S.Korean gaming addict accused of killing son

summary:

Internet gaming addict South Korean mother accused of killing her three-year-old son. She plays about ten hours a day. The mother beat and strangled him after he disturbed her by urinating on the floor and cried. Furthermore she's mad at him as she was tired and want to get some rest after playing game. The body was discovered only after three days when her in-laws reported the death to police.

Comment:

This is a sad case that's reported. A mother killing their own children is unacceptable, furthermore the reason is because she's tired after playing online games. She must have been a serious game addict. She haven't been doing house chore as her house is describe as like a trash site. In this world, there's many game addicts. I believe that due to much games, people get easily agitated when their tired or they can't live without it. There's many cases of game addicts doing harm such as a 15-years-old boy committing suicide after killing mother for scolding him over computer games. Too much video games can cause people to suffer from social withdrawals, physical aliments, aggressive behavior which is like mentioned above. They will also ignore responsibilities such as failing to eat proper meals or do their work. There should learn how to control their addicts and not rely too much on the net for comfort.

Japan defense reviw warm of China's military might

summary:
Japan and China's relationship is deteriorated sharply in September because of collisions between a Chinese trawler and Japanese patrol boats near China. Japan call China's military raise a source of international concern. Also North Korea is considered as an urgent and grave upgraded. North Korea's missile and nuclear programmed as a "pressing and serious destabilizing factor". In response, more Patriot interceptor batteries will be deployed, and the number of warships which can shoot down missiles will be increased in Japan but Japan's military is forbidden by the country's constitution from offensive action.

comments:
It is considered that the relationship between Japan and China is serious. I was surprised when Japanese patrol boats and Chinese trawler were collision. After that the program of visit Shanghai International exhibition was postponed the day before departure day. After those things, Japanese media often broadcast about relationship between Japan and China. And next problem is between South Korea and North Korea. Even if Japan increase military, Japan can't attack other couturiers because of constitution so I don't need to increase and train Japanese military. We have a military only defence for ourselves. Japan should consider having military only for defence or change the constitution but it is difficult to change constitution. Because Japan is already know warfare from World War2. Japan doesn't want to do same mistake again. It is important that how Japan correspond to China without no bad stimulus.

X100042
-Yuno

US man is HIV-free after stem cell transplant

summary:

An American man is still HIV-free more than three years after receiving a stem cell transplant. This is the first ever cure of virus thats causes AIDS. However this is used by a highly ricky technique. The man is known as "berlin Patient" this cure would not work for most of the 33million people with HIV worldwide. This is a operation of using a rare genetic mutation that is naturally resistant to HIV. However, the process is not easy. Hence they are still researching on another alternative to replicate the same process in the cells without going through the same risky process.

Comment:

There's a slight success in finding cure for HIV. This is better than none despite the risk. This is a great start for the researchers. I believe that if this method can be improve with less risk involved. This will allow those that's living with HIV to be cured and they would not die from it. Furthermore, if they're cured from HIV, they will not be isolated from the society. When a cure is found, non HIV positive will not get contracted from this disease. Lesser people will be drag into being HIV positive. However, everyone should still be cautious. Even if a cure is found, there could be another more deadly diseases which will evolve from this. As when a cure is found, one day, the diseases will be immune to the medicine. Everyone should protect themselves. By using safety precaution, this will lesser the risk of getting the diseases. If we're taking precaution in the first place, lesser people will die from AIDS.

Japan knife rampage on buses leaves 13 injured

Story: Japan knife rampage on buses leaves 13 injured. A Japanese man wield with knife went on rampage on two packed buses on Friday, slashing at least four people leaving 13 injured, mostly school students.

Yuta Saito is 27-year-old and unemployed. The attack happened during the morning rush hour outside Toride railway station, about 40 kilometres (25 miles) northeast of Tokyo. Witnesses subdued the knife-man also sustained some injuries.

The drivers of the two passenger buses later recounted the ordeal that sent panicked passengers fleeing from the crowded vehicles. The bloody knife attack evoked memories of another, far deadlier stabbing spree in which the attacker also ran down pedestrians with a truck in 2008.

Tomohiro Kato, 28, is still on trial for his rampage in which he killed seven people -- three with the truck and four by stabbing them -- and wounded 10 more in Tokyo's Akihabara electronics and manga comic culture district.


Comments:
I feel that the authorities should have done something during the incident.
Fortunately, no lives were lost. However, more actions should be done.
The public should also be well informed if such scenarios should occur anytime, anywhere so that they are prepared.

It is unfortuante that such events are often unpredictable and fortunately it does not occur daily, thus it is irrelevant if the Government should include "x-rays" in buses before passengers board.

