On citizen media website Stomp this week, Star Bloggers were asked to give their views on the topic, "What makes Singapore girls so hot and Singapore guys so not?"
Here are the writer's views: Who says Singapore girls are hot? I happen to think they're vain, self-absorbed and shallow. But if that's considered "hot", maybe we have our priorities wrong.
So, what actually determines the nature - including the relative temperature on the hotness scale, if you like - of any person, man or woman?
If you ask me, the obvious answer can be reduced to two basic factors: The genetic makeup of the person, along with the role played by the subject's environment on those genes.
Well, given that we all come from the same gene pool, we're probably more inclined to reason that it must be something in the Singapore environment that is responsible.
So what is it about the Singapore upbringing that results in men and women being situated on opposite ends of the attractiveness barometer?
Singapore girls are viewed as hot presumably because they're fashion-conscious, svelte and confident - feel free to correct me on this, by the way.
As for Singapore guys? I surfed around a bit and came up with an expat website's personal ads section, where local girls hang out in search of an expatriate boyfriend or lover.
Check out these extracts from two ads:
Ad No. 1: "Let me list the qualities I am looking for in a male: Average- looking, from 29 to 36 years old, Caucasian, honest, sincere and frank, not interested in mind games, funny, smart, outgoing and a bit of a bad boy."
Ad No. 2: "I'm looking for a male companion who is SING - sincere, intelligent, naughty (a bit!), generous."
Anyone spot the common theme there?
Bachelorette No. 1 wanted "a bit of a bad boy" and the second one was looking to hook up with someone "naughty (a bit!)".
And there, in a nutshell, is the main reason guys here aren't considered hot: They need to be naughtier, more rebellious, and less goody-two-shoes. I certainly don't think it's a physical thing. Fashion sense can be acquired - just read enough magazines - and teeth can be straightened and polished. A good body is only a gym membership away.
But mental attitude is honed over a lifetime, and it's in this area in which I think young men and women have had the most divergent upbringing.
There are far too many men who are, at heart, little boys who always listen to their parents. Even if there's a small streak of rebelliousness in a boy here, there's nothing like a stint in the army to iron it out. Trouble is, women like spontaneity, and even something of the gruff miscreant in a guy, and are actually turned on by danger.
Singapore guys, however, are largely characterised by pragmatism, industriousness and reliability.
In short, Singaporean men are the type your mother would approve of.Most women, however, are drawn to the very sort that would give mother a mild stroke.
I'm not saying, however, that this is right and that all is as it should be. I think it's worth pondering our attitudes to "hotness", for it seems to me that we have our priorities wrong.
What makes Singapore girls so hot and Singapore guys so not, then? Nothing more than the eyes with which we choose to see.
myp@sph.com.sg
The writer is a Star Blogger with Stomp, The Straits Times' social networking and citizen media website. This commentary first appeared on Stomp. Go to www.stomp.com.sg to read what the other Star Bloggers have to say about the topic.
