5/03/2015

Amos Yee – A new divide




The flutter of a butterfly has morphed into many butterflies fluttering in this island. When the fluttering of a butterfly is allowed to go flapping unrestrained you will get a storm brewing. The Amos Yee Incident has led to the gravitating of two groups, one hating him and wanting him to be lynched and another calling for understanding as he is just a wayward boy and needing guidance. When no one thinks it is right and prudent to tell the lynching mobs to back off, the mob went wild.

In the beginning there were the verbal threats of bodily harm to the boy, and this was followed by a man hitting the boy outside the court house. And there were applause from silly adults, supposedly responsible people, that the boy deserved it. And the icing to top up this comic tragedy of vicious attacks against a boy, a book store put up an insensitive tweet that went viral. I quote from an article in TRE on this,

‘Meanwhile, Popular bookstore posted an insensitive tweet on Twitter capitalizing on the “slapping incident” of Amos Yee.
It poked fun of Amos by putting up a picture of Famous Amos cookies and tweeting “Sorry you got slapped. Here, have some cookies on us!”.
Netizens were outraged and heavily criticised Popular bookstore. Many are calling for a boycott of the bookstore:… Facing a barrage of criticisms and calls of boycott, Popular bookstore later quickly put up an apology:
“It was a mistake that we accept and sincerely apologize for. We promise that we won’t do it again. #saynotoviolence”.
It has since deleted the insensitive tweet….’
The level of viciousness from the group against the boy, Amos Yee, is getting more serious and escalating. The voice of reason and compassion is also up a few scales to condemn those attackers. And the rest of those following this Incident are divided into two camps, one shaking their heads at how this is allowed to go on and on unrestrained, like it is the right thing to do, with approval from God, while the attackers behaving as if they are the righteous and godly people with God on their side. Come to think of it, when God is in the picture, who dares to go against God?
Everyone must be cowering in fear except some god fearing people that think they have the consent of god to do what they are doing to Amos Yee, the boy on the wrong side of god. What a heavenly divide this has become. And the storm is brewing, an act of God that nothing can be done to stop it except to hurry and evacuate to safety, away from the storm.
See nothing, hear nothing, say nothing and do nothing are the best things to do.
Which is the side of Darkness, which is the side of Light? Amen.
Below is a comment by a netizen, a father of 4 to Popular Book Store posted in TRE.
Trust et al:
Dear Popular Book Store
I am a father of 4, a Singapore citizen.
I saw your utterly reprehensible disgusting and outrageous Tweet making fun of Amos Yee, a defenceless teen who was viciously assaulted at the doorstep of our Courts. There was the image of a human hand in the gesture of slapping accompanied by the words ‘Hi 5′ and ‘Ouch!’. This clearly meant you were celebrating and even congratulating the assailant and feeling gleeful about the attack. To a 16 year old imprisoned as an adult and in handcuffs and ankle fetters after an assault, you offered Famous Amos cookies, clearly to taunt him.
This was a carefully designed stunt calculated to capitalize in a sadistic manner on the trauma and agony of a teenager. You clearly sought to gain cheap publicity since the tweet featured stationery which you sell!
Minister of Law Shanmugan has categorically stated that this horrendous violent act cannot be condoned.
The Singapore Kindness Movement (whose Patron is our Prime Minister) has denounced the vicious online attacks on Amos Yee which led up to this atrocity.
You are a company which makes its fortune selling textbooks, guidebooks and stationery to kids.
I cannot comprehend how you could stoop to such uncivic and barbaric behaviour when a young person is being victimized.
It is highly probable that conduct such as yours will lead to further violence against Amos Yee and will promote a culture of political violence and thuggery in Singapore.
‎I am ashamed as a Singaporean that an apparently reputable company like yours could stoop to such reprehensible cyber-lynching.
You have not apologized to Amos and his family. Instead you are resorting to PR gimmicks.
Many netizen have called for a boycott of your store and products. I think this is the least that you deserve!

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Popular Bookstore is a pro-Christian organisation.

