How To Get 5000 Votes Instantly

Right now I'm not in the mood to talk about philosophical stuff, so today's entry will be about something else, Singapore Idol(SGI)! Haha. Yes, once again, the show has captured my attention for all the wrong reasons. What about this time? Well, I'm sure all of you watching the show remember this guy.





I forgot what song he sang but most people would agree with me when I say that his singing was terrible. Surprisingly, some how, some way, he still got in. Then at the end he said:

"I couldn't have done this without Jesus Christ, my Lord and Saviour". (or something close to that.)

At that point I said to myself, well at least he's a good Christian. Can't say the same for his singing though. Then someone in my family said:

"Wah, maybe he's from City Harvest la."

And then hit me like a slap in the face. That's how he managed to get in! "There's no doubt about it!!!!", as they always they say in Naruto. As long as you're from that church, you are guranteed at least 5000 votes in any competiton. Heck, if William Hung was from City Harvest, he'd be in the American Idol top 10 and America's Next Top Model. (Yes, I realise that Next Top Model doesn't have a voting system but I'm sure the City Harvest people would figure something out anyway to ensure he wins anyway.) Their members would vote for him all the way from Singapore and as soon as it was out, buy his debut cd. Thrice. That's no sweat for people who are willing to queue at 6am through the hot morning sun for a service that is at 8, every sunday, 4 times a month, 48 days a year. These are the exact people you want to support you when you're running for the Presidency of the United States, the governorship of Timbuktu or any position that uses a voting system to declare the winner because, just as long as you're from their from church, they'll vote for you all the way. Even if you lack the ability to earn the post, as you've seen.

"But how you know he's from City Harvest?"

Ah ha! I did my research okie! Haha. And I so totally, totally, totally agree with this guy. Here's what he wrote:

I am rather distured as it is. I predicted the last time that Jerry Ong would not get in into the finals of Singapore Idol, because I KNEW his lack of singing talent too well since army days. Guess what? He gave a bad performance on the show, got bad remarks from the judges, and still got in, and then, as all reports go, he got in because of the voting favours of City Harvest churchgoers.....

I may have to eat my words this time round....The thing about City Harvest people is that they always stand by their churchmates in music and stuff, even if these people are BAD singers. One might call this voting by heart and not by ear. Either way, this episode has made me start to think about rabid churchgoers' mentality in this new pop culture age. We already have too many youths who go to church as if it is part of a club mentality, that is, "throw in your lot with a certain prominent group of youths who go for a church or society or organization, and then you will be called hip". City Harvest-ers have been giving the media and the public that impression so often such that they probably have no grounds to sue the public, should they even try to say that the public is distorting the case about them being supportive of their members with a motive. Yes, I am a Christian, and I view such things happening in our society with an immense sense of social consciousness because I do not believe in the fast food generation of Christians produced by the modern churches right now. Call me "wigged" in the Canadian slang, "old-fashioned" in the typical Queen's English, or "out of fashion" in any sense of current 'hip-iness' , but I STILL BEG TO DIFFER from the general crowd of people like that. The last time, I read much of the news about how City harvest forced a businessman (who nailed the hammer on the head about its pastor giving the credit to his singer wife more than to God) to paste public apologies of more than one million dollars just to say that he has caused Sun(Ho Yeow Sun) immense emotional distress. Broadcasting one's "dirty linen" in public--since the church is very much a family of God--not only shows how it lacks transparency but also an extremely BAD testimony to the world. It brings shame to the family of God.....


Did I already say that I so totally, totally, totally agree with this guy? I did? Well, let me say it again. I so totally, totally, totally agree with this guy! His view on youth churchgoers' mentality being going to church to be part of a hip and cool organization is so true. Why do I say that?

-(Of course I'm not saying that everyone who attends City Harvest is like that. Don't get me wrong.)-

How many of you all out there take the bus every morning during rush hour? How does it feel waking up early while the sky is still dark, waiting for the bus at the packed bus-stop, and then standing the whole journey so close to someone that you can see the sweat on their neck and the dandruff in their hair? I've been taking bus service 74 for the past 7 years and I tell you, it's bloody crappy. If I had a choice, I'd happily take the 11am bus when there's no people, the traffic is clear and I get to sit my ass down on the quite-comfortable seats.

I'm sure almost everyone would agree but these are similar conditions that occur when people go to City Harvest and they do it without complaining! And these are even young people we're talking about. The same pampered generation that complain about everything under the sun. The only other situation I could think of when they'd be willing to bear these kind of conditions is an Energy, F4 or a Dog Dog Cat Cat concert. God isn't exclusively in this church and they can get the same spiritual food if they go to another church, so why go to this one?

Here's an analogy. Say you want to eat chicken rice. So you go to a food court where there are 2 stalls selling chicken rice. Both of them sell the exact same quality of chicken rice. The thing is, one is has a long queue while the other one is practically empty. Which one would you go to?

The only reason I can think of that would make them go through all the trouble just to go to a certain church is that, they attend that particular church for something aside from the spiritual food.

Looking back at the analogy, if you add that the stall with the long queue is a famous and big brand, it would explain why people would be willing to queue there instead of the other humble, no-brand stall selling the exact quality of chicken rice.They are willing to wait and endure the long queue not because of the quality of the chicken rice, but because of the association and the power of the brand.

It is very sad if people start going to church for other reasons aside from God. For when that happens, they've lost the real purpose of going to church.

(Note: This entry is merely an opinion of the writer and is not intended to offend anybody. To ensure that happens, follow this rule: if you think I'm writing about you and feel offended, well I'm talking about someone else.)