Pride and Prejudice

Just yesterday night, I received an sms sent by relatives from my mom's side, from indonesia. Was actually quite pleased to receive messages from them showing their care and concern for me over here in Singapore. Really appreciate their thoughtfulness but the content of the message left me quite downcasted.

In essence, my aunts were congratulating my entry to the University as they heard from my mom in NUS studyin economics. I am truly disgusted with my mom. Why mommy do you have to lie? Same as my dad who lied that i was a havoc girl with no desire to study and now because of all these i have to lead such a dodgy life. Every time i stepped in school i have to pray hard that i won't be seen by people related to me. And straight after school i will scam right away. Why dad?

As i was shopping today, something just dawn on me. Singaporeans, like other asian countries i am sure, are so brand conscious. Just because this pair of shoes is from Aldo, it justifies the price that i have to pay for the pair of shoes. For the exact same design and pattern, I can probably get one from any normal shoe shop for perhaps a maximum of 30 bucks. But because it's from Aldo, people are willing to pay 65 for it. Why? because it's branded. It is a good brand, a high class brand so it's good and thus it is worth the price. But exactly what is it that makes us pay the extra 35 bucks? Are you sure it's cos it is of better quality? And the other shoes from an ordinary shoe shop are much inferior?

Sadly the idea of brands actually extend from not just merchandise but to schools and even to people. People from the more reputed and celebrated schools are smarter, more brilliant and more capable. But is it necessarily so? Why is there a constant notion that uni grads are more capable and are thinking individuals whereas a poly grad are usually seen as less abled? And within the uni grads, people are still further differentiated by their honours and which universities they graduate from. Are you sure that the piece of paper can tell u so much about a person and his/her capability and character, or does it tell me more of how book smart and exam smart the person is? And can scholarship be enough to justify why scholars get to breeze their way up the corporate laddder by skipping a few initial steps? Are these truly the so called creme of the crop? By paper or by true capability? Are we seeing people as fellow men of equal rights and chance or are they too being treated like goods? like aldo shoes versus the normal shoes?

Never judge a book by its cover, never judge a shoe by its brand, and never judge a person by label. our society loves to label. Everyone of us from the day we are borned are constantly being labelled. Which primary schools we are from, what stream we are in, what we get from PSLE, which sec sch we get into, which jc we come from, which uni we go to. Along the way, as long as anyone fall short of the society's standard, the person will be marginalised and outcasted. We fall out of the society's safety net. We're off tangent different and away from the norm and hence labelled as dubious or even inferior.

Don't get me wrong though. Education certainly has its value. And i believe in a good education because knowledge is the key to not just greater success in society but more of success as a human. It is about being able to understand each other better and respect each other's rights and being able to see the strength and flaws of our society and work on it. It is about carrying out actions when we see something that is against our principles and not just enduring it and closing an eye. Such is the purpose of a education. And it is to be available for all. Not only the priviledged few. Not to be differentiated. Not just for the 'elites'. it should be available for all who desire and value education. Shaping the future involves alot more, not just 'elites' or worse people who sit in their lil ivory towers.