The rise of cyber bullying

After reading this article, I found out many things about cyber bullying; many people have been seriously harmed or even killed by cyber bullying, cyber bullying may be even worse than physical bullying and many countries, organisations and people are doing a lot to prevent cyber bullying. Thirteen year old Ryan Halligan committed suicide after rumours were spread via instant messaging that he was gay and a girl pretended to like him and copied their chat exchanges to her friends. Fifteen year old Gail Jones committed suicide after receiving twenty silent calls on her mobile phone every thirty minutes. The first reason why cyber bullying may be even worse than physical bullying is the sheer number of people who can view anything posted online. It would be bad enough to be cyber bullied by one kid when nobody else knew about it, but a video seen by hundreds or thousands of your peers could be devastating. The second reason is its sheer relentlessness. Cyber bullying could go on 24/7, three hundred and sixty five days a year and there is no escape since today's teens depend on the internet to keep in touch with peers. The third reason is cyber bullies can stay anonymous when online and this means they can write things they would not dare to if their identity were known. Anonymity can also amplify bullying's negative effect on the victim. The psychological ramifications of not knowing who is attacking you can be maddening. The lack of face to face contact might tempt bullies to new levels of cruelty. In cyberspace, where there is no visual contact, you get more extreme behavior. So what can be done? A consortium of European researchers recently developed role playing software called Fearnot!, which gets children to empathise with a victim of bullying. The US Congress passed a law making it a federal crime to "annoy, abuse, threaten or harrass" another person over the internet. In South Korea, the "internet real name system" forces online portals and new websites to record the identities of people who post content and to disclose their contact details if someone wants to sue them for libel or infringement of privacy. However, it can be difficult to persuade people to take the laws seriously and in the US they apply only to adults. Many jurisdictions do not want to investigate or prosecute these cases as they are short staffed and busy pursuing what they call real crime. John Halligan, father of the boy who committed suicide after being harrassed online, continues to lobby for cyber bullying legislation that specifically targets children. He also talks to school groups and runs a website chronicling the events that lead to his son's death. Last but not least, I think that cyber bullying is a very horrible act that can happen to anyone since most of the people use the internet nowadays. I wish that more can be done to prevent cyber bullying, or else the future generation will suffer greatly and the world will be even worse than it already is right now.
Written by:
Zames Lee Wen Jie
3H (38)

Miss Phua,Xiao Lu's invitation has expired.So she's using my account to post her reflection.

There are times when people follow their own instincts, and timmes when people follow others. In this story, her instinct is correct. When she had the dagger-like pain to her gut, the doctor thought thai it was only appendicitis. But she did not believe the doctor and she felt that there would be a more serious problem, like cancer. When she wanted to confirm the fact again, the surgeon avoided her question. Her instincts told her that when people do not answer your question directly, it means that the news is not good. When she finally found out from her sister that she had colon cancer, she was determined to be a normal person living a normal life again.

After she found she had colon cancer, she did not afraid of that, and refuse to cure. I think she is very brave and is not like the other cancer patients, she wanted to resist with the cancer and face this fact. At first, the surgeon told her he had removed a reasonably large tumour from part of my large intestine. He'd also removed about 45 centimeters of the colon itself and stitched the raw ends back together. W e cannot know that how painful is it and it seemed cut part of their body. For them ,if they are lucky to overcome cancer,they may seemed more cherish their life than others as they just experienced about the death before. She fought cancer with three years, we can guess how she depend on her determination to challenge this kind painful for long time.Finally, she overcome the cancer and be a normal person living in a normal life

Picture Discussion

This picture depicts a scene of a school's sports day prize giving ceremony and I know that it is one as the participants are wearing PE attire, there is a running track and a football field and there is a prize being awarded to a winner. As the prize is being awarded, the crowd of spectators behind are cheering and giving a round of applause to the winner. Let us focus on the winner. She is smiling shyly and looking away from the camera while receiving a trophy from the guest of honour. She is extremely happy that she had won a competition and was awarded a prize by the guest of honour himself. In my opinion, I feel that she deserves to be happy with herself as winning a sports competition is a big deal and she may have made people realise her prowd achievement. She may have put a lot effort in training for this event and I can say that her hardwork has paid off. Let us focus on the guest of honour, who has a bald spot on his head. I know that he is one as only guests of honour can award prizes to winners. In my opinion, I feel that he must be very honoured to have come and witness such a joyous event as well as to award the winner with the trophy. He must have sacrificed some time to come for this event and I think that he has much respect for the school. There are two NPCC cadets in full police uniform and are stationed at the far sides of the photo. They look smart in their uniform as they are groomed appropriately and they must have polished up their uniform til tip-top condition. In my opinion, I feel that they are stationed at their posts to maintain order and prevent any mishap from taking place at such a joyous event. Their upright posture tells us that they have a high standard of discipline, are prowd in their work and dedicated in their commitment towards the school. After this event, I think that all the participants will be happy with what they have won and for those who did not win, I hope that they will not be discouraged or jealous, but will work harder for next year and never give up. To conclude, I would like to say that this event is quite meaningfull, has served many purposes and should not be viewed by students as useless or a waste of time. The reason why I think that this event is meaningfull is because firstly, it helps students realise that exercising and keeping yourself fit is very important. Secondly, such a joyous event helps to reduce our stress from all that studying. Thirdly, it brings us together as a school so that we can foster a stronger bond between each other and build better relationships with one another by working together to achieve a common goal. I really do hope that more of such events can be held in my own school.

Written by:

Zames Lee Wen Jie

3H (38)

Reader's digest reflections...the rise of cyberbullying

Its easy to be either prey or predator in the virtual world of the net. The difference only lies in the mindset of the users and how they deal with the consequences of using the Internet.
Predators that abuses the technology may either choose to use hand phones,instant messaging or the Internet which is the easiest to manipulate.
Victims of these bullying suffer mental stress, but to me they are so stupid(that's the only word i can think of). They are usually the weaker lot, unable or don't know how to protect themselves or are just too dumb to do so. They most likely reveal their weak spots too much, show personal information online no matter its embarrassing or not, unknowingly offend potential bullies or trust their so-called 'friends' too much.
With these weaknesses in hold of the bullies, they always regret it too late and some even go into depression or commit suicide. Its so ridiculous when they do so, when it does not even solve the problem and they end their lives just like that.plain silly.
Bullies themselves are also a childish lot, hiding behind the masks they weave on the net, going by these aliases and cause hurt to the weaker.What do they gain by doing this?Maybe some satisfaction for a short while, but who knows the consequences they have to bear afterwards?They don't think before they do, and its as dumb as the victims themselves.

By: Yuxin(5)

The rise of cyberbullying.

