Cute song... Absolutely cute. Listen to it and you'll know how screwed up the army is...

http://www.mindef.gov.sg/arc/downloads/download.asp?file=songs/03_knock_it_down.mp3

Lyrics:

http://www.mindef.gov.sg/arc/downloads/download.asp?file=songs/03_knock_it_down.pdf

HiMy seniors in UChicago are organising this party called Absolute US at Zoukon the wed 4th august, 8-10pm. There are a lot of competitions among thevarious us universities, like singing...drinking etc. Non-US people are alsowelcomed(esp if you are a British hard core drinker). If you are interested,please feel free to contact me for more details : )

 

IT IS TRUE - IT PAYS TO BE A GIRL. MCPs ARE GENTLEMEN TRYING TO PROTECT INNOCENT GIRLS FROM THE CRUEL TYRANNY AND HYPOCRISY OF MODERN SOCIETY
 
Iranian lawyer Shirin Ebadi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize today in Stockholm for her tireless work on behalf of human rights in her country. But even as she is honored, countless other women are risking their lives to make a difference in the world. Anne Richard reflects on the troubling list of women who were attacked in 2003 for doing just that.

We can start with Sweden’s Foreign Minister Anna Lindh, who was murdered days before a key September 2003 referendum on the euro, while shopping in a Stockholm department store.

Fighting disease

There is also Dr. Annalena Tonelli, the Italian humanitarian worker who ran a tuberculosis hospital for years. She was murdered in October 2003 in Somalia.

All over the world, women work daily in the pursuit of peace, justice and democracy. What these women and others like them deserve is encouragement — and protection.
And then there is Bettina Goislard, a 29-year-old French woman, who was shot and killed in November 2003.

She was working for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Afghanistan. And let's not forget Zully Ester Codina Pérez.

In November 2003, this Colombian journalist — the host of a weekly radio opinion program called "Entérese" — was shot four times and killed by two assassins riding a motorcycle.
Democracy advocate
However, not all the women on the list are murder victims. Some were just harassed and repressed, like Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of Burma's pro-democracy forces and a Nobel Peace laureate.
She was taken into detention in May 2003 — and remains there. Radhia Nasraoui, a Tunisian lawyer, may well die from a hunger strike she has been waging since October 15, 2003, to draw attention to human rights abuses in her country.
Equal representation
Also on the list is Dr. Akila Al Hashimi, a career diplomat in the Iraqi Foreign Ministry.
News of all of these brave women is elbowed aside at the newspaper stands, replaced by the latest word on Paris Hilton.
She was shot during an ambush outside her Baghdad home in late September 2003. She died five days later. The assassination of Dr. Al Hashimi was a setback to the cause of democracy in Iraq.
She had been one of only three women on the 25-member Governing Council appointed by Coalition Provisional Authority Administrator L. Paul Bremer.
Mission impossible?
Even though half of Iraq’s population is female, it is apparently impossible to appoint more women to the Governing Council — unlike, say, the task of trying to set up a functioning democracy in Iraq by June 2004, which is only near-impossible.
To his credit, in mid-November 2003, U.S. President George W. Bush did meet with leaders of a delegation of 17 Iraqi women in the White House.
Demands by Iraqi women
In November 2003, some of the same women sat down with U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton from New York when she traveled with Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island to Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Half of Iraq’s population is female — yet, it is apparently impossible to appoint more women to the Governing Council.
Senator Clinton is, herself, no stranger to death threats.
These Iraqi women have drawn up a list of demands for the Iraqi Governing Council to consider.
They call for safety in the streets, a minimum of ten women members on the Council, female representation throughout the reconstruction process — and accountability for the Council itself.
How do women get in the news?
As it stands, the fact that women put up with overwhelming and life-threatening obstacles is not considered news.
But what happens if a woman gets taken captive and is severely injured, but manages to survive — as happened to U.S. Private Jessica Lynch while serving in Iraq?
Socialite vs. social change
Apparently, she then somehow deserves U.S. national television exposure, along with an invitation to christen a cruise ship.
The fact that women put up with overwhelming — and life-threatening — obstacles is not considered news.
Meanwhile, news of all of these brave women is elbowed aside at the newspaper stands, replaced by the latest word on — Paris Hilton.
No, that is not the name of a hotel in the French capital, but an American socialite gracing more than just U.S. TV screens. Short of such dalliances, international women leaders simply cannot generate the same kind of attention required for inane U.S. media audiences.
Role of the media
All of which leads to the big question: What is it about strong women that makes some men want to kill them?
And why is it that the popular media only take note of serious women striving to make the world a better place when they are harassed, violated or murdered?
Courage in Iran
And yet, all over the world women work daily in the pursuit of peace, justice and democracy.
The big question is: What is it about strong women that makes some men want to kill them?
What these women and others like them deserve is encouragement, inclusion, applause — and protection. They don't need to be marginalized or murdered.
Today, this year's Nobel Peace Prize will be awarded to Shirin Ebadi, an Iranian lawyer and human rights activist. The Prize Committee made special mention of Ms. Ebadi's work on behalf of the rights of women and children.
A black-tie — and flak jacket — event?
She has received death threats — but, fortunately, is still alive.
Let's hope that as part of her prize the Nobel Committee is smart enough to issue her a flak jacket and a bodyguard. If 2003 is any indication, she may need both.

