TR EMERITUS

Singapore's reputation as a neat, organized and efficient country lies in tatters yesterday as the much anticipated YOG Opening Ceremony, billed by the Straits Times as Singapore's "BIGGEST" show turned out to be a NIGHTMARE to both the organizers and viewers alike. [Get instant updates and discussions about the YOG on our Facebook page here] The most important section of all past Olympic Games' opening ceremonies is the part where all the participating nations are introduced with their flags displayed for to see which are usually well choreographed and rehearsed with not a single mistake tolerated. There were not one, but multiple screw-ups at this section of the YOG opening ceremony as the flag and name bearers appeared completely confused with the way they should be heading after making their appearances on stage leaving shell-shocked volunteers scurrying all over the place to direct them to their rightful locations. The flag-bearers were supposed to follow right behind the ushers holding placards showing the name of the countries and they were to walk in alternate left and right to lie up in front of the podium. In the snapshot below, the athlete carrying the Algeria flag appeared lost as to where to go and lingered on the stage long after his name-bearer (circled in red) had walked off: Next, the athlete bearing the Azerbaijan flag walked in the opposite direction of his name-bearer: Similarly, the Bosnian althlete seemed clueless on where he should be heading as well: The Jordan althlete stood still staring at the crowd upon appearing on the stage, looked around and then turned and walked off in the opposite direction, prompting one frustrated volunteer (circled in red) to rush after him and in the process almost collided with the name-bearer of the next country: As one netizen Benny Lim summed up the entire debacle succinctly: "The projection introducing the different countries participating in the YOG was so bad (one side is brighter than the other - so I believe it's made up of two projections). The athletes did not know which way to go. C'mon, this is the most important part of the opening. All I (as well as the rest of world) could see was the crew running about to pull back the athletics that went the wrong direction." It is absolutely unacceptable that the YOG committee can make such an elementary mistake in front of the world which displayed their lack of preparation for the event. Were there any rehearsals conducted for the athletes beforehand to instruct them on where to walk? Their nonchalant, cavalier and comical demeanour displayed on stage is an insult both to the host and the IOC. After splurging nearly $400 million dollars of taxpayers' monies on staging the YOG, such a sloppy, unmotivated, disgraceful, pathetic and atrocious performance at the opening ceremony calls for an immediate internal inquiry. Contrary to showing what Singapore is "capable" of as proclaimed proudly by PAP minister Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, the YOG opening ceremony has managed to showcase the utter incompetence, impotence and ineptitude of the PAP regime to the rest of the world which brings to mind the escape of famed terrorist Mas Selamat Kasteri two years ago.     EDITORS’ NOTE: Has your life been turned upside down by the YOG? Please share your views with us. We assure you that your identity will be kept strictly CONFIDENTIAL. We will be your UNCENSORED VOICE. We will publish your letter in FULL with ZERO editing, moderating or censoring. You do not have to suffer in silence! You have the RIGHT to speak up as a citizen of this country. Remember: you are a CITIZEN of Singapore, not a SLAVE of the PAP regime. Our mailbox has been swarmed by letters from YOG volunteers for the last few days. Unless you specifically want us to publish your REAL NAME, we will use a pseudonym instead. Please understand that due to manpower constraints, we may not be able to publish your letters immediately and we will have to stagger them a few hours apart to ensure that they get maximum exposure. Please keep your feedback coming! Singapore for SINGAPOREANS! Your interests always come FIRST.   Related articles: >> Netizens lampooned YOG opening ceremony >> No news of YOG opening ceremony in rest of the world >> MOE teacher: How students can stay out of YOG >> YOG Webcast server crashed >> SFI promises to improve “DOG” food for volunteers >> Primary school students stand in the rain to welcome YOG torch >> Plight of Singapore volunteers at Youth Olympic Village >> JC students forced to attend YOG events >> Dr Vivian: Singaporeans are proud of YOG >> PM Lee: YOG has struck a “chord” with our people >> Dr Vivian: YOG venues will not become “white elephants” >> Online pressure forced SFI to provide better food for YOG volunteers >> Civil Service Club offering free YOG tickets >> Journey of YOG flame costs Singaporeans $7 million dollars >> Corny YOG propaganda in Straits Times >> Tharman: YOG enthusiasm is real >> Polytechnic student: I don’t care about YOG >> JC students being “volunteered” for YOG >> YOG: What the HELL is that? >> PAP provides YOG athletes and officials three daily buffets >> YOG students being given “dog food” >> Singapore students forced to