Did you get censored for this piece of writing before it appeared here?

Somehow I got the impression that your story is fully told.

A different voice that is not under the “uni whip” is definitely welcome, everyone has a different angle as they approach a something.

At the end of the day, I am glad you realise our degrees come from the there too. Seeing as such, it is wise to thread on the safe side and quite foolish to have the conviction that people will not see you in a bad light. NTU does not need any more controversy.

I think ideally a newspaper reports things as it is. The starting point is because we want people to know the reality on the ground and use it to improve things. Based on my experience working in The Chronicle, that’s clearly now how the administration views journalism. To them, the paper is to report the latest happenings on campus, if it’s negative, you better be careful.

Perhaps we can feedback to the relevant authorities our problems and keep things out of the news? But this could also breed the complaint culture we have today. Bitch about your issue and hope someone fixes it for you.

Without the media, people might also think their issue is isolated and continue to suffer in silence. On the other end, the school might also see it as a one-off case and ignore it. Worse, what if the person who received the complaint is incompetent in solving it?

And to equate bad news with irresponsibility is just too huge a leap. The hope is really that putting such “dirty linen” out people can react positively to change things. I think it’s foolish to think we exist to make the school look bad, our degrees come from there too.

Now, if you truly believe in the system and if you also happen to be one that fits into the system, meticulous, scholar material, and can make your boss looks good, you will benefit greatly from it.

But then again, I do not think it is something that can be taught. Either you genuinely believe in the system or you do not. If you belong to the latter group, you clearly should not go into journalism in Singapore, you will never be happy, but there are other occupations in Singapore that you can still go into. You just need to accept that, financially at least, you may not reach their level.

In summary, just play the hand that you are dealt with. In poker terms, the Chua sisters were dealt pocket aces, and played them accordingly. For the rest of us, maybe we are dealt low suited connectors and we must know how to play them, given the Singapore system.

NTU is already in the limelight for numerous cases which are not exactly flattering, much less with our own students washing our dirty laundry in public (such as in stomp cases). Why is it that this doesnt happen to NUS or SMU or even SIM for that matter?

When you entered journalism. You should have already expected that freedom of speech comes with the burden of being responsible for what you say, as well as the end product of whatever you may stir, which will not always end in good results.

Maybe it is time for you to wake up as well and see the world as it is. This is earth, not utopia.