Tan Kin Lian's Blog: The legacy of reputation

Monday, July 05, 2010

The legacy of reputation

Read this article.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...: What will be the legacy that our old man will leave behind? So many people are cursing him and wish him to depart sooner.; July 05, 2010 8:13 AM
yeokh said...: The dead remember nothing. It is only when one is alive that one thinks how one will be remembered is important.

Live the good life (regardless of how you choose to interpret this) and die the good death.

Our world ends with death. That is probably the most crucial fact we need to come to terms with.; July 05, 2010 10:18 AM
Anonymous said...: The old man will die knowing that a long queue is waiting to spit on his grave.; July 05, 2010 11:15 AM
Anonymous said...: Aahh, for those waiting to spit, pee and shit on the old man's grave --- will be quite difficult.

For the past 10 years already, the SAF Provost Unit (military police) has prepared a sub-unit for guarding the grave of the esteemed bugger.

The soldiers will perform guard duties 24/7/365 and ridiculous wayang wayang marching up & down, just like for Russia's Lenin, China's Mao and Taiwan's Chiang Kai Shek. Many NSF shortlisted and trained for this always pray that the old ape will only die after their 2-yr NS.

So most ordinary Singaporeans can only be content with throwing parties, opening champagne and toasting each other when the occasion arrives. Unless you're prepared to risk life, limb, personal freedom and monies to conduct a commando-style operation to subdue the guards and defile the old freaker's grave.; July 05, 2010 12:00 PM
Anonymous said...: A corpse hears, sees and feels nothing and almost starts rotting. However, if he/she had a rotten reputation, that rotten posterity will smear the deceased forebears and tarnish the images and standings of their offsprings and successors.

One of the Greatest Chinese Virtues is the understanding of shame. It is knowing shame that one will prevent and avoid doing wrong and sinful deeds. It is not just to avoid shaming oneself but also to avoid the sin of shaming the ancestors and successors.

Conversely, the Chinese are glory seeking in life, so as to 'kuang jung yao zhu', meaning to glorify all in the family and clans. Unfortunately, many in their zeal to achieve glory commit much hidden unconscionable acts.

As implicit from the appended article, a rotten name(reputation) could leave behind a stench that could last infinitely and it could affects the successors for many generations.

patriot; July 05, 2010 1:01 PM
Anonymous said...: Anon 12.00 PM.

Are you kidding or really serious?
This is North Korean style, and is shocking. Reminds me of Emperor Qin Shi Huang and his army of terrcotta soldiers, preparing for the after life.; July 05, 2010 1:03 PM
yeokh said...: The reputation of LKY will doubtless be mixed. But his leadership which allowed Singapore to grow from a small and obscure corner of nowhere to a developed tiny city-state will loom large for some time to come.

His strict laws and decision to pay high salaries to himself and his colleagues will probably be perceived as the policies that make the material prosperity of Singapore possible.

The negative side of the ledger will be the huge gap between rich and poor and the increasing foreign presence in the country which rightly or wrongly is seen as the state's solution to the low birth rates.; July 05, 2010 4:01 PM
Anonymous said...: Aiyah, for those who think it's a joke for pre-prepared ceremonial guards etc --- don't be surprised or shock lah. Whether future parliament will actually implement such a Mao or Lenin scenario is immaterial to the powers-that-be in SAF. So every year, some soldiers need to be sacrificed & trained for this crap --- been many years already.

In case people don't know, there are also a "funeral" detail unit that is on 24/7/365 standby in case any VIPs conk-off. E.g. when the wife of an esteemed VVIP was stricken down, the soldiers in this company were mobilised and on 24-hr standby to prepare with their No.1 uniforms and swords. Burnt a few weekends and off-days before standing-down. Usually the soldiers in this unit are NSF who are 'pai-kar' and downgraded.

Just like all those documentaries you see on TV when Goh Keng Swee went adios. You think Mediacorp assembled all this overnight? Everyone of the VIPs already have their own "farewell documentary" prepared. Mediacorp will update these "farewell documentaries" on a yearly basis.

All the above are very common, also in other countries. Just that in Singapore the elites don't like to publicise as it clearly indicates very special treatment.; July 05, 2010 6:15 PM
Anonymous said...: Me likes to say here that it is definitely wiser for those who can know before hand and for sure, of their own 'reputations' while alive, not to leave any thing like the tomb/grave of Qing Huai, the Traitor that caused Ye Fei's death. Without a concreted posterity, the reminders of traitors, tyrants, sinners and undesirables are quite easily forgotten after a numbers of years. However, with something concrete for people to recall the 'badness' of the person, even if nothing can be thrown at the representation, the curses and angers will naturally form in the minds.

A stinky reputation will hurt the forebears and successors, as me had stated above. It will also certainly shame the countrymen.

Let thee's stench disappear faster if You carry that stench while alive. Reminds not the World of ones' infamy for that is quite silly and funny to leave oneself for memory.

patriot; July 06, 2010 12:50 AM