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Muz say CS should stop assuming that the whole world agrees with him... Silence is not equal to consent k... Who's gg back on next thurs?

Shi

hey pp... final date settled. this is the onli day pp goin nus would be free. 29july thursday meet 12pm at BP bus stop. we'll have lunch at kampong arang then go sch visit the teachers k??  

hiya! hey tk should have included the girl's poem right at the end too.... ...tt would have brought out the story yar =)  i was thinking of typing it out, but i'm scared jess would freak out haha..... anyway quite alot of tw's 网络作家write like tt.... abit 无厘头style of humour throughout the book, but he's the best so far.... recommend to u all his 2nd bk, tts my fav ''mistletoe'' =) ha btw i realised the male character in all his books r alike, which is sorta 他的自我写照吧, but his female characters dun seem veri real... too dreamy.....
 
 
peixuan
 

Follow up: MY theory of love.
 
Mine is not as cool as coolgoh's... and the england not that powerful also. But indeed can make coolgoh's crapiness extremely evident. Haha.
 
XIAOYANG's theory of love.
 
Human beings are the only animals we know that possess the feeling of ‘love’. This inbred feeling exists mutually between individuals, and it is unlike pain, itch or boredom that can be explained figuratively or literally. Most of the time people themselves do not know why such a feeling arises. In literature, it has been depicted as something so beautiful that millions of people can give up all their wealth and power for it. Yet, love is also a source of unhappiness, in which rivalry, jealousy, dishonesty and depression can manifest as a result.
 
Love has seldom been explained in a scientific or logical manner. Though psychologists and neurologists are working hard in an attempt to unveil its mystery, little progress has been made. It is true that neurological studies have shown that certain parts of the brain are activated in a distinctive manner when a person is in love, and when this feeling becomes intense physiological responses such as a raise in heart rate, brushing, and the feeling of anxiousness indicates sympathetic nerve stimulation. However, we do not know much further than this.
 
How does love arise? This is the question I will attempt to discuss here. I believe that love is a product of evolution. Recent studies have found that memory and behavioural patterns are formed and retained by a series of ‘wiring’ that takes place inside the brain. Dendrites and axons grow from neurones, creating new synapses with other neurones while breaking old ones. Genetic factors play some parts in this process. Hence, love may be a product of such a process, which may have developed since our very early ancestors and passed down as almost unaltered due to its evolutionary advantages.
 
