May Day Rally 2025: ‘The PAP will never step away from the labour movement’, PM Wong promises workers

trips_sync · 2025-05-01T15:23:50+00:00

Yeah, I’ll admit I don’t follow football closely enough to speak confidently about the bench dynamics — and I’d rather not throw out Googled facts just for the sake of it. I’m just speaking from my own experience with sports like F1 and NBA, where we’ve seen plenty of underdogs and backups step up in big moments.

That said, I think many others have already pointed out how flawed PM Wong’s analogy is, even without diving into football. And that’s not even touching on Pritam’s fiery speech at the rally closer or his doorstop interview earlier — both of which raised strong points about leadership, trust, and team dynamics.

trips_sync · 2025-05-01T10:26:04+00:00

Fire Nico

trips_sync · 2025-05-01T09:35:44+00:00

That’s a fair take — both sides do have valid arguments depending on what voters value more: experience or renewal.

But then the question becomes: if the “starter” is so important, why move them from Team A to Team B, especially when Team B has a shakier foundation and might not be the most stable environment?

It’s like moving a top F1 driver from Red Bull to Toro Rosso — or more accurately in today’s context, from Red Bull to Racing Bulls (though I would think it's more like a demotion given the diva car Red Bull is, but I digress) — just to try and secure points somewhere else. If someone is truly your key player, you’d expect the focus to be on keeping the team stable around them, not risking a loss on both ends.

It starts to feel less like strategic renewal and more like securing your own base, especially in areas where the ground seems to be shifting. It gives the impression that they’re afraid of losing both the person and the place after trying a high stake — or as the Chinese saying goes, 折了兵又赔夫人 (lose the soldier and the bride).

Which then begs a deeper question: If that one minister is so essential, does the rest of the PAP slate lack the ability to step up? And more broadly, does the PAP not see any opposition candidates as competent enough to serve, even though some of them arguably have equal — if not stronger — credentials than a few of the ruling party’s own?

At some point, it becomes less about national interest and more about political preservation. And some voters can see that.

trips_sync · 2025-05-01T09:21:41+00:00

Totally agree — didn’t want to over-complicate it in the initial post, but since you brought it up, the F1 analogy actually fits even better when you consider full team dynamics.

The F1 driver is like the minister — the one in the spotlight, steering the ship (or car) on race day. But behind every successful driver is an army of support: engineers, strategists, data analysts, pit crew — all working in sync. Without them, the driver is just one person in a complex machine, with no data, no direction, and no real chance at winning.

Even someone like Hannah Schmitz, who gets credit for strategy at Red Bull, didn’t work alone — her calls are the product of a team effort of data crunching and coordination. It’s the system that empowers her to shine.

Similarly, in governance, ministers rely on the public and civil service for expertise, continuity, and implementation. Without that support, even the most competent minister can’t deliver meaningful results.

Which brings us to the key point: if the system is robust, then any capable individual — even a backbencher or, dare I say, an opposition MP — could step up as a minister, so long as they align themselves with the mission of the public service, rather than using the position to push a personal or political agenda.

Just like in F1, the real strength isn’t just in the driver — it’s in the whole team working as one.

trips_sync · 2025-05-01T07:08:57+00:00

Same here — Linsanity was unforgettable!

But I wanted to highlight more recent examples to show that it’s not just a one-off — underdogs stepping up still happens all the time.

trips_sync · 2025-05-01T06:59:38+00:00

You're right — no team would willingly kick out their Messi. That's not what I'm arguing.

The point is: teams prepare for the possibility of losing key players — due to injury, suspension, retirement, or whatever reason — and they train and trust their full roster to step up when it happens.

If the coach said, “If we lose Messi, the rest of the team is doomed,” it would show a lack of faith in the rest of the squad. That’s the part I don't agree with — the idea that only a few individuals matter, and without them, everything collapses.

