united we stand,divided we fall

2007-08-10T04:55:00.000-07:00

the speech is up, and its at undefinedmeaning.wordpress.com cos wordpress pwns ur balls mr tarn. thanks for the relinking.

2007-04-19T02:23:00.000-07:00

http://view.break.com/217894

2007-03-22T06:05:00.000-07:00

#8
i just finished 'the phantom of the opera' yesterday, and although it cost me quite a few precious hours of sleep, i must say its worth it.

it talks of erik, a disfigured musical genius who lodges beneath the london opera house. a recluse, yet deeply in love with christine daae, a budding young singer. the battles of the phantom against christine, who loves the vicomte de chagny, raoul.
although christine admires erik, she is deeply attached to raoul, whom she has known since young. and this unravels into a marvelous love story.

one of the last lines christine was to erik, 'god give me strength to show you that you're not alone'. this has huge significance, because the phantom believes that he is shunned by ALL people, and hence dares not show his face to christine. all things he will do for her, yet he will not show her his face. and by saying this, and then proceeding to kiss him, she showed him that he was loved, and thus saved raoul, for he released the both of them afterward.

the best scene was when the three of them, erik, raoul and christine sang trio, with their voices overlapping each other. christine is a soprano, and erik and raoul are definitely beautiful tenors with marvelous voices. the music is beautifully textured, and their voices blend in with each other, countering each other, each telling a part of its own.......... all at the same time. also, it helps that the voices of the main actors and actress are so wonderfully perfect. this chorale creates the climax of the story, and then after they escape, the phantom disappears through a broken mirror that covers a hidden passage

many years later, when raoul is old, and christine is gone, he buys a musical box that the phantom used to own, and puts it at her grave. old and frail, his attendant tries to help him, but with a small gesture, he indicates that he wants to do it himself, showing how much he loves christine. as he turns to leave, a red rose catches his attention, and he recognises it as the phantom's as he always ties a black ribbon around the rose. this showing that the phantom is still alive, and that he has never forgotten christine. the expression on raoul's face is pensive, perhaps thinking of the phantom's whereabouts, or maybe reminiscing about his youth, and the battle with the phantom

and i cant believe i actually took time to write this. sheesh

2007-03-06T07:44:00.000-08:00

you are stronger than you realise, wiser than you know. what was once your life is now your legend.
will we recreate that legend?
can we recreate that legend?
i think we want to believe tt we can

2007-02-27T05:33:00.000-08:00

what is the use of capital punishment? does it serve to deter 'would-be' criminals from committing the crime? or is it just a 'tradition'? bringing forward the tried and tested ways of medieval punishments, showing the darker side of the human race. many old ways of killing criminals were foul, disgusting, and inhumane. these practices, are certainly what the amnesty international would be crying out against, if they were to exist now. however, they were common practices perhaps 500 years ago. so is this unfairness? and how can justice ever be 100% correct? it is human to err. if we do not err, we would not be man. we would have been elevated to the status of God.

first, i would seek to define the meaning of the words 'justice', and 'human rights'

as defined by the mariam-webster's dictionary,
'justice' means 'the maintenance or administration of what is just especially by the impartial adjustment of conflicting claims or the assignment of merited rewards or punishments' , the 'the administration of law; especially : the establishment or determination of rights according to the rules of law or equity' or: the principle or ideal of just dealing or right action : conformity to this principle or idea.

human rights, by the encyclopedia Britannica, says rights that belong to an individual or group of individuals as a consequence of being human. They refer to a wide continuum of values or capabilities thought to enhance human agency and declared to be universal in character, in some sense equally claimed for all human beings.

i will touch on points on each side of the argument, THEN supporting one specific side.

