The Night Before

Listening to: Santana's I'm Feeling You

suddenly, i realised how much significance this particular posting of mine will hold.

so it all comes down to this.

to me, this is the night that you can officially surf the Internet during the exams, and yet your parents wouldn't be able to yell at you. Cos all you need to tell them is this: your gp tutor says it's good to just surf around NEWS SITES on the night before. All in the name of RESEARCH :) Erm, you can read through the newspapers which you've been saving for this special day. but i wouldn't be too bummed out if you can't finish all. just read the past week's news at least?

other stuff you need to do:

1. read through your stuff, including old compres (rem what i said about vocab items, for example)
2. surf the net (news websites, en.wikipedia.org is good too)
3. Write out a checklist of what you need to do before you start the papers. This is a quick revision of the skills you need to apply, and last but not least;
4. SLEEP EARLY (have said this so many times, you need to be fully awake, not half-asleep)

ultimately, do remember that the gp paper is indeed an unpredictable fella. But yet, it doesn't mean we should fear unpredictability. Yes, we've seen so many essay questions and yet, they don't seem to repeat themselves. But are they really all oh-so-different? Truth is, they really aren't. Essentially they are asking about the same issues. So all you need to do is to tailor whatever you already know to the specific question that you're answering.

i should be online on the night before. So if you wanna talk to me, just come online to msn. if you don't have my id, sms me to ask.

you may think it's cliche or i'm just paying lip service. but i believe in each of you. i do.
i'll see you guys bright and eager on fri morning :)

The Pressing Issues

Listening to: KT Tunstall's Suddenly I See

'The power of the journalist is great, but he is entitled neither respect nor admiration because of that power unless it is used right.' (Theodore Roosevelt)

For all those interested in the topic of media and especially what S'pore's stand is on this issue, then you should have read the excerpt of the speech by SM in today's ST.

Go read the full article for all the details, but let me share the excerpts of excerpts - all extracted from SM's speech :)

1. The media disseminates information, news, analyses and commentaries. It influences and shapes public opinion. Hence ideally, its corporate interests should converge with the core interests of its home country.

2. The media also provides an important channel for the government and national leaders to communicate with the people.

3. Editors and journalists shoulder a heavier moral and social responsibility beyond that of CEOs and executives of other commercial companies.

4. A free press by Western standards does not always lead to a clean and efficient government or contribute to economic freedom and prosperity.

5. In reality, of course, there is no such thing as unfettered press freedom. Even the most liberal-minded person would acknowledge the necessity of some form of regulation or code to ensure responsible reporting.

6. Singapore needs a media model where the players practise press freedom in a responsible way.

7. I do not favour a subservient press. An unthinking press is not good for Singapore. But press freedom must be practised with a larger sense of responsibility and the ability to understand what is in or not in our national interests.

8. Editors need to understand what their larger responsibilities entail and to demand them of their journalists. Editors and journalists must have high personal integrity and sound judgment - people who understand Singapore's uniqueness as a country, our multiracial and multi-religious make-up, vulnerabilities and national goals.

9. News should not be slanted to serve a hidden agenda.

10. Even though Singapore is now more developed and our population better educated, it remains crucial for Singapore to maintain our own unique and tested system of political governance and media model. They have worked well. We should improve them from experience and by learning from others. Accept what has worked and reject what has not, whether they are from the East or West. But we must be bold enough to evolve our own model of a responsible, lively and credible media.