Ris Low: Miss Singapore World

Ris Low won Miss Singapore World. This is, apparently, a competition to determine the prettiest girl in Singapore in some respects. Unaccountably, this girl with a lopsided smile, won. I find this odd, in itself, since I have seen, since I arrived in Singapore, many a better looking person...but heh, perhaps those others didn't want to enter.

Anyway, Ris Low, has become more famous for her personal "qualities" than for her "beauty". When first elected to the crown of Miss Singapore World, she was heavily criticized for her risibly low command of English. She seems to speak her own version of "unintelligible". In truth, she is a heavy Singlish speaker with an original style. Ris Low classics include "bigini" for "bikini"; "leopard preens" for "leopard prints" and "zipbra" for "zebra". She can't even pronounce "red" which she says as "RAD". At times, her speech departed so much from communicative norms, in any language, that she simply could not be understood - even by Singlish speakers.

Ris Low embarrassed Singapore through her poor grasp of English. Many felt that she made Singaporeans look uneducated. (Well, she does...) However, her poor English could be forgiven on account of her presumed risibly low intelligence. She has, yet, in her public appearances never given any evidence of being a thoughtful person. Now, however, she has given much evidence of being a thoughtless one. Ris Low, believe it or not, has been convicted of multiple charges of credit card fraud!

Seeing her lopsided smile in the My Paper, with the words "Guilty of Credit Card Fraud", felt rather surreal. It was as if someone was saying a bad joke twice. We have already heard the joke about her English...now we have to hear the joke about her morality.

Rather astonishingly, Ris Low stole credit card details of PATIENTS while working as a patients' service assistant (that is SOME service) in a healthcare facility. She then went on an idiotic spending spree buying such necessary items as two gold anklets for a $1,000, a $698 mobile phone and dining out at an upscale restaurant. In total, SIXTY charges were taken into consideration for her sentencing. She was convicted of five charges of misappropriation (akin to stealing), cheating using illegally obtained credit cards and IMPERSONATING the identities of the card owners.

What really astonished me about this case was the lightness of her sentence. She was given two years supervised probation. It seems clear that the fact that she is a beauty queen seems to have had some influence over her sentencing.

To my mind, a beauty queen should be more than a pretty face (and I don't think that Ris Low is even that, since, by my standards, she is not good enough to even be an entrant in such a show). A beauty queen should also be a decent person with integrity and heart. I say this because beauty queens represent their countries. As representatives they should show the BEST of their countries...not only in beauty (she is not the best) but in character (she is not the worst).

Ris Low fails as a beauty queen precisely because she fails as a human being. She has proven to be dishonest. She is so risibly low in moral character, that she thinks it OK to steal from hospital PATIENTS to buy herself gold ankle chains. It is absolutely revolting. The people she stole from have enough worries and stresses in their lives dealing with their illnesses, not to have to deal with the sudden knowledge that someone has been using their credit cards fraudulently. Just imagine the shock of those patients to discover that it was a HOSPITAL staff member that had stolen their cards? It is appalling.

Ris Low should not represent Singapore in anything. She shows, if anything, that Singapore is a place of poor moral standards. Ris Low grew up in Singapore. Therefore her almost unintelligible speech and lack of a moral sense, are the products of her Singaporean upbringing. Both facts, make Singapore look very bad.

Singapore should take more care in its choice of "Ambassadors", if it wishes to be seen in a good light. Then, again, perhaps it is more truthful of the true nature of young Singaporeans today, that someone like Ris Low should be an ambassador. Perhaps her character is no more than a reflection of a generation who seek short cuts in all things; who value materialism above morality - and who think that they can get by on looks alone, with no other redeeming quality or ability at all. Ris Low, therefore, represents the Singapore of tomorrow: characterless, amoral, far from bright and not really that beautiful.

So, Singapore has a decision to make. Either it should show Singapore as it is becoming (see Ris Low's description above), or as it would like to be seen.

I have a view on this. Generally, I think a country should show the BEST of its people. It should highlight the exemplars. In doing so, it gives all people of that nation something to aspire to - but it also shows what that country and its people can achieve. This is not lying about a country, for everyone knows that not everyone is as beautiful, talented, honest etc.

