LIFT: Of employment and seats

When I came across the following article in the morning, it brightened my day.















Call me unsympathetic, inhuman, whatever but I still must do this: *explodes in uncontrolled bursts of laughter* HAHAHAHAHAHAHA~ Phew, OK, lemme compose myself. WAHAHAHAHAA~ OK, seriously now.

So, there we have it: a bitter ex-regular complaining of how he is being betrayed by the organization he oh-so worked loyally for. All I have for this chap is a one-liner that all army personnel are familiar with: WAKE UP YOUR IDEA LA!

My reply below:

Dear Mr Minjoot,

Firstly, I would like to express my sympathies on your loss of employment. Notwithstanding your past work conduct - be it good or bad - I think it's a sad thing for one to lose employment and my heart goes out to you.

Having said that, I think you should really count your blessings that you were given 6 months notice for you to notice. They could have really summoned you to CPC and tell you in your face, "Look Warrant Henry, we need to get rid of some deadwood and you know what? You're in that pile. Oh yeah, the refuse truck is coming tomorrow, so be prepared and move along." So like, don't begrudge what you have. I'm not defending the SAF but hey, it's true. For me, my employer can simply give me a month's notice and send me packing. How about that?

You mentioned that you were promoted to 2nd Warrant Officer in 2001 and you turned 50 in November 2006. That means you were around 45 when you were finally able to rip the accursed Master Sergeant rank off your uniform sleeves and wear the Warrant Officer epaulet on your shoulders. I've got an acquaintance who got the same rank when he was 31 or 32. He's not someone whom I would call a high flyer but he's definitely hardworking and meticulous. Given him and you, who do think the SAF will retain?

Honestly now, I think you have to do a reflection on your deeds. Was it one too many canteen breaks or the last time you screwed up an important task assigned by an officer? You mentioned of your performance and stuff like IPPT, ATP, etc. But look at the facts: you were promoted more than a decade later than my acquaintance. So, what does this say of your so-called "performance"? Not having problems or passing the tests is not equivalent to "performance", mind you.

Also, you seemed overly pre-occupied with the notion of serving up to the age of 55. C'mon now, you don't really think that is a "sure bet", do you? In this world now, employment is a privilege, not an entitlement. Yes, even for the jobs that were once perceived as "iron rice bowls". Hellooo... It's 2007, not 1977. Man, what were you thinking?

Anyway, don't fret. There are many jobs out there for people like you. Jobs like security guards, taxi drivers, fast food restaurant helpers, toilet/food court cleaners - you name the demeaning, low-paying job, they have it. Just bear in mind that the NSFs whom you have trodden upon during your heydays won't really have much hesitation in deriding you while you clean their tables. Oh yeah, remember not to show visible signs of anger. After all, you are in the service industry - cleaning is a service, yes? - and you'll need to fulfill the GEMS thingy.

herzberg

Frankly, I don't really what is on this guy's mind. He was fired like last year and it took him nearly a year to write to the papers? What was he doing? Feeling sorry for his pitiful self or whining non-stop to his peers and family? I doubt he even went on a job hunt as he was "in a state of depression". Regardless, I find the letter to be of no value and merit to precious publishing space within the papers, thus, it earned a place amongst my LIFTs. Every now and then, people get retrenched. And every single one of them would claim to have done a good job blah, blah, blah. But that's life, man. We cannot have this kind of worthless prose on the papers, not that the local papers are any news-worthy to begin with.

The letter deals with a common occurrence in the local trains with an equally common solution. It comes from a bitter man too, one that seems hell-bent on making all commuters pay for not giving up seats.















My reply:

Dear Mr Teong,

I find your proposal daft and probably motivated by anger and frustration more than genuine concern for the elderly and pregnant ladies (or those who truly need the seats in trains). Hence, your letter made it to my LIFT list. In fact, it ranks just below the one that suggests lighting up commercial buildings for national day.

I find your wife pitiful. In fact, I feel sorry for her. Eight months pregnant and still have to take 45min journey to work? I wonder why she has to work during such a state. Perhaps her husband is unable to afford her living expenses? Or maybe the husband is actually heartless enough to let her continue working and didn't bother to dissuade her? Yeah, I'm referring to you. Maybe you should reflect on why your wife needs to work when she is heavily pregnant, instead of taking it out on fellow commuters.

Besides, the commuters can't really give up their seats to each and every pregnant lady/elderly, you know? That would encourage a crutch mentality and things will be taken for granted. And to impose a fine would only further entrench this crutch mentality. The elderly/pregnant ladies would then be unmotivated to fight and squabble for seats, like what the rest of the commuters do. They would simply stand around and wait for things to happen, pretty much like what is happening now.

Oh yes, I suppose in your moment of blind rage, you forgot to consider the fact that in order for a rule to work, someone has to be there to enforce it. How does adding extra "enforcers" help the already cramped conditions of peak hour trains? Besides, does your wife pay extra fare, to the extent that she deserves a seat? I think not. Since she is not paying any extra fare, she shouldn't be expecting anything more premium than a standing space and an occasional chance to grab seats.

What's more, with a bloated tummy, she is taking more space than a typical commuter. Heck! She should pay more, as the space take up by your non-fare-paying unborn child could easily accommodate another commuter. Be grateful that the train companies are gracious enough to let your unborn kid enjoy a free ride and we, the general public, are subsidizing its travel.

herzberg

Personally, I find the notion of imposing fines on people who refuse to give up seats repulsive. It's a matter of courtesy and ethical behavior and I think people shouldn't be penalized for something non-criminal. Let me put it this way, a fine imposed in this case would be jailing all crime scene witnesses who did not report crimes. I can witness a mugging from afar but that does not mean I have to identify myself as a witness, right? Sure, I'm being a bastard by societal norms and values but hey, does that justify me paying a fine or doing time for that? Man...The ideas that people come up with... And some claimed that Singaporeans are uncreative. Maybe Singaporeans are not uncreative, maybe they just lack rational thought and simple logical reasoning faculties.