Social Issues
Empowered Women Empower Women: 5 Questions with Grace Park, Christina Teo, and Tjin Lee on International Women’s Day 2019
March 8, 2019
Empowered Women Empower Women: 5 Questions with Grace Park, Christina Teo, and Tjin Lee on International Women’s Day 2019
Today, on 8 March, we commemorate International Women’s Day (IWD) – a global event that celebrates the successes of women, particularly in challenging traditional gender expectations and norm. The event also symbolises an impetus of gender parity, which is a core theme that works in tandem with this year’s IWD core theme: Balance for Better. We sat down with three women leaders: Co-Founder and President of DocDoc, Grace Park; Chief Builder of she1K, Christina Teo; and Founder of Mercury Marketing & Communications, Tjin Lee. We discussed how these leaders have embodied this year’s theme to tear down all gender expectations…
Self-Driving Cars: Ready, Set, Go?
July 27, 2018
Self-Driving Cars: Ready, Set, Go?
Over a decade ago, Mobileye could hardly conceptualize of a future where cars would drive themselves. Today, they are at the forefront of a transportation revolution. In a meeting with ASIC Manager Mois Navon, one of the key people blazing the trail at Mobileye, the discussion around the history and progress of Mobileye threw up fresh ethical issues that every self-respecting commuter should be aware of today. Mois Navon cuts a stately, almost imposing, figure, but his welcoming smile and warm tone could make you believe for a moment that he was inviting you into his very home. This is…
They’re Here, They’re Queer — No Fear
July 20, 2018
They’re Here, They’re Queer — No Fear
Queerness scares people – that’s the truth. But the truth is rarely pure and never simple. What does it mean to be queer? If you wanted the pure and simple truth, then it just refers to being anything other than heterosexual or cisgender. But the world we live in doesn’t abide by dictionary definitions – neither does judgement nor discrimination. To be queer is to be invisible, to be seen through pejorative glances, to be the antipode of normal. In the small city-state of Singapore like anywhere else, the history of queerness is the history of marginalisation. Although many assume…
On Dementia & Abuse: Lincoln Lim’s New Music Video is Open to Viewers’ Interpretations
May 3, 2018
On Dementia & Abuse: Lincoln Lim’s New Music Video is Open to Viewers’ Interpretations
It was a drizzling Friday night when I met Lincoln Lim at a bar in a nondescript corner of Bugis. He greeted me as if I was an old friend, extending his hands out warmly with a wide smile and said: “Hi, you must be Stacey!” Surprised by his nice reception, I shook his hands and greeted him back. Although he was scheduled to perform at the Jalan Klapa bar at about 7.30pm and it was already a little over 7.15pm when I had arrived, he assured me that he would have enough time to have a quick chat with…
To Make the Most of Freedom and Pleasure
February 13, 2018
To Make the Most of Freedom and Pleasure
“In the moment that you are waiting for your food, do you not become the waiter?” Puns aside, most teenagers from middle-class families probably have no idea what it’s like to be serving someone else at the other end of the table. As a fresh JC kid back in 2014, I was looking for a way to kill time and to pick up a little life experience and thus chose to venture into that other side. This decision would eventually lead to a part-time stint at Sunday Folks, a humble, quaint ice cream café situated in Holland V. Having no…
Say What: How Edmund Dealt With Hearing Loss
January 10, 2018
Say What: How Edmund Dealt With Hearing Loss
Listening to music while we commute, the chatter of friends, and the general ambiance of a crowded office are all pretty mundane detail for many of us. Yet, trying to come to terms with our world of sound slowly turning silent, is something completely unfathomable altogether. Meet Edmund Koh, who was only formally diagnosed with hearing impairment at the age of 17, thanks to the pre-enlistment medical checkup for Singapore’s National Service (well thanks, NS!). Although he faced difficulties in hearing his teachers back in his old school days, he coped by choosing seats closer to the front of the classroom…
Why Sometimes I Don’t Text Back
September 26, 2016
Why Sometimes I Don’t Text Back
This reflection started off with a close buddy of mine asking: “How in the world do you deal with life? I mean, like with that many messages from so many different chats!?” Maybe it’s because a million thoughts go through my head a day, or that I’m probably just an asshole. Either way, I almost always forget to text people back, and sometimes I really just don’t give a damn to do so (which makes me want to put my money on me being the latter). Anyway, on average there’s Facebook Messenger, Snapchat, Telegram and WhatsApp, all of which are just…