my facebook status reads: haoting is starting to wonder if all these is worth it.
now dont miss understand yo. i am not thinking of giving up or anything. its just that a certain turn of events has set me thinking about some things.
national service is something every singaporean boy needs to experience. it's the so called transition every boy takes as he matures into a real man. at least thats what they claim. growing up on this piece of land, the least we can do is to play our part to protect it, isnt it?
for many boys out there, we just want to serve finish the two years and carry on with our civilian lifes after that. just like the way our fathers, elder brothers, seniors did before us. all those military/regimental/discipline stuff just aint our forte. we just served because they say we should or rather we must. because we love our land. and we want it to be free to be free. just endure through these 2 years and you can get back your own life.
a high ranking officer once gave a talk to convince young men the importance of serving the army. he says it is to protect our way of life. so that when you go downstairs you are still able to buy that plate of chicken rice like you used to. so that your family and friends are safe. then why isit that as we are protecting our way of life, we lost our way of life? the chicken rice stall remains there, but you no longer have the time to patronize it. you talk to your family and friends via the phone more than you talk to them face to face. this isnt the way of life we were trying to protect, are we?
we serve so that we can be free. and yet the more we serve the less freedom we have. our lifes become so simple. all we need to do is to follow instructions. nothing to fancy. people say we must sleep. we sleep. people say we must drink water. we drink.
soldiers die. if they are to die, they are meant to die on the battlefield. it is just not worth it to die during training. i thought everything is supposed to get back to normal after 2 years. every soldier out there is somebody's precious son. there are too many times that the soldier's life is endangered that i just think that its not worth it. yes soldiers should be willing to die for their nation. but that's only when the country's peace is on the line. nobody wants to die in training camp. no point pushing your body above the limit trying to run that extra round around the track.
this isnt my main point. we need to serve NS to protect singapore from potential threats that will endanger our peace. fine i buy that. i want to play a part against terrorism too. i want to protect my family and friends too. but there are somethings i just dont quite understand.
we arent here to be soldiers for life. we are just here because they say we should be. for two years. that's it. after that my life is mine again. yipee. willingly or reluctantly. we all served nevertheless. it would be a bonus if anyone feels motivated in serving the nation and tries to be the best that he can be.
what i dont understand is why must certain punishments be so harsh. people forget we arent real soldiers. we are just soldier-wannabes. our real statuses are civilians. we are just wrongly misplaced for the time being and making the best out of it.
i am not saying all these because i feel that i have been injusticely punished. in fact i am still doing fine in one piece. at least for now. some of my peers are not that fortunate. that's what upsetting me so much. they are one of the most motivated soldier-wannabes that i have ever met. and just because of one mistake. all their previous credits were undermined. like a loyal dog beaten to death after disobeying its master just once. okie that may be quite an exaggeration but i think i have put my point across.
and i know certain people that have their bright future ruined. all because of a foolish mistake they made due to fear of failure. all they wanted was not to let their family and peers down. but yes a mistake will always be a mistake whatever the intentions. but is there a need to go all the way to the extent that the culprits have their lifes after NS ruined? now where can they go after their NS. i am trying to describe the situation as vaguely as possible in a desperate attempt to protect my ass. it may be too late to say this but what i have said so far is only my 2cents worth of opinion. that sometimes the punishments need not be so harsh. just make sure that the culprit learn from his mistake. i am sure there is more than one method to ensure that.
how far will you go to protect your country? especially in seemingly peaceful times like this.
have you ever wondered, why must we serve.
because we love our land, and we want it to be free, to be free.
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