Article
She once left the country to look for a better life in a foreign land. The 37-year-old former domestic helper, Jourgina Dagoplo, found what she was searching for right at home.
She worked as a maid in Singapore for 13 years, but with her employer's help, she managed to obtain an ITE (Institute of Technical Education) skills certificate.
Eighteen years after leaving the Philippines to work in Singapore, Dagoplo is back in her homeland to finish studies in information technology-her long-time dream to earn an education that she says is worth much more than overseas money.
"I realized that it's hard to live without an education. It is an investment in yourself and something that nobody can take away from you," Dagoplo told the Inquirer in Filipino.
"No matter how much money you earn, that will be gone. But education, your knowledge, it belongs to you until you die," she said.
"My employers were very, very kind. If I couldn't do my work because of school, Ate would do it so I could go to school," Dagoplo said, adding she had grown very close to her employers' family.
She landed a job at IBM when the firm's bosses learned about her story from the Straits Times. She was hired by IBM as a technician earning $1,050 a month - double what she got as a maid. And even when she could no longer work as a house help for her employers, she was welcome to stay at their home as a guest.
Despite the setback, Dagoplo is determined to finish what she has started.
"The reason I'm studying now is not because I want to go back to Singapore. If I get an opportunity here, why not grab it?" she said.

My Views
Singapore is a good place to nurture but not everyone will be able to excel. Dream comes true through diligence. I believe that her employers are not only kind but understanding and always in full support to ensure that their maid could achieve better. At the same time, the maid herself knows to treasure every opportunity that arises and given. I think this is a very important story that must be told and heard by everyone, especially those students who like to play truant and discontinue schooling just simply because they do not like to study. They should be grateful that they have the chance to earn an education.

KOAY YI JING - 105421G

KOTA BAHARU, Dec 15 (Bernama) -- Shocking, but true. Some teenage drug addicts are offering their girlfriends, including schoolgirls, to drug peddlers for a night of passion, in exchange for ''pil kuda'' (psychotropic pills).
This ''business transaction'' has been cited as a reason for the hike in sexual crimes in Kelantan.
State police deputy chief Senior Assistant Commissioner Mazlan Lazim said investigations revealed that teenagers hooked on ''pil kuda'', offered their girlfriends to drug peddlers for a night of sex.
In return, the teenagers would be given their supply of the pills, he said.
Mazlan said: "Such alarming activity also involved schoolboys aged between 14 and 16, who already had sex with their girlfriends," he told reporters here today.
He said, between January and Dec 12, this year, 296 rape cases were reported to the police, including the ''exchange'' of girlfriends for a supply of ''pil kuda''.
He called on parents to monitor their daughters'' activities to prevent them from getting involved with drug addicts.
-- BERNAMA

MNR MRA NHA GR

Nicholas Chan
Kuala Lumpur (The Star/ANN) - A 17-year-old Malaysian boy reportedly became the sex slave of his tuition teacher for four years, reported Malaysia's Chinese daily, China Press.
The teenager from Johor Baru was sexually abused by the teacher, who taught Mathematics and Science from his home.
The newspaper reported that the teacher would play pornographic movies during tuition classes. Apparently, the teacher would also force the student to have oral sex and sodomised him repeatedly.
The boy decided to reveal his ordeal after his SPM (equivalent to the O-Level) examination ended.
He told his father about it and the teacher has been arrested at his home following a police report.