Cyberbullying is the use of electronic information and communication technologies including email, websites, text messaging, web logs or blogs, three-way calling, cell phones, photographs, videos, or any other electronic means to repeatedly willfully and intentionally embarrass, intimidate, humiliate, threaten, or harass another.

Cyberbullying is a serious and growing problem among today’s young teens, but measures can be taken to prevent it. It is a mean and cruel conduct and may inflict damage to the victims. Victims of cyberbullying may choose to keep quiet about it and may be reluctant to tell others, causing the situation to worsen. Some children believe by involving an adult, it will make a bad situation even worse resulting in some form of online or offline retaliation. Others may think they just have to deal with it; it’s just the way it is.

Cyberbullying can be devastating to the victims. It can take a serious toll on social confidence, relationships with peers and family, self-esteem and on schoolwork. Children who are bullied frequently are more likely to experience depression and will most probably withdraw from the society. In some more drastic cases, victims of cyberbullying even turn suicidal.

I think cyberbullying can be prevented though. Many may think that the internet is a safe place to make friends and air your grievances, but when things gets ugly, that's when one realises the harms of it. We should protect ourselves by not divulging too much information about ourselves. If someone that you don't know begins to talk to you ignore them, the best idea is to click out of the conversation and block the user from contacting you. If someone unknown to you begins to ask questions that relate to where you go outside of your online world, immediately cease contact and don't answer any questions. Lastly, we should also learn to stand up for ourselves and not get intimidated easily by these bullies.

RD May issue reflection: "I Hunted Down The Woman Who Stole My Life"

Thieves are common everywhere, especially on the Net. Internet cheats are the most dangerous of all, because they can make use of one's personal stuff like a bank account number or address to take our hard-earned money. In Karen Lodrick's case, the postbox thief made use of her identity to purchase expensive items like Gucci or Prada just to satisfy thier own pleasures. I think its simply horrifying. Imagine if someone were to wake up one day just to find that his or her bank account's balance was zero, and the bank said that he or she had made some large withdrawals from their account. The person might be bewildered and unable to give an explanation, while the thief gets away quickly. And the money doesn't go anywhere but to expensive goods. I think what Karen did was right. She chased the thief but although she did not get her money back, she prevented morepeople from getting cheated.
Nowadays more people have the chance of getting cheated with the advance of technology. The Internet provided a place for them to get account numbers and personal information. With the Internet they can simply create an online advertisement like "You are the 100th winner! Click hereto claim your prize!" or as "Spyware" pop-ups, which end up as viruses hacking at your computer's database. I had a close encounter with such a pop-up once. I had just gotten my computer back then and I did not know about the harmful side of the Internet. So there was a "Spyware" pop-uponce and thinking it might be a good thing I clicked on it and installed it. A few days later my computer was instantly hacked by a virus. It was luckythat I brought my computer to the computer repair center and got it repaired and I'm still using it till now. Of course that incident did teach me a valuable lesson.
The government needs to prevent further cheating and thieving incidents from taking place. However although governments have put in a lot of effort to curb these problems like having the law to deal with these problems, such acts are actually human nature. From prehistoric eras there are already instances where Man stole from his own friends or relatives food for his family. So although such acts cannot be totally prevented, parents and the Government should educate the public on how to prevent such cases from happening and to curb these problems.


Written by:
Grace Lim (06) 3H

Reflection on the article:"Alternative Hanoi"

In this article, I realised that the artists in Vietnam are actually struggling, like those in other countries, for acknowledgement and recognition in the society just because people feel that their works are spoiling the country's reputation and are extreme and are normally banned by the local government. It is not fair for those artists. They are capable of producing quality work and are creative but many have to turn into forging works of famous painters like Van Gogh and Dali to earn a living because they are not earning from their original paintings which people find disturbing. It is so as paintings of these Vietnamese artists normally show sides of local government and military officers.
Art is a way to express one's feelings and emotions. Thus, it is not up to the others if it is "good" or not and, not to say, ban it.
This article reminds me of movie censorship in Singapore. In local filmmaker, Royston Tan's first movie, 15, 15 scenes were censored before it was allowed to be shown to the public though this film received numerous awards and gained international recognition.
It is rather ironic that the government wants to promote the arts.
I sometimes wonder how free we, as human beings, are.


Cai Feng

The rise of cyber bullying

The rise of cyber bullying is going to be a threat to many. There is an increasing number of cases because cyber bully is much easier done than bullying in real life.This is because the bullies can keep their identities a secret. In this way, it can do more harm to the victims, as the victims do not even know who is targetting them. Like some of the examples in the article, some cases are even suicidal. I think everyone should put a stop to cyber bullying. It is unfair to hurt other people's feelings. I think cyber-bullies should put themselves into the shoes of their victims-how would they feel if they were the ones who were treated this way?

Cyber-bullying also takes over a range. They range from insulting over instant messaging, gossiping in blogs and worst is screwing up others photographs and putting them online. To the bullies, this may only mean something they can laugh about. However, to the victims, it can be very insulting,hurtful and humilating. Infact, this might drive them into revenge and their anger will make them do even more cruel things to initial bullies. The provoked bullies will again,start their bullying. Things will eventually worsen if this cycle continues.

The best solution to solve cyber bullying is simple-do not start it. Also,victims of cyber bullying need not feel helpless because there will always be people out there to hear your problems and help you solve them.Even if there isn't try to stand on your feet and try to solve any disputes between the bully and yourself. It is best to not make any enemies.

um just realised i have not accept invitation so i wasnt able to post earlier.

Blog discussion - Chiang Jun Yong(28)

The rise of Cyber Bullying

In the article “The rise of Cyber-Bullying”, I realised that Cyber-bullying has not only become increasingly common but also more extreme. There are often involvements of communication technologies used to harm others. They may be threats, sexual remarks, hate speech which can bring about hard feelings and pressure. Although contents in these messages are sometimes strong, it rarely cause the victims to commit suicide.
As technology advances, internet is readily available and so is IM programmes. As a result, teens are widely exposed to them, and in time, beginning to abuse them- against their friends, or someone they disliked.
As there is little restriction on the net, cyber bullying grows to become more extreme, because there is no one to stop it getting serious. And also, when cyber bullies chose to stay anonymous, they will write things that which attacks the victim’s self esteem, things that they would not have said if their identity were known.

In my opinion, I think that these cyber bullies are cowards who are acting very immaturely. Instead of voicing their opinions of others in reality, they resort to bullying through the nets, taunting others behind a curtain of anonymousity. Besides, they are also cowardly to abuse others through their weaknesses and manipulate them just for amusement. If only these cyber bullies were to put themselves into the victim shoes, they would have known how it hurts to bullied.

