In this mid week special episode, we discuss the recent Rice Media article "Is Singapore Ready For Freedom of Speech?". The article was written in response to the IMDA's ban on Watain from performing in Singapore just hours before their scheduled performance. What is hate speech? What is offensive speech? And more importantly, who gets to define these terms?  

Do you think Singapore is ready for freedom of speech? Or should there be a limitation of what could and could not be said in the public sphere? 

Link:

https://www.ricemedia.co/current-affairs-commentary-is-singapore-ready-for-freedom-of-speech/

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Drunk Shaun is back with us after his shenanigans in New Zealand. In this week's episode we talk about China's iron grip on social media, where every Chinese citizen is being tracked and monitored. Is this the dystopian future that George Orwell has so accurately predicted half a century ago?  It truly appears Black Mirror isn't that far off from reality. 

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In this week's episode, Shaun is on a trip to meet some hobbits in middle earth and we have a special guest for you guys, Jon Wang from the LongkangKitties. We talk about how the left is controlling the media by restricting speech online, driving people on the fringe to underground channels. We dive into our deepest darkest fantasies on how to hold a counter strike like competition between various extremist groups.  

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In this week's episode, we talk about the petition by a certain religious group in Singapore to ban the performance of Watain, a Swedish death metal band. With claims made in the petition, which was signed by 17,000 Singaporeans, on the grounds of "public order interest" and "religious and social harmony". IMDA proceed to issued a ban on Watain just hours before their scheduled performance. Should Singapore, being a secular country, bow to pressure from religious groups?  

In this week's episode, we talk about the recent conflict between India and Pakistan over contested Kashmir.  Both countries have been warring over Kashmir for many years but now both possess nuclear weapons. Just recently on February the Pakistan-based terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed attacked a paramilitary convoy in Pulwama in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. 

Some experts believe that India and Pakistan both hold between 150 - 180 nuclear warheads, which would be disastrous if either decides to use them. However, with how interconnected the world is at the moment, safe to say that chances of that happening are slim. Are nuclear weapons a deterant for all our war? Or just a fiery radioactive time bomb waiting to engulf us all?  

In this week's episode, we discuss the Jussie Smollett case, where he is being accused of paying two brothers on staging an attack on him.  

"He said they then punched him, poured a potentially chemical substance over him and put a rope around his neck - a reference to racist lynchings of African-Americans. He also claimed the men said "this is Maga country" during the assault, a reference to President Donald Trump's campaign slogan, "Make America Great Again"."

With no witnesses and no footages after police officers reviewed more than 50 surveillance cameras, it was later revealed that he paid off the two 'attackers' with a $3500 cheque. 

Link:

https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-47336596

In this week's episode, we discuss the recent case of a jobless man getting into an altercation with a cook because he doesn't have money to pay for his meal. He was sentenced to 8-10 months imprisonment and also couple strokes of the cane. Does corporal punishment have its place in modern society? How good of a deterrent is it?  

Other topics that we discuss are the rise to fame of Congress woman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a video of her dissecting how US campaign finance laws is a "fundamentally broken" system has gone viral online.

Links: 

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/man-slashes-cook-after-being-denied-free-roti-prata-11222908

https://www.theguardian.com/global/video/2019/feb/08/alexandria-ocasio-cortezs-brutal-take-down-of-us-political-finance-laws-video

Gong Xi Fa Cai! 

We celebrate CNY 2019 by inviting our friend and fellow podcaster Danny from Economical Rice Podcast. In this episode, we talk about recent affairs, from go-jek 'kidnapping', to dick towels and our hopes and dreams in dominating the podcast market. If you like what you hear drop a like and share to Listening Room and Economical Rice podcast. HUAT AH!

Danny is currently an auditor with KPMG Singapore and runs the Economical Rice Podcast, a show that discusses local economic issues in a narrative storytelling format

Website: http://www.economicalricepodcast.com

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In this week's episode, we discuss the recent controversy surrounding Gillette. Gillette has released a commercial that has received tremendous backlash from the public for riding on the wave of the Metoo and Time's up movement.  If Gillette had spent the money they invested in creating that commercial into improving their blades, would their blades be able to last more than four shaves? 

We also discuss the unfortunate passing of Aloysius Pang while on  reservist duty in New Zealand. Over 4 deaths in the past 16 months, is it time for MINDEF to do take a hard stand and admit that safety protocols might have been neglected during training exercises? 

In this week's episode, we discuss about the lives of former porn stars after they have decided to call time on their careers. Illuminating documentary "After Porn Ends" that pulls back the curtain on the lives of some famous porn stars. 

We also discuss local politics and the upcoming General Election. How will the votes swing? Is it time for a change and what is the best course for the opposition to take that will pose the greatest challenge for the incumbent government?