On Forming Casual Relationships Casually

It took our Singapore-educated society some two or three days after the Ministers' Pay Rise was announced before someone, finally someone, with enough reason in his head, wrote to the Straits Times to say that some of the ministers have formed a very convenient and casual relationship between High Pay and Good Performance.

Simply put, pay the ministers well, and they will perform well. The MM declared that we shall not put Singapore's economy worth by the billions at jeopardy by reducing the pay of the ministers by the millions.

This rational unknown person, whom I applaud, argued that they are forming a casual relationship between two things that cannot be linked very closely together. Just because Singapore performed really well these 40 years and at the same time ministers are paid well does not mean they performed well because they are paid well. It is like saying, since I observe that the sun rises in the morning and at the same time the cock crows, therefore the sun must have risen because and by virtue of the crowing of the cock. But don't get me wrong though, I still support that the ministers be paid well. Just that the kind of logic MM gives is really questionable.

Casual relationship.

Which brings me to the idea that you can find out a person's character just by observing the way he plays a game. If that person is treacherous in a game, he might be treacherous in real life. That is quite nonsense to me. I don't say it is wrong. I am saying there is little evidence or reason to assume that. One might as well say we could observe the character of people by their manner of eating and drinking.

Simply put, there are certain ways games are designed to be played. I have never played a game where the objective is to lose, except this game called Mad. And even then there was a way to play it! Most games designed requires people to be "selfish", whether is it accumulating the most money, destroying the most armies, or whatever. No one designs a game and say, 'The idea is to help the others win as much as they can.' No. People create games so that you win. That's why it is called a Game.

I have played games like Settlers of Catan with Christian friends. I enjoy playing with most of them, because they could understand it was a game. On the internet, they were witty and unscrupulous. Changing two cards for one of mine? Well, that was smart. They knew I was desperate, so the exchange was made. Was I being treacherous or was I being witty when it was later my turn to play to their expense? That was part of the game. What I cannot stand is that people (especially Christians) try to bring in the Second Greatest Commandment into games and then say, 'You are being treacherous!' No, again I say, this is the way it is meant to be played! But I understand where this is coming from. I once played a casual game with Christians only to be culturally shocked. In a really bad way.

Sometimes people take games too seriously. Sometimes people take it too liberally. Businesses become games, and then there was their 'right' to be treacherous. Of course that would be wrong. But go back to good old fun board games, I say, let's play it honestly. And most of the times to be honest and be the least contrived, is to play it as it was meant to be played. Someone who plays a game like Risk and then offers to extend mercies and all sorts of 'Christian antics' are not necessarily Good Christians. That is a casual relationship. That is being contrived. Play it as it was meant to be. Kill off the armies if your mission card says 'Kill the Armies'. The way it was meant to be played. Or, if one cannot stand this kind of 'treachery', don't play it lest one becomes contrived. Most games are like that. Board games, computer games, whatever it is.

But that is what I think of course. I know there are people who disagree with me, but I won't argue further. I just see no true relationship between the way a person plays a game and his character. Maybe there is. But I am saying you cannot establish the relationship rationally.

If you can, then I am the most treacherous person on earth. Just by playing a game it was meant to be played.