新加坡部落格大奖 II

enjamin Cheah

The Lionheart / Benjamin Cheah

http://leounheort.blogspot.com

Tell us about yourself in 50 words.

I am a nineteen-year-old full-time Full-time National Serviceman. While I’ve mostly been blogging about current affairs, I’ve also held an interest in wide-ranging subjects, from philosophy to behavioural sciences. Offline, I write fiction that expresses my thoughts on various topics, from morality to terrorism.

How long have you been blogging and why did you start blogging?

I’ve been blogging since January 1st, 2006. My initial motivation was to improve my argumentative writing skills, and hopefully transfer some skills over to my fiction writing. Then I started writing to express my opinions on current affairs, and how to improve the state of the world.

How do you feel as one of the finalists in the second Singapore Blog Awards? What do you think is your chance of winning?

Frankly, I’m amazed. I’m quite possibly the youngest finalist in this category, and with the fewest number of posts. It feels as if I have beaten the odds stacked against a relative newcomer to the blogosphere, even in the circle of socio-political blogs in which I frequent.

That being said, I’m a realist. My chances of winning compared to everybody else are quite possibly the lowest. No matter how high a score any finalist could obtain from the judges, I think the competition would be won by the sheer weight of votes. While voter participation counts for just 30% of the final score, having 1000 votes would mean that your score is proportionally 10 times larger than someone with just 100 votes. Such a score could, and would, dramatically reverse or entrench the existing difference in scores between the finalists, turning a would-be loser into a dark horse winner, or a toss-up into a walkover. Given my age and lack of experience vis-à-vis the other finalists, I think it’s quite safe to say that I would not be able to muster as many voters to vote as frequently as possible than the other finalists. Certainly not enough for the top prize.
But maybe, just maybe, enough to land a spot in the top 5.

Who do you think are the strongest bloggers in the category you are nominated for and why?

By ‘strongest’, I assume that you are referring to bloggers who are able to generate a lot of support for their blog, and are able to consistently write thoughtful, analytical posts that expose pearls of truth with every point. Going by this assumption, without a doubt, Sam Ho and Daniel Ling, for two reasons.

Firstly, having gone through their blogs, I think they are very intelligent, insightful, and articulate writers who are able to explain complex and confusing issues clearly and succinctly enough for laymen to understand.

Secondly, working within the framework established in the first criterion, they are able to write up more posts than me per any given time frame. This leads to a greater footprint on the Internet, generating interest in their blogs, and therefore more votes. This is in addition to the people whom they have approached to vote for them, which should surely be in the triple digits by now.

Name some of the bloggers whom you look up to and why (need not be in the running for the Singapore Blog Awards, and can mention overseas bloggers too)?

The Singaporean blogger whom I look up to the most is Au Waipang, also known as Alex Au, better known as Yawning Bread. He is not afraid to call things as he sees them, and does so in an erudite, succinct, insightful, and occasionally humorous manner. By virtue of his using an older HTML design for his blog, he is also able to design his blog in a very user-friendly way, that is both easy on the eyes and allows the reader to pick an article he or she wants to read. Mr. Au is a pioneer, both as an activist and a blogger. He was among the first citizens in Singapore, much less activists, to embrace blogging as a communication tool. I’ve had had an opportunity to see his initiative and intelligence at first hand, when I collaborated with him for the Bloggers 13 Internet deregulation proposal. I think it’s an understatement to say that his reputation as one of Singapore’s best bloggers is well-deserved.

The foreign blogger whom I prefer the most is Barry Eisler. He is an American thriller writer who has written the best-selling John Rain series, and has recently published a stand-alone novel that has enjoyed considerable commercial success. He also happens to be one of my favourite fiction writers. Mr. Eisler writes about the finer aspects of writing, such as marketing your stories, and controversial issues in America, such as the use of torture in the War on Terror. As a writer, I intend to learn the skills he is passing down; as a human, I am interested in what he has to say about the world. He places issues under a microscope, delves deeply to seek out nuggets of truth, and then showcases them in clear and lively language. He rejects the traditional American Republican-Democrat dichotomy in his political leanings, instead favouring whichever side has the best ideas and workable plans in his opinion. He also has links to other interesting American bloggers, and collectively they provide a reading on the heartbeat of America. Writers and people like him are the future of the world, able to decide on their own what works best and how to improve the world.

What would you like to say to your blog readers and those who voted and supported you?

Thank you. Your help is greatly appreciated.