Amos Yee is Not a Martyr. He’s a Rapist who Violated the Freedom We’ve Fought so Hard For |
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By CowBoyJohnny  Think about it: your father just died, you’re in mourning, and some teenager who’s probably got less sense than facial hair condemns and denegrates your father. Openly, on a public platform. He couldn’t even wait for after the funeral to rub all the bad things daddy has done in your face. Said kid then talks down to you, and challenges you to take action against him. What would you do? If I found the kid, I’d likely drag him to a corner and give him a good one-two. My sense is if this fella is going to resort to cheap low-blows, then I shouldn’t hold any punches. That kid is Amos Yee. And he didn’t do it for any reason, other than to make himself feel big – bigger than our Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong.  What cause does he have to attack Singapore’s leader, and former leader? He has a roof over his head, enough cash to afford cameras and computers, and a hell lot of time to attack almost anything under the sun in trashy YouTube videos. He’s got a foot-in-the-door when it comes to the movie industry, work which he’s apparently fond of. And he’s 16-years-old – not of age to understand the hardships and worries that come with life as many of us 10 to 20 years his senior would have felt. So what’s he so angry about? He isn’t. His video was an ego trip, born purely out of a frivolous desire for attention, and maybe affection – something this kid probably lacks a lot of.  PM Lee took it in his stride, taking the time to greet Singaporeans who mourned his father’s passing, taking to the stage to read eulogies and national addresses. All this, under the glare of the media, his every move scrutinised before the eyes of the whole nation. He put on his statesman’s hat, and he did it well. So did the rest of the Lee family. That’s something which people like the grassroots chap Jason Tan, who went on a frenzied rant online threatening to cut off Amos Yee’s penis could do well to learn from. But with some 20 police reports, surely the cops had to step in? What else could they do? Amos Yee cannot hide behind the veil of freedom of speech. Such freedom comes with responsibilities Are we really going to put him on the same pedestal as the likes of the late J B Jeyeratnam, a true Singaporean stateman? Or people like Dr Chee Soon Juan, who has spoken up on issues ahead of his day, was shown to be right on many counts, and was hammered for speaking? Amos Yee cobbled together a little ditty to gain eyeballs, and possibly YouTube earnings by attacking our Prime Minister when it would hurt him the most.  This is not the face of a martyr. This is a kid who is raping the values of freedom that others are fighting so hard to achieve. Singaporeans have been jailed, bankrupted, and supposedly exiled just for this freedom to speak out against injustice. Amos Yee violated this freedom, with his very deliberate attempt to hurt others simply to stroke his own fancy. Singaporeans don’t like the government kicking a man when he’s down, that’s why so many stepped up to crowd-fund Roy Ngerng. Why should we let this kid do the same? Je suis Amos? Tell that to a grieving family. This article first appeared on Redwire Times. It is reproduced with permission. |
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