-Claire

ZoukOut 'molester' arrested

SUMMARY: A 21-YEAR-OLD foreigner was arrested for molesting someone early on Sunday morning at ZoukOut, the annual dance party on Sentosa, which attracted an estimated 30,000 revellers.
A 23-year-old party-goer who did not want to be named said she saw the man being taken away, and that he did not look drunk.
Organised by Zouk, this outdoor music festival saw some 30,000 party goers descend on Siloso Beach at Sentosa.
For 12 hours, starting from 8pm, party goers danced through the night as famous DJs like Tiesto and David Guetta played their songs.

COMMENT: There has been various reports regarding molesters during parties like ZoukOut, and even during the Countdown party. I feel that party-goers should be more aware of their surroundings. Even if girls want to wear bikinis during the party, they should always have guy friends who look out for them while having fun. Even better, if they fear being molested, they should not be going to these parties. They should be aware that the place will be very crowded. This news has caused some people to post racist comments guessing the molester's race; and most of them think it's an Indian guy. I think this should not happen. The race of the molester could be Chinese or a Malay, why do people zoom in into Indians? People should stop being so narrow-minded. It's not fair to the Indians out there.

Former maid turned technician lands scholarship

Summary:


Former maid Miss Jourgina Dagoplo's Singapore employers funded her which allowed her to continue her education. Before receiving this opportunity, Miss Jourgina had already been working in Singapore for 13 years. Her kind employers offered her a chance to study by funding her and that made her obtain a ITE skill certificate which earned her a spot in IBM in the year 2005, with a monthly income of $1,050 which was double the pay she earned as a helper. Apart from the ITE certificate, she also graduated from Singapore Polytechnic with the Diploma Electrical and Electronics Engineering. However, since she has already stayed in Singapore for 18 years, her visa permit has expired, thus she had to return to her country. Back there, she received a scholarship to study in a private school - Informatics. The couple are continuing to support her by giving her an allowance for the next 2 years until her studies complete.


Comments:
I feel that despite many cases with maid issues that are either abuses or robbery, there are still some stories that are so different. More and more maids are receiving benefits from their employees, which also tells us that yes a family with a helper can get along. Abuses and other cases should be prevented. I must say that Miss Jourgina is really lucky to be able to continue studying that allowed her to earn a scholarship, her employers should have felt proud of it. As my household has a maid too, I have actually asked her what she thought about continuing study, she said she wanted to earn money first then continue her studies next time as she has many siblings. One of the helpers I have had before, looked after me for 12 years ever since I was born, my mother taught her many culinary skills like cooking Chicken Rice, when she returned to the Philippines, this gave her the opportunity to set up a business selling Chicken Rice. Now, she is happily living in her country able to support herself even though she didn't continue studying. 


I must say that there are good employers with good helpers, there are also average employers, with average helpers, and the other extremes. However, this proves us that having both helpers and employers can work together having an unexpected result at the end of the period spent together. 

"hacktivits" threaten websites if Assange is extradited

Summary:

an army of computer hackers is planning to bring down British government website if Mr Julian Assange, founder of wikileaks, is extradited to Sweden. They have hacked the website for Dutch police, MasterCard,Visa and Paypal. This happened when they companies announced that they will not donate to the anti-secrecy organisation.

Comments:

the recent cyberattack which is in support of wikileaks has caused trouble to Visa and the Dutch police website. Visa was down for a day. This was a warning given. However, in my opinion, there's pros and cons about this anti-secrecy organisation. The pros would be for example, they leaked out the documents about North Korea and Myanmar. The two countries have always been close. It was said in the documents that Myanmar is building nuclear sites with help from North korea. This allows the US to react over Myanmar's instability and aversion to change. Without this documents, some things may not be able to come to light. However, too much of this leaked document can prone terrorist attack. The documents are raw. Some documents may spark anger from people when they happen to read some negative comments in the wikileaks.

Kitten found dead in Sengkang: Another victim of animal abuse?

Summary: STOMPer Kiefer Goh is preparing to bury this kitten that his mother found dead under block 183B at Sengkang. There seems to be a puncture wound under its neck and the STOMPer wonders if this is a case of animal abuse.
The STOMPer appeals:
"This cat was found at Sengkang 183B around 10pm on 9 Dec.
"It appears to have been punctured from its lower jaw into its mouth.
"Its eyes were bloodshot and I suspect that was due to strangulation.
"The cat was only a kitten and no bigger than 1 foot long.
"It was already dead when my mother carried it to my house. We are preparing to bury it.
"If anyone has more information about this case, please contact the authorities.
"I hope the government will start doing more to help these poor animals."

