Here is yet another blogger sharing the dirty linen of MINDEF, the one Ministry that is paranoid and retarded enough to attempt to clamp down on every damn negative thing that is about it.
Don’t the people in this Ministry get it? They are a Government Ministry, which means they are funded by the taxpayers.Those people sitting there and attempting to catch or threaten all negative internet postings are living on the salaries paid by the taxpayers, which easily means our taxpayers can demand accountability. They must be held publicy accountable for everything, both good and bad. Claiming that national security justifies such draconian and senseless actions of clamping down on Internet postings by NSFs will just ring hollow when they turn a blind eye to positive articles on MINDEF and SAF. It is in effect something known as double standards.
Since they are so proud and sure of their NS experiences that they can offer to everyone, and they consistently boast about it, why don’t they have the guts to let everyone in Singapore know just how positive it is? After all, assuming that what they boast is true, we should be expecting to see many entries and blogs that laud and praise SAF for giving them life-changing experiences that cannot be found anywhere else. When they attempt to clamp down, isn’t it a as clear an indicator as anything else that all is not well?
It is time to for MINDEF to wake up, and mature in their thinking that criticism is not acceptable and just damaging to the organisation’s reputation. When people bother to criticise, it means they at least care enough to point out the flaws in the system. In fact, blogging is a fantastic tool for higher-level commanders to really feel what the ground troops are thinking, instead of wishy-washy interview sessions that many shun and view as play-acting.
What those jokers in MINDEF should do now is to scour the Internet for criticism, highlight and request that the necessary departments act on these criticism. No one is perfect and above criticism, so why should MINDEF be? Trying to continuously hide skeletons in the cupboard in this new age, and under the age of alternative media which is nearly uncontrollable, will eventually backfire on MINDEF one day.
Just a quick scour around the Internet would reveal many blogs maintained by US soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. These blogs are authentic and provide a first-hand look at the wars there, and how life is like in a war-zone. Surely higher security requirements there would be more justified, as compared to Singapore’s situation. Thinking that our neighbours will attack us, just because the national servicemen said that SAF sucks online, is just naive and stupid. However, that thinking might well be manifested in those commanders in charge of that department which catches NSFs for posting and writing negatively on the SAF.
In essence, from the current status quo, MINDEF is behaving just like top ministers who are perpetually paranoid about criticism and will not hestitate to punish those who dissent, especially when they run the rule over all the NSFs.
20 Comments
January 13, 2009 at 10:44 am
Well, I guess that you are within the radars of the search team now. Yes, I believe that there will be some policies being worked out behind the scenes.
You can have policies to control information flow but you cannot control human nature much. If they want to fix, they will fix.
It is the bad after-taste that stays with the soldiers for the rest of their lives. Injustice cannot be simply brushed aside by mere words.
January 12, 2009 at 11:55 am
Erm, if you take a look see, those news articles came out before HWZ and other forums caught wind of it. In fact, you would notice that such threads appear quoting the newspaper as their source.
But I get what you mean, I’ve read comments about how the radical progression of the new media has led to a need for increased openness to such events and I agree. Nothing’s really safe from the Internet anymore.
Now about Mindef.
Yes, I’ve served in Mindef, and yes, I know that there are people dedicated to find this bloggers. Yes, you are also right about how these blogs get sent off to the appropriate department for punishment, but I am also aware that several policies appear and/or being planned behind the scenes to root out the cause of these blogs, i.e. middle management etc. That is why I ask if you know what [b]really[/b] (didn’t want to capitalize, but you get the emphasis) know what happens. I find it extremely unfair that you would judge MINDEF or any fellows that work on these policies just because their policies haven’t seen the light of day yet.
I apologize for my misconception with regards to the blogging though, must be because I usually see these posts when I come along.
January 12, 2009 at 10:13 pm
yes,this happens often anyway. they always need to provide sources instead of just shouting around. last time the dunking incident happens to be the same situation here.
have you ever seen where the buck stops? do they really root out the cause? why then do so many people still complain about the inefficiencies of SAF? if they are really so good, why do they even need to warn people against posting NEGATIVELY about SAF? its explicit. NEGATIVE. nothing against POSITIVE posts.
yes i do know what happens. their policies haven’t seen the light of day yet?what policies are you talking about? since when have they started managing relationships with NSFs and NSmen as humans, as people, as valued assets rather than dogs and slaves? what has seen the light of day are clear directives that warn against blogging negatively about SAF. the OSA is a joke. they determine what contravenes OSA and what doesn’t. If they want to punish the serviceman, OSA or not, they will cook something up to punish the serviceman, regardless of how meaningful the comment is.
and didn’t the recent AIMS thingy remind you about SAF and their fear of their dirty linen being washed in public?
perhaps. =) thanks for visiting and leaving your comments!