Ris Low is not the best that Singapore has to offer, in any sense of the word best. She is not the most beautiful person in Singapore. She is not the smartest person in Singapore (in fact, she is not the smartest person anywhere). She is also not the most honest person in Singapore (nor is she anywhere). If Singapore wants to show its young people as they can be, then show Ris Low to the world. If Singapore would like to show its young people as they SHOULD be...then get someone else. Anyone else would be better than this risibly low choice of a human being.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to:http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

IMDB is the Internet Movie Database for film and tv professionals.If you would like to look at my IMDb listing for which another fifteen credits are to be uploaded, (which will probably take several months before they are accepted) please go to: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3438598/ As I write, the listing is new and brief - however, by the time you read this it might have a dozen or a score of credits...so please do take a look. My son, Ainan Celeste Cawley, also has an IMDb listing. His is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3305973/ My wife, Syahidah Osman Cawley, has a listing as well. Hers is found at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3463926/

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)

A leader without a sense of morality.

President Obama is a leader without a sense of morality. He has demonstrated this, already, in his short Presidency, twice, to my knowledge - and perhaps more often, since I am not paying close attention to his daily deeds and utterances.

His first immoral decision was to give the go-ahead to the "harvesting" of embryonic stem cells from embryos. This cannot be achieved without murdering unborn children. Yet, he sees that as a reasonable decision - even though alternative sources, from adults, for stem cells are now available.

His second immoral decision was to try to save 540 million dollars annually by NOT giving free medical care to wounded and disabled war veterans of the US armed services. What he wanted to do was to refer them back to their private insurers and let the private insurance plans pick up the tab.

I was, at once, struck by the moral reprehensibility of sending young men out to war and then NOT taking care of them when (inevitably) many of them come back with lasting injuries and lifelong disabilities. He is saying, as directly as it is possible to say it: "I hereby order you off to war. You are to fight for your nation and do my bidding. However, I don't care if you lose your life, your health, your happiness. I don't care if you spend the rest of your life in a wheelchair - and I am most certainly not going to pay for it."

The idea that the US state would actually shirk its responsibility to care for those who have sustained injuries or loss, while working on behalf of the US government is quite appalling. It shows, however, most clearly, that Obama is not a man who understands moral issues. He is not a man of compassion and insight. He is a man who is a paradox - for though very charming and personable, he cares not for people. He does not care for the lives of unborn embryos and he does not care for the lives of combat veterans. Perhaps, deep down, all that Obama cares for, is Obama.

No nation can ask men to fight and perhaps die for it, and then turn its back on them, when they get disabled. Yet, Obama wanted to do just that: to turn the nation's back on its war veterans.

I find his early decision-making disquieting for what it says about him. President Obama is seemingly not guided by an inner sense of what is right, wrong or appropriate. This leads him to fail to care for those he should care for and fail to understand which course of action is the right one, in the sense of good and true.

Another indicator was his crass comparison of his bowling skills to those of athletes in the Special Olympics. Though he apologized later for his remark, the fact that he made it, seems to show that he looks down on the disabled. They are people to make fun of. Indeed, it is telling to note that two of his recent "boo boos" refer to disabled people: the withdrawal of medical support for disabled veterans - and joking about the abilities of disabled athletes.

I am beginning to think that President Obama is all charm and no soul. The outer image he presents is polished and urbane, but the inner world is empty of morality or compassion.

Only a man without compassion could joke about the Special Olympics. Only a man without compassion or morality, could withdraw state medical support for those wounded or disabled in the service of that state.

President Obama is yet at the beginning of his Presidency, but there are already cracks in his character showing that indicate his Presidency could be littered with many ill-founded decisions; decisions that have no moral underpinning.

Personally, I would like to see a President of less charm and more soul. Charm might make for good television - but soul makes for a good man - and good decisions.

Knowing what is right and what is wrong, is instinctual. If it is not in a man - as it is not in Obama - I think it is very difficult to acquire. Then again, a man without it would usually not value it or see any need to acquire it. Given this, the only thing that will spare America from an immoral Presidency, is if some of his advisers make up for his character defect, by supplying him with a solid moral viewpoint. Without it, President Obama may not, in fact, turn out to be the great President everyone expects him to be. Indeed, he may do unexpected harm to the nation that elected him with such expectation.