Comment: As much as I hate cats, I still think that this isn't the right way to treat your pet. Just a few weeks ago, a video was posted online showing a girl sitting on a huge glass with her pet rabbit under the glass. The rabbit was squashed. While watching the video, I was horrified. The girl was still smiling and laughing. If you own a pet, it is your responsibility to take care of it! Not hurt it, or even go to the extend of killing it. Even if you killed your pet, isn't it common sense that you bury it properly. Not leave it at the void deck. I really think the government should pass a specific law for these irresponsible owners.

Nor Atiqah
103924B

Singapore Red Cross reports woman for pocketing $90,000

Summary:
The Red Cross Society has declared that they would stop fund-raising until investigations into a misappropriation of funds have been done. One of the Red Cross Society's employees who started off as a temporary administrative assistant staff of the finance department in the year 2009 who was then made a permanent staff had been reported for a total theft of $90,000 over the period starting February 2010. She admitted that she was guilty. This is the first time the charity encountered such an incident ever since the year 1949. This has resulted to Red Cross secretary-general Christopher Chua making an apology to donors that helped.


Comments:
I feel that these people should not be let scot-free. Money donated by tax-payers and other people are hard earned, yet they are willing to donate to these charities to help those in need. However, she took advantage and nabbed that $90,000 which could have been used to save many lives and maybe improve the standard of living of those in need. Yes, these people might have their reasons for doing so, but it is still a crime. Just because of her foolish act of taking that $90,000, Red Cross has to stop fund-raising which would mean the poor would have to suffer. I believe that this would definitely bring down the donation amounts after fund-raising events start again. 

Stunt goes horribly wrong on German prime-time TV

Summary:
A contestant, Samuel Koch, in one of Germany's most popular TV shows was admitted to the intensive care unit of the hospital as he suffered severe spinal injuries. The TV programme is one that allows contestants to attempt to perform or show daring feats. Upon attempting his stunt, which was to leap lengthways over a moving car wearing spring-loaded stilts, Samuel met an unfortunate mishap. As a result, he lay motionless on the floor. Koch was immediately sent to the hospital, fortunately he managed to regain consciousness and could speak. His operation lasted for about 2 and a half hours. 
Thomas Gottschalk, the host of the show stated that over the 29 years since the programme started, there were many participants performing very dangerous stunts like a young man who jumped over a house on a skateboard and the worst suffered a broken leg. The host also stated that if he had known that Samuel would attempt such a dangerous stunt, he would not have allowed him to perform.


Comments:
I feel sorry for Samuel Koch as all he wanted to do was probably to gain fame and also a chance to shine. However, is it that necessary to perform such dangerous stunts in order to win? I find that he was lucky that it was just a spinal injury, something worse off like death might have happened. Gaining fame or popularity should not include risks that might end your life. Yes, it might have been something to wow about if he succeeded, but to me, it is just not right. Now he has spinal problems, which would probably disallow him to walk properly and cause many disruptions to his daily life he had before. Why go to such extents just to win a TV program? Now, even if he is recovering, his life would not be the same anymore.

Bird-flu steps complete: Japan

summary:
Last Sunday, the Shimane prefecture announced that it has taken all preventive measures against bird flu since a local poultry farm was fund infected last week. All 21,500 chickens at a farm have been killed and incinerated. No new cases of avian flu have been reported, surveillance will be maintained within a 10-km radius of the infected farm. Shimane governor said Sunday at a meeting of the local task force that he will try to compensate the poultry farm and neighboring farm tasted positive for bird flu in preliminary tests. the virus was identified as the often deadly H5N1 strain.

comments:
Last year, there is swine flu and it run riot and a lot of people died. The swine flu came from Mexico to Japan on April. In Japan, the season for flu is from beginning of autumn to end of winter. The swine flu of last year was unusual. It took a long time to produce new antibiotic because the virus was very strong. And i t was few amount. That why a lot of people died. If this bird flu infect with people, it is serious problem. I don't want it to infect people and I don't want to see same incident again. The government should do some provision as soon as possible.

Yuno
-100042

Malaysian 14-year-old's marriage sparks debate

Story:
The public marriage celebration in Malaysia between schoolgirl Siti Maryam Mahood (14 years old) and teacher Abdul Manan Othman (23 years old) celebrated their marriage at a mosque in the capitl Kuala Lumpar, after a religious Sharia court approved the union, has triggered a call for a fresh debate on child marriage.

Abdul is the girl's family friend. Siti knows that it is hard trying to juggle two roles, as a student and a wife.

