Singaporeans and the Environment Since my undergraduate days, when I was still filled with ideals and hope, I have already consigned myself to the fact that Singapore, its people and government, have not much love for the environment. Yes, we do have campaigns about keeping Singapore clean and green, and tree planting sessions, which essentially are photo opportunities for politicians. To me these are all lip-service. As our urban sprawl grows and green areas shrink, I was appalled to Sunday Times' Ignatius Low's piece "Want Orchard Road buzz? Cut down the trees". Ignatius, who apparently put some thought, which ain't very much, into this after listening to his friend's comments on Orchard Road not being as iconic as other shopping districts in other parts of the world. Going on to show that he konws the reasons on why we have trees there, citing the heat, tradition, Orchard Road being an orchard literally etc., he rationalises that these are now irrelevant and the trees just gotta go. Reading his piece, I can't help but think of the pragmatism drilled into our brains during our years in the formal educational system. Sadly, Ignatius is just another 'robot' produce by the system. A robot with no love for heritage, culture and history. Everything can, and should, be done for the economic well-being of Singapore. Personally, I think the trees add something to the road where we rush to each June and July. This small sliver of greenery disrupts the boring skyline of concrete and glass structure which are 'iconic' and repetitious in all major shopping districts around the world. Orchard Road is unique precisely because of the trees which line both sides of the road. Just imagine. No trees. What can one see? Nothing. The glare from the sun would pierce the eyeballs of any idiot, including Ignatius and his no-brainer friend, who wants to look into the not so iconic structures lining the road. If you want an iconic structure, go to our famous Esplanade aka Durian, or the lion headed fish called the Merlion at Merlion Park. One can always turn to the Singapore Arts Museum or St Andrew's Cathedral for some colonial structures. Having said all that, I have a question for Ignatius. Why does Singapore need to mimick others to have the so-called buzz? Shouldn't we create our own source of buzz and let the others mimick us? We should lead from the front and not play catch up all the time. It's people like Ignatius and his friend which prevents Singapore from having its own culture and heritage. All they want is a spanking and gleaming city, just like any other around the world, where we need to go to the park to see the trees.
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