FOR CAPITAL PUNISHMENT:

firstly, it would give families of the victim a sense of 'satisfaction', not satisfaction in the sense that it gave them pleasure to see someone executed, but satisfaction in knowing that the perpetrator of the crimes against them has been punished. this feeling of wanting revenge, to exact the appropriate 'payback', is probably the most primal urge. who doesn't want an equal treatment? a classic example. the small boy is being bullied by a much older kid. the kid is twice his size, and is trying to take away his school bag. would the boy just say 'here. take it. you can have it.' OBVIOUSLY he would not. who would? as is normally the case, the smaller boy tries to hang on to his school bag. ALTHOUGH it is highly impossible that he win the older boy, he would still try. this applies to the justice system, although the laws and constituencies of the country are more likely to succeed at condemning the criminal.

secondly, capital punishment would serve as a strong deterrence to criminals. using Singapore as an example, in 2005, drug abusers arrested registered a fall of 17% as compared to 2004. and between 1994 and 2006, the number of abusers arrested registered an 82% decline. this goes to show how the strict death penalty has worked for singapore. from opium users in colonial rule, to synthetic drugs now, singapore's penalty serves as a strong deterrent, discouraging drug abusers and traffickers. unlike USA, which has a flourishing illegal drug market, with drugs like cocaine, marijuana, heroin etc. if singapore were like the united states, then we would see teenagers addicted to drugs, get sent in and out of rehabilitation centers, ruin their lives and whatnot.

thus, to a certain extent the death penalty IS useful, and CAN serve as a warning to potential murderers, hijackers, and wutever other crimes people might want to commit.

AGAINST the death penalty

it is a violation of human rights. which, are rights that belong to every individual, freedom of unlawful imprisonment, torture or execution. it is plausible, to say that: who decides what is unlawful? how does the judge sentence the guilty? and what if the guilty is not guilty? how is 100 people killing a black man by hanging a 'lynch mob', but a county judge sentencing a wrongly accused person to hang be called 'justice'? it does not make any sense. in any case, law is supposed to be impartial. but, a judge is still a common man given the power to rule over cases by the government because of certain qualifications. and no matter what, will still be prejudiced against or towards someone, no matter how minutely. certainly, they too, will be affected by societal pressure, and thus the sentence cannot be 'impartial'
lets say a person was sentenced to death for the act of murder, and 20 years later it was discovered that he was actually innocent? and that during the investigation there was an error? or maybe the prosecution overlooked some details that might have lead to his release? can the court that sentenced him be responsible? is that situation manslaughter?

in the case of amara toshi, he arrived at singapore full of hope to play soccer, but first, was asked by his manager to deliver some capsules to a man in singapore. these capsules, his manager claimed contained herbal medicine. the capsules contained diamorphine. he was hanged, for possesion of drugs, even though he was not aware that he was carrying drugs. in the sentencing, the judge said ' Tochi should have known and therefore he is guilty'. can toshi be guilty? what if he was truly ignorant of the contents of the 'herbal medicine'? there was no evidence to show that he knew about the contents, or that discovered their contents. he was just an eager football player, hoping for a better future in singapore. however, it is the judge's statement that i find repulsive. 'he should have known'. if he had known, he would be guilty. perhaps he would refuse to bring it to singapore. but he had not known, and how can it be said that he 'should have known'?

to keep a man alive is costly, and if a situation was that 2million dollars of government money was given to keep criminals in life imprisonment alive, instead of spendings for healthcare, education etc. which would be more useful? people in society would be indignant about their taxes going to keeping these criminals alive. would you then, say that you would rather take away the life of this murderer, and not give him a chance to repent? and what if he was truly repentant of his actions? would he still be given a chance? we all make mistakes in life, and what matters is that how serious these mistakes are.

conclusion:
we cannot have our cake and eat it too. there is no perfect answer to this situation. human life is important, but are those of hardened criminals any less important? how is it judged when a person should be handed the death penalty? i feel that in most cases, the death penalty should not be applied. however, i do not believe in the total abolishment of the death penalty, as it serves a good purpose. as such, i believe that the death penalty should be used sparingly, at the discretion of the judge, in cases where it is evident that the accused is guilty, where the accused has been proven guilty in a lawful manner, and when absolutely necessary. also, i feel that criminals dealt with life imprisonment should be given the choice whether to die, or to stay in prison for the rest of their life. is a caged bird any different from a bird lying dead on the road? mayb yes, mayb no. certainly, it is alive. but does it have any happiness? is it free to fly in the sky as is the instinct of a bird, is that kind of existence any different from being dead?