Muslims below 16 who want to get married must obtain the permission of the religious courts. Those of other religions aged below 17 must have the consent of civil authorities.

In Malaysia, Muslims make up about 60 per cent of the 28 million population. For certain issues including family law they are subject to Sharia which operates in parallel with the civil legal system.

Comments:
I feel that every states practices different culture.
To me, I feel that there should be a standard age of minumum of 18 years old.
This is because, if the female is married at the age of 16, she will be holding on to a lot of responsibilities. And at such a young age, majority of the youths are merely learning how to undergo responsibilities.

I feel that before the couple gets married, that is if the female is below 18 years old, they should be counseled and it should be thought of.

-Claire

Caught for inciting violence

Summary: POLICE arrested on Monday a 15-year-old male for inciting violence online following the recent murder at Downtown East. On Nov 4, the suspect posted comments claiming he was associated with a gang. He also challenged other users to a fight, even stating a specific date, time and place. The suspect is released on bail and is still under investigation. The director of the Criminal Investigation Department, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police Ng Boon Gay, said the police are 'taking a tough stance on gangs'. 'Those who think they can hide behind the anonymity of the Internet should think twice and be warned that statements which are deemed to cause fear or incite violence are against the law,' he added.

Comments: I think the teenager is proud to be a member of the gang, and he probably feels that people will be afraid of him after he posted the comments online. Obviously, he was just 'inviting danger' to himself when the police arrested him. Even though we have the liberty to post anything online, we should still be mindful of what we post. We should not post something that might hurt someone's feelings, or even something that might get ourselves in danger. This isn't the first news about teenagers/internet users getting arrested because of what they say online. Several others have served their time for posting racist remarks, and other sensitive issues.

Nor Atiqah
103924B

China tackles cyberwarfare

Summary: BEIJING - CHINA'S army should seriously consider how to deal with cyberwarfare amid severe threats to online and information security, after authorities detained hundreds of hackers. 'The spread of information is developing at an unprecedented rate... bringing severe challenges to information and Internet security,' the state-run People's Liberation Army Daily reported. 'Military commanders must seriously consider how to deal with the issue of cyberwarfare.' The comments come just days after Chinese authorities said they had detained more than 460 suspected hackers and closed a number of websites that teach people how to hack, warning that cyberattacks were rampant across the nation. According to a notice on the Ministry of Public Security's website posted on Tuesday, police had cracked a total of 180 hacking cases within China, which has the world's largest online population of at least 420 million users.

Comments: Cyberwarfare is a serious case. If it's not handled properly, it could mean all the websites to 'close down'. No one would risk their accounts being hacked or their personal information to be exposed online. For the fact that there are a number of websites that teaches people how to hack, it makes the internet much more 'unsafe' than it already is. I personally feel that the China authorities should get some professionals to work together and find out more about the websites which teaches people how to hack, and try to prevent people from accessing the website. If they have to, they should just stop people from having internet connection, filter out all the 'hacking websites', then connecting it again.

Nor Atiqah
103924B

Japanese manufacturing activity falls as exports shrink

summary:
Japanese manufacturing activity reduce for a three months running from September as a strong yen hit exports. The Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) stayed below the 50 threshold. The index for new export orders fell to 46.9 from 48.4 compare with previous month. Also, new figures showed Japan's unemployment rate rose to 5.1% in October.

comments:
Strong yen is a serious problem for Japan. It is started from September 2008, after Riemann shock. Before Riemann shock, Japanese yen was 100 yen level against US$1 but after Riemann shock, Japanese yen have shot up. After 2 years, Japanese yen had continued ups and downs between about 85 yen to 100 yen but last month at length, Japanese yen marked 80.40 level. High Japanese yen rate is welcomed to people who go abroad but exporting company get huge shock. If Japanese yen increase 1 yen, exporting company gets 100 million yen damages. After Riemann shock, a lot of company got damage so they have reduced salary, employee or etc. These days, unemployment rate going up and job hunting is becoming difficult because of strong yen. A lot of university students can't get job before graduate. If they can't get job, most of them go to graduate studies because job hunting is easy for students compare to graduates. Usually in Japan, we begin to job hunting in second semester of year 3 so I begin to job hunting next October but I'm very afraid of that it is possible I can't get job. Above all I think that government should make some policy to control yen. If yen is going strong more than now, it is very difficult to readjust Japanese economics.

Yuno
-X100042

China surgery probe after death of TV personality

Story:
Last week, Wang Bei, 24, a former contestant on "Super Girl" -- China's smash-hit answer to "American Idol"died during a surgery to amend her facial-bone. This incident has sparked concerns about the dangers of going under the knife.


