Article 2 URL:
http://lwb.lawnet.com.sg/legal/lgl/rss/subcourts/52304.html
Recently, teenager Maria Dass was put to a reformative training centre (RTC) after committing two violent taxi robberies. Luckily for him, his 5 year jail term and caning was cut by Judge Rajah.
For his case, his grandmother attributed it to his short fuse and stubbornness which landed him in trouble. Not only that, living in a known gang hangout also caused him to be a bad boy. Dass was also said to be intellectually dull, which may result in him being influenced by his accomplices to rob cabbies.
Furthermore, Dass could not really be that bad, because he knew where his grandmother stashed all her jewellery but did not steal them at all.
Ironically, at first, his family members wanted him to be sentenced to jail instead. A prison term would mean that he would have a black record for life and would hinder him form finding a job in the future. Furthermore, a jail record would illustrate that he was a bad guy and leading to him not being accepted by society. In the end, the family changed their mind because the thought of caning really scared the daylights out of them.
But what intrigues me was why his family members wanted to sent him to jail instead of the RTC. After committing such heinous crimes, being sent to RTC would be considered a god's blessing. From their point of view, I feel that the underlying reason would be effectiveness in correction; considering the fact that Dass's two stints in Boys' Home had not changed him much, and in prison, there are not many people of his age that will lead him astray again. Whereas in RTC, there are many youngsters there convicted of petty crime; they would make Dass's reformation difficult.
This idea to me is quite new, for I have never read before such an unusual case of teenage offenders wanting to go to prison instead of RTC. Maybe, what the family members see is that going to RTC would be a waste of time, and having a black record would not really matter much, because he could help out with the family's grocery shop. I believe, for those who have commited crimes and wanted to reform but are unable to, they feel the same way too.
Personally, I feel that being sent to where does not really affect you much, it all depends on yourself. If Dass was sent to prison, but still hang out with those neighbourhood urchins, then the purpose would be self-defeating. If he went to the RTC and really set his mind on reforming, he would change for good.
Lastly, I feel that the person who I am shape my views, because only then will I be able to understand the whole situation beneath the context. If i just stick to a point of view, I will not know the family's reasons for doing so. This would be one blind spot, so we must put ourselves in other people's shoes and understand them. This would also ensure that students would learn better instead of just knowing the artificial content.
500 words
Friday, March 16, 2007
Sunday, February 11, 2007
BloG PoSt 1 - China Missile
Article 1 URL:
http://www.bestsharing.com/files/K61NO3Q218354/China%20-Satellite%20Missile%20Strike.doc.html
Just recently, China fired a missile to destroy a satellite. This has sparked off a series of events, which has raised a national debate over this incident. Hence, I have decided to use this missile firing incident as my ORP article 1.
The firing of a missile resembling an atomic bomb to destroy a satellite depicts that China has the possibility of igniting a new race for "space weapons", because it was the first to destroy satellites in space since 1980s after Soviet Union and U.S. Ironically, this also shows that the Republic's "peaceful rise" is just an illusion.
Not only that, as there are many countries around China in missile range, it might signify that those countries might be at risk of warring with China. It also proves that China can also shoot down spy satellites operated by other nations, and thus sparking off an extraterrestrial arms race.
One might feel that it is overly-sensitive to care about such "trivial" stuff, whereas others might feel that China is indeed boasting about its technological prowess. However, at this point in time, where there is no adequate evidence of China really wanting to go to war so it would be unreasonable to blame them. A novel way to look at this and not be biased will be to take the view of a bystander who will analyse the reasoning for both parties.
To China, this incident might be no big deal to them and does not really demonstrate any particular technological advancement, so some might feel that there is no need to feel threatened. However, to others, it might show that China has not only expanded its arms race to space and is also out to prove itself by destroying satellites because after all, they form an important part of communications. To United States, the debris resulted form the destroyed satellite could endanger the manned International Space Station and also orbiting satellites. Not only that, this incident is also a very big threat to India's unmanned space programme. As such, I feel that one should try to 'experience' the nervousness of being a country and a neibouring country(China) shooting a missile into space.
If China continues to use missiles to destroy satellites, then other countries might go attack China, forcing an arms control treaty and most probably starting the dreaded WW3. Also, given the history of some events of space issues, small things can cause very big problems. As such, China must better reason out this incident before it escalates into an arms race. I personally feel that China should provide the full details and then rejoining the consensus against testing in space. Furthermore, at times, we might not know how our actions could mean another thing to others, and so we must think thoroughly before every move. One must also not be afraid to apologise if really guilty of wrongdoings, in this case, China "wanting to wage war".
In conclusion, after reflecting on this incident, I feel that i have gained lots of invaluable experience. Firstly, the person who I am will change my views, because my views might be biased at times, thus leading me to misunderstanding some issues. Lastly, even if the truth is not very pleasant, we should not twist facts, and instead act on one's understanding.
(500 words)
http://www.bestsharing.com/files/K61NO3Q218354/China%20-Satellite%20Missile%20Strike.doc.html
Just recently, China fired a missile to destroy a satellite. This has sparked off a series of events, which has raised a national debate over this incident. Hence, I have decided to use this missile firing incident as my ORP article 1.
The firing of a missile resembling an atomic bomb to destroy a satellite depicts that China has the possibility of igniting a new race for "space weapons", because it was the first to destroy satellites in space since 1980s after Soviet Union and U.S. Ironically, this also shows that the Republic's "peaceful rise" is just an illusion.
Not only that, as there are many countries around China in missile range, it might signify that those countries might be at risk of warring with China. It also proves that China can also shoot down spy satellites operated by other nations, and thus sparking off an extraterrestrial arms race.
One might feel that it is overly-sensitive to care about such "trivial" stuff, whereas others might feel that China is indeed boasting about its technological prowess. However, at this point in time, where there is no adequate evidence of China really wanting to go to war so it would be unreasonable to blame them. A novel way to look at this and not be biased will be to take the view of a bystander who will analyse the reasoning for both parties.
To China, this incident might be no big deal to them and does not really demonstrate any particular technological advancement, so some might feel that there is no need to feel threatened. However, to others, it might show that China has not only expanded its arms race to space and is also out to prove itself by destroying satellites because after all, they form an important part of communications. To United States, the debris resulted form the destroyed satellite could endanger the manned International Space Station and also orbiting satellites. Not only that, this incident is also a very big threat to India's unmanned space programme. As such, I feel that one should try to 'experience' the nervousness of being a country and a neibouring country(China) shooting a missile into space.
If China continues to use missiles to destroy satellites, then other countries might go attack China, forcing an arms control treaty and most probably starting the dreaded WW3. Also, given the history of some events of space issues, small things can cause very big problems. As such, China must better reason out this incident before it escalates into an arms race. I personally feel that China should provide the full details and then rejoining the consensus against testing in space. Furthermore, at times, we might not know how our actions could mean another thing to others, and so we must think thoroughly before every move. One must also not be afraid to apologise if really guilty of wrongdoings, in this case, China "wanting to wage war".
In conclusion, after reflecting on this incident, I feel that i have gained lots of invaluable experience. Firstly, the person who I am will change my views, because my views might be biased at times, thus leading me to misunderstanding some issues. Lastly, even if the truth is not very pleasant, we should not twist facts, and instead act on one's understanding.
(500 words)
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