In one perspective, love is actually an extension of the ‘motherly’ nature of female animals. Similarly, when someone is in love, that person would offer protection and the best things he (or she) can offer to the other party, in the meantime both parties will develop a high level of acceptance and dependence on each other. This works for all kinds of love, be that between couples, between siblings, or between parents and children. The Darwinian theory of evolution suggests that the best-adapted individuals in an environment survive. In the human context, mutual love ensures the people involved in the relationship acquire the best conditions required for the competition of life. The protection, care and materials provided enable the individuals to acquire the best possible physical and psychological health and hence increase his competitiveness and adaptability. The dependence (both physical and psychological) hence developed will ensure that this mutual relationship does not break too easily, resulting in optimal utilization of resources by both parties. This enables both parties to compete as an integrated unit, increasing the chance of survival and success in competition.
 
In another perspective, love is an act of choosing a mate. In a human society where courtship and mating cannot take place as randomly and openly as other animals do, an elaborate mechanism of choosing a mate becomes essential. Also, given the comparatively low reproductive capacity of the human female, choosing the correct mates becomes important too. When one falls in love with someone else, there are certain qualities in which both parties of a couple see in each other that they admire. This kind of admiration is often the prerequisite of love between couples in human behaviour, and this admiration can be seen as criteria used in choosing a mate. For animals, admiration may have been sufficient to initiate mating; however, due to the more complex nature of human qualities and behaviour, love, whatever the extent, is required before permitted mating occurs (generally). This allows human beings to exhibit their best self and finally their true qualities before determining the best mate. It is a mechanism that allows human beings to pick the best partner and hence produce the best children they perceive. It ensures the best offspring to be produced.

Most things can be explained in a logical manner. Love is no exception. The beauty of things will not be destroyed when they are logically explained. Nobody ceases to admire the beauty of sunrise even if we know why it occurs. In fact, I always believe that things can better be appreciated if it is explained. We start our efforts in conserving wildlife because we now understand the mechanisms of ecology and the importance of biodiversity. Nobody will cease to praise love because he knows why he does; it is because he knows why he loves someone he cherishes the relationship even more. 

 
 
mm...=)
 
~ TiNgz ~

yo guys, just share with you my theory of love, since all the blog entries seem so"boring" so far and we need the elite guys in our class to spice things up :) PRESENTIN TO YOU :
 
THE ECONOMIC THEORY OF LOVE BY COOLGOH
 
If Economics is a social science that studies complex human behaviour, logically it follows that love being part of human behaviour can be subjected to analysis. The economic theory of love is a useful approach to deciphering the mysteries of love. If love is assumed to be a commodity, under the conditions of perfect competition, there will be no person who is love deprived or overburdened by love in the market. The laws of supply and demand of love will reach a stable equilibrium at a single price and a fixed quantity and ensure that all suppliers and consumers of love have sufficient love. Applied to the context of a couple, the laws of supply and demand will match a lovesick young man who has a need for a lot of attention with another crazy woman who needs to be in the arms of a man all day. The seller (woman) would be able to supply her love only at a very high price (e.g. seas of chocolates, thousands of roses). The lovesick young man is willing to incur a high opportunity cost (e.g. sanity, attention, forgone earnings) to procure the love of the woman, as it is better than the next best alternative. Hence logically, according to the laws of supply and demand, if there is an ever-increasing number of human beings who are lovesick and mad, it will lead to a continuous rightward shift in supply and demand. This will eventually increase the total quantity of love in this world, although the price depends on the degree of shifts in supply and demand. However, the ideal is that as long as both men and women are equally crazy about love, the shifts will be about the same, thus it is possible to maintain a relatively stable price while ensuring an ever-increasing quantity of love in the world.
           
            Unfortunately, the condition of perfect competition does not apply to the real world; hence there is a need for government intervention. For instance, there may be a monopoly of love by a single supplier. This may be a result of extreme price-cutting, i.e. the woman decides to be very angelic and understanding and does not demand anything from her potential lover. Yet, simple economics tell us that after the monopolist has cornered the market and forced out all her competitors, the woman will restrict the output of her love and force up price, resulting in supernormal profits. In the long run, the consumers (men) will suffer from exploitation, as they have to pay a higher price compared to conditions in perfect competition. The government must come in and place a maximum price ceiling on love. This is of huge importance as consumers with low income may not be able to have love if the price of it is too high. Politically, it may be crucial as voters may vote in a new president who will promise greater love and freedom. However, there will be a shortage of love as demand is greater than supply. Hence, the problem of a black market may arise. For instance, American males may be willing to procure love through human trafficking rings that import Asian females into the American market. More importantly in economic terms, a maximum price ceiling represents a misallocation of resources. The Marginal Social Benefit will not be equal to the Marginal Social Cost; hence the society in the whole will be worse off.
 