Wang died in an anaesthetic accident as during her surgery, her jaw suddenly started bleeding during the procedure, blocking her windpipe and causing her to suffocate. Wang's mother was having the same procedure at the clinic when her daughter died. Her death has fuelled concerns about the dangers of plastic surgery in a country where three million people go under the knife each year, according to figures published by state media.

Comments:
It is unfortunate that Wang died at such a young age and unexpectedly. I feel that the topic of plastic surgeries is arguable. Although it was said that "God creates us in His image - Genesis 1:27", commonly Gen Y are unhappy with the way they looks. It's either we have too big or small noses, high or low nose bridge, single eyelids, etc. A common dislike are their jaw lines and nose. I feel that we are who we are, and if we want to go under the knife to feel better, we should go through counselings and seek advices before making the final decision to go under surgery or not. 

-Claire

Man in wheelchair ignored by cabbies

Summary: Wheelchair-bound father ignored by taxi drivers. Singaporean taxi drivers have been constantly avoiding to give rides to wheelchair bound people and the elderly. Reason? They claim that these people lack the money to pay up for their rides, and are also a hassle. This particular Singaporean that shared said that her father was constantly late for his dialysis treatment despite preparing to get into a taxi 2hours before his treatment. The taxi drivers would give excuses like "Sorry, I'm going for my break now" or "Oh, I'm not going that way" just to turn them down. On one particular incident, her father was just about to get onto the taxi, when the taxi drove off, almost making her father fall, thankfully the other taxi driver behind them came forward to help. This proves that there are some kind taxi drivers too. Some other taxi drivers in the queue of taxi stands would also just drive off when they notice handicap people that are next in the queue.

Comments/Views/Thoughts:
I find that taxi drivers should treat the sick, handicap and the elderly with respect. On the forum thread itself, one taxi driver posted that the reason why they do not pick up these people is because they are normally rude and also poor. He believes that these people should not take advantage of their sickness and disability to cheat off these drivers to give them a free or cheaper ride. However, I believe that he should not categorize or group disability with poverty. Singapore is supposed to be a class-free country, everyone should be treated equally. It is not only the sick that would cheat or claim to have less money to pay up, but even the young would also do the same. If the taxi driver really is in going off or going for a break, he should not even be in the taxi queue, he should be by the side of the queue, asking people who is heading in that direction and then offer them a ride.

Murder suspect's first job in Singapore

Summary :

The indonesian maid named Nurhayati arrived from Indramayu in West Java last month. It's her first job in Singapore. The 24 years old maid is now charged with allegedly killing Linda Lee Yee Lin, 12, which shared the same room as her. Linda is born with spinal defect which affects her legs and speech.

comment:

There's many cases of maids being abused by employers. There's only minimum cases of maid abusing employers such as using black magic. Some human beings having such horrible heart which do those horrible deeds. This is somewhat similar to the case of rabbit crushing. People of this society have been doing much evil deeds. Parent should spare more time to take note of the situation. If they have maid and they do not trust them, they might consider to install CCTV in the house. If possible engage their relatives to help take care of their children. Parents may consider to switch from full time job to part time. This could help prevent unfortunate events from occurring.

New Zealand mourns 29 perished coal miners

Summary:

This article writes about the recent happenings of coal mining explosion in Greymouth, New Zealand. This has been one of the worst that has happened since 70 years ago. Flags flew at half-staff in memory of the 29 miners trapped nearly a week ago. There was a second explosion in the Pike River Coal mine on Wednesday. Police said there were no survivors.

The 29 miners were trapped in the 1.4-mile main tunnel last Friday night when methane gas caused a massive explosion in the mountain. Two other miners working away from the coal face narrowly escaped and walked out of the mine.

On Wednesday, rescue teams had to haul after reviewing the gas levels that had stopped them entering earlier when the second gas explosion occurred. Some miners' relatives were brought to the site to allow relatives' to understand the situation - why rescue was put to haul. Rescue teams sent robots and electronic devices to explore the mine but found no signs of any survivors from the initial blast.

New Zealand's worst mining disaster happened in 1896, when 65 miners were killed by gas in the Brunner coal mine. Around 200 people, including one of the survivors, miners' families and the mine company's senior executives, attended a church service on Wednesday night to mourn. The New Zealand stock exchange said the market would open five minutes late as a mark of respect for the disaster.

Authorities are believed to be looking at pumping inert gases such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen in the mine to put out any fires before making any attempt to recover the bodies. This disaster was declared as a national tragedy.