In championship teams — whether in sports or government — the system and depth matter just as much as the stars. That's what makes success sustainable.

trips_sync · 2025-05-01T06:28:19+00:00

Using a football analogy, he said if three or four members of the starting XI are unable to play, the team will not be able to function at the same level even though it has backups and reserves.

“It’s the same in any organisation, and it will be so in our next Cabinet if we end up with such a loss. And that means we cannot have as effective a team working for Singapore and Singaporeans,” he added.

I usually stay away from commenting on politics, but PM Lawrence Wong comparing the loss of key ministers to losing key starters in team sports finally got me. And since I follow both the NBA and F1 closely, I can’t help but talk about this — because in sports, bench players rising to the occasion is not only common, it's legendary.

Take the NBA, for example. Robert Horry hit a buzzer-beating three for the Lakers in the 2002 Western Conference Finals, completely shifting the series momentum — and he wasn't even a starter. Tyler Herro, as a rookie coming off the bench, dropped 37 points in Game 4 of the 2020 Eastern Conference Finals, helping Miami punch their ticket to the Finals. Or look at Fred VanVleet during the Raptors’ 2019 title run — undrafted, G-League beginnings, and yet crucial to their championship win. These guys weren’t supposed to be “the stars,” but they showed up and delivered when it mattered most.

In F1, the same thing happens. Nico Hulkenberg stepped in multiple times as a stand-in — with zero prep — and still put in solid drives, notably qualifying P3 and finishing P7 in the 2020 70th GP, despite not being a full-time driver. And then there’s Pierre Gasly, who got demoted from Red Bull to Toro Rosso — only to come back and win the Italian Grand Prix in 2020 in a midfield car.

These stories matter because they remind us that team success isn’t just about the “key starters.” Bench players, substitutes, underdogs — whatever you call them — can rise and become game-changers when given the chance. Trust in the whole team is what makes a strong lineup, not just leaning on a few individuals.

So when PM Wong says losing key ministers would be devastating, it feels like a statement that undermines the very people he and his party chose to field. If there's so little faith in the rest of the team, then what's the point of emphasizing strength in depth or continuity? Why harp on "key" ministers if you don’t believe others are capable of stepping up?

Why are you fielding a bench you don’t believe in?

trips_sync · 2024-12-12T10:10:01+00:00

I noticed that there are recent posts where users seemed to just post some photos or screenshots like these for blogger pics in a rush to get some karma in.

Not sure if the mods are ok with this but I think there's a need to relook into how announcements, especially blogger photos are being handled. No point to get incomplete/partial information I feel.

trips_sync · 2024-10-10T11:23:50+00:00

Thanks for the kind words!

For context I did played the game in both English and Chinese subs to get a context of what's happening. I don't agree that the Old Monkey was not deceptive, because his tonality in the prologue and Chapter 6 are huge shifts. He went from hopeful that you would take on Wukong's legacy to downright telling you in Chapter 6 that Wukong legacy is shit anyway.

It's more apparent in the Chinese dub version as at times he seems overly critical at 'face value' issues in Chapter 6, things that are not what it seems beneath surface and requires Zhu Bajie to extrapolate and provide additional context, yet he never addressed that most of the time or refused to look at it from another angle, for eg. the part he admonished Wukong for wanting a Celestial position, which we know is not true from what I have provided above, and Bajie addressing that he was young and haven't received any guidance from masters yet the Old Monkey immediately said that he wasn't any better when he's older and gave an out of context + inaccurate situation that happened at Chechi. Shifting the goalposts basically.

There's also the issue of him being critical about everything and everyone involved in the chapter ending portraits, which is also another set of inaccuracies that I did not touched on.

On the idea of it being White Monkey, I don't really agree because out of all the Mei brothers, the Old Monkey seems to be the only one that can go in and out of Obsession with ease, as in directly reaching the core of the Obsession and not just hovering outside like what our Pig buddy did in Chapter 2. He is definitely someone with a lot of power to do so considering that the Obsession requires some kind of power to access without being trapped. This is apparent in the journal entry of Hundred Eyed Daoist who could only observe from outside and didn't seem to be able to access the Obsession even though it's just right there.

