http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,124124,00.html?

This article is particularly important to me here because it, of course, applies directly my age group. But beyond personal importance, the article also shows something vital about our current society, which is simply, that children are not only becoming more mature and exposed overall but also that parents are starting to lose their control over their children’s upbringing more. It must be said that while parents are not wrong in trying to give their children more control over their own lives, at the same time I feel that they are being over excessive in the aspect, leading to the current situation.

This aspect of control shows itself in nearly all about things too. The concept where control must be balanced between excess and deficiency is incredibly important. It is somewhat similar to stretching a rubber band: if you overwork it, it will snap. But if you do not stretch it, then it will not be able to do whatever it needs to. When thinking about life in general, this much is true even for a student. Work and play must be balanced between excess and deficit.

Although it should be noted that as with nearly all kinds journalism this article only offers a few points of view that are roughly similar to each other(Aoxiang Counselling Service and Pastor Andrew Choo in this case). The children themselves do not have their perspective presented in this article which must, I admit, make for a rather one-sided article. Certainly the children themselves will account for their behavior, and it would be more effective to get their opinions as well, although of course it is possible that it is difficult to get them to reveal what they think.

The point of view of the children in question may have been somewhat painted in a negative light in the article, considering it’s called a ‘worrying trend’ and ‘a social problem’. While I do not deny that this is something that should not be encouraged, at the same time one should not think that the children are simply delinquents are the like. Rather, they, as stated by the article itself, are merely more open-minded and less conservative. As such, the children should not be thought as ‘problem children’ and I think that they would not want to be thought of as such either.

Of course, as with many cases, one cannot speak for others. Although I do think that the children are not to be victimized, this is merely my own point of view. Without hearing about their own opinions straight from themselves, there is no way of knowing fully what they really think. However, all ideas and responses must be made with that limit and hence this is the best I can do.