volunteer for YOG >> Poor ticket sales forced closure of YOG gallery section >> PM Lee calls on Singaporeans to support YOG >> Young Singaporeans hurl vulgarities at YOG >> Dr Vivian wants Singaporeans to celebrate YOG >> NTU students complain about YOG >> Dr Vivian: Sports is not about “petty politics” >> More than 300 Singaporeans joined “I hate YOG” Facebook >> CNA poll: 90 percent of Singaporeans “not interested” in YOG >> Slovak YOG Ambassador slams YOG venues of “school standard” only >> Two Facebook groups calling for boycott of YOG >> Free condoms for YOG officials and athletes >> Singapore helping to repair Jamaica’s stadium in return for YOG marketing >> Former stripper to choreograph opening ceremony of YOG >> Desperate PAP wants Singaporeans to get “passionate” about YOG >> PAP to Singaporeans: Give way to YOG vehicles or get fined $130 >> PM Lee wants Singaporeans to do their part for YOG >> Only six teams in YOG soccer tournament Please join our Facebook page here and invite your friends to do so to create awareness of the current affairs affecting Singaporeans. Please use our online web form to contact us.  Read More →

 1. The YOG bus lane is ridiculous. Using fear to inject graciousness is not going to work. Singaporeans are educated individuals. After all, isn't it dangerous for such a big bus to be driving faster than a normal car on the expressway? 2. The opening ceremony had too many repeated concepts with the recent NDP. Once again, we saw how Singapore developed as a multi-racial society; the symbolism of the 5 stars on the flag. All these concepts are good for NDP but not for YOG. The opening of YOG should be about making Singapore's culture accessible to world's youths in the way they like it. 3. I do not get the strong feeling of excellence, friendship and respect from the entire opening ceremony. I don't see how fighting with your inner monster and playing with fire contribute to the values. 4. With such a budget, I expect the ceremony to be almost flawless. The projection introducing the different countries participating in the YOG was so bad (one side is brighter than the other - so I believe it's made up of two projections). The athletics did not know which way to go. C'mon, this is the most important part of the opening. All I (as well as the rest of world) could see was the crew running about to pull back the athletics that went the wrong direction. 5. The YOG commentator should be fired!!! He destroyed the experience of viewers watching from home. His comments were running in conjunction with the live broadcast. Also, he kept talking about how many years he had stayed in Singapore blah blah blah. Who cares about that? Worst of all, he didn't even have the decency to let us enjoy one act completely without injecting his very own comments. 6. Sean Kingston's NO SHOW completely destroyed the Olympic spirit. Each of the 5 musicians of the YOG theme song represents a continent, just as each circle of the Olympic flag represent a continent. With the missing Sean Kingston, the 5 circles on the Olympic flag is incomplete and sadly, it has to happen in Singapore. 7. Finally, did SYOG Chairman, Mr Ng SerMiang, rehearse his speech? He seemed to have memorised the speech quite well. Nonetheless, why wasn't there any decent individual correcting his pronunciation during a rehearsal before allowing him to speak to the world with such bad pronunciation? 8. Home viewers were forced to watch advertisements (sponsors I think) even it means depriving us our one and only YOG experience. We missed a portion of the opening each time after an ad. I think we even missed 80% of a piano recital after one ad. I didn't know what went on there?   By Benny Lim [Source: I hate YOG Facebook]     EDITORS’ NOTE: Has your life been turned upside down by the YOG? Please share your views with us. We assure you that your identity will be kept strictly CONFIDENTIAL. We will be your UNCENSORED VOICE. We will publish your letter in FULL with ZERO editing, moderating or censoring. You do not have to suffer in silence! You have the RIGHT to speak up as a citizen of this country. Remember: you are a CITIZEN of Singapore, not a SLAVE of the PAP regime. Our mailbox has been swarmed by letters from YOG volunteers for the last few days. Unless you specifically want us to publish your REAL NAME, we will use a pseudonym instead. Please understand that due to manpower constraints, we may not be able to publish your letters immediately and we will have to stagger them a few hours apart to ensure that they get maximum exposure. Please keep your feedback coming! Singapore for SINGAPOREANS! Your interests always come FIRST.   