As members of this bookstore who buy a few hundred books from them every year, we will now stop patronising this senseless, idiotic, politically-motivated and humanly-depraved store.

Anonymous said...

"The level of viciousness from the group against the boy, Amos Yee, is getting more serious and escalating."
RB

That only goes to show how strong and even vicious too, the support PAP has among lots of Sinkies, and maybe new Sinkies against those who are anti LKY, anti PAP, anti govt etc, never mind if it is just only a 16 year old boy who cannot even vote yet. And dunno true or not, I heard that he is also mildly autistic?

And as usual, the not ready to be govt MPs from the strongest opposition party, the WP is silent on this.

And with that, PAP for sure will win big again in the next GE, and perhaps with a clean sweep too, by retaking Aljunied, Hougang and Punggol East from WP.


Virgo 49 said...

So this is how Christians behaved!

Thought they are meek and merciful!

THE FRIGHTENING OUTCOME ID THAT THEY ARE ALL GOING TO HEAVEN REGARDING OF THEIR DEEDS ON EARTH

Anonymous said...

No lah, they are waiting for Judgement Day. So easy to go to heaven meh?

Anonymous said...

"The Amos Yee Incident has led to the gravitating of two groups, one hating him and wanting him to be lynched and another calling for understanding as he is just a wayward boy and needing guidance."

The real elephant in the room is "Does Amos Yee's views have any merits?"

The PAPigs call PAP's Singapore a meritocracy.
So if Amos' views have no merits.
It will die a natural death.
Any need for threats to cut off his penis?
Any need to assault him in public?
It seems thus far that hooligans seem to gravitate towards only one side of the Amos debate.

Anonymous said...

I wonder if Popular Bookstore will identify the employees who made the offending tweet?

Come on.
Don't be a coward.
Let us know who you are.

Anonymous said...

Which is worse?
Heckling or physical violence?

Ⓜatilah $ingapura⚠️ said...

@ uptight-parent-with-no-sense-of-humour, via RB:

>> This was a carefully designed stunt calculated to capitalize in a sadistic manner on the trauma and agony of a teenager.

Aiyah, young uncle, relac lah brudder. It was a JOKE. Admittedly, some may consider an offensive and inappropriately made one, but it was still a JOKE.

What's more, uncle, why you so kaypoh? Amos didn't respond to the Tweet by Popular Bookstore. You don't know, he might have ENJOYED it! Why not? It adds to his "celebrity".

Amos has demonstrated his superb command of the English language. Do you think he is incapable of crafting a excoriating rejoinder if at all we was "offended"? Please lah, Amos is the national poster boy for freedom of speech in the realms of being "offensive" and "inappropriate".

Sorry lah Singapore. Here is yet more proof that you will not be having freedom of speech and expression anytime soon.

Anonymous said...

More slapping in Singapore.
Is this a case of Monkey See, Monkey Do?

Anonymous said...

Filipinos Asked To Turn Off Fridges To Save Power For Pacquiao-Mayweather Fight

SOURCE:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-05-02/filipinos-asked-turn-fridges-save-power-pacquiao-mayweather-fight

PAP Minister Josephine Teo:
"Josephine: Please don't CHOOSE to board the MRT at the same time!"

SOURCE:
https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=678174495539016

Do you see any similarity?
How musch is the Filipino politician paid to come up with the solution?
How much is PAP's Josephine Teo paid for her solution to our MRT crisis?

Ⓜatilah $ingapura⚠️ said...

@1108:

This one lagi best. A true testament to Pinoy IT "innovation"

Pinoy IT "genius" ☻ ☺︎☻ ☺︎☻ ☺︎

Anonymous said...


可怜 可怜 真可怜!

Sincerely feel very sorry for Amos Yee.

He is just 16+, a KID!

It must be tough for this kid to
go thru this whole episode with
the "SLAPPING" and so much
negative comments.

Tough! Really Very Tough!

可怜 可怜 真可怜!

Shall we....大事化小事 ,小事化無事 ?

Please.....................



Anonymous said...

Heckling versus Slapping

Anonymous said...

50 shades of white.