Nicholas Chan:
An unemployed man armed with a kitchen knife went on a rampage on two packed
buses Friday in Japan leaving 14 people wounded, mostly teenage school children,
before passengers overpowered him.
Police said they had arrested 27-year-old Yuta Saito on charges of attempted
murder after the morning rush hour attacks outside Toride railway station, about
40 kilometres (25 miles) northeast of Tokyo.
"The suspect got onto the buses and wielded a knife and slashed passengers,"
said a local police spokesman after the bloody attack with what media reports
said was a 25-centimetre (10-inch) kitchen knife.
Passengers subdued the attacker, who also sustained some injuries.
"I wanted to end my life," he was later quoted as saying by broadcaster
NHK.
The knife attack in a country where violent crime is rare evoked memories of
a far bloodier stabbing spree in 2008 when a man killed seven people in Tokyo,
running over three with a truck and stabbing four to death.
Friday morning's attacks left 14 people wounded, none with life-threatening
injuries. Among the victims were eight high school students, four junior high
school students and two women aged 49 and 59, reports said.
The man slashed at least five of his victims, a local fire department
official said, while the rest were hurt when he punched them or as they
stampeded to flee the attack.
"People screamed: 'Run. A man with a knife is getting in.' I was scared, so
scared," said one woman, speaking on television.
Another woman said: "There was an uproar. High school students were running
out and I saw a schoolboy bleeding from his forehead."
The driver of the first bus that was attacked told NHK: "There were some 50
passengers on the bus when the man entered.
"First, I thought it was a fight among students. But then I heard a scream
and I thought this isn't normal. I saw the man wielding a knife, and I quickly
opened the door to let the students flee. That's all I could do."
The attacks stunned the local community in Ibaraki prefecture.
"It's an unforgivable act," said Kenji Takezawa, deputy principal of Edogawa
Gakuen school, some of whose students were among the victims.
"We gathered our students in our hall and told them to stay calm," he said,
adding that all afternoon classes were cancelled.
The National Police Agency said this week that the number of criminal cases
detected by police in 2010 looks set to total below 1.6 million for the first
time in 23 years, Kyodo News reported.
Murders, attempted murders and conspiracy to murder are on track to hit a new
post-war low this year, with 988 cases reported by the end of November, down 2.8
percent from last year, the report said.

Nicholas Chan
Kuala Lumpur (The Star/ANN) - A videoclip showing two children believed to be
related to each other having sex has has created a stir in Malaysia.
The boy is believed to be about 11 or 12 while the girl is about 13 to 14
years old, reported Malaysian newspaper, Harian Metro.
The video clip was taken by a third person in a hotel room in Butterworth,
Penang, and is being spread via mobile phones.
A person who obtained the clip from a friend said: "I can only shake my head
in disgust. How will their parents react when they find out?" he asked.
He said the clip was a sign of moral decay and hoped the authorities will
take action.
I think that yes the authorities should take action because, sex videos are at large and people who are involve in it are getting younger. So there should be a stop to all these nonsense

Singapore’s Raj is the Biggest Loser

A mere one kilogram was the difference between winning and losing.
24-year-old Singaporean, Viveganandam Deveraj (Raj) shed a whopping 67 kilograms to win Season 2 of the popular weight-loss reality show, The Biggest Loser Asia.
The Ngee Ann polytechnic graduate and 3D modeler pipped his closest rival Atikom Laksanapanai (Nai) of Thailand by a mere one kilogram in the show’s dramatic final episode taped in front of a live studio audience at MediaCorp Studios on Tuesday.
In so doing, Raj took home US$100,000 in prize money. Genghis Khan Enrique of the Philippines finished third.
Speaking after his moment of victory, Raj told Yahoo! Singapore he drew motivation to work out even harder after nasty comments criticised his gamesmanship during the 13-episode competition.
And despite beating a total of 15 other contestants on the show to claim the top prize, Raj said this was just the start: keeping the weight off, accumulated from years of bad eating habits, was going to be the real challenge.
“Yes, this is a life-changing experience, but it will not be the defining point in my life,” said a startlingly fitter and trimmer Raj.
“The defining point will be the same time next year, at the end of season 3 of The Biggest Loser Asia, when the highlight will be on me once again. Will I still remain trim and fit, or will I put back all the weight I lost?”
“Winning the prize money is definitely a very big cherry on top of this life-changing experience, but it’s not about who wins the Biggest Loser Asia 2 — it’s about taking control of your life. In this case, every other contestant’s a winner as well,” the avid gamer added.
In the showdown finale, Raj weighed in at a trim 77 kilos – a massive 67kg drop from his original 144kg when he started the competition.
Needing to lose at least 64 kilograms to beat Raj’s weight loss percentage, the popular Nai of Thailand could only manage a 63 kilogram loss at the final weigh-in, thereby handing the title to Raj.
“At that moment, I already made peace with myself and if I had lost to Nai, it would mean that he deserved it more than me,” said Raj.
Third-placed contestant, Filipino  Internet cafe owner Enrique, hopes that his experience on the show will inspire others to adopt a healthier lifestyle.
“I have so many excuses not to exercise. I have diabetes, hypertension, heart problems, back problems and knee problems. I’m a ticking time bomb. But look at me now, I have all the excuses in the world not to take this step, so if I can do it, so can anybody else,” said the man, who himself lost 53 kilos throughout the entire show.
So what does Raj intend to do with his winner’s cheque of US$100,000?
“I want to use some of the money to set up a charity, to help people like me who need help in turning their lives around.”

