized the enemy, with their every soldier but a single voice of "banzai" One man won't achieve much, but with more and more raising their voices, people will change, as will governments.

We are seeing and feeling the effects of enough fed up voices being raised right here on this board with the reductions of foreign talent/workers due to the numbers of complaints from the ground. The government has finally has to listen. Same thing is happening in the middle east at the moment.

Your way works, no doubt, with some things, but you need a big enough core to be able to change a whole population, but I believe there is room for both styles. Especially after seeing only very small changes in the past 29 years I've been here. And most of those only because the government attached fines to them and not because of a basic change of their social habits.

Those of us who raise our voices in condemnation also practice what we preach. It only by example that our condemnation can hold any value.

[x9200]

WIMH, It is to some extent to be heard. The fact k1w1 posted it here is as I see it a direct consequence of all this FP ugly mess this thread turned into and otherwise she probably wouldn't do it. Now, as this already happened, you have pretty polarized opinions so you just rise your voice in defence of something questioned by your opponents. Reading between the lines, I do not think this is about anti-Chinese sentiments (I would have the same stand with anybody behaving like this). This is the unfortunate context or the whole approach to this topic that made it appeared like this.

[nakatago]

Reading between the lines, I do not think this is about anti-Chinese sentiments (I would have the same stand with anybody behaving like this). This is the unfortunate context or the whole approach to this topic that made it appeared like this.

I concur. A lot of the vitriol has been due to people missing the point entirely.

[Mary Hatch Bailey]

I occasionaly wander back to this thread suprised it still has steam, and refrained from further comment for obvious reasons.

The last 6 posts say more and say it more intelligently than all the pages that preceded them.

So does that mean that this dead horse has been sufficiently flogged?

No, I think it means despite some petty behavior, both overt and veiled, intelligent thoughtful debate is still a possibility.

[sundaymorningstaple]

+1

[tyianchang]

Lastly, I'm not Annie and we recognise persistent personal insults with delberate misuse of names as racist. This, unfortunately, reflects on you more than anything else. It all begins with self-respect and there're thousands of enlightened people reading this forum so do yourself a service. LOL

Anne, I've been a patient man on these threads. In fact, most here will agree that I've been MORE than patient, to the point of having them question why we are not "moderating". I've tried my best to give you as much leeway as possible, but once you raise the racism element, my spidey sense starts twitching overtime. I don't like it when that happens. You comments above are so damned preposterous that I almost drowned my keyboard in Pu Er tea. The only royal "we" you have is if you happen to have a mouse in your pocket. The fact that our posters take liberties with your nick and you take it as an insult, well, I've got news for you. DO YOURSELF A SERVICE. You are welcome to leave the forum anytime you desire. We do not force you to stay here, in fact, most have asked me to ban you a long long time ago. My reason for continuing to let you stay is selfish in as much as I enjoy watching you and several other act like little children in the schoolyard playing silly word games. Each trying to playing oneupmanship. At this point it doesn't matter one iota WHO started it as each is doing their best to outdo the other without resorting to foul language or racism. UNTIL NOW. The writing is on the wall.

tic...toc...tic...toc...

moderator


Quote and point out which racist statement I had made - try never to justify your abuse with a sentence of guilt without trial or evidence. Anyone working with the anti-racist board in the UK would recognise making fun of names as a personal taunt. The number of posters who use that name and aunty batty etc - you condone them? I stand for my statement.
You don't make the decision to let me stay and I have the gloabl right to disagree with a bunch of bullies on this forum. So stop your brow beating. I wonder at myself why I continue to post in this very strange forum which obviously allows the maltreatment of myself and others who try to justify their banner for free speech. You ban anyone who has an individual voice yet you encourage posters to complain there's no freedom of speech in SG or China.
Is it not noticed by many that local OPs are often banned and locked out when they make justified protests while you engage in vitriolic retaliation? I've read through them but as the Op died out, there was no point in taking in any of your one-sided barrage.
You did not answer my question about your post regarding 'the billion opportunists' and you said nothing about cyber bullying when it comes to the crunch. I have been to four other forums and in none of them have I encountered this amount of persoanl taunts and bullying. Even in the Malaysian forum I pmed you about, there was but One persistent ageist and spammer.
I thought you had a fair sense, but weighing up the whole situation, no,
you haven't. There isn't exactly a clear cut case of agreement for or against and I have've never made any racist comments, but indicated the existence of racial barriers in one's psychology.
On what grounds is your flare up against me based on, other than some hidden agenda? A few posters had expressed their opinions implicitly and some explicitly biased - 'flog the dead horse' etc. You'd never directly confronted the number of bullies in this forum. The insults, taunts and words they used were so vile and stupid " your old mind" (sic) most good posters stop responding to such posters. Simply look at the list of dead ringers.
Indeed, one becomes more desensitized if you get your way!!! It's obvious I'm picked on because it's against my grain to encourage bias, racism and bullying. So there's been the anti-LKY, anti China and heavens, this is a very strange expat forum form SG!!! The patience's truly mine.
If Pal answered me that this forum allows freedom of expression and that it's virtual, what gives you the right over others to ban decent intellectual Asians? It's an ego game that underpins this whole scenario , as pointed out by a couple of fair-minded posters.
Don't expect me to tow your line. You can ban me at your own expense but just wait till I respond appropriately to Kiwi who's being reasonable and deserves my attention.
So why direct this charge of yours to me only? Indeed, I 've been too easily impressed.