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Monday, June 01, 2015 - 20:54 SGT
Posted By: Gilbert

Calm And Fury


And all on only US$630k!
[Bonus: YouTube direct to gif tip]


Just to draw the curtains on the Famous Amos freedom of expression saga, which was getting a little long in the tooth, the star of the show has apparently restored for public consumption the material that had been ordered by the court to be removed, and is now looking at a year or two in reformative training - which is effectively a prison lifestyle.

To recap, there was actually no reason for it to have come down to this - very many similar offenders have, upon being invited by the police for a friendly chat over coffee about their unwise online postings, have been only too eager to destroy all traces of their statements, and/or issue a grovelling apology; in these circumstances, the normal response would have been a stern warning, or token fine. If you had been following the case, it should have been evident that Famous Amos had been given many chances to bail out quietly. Which, it is now clear, he had zero intention of doing.

This is an attitude that isn't going to do his personal liberty much good, for the immediate future; but, and this is probably what he is angling for - neither is it good for the authorities.

As previously raised, a key problem is that almost all of what Famous Amos had done, had already passed without incident. Firstly, his antitheistic rants have largely been well-treaded by New Atheist authors, whose books have been selling briskly here. I'd go as far as to say that his inexperience comes through in his attacks - Gideon's soldier-selection strategy actually does make some sense in that having guys who keep their heads up is useful in battle (and football), for example.


Unfortunately for YHWH's merry handpicked band,
*another* pantheon got the pop-culture patent on the 300-man brand.
(Source: comicvine.com)


Secondly, as for the offensive images, they are frankly nothing very new either. It is all too easy to view such pastiches on various well-known websites (hosted overseas and beyond easy reach of the self-important MDA, of course), such as, at random, this one on a former minister (who happens to be my former MP - friendly enough fellow, I think I still have a photo with him)

No, none of the content was all that fresh. The thing was, Famous Amos' timing was interpreted - and likely meant - as an open challenge to the powers that be, and once the police reports began rolling in, the authorities were more or less cornered into coming down hard, as to "maintain respect".

The dilemma, then, is that one suspects that reformative training will not in fact alter Famous Amos' attitude, in large part because his opinions are not exactly unfounded. I strongly doubt that the RTC counsellors can manage to convince him through reason that his stand on organized religion is wrong, because well, by the standards applied to most other domains of human activity, it isn't actually.

This suspicion is furthered by the observation of, moving up the bureaucratic ladder, a member of the Media Literacy Council (i.e. our own flavour of Minitrue) somehow connecting a local playwright's advocacy of Malay-Muslim issues, with radicalization by ISIS! After his target quite rightly voiced his outrage, the Guardian of Right Thought took time off being an Internet tough guy, to justify his accusations by noting that the playwright had alleged discrimination against Malays here... which is tricky as certain policies were never all that hidden.


It's not as if our pragmatism was ever poorly documented...
(Source: blogspot.sg, quote from The State's Times)


Roles were then reversed as the non-establishment figure requested the MLC member to retract or remove his unsubstantiated post, which the latter refused to. In the end, the former decided not to contribute to the unsightly culture of petty litigation... which gave rise to a reminder of just why some might be tempted. Well, if one ever needed an example as to how douchebaggery is and should be totally allowable, 'cause freedom of speech, this is it.

Then again, the mainstream media's grip on Proper Thinking seems to be loosening, seeing as how recent CPF propaganda efforts are not receiving the warmest of welcomes, given that the game in town seems to be "lock up all the funds". Ditto claims by a real estate developer that property investment narrows the income gap, which even ST Forum contributors found to be incredible, and one writer went as far as to suggest raiding the reserves. Aiyo, all so daring now!

But, and in keeping with the ongoing drive against higher education, The State's Times could not help but run a front page story on how you too can earn S$1.5 million in a single transaction, with just a diploma! It just takes discipline...


At Peace

Me: Nice lazy Vesak Day today. Well, John Nash has passed - now there was a man! - what a pity. Hmm, the USA and China are engaged in playing chicken over both their stock markets and the South China Sea, leaving Europe to pursue... fake jobs. Might be time to go heavy on cash in hand. And some feedback on libraries, from last week - it seems there are human libraries, and, erm, cat libraries. And a proof that two books are sufficient. Er...

Robed hamster: Amituofo.

Me: *sighs* Good morning, Mr. Ham.

Robed hamster: *bowing slightly* I know not of a Mr. Ham, but it is not inconceivable that he is not a part of me. If it please you, you may address me as the Very Reverend Hampa Hamzin.

Me: That isn't a recognized monastic title in Buddhism...

V. Rev. Hampa: Ah, a traditionalist.

Me: And I gather Conrad hasn't managed to retrieve Mr. Robo yet, given that he is attending to you.

V. Rev. Hampa: All things come to those who wait. Rev. Condak Radchen, do you know of any "Conrad", perchance? No? Alright then, dismissed.

Me: Save it, Hampa. We're not even sure if Mr. Robo is alive right now, after his... misadventure.

V. Rev. Hampa: Life and death are but two sides of the same coin, human; there is naught but the turning of saṃsāra. Suffering is the state of being.

Me: If so, why not just kill yourself?

V. Rev. Hampa: In Heraclitus and Diogenes, one discerns the shadows of the Wheel and the Tao.

Me: Are you capable of giving a straight answer?

V. Rev. Hampa: The circle is without flaw, for it is without beginning and end, but our destination lies above it.

Me: *shrugs* Fine, if you're going to be that way. *returns to papers* Blatter re-elected by a near two-thirds majority as FIFA president despite - or rather, due to - long-suspected industrial-scale corruption within the body. Like, did anyone really expect the members to break rank, if it is indeed the case that most of them are on the take?

V. Rev. Hampa: I was thinking, I was in meditation. I am a faithful ham. I like you, I like my job. And I like to be with you. I am not perfect. Nobody is perfect.

Me: ..."Let's go FIFA! Let's go FIFA!" Yeah, that's what he said. Then again, given that Platini was a major supporter of the Qatar bid too, nothing but a total revamp's gonna do it. Our own Football Association's keeping mum, as usual.

V. Rev. Hampa: Discretion is the better part of valour.

Me: Is this Generic Advice Day?

V. Rev. Hampa: It was all preordained.

Me: *throws arms up* Okay, I get it, you want some alone time. You could have just said so, you know.

*ups and leaves*

V. Rev. Hampa: ...My, these fortune cookies are a hoot. Want one, human? Human? Oh well, more for me, then.



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