The advancing technology is a very resourceful material that has become an essential part of our lives. We can barely live without them. However, it can become hazardous when they are misused or mishandled. Besides the government efforts to prosecute such cases, I believe the all-important ‘prevention’ is more effective. Schools should let their students have a clear message of the effects of cyber bullying, in expectant of more from them in terms of maturity.

RD reflection: I hunted down the woman who stole my life

This article is fascinating because it is a report on something that supposedly does not often happen in singapore. The robbing of another person's account is not a frequent thing in singapore as most citizens are very law abiding.
The main character of this article, Karen Lodrick , appeals to me as a woman who is not afraid to pursue her intuitions, even though she knew it might be wrong, and worst of all, her target may be armed or a dangerous person who might have many accomplices, but she still goes for the chase. Reading the sequence of her chase is a page turner as every moves she makes involves careful planning and detailed strategy, but karen lodwick being witty and observant, she creates her own capture with interesting tactics in a short period. However, the article was not to drive towards the admiration for the wittiness of Karen Lodwick, but to not be afraid to fight back as many against criminals like Maria nelson, will be more than willing to help.
As a result of suffering in silence, Karen sufffered many prolonged nightmares of the identity thief selling her account to anyone on the black market, she also has to bear the consequence of the thief generous spendings, many of them which over thousands of dollars. In retaliation, Karen could only put up fraud alerts, which in hope to scare the theif , but to no avail.
The most gripping part of this article is when the thief runs into many vehicles, riding from one location to another , but Karen never fails to be behind the identity thief, as it might be her remedy to all the nightmares she has been suffering for months. She emits determination and the strong will of fighting for what's rightfully hers. Her account and her justice.
In this article, Karen's determination and strong will to fight for justice can be applied to many of our daily actions, ranging from the simplest to the most complicated. Even in a piece of answer that your friend copied, you can inform your teacher about it, and regain your stolen justice of copyright.
In conclusion, this article aspires me to help those like karen, those in need, and not to let theives and injustiable people get away scot-free, even to help those which are not as complicated as karen. It is amazing how karen manages to deal with the dark times of her life and even have the courage to tell these to others who may be meek to fight back, that, life is never over, as long as the determination and will is still alive. I hope that people who have unruly and greedy mindset of gaining possession of other's stuff , things beyond their reach, will reflect on their own actions and hopefully turn over a new leaf and not to commit the same wrong misdeeds again.

The rise of cyber bullying – Reader’s Digest, May 2008

Cyber bullying has been increasing over the years. This is due to the upgrading of technologies, which improves the easy access to much different electronic stuff, such as internets on the computers. As teenagers nowadays spend more time on the computers, this might be the reason for the rise of cyber bullies on the internet. It may seem that cyber bullying is a minor matter, but it actually does a much worse damage than normal bullying, as it can hurt the child’s inner confidence and courage mentally.

Cyber bullies bully people on the internet, because they feel that it is fun and cool, and the victim will not know who the cyber bully is. They might also think that this is just a joke on other people, and will not affect the victim’s emotions. But when the cyber bullies have succeeded, they feel satisfied, because they have shown that they are stronger than you. Over the long run, the victims of cyber bullying might suffer from pressure and stress that is caused by the threatening from the cyber bullies. And this may result in the victims going insane or even death, because they think that they have lost, therefore they have no more face to face other people.

Hence, schools should teach the students why they should not be doing this kind of thing, and how to handle the situation when they occur. So if they become the victims, they will know who to approach, like the school counselor, teachers, or parents.

Therefore, cyber bullying cannot be controlled by people, but it can be reduced by teaching students the right thing, so as to reduce the amount of innocent pupils going into depress situation, or death.

by : Jia Yi (13)

Words to inspire

In this article, 7 do's and don'ts are expressed in the form of how they actually have an effect on children's mindsets. Take for example, a simple remark of "we can't afford that" made by a parent, would give the child an impression that money is the answer to everything. Though that may be the harsh fact that money isn't everything, but without money we are nothing, the drastic effects on the child's mind are devastating. The youth would comprise mainly of people treating money as their utmost priority and cast out morals compassion towards each human and simply become money-minded slaves. Experts decipher the adult way of these comments and it turns out that the meanings are quite different from the real meaning. As children, we cannot really decipher sacarsm or other different forms of speech like an adult does and often leads to misunderstandings, realationship disputes and eventually the breaking up of close and innocent relationships. This is caused by the simple misuse or the immaturity of the child's mind. One cannot find fault of another, when the cause is due to the wonders of nature. The only advice is that we exercise a tighter control over our language used and not as freely as so. When we do so, the child's mind may understanding of the remark made by the parent and so does not lead to any unwanted business. Suggesting the importance of communication, if is hard to communicate well and efficiently if the neccessary information is not properly witheld by the parent. In the article, suitable communications techniques are taught on how communication is done right. Some parents have simple no time with their family and have a 10mins or so talk with their family on Sunday nights before turning in. Within 10 mins, it is hard for one to manage a weeks' worth of talk and sometimes, the parent neglect that their child is a child. Some are no more than 10 and do not have Cambridge English-speaking standards. However, talking fast, they neglect or are irresponsible in what they say and this leads to the drifting of family ties. The article is good, as it really gives you some tips on what not to say and they really mean something else when you try to understand it a little further. I would recomend it as communication is indeed an important aspect in life and i would not want to neglect it. Good Night all-samuel

Jump or Die

After reading this article, it gives me new perspective on the humans will to live and also how the love for friends and family can push one to survive at all cost.

Tom Murphy was a madman to ignore warnings and let the adrenaline get the better of him. Before he knew it, he was already on trouble. Despite the avalanche, Tom manage to make the best of his surroudings and weigh the risk off dying or surviving when he descended down the mountain. He manage to keep calm and push himself forward knowing that he might not survive. This stunning feat might be something I am unable to do even if I was to be stuck in a mountain somewhere. I feel that one of the reasons for his survival is because he could keep a level-head and use oppurtunities to ensure his safety. Another thing that Tom did that shocked me was his
perserverance to get help. He went from cliff to cliff eventhough he was full of injuries and tired from going down the mountain. Even with his numb and broken legs, he was able to presevere for the sake of his family and friends. In the end, with his level headed,persevering body and also with a bit of luck he was able to seek help and get himself rescued.

I find the parts where he typed those messages to his loved ones very touching and showed me how much he loved them when he was on the verge of dying. Also when he descended down the mountain, it was thrilling but yet scary at the same time.

