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Weak protocol in issuing medical drugs in Singapore

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Weak protocol in issuing medical drugs in Singapore

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Stand: General practitioners in Singapore who run private clinics should require a Pharmacist on-location to countercheck the drugs prescribed for each patient.

Theme: We shouldn't take our health/lives for granted(?) idk

Recent Case: Doctor allegedly caused patient’s death by rash act, accused of prescribing man cancer drugs without tests

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/doctor-allegedly-caused-patients-death-by-rash-act?xtor=CS3-18&utm_source=STiPhone&utm_medium=share&utm_term=2019-10-22%2010%3A10%3A01

Article showing rising trend: Complaints against doctors at all-time high

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/complaints-against-doctors-at-all-time-high?xtor=CS3-18&utm_source=STiPhone&utm_medium=share&utm_term=2019-10-22%2010%3A10%3A37

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https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/cnainsider/regardless-class-race-religion-survey-singapore-income-divide-10774682

Personally, I think that class divide is indeed a prevalent issue in Singapore. Despite those who believe that some form of inequality is healthy because of how it gives people the motivation to strive for a better standard of living, I feel otherwise as ‘inequality’ becomes an issue when it begins to hinder one’s opportunity to improve his/her standard of living. ‘Inequality’ in Singapore’s context has allowed households with accumulated wealth and connections to pass on advantages to their children while those without the same social capital and privileges are forced to work harder to do the same. Singapore risks being a society where the rich get richer, while the poor remain poor; due to the lack of income, skills and resources to better equip themselves. Moving forward, this could threaten Singapore’s existence for it might pit Singaporeans against Singaporeans, causing disharmony amongst people in the nation.

Refined Stand - People should not be judged based on their differences

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Article link: https://www.google.com.sg/amp/s/www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1068676

Personal stand: It is so terrible that this is a growing issue around the world, especially in this age of the internet, where sexually perverse individuals have the luxury of hiding behind anonymity while consuming paedophilic materials and possibly physically perpetuating the act itself. An article reported by AXIOS stated that 45 million images and videos of child sex abuse were reported on the Internet last year. Even though it may 'just be a video' to some of the consumers of this content, the fact of the matter is that they are simply watching and even enjoying those innocent victims being scarred for life. In many cases, little girls get pregnant with children from their abuser and they are the ones who have to live with and raise them, at the same time having to cope with the emotional trauma that they go through. These children will also grow up having a warped view of society and the emotional damage that they suffer may even lead to psychological problems that they might present in the future. These psychological problems could lead to a perpetuation of such acts or simply them becoming dangerous to society.

Theme: Doing nothing is also doing something.

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Article link: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/commentary/disruption-prioritise-mental-health-impact-youths-singapore-11987948

Theme: Our mental health can be maintained through self-care.

Mental health is about our emotional, psychological and social well-being. It can be affected by stress from family, friends, work or studying. My stand on the issue is that while striving to work hard and achieve success, one must not put too much pressure on oneself and remember to take care of our own health. Self-care is important to our mental health, such as getting enough sleep, or balancing the amount of time spent doing work and taking breaks. Ensuring that we work towards mental wellness help us to be more self-assured and learn to be at peace with ourselves, which can lead to living a happier life.

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https://www.theperspective.com/debates/businessandtechnology/raise-taxes-rich/

Taxing the rich to pay for programs that help the poor and middle class. Tax hikes on the rich would have little impact on their spending, since most of this income would likely have gone into savings. The rich, by definition, have a lot of money; in fact, the top 1 percent in the US control close to 40% of the nation’s wealth.

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https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/university-student-who-molested-woman-gets-probation-for-minor-intrusion

I think Singapore needs to educate people on the psychological/emotional etc effects and trauma such acts can have on people, even if its just a "minor" intrusion. Singapore also needs to just take sexual acts more seriously. Death penalty for drug traffickers, but pardoning sexual offenders? What on earth is the point of adverts telling us what to do when we get molested when the law does not even take it seriously, when we know it doesnt work? If a NUS student can be let go because he has a "bright future", does the girl not have a bright future of her own either? Where are her rights to get justice for herself?

So many times have we called out those who have sexually offended others and ourselves. Yet the law and the government does not want to help us. Sure he only made a "minor intrusion" but he has done this MANY times and even FOLLOWED her. It is so terrifying having a man keep STALKING you and how long does the government want to protect people like him until it ends up even worse?

I have a right to be protected by the law. I have right to be not touched in the first place. I have a right to not be afraid of the old man who left the MRT as he caressed my hand.

It is time Singapore protects our rights.

refined stand: singapore pls do smth abt all these sexual offenders wtf

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vivien t

Societal Issue: Prejudice against people with mental illnesses

https://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/i-have-mental-illness-will-you-hire-me

I think people with mental illnesses shouldn’t be deemed as incapable of handling stress in interviews and that mental illnesses should be viewed similarly to physical illnesses. It's not something where can one can just 'be  happier, stronger and just move on'. We don't tell someone with a cold to just stop sneezing, so why would we tell someone with depression to just be happier?

A cancer survivor is treated with respect and support from family and friends are given. Why isn't there a same amount understanding and support for someone going through mental illness? In fact some patients are not only given enough support but criticised for something they can't help and are struggling with.