2007-02-24T19:17:00.000-08:00

title: reactions to the show 'the green mile'

before i begin, i have a request, that you listen to the song on my blog before reading on. you'll see why later.

the lyrics go:

From underneath the trees, we watch the sky
Confusing stars for satellites
I never dreamed that you'd be mine
But here we are, we're here tonight

Singing Amen I, I'm alive (I'm alive)
Singing Amen I, I'm alive

[CHORUS]
If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we'd see the day when nobody died

I'm singing

Amen I, Amen I, I'm alive
Amen I,Amen I, Amen I, I'm alive

And in the air the fireflies
Our only light in paradise
We'll show the world they were wrong
And teach them all to sing along

Singing Amen I, I'm alive (I'm alive)
Singing Amen I, I'm alive

[CHORUS (x2)]

And as we lie beneath the stars
We realize how small we are
If they could love like you and me
Imagine what the world could be

If everyone cared and nobody cried
If everyone loved and nobody lied
If everyone shared and swallowed their pride
Then we'd see the day when nobody died
(x2)

We'd see the day, we'd see the day
When nobody died
We'd see the day, we'd see the day
When nobody died
We'd see the day when nobody died

i actually found the song while searching youtube for the green mile, and someone made a video, with footage from the video and this song. i think that the song really fits the footage, and here i'll explain why.

the whole story is about the death penalty, and the underlying meaning that can be felt is that some people who shld not die ultimately die, and those who should die do not die.

should john coffey have died? the immediate response from most people would be a definite no. but in the end, he still died. he said that wild bill killed the two sisters with their love for each other. if everyone cared, if everyone loved, wild bill would not kill the both of them. the senseless, brutal murder of those two girls, show clearly his warped thinking and crazy mindset.

if percy whitmore was able to swallow his pride, and not bank on his 'knowing people', he would have been more likeable. if he was able to control his temper, and not abuse the prisoners, the others would have made life easier for him. although, he did not make life easy for anyone, and hence ' an eye for an eye'. given his background and qualifications, he could have made himself a good career, and done well in the prison faculty. however, he was unable to do it, all because of his pride, and his overestimation of himself.

ultimately he paid the price for what he did, becoming a patient in the very hospital that he was supposed to take charge of. perhaps some people might argue that it was a small price to pay for what he did to edward delacroix, but in my opinion, he received what was justly his. delacroix may have suffered for say, 15 minutes? but percy, on the other hand, has to struggle with himself for the rest of his life. which may be 10 years? 30years? 50years? staying in briar ridge, he will remember what he did for as long as he lives, and i believe that just that is enough punishment to him.

ending off, gandhi once said 'an eye for an eye, makes the whole world blind'. we should learn to forgive and forget, learn to love everyone. because, everyone deserves a chance in life. xD ( including fat baboons)

Noah's Ark

2007-01-31T11:17:00.001-08:00

my music my lworld

2007-01-25T05:04:00.001-08:00

to many people, music is a form of expression, and a way of......................rebellion?

someone told me before: music is not life. music is larger than life.
so music, is perhaps what keeps us going. in everyday life, you see people on the streets listening to their iPods n mp3s. yepps. and to me, music, the basis of my music is AHBAND.
yay! when u're in the band, you can feel the music. not just famous singers..with their phony albums and stuff, but music, played from the heart. its the way we express ourselves. and playing that music with your friends... its a most special feeling anyone can ever have.

so........my fav song for the moment is 'Stand By Me' by Shayne Ward.

lyrics...............................................................HERE:

Nothing's impossible
Nothing's unreachable
When I am weary
You make me stronger
This love is beautiful
So unforgettable
I feel no winter cold
When we're together
When we're together

[chorus]
Will you stand by me
Hold on and never let me go
Will you stand by me
With you I know I belong
When the story gets told

When day turns into night
I look into your eyes
I see my future now
All the world and its wonder

This love wont fade away
And through the hardest days
I'll never question us
You are the reason
My only reason

Will you stand by me
Hold on and never let me go
Will you stand by me
With you I know I belong
When the story gets told

I am blessed
To find what I need
In a world loosing hope
You're my only believe
You make things right
Everytime after time

Will you stand by me
Hold on and never let me go
Will you stand by me
With you I know I belong
When the story gets told

[repeat chorus]

Stand by me
No more darling I want you by my side
I want you hear with me

well. my mood's been kinda weird this few weeks. especially cos that person i've been waiting for to come online hasnt been coming online. and i really need to talk to he. or she. whichever. wutever it is..i really really need to talk to you. i feel that you're ignoring me. yes, ytd i saw you and you din even talk more than two sentences to me. i still remember all that you've done for me. what happened last year really changed me. you came in and totally changed my life.

i hope that after whatever happened, i've become a better person, and that i've become more mature. yepps. and that we can still remain friends.

no matter how happy and carefree i appear to be, inside, my heart is broken

this whole post abt music has digressed far enough. darn! ohwells i have nothing to say. my mind keeps drifting to think about that person/

NUTS!