There was a great outcry about President Obama's decision regarding veterans' medical care and seeing that he was being met with a lot of resistance, Obama backed down and cancelled his plans. I was amused to see how this was marketed: "President Obama made the right decision not to move forward", said Daniel K. Akaka, Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman. This is funny because it makes it look like Obama was the one who decided in their favour, when, in fact, he was the one proposing the move against them. His capitulation has been restated as his "decision".

A good President shouldn't need the moral outrage of others to tell him what a moral decision is, or is not. He should make moral decisions at the outset and not have the public inform him of the immorality of his choices, through their appalled reactions.

President Obama has a lot to learn, like any new President. Alarmingly, however, what he has yet to learn, it seems, is a basic sense of right and wrong. That could be awkward for the USA, in the years ahead.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)

53,000 babies and Chinese values.

Do the Chinese value human life? Or do they value money? A society answers this question not by what it says, but by what it does. Repeatedly, China has answered my first question in the negative, by doing something that shows a disregard for human life. As I write, 53,000 Chinese babies (up from 6,200 yesterday) are ill, some seriously, some dead, from melamine poisoning from contaminated milk. China, once again, has answered the question.

It is not possible, in a country in which its people value the lives of others as much as their own, for such a food poisoning scandal to occur. You see, melamine has been found in the dairy products of 22 companies in China. Melamine is more commonly used in fire retardants, floor tiles, kitchen ware and in the making of fertilizers. It is not a foodstuff and, indeed, causes death by renal failure if ingested in toxic quantities. That, of course, is just what is happening: babies are suffering kidney damage and some have died, others being seriously ill.

The fact that companies throughout the width and breadth of China are all manufacturing poisonous milk products can only mean one thing: hundreds, perhaps thousands or tens of thousands of suppliers and milk processors in China are adulterating the milk with melamine in the quest for additional profits, at the expense of the lives and health of unknown, random babies, by the thousand.

Think about that. The poisoning of babies on a large scale is considered a reasonable way to make money in modern China, by hundreds, perhaps thousands or tens of thousands of people. Furthermore, it was thought reasonable, by the Chinese authorities, to keep the whole thing quiet, while babies continued to drink poisonous milk, so that there was no embarrassment leading up to the Olympics. You see, first awareness of the problem goes back to March this year. Shortly after that, the relative of a leading Sanlu executive made a report to the authorities about it: she was told to keep quiet, apparently until the Olympics had passed. Thus, we return to the lies and deceptions surrounding the Olympics and the image of perfection China wished to present - at whatever cost. It seems, now, that one of those costs was the lives and health of 53,000 babies (and counting...after all the number declared was only 6,200 yesterday). How many of them could have been spared if the milk had been cleaned up in March?

Now, a toddler in Hong Kong has been revealed to have developed kidney stones after consuming Yili milk - one of the contaminated brands. How many others around the world are there, showing unusual sickness for their age...but unidentified because their doctors have not put two and two together? The contaminated milk has ended up in less than obvious locations - in everything from yogurt, to ice cream to confectionery...yes, that is right, your kid's favourite Chinese sweets, could kill them.

Everyone talks of the need for better regulation on the issue in China, but I don't really think regulation is the problem. The problem is a lack of basic humanity in their business people. Everyone knows you don't poison your customer to make a quick buck - everyone except the Chinese, it seems. There is no need for a regulation that states: "Don't poison your customer". That should be needless in any society that has reached even the most basic level of civilization. Perhaps China, in truth, hasn't reached that basic level yet - at least, its business people haven't.

What is needed in China is an elevation not of its economy (which will grow on the backs of lots of sick and dying people unwise enough to buy their products), but an elevation of its people: they must become responsible global citizens, thinking not just of the dollar today, but of people and society tomorrow. They must think of the consequences of their actions, beyond the immediate financial rewards that can be made by a particular course of action. If an action is sure to make more money, but the price is that it kills babies - then NO-ONE should be taking that course of action. Shockingly, however, in China it seems that hundreds, perhaps thousands or tens of thousands of people in the dairy supply chain took just that decision: to make money, while killing babies.

I don't think I will be visiting China in a hurry - and if I ever do, I won't be drinking the milk.

By the way, I have heard of something else that finds its way into Chinese milk to enrich the nitrogen content and thus the apparent protein content: urea. That's right: they are pissing in the milk supply. It gives a new meaning to "Made in China".

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.)