[Prev|Next|Index] 2/14/96, jim.edlin@hmg.com, San Francisco, CA USA

Learning from Gabriel and Lee Kwan Yew.

[Image] By Jim Edlin.

1. The Wisdom of Four

This is my son Gabriel. He was four last month. He has been using a
computer since he was 18 months, and first browsed the World Wide Web when
he was three. He doesn't care much for the Web yet though; it's too slow
for his attention span.

What Gabriel does care for is TV programs he calls "bad guys" shows. They
range from the mostly-benign lameness of Power Rangers to the loathsome
twistedness of Mutant League. I generally find these all awful. But I let
him watch anyway.

Would I be happier if the government forbade such shows, and saved me from
being the "heavy" if I chose to forbid them myself? To be honest, there are
moments when I would answer "yes." But when I really think about it, my
answer is a firm "no thanks."

I don't let him watch the "bad guys" in a vacuum. We talk. I try to help
him recognize the difference between the casual, consequence-free violence
of these imaginary worlds and the unacceptable anguish of violence in our
real, flesh-and-blood world. Sometimes, to my amazement, it even seems like
I am getting through a little. He has recently rejected his
formerly-favorite VR Troopers pajamas in favor of character-free plaid
flannels. His reason? They are "too violent!"

If you ask me to choose between the wisdom of my four year old son and that
of Sen. Exon, I would have to say it's no contest!

2. Studying Singapore

In a mass-mailing to campaign contributors after his election, Bill Clinton
asked for input on ways his administration might help improve life in the
US. I wrote back, "Study Singapore. Seek out Lee Kwan Yew as an adviser."
(Lee was Singapore's longtime leader until a few years ago.)

My knowledge of Singapore came from having had a Singaporean student
housemate for a couple of years, from having visited there for a couple of
weeks, from having an ongoing business relationship with a company there,
and from having some employees of that company work in my office during
extended training internships. What I saw of Singapore was in many ways
impressive. The island nation had bootstrapped itself in less than two
generations into a beacon of prosperity and economic power in its region. A
huge proportion of the citizens own their own homes. Public education
seemed well-funded and excellent. Health care seemed both good and widely
available.

I knew Singapore's record was not so good when it came to democracy and
personal liberty. Indivdual ownership of satellite dishes was forbidden,
for example. And the regulations for preserving public order are numerous
and draconian. But I was persuaded that these aspects were gradually waning
artifacts of the country's accellerated march toward modernity and
prosperity, and that the climate was gradually loosening.

Then, one day, in a trans-Pacific phone call with a Singaporean colleague,
I kiddingly mentioned that I had included some pornographic material on a
CD-ROM I was shipping to him. I hadn't done so, really; I said it as a
joke, meaning to tweak him about his government's well-known abhorrence for
lascivious literature. The response I got was not the bantering repartee I
had expected from this usually jolly fellow.

I could almost literally feel the chill come back across the line.

There was an uncomfortable pause. Then his voice came back in stilted,
extraordinarily serious tones. He carefully, distinctly told me how unwise
it was even to joke about such matters, how he certainly did not want to
receive such material, how customs agents would routinely examine the
contents of my package for such material, and how he did not wish to claim
the package if it did in fact contain such material.

I had the strong impression that his disclaimers were meant less for my
ears than for those of government agents who might be monitoring the call.

It was at that moment, when my joke fell so unnervingly flat, that I began
reconsidering the advice I had sent to Clinton. Singapore certainly has
many achievements that the US might learn from. But if the price is the
can't-take-a-joke fear that came back over the phone line that day, I am
not willing to pay it

That small exchange made me suddenly, keenly aware of how much I value the
freedoms of speech and thought I enjoy by the happy accident of having been
born in America. Like the air I breathe, I may tend to take them for
granted as long as they surround me, but I will fight like hell if anyone
attempts to choke them off.

So now I say let us indeed study Singapore in the US. But let us study it
as well for lessons on what not to do.