I find that this article can teach all of us many lessons. The first one has to be about warnings. They are there for a reason, to warn us of dangers. Secondly, is to persevere no matter what obstacles you would be facing. Like the saying goes, its better to die trying rather then give up. Lastly and most importantly, never to take your love ones for granted and treasure them dearly.

By tiffany (09) (:

RD reflection : Gut Feeeling [ Edited ]

This article talks about a reporter who was diagnosed with colon cancer. At first, she was diagnosed with appendicitis. Her sixth sense told her that it was not. True enough, it was colon cancer. She had suffered pain, both mentally and phyiscally. First she had an operation. Next was a chemotherapy. This was not the worst part. The worst part was the news that a recurrence might appear in the next 3 years. Imagine a person living in fear for 3 years, a serious cancer that might relapse and take away your life.

Chemotherapy requires courage. It's a torturing process. One will drop hair and feel nauseous at all times. That kind of feeling is so unbearable. Personally, i think that Lynn ( the reporter ) is so brave. She could actually endure the pain of chemotherapy. Some of the patients that had chemotherapy quited halfway, not only women, but also men. Chemotherapy is a painful process, the side effects are torturing too. It is just like anesthetics, you will feel nausea afterwards and this is not an easy process. I had been through operations, the suffering is 100 times anyone can think. Imagine after 5 hours of starving, plus the pain in the wound and the nausea feeling that works up every 5 to 10 minutes. You would not want to wake up, falling asleep is better. You cannot even eat anything, even if you try to eat, you will vomit out all the stuffs and vomiting is not an easy process either.

However, these processes are considered nothing when you recovered. I think that Lynn is really a brave girl to complete her chemotherapy. Now, she had a change of perception of life. " To live well". I truely understood her feelings as i had been through before. Escaping from death is considered lucky. Right now, living well is the main priority and not having grades of A1 nor being successful in life. Of course, this does not mean that one should neglect his career/studies.

"Prevention is always better than cure". I loved this phrase since i was young. If one can prevent cancer, why not? The earlier you found out that you have cancer, the higher the chance of you getting cured and get well. Therefore, i suggest that each and everyone of the readers out there, to go for a hospital check-up rather than one day the cancer become worse and take away your life.

To conclude, i think that people ought to be more careful with their lifestyles from now and live healthily. It is always better to be on the safe side. For those who are down with cancer, do not give up. Fight against the cancer and live your life for a better one!
Prevention is always better than cure.

By Cheow Yong =)

The Rise Of Cyber Bullying - YongLiang(34)

After referring to the article - "The Rise of Cyber Bullying", I think that more and more people especially teenagers are abusing technologies and the devices invented.

As time pass, technologies are advancing and as technologies advance, more devices are invented and upgraded. Some examples of these devices are cell phones, computers and many more... People often use these devices to communicate and these devices make communication much easier. However, with the increasing number of devices and gadgets, more and more teenagers I beginning abusing them, sending messages of junks and threats to disturb people. As a student, I think that the pressure implied on us in school by our teachers and parents are already very huge. In addition of the stress by these messages of threat, students often cannot accept such stress and this leads to committing suicide, under performing in exams and having mood swings. According to the article, there are already quite a few numbers of teenagers committing suicide after being "cyber-bullied". I think that the bullies are not only wasting their time, they are also harming other people and hurting them emotionally and physically.

People often use the computer and access to the internet to search for information, communication and making documents. However, Students and teenagers are using messengers such as MSN to communicate and make friends. Though you can make friends, you would never know who you are talking to. Through the internet, cyber bullying is being carried out.
I think that these technologies should be used properly instead of being abused. I also think that the bullies could also do more fruitful things. The virtual world may seem fun and safe, but they are not.

Therefore, I think that people should not only refrain from using the internet too much and the bullies should not carry on on wad they are doing. These would definitely reduce the casualties caused by cyber bullying.

By : YongLiang

Running For His Life - Reader's Digest June 2008

After reading this article, I found that the power of determination can be very big. The power of determination had helped Ryan to succeed. He is determined not to have the injection that would cripple him. He kept specifying that he does not want people to sympathise and help him. He wanted to be seen as a normal person. The act of hiding the facts of his disease from other runners also shows as an evidence that he wanted to be seen normally.

Ryan believed in himself. He believed that he could overcome the pain himself, even without the injection. He wants to use his own might to overcome this disease. The encouragement that his family had given him had also helped a lot.

Even though his training was tough, he had never once felt like giving up as he is very sure of what he wants: not to be seen as a useless person. And running is the only way to change other’s opinion of him. Therefore he continued no matter how hard it is.

The ability of running fast serves as a hidden talent in Ryan. If Ryan decides to let the disease get over him, feels useless, depressed, and decided not to do anything about it, he would not have found out his talent in running and would not be a successful runner now. Running had helped Ryan to forget about his pain, even though the pain only subsided when he was running. However this moment might be the moment he enjoyed the most. He could then prove that he is not a useless person and since found his goal in life.

There are many obstacles in life. Most of these obstacles could be overcome, the only difference is how we intend to overcome them. If we decide to do nothing about these obstacles, we would never overcome them. Ryan had learnt how to overcome his disease by covering up his pain, leaning to one side to hide his limp and to follow someone through a doorway. He succeeded in overcoming this disease by winning medals through running and by letting people recognised him for something he did well, rather than his illness.

He had shown to us that even though he had a disease that most people would think that he would not be able walk, he never gave up and found something which he is good at which is to run. And this is something that most people would have never thought that he could have ever done. He had showed to us that determination, encouragement, to believe in oneself and to never give up are all very important aspects in life in order to succeed.

by: Xin Yi (23)

Searching For Marita

Searching For Marita

After reading this article, I had a mixture of feelings. First of all, the issue of money. People smuggle sex slaves to earn money. The victims? young, innocent girls. Is money really that important that you have to resort to these sort of ugly business? Well, yes, money is important. But I don't see the need of people doing these ugly actions to get what they want. They say money is the root of all evil. Well, I can agree.

Secondly, Susana is really smart to disguise as a madame as well, looking for girls to force into prostitution. However, by doing this, her reputation is smeared. This shows that she is really desperate to find Marita. The world of sex slaves trading is so dark, nobody would expect such an ominous thing to happen to themselves or their loved ones. Well. why should those girls be forced into prostitution? Haven't those people who kidnapped them for their own incentives any consience at all? Probably they did not think before they act, and they are worse off than beasts. In the past, people consider sex a gift that is given to married couples for enjoyment. However, now, it is considered a sin instead. Why? because people just engage in it as in it is a part of their daily lives. And desolute men who did not manage to find a girlfriend feels jealous of those who can have sex with their girlfriends. Thus, they decided to engage in sex with any girl that appears before them. Because of the major demand of sex, prostitution begins, and prostitutes trade begins. This is because of the lust within the men and they could not control their uncontrollable libido. Thus, the young girls have to suffer. The girls did not want to engage in this. And why should they give their first time to a stranger they have not met before? Those men have absoulutely no right in raping a young girl, even though they've got heaps of money or whatever. Worse still, people who engage in the trading ! I see maybe they are so so poor that they have to do something ugly like this, or maybe they are just greedy for wealth. They are simply perverse with no common sense or whatsoever. They deserve to die.