Both blasts were believed to have been caused by explosive, toxic gases swirling in the tunnels dug up to 1½ miles into a mountain that had also prevented rescuers from entering the mine to search for the missing. Officials said the second blast could not have been prevented and was not a result of any of the rescue activities.

The second blast came hours after the first progress in days for the rescue attempt, when a drilling team broke a narrow shaft through to the section of the mine where the missing workers were believed to have been. And two robots crawled their way into the tunnel, giving authorities their first view of the inside of the mine.

Police superintendent Gary Knowles said after the initial blast, entering the mine was far too risky because of high gas levels and evidence of a smoldering coal fire underground that could have been the ignition source.


Comments:

My heart sank upon reading this article. This article teaches me not to take things for granted. It's too late to regret yet it seems that we always takes things for granted.

It is unfortunate that such accidents happen. This disaster has caused not only stress to the miners' family members, it also affects the country. I feel that the gas level must be so high and unacceptable, rescue works had to put to an haul. What's worst was, because it is an enclosed area, the gas is trapped inside. Thus chances of the gas level lowering to the safe level is very slow. What's worst is the miners were not connected to any fresh air or water.

To wrap up, I feel that such disasters are unavoidable as I believe that safety measures had been applied. Everyone has their role to play, and disasters like these are uncalled for. However, when such disasters happens, we should embrace ourselves and react appropriately.

-Claire

Bunny-crushing videos stir outrage online

Summary :

Recent outburst of crush fetishists. In the news, it was came to light that they are paid to do all this cruel job to satisfy the animal-crushing enthusiast. Search reveals that this group of people finance the videos. There's a recent video of attractive young women crushing small animals. The first one was a kitty getting crush by killer heels. This recent one was crushing a small rabbit.

comment:

Recently nasty things have been happening all over the world. Such as the Cambodian Stampede, NZ miners died, slashing cases. I think that they should treasure the life of all living things. Life is very fragile. These group of cruel people should be nail down as soon as possible to prevent further threat to other animals. All this act is too cruel. The government should do something to stop anything like this from happening again. Jail terms should be included. All this shows the ugly side of human beings. We are horrible people that inflict harm on small animals and make us feel superior. All this act must be put to a stop. Even if they wanted to earn extra money, this is not a way to earn by killing other living things. Likewise killing or slashing of people. We must learn to be nice to everyone.

Kan confers with Lee on North Korea

summary:
23rd November, North Korea attacked dozens of artillery shells to South Korea and two South Korean marines were killed and 15 others civilians were injured.
Prime Minister of Japan, Naoto Kan and Prime Minister of South Korea, Lee Myung Bak, agreed to their couturiers and America must work closely to confront by with the incident. Japan strongly supports the position of South Korea.
Kan called for action from the international community. including the U.N. Security Council.

comments:
This news was surprised me. South Korea is the most nearest country to Japan and that country was attacked by North Korea. And Japan afraid of North Korea. Between North Korea and Japan, there are lots of problems and diplomatic relations is very bad. The Korean War finished on 1953 but in reality it is not finish. The situation of those countries is cease fire. I think that always the border of two countries is tensing. Japan also watches for North Korea but Japan can't do anything to North Korea because we can't use any arm with security treaty so we need help of America. And South Korea also needs help of America. South Korea, Japan, and America need to coorerate and deal with North Korea.

-Yuno
X100042

Student posts O Level paper on Twitter

Summary: STUDENT Xavier Ong took a picture of his O Level Social Studies examination paper with his camera phone and posted it on Twitter. In the tweet, Xavier wrote, 'Do you dare bring a phone into examination hall and take a picture?', challenging other students to follow suit. Having such attention has only made this teenager's resolve stronger to make more controversial comments. He admitted that he posted the picture as a publicity stunt and even released a video explaining how it all happened. At the end of the day, he hoped to gain more twitter followers after this incident.

Comment: To me, this teenager simply shows how foolish he is. Of course, to some people, it might not be wrong as he only took a photo of the cover page, but it shows that the invigilators didn't do a good job invigilating during the examination. In addition, he claims that he was just trying to have a small publicity for himself. It shows how lonely his life is. What was he thinking? Posting a photo, just to get more followers on Twitter. He might get followers, but they're just out to criticize him on his foolishness. This has got to stop. It's bringing the school's or all the invigilators' reputations down.

Nor Atiqah
103924B

Malaysians gamble ‘S$3 million daily at S’pore casinos’

Story: Singapore's integrated resort (IRs) has been attracting 3,000 Malaysians board buses daily. And they travel here to gamble, approximately S$3 million a day.

Datuk Tee Siew Kiong, central committee member of the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA, has asked the Government to take measures to control the flow of these Malaysians to the IRs. Other Malaysian politicians are also concerned by the number of locals traveling to Singapore to gamble.