January 12, 2009 at 8:54 am
’sup.
I think you are being rather stronghanded on your criticism of Mindef. You seem to label them as anyone that is unwilling to accept any form of criticism at all, which is true only to a slight extent.
Recent news articles have already shown to an extent that MINDEF is increasingly beginning to hang their dirty linen. A week ago, there was the case of the army recruit being beaten up in camp. Just today, we have the story of parents suing MINDEF because of compensation issues.
Do you really know what goes on in MINDEF? Do you think that people there look for a negative blog, send it off to the appropriate department, and leave it as it is? Do you think that they are content to sit on their bums and let such problems resurface again? It’s like cutting the weeds and leaving the roots in the ground. Give them a little more credit. I will reveal this much, I used to serve at MINDEF. I am familiar with what is going on behind the scenes and their policies, and I know what they actually do.
Which also begs the question, who do you think surfs the Internet to find these blogs in the first place? Who do you think that you are REALLY criticizing?
You constantly blog about how MINDEF only knows how to clamp down criticism, and also seem to emphasize on the punishment that happens to such defaulters. I can almost taste the bitterness coming off it. Have you been on the blunt end of the stick before?
January 12, 2009 at 10:52 am
hey man.
i have an extremely low opinion of MINDEF. many of them are the epitome of the useless civil servants, content with sucking taxpayers’ money, being completely inefficient, stupid and simply waiting to slack or knock off at 530.
please. the news article caught on ONLY when news spread around HWZ and sgforums. i will stake my life and bet that if nobody said anything online, MINDEF will not say a word too.unfortunately for MINDEF, the world is greater than their gombak base, which means news get around much faster than before. the mainstream media no longer has a monopoly on information, unlike the past.
i do. =) there are people dedicated to looking for blogs, and once they find them, and find out the identity, they will send it to the appropriate department to TAKE ACTION AGAINST THE BLOGGER. is that what you meant? taking action against what the blogger said? yea sometimes they investigate, but usually will end up covering everything up. you already said it. its like cutting the weeds and leaving the roots in the ground.
for someone who used to serve at MINDEF, i am surprised that you do not know of people dedicated to doing such things. to whom do you think i am really criticising then?
i don’t think i constantly blog about it. i only wrote two articles about it before. and the bitterness? trust me, i know how MINDEF works. and the bitterness comes off from MINDEF’s end once they find out that they are caught with their pants down again. and don’t you feel that punishing people just because they can once they find out that these people have negative views about them, and aired them in public, are totally unreasonable and draconian?
January 9, 2009 at 4:15 pm
Blogging will not destroy…it’s how you blog that will destroy.
I read your comments in theonlinecitizen.com and you are right in that many people view things at one angle instead of looking at it in all perspectives.
How do you know if you’ve been brainwashed by information from overseas? Again you are right!
You see, our MOH (as well as other countries’ health authorities) has been brainwashed by USA’s FDA to accept that:
1. Cows’ milk is healthy
2. That the current food pyramid is healthy
No, don’t rub your eyes. I did say “brainwash”!
And you are also right. To get your facts right you have to read. So I urge you to continue doing what you said is “CORRECT”. I invite you to read more here with an inquisitive and enquiring mind cos with a closed mind you don’t gain or learn anything (I enjoy learning and sharing with you):
REAL STUDIES AND CONCLUSIONS with regards to Cows’ milk http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15741380?dopt=Abstract
Cows’ milk related to allergies http://www.nutramed.com/children/kidsmilk.htm
Bovine treatments in cows threatens our health
http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/bgh.htm
Rat Poison (fluoride) added to milk by LAW
http://www.notmilk.com/ratpoison.html
Yes, you are right we’ve been programmed to think that flouride is good for bones, but did anyone tell you it’s bad for the body?
Health authorities once approved mercury fillings for dentistry. NOW it’s banned for good cos people TALKED!!
If you think everything that Obama or Lee Hsien Long do will benefit our nations, think again. They may or may not use this knowledge to their advantage. For all you know they are drinking milk and eating aspartame everyday to increase their likelihood of getting heart attacks and disbetis.
Someone who doesn’t know how to take care of their health interests CANNOT take care of yours!
Be aware of politicians who give their monies to organisations who have no care for your life nor your health!
I wish you a very good and throught-provoking day and may the light guide you in every way you wish for!
January 9, 2009 at 7:42 pm
whoa. you are right about the different perspectives. haha. but i didn’t know about the milk thing. ‘luckily’, i don’t drink milk. talking about milk, when that time melamine incident broke out, AVA had the audacity to boast in the front page that they will not rest on their laurels. i was wondering what laurels? it wasn’t as if they discovered the issue or anything, but instead they had accepted what their importers told them. guess Singapore authorities just cannot stop boasting, even when they have nothing to boast.
there are many things we do not know. intellectual ability can only go that far. what matters is how we use the intelligence, and that’s known as wisdom. and to acquire wisdom, its crucial that one reads as widely as possible. =)
thanks. have a great day too. =)
January 8, 2009 at 10:48 pm
In the dark corners of power and drinking buddies, how far would the reports go once you are fixed. Alas, most have already suffered in silence. Not everybody is a 2LT Lee.
