Thursday, April 27, 2006
4:28 PM
Another lil somethin....
the presence of so many cases of poverty just highlights the existence of a so called underclass in this affluent Singapore society. There are instances where students are unable to meet the demands of the school system and fall out altogether from this middle class institution, otherwise conferred as a level playing field that extends the concept of meritocracy. Yet upon investigation of such individuals, their home environment impedes their social and educational development due to structural incompatibilities.
1) During my NS days, being attached to Investigation Branch was more of a boon than a bane. I got a chance to experience first hand some juvenile cases. One case i'd like to highlight is the Theft of Water Dispenser. In this case, two brothers attempted to steal the coins in the water dispenser and were apprehended. When quetioned and asked y they did such a thing, they said that they had no money and getting $2 made a big difference. I tink ur 1st reaction would be how stupid can u get??? budden upon further investigation, these two boys were not schooling, both parents arent working, electrical and water bills unpaid...goes to show the extent of poverty and their criminal acts are not actually for fun but an alternative act to support themselves.
2) In a case Maly told me, this boy who went to school with cockroaches in his school bag. When a team was sent to investigate, they found the home in a unimaginable state with the mum unstable and the father having a fatalistic view. the boys were cursing and swearing because their father swears at home. I feel that these students will fall out from the school system because education is not of a main concern for them. the home environment and the parents attitude causes them to behave in a manner 'socialised' to them
Sometimes, because the school system is structured in a way whereby you have to be the best in everythin you do, these individuals fall behind because of the lack of social support and environmental upbringing. These kids then get scolded, marginalised and this perpetuates a sense of hopelessness that you wonder where it will lead them to...
.sincera fazzy.
Saturday, April 22, 2006
5:12 PM
A Random Thot
I noe its in the middle of the exams and i should be concentrating on dem hahaha but on my way home juz now, i somehow conceived an idea out of nowhere =p and i guess i better pen it down before i forget..
I think i was daydreaming on the bus ride home hehe den i remembered abt dis cheer competition @ the Forum(nus nye) last dec. it was kinda cool to hav teams competing and it was a rather havoc ambience hhaha...i guess it would be realli cool to organize something of dat nature which reflects a youthful scene.
Anyway, it juz struck me abt silat. I dunno, would'nt it be cool to invite the different perguruans like Seligi, Sendeng etc and showcase seni in NUS Forum or MPSH? haha it hasnt been done before, and i was thinking having this as a prelude to IVP, since NUS Silat will be organizing nez year and perhaps we could invite all the silat participants from the diff tertiaries to juz watch a silat display by lets say 10 perguruans? they can perform a variety of seni displays like ganda, solo, masal, bela diri etc and can hav the younger kids perform (confirm cute haha) its kinda big and radical and i hav no idea if it'll work. I juz find it cool ahhahaa
and for some reason, i kinda thot it all out =p like sound system to get from Radio Pulze (50 bucks and dey even provide the DJ), gamelan music maybe 2 invite sendeng or sunda pajajaran, food (ah yes no idea but nice 2 hav buffet), Newater for participants(mcm biaser), funding (from PERSISI?) and of coz a showcase of NUS talent with Ilsa and Dikir as opening items hahaha GOH can be from PERSISI haha of coz if dey approve dis idea =p
ok yeah....juz 2 get it out of my system....back 2 studying! ciaoz!
.sincera fazzy.
Monday, April 17, 2006
11:59 PM
Us and Them
Juz now on the way to pasar mlm ngan muk and kamie, a traffic light actually made headway into our conversation hahaha mukmin asked y is dat people instantaneously stop walking if they see the red man eventho there are no cars in sight. I said that perhaps from young, we are imbued or taught by our parents that 'red man means no walking, green man means can walk'...we've been socialized since young and dats how we organize our lives. No parent will say...'red light, jalan lah kau' hahaha but of course as we grow older, we meet friends who nonetheless break the law and run the light even tho there exist the risk of being knocked down =p
Likewise, its common in MRTs for children who run around or climb the pole or jump and down from the seat. Then parents will say 'behave properly, if not police come catch u' haha as children we believe everythin our parents say and dat using the police as a coercive way of setting the norms or defining good behaviour.
I was thinking, moz of us live in a very controlled environment. Religious laws and moral boundaries defined by our families govern our way of behaving and thinking. Taboo topics are in someways uncomfortable to talk about or deal with. But i have no qualms whatsoever wif my upbringing coz alhamdulillah ive turned out who i am because of my parents =) If you look at the mats or minahs, the bengs and lians or the anjaks and anjikkans (how 2 spell ar? haha or maybe juz call dem minah-ci =p) they freely speak their mind and exude confidence. But den, its a totally different upbringing altogether. Their environment enacts toughness, confidence, smartness whereas moz of us so called cherish middle class values of politeness, courtesy and selective perception.
How would it feel to be in their position? I seriously feel like an outcast in my silat grp coz i do not have the same attributes as dem, i dun behave like dem (even if i do, rase kaku haha). you juz dont feel comfortable in dat sort of setting but den passion overrides dat and you do make frens and do learn how 2 be more comfortable. Its learning. Learning to act in different settings and dats y Maly, i say im not true 2 myself all the time coz i change myself in different positions and different environments
.sincera fazzy.
Saturday, April 15, 2006
3:21 PM
Here goes...Summary of Deviance
Im gonna try and summarize deviance as far as possible without looking at my notes (as a test to myself on how much i have understood)
Deviance, by definition, is an act/person/condition that violates the norms of society. It offends the conscience collective and the extent of hurt signifies whether the act/person is different, deviant or criminal.
