I’ve only just watched the 2-minute clip called “THE PURGE PRANK!!!” by MerlionTV and found that it is absolutely distasteful. People who find the video hilarious are quite frankly, sick in the head! And the producers should definitely spend some time behind bars for this stupid prank.
For those who have not watched the video, don’t! Adding to the number of views will simply inflate the egos of the producers, and spawn similar pranks. In essence, a masked person wearing a hoodie and wielding a long knife AT NIGHT scares a couple at a busstop, a worker chatting on the phone at the entrance to a construction site, a woman seated a short distance away from an escalator, and a man seated at a void deck (he runs away upon spotting the masked idiot).
I am upset with this video mainly because of two things:
1) It reminds me of the murders on the Taiwanese subway this year. I could have very nearly been on that same train, and probably ended up dead after that Taiwanese undergraduate went on his slashing spree. I’ve watched the videos regarding that incident and I really DETEST this prank one. Seriously, the people behind MerlionTV should NOT be celebrating how their video went viral; they should be ashamed of the unnecessary fear they have caused to the people they scared in their video.
The producers are crazy – “support” from your fellow Singaporeans?! The video has 395 thumbs up, and 1067 DOWN! The overwhelming majority hate this video. And I hope their “CRAZIER pranks” get them locked up. I, for one, will be happy to throw the key away.
2) Even if it’s Halloween, you don’t have the right to scare people who did not sign up to be scared. If you love scaring people, go work in one of those horror house tourist attractions. Don’t scare that unsuspecting lady – she might already have had a really tough day. Don’t alarm that worker – he’s probably on the phone with a loved one back in India or wherever. Just don’t scare all those innocent folks!
If I’m in that horror house ‘cos I paid to go in, and knew exactly what I was “signing up for”, then yes, you have every reason to try and scare me. And yes, I might (accidentally) punch you in the face because I freak out easily. BUT, I will not sue you. If I was one of the people in that prank video, I’d definitely sue the producers for every cent they have (or don’t have).
Singapore is generally a safe place to live and work in. Singaporeans do have a good sense of humor. There are some pranks which do scare people, but in a good clean fun sort of way. For example, I’ve seen a clip from ‘Just For Laughs’ in which people reach for a doughnut in a shopping mall, thinking they can sample it for free since no one is at the booth, are pranked. A hand pops out from under the table and smacks their fingers just as they are reaching for that doughnut. Scares them, but no one was in any danger of dying from fright. But if a masked man comes towards me at night, and he’s wielding a long knife, that would truly be scary.
And if one day, we do have a knife-wielding murderer, like the guy in Taiwan, and the public here just laughs it off and thinks “Oh it’s the guys from MerlionTV”, then what the hell is going to happen?
MerlionTV, don’t screw with us ok? It really isn’t funny.
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And If Anyone Still Thinks It’s Just A Silly Prank / It’s Halloween / Take A Chill Pill, No One Was Hurt
Well, let me just say that the producers, if fully confident that this prank would hurt no one, is likely not against the law, and is just for fun, would not have picked those victims. That masked idiot should not have tried to scare an unarmed worker at a construction site, he should have gone towards the guards outside the Istana, or a bank, or even walk right into a police station.
You have the balls to scare unsuspecting, defenseless people, but dare not scare an armed police officer? Why? ;) Because you look freaking scary and they’ll shoot you on sight?
So the public become sitting ducks for your stupid pranks, right? And you humiliate them further by putting the video on YouTube!
You know who are the real cowards? It’s not those people who ran away in fright.
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But you know what really sends a chill down my spine? How most of the people in the video were oblivious to that masked fella’s presence. It’s like he needed a loudhailer to tell them “Hello folks! Masked guy with a knife coming towards you! HELLOOOOOO”. If it wasn’t a prank, those people would have definitely been slashed at. Only the guy in the void deck would have gotten away in time.
It definitely is a reminder to always be aware of our surroundings. Yes, Singapore is safe. But no, it is not 100% safe. We have people who mutilate cats and other animals, murders once in a while, and stress levels in this country are not exactly low (some people snap just like that). So, watch out for yourself and your loved ones. Don’t be so preoccupied with that stupid phone all the time, look out for people behaving strangely and make sure you exercise regularly so you can run whenever you have to.
I think the police really need to take this more seriously. A warning to the producers will not suffice. They have tasted a bit of popularity (I wouldn’t say ‘fame’), they are unrepentant, and I believe they will be back for more. Mark my words.
Working With Grace
*The author blogs at http://workingwithgrace.wordpress.com