Everybody just serve and f**k-off (SAF).
That is the reality of life. The Army fears that the injustice suffered may translate into words in the form of blogs, In the old days, we just TCSS about the “special” treatments among ourselves and forget about it once the ICTs or NS are over.
But the new media offers a reach far beyond the fences of the army camps. Words that stay in record, even after one walks past the guard house.
January 8, 2009 at 11:13 pm
you are right. perhaps the permanence of their misdeeds and bad management is the cause of the fear. the permanent records of it all. the fear of their dirty linen being hung to dry forever in public.
wouldn’t that be even sadder? If they have truly learnt their lessons or absorbed the feedback or frank criticism given, and made the efforts to change their systems, why do they have to continue to force people into that closet?
January 8, 2009 at 3:55 pm
If you are fixed, report them… or suffer silently.
Your choice.
January 8, 2009 at 9:11 pm
what are you saying? =( i don’t really understand what you mean by “fixed”.
anyway, i hope you are kidding about your “long holiday” post.
January 8, 2009 at 9:47 am
I would agree that their way of doing things aren’t the most efficient, but I also think we should cut them some slack. Every company and organization has a right to protecting its public image and maintaining it as they like it, whether you like it or he doesn’t. The SAF is a military organization and endless rolls of red tape that slow change and progress down is inevitable. I do think the concept of “come let them criticize and whack us to pieces and we’ll see how we can make them happy from there” is a relatively new concept that is mostly adopted by younger leaders. The SAF now holds a more old-fashioned way of dealing with these issues, and it will have to be quite some time before the SAF moves on to a more modern stand. Let’s leave it to the younger incoming commanders to do something about this.
January 8, 2009 at 11:20 am
so in other words, to you we do nothing and wait for someone to do something because it has always been this way?
oh and yes they have a right to protect their own image, but using punishments and threats? isn’t it pretty indicative of their own competency and that their big talk are just hogwash?
January 8, 2009 at 12:27 am
There is nothing to blog about the technology, you can find most of the information in Jane’s.
What the Army is afraid of are rants and whinings. This will reveal the Army way of personnel management and the darker side of the human nature.
I believe that NSFs have seen their fair share of “special” treatments in the Army.
January 8, 2009 at 12:34 am
you have hit the nail on the head. pathetic isn’t it? MINDEF isn’t confident of their own abilities to create a unique NS experience and has to resort to such crude and offensive tactics to achieve their aims of keeping skeletons within the cupboards. let’s see how long they can keep it up.
January 7, 2009 at 2:16 pm
I would prefer to take the middle approach. Let’s see what exactly is being blogged/discussed.
If its about the latest capabilities, let’s just leave it to Pioneer to boast about it in their latest edition of the magazine.
If its about certain loopholes within the organisation that may result in crippling our national defenses, then greater care must be paid attention to that instead of highlighting on a public forum.
I would hope for better interaction from either party with regards to this issue. Instead of the be all and end all freedom of speech and whathaveyous.
January 7, 2009 at 4:14 pm
its ironic isn’t it? the latest technology SAF adopts can be freely discussed in public and circulated, while bad practices, abuses or incompetency has to be done in closed doors. i would say any logical person would think that military information and technology is more important and critical to national defence than the latter. unfortunately, the issue on “face” seems to override national security here isn’t it?
that’s really sad.
January 7, 2009 at 12:44 pm
no, i think you misconstrue the issue.
any organisation, governmental or non-governmental, would prefer that its employees or associates not blog about work matters if you will (i would assume that some organisations even stipulate that their employees or associates not blog about such matters). speaking generally, this is a sound and reasonable policy.
in any event, there are “proper channels” through which suggestions can be put through.
January 7, 2009 at 1:04 pm
so how is this a sound and reasonable policy?
please bear in mind, NSFs who blog about SAF negatively(emphasis intended) will be punished severely ranging from fines to detention barracks. positive articles go unscathed. if this is not clear double standards at work here, what is?
and please, we all know how “proper channels” work. perhaps thats why you had those “” too.
i am sorry but i have to disagree with you on your “any organisation”. there are many organisations that do not prefer such intrusion into the private lives of its employees, and trust that the workplace is conducive enough for the employee to not have negative views on it. in fact, some organisations do treat feedback given by their employees on their personal blogs seriously, and take steps to address them.
January 7, 2009 at 11:56 am
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