Thirdly, the madames there are also nothing more than a beast with no conseince. They treat the girls like what? Even though they had bought the prostitutes from those traders, why in the world should they treat the girls as if their lives are nothing at all? They torture the girls, both physically and mentally. Those madames force the young girls to have sex with perverse men whom they did not even know, just because she will get a huge, lump sum of money to add to their monetary wealth. Greedy people who have their conseince swallowed by the dogs. Other than this, the madames also force the girls to take drugs ( probably the perverted male customers does as well ). They also force their prostitutes into abortiong, by using a coat hanger to dig out the foetus in the poor girls womb. Any idea how painful will it be? Those perverse men had their share of fun, and then off they go to enjoy other girls. They unknowingly make their victims pregnant, then deny that the child was his. Thus, the force abortions.

I am really glad that Susana founded the organisation which help these poor girls get over their trauma. Susane was really brave in overcoming her trauma of losing Marita, and in turn helps the poor victims to get out of their dark world.

Thank You, Susana :)

Posted by Jia Yu (07)

Spread The Laughter :D

"Humour is a contagious condition that's good for you to catch."

After reading this article "Spread The Laughter", I find that the content is very true. Now, I feel that Singaporeans these days are very tensed and stressed out about everything that goes on around them. School, work and family- there's nothing that they are not paranoid about. I agree that laughter reduces stress, improves memory and helps to keep our hearts healthy. The article also states that "the ability to laugh is hardwired into our systems, and new research shows that it is not only good for us, it is contagious. Personally, I like to laugh a lot. It would be hard to find one day when I'm not actually laughing and I feel that it really helps me in my life. It helps me to be a more cheerful person and also makes me less frustrated.

This article caught my eye as I am a very "smiley" person, I really love to laugh. I feel that we should all laugh more as the article enunciates that laughing scorch kilojoules, ease pain and even helps to stay healthy! I really feel that this is a very simple way of keep healthy and it does not require any effort at all. The reason why laughing is contagious is that when we see someone laugh, our brain seems to activate "mirror neutrons" that send us into the same fit of laughter as stated in the article I have chosen. Therefore, I feel that we should really put it into practice. As I've heard before, "Smiling/Laughing only requires 14 facial muscles while frowning requires 47. So, smile!" And in this way, we can also help others to stay healthy and relieve stress.

So everyone, Laugh and stay healthy! SPREAD THE LAUGHTER! :D

CHEERS, VENESSA :D (22)

searching for marita

after reading this article on 'searching for marita'i saw two things in it.one,is the love of a mother so deep to a child that she has gone as far as disguising as a prostitute in order to find her lost daughter in deep danger and risk of being traded for sex, or sex trafficking.however when she found out that not only her daughter is being harmed,many other girls in their teens are being forced to be prostitutes,some of them are just about our age.such trauma they went through physically and pschologically are just too much and i feel very sorry and unfair for them.i

two,i thought that and i am always having the impression that argentina is country that makes me feel passionate.it might be because of the culture and their famous tango.but i would never know until i read this article on reader's digest that it can go so deep into such cases that is soo taboo to other countries and yet they are thriving,taking away the young souls and body of girls.i support susana for making the public aware that sex trafficking is something to be banned and i am abhorred by the idea of it.i suppose that the government should take action not only in argentina itself but also suggest the idea of prostitution being banned to other countries to prevent it from globalising which i suppose is happening,too fast.

szerui(20)

JUMP OR DIE

The article is about a snowboarder who was trapped on a mountain facing a stark choice- freeze to death or throw himself into space.

The snowboarder decided to jump off the cliff, as it probably has a higher chance of survival to him. By luck, the trapped snowboarder survived, but was wounded quite severely. He hit a ledge at the end of the many steep cliffs he fell over and got trapped there. He tried using the light from his cellphone to get passer-by cars on the road below him to notice him and rescue him but he got no response. The snowboarder stopped caring for a moment and lost consciousness. Moments later, the snowboarder gain consciousness and found that the ledge was giving way. He tried to get a network signal from his phone and found one. He quickly dialed his friend, Elliott's, number as he was on the trip with him and called for help. The snowboarder was eventually saved.

In my heart I think that if the snowboarder did not decide to jump off the cliff and decided to wait for help, he would have not have survived and frozen to death. Therefore, i think that the snowboarder did the right decision to take the risk jump off the cliff with the tiny glimpse of hope of survival instead of waiting in the "off-piste" area to be rescued, since the area would have no or little people going there and the chances of him being discovered is extremely low and him taking the risk may get him to an area with people passing by, which he did as he found a road. I also find the snowboarder very commendable as if I was in the same situation as him, I believe that i would not have dared to jump down the steep cliff for fear of breaking bones in my body. In conclusion, I think that the snowboarder made the right decision to jump instead of waiting as it has a greater chances of him being rescued even though the risks are greater and that he is commendable for jumping over not one but many cliffs with the mindset of surviving all of it and bearing with the pain of his wounded limps to survive.

Serching for Marita...another side of it

After reading this article,there is little unfamiliar things that I can describe how I feel towards the dark underground world where drugs,triads and our main focus-sex trade.Sure,I feel all sick and twisted at these,dirty men.Who desire to bite off more they can chew.However,there is one thing that I have wondered very much so till today after reading this article for this long.

Although I am aware that an underground world of illegal trades do exists without many knowing,especially teens these days,but why are the people in Argentina not doing anything when the problem is so serious right before their eyes.It really gets me wondering what the gorvenment and local police are doing there rather than stopping it.

Moving on,I can say that I admire and respect Susana for her guts to enter those dangerous waters and even separated from her other half for the sake of her duty and love as a mother to find her lost daughter.She has even spoken up for the victims of forced prostitution and the female population.In which elevates us woman to a social standing equal to that of men.Whom many,especially the older generation,believe to be the head of the household and have the rights and power over the female population to do their bidding.Now that's sick.

So,all in all,the world is not as simple and clean as it seems,and never would be,if no one tries to intervene and change these things for the world to see better of her days.Whee hopefuly,the ugly sex trade would be put to an end.

