in the mind of the lion

• Man U beaten 3-0 by Milan. Just when you thought they would rise to the occasion, they flopped and they flipped out of the Champions League. At least they have the consolation of the EPL title and an FA Cup final to heal those wounds. Chelsea have in the space of a week seen both their league title and euro champion aspirations go up in flames. This nicely sets up a repeat of the historic finals in Istanbul, as once more Liverpool and AC Milan face off for the biggest prize in club football.
• Inuka is gonna be staying at the Singapore Zoo after all. My opinion on this has always been that he should stay unless his health suffers. As it is now he is as contented as any bear can be. In fact I would go so far as to say he is one of the most pampered animals at the zoo due to his star status and all the publicity that surrounds him. ACRES can suck on that.
• A while back there was this hoohaa in the media about this group of FHM (cheap plug!!) Girls Next Door contestants on the Muttons in the Morning show. The girls were dared to take off their bras in the quickest time and that they did. As it turned out a podcast of the entire thing was posted on the 98.7 website. Then all hell broke loose. As expected there was a backlash and singaporeans were dutifully disgusted by the sensationalism. In between all the brow beating and high-roading it became apparent that was was once a one off video became the centre of attention in the news. Everyone and anyone who was an authority on such things voiced their 2 cents worth. So much for being prim and proper. Having viewed the said video in question it seems like the ladies were willing participants and nothing happened that was even remotely tintillating. it was just another case of people trying to impose their moral will upon others. if only walls could talk I say. My view on almost anything topic of this nature is that people are entitled to their opinions. No one person should be allowed to distate to the rest of society what is and what is not considered sociably acceptable. The same principle applies to casinos. to gambling. to smoking. To prostitution. to taking loans. to pre-maritial sex. homosexuality. abortion. to just about any topic or issue that skirts between social acceptance and religious inclinations. but often truth and reality are hard to reconcile. We are have our own moral compasses that are defined by our beliefs and upbringing. And it is little wonder that ever so often people agree to disagree. in short, if it is within the law we should live and let live. If you do not subscribe to such things, do not watch the controversial video, do not read that sensationalisitic newspaper or magazine, do not watch that offending television show. Just because something is not your cup of tea, does not mean that everyone else has to go without.
• The bunnies went for a check up today. As it turns out they have some growing up to do before I will be able to send them again to be spayed (or neutered as the case may be). Otherwise Scruff and Muff have a clean bill of health.
• ERP gantrys to be set up and rates increased. Here we go again! I guess this is a real money spinner for all involved. You charge ERP, so motorists take alternative routes. Then those alternative routes start to get higher traffic. Then you set up ERP gantries on these alternative routes and raise ERP rates on the exisitng ones. And so it goes. But maybe the problem is that our roads are not big and designed well enough to carry the traffic for which they are designed for. Anyone who has been on the CTE and PIE at peak hours can attest how heavy traffic can get. There are so many motorists coming in from so many directions then sooner or later there is bound to be a bottle neck. As one writer to the ST forum has said in his letter; that maybe the authorities could change the order of exits and entrys to expressways so that vehicles leaving the expressway could do so without having to deal with vehicles entering the expressway. As it is now, it can be an ordeal trying to get to the left most lane to turn off with vehicles entering also from your left. How many times have I found myself missing a turn because I was unable to maneuver into the turn off. The other part of the problem are inconsiderate motorists. People who hog the lanes and yet persist in driving at a leisurely pace. People who choose to remain in the outer lane which is actually meant for overtaking. And then there are the drivers who do not consider the consequences of their sudden braking, turning and lane changes. This often results in slow traffic and accidents in some cases which only aggravate the problem even more.
• Singaporean dies from being overworked. It seems like the major killer in society these days is stress. People are so caught up in their careers, work and commitments that few of us take the time to relax and contemplate. just as many of us are no closer to happiness than when we first started out our careers. Many choose to remain single or put off starting a family because of their careers. Some of us go to work even when we are unwell. Hardly take off or leave that we are entitled to. This is a life that we as singaporeans have taken to be as part of living in a fast paced society such as ours. But all of us have to take our time-outs to rest and recuperate and to take stock of wherewe are and where we are headed to. In fact studies show a rested and contented employee are often more productive in the long run.
• not unlike the FHM girls controversy above, another bone of contention in the forum pages has been the criminalisation of homosexuality. There are those for and then there are those who are against the notion. For me personally homosexuality is a no-no and against the design of nature (read:God). But then I am also not one to stand on my high box and decree that we should jail anyone who indulges in such acts or lifestyle. I happen to know many individuals over the years who are homosexual. i must say they do have more sensibility and honour than the so-called politically correct majority. Although I do not subscribe to their lifestyle choices (whatever that entails), I do think they do have the right to choose their life partners and live happily ever after. Then there are those who pull out all these statistics and charts to show how STD's (including HIV & AIDS) infect a higher percentage of these people compared to the general heterosexual population. But really does criminalisation of homosexuality really help bring down those statistics...or does it only serve to broaden the divide between us..and them?

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