Related articles: >> No news of YOG Opening Ceremony in international papers >> MOE teacher: How students can stay out of YOG >> YOG Webcast server crashed >> SFI promises to improve “DOG” food for volunteers >> Primary school students stand in the rain to welcome YOG torch >> Plight of Singapore volunteers at Youth Olympic Village >> JC students forced to attend YOG events >> Dr Vivian: Singaporeans are proud of YOG >> PM Lee: YOG has struck a “chord” with our people >> Dr Vivian: YOG venues will not become “white elephants” >> Online pressure forced SFI to provide better food for YOG volunteers >> Civil Service Club offering free YOG tickets >> Journey of YOG flame costs Singaporeans $7 million dollars >> Corny YOG propaganda in Straits Times >> Tharman: YOG enthusiasm is real >> Polytechnic student: I don’t care about YOG >> JC students being “volunteered” for YOG >> YOG: What the HELL is that? >> PAP provides YOG athletes and officials three daily buffets >> YOG students being given “dog food” >> Singapore students forced to volunteer for YOG >> Poor ticket sales forced closure of YOG gallery section >> PM Lee calls on Singaporeans to support YOG >> Young Singaporeans hurl vulgarities at YOG >> Dr Vivian wants Singaporeans to celebrate YOG >> NTU students complain about YOG >> Dr Vivian: Sports is not about “petty politics” >> More than 300 Singaporeans joined “I hate YOG” Facebook >> CNA poll: 90 percent of Singaporeans “not interested” in YOG >> Slovak YOG Ambassador slams YOG venues of “school standard” only >> Two Facebook groups calling for boycott of YOG >> Free condoms for YOG officials and athletes >> Singapore helping to repair Jamaica’s stadium in return for YOG marketing >> Former stripper to choreograph opening ceremony of YOG >> Desperate PAP wants Singaporeans to get “passionate” about YOG >> PAP to Singaporeans: Give way to YOG vehicles or get fined $130 >> PM Lee wants Singaporeans to do their part for YOG >> Only six teams in YOG soccer tournament Please join our Facebook page here and invite your friends to do so to create awareness of the current affairs affecting Singaporeans. Please use our online web form to contact us.  Read More →

Despite being billed as the Singapore's BIGGEST show by the state media, the Opening Ceremony of the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games (YOG) yesterday fell far short of expectations and was decried as of "getai" standard by disgruntled netizens who watched it LIVE with some calling it an outright "international disgrace". The opening ceremony got off to a bad start when American singer Sean Kingston AWOLED from it after failling to reach a settlement of his singing fees with the YOG organizers. Then its official webcast crashed for 20 minutes when the ceremony had barely began and was only accessible mostly to Singapore viewers subsequently when it was touted earlier by the Straits Times to be able to reach an international audience of more than 15 million people, prompting angry netizens from Canada, Australia and elsewhere to post complaints on the YOG Facebook. According to comments posted by many netizens on internet forums and Facebook, there is nothing new about the YOG Opening Ceremony which resembled the National Day Parade with its usual propaganda about how Singapore was transformed from a sleeping fishing village twenty years ago to the prosperous metropolis it is now (thanks to the PAP) [Get instant updates and discussions about the YOG on our Facebook page here] Darren Lee minced no words: "What a disgrace opening ceremony SYOGOC or its relevant organiser has put up...i think they shld put up photos or videos of singapore's orchard road being flooded...COZ THAT IS A FXXKING RARE SCENE." Even Mike Tan, the parent of a child who performed at the ceremony was disappointed: "My child performed at the opening ceremony and I must say that all volunteers were treatedbadly. they were made to waste so much time before and after the performance and had ridiculous food throughout the whole training and actual day. I actually think the organizers its ok to mistreat singaporeans while the visitors are mroe important. I much prefer that we didn't win the right to host YOG. The majority don't want it nor find it significant." Has Ibrahim had a feeling of deja vu: "Why does it feels like a second NDP show tonite? Nothing great abt the YOG opening ceremony so far. So much for the contributions of the foreign talents." Vernon Sim felt there was no originality: "More like a musical and dance extravaganza than opening the ceremony???  What more can I say, Ivan Heng the director. AND, the stage, performances and backdrop seems very familiar, a DIRECT duplicate from the musical fountain show at Sentosa, with the flames shooting out along the edges? CRAP." Adrian Lin shared the same sentiments: "Was it just me? Or did anyone else feel that they did quite a few rip offs from other world-class performances? I had a sense of deja vu when they lit the lighthouse as it spiraled upwards, it reminded me of the Beijing Olympics torch being ...lit. Although to be fair the lighthouse was a nice choice of icon since we're a shipping and trading hub. Don't even get me started on the Bible rip offs. 