My View

Raj have come a long way from who he use to be. He put in a lot of effort to lose those extra pounds. I am sure it was not easy but it is not impossible either. He must have gone through a lot to be the size he is now. He has proved that staying healthy is a choice you make and not something that is not possible to achieve. I admire him for his will power to come this far. It must have boost his confidence tremendously. I am sure he will be an inspiration to all those people who want to lose those extra pounds. Staying healthy is the most valuable asset we can have. There is no point if you are the richest person on earth and your bedridden will ill health you cannot enjoy the finer things in life without good health. We should also eat healthy, exercise and lead a happy life in order to lead a healthy and fulfilling life. Good health not only will make us confident but we can contribute back to the society more if we are in good health. Most Singaporeans are health conscious but they are also people who are obese and lead a sedentary lifestyle. Everyone should realise how important is a fit body and good health.

Banu Priya Bathumalai 104515L

Woman's eyes glued shut thanks to pharmacy blunder

SINGAPORE - An elderly woman unwittingly "glued her eyelids shut" after she applied the medication that had been dispensed to her by a pharmacy at a local hospital. Although the doctor had prescribed her Solcoseryl 20% Eye Gel, the hospital pharmacy had given her Solcoseryl Dental Adhesive Paste instead. Dental adhesive paste or eye gel? (Photos: STOMP) According to online pharmacy websites, both Solcoseryl Dental Adhesive Paste and Solcoseryl Eye Gel contain proteins derived from calf blood that aid in wound healing.

Her son, Austin, wrote in to STOMP with pictures of the wrong product:
"As shown in the pictures attached, my mother was prescribed Solcoseryl 20% Eye Gel but whoever was behind the counter gave her Solcoseryl DENTAL ADHESIVE PASTE instead.
"My mother does not understand English, and her eyesight is too poor to make out the words even if she did.
"I came home to find her complaining that it was difficult to open her eyelids and discovered to my horror that she had applied this paste to her eyes."
In a phone conversation with STOMP, Austin verified that his mother's eyelids were glued shut because she had applied the dental adhesive paste.
He added:
"She had to have her eyes rinsed repeatedly. As it is, there is no telling if there is going to be any permanent damage from this mistake and she may very well had gone blind if nobody was home tonight.
"Please urge your readers to check and double-check anything that they are given by hospital pharmacies, especially if they have elderly parents."
According to Austin, his mother was brought to the hospital's A&E department where she was given an eye irrigation treatment.
The family is still waiting for a response from the unnamed hospital on the matter.

My View

Pharmacy should never make such blunders as the woman is old and sick she will not be able to make out the words with poor eyesight. This is a serious matter that the pharmacy should look into. People who usually come the pharmacy are sick and some of them might not be aware what medication is dispense to them and they usually just take their medication as directed by the doctor. If the pharmacist dispense the wrong medication this could cause a lot problem to the patient. However patients should also be responsible and check the medication before they leave the counter. After the mistake is made it is hard to reverse however if all of us are alert it is easy to avoid this from happening.

Banu Priya Bathumalai- 104515L

Naked man arrested at McDonald’s outlet

A man was refused service by the McDonald’s crew in Queensway after he walked in stark naked and tried to order breakfast in the early hours of Sunday morning.
The incident occurred at the Rideout Tea Garden McDonald’s outlet along Queensway around 4am.
A witness, media coordinator Aslan Asat, 26, who was sitting in the alfresco area of the restaurant with three of his friends, told The New Paper they were shocked to see the man grinning as he casually walked into the restaurant totally nude.
“The naked guy was holding on to a laptop case, but he did not attempt to cover his private parts with it,” he added. The naked man also did not appear to be intoxicated.
It is understood that the Chinese man, who looked to be in his mid-twenties to early thirties, tried to order a cup of coffee over the counter but was refused service by the McDonald’s crew.
Mr Aslan said, “The McDonald’s staff asked him to leave, but he loitered around in the restaurant for at least 10 minutes before walking out.”
There were six other customers in the fast-food restaurant at the time, and they had the same reaction towards the naked man.
“Everyone was gawking at him initially and started to giggle after a while,” he said.
However, the naked man continued to loiter outside the restaurant even after being asked to leave.
“He took out a phone from the laptop case and started to make a call. I overheard him complaining about the refusal of service by McDonald’s staff in English,” said Mr Aslan.
“He left only after lighting up a cigarette.”
A McDonald’s spokesman confirmed the incident and said the restaurant had to turn the customer away due to the objectionable nature of his behaviour.
“The fast-food restaurant has referred the case to the police and investigations are under way.”
Police said they received a call at 4.35am on Sunday regarding a man appearing naked at a McDonald’s outlet. They arrested the man and referred him to the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) for psychiatric assessment.
Lawyer, Foo Cheow Ming, told the paper that appearing naked in public and exposing one’s private parts is regarded as an “obscene” act by Singapore courts.
If found guilty, the man faces a maximum sentence up to three months in jail and a fine of $2,000.

