Ignorance.

It’s a cultural disease, ignorance. Yet we are enveloped by it, caressing it’s limiting nature like cashmere, refusing to let go. Most would claim it’s the nature of our education system, I say rather it’s an obscene self-centred complacency. In that respect, Singapore is very much like the much derided United States.

I was reminded again today of how truly oblivious to the outside world Singaporeans are. How focused on little frivolities like where’s the best food, or who’s got the flashier car, we can be.

In part it may be the fault of an education system designed to perpetuate the status quo and the competent (but oppressive) rule of the elite. In part it may be a hugely successful social engineering project designed to herd communal thought towards specific goals. Whatever the reason, it saddens me. Not just because I find myself ignorant but willing to learn, but that the vast majority simply refuse to learn.

True, our sources of media are prone to spin. True that the media networks operate to serve specific political and social agendas. True that everything in this world is inherently biased. But still, is that any less reason to be informed and knowledgeable?

Hoping to prove myself wrong, I went through the first two pages of a Singaporean blogging portal to ascertain patterns in blogging. Nothing stood out beyond the usual posts about material goods, good food, and so on. There were also a lot of posts lamenting the death of a rally car driver. Again, how is this relevant?

Never mind that a few days ago, everyone was blogging about the tremors felt in Singapore due to the earthquakes in Indonesia. Of the ones I’ve read, only two expressed concern for the Indonesians affected; the rest were more concerned with ‘how cool’ the whole experience was, and how subsequent quakes might affect their lives.

Ignorance may be bliss, but wilful ignorance is blind stupidity. It reeks of complacency. I’ll be damned if I am going to be accused of complacency.