‘If it acts like a duck (all the time), it’s a duck. Doesn’t matter if the duck thinks it’s a dog, it’s still a duck as far as the rest of us are concerned.
Authenticity, for me, is doing what you promise, not “being who you are”.’
Pure coincidence but Seth Godin just blogged about what has been on my mind for the past few weeks.
Individuals who sprout lyrical about transparency, honesty, god-like social media rules, integrity and so forth on their blogs, tell a different story in plurk, msn and twitter.
Respectability requires consistency.
You don’t talk about respect and best practices in social media but call people names in conversations.
You don’t talk about discretion but divulge confidential information discussed in private conversations.
You don’t talk about integrity but ask for confidential information to be shared to all and sundry, tabloid style.
Transparency is not an excuse to merrily list out others’ ‘mistakes’ in an attempt to look superior.
Honesty is not an excuse for breach of trust.
Integrity is not an excuse for being a thoroughly self righteous and pompous person.
Respectability requires consistency.
For you may think you are a duck, behave like a duck (sometimes), quack like a duck and think you are a duck, but we all know better.
John McCain’s gracious concession speech – possibly one of his best speeches.
Honestly, though I think McCain is a good old chap with an evil sense of humour, his choice of Palin ultimately did him in good. The gaffes, the cluelessness on foreign policies and the wardrobe – too much to stomach. I shudder at the thought of her being remotely close to being the next President of America.
Also, after what Bush did to America’s economy, what with subprime loans, war policies and what nots, America is ready for a necessary change, a change which might be too radical for McCain and his conservative Republican policies and ideas. And so that change came in the form of Barack Obama.
Though our dear MM Lee once dismissed Obama as being too inexperienced and a ‘flash in the pan’ and that America is not ready for a bi-racial President, he is once again being proven wrong in the landslide votes – America had spoken and had spoken very clearly.
Part 1 of Barack Obama’s Victory Speech
Part 1 of Barack Obama’s Victory Speech
Difference between the two Presidential candidates and our politicans
When I was following the speeches on Wednesday, I was struck by the difference in the two politicians campaigning and fighting with so much passion for the presidency and our very own ministers and leaders, who were, for want of a better description, enticed and bought with money.
The jarring difference is painfully obvious. McCain, in his concession speech, pledges his full support to his opponent who had won. He said “the failure is mine, not yours.”
Our Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong, urges us not to vote in too many opposition politicians lest he has to spend more time thinking about how to ‘buy votes and fix the opposition‘.
Obama said to the red voters, “And, to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn, I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your president, too.”
Our Minister Mentor, Lee Kuan Yew, said ‘we decide what is right. Never mind what people think’ in 1987, while the opposition wards like Potong Pasir seem to have been marked off the property radar of Singapore.
Great world of difference – and we are constantly being fed nuggets of wisdom on how dangerous the Western liberation and democracy is and our MM Lee even said that the ‘one man one vote system is too dangerous’. Just look how dangerous and gracious McCain and Obama became. Don’t worry – our own leaders are not remotely even close to that kind of ‘danger’. Our leaders are incapable of being gracious even when talking about a dead opponent, much less one he would have to spend time ‘fixing’.
Indeed, if the political climate in America was like that of our country, Obama will not be given the opportunity to even serve in Senate. His family circumstances, the race issue, his radical ideas and thinking not in line with ruling party’s – all these would have worked against him here but not in America where the people have spoken.
Why the glaring difference
I believe it lies in one single factor – passion. Obama and McCain may have had different convictions and political beliefs but the common denominator was that they campaigned hard for the presidency. Obama particularly, harnessed a creative use of social media to speak to the masses. Were they enticed with a million dollar salary to run for presidency? Were they promised a nanny in the form of the GRC protection in their election? Nothing was handed to them on a silver spoon.
They battled hard and in some instances, fought dirty and showed grit and tenacity in their quest of ‘may the best man win’. I respect that deeply.
Our ministers, who have to be persuaded in tea sessions and monetary offers so that they will leave their ‘lucrative practices’ and promised candidacy where a heavyweight big brother will take care of you in the elections – forget it. What passion? What fiery oratory can these people be capable of? MM Lee loves to justify the ministerial salary to how much ministers like Ng Eng Hen and Vivian Balakrishnan were making in their practices before. Were Obama and McCain not wealthy before they chose to run for presidency?
When Obama spoke, the hair on the back of my neck stood and I felt awed, hope, comforted and inspired by the power of his conviction and the change that is to come. When McCain spoke, I felt humbled by his graciousness and respect for his consideration of the bigger picture.
When our ministers spoke, I usually feel nothing but anger and contempt, or at best – nonchalance.
Dr Terence Chong of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies told ST that ‘while Singaporeans cheer and dream along with Americans as global citizens, when it comes to local politicians, they just want them to make sure that the street lights work in the evening and there are jobs in the morning‘ and that we ‘accept that Singapore leaders don’t do inspiration, they do competence and reliability‘.
Really? Why is there a mutual exclusivity between ‘inspiration’ and ‘competence and reliability’?
In a nation where the mantra of the leadership is ‘we decide what is right. Never mind what people think”, we have to accept that there will only be concessionary change – Speakers’ Corner, political films (like we care, they were being distributed anyway) etc, just to wayang a little. The leadership style, the iron arm tactics, the ‘we know what is best’ authoritarian style – I doubt these will change.
But we can. We, as a people, can change to be less apathetic and more socially conscious. When will we ‘cast off the slumber into which you have been led into for the last 10 years. Wake up to your rights as a human being, to your proper role as citizens of this country.’ – in the words of JB Jeyaretnam?
I believe that we, as a people, do want change. Just look at the turnout in the WP rally in the 2006 elections.
When will our people speak? When will we stand out and stand as a people, ‘Yes, we can’ or most importantly, ‘Yes, I can’?