-Germaine(4)

'I hunted down the woman who stole my life'

After reading this article, I felt that identity theft should be stopped immediately. In this article, Karen Lodrick had spent so much time to track down the identity theft who had gotten and misused her identity. Only after reading this article, I realized how identity theft could be so serious. Despite having read many other interesting articles, I felt that this article left me with the greatest impression. In this article, an ex-convict had misused a stolen identity card which led to the owner facing many problems with finance, in desperation, decided to track down the identity theft. In my opinion, Karen perseverance in finding the identity theft entranced me especially when she met with and obstacle such as chasing the identity theft and even trying to confront her. However, I felt that the police were not very efficient and helpful during the chase for the identity theft suspect which had led to the suspect slipping off. During the hunt for the identity theft, Karen had also faced many issues from the bank. I find that the bank should watch out for such identity thief if reported or not such cases could be reduced greatly. In my opinion, identity card like credit cards should be given a special code that could be prevented to be used once it is frozen and this prevents the identity theft from further misuse of the identity card. This article is only an example of identity theft and unlike this case, I am sure that there are many cases that the suspect is not apprehended, therefore, I think that such crimes should be prevented with many ways such as the opinion I just gave. Although many cases might also involve the victim being careless, theft cases such as this one has caused the victim much trouble to freeze so many of her accounts to prevent further damage done by the identity theft, hence, we should all guard against such crimes and the police should be alert to such situations and not let the victim handle it themselves like Karen. Identity thieves should also be given a heavier sentence for each misuse. Unfortunately, Karen's identity might have been sold to the black market.

The reason why I chosen this article is to raise the awareness of identity theft. Such cases might also happen in Singapore such as using the identity card to borrow money. Therefore, it is important for all of us to take care of our identity cards.

Jump Or Die- Reader's Digest May Issue

I think that this was a very enlightening article that showcases one's will to live and the love that we have for each of our family members and friends which cause us to persevere despite daunting obstacles in our path.

However, I think that it was very foolish of Tom Murphy to ignore the warnings that were placed and go right on ahead for the sake of an adrenaline rush. Did he not think of the dangers that would occur if he went ahead. From the article, it appears to me that he did consider some of the dangers but had nevertheless gone ahead. Had he not survived, his family and friends would be grieving.

Nevertheless, I fully appreciate what he was prepared to do and had gone through just to see his family and friends again. The experience of surviving an avalanche must have been reasonably traumatic considering that he was in the midst of several tonnes of snow. He was terribly lucky to have survived that part of his entire ordeal. The desperation he must have felt when he was enable to contact his friend, Elliott Garrett, while he was out there alone and freezing in the bitter cold. But at least he kept his head cool and thought out a solution to his problem by deciding to descend to the bottom of the valley. This might not have been the wisest decision but I think that it was better to have tried rather than give up straight away. The parts where he actually jumped off cliff faces were the most impressive because of the love for his family and friends that called out to him giving him the strength to go on. Also he had typed out his moments on the cliff as a comfort to his family had he not survived. When he had finally reached the bottom he still persevered and finally got through and was saved.

In conclusion, I think that this article was a showcase of perseverance and the love between all humans as well as one's will to live

By Rachel Tan (16)

Searching for Marita by kah mun

This article is generally about a mother, whose life totally changed after her daughter went missing. Looking for her became a quest to help the victims of forced prostitution, and also highlighted to the world how serious such a problem was, and that something had to be done to stop it. It also demonstrates how strong the love the mother has for her daughter and that women are not to be underestimated.

The first emotion that came to me when I was reading this article was of anger. This is already the twenty first century, modernised and advanced, yet such stuff are still happening around the world. Believe me, forced prostitution is present in many places, however safe they may look like. Being a female, I find forced prostitution a violation of basic humanitarian rights, especially when it is for the pleasure of men. I felt grossed out by the fact that they are used to earn money.

In a world where there used to be biasness between the two sexes, men are generally considered the strong ones. But in my opinion, the ones who are really strong are the surviving victims of forced prostitution. Usually, the activities of forced prostitution will leave the victim with trauma, depression and such. But those who are strong will continue to live their lives as normally as possible when they managed to escape from that terrible fate.

I also felt a sense of relief, and of how fortunate I am. Having lived in Singapore my whole life, everyday is typically safe and peaceful, thanks to the law enforcers. Basically, there is security, and forced prostitution is generally rare.

I felt a deep respect for Susana, though she's just a mother looking for her daughter, she had gone out of her line of safety and comfort to help girls who are forced into prostution. What she done would certainly earn a lot of respect and gratitude, especially from those she had helped and from women all around the world. She could even be placed side by side Nelson Mandela!

Written by Kah Mun (17) 3H

The Rise Of Cyber Bullying adapted from READER DIGEST, MAY 2008
With the advance in technology, more devices are created. And today, we have computers and Internets. Internet is indeed a enjoyable place for surfing or leisure needs. We access to online communications like MSN and ICQ etc everyday. But these are also the places where young teenage tends to get cyber bullied by various people.
Online communications are dangerous in some ways, where people may get more aggressive and daring than their actual selves. Sometimes I wonder why some people like to have revenge on their nemesis by publishing things online that hurt them.Don’t the bully have his or her own conscience?
Cyber bullying has its consequences. One will be the victim committing suicide.
I feel sympathetic to those parents that had lost their children to a group of cowards who make themselves unknown. They should be punished one day. In Singapore, quite a number of cyber bully cases have arise.
In my opinion, family and school should be the ones educating a particular person on cyber bullying. At home, there ought to be at least an adult watching over the child when he or she is engaged in online communications. In school, if the teenage is being cyber bullied, he or she should consult teachers or best, the counselors. At least this would help them share their worries and not to have the thought of death.
Most teenage think that adults do not enter cyber world, therefore thinking that they will not be caught cyber bullying. I hope that there will be lesser of such cases happening again.

Picture Discussion

I believe that this picture was taken in the urban part of India as concrete structures in the background and the concrete floors can be seen. I can tell that the people are of the indian race from their clothes, skin colour, and the elephant walking on the pavement shows that it was in India. I think this picture was taken during summer as I can see two ice-cream sellers on the street and the people are wearing light clothing.

Both the ice-cream sellers are still using bicycles to travel around. The styrofoam box the seller use to keep his ice-cream forzen was so old and the paint had dropped off. I suppose their country is still developing or maybe ice-cream sellers would not earn much to buy a motorcycle or new equipment. The ice-cream cones they had have different colours which could not be found in Singapore.It will attract children to buy from him as most of the young ones like to eat colourful things.

I think the day has just begun as the ice-cream seller was still setting up his mobile store. He might also just came here to try his luck and he will go to another place if he could not earn much there. I think he will more probably stay as it was just the beginning of the day and more people will come. During the afternoon, when the sun is scorching, people will also buy to cool themselves down.

