Authority Figures

Currently Playing: This is the Last Time by Keane

I was confronted by the security guard and ordered to return to my room abt 1-2 hrs ago. but first, some background.

Staying in the same place for 4 yrs, i've seen these jagas come and go... I appreciated their presence, coz in the 1st 2 yrs here there were chinaman orgies and masked perverted running around the hall. grew chummy with 2 of them, the guy in yr 2 and yr 3. Recently there was some reshuffling and the usual jovial malay dude got replaced with a sullen malay uncle.

Out of habit, coming back late at nite i'd pass the guard table and try to make eye contact, smile and say hi. but soon i gave up trying coz this sullen guy either never made eye contact or didn't bother to respond. never saw him talking to residents, and in the end i just didn't bother to look at him altogether.

So back to the very recent past, i was watching band of brothers (1am on channel 5, tuesdays) when at abt 1.45am sullen uncle walks past without stopping and mumbles something at me, showing a 'V' sign with his fingers. it took me a while to figure out he was telling me to switch off the tv at 2am.

This might have been a very reasonable request, if not for 3 issues:
1) BoB was only going to end at 2.15am.
2) I had the volume low enough not to disturb anyone, just enough for me to hear.
3) It being the holidays, i doubt there was anyone in hall for me to disturb on a tuesday nite anyway. besides, if u're staying in hall on a tuesday nite in the holidays, chances are u're not going to sleep til 3am.

So i continued watching.

Punctually, sullen uncle shows up at 2am and tells me i have to leave coz everything was supposed to be swtiched off at 2am. He adds that I shd hv been in my room from midnite coz all activities are to be stopped at 11.30pm, as written in the "standing orders". Of coz not in such proper english.

Really? Half amused, I remarked that this was a hall and not a military camp. He told me if i didn't believe it, i could go look at the notice board, where the "standing orders" were. As BoB was starting, i decided to sit down and enjoy the show. he asked me if i was yr 1. to shut him up i said yes, following which he told me to ask the yr 2s and 3s abt the standing orders, which apparently was something they knew very well. "you don't believe me ah, boy?" was something he repeated at least 3 times. u're rite, i don't. even if it was true, i don't care coz i know i'm not disturbing anyone.

Anyway, itried to appease him by telling him nicely my show will end at 2.15am, after which i would switch off everything. he told me something to the effect of i'd better do it, coz he could just switch off everything as he liked. that i hv no doubt, but most prob i wld just switch everything back on again. he ended his show of bravado by telling me the hall counsellor was a woman (dunno which he's talking abt, the head hall counsellor is a man btw) and would come and check. if she found the lights still on at 2am, she would give sullen uncle trouble. as he turned round, he added if he got into trouble, he would make sure i got into trouble.

Was that supposed to be a threat? now really amused, i smiled. he saw me smiling and got more dissatisfied. he came back to me asking me for my student card. i said i didn't hv it so he asked me for my room number. i gave him a bogus one and watched the rest of the show in peace. after the show, i went up not looking his way and closed my door, which has remained since.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not afraid of a sullen uncle dissatisfied with his mundane job and misguided by the fact he has some form of power, i'm just the sort of guy who avoids unnecessary confrontation. for his sake as well.

His position is already compromised coz he didn't enforce his "authority", "gave chance" in a grudging manner and threw up an empty threat. classic hallmarks of someone who trying to act that he has authority. i know; i've been there before.

Don't forget, this is hall... the security guards role is just that. to provide security for residents, and since they're there, switch off the lights. no authority over resident unless someone complains/pao tos. but if he did switch off my TV, i'd complain to the hall office. oh no, not abt the TV incident, but just casually remark this security guard doesn't seem too frenly... and i've never seen him walking on my corridor on patrol once. (this is true)

So if he does find me and realise i gave him a bogus room number and wants my student card? hahaha like i'll give it to him. it's my property, wat if he doesn't give it back? unnecessary inconvenience. nice try, but no. my name is written quite clearly on the door, he could use that. if he steps into my room to grab my card? that's trespassing. these security guards aren't allowed in our rooms unless campus security or hall office is with them. if he grabs me to get my card or my attention? that's criminal force isn't it? oh man. i am so evil. since young i've never liked authority unless i AM the authority. esp despise those who think they have some and bully others.

Brings to mind another incident in malaysia, the recent angsi trip. before the shopping ctr next to the bus interchange opened, we went and asked the old malay security guard if we could go in and wait for the breakfast stalls to open. he gave the green light and we all went in, heading for the toilets and sinks by the tables to wash up. some of us sat and chatted, while an indian security guard positioned by the toilets and lifts eyed us from time to time. i was the last to use the sinks by the tables, when he decided to show some authority.

He loudly asked me wat we were doing here. i explained nicely the guy up in front let us in. he then had an outburst shouting the guy was old and didn't know anything; that we were not allowed inside here; and we should not be doing any disgusting stuff at the sinks near the tables. well since he found brushing of teeth and washing of face disgusting, no way i was going near him. i turned and continued cleaning up in nonchalance, and this guy skulked back to by the toilets repeating that we were not allowed in there. of coz, we ignored him and he did nothing. did not enforce "authority", and "gave chance" in a grudging manner. he didn't bother us after that as well.

i guess they wanted to show some authority after being blatantly ignored... but the show of bravado just made it worse. even if the ignoring part wasn't on purpose before, now it was.

no i'm not finished... this brings to mind something else. not necessarily related.

It seems that we bloggers have a new bane... some chairman of some govt body has decided to take it upon himself to rid s'pore of irresponsible blogging. he has publicly announced something to the effect of using weapons of mass destruction on anyone who belittled his govt body or himself. that's y i'm being careful here... i do not want to fall victim to his signature finishing move, which incidently is the same of another guy with the same famous surname... but that guy i respect a lot. this guy? i dunno.

for some reason his name keeps popping up in cases when a govt body does something bad to some rich studying guy who has run away and/or made some noise. this guy has also publicly announced he thinks better of young foreigners and young local girls over young local guys. (to work in the orgn he heads lah, wat u thinking)

sure his orgn does good work for the country... but it gets kind of old to see his name popping up in controversial news reports. he makes himself the face of the orgn, like a civil service Trump. wat will happen when he leaves? but more imptly, why? is he chasing controversy to shine more light on his orgn? or on himself? or is he just enjoying hunting down rich studying guys? i dunno... u decide for urself. one thing's for sure, i dun wanna work in his orgn. scary.

i'm not trying to influence anyone, but come on, it's just a blog... some guy's ramblings. ppl with intelligence would see blogs as just an opinion, not necessarily an educated one. so take stuff with a pinch of salt, and lighten up.

note to self: no names! and continue laughing at jagas with high self-importance.