My view

People are becoming more open for the wrong reasons nowadays. In recent days there are many news above indecent exposure like couples caught having public display of affection (PDA) and now this guy walking around naked in public. We living in a conservative society we should be aware that such acts will cause others to feel uncomfortable. We should be sensitive to people around us and respect them by behaving in a socially accepted manner. Such acts should be punished by the authority.

Banu Priya Bathumalai- 104515L

More than 600,000 people killed by secondhand smoke

Article
A new study analyzing data from 2004 in 192 countries says second-hand smoke kills more than 600,000 people every year.The first ever look at the global impact of passive smoking was published Friday in the British medical journal The Lancet.Researchers found that 40 percent of children, and more than 30 percent of non-smoking men and women were exposed to second-hand smoke.Scientists estimate that about 60 percent of the deaths were caused by heart disease and 30 percent by lower respiratory disease, followed by asthma and lung cancer.Altogether, passive smoking accounted for about one percent of the world's deaths.Scientists say passing and enforcing smoke-free laws for public spaces could significantly reduce mortality and health care costs from passive smoking.But researchers also noted that children's exposure to second-hand smoke happens most likely at home. They say that "the mix of infectious diseases and tobacco seems to be a deadly combination."

My Views
Smoking in your home damages the health of every other person who shares that home, especially children whose lungs are not fully developed. Smoking in public places damages the health of everyone who shares that space. Therefore, I hope that smokers can be more considerate and responsible. The non-smokers should have the right to breathe smoke-free air. It is important to have restrictions on where people are allowed to smoke and in particular to keep the work place as a smoke-free environment. Everybody should make an effort to quit for the sake of the people they love.

Koay Yi Jing-105421G

Teacher charged for having sex with underaged student

Article

A 26-year-old teacher admitted in court yesterday to having had sex with a 15-year-old student, twice.

He was slapped with two charges of having sex with a person below the age of 16, reported The New Paper.

According to media reports, the girl allowed the teacher in to her Woodlands' flat in May and June this year, where they had sex.

The teacher cannot be named to protect the girl's identity.

The co-form teacher has been suspended by the Ministry of Education (MOE) and is expected to turn up in court next month for a pre-trial conference.

If conicted, he faces up to 10 years' jail and a fine for each charge.

My Views

What is wrong with our society, it seems these forbidden relationships are happening more often. More and more this molesting has been notified in the public eye.  This is becoming an increasing problem that threatens the very nature and integrity of our educational system and is destroying untold numbers of young people. Predators are no longer the creepy guys in the raincoats across from the school. Maybe we should "only" hire more mature role models in a school setting? The control of role models don't matter any longer- our society has no control any longer. How do we decifer who is a good teacher anymore? Parents need to teach their children more morals and teach them the way of protecting themselves. 

Koay Yi Jing - 105421G

600 000 killed a year, what is the cause?

 
LONDON - AROUND one in a hundred deaths worldwide is due to passive smoking, which kills an estimated 600,000 people a year, World Health Organisation (WHO) researchers said on Friday.
In the first study to assess the global impact of second-hand smoke, WHO experts found that children are more heavily exposed to second-hand smoke than any other age-group, and around 165,000 of them a year die because of it.
Children's exposure to second-hand smoke is most likely to happen at home, and the double blow of infectious diseases and tobacco 'seems to be a deadly combination for children in these regions', they said.
The WHO researchers looked at data from 192 countries for their study. To get comprehensive data from all 192, they had to go back to 2004. They used mathematical modelling to estimate deaths and the number of years lost of life in good health.
Worldwide, 40 per cent of children, 33 per cent of non-smoking men and 35 per cent non-smoking women were exposed to second-hand smoke in 2004, they found.
This exposure was estimated to have caused 379,000 deaths from heart disease, 165,000 from lower respiratory infections, 36,900 from asthma and 21,400 from lung cancer. -- REUTER

 

Comment:

 

600,000 people die a year because of exposure to second hand smoke.