Just beside the ice-cream seller, I noticed a group of woman and girls sitting down on the pavement. They looked happy as I can see smiles on a woman's face. I supposed the women were chatting with their friends or neighbours and they had brought along their children with them. I reckon they have met up with them on the way back home from the market.

I think that these women would continue to chat till their stomach growled as Indians can sit down on anywhere and chat for a long time. If I were the ice-cream seller, I would be bored to stand for the whole day with little customers. Probably he would make himself an ice-cream.

India is a place where the history is rich and you will see some old tradititions in the people. It is a very interesting place to visit as it is quite different from Singapore which is multi-racial.

Loose Nukes

After reading this article,i know what the nuclear weapons are made from and how the materials could be obtained.Most of the nuclear weapon are kept in minimum security which can be easily stole by bribing the security officers or destroying the walls of the warehouse to get into it.By allowing such low security to guard the weapons is already a fall in the nation.The terrorists might thank the country for giving them free supplies to attack the other countries but the terrorists might also backstab them.

Fortunately,uranium,the core material that is needed to fuel the nuclear weapon,cannot be obtained just by mining.Hence,many terrorists are not able to get an endless amount of ammulation,if not,it would be almost impossible to stop them.The number of terrorists in the world is countless,regardless of what kind of terrorist they are.As long as there are these kind of people living on Earth,we will not be able to enjoy a minute of peace.We must always be on our guard as we do not know whoever might attack us and whenever they might strike.I do not have much confidence in our military force and fear that we might not be able to fight against those much more advanced weapons that we do not have.

Singapore lack natural resources and that is a weakness that we should not have.In times of war,we have to depend on other countries for food and other necessities.Even though Singapore is a developed country,we will not be able to survive an attack from the United States,Russia or even China.That is why our Minister Mentor Mr Lee Kwan Yew keeps on emphasizing on developing our relationship with other countries,so that we will not be attacked by them when there is a war.If we are fortunate,they might also benefit us.

In conclusion,i think that we should really understand the situation we are in now,and stop complaining!!

change of oral date to 18th

Dear 3H-ers,

Please take note that your oral will be shifted from 16th of June to 18th as Mr Lee has something on on the 16th. The times and reporting room remain the same.

For those of you who have posted your reader's digest reflection, good work. Please do not forget to post your picture discussion if you haven't already done so. If you have not received invites for any of the blogs, i may have added your email address wrongly. Please let me know by sending me your email address to phua_li_ling@moe.edu.sg.

Hope you're having a fruitful and restful holiday!

regards,
Ms Phua

After reading this article, I am really touched by what Susana did. She is willing to do anything to get her daughter, Marita, back. At first, she just wanted to find her daughter, but later, she helped a lot of girls who were forced into prostitution to get their freedom back. She put herself in great danger while saving many people and shedded light on the problem of human trafficking.
What surprised me was that Susana dressed up as a prostitute and would ventured in to bars and brothels alone in search for her daughter. She sold her houses, cars, and exhausted most of her savings which eventually led to her husband leaving her. She knew that she had to do alone without the help of the police and would usually hand out posters or asked people if they had any news about Marita. Susana faced her problems bravely even when she encountered three attempted hit-and-runs, receiving treatening messages. Other than finding her daughter, Susana also helped those girls who came to her for help and she will provide them with food and shelter. She also helped the country by persuading the country lobbying politicans to enact a law that would make human trafficking a federal crime.I think that she really fulfill the responsibilities of a mother and even that of a detective. This great mother has set a good example for us and I wish that everyone would be like her, not only cared about thier loved ones but also others. May she found her daughter as soon as possible.
When I knew that so many girls had been forced into prostitution in just one city alone, I felt pitiful for the girls who had to gone through such torture. The kidnappers are very selfish as they only cared about earning as much money as possible and getting the girls for free.
In Singapore, human trafficking is rare as the laws herer are strict and security is high. It makes me feel safe and lucky to be living in Singapore.

Reflection on The Rise of Cyber Bullying

Cyber bullying is another example of how people have been misusing or abusing the internet. The term cyber bullying is defined as the involvement of the usage of information and communication technologies to support deliberate, repeated, and hostile behaviour by an individual or group, that is intended to harm others and from that we would know that it is like normal playground bullying except the consequences are much worst. It is present everywhere, and our country is not an exception, there have been several cases already and there is no denying the fact that the number of such cases is rising. If nothing is done to prevent the escalating rise of cyber bullying and we allow it to continue, then not only will things get out of hand, it may result in more innocent teenagers’ death.

I feel that not only should prevention of such occurrences be taught, counsellors or teachers should also touch on topics such as how to handle such situations or perhaps who they can turn to in an event of such. I believe that with the internet becoming an essential of everyday life, people, especially teenagers have the rights and the need to know these important points like how to prevent, handle and report about cyber bullying. Knowing these would allow them to be mentally prepared, if they become the next victim of those cyber bullies. At least they would not choose death as an answer but approach someone for help instead. Ryan Halligan, Gail Jones, Jeong Da-Bin and Yuni all had something in common; they were victims of cyber bullying. They were under immense mental pressure and tremendous mental stress, when they could not take it anymore, they lost all faith and chose to end their lives there, to end their misery. At this point, I feel that there is a need to point out that death will never be the answer to your problems, in fact, it causes more problems instead. Those poor innocent victims thought that by ending their lives, they also end their pain and misery but instead it caused their loved ones to lose someone important to them and show the culprit that they have given up and lost the war.
As cyber bullying is relentless, there is no escape and after reading the article, readers would know that not only are normal average people the targets of these bullies but even the celebrities are not spared from such.

These bullies do not target on a specific group, be it teenagers, adults or celebrities, the status of others is not a factor that decides who they would target, no matter who it may be it does not matter to them. Many of these bullies treat this as a “game” or a “war” which may be due to over-exposure to violent games; they bring their gaming mentality to the chat rooms and threaten their helpless victims. They think that those words that they typed are merely harmless as it is nothing physical, so no harm can be done to the other party. The actual fact is that even without physically bullying, the victim is still bruised by it on cyber space, only mentally. As this continues, the victim feels the pressure uprising and awfully stressed out too. I feel that some of these cyber bullies may be students who are constantly being bullied by older students in their school, so they turn to the virtual world to get even on someone else. But there are some who are in the business purely for the kicks and I think that is just disgusting. Those bullies feel empty when they are unable to bully but feel satisfied once they have bullied someone and regardless whether it is physical or cyber bullying. By doing so they prove to the others around them that they are not to be meddled with, but I honestly think it is nothing more than a fake front these people put up, to attract attention by hurting someone.

