Singapore Class

This post isn't going to get any classier than the title above. Define "Singapore Class" for me, if there is even such a terminology to begin with at all. It all begins one day when a few of my friends were discussing about my blog and about the food i review.

DC* : "Eh Nicholas, why don't you write about hawker food?"

In a joking manner, i replied : "I think it is more classy to write about restaurants."

DC* : "Your class is Singapore Class."

To make things clear, i don't think hawker food is not classy. I was merely passing it off as a remark. I love hawker food and i think they are exceptionally yummy, despite the fact that i have to sometimes queue at my favorite stalls just to satisfy my craving for a particular food. 

I don't write about hawker food because there is a limit to what i can expand - there isn't much to write about (unless it is a comparison of the same type of food from different stalls). As Singaporean as i actually am, i still love and do Instagram photos of hawker food every now and then. Then again, my point is that i was joking when i made that comment about being classy and only writing about restaurants. 

However, i don't think calling someone "Singapore Class" can be taken into context as a joke. After he made that comment, i asked him what he meant by "Singapore Class" and i remember him saying something along the lines that he didn't mean it that way. In short, he felt bad after making a rude snide remark at me saying i am "Singapore Class".

Here's a little bit more about DC*, in case you want to know (to be honest, i am contemplating on revealing his real name at the end of this post). DC* went to the very prestigious Raffles Institution and went on to study at Yale University upon receiving the Singapore President's Scholarship in 2008. 

For your info, the President's Scholarship is the most prestigious scholarship in Singapore. In this case, i am very certain DC* isn't the more prestigious ones amongst the recipients. How can someone in the right mind who has taken a scholarship from Singapore (yes, his own country) call me "Singapore Class"? While many people who had taken such a prestigious scholarship from a meritocratic state ended up in high-rank, governmental positions, i am skeptical and at the same time worried for the future of our home country if he were to take charge of our national affairs - with his poor character and moral ethics.

I wonder if it is because he graduated from Yale University and thinks that he no longer labelled as "Singapore Class" but instead "American Class" or even "Elite Class". Why would someone so smart possess such degrading and arrogant behavior? And who is he to say i am "Singapore Class" when Singapore has funded for his education that his parents could probably never have been able to afford and put him through? 

There is only one word to describe him - ungrateful. Going to an Ivy League university does not make him an elitist, neither does it make him more superior than others in terms of character. Yes, he may be smarter, but a complete turn off when he makes self-righteousness remarks labeling "Singapore Class". What right does he have to call me "Singapore Class" when he has no class of his own, except maybe a "class" from Yale. Yes, i meant a class(room).

The point i am putting through is that DC* obviously wants to be the minority and have exclusivity. I however find it bewildering that he does not understand the nature behind me making that statement that i do not write about hawker food and decided to say i am "Singapore Class". Not withstanding that the aftermath conversation happened to evolve to imply that i am just like the masses amongst Singapore. Thus a scholar finds that the masses are shallow; he deemed to be or so his Yale education thinks we are. 

DC* is someone i have worked with before and he comes of as someone who is self-righteous and will make sure things go his way. Of course, like in most government sectors, being a scholar gives him an advantage - being more likable and "sought after". If a scholar can call a common man "Singapore Class", then what is he? Higher class? If so, is he sowing differentiation which the government is opposing?

The reason I'm dedicating this post regarding this issue is primarily to question the suitability of candidates hand-picked for the President Scholarships and at the same time, to give a thought about our nation's future. With many older generations flaming comments about the neo-generation and their attitudes amidst the changing times, I'd like to stress that humility is the way to go. Hubris will only erode one's character and one will not go far in life.

Speaking of classiness, a colleague once gave him a ride back and he offered to pay my colleague 50 cents for a 30km car ride. Indeed, you can pay for school but you can never buy class. And if you are itching to find out just who DC* really is - Google is your best friend.

Update : Read about "Singapore Class - So What Exactly Is It".