Sidney Sheldon Dies At 89 (Arts)

On 30th January 2007, American author Sidney Sheldon passed away. Famed for his mystery and suspense books, he died at the age of 89 due to pneumonia.

Personally, I find it a great loss to literature. He was such a great and entertaining writer. He had a tendancy to promote female characters and involve politics, romance and revenge in his novels. The only real qualm I have is that he would protray all males as sex-hungry.

Nurlisa

Punisher: A Maniac? (Philosophy)

In case you don't know yet, the Punisher a.k.a. Frank Castle is a Marvel Comics vigilant who believes in killing criminals. He is not above torturing, exhorting or blackmailing either. Sincerely believing that all criminal scum deserves to die, he sets out on a one man war against crime.

The question is, in this day and age, are we condemning these ideas too quickly? When the police is incompentant, and the law inadequent, is it right to take justice into our own hands? Can we ever justify killing?

The 198

Elitism: The Lesser Evil? (Philosophy)

Reading Defensedefumer's blog recently, I just felt I had to write this article.

Now, on 26th October 2006, a particular Wu Shu Min wrote that Singapore is divided into to the "capable and clever" class and "sadder" class. She tells whiner Derek Wee to get over his "miserable" life and get out of her "elite, uncaring" face. To top it all of, her minister father did not apologise for her views. This leads us to a question, is elitism a necessary evil?

Now, hold on and think for a second. Most of you will be quick to condemn Shu Min to the depths of hell. However, if you really ponder, there are grains of truth in her words. It's just that she was very curt in her statements.

Our government system may be one to run on meritocracy, but often, elitism occurs. Instead of seeing everyone who works hard benefit, we see that the best benefits. Think about how only the top schools make the papers, or that only the winners are really rewarded in competitions. The best are usually the ones who care enough to give thier best, to clear the mess, or to run a country. You may complain all you want, but elitism is a neccessary evil if you want the most efficient way of doing things.

Let's face it, life is never fair. If it were, all of us would be born in the same background. Think about it; if you want to keep the best in your state, country or company, you have to continually reward him over and over again. It will be that way, and continue to do so.

Why choose the alternative when you have the best?

Ben Tan

Bullet Points #1 Review (Arts)

I hate comics. I really do. Despite New Avengers #25 putting doubt in my opinion, this comic reinforces it.

Let's start with this story. The origin of the plot is derived from the idea that a single bullet can change the course of history. It highlights World War One and the deaths of Martin Luther King and John Kennedy as examples. Fine, I'm ok with that and partially excited on the potential. Then it shows how the premature death of Doctor Erskine changes the Marvel Universe.

For the uninformed, the good doctor was the one who developed the super-soldier formula that led to creation of Captain America. As Erskine was assasinated by Nazi agents in 1940, Steve Rogers fails to be the new American hero. By the way, young Ben Parker (Peter Parker's uncle) was one of the guards killed in the assasination. Ok, everything is fine so far.

Then the lousy part comes in! It states that World War Two starts when Japan bombed Pearl Habor! Every Tom, Dick and Harry knows that the war started 2 years earlier when Germany invaded Poland! Steve Rogers is then asked to be part of the Iron Man project, without any explanation on how USA could be so advanced and yet get its butt kicked in Asia.

It could only get worse. Peter Parker, without Uncle Ben as a moral guide, becomes a wild kid. See the link? I certainly don't. Anyway, he jacks a car and arrives at a bomb testing site. He is soon turned into the Hulk by the Gamma bomb. No shit!

This premise has lots of potential, but falls short in almost every area. If there is a saving grace, it's that Steve Rogers is still protrayed the ever idealistic American. He is probably the only mainstream character not to break character.

Overall: 21/100

Nurlisa

6 Bombs Blasts Bangkok (International)

In Bangkok, 6 bombs were detonated, killing 2 and wounding 20. Nobody has yet claimed responsibility.

As if our world wasn't screwed up enough...

Ben Tan

Saddam: The End (International)

Well, well, back to the normal programmes. As you all know, Saddam, the ex-leader of Iraq is dead. He met his demise at the end of a noose.

You may not like the death penalty, or the legality of the execution, but come on, who you really defend this guy? This tyrant? This mass murderer? Unrepentant to death? There is no other alternative.

Now few would think it would be smart to mess withe the United States.

Natasha Romanov