Any form of punishment that is effective in maintaining law and order is justified. Do you agree?
I agree that any form of punishment is effective in maintaining law and order is justified. As long as it is lawful and able to deter people from committing similar crimes, it is right to exercise them. In the example of Togo, they have a unique way in dealing with the offenders. When they need to distinguish the real culprit between two suspects, they will apply their punishment. The two suspects need to dip their hand in a pot of hot, scalding liquid to retrieve a ring in front of the whole village. This will put their courage to test. The people believed that the guilty would not be able to retrieve the ring and will be scalded by the steaming liquid while the victim will remain unscathed. This punishment is pretty effective as the real culprit will be overcome by fear and not have the courage to take the test. On the other hand, the other party who wants to prove their innocence will be willing to take the test. If one is found to be guilty, the offender will be embarrassed and known by everyone and has to bear nasty remarks from the villagers.
Another example of shaming will be in Albania. People have been convicted will be asked to carry a signboard stating the crime they have committed. They have to carry it around and “publicise” themselves. For instance, if an offender had been convicted of murder, he will not be sent to jail but instead asked to make a sign board with his offence on it. He will be asked to carry it on the roads, informing pedestrians and motorists of his offence. This type of punishment will invite nasty remarks and acts from passer-bys. The offender himself will be embarrassed especially if they are told to perform the punishment in a familiar environment where they will be recognised by perhaps their friends or neighbours. Report has shown that such punishment is effective in deterring similar crimes. Hence, I felt that it is truly justified to employ any form of punishment that is effective in maintaining law and order.
New law by 2012 to help seniors get rehired
As we faced a problem of a shortage of manpower due to issue of an aging population, we do have to implement several measures to remain sustainable in this changing economy. It is essential to tap on the aging population since the number is increasing at an alarming rate. By 2020, there will be 500,000 people aged 65 and above.
Under the new law, healthy senior citizens will be automatically rehired on reaching the retirement age of 62. Companies do not have to fret over the issue of hiring senior workers, worrying about their abilities to cope. This law will enable the companies to make a clear decision. This will also enable the senior citizens to be financially-able, earning a sum of money for their old age and for their family.
The number of taxpaying workers is shrinking while the number of older workers is increasing. Soon, the working population will have to pay more taxes to support the non-working population. Thus, another benefit of this law will help to alleviate the heavy burden on taxpaying workers to support the retired workers.
Another proposal is to help older women to rejoin or stay in the workforce. Facing the problem of old age, they may need to leave the workforce because they may be lacking the ability or being replaced by the younger generation. Some women may need their wage to support themselves because of unstable financial status. However, the proposal should not make it compulsory for older women to stay in the workforce. This is due to the fact that some may want to spend more time with their family in the old age and do not want to continue working.
With the persistence of the issue of aging population, Singapore needs to come up with more measures to counter this problem. Learning from the Japanese model in tackling the aging problem, Singapore may be able to generate more solutions and measures to minimise the effect of the aging problem.
Bullies in school – should they be intimidated or otherwise?
Bullies are people that act mean and hurt others. Bullies sometimes hit, kick, or push to hurt people, and they sometimes use words to call names, tease, or scare them. A bully might say mean things about someone, grab a kid's stuff, make fun of someone, or leave a kid out of the group on purpose. Some bullies threaten people or try to make them do things they don't want to do. They hurt their victims just to seek pleasure.
So should they suffer in silence and let bullies have their way? A prudent decision will be to stand up against them. They aim to gain a sense of authority over others, seeking people’s attention just to make their existence important or gain popularity. Hence, they like to antagonise the same children repeatedly. They tend to target children with common subjects for ridicule. For example those who are overweight, wear glasses, or have obvious physical differences like severe acne problem. But the differences don't have to be just physical. Children who learn at a different pace or are anxious or insecure can also be targets for bullies.
School children that are being bullied will develop certain symptoms. Some of the symptoms are inventing illnesses to skip school like stomachache or a headache. They can be missing belongings and money or even have sleeping problems like having nightmares. Psychological barrier can formed and it will be difficult to counter it if treatment was not received early. It will affect the child psychological development.
It is necessary for us to strike back against them because of the undesirable consequences. Children may have difficult getting along with people as adolescent or adults. Other problems are having a low esteem, depression or they can even turn to drug abuse. They will lose their confidence and think that they are incompetent. Depression will affect their daily activities and social network.
Thus, it is not wise to suffer in silence and just keep it to yourself. Confide in parents, friends and teachers, and discuss a solution. Punishing the bully will benefit not only the existing victims but also potential victims. So do not feel intimidated, instead stand up against them.
Are children of today too coddled and overprotected by their parents?
It is a way to express their love for their children, some parents may argue. Kids are meant to be care and love for. Yes, indeed. But when there is an overdose of such love, dire consequences may results.
Whenever I stepped into the toys section in a departmental store, kids could be seen whining for toys. Frankly, this method is very effective on parents. In the end, parents will end up buying the toys for their children so as to put a stop to such whining. When kids knew that this method is effective in ‘persuading’ their parents to obtain their wants, they will start to use it for the 2nd time, 3rd time… Unintentionally, parents fall into such traps. It has becomes so pervasive that they took little notice of it.
Kids are becoming too pampered because of the little things that occur in the everyday life. Parents can actually stop this phenomenon – not letting children have their way. If this kind of practice sinks into them, what will happen to them when they grow up? If they are not able to get hold of the thing they demanded, will they let their inner desires overwhelm them and resort to treat it lightly.
In this era of overly protective parenting, parents are the ones making decision on behalf of their kids. It is a norm to see parents watching, guarding, defending, and shielding their children, afraid that their kids will come to harm. This kind of parents sought for the best for their child and wants them to grow up in the environment that they had built for them.
Children under such circumstances may grow up to be having low self esteem, shy or rebellious. The former may result when the child are so used to staying in their comfort zone. Once they get out into the real world, they do not know how to handle it. If the parents have been covering up for their child’s mistakes, the child will not be able to handle failure due to lack of experience. This may even result in panic disorders. If they had not been given a chance to interact with people when young, they are most likely to become shy and lack confidence in themselves. The latter will result if children especially adolescent get tired of not being able to go with their friends or go to places because they are too young. Even though in some case the children are old enough and are capable of making good decision on their own.
These possible consequences can be prevented. Parents can let their children practise decision making when they are young. This will build up their sense of responsibility. Children should also be allowed to interact with people from young, equipping them with a sense of confidence. Parents play an important role in the development of their children. Hence, they should be helping their child preparing for the real world challenges and not let them live under an illusion.
