Fakes are good business, don’t expect AI to stop generating them

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S’porean boy, 14, who simulated ISIS terror attacks on Roblox issued ISA restriction order

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For issues on youth, video games, social media and terrorism....

What Singapore’s new disability task force must get right

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Qn: 'Not enough is being done for the disabled in your society.' Discuss.

Minnesota becomes ground zero for Trump’s America First

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Beware the crocodile: The challenge for small states

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[opening BANG!] A great power is like a crocodile: it can bring danger even as it looks benign. As Singapore’s first foreign minister S. Rajaratnam put it, when the crocodile shows its teeth, “one is never quite sure whether it is smiling or baring its teeth”.

economic and military coercion emanating from US President Donald Trump’s administration. The list includes 

abduction of the head of state of a sovereign nation, Venezuela

; threats to take over or intervene militarily in Canada, Greenland, Colombia, and Iran; and weaponising tariffs to force political submission and extract territorial concession.

the law of the jungle and like to quote Thucydides, “the strong do what they can, while the weak suffer what they must”

seeking out new like-minded partners. By coming together in new coalitions of the willing, the impact of our stance on principles is magnified, a strategy that combines both adaptation and mitigation

since Mr Trump’s push on Greenland, European leaders have become more vocal and united in their opposition to America’s “Might Makes Right” approach to foreign relations.

If ASEAN gets its act together, it can harness its collective strength to better withstand the pressures and counter-pressures from the two rival powers, even as it strives to build good relations with each. But to do that effectively, it needs to get its internal house in order and not allow bilateral issues or narrow national interests to stymie a coordinated approach.

[closing BANG!] As our founding foreign minister reminds us in another speech, “so long as we remember that a crocodile is dangerous even when it is friendly, nothing is lost by observing diplomatic niceties”.

Qn: Do global challenges divide more than they unite? (VJC Prelim 2025)

‘I won’t have to trouble anyone’: NUS team launches AI headset to help visually impaired commute, shop

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For issues on how AI enhances the lives of the disabled...

‘So eager to show off’: Hong Kong official fired after boasting about free travel upgrades

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Relate to older examples like Amy Cheong and Anton Casey, where a seemingly innocuous post uploaded to social media can cost one their job or career....

Consider also the envy caused by social media that can lead to comparisons and low self-esteem....

 

Qn: 'We should not be afraid of social media.’ Do you agree? (RI 2023 Y5 CT)

S’pore in talks with X after its AI bot Grok creates sexually explicit deepfakes of women and children

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Students need not own or use mobile phones, parents can call schools during emergencies: Jasmin Lau

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Good rebuttal of the solution-to-problem type.....

Now that we have AI, what are the arts for?

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For issues on the role of the arts....

Why do our school meals increasingly feel like bad ‘army cookhouse’ food?

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Indonesia’s new sex laws could turn bedrooms into ‘Batman traps’ for the unwary: Analysts

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Indonesia's new Criminal Code (KUHP), effective January 2026, criminalises adultery and cohabitation, requiring family member complaints for enforcement.

“Marriage is the legalisation of sexual relations. Therefore, sexual relations without marriage are prohibited. The position of Article 411 is to encourage society to marry before engaging in sexual relations,”

The code’s implementation has already prompted some urban couples to reconsider cohabitation or formalise their marriages.

Qns:

1. How far should the state intervene in matters relating to one's body? (MI Prelim 2025)

2. To what extent should the state interfere with the private lives of its citizens?

(RI Prelim 2024)

3. Is there still a place for marriage in today’s world? (HCI Prelim 2023)

More Singapore schools install mobile phone lockers for students to keep their devices away

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Previously, restrictions applied only to regular curriculum time, with some schools allowing phone use during break times. Under the stricter rules that kicked in from January 2026, secondary school students are not allowed to use their devices outside lesson time as well. This includes during recess, periods between lessons and co-curricular activities (CCAs).

The school has also seen a drop in disciplinary cases, such as students gathering in toilets to smoke or plan mischief. “They couldn’t coordinate any more because there were no phones

the lockers are now known as “handphone hotels”.....“Your phones have worked very hard, so they deserve a vacation while you’re in school.”

Tidy shelves and neater homes? What I got wrong about decluttering

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DHS Prelim 2023 P2 AQ on minimalism vs clutter.....

Trump says his global power is limited by his ‘own morality’

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Hwa Chong Institution says no students penalised or reprimanded for voicing opinions on school meals

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Overseas volunteering must move beyond personal fulfilment and good intentions

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Qn: 'People who undertake voluntary work do so more for their own benefit than for the benefit of others.’ Discuss. (2023)

When adults step back, kids learn to bounce back

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Forum: Maduro’s capture signals that rules-based order may be at risk

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While imperfect, this framework provided a measure of predictability, restraint and a shared language for managing disputes.

This does not represent a sudden collapse of international law or a descent into global anarchy. Rather, it signals a gradual recalibration.

A rules-based order offered protection through predictability; a power-based environment demands resilience through adaptability.

Qn: To what extent are rules and regulations desirable? (ACJC Prelim 2023)

Forum: A small country like Singapore cannot rely on goodwill alone to stay safe

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When everything else breaks down, defence is the final insurance policy a country has.

Many of us believe strongly in international law, diplomacy and global cooperation. These ideals matter, and they should continue to guide how nations behave. But we should not kid ourselves. When interests collide and rules are stretched or ignored, military strength still decides what a country can protect and what it cannot.

Singapore has made a clear and deliberate choice to spend the most on defence in its national budget, over $23 billion or 3 per cent of gross domestic product. 

Defence is about ensuring that peace remains the most rational choice.

Qn: Examine the extent to which expenditure on arms and the armed forces is justified in the modern world. (Cam. 2014)

Chinese homeschool students embrace freer youth in cut-throat market

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Her parents withdrew her from her Shanghai school three years ago, worried she was struggling to keep up with a demanding curriculum they believe will soon be outdated in the era of artificial intelligence (AI).

increasingly questioning the value of traditionally prized degrees from elite universities in an oversaturated market. In 2023, fewer than one in five undergraduates from Shanghai’s prestigious Fudan University found jobs immediately after graduation. The country’s unemployment rate for 16- to 24-year-olds reached a two-year high of 18.9 per cent in August....“(China) has out-produced. Too many PhDs, too many masters, too many undergraduates. The jobs they are trying to get are disappearing

There’s no way to meet his social needs at home....Time with children her age was one of the biggest losses

Qns:

1. Modern technology will mean the end of education.’ Is this a fair statement of your society? (CJC Prelim 2025)

2. Do schools still have a future in a technologically advanced world? (VJC Prelim 2025)

Vape sellers targeting the young with devices that can play music, games

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new devices are harder to spot because they do not resemble traditional vapes. Some “smart” models are designed to look like and can be mistaken for everyday items, such as mobile phones.

manufacturers are enticing the young with the “integration of smartphone-like designs and functionalities into vaping devices”.

When a vape looks like a toy and rewards you for using it, it is not just a product – it is a behavioural trap.

A conventional vape just delivers nicotine. These newer devices add in gaming elements – sometimes with full-on video games – that reward the user with points or prizes every time they take a puff.

vapes that looked like highlighters

Singapore 'gravely concerned' about US intervention in Venezuela, urges restraint

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Consider the uncanny parallel btw Russia invading Ukraine vs US implementing a regime change in Venezuela......

'The strong do what they can, while the weak suffer what they must.' -- Thucydides