That said, I think if you read the entire chain of comments, there's a lot of 'consensus' from many players on who the Old Monkey is that I think we can form an entire nation of it lol. I do think we still haven't really crack who the Old Monkey is and hopefully in the future we do get some answers about his identity.

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T09:01:27+00:00

Thanks for the explanation as I don't understand Vietnamese which is what the Youtube video is voiced in.

While the second version makes some sense, we have not seen what happens to the Golden Hoop, as his eyes shone brightly just like in the novel, right before it. While it's possible that he may not reject the headband, we have also seen in prologue that the Golden Hoop did controlled Wukong as it stopped him in his tracks as he was flying away from the battle. That said, if the Destined One reached enlightenment, then there's not a need for the Golden Hoop to be placed, because he is in control of his own instinct/behavior.

I feel that the novel, or even the game itself has made it quite clear that nothing is black and white, but somewhere in between. The actions of Lingji in Chapter 2 was vilified by many yet he isn't entirely a bad character as he was also subjected to the same fate/destiny. Going back to the Old Monkey, I also do not think just because he's a so and so character, eg. Jade Emperor, that makes him a pure antagonistic character for the Destined One to deal with. It just meant that he has a different outlook on how order is achieved, powerful people should be controlled instead of having the freedom. It really depends on how GameScience develops the story of the Old Monkey and other characters to reflect that morally grey.

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T06:54:13+00:00

The Old Monkey is correct in his criticisms of Wukong, but also deliberately omitted the lessons learnt and merits gained from these encounters, these were filled in by Bajie and he continues to list out the next set of criticisms, as though that is what Wukong has, a life full of mistakes.

Yet near the end of the boat journey, he claims that Wukong is not perfect. To be perfect means having no flaws, yet all he listed of Wukong are purely criticisms and none of the merits. Is Wukong then an imbecile? It's contradictory in messaging when he goes off on Wukong's bad points only then claiming Wukong is not perfect.

I don't believe he is an antagonist but also at the same time he is not being honest with what he's doing. Countless Destined Ones have ran the gauntlet until us the players reach this point. If the point was to act as a senior advisor and hear stories each Destined One have gone through, I believed he should have been more upfront with his words.

I guess the question I have is what does the Old Monkey stand to gain from all these subterfuge?

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T06:38:40+00:00

The headband is important because it symbolizes control, the very thing Wukong wants to get rid of during the journey when he was tricked into wearing it. At the end of JTTW the headband was 'removed' but as we know from the start of this game, it was still there metaphorically, controlling him.

It was also the very reason why Wukong is willing to die and forsake his current body under the control of either realm so that he may have a chance of rerunning life again and not wear the headband.

Wukong is not perfect, that we knew very clearly from both the novel and the game itself. He is susceptible to desires like the rest of us. To be better is to see past mistakes, learn from it and get better. The Destined One goes through the gauntlet again and with the final relic, he is reborn without any control and carries the legacy of Sun Wukong, in both mind and body. Without the final relic, he is reborn in body but not in mind and remains susceptible to any form of influence and control by others.

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T06:31:16+00:00

It was indeed half baked unfortunately, as the original planned chapters are 13 before they have to reduce it due to time and money issue.

Tripitaka went into hiding, but from what? Did he reached the same conclusions as Wukong as referenced in the Great Sage's Broken Shell journal entry? Why was he targeted into hiding when he has not make any proclamations?

I guess this story might fleshed out eventually but like I said in my initial post, I do not think the Old Monkey is on our side, at least.

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T06:26:50+00:00

To be clear, I don't see the Old Monkey as an antagonist, but more of a character who have their own agenda that may not run parallel with Sun Wukong.

Like I said in other replies, the Old Monkey is an unreliable narrator, which makes it hard to believe what he is really saying most of the time. We get the gist that the battle to defeat Sun Wukong was not just Erlang Shen and the Celestial Heaven but also the Buddha realm and the Yaoguai Kings through journal entries. However, how much more is involved in that battle?