 

I think it is good thing that Singapore has many smoke free areas, such as lift lobby, carpark area, school premises, shopping centre entrance and such by ruling we are actually reducing the risk of people suffering from second-hand smoke inhaling. However we are still exposed to second smoke at open areas people should be more considerate by not smoking while walking along pathways and in crowded areas.

 

Parents who smoke also need to take note that they should not smoke at home with the presence of their children. This is a bad thing for the children's health and the  children might also pick up the habit because of their curiosity to try out new things.

 

Student also  tend to pick up smoking habits in school when they hang out with the smoking clique. Not only are they exposing themselves to second hand smoke but eventually they might also start smoking due to increasing peer pressure and they to be like their friends in order to fit in.

 

We should keep away from second hand smoke and take care of our health by eating healthy and keeping fit. Our health is priceless so let's look after ourselves well.

 

Post by,

Banu Priya Bathumalai

 

No branded items? No partners in class

Article

Be rich, or at least appear to be, if you want to be popular in school. 

That seems to be the message in a recent topic on local forum Hardware Zone.The forum posts insinuate that if university students do not own at least one branded item, they will not be able to find project groups to work with and are ostracised.

A forum user on the Hardware Zone started the thread by saying: 'I heard that if you study in SMU and you don't have a car, or wear branded clothes, and don't have an iPhone or an iPad, socialising and making friends will be a huge problem.'

That comment riled up others in the forum, with quite a number replying in agreement. Another Hardware Zone forum user, 'SpinFire,' commented, 'Ladies there carry at least a Coach handbag, guys must have at least an iPhone 4 with Gucci or LV wallet.

'If not, no one will want to do project work with you. Sports or recreation clubs (also) won't take you in as a member..'

One forum user who claimed to be studying in SMU, posted a reply in the forum, saying that students had better ask their parents for a car before they start school.

Otherwise, they will 'never get a girlfriend here,' said the user, 'zeroboi'. 

He also said that the students here 'are rich, like really rich.'

Another forum user also commented that SMU seems to have become an elite university.

My Views

Well, that's the sad state of our affairs, our society is getting more and more materialistic, isn't it? Students do not own at least one branded item will not be able to find project group to work with, how sad it is. In university but behaving like a kid. Like if you dont have any branded items, they will not befriend with you. But the thing is, having branded item does not necessary make the owner of it any smarter. In short, we must not let materialism dominate our lives.

Koay Yi Jing-105421G

Primary 1 schoolboy goes missing after being bullied

Article

Bullying in school is nothing new, and the attack on this boy may seem trivial. Tom (not his real name) got only a bruise on his right leg, and fingernail marks on his left arm after five classmates allegedly set upon him; attackers were all 7-years-old. He said that when he asked them to stop, they kicked and pinched him.

"I wanted to go up to the second storey to run away from my classmates who were attacking me, but they pushed me to the floor andI hurt my chin," claimed Tom.

He then got up and was given a punch before he decided to run to the library. Other pupils who saw the attack looked for the discipline master, but could not immediately find him, he said. Tom tried to find his form teacher and also tried to call his mother, but he claimed the school phone didn't work. Feeling helpless, he ran out of the school crying even before the school assembly started in the afternoon. The vice-principal of the primary school confirmed that Tom had been attacked by five of his classmates in school and that the matter is being investigated. Tom claimed that the boys who attacked him had often taunted him with nicknames like "loser"and "idiot". Tom's mother, Madam Rina said she knew about the name-calling, and that Tom had often asked if he could transfer to another school because of it.

"But I brushed aside his complaints as I thought that it was common among kids to call each other names," she said.

"Moreover, his form teacher was also aware of it.

"But the attack was over the limit. I don't know why my son was beaten up and I want to find out why."

MadamRina said she decided not to make a police report after a discussion with Tom's father, 35, an operations executive in a security company.

They decided to let the school carry out the necessary actions instead.

