Public Behavior observed

Saw this article at Tomorrow.SG: "Are Singaporeans pigs?"

For most of us, this is not new... I've seen discussions on this as far back as elementary school, during my home country's Courtesy campaigns (started on the year I was born, no less). Singaporean tourists has had a long history of harsh words from folks in host countries about their bad behavior. Of course, being a tourist and international student myself, I often find that sweeping statement a bit over-reaching. I do agree that there is a percentage (of which I don't know how much, it might be 25~50%) of people who go abroad and act as if the rest of the world owes them something. And I feel that this kind of behavior extends across mostly in folks who originate from a lifestyle that expunges one of these traits: the "getting the most bang for the buck", or "doing the most in the least amount of time" and of course, having the "it's free, right? Just take!" mentality.

Living in the US for 4 years running (I hope to fly home during CNY '07 for a visit!) showed me how the old saying, "do unto others as you would have them do unto you" is so important in society.

From every country there will be black sheep, so I believe that it's not fair to use such broad statements to mock folks based on their nationalities. I've heard/read horror stories about the flippant & egocentric behavior of tourists from mainland China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, India, and naturally, USA... but in turn, I have good pals from China, Taiwan, Malaysia, India who don't not behave like some of the incorrigible 'touristy' folks as described (funny thing is - they too have similar experience observing others behaving badly). But I digress.

So I compared my experiences of staying here in Ohio with my visits to Toronto and California. Big City People 'living in the rat-race' want things to move fast (they drive more agressively, don't hold elevator doors, etc), and they are more -often unwittingly- self-centered (putting themselves and *often but not always* their immediate loved ones as top priority) and materialistic (preferring a fancy house, a fancy car and other luxuries over things that "just good enough"). Such behavior IMHO is most obvious in life-long, metropolis-dwellers with tall agendas (e.g. Singaporeans).

I find myself behaving a little 'nicer' as I acclimate myself to the slower pace of life in Ohio. I use turn signals to change lanes, I stop for pedestrians (not there are that many), I hold lift doors for others, I open doors for people behind me, etc. It just rubs off you when you witness so many others doing it and it brings smiles across the faces of those who observe it.

I certainly hope that in the next century, the pace of life in Singapore will slow down by a few hours, or perhaps a few days… when people will learn that sometimes, once they are outside of their workplace, they don’t HAVE to rush to catch that TV show, they don’t HAVE to beat that red light, they don’t HAVE to catch that train, that don’t HAVE to answer that damn phone call or SMS right away… instead, they can step out to a place like Marina South, just take a deep breath, look up at the clear blue sky, and... fly a kite.

Life is short, so have a little fun, folks! Don’t stress out and know that the most important thing is to stay healthy! Healthy = Wealthy = Wise. I learned that the hard way in college... it landed me in hospital!

Oh and don't forget to take a little time to tell your loved ones (i.e. your spouse/GF/BF, parents, grandparents, kids, cousins, etc.) how you appreciate them! It can be anything, from a warm hug, to a softly-spoken "Thanks and i love ya, y'know?" or simply a phone call to ask "How are you doing?"... I had a good friend of mine remind me of that, so I hope you can try it too!

To my lady-love: Missing you much, hon... I'll look forward to seeing you back in Columbus tonight!