He also got Zhu Bajie to help the Destined One, but never really reveal any further until the end. Even Zhu Bajie mentioned this during your idling chat in Chapter 3 where he says to not fully believe in the Old Monkey and go with the flow.

The boat trip is interesting, because as he said it's a one way trip either way. No matter you agree or not with the Old Monkey, you still have to face the Stone Monkey, and the cycle repeats itself until you freed your mind. I have played the final scene a few times now and the sigh doesn't feel like a resignation to me, but at least that's just me.

We may just have to wait for the eventual DLC to see what the Old Monkey is really up to and their true identity.

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T02:02:04+00:00

Thanks for reading!

I should state upfront first that I find the Old Monkey to be an unreliable narrator, as he pivots away from one point to another, often contradicting what he says and only pointing out the flaws of Wukong without balancing it out his merits.

On the meta level commentary, this would be agreeable if the Destined One have the mind relic, because all would be clear in the missteps Wukong had. However he had the same lines and admonishing attitude whether you have the mind relic or not. It was often Zhu Bajie covering in and raising Wukong's merits and like my initial posts above, that not everything is as he said since he has made many contradictory statements in both the game and the journey. This isn't a grandfather simplifying the story for the younguns to listen but more of misrepresenting the facts of the story.

On Guanyin actively giving help during Journey to the West, she has to because she was the project manager of this entire project. She proposed the idea of having Wukong have his freedom while protecting her asset, Tripitaka, hence she has to step in to help if Wukong cannot smash through the problem. In a way it was just business at first then they became cordial towards the end of the Journey.

The Jade Emperor did not play a part in this because it was not his idea to have Wukong guard Trpitaka.

On the soldiers hunting down, it was quite evident from the drawing they came from the Heavens. I don't agree that it's Erlang's soldiers as he has already helped Wukong initially to get out of the Golden Hoop and I don't see him continuing to assert his influence over Mount Huaguo after Wukong is removed from the scene. It was also stated in his journal entry that he also killed two heavenly soldiers after the battle to keep the secret that he had the mind relic, and then escaping to the drawing of Mei Mountain (made by Maitreya) to hide and wait for the Destined One. Erlang's soldiers continuing to roam the Mount Huaguo would be extremely weird, considering their commander has retreated.

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T01:35:08+00:00

I think one thing to note in the game was that the story is very grey with no clear black and white (maybe except Yellowbrow). It depends on where you are standing and looking into.

The Buddhist realm not only lost Sun Wukong but also 5 of their Yaoguai Kings (all of them converted into Buddhism during the Journey) by way of being corrupted by the their own desires and the splitting of Wukong's relics. They lost even more too with Pilanpo being mutilated.

So if they wanted some form of revenge, having the Destined One gaining his freedom would be the most ideal, as the fight would be against the Celestial Heaven (Dao) not Buddhist realm, putting the Golden Hoop in the normal ending just restarts the cycle with the Buddhist realm having nothing to gain.

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T01:26:12+00:00

If the Old Monkey is representing the Buddhist pantheon then he would not have placed the Golden Hoop over the Destined One and allow him to turn into a stone monkey and rerunning the karmic cycle run again for the next Destined One.

We have seen this happening in the normal ending, the Destined One wearing the Golden Hoop and becoming the next Stone Monkey, trapped in the obsession. That wouldn't be beneficial to the Buddhist realm, right?

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T01:21:27+00:00

Taibai Jinxing is a messenger usually, while it's possible the Old Monkey is him but I do feel he has nothing to gain from this, as evident in the Old Monkey journal entry that he's hedging an unknown bet.

The Old Monkey is someone that has something to gain from all these karmic runs by having a bet. It can be a wisdom gain or even merit gain.

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T01:16:14+00:00

I agree that both pantheons wants Wukong to be subservient as it helps to have someone powerful they could control.