My views

Kids nowadays are getting more and more uncontrollable. I think this has to do with the background life of a bully. A bully can inherit those behaviors from family or friends especially parents, play a major part in children's lives and can have an influence on their behavior. Parents talking with children about how to treat others and how others should be treating them AND being good role models themselves could be the most effective tool to fight against school bullying. In Toms's case, I think those attackers have to be counselled and they should be punished. More efforts needed to help ensure that school is a safe and secure environment for children.

Koay Yi Jing-105421G

MOE revokes scholarship of student found with child pornography

In a statement, a spokesman said the Ministry will also tighten its processes so that schools must provide information on specific behavioural problems which may affect their selection as teachers.
Wong was awarded an overseas teaching scholarship in 2006.
As part of the selection process, the spokesman said the ministry reviewed his academic and CCA records, as well as testimonials from the Chinese High School and Hwa Chong Institution which he attended.
The spokesman said the teachers did not include in his testimonials the fact that he was publicly caned as a student in 2002 for peeping in a lady's toilet as they thought that he had overcome this errant behaviour after professional help.
The Ministry said it expects their teaching scholars to conduct themselves in a manner that upholds the standards of the teaching profession, and will take the necessary actions against those who have behaved inappropriately.
Wong, a third -- year history undergraduate, was caught with 50 videos of child pornography on his computer hard disk after the police raided his room in March.
Of the films, 25 were rated as Four on the Copine scale, which is used to decide the severity of child pornography.
The top two categories, levels four and five, are used for hardcore pornography.
Wong, who is out on bail, will be sentenced by the York Crown Court on December 13 and faces imprisonment.
__________________________________________________________________________

I'm glad that the ministry had taken such a measure, to withdraw his scholarship. He should not have been awarded the scholarship in the first place due to his past offence of having caned in public for peeping at girls in the toilet at the age of 15. After securing the scholarship, he is still not repentant and continue his wrong doings. The ministry have also done another right move to check all applicant's background in future for any signs of behaviour problems before offering the scholarship to them.

Yu Ming

Booklet printed in all 4 languages is such a waste of paper

STOMPer save the earth does not think it prudent to print this Emergency Guide booklet in all four major languages. He suggests distributing the English version to all households while making the copy in other languages available at the community centres.

Said the STOMPer:

"Every household would have received the Emergency Guide by MOH and the Health Promotion Board.

"While I agree that Singapore is a multi-racial society that supports 4 major languages, is there a need to waste an extra 20 pages on other languages in a booklet that is given to every household?

"My household is only interested in the English version which only made up 5 pages.

"Is it really necessary to print such a thick booklet for every household when most of the 20 pages will be useless to them?

"Multiply 20 by the total number of households in Singapore -- that is how much paper and printing costs have been wasted.

"The amount wasted could have been used to provide subsidies to the needy instead.

"Besides wasting taxpayers' money, it is also a waste of paper.

"The first of the '3R's is Reduce.

"Can you imagine how much paper has been wasted?

"A suggestion: Just distribute the English version to every household, but make the copy in other languages available the community centre.

"The amount saved would be substantial."
__________________________________________________________________________

I feel that this stomper having a wrong mindset. There is this need to send all 4 copies in different languages to all households. Who knows if that particular household out there only knows one language? Or what if its only one elderly living in that flat who only understands chinese? In this world these days we tend to focus too much on money. Although printing less will save the earth and also save a huge sum of money, but we have to remember the fact that, as long as one person get's saved by reading this information booklet regardless of the language, all the money spent is worth it. A life is priceless.

Yu Ming

Nassim Rd house is one of Asia's 5 most expensive homes

STOMPer propertyagent was stunned to learn just how much a house can cost you in Asia -- take a look at Asia's most costly residences.

The STOMPer described:

"The most expensive house in Singapore is worth US$120 million.

"It is none other than the Arwaa Mansion at 48 Nassim Road, which is purportedly owned by the younger brother of Sultan of Brunei, Prince Jefri Bolkiah.

"The other unbelievably expensive houses in Asia are in India, Shanghai, China and Hong Kong.

"All of them range from tens of millions to billions of dollars.

"And I thought HDB prices were high..."

__________________________________________________________________________

I feel that there is no point having such a luxury house when you can simply stay in a HDB flat. In life, one just have to be contended with what they have. A simple four room HDB flat should be enough for most families, if couples want a modernistic look or feel in their homes, all they need is some interior designing. I have once seen a video on facebook, a guy living in hong kong with a flat of only 400 square feet, is able to make his house look so spacey and big with 26 different sliding compartments and mirrors as his ceiling. And from the video it can be seen that he is very happy with his house.

