The Kiasu Phenomenon Caught on YouTube

You can read my post on Kiasu Singaporeans at my other blog. Thanks for requesting it Maria.

1. Kiasu while filling up petrol in JB.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCxUeo57iVM&NR=1]

2. Queuing up for cheap petrol in Singapore. There seems to be a theme here and perhaps our petrol is just too expensive.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4YOFZQBjbI]

About bookjunkie

Blogging about life in Singapore & recently cancer too.
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11 Responses to The Kiasu Phenomenon Caught on YouTube

  1. Pingback: The Cliche of Being Kiasu in Singapore — Singapore Actually

  2. LL says:

    I saw your kiasu post on your site through your tweet and was wondering about the car shaking scenario you mentioned. Thanks for the youtube video. I’ve never seen anyone shake their car. the most I’ve done is just shake the handle so no drops are wasted, haha. But like a poster said on your site, stuff like this is pretty common, maybe just more extreme where you are? I do shamelessly partake in hogging starbucks tables as I nurse my coffee and/or do hw. I have noticed their tables are now incredibly small and instead there are more sofas. Wow, I am surprised Borders let this go on for so long. Such horrible treatment of merchandise is only common in discount stores. Maybe that is why they are bankrupt and closing?

    My pet peeve is our neighbors having so much crap in their smaller house, that they actually crossed our property to messily throw away pizza boxes in our trash barrel (not by the street). Our trash is always neatly tied in plastic bags just to keep the trash barrel from smelling worse. Their messy trash just made it smell so nasty we had to rinse it out =/ It was trespassing and disgusting. My friends think it is no big thing (they do it too), but is this kiasu? I think it is more like being totally ignorant (of people being cleaner than them) and inconsiderate. I don’t think we would’ve minded if it were something innocuous and light (we have to roll those things to the curb) like cardboard boxes. Sorry for the long rant. I just really hate our inconsiderate neighbors. Their kids started playing on our front lawn, and I yelled at them a couple times to get off (if they got hurt etc we’d be liable, too). I feel so much like a crochety old person steroetype, but I’m told it’s just because I live in la that we care so much about ‘our property’ and ‘being liable’.

    • bookjunkie says:

      I do nurse my drinks as well, but the students place their bags and books all over and a table meant for 3 is occupied by one student with bags and books everywhere. The worse part is when they leave their stuff and go off to do a bit of shopping.

      I hardly go to Borders. At Kino the magazines are so securely double wrapped I need a pair of scissors to cut the wrapping open. But I like it because I always want to buy a book that’s brand new and untouched. I am super anal that way.

      Your neighbours sound terrible. I don’t think anyone in Singapore would dare do that. It would be like asking for trouble.

      • LL says:

        Wow, spot saving when no one is there is pretty much never seen because of thieves.

        You should go to Borders and take final pictures before it closes 😉 I am fond of Barnes & Noble for some reason. Does their merchandise also suffer the same fate as Borders?

        My neighbors need to move away! My parents hated them ever since they parked their car in front of our house. To me, this is not a big deal since no one owns the curb. But now they are pushing it with me with their stupid friends whose car is super loud and has ugly painted flames on it. We got their mail by mistake a few times, and my parents actually went to their door to return it. My parents are just that type. I would have just thrown it away without opening; I am sure they do the same for us.

  3. LL says:

    Gas prices are on a steady rise right now, too. I can sort of empathize with the long lines now, unfortunately haha. I’m sure gas has always cost way more in Singapore, but I am not used to it! The most I will do is wait until it is really late at night to fill up my gas at a cheap station. At least the lines will be less.

    • bookjunkie says:

      This is why most Singaporeans head to Malaysia which is just across the causeway for cheaper petrol. Some people just do it more frequently but I found the car shaking just too crazy.

      • LL says:

        I don’t even understand how that works! Wouldn’t shaking the car cause it to slosh the gas around and create bubbles? I can understand topping it off but shaking? Sorry, I just don’t follow the line of thinking. I have seen my friends try to top off and just shaking off any possible drop of gas into their tank. I only adapted the shaking handle part because it does rankle me when I go to replace the nozzle and it drips; I paid for those drips!! haha. Am I kiasu then? 😉

        • bookjunkie says:

          I would think liquids have a fixed volume? Yeah I have no idea about that trick…..there is more than one video of of Singaporeans shaking cars and I have seen it done too. So crazy!

  4. whatsaysyou says:

    In Singapore and Malaysia, we call that kiasuism while in the Western world we call that as ‘keeping up with the Joneses’. Interesting blog article about kiasuism and keep it up.

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