I feel really sorry for those parents who have lost their children to a bunch of cowards who use some username to represent them and misuse it by bullying others while they hide behind a screen and manage get away scott-free. They ought to be taught a lesson and remember it well because their actions on the internet have caused someone to lose a person so dear to his or her heart. Laws being passed and talks about cyber bullying for schools are signs that something is being done to reduce the rise of more cases, but I hope that with the help of modern technology, we will be able to find the real culprit for each of such cases and use something these bullies believed, could hide them forever, against them. I feel by punishing those culprits harshly, it would serve as a strong warning to others that cyber bullying will not be taken lightly and that if you commit the crime, you serve the time. Only then will the virtual world be much safer and a more friendlier place for everyone. We need to learn to use the internet wisely and not abuse it.

By: Sherilynn Loh (11)

RD REFLECTION

In this article that I have read, I can feel the intense love of Susana Trimarco for her missing daughter that led to seperation of her irresponsible husband and the fear and extreme courage she would have needed to stand up against the shadowy world of sex trade, alone. Her search for her missing daughter year after year has tire her of her savings but not her hopes of being able to save her daughter someday. Her unbelievable perserverence has led to the attention of the media, and consequently, a large amount of girls being saved from the sex trade. While some mothers rejoice to have their daughters back, others called her for help. Susana had played a very important part in saving girls.
I admired her perserverence and courage. While there might also be some mothers that would search for their own missing daughters, most stop after one year, when their savings might threaten to tire out and have lost hope of ever saving their daughters. I felt that even though her daughter went missing, Susana's search for Marita, if we looked from a higher point of view, has forced the police to work and search for missing girls and saving a lot of female teens which was a good result from the kidnapping. She has chose to stand up to society and as a result, even has the help of the governor of Tucuman. I was very touched by this article.
In Singapore, such cases are rare, firstly it is because Singapore is small , and having an efficient government allows such cases to be tracked very quickly. Also the government cares a lot about citizens and would respond very quickly and the laws of Singapore are very strict. Therefore, after reading this article, I realize how safe Singapore is and how dangerous the "outside world" is.

Gut Feeling Reflection

The article of 'Gut Feeling' in the May issue of reader's digest interested and touched me the most.It centers about colon cancer,and how serious it affects the body, what are the chances of cure, but most importantly, the will to survice in cancer patients. As in lynn's case, she found out what she could about colon cancer to get an overrall insight of her situation of colon cancer, and went to a hospital in New York immediately after having a strong sharp pain in her gut. But her will to live, and to be a normal person again leading a normal life, pulled her through her otherwise mental torture of waiting to die. When she started chemotheraphy, she met many friendly and tolerant patients there, which convinced her finally that cancer is has no place in fear, and finally after many treatments, she was finally cured of not just her cancer,but also the fear of death, and she finally got what she wanted; to be normal again.



I am personally intrigued by this article as my second aunt recently was diagnosied with colon cancer. It was also the very sharp pain in her gut that forced her to take a trip to a hospital. Everyone in my family were very worried, and the doctor said that she had to go for surgery to remove the tumour inside her colon; or large intestine. But sheer determination and a fearlessness of death pulled her through, and she recovered from her cancer. At first, she had a critical fever which made her in constant peril again, but with love from her family, as in Lynn's case too, she finally recovered from it. Although she is still a little weak after just a few weeks of recovery, the worse of it has lifted. what I want to get through is that the fear of death may eventually kill you. Embrace your condition, but also do not ignore your body's warning signs. The earlier the treatment is, the higher chance of cure.

By:Dean Hunt Wei Cheung(32)

Dead Of Night - RD May 2008 (Pg 120-130)

Done By - Lim Meng Ying (10)

<---Reflection Starts Here--->

This article is about the actions of a family with three children who have just moved in to a new neighbourhood and their neighbours around them when a 'drug-crazed' thief broke into their new house. The quick-thinking and courage of Robert and Ana, the couple who had just moved into the new neighbourhood, managed to prevent anyone from getting killed by the intruder.

Robert and Ana had decided to move to the new neighbourhood as they felt peaceful and secure there. But it is commendable that 'even before they were wed, they had begun a discussion that would continue throughout their marriage: WHat would they do if they were ever in a situation of real threat?' People often refuse to think that anything serious could happen to them in their lives, and refuse to be cautious in life, which is the reason why when most people become victims- whether of a robbery and held as hostages- they suffer as they would have no plan to save themselves from harm. As a result of that discussion, Robert decided that he would sacrifice himself to save his family, which is extremely courageous of him. This turns out to be one of the reasons why the whole family would survive.

The article also shows that Ana is willing to trust in her husband to sacrifice himself, including her strong will to stick to the plan. She grabbed her baby and rushes out of her house to find help. This action proves to be one of the most important as most people deny the urgency of getting help in times as such- denying the possibility of leaving one's loved ones alone.

Ana was able to run to her neighbours for much-needed help. Having a close relationship with one's neighbours is very important, and thus, Ana was able to get help from the proper authorities in time. Meanwhile, Robert and Dale, an ex-police officer and friend, managed to trap the intruder in the garage thanks to their wits. This prevented harm from coming to the remaining two children left in the house. Fortunately, the children recognised the seriousness of the situation and had remained calm in their own bedrooms.

When the whole matter was resolved, with the intruder caught and arrested, the new police chief was surprised that no one was dead, even after being caught in such a deadly situation. This was achieved due to many factors: Robert's willlingness to save his family, Ana's strong faith in her husband, neighbours willing to lend a hand, even though they might get caught up with the intruder, the bravery of the two children, and last but not least, the co-operation of the whole neighbourhood in following a well thought-out 'plan'. There wasn't any actual plan in play, but each person played an active- and dangerous- role in the overall result.

After reading the article, I was awed at the bravery of sacrificing oneself to save others- it makes me think of the question: "Would you take a bullet for someone?"- I probably wouldn't. This is a great story of wit and courage, only that it is non-fiction. I only hope that more people in the world would practice the act of selflessness, especially in overwhelming situations like this, even sacrificing oneself, although only in severe cases where it is absolutely essential to do so. Also, people must be open to the possibility that such cases may happen in their lives, and be prepared to act.

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hi reuben here n erm i forgot wad to do for the blog already can tell me agian?

^~^

aiyo ms phua..why our class blog's blogskin onli black and white..style it up more lehs...3I de so nice sia..

Hi, charmaine here. This is like so plain and weird. Cant you choose a better layout, a white layout is preferbly more stylish.

i'm here :D this blog and the other one are reallyyyyy plain

i am zames lee wen jie

hi, yuxuan here