The Online Citizen thanks Xtralicious for allowing us to publish the following article. It was first posted on her blog here.
Xtralicious
A few days ago, people were positively outraged that this Foreign Talent (mouthed with a very contemptuous and derisive tone) dragged the National flag on the floor during the opening ceremony, and here people are positively proud that she is one of us, she won a silver medal for us! Excuse moi while I go to that corner and roll my eyes silly.
*Goes to corner and rolls eyes silly* *Comes back prim and proper again*
Where is our pride and dignity, that we forsake it so readily for a bit of gain?
The BBC pens its article, starting off with:
Feng Tianwei, who, like the rest of the Singapore team, is an import from China, won both her singles matches to help them clinch a tense 3-2 victory.
You feel proud? You feel that Singapore has won a Silver medal?
I don’t. And I am not the only one it seems.
And this doesn’t sit well with me too.
Their table tennis coach Liu Guodong said: “I feel very honoured. I’ve been in Singapore for just over two years and can help it get an Olympic medal, at least a silver, for the first time in 48 years.”
好大的傲气啊！
I am going to be scathing here and say – that you are only here in Singapore because you know you cannot make it in China.
And it shames me greatly to say that.
And since we are into such capitalism and buying of National pride, why go for the second best? They should have bought Wang Nan and Zhang Yining over! Then, we would have won our first gold medal in 48 years, or ever.
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I have nothing against people choosing to immigrate to this country. I shake my head at the whole Foreign Talent nationwide propaganda because I think most of them are a big joke, including the now very famous Mr Amit Nagpal. I used to think that Foreign Talent belong in the category of private bankers who specialize in certain niches, highly specialized industry experts and so forth.
Apparently our government disagrees.
These days, even a foreigner with average qualification and professional experience is considered as a “Foreign Talent”. Thankfully I don’t need to write an entire diatribe to express how appalled I am and how ridiculous this whole ruckus is. Endoh has done it very nicely.
With that kind of direction from the government, I wonder how much stronghold the citizens have in this landscape of rapidly increasing foreign talent. There are many of these foreign talent in the estate I live in now. They are rude, aggressive and have no common sense of living in Singapore. I wonder if they can truly assimilate in the lifestyle and culture of Singapore, or are we merely a stepping stone for them to move on to US or Canada?
As for the Foreign Talent playing in the Singapore team, I do not blame them for coming here for the money. Anyone would. I blame the government for yet again, choosing the short term solution route. You may say that with the Sports School changes everything. We are now nurturing our own, encouraging our young – no expenses spared. Really??
Yet another foreign talent.
And you think she is one of us? That she thinks she is one of us?
In January 2008, Tao became embroiled in controversy after the Singapore Swimming Association (SSA) introduced a 15% levy on the cash awards given to swimmers, with about 6% set aside for youth development. As part of the government’s Multi-Million Dollar Award Programme (MAP), she received S$23,750 for winning three individual titles and one team gold at the 2007 SEA Games.
She was therefore “taxed” S$3,562.50, with S$1,425 going to youth development. Unhappy with this, Tao said: “If they [the SSA] want to cultivate youth, they should find their own money, not pay using our awards. It’s through our hard work that we got the money. So, I don’t see the point that we should give the money to the youths.” She also said it had been her school and not the SSA which had borne the expense of her overseas training. The SSA said it was “very disappointed” with her comments, and pointed out that the association had spent “easily in excess of $20,000″ in sending her for competitions abroad such as the World Championships, Hong Kong Open and Japan International, and a stint at the Australian Institute of Sport. SSA Vice-President Oon Jin Gee told the press, “Even with the Sports School funding it, it’s our taxpayers’ dollars going into her development. It doesn’t matter which avenue it comes from, it’s still Singapore’s support for her.
And now they are using the taxpayers’ money to fund her million dollar makeover.
I am so sick of the level of stupidity of this government.
Can we entice Obama Barack and Hillary Clinton in as Foreign Talent to replace this lot of grossly overpaid and highly complacent peacocks?
Oh. I don’t think so. It slipped my mind that Mr Barack and Ms Clinton are in politics for totally different reasons than our local chosen ones. Silly me.
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