It was noted that Malaysians spend a minimum of S$1,000 which is equivalent to S$2.9 million a day, or S$83 million a month.

Mr Tee added that from the information he received, 30 buses make the daily round trip, with seven of those being buses from Singapore, the report said.


Comments: As a Singaporean, I feel that the IR is essential as it helps bring a higher revenue for our Country. I feel that it is one's own responsibility to take care of the amount spent on gambling.

Due to the IR, there will be an increase chances of bankruptcy, loan sharks, etc.
Having counseling and help lines are not the most effective ways to help gamblers as it is an optional and individual preference.

I feel that the IR should have a background check on the visitors if they were bankruptcies or were in any form of debt. Also, to ensure that visitors do not leave the IR "empty-handed", there should be a deposit of S$1000. This is to help facilitate visitors that are unable to manage their cash flow.

Thus, this will help decrease the chances of having gamblers going bankrupt easily.

-Claire

Teen slashed in AMK

Summary: The article writes about another incident of youth violence. This time round at Block 448, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10. The victim, who left a blood trail from outside a 24-hour restaurant, where the attack took place, was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital. The New Paper reported on Friday that the two youths had got into a loud dispute and a shoving match before the victim was knifed.

Comment: This incident happened after two other incidents of slashing at Downtown East, and also Bukit Panjang. As a 17-year old myself, I feel worried after reading such reports as it involves teenagers. I really think that it is stupid for the teenagers to be a part of a gang, and start slashing others from another group. However, we cannot totally blame teengers for being a part of those gangs. They might be having problems with their parents who might be too busy with their career, and teenagers feel left out, then decide to join those groups. Maybe you'll feel a sense of belonging, but you don't have to be a gangster. This is where choosing the right group of friends comes in.

Nor Atiqah
103924B

China's inflation rate hits a two-year high

summary:
China's inflation rate has increasing two years and rises in food prises, despite the government's efforts to damp price rises. In September, inflation rate was 3.6% and October was higher than 4.4% so the government needed to control price rises. Beijing introduced raising interest rates and curbing bank lending to reduce rapid economic growth and rises.

comments:
Chinese economic growth rate is remarkable and also china has problems because of high economic growth. This problem is one of its. I think this problem is little bit similar to past of Japanese economic condition. After world war 2, Japanese economic had been growing up but also has a problem about high inflation rate in the 1980s. It called bubble economy. This problem occurred to because of Plaza accord. The low interest rate had been long term so fund concentrated on stock and land. I think this is the best choice to China introduced raising interest rates.

-Yuno
X100042

Indonesian minister heads to Saudi over maid torture

Summary: This article writes about an Indonesia maid who worked in Saudi Arabia.
The victim, Sumiati Binti Salan Mustapa is only 23. She suffers from multiple injuries as a result of physical abuse by her employee. It was noted that it is common for such abuse to occur to migrant domestic workers. Indonesia's women minister, Linda Agum Gumelar made her way up to Saudi and will leads a inter-ministerial team to ensure that justice is fought for.


Comments: Upon reading this article, my heart sank. The victim is only 23 and she is scarred in her heart. Having to recover from such traumatic event is not easy.
I feel that human rights should apply throughout the world.

No doubt all of us speak different language, believe in different religion, however no matter how much we feel that a certain gender is more superior than the other, physical abuse should not be common, or even happen.

We should respect one another be it gender, race, religion, etc.
During dispute, a real man talks things out.

In conclusion, I hope that the Government will give a strong sentence when the culprit is arrested. Thus, drawing a clear line on human rights.


-Claire

young thugs need to feel the fear now

summary :

The recent cases of slash and gang related matters. Police have step up measures on patrol and stay vigilant to those that' hanging around at common areas. They have taken down the particulars of those suspected of engaging in street gangs and their usual hangout such as malls etc. Police are able to tell between the innocent and gathering of wayward youth. They require more helps from the neighborhood alert them should any known associates of gangs is observed.

comments:

The ministry of states should have take actions earlier not until when lives are taken away from us. However, they can still increase regular patrol at those places which encourage people to gather. They should also continue taking down those people that gather at void deck regularly to let them know their under watch and they can't do anything illegal. They should try to track down more of those gangs so as to discourage them to recruit more youngsters. They should also put teachers on patrol outside school gate during dismissal hours. Rise awareness of what will happen to youth that join these gangs. The community club can also open a club that allows volunteers to join and help in the patrol. Parent should also help to show more concern to their kids to find out if they're engage in this type of activities. Police should also seek help from those in the ex-gang society so as to track them down earlier.