'Running on water' & 'felling the giant with a slingshot'. But some of the designs and costumes were clearly a bit under budget. Like the guy firing the slingshots at the giant 'monster'? He was wearing a cycling cap with antenna stuck in it? /Antenna/?! Maybe it's a warning that Singaporean athletes aren't 100% normal?" Suzlynn Mohd was appalled at the anime section of the performance: "Embarrassed!!! Disgrace!!! What the hell that anime was for??? OMG!!! Malu-ation!!! They might as well get all those cosplay kids to perform lah." Shawn Liew added: "At first, I thought I went bad in time to 9 August. YOG = NDP. BTW, So sianz, no interesting performances. First Sing "I got a feeling" then keep on singing random songs. I expected this crap performance knowing the food that they gave the "volunteers". What does FIRE and a boy's DREAM got to do with Olympics? Wayang ar? Show how good they are at lip syncing? I only see constantly fireworks throughout the whole performance." Loke Yu Meng put it bluntly: "Opening ceremony show is Cheesy, Circumscribed, Convoluted." Jack Son was obviously embarrassed: "Thus now on, are we gonna fake a nationality when we travel abroad? To save ourselves from explaining this outright failure.. Seriously, I somehow feel Moscow can do better." Micky Sureanto thought the standard is only slightly better than "getai": "Just switched channel..5 mins ago...really painful to watch...cheap amateurish...i suspect budget problem! Slightly better than getai only!" While the volunteers and performers must be applauded for putting their best efforts under the most daunting conditions - spending long hours rehearsing with little rest and being served "DOG" food, the blame for the debacle fell squarely on the PAP regime and YOG organizers for disgracing Singaporeans and diminishing the standing of the Olympic Games. The YOG has turned out to be an embarrassing $389 million dollar FLOP for the increasingly unpopular PAP regime which has come under heavy fire of late for bursting the budget by more than three times, coercing Singapore students to participate in YOG events to generate fake grassroots support for it, giving them "DOG" food while treating the foreigners like kings and causing inconveniences to ordinary Singaporeans in its desperate attempt to "show off" to the world what it is "capable" of. The best support Singaporeans can show our youth is not by supporting the PAP regime's YOG, but by fighting for their RIGHTS on their behalfs to demand for better food, shorter hours and more humane working conditions for our poor, oppressed, long suffering fellow Singaporeans who are being forced to provide free labor for the YOG. [Comments sources: TR, Vote PAP out and I hate YOG Facebooks]   EDITORS’ NOTE: Has your life been turned upside down by the YOG? Please share your views with us. We assure you that your identity will be kept strictly CONFIDENTIAL. We will be your UNCENSORED VOICE. We will publish your letter in FULL with ZERO editing, moderating or censoring. You do not have to suffer in silence! You have the RIGHT to speak up as a citizen of this country. Remember: you are a CITIZEN of Singapore, not a SLAVE of the PAP regime. Our mailbox has been swarmed by letters from YOG volunteers for the last few days. Unless you specifically want us to publish your REAL NAME, we will use a pseudonym instead. Please understand that due to manpower constraints, we may not be able to publish your letters immediately and we will have to stagger them a few hours apart to ensure that they get maximum exposure. Please keep your feedback coming! Singapore for SINGAPOREANS! Your interests always come FIRST.   Related articles: >> No news of YOG opening ceremony in rest of the world >> MOE teacher: How students can stay out of YOG >> YOG Webcast server crashed >> SFI promises to improve “DOG” food for volunteers >> Primary school students stand in the rain to welcome YOG torch >> Plight of Singapore volunteers at Youth Olympic Village >> JC students forced to attend YOG events >> Dr Vivian: Singaporeans are proud of YOG >> PM Lee: YOG has struck a “chord” with our people >> Dr Vivian: YOG venues will not become “white elephants” >> Online pressure forced SFI to provide better food for YOG volunteers >> Civil Service Club offering free YOG tickets >> Journey of YOG flame costs Singaporeans $7 million dollars >> Corny YOG propaganda in Straits Times >> Tharman: YOG enthusiasm is real >> Polytechnic student: I don’t care about YOG >> JC students being “volunteered” for YOG >> YOG: What the HELL is that? >> PAP provides YOG athletes and officials three daily buffets >> YOG students being given “dog food” >> Singapore students forced to volunteer for YOG >> Poor ticket sales forced closure of YOG gallery section >> PM Lee calls on Singaporeans to support YOG >> Young Singaporeans hurl vulgarities at YOG >> Dr Vivian wants Singaporeans to celebrate YOG >> NTU students complain about YOG >> Dr Vivian: Sports is not about “petty politics” >> More than 300 Singaporeans joined “I hate YOG” Facebook >> CNA poll: 90 percent of Singaporeans “not interested” in YOG >> Slovak YOG Ambassador slams YOG venues of “school standard” only >> Two Facebook groups calling for boycott of YOG >> Free condoms for YOG officials and athletes >> Singapore helping to repair Jamaica’s stadium in return for YOG marketing >> Former stripper to choreograph opening ceremony of YOG >> Desperate PAP wants Singaporeans to get “passionate” about YOG >> PAP to Singaporeans: Give way to YOG vehicles or get fined $130 >> PM Lee wants Singaporeans to do their part for YOG >> Only six teams in YOG soccer tournament Please join our Facebook page here and invite your friends to do so to create awareness of the current affairs affecting Singaporeans. Please use our online web form to contact us.  Read More →