veni. vidi. vici. carpe diem!

the first impression i got from h&m was not a wowed gaze and hysteria unlike many Singaporeans drawn into its colourful designs and trendy styles haha. it was more of the advertising that actually caught my eye, being the entrepreneur i was. (;

i thought their campaigns were rather effective and appealing; out of the ordinary and plain whacky! that is what i feel advertising should be. that’s how brands create life in its consumers and entice them to buy.

for example, one of them goes, “SORRY SINGAPORE TO HAVE KEPT YOU WAITING.”

i think it looks pretty menacing here, but on the billboard you’re like hey! that’s a cool brand.

at the very least, i thought, it was good advertising, something Singaporeans especially could learn from.

until i came across the independent article. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/hundreds-of-workers-collapse-at-cambodian-hampm-clothing-factory-2345537.html#

i guess this is where the ironies of life magnify itself and become apparent in society. we usually do not notice such things as we sit in comfort and prosperity. but, our heart aches when we realize such truths. as we run the gamut, everyone has a different answer and response. the extremes want to boycott, shopaholics would never have read such an article (perhaps? even if they did, practicality! cause it’s not me and one person boycotting makes no difference?!) while some are just like me, sitting on the fence.

actually no, sitting on the fence is not a good term. i’d say that we have ambivalent (yes lit lessons!) feelings because we struggle between practicality and justice. all these philosophy presents itself in simplified terms in our actions! and amongst these group of people, you either choose a side at the end even though your heart does not agree with your actions.

but the fact remains: the irony of people queueing up (think of them forgoing sleep and collapsing) even before the h&m store opens in Singapore as compared to those 300 people collapsing and foregoing sleep to produce these goods to meet the demands of the world.

although both forsake sleep for different reasons, it is ironic that even the “masters” and consumers are caught in this cyclical point where we still suffer and find no satisfaction and peace in our hearts. for the consumers, it is a constant pursuit after materialism to recharge one’s satisfaction and happiness index level, which contributes to standard of living. for the exploited workers, it is a needed pursuit to ensure one’s survival.

i left this hanging and only wrote until here. most of my thoughts have already vanished so i’m trying to recollect it now.

in the higher scheme of things, we see several ironies that leave us unanswerable and confounded. the rich-poor divide, death as a means to life (euthanasia and mercy killing), capital punishment. everyone has a different take on such ideas but more so, the modern economy is one of the most ironic things of life.

i remember reading through the VJC GP Prelims last Wednesday and i agreed to a large extent that capitalism is one such issue where we have no idea whether it is good or bad. there are arguments and counter-arguments that are valid. however, for one to negate the bad sides of capitalism, it requires something beyond economics and profits. it requires social entrepreneurship and hearts that are willing to give their all at the expense of themselves.

in the economic terms, equity and ethics would never be possible as there is no true satisfaction to be found, no matter how much you produce even if we produce way way beyond the PPC Curve.

this brings to mind my conversation with mr kevin sim on facebook, as i was encouraged by how he actually reached out to the burmese children by giving them free education to level the playing field, creating ripples that will grow larger by the years as poverty is lifted slowly but surely. yet, as he mentioned, the price and sacrifice to pay, that is so unromantic and real, is something many dare not fork out.

but as the saying goes, with each and every starfish that the boy is able to save, he makes a difference in small ways. it goes as an encouragement to those who wish to act upon these ironies, to collectively remove grains of sand to move the largest mountains out there.

all those who fight for labour rights and humanity.

these people are forgotten but their deeds do remain.