            Up till now our discussion has been limited to microeconomics, but love plays an important role in macroeconomics and our survival as well. There is a logical explanation for why people love so much and so deeply for centuries— because they all want to avoid a recession. John Maynard Keynes has contributed a new school of thought to explain this phenomenon.  When people are in love, they tend to give gifts to their lovers to show their appreciation, sincerity or simply because the lover demands it. This will raise the aggregate expenditure in the economy through greater consumption (C) as AGG E = C + G + I + (X-M). Hence, increase aggregate expenditure will ensure that more people will get jobs in the chocolate and flower industries. Unemployment rate in the economy will be lower and increasing love in the economy will lead to a boom. This is proven by empirical observation in the Clinton Administration and epitomised by Bill Clinton who had many lovers. Furthermore, game theory tells us that since love is just a game, in a conflict of love interests among competing lovers, there will eventually be a payoff (outcome), in the of lawsuits and divorce cases which will generate additional economic activity in the nation. The Keynesians will argue that in times of recession, governments need to step in and “pump primp” the economy.  Governments can make good capital investments in love by setting up the infrastructure, e.g. counselling clinics, orphanages. This will be useful capital expenditure with positive effects in the long-run, while in the short run it will hopefully pull the economy out of recession.
 
Combining the Monetarist and Keynesian schools of thought, I have come up with a new equation that links love to the economy. L= SILLY where L stands for love, S stands for savings, I stands for investment, L stands for Loans and more Loans, and Y stands for national income.  From this equation, which is the result of the compilation of statistics for centuries, it is empirically proven that love has a direct relationship with national income. When love increases, it can go into any of the SILLY variables. For instance, it can go into savings, for in an increasingly materialistic society, lovers need to save for a long time to buy a new BMW or a plush mansion as signs of love. Yet they never managed to buy them, as the savings are never enough, hence the savings can only increase with love. Similarly, increasing love will result in people investing more in their portfolio, thus increasing investment. After all, it seems that all the executives with fat wallets get to date with supermodels (e.g. Donald Trump). The saying “ No Money, No Honey” is a time proven truth in the modern economy. Hence, male lovers who want increasing love will need to show that they are rich.  The relationship between love and loans and more loans can seem obscure at first glance, but it all works out logically. As lovers never save enough to buy new cars and other luxury items to show their love, the logical alternative is through loans. This is proven in the experience of Japan in the past two decades. In the 1980s, Japan experienced a booming economy with huge loans being borrowed. During this period, there were more children being born in Japan. Logically, a child is a sign of love, the fruit of a union between two lovers. Hence more love leads to greater loans through the empirical observation of more children. In the 1990s, when Japan experienced economic stagnation, it was a period of decreasing birth rate, with an increasingly ageing population. Furthermore, Japanese banks are subjected to bad debts of the 1980s. The current economic stagnation in Japan can be attributed to excess love in the 1980s and the lack of love in the 1990s. So policy makers in Japan should abandon the fiscal or the monetary approach, and encourage more love in Japan hence dragging the nation out of recession.
 
In conclusion, economic analysis of love is a useful approach to the seemingly unfathomable phenomenon. After all the L= SILLY formula explains many experiences observed in the economy. Hopefully, this short analysis of love in relation to economics will spark off more debates and discussions, leading to a breakthrough in the field that will bring a stable increase of love in this world. 
           

took this pic in msia. something about the solititude stikes me. there's a kind of apprehension, the feeling stepping out boldly and loneliness... any cat lovers here? btw, see the little speech icon next to this caption? click on it to download the program-Hello from Picasa to upload photos onto blogger easily. 

and me!

ahaha... sounds like fun...let's try to breathe some life into this blog... whee! ... so here are my facts...