Durkheim mentions that the expression of Crime and Deviance is a result of deregulation in society as it transitions from mechanical to organic solidarity.This deregulation is brought about by a state of anomie in which there is a disjuncture between the internalization of cultural goals and the attainability of those goals due to structural incompatibities in terms of class, race, gender, ethnicity etc Robert Merton developed the Strain Theory whereby people suffer from 'illness of insatiable desires and infinite aspirations' hence express themselves in the form of C & D. He developed the idea that people commit deviance in 4 adaptations - innovator, ritualist, retreatist and rebel. However, a problem of this theory is that there is a time lag between the motivation and the actual action of committing deviance.
Sutherland fills in this gap with Differential Association which simply means the individual goes through a process of learning before he can become a 'professional'. The prison is a university of crime coz 1st time offenders learn the ways during their stay in prison from others. Albert Cohen extends this by saying that individuals do not learn in individualized and atomized ways but rather in intimate and personal groups which he termed as subcultures. The formation of subcultures is due to the incompatibility of structural realities with middle class institutions, values and socialization and hence create an alternative value system which presents an inversion of middle class values. However, Cloward and Ohlin argues that Cohen over emphasized on working class members and that all structural realities need to be taken into account. Differential Access in Illegitimate Societies explains that when u have the motivation to cross over into illegitimate society after falling out from legitimate societies, structural realities decide ur placement in Criminal, Conflict or Retreatist Subcultures.
The problem with functionalist theorists is that they are conservative and problematize deviant motivation. The labelling tradition and Marxists are more radical in the sense that they problematize social order ie social control constructs deviance and hence destabalise social order. Labelling theorists like Howard Becker explain that deviance is a conferred status and not an inherent condition and that labelling constitutes power relations. Labelling is two way because of the Insider and Outsider Perspective and the creation of a stigma contest between the labelled and the labellers. David Matza theorizes the Techniques of Neutralization where deviants/criminals deny responsibility, injury and victim, as well as appeal to higher loyalty and condemn condemners. He also explained the Delinquency Drift where individuals oscalate between legitimate and illegitimate societies and indulge in subterranean values. Edwin Lemert extends the concept of Primary and Secondary Deviation and Retrospective Re-interpretation.
Marxists argue that social classes play a very important role in the system of economic relationship within the mode of production. Our ideas of C&D corresponds with the smooth operations of capitalism. These ideas are reinforced by the ideological state apparatus (sch, media, family) and the coercive state apparatus (Criminal Justice System). Hence, deviant acts are defined by the capitalists against the proletariats and the actions which hinder the progress and goals of capitalism.
Power governs and define deviance and this. With the state at the helm of power, the creation of urban legends and moral panics is a conspiracy on the part of the state. State sponsors a moral panic to renew its legitimacy and maintain a particular conception of reality, conjure images of symbolic assailants and wad constitutes order.
There....heh
.sincera fazzy.
Thursday, April 13, 2006
11:16 PM
Political Joke
*Disclaimer: This is purely fiction. All resemblence to any person living or dead is coincidental* (ni seme impt arr...kalo tk sensitip bebbb...) =p
A Red Indian chief was newly elected into the council after the death of the wise one. As it was nearing the winter season, the Red Indians asked him:
Red Indians: Oh Chief...how cold will the winter be this year?
Being a modern Red Indian, the chief did not know how to read the signs of nature and hence decided to call up the US Meteorologist Centre.
Chief: Good afternoon, may i know how cold will the winter be this year?
Weather man: Oh this will be a cold winter.
The chief returned to his tribe and told all the Red Indians that this would be a cold winter and pick up as much firewood as they could.
The next week, the Red Indians asked the Chief if he is sure of the winter. The chief then called the meteorologist to confirm and was given the same answer. He returned to the tribe and told them to collect all the firewood they could find.
On the third week, the Red Indians asked the Chief if he was certain about the winter. Once again, he called up the meteorologist
Chief: How cold will the winter be this year?
Weather man: Oh its definitely gonna be very very cold!
Chief: *puzzled* How can you be so certain of this?
Weather man: That's because we see all the Red Indians picking up alllll the firewood in the forest!
.sincera fazzy.
Friday, April 07, 2006
11:55 PM
Birthday Blast (slengzzz haha)
thx so much K2P and the galz for a wonderful bdae surprise hehehee of coz thr were lotsa selenge moments along the way which culminated in me being ultimate selenge upon receiving my bdae gift! hahaha ahh well....itz really a day to remember and guys dun ever forget 6th April 2006 coz i think we'll all juz laugh over and over again juz thinking abt it =p to give all of u credit...i was indeed surprised that u all decided to hold the bdae celebration at fong seng @ 2...i seriously thot u all were gonna do it after zikral rasul =) so thr...u all did surprise me, altho it was juz so unfortunate dat u all had to bertembung wif me at the longkang junction...budden again, u pple's shocked expressions were realli worth it! hahahahaa
(please refer to hafie's blog for full details of the ke-selenge-an terserlah hahaha)
we also had zikral rasul last nite and it was an enriching event - admiring yan's Quran recitation and Ustaz Nazirudin's takzirah...not forgetting gelagat wan and of coz the cam-whoring antics of everyone hahhahaa ahh well =) and the nite before, jannah blanja-ed me Pizza Hut...hehehe she's trying to fatten me up =p dat juz sums up a wonderful day! yayness yahoo!
.sincera fazzy.
