propitiate.net

Sometimes, you just have to ask yourself why is it that some people in the library

1. Play Metal Slug on their laptops with the speakers activated, whilst simultaneously blocking the aisle with their stretched legs
2. Put their five-toed-socked/bare feet on the couches, contorted in what must be rather uncomfortable poses that nevertheless take up an inordinate amount of space on the originally two-seater seats
3. Lean on the somewhat fragile Southeast Asian painting exhibit during loud conversations on their expensive mobile phones that they brandish like gaudy jewelry and not notice the damn boards are shaking precariously
4. Play dull sports simulation games on their PSP, putting their bare feet on books their friend had obnoxiously strewn around on the floor, and feeling so pleased with themselves when they score points that they cannot control their urge to recount loudly the details of his triumph to said friend

Yes, this is my diatribe against the flagrant infractors of the unspoken rules of public space. I don’t see why Singapore should be selectively adherent to the vague notion of ‘Asian Values’, picking out what seem to be the worst of the bunch for its own (well, I use ascribe things to owners here rather loosely) self-actualization but ignoring the genuinely favourable sense of courteous public spirit that is supposedly rooted in our (again, nonspecific for some effect or another) culture.

To ground it in the context of the library,

‘… a culture that doesn’t value its librarians doesn’t value ideas and without ideas, well, where are we?’

- The Sandman, Neil Gaiman

One has to question if this sort of conduct is symptomatic of the state of our society as a whole; in my opinion, some people really need to think a little more often.