Why?

This blog is a personal review of the next year of my life. Having decided that after my Master’s I will head into a career path that I have shown little to no interest prior. So why the change of mind? Definitely not the money, lawyers don’t get paid frankly enough. No, it is more to do with my life goal of being Prime Minister. While I don’t tend to tell people straight away, I almost certainly say that I wish to get into politics later on in life (as well as ambitions for a PhD, though that’s on the back burner right now).

 

Look, I am not an idiot (most of the time); I know that you don’t need any formal qualifications to become the PM. However, I am a firm believer in technocrats and that even just being a Minister of Parliament, that being able to write, read and analyse legislation is vital to good governance. As if you cannot fully comprehend the laws being placed on how they affect society, how can you govern effectively? While a law degree is neither necessary nor sufficient for this requirement, I hardly believe that it will be a hindrance to my goal.

 

Beyond politics (if that’s possible), I have always had an interest in rights and looking at rights in history effectively decide what one can do outside the state of nature (yes, I’m bringing in some political theory)(also, if it hasn’t been painfully obvious by now, I write with lots of deviations off topic and tend to ramble on in the brackets).

 

While I don’t believe in a dystopia such as 1984 happening anytime soon, nor I am a Huxilian (Huxley-ist?) where I shall be popping soma tablets to help deal with the lack of rights. What is more worrying is the ability to use one’s rights is being made harder for those who are worse off (*this is a perception, not a factual backed statement (though its lack of factual basis does not mean that it is necessarily wrong… I digress)).

 

The fear is that tools that are used to subjugate democracy are being removed and society shifting towards a Victorian-like society where there is stranglehold of power with the few to exploit the masses. If I were to believe that a more Singaporean type of government and society is forming, I would not be concerned. Rather, I would be elated. The fact is that Singapore is an authoritarian dream. Educated population, free press (though even I would have a look again at the defamation laws), ideal for business and great weather (the sun makes everything better). Only real issue is consociationalism… guess nothing is perfect…

 

That’s probably enough rambling for now. Time to head off to the library and start the preliminary reading which includes some introduction reading and of course Cicero.