(1)i CANNOT, absolutely cannot stand long protracted mushy scenes, be it in books, movies or games... they freaking get on my nerves... i quote an example "I don't like sand. Sand is coarse and hard. But you're not..." Which is reason enough not to re-watch episode II again.ugh. and 'eyes on me' is quite a trying song (to me)... nothing against faye wong though....

(2)it feels very, very strange when i hear ppl call me "Jessie" like my name is strangely incomplete or something... it feels a lot better when people call me jess, or my full name... so... yup.

(3)My life goal is to be able to draw like Tetsuya Nomura! *sparkly eyes* and shake his hand! whee!

Well, no one’s been posting lately, so I suppose I’ll try to start the ball rolling. ^^;;

I’m actually quite keen on the idea of a class blog (hey, a great way to keep in touch!), except I don’t quite know what to post, hence the decided lack of input on my part. And I suspect most people also have the same problem?

So here’s what I propose. The whole point of a class blog is to keep in touch, and get to know each other better. After two years together as a class, I still don’t quite know much about many of you, and most of you probably don’t know much about me either. (it’s not like i spoke up much, after all, so it’s probably my own fault.)

The mission: Post three facts about yourself that we probably don’t know. Readers can also post questions in the comments box, and the writer will try to answer them if possible.

It can be serious, it can be stupid, it can be about anything under the sun, however irrelevant. Deep, Dark Sekrits are also appreciated, of course. ^_^

My Three Facts:

1) Deep down inside, I am actually a real chatterbox at heart. Hence the lengthy blog post, the smilies scattered everywhere, and the generous use of brackets. Most unfortunately, this trait usually manifests only on my blog, when I’m with good friends, and with total strangers I know I’ll never meet again.

2) I am actually a very optimistic and cheerful person. My mother has this theory that I may have eaten too much chocolate when I was a child, which resulted in this ability to be happy over the littlest things, and get over disappointments relatively(?) quickly (i hope).

3) I don’t like to eat sweets. Which includes Mentos, Fisherman’s Friend, gummies, etc. But I really like cakes and chocolate. Other than those few exceptions, I generally dislike most sweet stuff.

Okay, I really hope people will continue posting things about themselves too. You may find it a stupid activity, so I’ll gladly welcome any other posts about anything else, as long as I hear from You, You and YOU! (this place is just too quiet…)

Please post, or I will look incredibly stupid to have one single lengthy, wordy post on this erstwhile class blog, and the Shock And Shame Of It All may traumatize me to such a degree that I will Forever Hold My Peace on this blog. (j/k. i’m not as weak-hearted as that.)

But seriously, do post. [/tentative appeal]

outside Harry's @ the Esplanade

effects of esctasy

seven eleven

groping abt in the dark...

5 handsome "humks"

and more! girls lost in time... b&w makes the pic feel kinda timeless eh...

the four pretty girls!

phantom of the steamboat

the 4K steamboaters! the first time we have a gath where there are more girls than guys.. haha.

"There You'll Be"

When I think back
On these times
And the dreams
We left behind
I'll be glad 'cause
I was blessed to get
To have you in my life
When I look back
On these days
I'll look and see your face
You were right there for me

In my dreams
I'll always see your soul
Above the sky
In my heart
There always be a place
For you for all my life
I'll keep a part
Of you with me
And everywhere I am
There you'll be

Well you showed me
How it feels
To feel the sky
Within my reach
And I always
Will remember all
The strength you
Gave to me
Your love made me
Make it through
Oh, I owe so much to you
You were right there for me

'Cause I always saw in you
My light, my strength
And I want to thank you
Now for all the ways
You were right there for me
You were right there for me
For always

Hey yo.. do you all remember this song? I think the lyrics mean a lot more to me now... when we have left dhs... really glad to see so many ppl turn up for the last steamboat & pubbing gath. I had a great time. I do miss 4K. Hope we will all keep in touch, if not face to face then at least through this blog k?