-Chen Miaoxin

101638R

Sleep deprivation can ruin your health

summary :

In the recent years, it have been revealed that singaporeans are deprive of sleep. lack of sleep can affect us in many ways. it can trigger psychiatric illness such as depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. it cause people to have hallucinations and paranoid thinking especially those with known case of histories of psychiatric conditions. lack of sleep also cause people to be more prone to being easily irritable and unable to concentrate. some lack of sleep problem is because of sleep disorder such as insomnia , etc.

comment :

In my opinion, lack of sleep can cause many health issues and mental issues too. Recently a man made the headline as he died due to lack of sleep. He had to work 4 jobs in order to support his family. He died of exhaustion. Lack of sleep cause people to be easily irritated, this cause them to easily agitated. When they become angry, this increase conflict among people. Perhaps this recent cases of slashing might be cause due to fatigue and then they got easily agitated. If those that is suffering from insomnia should seek help to cure themselves. We have to prepare a time management table so as to allocate sufficient sleep everyday and hours to complete our work. I believe that in the end, the time is ours to be use wisely.

-Chen Miaoxin

101638R

Toyota plans green-car blitz

summary:
Toyota is planning to sell a plug-in hybrid car in the U.S., Japan and Europe in 2012. Toyota is also planning to sell an electric vehicle in 2012 in the U.S., Japan and Europe and considering in China. But after success of the Prius, how does Toyota let hybrids car (gasoline-electric hybrids) succeed.

comments:
I think that these new plans of Toyota are very good plan because these days environmental pollution become a big problem in the world and we need to do some provision for this problem.
I think a lot of people will buy hybrids car because people in the world are knowing this big problem but I don't know these new types of car succeed more than Prius. In this case, I think Toyota doesn't need to worry about success or not success because whatever this new plan will success or not success, it is good for environment. In the future, I think we won't use a lot of gasoline and there will be only ecological car.


-Yuno
X100042

Hong Kong man sues Singapore doctor

Summary:

A Hong Kong man has sued a Singapore doctor due to a misleading operation consent form. The Hong Kong man named Mr Li has claimed that the doctor who was responsible, Mr Looi had performed an additional operation without his consent. Mr Li had suffered severe injuries on his right hand due to a case of robbery in Hong Kong. As Mr Li's friend had recommended Mr Li to seek consultation from Mr Looi, who was supposed to be a Specialist in the field, Mr Li went to his clinic. Mr Looi said that Mr Li would have to go through a 'simple operation', and would make the scar on his right hand smaller. After the operation, Mr Li said that his condition got worse, his fingers felt numbness, loss their sensation and then he became unable to stretch his fingers. Therefore, Mr Li decided to sue Mr Looi, as he claims that the operation was carried out without his consent, and also making his before operation condition turn for the worse instead of for the better.

Comments:

Operations should be carried out only if the patient seeks consent to it. Also, patients should be more wary to know about what they are signing before they sign the consent form which means agreeing to the operation. Since Mr Li's friend recommended Mr Looi, Mr Looi should have been a great doctor, it is shocking to see how an operation would ruin his future and might also take away his doctor's license. Being a doctor is tough, one wrong mistake and it might ruin someone's life.

-Melissa
103421A

Abortion On the Rise in BangKok

Summary:

Bangkok's foetus abortion rate has been increasing. 46.8% of the women that had been through an abortion surgery are under the age of 25. According to the government, it is illegal to undergo abortion, only those under the age of 15 that were raped, or ladies that have terminal illnesses or serious sickness that must have an abortion. Abortion for foetus that are about 3 months in Bangkok are worth about SGD$216. The girls that went through abortion did not want to allow their parents to find out about being pregnant, thus they decide to go for an operation. They also shared their experiences, and want to spread the word about having protected sex and not unprotected sex, which might result into pregnancy. They found the experience slightly painful, but after a few hours the foetus would be out and they would have successfully aborted the foetus.

Comments:

I find that teenagers be it in Singapore or Bangkok(Thailand) are all very curious and want to try out sex. However, it is silly that we would feel ashame to be pregnant, knowing that sex without protection may result in pregnancy. If a couple were to engage in these activities, they should be prepared and get ready to start their own family, otherwise just stay out of the sexual activities. Foetus are considered a living life, aborting it just means killing another life. Going through abortion also requires money, which is quite a big sum to young teenagers. Thus, I find that educating teenagers and young adults that are just overly curious about these activities is very important. We should not wait till it is too late and instead work together to keep abortion rate lower and sexual activities among young adults and teenagers to the minimum.

-Melissa Tan
103421A