Whistling Away

there was this story in TST about how one would be hard pressed to make a movie about whistle blowers in Singapore, unlike in US, which spawned shows such as "The Insider", "Erin Brokovich", etc.

the writer goes on to say that all that may change with new legislation to protect whistle blowers. while i agree that legislation to protect whistle blowers is indeed needed, i think the article misses one point. the reason why there are movies (of fairly good quality) made about whistle blowers is because those whistle blowers faced no small amount of difficulty and persecution. they had all different kinds of shit stuffed in their faces and still came up tops. and that's what makes their stories great stories of triumph, that's what makes those characters such heroic ones.

the difference therefore is about moral courage and (yes... you've guessed it) resilience: the moral courage to speak up against what is wrong and the resilience to make sure that one is heard regardless of the challenges and setbacks. now it would seem that both of these are sorely lacking in our Singaporean culture. if anything, instilling these should be amongst the desired outcomes of our education and should be prioritised above the blind pursuit of results.

it is interesting that in fact, politicians have pointed this out . yet, we are still obsessed with the mad pursuit of good exam results. why? in no small part, parents and society are to blame. can we do anything about it? yes. but parents must change their mindsets and work together with educators.