2007-01-19T05:30:00.000-08:00

the blog subject for today is::: NUTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

so, i'm here to talk about nuts.
seriously, nuts!
wut's e definition of nuts? anyone? nuts?
there're many kinds of nuts.. like, peanuts,cashew nuts,pistachio nuts etc etc.
but that's not the point. the point is...........kicking nuts.
as, mr joel han says, KICK MY NUTS!
ya noe wut's kicking a person's nuts right?
for example.........i think many people just wna kick chai's nuts cos he's so **** sucky.
back to wut i was saying......it really hurts if u kick a person's nuts.
nah. i'm jux kidding. but dont go arnd kicking guys kk.
ha.
if you say a person is nuts, it also means that that particular person or if u will, animal is CRAZY. the term 'animal' can refer to some people, for example, if that person has a nickname that's convieniently an animal's name. or, perhaps, if that person looks like.....................a dog? AND, if that person behaves like a dog...and the gender is female. but that would be more commonly referred to as a BITCH. for example, SOME people in a bedok SAP school. (those ppl are in high management positions) enough said.
so.. are you nuts? or do you like to kick other ppl's nuts? or do you like eating nuts?
which kind of nuts are nicer? i like peanuts ya noe.. like that peanut waffle we ate aft band prac.
we saw chua ge ge there lehh.
then weyjian went: hello mr chua.
n cherine n i were like.............dont catch us for anyting.
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL.
but the peanut waffle was nice. yeah. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ben n jerry's! i still owe yingzhi
BEN N JERRY'S

==========================================================================

on unrelated stuff,
there's drills tomorrow
at 8am
in the field
please
pray
that
it
doesnt
rain

i dun wna do drills in front of sjab. WALAU AHBAND'S DRILLS SUCK LA>
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
AHBAND DE DRILLS IS LOUSY! HAPPY??!?!?!?!?!?!??!!
shit u.
kick ur nuts

shane came back today
elaine came back today
jiaxin came back today
jeryl came back today
qiqn came back today, and scolded us.

whahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
okok its nt funny. she said tt e standard wasnt there
tone needed improvement
articulation wasnt clear
and that drills attendance was PATHETIC
then shane talked to us.. =)))

nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.
nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.
nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.
nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.
nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.
nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.
nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.
nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.
nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.
nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.
nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts. nuts.

u noe why i'm writing the word 'nuts' here?
cos tts wut mr tan said to write about.
so technically,i can just write a hundred 'nuts' here. and be done with this post.
yes you can! because, it fufills the task requirement of writing about 'nuts'. and the minimum word limit of a hundred words.

ok i went on longer than expected. and i'm jux gna copy this post into my main blog. thats so shit. or if u want the more scientifically correct, its so faeces. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. mayb tts copyrighted by mr tan.
sianzzzzzzzz. okok i wna go play O2jam alreh.
wesley is cute!
adios suckers!

2007-01-16T04:55:00.000-08:00

hmmm today was kinda ok right?
msg-ed jiahao at 6.05 to ask him go eat brekky
den he said he was still at home so i took my time to walk
chatted with him all e way to sch n kept stoning cos i had to type e msg
so reached e 222 bus stop at like 6.30
then i saw cc!
i wasted another sms. lolol.
ohwells. tada. but tt 2 sms-es kept me awake in class!
cos i told her nt to slp in lecture n she said tt i was e one who would slp n i shld nt slp
I DIN SLP IN MATHS!
^tts ur cue to clap/

dum diddly dum dum but tts nt e pt! e pt is tt I DIN SLP. ahaha. and i doodled somemore on my books..... look wut leonard drew on my foolscap paper.
i'll keep it forever sia.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
bro damn psychic
ur ye shen yue means sth else eh.
whahahahahhahaha
okok go play O2jam or ms le.
sianzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
CC faster come online lehhh