Yu Ming

MOE Scholar Caught with Hardcore Child Pornography.

   Jonathan Wong a 23 year MOE scholar who is studying in University of York at where he is a third-year History major in the United Kingdom has been caught with hardcore child pornography videos on his computer.

  Wong has pleaded guilty to 17 charges of downloading child pornography between July 15, 2008, and March19 this year. According to the Crown Prosecution Service spokesman, the maximum sentence for "the most serious of these types of offences is 10 years".

  This is not the first time Wong was caught for his unusual sexual behaviour when he was 15 he was caned in his secondary school for peeping at primary school girls in the toilet.

  I think he is paedophile. His scholarship should be revoked. He should be a role model as a scholar but he is an bad example and a disgrace to the country. He should be severely punished and sent to rehabilitation centre. He should let others suffer for his wrong doing. The children have a bitter past to remember now. 
This is going to affect their daily life and haunt them for the rest of their life.

  We should not only emphasise on academic excellence our society should also emphasise on socially acceptable behaviour and moral behaviour. We focus to much on academic excellence and we forget to instill moral values in our children while they are growing up.


Banu Priya Bathumalai
  

Student snaps photo of 'O' Level paper and posts it on Twitter

Article
A student from Outram Secondary School posted a photo of his 'O' Level Social Studies exam papers along with the tweet, "Do you dare bring phone into examination hall and take a picture?" Xavier Ong's brazen act may be illegal, but the teen says he loves the attention and does not intend to remove the photos. Some called it a 'brave' but foolish act, but to others it was a self-seeking cry for attention. He received much attention from local and global Twitter users after he posted the picture. But now, he regrets his actions. He felt like a criminal who was being interrogated during a meeting with the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB) yesterday regarding his Twitter post.

My views
I think this is what social media is doing to humans these days. A mixup between the real & cyber world! Many people think that it is harmless to post anything online, they do not know the consequences that may arise. Like in Xavier's case, he didn't know that the post might have given viewers the lack of seriousness in the exam procedures for the 'O' Level examinations and he will be interrogated like a criminal. In my opinion, students should be taught to understand new media and the real risks that it poses. They also should be taught the effective decision-making strategies to assist in deciding what is the right action.
Koay Yi Jing-105421G

Nicholas Chan, 101249L
Child pornography.
A Singaporean student at the University of York has pleaded guilty to 17 charges of making child pornography videos featuring girls as young as 6-years-old.
Jonathan Wong, 23, who is on an Education Ministry teaching scholarship, is currently out on bail and has surrendered his passport to the police.
Martin Butterworth of the Crown Prosecution Service told magistrates that some of the girls featured in the videos looked as “young as six”.
“Of the movies, some of them are graphic, some of them have audio, some of them last more than an hour.
Why people are so much into pornography? Well I think that this people are just sick in the mind. They just do not have anything better to do. Pornography is something that people in it would want to keep it private. Not to let it be shown to the whole world. And this guy he is even having videos of girls as young as six and it is really weird. Because girls at that age are still innocent and I think that they are being forced into doing it. Jonathan Wong should be charged and be jailed for doing this.

Nicholas Chan, 101249L
I find that the slashing incident at downtown east has made known to all Singaporeans that we have to be on our guard against gangsterism. As gangsterism is on the rise, many innocent parties will get harmed. People who hang out late at night are not necessarily up to no good. But they might be just having a small gathering. Recently, my group of friends, we were out under a HDB block then police came to use and take down our IC number. As we were just talking and not making so much noise, they police told us that we should go home as the night is very dangerous. But we didn't care so much about it at all. But after the case of the death of Darren Ng, the police will take suspected people to the cantonment unit for questioning. But from my point of view, even though the police has stepped up on the security, but I think that it is totally useless. Gangs are everywhere. They are able to move around so quickly and this allows the police to take lots of time to track  them down. Therefore, I think that what the police should do, is to bring the SSB unit to talk to the gang leaders. After a week or 2, there is a case of a stabbing incident in ang mo kio. Although they say that it does not concern anything of gangsterism, but I think it does, because who will bring a knife with them when they go out. It can never be of such coincidence. I think that the case still has some leads to the downtown east incident.