Mental illness could hit anyone, friends or family so we should be more mindful in how we treat them. A person is made of so many things, a personality, hobbies, values, abilities and they most definitely should not be defined by their illness.

There needs to be a change in the way we view and treat mental patients. We shouldn't just view them as 'crazy' but people like us, people who need help.

Refined theme: Nobody should be treated differently just because of their circumstances.

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Link: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-09-12/who-decides-what-beauty-is/10177538

Personal Stand: My personal stand on the issue is that beauty is a flawed concept in general. Everyone is born with different proportions and dimensions. But there has to be a line between being healthy and being accepting for who you are. It’s  the nutrition that matters, not the amount of calories.  Stories about how some people will purposely vomit out their food to stay slim will ultimately damage their body in the long run. Same with those who are overweight but even that is not always black and white. What I'm trying to say is yes accept your body for what it is but if you don't feel good maybe a change is required. And when I say health I mean all aspects of the word, mental, physical spiritual.

Refined stand: Beauty Standards should not stand in the way of your overall health.

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https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/families/article/2111822/downsides-singapores-education-system-streaming-stress-and

Personal stand: Singapore's education system may be top-notch as compared to the rest of the world, but it may not be the best for students' mental health.
The pressure stems from being segregated into different classes based on results and assessments at a very young age of nine, in Primary 3.

Students undergo two major examinations even before leaving primary school.

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 People circulating obscene images of others without their consent

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 People circulating obscene images of others without their consent

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https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/police-looking-into-another-telegram-chat-group-allegedly-circulating-obscene-materials?cx_testId=20&cx_testVariant=cx_2&cx_artPos=2#cxrecs_s

Personal stand: These people should not be taking/screenshotting and subsequently spreading such photos of girls without their consent, as it is an infringement of their privacy. The outrage of the public upon discovering such groups is completely understandable, as I too am disgusted.

Theme: People should be held accountable for their actions, instead of victim-blaming others

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https://time.com/longform/teaching-in-america/
Personal stand: Teachers work extremely hard but are not paid enough for their efforts. They should be paid more. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the average salaries of elementary, middle, and secondary public and private school teachers adjusted for regional cost of living differences in U.S. metropolitan areas. While the average annual salary of teachers nationwide is $52,000, in some major metropolitan areas the average teacher salary is close to $10,000 less, even after adjusting for regional cost of living differences. There have been several stories of teachers needing to sleep in cars and work other jobs on top of being a teacher just to pay the bills. This needs to come to an end.

Refined stand: Teachers are struggling and they deserve to be paid what they’re worth.

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https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/37-families-to-be-affected-as-sla-reclaims-state-land-in-katong

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/commentary-how-should-singapore-decide-what-to-conserve-8916298

Personal Stand : In a small country like Singapore, development should be a top priority however, there should be trade-offs that can still preserve heritage. While Singapore has definitely made an effort to conserve heritage buildings (i.e shophouses along Joo Chiat), old housing estates such as the flats in Tiong Bahru are at risk. I think that we should consider other ways to weave not only heritage buildings opened to public but also old housing estates that have built our identity as Singapore.

Refined stand : we should have stricter guidelines to preservation as urbanisation starts to take priority in today's world

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Article: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/marijuana-legalization_n_4151423

Personal stand: I think Marijuana should be legalised. Marijuana has been proven to alleviate pain for a lot of medical ailments, as well as be used as a sleep aid. In the case of the United States, despite marijuana currently not being legal in many states, around 40% of Americans admit to using marijuana anyway. Legalising marijuana will ultimately make it safer for all it's users as product testing is becoming a standard requirement for legal marijuana markets. It's also no secret that the justice system disproportionately harms people of colour

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https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/victim-of-minor-intrusion-molestation-case-disappointed-at-courts-decision

I think Singapore should start taking these molestation cases more seriously. It is getting absurd that NUS post graduates are getting away with molestation because it is only a "minor intrusion", and more ridiculous still, because the offender has a high GPA and has "high prosperity to reform". It is gross that Singapore has an over fetishization of high grades and justifies these immoral acts because somehow, high grades= a morally good person?

How is anyone supposed to take the law more seriously if the higher ups in Singapore don’t even take them seriously?

Girls are told not to "overreact", but nobody understands the trauma of being a victim. Yes on the surface level maybe "he touch a bit only", but the emotional, psychological trauma goes deeper and becomes more painful still when the very law that promised to protect you decides to pardon the sex offender.

Theme: Women's rights should be taken more seriously in Singapore

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wasteful lifestyle in singapore (vivien q)

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wasteful lifestyle in singapore (vivien q)

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Article: https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/singapore-throw-away-nation

Personal stand: singapore is a very wasteful society, we throw away anything and everything, including brand new clothes with tags on them, or even furniture once they get a tiny scratch. Only 7 percent of plastic waste in singapore is recycled, when we produce hundreds of thousands of tonnes every day. The rest of our trash is incinerated, which results in pollution and toxic substances being created that are released into the environment. If we would all reduce the amount of trash we produce, we would not have to burn so much rubbish

Refined stand: we all play a part in reducing waste and thus reducing pollution