a friend of mine was tickled pink recently reading Notes From An Even Smaller Island - a book by an ang moh capturing his feelings, views and observations about Singaporean life from his time here on our little island ..i'm sure this guy was really funny, judging from how my friend couldn't stop laughing and prodding me to read the book too... there were bits about kiasuism, government policies and also daily local life in the book. ..

yet, on the other hand, i felt a little annoyed...and the reason why this was the case was because this friend of mine is Malaysian and a more than occasional critic of Singapore-related stuff. I'm not saying that all Malaysians are Singapore-bashers (though that might appear to be the case of late - judging from what is written in the press).. yet, much as my views on Singaporeans (and especially on govt polices) may not always be positive, i know that i do love this country. in fact, i can even imagine myself willing to die for Singapore if the need ever arises.. so one thing that never fails to get to me are how foreigners (even Malaysians) poke fun or laugh at, criticise and slam this country even if they don't know enough about this place and who have obviously no deep vested interest in the country to hope it will flourish (other than so they can work here!) - i mean, who are they to speak as if they know better? they could just walk away when things go bad - no loyalty whatsoever even if they have been here a while, studying, working or living... we all know that Singapore is imperfect in many ways, but unless they have a genuine interest in making this place better, all this talk is fruitless and empty.. for this reason, i am a 100% supporter of local forums such as Sintercom, ThinkCenter and Singapore Window where Singaporeans themselves take an interest in and discuss local issues openly..