A caring big brother or a hardcore gangster?

There was an article in the Straits Times on 6 January 2007 that I found quite amusing.

Titled "JB Slashing Victim : Caring big brother or hardcore gangster?"

The reporter said that differing tales paint two pictures of a man (Ah Hua) who was murdered in JB recently. The murder victim was reputedly a gangster and was a murder suspect himself (for the murder of a 18 year old in Singapore in 2003). So this reporter said that different people remember the victim for different things.

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The positive side

Some said that Ah Hua was friendly and polite and even helped pub staff keep away the chairs and tables. Ah Hua also gave a regular allowance to his parents and looked out for the elderly. He also "blushed" when he had to pass a sweet with his mouth to a girl.

The negative side

Some said that Ah Hua has a quick temper, abused his girlfriend and took her money. Ah Hua was a hardcore criminal and was involved in illicit activities in Singapore and Malaysia since 16. He also dabbled in drugs and threatend to hurt people who crossed his path.

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So it seemed that the reporter was at a loss to decide whether Ah Hua was a good or bad man in view of such differing opinions. I think he cannot believe that a person can be both kind and evil at the same time.

Well, why not? Welcome to the real world, Mr/Mrs Reporter. You sounds like you are confused. Hey, instead of using the title "Caring Big Brother OR Hardcore Gangster?", why not use "Caring Big Brother AND Hardcore Gangster". There is no contradiction there. The facts are actually quite clear. He is nice to his family AND also a gangster. He is abusive towards his girlfriend but also blush when asked to do something intimate with a girl. A man can be all these things at the same time. So there is actually no question here. Quit abusing the use of the question mark.

I found it amusing that some people seem to be unable to accept that a person can be both a good brother and son as well as a bad-ass gangster involved in murders, drugs and illicit activities. Why not? Why is everything always have to be black and white? We are not washing socks here. Some people walk around with the most coloured lenses in the world. To them, the world is filled with stereotypes as follows:

Gangsters and moneylenders = evil, bad asses who must have a lot of tattoos and be abusive to parents and wives and always dabbled in drugs and prostitution. All deserved to be caned and shot.

Successful businessmen and officials = smart and hardworking people who think "outside the box" and always know how to seize opportunities. Must be "streetwise". Cannot be graduates from Singapore since we all know graduates from Singapore are all "book smart".

Singaporean men = nice but boring. No money either. Dungeons and Dragons dorks. Sexually depraved.

Singaporean women = sophisticated and driven. Know what they want (yeah, right. Next stereotype please).

Singapore politicans = morally upright and never make mistakes. Always know what they are doing. So if they say GST going up to 7% is right, it must be correct. Bus fare going up? Must be the right thing to do.

YAWN. You know, sometimes our politicians missed the point completely and talk the most absolute garbage. E.g. our real estate policy in the 90's was a complete unmitigated disaster when the authorities allowed rampant speculation which drove property prices skyhigh. They called it "increasing the value of our people's assets". Well, everyone got their asses kicked later when the bubble burst. Some people never recovered. Smart people need not necessary know what they are doing. (I am watching the current real estate market with great interest as it appear that the same bubble is growing).

Those Nazis who gassed and killed millions of Jews during WWII were also good fathers/Christians who read stories to their children before bedtime. And how many times have we read Mr X is a quiet and humble Singaporean only to find out later he murdered and chopped up his Chinese mistress? Is it really incomprehensible that a person can be good and evil at the same time? Oh, and when that Chinese girl Huang Na get killed, every Singaporean was donating money to the "grieving mother" . . . who then promptly used the money to build houses back in China. Real smart move, dumbasses. I don't think the mother was sad at all. She is a opportunistic, evil mother who left her small daughter alone in Singapore with no money or adult supervision and have to fend for herself. Why does everything think that all women are good mothers?

A man or woman has many faces. Deal with it. A woman who is an intelligent and educated professional might be stupid enough to be in an abusive relationship with a loser boyfriend or husband. I have also stopped going "Wow!" everytime someone introduced me to a successful person who made it big. It is not because he can "think out of the box", talented or street smart. Some people made it big because they are either lucky or kiss enough ass to stink up the place permanently. Take everything with a pinch of salt. A gangster can be a fillial son and evil person. An educated person can make the worst mistake. Nothing surprising there.