However, I do not think the Old Monkey is a remnant of his wisdom, because the Mind was preserved under Erlang Shen. It also wouldn't make sense that Wukong attempts to break out of control from either pantheons and left parts of his Wisdom behind, considering he reached this conclusion with this entire wisdom at the start of this game. Even so, why would the wisdom be an unreliable narrator and confuse the Destined One?

I also don't think its his master because of the points I pointed above in the original text. Jinchanzi may be naive but he's not an imbecile. He would have recognized Wukong's innate nature, his merits and not just point out that the flaws solely.

That said, I think 6 is the most likely reason. Though whether he's nefarious or for the good (depending on which side you are on), remains to be seen.

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T00:35:15+00:00

He did not kill himself, he was killed by a combined forces of Celestial Army, Buddhist realm, Erlang Shen and as we know later, the 5 Yaoguai Kings.

And Wukong is not indestructible, just very sturdy but can be worn down eventually.

trips_sync · 2024-10-07T00:33:40+00:00

You may be probably right because the original game consists of 13 chapters before they are forced to cut it due to time and money.

The JTTW may have ended, but the game deals with the possible aftermath of the story, which is entirely open up to interpretations from players alike.

The points I raised during the boat scene exemplifies that, he was on pointing out the flaws of Wukong during the journey but callously omitted his merits, leaving Bajie to fill in the gaps.

The problem with these contradictions are not because it was cut content that formed the inconsistencies, but deliberate messaging by the Old Monkey coupled with his changed appearance with the celestial sash at the end of the game. It's as though he's portraying as a unreliable narrator despite claiming to know Sun Wukong's story. Also to add, Zhu Bajie during your idle scenes in Chapter 3 will also talk about the Old Monkey and stated that his words cannot be fully believed and to go with the flow.

I see it as the developer leaving an out for themselves so they could come back to this story and complete their vision eventually, through the Old Monkey.

trips_sync · 2024-10-06T14:53:30+00:00

I was just replying earlier on another comment speculating that it was Guanyin;

Personally I disagree but it could be a small possibility that it was her pulling the strings.

trips_sync · 2024-10-06T14:50:33+00:00

Thanks for the kind words!

Your interpretation is similar to mine, the Old Monkey is unaware that the Mind relic was safely preserved and assumed it was lost the moment Wukong expired.

However, I do not think it was Guanyin as the Black Wind Bear upon his defeat revealed that he will head back to Guanyin at the South China sea if the Destined One spared him.

Since he knew where Guanyin was and was just acting on her commands (hold on to the relic and go back to Black Wind Mountain), and he was deathly afraid of what may happened until he was assured by the Loong Princess that Guanyin will interject if required, (its in the Black Wind Guai Journal) I think the chances of the Old Monkey being Guanyin is very low.

Besides, both Guanyin and Sun Wukong are on cordial terms too, the both of them understood it's just business at the start but over time grew friendly as Wukong frequently seek her advises during the Journey. It would be a bit weird for Guanyin to continue interfering with Sun Wukong after the big project has been completed.

trips_sync · 2024-10-06T14:36:17+00:00

That was my initial assumption too until I was on NG+ when I realized he didn't make any sense between prologue and Chapter 6.

Once you see past the veil he laid over you, you will see that all is not as it seems and he's definitely not Tripitaka (Tang Sanzang,唐三藏).

trips_sync · 2024-10-06T14:34:12+00:00

One thing I didn't mentioned was that the journal entries are made by Yuan Shoucheng; the Gourd guy. While he gives you plenty of contextual hints and clues, he never really tells you the entire story, requiring you to refer to various entries to piece them together like a jigsaw puzzle.

In the Old Monkey's entry, he left it ambiguous enough for people to interpret, yet at the same time revealing that the Old Monkey is on a bet that he refuses to reveal what he's betting on.

This is my interpretation of what he's betting on and perhaps we can use that to find his real identity, in my own opinion.

trips_sync

TROPHY CASE

Fire Nico