Trailing the Knights - Singapore's Aerobatic Team

 I used to watched this team practicing as they screamed past the HDB's in the tight formation of jets.  They were impressive then but this cockpit-eye view is even more so.
Practicing for the big SG50 celebration and pity I can't be there in person to witness it - but at least we now have live streaming on the internet.

PM Lee's national Day Rally Speech - 2013

The best speech I have heard from Lee Hsien Loong to date. The futurist projections show an exciting time ahead for Singapore; and some challenges.

I've Just Had A Mint Moment!

Apparently the post-coital cigarette has been replaced by the pre-coital mint in Singapore. A tongue in cheek (and I use this pun in the figurative sense, not the literal) has seen a mint confectionery company promote the idea of increasing one's family size on the night of National Day.

Appalled by the prospect of a plummeting birth rate the government has for many years been trying to coerce the population to breed; so far with little success.  Whether a sugar shot will add to the national libido has yet to be seen but it certainly added spice to National Day!

In honour of this innovative advertising promotion I felt  the very least I could was to come up with a range of congratulatory buttons, magnets and to top off the celebrations (an even worse pun!), a beer stein.

Click on any of the images below to go through to the products in question.

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Happy Birthday Singapore

It's August 9th and that means National Day in Singapore;thisyear is the 47th anniversary as it turns out.
As per usual there is a patriotic song around the selected theme. The socially binding statement for 2012 is "Loving Singapore Our Home".

What has impressed me is how each year the country makes increasing use of online media to engage with its citizens.
As well as a photo competition (my favourite from the winners - by Teo Yong Kang - can be seen below) people can now create and download an e-flag as well as an e-pledge.
And Singapore being Singapore i.e. a shopping paradise, no celebration would be complete without a range of discounts, coupon and offers. As the coupon site says "What is a birthday without presents, goodies and all things nice?". I note I can get a fish and chip set from Botak Jones and even D24 durian puffs are on special!

Photo:  Teo Yong Kang

So happy birthday Singapore.  I won't be there in person to see the jest whizzing past my condo window, but I will be celebrating in spirit from afar.

National Day Parade 2011

Singapore's National Day is always celebrated in song and heavily promoted by the government and Mediacorp. The above video is of song composed and sung by Lorraine Tan.

The official song for the NDP is called "In A Heartbeat and is sung by a former Singapore idol runner-up, Sylvia Ratonel. She is a Euro-Filipino who signed a fulltime contract with the government's MediaCorp after Singapore idol so it is not surprising she is the chosen one for this rendition.



I much prefer the Lorraine Tan offering as I find Ms Ratonel's effort vocally insipid.  However this is a matter of personal taste.

The country's greatest asset is its people as it has no natural resources to speak of.  Although the lyrics and sentiments may seem rather 'saccharine' to outsiders, they reflect the importance of family as the key unit of social stability and support.

It is interesting to review such ditties from previous years and all have a similar perspective.

National Day - What National Day?

Today is Waitangi Day, a day that means very little to many New Zealanders, despite it being touted for the last few decades as our 'national day'.

Last night on television a local commentator bewailed the fact that there were very few if any Kiwis of European stock (labeled 'Pakehas' in politically correct circles) showing up at the celebrations on a Northland marae.

National Days -  The Good (left), The Bad and the Ugly (right)

I use the term 'celebration' advisedly as most of the media focus is on noisy protesters and mud slinging, both verbal and literal. In reality Waitangi Day means very little to many Kiwis and certainly doesn't feel like a National Day.

Compare this to the orchestrated celebration in Singapore where we had impressive displays of aerobatics for the country's jets, live concerts and huge firework displays.

New Zealand of course could never stage such displays, even if it wanted to, as a previous Labour Government kneecapped the fighting wing of our air force. We have no fighting jets.

A couple of retro-fitted and ancient Hercules aircraft lumbering past just wouldn't produce the same effect as the Singaporean strike force.

I know there may be some in Singapore who see their celebration as political posturing by the PAP but  it is not a view I subscribe to.  At least there is an attempt to pull all sections of the community together to celebrate the tangible benefits of nationhood.

If New Zealand truly wants a day that unites the population they need look no further than Anzac Day; a day when we remember those men and women who gave their lives during past wars.

At least the current New Zealand Prime Minister is trying to look forward and distancing himself from the 'grievance' industry that has grown up around land claims and Waitangi Day.  John Key has a successful working relationship with the Maori party thanks largely to the intelligence and foresight of that party's leader, Peter Sharples.

So on this our 'national day' few of us will feel motivated to turn on the television and watch the goings on at Waitangi. There is far more interest in New Zealand's sterling performance in last night's Rugby Sevens in Wellington and for many of us, on the Chinese New Year celebration.

Related articles

• Charge for media to enter Waitangi marae 'racist' (nzherald.co.nz)
• Tense start to Waitangi celebrations (nzherald.co.nz)
• Brian Rudman : Special days should not be cheapened (nzherald.co.nz)